->. ^^• ■^'^ .^ ^^^^^ .\- .\^ "'-^. SiO^ .^ -O. .^- O >r <^- ■>^'' 'h ■^c. '^v-. ■3^ X A- 'bo'' .^^ •^i- ^ rU I.. '^ ^^ y •*. 9.-^ " , ^ >■ ' •^^ -S^ ^>i-'^ ''>. ,/- V ^> "^^ * r ^ ^ THE LIFE OF HENRY CLAY THE GREAT AMERICAN STATESMAN, EMBRACING AN ACCOUNT OF niS EARLY AKD DOMESTIC HISTOET— HIS MORAL AND RELIGIOUS SENTI- MENTS-IIIS PERSONAL AND EEOFESSIONAL QUALITIES— HIS VIEWS UPON THE GREAT QUESTIONS OF HIS TIME — HIS GENERAL POLITICAL CHARACTER AND CAREER- AND THE INFLUENCE HE EXERTED UPON THE NATION AS A PATRIOT AND STATESMAN. BY CALVm COLTO^^, LLD, »< PROFESSOR OF POLITIOAL ECONOMY IN TEUVITT COLLEGE ; AND AUTHOR OF IN TWO VOLUMES. VOL. II. NEW YOEK: A. S. 13ARNES & CO., 51 JOHN-STREET. CINCINNATI: — H. W. DERBY. 1856. \ \ Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 18C4, Br A. S, BARNES * CO.. in the Clerk's OfBcc of the DUtrict Court of the United States, in and for the Soathem District of New York. um V ^^ ?f^ -.— Disclosures of Kxlravagancc and Corruption made by the Twenty-Seventh Congress. — Their Fidelity. CHAPTER XVI 404 Mr. Clay's Resignatiok and Valedictory Address. CHAPTER XVII 412 Mr. Clay in Retirement. — The Barbecue at Lexington in Honor of Mr. Clay. — The Sentiment addressed to him. — His Speech on the Occasion. — Personal Matters. — Public Affairs. — The Hoary Statesman in Private Life. CHAPTER XVIII 423 The Prk.sipential Campaign or IS 44. — Causes of the Early Movement of 1844. — Baltimore Whig Convention. — Its Enthusiasm and High Hopes. — Nomination by Acclamation. — Mr. Frelinghuysen. — Causes of Defeat. — Party Names. — The Texas Question. — Political Letters of Candidates. — The Whigs a Patriotic Party, but want Discipline. — Mr. Van Buren put oil' the Course by the Wliigs. — Executive Patronage. — Texas Treaty. — Native Americans. — Abolition. — Action of Mr. Clay's Namesake. — Defects of Whig Organiza- tions. — Belting on Elections. — Election Frauds. — Mr. Clay elected by the Legal Vote of the Country. CHAPTER XIX 444 The Disappointment. — Remarks on the Occasion. — Extracts from Letters of numerous Persons, of all Classes, in all Parts of the Union, expressive of their Feelings in View of the Result of the Presidential Election of 1844. — Notice of Similar Documents of Political Associations. CHAPTER XX 467 Reklectioxs. — Mr. Clay's Influence on American Society. — Tlie Protective Policy.— Public Wron;,'-* to Mr. Clay.— The Oregon Question settled by ilr. Clay.— The Public Land Policy.— Fickleness of Legi.xlatioo. — The Admiuistra- tions of Harrison and Tyler. — A CMauce at the Future. 1 THE LIFE AND TIMES OF HENEY CLAY. CHAPTER 1. THE CURRENCY. Mr. Clay's Views in 1811. — flis Change of Opinion on a National Bank. — Rea- sons. — The Constitutional Question. — Not Banks, but a Tariff, that makes Money plenty and sound. — Losses to the Country by State Banks. — General Jackson's Veto of the Bank in 1832. — Reasons. — Remarks of Mr. Clay on the Veto. — The Motives out of Sight. — The Wiles of the Magician. — The Way the State of New York was brought under. — How General Jackson attempted to bring the Nation under. — Failure. — Vengeance. When Mr. Clay made his speech, in 1811, against recharter- ins: the bank of the United States, he found occasion to rehearse the following anecdote of Patrick Henry : — " He mistook, in one instance, the side of the cause in which he was retained, and addressed the court and jury in a very mas- terly and convincing speech, in behalf of his antagonist. His distracted client came up to him, while he was thus employed, and, interrupting him, bitterly exclaimed : ' Y^ou have undone me ! You have ruined me !' — ' Never mind — give yourself no concern,' said the adroit advocate ; and turning to the court and jury, con- tinued his argument, by observing, ' May it please your honors, and you, gentlemen of the jury, I have been stating to you what I presume my adversary may urge on his side. I will now show you how fallacious his reasonings, and groundless his pretensions are.' The skilful orator proceeded, satisfactorily refuted every argument he had advanced, and gained his cause !" It can not be denied, that Mr. Clay made a very able argument on that occasion, and that either his argument, or his vote, or both, defeated the bill j for it passed the house of representatives, and was lost in the senate, of which Mr. Clay was then a member. 10 THE CURREXCr. only !)y llic casting vote of tlic vicc-pre.-^idcnt, Mr. Clinton. But in .Mr. (JIay's argument on the same .subject, in ISIO, like Pat- rick Henry, he beat liimself, " and gained iiis cause." His i^peech on tlie last occasion, in committee of tbe liou.se of representatives, of wliicb lie was then member and speaker, was never published ; but in an address to his constituents at Lexington, June 3, ISIG, his views and reasons in supporting the bank are succinctly and forcibly stated, of which he afterward, in 1S32, said : " By the reasons assigned in it for the change of my 0])inion, I am ready to abide, in the judgment of the present generation, and of pos- teritv." He also said on the same occasion : " During a lon£r public life (I mention the fact not as claiming any merit for it), the only great question, on which I have ever changed my opinion, is that of the bank of the United States." It might, per- haps, more properly be called a change of sides, than of opinion; for the reasons which shaped and controlled his opinion in ISll, are as different from those whicii swayed him in 1S16, as one opin- ion varies from the other; and there is no -inconsistency in his ac- tion in the two cases, when the reasons of both are considered. It was not, therefore, strictly speaking, a change of opinion; but a change of circumstances in the state of the country and in the state of the question, which led to different views with a statesman. Since, however, Mr. Clay himself has allowed it to be a cliange of opinion, others are not required to arraign this admission, tiiough it may be suggested, that its ingenuousness might naturally create additional confidence in that correctness of judgment which has never required, and that firmness of character wiiich has never shown, a change on any other great national question. But, it is due to ^Tr. Clay to show the reasons of this changrj. They are few, simple, and obvious. In Mr. Clay's address to his constituents, June 3, IslG, he gave three reasons for his oppo- sition to the bank in isH : " First, that he was instructed to op- pose it by the legislature of the state. Next, tiiat he believed the corporation had, during a portion of the period of its existence, abused its power, and hail sought to subserve the views of a po- litical party." In answer to the (juestion, " What security is there, that the new bank [of l^^Kl] will not imitate this example?" he replied : " The fate of the old bank, warning all similar insti- tutions to shun politics ; the existence of abundant competition, arising from the great multiplication of banks ; and the precautions which are to be found in the details of the act." THE CURRENCY. 11 ' A third consideration [said Mr. Clay] upon which he acted in ISll, was, that as the power to create a corporation, such as was pro- posed to be continued, was not specifically granted in the constitution, and did not then appear to him to be necessary to carry into effect any of the powers which were specifically granted, Congress was not authorized to continue the bank. The constitution, he said, con- tained powers delegated and prohibitory, powers expressed and constructive. It vests in Congress all powers necessari/ to give' effect to the enumerated powers — all that maybe necessary" to put into motion and activity the machine of government which it con- structs. The powers that may be so necessary are deducible by construction. They are not defined in the constitution. They are, from their nature, indefinable. When the question is in rela- tion to one of these powers, the point of inquiry should be, is its exertion necessary to carry into effect any of the enumerated pow- ers and objects of the general government? With regard to the degree of necessity, variolas rules have been, at different times, laid down ; but, perhaps, at last, there is no other than a sound and honest judgment exercised, under the checks and control which belong to the constitution and to the people. " The constructive powers being auxiliary to the specifically granted powers, and depending for their sanction and existence upon a necessity to give effect to the latter, which necessity is to be sought for and ascertained by a sound and honest discretion, it is manifest that this necessity may not he ycrceived, at one time, under one state of things, ivhcn it is petceived at another time, under a different state of things. The constitution, it is true, never changes ; it is always the same ; but the force of circumstances and the lights of experience may evolve to the fallible persons charged with its administration, the fitness and necessity of a par- ticular exercise of constructive power to-day, which they did not see at a former period. " JNIr. Clay proceeded to remark, that when the application was made to renew the old charter of the bank of the United States, such an institution did not appear to him to be so necessary to the fulfilment of any of the objects specifically enumerated in the con- stitution, as to justify Congress in assuming, by construction, a power to establish it. It was supported mainly upon the ground that it was indispensable to the treasury operations. But the local institutions in the several states were at that time in prosperous existence, confided in by the community, having a confidence in each other, and maintaining an intercourse and connexion the most intimate. Many of them were actually employed by the treasury to aid that department, in a part of its fiscal arrange- ments ; and they appeared to him to be fully capable of affording to it all the facility tliat it ought to desire in all of them. Thpy superseded, in his judgment, the necessity of a national institu- THE CURRENCY. lion. But how stood the case in 181G, when he was called up ai^ain to cxaniinc the j)Ower of the general government to incor- porate a national hank? A total change of circuin^iance.s \va> presented — events of the utmost magnitude had intervened. " A general suspension of specie payments had taken j)lace, and tliis had led to a train of consequences of the most alarming nature, lie heheld, dispersed over the immense extent of the United .States, about three hundred hanking institutions, enjoying in diflerent degrees the confidence of the public, shaken as to them all, under no direct control of the general government, and subject to no actual responsibility to the state authorities. These institutions were emitting tlie actual currency of the I'nited States — a currency consisting of a j)aper, on which they neither paid interest nor principal, while it was exchanged for the paper of the community, on which both were paid. He saw these institutions in fact exercising what had been considered, at all times, and in all coimtries, one of the highest attributes of sovereignty, the reg- ulation of the current medium of the country. They were no longer competent to assist the treasury in either of the great oper- ations of collection, dcposite, or distribution, of the public rev- enues. In fact, the paper which diey emitted, and which the treasury, from the force of events, found itself constrained to re- ceive, was constantly obstructing the operations of that depart- ment. For it would accumulate where it was not wanted, and could not be used where it was wanted for the purposes of gov- ernment, without a ruinous and arbitrary brokerage. Every man who paid or received from the government, paid or received as much less than he ought to have done as was the difference be- tween the medium in which the payment was effected and specie. Taxes were no longer uniform. In New England, where specie prymcnts have not been suspended, the people were called upon to pay larger contributions than where they were suspended. In Kentucky as much more was paid by the people in their taxes than was paid, for example, in the state of Oiiio, as Kentucky paper was worth more than Oliio paper. • ••••••• "Mr. Clay said, he determined to examine the question with as little prejudice as possible arising from his former opinion. lie knew that the safest course to him, if he pursued a cold, calcu- lating prudence, was to adhere to that opinion, right or wrong. He was perfectly aware, that if he changed, or scrmal to change it, he should expose himself to some censure. But, looking at the subject with the light shed upon it by events happening since the commencement of the war, he could no longer doubt. A bank appeared to him not only necessary, but indispensably necessary, in conncxiun with another measure, to remedy the evils of which 3II were but too sensible. He preferred to the suggestions of the THE CURRENCY. 13 pride of consistency, the evident interests of the community, and determined to throw himself upon their candor and justice. That which ajjpeared to him in ISll, under the state of things then ex- isting^ not to he necessary to the general government, seemed now to be necessary, under the yreseut state of things. Had he then foreseen what now exists, and no objection had Iain against the renewal of the charter other than that derived from the constitu- tion, he should have voted for the renewal. " Other provisions of the constitution, but little noticed, if no- ticed at all, in the discussions in" Congress in ISll, would seem to urge that body to exert all its powers to restore to a sound state the money of the country. That instrument confers upon Con- gress the power to coin money, and to regulate the value of for- eign coins ; and the states are prohibited to coin money, to emit bills of credit, or to make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts. The plain inference is, that the sub- ject of the general currency was intended to be submitted exclu- sively to the general government. In point of foct, however, the regulation of the general currency is in the hands of the state governments, or, which is the same thing, of the banks created by them. Their paper has every quality of money, except that of being made a tender, and even this is imparted to it by some states, in the law by which a creditor must receive it, or submit to a ru- inous suspension of the payment of his debt. It was incumbent upon Congress to recover the control which it had lost over the general currency." In the above citations are seen the ground which Mr. Clay oc- cupied on the bank question, in ISll, and that occupied by him in 1816, and ever smce. At the former period he labored some- what haltingly on the constitutional argument, and one of the pleasantest, if not the most forcible illustrations he then presented, is the following : — " A bank is made for the ostensible purpose of aiding in the collection of the revenue, and while it is engaged in this, the most inferior and subordinate of all its functions, it is made to diffuse itself throughout society, and to influence all the great operations of credit, circulation, and commerce. Like the Virginia justice, you tell the man whose turkey had been stolen, that your books of precedent furnish no form for his case, but tjiat you will grant him a precept to search for a cow, and when looking for that he may possibly find his turkey ! You say to this corporation, we can not authorize you to discount, to emit paper, to regulate com- merce, &c. No ! our book has no precedents of that kind. But then we can authorize you to collect the revenue, and, while occu- pied with that, you may do whatever else you please!" 