The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-08-19
AN OLD-FAsHloNEp BANK.

which the Wing or Clay party is attempting 10 en-.
force upon the People Mr.. Clay himself in his
speech at Raleigh The 18th Of April last, expati-
sted fully, openly, and con @nOre, upon the darling
theme. The greatest opposition to Bank of the
United States" said he, "wl be found to arise out
of foreign influence" In 1871 he was eager to de-
monstrale just the contrary viz that the greatest
support of Bank Of the United States arose out Of
foreign influence. "Seven.tepths of its capital
quoth he are in the hands Of foreign capitalists,
and these foreigners chiefly English subject.
believe il to be fact that this Bank
csed its influence in support of jays treaty. The
Duke Of Northumberland is said TO be the most
siderable stakeholder" sc. Sc &c.
In this respect the last Bank little better than
The first. Foreigners owned more of its stock than
our own Government, and nearly half as much
our own citizens We do not find the name of the
Duke of Northumberland in the list Of stockholders,
but it contains plentiful sprinklng Of the English
nobility For instance " the Right Honorable Fran
els c. 8. C Conway, Marquis Of HEREFORD" was the
proprietor of 0O3 shares, worth at par 900, O30
Sir Marmaduke Peacock, Lieutenant General of his
M.jesty's forces, 500 shares; Sir Vim. Keppe, Gen
eral in his Majesty's forces, Knight Grand Cross Of
the order Of Bath, 722 shares together with the
Earl Of Beauchamp, Earl of Leyen, Right Honorable
Sarah, Dowager Countess Of Castle Stuart and some
score or two Of others.
Mr.. Webster, in his speech At Trenton, May 29ih
last discussed the subject Of the currency, and the
necessity of ito regulation by the General Govern
ment but ingenuously confessed that he had " no.
thing to say Of Sub-Treasuries National Banks, or
Exchequers"
Mr.. Joseph l.. White, late NJ C. from Indiana, in
speech before "an immense gathering of Wing
young men," in New York, about the LIST Of this
month, was particularly indignant at the idea Of any
Sinking Of /" that old and time -honored issue of
National Bank, and concluded his address with an
emphatic reference to it:
Let them take banner in their hands, and
from this ill November next display it at public
meetings end everywhere. Let us all 90 forth ready
necessary, 10 die politically with the folds of that
flag wrapped around US. Let there be inscribed on it
Wing principles as they have been-as they are
and ~ they ever will be-a protective tarH-the dis
tribulion of the proceeds of the public lands-(and
lear not to say and pale not at the sound "a ma
tonal bank, for the regulation Of the currency.
Ar. White here sat down amid the most enthu-
sastc app suse."
1t is evident therefore, that if Mr.. Clay succeeds
the currency to be regulated whether it should hap
pen to stand in need of regulation not. The pill
must be swallowed, whether the patient be sick or
well-because if well, he had business to get well
without isno right to himself, unless sseundens
srsm, and by the advice Of the faculty
II il natural, therefore, that amidst the din of pre-
tsndid Wing rejoicings and Wing bravadoes, we
should steal glance at the past in order to ascer
tain how m old-fashioned Bank" was won, to re.
gulate the currency
But in the fl 81 place, II is necessary to determine
what we understand by a we'll regulated currency
The impression with many is, that nothing more is
essential to sound paper currency, than that it
should be convertible demand into specie and be
everywhere at par, or at par for all practicable pur
poses But i, may happen and has happened, that
The notes of bank are deprecated fifty per cent.
within tweniy-iour hours after the announcement OF
It's failure Such notes were, 10 fact, worth no more
the day before than the day after the failure. And
what happens with single bank, may happen with the
whole number. A month before the last general
suspension of specie payments the whole paper cur
rency was convertible. and everywhere at par vet
The entire worth no more than when it had
Deprecated fifteen or twenty per cent The real
measure Of its depreciation the amount of nfa-
ton in prices
Ii Is evident, therefore, that something more is ne
eessary 10 constitute sound paper currency than
mere imaginary conyertiblity, which disappears the
moment that it is pu, to the test, paper currency
cannot be sound If II exceeds the amount needed for
purposes Of trade and a medium Of exchange, nor
If its rate Of increase exceeds, at any time the in
creasins wants of the trading community. The only
legitimate use Of paper currency is as a medium of
exchange, and not a means Of borroving or lend
ing credit upon the preence Of relieving the tight
ne. OF the money market.
Let us see IN what manner the late Bank OF the
United States fulfilled this condition of sound cur
rsncy. We might content ourselves with appealing
70 the testimony Of Of the most intelligent off,
GERS Of the Bank, John White, ESQ., the highly res
pccted cashier Of the Baltimore branch Of the United
States Bank This gentleman, in reply to letter
from MIR. Ingham, Secretary Of the Treasury in
February, 1890, calling upon him Cor certain infor-
nation with respect 10 currency and exchange took
occasion thus to express his opinion Of our national
currency, Which, in the estimation Of some was
then in its pslmest state and the best currency of the
world
Entertaining the opinion that the banking sys-
tem Judlciously administered conlers many and in
portrait advantages upoo commercial and rnanuf.c-
turing communities and conceiving also, that the
progress IN pro periy OF every nation, is intimately
interviewer with wise regulation Of pecunisry con-
Germs, have been ACCUSTOMED to advert with inter
eat to all important yicssitudes. Looking back TO
the peace, a short, period, fresh in the memory Of
every man, the wretched state Of our currency for
the two succeeding years cannot be overlooked the
disasters oflsIs, which seriously affected the crcum-
stances property and industry OF every district of the
United States will be long recollected. a sudden
and pressing carcty Of money preys led in the
spring Of 1922 numerous and extensive failures took
place at New York, Savannah CharvstoI and New
Orleans in 1925; there was great convulson among
banks and other moreyed Institutions the State OF
New York in 1895; the scarcity Of money smongs,
the traders in that State and Eastward in the vinter
OF LEAF and 1928, distressing and alarming