Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1840-1842, 1841-01-15

| nor Wes, anu ne would ike 20 know IN what IN
right OF the Legislature to act had changed. Ii IN
Legislature had no right TO act, and to make its nc
ton effective, then had the representatives OF III
People been guilty Of the folly OF placing IN tn
Executive branch Of the Government the power G
causing the taxes Of the State to be increased when
ever, he might, from folly or vicousnesS, choose 4
do 50. The Governor had only to appoint Direc
| tors, who would either themselves abstract III
funds OF the Bank. or sit by and let the officers o
the Bank Go SO. Having, as he thought, fully an
swered the first objection to action, he would pro
coed to answer another, ard would show that tina
House ought to act, and that il every other mem
Der Of the last House OF Delegates neglectful o
his duties, that he at least was not so far as tina
subject was concerned.
Ii had been said that DR.. B. has teen guilty o
no offence not even Of neglect, in relation &c
the late deialcaton caused by MIR. Dabney-anC
that for this one act Of neglect, arising merely from
over confidence, they ought not to deal hardly with
HIM. He admitted, IL it true that this the
only non observance OF duty on the part Of DIR. B.
and lac had managed the Bank uniformly well, ex-
cept IN the instance of DAbney's abstracton-thal
there would be much more force in the reason than
there was. But, believing as he did, and had for
the last SIX years believed, that Bank was ever
worse managed, he had concluded they ought to act.
For what was II that Dr. &. ought to be retained
Was because he subscribed for stock of the Cd U.
5. Bank, in violation Of the ch,rter of the Bank OF
Virginia, over which he PRESIDED He had seen
that leading journal OF that city cxtollins him
Tor that This had heretofore been but little known;
for no man, he presumed, ever thought tina, DR.. b.
had actually, and that, too, 10y violation of tie
charter of the Bank which nc presided assisted
to breathe vitality into the old U. 5. Bank. But the
Doctor made money for the Bank by that opera
ton. Suppose he had lost by the transaction
lie thought it probable he would have been told he
was weng IN subscribing, that lie ought not TO have
violated the charter OF his own Bank.
Was he to be retained because OF his agreement
with the Secretary OF the Treasury of the United
States, TO keep and pay out the revenue of the u.
Statesl Every body condemned that act; tie Stock.
holders refused to confirm that agreement. This
the hrSt act which caused him TO suspect Dr. Brock
enbroushs cap,ciy for Bank President, whose
duties were or ought TO be prescribed by the char
ter and bye laws OF the Institution. The Doctor
might be en- able hnancier; his financial abilities
were not necessary 10 be examined into IN that dis
cusson. His suspicion being aroused in 1854,
when he offered the resolution before referred TO,
he began to look little closer into the concerns OF
the Bank. He satisfied his mind from the reports
OF tie Bank, that us affairs in avery deranccd
condition lie followed up his inv stiga,ion and found
no change for the better IN lis condition The sus-
pension OF specie payments came; the Bank had a
large amount OF money due protested bills and
notes, and lie found out that protested b or note
was an obligation by doubtful or broken man to
pay money. lie found out that it was mos: gener-
ally what the neopc called broken mans paper.
Tie Quilted the Legislature in 1856, and did not re-
turn TO 1t until last winter; lie then moved TO have
the money end notes in The Bank counted; the House
voted down the proposition without DIVISION
Tie was told II seeming TO cast suspicion on the
Bank officers. He had no specific charges TO bring
against the officers, but what wps known or ought
TO have been known by every body. He let the
count rest bu, he believed if a count had then been
had, that much of the money lost by the confidence
IN MIR. Dabney, might have been saved. So fully
WAS he last winter impressed with the belief that
something was wrong about the Banks that he Of
ia ,ltrHra s..sy, ~.
w, and the Committee was also directed to enquire
into the proprcty OF adopting a different bonkinc
system He had shown that he had been constant
~ trying 10 EXHIBIT TO public gaze the affairs of
the Bank Of Virginia. Was DIR. Brocksnbroush
TO be retained in the Presidency OF the Bank bs.
cause under his management the whole amount OF
the capital Of the mother Bank, over which lie pre.
