The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1838-04-05

as heretofore Il is TO have nothing TO do with them
but is 10 collect and dsburse It's by it, own
means and its own officers
The receipt Of the notes Of speciepayng banks Is to
be parliay allowed for some time but IS TO be gradn
ally discontinued and SIX years hence, we are TO arrive
the maturity and the perfection Of the system when
that suspicious day comes, Government Is TO receive
and pay out gold aud silver aud nothing but gold
silver
Now. Mr. President, let rs anticipate this joyous
epoch let Us suppose the six years 10 have expired
and let us imagine this bill, with it's specie payments
and ALL TO be ~ full operation at the present hour what
will that operation bel In the first place. dsregardng
all question Of public convenience, the general inter
Of the people, how Will this system work as mere
mode Of collecting and paying out revenue Let US
Our receipts and expenditures may he estimated,
each, at thirty millions year. Those who think this
estimate either too high low, may make the ne
cessary allowance. Here, then, is the sum Of thirty
millions 10 be collected and paid out every year; and It
is all TO be counted, actually told over dollar after dol
lar and gold piece after gold piece; and how many
times counted Let us inquire into that. The I'M
porting merchant, whose ship has arrived, and who has
cash duties 10 pay, goes 10 the bank for his money and
the cllers II out this is He carries II TO
the customhouse pays it, and the clerks count IL
that is twice. Some days afterwards, the collector
takes it out OF his bags ard chests carries II TO the re-
ceiver generals Office and there II is counted again, and
poured into the bags aud chests of that Office that Is
the lniTu time iItsthtIy warrant coHits ihe
Treasury IN favor OF discussing officer. and the
boxes opened, and the necessary counted out
this the fourth counting And, filthy and lastly the
dsbursng officer pays 1t to the persons entitled TO re-
ccye H. contracts or for PENSIONS salaries, or other
claims. Thirty millions OF hard money are thus 10 be
handled and told five times in the course Of the
year and # there be transfers from place TO place, then
Of course, il is TO be counted much oftener Go
vernment officers therefore, 10 count over one hum
dred and City millions Of dollars year which, allow
ing three hundred working days in The year, gives five
hundred thousand dollars day. But this is not all.
Once quarter the naval officer to count the collect
ors money, and the register in the land Office is to
count the receivers money. And moreover, sir, every
and then the Secretary Of the Treasury to author
ze unexpected aud mprompfu conntngs, in his dscre-
ton, and Just to satisfy his mind
Sir, what money counting, tlnkltng, Jluglng gene
ration we shall be All the money changers in Solo
mons temple will be as nothing TO Us Our sound will
90 forth unto all lands We shall all be like the king in
the dltty IN the nursery
There sat the king, counting Of his money"
You will observe, sir, that these receipts and pay
mens cannot be made 10 parcels, without the actual
handling Of each piece OF coin. The marks kegs of
dollars and the labels bags of goid not be
trusted These part Of eredit-and all credit, all
trust, all confidence, is be done away with. When
the surveyor, for instance al the cusomhouse, is to
e1athc The money hand IN possession OF the collec
tor receiver general he IS OF course to count the
money. No other examin ation come to any thing
He cannot tell, from external appearance, from the
weight whether the collector has loaned out the money,
and TILED the bags and boxes up with sand and lead, or
Nor counterfeit pieces be otherwise detected
than by actual handling. He must examine, ne must
count And SO al the land offices, the mnts and else
where, If these officers shall have taste for silver
sounds, they are all likely to be gratifed
Mr.. President, IN all sobeness is no, this whole ope
ration preposterous! .,'.. ..a....
1t begins by proposing to keep tho public moneys.
This, ITSELF the the word here used, per-
feet novelty, especially in the United States Why keep
the public moneys that Is TO say why hoard them, why
keep them out of use The Of money is in the
change II is designed TO circulate, not to be boarded
All that Government should have do with it,
ceive it to-day, that II may pay 1t away Tomorrow 1t
should receive it, before it needs 1t and it should
part with 1t as soon as 1t owes It, To keep that Is,
detain it, TO hold it back from general use TO hoard
it, a conception belonging 10 barbarous times and bar
barous Governments How would it strike US, if
should other great commercial nations acting upon
such system II England, with a revenue Of fifty
millions sterling year, were found TO be collecting and
disbursing every shilling of it in hard money, through
all the ramcations Of her vast expenditure, should
no, think her mad But the system is here, be.
cause whdraws just so much actual capital from the
of country that requires capital, and paying
terest for capital wherever 1t can obtain 1t,
But now, sir allow to examine the operation OF
this measure upon the general interested commerce and
point oWew, the first great question is, What amount
Of god and strcr 'rW hiS operation subrdet from the
circulation Of the country, and from the use Of The
banks
In regard to this important inquiry we not with
out the means OF forming some judgment. An official
report from the Treasury, made the other House,
shows that for the last ten years. there has been, at the
end Of each year, average fifteen millions and four
hundred thousand dollars in the Treasury. And this
sum exclusive of all that had been collected of the
people but had yet reached the Treasury and also
of all that had been drawn from the Treasury by dis
bursting officers but which had not yet been by them
paid to individuals. Adding these together, sir,
and the result is, that average for the last ten
years there have been at least twenty millions of dol
lars in the Treasury do not of course, that this
sum is the whole OF it, unappropriated. mean that
this amount has in fact been the Treasury either not
appropriated not called for under appropriations
that this Sub Treasury scheme had been in operation,
in times past, Of the specie In the country, twenty mil
lions would have been constantly locked up the safes
and vaults. Now, sir. do not believe that for these
years the whole amount of silver and gold in the
country has exceeded average, fifty sixty mil
lions | do not believe it exceeds sixty millions the
present moment and If we had now the whole system
in complete operaton it ould lock up, and keep lock-
ed up one full third Of all the specie in the country.
Locked up | y--hoarded-rcndered useless to all
purposes of and business, if it were car
RED back its native mines. Sir is it not nconceiva-
Die that any should fall upon such scheme Of poll
CIV as this Is II possible that any one can fail to
the destructive effects of such policy the
and the currency Of the country!
1t is true the system does not come into operation all
at once. But it begins its demands for specie immed-
aely it calls upon the banks and 1t calls upon lndvldu
ais for their hard dollars, that they may be put away
and locked up in the Treasury, al The rcry moment chcn
The country IS suffering for The of specie IN
The circuaiion and The banks suffering for 10
enable them 10 resume their payments. And this, 1t is
expected, will improve the currency, and facilitate
sumption!
1t has heretofore been asserted, that the general
Of the needed TO be STRENGTHENED by the