The Madisonian. [volume], November 21, 1837, Image 2

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or .linoai all the pttl failure# in Europe have b*en of
ZSTLi* m the Au.?rio?a lr.de Great Bnu.n,
which, .. the justly observes, w.mU.n- lhe
closest reUlKMM ?*nta us, baa suffered most ; f ranee
nexl, and *> on, w tUe order of their greal?r or less
commercial intercourse with US. Moal truly wss 11 ?**?
by lite Senator fiom Georgia. lhal the recent embarrass
ments of Europe were the cnibairaaamenla of ? creditor,
from whom psyatent ?u withheld by the Jebior, slid
from whom ihe precious uiruli have been uuneceaaari
ly withdrawn by the policy oflhe same debtor.
Siuce the intensity of suffering, and the diaaatroua
?tale of thing* in this country, have far transcended any
llimg thai haa occurred in Europe, wo must look hero
for some poculiar and more potent cauaca thsn any
which have been in operation there. They are to be
found in that aeries of inuastirea to which I have al
ready adverted.
lat. The veto of the Bank.
Snd. The removal of the depositcs, with the urgent
injunction of Secretary Taney upon the banks to en
large their accommodations. ?
3d. The gold bill, and the demand of gold for tjie
foreign indemnifications.
4th. The clumsy execution of the deposite law j
and ?
5th. The Treasury order of July, 1836.
[Here Mr. Clay went into an examination of these
measures, to show that the inflated condition of the
country, the wild speculation#, which had risen to their
height when they began lobe checked by the prepara
tions of local banks necessary to nieel the deposite
law of June, 1836, ihe final suspeusion of specie pay
meiita, and the consequent disorders in the currency,
commerce, and general business of the country, were
all U> be traced to the influence of the measures enu
merated. All these causes operated immediately, di
rectly, and powerfully upon ua, and'their effects were
indirectly fell in Europe, j
The Message imputes lo the deposite law an agcncy
in producing the existing embarrassments '1 his is a
charge frequently made by the fnendsof the adminis
tration against that law. It is true, thai the banks ha
ving increased their accommodations, in conformity
with the orders of Secretary Taney, it might have not
t>een convenient to recall and pay ihein over for pub
lic use. It is true also that the manner in which the
law was executed by the Treasury depsrtment, trans
ferring large suuia from credilor to .debtor portions of
the country, without regard to the commerce or busi
ness of the country, might have aggravated the in
conven'ence. But what do those who object to the
law, think ought to have been done with the surplus
ses which hau accumulated, and ?vcro dally augment
ing to such an enormous amount in the hands of the
deposite banks ? %Vere they to I e incorporated with
their capit^la, and remain there for the benefit of the
stockholders ! Was it not proper and just that they
?hould be applied to the uses ol the people from whom
they were collected ! And whenever and however ta
ken from the deposite banks, would not inconvenience
necessarily happen!
The Message asserts that the Bank of the United
States, chartered by Pennsylvania, has not been able
to save itaelf, or to check other institutions, notwith
standing " the still greater strength it has been said to
possess under its present charter." That hank is now
a mere state institution. Why is it referred to, more
than the Bank of Virginia, or any other local inatitu
tion 1 The exalted station which the President fills
forbids the indulgence of the supposition that the allu
sion has been made lo enable the administration to
profit by the prejudices which have been excited against
it. Was it the duty of that Bank, more than any
other State bank, to check the local institutions ! NN as
it not even under .less obligation to do so than the de
posite banks, selected and lostered by the General Go
vernment !
But how could the message venture lo assert that it
has greater strength than the late Bank of ihe United
States possessed i Whatever may be the liberality of ihe
conditions of it* charier, it is impossible that any single
Slate could confer upon it faculties equal to those granted
to the late Bank of the United States?first in making it
the sole depository of the revenue of the United States;
and, secoudly, in making its notea receivable in the pay
ments of all public duea. If a Bank of the United
States had existed, it would have had ample notice of
the accumulation of public moneys in the local banks,
and, by timely measures of precaution, it could have
prevented the speculative uses to which they were ap
plied. Such an institution would have been bound, by its
relations to the Government, to observe its ap|iro|inat ions,
and fiuancial arrangements and wants, and to hold itself
always ready promptly to meet them. It would have
drawn together gradually, but certainly, the public mo
neys however dispersed. Responsibility would have
been concentrated upon it alone, insfad of being weak
ened or lost by diffusion among some eighty or ninety
local banks, dispersed throughout the country, and act
ing without any effective concert.
A subordinate but not unimportant cause of the evils
which at present encompass us, has been the course of
the late administration toward the compromise act.?
The great principle of that act, in respect to our domes
tic industry, was its stability. It was intended and
hoped, that, by withdrawing the tariff from those annual
discuasions in Congress, of which it had been the fruit
ful topic, our manufactures would have a certainty, for a,
long pciiod, as to the measure of protection extended to
thcro by its provisions, which would compensate any
reduction in the amount contained in prior acts. For a
year or two after it was adopted, the late administration
manifested a disposition to respect it, as an arrangement
which was to be inviolable. But, for some time past, it
has been constantly threatened from that quarter, and a
settled purpose has been displayed to disregard Us con
ditions. Those who had an agency in bringing it for
ward, and carrying it ihrough < ,'ongress, have been held
up to adimadversion ; it has been declared by members,
high in the conlidence of the adiiiinisrtation in both
Houses, to possess no obligatory force beyond any or
dinary act of legislation, and new adjustments of the
tariff have been proposed in both Houses, in direct con
travention of the principles of the compromise ; and, at
the last session, one of them actually passed the Senate,
against the most earnest entreaty and remonstrance. A
portion of the South has not united in these attacks
upon the compromise; and I take pleasure in saying
that the two Senators from South Carolina, especially,
have uniformly exhibited a resolution to adhere to it
with perfect honor and fidelity.
The effect of these constant threats and attacks, com
ing from those high in |>o\\ < r, has been most injurious.
They have stwwn to the manufacturing interest that no
certain reliance was to lie placed upon the steadiness of
ihe policy of the Government, no matter under wliat
solemn circumstances it was udopttd. That interest has
taken alarm ; new enterprises have been arrested, old
ones curtailed ; and at this moment it is the most pros
trate of all the interests m the. country. One half in
amount, as I have lieen informed, of the manufacturers
throughout the country, have actually suspended opera
tions, and llrase who have not, chiefly confine them
selves to working up their stocks on hand.
