The Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1822-1829, 1824-06-08

/ Moore, Henry Baldwin, William Hendricks,
James Noble, Waller Taylor, William Z.
/ Anderson, Levi Barber, Themas Speed,
/ John w. Campbell, Samuel iierrick, Peter
! Hiiciicnck, and Philemon Beecher, these
sentlemen all concur in stating, that ''every
4 mail from the w est brings usthe complaints
and requests Of the people, ON the subject
! of the fiecuniary state of our country );
ard they conclude, by recommending, AS a
! matter of vital impoftance, the reception oi
such western paper 0f specie paying banks
/ as were in good credit. The Honorable J
! Mclean. tif Illinois, in letter OF the 9TH
June, 1919, Speaking sf one of the districts
/ in that state, makes the following represen
tatiOn II am well assured, from my own
| knowledge, and the letters OF respectable
/ gentlemen 10 that part of the country, that,
| If every note that will be received IN pay
ment of land and every dollar of specie
that is in the country, were in the hands OF
those indebted to the government for Land,
il would be insufficient To enable more than
one tenth man of our settlers to comply
with his engagement. | almost daily re.
ceiye letters from the people of Shawnee
town Land District and of that part of
Illinois included in the Vincenues District,
stating that they are in situation truly
distressing, and that, unless there be some
amel1ration in the directions TO the Re.
ceiyers, that the time is but very short, I'M
I'll they expect to see the little farm and
dwelling they have provided for the sup
port and shelter of themselves and family,
torn from them by the lherciless, avarcious
Spectator. ] am sorry to he constrained
To say, that their apprehensions are but too
Justly predcated, and that they represent
facts"
These are the letters which have prcsen-
ted themselves on hasfy reference 10 the
files ofthe Department tits we'll rep'em-
bered, however, that Numerous and earnest
personal representations, have been made
by other gentlemen in Congress, both as Ia
the ptcuniary distiesses of the western
Icounirv, and the necessity Of change IN
the existing regulations. Representations
like these could not be received with irrtlf-
ference Il is to be recollected, also, that
AT the time when this state OF things exist
ed the debt due for public lands amounted
to about twenty millions of dollars the
greatest part of which had been contracted
dining the suspension of specie payments.
Uron mature, reflection. therefore, and
with the appreciation Of the President, il
was deemed advisable 10 make the arrange
ments with the western Banks, which are
the subject Of Mr. Edwards condemna-
ton.
The details Of thcse arrangements are so
fully explained in the Secretary's former
communications on the subject, that it is
not thought necessary here TO explain
them.
AS far as the interests Of the people, and
If the Treasury, were concerned, il is be
iirved that those arrangements were not
merely defcnsible, hat c0mmendahle.-
As far as the measure affected the interests
| of the bank ufthe L.. States, tits believed
To be- equally deserving of appreciation
In u letter written by the Secretary to the
! President of that institutions, on the 14th
! September, t819, he thus explained the
| motives, which, avs far as the bank was
concerned, influenced his course on the
subject
! g Il has been my constant ebdeayor, for
more than twelve months past, to prevent
as far as practicable, all collision between
the Bank Jf the L. States aura the State
/ Banks ms far, AT least, as that collision
might be connected with the transactions
of this Department. 1t is not my intention,
! therefore, to give drafts upon the State
/ Banks for public money, without previous
! ly arranging with them the mode of pay
mcnt."
Acting upon the same principle, have
endeayured, in the course Of the present
wear, ~ make arrangements with the State
| Banks in the Western States, by which
! they should become the repositories ofthe
public money collected in that section OF
! the L .iuh considered the drposisps there
positively injurious 10 the Bank, for the fol
! lowing reasons, viz
"1st That the offices had already ex-
tended their discounts IN Ohio and keuiuc-
| ky, farther than was consistent with the
interest of the bank.
" I'd. That every dollar deposited in
| them on account Of the government, that
| could not be dsburscd there, would Rave
to be- employed in discounts, or transferred
! to the Bank in Philadelphia, or its Eastern
| Offices.
ID. That owing to the scarcity of ex-
change, transfers could only be made by
the transportation Of specie arross the
mountain.
= irh That, owing to the geographical
position Of Kentucky and Ohio, the public
expenditure wouid be extremely limited
jth. That the transportation nf specie
from the Western 10 the Eastern States, by
the bank, invariably had produced, and
would continue to produce, irritation in the
public mind against the bank"
An additional reason for endeavoring
to make state banks in that section Of the
unrn the repositories ofthe public money,
was to increase the receipts, by enabling
the public debtors to pay in the notes Of
specie paying banks. which would not be
received By tie officers Of the bank, and
which could not be received by them,witr
out increasing that collision, which ii wa.
my dr9ire to diminish"
These views, it is believed, werc To. -.
not to meet the appreciation of me 5;s J%a
gnished individual wIH presto ed "l0'l''