The Congressional Globe, Volume 14: Twenty-Eighth Congress, Second Session Page: 56
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56
CONGRESSIONAL GLOBl.
=es
was equally true that it contained the name of Dal-
las as an opponent of a bank of the United States.
Both exhibitions were equally unfortunate; for Mr.
Polk had been, previously to the election, no more a
friend of protection than hi3 friend Mr. Dallas had
been an adversary of a bank of the United States.
The issue was between a bank of the United
States proper and a State bank bearing very improp-,
erly the same name, but being a mere emanation of
State authority: without the same capital, or the
same-circulation, or any of the same resources as its
namesake, the wonder was, not that it failed, but
that it should have been able to stand for an hour,
under its vast liabilities. It went out in clouds; it
sunk in disaster, and not without disgrace; but the
question was, was it a national institution? It was
not. It was not. The real Bank of the United
tetates expired by its own limitation with millions in
its vaults, and with its stock at 116—16 per cent,
above par. The real issue before the people had
been whether these two institutions were identical.
A number, a very large number, and of well inform-
ed men, believed them both to be the same. Nay,
the President of the United States himself, in his
late ^farewell addre.ss, spoke of "the Bank of the
United Slates" as having t;one out in ruin and dis-
grace; although the report of an investigating com-
mittee made to this House declared to be in a state
of prosperity ar.d strength, and though the United
Slates treasury received back its seven millions, with
an addition (by compromise) of 15 per cent. Even
tile State bank which succeeded and bore its nairfe
made dividends of 4 per cent, for a long time, and
did not at last go down until those to whom it had
intrusted its money went, down before it.
As to the issue referred to by the gentleman from
Virginia, it never was made. True, the party to
which he belonged had succeeded; they had tri-
umphed completely; there was no mistake about it;
and now it was the duty of every good citizen
cheerfully to submit, and to obey the behests of pa-
triotism, by continuing to aid his country by his
very best abilities. Let gentlemen look at the prop-
osition before them, without going back to inquire
what issues had or had not been made before the
people, and they would find that all moneys paid by
debtors of the United States to receivers, wherever
shey might be, were in the treasury, and could not
be parted with by these officers, unless in conse-
quence of appropriations made by law. They
would find that the security of the treasury itself,
t!>e powers of the public function acting under its
direction, and the national honor, were all thus
maintained and insured together.
As to the wisdom of trusting to bolts, and bars,
and keys, which must, after all, be kept by some
man or men, facts could be adduced which would
teach an impressive lesson. The question was,
whether it would be wiser and safer policy to trust
to a host of subordinate officers, down to the very
lowest, or to those whose long experience, tried ser-
vices, and high and unblemished character, entitled
them to the public confidence? Some allusion had
been made to other countries. In countries where
there were no banks, individuals were their own
bankers; and they often hoaided their money in
heaps upon the floor, in pieces of so small a denom-
ination that, if a robber should even succeed in for-
cing an entrance, he should be physically un ble to
carry off an amount sufficient to ruin the proprietor:
it was not alwas so easy to escape the poniard of
the midnight assassin.
Mr. I. here adverted to the governments of dis-
tant countries, and espicially of China. The public
treasurers in Canton resorted to this same plan of
security, by placing the public treasure under locks
and bars; and the practice hai been pregnant, with
riots so bloody and appalling as to'throw every
thing into confusion; and it gave him pleasure to
advert, in this connection, to the fact that for the
averting of these dangers when they had reached
their height, that feeble government had been in-
debted to the boldness, the promptitude, and the
skill of American seamen.
Mr. 1. eoncludcd by expressing his earnest hope
that this bill would not pass: but, if pass it must,
he trusted thar a section so objectionable would be
withdrawn; a section wliich confined to any one spot
a treasury .which ought to be as universal and as
wide as the existence, the credit, and the govern-
mentitself—which should be every where and at all
times.
At this point of the debate we are obliged to sus-
pend our report, and to reserve the residue for a
future paper. The House sat unusually late for
tills stege of the session, and the time for preparing
a detailed report was thereby necessarily curtailed.