The consequence has been, that we have made too
little at home, and" purchased too much abroad This
has augmented that forrign debt, ihe existence of
which so powerfully contributed to the suspension, and
yet forms an obstacle to ihe resumption of specie pay
ments.
The Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Calhoun,) at
tributed the creation of the surplus revenue to the tariff
policy, and esjiccially to the acts of 1824 arid 1828. I do
not perceive any advantage, on the present occasion, in
reviving or alluding to the former dissentions which pre
vailed on the subject of that policy. They were all set
tled and quieted by the great healing measure (the coin
promiae) to which I have referred. By that act I have
been willing and rtady to abide. And I have desired
only that it should be observed and executed in a spirit
of good faith and fidelity, similar to that by which I have
been ever actuated toward it
Th0 act of 1828 was no measure of the friends of the
manufacturers Its passage was forced bv a coalition
between their secret and open opponents. But the sys
tem of protection of American industry did not cause
the suplus. It proceeded from the extraordinary sales
of the public lands. The receipts from all sources other
than that of the public lands, and expenditures of the
years 1833?4?5?6, (during which ihe surplus was
accumulating.) both amount to about eighty-seven mil
lions of dollars, thus clearly showing that the customs
only aupplicd the necessary means of public disburse
ment, and that it was the public domain that produced
the surplus.
If the land bill had been allowed to go into operation,
it would have distributed gradually pnd regularly among
the aoveral States the proceeds of the public lands, as
they would have been received from time to time. They
would have returned back m small streams similar to
those by which they had been collected, animating, and
improving, and fructifying the whole country. There
would have been no vast srrplus to embarrass the Go
vernment; no renoval of Deposites from the Bank
of the United States to the deposite banks, to disturb the
business of the country ; no accumulations in the de
posite banks of immense suma of public money, aug
mented by the circuit it was performing lietween the
land offices and the banks, and the banks and the land
offices ; no occasion for the Secretary of the Treasury
to lash the deposite hanks into the grant of inordinstc
accommodations; and possibly there would? have been
no suspension of speeic payments. But that bill was
suppressed by a most extraordinary and dungeroua ex
ercise of Exccutiro power.
The cause of our present difficulties may be rt?l?jd '?
another way. During the lale *4?u.i?tration ?? ha**
been deprived of the practical benefit of a fro* govern
ment ; the forma, it la Uue, repsined and wer* observed,
but the ease nee did not eust In a free, or aclf-govtrn
ment, the collected wudom, the aggregate will of the
whole, or at leaal of a majority, mould* a?d directs the
course of public affairs. In a despotism, the will of a
single individual governs. In a practically fn.e^ govern
ment, the nation controla the chief magistrate ; in an ar
bitrary government, tbe chief maglstrste controla I be
nation. And h?a not tlu* been our aituation in the
period mentioned ! Has not one man forced hia owu will
on the iwt.on ! Have not all thoae diaaatroua meaaurea
veto of the bank, the removal of the depositee,
the rejection of the land bill, and the freaaury order,
which have led to our present uufortunate condition,
been adopted in spite of the wi?hea of the country, and
in opjioaition, probably, to tlwse of the dominaut party
Our mi* fort una liaa not been the want of wisdom but
of firmness. The |?rty in power would not have go
verned the country very ill, if it had been allowed ita
own way. Ita fatal error haa been to lend it* MMlMRj
and to bvalow ita subsequent applause and aup|>ort upon
Executive acta wUich, lu their origiu, it previously de
precated or condemned We have been .hocked and
urieved to aee whole legislative bodies and cominunitica
.?.proving and lauding the rejection of the very mea
aures, which previously they had unanimously recom
inended 1 To see whole Stales abandoning their long
cherished policy and be.ta interests iu subserviency to
Executive pleasure !?And ihe numberless examples ol
mdivuluala who have aurrendered their mdejiendence.
must inflict pain m every paiuotic bosom. A single
rase forces itself u|kmi my recollection as an illiwtntion,
to which I do not advert from any unkind feelings to the
gentleman to whom I refer, between whom and myself
civil and courteous relatioua have ever existed. I he
memorial of the lato liank of the United States, praying
for a recharter, was placed in his liandi, and he pre
sented it to the Senate. He carried ihe recharter
through ihe Senate. The veto came; and. in two or
three weeks afterward, we behold the same Senator at
I be head of an assembly of the people in the State
House Yard, in Philadelphia, applauding the veto, and
condemning tho bank?condemning Ins own act. Mo
tivea lie bevond the reach of the human eye, and it does
not belong to me tossy what they were which prompted
this self-caatigalion, ai d ihia praise of the destruction or
his own work ; but it is impossible to overlook the fact
that tlu? ?n?o Seualor, in due time, received from tho
author of the veto the gift of a splendid foreign mission.
The moral deducibTe from the past is, that our free
institutions are superior to all others, and can be pre
served in their purity and excellencc, only upon ihe
stern condition that wc shall forever hold the obligations
of patriotism paramount to all the ties of party or to in
dividual dictation ; and that wc shall never openly ap
prove what we secretly condemn.
In this rapid, and, I hope, not fatiguing review of ibe
causes which I think have brought upon us existing
embarrassments, I repeat that it has been for no purpose
of reproaching or recriminating those who have bad the
conduct of our public affairs ; but to discover the means
by which the present crisis has been produced, with a
view to ascertain, if possible, what (whitjh is by far
much more important) should be done by Congress to
avert its injurious effects. And this brings me to con
sider the remedy proposed by the Administration.
The great evil under which the country labors, is the
suspension of the banks to pay specie, the total derange
ment in all domestic exchanges, and the paralysis which
has come over the whole business of the country. In
regard to the currency, it is not that a given amount of
bank notes will not now command as mu.:h as the same
amount of specie would have done prior to the suspen
sion ; but it is the future, the danger of an inconverti
ble paper money being indefinitely or permanently fixed
upon the people, that tills them with apprehensions Our
great object should be to re-establish a sound currency,
and thereby restore the exchanges, and revive the busi
ness of the'country.
The first impression which the measures brought for
ward by the administration make is, that they consist (if
temporary expedients, looking to the supply of the ne
cessities of the Treasury ; or so far as any of them
possess a permanent character, its tendency is rather to
aggravate than alleviate the sufferings of the people.
