National gazette. — Philadelphia [Pa.], 1793-03-16 00:00:00, page 1

Debate on the Official Conduct of the Se
cretary of the Treasury, (continued
from our last.)
Friday, March 8.
LAWRENCE contended, that the
- 1 interest of the monifs borrowed
■was not paid out of the principal of the
loan, as let forth in the fir[t charge of the
resolution before the committee.' If gen
tlemen would attend to the history of the
tranfaftion, they would find this ftriftly
true. Thisintereft was paid out of the
monies borrowed for the reduction of the
public debt, and not out of those iutcndecl
to pay the French, and the funds appropri
ated for the payment of that interest were
here, to replace the former and be applied
as those were appropriated. He referred
to the President's speecheS at the com
mencement of the two last fefiions to (hew
that the loan was obtained under tilt joint
authority of both acts, and adverted to the
ast of Congress, in confeqnence of adonbt
suggested by the Secretary, explaining,
that the monies firft obtained might be
conlidered as borrowed under the act au
thorizing the 2,000,000 loan. Having
fliewn the firlt charge in the resolution to
be unfounded, he turned to the second.
The Secretary is accused of drawing
monies to this country without inftrufti
ons. rn this tranfaftion, he said, the Pre
sident mull be conlidered as principal and
the Secretary the agent, or the Secretary
must be looked upon as the principal. If
the Prcfider.t is the principal and he be
authorized to obtain the loans, as soon .
the money is obtained it naturally fallsun
derthe direft'loll of the financier; but if
it be contended, that the Prefulent was to
have applied the monies as well as to bor
row them, then we have nothing to do
with the agent, that agent is accountable
to his principal, and as this principal
is not called to an account by the
iegillature for any improper exer
cise of discretion he must be considered as
having acted ftriftly within the law. If the
Secretary isconlidered as the principal (and
by a ftrift attention to the law, he believ
ed, it would be found so ; for the Preli
dent is by it authorized to borrow and it is
not exprefied who (hall apply the money)
then it was not one of the duties of the
Secretary to procure the inftruftions of the
Preiident; being the principal and con
sequently having the direction of the mo
ney borrowed he is made the judge of the
time of drawing, but to fulfil the intenti
ons of the law. Was the money, he ask
ed, to have remained in the hands of the
banker in Europe ? Since it was borrowed
for the purchase of the public debt, the
sooner it was drawn over, the better, and
the Secretary having the direction of those
monies could do it without consulting the
Preiident. He proceeded to (hew, howe
ver, that the Secretary had by no means
acted entirely without regard to the Pre
sident's inftruftions. His letter to Mr.
Short, which had been read, exprefily fays,
that he is waiting for inftruftions from the
President; and the only inftruftions brought
forward, clearly (hewed that he c|id not
ast without them. On this occasion it was
not neceffarv, he conceived, that all the
private communications between those two
officers should be brought forward ; in
deed many of the inftruftions might have
}>een verbal, and of a private nature.—
Another proof lies before the committee
to (hew that the Secretary did not ast in
dependent of inftruftions. A report of
the Secretary, mentions, that some mat
ters relative to the loans were under the
confederation of the President of the Uni
ted States. This document, he remarked,
the gentlemen were in poflellion of when
they framed the resolutions, and it, in hU
opinion, left very little ground, indeed, to
jfuppofe, that the Secretary had acted with
out inftruftions.
That officer, he contended, had ftriftly
obeyed the appropriation law ; he had not
drawn one dollar that the ast did not war-
rant. On the authority of one ast, the
Secretary drew two inillions(by the bye he
wilhed to remark, that the Secretary is
not the officer who actually draws, who
fells the bills, or receives the money ; this
falls within the province of the Treasurer;
the Secretary does not touch a penny of
those monies) he drew two millions to ap
ply to the reduction of the public debt.
The other ast, he said. gave the President
power to tlraw every dollar of the loan it
eftabliffied, if he thought fit, if those who
were to receive the money wished to be
paid here. Will the remittance which af
forded so seasonable a relief to St. Domin
Numb. 40 of Vol. ll.]
