The Kalida venture. [volume] (Kalida, Ohio) 1841-1865, 1847-03-19

sold and conveyed some public lands il
i l795, and next year, l796, the legisa
ture which hadauthorized the sales, SET then
aside and claimed the lands. To state thes
facts is surely sufficient. The State owne,
the lands which were useless until cultiva
ted. She could not cultivate them---individ
uals must do that. If The State simply a
bandoned them, 40 title could be acquired
by ihe occupier, nor any improvement b.
made. lfgiven TO tosettlers, the citizens o
Georgia generally would be cheated. and
few enriched; SO that from necessity the
were sold and the proceeds placed in tht
public treasury. After such purchase ant
payment and conveyances, The public tide
was Of course divested by the grant, and YES
ted in the purchaser. The most acute min,
can in this perceive no analogy TO the pres
ent question.
Mr. Speaker, will no, weary the House
| with these almost professional details. 1
was only because they were oseuiatiousy
lparaded elsewhere, that | have ende avored
to show that they are totally out of place,
and cannot for moment defend the devoted
heads ofthe bankers from the patient, but
inexorable requistion of the people.
1t may be said that the legislature by tax.
ing the bank capital, and thereby modifying
these bank charters, recognizes and confirms
their existence. think not. will com
municato my own opinion Of bank charter,
even upon the inadmissible by po,hesls, that
il has any vitality. If the legislature grant
ing bank charter, was not controlled at all
by positive restrictions, that charter is H.
censo only, which may be modified or dis,
continued at pleasure, whether perpetual or
not. Charter aud license are convertible
Terms; but charter and contract arc wholly
dissimilar, and not at all convertible.
We use charter and license in conversation
anonymously; and every body understands
the propriety ofsueh mode of speech. The
word contract is ofa face equally familiar,
but of family very different. 1t has def.
mite non-converiibe meaning. 1t is all t c
time contract, and nothing else. 1t can
only be defined by the use of several words,
and not by any alternative word. A contract
is a mutual promise, 8pon consideration, be-
tween competent parties, Well SIT, ifa char
Ter he no! a contract, but license, il is ev-
ident--is is perfectly undeniable, that it is a
license without any consideration. IL IS a
mere permission which nothing has been Civ
en-, because nothing was required The man,
then, who is licensed, may enjoy his special
privilege only so long as Il Is The VIII aHu
pleasure Of the giver, and The privilege ITSELF
ceases at the command Of The latter. If the
banker had bought his license, il might have
been different; always observing, however,
the distinction, that 70 legislature in free
state can sell privileges 10 some, and deny
privileges 10 others;- ;-or in other words, sell
privileges at all. know that there is rad
ical doGect in even this part of the argument,
ior reasons already given: but it is at least
consistent, and the most favorable 10 the
banker, which is tenable al all. And now
what does the license suggested resemble |?
II is precisely like the case Of nuduar pacfar,
individuals. Ii is, as if you, Mr..
Speaker, had gratutously authorized a friend
'or a year, or for ten years, or Indefinitely,
% take the annual proceeds Of your farm and
ipply Them 10 his own boaeft. Although a
privilege Of undoubted value TO the receiver,
and a license which he could i'll afford 10
lose, your right to terminate his reception Of
The annual product, this customary sppropri-
alton Of il TO himself, is both clear ard un.
questionable. ..ar. u
BY these arguments, and this homely it, |
lustration intelligiblq to every man, think |
have extricatcd the Legislature from any d.
lemma in consequence Of the supposed re-
cognilion by taxation of the banking corpor-
llioas of Ohio. Indeed, fatter myself that
[ have gone much further, and have also
shown, that so far as relates TO tho general
banking companies organized under tho act
Of February, lS45, they may at any moment
be modified, or abolished. In no proper
sense have these companies charter by spe-
:ial grant Of the Legislature. o
They are companies organized according
% the provisions Of an unusual enactment,
,ut one which is nothing more nor less, SO
ar as they are concerned, than general
aw. Without abandoning one title of the
Whole previous argument, and granting for
he sake of argument only, the legislative |
power 10 pass any such inequitabla law for
be benefit of favored class, also positive
y assert the legislative power TO alter that
aw, or TO set it entirely aside. This power
o amend or repeal a law is inherent in the
legislature, and never can be alienated. lis
yercse at all times from the nature ofthings,
IS from the Nords of the constitution, must
always be neither moro nor less than a NOR
i question for that legislature to decide be-
ore whom the question is brought Not a
Idestion to be decided, nor decision of it
precluded by priei legislature, nor power
over it in any manner so diminished or taken
away, Surely this is too plain for argamenti
and a precedent for us has been lnconslder-