14 THE CURRENCY. But on the point of coiistilulionaliiy, Mr. Clay was not very confuK'nt at that time, and he admits in 181C, that " he should have voted for ilic renewal, had he t/ic/i foreseen what 7ioiv exists." A total change had come over the monetary system of the country, and that state of thinf,'s which, in 181 1, did not seem to .Mr. Clav to make a national bank " necessary and proper" — such being the lan^jjua^e of the constitution — had, in ISIG. given place to an en- tirely ilineront state of things, as described by Mr. Clay, in the above extracts, which, in his view, did render such an institution " necessary and j)roper" to carry out the other powers given to Congress by the constitution ; or, as that instrument itself expresses it, in two general and comprehensive powers, one as the introduc- tion to, and the other as the conclusion of, certain and numerous sjiecijic powers : " Congress shall have power to provide for the common defence and general welfare of the United States," and *' to make ai>l laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other j)ow- ers vested by this constitution in the government of the United States." Of course, as Mr. Clay intimates, the use of " a sound and honest discretion" is implied in such language, ami that which is *' NECESSARY may not be perceived at one time, under one state of things, when it is j)erceived at another time, under a difier- ent state of things." In ISll, the necessity of a national bank was not so apparent; in IS JO, it was regarded by Mr. Clay, and those who acted with him, as imperative. After the country had endured four years of the worst currency ever experienced since the adoption of the constitution, down to the era of the tarifi' of 1S42, comprehending the interval between the expiration of the charter of the first bank of the United States and the establishment of the second, the republican or democratic party, with Mr. Madison at their head, by a strong and decided expression of feeling and of votes — SO to 71 in the house, and '22 to 12 in the senate — against the federalists, who for the most part voted against it, reincorporated the bank for another twenty years. It was on this occasion that Mr. Clay came out as the ailvocate of this institution, in the manner and for the reasons already ex- hibited in his own words. In the same extracts is also presented the deplorable state of the currency, which led to the adoption of this measure. Mr. Madison, and all the republicans, alias demo- crats, of that day, who had felt scruj)les as to the constitutionality ■)f the act, yielded to the necessities of the country, and took THE CURRENCY. 15 shelter under authority. Mr. Calhoun brought in the bill, and supported it. It was a republican or democratic measure, and Mr. Clay was one of the leaders. No other member, probably, had an equal influence in the house of representatives. His position as speaker of that body is a sufficient indication of his social influence, not to speak of his previous history as a statesman. As no bank, or banks, can make money, or supply the defects of an inadequate tariff by bringing money into the country, it is a sufficient praise of the effects consequent on the reincorporation of the bank of the United States, that it immediately brought order out of confusion, re-established confidence, and helped the nation along, till the tariff of 1S24 began to restore funds to the country after which everything went on swimmingly, till the United States bank was again wound up in consequence of the veto of President Jackson. The tariff of 1842 has once more supplied funds for a currency, and according to the doctrine advanced in another chapter, it is impossible that the means of a currency, that is, money, should be wanting, so long as the tariff is adequate to prevent more money going out of the country than comes in. Whether the currency, as to its form, shall be supplied and regulated by state banks alone — it is taken for granted that banks will not be dispensed with — or whether the federal government shall assert its right and duty to have to do with it, is a question still open for debate. While the currency is good and sufficient, the mass of the people will not trouble themselves about this question ; but statesmen, who are bound to understand the complicated machinery of political econ- omy, and to look into its profound secrets, can not repose without concern on a mere superficial calm, that is the effect of a pres- ent prosperity and abundance. So long as the people are supplied with a currency that answers all their present purposes, they do not inquire, nor is it possible for them to know, whether it is fur- nished by agencies that may be trusted to any extent ; whether the system is guarded by all the necessary checks and balances ; or whether, for want of a balance-power, it is rising and spreading, to topple on its foundations, and finally to fall with a crash that will overwhelm the community with disaster. It is for those who un- derstand the subject, for the faithful sentinels of the public, to give notice of any harm that may be impending, and to show the rea- sons why they apprehend it. That the state authorities, through the medium of state corporations, which are their creatures, ought not to be the sole agents to supply and regulate the currency of 16 THE CURRENCY. the country, would pccm to be a very credible proposition. Every one feels, on reading the federal constitution, that the instrument intended, that lin' /^f.-neral governnient should have some hand in this business, and that it is proper ; that it should at least exert an iiitluence equal to a balance-power, to prevent the states from erect- in;^ an overgrown monetary system, to fall by its own weight, and from blowing up bubbles, to dazzle by their promise, and disap- point by bursting. A sage and fpiaint writer, after citing the old adage, that experi- ence is the best schoolmaster, gives this additional advice, that it doth chdfsc hli{h ivaircs. It ap|)ears by the letter of the secretary of the treasury (House Doc. .No. Ill, second session, Twenty-sixth Congress), that the increase of banks from 1S20 to 1S30, was only 22, and the increase of bank capital, for the same period, only SS, 000, 000. During this time the influence of the national bank, or some other cause, kept the uiiiicalthv irrowth of state banks in check. But, behold the chantie ! From the same document, it appears that the increase of banks, from 1830 to 1840, was 392 (including branches, 571), and that the in- crease of banking capital for the same period, was $213,000,000 ! It also appears, that this rapid increase did not begin till the fate of the national bank was sealed by General Jackson's veto. A large portion of these banks failed, and the capital vanished, as might have been expected. The losses on bank circulation and dcpositcs amounted to $-54, 000, 000, and the losses on bank capital to 8248,000,000 — in all, to three hundred inid tuo millluus aj dol- lars ! All this by state banks. Not a cent was ever lost by a na- tional bank. ^'eriIy, experience doth charge high wages. The motives of President Jackson, in vetoing the bank bill of 1832, will become more and more apparent, as history opens the plan, in the execution of which he imsettled the commercial habits of the nation, and brought about a derangement and general break- ing up of the currency. It was made a subject of comj)laint by the partisans of the president, when the bill of 1832 was brought in, that it was prematun\ The insincerity of this protest was in- stantly shown by Mr. Clay, by calling attention to the facts, that the president himself had specially and pointedly invoked the ac- tion of Congress on the subject, in his annual messages of 1829, 1830, and 1831 — that is, at the opening of every session of Con- gress,, after his advent to power. During the progress of the bill, an extraordinary investigation into the administration of the bank, THE CURRENCY. 17 was ordered, with a view to impair public confidence, but without result. It is singular, that each one of the reasons assigned by General Jackson, as objections to the bill, vanished upon scrutiny, thereby indicating, that the real motives were out of sight. He expressed himself, that the precedents drawn from the history of the proceedings of Congress, as to the constitutional power to es- tablish a bank, were neutralized by there being two for and two against the authority; whereas, in the instance of ISll, the bill passed in the house, and was lost in the senate by the casting vote of the vice-president; but it was known, at the same time, that on the constitutional question, the senate stood 21 in favor of the power, and that some of the remaining 13 were doubtful. As to the bill of 1S15, that too was lost in the house by the casting vote of the speaker (Mr. Cheves) ; but the objections that prevailed were not constitutional. They arose out of the structure of the bill. Not one Congress, from the commencement of the govern- ment, had been opposed to a bank on constitutional'grounds. That foreigners were interested in the stock, was not a reason becoming a statesman, who must know that anybody, in any part of the world, might trade in stock that is in the market, as bank stock always is; much less did such a reason become a statesman, at the head of a government, which ought to take care, that it should not be necessary for the stocks of the country to go into foreign markets to settle the balances of trade ; and still less did such a reason become a statesman, who ought to know, that the capital of foreigners, vested in the country, would more naturally add to its commercial and political strength, than to its detriment. It might, perhaps, enter into the argument of a demagogue. The same amount of stock, said to be owned by foreigners, eioht mil- lions, would still remain in the country in some other form ; or, if it should be remitted, it would so far cripple the currency and im- poverish the country. That the interests of the great west required this course of treat- ment, might have been left for the west to determine. The ques- tion was, whether they should be called upon, unexpectedly, to pay up thirty millions of principal, which they owed the bank of the United States, and be themselves wound up in bankruptcy; or whether they should be allowed to trade on, and pay interest out of the profits of their business, which they could afi^ord, and which was tlie object of both parties in the loans ? But General Jackson took upon himself to decide this question, and wound them all ud Vol. II.— 2 ^ 18 THE CURREXCV. in Itankriiptry, with the coinrortiiig assurance, that he thouglit their intcTL'st-s rctjiiirod it ! (jeneral Jdckaon^sjinalc of reasons in this veto message, was, that, if the executive had been called upon for the project of a hank, the duty would have been cheerfully performed. It is true, this was inverting the order of ihe constitution, and like as in France, under the old regime, assigning the initiative of the laws to the king, and forbidding that any should be passed, except such as had been first presented to the legislature by the crown. But, so the constitution be called into service, what matter, whether it be taken right or wrong end foremost, especially while it was in such safe hands as the executive? It will appear by-and-by what the executive project was. It is true the constitution authorizes the president to propose objects of legislation ; but it remains to be dis- covered, wherein it invites him to bring forward the organic forms of law. The president, in this veto message, spoke of "an investigation witcillifiirli/ conceded [the investigation into the administration of the bank] and so restricted in time as necessarily to make it incom- plete and unsatisfactory, disclosing enough to excite suspicion and alarm." " Allow mc, [said .Mr. Clay] to ask how the president has ascer- tained that the investigation was n/iirilllnirh/ conceded? I have understood directly the contrary ; and that the chairman, already referred to, as well as other members in favor of the renewal of the charter, promptly consented to and voted for the invcsiiiration. And we all know that those in support of the renewal couUl have prevented the investigation, and that they did not. But suspicion and alarm have been excited ! Suspicion axd alarm! Against whom is this suspicion? The house, or the bank, or both? "Mr. President, I |)rotest airainst the ri-rht of anv chief mairis- trate to come into either house of Congress, and serutuuze tlie mo- tives of its meml)ers; to examine whether a measure has been passed with promptitude or repugnahce; and to jironounce upon the willinjiness or unwilliuLrness with which it has been adopted or rcjcrted. It is an intrrfcrcnce in concerns which jjartakc ol a do- mestic nature. The oliicial and constitutional relations between the president and the two houses of Congress, subsist with diem as organized bodies. His action is confined to their consummated proceedings, and does not extend to measures in their iiKi|iient staires, durinjr their proi^rcss throuirb the houses, nor to the motives by which they are acluatcd. TIi(M(> are some parts ol tins messai^e that ought to excite deep alarm : and that especially in which the ppsideut a?:uounces that each public oflicer may interpret the con THE CURREXCY. 