Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1848-12-08

dent retain IL III his pOSsessioh
a law by the lapse OF ten days"
u,hich The bill was presented the President, and
rho day on which his action was nad upon ~,
we're bath 10 be counted inclusive, then Inc line
allowed him, within which il Woulo DC coupe
,ent for him 10 return il TO the House IN "nlch II
oriainaled with his objections, would expire on
Tuesday, the lwenty-ourh oil February. zen.
Hamilton on The same day returned an answer, ,
in which he states: Il give it as my opinion mat
YOU have ten days exclusive oil that on which
he bin was delivered 10 you, and sundays
hence, in the present case, II II IS returned On
Friday, il will be in time"
Rv this construction, which The Presideh'
adoped, he gained anctter day lar deiioeiauoh,
nd il was not until The % h oil FEBRUARY 'has ne
signed The bill; thus af,rdins conclusive PROOF
Thai he had at last obtained his own consent ~
sign il not without great and almost lnsupefau'e
difficulty. Additional light has been recently
shed uron the serious doubts when ne hau oh
the subject, amounting at one time 10 conVic-
,ion that i, was his duy 10 withhold his appro.
val from The hill. This is found among me
manuscript papers OF Mr. Madison, authorized
10 be purchased Tor the use II The governments oy
an acl of the last session o Congress, ana no"
for the first time accessible 10 the puoiic.
From these papers, il appears That PRESIDENT
Washington, while he yet leld the Bank Dill IN
his hands, actually requesed Mr.. MADISON al
that time member of The House OF Represen-
lalives, to prepare the dralght of Veto Mes,
cage for him. Mr.. Madiso,, at his request, did
prepare The draught of such message, ana
sent il 10 him on the 2lst February, lf9l
copy of this original draugt, in Mr.. Mauison 5
own handwriting, was carefully preserved oy
him, and is among the npars lately purchased
by Congress. 1t is prec,lei BY note written
on The same Sheet whici IS also IN Mr. ''aui-
sons handwriting, and i q, follows:
February 2l,t, 1871 Copy Of paper made
out and sent TO the President al his request, 10
be ready in case his judgment should ilnally DC
eide against the bill fe Incorporating Ma
tional Bank the bill being hen before him.
Among The objections assigned in this paper
to the bill, and which WIRE submitted for the
consideration Of the President are the following:
81 object 10 the bill, because il is an essential
principle of the Government that powers not
delegated by the Constitution cannot be right
fully exerciscd because tie power proposed BY
the bill to be exercised isnot expressly delega-
ted and because | cannoisalisfy myself that it
results from any express pwer by fair and safe
rules Of interpretation
The weight Of The preceta: q the bank OF 49, ,
and the sanction ot he greet name oil Washing
ION which has been 81 o!ldl Invoked in lis sup
port. are greatly weakenedIby he development
Of these facs. The experiment OF that bank 81
ti.ied he couniry that il ought not be con
timed. ard a: The end OF tt-ny years Congress
reused 10 recharlcr il II You'd havc been Tor.
tunaie for Inc country, and svr! thousands from
bankruptcy and nin, had our public men OF
1915 resisted The temporary Frssufe OF The lines
upon our financial and pecpiaIy interests, aud
refused 10 charter the SECONDHAND. OF this The
country became abundanly aiisfed, and at the
close OF its twenty years durlion, as 10 The case
Of the first bank, il also ceasd 10 exist. Under
the repeated blows Of Presidel Jackson, il reeled
and fell, and subsequent apmpt 10 charter
similar institution was anesL by the veto Of
President Tyler.
Mr.. Madison, in yielding is signature 10 The
charter oil 1916, did SO upon lie ground OF the re-
spect due 10 precedents: and IS he subsequently
declared 'ihe bank of the United States, though
on the original question, helcto be unconsliIu-
tional, received The Executive RnatuIe."
Ii is probabe that neither lhebank OF 1891, mol
that OF 1916, would have been chartered tut iol
The embarrassment of The so.fnment in lis D
nances, the arrangement OF Ihe:urrency and The
pecuniary pressure which exissd, The first The
consequence oil The war OF iherevolntion, and
the second the consequence OF lie war Of ISL
Both were resoIted 10 in tie dtusive hope TIA
they would restore public credit,and afford relic
10 the government, and 10 lhebusiaess Of Inc
country.
Those OF our public men NO opposed The
whole american system" al its commencement
and throughout its progress, toresw and predict
cd, that il was lraughl with incalcl BILE mischeis
and must result in serious injurpo the best int
ress OF The country. For sers OF years theii
wise counsels were unheeded, andhe system wa:
established II was soon apparel that It's prac
lical operation was unequal andlnlust upon dill
pie engaged in different pursuits
All we're equally entitled 10 n. favor and pro-
tecion OF me government. Il iosiered and eleva
led the money power and enriehed the lavoree
few by taxing labor, ND 80 tAYeHsr ~ 'h'
many. Its effect was 10 'makelhe rich richer
and the poor poorer" lis tendelcy was 10 Gre
alc distinctions in society based N wealth, and lt
give 10 the favored classes undle control and
sway in our government. II va an organised
money power, which resisted / popular will
and sought TO shape AMI conrolhe public poll
cy
Under the pernicious working of this combin-
ed sysem OF measures, The couniy witnessed al
iernale seasons OF temporary apparent prosperity
of sudden and disastrous commscial revulsionsi
OF Unprecedented fucluation ofprices, and de-
preston oil The great interests ofsgricultufe ma
vigation, and commerce; of gneral pecuniafJ
suffering, and of final bankrnp,y OF thousands.
Atter severe struggle OF morahan quarter OF
a century, the system was oveIhrown.
The bank has been succeed by a practical
system Of finance conducted an controlled solely
by The government. The constitutional currency
has been restored The public reiil maintained
unimpaired, even III period d foreign war
and The whole country has become satisfied that
banks, naional or STATE, are not necessary a f.
cal agents Of the government. avenue duties
have aiken the place Of the protective tariff The
distribution OF The money derived Tom he sales OF
The public lanes has been abandoned, and The
cofrupling system Of internal Improvements, |! IS
hoped, has been effectually CHECKED.
Ii is not doubled, that II this qho'e train 81
measures, designed 10 take wealth rom The many
and 5asrw it upon The few, weFeo prevail, the
effect would b: IL change The enltc character 81
The government One only daIsr remains. II
is, the scfuc'ions # that branch Of the system
which consists in internal Improvements, holding
out as il does, inducements TO the people OF par
lcular sections and localities 10 sn bark The g :
vernment in Them without stopping 10 Calculate
The inevitable consequences.
This branch Of the system is 81 intimately
combined and linked with the otters, that az
surely as an effect is produced by an adequate
cause, if il be resuscitated and revived, and
frmy established, it requires no sagacity 10
foresee that it will necessarily ard speedily
draw after il the re establishments Of National
Bank, The revival Of Protective Tariff, the
distribution of the land money, AMI not only the
posiponemcnt 10 the distant future Of the pay
ment Of the present National deo, but its an
nual increase.
| entertain the solemn conviction, that il the
Internal improvement branch Of fc "Amcri-
can SYSTEM be no, firmly resisted al this time,
The whole series of measures competing it will
be speedily re. established, and the tountry be
thrown back from its present high state Of pros
perity, which the existing policy has produced
and be destined again TO witness all The evils,
commercial revulsions, depression Of prices. and
pecuniary embarrassments. through which we
have passed during the last twenty-five years.
To guard against consequences so ruinous, is an
object Of high national importance, involving, in
my judgment, the continued prosperity Of the