None of them propose to rectify the disorders in the
actual currency of the country ; but the people, the
Slates, and their banks, are left to shift for themselves
as they may or can. The adininisiration, after having
intervened between the states and their banks, and taken
them into the federal service, without the consent of the
states ; after having puffed and praised them?after hav
ing brought them, or contributed to bring them, into
their present situation, now suddenly turns its back
upon them, leaving them to their fate-! It is not content
with that; it must absolutely discredit their issues. And
the very people who were told by the administration that
these banks would supply them with a better currency,
are now left to struggle as they can with the very cur
rcncy which the government recommended to them, but
which it now refuses itself to receive !
? The professed object of the administration is to esta
blish what it terms the currency of the constitution,
which it proposes to accomplish by restricting the fede
ral government, in all receipts and payments, to the
exclusive use of specie, and by refusing all bank paper,
whether convertible or not. It disclaims all purposes of
crippling or putting down the banks of the states i but
we shall better determine the design or the effect of tho
I measures recommended by considering them together,
as one system.
1. The first is the sub-treasuries, which'are to bo
| made the depositories of all the specie collected and
paid out for the service of the general government, dis
crediiing and refusing all the notes of the States', al
though payable and paid in specie.
2. A bankrupt law for the United States, levelled at all
the State banks, and authorizing the seizure of the ef
fects of any of them that stop payment, and the admi
nistration of their effects under the federal authority
exclusively. .
3. A particular law for the District of Columbia, by
which all the corjioraiioiis and people of the District,
under severe pains and penalties, arc prohibited from
circulating, sixty days after the passago of the law, any
paper whatever not convertible into specie on demand,
and are made liable to prosecution by indictment.
4. And lastly, the bill to suspend the payment of the
fourth instalment to the States, by the provisions of
which the deposito banks indebted to the Government
arc placed at tho discretion of tho Secretary of tho
Treasury.
It is impossible to consider this system without per
ceiving that it is aimed at, and if carried out, in>ist ter
minate in the total subversion of the State Danks, and
ti|at they will be placed at tho mercy of tho Federal Go
vernment. It is in vain to protest that there is no de
sign against them. '1 lie effect of these measures can
not be misunderstood.
And why this new experiment, or untried expedient?
The people of this country are tired of experiments.
Ought not the administration itself cease with them!
Ought it not to take warning from the events of recent
elections ? Above all, should not the Senate, constitut
ed as it now is, be the last body to lend itself to farther
experiments upon the business and happiness of this
great people ? According to the latest expression of
public opinion in the several States, the Senate is no
longer a true exponent of the will of ihe Slates, or of
the people. If it were, there would be thirty-two or
thirty-four whigs to eighteen or twenty friends of tho
administration.
Is it desirable to banish a convertible paper medium,
and to substitute the precious metals as the sole cur
rency to be used in all the vast extent of the varied busi
ness of this entire country. I think not. The quantity
of precious metals in the world, looking to our fair dis
tributive share of them, is wholly insufficient. A con
vertible pajier is a great time-saving and labor-saving in
strument, independent of its superior advantages in
transfers and remittances. A friend; no longer ago than
yesterday, informed me of a single bank whose pay
ments and receipts in one day amounted to two millions
of dollars. vVhat time would not have been ne
cessary to count such a vast sum? The payments in
the cirrle of a vear, in the city of New York, were es
timated several years ago at fifteen hundred millions.
How many men and how many days would be necessa
ry to count such a sum ! A young, growing and enter
prising people, like those of the United States, more
than any other, need the use of those credits which are
incident to a sound paper system. Credit is the friend
of indigent merit. Of all nations, (Sreat Britain has
most freely used the credit system ; and of all she is the
most prosperous. Wc must cease to lie a commercial
people ; we must separate, divorce ourselves from the
commercial world, and throw ourselves back for centu
ries, if we restrict our business to the exclusive use of
specj?.
It is objected against a convertible paper system that
it is liable to expansions and contractions ; and that the
consequence is the rise ami fall of prices, and sudden for
t nostr sudden ruin. But it is tiie importation or ex
portation of specie, which forms the basis of paper, that
occasions these fluctuations. If specie alone were tho
medium of circulation, the same importation or exporta
tion of it would make it plenty or scarce, and affect prices
in the same manner. '1 lie nominal or apparent prieps
might varv in figures, but the sensation upon the com
munity would be as great ill one ca-* as in the other
These alterations do not result, therefore, from the
nature of the medium, whether that be specie exclusive
ly, or paper convertible into apccie, bat from the ope
ration* of cooimorcc It is rodMntn n, gt Uai, (bat m
chargeable wilh expansions and contraction*; and
against commerce, and not ita inatrumeot, should oppo
attinn be dfrected.
I have beard il urged by the Senator fiom South Caro
lina (Mr. Calhoun.) with no little surprise, in tbe coorao
of tbia d' bate, tlut a convertible paper would not an
awi'i for a currency, but tliat tbe true atandard of value
waa to be found in a paper medium not convertible into
the precioua ntetala. If there be, in regard to curren
cy. one truth which the united experience of tike whole
commercial world bad ratabliabed, I had aup|>oaed
it to bo that emiaaions of pure paper money consti
tuted the very worst of all conceivable apeciea of cur
rency.
The objectiona to it are : Firat, that it ia impracticable
to aaccrtain, a prion, what amount can be laaucd with
out depreciation ; and, aecondly, that there ia no ade
quate aecuiity, and, in the tiature of things, none can
exist, ag.iinst excessive. laauea. Tbe pa|>cr money of
North Carolina, to which the Senator referred, arcord
| ing to the mfoimation which I have received, did depre
I ciate. It waa called Pfoc., an abbreviation of the autho
| rtty under which it waa put forth, and it took one and a
half and aoiuelimea two dollars of proc , to purcbaae one
ill apccie. l)>it if any one dcsirea to underatand per
fectly the operation of a purely paper currency, let bun
study the hiatory of the Ilank of the Cooimouwcalth of
Keutucky. It waa established about tlfleen or sixteen
i years ago, wi li tbe couacnt of the majority of the people
j of that State. It ia winding up and closing Hi career,
with the almost unanimous approbation of the whole
people. It bad an authority to laaue, and did issue,
notes to tbe amount of about two nnlliona of dollar*.
