The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1855-02-05
fy.r N. Eva. .v,fi. J.ss.si.J
Dsaks again.
H.. Esro.: A 4

/ will not accuse "C)vis" Of ignorance or an
airpe.s, when in reply 70 my forIsar article he
,uo,es Ar. 4, Sec. . oflhe consitusiOps giving
he Governor power to call specizU sesions OF
he legislature, as an answer 10 my ohjectiontol
&C. 5" proposition, that the present legislature
should amend the Constitution aud submit the1
amendment 10 the people Al the next general
election. will say, however, that (sCivis" il
mistaken when he supposes that this power 10
.onvene the General ASS mbly nexsra session.
n any measure obvia.es my objection. 4 In my
,rief article. quoted the provision Is 70 amend
nents, and II 'Civis" bad read Il s,teStiveIy, he
would have discovered that an amendment 10 |
he constitution before it can be submissed to the
people for rejection, must be agreed to- MOI meve-
" by tsco different assio.s Of TIE SANG Cessral
Assembly. bur by a majority Of all the members
vi two separate and distinct General Assemblies
The amendment. ifagreed,o by majority of
the members elected to each House Of the pres
ent General Assembly, would by the yeas and
nays thereon, be entered on iheir, journals '-and
referred to tic General Assembly to BE- chosen at
the merit general election" Us prosecution, in
answer 10 which wrote. was TO re charter the
present State Bank, and he correctly understood
that to do this, an amendment of the constitution
was necessary, and he suggested that the amend
ment should be passed al the preeent session OF
the legislature, and submitted TO the people at
the next election. l showed this to be imprae-
ticable, and in this connection remarked that
the question for the next four yearslat least, will
not be, shall; we have Free Banks. or shall we
have Slate Bank, but, shall we have Free
Banks or no Banks at all. .'Civis" preiends 10
believe that intended to be guilty II unfairness
by not stating the fact that Section s of Article
~ provides that the General Assembly may also
char.er Bank with branches, wilhou, collateral
security. Now, the power TO pass'a Bank CHAR
ter is one thing, and the establishment of the
Bank. under such charter, another and very
different thing. ~ evidently believed as I do,
that we riu Aare no State Bank until the consii.
luton is amended: NOT because the legislature
has no power TO charter some SORT ola Bank with
branches, but because neither the stockholders
of the present State Bank nor any other capital.
lists would invest theft funds in airy bank which
the General Assembly has the power to charter.
Section ~ of Article IL OF the constitution pro-
vides "that the State shall not be stockholder
Tin any bank, after the expiration of the Preseu,
bank charter; nor shall the credit of the State
sever be given or loaned IN aid Of any pe,son.
ASSOCIATION or cJrporaiiop; nor shall tn: State
thereafter become stockholder IN any corpora
"iion or association" Section 5 Of the sarae
Article makes the branches of any bank that
may be established mutually responsible for
each other upon all paper issued as money
Section 6 of the same Article makes each stock
holder in aEy bank individually responsible over
and above his stock to an amount equal to his
stock, and that too for al debts o. iabiiit;es 81
Of the bank. Had these provisions all been ia.
the charter Of the present bank who believes that
that BANK ever would have been organized :
Who believes that the necessary capital wouLl
be taken in any bank with branches, which the
llegisla ure might charter under the prescntcon-
siisu,ionl II the stockholders In the present
State Bank were willing to transfer their stock
to any new bank which the legislature has pow.
Ct to charter, would not those stockholders ask
the legislature to pass such . charter1 Has the
State Board, the Board of Directors Of any branch
or any Individual stakeholder Of the prrsen,
State Bank pelitioned for the charter Of new
bank with branches1 If hey have not, Is no,
their silence evidence of their unwillingness 70
transfer their stock TO any new bank which The
Legislature can charterl ITepeat then that fol
the next four years the question is nos whether
We shall have free banks or State bank. but
shall we have free banks or no banks At all.--
"Civis" says that II is easily shown that the banl
as Il is can, under the constitution, now be ex.
tended and enlarged without material alstr
except thar the safe would cease to be stock
holder, ("and leparticxlars gro,cing oct efit'',
and except also the incorporation of The individ
ual liability clause. Exactly 80. Just as easily
shown as Pat proved the identity Of his boots, al
though they had been footed" four times, and
had been twice furnished with new legs. A
State Bank in which the State holds no stock
and in which the branches are mutually liable
for the issues Of each o:her, and the stocxholdei
Individually liable for all he debts Of az ~.
branches, not only to the amount of his stock, bu
TO double thar amount, would bear no more re-
sembsance TO the present bank than il would 10
free bank. Wuull "Civis" invest his means In
such bank even at the command Of The people
with whom he says the whole matter resist
'.Civis" thinks that the power to invest "ih,
rust funds" is power to transfer tho suck nov
held by the State from the present to new bank
do not suppose this is Attributable to either ig
norance or untairness, bat until Tread .'Civis,
always supposed that 1.-The trust funds" wer,
certain funds held BY, the Stale in trust for edu
cational purposes, such as .''the surplus revenue
fund" saline fund, &c. But my whole purpos'
in this communication was to reiterale what
stated in my former one, viz: That at least foul
years will be required 70 effect an amendment Of