Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1838-01-04
SKETCHES OF CONGRESS-.

WARRINGTON, Lee. EOj 1904.
"The bill to restrain the circulation of small notes in
the District of Columbia, has this day passed the Senate,
with but one dissenting vote. The provisions of the
bill are local and limited in their operation. Their OBJ
iect, is TO expel from circulation all individual and corpo-
ration notes under FIVE dollars, and TO restore 10 The pco.
pie of the District a silver currency, at least for small
change. The bill passed the Senate, at the extra ses.
sion, without any serious opposition. The friends OF
the Administration were not, therefore, prepared to ex.
pecl the vigorous attack made upon it by Mr.. CLAY and
MIR. PRESTON on Thursday and Friday last. That at
tack was renewed this morning; and it was most ti.
unphantly met and repealed by Mr.. BUCHANAN, MIR.
Wn,oHT, and other friends of the Administration.
"On Thursday last, when the bill came up, Mr.. CLAY
moved to postpone its further consideration until the
second Monday in January. He alleged the impossible
ly of supplying a specie substitute for the small notes in
circulation here, until the banks of the country should
generally resume specie payments. He said, that 1t
would be wrong to require the District banks 10 return
10 the redemption Of their notes with gold and silver,
until the New York, Maryland and Virginia banks re-
sumed and he %expatiated upon the necessity and con.
venience Of the small noles now in circulation, to the
people Of the District, as we'll as 10 strangers.
L" Mr.. BENTON said, that the argument Of the Senator
went to an indefinite po~slponement of The subject. The
argument was, that we should wait until other banks re.
suned specie payments, before we acted upon it. Until
then, shin. plasters were not to be suppressed, nor the
District banks to be required to redeem their bills with
specie. MIR. Benton denied, that any necessity existed
for the circulation of these shin. plasters. Congress it.
self expended specie enough daily 10 supply n sutficien-
cy of silver for small change. lie denied that there was
any necessity to wait for the banks generally 10 resume.
The District banks would, if the circulation Of the small
individual and corporation notes were suppressed, safely
resume specie payments al any moment. He declared
that, in his opinion, if we were TO wait for the banks ge-
nerally 10 resume, we should have 10 wait forever. A
large number of them would never resume. He de-
nounced the Opposition as the universal broken bank
shin. plaster party; denounced the Bank Con vention and
its proceedings, and affirmed that the Pennsylvania Bank
of the United States, and its friends now stood as the
sole obstacles to the resumption of specie payments.
"The motion to postpone the bill was lost by q vote of
81 to ID, all the Administration members then present
voting against the postponement.
"On Friday, Mr.. PRESTON renewed his wild and fan.
cifnl animadversions upon the bill. The bill was to be
executed by a summary process, and was 10 be applied
To all classes as if, really, all laws Of the kind were not
properly and necessarily to be enforced against oil class.
es! He talked about dipping the statute book in blood!
Mr.. Preston is a man Of vivid Imagination. He very
often draws upon his fancy for his facts, and gives
TO "airy nothing q 'local habilation and a name" The
highest penalty in the bill was fifty dollars and yet it
was compared to the laws of Draco MIR. PRESTON has
the unhappy faculty of working the ocean into a tenn.
pest, "o watt a feather, or to drown a fy:' The mantle
of the renowned PATRICK Henry, the illus,rious Vir.
gilman ancestor of the Honorable Senator, has not
fallen upon his shoulders. MIR. PREsros, again, spoke
of the oppressive bearing of the bill upon the poor PEG.
pie Of this District, when, in point of fact, the main
purpose and effect Of the bill were TO relieve them from
the miserable currency with which they are afflicted,
and 10 insure TO them a silver circulation for small
change. He assailed the Committee Of Finance affect
ed to consider it extraordinary that this subject, which
properly belonged to the District Committee, should
have fallen into the hands of the Finance Committee
attacked the financial measures OF the Executive ana
the Committee, as wild and lantastical projects, which
had proved abortive, and the failure of which was to be
visited in resentment upon the women and children and
negroes Of The District.
"Mr. Bnows said, that there was a grand project, a
grand experiment, on foot, proceeding from q certain
party in this country, 10 prevent the resumption OF specie
P,aymen,s, and 10 p~erpetuate the paper system on the
American people. As to the petjuTies, of which j. had
oeen alleged the bill would be productive, Mr.. BRowS
sald that such arguments equally applied TO laws for
INIT. Wright vindicated the Committee on Fnunce
rom the charge of having gone out Of their way to bring
IN this bill. The subject had been committed to them
oy an express order Of the Senate. In relation TO the
said that no measure affecting the currency of The coun-
Try, reported by The committee, had been adopted. One
bill only Of that character had, BY that committee, been