Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1840-05-26

of no small difficulty So strong has been .''s sin pa
the present session, that thus lar lew os nav
;nyov;nu e.penditures 10 which could mol chceli :.
~ rive nv assent But attribute the re"rh'auo" IN
the exhausted state ofthc Treasury. ! hhoG en- ,he
from past experience If the treasury IA" ~. tr IN The
money would be spent. III wouia 'ot ~ :, .,r.nt
80. or tb;s or any other Administration, 70 Ps'Neh'
va al. tho occasion 10 repent thai rely on IN
800 n eosury as the only certain remedy asaiist e.
,r,r,gance The most that can be done 'y 'he t,u.'
nisration is bring down the expenditures WIN .e
diminishing means OF the Treasury lh's - 4 u,rh'
nlt task and necessarily requires time. ask the als
,nouished Senator from Kentucky, IN all canaor' "ne
ther il would be possible for the Administrator =.
ducc the expenditures TO the proper s'ahu'i", a..
once: Take the pension lists lhefe are IL -
four thousand remaining it, at cost OF upwards ~
,brce millions annually Can that be got Clear OF :"
once; What can be done under this vast heau u
,liture bat 10 arrest the further progress an -
10 time TO retrench it, appeal 10 an whether .ne..
has no, been great vigilance iof ,e more could
nrevent the increase of the lists, or whener more ooe
Iii he done in that particular than has peeh: !tga'u
lake the Seminole War, for winch Tue present auii
nstrotion is not certainly Responsible. lney ,o"hu
!, er;stinp and how could they prevent Tue heaVy
expenditures from that soui9e W." "
exist h;o. &c
have had sir, some experience on 'te s"oJeo' "
retrcnchment and economy. twas my fortune 70 au
minister the Department OF war nnder M. 'ioioe
The Department in state OF great disoraeL anu
The expenditures extravagant went IN WIN the de
termination to best efforts to econom'1e ana
retrench to which devoted myself; ont iouhu u.e
task work Of three years of ncessant labor, o'iore
could be accomplished to any thing Ike sa'S'ac'o" -
myself. o,har -
The Senator has asserted on this, as well as o,her oc
cosions that the tariff not the cause Oh lhe 81!
plus revenue, but that it was caused oy thc pun.
lands A very few remarks will, trust SATISFY 'n. &c
Senator himself that he is in error Inc tar'h u
1895 raised the duties an average, OF an 'ne nPo
40 high that nearly onehulf in value OF an Tue sooas
imported was paid to the custon.honse, ,a' .; o "
an import IF about sixty millions OF dollars, Tue W.
vernment collected about thirty millions. mat was
.ha, Tho omonnt of the imports when the compromise
oc, nassed Since then domestic exports nave
risen to nearly 0O00,000 which, adding the proltS
Of trade and the whale fishery, with other resources;
would give an import of not less than one huhaeu i
,renty or thirtv millions and which, if the tarh OF
1928 had not been reduced, would have gwen an N
come from the customs OF sixty or seven li'i.o1
Gould so large an amount have been collected "i.o
heavy surplus: it may, indeed, be sad, that u lhe
not been reduced the exports would not have
been increased but that would place IT'S oppressive
character in still stronger light The object Tor re-
ducng the tariff in part TO get clear OF the excess
of revenues but notwithstanding the reduction, wnicn
had to be gradual to prevent the destruction o. lhe
manufactures the duties were sufficient 10 SVEN 'it
income from that to an amount greatly beyond
the expenditures of the Government The surplus
after the payment Of the public debt and the removal
Of the deposites, placed IN State Banks ana
ed the means Of bank accommodation, on SO large
scale as to rasesprices and to an unbounded I'M
pulse to speculation in the public lands and hence tt
revenue from source TO which The Senator attribute
the surplus 1t, indeed, greatly increased u put pro
perly considered it itself but one OF The effects
The surplus already accumulated in the Treasury iron
the tariff.
But the Senator said that, admitting it was the cause
still there was no necessity that the surplus should b
spent no necessity for spending revenue OF forty 0
ty millions of bank paper, passing into the Treasury
annually. Could such tide OF paper be permitted
flow into the Treasury from year TO year. without flow
ing OUT through some other channeE put the qnes
the Senator, would not ITS first effect have beer
10 transfer large portion of the property OF countr
10 the banks and their favortes, and finally on the re
fnx of the tide TO leave them in the embarrassed an
FRUSTRATED condition in which we now find them J
not in fact the present condition OF the country, proc
conclusive Of the truth of what have asserted:
mr. CLAY The accumulation might have been pre-
vented by the distribution Of the surplus.
Yes it might, and accordingly made the quahca
ton that must be spent, or got clear OF some ohe
way; but the Senator knows my objections to tn
scheme Of raising revenue for distribution. II ma
be expedient 10 get clear of accidental surplus Il
avoid greater evil, BY dcposte with the States,
was the case in 1876; but Of all measures, | regard
permanent distribution of the revenue as the most iata
effect that could grow out of a surplus revenue. a
bad as extravagant expenditures IT is SUI worse
We have had the two combined, and they, in the shor
space ola few years have well nigh proved fatal TO IN
country.
III, i
ae was for protection, and was IN favor OF system
coantervailing, or retaliatory duties
mir Clay explained, that he in favor of main
tanning the compromise act, and OF atordng protec
ton within the limits TO which It would reduce the du
dies.
| certainly understood the Senator 10 say that h
was prepared to meet protection BY prohibition. Did
understand him correctly:
IMr. Clay assented.
do not intend to 90 into the important question III
Int | Ike he
voice against the whole system of retaatory duties
1t would prove worse in the end than the Protectiv
System Go into il when you may, il viii be alnos
impossible TO get out of it Begin the of dutie
against duties and prohibition against prohibition an
you will find no stopping. place. 1t Will go on In
passions will be reused on both sides. Pride will b
enlisted If YOU raise the duty article in orde
70 force reduction another instead of reduction
additional duties will laid to coun,crvail yours. yo
prohbit on one article force the removal of prohib
zion another, il will in like manner be met by pro
hton some third article. In every instance ther
will he less resistance IN Increased duties OH SIDE
than reduction of the duties the opposite, and
adding to the list of prohibited Articles on one side
than diminishing the list on the other.
Ii is easy to see the end. We should have the pre-
,eclive tariff the worst possible form, still more op
pressivc and difficult TO throw OIL | proclaim
the danger in advance, and | call those nterestc
~ /. on their guard.
in guarding against the danger of the retaliatin
system, am not insensibe to the unequal and oPpres
ave duties under which some oil our great staples, an
especially tobacco, labor in many 4" the countries wit
which We have commercial relations I, the great in
jury of both them and us. hope the folly OF such
policy will yield 10 the growing intelligence of tn
age; and do trust that those who may be charged will
the Executive Department of the Government, vii
spare efforts, lose any opportunity, TO rcmov
the evil through the agency of negotiation and argu
,ncnt but do trust that the Government will not %
stop beyond. 1t would be, at best, but to injure
'-lvcs in order to spite others. hope that NOR
suitable occasion may be presented to go fully int
,his important subject, before the termination of tn
Sessioa.
The question being then printing thirty thousan
copies of the report, was agreed toayes =!
noes IA, as follows:
Yeas-Messrs. Allen, Anderson Benton, Brown Blu
chanan, Calhoun, Clay of Alabama, Cuthber, Fulton
Hubbard, King, Lumpkn, Nicholas, Norvell, Pierce
Roane, Robinson, Sewer, Sturgeon, Wall, Williams an
Wrght-22
.Mys-Messrs. Clay Of Kentucky, Clayton, Davis