The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1842-09-21

PERICLES
From Inc Philadelphia Public Ledger.
"OUR FIRST DUTY is TO FOREIGNERS -
Such were the memorable words contained in a
memorable letter to John Quincy Adams in the
summer Of 1887, Immediately after all the banks in
the Union had repudiated their obligations the peo-
pie. These memorable words, and uttered on
memorable occasion, this concert In fraudulent
bankruptcy; and they were uttered for the purpose
of justifying that grand scheme Of Reputation But
they did not blind the sturdy old Yankees old fash
toned notions of business; for in his equally
BILE reply, he told the etter-wrer that the great
nser with all its little monsters, for thus violating
their solemn engagements, were no better than they
should be. So the letter-writer took nothing by his
motion, but good scoding from old fashioned
man, upon his new fashioned notions Of Jinance.-
Some pronounce this word fnesseand probably they
are nearly synonymous. But these were memorable
words. " Our first duty is to foreigners" We ask
American citizens to reflect upon them sour first
duty is to foreigners" They the reverse of the
maxim, " Charity begins at home" But all old
fashioned landmarks reversed in these days of i'm
provement
sour first duty is to foreigners" Let us examine
this doctrine, and the facts TO which it applied.
maxim upon which every individual acts is "Self-
preservation is the first law of nature )" and this is
| applicable to States as to individuals. Therefore,
if between ourselves and foreigners the alternative is
presented, my head yours, the majority at home
will award the preference to head, and say that
our first duty Is to ourselves Let suppose that the
poor man who stole piece Of meat in the market a
few days since, to feed starving family had but one
sixpence in the world, and owed shilling to rich
| neighbor, for money which the rich neighbor had
persuaded him to borrow. What is the first duty
with his sixpence, to buy loaf Of bread, to pay
his rich neighbor' The neighbor can afford to wait
but his starving family cannot. So the rule is not
applicable to all And deny that it is appli-
| cable to any. A conflict of duties is moral absur-
dity, for duties never conflicts and therefore, this
language, Our first duty IS this and second duty
| is that is philosophcally wrong. The language
| should be, which thing first becomes our duty y
for though there can be no precedence among duties
for if be duty, the rest cannot be till that be
disposed Of yet there is precedence among things for
the place Of duty, and the entitled to this place
excludes all the rest from being duties, till that one
has vacated the place. In this view of the case
wherever our own safety is concerned, duty is
first to ourselves.
But let US examine the case to which the letter
wIlIer applied this doc rine The bank had contract.
ed debts to the people, and subsequently debts to TO
relgners. BY expansion and speculation, II had emit
ted large circulation; and to relieve itself from tho
difficulties induced by this fnanciertng, it had Dor
rowed largely IN Europe. Foreigners, greatly our
| creditors were drawing specie from banks, and
the latter under this OPERATION unable 10 do any
| business. The United States Bank, owing at home
on It's circulation, and owing abroad It's bonds con-
trved the project of suspension This enabled 1t to
its notes largely without fear Of demand for spe
Gle, 10 buy cotton largely and send abroad and TO
sell it for the purpose of meeting its engagements with
| foreigners. And what this process, stated in
| plain English The bank owed at home and abroad;
repudated old aud nracled debts home,
pay its debts abroad and did this becauseis first
duty to foreigners! A neighbor,
then contracts debt To second, then repudIaes the
debt To the first, and borro Of third becausehis
first duty is the second! So much for the banks
Bu, the rule intended or much wider appcaton.
| The merchants owed abroad for impor,ations, and
| had no means OF payment. They could borrow of
the banks under the suspension, buy -four and cotton of
the farmers with bank paper, and remit the produce
| pay their foreign debts. But they thus mortgage
themselves the banks and obtain the produce OF the
farmers in exchange for the obligations of the banks
which the obigOrs repndiale; and thus the farmers
defrauded of their crops, because the first duty OF
| the merchant is to foreigners!
These facts afford valuable lessen. They prove
that the working men" of this great country, The
producing classes and the classes engagsd in the
full exchange Of productions, rendered by the pa
per credit system, the "hewers of wood and drawers
of water L. foreigners 10 foreign spectators Their
industry Through his system they entangIed in
the OF needless debt foreigners and when
| they find that immediate payment or sefpreservaon
is the alternative, they told by those who manage
the system Tor the benefit OF their pocket, that
their first duty iorein RS ~ Some of our read
may say that repeating old stories that the
day OF these things is past, that the bank dead and
cannot be revived. All this is true. But the system
not dead, and spectators and politicians bu-
silly engaged in revving Il, and in devising in
struments Tor its operations. The spectators
seeking it for profit and the politicians an instru-
ment Of ambition. Therefore let us be taught by the
past, and provide for the future The load Of
debt which now weighs down the country, and presses
equally upon States and corp ,raons is the Of TO
reign,rs, operating with Ibis pa system The stock.
ohbng capitalists of England eager 10 obtain
mortgages upon this country, in the shape of State
loans for such investments would give high interest
and would be secured by pledge of every 'work-
| ing mans" land or labor TO tempt the States into
debt of extravaganza was necessary and
this would be produced by expansion of banks
The monster, controlled in England exerted all its
numerous influences to begin this game, and all the
rest followed with their aid. The consequences we
see in two hundred millions of debt, and the mortgage
of the whole country; and the foreigners, who de-
vis.d this magnificent conspiracy TO make their
Tributaries, denounce dishonesty because they
have overshot thei mark, and imposed upon us more
debt than we can Immediately pay. The dishonesty
is imputable to the consprators and not to the dupes
And the foreigners, TO relieve themselves would ere
ate another eat instrument of expansion and I'M
der ITS influence, sell their mortgages to for what.
ever OF ourl property remains uneucumbered; and
this is to be accomplished by new presidential cleo
ton. Let us look out, and trust politicians who
contend for the paper system Our duty is first to
| ourselves.