The Arkansas advocate., 1835-04-10
For the Advocate.
To fhe Tdfor. ( U fS1s h-a St ss5Cf
NO. |.


 NO. I.
 To the Editor:
 SiR--Sinee the fate of the United States Bank has been ascertained, the newspaper press throughout the States has been filled with essays, and the speeches of public men on the comparative merits of paper currency and what IS commonly termed the hard money system. The advocates of the latter have in an ingenious manner portray cd the evil and ruinous effects of the Bank ing system whilst they held up in glowing colours the idea of return 10 the golden age, when every man, rich and poor. would have his pockets filled with the ssyelow boys gold. An attempt has been made 10 bfing about this state of things. Congress, at the session before the last, passed an act, reducing the standard value of gold, deba- sing the gold coin, and making t 6 l-2= per cent. less than the former standard value. lh his act caused an unusually large impor- talion of gold, and an excessive coinage of that metal al the mint; yet, notwithstanding the scheme appears to have failed. and there Is too much reason to believe t will turn out in the end as its enemies predicted, iliefe hualbng--ihat inc gold coin, when II leaves the mint, instead of passing from hand to hand as a currency, soon finds it's way into the vaults of the local Banks, and their notes take it's place as the.common currency oi the country. In Arkansas 1t has been exemplifed. Nine months have now elapsed since the mint commenced the new colnage. and to this day there is not one in five hundred of our population that ever saw | piece of the new coin. The failure of this attempt 10 introduce a metal lie currency instead of bank notes, taken with the fact that many of the States, who, at the same lime that they bold out, through their General Assemblies and members of Congress, the idea of favoring metallic currency, are increasing thelr number of Banks, n some cases to an unreasonable eXent--must force on the mind nf orar,r rrffecung man the conclusion that the Bank ing system Is engratted on the public insti- tutions of the United States, and that we must take 1t for better or for worse. This being the case, wisdom and prudent fore slght 0. coming events seem to require of the representatives of the people of Arkan- sas, At the next session of the Legislature, the passage Of some act that may guard agalnst the approaching evil, which begins to be already seen in the variety of bank notes now circulating in the Territory ma ny of which will not be received at our land offices. Those bank notes must continue to increase, both in variety and number and as the m re current will find their way into the land offices, and be sent out of the country in remittances by our merchants, the others must consequently decrease in value. As fire Is frequently applicable to extract he effects of fire from the human body, and snoT 10 frozen limb, so in the political body well conducted Bank has been found the best corrective and safety guard to a community, against the extraya- gant issues and forced circulation of foreign bank notes. l must confess am not an advocate of the Barking system generally, nor to the extent that 1t appears to be car red at the present day. The experience ol d life. now past the meridian, has taught me tbat 1t has been too frequently abused and that there are evils growing out of Ii, which sometimes have a balefu influence on the prosperity of a country. On exami- nation, however, it will be found that those evils most generally arise either from radi. cal defect in the charter or n1ismanage- tnent of the affairs of the Bank. They cannot be looked on as an innate qualn, growing out of the true principles of Bank. ing. On the contrary, so far as past expe. rience has demonstrated, (and the instances are numerous 1t must be conceded that 6 well regulated Bank, based on solid capi. tai, IS great advantage to any country and highly convenient and useful 10 the people. Should the resources of Arkansas be found adequate 10 the support of such ar institution, believe, sir, you will agree witE