Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1840-1842, 1841-09-07
C0rrs,pond-nee IF "a, uhir.

20 against IT, MIR Rives refused TO vote for the b
manly on the ground that the Bank had the pow
D. 10 establish agencies in the States without their
10 seh'' though he also thought that the power
5. discount bills Of exchange was not sufficient
- guarded.
10 IL mas ceen matter of surprise and regret TO
# hWeS friends, that he should have taken positio
/, on The assent principle, un,enabe in eons,it,
:. uoha point OF view, and which IN practice would
= attended with such disastrous results. will n,
d pretend oil course, 10 argue constitutional que
- ZION IN letter like this written etTrenie eaIant
# Out 1t seems TO me so plain, that all the power
, which the Federal Government possesses, are dc
rNed from the Constitution, and from ths ConsiiiU
''"n Clone and that those powers neither be en-
0 'arseu nor diminished, except by an amendment q
INC constitution, which Is the governmental pow c
oil attorney, that am at n loss TO perceive how
mind So sagacous, ami 50 well disciplined, as NJ
hive>', could DC imposed on by the sophsIcal rea
sonins IN regard to the efficacy Of State assent
The Government either has the power to establish
Bank as fiscal agent, or IL has It not If IN,
1t derives 1t from the Constitution. II il has i, no,
then how can the assent OF one, or half a dozen -
twenty six ecntederatcd States, enlarge tho nrov;
SONS OF the Constitution Ii is more especially. q
matter Of surprise 10 me how A State RIGHTS man
Ike Mr Rives or Mr. Tyler, can hold such doc.
time. Upon what hypothesis does the at ument pro-
ceed1 Is It not on the supposition Of 4 con,rac, be-
\ tween the General Government and the assep,irs
States Now let US look at the consequences which
result from this assumption. Where the Federal
Government is one Of enumerated powers, it pos.
sesses none but those which are speci6.d IN III.
grant, or such as are necessary and propcr TO carry
RFeI
cardinal proposition IN view, where, ask. do Won
hna III The Constitution the power gwen to the Fe.
dera. Government TO contract with A St,te1 Where
are the means OF enforcing such contract You
must resort to the widest implication-thc most Ia,
"'u''"aren construction, TO derive it from any pro-
vision Of the Constitution But this Is not tho orl,
objection The control OF the currency is one of
the attributes OF sovereignty-and If II BELONGS 70
he states, how can they bargain it away for con.
s'derauon TO the General Government, in any other
way than 10y formal amendment Of the Cors,I,u.
uon' IN the mode pointed out 10y the provisions Of
that Instrument Thus it seems there Is a double
disability IN the parties to the proposed contract
The States have no power TO pert with the banking
power which they possess; and If they had the now
er, the Genera, Government has no, the cons,i,,.
Uona' capacity 10 acquire H. But must no, su fer
myself to oo drawn into a discussion of this kind
and will merely advert to one or two praetjc,l
eVi.s' WHICH would result from the ackno,yl,J..
men' OF this consolidating doctrine, aud then drop
'Ae SUBJECT II the assent of the State can GIVE now
CT not delegated ~ the Constitution in orc case
NeNn IN every conceivable case-and what is th,
result DO you not destroy all limitations on the
powefa OF the federal government Do YOU no,
cause those powers TO contract or expand as the
sent OF The States may be given or yyithheld-n,ead
Of keeping permanently and distinctly them defined
ny the terms Of the organic law?-Do Won NOT do
st'oy the uniformity oflhe action and power o, the
Governmen'-makins It one thing in Virginia-an.
other IN Mary and, and yet another in Pennsvlvan,7
But .ook ni tie subject in another aspect. We in
Virginia deny the power to incorporate Bank
and we with old our assent because we believe i.
unconstitutional. Maryland and North Carolina,
10 t"e North and South Of US, entertain dlfTeren,
opinions, and give their assent. The CONSEQUENCE
IT, that branehesa are established on both sides of ~.
10 not the Constitution ofihe L. States as ctFec,,IIv
violated according to our opinions, as if branch
were located in our own borders Isitanv ,nsvve,
to our complaints to say that the violation was mt
committed within our territorial ni,s} Is not,ba
Constitution an entire thing, and is no, violation
Of II IN Maine or Louisiana as fatal TO IFS INTEGRITY,
as one in Virginia.
Butagain, suppose you establish this asser, Zen.
ture how easy IS 1t to reconstruct the great coos,
systems Of federal internal Improvement The ,o,-
eraI government has 10 power to make imnrovs.
ments IN State i7iihom its assent; but ACCORDING
to this new tangled doctrine, il can do i, ,,i,b "a,
assent OF the States. The U. States oovernooe,,
q In NJ,
assent, enlarge your canal-or to yirrfno. VIC ,;lI
'0''" your assent complete the James River s. K,-
na"ha improvement, and 10, the dormant eoost,u.
uonal power at once springs into existence, The
assent IS the Promethean spark, which, when once
oreaihed into the nosrIs OF the Constitution. viv,
mes and expands ITS frame in all rs colossal propor
TONS Heaven defend US from such doctrine no
this'-o doctrine trunscendIne irnmeasur,bIv. m.
widest dreams Of the most ultra feIera,t and ovo,
throwing every Limitation on the power Of the Can
uaI Government
Let It not he said that this is mn extreme case
could cite hundred s.iI. stronger. And oocs %.
Anhsh the principle, and how long would i, be he
'ore you would have all the States begg1rs NJ the
uoors OF the isderal treasury, and argesseg d,trib
u'eo IN every form, with the assent oCAs States IN
O"y up the" remaining attributes Of soverc,n,v. nm.
I'll they would be stripped ofcycry element Of no,,.
er and independence, and become rern ne,,, cor-
temPubic, political municipalities Awsv r,c,
with your STATE assent Don, ATTEMPT to chen, ~,
with nnhme-leta all banks perishi-Yes To-, III, rcd.
erhi government itself PERISH before we give co,,,
tenance to such monslrous doctrine M This =,
State asSe { comforting powers on the general INV
ernmsn' which are not delegated 10y the Cons,itu
ton.
+. The House Of Representatives has despa,ebe,
all rs business, and was reldy to adjourn sever,
days ago. II now awaits the action Of the p,csi
dent and The Senate. II the President acts r,orr
", as J presume no will the adjournment ,yirl ,,k,
place on Tuesday or Wednesday. Il il tboncr
the President will have a hard n.k to rr,,,..,c
plausible veto after the ground which he tool ., r.
vor ofan exchange Bank, in his formervet r,,, h.
4 has near him man abis to help him IN his Time q
u need. ''''o
. It's plugged about tho city TO- day, tina, m css,,
n was made yesterday towards the C,rn,t,o, If
new Cabinet, which was not as gueee,sCir nj, ,bo.
10 concerned could have desired. The repor, i,. fl.
- Two gentlemen visited Mr. McMahon Of B,l,i,,o,,
10 convey 10 him the Presidents desire TINT bc non
b, nFo iho place Of Mr. Cuuenden in the Cabinet, o.
n''Mf Mcmahon, as the story goos, very pr1mpl
b. responded, substantially, that he WIS able +
mike hs living by his own c3ertions, and was fbsr
,J lore not yet in the political market OF eour,s
cannot vouch for the truth Of this report, but ID
S. very current, and as iaras have heard. univ,,s,