Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1838-05-01

u specie; n" credit; revenues; price for property
lenGer iaw'-p!opSrty Ihws--repl"vin aws-s,ay laws
The order Of the dayi An entire sl8gnaon OF business
followed, mol fictitious. but real and such was the fall
IN the price OF all produce, al property and the wages
OF all labor, owing 10 the failure vi the banks and the
absence oil specie, that 81! debtors placed in The
Jaws o. RUN, and most OF them entirely ruined There
was no lrasrry order then; no removal of depoScs;
no veto; no Jackson administration to ruin the country
YET The distress aud suffering actually then what
falsely said TO be- and wickedv attempted 20 be made
Al present There is comparison between the slate
ol Things then and nov
At this epoch this second explosion of the pacer svs.
tenn, came into the Senule Of the United States [
came here IN the autunr o. 1870 | travelled from
the Mississippi TO the Potomac amidst the crash Of fail.
lug banks The wrecks of pager currency and the Ia.
ineniatIons o suffering nat!oa arrived here 10 sec
Government without dollar and borrowing money
10 pay lis daily expenses which, the year before boosted
revenue OF forty millions and oIrienled itself
WIN schemes L" get rad OF Icsrs icomnIenceG nv
SENATORIAL career under these crcumstances-circum
stances 10 make ME mediate, and make the feel
happily, my associations were with the fathers of the
hePubIc-witt Macon and Randolph whose intimacy
enjoyed, and whose friendship possessed Ny read.
M was that OF the early history of thu Governments
The Revolution, The Confederation the formation Of the
Constitution OF 81 end the workings of the machine.
~ OF the Federal Government under the admnisra.
lions uf the earlier Pr sidents WasngrUn A dams and
Jefferson he result OF this association, and OF this
reading, was thorough conviction l. Fiat lbe FEEDER.
al Constitution vas formed hy hard money men, and
intended 10 be hard moGGy Government: 3 That
1t had been converted INTO paper money Government,
contrary TO the genius and Intention of the Constitutions
5. That this departure from The Constitution was the
Of the moneved calaniiies during the war and
again at that time; d. hat the remedy for these calan
l"s was 10 return 10 the plain Gaming Of The Innstuun
expressed III the Of 1889 and conhne
the receipts and expenditures Of the Federal Govern
rt To gold and silver only These were my con.
y'con: and NJ soon as circumstances WIRE aaSscIous
Tor action, Commenced series If aGsufe5 all lrndinpto
cary back the fiscal ictnn of The Government To the m
!eGon OF The CONSTITUTIONS fully believing, that If the Fe.
dra! Grvernmenl would require gold and silver for lis
own rPasury, would cause enough 10 BE- brought nio
lhP country and 10 remain IN the country, to supply the
whole body ui the people wi!h hard money Tor all lhec
c"rn'.on and ordinary dealings ard transactions itwas
not until Gen jackson adinuisratIrp that was able
tn taSr any strong and direct towards the
compshmen oi the great "hect which presented itself
to TIE LlcIou3 Mr. MGCun u,irn said ne,
ihGt IL IN vain att'mpl reform, uurss The
Administration s with you The election Of Grnrrsi
Jackson gave such an Administration. FI"n TINT time
there President not only To avor but 10 take the
lead the great business of restoring the constitutional
currency aud my part BECAME subordinate and easy
had only T. explain and defend the great measures
which his sagaclty and patriotism conceived end recon-
tncGdcd
II is not necessary TO dwell on these measures much
less 10 enter n0w into any defence Of them. brief
will suffice. l. No National Banks.
j
and their chartered right pay the Federal in
their notes, in itself clear breach OF the Con-
strulIon and blnshed gold and silver from the Treasu
~, and, by diminishing demand for IT, lied from
the county Z. To restore the gold currency by
rectng the standard ct gold. 3 The repeal
cpl!oTs the gold and silver coins of all foreign coun
TT 4. The multiplication OF the minis, both fer the
purpose Of Ginning money in different parts ." the Union,
aud for becoming places Of depose and safe keeping Of
the public moneys. s. The suppression Of all local
NJ
power over the banks Of the Stale the ony mode Of
accomplishing this object was by lie revenue Tegua.
