Produced by Lee Dawei, David Garcia
and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team.
Tonight at "Blakeford," I set down this dedication of the third editionof this book which has proved to be the pleasant companion of twovisitations—one at "Wakefield Manor," Rappahannock County, Virginia, in1891, the other at my old home "Blakeford," Queen Anne's County,Maryland, in 1915. The memories that entwine it there, and here minglein perfect keeping and have made of a dry study something that stirsanew within me as I consider the work accomplished, my love andremembrance of the old days, and my love and unforgettingness of theseother golden days under whose spell I have brought the book up to thepresent year.
October 10, 1915.
The second edition of this study of Panics in the United Statesbrought us through the year 1891. I originated about one fourth of it.
This third edition brings us practically up to date. Of this edition Ioriginated about one half. I hope it will prove helpful in many ways. Itrust that it will force an appreciable number of men to realize that"business" or "financial" panic is not merely fear, as some haveasserted; but is based upon the knowledge that constriction, oppression,unhappy and radical change in this, that, or the other kind of businessmust tend to drag down many others successively, just as a whole line ofbricks standing on end and a few inches apart will fall if an end one istoppled upon its next neighbor. Indeed, the major cause of "business" or"financial" panic is just reasoning upon existing conditions rather thana foolish fear of them. Over-trading and loss of nerve constitute themedium. Recent national legislation has gone far in enabling thebusiness world in the United States to prevent panics, and farther yetin providing the means to cope with them when, in spite of precautions,they shall recur.
October 10, 1915.
In this translation, made with the author's consent, my chief objectbeing to convey his entire meaning, I have unhesitatingly rendered theFrench very freely sometimes, and again very literally. Style has thussuffered for the sake of clearness and brevity, necessary to secure andretain the attention of readers of this class of books. This sameconciseness has also been imposed on our author by the inherent drynessand minuteness of his faithful inquiry into hundreds of figures, tablesshowing the condition of banks at the time of various panics, etc.,etc., essential to his d