These note*, upon their face, purported an obligation of
the bank to pay the holder, on demand, the amount in
specie ; but it waa well known that they would not so
be paid. Aa a security fur their ultimate payment, tberu
were, lat. The notes of individuals supposed to be well
secured, every note put out by tbe bank being repre
I sented by an individual note discounted. 2d. Tbe fuuda
I of the State in a prior State Bank, amounting to about
half a million of dollars. 3d. The proceeds of a large
body of waste land* belonging to the State. And 4th.
Tbe annual revenue of the State and public dues, all of
which were payable in the notes of the Commonwealth
Bank.
Notwithstanding this apparently solid provision for the
redemption of the notca of the bank, they began to de
preciate shortly after it commenced operation, and in the
course of a few months they sunk a* low as fifty per
cent.?two dollars for one specie dollar. They continued
depreciated for a long time, until after large amounts of
them were called in and burnt. They then rose in value,
and now, when there is only some fifty or one hundred
thousand dollars out, they have risen to about par. This
is owing to the demand for them, created by the wants
of the remaining debtor* to the bank, and their receiva
bility in payment of taxes. The result of thu experiment
is, that, although it is possible to sustain at about par ?
purely paper medium to some amount, if the legislative
authority which create* it will also create a demand for
it, it is impracticable to adjuat the proportions of supply
and demand so as to keep it at par ; and that the tenden
cy i* always to an excess of issue. The result, with
the people of Kentucky, has been a general conviction
of the mischiefs of all issues or an irrdeeinable paper
medium.
To be cuncitulal.
From the Jtjferaoman llcjmbltcan.
THE GLOBE AND THE CONSERVATIVES.
Mr. Ekitok :?The Glube of Tuesday last( lets off
another broadside'at the Conservatives. Not con
tent with having made out an identity (in its own
mind at least) of the feelings and interests of the
Conservatives with those of the Federalists, and with
having run a parallel between them and the White
faction in Tennessee?it now identifies the American
Conservatives with the English Conservatives, who,
we are told, wish "the preservation of the Union
between Church and ?tate"?" to blend the strength
of the powerful and rich in one eoi.nrnon effort to
strip the producing classes of their substance annu
ally, to give their Archbishops, Bishops, and Clergv,
their immense, revenues." Now 1 do suppose, Mr.
Editor, that our bishops, parsons, deacons, &<?. will
stare in utter amazement at this news. They will,
no doubt, rejoice exceedingly, that amid the general
ruin, panic and pressure that pervade all classes,
provision is likely to be made for them at least.
Messrs. Rives, Tallmadge, Legare, Garland and
others, will, beyond all dispute, get to be popular
with the " Church party,"(for I presume there must
b' such a party?else Mr. Blair would not have said
so by implication even,) in the United Slates. But
what say yel Mr. Rives and Mr. Tallmadge. Are
you going to bring ab mt a union between Church
and State, as well as between Hon I. and Stale t Mr.
Blair mustjihink so,or be would not have run a paral
lel between yonr Conservatism and that of England!
Already does he see, with his mind's eve, Mr. Rives,
" Archbishop of Canterbury," and Mr. Tallmadge
" Archbishop of York"! And no doubt he has eccle
siastical dignities" in store for Messrs. Legarc and
Garland, while the first " vacant benefice" in Albe
marle, will be presented to you, Mr. Editor. Mr.
Blair will hardly forget, either to provide for his
neighbor, the Madisonian, by making him " Bishop
of London"?while the Conservatives in Congress
will bo honored with a separate " bench," and will
hereatlerbc known as the lords spiritual in Parlia
ment." Thev will not be allowed to sit upon the
?'"ministerial benches," however.
So much for the Church?now for the Stole. The
Globe savs that "ihe principle" (Conservative prin
ciple in England) "is to associate the interests of
Government with the peculiar interests of rich and
influential orders, classes and corporations"?and
that the liberal party in England seek, in some degree,
to sever the Government from that aristocratical in
fluence which makes its ministration conduce to the
avarice, ambition and vanity of the few, at the ex
pense of the welfare of the many:"
Here, then, is Conservatism and Liberalism in
England, placed in juxla-position. The inference
which the Globe would have us draw is obvious ;?
the Conservatives in America, like those in England,
wish " to associate the interests of the Government
with the peculiar interests of the rich and inflnencial
orders, classes and corporations'"?while the Liberals
in America, like those in England, wish to counter
vail this tendency?to sever the Government from
this aristocratical influence." And how is this to
be done 1 How is our Government to be "severed
from this aristocratic influence 1" Whv, it is to be
done according to the old maxim?"fight the Devil
with fire." One " aristocratic influence" is to be put
down by another. The Bank aristocracy is to be
put down, and the office-holding aristocracy to be put
vp. The Globe will not agree that there shall be any
division of aristocratic privileges. Oh, no! The
Government must have nil?must enjoy a monopoly;
and instead of the present "orders, classes and cor
porations," of which the Globe speaks, we must have
a new "privilege and order," composed of the office
holders. The Glob.-, doubtless, wishes to drive a
bargain between the Government and the people?
" You let me alone, and I'll let you alone." "Every
man for himself." "You lake care of yourselves,
and I'll take care of myself." Now this is just the
language that the Sub-Treasury scheme holds out to
the people. But the Globe may rest satisfied that
they will make no such birgain. * They won't be let
alone. They will never be contcnt to suffer the Go
vernment and its officers to be paid in specie, while
they are left to get along as well as they can with
" depreciated bank rags."
The Globe further tells us, that the Federal Go
vernment was instituted " for the common defence
and general welfare." Yery true. But for whose
"common defence, and pencrat welfare" was it esta
blished 1 For the Government's 1 One would infer
as much from the course of the Globe: and in truth
if the idea that the Federal Government has no au
thority to legislate with a view of improving the
"common" currency of the country, be correct?then
indeed, I must admit that it is most certainly true
that the Government was instituted for its mrn de
fence, and to promote its own "general welfare."
For nothing can contribute more essentially to the j
" general welfare" of the people than a sound cur- I
reney?and if the Government of (he United States i
refuse to improve, as far as possible, this common cur
rency, while it is careful to provide a good currency
for itself, then, I repeat, it will have neglected one of j
its most important functions?that of providing for \
the "general welfare" of the whole people, for whose
benefit it was established.
V IN'DF.X.
