Southport telegraph. [volume] (Southport, W.T. [i.e. Kenosha, Wis.]) 1840-1850, 1842-01-18

cal inability, of neglect of duty, or incapacity to
discharge it. And what was to be the power of
the board thus constituted There were to be, or
might be, ffty-two subordinate boards, which might
be scattered all over America There to be
branch agencies not over two In each State of the
Union. The bill proposed that the board was to
have three principal officers at each agency so
that in the whole establishment and its branches
there would be a body of 156 officers, scattered
throughout every portion of the Union, to perform
the business of this Exchequer Board
What were the functions to be discharged by this
Board? First, it to receive, to keep, and to
disburse the public revenue 1t was also to per-
form the duties of Commissioners of Loans and
Commissioners of Pensions. And here he would
remark by the way, that these humble and useful
duties were, under the bill for the Independent
Treasury, to be discharged, the whole of them, by
four or five Receivers General For the mere
performance of these duties Mr. B. had no objec-
ton to almost any proposal the President might
make. To be sure, if the plan should be cut down
to the dimensions of the Independent Treasury Bill,
four officers would be sufficient to do the whole
duty here assigned to one hundred and fifty-six.-
And what duties were these? Were they the du-
ties OF a Bank or no? First, the Board might
celve fifteen millions of dollars deposltc, might
cut up that amount into the smallest fractions, for
which 1t might issue certificates, to supply the place
OF circulating medium. This particular part,
however, OF the scheme left by the bill in great
obscurty. as 1t was not expressly declared that
these certificates should be receivable in payment
of the public dues. He did not know whether
these were to constitute part of the banking cap
ltal or not. Tie supposed, however, that such was
the intention; but 1t was not expressed in the bill
The next duty of the Board was to receive de-
posltes. This was one of the powers of banking,
and In fact some of the best banks in the world
were limited to this power of receiving depostes
and of issuing certificates. But MIR. B. considered
thel hlof aat, in III
What came nextl The Board was to put in crcu-
latlon fifteen millions OF dollars, reduced low as
five dollar notes, and, he presumed, on the COM
mon principles of banking, that these notes might
be issued IN the proportion OF three to one. For
every specie dollar in the Treasury the Board might
issue three paper dollars. Then it bank of
issue Was it also bank of discount? Could
any man doubt it? 1t was the Exchange Bank of
an honorable friend near him, only taken from the
control OF private individuals and transferred to the
Treasury. That the whole matter; because,
whether the Board should buy and sell bill of ex-
change, or discount promissory note, it came to
the same thing it was neither more nor less than
an accommodation loan. And it was loan sub
ject to all those risks to which bankers, brokers,
and spectators could expose it. No honest man
would ever be willing to put his money into
such hands. MIR. b. therefore took it for granted
that 1t could not and would not be denied that this
Exchequer Board was a bank.
dlsrespect to the honorable Senators from Alabama
when he said that 1t bank purely on the AL
ALBANIA principle. If the bank should run down, as
1t might be expected soon to do, there was a pro-
vision in the bill that the United States Govern.
ment might advance five millions to wind it up,
which advance mi ght be sold in the market at any
amount under par which it would bring. Now,
when the General Government undertook to deal
| In banking, 1t might calculate upon the same fate
which had attended banks owned by States. From
statements MIR. B. had lately SEEM it appeared that
the Alabama Bank had got through five millions of
It's capital, and was in very fair way to get thro'
with the residue. A laugh This would be
Government bank such all Government banks
must be, where private and individual interest was
not brought to bear its concerns.
Mr. Is. SAID that he would now state few obec-
tons to this plan and would then relieve the Sc
nate.
And, in the first place, the Wing party of this
country had ever protested to regard the curtailng
of Executive influence the great polar star of all
their political movements. Every distinguished
Wing Senator had deprecated this as one of the
greatest of all evils. The very distinguished Sem
ator from Kentucky (NIr Clay had this very
morning repeated on that subject sentiments which
he had heretofore presented, over and over again.
In that Chamber, and the poor Independent Treas
ury bill of Mr.. b. S party had been assailed, and
with the utmost effect, on that very ground The
country had been alarmed at the and extensive
patronage to which it would give OCCASION The
thought OF the appointment of four receivers gene
raj had struck terror and alarm through the hearts
OF all his Wing friends But what had we here -?
Here were five commissioners to be appointed at
Washington, with fifty two subordinate agencies
all over the country, each requiring the additional
appointment of three principal officers to say moth
ing OF subordlnates Here was a corps of officers
OF at least two hundred individuals presentngtw two
hundred places very convenient indeed for the
Admin traf 1Xbi ,rrht
to secure and to reward their services Mr. b.
here again protested that he intended no personal
reflection on the present Chief Ma gstrae in the re-
marks he now made. He did not entertain the re-
hottest tear that President Tyler would ever abuse
his trust. Public liberty was not in the least DANGER
from him. Mr.. b. was governed entirely in the
ground he now took by general principles of poll
cy, and not by the slightest possible disrespect to
the present Chief Magistrate.
What he had stated was however the smallest
objection to the bill for it went to effect perfect
concentration in the hands of the Executive of both
the political and the money power. How could it
possibly be supposed that any honorable Senator
belonging to the party with which it was Mr. BIS
happiness to act could ever adopt plan of this de-
scrpuon? That party had always been strenuous
ly opposed to Bank of the United States And
why? Because the United States were laroelv
concerned IN It's stock; because the President ap-
pointed a portion of the directors; and because
these directors were at Washington, and under the
immediate influence of the Government They
had always condemned the connection of great
money power with the political power of the Gov
eminent. But here in this bill all masks were
thrown OFT. Here was Government bank not
owned IN part controlled in part by the General
Government, but belonging altogether to that Go
vernment, and having all its officers by Govern
ment appointment. And yet they were told, for
sooth, that this was an ''intermediate measure -
So far from 1t, that, with the single exception of
% t1rl ~ nf
it went far beyond the National Bank, which his
party had always opposed as being connected with
the Government, and subject in some measure to its
influence. But here an institution not merely
connected with the Government but in all respects
complete Government bank. And yet the Senate