The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1839-04-13

the purpose Of preventing the sxeessss III business
This excess oi which we hear 50 much Is more or
less incident TO every system OF credit II results
from The very nature Of our free institutions II sS
10 lis own selfregulation the evils arising from Il
would be comparatively smail--and would bear M
asSgnable proportion 10 the unnumbsred advantages
flowing from the system ITSELF The great ditRrnbr
lies la The ofiicious intermeddIing OF Legislative
uuackery Excuses in the business as In the moral
world, are generally mosl injurious 10 thuse who
commit them; and IL left alone in due time regu
late and cure themselves. The great evil Tes1L,
from the interference Of others to regulate them bv
artificial means. | once listened TO homeIy bGt
very jusi, illustration Of this IN liter board Of one
OF our North River steamboats,. II was during the
agitation of the Sub Treasury scheme in Congress.
and which became the subject Of discussion on boai
the boat-Congressional orators had said much abou,
The excuses in business, and The necessity OF The
Sub Treasury scheme 10 regulate and repress them
These arguments were repeated by some Of these
stea0nng orators this occasion. After the whole
subject seemed 10 be exhausted By those who bad
been engaged In IL, plain, respectable elderly
looking farmer, who had been during The whol,
discussion, mere locker on" 'gged 10 say few
words. He said, that in the course OF long life i.
had always found in his farming operations. tbat
mere hsorics amount 10 nothing, and that thew Were
worse than useless, u.less accompanied by a sound
practical common sense in their application just 50
said he, is IL with theories in currency or finance
unless They are accompanied by this practical com.
mon sense, they are not only injurious but some.
times destructive 70 the business Of the whole com
muniy; they are not, said he, like The experiments
Of the farmer confined TO himself they operate upon
the whole country every interest is affected BY
them, and ruin and desolalion sometimes follow in
their train. Such he continued, would be the effect
OF this Sub-Treasury scheme. The very agitation
OF the question, and the effort that is now making 10
force upon The people, have already produced mis-
chiefs far beyond those excuses which is designed
10 remedy. II reminds me, said the farmer, OF
neighbor Of mine who occasionally gets as we say
in The country, " a e over the bay" or as some
call it, "pretty we'll 10 live, or as others term i,
" about three sheets in the wind" or half
over, or as il is more accurately defined " about
shirtiR fcidLi," that is no, quite yard but db.l
three quarters. Now, said he, this man has been
guilty Of excess. He has brought il on himself,
and is The principal sufferer. Its true, may suffer
incidentally, from having such neighbor ba, it is
he who feel The effects OF his debluch most sensiby
and his experience will prevent him, for long time
at least, from engaging in another. ] remember,
said he 10 have seen him morning, after his in
diligence night in the Undertaking cup, and asked
him. how he did, He replied, he had bad head
ache, pain in his back, stomach deranged, bowels
oul Of order, and didn't feel very well himself Now,
said The farmer, your Sub Treasury scheme, for
regulating The currency, would be like calling in a
Quack Doctor to give physc, not only to this
drunken man. but force 1t down the throat Of every
well man in the neighborhood.
This scheme said Mr.. t., was repudated by Gene
raj Jackson, BY Mr. Van Buren,, and by the whole party
in s34.5 when it was brought forward in the House Of
Representatives by an opposition member from Virgil
MIA The state bank deposte system was exolled to
the skies The Secretary of the Treasury then
eloquent praise of system, which, since the of
the administration against it, it has been DESTROYS
demolish The awkwardncss Of his efforts to unsav
what he had well said beiore-hs attempts to justify
his hard money doctrines backed they by the DIS
seration OF the consul at Havana, place him in
viable position between the American people. Under
such circumstances should not be surprised at the
lucid in which he sets forth the financial policy
nf ead, II If
by member OF legislature years since, in pur
suance OF promise TO keep his friend advised OF all
that was going at Albany: can only recolect the
first sentence, but that will be sufficient for the purpose
bic TO communicate that to others whereof we ourselves
not possessed of-for in doing. apt to fall
into many which it is very difficult to eradicate
them"
There is another view Of this subecs said Mr.. T.
which will merely present for your consideration, the
bare statement of which will show the utter absurdy OF
this Sub-trcasury scheme Il is hisIf il be proper
measure to be adopted by the general government 1t Is
also proper for the several states There is
object proposed to be accomplished by it in the former,
which would I've fully accomplished by its adop
ton the latter Would such proposition be listened
to, for moment, any State Of this Union trust
not How would il fare in the legislature Of our own
State Suppose It were proposed to dispense with the
use of banks in the safe keeping of the public money
and that our canal tolls, auction and salt duties and
the notes Of sound specie paying banks Such pro-
position would not get single vote in its favor unless
q Slam, Bang q Co." should happen to be members
And STILL this policy which could not receive the sup
port Of single member Of any Legislature in this Union
is to be persisted in the part of the general admins
traon, the settled policy Of the government and the
people and their representatives be forced into its
How long shall this executive dctaon be
tolerated Will the people longer submit tot Or
will they like the ancien, Hercules rise IN their strength
and cleanse the Augean stablei Shall this, like his be
one Of the twelve labors which the exigences of the
times call upon them to perform! For nine years the
King Of Ellis kept several thousand oxen, without clear
Ing out his stables Hercules cleanscd them in single
day. by dverting from its ancient channel and turning
through them the river Alpheus. For about the same
period, and with similar neglect, have the executive
stalls at Washington been occupied. The broad cur
rent of public sentiment has already began set that
direction. Let it continue To flow has commenced
and It's resstess force will soon sweep away the cattle
which have SO long iattencd at the public crib.
coud add much more on this and kindred subjects,
bnt fear have already detained you long. 1t Is
sufficient to say, that in my judgment the adminstra-
on Is wholly incompetent to the discharge OF the hgh
duties required Of 1t by the country cannot better IL
ustrae my views Of its ncompetency and ncspaci'y,
than by reading extract from late number OF Black
woods Magazine, in which the Melbourne admnistra-
lion of England is off at length though far be
rom me TO compare that administration, however inca
pabe, with the one we have at home
"I'hree years ago." says Blackwood, "Lord Brough.
am sent the Melbourne Cabinet into the world with
The brand of The Incapables" on its forehead
Among all changes Of principle and practice, they have
been true to their title They intend nothing and they
we're incapable Of nothing; and they hare fulfilled BON
their intention and their capacity. The country has
gone without them They more responsible
for its movements than the barnaclcs the ships bot
tom responsible for the ships The business
OF the barnscles is to cling where they have been once
stuck on, and their instinct is TO repe any force that
would scarpe them Off The Cabinet have the same
business and the same instinct, and more. They
would perhaps like tho barnacles, have sense oil
if the ship to be bgcd against tho
rocks broken up by utter roiteness but like them,
they will only follow their natural impulse in cnging