The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1839-10-19

with specie, that The Government mighi, W w
few years, be tempted 10 give the holder discreon
i'm the matter The people themselves would demana
| Id You would then have the sub treasury banking
institution, conducted principles similar 10 those
upon which the celebrated bank o. Ams,eraan asa
business Like as In the case OF that bank L might
soon be discovered that there would be no Likelihood
Of all the silver being called for al once and con-
sequently that large portion might DC loaned oo',
or made way with BY the conductors Oh inc ihs'''u
/ ton.
4 But again supposng your whole banking system
should even be endangered, (and recoect II IS mere,
as in mechanics, the weakest link In The chain Is me
measure of the strength OF the whole sysiem,) inc
| banking system being endangered, credit and CONN
| denee OF course would fail, great contraction
would take place in the circulating medium, pdnk-
1 rupcy aud distress would cover the land-can you
doubt for one moment, 10 what quarter The eyes OF
all would be turned for relief In such period oil ca
| lamiIy Most assuredly TO your sub-lreasury Just
! al such period its strong boxes might DC gaatsa
with the precious metal. IL would then nave t an
/ life blood the very soul Of the banking system All
that would be wanting would be 10 endne Il win The
| forms and privileges Of the system And does any
doubt that people, ground into the very dusl py
momentary pressure, would hesitate for momen,
| 10 confer such privileges when immediate relief
| might be the consequence You might almost as
4 soon expect the shipwrecked mariner TO hesitate IN
| seizing the plank that fortune had thrown IN ms
way TO suppose that the representatives oi DIS
tressed and suffering community, would pause to
calculate he remote consequences oil measure,
| which would check for the present the oyerwheim
1 ing tide Of national calamity. The experience OF
modern times has shown, but too conclusiyely, mat
Ia the agony OF commercial commissions, PATRIOTISM
! and virtue will be sacrificed the shrine Of present
interests.
So far have been considering what the people
| themselves would be willing TO do--what change
they would be likely to call for in this subreasury
system. have been supposing the Executive all the
| time entirely passive. But can we anticipate such
lconlentedness, such inertia Those VINO 90, nave
more confidence in the integrity and rectilude OF hui
1 man nature under strong temptation than have.
No you may rest assured, that, sooner or later,
some popular executive would breathe the breath Of
life into the system. You talk OF this and that de-
vice to restrain the executive, of this and that pro-
| vision to make your Sub-treasury work according
| TO your anticipations! Vain deusion. You are
| bul binding the sleeping Samson with slAen fhreads!
Your executive win watch for his times and seasons
/ Of encroachment He viii build up and arm in his
/ own defence This mighty ally, and wo be to that
country that shall witness the consummaiion Of
| such monstrous alliance
/ Mr.. Calhoun relies upon what he terms tho anita
gpniscal position Of the State Banks TO the Federal
Government as soon as the latter should be diyor
ced from the former. But what, let me ask can be
the value Of such antagonism, when you have
drained the banks of their life-blood2 Enfeebled
and exhausted their struggle will be for mere exist
ence. They will become the crouching slave OF the
executive, ready to do his bidding. No, sir. But
give the president OF the United States the subrea-
sury, henmed in and guarded by all the devices
which The wisdom Of man can devise, and will
venture the prophecy that not one generation will
pass away, before all the rammes will be removed,
every obstacle be overcome, and your sub-treasury
will Stand forth confessed to the world, colossal
banking institution, controlled and directed by the
executive and his mnons. Rest assured, that the
Rubcon can never stop the onward march OF an am
bilious man. when an empire Is the stake Tor which
he is struggling.
The constant transfer Of large amounts Of specie
from one point to another which the sub-treasury
system would necessarily produce, constitutes ano-
| Their formidable objection to the scheme. Three
.Ft kn tie aatnIn Nam
while not one-twentieth Of the disbursements take
place there. The sub-treasurers must then draw and
| redraw each other. These checks and drafts will
be thrown into the circulation, and will influence the
currency. This is banking. Moreover gold and
silver will be eternally on the road or the waves
FIRST seeking the points of collection, the sea board
towns, then travelling back to the points Of disburse
ment Now, every one, who knows any thing flhe
nature Of commerce in a country like ours, knows
that the system works best when the specie is in
state OF comparative repose. Specie, IN country
full Of banks, is like ballast in ship; il rust be
kept fixed and steady. When you place it loose
the top, and it begins 10 move and roll TO and fro
with the rocking OF the vessel you may expect TO be
capsized by the very first blast that blows. This sys
tenn will have tendency towards specie plethora at
the points of expenditure, and depletion al the
points Of collection. And this very fact will make
the taxes the most oppressive possible, because OF
the difficulty OF paying them when specie is defcent
and it would push the expenses Of the Government
always TO maximum, because of the redundancy at
the places of expenditure And this consider an
argument of no little weight. The Florida campaign
has cost Sl0,0O0000. Suppose you had sent your
strong boxes filled with gold and silver, and had
poured this amount into the circulation there; could
you wonder at sack OF corn selling for $40 or $50
and barrel Of flour for $75, and steamboat being
chartered for three or four weeks at cost which
would pay for its construction The nations OF an
quity avoided this evil in great measure, by col
ecting large amount of the revenue in Kind and
by levying heavy contributions in provisions where
yer their armies marched.
In conclusion, | will make remark or two
what is called the Pet Bank system, and its late
supposed failure. In the first place. sir, ! am very
far from thinking the banks the sole cause, or even
the main cause, of the mania for speculation which
we have recently had and The consequent disastrous
revulsions, terminating in the suspension OF specie
payments. The impulse was undoubtedly hrst COM
municated by the rise in the price of cotton Thing
wholly extraneous TO our banking system That
lasted several years. during which time western
lands, negroes and almost every species of agricu-
ura product felt the influence of the steady demand
for cotton, Then came the independence Of Texas,
which intoxicated thousands with dreams OF wealth
and aggrandiZment in that fanced I'll Dorado Then
our whole population got upon the move almost the
whole OF lower Virginia at one time was in the mar
ket. The tide set in with an overwhelming impetus
towards the cotton country. Every man who could
have reasoned at all, might have seen that most
tremendous pressure must come upon the engine, II
ever the price Of cotton, which was the great Atlas,
UNFOLDING the whole supersructure, should fail. Ia
the mean time, sir, must say, that In this crucal
condition of things, man who, whatever might be
his general merits, posterity will be found to confess
great financial 'quack was placed at the head OF
government II is the case with such men general
~ that their confidence in themselves and reckless
ness OF consequences are exalted in proportion to
I their want of knowledge and foresight. Can we
then wonder at the consequences, under these CIR
cumstancesl And after ALL do not consider the
suspension Of specie payments as proof OF failure
This is an occasional evil, incidental 10 the credit
system. We are all even now well content with
bank notes, and SO would the government creditors
have been, but for this hue and cry about hard mo-
ney; and under all circumstances, doubt whether
the government will loose above few thousand dol
lars Is il fair 10 say then that the experiment proves