The Eastern (Maine) RrjniMican, a staunch and
leading democratic paper truly says: " The most ex
peditious way to effect the charter of another Na
tional Bank is'to destroy the local banks?for the
community will have one or the other beyond a
shadow of doubt. We do not pretend to know what
will be done, but feel confident that things are on a
pivot?crush the local banks, and up springs another
National Bank?sustain them, and nosuch ihingneed
happen."
'1 he Portland Argus expresses the same senti- I
ments in a leading editorial article in that paper of '
Tue>day last. Their truth is apparent to every
discerning man.?Harlford (Conn.) 1'atriot and ?
Democrat.
A (treat Mistake.?Many people seem to think that
a printing office is a public hews room.?S. Y. Daily j
Sews.
THE WORKIXO I
Extract of Mr. Lrgtrit Syeerk in Ik* Uuuk of /*
pmcnlati rex. <
Sir, as a Southern man, I repri (squally rent, (
capital, wages, which are alt confounded in our
estates?and I protest against attempts to array, witu
ont a cause, without a color of pretext or plausibility,
the different classes of society one against ano.her,
as if, in such a country as this, there could be any na
tural hostility, or any real distinction between them
?a country in which all the rich, with hardly en
exception, have been poor, and a11 the poor in.'y one
day be rick?a country in which banking institutions
have been of immense service, precisely
thev have been most needed by a people, who all had
their fortunes to make by good character and indus
trious habits. Look at that remarkable picture?
remarkable not as a work of art, but as a monument
of history?which you see in passing through the
Rotunda. Two out of five of that immortal com
mittee were mechanics, and such men !? in tne
name of God, sir, why should any one study to per
vert the good sense, and kindly feelings of this moral
and noble people, to infuse into their naiads a sullen
envy towards one another, instead of that generous
emulation which every thing in their situation is
fitted to inspire, to breathe into them the spirit ot
Cain, muttering deep curses and meditating despe
rate revenge against his brother, because the smoke
of his sacrifice has ascended to Heaven before his
own! And do not they who treat our industrious
classes as if they were in the same debased ami
wretched condition as the poor of Europe, insult
then bv such an odious comparison 7
Why, sir, you do not know what poverty is?we
have no poor in this country, in the sense m which
that wora is used abroad. Every laborer, even the
most humble, in the United Slates, soon becomes a
capitalist: and even, if ht? chooses, a proprietor ol
land?for the West, with all its boundless fertility, is
open to hiin. How can any one dare to compare the
mechanics of this land, (whose inferiority in any
substantial?particular in intelligence, In virtue, tn
wealth, tothe other classes of oui country, 1 have yet
to learn,) with that race of outcasts, ol which so
terrible a picture is presented by recent writers the
poor of Europe I A race, among no inconsiderable
p trtlon of whom (amine and pestilence inny be saiu
U> dwell eonstanilv?manv of whom are without
morals, without education, without a country, with
out a God ! and may be said to know society only by
the terrors of its penal code, and to live in perpetual
war with it. Poor bondmen! mocked with the na me of
liberlv, that they may be sometimes tempted to break
their chains, in order that after a few days of starva
tion in idleness or dissipation, they may be driven
back to their prison house to take them up again,
heavier and more galling than before; severed, as it
has been toucbingly expressed, Iruui nature, fiom the
common air and light of the snn; knowing only b>
hear-say,that the fields are green, that the birds sine,
and that there is a perfume in flowers.t And is it
with a race, whom the perverse institutions of Eu
rope have thus degraded beneath the condition of
humanity, that the advocates, the patrons, the pro
tectors of our working men, presume to compare
Sir, ft is to treat them with a scorn at which their
spirits should revolt, and does revolt! Just before 1
left Charleston there was a meeting called for some
purpose, which was regarded by the people of that
city as unfavorable to public order. rhere was
something 1 suppose in tne proceedings, which
ed to the invidious distinction of which 1 have been
speaking; for it led, 1 have heard, to an expression
of sentiment from one of our mechanicst which
struck me as noble beyond praise. He said he won
dered what could be ineant by addressing to the in
dustrious classes particularly all inflammatory ap
peals against the institutions of this country, as if
they were not a part of the community?as much in
terested in its order and peace as any other?as if
they had no ties of sympathy or connection with
their fellow citizens?above all, as if they had not
intelligence and knowledge enough to take care of
tiieir own interests, but were reduced to a state of
perpetual pupilage and inlancy, and needed the ol
ricious protection of self constituted guardians
Sir, that was a sentiment worthy of a freeman, and
which may be recorded, with honor, among the say
ings of heroes.
? Franklin and Sherman, Signers of the Declaration.
f.Michelct.
t Mr. llartiy.
TIIE MEHt'HAST.
The following extract from the speech of Senator
Tallmadgk, contains a merited tribute to the mer
chants of our country.
From Mr. Tallmtulge't Speech in the U. S. Senate, Sep. 22.
Sir, 1 am aware of the prejudices which honestly
exist with a portion of the community against any
thine like "associated wealth." 1 aui aware how
easily those prejudices may be wrought on,by de
magogues and designing politicians. But those who
are sent here to legislate for the great interests of
the country, should be extremely careful how they
minister to such prejudices. Whilst it is admitted
that the banking system has its evils, its superior
benefits, nevertheless, recommend it to the candid
consideration of every statesman and patriot. It
should be his object to correct the evils and retain
the benefits. " Preserve and regulate, but not de
stroy," should be his motto. It has existed and
b ?en recognised from thevearliest foundation oi the
Government down to the present time. It has been
identified with the interests of the Government.?
These institutions, in some shane or other, have been
employed by the Government during that whole pe
riod. It is through their agency and instrumentali
ty that these much abused and despised merchants
have been enabled to pay into your coffers the vast
amount of revenue which has sustained you in peace
and in war. Yes, these very merchants who have
been represented as not to be relied on in times of
peril?whose patriotism is in their ledger, and whose
field of glory is their counting-room?men w-ho are
the most forward in their pursuit of gain when all
ispeaccjand quiet, but who shrink from responsibility
when danger presses. ... , . .