19 stitution as he pleases. His language is: 'Each public officer, who takes an oath to support the constitution, swears that he will sup- port it as he understands it, and not as it is understood by others. * * * The opinion of the judges has no more authority over Congress than the opinion of Congress has over the judges; and on that point the president is independent of both.'' Now, Mr. Pres- ident, I conceive, with great deference, that the president has mis- taken the purport of the oath to support die constitution of the United kStates. No one swears to support it as he understands it, but to support it simply as it is in truth. All men are bound to obey the laws, of whicli the consthution is the supreme; but must they obey them as they are, or as thcij understand them ? If the obligation of obedience is limited and controlled by the measure of information ; in otlier words, if the party is bound to obey the constitution only as he understands it, what woidd be the conse- quence? The judge of an inferior court would disobey the man- date of a superior tribunal, because it was not in conformity to the constitution, as he nndersla7ids it ; a custom house officer would disobey a circular from the treasury department, because contrary to the constitution, as lie understands it; an American minister would disregard an instruction from the president, communicated through the department of state, because not agreeable to the con- stitution, as he understands it; and a subordinate officer in the army or navy, would violate tl^e orders of his superior, because they were not in accordance with the constitution, as he under- stands it. We should have nothing settled, nothing stable, nothing fixed. There would be general disorder and confusion throughout every branch of administration, from the highest to the lowest offi- cers — universal nullification. For what is the doctrine of the president but that of South Carolina applied throughout the Union? The president independent bodi of Congress and the supreme court! only bound to execute the laws of the one and the decis- ions of the other, so far as they conform to the constitution of the United States, as lie understands it ! Then it should be the duty of every president, on his installation into office, carefully to examine all the acts in the statute-book, approved by his predeces- sors, and mark out those w^iicli he was resolved not to execute, and to which he meant to apply this new species of veto, because they were repugnant to the constitution as he understands it. And, after the expiration of every term of the supreme court, he should send for the record of its decisions, and discriminate between those which he would, and those which he would not, execute, because they \\:ere or were not agreeable to the constitution, as he understands it.'''' Mr. Clay concluded his speech on this occasion, July 12, 1S32. with the following melancholy reflections : — 20 THK CUUREN'CY. ••.Mr. rrcsident, we are about to close one of the longest and most anliioiis >cj!?ion.s of Congress uiitler the present eonslitiition ; and when we return among our constituents, what account of the o|)crations of their government shall we be bound to communicateV We shall be comjielled to say, that the supreme court is paraly/cd, and the missionaries retained in prison in contemijt of its authority, and in defiance of numerous treaties and laws of the United States; that the executive, through the secretary of the treasury, sent to Congress a tariirbill which would have destroyed numerous branches of our domestic industry, and tending to the final destruction of all; that the veto has been applied to the bank of the United States, our only reliance for a sound and uniform currency; that the senate has been violently attacked for the exercise of a clear constitutional power; that the house of representatives have been unnecessarily assailed; and that the president has promulgated a rule of action for those who have taken the oath to support the constitution of the United Stales, that must, if there be practical conformity to it, introduce general nullification, and end in the ab- solute subversion of the government." It has been suggested, that the baseless reasons assigned in the veto message on the bank bill of 1S82, for tlie renewal of the char- ter of that institution, argued motives out of sight. It is the province of history to inquire into the motives of men who have been prominent and leading agents in great events, and in the ac- complishment of momentous results; and it is a recognised rule of evidence, common and judicial, that motives are to be inferred from conduct. Errors may result from the application of this rule, and it ought doubtless to be used with caution and allowance, liut it is neither required, nor possible, to dispense with it. The war of General Jackson on the currency system of the United States, such as he found it when he came into power, and the disastrous results which flowed from it, in connexion with the history of the attempt to establish an independent or sub-treas- ury, demand the most thorough and rigid scrutiny, not less for the futiu-e use of statesmen, liiaii for the well-being of the republic. It was an aim at a fundamental, complete, and radical revolution in the commercial habits of the people, without consulting them. It was, indeed, never accomplished, for that was impossible. Nothing but a miracle could do it. Changes were forced upon the community; society was convulsed to its foundations; the great mass was upheaved as by the throes of an earthquake ; stee- ples topi)led on their bases; fearful chasms yawned in sight of the terror-stricken multitude ; a continent was rocked ; millions were THE CURREjSTCY. 21 destroyed ; and a nation was scarcely saved. Nevertheless, the revolution contemplated, was not effected. That can never be. Some, no doubt, will be surprised, when the history of motives in these transactions, is unveiled. The evidence in the case, as in all such cases, is that of probability — presumption — arising from certain known facts. Men, devoted to an object which they dare not promulge, do not wear the announcement of their purposes, written on their foreheads. In the first place, it will not be denied, that Andrew Jackson was a man of iron avill — disposed to have his own way — pro- pense to despotism. Friends and enemies agree in this. It is marked indelibly on the history of his life. He cherished none who would not minister to this appetite, and acknowledge him as chief. Servility was the homage he demanded — not acquiescence. There was no independence of judgment, within the sphere of his influence, on questions which belonged to him, or which he thought proper to take in hand. He wanted tools — not a master. It will also probably be admitted, that Martin Van Buren had more influence with General Jackson, during his [the general's] administration, than any other man. It is then pertinent to the purpose now in view, to call attention to a somewhat remarkable chapter of political history in the state of New York. It was very naturally expected, when Mr. Van Buren and his par- ty rose to power in the state of New York, 1829, that, having been the denouncers of banks, they would rather abridge the system, than enlarge it. After the governor's [Mr. Van Buren's] message had recommended to the legislature Judge Forman's plan of bank- ing, and that plan was reported on, the public were somewhat surprised to find in the report of the bank committee the following lano;ua£;e : — " The system of paper credit has now become indispensable to all commercial countries. It is the most powerful agent known to the world in generating the wealth and prosperity of a nation. In great exigencies, it, by its timely assistance, often delivers govern- ments from embarrassments and danger." Again : " A paper cir- culation as to all objects of commerce, is a positive increase of capital." Again : " Banks in this country have been productive of the greatest advantages." The plan of banking, heralded by this favorable report, was the safety-fund system — a somewhat captivating name, though not, perhaps, when thoroughly sifted, quite so safe as was originally 2'2 THE CUIIREXCY. promised. For example, in lb;J4, wiien the liabilities of the safctv-fiind banks of New York, exclusive of capital stock, were S:j4,()()0,0()(), the safety fund, alias the security, was only S2S9,U00 ; and for several years that fund has been in a minus quantity. That mode of security is not otherwise a j)Ositive vice, than as be- ing deceptive. It is good for what it amounts to, and may answer tolerably in ])ropperous times ; but, in a hiird trial of a banking system, or in a general crash, as has sometimes happened, it is good for nf)thin^^ But it was blown into favor on the advent of Mr. \'an ]>uren, as governor of New York; and in six years after the svstem was established, sixty-six banks were chartered on this basis ! The previous number of the banks in the state, was nominally forty; several of which, however, were broken and un- sound. These forty banks were a half century coming into exist- ence, and did not average one a year; whereas, the Van Buren administration the first year renewed the charters of sixteen old l)anks, and created twelve new ones! Ten more were created the next session of the legislature ; ten again the next thereafter ; AXD so ox ! 'I'iiis, for an anti-bank party, was doing business. But the secret is not told. It had been customary to require a bonus to tiic state, of a new bank, and for new charters ; but Mr. Van liuren, in his message of I'^iO, recommended, that thereafter no bonus should be required. The average premium arising from the advance of stock above par, was ten per cent., which on a capital of S12,SoO,000 — that being the whole capital of these new banks — amounted to $1,285,000. The way this bonus of SI, 2^-'), 001), was disposed of, may be accounted for by a consid- eration of Mr. Stephen Allen's project of a Tammany bank, in 1S32, which he calculated would yield the Tammany society S10,()00, without a penny's investment; and by the following evi- dence given in the New York circuit court, July 0, 1S27, by Joseph T), liccrs, a celebrated broker, on the trial of Jacob Barker : — " ' Did you ever sell stock on contract, and si-il it without own- ing it?' — 'Yes, frequently.' — 'To what amount V' — 'Not very large at any one time.' — ' Do others do it V — ' Yes.' — ' Is it a common practice among brokers :uid stock-dealers V' — 'It is: sometimes to large amounts.' — ' Say three or four hundred thou- sand dollars?' — ' Yes.' — ' Whi'tlu'r the amount be large or small, is it like other business, only the dillerence between a wholesale and retail dealer?' — ' That is all.' — ' Are not such contracts en- tirely regulated by the prospect of profit ?' — ' I make no oUier cal- THE CURRENCY. 23 culation, than whether or not I can fulfil to advantage.' — * Is it not very common to settle such contracts by paying or receiving the difference without there being any stock received or delivered ?' — ' It is very common to settle in that way.' " It is unnecessary to say, that it was perfectly easy, in the way suggested by Mr. Allen's project for a Tammany bank, and by Mr. Beers' evidence, as above, to distribute this bonus of $1,285,000 among political associates, and for political objects, in the state of New York, and that all the business might be done on change, with no other use of money than for the nominal and privileged holders of the stock to pocket the difference between par and ten per cent, above par ; and they must have been more simple than some re- cent developments indicate, if they did not embrace the opportu- nity. As Mr. Allen said, when he proposed to establish a Tam- many bank of half a million, " my opinion, you no doubt know, is in opposition to these banking monopolies ;" so it was well known, that Mr. Van Buren's opinion ran the same way, when, in 1829, he started afresh the manufacture of banks in the state of New York, turning out a batch of twenty-eight the first year, and an average of ten a year thereafter, till he and his party obtained a very handsome bonus as above, for their political objects — the bonus, by recommendation of the governor, as before seen, being kept back from the state, and applied to what were doubtless regard- ed, by those who used it, more important and more worthy objects. Probably the reason why jSIr. Allen's project of a Tammany bank did not prevail, was, that it would be drawing aside the veil too much, whereby all the rest would chance to be seen. Besides, in that case, the mouth of Tammany would have been shut. There is another material fact, as reported and believed, worthy of notice in this place, in the history of the New York state banks, to wit, that contemporaneously with the events above noticed, the old banks found themselves annoyed by unexpected runs upon them for specie, and that while laboring under these inconveniences, hints were passed to them, that, by appointing such and such directors, they would be relieved. The new banks were of course all furnished with suitable directors. In this way, it is averred, that the whole banking system of the state of New York, from one of the bank parlors of Albany, was brought under the sway of the dominant political party, and forced to minister to their occasions. It can not be denied, that, of all men in the world, they who had accomplished such an achievement, were best qualified to S4 THE CURRENCY. know tlic power «)( lr.iiiks a-> jjuliticiil L'ii;L;iiiL'.s, and to declaim against tlicni wIkmi it should answer iheir purpose, as an enormity in the social state. W'lio was better (pialified than Mr. ^'an lUi- ren, when transferred to the state department at \Vashin<,'ton, to give advice to the president of tlie T'nited States on this snhject? *' Do you not see, sir, how admiraljjy this system works in the state of New York ? We govern the state hy tlie banking system there, and force the banks (ahas, the people) to ])ay all the costs of our party in maintaining,^ our ascendency. You have only to adopt the same system with the bank of the United States, get such di- rectors and presidents of the branches as are most suitable, and gradually bring the parent institution under the same discij)rme, and the politics of the nation will ever afterward be at command." There is no positive evidence, that such counsel was ever given, or a(loj)te(l, with such a view. But it would be singular, if it were not thought of, and more strange, considering wiiat is known of the j)arlies, and of the contcmj)oraneous history of banking in the state of New York, if such a plan were not actually agreed uj)on. The very thing that would be exjiected to follow, came to j)ass. In 1S20, General .Tackson undertook to remove and appoint offi- cers of the bank of the United States, and began with Jeremiah Mason, president of the branch bank of Portsmouth, New Hamp- shire. It appears, however, the aim being apparent, that there was too much probity, even in the bank of the United States, to consent to be made subservient to the political designs of a ])nrty in i)ower, and the movement was resisted and thwarted on the threshold. Better, perhaps, for thp bank, if it had yielded ; but it did not yield, and its doom was sealed from that hour. 