Alexandria gazette & daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1817-1822, 1822-01-12

banks the GepreciaCeu PdPor Was, 49,
Int he had not informed the house how
he had received it, or under what cob
tingencies and circumstances losses had
been sustained by the Treasury. Since,
then. there was so much in tie dark, & |
so much that ought to be brought to
light, why was objection made 10 his
motionp The bulk of the information
asked for, was not, he said, sufficient
ground of objection In regard to the
yellow Stone Expedition Of last year,
when a document of the size ola family
bible was presented to the house. Its
bulk did not induce the house to shrink
from the call for it, nor from having It
printed. Calls had been authorized,
freely. Oh all subjects, and never shrunk
from, particularly when they related to
the money concerns OF the country; and
he did not see the reasonableness Of the
objections now made.
MIR. Hardin said, it was but day or
two ago that the house had been lnform-
I'D that. in defiance of law and OF pro-
per sense of proprie,y, the Secretary OF
the Treasury had appointed Senator
to inspect the Land Offices. &c.-and,
Mr.. IL. said, anxious that the gentleman
should be furnished with all the infor-
nation necessary to guard the state
which that gentle nan represents from
all attempts to corrupt it, he had voted
for that reso luton. We hear to-day,
said he, that there has been mismanage-
ment of the Treasury; and, throughout
the whole of the gentleman's remarks.
the conduct Of the Secretary OF the
Treasury has been called In question.
| have, said Mr.. Ii. the utmost conf
dence in that officer-as much as can
have in any man, and in the correctness
of his conduct; but as the gentleman
from Illinois seems to wage determln-
ed warfare against that gentleman,
hope my friend from Miss. will let his
resolution pass, and let the gentleman
guard the State Of Illinois, and every
other state in the Union, from corrup-
ton in any quarter. MIR. Ii. knew, he
said, that there was in the Treasury
great amount of unavailable funds. This
arose from the ephemeral duration OF
the Banks which had started up In varl>
Gus parts Of the country. whose paper
the Secretary of the Treasury Was i'm
pertuned, on all hands, to recsive In
payment of debts due fer public lands;
and which the government was compel
led to receive. and after it was received,
was further obliged, in order to make
( any use Of it, to deposit 1t IN those very
banks. This was to enable the people
| to pay their land debt-a debt, which
the gentleman from Illinois had often
told the house, hung heavy upon them.
By opposing this resolution, MIR. II.
said, some ground might be given for
the suspicious which had been insinuat-
ed in regard to the Secretary of the
Treasury. Let, then, the inquiry be
made; and, when all was said and done,
the gentleman would find that his own
state had failed in debt to the govern
ment to an amount of more than doll
lar for every soul in it. He wished to
see this inquiry Nay, said he, let US
take the bull by the horns at once-no
doubt the gentleman from Illinois can
manage him. For one, Mr.. H. said, he
| was tired Of these insinnations,S wish
ed to see something like facts presented
in lieu Of them.
| Mr.. Cook made some observations in
reply to Mr.. Hardin. He should not
object to any inquiry lest it might at.
feet the state of Illinois: he was DESTROYS
to have the facts before the house,
whomsoeyer they might affect If there
was belefin the public mind that there
had been Encouragement in the ad-
mini.tration of the money concerns of
the country, let the information be cal
led for; and, if the public mind be mis-
taken, that is the way to correct its i'm
pressions. For this information which
ne wanted, MIR. g. said he did not chuse
to go in secret to the Head of the De
partment to ask for it, but chose to call
for it publicly, az he had right to do.
He would he said, march on III the line
of his duty, whether in doing SO it bore
hard on his constituents or not. Ii
there we're just grounds to apprehend
Encouragement, fraud, corruption, or
dereliction of duty; he cared not whom
it concerned, he considered it his dutyto
inquire into it. If the Treasury De
partment was entitled to all the conf
dence, to which, said he, trust in God
it is entitled, let US see it. For here
declare, if my impressions and the pub
lie report are wrong, | will take as much