The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1837-09-12

idol, the Bank of the United States. They
will prefer TO keep every thing in its present
unsettled condition-to make confusion
worse confounded"- scatter panic and
complaints among the people-and force them
if possible, 10 take refuge in the embraces Of
the monster. Mr.. Biddle is bent upon TIL
umph " with an eye that never winks, and
wing that never tires" His designs are as
daring as his means are insidions. We see
his little finger in tho late movements of the
banks Of Philadelphia. The Convention Of
Banks is to be strangled. 1t does not suit his
purposes, at present, to bring back the State
Banks TO the resumption OF specie payments.
The people are not yet discontinued and
" sick" enough to cali for his assistance. He
has plans afoot, which ought to startle every
, patriot in the land. Ii he succeeds in forcing
a recharter from the country, we may well
tremble for her Constitution and her liberties
A Money King viii indeed rule over us.
In fact, never was there q time when the
Republican party should be more strongly
united-when il was so unfortunate that any
schism should creep into their camp-and
when it was so necessary for them to exercise
discretion as well as moderation. We have
often repeated, that we ought to "bear and
forbear' with each other. In sketching our
objections to the message, therefore, we shall
observe the most liberal disposition. We re-
greet that it speaks in 80 thorough and uncom-
promising a tone but we shall take the liber-
ty of suggesting some ground of Cancellation
and compromise, on which the friends of the
Administration might probably meet, in the
present Congress.
How is it that the great masses of the two
parties seem to be respectively shifting the
grounds, which they occupied in "a Many
Of the Wings then supported the Sub-treasury
system in preference to the State Banks. The
friends Of the Administration then violently
assailed it. Now the Wings have chopped
round, and 20 against it. Most of the Repub-
Iicans, with the President at their head, are
inclined to support it. 1t is our misfortune to
adhere to the same principles which we then
professional for the same reasons. A bet
ter soldier than ourselves, then gave forth the
most serious objections to the scheme:
"The public moneys, from the time Of their
receipt to the time Of their disbursement,
amounting, as they often do, to ten or twelve
millions of dollars, must remain in the hands
:. of individuals appointed by the President, and
removable al has toiu p "They ought (not) to
be kept in their pockets, chests, uaults, where
they can approach it every day, and use it
without the checks of warrants drawn, coun-
tersigned, registered, and recorded, and pass
ing through many hands, without which not
dollar can now be touched by any public Off
Ger, not even the President himself"
We have no desire to see such an accumu-
lati0n of power in the hands of the Execu-
tive-no wish to put the public money direct
ly into the palms of his friends and partisans
We wish to see the power and patronage
Of the Executive increased as little as posi-
Bile" the powers of the (Federal) Govern
ment (not enlarged"-the purse and the
sword not more strongly united, than they are
in the hands of the President-and as few
means of corruption as possible trusted in his
possession. Some events have shifted the
balance of the Constitution, and thrown too
much power already into the Executive scale
thanks especially to the Wing Senators,
who fought so recklessly for the Bank of the
U. States in the day of panic trampled their
instructions under foot, and brought their own
body into contempt! We have no desire, I'M
less the public interests imperously demand
it, to throw greater weight into the Executive
scale, by bringing the President. into closer
contact with the public purse. We have no
uneasiness about the present incumbent. Mr..
Van Buren, declares, that he would much ra-
Their withdraw, F" to the greatest practicable ex-
tent, from all concern in the custody and dis
bursemcnt of the public revenue" We con-
sclentiously believe him. But we arc framing
general system, not for him alone, but for his
successors. We might safely trust the public
purse in his hands; but who is to ensure us
against those who are to come after him
Some ambitious, and dangerous man may as
cend to the chair, prepared to abuse the pa
tronage of office, and to exert the means OF
corruption.
But the Message fritters away the extent
Of this patronage 1t states the number OF
officers as very few; the amount of monies in
their hands as small and the additional ex-
penscs as not exceeding 100000 a year
But these were not considered as slight OBJ
iections in "a; and we cannot permit our
selves to undervalue them now. The argu-
ment has indeed gained strength since that
timc.9 We must allow for every condition of
our finances. We have lately seen surplus
revenue of forty millions thrown into our
Treasury The President lays great stress
on the mischief it has done in the State
Banks. But the argument cuts both ways
What mischief would it have done, If the
Sub-Treasury system had been in full opera
ton! Half the coin in the country (at its
highest estimate Of so millions) would have
been Withdrawn at once from circulation-tho
people would have been subjected to great in
convenience in paying the public duties; and
an immense sum exposed to the pillage OF
parasites and partisans."
We shall sec what the Secretary of the
treasury says of the cheapness and working
of the machine but we are puzzled to see
how it will cost but 100000 more The