'I'hey who choose to ascribe to General Jackson j)atriotic mo- lives in falling in with this supposed project, are at liberty to do so; but none, who understand his character, will deny tliat he de- sired and aimed to have everything under his control ; anil u hat more important to an ambitious chief of the nation, than to get the bank of the United Stales under his thumb V Was it morally possible for a man of (Jeneral Jackson's known temperament, to be contented, till he had accom|»lishcd that object, if he had (-nee conceived itV And what shall be deemed evidence that he ever undertook it V Precisely that species of conduct which is alleged to have been practised in the state of New York, for the attainment of a kindred object, and which is believed lo have been so suc- cessful ; and that evidence is furnished. 'S\i: \\)> y jV the currency. 25 Mr/Clay, in his speech on the sub-treasury scheme, of Febru- ary ii0^ilS38, has noticed this event as follows : — " I have heard his [General Jackson's] hostility to banks, as- cribed to some collision which he had with one of them, during the late war, at the city of New Orleans : and it is possible that may have had some influence upon his mind. The immediate cause, more probably, was the refusal of that perverse and unac- commodatino- gentleman, Nick Biddle, to turn out of the office of president of the New Hampshire branch of the bank of the United States, at the instance of his excellency Isaac Hill, in the summer of ] S29, that giant-like person, Jeremiah IMason — giant in body, and giant in mind. War and strife, endless war and strife, per- sonal or nadonal, foreign or domestic, were the aliment of the late president's existence. War against tlie bank, war against France, and strife and contention with a countless nutnber of individuals. The wars with Black Hawk and the Seminoles were scarcely a luncheon for his voracious appetite. And he made his exit from public life, denouncing war and vengeance against Mexico and the state banks." It is charitable to suppose, that General Jackson had not the remotest conception of the tremendous calamities he was preparing for the country, in the vengeance he resolved on against the bank of the United States, for this heinous disregard of his will. No one will probably ever accuse him of having been endowed with such perspicacity. It is the consequences which this vengeance led to, and not the destruction of the bank, that is so much to be deplored. The latter was a trifle, and scarcely worthy of notice. With an adequate protective policy, the country can possibly do without a national bank. It can at least try. If the state banks can be kept within safe bounds, without a national institution to act as a balance-power in checking their excesses, a nadonal bank is not essendal. But, it was war on the currency system of the whole country, and on its protective policy, which followed in the train of this war against the bank of the United States, and brought disasters incalculable, and almost without end, upon the nation. It was the great plan immediately formed, after this disappointment, to revolutionize the entire monetary and commercial system of the United States, in the establishment of a government bank, un- der the guise of an independent treasury, which brought desolation and wo upon the land. That iron will could never bend — must rule. Since it could not bring the bank of the 26 THE CURREXCY. United States under its control, it resolved to remove all other banks out of the way, and have one of its own. It is to be observed, however, that the plan of the subtreasury was not matured, till that of establishinjf a new national bank in the fity of New York, under the control of the partisans of the administration — who, on the principle of the New York state sys- tem, before noticed, expected to realize at least a two-million bo- nus, for private and political objects — had failed. The evidences of this plan are so abundant and notorious, as not to require speci- fication. From the time when this fatal resolution of war on the currency began to take eflcct on die great interests of the country, till the people came to the rescue in 1840, the history of the republic is one of uninterrupted, wide-spread, overwhelming calamity. 'J'his, and the war on the j)rotcctive policy, and on all the commercial liabits of the nation, was one of plan and of time. A great and strong people, in the full tide of prosperity, can not be easily bro- ken down by measures of government, however hostile to their in- terests, however destructive in their tendency. " He [deneral Jackson] killed off the institutions of the country in detail," says the Hon. John M. Clayton, " always selecting the weakest first, destroying that with the aid of the friends of the others, before he ventured to announce any hostility to the latter, and never attack- ing the strongest, until the friends of the weaker measures, wiiich had been victimizx'd, became powerless. His first attack was upon the internal improvement system. The bank's turn came next. Within six months after that, he made war on the tarifiV These demonstrations, by the alarm which they excited, began immediately to afiect the country, though they did not so soon reach the great body of the people. The impetus of public pros- perity, which the tarifi' of JS:24 had imparted to the nation, could not be instantly arrested. It was a great and mighty volume of the business and trade of a great people, rolling u[) wealth in heaps and mountains, and it was not till nearly the close of General Jackson's administration, that the eficcts of his destructive meas- ures bejran to be seriouslv felt. The veto of the bank bill, in 1S3:2, was a shock under which the whole nation staggered ; but it w;is then too stroni; to lall. Tiic removal of the public depos- ites, in October, \^'-'>'-i, in the face of a resolution of Congress intended as a dani|)er for the half-revealed purpose, and against the remonstrances of his own party, stunned the public mi'id, like THE CURRENCY. 27 the effect of the first blow on the head of a bullock that is doomed to the slaughter. It also produced great and extensive distress. It was on the occasion of introducing a resolution in the senate to rebuke this extraordinary assumption of power, that Mr. Clay said : " We are in the midst of a revolution!" Petitions from all parts of the country poured into Congress, praying for relief. But General Jackson had taken the people captive, was in the zenith of his power, and his iron will, still bent on the execution of his fell purposes, knew no sympathy for a suffering public. He had been thwarted. He must be revenged. It has been charitably allowed, that he was not aware of the devastation he was bringing upon the country, not being able, from want of skill as a states- man, to foresee the effects of his own measures. The next great error, planned in equal ignorance of its unavoid- able result, but designed to atone for the public dissatisfaction so extensively expressed, was a bait thrown out to the people and the states, in the double form of loaning the public deposites to private enterprise, and recommending the bestowment of the surplus funds of the national treasury on the states, for their use and bene- fit. The seductive influence of this temptation to all these parties, was unfortunately but too effective. The people launched forth into the wildest schemes of speculation ; importers flooded the country with foreign goods ; states, in anticipation of the surplus funds, projected internal improvements on the largest scale, sent their bonds to the European market, the proceeds of which were remitted in goods, and the funds for home consumption were drawn from banks of home manufacture, which, by scores and hundreds, under the same stimulus, had sprung into existence, without capi- tal ; the whole face of the country was checkered with new and weW-majjpcd towns and cities ; property everywhere rose to an un- natural price; extravagance, in all conditions of hfe, was the order of the day ; and the nation ran mad with the idea, that all this was substantial, and could never end. It need not now be said, that it was all forced. It is equally unnecessary to say — for all will see it — that this state of things was produced by unsettling the old commercial habits of the people, by destroying the old system of currency, and introducing a new and fictitious one, and by capti- vating the nation with bubbles of credit, doomed to burst. When the people and states were wrought up to this intense pitch of excitement and expectation, and more than twenty millions a year were flowing into the national treasury from the sales of the 28 THE CURREXCV. public lands, nud at the very moment when, in consequence of these slimulanls achiiinistercd by the seductive measures of the government, a balance of sixty millions in foreign parts had ac- cuiindatfd against the importing cities, the peoj)le were thunder- struck with an order from the treasury, the efiecl of which was to remove the specie from the Atlantic border, where it was most wanted, to the far west, where it was not wanted. 'I'he nation WAS iiuiNED ! Even without this order, it would have been dlftl- cidt for the people to stand up, alter such a season of intoxication. WIkmi it came, they were prostuate. 'J'he work of destruction, which began with the veto of liie bank bill, in lS-32, was consum- mated by the specie circular of T^'iG. There was no more to be done, no more to be hoped for, till the nation, come to its senses, should rise, and save itself, as it attempted, and partially accom- plished, in 1S40. What patriot, what man, that lived through that I'earful period, to know what it was, by some taste of its ca- lamities, can look back upon it, without shuddering at the perils through which the country was doomed to pass "/ THE SUB-TREASURY. 29 CHAPTER II. THE CURRENCY. Mr. Van Buren's Accession.— The Extra Session of 1837.— The Sub-Treasury.— Its Failure at the Extra Session.— Subsequent Debate on the Message. — Mr. Clay's Views of it. — His Examinatioa of the Gradual Opening of General Jackson's Scheme of a Government Bank.— Mr. Clay's Argument in 1838, and his Warning on the Passage of the Bill in 1810. — Mr. Van Buren's Servility proves his Destruction. — Capital and Labor. — The Philosophy of Currency. Mr. Van Buren came into power, in 1837, to " tread in the footsteps of his illustrious predecessor." In less than three months after his accession, the banks, unable to hold out any- longer, suspended. The work of destruction was now complete. All that had been resolved on, was accomplished, with one excep- tion. The bank of the United States was destroyed, and all the banks of the country were under the feet of the president. The currency was destroyed, the protective policy was crippled, man- ufactures drooped and the establishments were tumbling in ruins, every species of property had depreciated to a mere nominal value, thousands and tens of thousands who had supposed themselves rich, found themselves bankrupts, and sheriffs and their deputies were almost the only vocations worth pursuing. The spirit of the people was broken, and now was the time to fasten upon thein that great project, which General Jackson conceived soon after he first quarrelled with the bank of the United States, to which all the measures of his administration looked and tended, and which was his undeviating aim, during the tremendous ordeal through which he had hurried the nation, to precipitate the final result. All things being judged to be right for the measure, Mr. Van Buren called a special session of Congress in the autumn of 1837, and brought before them the scheme for an independent TREASURY, as he and his party denominated it, indicating the ab- straction of DIVORCE OF BANK AND STATE. The opponents of the scheme have been accustomed to call it the sub-treasury." 