Year: 1861

sembled at noon; President Mouton in the chair,
and eighty members present. The journal was
read, corrected in one particular, and approved.


The President presented to the Convention q
communication from Gov Moore, transmitting a
printed copy of lengthy address and resolutions,
which had been presented to the Senate and Repre-
sentatves of the Choctaw Nation for their consid-
Grafton, by Geo. Hudson, Chief of said NatioA and
transmitted by the said body to the Governor of
this State. The address treated of the separation
between the North and the South and of what the
Indians ought to do and be entitled to under such
circumstances and one of the resolutions called for
a Grand Council of the Cherokees, Creeks, Chick
a5aws, Seminoles and Choctaws to consider what
action should be taken by the tribes jointly, in
view of the secession of the Southern States, with
which they friendly.


Owing to the great length of the document. a
motion was made to dispense with the reading but
30 great was its interest that the motion was lost,
and it was read entire.


| Mr.. Lawrence moved its reference to the Com
mittee on Southern Confederacy.


| Mr. Fuqua consided this message from the Choc-
taws g most important and able one; and after
paying high tribute to the advanced civilization
and enlightenment of the tribes named and to that
of the Choctaws in particular, he moved that be-
sides referring the address to the Committee on
Southern Confederacy. there be 500 copies of it
printed for the use of the Convention and that the
Committee he instructed to make such report as
would fully express the sense of the Convention
upon a matter so important. The motion carried
unanimously.


Mr.. Marks, of Caddo, offered a resolution that
the Texas delegates to the MONTGOMERY Conven-
ton be invited to seats within the bar Amended
80 that the invitation stand open TO all delegates
from seeded states, and thus amended adopted.


Numerous members rose to offer resolutions j;
but o'clock having arrived. the President an
nounced that the only business in order was the
special order of the day. to-wit Mr. Estlins ordi-
| nance orfbanks and banking I'VE published the
| ordinance in full on Saturday


The ordinance was taken up: the reading of it
in whole was DISPENSED with and motion was
made and carried, that it be read and acted upon
section by section


Mr. Elgee moved to strike out from the first sec
ton the date 1890 y and to insert therefor the
date ''lS85;" explaining as bis reason, that the
proposed extension Of the bank charters was too
long for the progressive state of the country.


Mr.. Girard, of Lafayette, moved to strike out
the enactng clause of the ordinance; and as this
necessarily brought up the ordinance for discussion
as whole, the motion to discuss section by sec
ton was overruIed, and the ordinance debated
upon its general merits,


Mr.. Duprt opposed the ordinance as a whole,
on the ground that this was a matter exclusively
for the action of the State Legislature; anu he
gave his views as to the difference of authority
between the Legislature and the Convention, and
as to the impropriety of the members of this Con
vention taking action upon any matter not spe-
ciaiiy delegated to them by the people, He next
in speech of some length, reviewed the ordin
nance in detail, and opposed every section of it
from first to last He saw in some of its pro
visions scheme for the greatest banking mono
! poly he ever heard of; in others, a scheme to
aggrandize city capitalists and merchants ut the
expense of the agriculturists of the country. He
did not think that any constitutional restrictions
or laws could make the banks any more honest or
safe than they now are : and explained, as the
basis of his whole opposition to the ordinance,
that he was opposed to all banks and banking sys-
tens.


Mr.. Hodge stated that upon careful examlna-
ton of the Constitution with reference to the
banks he found that it 7cas necessary for this
Convention to take the action proposed by the
ordinance He was very far from wishing to deal
with anything which the Constitution left to the
Legislature. He proceeded to speak ably and at
length upon the merits of the ordinance. The
Legislature, he maintained, had not the power to
put the free banks on a footing with the old
chartered banks He reviewed the history OF
banking in Louisiana from 1912 up to the present
time pointing out the defects of the free banking
system as shown in times of commercial distress
and panic and the stability and integrity of the old
chartered system at all times Time and expert
ence had demonstrated it, the whole United States
had acknowledged it, and even in Europe it was
acknowledged, that the chartered banking system
of Louisiana was one of the very best in the
world. The ordinance before the Convention in
voved no clashing between the great commercial
and agricultural interests of the State; the one
interest reflected the greatness of the other The
charters of the old banks, except one, would ex
pire in 1867; and unless we passed this ordinance
J we would after that time have to depend on free
banks with all their uncertainties, as heretofore
If bank gets into trouble or panic, there is bu
one thingathat save the note-holders, and that
is money in the vaults. The great object of the
Committee in presenting the ordinance was to pro
vide safe and sound currency for the State o.
louisiana He Nhe speaker) would propose tc
add to the ordinance the conservative clause of the
|