Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-10-10

| reSOrteo 10, and direct tax was lalo. 1 ne
/ Hartford convention aggravated the Sltua-
| ton. and. though its full proceedings have
never been published-its sealed journal,
| when opened. being found to contain
| meager sketch of formal proceedings
| enough is known to show that deliberate
! attempt was made by representative led
| eralists to procure a separation or the
| states To use the illustration of a distin-
| guished writer, the Hartford convention,
| hardening into stone. preserves for all ages
a sphinX-like mystery" Fortunately our
| quarrel with Great Britain was brought to
an amicable conclusion through the treaty
of Client on the day before Christmas. and
the session closed in exuberance of joy
| Military operations We're declared suspend
ed. calls foT additional troops were counter
mauded, the militia speedily diScharS-
ed and the state volunteer act repealed
! Dallas bank scheme postponed and
| Congress, by the acts of February ~ and
| March 3. 1915 provided for the immediate
wants of the treasury by temporary loan
and a new issue of treasury notes.
Sixth Extra Session (1s3D.
The general and almost simultaneous sus-
| pension of specie payments in the month of
| May 1897, was the occasion of the mo-
mentous extra session Which. as the first
of the Twenty fifth Congress, was convened
on the 18th of September. 1897. by President
| Van Buren,, and closed on October 10.
| In the midst of era of unprecedented
! prosperity, trade expansion and national
| growth. Jackson had commenced his fight
! on the national bank and the dismantle-
| ment of that bank in 1853. through the re-
| moval OF the public deposits. had induced
| a nominal increase in the capital of state
| banks from Sic G0O00J in 1890 to SOD
| O00.00o in 1897; the specie circular di-
| rectng that nothing but gold and silver
should lie received in payment for the pub
| lie lands, had Disseminated against the
deprecated paper of the state banks;
great glut of merchandise from E--ope, the
result of the unfortunate Clay compromise
act of 1922, had compelled our merchants
| to draw heavily on their banks for specie
| to ship across the Atlantic; and the in
evitable eXplos on. says Schouler, which
| empirical finance had fastened, burst in
moment the blown bubble of fictitious pros
| perity on which trade had painted its image
| in rainbow co!ors and scattered ruin far
and wide"
| Under such serious conditions the Twen-
| ty-fifth Congress convened in extra ses-
sion. The Presidents message rec;ted the
disastrous events of the preceding six
months and the deficit in the treasury.
| The only measure of relief proposed by
President Van Buren, the plan or
| scheme of independent or. as was more
commonly styled. the sub" treasury, which
was a complete divorce of the government
and all its operations from banks. That
| proposition failed and treasury notes (act
| of October II, 1897 We're issued though
| less in amount than recommended by Mr..
| Van Buren, another measure of temporary
| relief postponed the payment of the fourth
surplus installment to the states; and
| few minor measures of temporary relief
| We're passed; but both parties were con-
| tent to wait until the fall elections, which.
as rule, were wing reyerves
Seventh Extra Session (1S41).
| The occasion of the next extra sess;o on,
| the first of the Twenty-seventh Congress-
called by President Harrison for May 81,
1871 was. as declared in the proclamation.
''sundry important and weighty matters
| principally growing out of the condition of
| the revenues and finances of the country"
| The death of President Harrison, one
| month after his inauguration, and the
| cesSOn of Vice President Tyler to the preSi-
| dency, with the complications growing out
| of the change of policy the part of Mr..
| Tyler from that mapped out by his prede-
! cessor, produced great bitterness in Con-
greSS against Tyler, that the session
was barren of any important legislation.
| John White of Kentucky chosen
| Speaker bya viva vOce vote-an unusual pro-
| ceeding. President Tyier's message aroused
| the suspicion of the wing leaders that
| treachery was meditated by it's author. 1t
| urged that tariff legislation be attempt
| ed at present, that the subtreasury law
| should be repealed and a suitable fiscal
| agent" substituted, while he expressed his
| disgust that irresponsible state banks had
| multiplied so fast of late 1t was generally
regarded as a national bank message,
| the report of the Secretary of the Trea Sury
| tThomas Ewing distinctly proposed a
| tional bank Henry Clay submitted his
| plan. which proposed the repeal of the sub
treasury act, the Incorporation of a
| tionai bank, provision for raising an ade-
| quate revenue by means of new duties,
| temporary loan and a few minor matters.
| An act was passed July u, 1S4D author
| zng a loan of twelve million dollars, and
| Mr. Clay, from the finance committee, re-
| ported n bill, which became a law August
| IL. 1S41 repeating the subtreasury act, the
first distinctly national bank act passed
| by WING party.
Eighth Extra Session 1885,.
The failure of the Thirty Fourth Con-
| gress al its first session (Which terminated
August Is. 1856 to make provision for the
army, necessitated an extra" session,
| which was Immediately called by President
| Pierce and met on the 2lst day of August.
| three days after the close of the first ses-
| son-a notice" of but three days. The
| differences between the two houses in
| gard to that bill related to the amend
ment submitted by Mr.. Lewis D. Campbell
| of Ohio and adopted in the House by
| close vote, which prohibited the employ
ment of the army in the enforcement of
| an enactment of the territorial legislature
| of Kansas until such enactment had been
| affirmed or approved by Congress- The
| House again passed the bill with this pro-
| vision to which the Senate would not
| agree, and a new bill without such pro-
vision was thereupon passed and approved.
| The session terminated on August 50.
Ninth Extra Session OS61).
| The next extra" session was the first
| of the Thirtyseventh Congress, convened
| on the 4th day of July, 1861. by President
| Lincoln. Ut called. in the language of
Mr.. Lincoln-on account of the opposi-
ton to the laws of the United States. and
| the distractions placed in the way of their
! execution" in certain designated southern
| states, by combinations too powerful to
he suppressed by the ordinary course of
! judicial proceedings. or by the powers
| vested in the marshals by law" The ses-
| sion closed August o. 1851. after passing
| many important measures for the increase
| OF the military and naval establishments.
| for the revision of the tariff, for levying a
| direct and income tax, etc, both
| branches being in full accord with the
| administration in respect to the policy to
| be pursued toward the seeding states.
| Tenth Extra Session (187D.
| An extra" session of the Forty-fifth
| Congress called by President Hayes
| for the 18th day of October. 1877, ac
| count of the failure of the Forty-fourth
Congress, during its second session. to make
the usual appropriations for the army. the
! difference between the two bodies thc