30 THE RUB-TREASURY. Tlio project, however, was destined to enroimtcr more formidable difii( ulties, than had been anticipated. Tlie mandate of the chief- tain had less force Innii tlu; Hermitage, than from the chair of state. Though the will of lii.s successor did not lack in obse- quious fidelity, he could not roar like tlir Hon himself. He was accused of being related to another species of the quadruped race, more cunning, and less generous. The bill failed, and Congress adjourned without result. in the opining of Mr. Clay's speech on this occasion, Septem- ber i2r3, ls;{7, he said : — *' No period has ever existed in this country, in which the fu- ture was co\ crcd by a darker, denser, or more im]>eiietrable gloom. IVone, in whirh the duty was more imperative to discard all pas- sion and prejudice, all party ties, and jirevious bias, and look ex- clusively to the good of our alHided couiiiry. In one respect, and T think it ;i Inrtunate one, our present difiicultics are distin- guishable from former domestic trouble, and that is their unl\er- sality. They are felt, it is true, in dillerent degrees, but they reach every section, every state, every interest, almost every man in the Union. All feel, see, hear, know their existence. As they do not array, like our former divisions, one portion of the confed- eracy against another, it is to be hoped that conunon sullerings may lead to common synq)athies and common counsels, and that we shall, at no distant day, be able to see a clear way of deliv- erance, if tlic present state of the country were produced by the faidt of the j)eople ; if it j)rocceded from their wasteful extrava- ganc{\ and their indulgence of a reckless spirit of ruinous s]H'cu- lation ; if jjublic measures had no agency whatever in bringing it about ; it would, ne\ertheless, be the duty of government to exert all its energies, ami to employ all its legitimate jiowers, to devise an efllcacious remedy. iJ^ut if our present deplorable condition has sprung from our rulers ; if it is to be clearly traced to their acts and ()j)erations, that duty becomes infinitely more obligatory ; and government would be faithless to the highest and most solenm of human trusts should it neglect to perform it. And is it not loo true, that the evils whii-li surround us are to be ascribed to those who havi' had the conduct of our public affairs? '• In glancing at the past, nothing can be further from my inten- tion than to excite angry feelings, or to find grounds of reproach. It woidd be far more congenial to mv wishes, that, on this occa- sion, Wf should forget all former unhappy divisions and animos- ities. l^,ut in order to discover how to get out of our didiciiliii's, we must ascertain, if we can, how we got into them. '• I'rior to that scries of unfortimate measures which had for it.s object the overthrow of the bank of the United States, and the THE SUB-TREASUKY. 31 discontinuance of its fiscal agency for the government, no people upon earth ever enjoyed a hetter currency, or had exchanges het- ter regulated, than the people of the United States. Our mone- tary system appeared to have attained as great perfection as any- thing human can possibly reach. The combination of United States and local banks presented a true image of our system of ti-eneral and state governments, and worked quite as well. Not only within the country had we a local and general currency per- fectly sound, but in whatever quarter of the globe American com- merce had penetrated, there also did the bills of the United States bank command unbounded credit and confidence. Now we are in danger of having fixed upon us, indefinitely as to time, that medium, an irredeemable paper currency, which, by the univer- sal consent of the commercial world, is regarded as the worst. How has this reverse come upon us ? Can it be doubted that it is the result of those measures to which I have adverted ? When, at the very moment of adopting them, the very consequences which have happened were foretold as inevitable, is it necessary to look elsewhere for their cause ? Never was prediction more distinctly made ; never was fulfilment more literal and exact. " Let us suppose that those measures had not been adopted; that the bank of the United States had been rechartered ; that the public deposites had remained undisturbed ; and that the treasury order had never issued ; is there not every reason to believe that we should be now in the enjoyment of a sound currency ; that the public deposites would be now safe and forthcoming, and that the suspension of specie payments in May last, would not have hap- pened ? " The president's message asserts that the suspension has pro- ceeded from over-action, over-trading, the indulgence of a spirit of speculation, produced by bank and other facilities. I think this is a view of the case entirely too superficial. It would be quite as correct and just, in the instance of a homicide perpetrated by the discharge of a gun, to allege that the leaden ball, and not the man who levelled the piece, was responsible for the murder. The true inquiry is, how came that excessive over-trading, and those extensive bank facilities, which the message describes? Were they not the necessary and immediate consequences of the overthrow of the bank, and the removal from its custody of the public deposites ? And is not diis proved by the vast multiplica- tion of banks, the increase of die line of their discounts and ac- commodations, prompted and stimulated by Secretary Taney, and the irreat auermentation of their circulation which ensued ?" After exposing other unsound reasonings of the message, especially the incorrect statement, that similar difficulties had oc- curred in Great Britain and Europe from the same causes — which 32 THE SUB-TREASURY. was not a fact — Mr. Clay proceeds to a specification of what lie regards as the true causes : — ♦♦ Since the intensity of sufTering, and the disa.^trous state of things in this country, have far transcended anything that has oc- curred in Europe, we innst look here for some peculiar and more potent causes than any which have heen in operation tlx.'re. Tiicy arc to he foiind in that series of measures to which I have already adverted : — First, the veto of the hank ; Second, the reiiKnal of the dcposites, with the urgent injunc- tion of Secretary Taney upon the hanks to enlarge their acconi- inodations ; Third, the gold hill, anil the demand of gold for the foreign indemnities ; Fourth, the clumsy execution of the dcposite law: and Filth, the treasury order of July, 1S3G." These points were severally established by ^Ir. Clay, in a gen- eral survey and detail of facts, with apposite proofs and illustrations. The following remarks, made hy Mr. Clay on this occasion, are introduced here, not alone for their own inherent importance, hut for the sake of some others growing out of the subject, which are deemed necessary to disabuse the public mind of errors of fact: — " The message asserts that the bank of the United States, char- tered hy Pennsylvania, has not been able to save itself or to check other institutions, notwithstanding 'the still greater strength it has been said to possess under its present charter.' That bank is now a mere slate or local institution. Why is it referred to more than the bank of \'irginia, or any other local institution ? The exalted station which the president fills forbids the indulgence of the sup- position, that the allusion has been made to enable the administra- tion to profit by the prejudices which have been excited against it. Was it the duly of that baidv, more than any other state bank, to ' ch ' 'v the local institutions? Was it not even under less obliga- tion to do so than the deposite banks, selected and fostered by the general government '( " liut how could tile message venture to assert, that it has greater strenglh than the lale bank oi liie I'nited Slates possessed t What- ever may be the liberality of the conditions of its charter, it is impossible that any single state could confer uj)on it faculties equal to those granted to the late baid< of the I'niled States — first, in making it the sole depository of the revenue of the United States; and, secondly, in making its notes receivable in the payment of all public dues. If a bank of the I'niled Slates had existed, it woidd have had ample notice of the accumulation of public moneys in tlie local banks ; and, by timely measures of precaution, it could THE SUB-TREASURY. 33 have prevented the speculating uses to which they were applied. Such an institution would have been bound by its relation-^ to the government, to observe its appropriations and financial arrange- ment and wants, and to hold itself always ready promptly to meet them. It would have drawn together gradually, but certainly, the public moneys, however dispersed. Responsibility would have been concentrated upon it alone, instead of being weakened or lost by diffusion among some eighty or ninety local banks, dis- persed throughout the country, and acting without any effective concert." The very just rebuke administered by Mr. Clay, in the above extract, to Mr. Van Buren, for pandering in his message to preju- dices sown and nourished for party purposes, will be appreciated. No man knew better than Mr. Van Buren, that the bank chartered by the state of Pennsylvania for its own state purposes, which very improperly took the name of the " Bank of the United States," to avail itself of the credit of that institution — thereby imposing upon the public, and making a great political party responsible for it — occupied precisely the same position as any other state bank, and was no more worthy of a special notice in the president's mes- sage. Ever since the failure of that bank, the same unfairness has labored to keep up the idea in the popular mind, that it was the failure of the national bank, after which it was fraudulently named. It would be equally proper to call the United States hotel in New York, or the United States eating-house in Washington, a na- TIO^"AL INSTITUTION, and hold the government of the United States, or a political party, responsible for it. And yet, the fate of that institution in Philadelphia, is still pointed to as the down- fall of the national bank. It was indeed true, that the president of the national bank — which had ceased to exist — was at the head of this bank ; that the business of both was done in the same build- ing, and the money kept in the same vaults ; that much of the capital of the first was transferred to constitute the capital of the second ; but a man would be scouted, that should pretend to iden- tify one institution with the other. The faculties of this state bank, as in the case of many other state banks of that time, were perverted from banking to commercial functions, and it was ruined/ But there was no such practice, and no such tendency, in the bank of the United States ; nor is there any ground to believe, that its fidelity and strength, as a national institution, would have been impaired, if its charter had been renewed. / In January^ 1840, while the sub-treasury bill was still pending, Vol. II . — 3 \ • / 34 THE SUB-TREASURY. Mr. Clay had occasion to make a similar reply to a like misstate- ment of Mr. Buciianan, as follows : — '' Mr. IVcsident, can the distiniriii.-lied senator be serious in his description of these altrihutes of the Pennsylvania bank ? Surely he must have intended that part of his speech for some other thea- tre. In the first place, Pennsylvania, besides sundry other onerous conditions of loans and subscriptions to objects of internal improve- ments, levied upon the |)rescnt bank, in the form of bonus, some four or five millions of dollars. Then the general government has withdrawn from it the seven millions of stock which it held in the old bank — a circumstance which I have no doubt has tended to cripple its operations. And it is wholly wiUiout the deposites of the government, which the former bank possessed. Instead of being an ally, the general government has been in the relation of an enemy to it. And it has had to encounter all the enmity of a powerful party, within the bosom of the commonwealth. iSo far from assuming the office of a regulator of the local banks, its late di?tinguishcd president, upon whose authority the senator relies for proof of the extent anil liberality of its new charter, expressly declared that it had ceased to be a general agent, and had retired within ths circle of its state duties. tSo far from having derived any strength from its connexion with the late bank of the United States, there can not be a doubt that that connexion rendered it far less efllcient than it would have been, if it had gone into opera- tion with an unencumbered capital, freshly subscribed, of thirty- five millions of dollars." Mr. Clay very justly notices in this speech the want of fidelity in the federal executive in carrying out the purposes of the com- promise act, and shows the bad effects of hostility to that measure from the same quarter ; — that this bad faith had its share of influ- ence in producing the misfortunes of the country. "But [said Mr. Clay] the cause of our present difficulties may be stated in another icaij. During the late administration [.lack- son's] we have been deprived of the practical benefit o( a j'nc gov- eminent ; die forms, it is true, remained and were observed, but the essence did not exist. In a free, or self-government, the col- lected wisdom, the aggregate wisdom of the whole, or at least of a majority, moulds and directs the course of public atfairs. In a despotism, the will of a single individual governs. In a j)racti- cally free government, the nation controls the chief magistrate ; in an arbitrary govermnent, the chief magistrate controls the nation. And has not this been our situation in the j)eriod mentioned? Has not one man forced his will on the nation? Have not all these disastrous measures — the veto of the bank, the removal of the deposites, the rejection of the land bill, and the treasury order THE SUB-TREASURY. 35 — ^which have led to our present unfortunate condition— been adopted, in spite of the wishes of the country, and in opposition, probably, to those of the dominant party itself? ******** " We are told, that it is necessary to separate, divorce the gov- ernment from the banks. Let us not be deluded by sounds. Senators might as well talk of separating the government from the states, or from the people, or from the country. We are all — people, states, union, banks — bound up and interwoven together, united in fortune and destiny, and all, all entitled to the protecting care of a parental government. You may as well attempt to make the government breathe a different air, drink a different water, be lighted and warmed by a different sun, from that of the people ! A hard-money government, and a paper-money people ! A gov- ernment, an official corps — the servants of the people — ghttering in gold, and the people themselves, their masters, buried in ruin, and covered with rae;s ! " No prudent or practical government, will in its measures run counter to the long-settled habits and usages of the people. Re- ligion, language, laws, the established currency and business of a whole country, can not be easily or suddenly uprooted. After the denomination of our coin was changed to dollars and cents, many years elapsed before the old method of keeping accounts, in pounds, shillings, and pence, was abandoned ; and, to this day, there are probably some men of the last century who adhere to it. If a fundamental change becomes necessary, it should not be sud- den, but conducted by slow and cautious degrees. The people of the United States have been always a paper-money people. It was paper money that carried us through the revolution, estab- lished our liberties, and made us a free and independent people. And, if the experience of the revolutionary war convinced our ancestors, as we are convinced, of the evils of an irredeemable pa- per medium, it was put aside only to give place to that convertible paper, which has so powerfully contributed to our rapid advance- ment, prosperity, and greatness." The insecurity of the sub-treasury system as a depository of public funds, and the fearful increase of executive patronage con- sequent thereupon, are delineated by Mr. Clay with great truth and graphic power : — " There stands the executive power, perpetuated in all its vast magnitude, undiminished, reasserted, and overshadowing all the other departments of the government. Every trophy which the late president won from them, now decorates the executive man- sion. Every power, which he tore from a bleeding constitution, is now in the executive armory, ready, as time and occasion may 3G THE SUB-TREASURY. prompt the oxi.