The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1838-08-25
ADDRESS OF THE HON. J.. G. CLARK
Tothe Republican Electors Of Chsnango
County, N. Y.
+ ,JaI
(ConcI ID


8. County, N. Y.
(Concuded.)
These instructions are plain direct and unequivo-
cal They say, substantially discount the full
amour. allowed By your Charter and 4 you nave ,e
some bank that CAN discount upon IT,"
And now, forsooih the banks are subjected to
odium by the administration, and for what for do
ing what the administration directed them TO d.
What, in private lfe would be said Of a man, who,
having directed his agents TO perform duty which
they executed promptly and agreeable TO his nstrnc.
tons, should he charge them with want OF faith and
prudence He would be visited with scorn and
contempt. The extent OF those oyer-issues has been
greatly magnifed to produce feeling against the
banks | have already shown from Mr.. Woodbu-
rvs report that they had curtailed. He says that
they had made "a great reduction In their circula-
ton as well discounts, between the time OF their
selection and that Of the suspension"
Having shownthatt the State Bank Deposite system,
through lis whole continuance, has answered all the
purposes of its institution and equallsd the expecta
lions Of Its projectors might here stop, and Justify
my vote the ground that an old well tried system
should not be discarded for new and untried ex-
pedientn The innovator In proposing new mea-
sure the substitute for old one which has work
ed WELL must show that Il possesses advantages over,
and that 4 will work better than the one proposed 70
be ubolished Time sanssi6ss and proves sllAhiness
will adhere TO old systems tested by trial rather
than ny TO new ones Eve know not OF. Il, then,
Il could be proved prma facia on paper that the Sub
treasury plan was preferable to the Deposite system
would still adhere to the latter, for the reason that
IT wants the test of practical demonstration
But ] do not rest here. The plan proposed not
only does not possess the merits Of the plan which
has been in use but il is fraught with consequences
destructive to our prosperity, corrupting in its inu
ence and dangerous to our liberties. As this com
muncation is already much longer than at first in
tended shall be brief as possible.
LIST. This Sub treasury is a Treasury bank In dis
guise As bank Of circulation, II stands revealed.
BY one Of its sections, the Secretary has an unl-
mlted discretion TO transfer in his own way the mo-
ney from one Sub-treasurer to another, and from
one point to any other The section is so extraord-
nary that transcrbe it.
SEC 10. And be il further enacted, That il shall be
lawful for the Secretary Of the Treasury to transfer the
moneys in the hands Of any depository hereby constr
ued TO the Treasury Of the United States to the mint
at Phiadephia TO the branch mint at New Orleans
or to the officers Of either of the receivers general Of
public moneys by this directed to be appointed to
be there safely kept according to the provisions Of this
act and also to transfer moneys in the hands Of any
one depository, constituted by this act to any other de-
pository constituted by the same, DISCRETION
and as the safety Of the public moneys and the conve-
nience of the public service, shall to him to re-
qure And for the purpose of payments on the public
account shall be lawful for the said Secretary to draw
upon any Of the said repositories he may think most
conducive to the public interest," to the convenience
Of the public creditors, or both"
BY the last clause, this "bank Of circulation
would be perfect. The amount of public collections
may safely be put at 10000 600 average, yearly, to
b collected af,er few years entirely in specie
drawn by the Secretary on the ub-Treasurers in
favor OF the government creditor, payable TO his
der: these of course will pass by endorsement and
become n circulating medium. That il will be as
good any paper money that can be made, there is
no doubt. 1t will pass with equal facility over the
whole country. Now no one supposes that the hold
er q this government paper, will draw the specie on
ii; for the paper is Of equal value over the whole
country and OF much greater convenience. 1t will
BE- used as remittance, and will pass from hand 10
hand as money. Thus at the end of the first year.
after the whole payments shall be made in specie,
here will be In the Subtreasury 30O0oO0O Of dol
u represented by so much Treasury paper afioat
roen n 4 the disbursements or the govern
The Sa,e Rams c n9ant Now let ask, how long
How could they stand up against this powerful com.
petitor and hoarder up Of specie backed BY the en-
tire revenue and influence Of the governments Not
two years Their specie would be all drained from
their vaults, and they would be compelled to close
their concerns.
These remarks are based upon the supposition
that the disbursements and receipts shall be equal
that there are and will be no SURPRISES But, may
we not calculate what has been will be again. An
official report from the Treasury informs US that for
the last ten years there has been an average surplus
OF $l5, 100000. This is so much money laying over
in the strong box of the Treasury; though the en-
they are not destroyed-Anteus like, she will rise
from the fall and pursue her onward course to wealth
and renown, with fresh and renewed vigor. We
shall again, before many years, have surplusses in
the National Treasury, which, of course, under the
hard money plan will be then locked up, perfectly
useless to the government or to any one.
When the Distribution Law was passed in 1886,
we had surplus of $3.50, 100000. Under the hard
money policy this amount would have been boarded,
to the great detriment of business and credit. BY
pnffh ort tha In b;c
tion may prescribe rules when this Treasury paper
shall be presented to the Subtreasurer whom
drawn 1t is all discretion, Executive discretion,
from the beginning to the end. In the hands Of an
INDUCED. But the system is to be permanent and
enduring In the course of time and events we may
have a corrupt President who would not scruple to
the public funds for the purpose of substituting the
up voters like cattle in the Market for such pur
poses, to such President, Government Bank
would be very desirable and convenient If he
could not by fair means obtain the influence Of the
State banks he would coerce them into his measures
by keeping locked up all the specie of the country
by prescribing under the section alluded to- that the
Treasury drafts might be presented at any time with
in six years, al the option Of the holder In the
mean time, this Government paper Is in circulation
and increasing every year, until at the expiration Of
six years it will have swelled to an hundred millions
Of dollars. 1t is evident that wicked Executive
could make the Sub-treasury bank of circulation,
and have no doubt he could make II bank Of dis
count and depose too, if he SO willed. Thus arm
ed, he might defy the people, perpetuate his power,
and become tyrant for life;
have said already, that before the Subtreasury
system the local banks cannot stand and have shewn
in what way they will be drained of their specie
Admitting that am mistaken in aitributing TO it the
results | have sketched-sti the natural tendency
of the system, when moved by pure hands, is TO de-
s,roy the usefulness of State institutions. Sub
treasury supposes, necessarily, that all the coec-
tions will be made in hard money. 1t would be III
dicuous to put into such treasury bank notes you
might as well have credit on the books Of a bank,
as to hold its notes The system is founded on dis
trust Of hank bills The Government refuses to re-