Martinsburg gazette. [volume] (Martinsburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1833-1855, 1839-12-12

NhrthSt regard oe Nad 10 TIE ease aad convenience /
OF the people in meeting the public lsfthens. The
snis-keeping snd collection Of the public revenge.
or the general operations oil The Treasury. ia CON
Quoting the public finances, and nphohiiae the pub
nc credtt-ati these considerations made il incpn-
bert on the Executive 20 seek carefully The inicu-
lions OF the Legislature as to the nature of the co,s-
unsency contemplated by them, and on which such
itnportant conseqlences we're 10 depend. a diver.
sity Of opinion existing as 10 the true Construction
OF the act of 1887, IN this respect, [ called on the
Attorney General for his opinion, which Is herewith
communicated TO the General Assembly. Ii will
be seen, that that officer stated. as the result OF is
reflections an the subject. and ola careful exauiua.
ton Of the law, that he was strongly Inclined to the
opinion, that the law intended to provide Tor a
case in which one OF morebsnks Ind suspended ere
Gle payments, while others continued 10 pay spe-
Gle" and that the duties required Of the Gayersor
were TO be performed in the case OF a partial .na
not a general suspension of the Banks.
The suspension which has taken place, beins al
most a general one, including. il is understood, all
the Banks in the Commonwealth. except those OF
Wheeling. and the branch OF the Bank Of Virgin.
ia, at Portsmouth, there could 20 longer be room
for doubt, as To the %propiiets of the Executive re-
framing from any action on the occasion, II the
opinion intinB,cd. by the law officer of The State, be
the true construction Of the act of 1887. The least
that could be said under tho influence of so respect
able an authority, was, that IL rs at all events, a case
of doubtful constructions; and The public convent
ence, in all such cases, being held a sound rule Of
interpretation, rs furnishing the most probable clue
to the intentions Of the Legislature, | could not but
give very great weight, in forming my own iudg-
rnent on the subject, TO the obvious aud distressing
consequences TO the public ut large, which would
result from prohibiting the receipt of bank notes,
forming as they do the general, and almost sole,
currency OF the country, at the present moment,
and demanding specie alone, in payment OF the
public dues. The consequence must have been,
either that that portion OF the revenue which re-
manned to be collected, probably one half, would
not be collected at all, or, il its collection were
e coerced by the stern process ofthe law, and that
r too, within so short an interval before tho period
D fixed for the entire payment of the revenue into tho
Treasury, a ruineus sacrifice Of property would have
taken place, greater, in ell probability, than has
0 been witnessed st any time since the Revolution ~
/. And to what end would these specie collections
have been wrung from the people, at the cost of SO
great and Distressing n sacrifice of property Ac
!. cording to the opinion of the Attorney General
founded on the positive provisions of the law of Is
%, regulating The mo lie of paying money into th'
Treasury merely that they should pass into thi
t vaults of non-specie paying banks, which woult
have given out paper only in return; for the Banks
it must be remembered, are no more obliged 10 pa
r specie ON the demands of the Commonwealth anc
its creditors, than on those of private individuals
All the distress Of these specie exaetions, then
would have been visited upon the people, withoui
any ConntefNhiiliE auNdHtoS ~ tAc opNNfniitht
or the Commonwealth.
On turning TO the other branch nf the duty inpa
sed on the Governor by the act OF 1887, in the con
tinecncy therein described, TO wit, that of removing
the deposits Of the public revenue, from the banks
wherein they are placed by la~, to some specie
paying bank, or other place Of safety, other, and il
rossible. still more serious difficulties presented
ttemselses, which gave great additional weight 90
The opinion, that the contingency described n the
scf. could not have been intended 10 refer TO a gen.
eral suspension Of specis payments by all the banks,
or, if Il did, that the execution Of the act, in The
state Of things which had arisen, was plainly i'm
practicable. There being no srecie paying bank
in the State, if the public monies we're removed
from the banks in which they are now deposited by
law. ttey must have been removed to some place of
safety, other than a bank. But to have done that,
in tho existing state Of the law, would have rrodu-
ced q complete suspension of all the operations OF
the public treasury;-a consequences which conld not
! be presumed to have been contemplated or intended
by the Legislature. As tho law stands. regulating
the receipts and payments of the public monies, no
money can be received into the treasury. but on cen
tifcates of payment first made into the bank, given
by the officers Of the banks, which are constituted
by law, the repositories o. the public revenues: nor
! can any money be paid out Of the treasury, but by
} checks drawn on those banks. The act OF 1887,
while il authorises and requires the Governor, in o
certain contingency, TO remove the public monies
from those banks, neither repeals The general pro-
vision. of the law, above referred 20, nor provides
any new mode by which money may be received in
to or paid out Of the treasury.
The whole Of our existing legislation on that sub
ieci,. is comprehcnded in tic act passed The 10Th of
February, 1929, prescribing the mode Of paying
the public monies into and out OF the tIeasury.H-
BY the FIRST section OF that act, it is provided, that
all moneis due and payable to the Commonwealth
&c, shall be paid into the Bank of Virginia, or
TURNER'S Bank of Virginia, in the manner hereafter
---t-l - - al s,tea Pic uau,a IA
<then prescribed as follows-The person liable 20
nay, is first to obtain a warrant from the Auditor of
Public Accounts or the second Auditor, directing
the Treasurer TO receive the money, The Ifeasu
rer is then TO make an order upon the warrant, d-
recting the proper officer OF one OF The Banks TO re-
ceive the same. The certificate Of the bank officer,
that the money is paid, is Brought to the Treasurer,
who then gives a receipt for the money. This re-
ceipt is carried to The Auditor, and he gives a dis
charge. The second section anacts, that If any
person shall pay any public money whatsoever to
the Treasurer, otherwise than according 10 the pro-
visions aforesaid, be shall remain liable therefor, as
il he had not paid il. The third section provides,
that all public monies shall be kept in the banks a.
foresaid, in the name of the Treasurer of the Com
monwealth; md the fourth, that the Treasurer shall
have no authority to draw any money standing 10
his credit aforesaid, in either bank, except by his
check drawn on a warrant issued by one OF the Au-
ditors.
his law, IL VIII uOupie5f oc iSSoiVANu " AN
General Assembly, was passed upon great delihera'
lion. after experience had demonstrated the deiec-
,iveness and insecurity offormcr resolutions on the
subject, and was intended to introduce and establish
an entirely new system in the receipt, safe keeping
and disbursement ofthe public monies. 1t IS EN-
rha,ically the organic law OF the public Treasu-
nv in Virginia, and until repealed or modified by the
Legislature, the only competent authority, it must
be regarded as n binding rule Of action to the pub
lie officers and all others concerned.
This then being the existing state OF the law, let
it be supposed that IT had been determined TO re-
move the public monies from the banks, under the