Preble County Democrat. [volume] (Eaton, Ohio) 1857-1859, 1857-12-17
!. PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.
FIRST ANNUAL MESSAG
s-l OF
President Buchanan.


Fsllo,e- CStisens Of the Senate. and Hous
Of Representatives
In obedience to the command of tn
constitution, it has now become my du
ty to "give to Congress information o
the state of the Union, and recommend
to their consideration such measures
as l judge to be necessary and expe
dent"
But sGrst, and above all, our thank,
arc due to Almighty God for the hume
rous benefits which He has bestowed
upon this people and our united pray
ers ought to ascend to Him that Ht
would continue to bless our great re-
public in time to come as He has bless
ed it in time past. Since the adjourn
ment of the last Congress, our constit.
uents have enjoyed an unusual degree
of health. The earth has yielded hel
fruits abundantly, and has bountifully
rewarded the toll of the husbandman
Our great staples have commanded high
prices, and, up to within brief period
our manufacturing, mineral and me-
ehanical occupations have largely par
taken of the general prosperity We
have possessed all the elements of mate
rial wealth, in rich abundance, and yet,
Notwithstanding all these advantages,
our country, in it's monetary interests,
is at the present moment in u deplora-
bic condition.
In the midst of unsurpassed plenty
in all the productions of agriculture and
In all the elements of national wealth.
We find our manufacturers suspended,
our public works retarded, our private
enterprise of different kinds abandoned,
aud thousands of useful laborers thrown
out of employment and reduced to want
The revenue of the government, which
is chiefly derived from duties on imports
from abroad, has been greatly reduced,
whilst the appropria tions made by Con-
errss at its last session for the current
fiscal year are very large in amount.
Under these circumstances loan may
be required before the close of your pre-
sent session; but this, although to be
deeply regretted. would prove to be on
ly a slight misfortune when compared
with the suffering and distress prevail
ing among the people. With this the
government cannot fail deeply to sym
pathise, though it may be without the
lower to e.tend relief
1t Is our duty to inquire what has
produced such unfortunate results. aud
whether their recurrence can be pre-
vented In all former revuisions the
blame might have been fairly attributed
to variety Of cooperating causes; but
not SO upon the present occasion. II
Is apparent that our existing miSfortunes
have proceeded solely from our extrava-
CANT and Vicious systt III of paper currency
aud han IL ornlIfc oxu;fI,,.. H. l.
wiIsd pee ulations and gam bling in stocks
These revnlsions must continue TO re-
cur at successive intervals so long as
the amount OF the paper currency shall
be left to the direction of fourteen hun
dred irresponsible banking institutions,
which from the very law of their ma
ture, will consult the Interest of their
stockholders rather than the public
welfare. if
The trainers of the constitution, when
they gave to Congress the power ''to
coin money aud to regulate the value
thereof" and prohibited the States from
coming money, emitted bills of credit,
or making anything but gold and silver
coin tender in payment of debts, sup
posed they had protected the people
against the evils of an excessive and ir-
redeemable paper currency. They are
not responsible for the existing anoma-
ly that government endowed with the
sovereign attribute of coming money
and regulating the value thereof, should
. lave no power to prevent others from
driving this coin out of the country and
filling up the channels of circulation
with paper which does not represent
gold and silver.
~ 1t is one of the highest and most re-
sponsible duties of the government to
insure to the people a sound circulating
medium, the amount of which ought to
be adopted with the most possible wis
dom and skill to the wants of internal
trade and foreign exchanges. If this
be either greatly above or greatly below
the standard, the marketable value of
every mans property is increased or di-
m n she'd in the same proportion, and
injustice to individuals as well as meal
culable evils to the community are the
consequence. 'u
Unfortunately, under the construction
of the Federal Constitution; which has
now prevailed too long to be changed.
this important and delicate duty has
teen discovered from the coming power
and virtually transferred to more than
fourteen hundred State banks, acting
independently of each other, and regu-
lating their paper issues almost exclu-
sively by regard to the present inter
ests of their stockholders. Exercising
the sovereign power of providing pa
per currency, instead of coin, for the
country, the first duty which these
banks owe to the public is to keep in
their vaults sufficient amount of gold
7 and silver to insure the converta bility
of their notes into coin at all times and
under all I. circumstances. No bank
ought ever to be chartered without such
restrictions on its business as to secure
this result. All other restrictions are
comparatively vain.
This is the only true touchstone- the