By P. FRENEAU: Publijhcd Wednesdays and Saturdays, at Three Dollars per annum.
go, be found fault with? If this mode ol
paying was within the authority veiled ir
the Prelident, fnrely the power of drawing
mud have accompanied it. He concluded
by observing, that he had slated his ide.
on the ftibjett in a hafly manner, under the
impreifion of want of time to goiiilly inc
the difcuflion.
Mr. Mercer next rose. None of the
communications from the Secrerary of tliL
Treasury, he said, had removed his fufpiii
ons relative to the tranfaclions of that de
partment ; what had fallen in the course
if the difcuflion had not removed hi:
tloubts. He confefled himfelf more at a
lofsthan ever to account for the condutl
if that officer. To judge of the propriety oi
his conduct, it was neceflary to confidei
ivhat his duties are. and invefligate whe
Lher a necessity exifled to jullify the draw
ing complained of.—Gentlemen in thcil
arguments Sad-alluded to some observati
ons that had fallen from him on other oc
casions expreilive of his opinion, that there
liad been corruption in that department.
This opinion he flill entertained ; he fug-
that some irregularities, h:»l, he
believed, taken place as to the money ap
propriated to the finking fund. This
might be the fa£l, and his suspicions were
fufficiently urgent to warrant him in fug-
that it might be possible. At the
close of '92 he slated there was a balance
of cash In the Treasury 0f2,33r,i52 dol
lars, and the bonds due in the course ol
:heprefent year would produce a sum ol
about 2,269,000 elollars; yet a propolitior
was made in the house.predicated on a to
:al want of money in the Treasury, te
jorrow 800,000 dollars in addition to the
joo.ooo already borrowed of the hank.
Here Mr. Boudinot interrupted th<
member a'", bpin* Qut cf nrxi.-r
The Chairman, conceiving Mr. Mercer'
•emarks to be introdnftory to, and con
lefted with the observations he intended t(
make on the resolution declared him it
order.
Mr. Mercer proceeded to flievv by fun
tliy flatements and calculations, througl
which we were unable to follow him, tha
there was no necellity for this loan of 800
300 dollars. The house, he said, t<> dif
charge their duty (liould b» fatisfied how
money appropriated was applied, before
they consented to repeated additional ap
propriations. When calls for informatior
liad been made by the house, with a view
to comply with this their indifpenfible du
ty. the Secretary had thought it fufficienl
to balance money actually rece.ved, by cal
culations of sums that would probably be
wanted agreeably to appropriations. Were
dollars, he alked, to be balanced by obso
lete appropriations ; can things certain be
balanced by things uncertain ? AJtiial ex
penditure would alone balance a£tual re
ceipt. Appropriations only founded 011
uncertain calculations could not fliew the
money actually laid out. He adverted tc
some calculations irnde to ascertain the
probable expences of the war department.
Here the member was again called to
order, and was declared out of order by
the chairman.
Mr. Mercer confined his observation?
more immediately to the resolution before
the committee It had been said, that the
interest: paid, was paid out of monies that
were to be drawn to this countrv, and
were replaced hereby funds from the do
meflic resources originally appropriated
for that object and that the dead letter of
the law, if any part of it, h id alone been
violated. He contended there had been
an eflential violation.
Th .- sums drawn for and appropriated to
reduce the public debt were not applied to
that purpose, the domeflic resources ap
propriated to that obje£l i never were cx
haufted. If this is the rase, condufion l
surely unfavourable to that officcr mufl
naturally follow.
He proceeded to make some remarks on
the qi.eflion, whether the Secretary had
acted under inftruflions from the Presi
dent. It was difagrecable, lie premised.
to criminate the character of any officer.
He bore agrear refpeft for the President,
for his virtues, talents and services ; but
however grating to his feelings it might
be to find fault with any part of his con
dust in this business he was unable to dis
charge his duty under his_ present impres
sions, milefs he avowed, that he conceived,
that officer had violated the law, tho' he
allowed, without intention, by not enqui
ring into the bufineft, while tranfafling, as
it was his duty to do. He mull declare
that he favv no proof that the Secretary
SATURDAY, March 16, 1793.
had afteil under the President's inftruflions,
on the contrary he saw the reverse.—there
wa> evtn no preemptive proof of the fact.
