Wheeling times and advertiser. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1839-1849, 1840-10-06

the President at the last session, through the Trea-
sury Report. Mr.. Benton's resolution. and Mr.. Crundy's
Report, and the Administration press. there seems a
systematic Effort to injure The character and credit of
States ihnt have undertaken large internal improve
mcnts They are represented ss much injured. bur
dened with useless railroads. and canals, and as having
Incurred debts. by the issue of bonds. which il would
DO difficult TO cNinguish.
Let us zee under what circumstances these debts
were contracted. A few facts. dates. and figures may
I've important IN this inquiry. Aud first. I here to-day
IN your presence charge upon the administration OF the
General Government the great expansion of paper
money. IND its sudden contraciiOn; both 80 ~fearfUlly
dcranging the affairs Of the country. Tproceed to prove
this. To GO bcck no farther than 1882. when
the Veto sculed the point that tho United States Bank
would not be Te-chartered. We will take the years by
series OF tens and 6ves. and trace the creation of hanks.
During the 10 years from lS20 20 1880. only % new
banks were chartered IN the United States. with an
aggregate capital of sight millions. During these ten
years, The Bank of the United States was In operation.
and no one doubted that II would be re-chsrtereJ. In
he ten years frum 1899 to 1910. ui lsss than 3lS
banks were chartered. against - in the proceeding
and they added POS millions to the previously existing
banking capital instead Of 30 millions a. in the prece.
ding ten years. This remarkable expansion OF hanking
capital was during the charming and successful reign
of the Experiment. BIT IL was not only by the means
of banking capital that expansion was encouraged.
for after the extraordinary proceeding of removing the
deposites. II was made the duty of all dcsposIie hanks
to lend money freely tn merchants. Secretary Taney.
in September. 1894 old the hanks il was their duty
TO discount freely; and that The money of the govern
nienl should be applied TO mercantile uses. 81 far
was this pushed. that a cashier in this street said "he
hardly know what to do. for he was ordered by Gov
eminent to lend money more than he knew how to
getsecurty tor" IL was then from the multiplied
ion OF hat Ks. and Of discounts by order Of the Trca-
sury. that the expansion ensued. IL may he said
there were expansions and conlrnctions unler the L.
nied States Bank. No one denies il; the administra.
! tlon oi that RINK a a uf alyyavs nerfecf. hat f,L. IN.
half centur, during which we had u national Bank.
and ~ was more free from fluctuations han any peri
od since. The gentleman whom [ have already quo
ted (Nir. Senator WrighD said in his speech here. he
could not 60 hack To the first United States Bank.
Why notl lie finds two or three instances under the
several banks in which evil occurred. hut he does not
attempt 10 ~dIsprovc that during the existence Of the
bank, we were more free from fluctuations than since.
But in the midst OF the expansion just explained.
came the specie circular, which, with other measures
OF Government, produced n violent reaction in the
country. Now, 20 recur. TO what ! WAS speaking Of
under what circumstances. and nj whose Recommending.
ton, did tho States commit the imprudcnce nf getting
into debt You hear now Of 300 millions of sia'c debts.
When contracted and by whom induced' Look nj
the hcts. From 1910 Ia % the State debts were
about Ia millions-irum - TO 80. about Is millions
more, From 80 30 IS, 10 millions was added. SO
that this vast amount Of debts was contracted when
currency was redundant. here nj home. and the lie.
T pOsite banks were dashed On TO lend 10 all who would
borrow.