Sir I have for a long time looked with horror
upon'the ruthless warfare that has been carried on
a-ainst the mercantile interest. I have seen with
afarm the attempts which have been made to set up
other portions of the community against thcin. I
have heaid them branded as swindlers for collecting
their honest dues at home, and as traitors toi paying
their honest dues abroad. Sir, the interest of all
classes in this country are reciprocal. Neither the
farmer, the manufacturer, the mechanic nor the mer
chant, can get on advantageously, one without the
other. But, it is to the merchant more especially,
that the Government must look lor the immediate
means of support.' It is the merchant that stands
between the Government and the consumer. It is
the merchant that shoulders the responsibility and
pays into the Treasury the enormous amount of re
venue which keeps the whole machinery of Govern
ment in motion. It is the merchant that maintains
the credit of the country abroad, by the scrupulous
fidelity with which he endeavors to meet all his en
gagements. In short, the character of an American
merchant is a passport through any country in the
world. And still this classol'citizens that command
universal respect abroad, cannot be relied oil in
times of peril at home! Sir, in what period of
our history have, the merchants been obnoxious
to this charge 1 None were more patriotic dur
ing the revolutionary war?none contributed their
means more largely or freely. And who, let me
ask, occupied a prouder position during the late
war 1
When the credit of the Govcrnmont was at its
lowest ebb, who furnished the means to carry on the
\var1 The merchants. When the Government
wanted money, and could not command it on its own
responsibility, who stepped jn to its assistance and
provided a credit on which it could be raised 1 The
merchants. Yes sir, when your troops were fa
mishing for want of supplies, and disheartened, for
want ot pay?when you could not raise a dollar on
your own credit?it was the merchants, through
ihese much traduced and villified h-inks, that took
your depreciated paper, which had no cut rency with
the people, and gave their own in exchange, in which
the country had confidence. Sir, I am tired of thrse
incessant efforts to excitc.one portion of the commu
nity against the other. There is no class to whose
patriotism you may not appeal when the country re
quires their services. The agricultural, from the
very nature of their employment, will always stand
pre-eminent. But, it is to the merchants, more than
any other class, that you are to look for the ready
means to aid vou in time of war. Sir, they have al
ways responded to your call. They were never
found wanting in the most perilous periods of your
history. Whatever of glory, orof honor, or of pros
perity, this nation enjoys, it is indeb'ed, in no small
degree, to the patriotism of the merchants.?They
have contributed their full share towards e<t.Wish
ing your national character, at home and ai r >ad.?
They w ill continue to sustain it, until their broken
and subdued spirits shall think it no longer worth
preserving. _____
The b isiness of the country, and the value of all
the property it contains, have become adjusted to a
creuit system founded <>n a mixed currency, and to
change the b isis, would be to plunge the whole into
inextric ible confusion, and to b'g'^ar those who arc
parties to the millions upon millions of contracts
which already exist.?Eastern (Me ) Ar%vs.
TO THE PEOPLE OP THE UNITED
STATES.
FWlvtc Citizens ?The unexampled distress in the
(be Meicantile, Mad u fact unng, and Mrcbcnical
branches of Trade ha ving induced the American
Institute of ihe cily of New York, u> recommend a
" General Convention of Bosipess Men to assemble
in the city of Philadelphia, without distinction of
parties,' and our fellow citizen* having deputed us
to represent thein in the said Convention, we de'ein
il our incumbent duly to lav before you a brief state
ment of the causes which fed to the call of the Con
vention, together with some Miggestions in regard to
a remedy.
Possessing a widely extended and fertile country,
with a production of every thing which contributes
to Ihe health or happiness of man; with a hardy,
enterprising, and intelligent population, proveibial
lor high attainments in the arts of civilized life. In
a word, with the frie dship of all nations, the boun
ties of the earth, and th? smiles of heaven, it would
seem that we must be, indeed, prosperous and happy
Lb>ve all people. But when wc inquire into the
actual condition of the people in their individual
capacity, we discover that so far from realizing the
prosperity and happiness, which heaven and earth
thus tender to acceptance, actual distress and gloomy
forebodings have spread dismay and ruin over hopes
and procpeeu but recently the moat brilliant and
flattering. Bankruptcy has overtaken thousands of
our most worthy and enterprising business men ;ottr
binks are unable to meet their t ngagements, and in
stead ol a sound and healthy currency, we have a
paper circulation based upon promises which are
not performed, or what is still worse, a species of
paper currency containing no promise to pay, "till
after a lajisc of time which will wear them to rags.
Many ol those who hare consumed ihe productions
ol our manufacturing districts, are unable to pay the
merchants Irom whom thev purchased, the mer
chants are untble to pay the manufacturers, the
manufacturers are unable to get on with their work,
the laborers are unable to pay for bread, and the
spindle, and the loom, and Ihe artisan are still; and
thousands, who twelve months ago enjoyed a com
fortable subsistence from the rewards of honest in
dustry, are now trembling on the b.ink of despair.
Every department of industry, every branch of trade
feels the mighty shock; while every man asks of his
Iriend or his neighbor what is the cause, and where
and when, and how .shall we find a remedy 1 We
believe thai we shall be sustained by the intelligence
of the whole country in asserting that there are no
natural causes for the difficulties under which we
are suffering, artificial causes alone in our estima
tion, have produced the catastrophe, and therefore it
is that we look with hope and confidence to a com
plete remedy within our own reach.
In a community of fifteen millions of freemen,
scattered over a widely extended country, and united
under one general government, important pecuniary
interests of the people must of necessity be confided
to the direction and control of the national Adminis
tration ; among the most prominent of which may
be reckoned the duty ol ample protection to domestic
industry.
To the excessive importations of foreign produc
tions and the consequent demand for specie for ex
portation must be largely attributed the deplorable
necessity which compelled the banks to suspend
specie payments. By excessive importations of fo
reign goods, Ihe home manufacturer is deprived of
his profits, the laborer of employment, and the whole
country of its only solid basis for a circulating me
dium. Il the producing classes of our fellow citizens
would insure to themselves a fair prosperity, they
must demand of the geneial government adequate
protection for the products of their own industry.
A well regulated system for the suppiy of a uni
form and adequate circulating medium, together
with facilities for the transmission of remittances
from one section of the country to another, are also
among the most important duties of the general go
vernment, upon the judicious excrcise of which the
prosperity of the business of the country very greatly
depends. We will not attempt in this address to
point out the mode in which the important objects
are to be obtained; there are unquestionably dif
ferent views upon this subject among ourselves,
but we are all agreed that these are subjects which
properly claim the excrcise of the soundest wisdom
in those who are elected to superintend the import
ant interests confided to the administration ol the
general government of this nation.