But as the discussion became very interesting as it
proceeded, we shall continue a particular account of
what was said.
Mr. DOUGLASS observed that he had supposed
hat this bill would have been permitted to pass in
silence without being the occasion of bringing up a
partisan discussion. His reasons for coming to that
conclusion were, that the questions of the establish-
ment of an independent treasury, and its antagonist
measure, a national bank, had been so long before
the American people, had been so fully presented to
them, so well discussed and understood,and so une-
quivocally decided upon, that he had supposed the
House to be ripe for a measure of this kind, without
spending much time in the discussion of its details.
The gentleman said that the independent treasury
had been emphatically condemned by the American
people. When had it been condemned? The gen-
tleman said that it had been condemned by the ver-
dict of the people in 1840; but he need not
tell the gentleman that that verdict had been set
aside, and a new trial granted, at which a verdict had
been rendered in favor of the independent treasury.
As the gentleman was a good lawyer, he hoped this
would be satisfactory to him; andhe also hoped that,
as a good citizen, he would acquiesce in the clearly
expressed will of the people, and let the bill pass
without further opposition. If it were necessary to
prove that the will of the people, had been clearly
expressed in favor of this measure, he would refer
to the congressional elections of. 1839, which turned
on that issue. He would further refer to the elec-
tions in 1842, when there was another verdict in its
favor, and lastly to the late presidential election,
when that verdict was confirmed.
But the gentleman said that there were, other
questions besides the independent treasury that
were brought into the late canvass. Well, suppose
there were: he would ask the gentleman if there
were not other questions brought into the canvass of
1840? It was much easier then for gentlemen to get
up on that floor and discuss the subject of gold
spoons, the standing army, and negro testimony,
than to discuss great principles. Their principles
were in a great measure concealed. They dared
not, in 1840, bring up the question whether a na-
tional bank, or an independent treasury, should be
established; and, for the purpose of concealing their
principles from the public eye, the whig party
nominated as their candidate for the vice presi-
dency a gentleman known to be opposed to the
establishment of a national bank.
But the gentleman said that this issue had not
been presented to the people at the last election, and
he boldly told them that the democratic party did not
dare to present it. Did not dare? When, he asked,
had the democratic party ever failed to present it, or
any of their principles, to the American people? or
when had they failed to meet that, question when
fairly brought up for discussion? As the gentleman
had referred to the course of the democratic party at
the last session on this bill, and the report presented
with it by the gentleman from Virginia, [Mr. Drom-
goolf.,] he would tell him that in that very report
the question presented to the American people was,
whether a national bank or an independent treasury
should be established. To show the gentleman that
this issue was directly presented to the people, he
would read a few passages from the concluding part
of that report.
Mr. I), here read the following extracts:
"The establishment of a notional bank has still ni;:riy nr-
dent friends and urgent advocates o; with'trilajr the
strong constitutional objection.; to -ucli an institution—not-
withstanding the calaminous experience of the past— not-
uithstatidin^ the populat approval of the veto, v.hich pre-
^ exited the rechanei of the last I'nued States Bank, am! ihe
niieqMivo al fihicuirenee of the people, recently, in the le-
peated vetoi s \\ hicti lia\ e pre-en'ed the revival of such a
corporation—yet the indications cannot be mistaken, that
the ehort to incorporate a ban); will be nmwtd, with in-
creased perseverance, it ciicuinstances pemnt 'the com-
mittee. therefore, ha\e deemed it proper the more te.lh to
explain the principles upon which re-is the sj ■ tern now
recommended—of a tre.i■ u:y oi£,\ini7ca according" to the
provisions of the constitution, arid wholly preserved from
dependence upon banks and corporations of eveiv kind. It
need not be disguised, that the iv, o £ioat leading" anel com-
peting fiscal systems, not only in the view of Vn-enca -i
statesmen, hut in tin1 contemplation ef the public mind, aie
a v w loS-Ai, iiiM and an nri ie.Mn.vr tk* jh rv."
Yes, sir, said Mr. D., the report made at the l?.st,
session by my friend from Virginia concludes with
the distinct declaration that the twx> great leading
and competing fiscal systems, not only in the view
of American statesmen, but in the contemplation of
the public mind, are a national bank Aid an inde-
pendent treasury.
