Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1843-03-16

lent IS expefence has shown, Is yet oil senle aSa
It's agents have the same opportunity oil ROOFING 'n
Governments ,shc!, The agents oi Inc lhoePeh"s''-
Treasury had and ihey l'vt e'fa,. ts.,,
;aach larger aaoat al funds, a, 'he d'P's'i t'e's
35 OpG enc 20 say .oiug about HE gums receive" ~
tsa! Dy IN exchanges; whereas. nhdcF lie
I rfeasuty system, the avrf7.e a;hoon' % "si
all the agencies together, @"u'd o"'y nave v," =.
! ,woa, q am .nD and :. 0N0,uUO,) and mnch hetei
o,no,,n,,,es afforded in issuing fas" cerhhca,es o'
denos, and pretending 10 purchase le't.'"u' '"''
/ And in this institution, the innGs oil tue "o'e'""'e"
orc ,,osed IN commercial vicssi.udes, III pufchas"
and selling exchange whereas, " was no. ~ "a
At all undsr the Independent Treasury system anu
IL 49,, > g,ci that this board will consist almost Ger
toinly of politicians, not acquainted Win .e
I or character Of the business men VINO WI" o.d' =,
;, ,,d ,L, they will have m pechn'aFy interest a'
,ke NO canuo, anticipate thai the losses on 'h' scoe
i, ~. - .r I,-c, BESIDES al! ta's, under the con-
,ir ,, pos,lcni this board would possess an ehor
, rai,,,cI ,cilnence and rightn! opportunities o.
t,vur,,,s,p - the pnwef !, would nave o' esfu"'"s
The drafts OF political ''ehoS, NEE 'e'us'"S 's
re o,,onen,s THIS might lee used IN The same way,
.,, +, ,,..;e, extent aan The DESIGNATING power by
, Rant ~ the United States, in the manner we have
pointed out. . =, :
As IN the other two objects, The furnishing OF ex-
ch,,ra mad otoylinC or paper currency We utterly
den - rho General Government any jurisdiction over
,basa s,b;cc,s as distinct end Any plan al finance
will ac them incidentally 10 considerable extent
and the ought 10 study 80 TO arrange Il, as
no, To affect them pefnclously But, 10 be consli'u
,onal il. nrea object, lis end, must oe The coecnoh
and disbursement OF The public revenue
I'm, tho plsn of the President has th's TO recommend
1T, 10 remarkable at The will of Congressman We are
persuaded # IT shall be adopted, (as there seems very
little p,nspec that il WILL, this right of reppai wa ne
sneedv yered 10 the country from It's disastrous
working.
W. are not satisfied dsmiss this currency question,
with single reputation of the Bank and Exchequer
scheme, without avowine and defending our own IL
is well known, that the Democratic party ~ IN favor
OF divorce of Bank aud State In word we are ID
favor of THE lNDEPENDENTTRE We
are not welded the p-ec,ae bll which was lately so
precipitaely repealed by the Wings, without providing
a better, indeed any other plan IN rs place Nor
welded TO any particular form OF detail; out we
are niexble /" the principle; aud We prefer that
form OF detail which w BEST preserve and carry out
II has much to recommend 1t In thu first place, lis
consutonaiiy is unquesiioned aud unqGes''"nahls
Indeed i; is obviously the very plan c"m'emP "''o ny
the Constitution, il shown by many OF Is rFov.aloas'
nid the fact tint IL IN principle adopted, without
Dissent from any, III the enactment 81 tue Ia" OF IeJ
when The Government, ~as list organized, n"usf lhe
au.GeGce OF those who were nl"sl proa'h'ht III TIE
Conventions which framed aud adopted the Conali:u'
t:rus: and who may be supposed TO know best the
meats contemplated by II. How much stranger is
this coDemporaneous exposition oil The Constitu
ton, than the charter OF the Bank in 81, two years
alte wards, the teeth of the active opposition on con-
suonal grounds of many OF The Fathers OF the f.e-
public.
