The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1856-01-12
GBe 9allg yoarllats:.
NEW STATE BANK-eovERNoR wBIeHrs >
INDfANApoLIs, IND, Dec. 26, 1855.
nal Il. Hall. ESQ. E,lS6o5- of Deul0crut


1NDfANAroL1s, IND, Dec. 26, 1855
.Sqmual Il. Hall, Esq, Elstor of Democratic
| Pharos, Losanspolt, Ind. .-Y -.
Dear Sa-Yours of the 18th inst, upon the
subject ofmy suit against the new State Bank
is before me. Many inquiries and frequent
Misrepresentation are made about the suit:
therefore l answer you, as briefly as possible.
The suit was brought in my name; by Judge
Morrison, with but short notice, the object
being to have service made before the pay
ment of any money or organization, in order
that we should not hear anything about priv
ilages passing into the hands of those who
were aiming to establish this great monopoly
Their payments as we'll as their organization,
Were made and effected after full notice that
their rights would be contested. The amends
ments to the suit now pending will present all
the questions directly before the court, as to
what rights, ifany passed by the act ofLegisla-lE
ture. If decided by the court against the plaiT-s
tiff, when the cause is fully presented by the
amendments, the suit viii then go to the SuS
preme Court. 24s szHlH
This suit is brought with the firm convie-
ton that the legislature had no power, cnders
our present constitution, to incorporate afys
bank until the expiration of the charter cf the
present one. The people ofthe State have
vast interest in the present old State Bank Of
Indiana. In this institution are their trust
funds of every kind; also the basis oftsnking9
capital, for which the people are responsible, if
not paid by the Bank-in all amounting to
more than two millions Of dollars. 80
1t was undoubtedly the intention Of the
present constitution--the language of that in
strument will bear no other construction
that there should beLut one bank of the State;
and that the present bank should be closed on
the expiration of its charter, its affairs wound
up, and its financial expose made, in order
that the people might witness the condition
in which it left the country, and then after 4
full discussion of the question the people could
decide whether the wants of the country re-
luired the chartering of another institution of
the same kind. .,,,. 80
Our fathers based their hopes for the sue
cess of our form of government upon the fun
damental principle that all public measures
which affect the finances, trade, business and
character of our State should pass through
the erucible Of public investigation. With
rec pect to the present new bank charter it is
believed that not single press nor single
public speaker in the State, ever named the
subject in the political contest OF 1854 Now
f the legislature, under our constitution, two
,r four years before the expiration ofa charter
,an occupy the whole ground for such an ex-9
Lensiye and dangerous monopoly, for the next,
twenty years. without any examination or
discussion by the people, | do not see any
good reason why the very next careless and
mischievous legislature may not prepare the
wav for few privileged gentlemen to acquire
the same rights and privileges, commencing
say ten, fifteen, or eighteen years hence, and
n this way defeat the planest principles Of
our constitutions and destroy one of the strong
est safe guards Of public vlrtue--the voice of
the ballot box
The capital stock is exempted from taxation
for municipal purposes. The rightis is given to-
issue post notes, the most worthless of all
Bank issues, payable at their own time No
additional branch or branches can be establish
ed. let the wants Of the country be what they
may, without the consent of two thiIls of the
All of these are clear -viols tionssef
laid down in our new Constitution.
BY the 91st section of the charter, the Gem
eraI Assembly, with the consent of the State.
Bank and branches, may alter or amend the
charter. On this point there is force In the
language of one who said--"We can hardly
trust ourself to speak of the fagitious insult
to the common understanding of every decent
man. and the dersive mockeTy of the reserved
power of legislation to that mans rights. The
people, poor dIpes thought before they had
been initiated into the mysteries Of banking
by this act; that the power to legislate was
controlled only by the superior power sof .ass tas
Constitution But in this new phase of the
higher law, the bank parlor becomes the hall
of Legislation in all that relates to the materi-
al fiscal interests Of the State, and its direc-
tory, kicking the Constitution out Of the way
of bank vote, arrogantly tell the representa-
tiyes of the people, we ignore your bills, we
refuse our assent to your legislation-but by
virtue of our authority above you and your
Constitution, we youch safe to you the priyiE
lege of passing into law what we now pre-
sent'.' TarteT
You doubtless remember that among other
objections to this charter, there was, in my
veto message, the following; fiiesy.I .soaT
"The 18th section, after providing for twen-
ty days notice of the opening ofathe books
for the original subscription of stock, by its
obvious import allows the books to be closed
if the requisite amount shall then be sub.
scrbed, at the end of the very moment at
which they are opened. Thus one man, may
subscribe the entire amount of stock of one
or more branches, and a moneyed monopoly
as odious and frightful as any of which the
history of American legislation furnishes an
example, may suddenly be established. The
94th section of the charter Of the present
State Bank, the language Of which is copied
word for word, in many parts Of this bill, ex-
pressly provided that the books for the ORIGIN
al subscription of stock should be skept open
between the hours of 9-and IL o'clock A NJ
of each day for the space of thirty days;'' yet
this wise safeguard in the case of the present
bill, would seem to have been studiousiy omit.
ted.' ysF.
As strange as it may appear, this prediction
has been almost literally fulfilled. Various
fad aff he II