The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1839-01-01
THE NEW suB-rREAsURy SCHEME.


Means of the House Of Representatives, embodied
into bill, entitled, /" tii e6ectuaiy 10 preuent
frauds in The collection, keeping, transfer AID dis
burSmeats Of the public revsnue and 10 punish public
detanltersn
This bill has been, no doub. prepared in conformi-
~ with the suggestions OF The Chief Magistrate of
the Union for the third time brought forward in his
official communications to the Congress OF the
American Republic; and after 1t had in one shape
or another been five times repudiaed by that body.
We shall not advert TO The manner in which the
scheme has been heretofore received and condemned
by The people, but shall go al 10 the bill in ques-
ton, which now awaits the action Of Congress.
The enormous populations and distractions Of the
public money which have but recently come TO light,
were well calculated TO excite prejudice in the
feelings of the people against the subordinate Off
GERS of the Executive, employed in collecting and
keeping the public money; who are appointed by
him, are accountable TO him. and are removable by
him at his pleasure. The Executive has not failed
TO avail himself Of these prejudcies while in the
height of their stence and before the public mind
had time TO come TO proper understanding of all
the facts, to bring forward a scheme, oaensibly,
having for its object TO secure more efecually the
collection and safe keeping Of the public money and
TO punish delinquents and peculators but which un
der his gie, has for its object, in reality, 10 carry
through Congress his odious ub.Treasury scheme
he has heretofore utterly failed to do in every shape
in which it brought forward by his partizans in
either House,
| Who the author Of the bill in question is. we know
mot We however hope that the Chairman of the
Committee Of Ways and Means who introduced it
into the House, WILL for the sake of his reputation
as practical merchant, dscaim all hand in its
/ ,,sp.n IL ;c daJ fhrnnu hnut
with the smoke OF the Treasury lamp, having inter-
woven with ii the empireisms of the sliding dra1ers
and Ayrostac balances Of the original author Of the
Sub Treasury scheme.
The bill itself is composed OF heterogeneous
mass of matter comprising impraclcabities, incon-
sistencies, augmentaons of Executive power, en-
dangerng, in place of adding to the security of the
public money, throwing discredt our State insti
tulions, exacting payment in specie alone for the
whole of the public revenue, from all branches
whatever holding out temptations for honest men
to become rogues, and infictng penalties which will
inevitably lead to defeating the ends Of justice and
thereby counterfeit the objects they were intended to
effect, all Of which we will endeavor to prove. In
doing SO we must necessarily confne ourself prin-
cipaly to the most prominent features of the bill,
and glancing over with but mere passing notice,
the verbiage with which it abounds.
The provisions OF the first Section make il oblig-
a,ory on the Treasurer of the United States take
charge of all public moneys which may be collected
within the district and deposited with him, by
rious officers named in the same; and, furthermore,
" to collect all other public dues which may be paya
Bile to the United States in this district" The first
part of the bill is we'll enough, and very proper,
far as The moneys that go into the hands of the va
rious officers named belong bona fde to the Uni
ted States but the last part contemplaes that which
is wholly impractcable. 1t imposes on the Treasu-
rer of the United States, the duty Of collecting all
such public dues in the District, the District At
,orney and Marshal may fail to collect. This is the
first evidence Of the want Of practical information
on the part of the trainers OF the bill. Section 3D.
is in these words:
"It shall be the duty of the Treasurer Of the Mint
of the United States, at Philadelphia and the treas
urer OF the branch mint at New Orleans in each of
said districts, respectively, to take keep, and collect
all bonds for duties at said ports, whether paid under
protest not, or before after suit or judgment;
and also, TO collect all cash duties, tonnage duties,
and custom house charges of every description, all
moneys hitherto collected by the district attorney, or
marshall OF the United States heretofore placed
in the custody of the clerk of the district court Of the
United States and any other money which may be
payable to the United States within their districts,
not appe pertaining to the Post Office Department and
erwse come into their hands"
In this section there is total disrust of every
class OF public officers, excepting those who TO be
made the repositories of the public money and the
Post Masters. We should like to know why it is
that, this latter class of officers excluded from
the acquisitions of the section Of the BILL when the
existing law is imperative that the revenue from
hostages shall be paid into the Treasury and all pay
men,s on account of that department made from it.
The section speaks of bonds paid under protest"
Now we take upon oursef to say, that such thing
was never heard of. Bonds are never protested, and
were never, therefore, paid under protest. This is
another evidence of the ignorance of the author Of
the bill Did the framer Of the bill know the p-ac-
teal operation of this part of the section, which pro-
vdes that the Treasurer of the Mint at Philadelphia
shall "collect all cash duties, tunnage duties, and
custom house charges Of every description 7" 1t is
not possible that he could. We will explain it. 1t
will be briefly this. A merchant having cash duties
or tonnage duties to pay, must first go to the Custom
| House to have the amount of the same ascertaned
and then he must go and deposite the amount in the
| mint, which is at least a mile from The custom
house. then return and get his permit, before he can
discharge his vessel or land his goods. This Is not
all The existing laws require that certain packa-
ges out of each invoice shall be sent TO the public
store 10 be examined and appraised, on which there
are charges that accrue which the owner must pay
Under this section of the proposed act he must go
to the mint and deposite the amount OF the charge,
which may amount 10 half dollar in some cases,
and more N others, before he can obtain possession
| of his property
| And why is all this trouble contemplated TO be
given to the merchants Why, simply because, the
Government has class of holding The important
Offices of Collectors of The Customs trhom ii darcs not
trust nth collecting the ordinary fees Of their Of