-Jtinij inciiinl)pnt, whenever he may be, to be thim (lered against the liberties of ilie people. ''Whatever," said Mr. Clay, "may have been the motives of the course of others, I owe it to myself and to truth to say, that in deprecating the election of (jeneral Andrew Jackson, to the ofTice of chief magistrate, it was not from any private considera- tions, but because I considered it would be a great calamity to my coimtry; and that, in whatever opposition I made to the measures (»f hi.-; administration, which more than realized my worst appre- hensions, I was guided solely by a sense of public duty. And I do now declare my solemn and unshaken conviction, that, until the executive power, as enlarged, extended, and consolidated by hiui, is reduced within its true constitutional limits, there is no per- manent security for the liberties and haj)pines3 of this people. " Pass this bill, and whatever divorce its friends may profess to be its aim, that perilous union of the purse and the sword, so justly dreaded by our I'ritish and revolutionary ancestors, becomes ab solute and comj)lete." But the greatest objection, after all, arises from the fact, which could not be concealed, that in putting down one system of bank- ing, known and tried, the sub-treasury, in its practical operation, as a substitute, must necessarily become a government bank of stupendous, ever-increasing, unlimited, alarming power, in the worst and most danirerous hands — worst because unsuitable, and most dangerous because of the motives to abuse and the lack of all restraint. The governing power would be irresponsible. But the speech of Mr. Clay at the next and regular session of Congress, on this subject, delivered February 19, 1S3S, is deser- ving of special regard. The stupendous alteration proposed in the very structure of the government, to engraft upon it, and in- fuse through all its branches, a new and momentous power, had evidently lain with a heavy pressure upon his mind, during the recess, and since the bill had again been brought forward at this session. Never has Mr. Clay been known to rise on any public occasion, with such marked seriousness and solemnity, as at this time. His exordium was as follows: — " I have seen some j)ublic service, passed through many troubled times, and often addressed [)ublic assemblies, in this capitol and elsewhere; but never before have I risen in a deliberative body, tmder more oppressed feelings, or with a deeper sense of awful responsibility. Never before have I risen to express my ojiinions upon any public measure, fraught with such tremendous conse- (|uences to the welfare and prosperity of the country, and so per- ilous to the liberties of the people, as I solemnly believe the bill THE SUB-TREASURY. 37 under consideration will be. If you knew, sir, what sleepless hours reflection upon it has cost me ; if you knew with what fervor and sincerity I have implored divine assistance to strengthen and sus- tain me in my opposition to it, I should have credit with you, at least, for the sincerity of my convictions, if I shall be so unfortu- nate as not to have your concurrence as to the dangerous character of the measure. And I have thanked my God that he has pro- longed my life until the present time, to enable me to exert myself in the service of my country, against a project far transcending in pernicious tendency any that I have ever had occasion to consider. I thank him for the health I am permitted to enjoy; I thank him for the soft and sweet repose which I experienced last night; I thank him for the bright and glorious sun which shines upon us this day. "It is not my purpose, at this time, Mr. President, to go at large into a consideration of the causes which have led to the present most disastrous state of public affairs. That duty was performed by others, and myself, at the extra session of Congress. It was then clearly shown, that it sprung from the ill-advised and unfor- tunate measures of executive administration. I now will content myself, with saying that, on the lourth day of March, 1S29, Andrew Jackson, not by the blessing of God, was made president of these United States ; that the country was then eminently prosperous ; that its currency was as sound and safe as any that a p-^-ople were ever blessed with; that, throughout the wide extent of this whole Union, it possessed a uniform value; and that exchanges were conducted with such regularity and perfection, that funds could be transmitted from one extremity of the Union to the other, with the least possible risk or loss. In this encoura2:in2: condition of the busmess of the country, it remained for several years, until after the war, wantonly waged against the late bank of the United States, was completely successful, by the overthrow of that invaluable in- stitution. What our present situation is, is as needless to describe as it is painful to contemplate. First felt in our great commercial marts, distress and embarrassment have penetrated into the interior, and now pervade almost the entire Union. It has been justly remarked by one of the soundest and most practical writers that I have had occasion to consult, that 'all convulsions in the circula- tion and commerce of every country must originate in the opera- tions of the government, or in the mistaken views and erroneous measures of those possessing the power of influencing credit and circulation; for they are not otherwise susceptible of convulsion; and if left to themselves, they will find their own level, and flow nearly in one uniform stream.' " Yes, Mr. President, we all have but too melancholy a conscious ness of the unhappy condition of our country. We all too well know, that our noble and gallant ship lies helpless and immoveable 38 THE SUB-TREASURY upon breakers, dismasted, the suri^e beating over her venerable sides, and the erew threatened witli instantaneous destruction. How came she there '/ Who was the pilot at the hehn when she was stranded? 'J'he parly in power! The pilot was aided by all die science and skill, by all the charts and instruments, of such distin- guished navi;;alors as Washin^^ton, the Adamses, JefTerson, Madi- son, and Monroe; and yet he did not, or could not, save the pub- lic vessel. She was placed in her present miserable condition by his bunglini^ naviiration, or by his want of skill and judgment. It is impossible for him to escape from one or the other horn of that dilemma. I leave him at liberty to choose between them." 'J'he plan of this speech is laid out as follows: — " 1 shall endeavor, Mr. President, in the course of the address I am about makinj^, to establish certain propositions, which I believe to Ije incontestable; and for the sake of perspicuity, I will state lliem severally to the senate. I shall contend : — " First, that it was the deliberate purpose and fixed design of the laiu administration to establish a government bank — a treasury bank — to be administered and controlled by the executive de- partment. "Secondly, that, with that view, and to that end, it was its aim and intention to overthrow the whole bankini; system, as existing in the United States when that administration came into power, beginning with the bank of the United States, and ending with the state banks. " 'JMiirdly, that the attack was first confined, from considerations of policy, to the bank of the United States; but that, after its over- throw was accomplished, it was then directed, and has since been continued, against the state banks. '* Fourthly, that the present administration, by its acknowledg- ments, emanating from the highest and most authentic source, has succeeded to the principles, plans, and policy, of the preceding administration, and staiuls solemnly j)ledged to complete and per- fect them. "And, fifihly, that the bill under consideration is intended to . execute the |)ledge, by establishing, upon the ruins of the late bank of the United States, and the state banks, a government bank, to be managed ami controlled by the treasury dejiartment, acting un- der the coriunands of the j)resideMt of the United States. " I believe, solenudy believe, the truth of every one of these five propositions, in the support of them, I shall not rely upon any gratuitous surmises or vague conjectures, but upon jjroofs, clear, positive, undeniable, and demonstrative. To establish the first four, 1 shall adduce evidence of the highest possible authenticity, of facts admitted or tmdcniablc, and fair reasoning founded on them. And as to the last, the im-asure under consideration, I think THE SUB-TREASURY. 39 the testimony, intrinsic and extrinsic, on which I depend, stamps, beyond all doubt, its true character as a government bank, and ought to carry to the mind of the senate the conviction which I entertain, and in which I feel perfectly confident the whole country will share." The first three of these propositions are established with great clearness and force, by citations from General Jackson's messages, beginning with the first, in 1829, and pursuing the gradual disclo- sure of this purpose in his public and official documents, during the term of his administration of eight years. As a part of an ex- tended clause of reasoning on the subject, the project is fully brought out in the message of 1829 : "I submit, whether a national one [hunV], f 071 tided upon the credit of the government and its reve- nues, might not be devised," &c. In the message of 1830, he revives the subject in another extended paragraph, and, among other things, says : "It becomes us to inquire, whether it is not possible to secure the advantages afforded by the present bank, through the agency of a bank of the United States, so modified in its principles, as to avoid constitutional objections. It is thought practicable to organize such a bank, with the necessary officers, as A BRANCH OF THE TREASURY DEPARTMENT," &C. In the mes- sage of 1831, he says : " Entertaining the opinions heretofore ex- pressed, in relation to the bank of the United States, as at present organized, I felt it my duty, in my former messages, frankly to disclose them, in order that the attention of the legislature and the people should be seasonably directed to that important subject, and that it might be considered and finally disposed of, in a manner best calculated to promote the ends of the constitution, and sub- serve the public interests." In his veto message of 1832, he says : "I do not entertain a doubt, that a bank of the United States might be so organized, &c. Had the executive been called upon to fur- nish the project of such an institutio7i, the duty would have been cheerfully performed." In the message of 1834, the war upon the state banks was commenced, by proposing a divorce of the government from all banks, and endeavoring to bring odium upon such institutions. In the message of 1835, this attack is yet more distinctly disclosed : " In considering the means of obtaining so important an end, we must set aside all calculations of tcm])orary convenience. . . . We must recur to first princiijles, and see what it is that has prevented the legislation of Congress, and of the states, on the subject of the currency, &c. ... I am sure I can not be 40 THE SUB-TREASURY. mistaken in ascriljiiig our want of success to the sjmit of monopoly. All the dan;j;L'r.s which our system has yet encountered, may be traced to the resort to viqilicd powers, und the vsc of corporafions clothed uith privileges. . . . We are now to see, whether, in the present favorable condition of the country, we can take an effectual stand against this spirit. ... It is ascertained that ihc manage- ment of the rcvenve can be made auxiliary to reform. It has only to be fostered by proper regtdatiovs on the part of Congress, to se- cure a practical return, to the extent required for the security of the currency, to the constitutional medium." Upon this message, Mr. Clay says : — •' As in the instance of the attack upon the bank of the United States, the approach to the state banks is slow, cautious, and insid- ious. He reminds Con;:;rcss and the country, that all calculations of temporary convenience must be set aside ; that we must recur to first principles ; and that we must see what it is that has pre- vented the legislation of Congress, and the states, on the subject of the currency from satisfying public expectation. He declares his conviction, that the want of success has proceeded from the Hindue countenance which has been aflbrded to the spirit of mo- nopoly. All the- serious dangers which our system has yet en- countered, may be traced to the resort to implied powers, and to the vsc of corpora t ions. We have felt, he says, but one class of these dangers in the contest with the bank of the United States, and he clearly intimates that the other class is the state banks. We are now to see, he proceeds, whether in the present favorable con- dition of the country, we can not take an effectual stand against this spirit of monopoly. Reverting to his fiivorite scheme of a government bank, lie says, it is ascertained, that, instead of being made necessary to promote the evils of an unchecked jiaj/er si/sfem, the management (f the revenue can be made auxiliary to the reform which he is desirous to introduce. The desitrns of President .Jackson agamst the state banks arc more fully developed and en- larged ujjon in his annual message of 1S3G." After quoting largely from the message of 1S36, Mr. Clay says : — " It is seen that he again calls the attention of Con2:ress to the currency of the country, alleges that it was apparent, from the whole context of the constitution, as well as the history of the times that gave birth to it, that it was the purpose of the convention to estab- lish a currency consisting of ilie p/vr/V)//.? metah ; imputes variable- ness and a liability to inordinate contraction and exjiansion to the existing paj)er system, and denounces bank issues, as being an un- certain standard. He felicitates himself upon the dangers which THE SUB-TREASURY. 