tins of the Federal Government, and by operating
public opinion IN the different State Ny own lmit
vas one hundred do!lars-b but did not attempt to
bsh it, because knew that could not succeed. My
conviction clear that there ought TO be no bdnk
note under one hundred dollars
Such wrre 20. restoring The cnnencyo Of
the Constitution to the Golfers Of the Federal Treasury,
aud supplying the country with gold and silver for all
Tie Common ordinary .rarGactions and dealings
The success, notwithstanding powerful combined pa
iillcal aud mOneyed opposition astonshngly great
The rccharrr f National Bank sunk under the ve",
sustained by public opinion The act for the correction
the und standard Int the point OF correction with such
pp RECT accuracy that the coins gold and sIlve; is
suing from Mint. have pr, cseIy III" value ~
the money market Uuder Tie suspicious operation OF
that act gold has RISEN In little more than three
years from nothing Is Millions and will probably rise
To - millions before the termination Of Mr. Van Buren,
term The for rep"ahg the acr or fel9 and
10! restoring Drfg cons 10 cTcnh'ion mas sent cS
can dollars into every part OF the Union and has enabled
other foreign coins both gold and silver, 10 make some
progress ~ penetrating country Silver has increis.
ed thrcsiold 1892 and silver and gold togeh'r,
iouru.d Our specie 20 millions then; it's ~ nov,
" h the prospect of exceeding hundred millions before
the present terra Of Mr. Van Brren out oar currency
in existence is abundant end more solid than ,ever
bcnrr bat the specie part OF II - Suppressed ny
the power and policy of the Bank Of the U 5 com.
hnsd with the politicians and that part OF The oahks
had nod IN
crate upon small and to exclude those uncer ~
dol ars from revenue altogether and to exclude
all others which not convertible into gold ana ell
yer UpGn tie Sp0t, at the VII o! the holder, ana
without loss or delay 10 hin Public opinion had pre-"
awakened the subject OF small notes; ana me
every where we're moving towards Inc
suppression Of all under twenty dollars such was he
pruGess and such the srccsss OF our measures III May
last eight hundred banks stopped payment al "hP'
shut down close all the specie IN ihPir vaults or-
nyInp a nine pence picayune, five cent piece, even,
10 the Government whose thirty millions oi aepn7es they
held or TO the community who held hundred and TWEEN
tv millions Of their notes! In the midst ct profound
nsnce general prosperity. un1er Government without
taxes and without public debt with four times as much
specic az was in it FIVE years before, came this crash Of
the banks It came like clap Of thunder in cloud
less sky. In moment as 1t "ers Government,
with thirty millions Of revenue Oh hand, was lett VAN
ou shilling in one moment. nation oil hiteen MI.
lions of souls as deprived Of nrepences for the markc
or the post Office As if TO proclaim their design to DO
ni.h ali specie from the land simultaneous aud un'v'f
sal dsluge Of small notes and shin plasers was poured
upon the penpa; and he significant cry sset up 'ha'
specie payments could be restored until Na'i"n
al Bank was established. This cry explained the MOI"
cause Of the general snppage and the sole cause ~ ~"
shin plus,er and small mole issue
Al,his took place in May ls37 II was f'pe'uon:
r;,b,nt the excuse of Of the bank explosions o!
,i ar in sl4 twas the second poson Of the banka
since the wnr, and in profound peace 1t was expected
to asound ,prifv subdue Distress and c"erce the coun
try into submission to The re establishment OF the Ma
,''i prk, result, that would have been inevitable
L.d !, no b.en for the eighty millions Of gold and sill
ver which Jsckson's administration brought into the
..,,o,,v and which has well kept up the value Of
hank notes that those which are in good credit are now
~ moro Than one two per cent. below par. THIS
,;.d e,oIoson in twenty FIVE ysars-,hs second explo
, in time Of peace this loss Of national revenues as
f hy enchantmentthis disappearance Of sP-ce, 90