The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1848-12-16
ICnncLlllieA G.om 4lh prre. J


rXpediency Of the measure; and while tho
hill was before him for his official upprOYn
Or disnpproyal, so grent were his dolIhiS Una
he required "the opinion in writing" Of The
members of his cabinet to aid him IN arriving
nj II decision. Ills cabinet gave their opinion
nnd weru divided upon tho sulJect-Griler'
nj Hamilton being ninVor of and Mr. Jetilr-
son mud Mr. Randolph being opposed TO the
consrutionulity and eXpedieucy Of the bnnk
II is well known, also, that President Was!.-
ington retained thu bill from Monday the
fourteenth, when it was presented TO him.
until Friday, the twenty fifth Of Februnly--
being the last moment permitted him by The
constitution TO deliberate, when he finally
Welded TO il his reluctant assent, and gave II
his signature. II il certain Ihnt MS late as the
23d of F'ehrunry-heiug the ninth day alter
the bill was presented TO hinl--he had nrriv-
eel at no satisfactory conclusions for on that
dny he addressed note to Gen. Hamilton, IN
which Inc informs him tllal"this bill WINS pre-
scented to mo by tho Joint committee Of Con-
yress nj 10 O'clock on Monday tho fourteenth
instnnt;" and hr requested his opinion 'to
what precise period, by legal interpretation
oGtho constitution, can tlIG President retain
il in his possession, before it becomes law
by the lapse Of ten days.
Ir the proper construction was, that tic
day on which the bill was presented 10 The
President. and the day on which his action
wa5 had upon it, were both 10 he counted in
elusive, then the Iime allowed him, within
which it would he competent for him to re-
tlrn il to the House in which it originated
with his objection, would expire on Thursday,
the twenty fourth Of February. Gen. ilam-
ION on the snnc day returned an answer III
which he states: 81 give it M my opinion
that YOU have ION days exclusive ofthat on
which the bill was delivered to you,nud Sun
dlys: hence,in the present casFi II Is return
ed on Frdly, it will he in time" by lllls
construction, which the President adopted he
gained another day for dehera,ion, aud it
Mas not Till the twenty fifth Of February that
he signed tho bill; thus aiording conclusive
proof that he bad NJ last obnined his own
iunscnt 10 sim il not without great and Ill
tsost insuperable difficulty.
Additional light has been recently shed
ANON the serious doubts which he had on the
subject amounting at one time to a conviction
that ii was his duty to withhold his approval
from the bill This is found among the man
dscript papers Of Mr. Madison, authorized to
he purchased for the use oFtllc government
hy Rp net of the last session Of Congress, and
now for the first time accessible to the pub
lie. From these papers, ii appears that Pres
ident Washington, while he yet held The bank
NI in his hands. actually requested Mr. Mad
iSOn, at that time member OF the House OF
Representatives, to prepare the drahght OF Il
veto message forfin MIR Madison, ut his
request, did prepare the draught of such
message, and sent it 10 him, on the twenty
first of February, l79l
Acopy of this original draughtu Mr. Mad
ison's own handwriting, was carefully pre-
served by him, and is among tile papers late.
Nv purchased by Congress. 1t IL preceded by
i, note. written on the same sheet, which is
ailso in Mr. Mudison's handwriting, and is as
follows:
HFebruary 2lst, 1901. Copy Of paper
ynade ont aud sent 20 lhe President ut his re-
quest, to he ready in case hisjudgment should
finally decide against the bill for Incorpora-
ting e Haienu! bank, the bill being then be-
fore him"
Among the objections assigned in this pa
uer 60 the bill, mad which were submitted for
The consideration of the President are the
following:
81 object to the bill, because it'is an essen
siai principle Of the government that powers
NOT delegated by the constitution cannot he
Ti1htfi,Ily exercised because the power pro-
posed by the bill to he exercised Is not ex-
prcssIy delegated, and becHuse cannot sat
isfy myself that it result from my express;
mower by fair s. safe rules of interpretation
The weight of the precedent of the bank
.y,fl70I, and the sanction of the great naIne
of Washington which has been so often in
y0keS in its suDport,are greatly weakched ny
lhe deycopment oflhese facts. The expert
ment of thar bank satisfied the country that
1t ought not to be continued, and ut the end
tsftwenty years Congress refused 10 rechar-
terit. II would have been fortunate Tor Inc
country, and savedthousnnds from bankr,lpt-
CIV ond ruin, had our public men of 1916 re-
sisted the temporary pressure ofthe times
,upou our financial and pecunlary interests.
and refused TO charter the second bank. VI
This the country became abundantly SATISFIED
and at the close of its tWenty years duration,
~; i'm the case of the first bank, II also censcd
toeXist. Under the repeated blows OF Presl-
alcnt Jackson it reeled and fell, and suisse
Uuent attempt to charter similar institution
was arrested by the veto OF President 1yier'
MIR Madison. in yielding his signature to
the charter ofISl6 did so upon the ground
or.tfae respect due to precedents; and, as he
s,,bseuuenty declared, "the Bank ofthe Uni
led States, thou Oh, on the original question
held to be unconstitutional, received the FAX
ccutive signature" .,uo,
II is probable that neither the bank ofl79l
nor that of 1916, would have been chartered
but for the embarrassments ofthe govern
meut in its finances, the arrangement OF INC
currency and the pecuniary pressure which
cxistpd. -,hc first the consequence of the wal
of the revolution, and the second the conse
u,enco of the war of 1879. Both were re-
sorted to in the deluSive hope that they woult
restore public credit, and afford relief to the
government, and to the business OF the coun
try.
'Those of our public men W ho opposed the
whole "Amertcan system" at lis commence
tnent, aud throughout its progress, ioresaN
and predicted that it was fraught with meal
culabIe mischiefs and must result in serious
injury to the hest interests of the country
For series ofyears their wise counsels were
nnhceded, and the system was estnhIisled