41 have been obviated by the overthrow of the bank of the United States, but declares that little has been yet done, except to pro- duce a salutary change of public opinion toward restoring to the country, the sound currency j)>'ovided for in the constitution, I will here say, in passing, that all this outcry about the precious metals, gold, and the constitutional currency, has been put forth to delude the people, and to use the precious metals as an instrument to break down the banking institutions of the states, and thus to pave the way for the ultimate establishment of a great government bank. In the present advanced state of civilization, in the present condi- tion of the commerce of the world, and in the actual relations of trade and intercourse between the different nations of the w^orld, it is perfectly chimerical to suppose that the currency of the United States should consist exclusively, or principally, of the precious metals." In General Jackson's farewell address, on retiring from the gov- ernment, March 3, 1837, he says : " My humble efforts have not been spared during my administration, to restore the constitutional currency of gold and silver. But enough yet remains to require all your energy and perseverance. . . . The constitution of the United States unquestionably intended to secure to the people a circulating medium of gold and silver. But the establishment of a national bank by Congress, with the privilege of issuing paper money, re ceivable in payment of 'the public dues, and the unfortunate course of legislation in the several slates upon the same subject, drove from general circulation the constitutional currency, and substituted one of paper in its place." " The mask [says jMr. Clay], is now thrown off, and he boldly says that the constitution of the United States unqucstionaUy in- tended to secure to the people a circulating medium of gold and silver. They have not enjoyed, he says, that benefit,' because of the establishment of a national bank, and the wfortunate course of legislation in the several states. He does not limit his condemna- tion of the past policy of his country to the federal government, of wliich he had just ceased to be the chief, but he extends it to the states also, as if they were incompetent to judge of the interests of their respective citizens." In support of the fourth proposidon, Mr. Clay says : — " The proofs on this subject are brief; but they are clear, di- rect, and plenary. It is almost impossible for any unbiased mind to doubt for a moment about them. You, sir, will be surprised, when I shall array them before you, at their irresistible force. The first that I shall offer is an extract from Mr. Van Buren's letter of 42 THE SUB-TREASURY. acceptance of the nomination of tlje Baltimore convention, dated May L':Jd, Ib-io. Jn that letter lie says: — ♦' ' I content myself, on this occasion, with sayinjr, that I con- sider myself the honored instrument selected by tJie friends of the present administration, to carry out its principUs and polici/ ; and that, as well from inclination as from dufij, I shall, if honored with the choice of the American pco])]e, endeavor generally to follow in the footsteps of President Jackson ; happy if I shall be able to perfect the work which he has so gloricAjsly begun.'' " Mr. Van Bnren announces that he was the honored instrument selected by the friends of the present administration, to carry out its principles and policy. The honored instrument ! That word, according to the most approved definition, means tool. He was, then, the honored tool — to do what? to promote the honor, and advance the welfare of the people of the United States, and to add to the glory of his country V No, no ; his country was not in his thoughts. Party, party, filled the place in his bosom which country should have occupied. He was the honored tool to carry out the principles and j)olicy of General Jackson's administration ; and, if elected, he should, as well from inclination as from duty, endeavor, generally, to tread in the footsteps of General Jackson — happy if he should be able to perfect the work which he had so gloriously begun. Duty to whom ? to the country, to the whole people of the United States ? IVo such thing; but duty to the friends of the then administration ; and that duty required him to tread in the footsteps of his illustrious predecessor, and to perfect the work which he had begun ! Now, the senate will bear in mind that the most distinguishing features of General Jackson's administration related to the currency ; that he had denounced the banking insti- tutions of the country; that he had overthrown the bank of the Uniied Stales ; that he had declared, when that object was accom- plished, only one half the work was completed ; that he then commenced war against the state banks, in order to finish the other halt ; that he constantly persevered in, and never abandoned, his favorite project of a great government treasury-bank ; and that he retired from the ollice of chief-magistrate, pouring out, in his tare- well a«ldress, anathemas against paper nmney, corporations, and the spirit of monopoly. When all these things are recollected, it is impossible not to comprehend clearly what Mr. \'an Buren means, by carrying out the principles and policy of the late administration. .No one can mistake that those jjrinciples and that policy require him to break down the local institutions of the states, and to discredit and destroy the paper medium which they issue. No one can be at a loss to understand, that, in following in the footsteps of President Jackson, and in perfecting the work which he began, Mr. \ an Buren means to continue attacking, systematic- ally, the banks of the states, and to erect on their ruins, that great THE SUB-TREASURY. 43 government bank, begun by his predecessor, and which he is the nonored instrument selected to complete. The next proof which I shall offer is supplied by Mr. Van Buren's inaugural address, from which I request permission of the senate to read the following extract : — " 'In receiving from the people the sacred trust twice confided to my illustrious predecessor, and which he has discharged so faithfully and so well, I know that I can not expect to perform the arduous task with equal ability and success. But, united as I have been in his counsels, a daily witness of his exclusive and unsurpassed devotion to his country's welfare, agrcei7ig with him in sentiments which his countrymen have warmly supported, and permitted to partake largely of his confidence, I may hope that somewhat of the same cheering approbation will be found to attend upon my path.' " Here w^e find Mr. Van Buren distinctly avowing, what the American people well knew before, that he had been united in the counsels of General Jackson ; that he had agreed with him in sen- timents, and that he had partaken largely of his confidence. This intimacy and confidential intercourse could not have existed with- out the concurrence of Mr. Van Buren in all those leading and prominent measures of his friend, which related to the establish- ment of a government bank, the overthrow of the bank of the United States, the attack upon the state institutions, and the denun- ciation of the paper currency, the spirit of monopoly, and corpo- rations. Is it credible that General Jackson should have aimed at the accompUshment of all these objects, and entertained all these sentiments, without INIr. Van Buren's participation ? * * * \<7-9n * * * * " On the fifth of March last, not a doubt was entertained, as far as my knowledge or belief extends, that Mr. Van Buren would rescind the obnoxious order. I appeal to the senator from Mis- souri, who sits near me [Mr. Linn], to the senator from Missis- sippi, who sits furthest from me [Mr. Walker], to the senator from Alabama [Mr. King], and to the whole of the administration sen- ators, if such was not the expectation of all of them? Was there ever an occasion in which a new administration had so fine an op- portunity to signalize its commencement by an act of grace and wisdom, demanded by the best interests and most anxious wishes of the people ? But Mr. Van Buren did not think proper to em- brace it. He had shared too largely in the confidence of his pred- ecessor, agreed too fully with him in sentiments, had been too much united with him in his counsels, to rescind an order which constituted so essential a part of the system which had been de- liberately adopted to overthrow the state banks." The order of Mr. Van Buren, that nothing but specie should be received from the people, in paying their dues to the treasury, when 44 THE SUB-TREASURY. no pperie cotild he had, and his recommendation of a hankriipt law that shoidd walk over witliin ilie hues of state jurisdiction, to wind iij) the state hanks, were justly regarded as a most on'ensive exhihiiion of his ohscfjuiousness to, the will of his predecessor, and of a delennination to clear the way hy force for the estahlishmenl of a government hank, on the ruins of all other hanks. Such was the fierceness of the war, that a hill was hrou;,d)t into the senate hy Mr. (Jrundy, to suppress the only currency that was then univer- sally current — specie being out of the question — to wit, a few hundred thousand dollars of the old hank of the United States. " Sir [said Mr. Clay], if the hill had not been proposed by my old friend from Tennessee, I would say its author better de- served a penitentiary punishment, than those against whom it is directed. I remcmhcr to have heard of an illustrious individual, now in retirement [(general Jackson], having, on some occasion, burst out into the most |)atriotie indignation, because of a waggish trick played oil" upon him, hy putting a note of the late bank of the United States into his silk purse with his gold." Mr. Clay went on to show, how such a government bank would confer boundless power on the national executive; what unlimited discretion the plan proposed to confer on the secretary of the treasury ; how its practical operation would fill up the channels of circulation, and become the medium of trade, to the exclusion of all other cuiTcncy; what chances of speculation in brokera^^e it would aflord to the agents and Aivorites of government ; how easy it would be for a chief-magistrate to abstract millions to jrain an election, and himself have charge of the secret ; what temptations to enlarge issues, till nohotly would know how much paper was out, and it should finally be discovered, that the world was full of it, and no specie to redeem it' " All experience [said Mr. Clay] has demonstrated, that in banking operations, a much larger amount of paper can be kcj)t out in circulation than the specie which it is necessary to retain in the vaults to meet it when jirescnted for payment. The propor- tions which the same experience has ascertained to be entirely safe, arc one of specie to three of pajjcr. if, therefore, the exec- utive government had sixty millions of dollars accumulated at the port of New York, in the hands of the receiver-general, represented by sixty millions of <,a)vernment drafts in circulation, it would be known that twenty of that sixty millions would be sullicient to re- tain to meet any amount of drafts, which, in ordinary times, would be presented for payment. There would then remain forty mill- THE SUB-TREASURY. 45 ions in the vaults, idle and unproductive, and of which no practi- cal use could be made. Well ; a great election is at hand in the state of New York, the result of which will seal the fate of an ex- isting administration. If the application of ten millions of that dormant capital could save, at some future day, a corrupt execu- tive from overthrow, can it be doubted, that the ten millions would be applied to preserve it in power? Again, let us suppose some great exigency to arise : a season of war, creating severe financial pressure and embarrassment. Would not an issue of paper, founded upon and exceeding the specie in the vaults, in some such proportions as experience had demonstrated might be safely emitted, be authorized? Finally, the whole amount of specie might be exhausted, and then, as it is easier to engrave and issue bank-notes, than to perform the unpopular office of imposing taxes and burdens, the discovery would be made, that the credit of the government was a sufficient basis whereupon to make emissions of paper money, to be redeemed when peace and prosperity re- turned. Then we should have the days of continental money, and of assignats, restored !***** " The system [said INIr. Clay] would control you. You could not control the system. * * * * * * "x^ssumino; the downfall of the local banks — the inevitable con- sequence of the operations of this great government bank; assu- ming, as I have shown would be the case, that the government would monopolize the paper issues of the country, and obtain the possession of a great portion of the specie of the country, we should then behold a combined and concentrated moneyed power, equal to that of all the existing banks of the United States, with that of the late bank of the United States superadded. This tre- mendous power would be wielded by the secretary of the treasury, acting under the immediate commands of the president of the United States. Here would be a perfect union of the sword and the purse ; here would be no imaginary, but an actual, visible, tan- gible, consolidation of the moneyed power. Who or what could withstand it ? The states themselves would become suppliants at the feet of the executive for a portion of those paper emissions, of the power to issue which they had been stripped, and which he now exclusively possessed. ***** Look ! " How admirably did the whole system, during the forty years of its existence [bank of the United States], move and work ! And on the two unfortunate occasions of its ceasing to ex- ist, how quickly did the business and transactions of the country run into wild disorder and utter confusion ! * * * * " 1 have been curious, Mr. President, to know whence this idea of receivers-general was derived. It has been supposed to have been borrowed from France. It required all the power of that most extraordinary man that ever lived, Napoleon Bonaparte, when 46 THE SUB-TREASURY. \ he was in his moridian jTrcatness, to (li.