The distribution of the proceeds of the public
lands among the several States, for the encourage
ment ol internal improvement, the promotion of
common schools, and institutions for agricultural
and mechanical improvements, would, in the esti
mation of this Convention, not only contribute to the
universal diffusion of education, but in evcrv respect
would be the most beneficial disposition of the public
domain.
These wc regard as the most prominent measures
to which the attention of the American people should
be directed as connected with the governmental
regulation of the pecuniary interests of business
men; these wc would have'our fellow citizens to
regard as among the legitimate purposes for w hich
our national government was established.
1 he productive portions of the community have,
heretofore, been too unmindful of the vast import
ance of a wise and judicious selection of men, to
direct those interests. We believe that a* remedy,
for the evils which wc are now suffering, is to be
found, and permanently maintained in no other way,
than by the selection of honest, intelligent, practical
men, to represent the great interests of the business
community, in the councils, both of the National and
State Governments. If business men, would have
their interests represented, they must emplov as
Legislators and Officers of Government, those who
have a fellowship of interest with them, and whose
prosperity and happiness, depends upon a course of
policy, which will be productive of prosperity and
happiness to all.
It is one of the most prominent artifices of political
demagogues, to create an unnatural hostilitv, be
tween the employers and the employed; this base
subterfuge is resorted to, for the purpose of creating
an impression upon the minds of the working people
that these brawlers are their only real friends, and
by this means to secure their votes, to elevate them
to places of honor and profit; men, when they have
used the people as a ladder, to clime to power, w ill
seek only their aggrandizement. But we rejoice
that a more correct sentiment is beginning to pre
vail, and the people are opening their eyes to the
fact, that the interests of employers and employed, in
all tree communities, is one and inseparable; and
we trust, the day is not far distant, when all our
rational and State elections, will be conducted with
reference to the promotion of the business and in
dustry of the nation, and the protection of the ri"hts
and interests of the whole people, and not as hereto
fore, with reference to the political ascendancy of
one party over another. '
1 arty spirit is the b*me of elective governments,
mast of all to be guarded against. Give us w ise'
virtuous, and patriotic rulers, whose pn>speritv and
happiness is identical with that of Ihe great Ixidv of
the people, and we may be- perfectly sure that'the
government will be administered for the general
good ; but beware of ambitious political aspirants
who flatter but to deceive, that they may riot in the
wealth wrung from the hard earnings of the poor
laboring man, little caring for the welfare of him or
his family.
We mean to make no discrimination in these re
marks, between the parties which apitate and con
vulse the public mind, but we intend them merely as
a warning to those who, like ourselves, have a deep
interest at stake, in the stability and permanency of
our free institutions, and in Ihe prosperity and fiap
piness, especially of the productive class of society
that they maybe induced to give their suffrages to'
men who regard civil government as an institution
organised and sustained for the benefit of the whole
people, and not as a scheme to elevate to power, men
whose only aim would be to lax the hand of honest
industry, as far as it would bear, and to share among
themselves the fruit of the plunder, under (he plausi
ble pretext of supporting the government.
Finally, give us for our Legislators, and Officers
of Government, men whose lives afford a practical
demonstration that ihcy fear God, and hale oppres
sion, men who will rejoice at the expiration ol their
term of service, to mingle again w ith their fellow
citizens, to enjoy with them the general prosperity
and happiness, which has resulted from their wise,
and patriotic measures.
In conclusion, we recommend to our fellow citi
zens to elect di legates from every city, town, and
county in the JJnion, to represent Ihe interests of
business men in all the productive avocations of life,
including employers and employed, without any dis
tinction to assemble in National Convention, in the
city of ???, on the ??? of ??? to adopt
such further measures, as to them shall seem best
calculated to promote the general welfare.
^ ILLIAM IIALSLY, President.
James Brewster, f ...
Phii.it Reyboi.d, j V,ce Presents.
Damei. M. Keim. > ,,
R M Stoatton, \ Secretaries.
J. S. Jonss, Assistant Secretary.
FaiftiiTrt t Murtai.ity.?A letter from the capt;in
of the ship Nestor, hence at New Orleans, states that
of 218 passengers who went out in thai ship, lf52
died previous to (Mobr 4th, chieflv of yellow fever,
and that on the l!>ih, only ten out ol the whole nun -
Ivr snrvived. The Nestor IcA New York on tl e -rd
of August.?J. of Com.
From ike Fridrruk, (Jtfif ) Tim'#
Tun Hon. Willum L. Mat.?Tbls gentlemr n
: has addressed a latter to his constituents, (the pe?.f j..
of lll.nois,) in justification of his vote against i|,..
8ub-Trea>ury bill. If is sn fcble production, ami re
fleets great credit up? n I he people who delegated him
to Cot|res. We have telccted the following ex.
tract an bring applicable not only to his state, but t-.
the whole people ot the Union. We have now read
enough to coin ince us, that, if we wanted to devi-e
some plan to drive Kohl and silver from circulation
and to break dawn the Democratic party, we should
select the Sub-Treasury project ns the most effectual
Hear the statesman of Illinois ???
" What would be the effect, in brief, of the Sub
Treasurv, hard money policy upon the State of Illi
nois. ! Her bank paper would, be depreciated, and
perhaps destroyed, ;.nd sixcie would disappear! Hi r
grand system of internal improvements tnust be d? -
feated and atopped, and her lith, unoccupud lands
might remain unsettled?her foreign commerce inter*
I dieted : her revenue cut off and the business of her
i people paralyzed !! Suppose there are seventy mil
lions of specie in the country ; 10 or V) millions have
b-en the amount of the public revenue: two-thiri\
of it therefore would Ik- absorbed by the gorernmet,t
and the residue would be hoarded?every dt liar this
disappearing, except in the revenue transaction
Twenty-four millions are required to defray the ? ?
peaces of the government: the residue of the 40 vr
j ")0 would be "salted down" in Treasury vault
I without interest or use, until Congress disposed <>1 ii
by law. The entries for lands in Illinois an .
mated at two millions of dollar?, and our iin|>ortsi ir
exceed our exports. Where arc our people to t :
cure specie to supply the constant drain of the land
offices, and the demand of the Eastern mark' -1
Are tlirre any federal disbursements in our S .1.
