Bedford inquirer. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1857-1884, 1867-09-20

the meaning Of the words bills OF credit,
we may resort for light TO the opinions and
votes of the meu who framed the Coustltu-
tion, in deciding whether ia the words to
borrow money, was intended TO be included
"to emit bills of credit fer that Is the pre-
else question we have here to consider.
Bvtac ninth of the old srticles Of coniede-
ration. section 5, it was declared thar 'the
United States in Congress assembled, shall
have authority to borrow money or emit
bills on the credit Of the United States.
In the plan Of the Constitution, as reported
to the convention by the committee Of detail,
Of which Mr. Rutledge was chairman-thls
clause was copied-Sto borrow money and
emit bills on the cTeditof the United States.
On the I7th Of August 1877, inconyention,
Mr.. Gouyerneur Morris Of Pennsylvania,
moved to strike cut the words, and emit
bills There was a debate "a this motion,
which Is reported by Mr. Madlson. IL was
argued by some, and Air Madison hlmseu
among the number that the words had bet
ter remain, with a provision prohibiting
them from being made legal tender. MT.
james Wilson, of Pennsylvania, afterwards
one of the justices oftb Supreme Court OF
the United States, appointed by President
/ Washington, contonded that it would have
most salutary influence on the credit OF
the United States to remove the possibility
/ of paper laoaeg =" Other members who
/ spoke concurred with him in this view.
The motion was carried, and the words
stricken out by a vote Of nine States to two.
Mr.. Madison has added In q foot note, that
the vote By Virginia in the affirmative was
occasioned by his acquie scence, because he
became satisfied that striking out the words
would not disable the Government from the
use Of public notes, as far as they could be
safe and proper, and would only cut oil nc
| protect for d paper currency, and particularly
for making the bills a tender either pudtc
or prtrotc debts. Is Flliott's Debates, 434,
435.) | do not know how these proceedings
may strike other minds, but they have con-
yiHced ne that the Federal Convention un-
/ dcrstood by bills Of credit, aot securities
Certificates Of loans or Indebtedness, treas
ury notes, or exehequer bills-but Just what
Chief Justice Marshall afterwards defined
! them 10 be. paper money, and meant to
deny to Congress the power to make such
money.
Luther Martin, in the address to the Ma
/ rylaud Legislature in justification of his
course IN retiring from the Federal C0nven-
| ton, has also given brief sketch OF tins IN
! terestiug debate, which corresponds IN the
main with that Of Mr.. Madison. lie de-
| clares IN the most emphatic manner that a
| majority OF the convention being willing to
I risk any political evil rather than admit the
/ idea OF q piper emission IN dRy possible case,
refused 10 trust this authority to the Gov
4 ernmeut Secret Proceedings Of the Fed
| eTal Convention p. 81 He afterwards III
forms the Legislature, as indicative Of the
temper of the body from which he had with
drawn, that as the Constitution was re-
ported By the committee Of detail, the States
we're only prohibited from emitting them
! .bills Of credit, JcitboW the c1aseatgf CoR-
/ gres, but the convention were so smItton
/ tCtth The epaper-ntoney ctreal, that they IN
sisted that the prohibition should be abso-
/ lutte. 1t was my opinion, SIT, he pro-
I ceeds to say, that the States ought not to
be totally deprived OF the right to emit bills
| Of credit, and that Is we had not given an
1 authority to the General Government for
! that purpose, il was the more necessary TO
4 retain it in the States.
The members Of the Federal Convention
! truly represented the views and feelings OF
/ the people Of the States By whom they had
| been chosen No one acquainted with the
/ history Of the Revolution can be surprised
at the extreme jealousy entertained Of in
vesting either the Federal OF State Govern
ments, or even both, by joint action. with
any discretion on this subject Ii Is plaia
that the men who framed the Constitution
the men who ratified it in the State Con
ventions-the great mass of their consti5u-
ents-meant uOthigg less than to exclude
forever, IA any posslJig case Mr.. Martini
tile pOsastlRY of pGper mORgf-( Mr.. Vii
son. The public faith again and again sol
emnly pledged for the redemption Of the
Continental bills Of credit, had been shame
fully violated The tender laws Of the States,
enacted at the urgent solicitation Of Con-
gress for the purpose Of sustaining their
credit lad utterly failed. The amount OF
private wrong thereby inflicted on indiyid-
uals and families was incalculable. Con
gress, in q circular address in l779-after
promising soIemniY that the amount Of the
bills should on no account exceed 5000 000,
00O-indignanuy repealed the idea that
there could be any violation of the public
faith, or that there did not exist ample funds
to redeem them. The emission, however,
very soon after swclled to S379 600, 900, and
having ceased to circulate, quietly died IN
the hands Of It's pOssossOrs. 3 Story on the
ICoust., 233-224. Mountaineering was found
SO easy, SO attractive, and at the same time
so deiusiye and destructive as that Of resort
ing to paper money. who, said a mem
Der Of the Revolutionary Congress in de-
I bate, viii consent to load his constituents
with taxes, when We can send to our printer
and get a wagon-load Of money, and pay for
the whole with a quire ofpaper2' (Breck S
| History Of Continental money, D. IS. Well
said Mr. Read, Of Delaware, in the Federal
/ Convention, that such pawcr would STAIN 2
the Constitution with ''the mark Of The
beast in Revelations" and Mr.. Laugdon,
of New Hampshire, only expressed the feel
iugs of the entire country when he declared
that he would rather reject the whole plan
than retain the three words and emit bills. "
/ 1t requires but a slight knowledge Of the
times to conclude that if these three words
had been retained, or had it been imagined
that though stricken out, as by comparing
the new with the old system every body
could see that they were, they still iurked
iu the instrument as incidental Co some
other power, the Federal Constitution woul
never have been ratified by nine States.
In the discussion and publications which
followed on the PRONUNCIATION Of the plan,
before proceeding to vote on it in the State
conventions, as well as in the debates Of
those bodies, so far as they have been pre-
served and handed down to US, though every
hole and corner of the instrument was ran
sacked to find objections, | am not aware
that it was ever suggested that it might pos
sbIy contain so odious and unpopular a
power. The voice Of the instrument itself
appeared sufficiently marked as uumistak-
able.
H. I come now to consider the remain
ing clause, which has been relied on as the
source OF authority to pass the act in ques-
ton 10 coin money, regulate the value
. tba~pBf and of fgreipn coin oni fv fbp