Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1844-10-08
TIE ISLANDER DESTROYED:
BANK M, 1915

TIE ISLANDER DISPROvED:
Orhe In"Eair Proposition noIeG 10 iie Ce&n'er
Ne. Will
BANk OF 1916.
We now proceed 10 the history Of the chaitol
OF The Bank of 1916 The circumstances, unccl
which that bill passed, are well known. The
country had Just emerged from war with lht
most powerful nation on earth. Ii was iiaode,
with irrcacema5lc -hn-pa>tc!s, by aumbcrleS,
State Banks and the only measure Which !, wa:
thought would remedy he cv1. was Natioaa
Bans, Accordingly Bank WAS passed, and ;hc
charter signcd by the President Bui did tic RI
PrrrlcAN PARTY, rs party, aprro:cc Of tha; mca
sure? EY No MEANS. According Ia the show
inc Of the Fair Proposition iistlf, (and, though
il produces no proof Of the accuracy Of lis calcr
la;on we are willing 10 use I'D Thirty ncllber>
OF the Republican party i'll the House Of Repre-.
sentatves voted a-,;yaa the Bank cren rnder Ii,
circumstances m naich the cOHatry irdS Msa p0rcd
Among them were McSsrs. II. +. BARBOUR
B,ssErr, CLoPToN, CRAWFORD OF Pennsylvania
RANDOLPH etc Now, what docs hi, state OF
The vote show? 1t evidences clearly that, though
Il majority ot tie Republicans, mostly Young
men. who had not seen The Adams Reign of Ter
ror, were frightened By The condition OF The coun-
Try ir;oa torget!ulEcs> OF principle and duty, vel
large number stood iirm and consequently ihatihe
Bank, AMI consequently MEIER SANCTIONED il.
The vote o The members from VIRGINIA stood, Stor
the Bana 10 against il. -Four members were
absent; and though on subsequent question oi
Indefinite posiponemeLt Of The Hill they voted )
(NIeSSrs. Tate peasants and Nclson,) against
and (Mr Roane) FOR il, yet this vote cannot I've
considered As a proper test OF their opinions on
the Bank itself, (any more than The singular
vote of John Randolph, which mentioned a
-four ,hor. ba.l- cpp h, cnrsi,lprpi ipg,c.
iive OF his sentiments on the same question Bat
we have other and surcr means OF aniL Z
The votes which these four gentlemen (A!e>S:S.
Nelson, Tate, Peasants ani Roans) wouM have
Given, il present, Gin the 18th March the Iav
before the passage Of the bill, Mr.. pi;hin pro-
posed an amendment which. he said, was with
him 4 Siac qua nor. ON this question. Mr.
TATE, the o:l9 one OF the ;cur present, vo;ci rh
Mr.. Phn;n. The amendment WAS moi carried
This vote explains why Mr.. Tate WAS asaia>.
the indefinite posponemcnt o! the bill the amend
mcni may have been also with him Il sine qHa
man, or lie NAV have been altogether opposed 10
the Bank, along with many other opponents Il
The bill who voted with Mr. Pitkin. Ills nan,e
docs not appear in the debate, and no oher vote
Of his is recorded in ii. We must hen take this
vote as a test and elias, him with The opponents Of
the Bank. Mr.. Nsl.soS was Chairman oi the
Committee OF The Whole during this debate, and
We consequently tdIillOl itdlH HtH IL opium
Concerning The Bank. Bun h. voted Gga,as, all
Inc attempts 10 charter Bank in lSll-aea,aM
the Bank bill OF 1915, on lis lin; passage on
January 1,h of tina; year, Doc. Hist. y. 5o0)--
and for the indefinite postponemeni ol the Bank
hill from The Senate, on The l1th February, 1878,
(Doc. Hist; 7. GoS) There can then he nodouht
that he was an opponent oi the Bank WM. II.
