The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1837-10-17


extended 10 the necesssres of life, Our people beng
INTOXICATED by this delusve prosperity, every species OF
property was embraced ~ the wide range OF specula
ton, which speedily reached the pnblic lands Every
one seemed TO think much easier 10 get rich by spe
culdting ~ land than by cutyatng II aud by ld,gC
land sales, added TO heavy nporiaons, soon produced
an enormous surplus 10 the Treasury which was dIslg
buted n great number Of banks. There was grea!
anxiety 10 recommend state repositories 10 the people
and reconcile them TO the loss OF the United States
Bank by proving that institution 10 be unnecessary
and accordingly they stimulated TO accommodate
the community by the Of the public funds In tina
way banks were multiplied paper issues were mutt Pi-
ed, spcculatlons stimulated. and produced that
bloatcd and diseased condition Which began 10 manifest
Itself IN the MINER Of 1886
IL may he necessary N this connection more parcu-
larry to notice the means b. which wo wera enabled SO
long to Keep up tins forcing process, aud prevent an
earlier reaction by the operation OF our foreign debt
This was PLAIN enough, when the facts we're known,
though 1t had continued long to puzzle The best imam
ciers Of Europe. The natural effect OF the general spc
cuatlye rise OF prices here FROM redundancy oil our
currency and credit, depreciae our foreign
changes, and produce call for the balance Of oar To-
reign debt Yet we prevented this, by sending them
bonds, bank shares, state stocks and credits OF various
descriptions to greater amount than we owed them.
by these means raised our own exchanges and de-
preciaed theirs which drained them OF their bullion,
las before Intimately by means OF the credits they
tended to These speculatons AT home had produc-
ed almost unlimited demand for money, and we
would take all their cash, we'll all their cominod
ties, and oSerd their capitalists 10 get them, pro-
vded could make the operation credit Thus
continued inverling the laws OF trade, aud utterly
confronting the bank directors and capitalists OF Eng
land until the Of 1896 We hnd that the bank
directors then made the discovery thai the Uned States
had been draining them Of their gold " on credit" and
they took steps prevent IT. by increasing the rate of
interest in June TO l-2, and in August per
Let US now return to the United States. la June,
1885, the ruin threatened by SO large an acculnuld-
ton Of the public money, aud the uses that were
made Of IT, and the unsound state OF the currency
generally, was so manifest that all parties united IN
the opinion that something must he done with II. Al
ter full discussion and great dehbrrdton, Congress,
with uncommon unanmlty, adopted the ldw to dstri-
butte the deposites among the States. Though no
free from objection, this certainly the
wlscst that could have been adopted III reference TO
the end proposed 1t depleted the Treasury, and check
ed over-ssues, bv public law, WIN full notice, easy
terms and ample time for It's execution The Presi-
dent was. unfortunately, opposed to II, aud seemed
determined not only to use every means TO prevent
its efficiency but TO prevent It's operation on the west.
and southwestern deposte banks, WHICH, IN fact,
most needed its operation With this view, he adopt
ed the famous specie Circular of Order in Coun-
cll-though the identical measure had been few days
before proposed legislative measure, aud. with al
most perfect unanmity, rejected by the Senate.
The neutrality-suspicious. only object OF this measure
was 10 SaFe from explosion some Ol
site banks III the west and southwest when they should
be called upon to comply with the deposlte law, and
surrender the public money. Ills object could not
have been to prevent oye-ssnes, such an OBJECT be-
ing inconsistent with his opposition 20 the depoSite
bill which certainly OF all others, the best con-
ceyed for that purpose. Whatever might have been
the motive the measure was an unwlse aud uniortu-
nate one, deranglng the whole internal commerce OF
the country producing panic, breaking up exchanges,
aud destroying credit, at the very time OF all others,
when the country should have been permitted 10 make
the best of its resources, without violence or sur
Prise.
Mr. said he was sorry to his friends who had
voted against this Executive throughout, now
coming forward sanctliyng an Executive triumph over
the legislative authority by acknowledging their error
His worthy friend from Connecticut had SAID that
though he had voted uniformly against H. yet that II,
" might have done some good IN SAVING the banks, =
THIS confession Of his freud was, perhaps harmless
oHenng to Executive power but as he d'd not approve
of such gatutous bencvoence at the cost OF coslsen-
cy, matter OF such Importance TO the country, he
must say 10 his friend that he entirely disagreed with
him, and must cali upon him for some OF the beneficial
effects Of this wise aud saluary measure Inc Sena-
tor himself told the next breath that the deoste
banks and all other banks broken, aud that the
public money, both specie aud paper have become UNI
available in their vaults The patient is dead and yet
the treatment is lauded If quack IT defiance OF all
remonSrances continues his treatment, aud the patient
Dies we NAV conjecture that he would have done no
better with different treatment or without Treatment!
bu, hor he coud hare do"c rorc, 1t IS somewhat DUH
cult to conceive This measure. then, condemned by
the Senate condemned BY the Cabinet, condemned by
the People, after full trial, condemned by the whole
legislative auhority and condemned by the strong ev-
denccs Of mischief it has Produced Is sui persevefed IN
by the Executive Landed for samtay effects and
was referred to by Senator Cooking at Mr. Ben
toni as the glorious specie circular. Mr. Benton
"Ics the ever-glonous specie circular. y Mr. X,
.,,h IN IL : all UlOry aud
good Where are the evidences OF your glory Is
there any thing glorious the present unhappy condi-
ton of the country Your Government msol.cnt aud
d.srraccd Our people branded by foreigners as ma
ton OF fraudulent bankrnpts aud swndlets your mer-
chants bankrupt Your manufacturers langu'snlng III
dencss and distress your planters ruined, aud two
thirds OF the laborug population OF the United States
threatened ruth actual Starvation, These are the eS-
dcnces Of the sautary effects of the measures We
are called on to gloiy. Why SIR, the Senator must
have forgotten that glory has deprecated N the market.
Like paper currency, it has been redundant aud isnow
almost as much below par as rag money; very much
for the same reason, On examlnaton we md mat
neither has had a very solid basis to rest upon
SO much (sald Mr. Klng) for the giory OF this order
now propose take more dlspassiondte aud better
reasoned view Of il as financial measure.
The PLAIN objection to the circular as hnancial inca
sur IS tina, it did violence all the laws OF trade aud
commerce bg The tOrc'hc interference ~ me 60rF"-
,uru The easing operations OF exchanges, so useiai
and necessary adjusting asceraned balances between
different sections OF the country, were suddenly ana Vo
cu,y interrupted. The useful admonton OF an uni"-
yorablc balance as indicated by The exchanges, was not
only dsrcgarded but that bdidncc jHc'hy increased
The destructive tendency of such interference by TO-
ycrnnent in the Of the country has been ac-
kuowlcdged by the Senator from North Carolina (Hr
Srange,) though thought the principle might have
been better applied by him. Such measures produce
the same effects in the same way, whenever and "her-
ever applied in free commercial country; always TAX
ing the People by surprise, and breaking up the es'ah-
ished order OF things The business OF the country Is
as ccctually dcrangcd and dsorganlscd by such vo-
ence as the human system by the destruction oil the
heart
Commerce has its laws. The people study them
i hpcnn aC-