The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1840-01-14

dent. Now, compare these with the positive and
notorious facts that through forty years almost the
entire Rev Of our Governmenl-amounlng in
The aggregate 10 nearly four hundred millions
Were deposited in, kept by, and discussed from Two
successive National Banks without farthing OF
expense or loss To the Nation, though transferred
from any point where collected 10 any point where
required to ne Pad.-wirhout trouble, anxiety OF
insecurity md shall be partially prepared to
estimate the value OF the independent Treasury
| as a discovery or Improvement in Finance.
But the Presidents last quoted fact Is imperfect
or mistaken in another respect lie would seem
to represent that twenty two of twenty gov
ernments have systems Of Finance Identical III all
their leading features with his projected Indepen-
dent Treasury AT least this is The idea which
the mass of leaders will mbbe from ilis assertion.
Yet this is very far from the ruth France en-
trusts her revenue 10 The custody OF public othcers,
but-anti numerical and full of specie as she Is
she does not exact the COLLECTION and payment Of
her revenue specifically in coin. So with Russia !;
so with most other countries We desire, there
! fore, to place another fact in opposition 10 that
stated by the President viz of the twenty-five
governments adduced in evidence by him. II would
be impossible 10 instance three which-the common
currency Of their several countries being convert
bio piper vet forbid the reception by their reve
nue. officers of that paper in payment of imPosts
and exact such payment in gold aud silver exclu-
sively In this respect, we believe the proposition
now earnestly urged upon the Aneri can People TO
be utterly unprecedented, and certain, If success
ul TO prove oppressive and disastrous in lis oper
alton.
l. 70 ''dlvorce" the Government from all con
nexion with Banks and keep its revenues e1cIu-
sivey and rigidly in the hands Of lis own function
aries
fcally in gold and silver com, and keep Them in
such coin until their disbursement
These two propositions constitute the Indepen-
dent Treasury projcct-the former, as is unanswer-
ably asserted by The President, Of possible avail
or efficacy without the latter. These the People
of the United States now called TO sanction and
,I,.s,- M, 81
Finance. 10 these propositions we object and,
since we find Al impossible, in the brie space 10
which we are confined, to traverse all the ground
taken in the Message, we Will state some of our
objections more briefly and directly, as follows
We object 10 the Sub-Treasury scheme, be,
cause
|. lis rery adroeotcs seem afraid and ygtse to
act up 10 lis ~ incpiGS.
ifMr Van Buren, fully and heartily believes that
all the mschefs and evils hch he in this Mes
sage attributes the existence and action of Banks
and to the countenance shown them by the FEEDER
al Government, are Justly so attributed, he ought
long since TO have severed the connection and with
drawn that countenance. lie might, at any time
these Two wears, have dnected Mr. Secretary w God
bury TO issue Treasury Order, importing that all
payments 10 the Government shall ,henreforth be
made in Specie, and the "Dvorce' would have
been effected at word why has he not none NJ
WHY are Bank notes and Bank checks at this day
received at the New York Custom House, and
a, other Custom Houses and Land Offices, in pay
ments 10 the Government Why are even one
dollar notes freely taken at the New Hork and 9th
Ell Post Offices-in defiance, if we mistake not, Of
an express law Of Congress Why does Sub
Treasury South Carolina at this moment cherish
and pamper her own suspended Banks, and receive
their irrcdeemable notes in payments 10 her Treas
urv why does Sub-Treasury New Hampshire
collect and keep her own revenue in Banks, and
hermit them 10 issue One Dollars bills Why
does not Sub-Treasury Missouri divorce" herself
from her own middle sized monster, with which
her Government appears 10 be IN unusually close
and kindly alliance ?-These questions may be
multiplied abuudantly, and they demand candid
answer. They pertinent to the matter. We
intend no impeachment Of the sincerity and mo-
lives of those who differ from this great ques
zion we only insist that they hoty riding their
hobby upon ground where they would not think of
deliberately walking
II. Its fleets on tie CWTTeRey and Productive
Interests of tho COttRtTy
The President seems To Us to pass This view
of the question hastily and supeThclaiiy lie as
serls that lhe danger of Inconvenience 10 the pub
lie and unreasonable pressure uPons sound Banks
has been greatly exaggerated How so ? Be-
cause as he tells US, there eighty five millions
of Specie in the country, ard the operations OF the
Government would require only four or FIVE mil
lions Rn, this last assertion is refuted by well
known facts b official port from the Trea-
sury Department, II was recently promulgated that
| the average amount of Public Money remaining
in deposit or in the hands of public officers through
The ten wears preceding 1885 was about Fifteen
Millions During these years, Twill be remember
ed, there eA.sted a National Debt, which absorbed
any available surplus as fast as IT accrued, while
! the Expenditures and Financial operations gener-
ally of the Government were on a scale far more
limited than at present. There must at all times
| be large sums in the hands of Disbursng Officers,
of Collectors IN the shape of disputed Duties, &c.
which are not regarded or reported as portion of
the balance in the Treasury. IL the Independent
Treasury is not TO be suffered TO rpen Immediately
into a great Government Bank, there must be large
sums Of Public Money constantly in trdnsita from
the points of collection to those Of disbursement
of course, adding by so much TO tho amount ne
cessarily kept on hand. If the experience of the
past be of any worth, then the amount of Specie
regularly and certainly absorbed by the action OF
the Government cannot be less than Ten Millions
of Dollars. In other words, this amount of Specie
mus, be sub,racted by the operation of The Inde
pendent Treasury from the purposes which it has
hitherto subserved of sustaining the Credit and
thereby stimulating the Industry and Production Of
the Country, and locked up in Government vaults
and safes where II will be practically of more
utility than granite. The tendency of This alb
sorpton 10 weaken and then violently contrac
the Currency, to depress prices, discourage indus
try, and produce bankruptcy and suffering neet