North Carolina Gazette

              december 5th 1 777 h lucubrations ha-ve been pervjed spect no 78 mr davis as you favoured the carolina planter with a place in your lait gazette nd find the gene rainy of your readers this way approve of the fubjed it encourages me once more with your further indulgence to oifer the public a few more of my evening's remarks the fjbj'jift of this paper h fome confiderati on on the fudjen fall and diminutive value of our currency with feme difcriminatiens on tories and merchants a fet of people that in many refp.&s can hardly be diitinguiflied and if they may be feperated in a few inilances they have hitherto b-'en jointly pernicious to the public good and well beir.g ci hc stare the exigence of the times and natural confequence of war and repelling force by force occasioned a l*rge eiiiirlion and ra pid circulation of money $ the great and fuduen plenty muft of confluence in fome decree leil^n its vaius sodiers to b iilei a:.d entered into prefent pay and good quarters large cojiitie given this made light con;o li^i go the common people rather than follow a diligent employment chofe to go into the army this rz'ucd the prke of labour the demand for ammunition arms proviiion cloathing blankets and tents occasioned vait more fum.s to circulate among us and every ar ticle ic demand commanded foiqething more than common price but as the circulation offflooey was in genera the advantages and difadvan cages for bme time kept en 2 tollerable even bal lanccj and our cuirency would have been of good ufe and rca fonable raiue uato us till this day but for cur lories and mer chants the unbelieving tories and dupes of arbitrary power whofe creed attribute omaipotency to lord howe and pronounced the army unuer his command invincible and that nothing was im po:'ib:e for hem tj perform that they had a mind to under take forget ing there is an over-ruling providea e that rules and over-xoleb all human srcngth and cojitiiva.nce when inde peodencc wio docla cj and ir^ny vi che*n merchants and in other cupici'ies were pooeitrd and had the command of much money and as they had b^d hearts and cowardly fpirits they bcleived and no doubt many of them wilhed we might not he able to fupport cur independency therefore n;;de it their di ligent care and practice to give any price for land negroes caule or merchandize any thing fo tha a any rate they might turn their r.uncy into fo:-e other propierty ; have been apt to conceit fome ti mas it was for fear t heffian troops would come opou u through virginia with their pociveri full of tobacco and take all our fquu.re dollars m ui lr.ii light their pipes with them the merchants in general without many exceptions sre funy damcntally neither whigs uor ctrriei the cbjccloi their addrati-1 on i profit r.nd their ihort aecd ib 4i that gain is gcd.4nefs."j we may compare them to the jews as greedy hunters after gain and thai t few of them are real friends'to any country some of them 00 doubt were well withers to the independency some lukewarm ar.d mar.y againil i ro tory principles bat gene rally ivtcfe io the it;i.i:-.s.ce as^d eppoixdon made to the arbi trary and unprecedented mandates of britain becaufe the na tureofthc coniell ntcciiuiily for a tiin woujd bur cp the ui\i avtnues and free intercourfc of ttr.d many of thorn upon to tj principles above defcrib.-j confid-ted our currency as the molt precarious irstereft they coal'd poflefs and all from their aptnefa to trafuk and coveting of gain joined in laving out th«ir money freely and without hesitation for articles they knew would command a great profit and advar.ee of price — thas continued monopolinng ard advancing the price in buying lad felling untill they have reduced the credit of our currency to the lowed ebb and made owr money of little more value to ni than walle paper it has br-en a common and juft remark a nong many people for a long tim when they heard of the ar rival of one or aiore refiels with fait foiaemrfaflw a.c tka we fhould foon hear that the price of thofe articles would be advanced it is through the meant and malignant difpofition of the to nes our proceedings and intentions as far as they knew was re gularly conveyed to the enemies of men't juk rights ic has been the tories that poifoned the minds of the common people and others of weak intclle&s filled their thoughts with iright fui apprehension and dread of the fovereign power ami irrelilta b!e p-owefs cf lord howe with his army teaching the people the danger of being jult to themfelves that to iniilt upon maintain ng our rights as free men was a fundaroeotal error in the human fpecies ; that to think for ourfehes cr indulge tlu thoughts of independency was a crime of the deepeft cik i hzi bees the toriea and avaricious people t st ec . noned ait the confufion that has hitherto been among us ai d made the fenfibie and difintereited part ef europe wonder rh.re ouid be the jeaij difunion among ourfelves it has been the tones and merchants depreciating our money as already deicubed that this late is brought on the verge of ruin without fufferiag the co:nmon violence of war ; they have been of far mere damage to us than our avowed and open enemies that fpread th ter ror of their warlike weapons in the open field however fome merchants are svhigs in principles in a private capacity gcod neighbours and di veiled of their calling worthy of elitea but i mult neither apologize nor palliate much i am fully feniibie from an intimate and general knowledge of their difpofitiott though i have known one that would not or if he knew it carry on trade to the prejudice cf the public ) vhat i can venture to fay and refer to the judgement of the people if there are many among us at this time but would if they had it in their power purchafe and export any quantity of provifion out of the country though the fjre confluence would be the itarving of thoufands among ouifclves and h great par of thofe anicles the fupport of lite mult neceifarily without almoit a miracle fall into the hands of our enemies indeed by their avaritious practices proviiion is come to fo high a price that lew will be able to purchafe any beiides themfelves the confequence is ea fily foreieen and will be k-niibly felt by the molt ih^rt lighted perfons before the expiration of many months i with i could lay down my pen and quit he fubjeft without obferving as i think i ought that by the covetous difpoution cf merchants fo much fait has ween frequently laid up with a view cf mak ing profit by felling fome of that neceflary article in kind but more particular with intentions of curing proviiion and lhipping the fame out of the country in fhort it is owing to avarice monopoly and fpirit of extortion that the molt valuable and neceflary article fair as weii as many other ufeful things bear fo hitfh a price a;-.d do no circulate more freely and general a mon<r the people at a much lower rate scquidem pecunia amor eft radix enznium malonur if mv obfervatiom re iu.l-red to be ri;-ht it is the province : of the kgiilature and in tntir power alone to i.:tcm;t a relief a far as the natiirt vf things and circu:niianc£s will admit a perfect cure of fuch deep-rooted evils muft be the work of time and will iequ:re i'ound judgement hontity and aciduity without refpect to perfons jljut 1 prefurne that fome palliatives ought quickly to beadminiftered elfe the bedy politic will fail in:o a delirium that ill be followed by violent onvulfions a few more obferrations upon merchanu and merchimdiziag and f will cooclode r l he l'artha^-ir.i^ns provided diftercnt rcfidence for merchants and would not fuffsr t:em to live in common with their other citizens the grecians did not receive them within their walls more fimilar infunces 1 cculd mention there was an ancient law among many common wealths that no merchant mould be a magistrate or admitted into the fenate or council and mer chandizing has been condemned by canonical decrees and ut terly forbid by many of the antient fathers i could mention but st chryfoftom's words are to the following efre let no chriftian be a merchant and if he will be fo let him be call out cf the church i am see a carolina plahtu december 12 1777 the number 406 orth-c^rolinj gazette with the lateft advices foreign and domestic semper pro libertate et bono publigo