None whatever! Specie would seek the South ui.d
the East, and the greatest amounts would be com ?
trated in the lnrgest importing towns. New York,
for example, where the greatest amount of reveni ?
is paid, would be the grand point of centralization
The -pecie will nil concentrate, of course, at th<>?.<<
markets where there is the greatest demand for it
Washington, Oct. 30, 1837.
To th" Editor of the San?arno (III.) Journal:
Sir?Some weeks since 1 was induced, from in
formation received from Illinois, to addres> a let;< r
to the Secretary of the Treasury, a copy of w hit b,
together with bis reply, I herewith send you for
publication, for the especial benefit of all whom it
may conccrn.
It seems tome that by far too great a degree of ac
tivity in the political concerns of the country, has
heretofore, and still continues to be evinced bv the
officers of the federal Government. For once, 1 am
determined to hold everv officer of the Government,
\ within the limits of mv District responsible, for any
I improper interference hereafter in the politics of the
i counify.
The people, and they alone, are the proper per
1 sons to control the aliairs of this Government, and
I especially to determine wholhey will select to repre
' sent their wishes in the councils of the nation.
I have selected on thjs occasion your paper as an
I organ "through which to communicate information
' to my constituents" from a belief that the other pa
per in my own town would refuse to publish it.
Yours, respectfully,
WM. L. MAY
I Copy of a letter addressed to the Hon. Ijeri Woodim. ry.
Secretary of the Treasury.
Washington, Sept. 15, 1*37.
Sir?lam informed upon authority which I can
not doubt, th; t the Register of the Land Office at
Springfield, Illinois, has teen recently, and is per
haps at present engaged in a political electioneering
tour through my district, getting up meetings of the
voters to organise a convention of delegates, to -
minate a candidate for Congress, who are to be
pledged against me, should my name b-1 presented
to the convention. It is my object -to inquire whether
the federal officers holding stations like his, are al
lowed by the Executive to use their official inilu
ence for such purposes.
I have the honor to remain, with great respect,
your obedient servant,
WM. L. MAY.
Trkabcry Df.partmfvt, )
lGth Sept., 1837 $
Sir?I have the honor to assure you, in reply to
your letter of the 15th instant, that any complaint of
the kind you mention, against any Land Officer, will
at once be communicated to him and properly in
quired into, if the person making it, wishes itor,
if no wish is expressed about it, the Department, if the
charge be made specific, and authority given to use
the letter of complaint otherwise than as confiden
tial, will pursue a similar course in investigating.
&c. After the inquiry is made, the result will be
submitted to the President for his action ou the
whole subject.
I am, respectfully, sir, your obedient servant,
LEVI WOODBURY,
Secretary of the Treasury.
Hon. Wm. L. May.
From the Frederick (.Vri.) Times.
MR. TALIiMADCE'8 SPEECH.
We eommcnce the publication of Mr. Tu.t
m.*doe's able, forcible, and argumentative speech iu
this week's paper. All parties have united in pro
nouncing it one of the clearest, most eloquent, and
most discriminating speeches that ever was deliver
ed in a parliamentary body. None of the speakers
on the opposing side attempted to refute his argu
ments, because they knew them to be unanswerable,
Never before, was more light thrown upon a subject
by any political debator, than this distinguished
Senator nas cast upon his. During his masterly
effort, the advocates of the Sub-treasury bill had to
hide their faces for shame, at the strikingportraiture
of their inconsistency, which he laid naked and
bare before them. The whole bitch of Loco-foqo's
in the nation; (great and smali.) if they were to put
all their heads together, and " feed the midnight
lamp with their hearts' blood, and strain their brains
to the verge of madness," they could not answer ii in
a century. ,
We. wonder if the Globe will fire anotiier gun at
Mr. Tallmadge and his Conservative friend1'. TV
easy, gentlemen editors!?though you may over
throw the Administration by your ultraisrn and im
prudence, you cannot Wound the reputation of (In
consistent Conservatives.?lb.
Mr. Tam.madge.?The Globe of the 4th inst. has
devoted two and a half columns to a notice of the
Hon. Senator Tallmadge, of New York, who has
been guilty of high treason in daring to express his
views in opposition to the Sub-treasury scheme and
the pernicious consequences to the democratic party
of adopting that measure. The Globe calls?Jiim
" the Conservative Mr. Tallmadge"?"of the new
school of politicians," and says, " his principles are
at war with the well settled principles of republican
government, and tend to subvert the foundations of
the Constitution." When this sub-treasury scheme
was introduced to the attention of Congress in 1834,
by the Whigs, the editor of the Globe repeatedly de
nounced it as one of the greatest abominations ever
proposed; and said?" It i.s as palpable as the sun,
that the effect of the scheme would be to bring the
public treasure Mien nearer the actual custody and
control of the President, than it now is, [then in de
posite banks,] and expose it to ht plundered hi/ a hun
dred hands, where one cannot now reach it.
N.iw to oppose this scheme is to war with the prin
ciples of republican government. We hope the cd
itor of the Globe, before he scolds Mr. Tallmadge
and others for acting for their country, and at the
same time with a view to preserve the honor and
ascendancy of the democratic party, w ill soberly ex
amine the Election returns from New York, and re
E>rt his opinion of the propriety of further attempts
drive a thinking, free and independant people at
the point of the bayonet. This was not the detnocra
cy of Jefferson, nor is it the democracy of that great
and patriotic State which has given us four such
Prestden's as we fear our country will never be
blessed with again.?.V/r Harm /trgirtrr.
From I he ChnrlotlennlU ( Vn.) JeffertonittH.
MR. RAXDOLPH'R LETTER.
Our readers will perceive that in consequence of
the meeting that was held in this County last week,
and the tenor of the resolutions which were passed,
that Mr. Randolph has deemed it necessary to lay
before his constituents his dissent from the opinions
then advanced, and intimates that if a majority "I
the people of this county concur with the meeting
in opinion, he shall resign his scat in the legisla
ture.
If the simple question could b~ taken by the pcr>
K'e of the county, independent of other and cseit
g political topics which have so long divided them,
we have no doubt that an overwhelming majority
would be found against the Sub-trensurv scheme
But whether those who voted Ibr Mr. Randolph are
willing that he should give up his seat because he
cannot agree w ith them in all things, is a matt' r
upon which we cannot so readily give an answt r
The subject is now fairly b-fore the people, who
will doubles* give it due consideration, and if thev
deem it necessary for Mr. R to resign his seat tl cy
will so inform him.