Did that look like concealing their principles? On
the contrary, there were 5,000 copies of that report
printed by order of the House, and sent out to the
people, telling them that the issue was between the
independent treasury and a national bank. And
again: when that issue was submitted to the people
and canvassed before them, they had given a verdict
against the latter, ajid in favor of the former. But
the gentleman from NewYork [Mr. Barnard] told
them that the gentleman from Virginia did-not draw
up his report for action, and that he "did not press
the bill to a passage. Why, if the gentleman had
called up the bill for action, and passed it, it would
have subjected the majority of the House to the
charge of forestalling the wishes of the people.
Hence it was • that they printed 5,000 copies of
the report; and, after having sent it out, waited with
deference and respect for on expression of public
sentiment in regard to it; and now that they had
received the verdict of the people in its favor, it was
their duty, as representatives, to carry that verdict
into effect. He would remind the gentleman that,
in 1840, the members of the whig party, coming
fresh from the battle field, proclaimed that the meas-
ures of the democratic party had been condemned
by the people, and that it was their duty to repeal
them, and the duty of the democratic party to sub-
mit in silence. Now, following the example set by
'the whig party, he would call on them, as they did
on the democrats four years ago, to submit in silence •
to the will of the people, and, as good citizens, to
suffer the bill to pass without opposition.
Mr. CALEB B. SMITH d:.d not recognise the
propriety of the course recommended by the gentle-
man from Illinois, who seemed very much disposed
to dictate to the minority the course they should
pursue. He did not acquiesce in the propriety of
the course recommended by the gentleman that
they should content themselves with a silent vote on
the passage of the bill. He was somewhat surprised
to hear that this old and exploded subject of the sub-
treasury was the pivot on which the late elections
turned, and that the people had decided in its favor.
He would ask the gentleman from Illinois to point
out when and where the issue was made on that
question in the late contest. Why was it not \
at the last session of Congress when the democratic
party had so large a majority in the House?
Gentlemen knew that if they had passed it, their
party would have been scattered to the four winds
of heaven, as they were in 1840; and therefore they
were contfnt to let this bill slumber where it was.
He knew that, in his own State, it never was avow-
ed as one of the measures of the democratic party
in the event of Mr. Polk's election. He knew that
when charged with an intention to establish a sub-
treasury, the democratic party had always denied it.
But now that the elections were over, and Mr. Polk
was elected President, gentlemen were for bringing
up this old exploded sub-treasury system, which
they w ere afraid to bring forward during the con-
test, while they claimed that the whig party should
submit to it in silence, because the verdict of
the people had been rendered in its favor. He re-
membered that some days since a gent'eman con-
tended that,, because the people had elected Mr.
Polk to the presidency, their verdict had been given
against a high protective tariff; that they were on
the top of Mount Pisgali, looking down upon the
promised land of free trade, and were now about to
' enjoy its fruits. But. on the same day another gen-
tleman, of the same party, also contended that the
democracy of Pennsylvania, by the election of Mr.
Polk, had readied the top of Mount Pisgah, and
were looking down on the promised land of a high
protective tariff. Tt seemed, therefore, that there
were two Mount Pisgalis and two promised
lands. Again, they had been told that the re-
sult of the late presidential contest had decided
in favor of the annexation or rcannexation of
Texas—that is, the immediate annexation, if not
sooner. There was a great deal of humbug in this
country, and this was one of them. But he denied
that the result of the late presidential contest was
a decision of the people, either m favor of that meas-
ure, or on the question of the tariff or sub-treasury.
They all knew that, in 1840, the verdict of the peo-
ple was against the sub-treasury; and there was no
evidence, that, at the last election, the people had de-
cided in its favor.
If the democratic party desired to revive this bill,
with its specie clause, so that they might pay their
office-holders their wages in the coin of the country,
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United States. Congress. The Congressional Globe, Volume 14: Twenty-Eighth Congress, Second Session, legislative document, 1845; Washington D.C.. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth2366/m1/72/: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.