, 1840-04-18
SPEECH OF MR.. CLAY,
OF KENTUCKY,
On the Sub-TreasUry Fsill,
CONCLUDED
IL SENATE-January 90, I84o.

IL SENATE-January 90, l840.
We are told by the President OF the United
! States, ii his Message at the opening. of the
session, that 4 gceat moneyed power exists
in London that eXerts 4 powerful influence
on the country: that it is the result OF the
! credit system: and that every bank estab-
| lished in a remote village in this country
becomes bound to that power by a cord,
which it touches at its pleasure.
There is, sir, some truth In this representa-.
lion, and every genuine American must feel
with shame aud regret. |. is u meIancho-
" fact that the arrival of steam vessels in the
port of New York from En-Iani is looked
for with more curiosity and interest. on &C
count OF The financial intelligence which they
bear from London ani the Bink of England,
4 ,han the arrival of the mail from Congress-
Our people have been taught, by sad expert
ence. to expect nothing good from the coun-
ellis of their W country, and turn their at
teton towards the operations in a foreign
country. Was this eager inquiry i3to the
transactions Of the Bunk Of England made
J during the existence of the Bank OF the
1 United States? No. sir, no, sir. You denoun-
ced this bank u; q monster, md DESTROYED
If; and you have thrown rs into the jaws
ola foreign monster which We can neither
cage nor control. You tore from us our
best shield against tie Bank o. England, and
now profess TO be surprised at the influence
which it exercises upon or interests! We
do not Enl that the contineltll nations of
Europe. that have national banks, complain
of the influence o. the Bank OF England up
on them. On the contrary, tie Bank ofEng-
land hasfecently been compelled to apply to
the bank Of France foc 4 large sun ofspecie
to sustain its credit and character.
But, sir, we must look to 4 higher and
much more poten: cause than the operations
Of any Bank, foreign or domestic, for the
lively interest which is felt in this country
in the monetlry transactions of England. In
England the credit system as ii is called,
exists in a much more extensive degree
than in this Country; and ii it were OF the
nature OF that system, as is alleged, to rem
der one country dependent npon another,
why should not England be more dependent
upon US than we upon England? The real
cause of our dependence arises out of the
unfavorable balance Of our foreign trade
We import too much and export too little
We buy too much abroad, and make too
little al home. five would shake off this
degrading foreign dependence, we must pro-
duce more, or buy less. Increase our pro-
ductions, in all the variety of forms in which
our industry can be enployd; augment the
products of the soil, extend our manufac-
lures, give new stimulus 10 our tonnage and
fishing interests; sell more than we buy, get
out OF debt and keep out Of debt 10 the
foreigner, and he will no longer exert an
Influence upon our destiny.
And this unfavorable balance Of our for
sign trade is wholly independent of aud
u~nconnected with the nature of the char
acier OF the currency of the country, whether
II be exclusively metallic. or, mixed Of paper
and the precious metals. England in great
measure, by means OF that credit or paper
sytem, now so mu:h denounced, has become
the centre of the commerce the exchanges,
and the moneyed Operations Of the world.
BY the extent, variety and perfection of her
manufactures, she lays most nations that
admit them freely under contribution to her.
And, if we had no currency but specie, we
should be just as much exposed to the mon
eyed power Of London, or, which is the true
state ofthe case, to the effects ofan u~nfavor-
able balance of trade, as We now are. We
should probably be more SO; because a large
portion ofthe specie Of the country being
IN the vaults Of few repositories, it would
De easier then TO obtain it for expectation,
10 the operations Of commerce, than now,
when it is dispersed among nine hundred or
a thousand banks.
What was our condition during the colo
MAJ state, when, with the exception Of small
amounts Of government paper money, we
TSo no currency but specie, and nc banks ?
were we not constantly and largely in debt