The whole people were excited By this eytraordi.
nary Redundancy, brought about by the action of gov.
eminent, tn all SORTS OF speculaiions. AMI to The con-
tracing ofthOse debts, for which, states are now revil-
ed by The party in power. from the head Of the Gov.
eminent down To It's lowest agents. One half Of the
whole amount OF those debts was created from 1895
TO lS36-i00 millions in the midst Of the glow and
flow of the experiment; in , years 100 millions ofdebi
was thus contracted! The creation Of state debt kept
pace with bank expansion. and bank expansion with
/ fh, rroafa,n al h,,La ,nI al. ~ -. n 49, ~
with Government experiments and Government evper-
imenls with tho most extraord nary delusions that CIV.
or mislcd q nation. While Oh this topic, ] must say
something afOno analogous To it. One Of the charges
Of the day. wholly hlse and uniounded. Is. that the op-
ponenis ofIhe present Administration have come oui or
desired 10 rome oni, COR the assumption of these stale
debts by tile General Government. This charge lie.
gan in the Senate ofihe lInited States last year. Let
US look ut this. have said that Government enconr-
aged the states TO incur deb's & issue bonds, by making
moneys so abundant. But they encourages this IN nno-
Their mode. IL was a favorite prJect. ai!cr The reno
val ofIhe deposiles. with certain persons in and about
the Government. 10 iHueSt any surplus or unused Tevc.
H1e Of me Uuifed States ia hsss rery State bonds.
do not mean 10 say this IS assumption. but to prove
that the General Administration stimulated States TO
issue bonds. aud endeavur TO give to Them all the ere
dt they could.
In 1886. VIC took up. in The Senate. the bill for dis
tributing the Surplus Revenue. This was not the
measure Of the Administration, but rather carried
against It's wishes. As early rs May. 1896. Mr.
Wright. then. rs nov, the ablcst and most effective
leader Of the Administration in that body, proposed rs
an amendment, that the surplus then in The Treasury
be invested IN Stale bonds, and that whenever my
sum accumulated beyond HE immedI ate wants of the
Treasury. IL I've IA like manner invested. Again.
when the law regulating the dcposite hanks was pass.
ed. and the famous 18th section, which provided for
the distribution Of the surplus, was added 10 that bill.
The same distinguished gentleman moved To strike out
that section, and 10 insert in heu Ihereofa provision
that the whole forty millions should be invested IN
State bonds, And when the first Sub-Treasury ball
was introduced, u, too, had n provision for investing
my surplus in the Treasury IN such bonds There
are other funds under the control of tho General Gov.
eminent which are thus invested: the Smithsonian le
gacv. some half n million about IS oil hut a small
sum Invested IN Stale bonds; and largo Gums. reserved
to provide for stipulated Indian annuites. have bSen
invested IN the same way.
Hence. II will be seen. that an administration IL
self whenever it could make an interest by it-an in
tereSt ] mean with the people-was foremost in en-
oouraging and fostering State bor,ds; and Mr.. Wright
raId there was no fear that these securities would be
scarce. for States ad So many motives for pnblic i'm
provemen.s. and otherwise to contract dCbt, that they
produce bonds, as fast as we wanted them. Now | re-
peat that, while do rot charge this as practical as.
sumption, DO maintain that Il vas holding up these
securities IN Europe and the world. as worthy Of all
credit. And what a pretty piece of business II would
have been. II Mr.. Virgins proposition to invest 40
millions NJ once ia State Bonds had succeeded n
Mr.. WOOdbury-conscious and scrUpulous as he IL
known 20 be general laughteT)-hhd been charged
with thus investing this sum-what do you think
would haze been the rule Of seleciion1 II Massachu.
sotts-l had almost said Maine. but that is souled-or
Pennsylvania. the States that haUc, and those that hare
nt voted. had bonds to offer. would II not have been a
bc0Biiful business 20 DO, on the eve Of an election. TO
buy such bJndsl
But I revert 10 the charge that we desire or aim at
an assumption. and pronounce II 10 be without a plrti-
Gle ofioundatiOn. I JOnOt know the man IN congress
thai enioraIns the belief, that the Constitution per.
n..,- the payment OF tho debts Of States by the u.
Stare. v'tbout 4 consideration, any more than the
det;s Of indlyiiuals Such nn assumption rs Mr. Ben.
ton resolves agairs'. and Mr. Grundy re- Ports against.
in an inrsrmcdiaie sing 90 "JtnmHnnldccs, was never
point You have al oJubtless heard That a sysiem1.
tic plan Of Operations was set on loot. VA which was 10
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