Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1833-09-24

sury shall otherwise direct. Unless, therefore,
the Secretary Of the Treasury first acts. Congress
have no power over the subject. tor toey eau"'.
add new clause to the charter or strike one out
of it without the consent Of the Bank; and con.
sequently the public money must remain 'n '''a'
institution to the last hour OF its existence, vi"
less the Secretary of the Treasury shall remove
it at an earlier day. The responsibility ~ uus
thrown upon the Executive branch Of tne oo'e'n'
ment, of deciding how Iong before the eaP'fa-
ton of the charter, the public interest VIII re
quire the deposies to be placed elsewhere,
Add although, according to the frame anu Pfin
! cipe of our government, this decision wou'd
seem more properly to belong to the legislative
power, vet as the law has imposed 1t upon the
Executive Department, the duty ought 10 oe
faithfully and firmly met. and the decision made
and executed upon the best lights that can De oo'
tanned. and the best judgment that can De iormeu'
1t would i'll become The executive branch OF the
Government to shrink from any duty which the
law imposes on it. to fix upon Others the respon.
sibiIty which Justly belongs to Itself. Ana
while the President anxionsy wishes to abstain
from the exercise Of doubtful powers. anu 10
| avoid ali interference with the rights and duties
Of others, he must ye., with mistaken constan-
cy, discharge his own obligations: and cannot al
low himself to turn aside. IN order to AVOID ahy
| responsibility which the high trust with which ne
has been honored requires him To encounter;
| aud IL being the duty OF one OF the Executive
Departments to decide IN the first instance. sub
ject to the future action Of the legislative power,
whether the public deposits shall remain 10 the
Bank of the U States until the end OF Its ex
| istence, or be Withdrawn some time before, the
| President has felt himself bound to examine the
question carefully and deliberately IN order to
make up his judsment.on the subject: and IN ms
opinion the near approach OF the termination OF
the charter, and the public considerations hereto.
fore mentiune,I, are Of themselves amply sufi
cient to justify the removal of the deposltes
without reference to the conduct OF the Bank, or
their safety in its keeping
| But in the conduct Of the Bank may be found
other reasons very imperative in their character,
and which require prompt action. Deveope.
ments have been made from time to time OF It's
fai,hlessness as public agent, its misappicatIon
OF public funds, its interference in elections, ITS
Efforts. bv the machinery Of committees, to de.
privsthe Government Directors of q full know.
. ledge of its concerns, and above all, its fagrant
misc ouduct as recently and unexpectedly dlsclo'
sed 10 placing all the funds of the Bank, inclnd.
ins the money of the Government, at the dspo-
sitlon Of the President Of the Bank as means OF
operating upnn public opinion and procuring a
new charter without requiring him to render a
voucher for their disbursement. brief recaPl-
tuatinn Of the facts which justify these charges
and which have come to the knowledge ct the
public and the President, will, he thinks, remove
every reasonable doubt as to the course which Ut
is now the duty of the President TO pursue
We have seen that in sixteen months. ending
in Nav, 1882, the Bank had extended its loans
more than S2S, 100000, although II knew the
Government intended to appropriate most OF its
large deposi;e during that wear in payment OF The
public debt. 1t was in May. 1892. that its loans
arrived al the maximum. and ~ the preceding
March, so Sensible vas the Bank that II would
not be able to paw over the pubic deposte when
1t would be required by the Government. that il
commenced n secret neg"tia'i"n without the ap-
pruOation or know edge of the Government. with
the agents. for about 81 700 600 of the three per
cent stocks held in Holland, with a view OF IN.
duciny them not tn cnme torward tor payment
for one or more years after notice should be civ
tn bv the Treasury department This arrange
nent would have enable ed the Bank to keep and
use during that time the public money set apar,
for the payment Of these stocks.
After This negotiation had con menced, the Sc.
cretary OF the Treasury informed the Bank, that
IL was MS lultHton I'D paw I'll one van VI NV ' &c
Der cents on the fist of tie succeeding jolly,
which amounted To about Sc. 500, 900 The
President Of the Bank. althnng, the committee
OF investigation was then looking into i's affairs
at Philadelphia, came Immediately to Washing
ton. and upon representing that the Bank was
DESTROYS of accommodating the importing mer
chants at New York (which it failed to dol and
undertaking to paw the interest itself, procured
the consent Of lbe Secretary, after consultation
with the President, to postpone the payment un'
! til the succeeding first of October,
| Conscious that at the end Of that quarter the
Bank would not be able to pay over the deposites
| and that further indulgence vas not to be ex-
pected of the Government. an agent was dis.
patched to England secretly to negotiate with
the holders Of the public debt IN Europe, and IN
duce them BY the offer of an equal or higher in.
terest than that paid py the Government to hold
back their claims for one year, during which the
Bank expected thus to retain the use Of $4,000.
600. of public money which the Government
! should set apart for the payment Of that debit