The house had called for information as to
the extent of the authority delegated, in
the buiinefs, by the President t the Secre
tary. Either the Secretary has produced
the proof of this authority, or lie Jias not
complied with the order of the house ; it
does uppe:y tkat he has gone beyond it in
making the drafts complained of. The
Prelident directed that the proceeds of the
loan be immediately applied to pay the
French; yet a great portion of that mo
ney was brought over here. It was said,
that he might have brought the whole here
it' he chose, and paid it to the French here.
This argument goes on the preemption,
he obferverl, that the Prelident might do
wrong without in cut ring blame. But the
Prelident cxprefsly directed it to be paid
immediately to France ; and the house
had no right to presume that he did direst
the money tobe drawn here when proof
10 the contrary appears. Upon the whole
1e concluded, that the law had been bro
ken in letter and substance, and that the
■Secretary had a&ed without proper in
trusions from the President.
Mr. Ijvermore obfer* ed,chat the charges
igainfl the Treasury department were at
ir(l well calculated to beget serious alarm.
When misapplications of the public money
we founded in the public ear, all feel inte
■efted, knowing, that what affects the pub
ic purse, rtinft in a degree affect the purse;
jf each private individual. In the pre
ent stage of the business, he was happy in
>eingable to felicitate himfelf and his fel
ow citizens, that even (liould the whole
if the charges contained in the resolution?
>e proved, it would not appear, that they
tat'loft a fuftiiifig by me bufrnefslT) loudh
complained of. What is the charge ? Thai
lie Secretary Ins paid an interert that was
liftly due : why then, he presumed, we
hould not have it again to pay. If thi
Secretary has onid what was due, whai
hen is the complaint ? It was fin ely 1101
ntended, that it (hould have been paid
This was not the intention of Congress :
or they.pafled an a£t providing funds fevi
t5 payment; the Secretary was then riglu
0 pay it. But it is said, he paid it with
he wrong money ; he saw no harm in not
laying it with the very dollars appropria
ed, and approved of the operation, which
"aved drawing with line hand and remit
ting with the other ; in this there was nr
:rime committed, no loss incurred. Ii
ippcars, on the contrary, that something
was gained by it : So far then, he wj;
no law had been violated, nor was
any rule of propriety departed from. He
then touched upon the Secretary's difpy
ted right to draw. He contended, that h<
had that l ight. The loans were obtainei
under the joint authority of the two ails.
It was said that more than two millions,
the amount appropriated for the (iukinj
fund, were drawn overbut, he infilled,
he might have drawn the other twelve
millions, if it had been for the public inter
est so to do. The French wished to be
paid here, and it being no loss, rather t
profit to comply with their wish, where
was the harm in so doing ? If any public
lofsli id been incurred owing to these drafts,
then blame would lie, He concluded, by
exprelling his hearty approbation of the
condutl of theofficer who is criminated bj
the resolutions, and declared it as his firm
intention to give them his negative.
Mr,i'm/rt(S. C)regretted,that this bufinef:
(liould not have been brought forward be
fore the clole of the feilion nearly ; that
the information on which the present rc
folutions were grounded was not called for
at an earlier day. No delay, it mnft be
evident, could be imputed to the Secretary
he had reported with alacrity and dispatch.
1 hough lie felt feufibly this regret, yet he
was happy, that the charges again)! this
officer were brought forward in a fpecific
form. He premised, that as considerable
latitude had been taken by forne gentle
men who had been up before him, he
(liould take the liberty also, to preface his
remarks with a few observations, that
ould flriilly apply, however to the fub
jeft in general. In the origin of the biifi
nefs the charges were various, and of a
different nattire from the present. At one
time a million unaccounted for was spo
ken of, at another, money was borrowed
011 an interelf of 16 or 17 per cent : the
bufinef in its progress resolved itl'elf how
ever into the iiinple charges contained in
the resolutions on the table. He made
some observations pti the danger of bring-
irg forward charges which cannot be fup-.