RoANE-bu why should we seek TO show from
the record, the consistency oiihiS sterling and IN
ilinching Rerub:can!-he vet lives 10 testify, in
words Of burning eloqucnce, his unwaverng al
iercnce 10 the tilne-lonorcd creed OF he Repul
hcan party. The Fair Proposition does no,cven
auemp, 10 claim him among lis anomalous Bank
Republicans. He xa>
"Failhtul found among innumerable false
Unmovsd, mistaken un>educcd. uategr.iet:
His LOYALTY he KEEP. his faith his love
Nor Numbers nor example with him wrought
10 swecye from truth, III change Lis conS'an,
mind
Though single
Mr. Pleas ~T> voted for the Bank hil or
1919, and mast ID. considered Ben, mau. lhi!S,
at ths three absent ln..aae, claimed III, tn
Fair Proposition rs Bank men, iwo AZ. shown
bv their r,te> 10 be au;i-Bana on he iour al
sent members, three, (Nfc>srs Mason, R0ANr
and TArE,) wer. an'i-Raal;-cu" (Mr PLEA-
s,NTs) Bank man. Thus. ii. entire delesa-
AIpH lipbi tSiHld StioNt. - W. tat i'cIh. IL
against il, and, of these, 10 we're Republicans
Thus was the potent voice Of VIRGINIA raised
against the Monster Bill. The Delegation from
New HAMFSHiRg s:ood, for the Bank, : agdia,a
il. PENNSYLVANIA gave & voc. iar il, II
agGiaa it, although the Mo;lc, Bank vas TO BE
located in her capital
Some support for the ridiculous position .. the
"Fair Proposition has been attempted 10 te
drawn from The i,lct, that som, Of The i'c"ra
ISIS. (ncluJing all from Nrgiui.,,l vo,ci against
The Bank. The voted. as clearly appears from
the debates, aganS, the particular measure heir,
Coaertss becauS, thcy disapprovei Of its fetGdS.
and not hesauS. ;hcy were opposed 10 Ban, Il
together and certainly 10 no Bank. on coE>;iu-
tional grounds. This W. nigh, readily conclutc
from nc Circumstance, tha, those very gentlemen,
and lhci. party, h3d always been previously in
favor Of a Bank. But. unfortunately f,r the
Fair Proposition" their own declarations leave
MS. no doubt, on the subject.
Mr.. GAsroS, Of No:: Carolina. in .he debates
IN loli ''iro;cSSea himself 0aJicWs ior Tie c>ta'
lahnen, OF 4 National Bank. which H. hed a.
ira.S avoGc'!, when opportunity of.c1rj. Eat j,
was his decide! convictoa, that a bill he tI0i en-
the t0bs, ToTi no; ;;ns,.crih" purposes 0. the ma
lion. 81 II the Goveramcn. - Doe Hist y. lso1
Mr.. WEBSTER. III the dcb1:c~ in 1915. said
"To a Bank oi this ratnrc, ,.tc! - ne had de-
>cribad.) should, AT any iBle be- @illiag 10 give
nv support, no as measure oitemPorary POLICY,
bn, as an institution OF ,ermapcni intcrcs; and
importance "-(Doc. Hill, p 5i3)
Mr.. GAsToS in the Debates of 1873 expressed
himself .'mtrars friendly To such an institution"
doc Hist, p COZ
In The debate on the Bank charter of 1916, Mr..
WEBSTER repeated these opinions, and Mr.. PR
KIN, though he, like alr. Webster, voted aga in>,
The Bank, expressed himself decidedly friendly
10 the Incorporation OF 4 Bank. y doc. Hist, p.
GJ3)
Although, as we have shown, 4 majority Of
the Virginia Delegation and 4 majority Of the
Republicans in il, voted against the Eank OF lsl6
yet the Fair Proposition asks: Can any one
doubt, after examining these facts, that The Old
Dominion favored ,ha, institution Where
were her instructions 10 her Senator'S If she was
against il T.
we have before lis a pamphlet PRINTED BY
ORDER o. TnE Ho:S: or DEt.eGArss" q! Virginia
in 1919 containing instructions 10 the Senators
Of Virginia in the Congress OF the Unitcl States.
(submiued by Andrew S,evcn>opl Preamble
and Resolutions on the conslilGtionaliiy ol tn. l..
5. Bank Law, (>ubmii;cd bv VIM S Archer
Preamble and Resolutions on the saiae >ub!.ct.
Submitted b. BriScoe c. baldwin, Togc,hsr
with the Resolutions oi the Virginia Legislature
in l7oS; and the Report, adopted in 1901, on he
Alien ami Scdiiion l.awS--,o which is sublo;peti
the opinion OF The Supreme Court OF the e. =.
pronounced in 1910 on the cons,i,,iioualily OF
the U. $. Bank Law The "lnslrt,c,ons" con
tain the following declarations: III The Suprcm'
Court had confined their opinion simply 20 The en-
quiry, whether the Bank Of the u. :. was nccc,-
>lry and proper 10 carry into effect certain spcci-
fed powers OF the Federal Government, the Gc-
neral Assembly though il has uniformly mani
tested its opinions that the Bank was aacoaa,ia-
tD,ss!, would in consideration 0: the circumstance.
0'tewiing he establishment Of that iaa,ia;ien, liz
EAanciai arrangement md nridc-smcod jadiridp9
rnia which REPEAL OF its CHARTER might pro-
duce, have been disposed, though differing in SEN
timent from The Supreme Court, 10 have remained
sen, until the charter should have expired, with
lis owa limi,aton-hnt when the question as 10 The
Bank is made the occasion 10 lay down and as
sert principles OF such universal extent, and such