The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1848-09-30

Yet as soon the wings got into power, they passed
bill after bill TO create banks said that President Harr
son, had he lived, would have given them bank and
called President Tyler ga weak athess and vacilatng
Chief Magistrate" because he would not allow them
create one His worthy and consistent cabinet resigned
their places because President Tyler dared to do what
they said in the he bound TO do, hon
est man Nay, for his honest and consistent OPINIONS
against the power of this government to create bank
some OF the wings who voted for him wanted to impeach
hun, to eject him from Office, and to render him forever
Ineligible to honors and trust Even balmage of tar
and feathers invoked TO rdicue his exit from power
and to preserve his nfamy negative example pos
terty
Fearing therefore, that the wings would bank
If seated in power and suited with President who would
not restrain them will present soreasons for agree
ing with General Harrison that here is grant in the
constitution, of power to create bank"
| On the 18th of August, 1857, Mr.. Madison submitted
to the federal convention proposition to give Con-
gress the power TO grant charters of Incorporation in
cases where the public good might require them and the
authority of single State might be incompetent"-(3
Madison Papers, i543) On the same day. Mr. Pnckney
submitted to the federal convention proposition give
| Congress that power, without mitation-(3 Madison
Papers, l543D The committee whom these separate
propositions were referred made TO the federal conven-
ton report, excluding from the circle of federal powers
both the special and general power TO grant charters of
incorporaton.-(3 Madison Papers, l543) Again, on
the nth of February, 1857, few days before the
venton adjourned, Doctor Franklin submitted to the
federal convention proposition to give Congress
the power to provide for cutting canals where deem
ed necessary" Before vote taken on this prop
ositon, MIR. Madison still wishing TO delegate to the
general government the authority charter corporations,
moved to amend the Doctors proposition, by adding to it
"the power to grant charters of incorporation in
where the interest of the United States might require
and the Legislative provisions of individual States might
be incompetent" But the proposition OF the Doctor and
the amendment OF Mr.. Madison wholly rejected
g Madison Papers, 1860 Thus, three distinct propo
sitions to gue to Congress the poccr to charter corpora
tions fairly submitted, considered and uoted down
MIR. Morris of Pennsylvania also submitted TO the fed
eral convention distinct substantive proposition "o glue
to Congress the poUer to create national bank" And
after argument and elaboration, that proposition
also rejected on the public and avousd ground that such
poaoer, granted to the governmen could create enc
mics to the constitution, and defeat its adoptioa(3 Mad
son Papers, 1916; and Elhots Debates, GIL; and A
Jeierson's Memoirs, soy No statesman will venture to
dispute this weighty and unanswerabe history 'sThe
Papers" of Mr.. Madison were wholly prepared by him
SELF and purchased by the government for their wisdom
and truth.
Now, the power to create corporations remains where
the trainers of the constitution wisely found it, among the
separate States II is pretended that any amendment
of the constitution comforting that power the govern.
ment, was ever made. Congress has, indeed, passed
bank bills, and presidents have signed them But both
Congress and the Executive have often defeated
such bills while the people have always condemned them
in the strongest terms And it would be absurd to con-
tend that usage and precedent of binding weight only
when they operate against the public will, to favor the
encroachments of arbitrary power
If precedents can alter fundamental laws and usage
make power constitutional rulers may dives of every
blessing which written constitution intended to
cure They would only have to create presidents, and
insist upon them pretext for Others till lawless
power would subver the constitution, and compass every
object of sinister ambition II to prevent this very
tendency TO political abuse that the fifth article of the
federal constitution adopted, fixing the terms and
prescribing the conditions upon which powers be
added to or taken from the charter of our Union
Now, there has been to this fixed and con-
stituonal method of obtaining for the national govern
ment power to create bank There was a time
when the power could be gotten in that way And those
who the existence of the power because they want
it, driven to the dangerous doctrine that
precedent coners what the clear letter and undsputed
history of the constitution obviously deny. We cannot
estimate the evils of bad precedent, when gilded with
the sanction Of celebrated The debt and distress
which revolutionary struggles created among u.s. and
the pressing entreaes of Secretary Hamilton, tempted
President Washington yield his reluctant assent to the
bank bill which passed Congress in 1901 In 1911 the
charter of that bank expired, and Congress refused to
renew it. In 1915, President Madison vetoed bank
bill Yet but little while afterwards, without distrust
ing his previous conviction that there constu-
tona authority in the government TO create bank, he
gave his assent to the charter of bank, the ground
-untenabe, we humbly think--that the States, the
courts, Congress, and the people, by permitting bank
charters had barred all inquiries into the constitutional
authority of the government to create them Mr. Nadi-
son had witnessed the repeated efforts that vainy
made in the federal convention to confer on Congress
the power to charter banks He made those efforts and
recorded them himself And he knew the motives which
prompted the stubborn refusal of the convention to con-
cede that power. He showed all this in the famous
speech which, in 1791 not three years after the power
was wholly refused he made in Congress against the
bank That noble speech placed the speaker in the lead
of our great constitutional statesmen AMI prepared the
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