ported, efpeciallv again!! such an officer
as the Secretary of the Treasury. In
vertjoient-; like this the financial depart
ment is in of) the object of puljlic suspicion;
caution fhuuld therefore be used before
diftrull is excited. A charge a-gainft this
department ftuwld not be made, unless well
grounded. The resolutions on the table,,
he remarked, did npt accuiV the becreta
ly of a deviation from his duty owing to
interefled motives ; but of afiuming more
authority than he was entitled to, from an
?rror in judgment, and not any corrupt
principle. He agreed to the
:hat 110 executive officer should ceviate
rom the ftri'fl line of his authority unlefi
n cases of urgent receffity : The enquiry
s then, whether the Secretary has viola
:ed the law, and if he has, whether therq
jxifted any neceflity for the violatior.
tie had proceeded to make some farther
reneral remarks, when we wa> callled
irder by.
Mr. Find-ley, who (fated he had been
railed to order when on the ground, the
nemberfrom Sojith Carolina (Mr.
tad just entered upon.
Mr. Smith fiid, that the general
/ations he had yet to make were few :
lowever he would now ftriflly cor!:ne
limfelf to the two charges contained in tha
•efohition immediately before the cojnn}it
:ee. He approved of the manner in which
he Secretary had avoided making a remit*
:ance, by avoiding a correspondent draft.
[f he had ailed differently, he would have
jeeti liable to cenfnre. If any loss bad ac*
rued on his bills, in cafe be had pursued
lifferent line of conduit from tha; he
idopted, he would have been charged with
>hmdering and ignoranoe of his duty. Hs>
lad avoided this, and yet he is unacvouilt*
ibly found fault \vith.
He next turned to the second shargsj
:ontained in the resolution, and her? he
( marked, that the gentlemen h'o not, in
his business taken the spirit o£the laws or
he course of justice as their guide. Th«
aw prelumes all pel Tons innpeent 'till they
ire proved to be guilty, they pr. fume thin,
)fficer guilty and will not admit preintpp
:ive evidence of his innocence.
The President had made the Secretary
lis agent to negociate both the loans au
horijsed by law ; giving jlim at the fame
ime inftruftions relative to the application
if the money to be obtained undertbc au
hority of the fit ft ast, and no iultruOion as
o the application of the money to be obs
ained under the other ; what is the natu-j
al inference from this, he aflied : fer
ainly that the President reftrved his iu«
truftions on that fubjeft to a future occa
ion, or that he was willing to leave it tq
he Secretary's direction, to whom indeed
he application of all tr.onies devolves ex
iffitio. As to conColiilating the separate au
horities of tjie two aits, this was Well
cnpwn to the President, he mentions it tq
:he house in his speech deli\ ered two years
igo, snd refers to the Secretary for further
Information on that ftib eft. The Seoreta
-yin his report, expressly fays, that this
was done in the name and by order of the
President, ane that part of three jn'Hlpi.t
sorrowed had been paid tt- the French,
lart to the Dutch and that \vh ,t rema'ned
ivas ready to be applied to the pqrehafe of
:he debt. Yet gentlemen, he pbl'e-rvcd,
tad afierted, that nothing had been com
municated to the house refpcftini monies
obtained by loans for the | urehaie of the
debt. Hetalledfor the reading of tjjt- do
.unients he had referred to.
After the reading of such parts of thnfedo -
ruments as applied to tie points lie uilhed
to elucidate, he repeated, that in his re
port the Secretary cxprefsly fays, that a
sum remained which might be applied to
the purchase of the public debt : Yet
gentlemenhadnfTerted,that ilie pdb icicthi
house were in total daikncfsaf to the pro
priety and situation of those diafts, Sure
ly the Secretary's conduct might with ren
fon have been eliminated if he had r< t
drawn. A s to the inductions from the
Prelident to the Secretary ; it mud ap
pear evident, from what had been read,
that there mud have been ipftru£l ons
from the principal to the agent, or gene,
ral discretion lepofed ; this mull he pre
sumed ; that the President diu his dutj
and would lisne punished the officer, by re
moval, if he had aftpd without a difcre; i
onary power or contrary to his inllrudti-
I'ljt J age j
[Total No. 144-.]