The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1841-09-25
6TATEMENT.

called to see the President on official business
the morning Monday, 18th August) before the first
Veto Message was sent In. found him reading the
Message to the Secretary Of the Treasury. He did
me the honor to read the material passages to me.
Upon reading that part of it which treats of the supe
Importance and value of the business done by the
late Bank of the U nited States in furnishing ex-
changes between the different States and sections Of
the Union was SO strongly impressed with the idea
that he meant to intimate that he would have OBJ
lection to bank which should be restricted to deal
ing in exchanges that interrupted him in the read
ing, and asked if was to understand, by what ne
had just read that he was prepared to give his assent
To bank in the District Of Columbia, with offices OF
agencies in the States having the privilege, without
their assent, to deal in exchanges between them, and
in foreign bills. He promptly replied that he thought
experience had shown the necessity of such power
in the Government could not restrain the immedi-
ate expression of my qualification upon hearing this
avowaI | said to the President at once that what
had feared would lead to fatal dssensions among our
friends now regarded rather fortunate than 9TH
erwise that his of the bill then before him would
lead to the adoption of much better one also con-
graduated him upon the happy circumstance OF the de-
lay which had taken place in sending in his Veto
Message The heat and violence which might have
been expected if the Veto had been sent in immedi-
ately upon the passage ofthe bill would now be avoid
ed. Time had been given for cool reflection, and as
the Message did not exclude the idea Of b bank in
some form, no unpleasant consequences would be
likely follow He expressed his great surprise that
there should be much excitement upon the subject
said that he had had his mind made up on the bill be-
are him from the first but had delayed his Message that
that there should be time for the excitement to wear
off that nothing could be easy than to pass a
bill which would answer all necessary purposes that
it could be done in three days. The next day, hav-
ing occasion to the President again. he requested
me to furnish him with such information as tho War
Department afforded of the embarrassments attending
the transfer and disbursement of the public to
distant points the frontier, in Florida &c. He at
the same time requested me to draw up brief slate
ment of my views upon the subject, showing the
practical advantages and necessity Of such fiscal in
stituton as he had thought of proposing. Such in
formation could hastily collect from the heads Of
the principle disbursing bureaus Of the Department
handed to him the evening Of the same day. know
ing that time Of the utmost importance in the
state in which the question then was. He received
the statements gave him with manifest indifference
and alarmed me by remarking that he began to doub
whether he would give his assent Gas understood
hm1 to any bank. tTsssa@ syy or staag
The next day Wednesday, 18th August) was tn,
stated time for the weekly meeting of the Cabine
with the President. Mr.. w EBsTER, Mr>EwINe, ant
myself went at ten o'clock in the morning, and wer
informed that the PREs,DENT was engaged witt
Messrs. BERRIEN, SERGEANT, and, think, Mr.. DAw
SON, Of Georgia We waited until they retired, ant
the PRESIDENT made his appearance about three quar-
tiers of an hour afterwards MIR. BADGER came II
soon after the PRESIDENT joined us. Messrs Carr
TENDEN and GRANGER did not attend. The COME
at least according to my recollection. | cannot pre-
tend to detail all that was said neither can under
take to give the language employed by the PREspENl
upon every point, OF the members OF the Cabinet
can only sta the substance of what was said upoI
those points which most attracted my attention al
t#a The President commenced by stating that he hat
been waited upon that morning by committee o
Members of Congress, who desired to know his view
upon the subject of bank-such a one as he could
sanction. He had given them no satisfaction upor
that subject but had informed them that he would frs
consult with his constitutional advisers-his Cabne
through whom he thought it most regular that hi
views should I've communicated. He asked the OPT
Mon of his Cabinet upon the correctness of thu
ground he had taken; remarking at the same time
that the habit of expressing his views to Members
Congress upon subjects of SO much interest sub
jected him to great embarrassment and much misrep
resentation. That question being disposed of the
President adverted briefly, but without much con-
nexon to the relation in which he stood to the Bank
question, and his disposition to 90 as far as he could
70 comply with the wishes Of his friends. He spoke
of the relation that existed between him and his Cab
net, and how necessary II was that he should have
their support. Would they stand by him2 He much
preferred that the whole subject should be postponed
until the next session but ii il was necessary TO act
now he thought plan might be devised which, with
their corporation might be carried through. He
wondered why the Senate continued to postpone act
ing upon his Veto Message which yet TO be dis
posed Of He supposed il might be TO hold il a rod
over his head; and had some doubts whether it was
proper that he should consider further upon the sub
ect until the Senate had decided what they would do
with the bill then before them Some one present
sured him that the posponement Of the question pend
ing in the Senate was intended 10 give time for reec
ton, and to prevent an incorporate debate
The President then gave the outline OF such bank
or fiscal institution he thought he could sanction
II to be in the District of Columbia, to have the
privilege of issuing its notes. receive moneys on
deposte and to deal in bills Of exchange between the
States and between the United States and foreign
States. But he wished to have the opinion of his
Cabinet upon it. His own consistency and reputa-
ton must be looked TO- He considered his Cabinet
bis friends, who must stand by and defend whatever
he did upon the subject He appealed particularly to
Mr.. WEBsTER for his opinion upon the point Of con-
sstency; and whether there was not clear distinc-
non between the old Bank of the United States
oank 81 discount and deposite--and the one he now
Thought OF proposing and whether the constitutional
question was not different He reminded Us that, in
al his former speeches and reports he had taken the
ground 'ha' congress had no constitutional power to