The Rhode-Island Republican. [volume] (Newport, R.I.) 1809-1841, 1838-08-22
NEWPORT.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 90, 1885
SPECIE PAYMENTS.

IL, "o"iu impress upon our readers, and "
'Ir ask for it an attentive perusal.
There is now general resumption {
NC specie payments, ard business resumes it
,g won,ed channels md activity, in spite {
n the panic mukers. There nre few hank
he ing institutions, in the out skirts of IN
40 Union, that have not yet come into IN
nc measure, aud perhaps never may, but the,
~ are but exceptions to the sound mass. en
IS such as frequently exist, IN the best O
= times. The great regulator" has exerte,
" himself TO the utmost to prevent a return
: to honest specie paying times, and his satel
lites, wherever they dared to brave public
r opinion, were ready to 60 with him to the
, death. But thanks to the spirit of a free
people, he has been bafiied, sisnaIIy baffied
in his endeavors to prolong the pressure.
IL was but about four months ago, that Mr..
; Bddle refused to unite with the New York
banks, in their endeavors to bring about
specie payment. In the general conyen-
ton of banks he wns voted down, but still
he insisted on standing behind his " cotton
bags" He appealed afterwards to another
convention of banks, situated in his own
Stale principally, where 1t was supposed
his influence would be omnipotent But
here again, so late as June last, he was
thrown into minority; a vote of III to 4
proclaimed that an insulted people would
no longer tolerate the banks in the course
they were taking, and that u RESUMPTION
must be the order Of the day. After bay-
ing been thus out voted, in two different
conventions, MIR. Biddle then concluded TO
make merit Of necessity, and under the
shelter Of Governor Ritner's proclamation
which he advised, he now avows himselfl
to be real hard money financier, and has
the unblushing impudcnce to take to him
self the credit of n general resumption of
specie payments. This out Biddles BiddIe.
This resumption is the most bitter pill
tor the wings that they have ever taken.
1t f"ls'ties all their prophecies. and exposes
the wlckedness of their attempts to proloug
the panic. They insisted from the first
that there never could be resumption. un.
hl Congress should charter a NATIONAL
Bank. This, it now turns out, was more
OIL a political maneuver than any thing else,
to force II bank charter for Mr.. Riddle from,
Congress. Hence he was among tho first
to suspend, and the last to resume. If,he
President had flinched, in requiring the
constitutional currency for all public dues,
when The banks ceased to perform their du.
'es' or had Congress yielded to the panic.
and erected National Bank, the present
resumption would have been attributed by
the wings 10 those causes. Bu, as !, is
they cannot catch at such straws IN s,ve
themselves. 1t is owing to the Sub-T,ea-
s"ry, which has been practically in force
Tor the last sixteen months, that we are now
brought back to specie paying times. The
wise policy in this respect adopted Inv q
, Democratic administration, and pa,rio,ical.
~ persisted IN by the President, has brought
ABOUT return to specie payments. in n
"ucn shorter time than it was pretended to
have been done by the Bank of the Uni.
ted States, after its incorporation in ls,6
5 Us asked what measure in particular of
INC administration or the President, has
$ produced this effectl We answer-,L.
very measure which Daniel Webster i,
ioio' when he was opposing a National
} nanS' said were the only true and safe
b measures Tor restoring confidence. md
: bringing the State banks back to their duty
In speech, which Mr.. Webster tho, do.
! lTered' he used This emphatic lappu,ge-I
rank loco focoism-as it would now be
4 eai'eo' 1t was in the midst of Just such n
I suspension in 1916, as this, which ~. h,v.
: now gone through.
e Inc whole strength of the government,
I I'a'd MIR. Webs,er) ought to be mn, forth
, TO compel the poysent of TIC du6s, ,ns
: 'dre'' " the id'etui currency ofns limited
STATES. GoLp AND SILVER was III. ,,,x ,s
the land at home, and the law of tho world
. abroad The only legitimate portr Of Con-.
. s'''s Hd'' to ''terdiet the paper Of such
od"S'' as do not pay specie, from be;re ~.
ee'ced at he cHstsm houses"
This has been done for the las, s;,,ss,
months The whole strcagh of the
government" has been put forth, to eomnel
The payment of the duties and taxes. "ip
the lawful currency of the country /" and -
'"'erd'e' the paper of such banks, a, do no,
: pay specie, from being received >, tho 90.
tom houses" Aud now, behalf Il.
suI'', III general resumption. No ,d,,;n