AS we have already said, the paramount object in
an; scheme which may be adopted should he the sale
keeping of the public funds, THIS IS provided Tor IN
the independent Treasury plan wth great caution In
the first place the putlic will constantly ne
lowing III and paid out so that there %ill ue
large of public funds IN any one depository, Al
any one time. The average III all Of .hem together
need not be than two or three millions For ~
years from 1870 1910, the average was about seven
,u,, dol md
great surplus accumulated.) And this sum would be
distributed among the dep"sitofes in every part o the
country Then there would be the fear OF disgrace and
the penitenary to prevent dishonesty and the TcceV
ers bond security against it. The bond would not
be in specific amount, that the security could be
unified from the public funds; but IT would be con
dtnned generally or the faithful discharge OF his dn
,y--co9er,ng the whole extent of any dealcati"n -
fh's ~cud ensure 10 the Treasury the vigilance ci the
security. But above all. the funds Of the Government
would not be exposed the hazard and vicss',udes OF
I trade
/! vii, incidentally produce most beneficial effects
upon the currency. 1t wall tend 10 prevent IT'S sudden
c"n'raoonS and xp1msioas and the Consequent Hue
tuatious of prices: which the Bank system, either
STATE Federal, create. This may BE- shown N
few words. Tie natural tendency OF oil banking IN
stilutions is 10 expansions. The more money they
Ind and the greater their issues, the more they make
The immediate effect Of eSpausian OF the currency rs
10 make money penty; and raise the price OF every
market, 10 pour n:o the country, and the receipts OF
the Government In he large These going into the ca"
f-rs of The Banks, increase their means oi discount and
ISSUE st farther expanding thc currency aud swelling
the amnunt of imports. a, the time uur exporis
are depressed; Tor, shippers where find such
high prices at home. La q short tuie the balance
OF trade against large; specie is shipped to settle
~ aud the Banks are either forced to suspension OF
specie payments, or 10 rapid cu5ialment 10 prevent
Ill and thus prec plated a; once from inflated
to depressed currency--from very high to very low
prces-which brings distress upon every part OF the
country, as may be explained in few words When pri
become high, and the Of extravaganza great,
consequence Of the expansion of The currency large
amounts Of goods imported, principally by foreign
ers or On foreign account, They sold TO the
wholesale merchants Of the cities, who pas for them
IN bank notes which are borrowed generally from the
banks These merchants sell hem credit 20 the
Try merchants, who in turn sell them credit IL their
conn,ry CUSTOMERS With the hank notes, the importer
purchases foreign .Hl!s of exchange Cor remittance
rhrold long lie DO 4 Il. !arr prcc hui
TIE Exchanges iutGe,! agans; us, liz finds
profitable To ship specie, and with thu view he draws
u from The banks. ihs c"iupes Them to curaii the
ci;Y merchant, who calls upon the country merchant
Tor payment aud lie upon his country customers, until
ihr pressure IS felt IN every negbbofhood in The land
Al the time the contraction of The currency causes
the price Of country produce to fall in the commercial
narts; and the consequence i, the demand for the
OF remittance exceeds the supply. THIS raises
! the premium upon domestic bills, and deIanges the
Bu, the operation, under the Independent Treasury
system, IS very different. Assoon the Banks begin
10 expand, and the imports increase, run is made
upon them for specie TO pay the duties md they are
checked 1T cnee ond thus is supplied The des'dera-
tum ~ currency spoken o! in the E.ish Patliame n:
by 'lr. Charles Grant-"A preventive rather than
corrective os flacuatinnsa check whereby the evil
we wish Ia avoid is arrested before it takes place. =
A National Bank has been supposed 10 produce The
same result But little examination will show, that
though It may 'etard, yet it cannot prevent con,rac-
tons and expansions. When the Government funds
are deposited in a National Bank, the operation is
this rs soon the imports and the amount Of duties
begin TO increase in consequence of expunsun OF
the currency, demand is made upnn the State Banks
for specie TO pay tem If TIE duties payable spe
cie; Or, II they payable in State Bank nnies, these
notes GO into The National Bank, and the weekly
settlements the balances drawn IN specie. Thus
the Sia.e Banks checked, AMI II there was aay
security tia; the National Ban, would be managed with
discretion amd Judgment, the cheek w1nd be very
vl.cl r. hat,