Herald of the times. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1830-1846, 1838-04-05
Mr. IeOIbins's speech on the
Sub-TrcasWFyB bill.

Mr.. ROBBINS addressed the Senate
as follows: go
In the fall Of the Roman empire, in the
most corrupt age Of That fall, subtle and Ia
tai poison was devised and compounded that,
without destroying life, destroyed the con-
stitu,ion wasted by slow degrees al tho
sources of health, Of ylgor, Of animation, IN
the victim reduced his manly form To a mere
skeleton OF skin aud bone and made the yet
living man 10 resemble the spectre OF tho
dead. lust such poison to this country, as
it appears to me, has been devised and COM
pounded in this sub-Treasury bill and that
ii forced down, and kept down, it will work a
change no less riehtlul and hideous in her
condition and aspect. For ] think II must
destroy a very great proportion Of al! the re-
gular business Of this country, such as II has
hitherto till of late existed as much, think,
as nine parts in ten Of thnt business. That
it will involve millions and millions Of your
fellow citizens in all the colamities of that
destruction; that it will fill your country,from
one end of it to the other, with the monldct-
inc monuments ofthut extensive ruin monu-
rcnts Of our once great, but then departed,
prosperity. That it will disable the country
entirely and forever from developing her
physical resources will lock mp TINT great
storehouse OF the elements OF national wealth
and power; elements bestowed upon us by
kind Providence, aud bestowed in bounty
and with profuson without II parallel IN any
other country, hardly IN all other countries
put together resources which, IL fully de,
veloprd, would sustain in happiness and
splcndor population of two hundred millions.
But still more caam,ous effect Of this dele
tcrious policy. | fear, would be, that, with tho
means, it would destroy the mind Of the coun-
try; would make this great people spirltless
helpless, hopeless. Talk of the calaInliles OF
foreign war in the comparison Why, this,
10 me, is to bclitle the subject; it is to com.
pare the greater evil To the less, Ia the much
less. For, though war has Its calamiies, Il
has its compcnsations too f; II imparts To
country its own vigor; and that vigor never
fails on the return of peace, soon To obliter-
ate every trace Of those calamities. Bat what
hope is left TO a country when the mind ~
gone? II is then prepared for and exposed
To every other calamity, and especnly to
that greatest of all caamtics-to foreign
domination, or Ia domestic usurpation. What
avaicd it To R0me--her vast extent of ON
pire - an empire that covered the whole ot
the then civilized world, aud much OF tho
barbarian-w hen once the Roman mud was
gone? With what facility, then, tho rude
barbarian Of the North trampled that empire
in Ae dust? At the flash of his sword her
countless millions covered, and sunk IN
trembling submission beneath his sway.
Will il be said that all THE is but declamn-
tory rant and wild speculation : that it this
policy be a poison, the proof must oome from
the trial that beforehand we can have moth
ing to oppose to it but conjecture aud imagl'
naiion and that n sufficient offset to this, Is
| conjecture and ina gination per contra?
H IN it, indeed, so? Have we no proof .
Recollcct, portion Of this same poison We
! iia"a $500. I'D have been forced to take;
and the effect of that leaves no room to '''
what will be the effects of the whole com
pound and prescription | mean that portion
Of the bull which consists in the eXaction of
the public dues in specie. We are now un-
dergoing that experiment, aud have been
! since May last, the erperims,,tum crucis-
! Attend now only to one result of that expert
/ mcnt, and To its necessary consequences,
! which will cndcavor to dcduce and lay be-
! fore you, and then doubt, it you can, whether
this policy will be poison 10 this country--
most deadly poison.
II WHY is specie now an article of mcrchan-
disc, and banished from circulation as cur
rency? as you all know j, is and has been
) since May last. 1t is because Government
has exacted its dues in specie, and thereby
las KEEP. specie at n premium IN the market
What other cuuse can there be Specie IL
not now wanted for expiration, for foreign
? exchange is below par. Instead OF exporting.
we now import specie. II is not wanted for
internal exchanges, for none of these exchan-
ees are effected in specie. There il no sucI,
thing as a draft from one part Of the country
upon another part Of the country, payable IN
specie. Nor could such drat, be obtained
ut any known rate OF exchange. Every draft
or inland bill Of exchange is purchased r'fh
papor, and paid in paper, and in nothing else,
ii is not because the banks hive suspended
specie payment; for, Notwithstanding tha',
their credit has remained good and their pa
, per constitutes the currency OF the country
the sole currency. What cause, then, other
than this cxac,ion of the public dues in spo-
, Gle, can be assigned for this extraordinary
fact. that specie hes become ar article o' mer-
cbandise, and has ceased to be currency &
| know Of none.
: When Government, to relieve this demsnd
for specie, thus created by itself authorized
1.-The issue or ten millions Of Treasury poiss,
made receivable in the payment of the public
y dues, aud, besides, Ind gwen further time los
the payment for so large an amount oi ihoso
). dues. the premium Oh specie immediately
Ind thus been relieved. II that leaves any
doubt NJ to the cause Of the premium on spe'
Gle, suppose this case Suppose the Govern
u mcnt now, TO day, were 10 soy to all 'he''
~ debtors, sWe will henccforth receive our dues
ns the private citizen receives his dues, anf
n is content to receive them. namely, 10 ih'
" psper of solyen, banks" would specie remn',
at a premium another daye Why should u
le How could il? There would he no lonRc
any spccial demand for specie and, ~itl'o"
a spccial demand, specie could mol ne at
", premium IN The market.
o This exactiop OF the public dnes IN specie
if this bill IL adopted, is 10 he tho s'and'n
policy Of the Government for oil future time
'e'I and It's steady and continued effect must b'
in as il has been, 10 keep specie at pre'n'u'
In the market aud thereby TO ban''h Il iro'
- circulation as a currency; that ", 81 iona
paper ~ IN circulation as a currency. w
must be 50, in the nature OF things. The'
canno, be, At the same time, IN the sor
Mace, twn cure nces OF different values; '
tho more valuable will cease 10 be cprIr
rst cy. md become an article OF ncrchspdis
A.. -. y.i,akIo x.ll tecptue the EXCL