Arkansas intelligencer., 1844-11-16
GOVERNORS MESSAGE.
FelloD Citizens Of the Senate
and If the House Of Representatives.

L
BY the constitution Of this State it is made the
duty Of the Executive, "fromtme to time, to give
to the General Assembly information of the State
of the Government, and recommend to their consid-
eraton such measures as he may deem expedient.' ~
| In discharging duty, thus imposed upon me;
! embrace this opportunity Of congratulating you
4 upon the favorable auspices under which ycu as.
semble. Within the short period of my admins.
tration, nothing has occurred permanently TO i'm.
pair the prosperity Of the people. TO check the
growing importance of the State, as u member oil
tho Union. --s ! r4alga1 lrr s..t,,,..1 .,..,
All the elements of prosperity. connected with
| a genial climate and fertile soil, are in a mos,
healthy state, calculated to secure and advance
the happiness and prosperity of all portions of the
country. t-.rr.E. .--s-..5s. 40
A people, thus favored, ought. upon all proper
occasions, remember tho high obligations they are
under to Divine Providence for the benefits thus
conferred, and devoutly hope for their continuance
as the destinies of nations and of men are in his
hands.
For several years past, no portion OF the Union
has been exempt from a commercial and pecunia-
ry arrangement. growing. doubt out Of a spirit
Of speculation aud extravaganza unparalleled ia
the history Of the country. But form the charac-
ter Of our peculiar system o: Government, based
as it is upon the virtue and intelligence of the peo-
pie, and their capacity for selfgovernmont, and
so framed to allow all to engage such pu rsuits
as their inclination may direct, connected with
the enterprise and industry of the people, we may
confidently anticipate that the time is not far
distant, when by a proper administration of the
government, pecuniary embnrrassments s will cease
commerce will! assume its proper chnnnel, and
all the elements OF prosperity so abundant in this
State will have their full effect upon the labor and
industry of the country.
The system of economv which pervades the
whole country growing out of the commerciaI
and monetay difficulties through which we have
been and are still passing, and which has visited
all classes of the community, will no doubt secure
that general prosperity so ardently desired. This
IS an agricultural State ninety-ni out of every
hundred Of our population are agricultursts; and
il IS confidently believed, that one Of the most de.
sirab ble things to be accomplished is perma nency
of legislative action, which ought at all times TO be
kept in view by every department Of the Govern
ment. ! cannot, therefore, too earnestly recon-.
mend such course Of legislation Us will produce
changes in the laws only where experience has
shown thom indispensable. Changing the laws
sR!Y aHHRsp dRqEsdaess ha and
avoided. @
BY this cautious sy stem Of legislation. the culti-
vators soil. who compose such large ma jor-
ty of the people i'll be secured more certainly in
their rights. without infringing upon the rights Of
olhers-and thus the prices of the products of the
soil and the wages Of labor will be more uniform
aud certain. ...-.... -
A wild and extravngant system Of legislation
is more to be deprecated in free country like
this. than any thing else. Such a of legis.
lation, together, with the operation of the Banks
in many of our sister States, well as in own.
has had tendency to neglect the interest Of the
producing Glasses, while it protected the supposed
interest of the large dealers and bankers. Hence
the cause of that wild spirit Of speculation and
extravagance, which for time pros rated the best
interest Of every department Of life. 7
! presume it is beyond on'roversy, that sys.
tenn of legislation has been adopted in many parts
of the Union, which has had for its object the ad
vancement OF the interest of the banks, enabling
them to proctce system of favoritism by ex-
tending large loans to few extensive dealers to
the almost entire exclusion of those vino operated
upon a smaller scale, we'll as the community;
which resulted disastrously both to the banks
and the people. .l1...ss 1s-.. -ar
Aided therefore, by the experience Of the past.
we will be prepared 10 avoid such unhealthy icgis-
lation. '' f
At the last session of the General Assembly, an
act was passed placing the Bank Of the State in
liquidation. and requiring heavy calls TO be made
upon its debtors. The soundness of that act n.
not at this day be questioned. At the period of
its passage, the Bank was in a s'nte of suspension
of specie payment, and its circulation had sunk to
a most runous depreciation, and it exhibited an
incapacty to resume the payment fspecie, or to
redeem at an early period its paper. The neces-
siiy therefore, pressed upon tho Gencral Assem-
bly, TO place the Bank in a condition to be wound
up with as little loss as possible to the note hoI-
ders. Since the Bank has been under going the
process Of liquidaton its circulation has been re.
duced from large. to comparatively very smaI!
amount, producing at the same time ns little op.
preston in the community, us the General As
sembly could have anticipated.
The amount of notes issued by the State Bank
and branches, outstanding on the 26th day of Oc-
tober last, after deducting the amount already
burnt, and the amount on hand 10 be cancelled
and burnt, was $l72355
Towo rds the redemption OF this sum, there are
already in the vnuts Of the principal Bank
$l26 900, in the notes of the Real Estate Bank
and branches, to which, may be added the amount
Of notes collected by the Receivers of the differ.
ent branches since their last returns.
Thusit is manifest, that under the regular op
ernton ofihe law, in much less than two year.
more, the entire circulation will have been taker
in. After that period. the debtors will be forced
topay their calls in specie. which, under the pres
ent arrangement will be impracticablc.
| Had il been the good fortune Of our citizens Il
have escaped most extraordinary flood of wnte