sided so long, had either been entirely sunk or rem
dered perfectly unavailing2 The amount of the
capital Of the mother Bank Il; this place is Sl435-
OOO;-there had been abs;r7ctel of that by Dab
ney's deiaicatIOn about $4,000, as admitted by
Dr.. BfockenJrough; there was. as appears Nv the
INK reports, rather upwards OF $500, Gas due the
Bank in protested bills ard notes, rpwa5ds Of STOP
900 Of over checks, and $4,000 of Stock in the
James River < kanawha Company, besides real
estate TO large amount ii these several sums be
added together, II will be seen tina: It the Bank is
not broken, which he verify believed, that il had lost
and now had amount large piial entirely
uupToduciive unavailable. The Stock in the
James River * kanawha Company, $500 COO did
not now yislt one ceut TO the Bank, and was not
likely to 10 so for many years. The $40 Gi5 OF
protested notes and bills, unproducliye OF una
valuable; the SI02, 600 OF over checks was also he
presumed, unavailable. Certain Il was that the
S54O,00O abs;Tacitd by Dabney, was gone. IL had
been frequently said that Virginia would die of an
abstraction; he did not know whether that would
ever happen, but lie very much feared that the Bank
of Virginia was already oead OF one. In relation
10 the defalcalion OF Dabney, Dr. Brockenbroush
said that occurred from over confidence, and that
II could as well have happened At any time within
the last so years as when u did. He looked upon
that as a direct adm sson by D.. Broc kenbrough that
the Bank had been badly managed for Thirty years.
and he thought lie was right.
Did not DR.. Brocksnbroush know that Dabney
was acting Improperly before his hisht7 lie con-
tended that he did. and thought he could shew !,
from his letter Of July the 1T (lSi0) TO the stock
holders. Ia that letter the DR.. said "Ai;Eousb
there were some Circumstances ,h1t excited my sur
prise Il short time before the fight Of tie Teller,
yet such was the universal confidence in the prn-
ciples Of that officer, from his department during his
ten yeATs IN the Bank, that attributed what
could not well understand, to q cause that was
certainly inadequate 10 tic effect" Here the Dr.
expressly admitted that his surprise was excited
before tic Telel's l.sht-und why did he not nj
once cause on examination Of the funds Of the
Bsnk1 One would have thought that Il the Pre-
sident and DireClors-and the Dr. was one Of the
DIre'iors--h1d inIed TO count the money when no
suspicion Of neglect or o-her improper conduct ex-
isjed, that NJ least thct course would have been
pursued after suspicion was aroused yet u was
not done. D.. B,ockenbrough, ~ the same letter,
says: "Under our course Of reduction, IL seemed
to me that the neghbOuring Banks ought 10 have
fallen constantly in our debt, inasmuch as one Of
them, az least, wss new establishment and was
extending its operations yet all suspicion Of mis-
conduct was waTded Of 10y tie impression that our
B4nk had become unpopular from our severe re-
trenthmen'. and fIom other causes, which bad in
duccd many Of our customers 10 transfer their de-
posts 10 other Northumberland u was not until
dscovcied that our own circulation began 10 IN
crease, without an enlargement Of our operations,
that bccaE4e really uneasy" Then, the Dsrcalfy
became uneasy. For what was he un,asyl lie pfc.
sUmed from the belief which had very nearly matur-
Cd INTO conviction, shat somathng was wrong IN the
conduct Of the Teller. Yet all this could not *.
cite hlm ~ investigation. The Dr.. DO the same let
ter, s1II: " then enquiTed OF the Teller, Wig he
pad out our notes, when he had been directed u,
pay dtmabds On the Bank in the notes cf the
brlnches7 and he replied that bis stock Of branch
monts .1i before the Board, that they lad not esn
sent 10 lhe branches, ! told him / Old not under.
stand these thing, and thrt the yaul,s must 10 ex-
AHMED" D.. Bro kenbrough, m the last sytfgct.
showed that he still gufpc-tcd something was
wrong. lie thought he Showed that he did n,t be.
l.eye the Teller: he Showed that he, f.om rircuD.
stances known 70 himself had good cause 70 ,ua-
pcct the Teller; md 50 stlOng was the suspicion
on he port Of The President, that he felt % % be hls
duty % tell Nj D1brey th1t h. did not believe
blm. lie asked MI Dibncy Tor the ciuse Of the
pr'''nt condition Of th!rgs On tic Bank Ddbney
told him the reason set the d.. replied be did rot
understand these things, and said 70 Mr.. Dsbnsv.
bus vault mus, be examined. Yet nothing could
urge he d. 10 The exercise Of his supervisory pow
or over affairs until Dtbncy ned. Ag8ip. the