«place the farmers-nrcneral, and to suljstituto in their place the refcivers-eeneral. The new system requires, I think I have heard it stated, something' hke one liundred thousand employees to have it executed. And, notwith- standing the modesty of the infant promises of this new project, 1 have no douht that idtimately we shall have to emj)loy a numher of persons approximating to that which is retained in France. That will undouhtedly he the case whenever we shall revive the system of internal taxation. In France, what reconciled them to the system was, that Napoleon first, and the liourhons afterward, were pleased with the immense j)atronage which it gave them. They liked to have one hundred thousand dependants to add strength to the throne, which had heen recently constructed or re- ascended. I thought, however, that the learned chairman of the committee of finance, must have had some other hesides the French model for his receivers-general ; and, accordingly, looking into .Smith's history of his own state, 1 found, that, when it was yet a colony, some cen'liry and a half ago, and when its present noble caj)ital still retained the name of New Amsterdam, the his- torian says : ' Among tlie principal laws enacted at this session, we may mention that for estahlisliing the revenue, which was drawn into precedent. The sums raised by it were made payable into the hands of receivers-general, and issued by the governor's war- rant. By this means the governor became, for a season, inde- pendent of the people, and hence we find frequent instances of the assemblies contending with him for the discharge of debts to pri- vate j)ersons, contracted on the faith of the government.' The then governor of the colony was a man of great violence of tem- per, and arbitrary in his conduct. How the sub-treasury system of that day oj)erate(l, the same historian informs us in a subsequent part of his work : ' The revenue,' he says, ' established the last year, was at this session continued five years longer than was origi- nally intended. This was rendering the governor independent of the peoj)le. For, at that day, the assembly had no treasure, but the amount of all taxes went, of course, into the hands of the re- ceiver-general, who was aj)pointcd by the crown. Out of this fund, moneys were only issuable by the governor's warrant, so that every ofllcer in the government, from Mr. Pjlaithwait, who drew annually five per centum out of the revenue, as auditor-general, down to the meanest servant of the public, became dependent, solely, on the governor. And hence we find the house, at the close of every session, iunnbly addressing his excellency, for the trilling wages of their own clerk.' And, Mr. ['resident, if this measure should unhajipily pass, the day may come, when the sen- ate of the United States will have humbly to implore some future president of the United States to grant it money to pay the wages of its own sergeant-at-arms, and doorkeeper." ♦ • • THE SUB-TREASURY. 47 The earliest and most remarkable instance of s^ib-treasiny in history, and the most graphic picture of the system, is found in the 47th chapter of Genesis, from the 15th to the 26th verses, under which the treasury of Pharaoh first swallowed up all the money of the people ; next, their cattle were taken ; then, their lands ; last of all, they sold themselves into perpetual bondage, to render to Pharaoh, in perpetuity, 07ie Jifth of the products of their labor ; and they remained in slavery for ever afterward. When Spain ex- hausted the mines of South America, and in the end drew forth more than a tliousand millions of bullion into the royal coffers, it was all done by s?^6-treasurers, while the people were taxed, worn out, and kept under. iS'wZ'-treasurers are always in favor of direct taxation, and that is the only way to maintain the system. Rome was free till the system of 52/i-treasury was introduced. So was it in Greece. So has it been in every country that has lost its freedom. The peculiarity of a s?^5-treasury system is, to separate the government from the people, to raise it above them, to make it independent, and to make the people dejicndent — slaves. There is no sympathy between the parties, but a necessary and perpetual hostility of interests. Mr. Clay concluded this speech — one of the greatest and hap- piest efforts of his life — as follows : — " I am admonished, sir, by my exhausted strength, and by, 1 fear, your more exhausted patience, to hasten to a close. Mr. President, a great, novel, and untried measure is perseveringly urged upon the acceptance of Congress. That it is pregnant with tremendous consequences, for good or evil, is undeniable, and ad- mitted by all. We firmly believe that it will be fatal to the best interests of this country, and ultimately subversive of its liberties. You, who have been greatly disappointed in other measures of equal promise, can only hope, in the doubtful and uncertain future, that its operation may prove salutary. Since it was first proposed at the extra session, the whole people have not had an opportunity of passing in judgment upon it at their elections. As far as they have, they have expressed their unqualified disapprobation. From Maine to the state of Mississippi, its condemnation has been loudly thundered forth. In every intervening election, the administration has been defeated, or its former majorities neutralized. Maine has spoken ; New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ohio, Rhode Island, Mississippi, and Michigan, all these states, in tones and terms not to be misunderstood, have denounced the measure. The Icey-stone state (God bless her) has twice proclaimed her rejection of it: once at the polls, and once through her legislature. Friends and 48 THE SUB-TREASURV. foes of the atliiiini'iiatioii liavc united in condemning it. And, at the very ni(;nicnt when I am addressing you, a large meeting of the hue .-;u])|»orlcr.s of the administration, headed by the dis- tin<'uishcd geiuleman who presided in the electoral college which gave the vote of that patriotic state to President Van liuren, are asspinhlins; in Philadelphia, to protest solenudy against the passage of this bill. Is it right that, under such circumstances, it should be forced upon a reluctant, but free and intelligent people? Is it right that this senate, constituted as it now is, should give its sanc- tion to the n)easure ? I say it in no disrespectful or taunting sense, but we are entitled, according to the latest expressions of the j)op- ular will, and in virtue of manifestations of opinion, deliberately » expressed by state legislatures, to a vote of thirty-five against the bill ; and 1 am ready to enter, with any senator friendly to the administration, into details to prove the assertion. Will the senate, then, bring upon itself the odium of passing tiiis bill ? I implore it to forbear, forbear, forbear ! 1 appeal to the instructed senators. Is this government made for us, or for the people and the states whose agents we are '/ xVre we not bound so to administer it as to advance their welfare, promote tlicir prosperity, and give general satisfaction? Will that sacred trust be fulfilled, if the known sen- timents of large and respectable communities are despised and con- temned by those whom they have sent here ? 1 call upon the honorable senator from Alabama [Mr. King], with whom I have so long stood in the public councils, shoulder to shoulder, bearing up the honor and the glory of this great people, to come now to their rescue. I call upon all the senators : let us bury deep and for ever the character of the partisan, rise up patriots and states- men, break the vile chains of party, throw the fragments to the winds, and feel the proud satisfaction that we have made but a small sacrifice to the paramount obligations which we owe our conunon country." Notwithstanding the fixed and resolute purpose of Mr. Van Bu- ren and his advisers, acting, as supposed, under the dictation of his predecessor, or bound by fealty to fulfil pledges to that author- ity, the exposures made of the novelty and dangerous character of this great experiment, struck the public mind with alarm, and for a while held the execution of the project in suspense. But, as has been seen, the abandonment of this object would disappoint the plan and labor of years. All that had been done by CJeneral Jackson, in breaking down the currency system of the country, was to prepare the way for a treasury and government bank. It can not be denied, that this course of preparation had been to the nation what (leneral Jackson, in his message of 1835, allowed to bear on public ''convenience.'' h was in fact a tremendous THE SUB-TREASURY. 49 ordeal. "Was the iron will of the retired chieftain to be disap- pointed ? Was the mantle which he had cast behind him on the shoulders of his own anointed one, to be torn ofF, and trampled under foot ? The pertinacity with which this great purpose, this consummation of the work of many years, this dear and long- cherished scheme, was pushed by Mr. Van Buren, to his personal peril, to his final ruin, is a striking exempHfication of the functions of an " honored instrument," alias " tool," " to carry out the principles and policy" of his predecessor, to which he had pub- licly and solemnly vowed in the acceptance of his nomination in ■1835. The responses which came back from the wide domain of the republic, on the full disclosure of this scheme — the pre- monitory symptoms — were not very encouraging. Pauses, vacil- lations, fears were betrayed, in the mind of him who had been "the honored instrument" of thus shocking the mind of the na- tion by a proposal, which, so far as understood, was most remote from meeting with approbation. But it was the goal marked out eight years before, to reach which, the best interests of a great, confiding, patient people, had been walked over with iron heel, and left trodden in the dust. The scheme, as before seen, was first brought forward at the extra session of Congress, in 1837, convened for that especial pur- pose, when it was expected the bill would be passed, and the de- bate was not finally closed till 1840. In January, 1840, wheoc: the bill was about to become a law, Mr. Clay — not with any hope of arresting the measure, for the votes were marshalled, and the purpose sealed — but to sustain his protest to the last, and dis- charge his duty to the country, delivered another speech upon the subject, recapitulating his former arguments, and suggesting some new thoughts. It was at this session, that Mr. Buchanan, of Pennsylvania, came out with his theory on the wages of labor. " The gentle- man from Pennsylvania," said Mr. Clay, "has put the case of two nations, in one of which the amount of its currency shall be double what it is in the other, and, as he contends, the prices of all property will be double in the former nation of what they are in the latter." It matters little in point of justice to him who pro- pounded this theory, in what form it is set forth. The principle and the object can not be disguised. The avowed object of the administration and its advisers at that time, was to suppress the paper medium of the country, and introduce a metallic currency ; Vol. 11.-4 50 Tin: SUB-TREASURY. and the independent or sub-treasury, was to be the means of ac- coinnlishlng the end, although, as shown by Mr. Clay, it must necessarily fail, and itself establish a paper medium of a most dano-erous tendency. As in a sound paper currency, there is allowed to be three to one of the specie Irasis, the suppression of paper will reduce the amount of currency by the proportional dif- ference. It is allowed by the theory, that every species of prop- erty, and the wages of labor, must fall in the same proportion ; but its advocates say, that, when everything is reduced to that level, the difference is merely nominal, and it will not only be equally well, but better for all parties. Tiiere is, certainly, some plausibility in thFs theory. But the difficulty is in reducing it to practice, because it fails to consider the relative position of American capital and labor to the labor and capital of other parts of the world, which is illustrated in a subserpient chapter. If the reasoning in the place here referred to, be sound, it demolishes tiiis theory, and shows that nothing could be more alarming to the American laborer, nothing more fatal to American freedom, than its proposed object. The high prices ol American capital and labor are the citadel of freedom, and with their fall, freedom falls. He who seeks to pull down one, lays violent hands upon the other. It was for want of consideration of this relation of prices to freedom, and of freedom to despot- ism — it might, perhaps, be added, an ignorance of political econ- omy — that proposed and advocated a measure, which was sup- posed and allowed to involve a large reduction — say, fifty per cent. — in the prices of American property, and in the wages of American labor. It would be mild enough, because it is exacdy U'lie, to say — it was tueaso\ to the country ! The following are some of Mr. Clay's thoughts on this point : — " The proposed subsiitution of an exclusive metallic cunvncy to the mixed medium with which we have been so long familiar, is forbidden by the principles of eternal justice. Assuming the cur- rency of the country to consist of two thirds of paper and one of specie ; and assiimiiit^, also, that the money of a country, what- ever may be its coin[)onent ]iarts, regulates all values, and expres- ses the true amount which the debtor has to pay to his creditor, the elTect of the change ii|)()n that relation, and upon the property of the country, would be most ruinous. All property would be reduced in value to one third of its present nominal amount, and every debtor would, in ellect, have to pay three times as much as he had contracted for. The pressure of our foreign debt would THE SUB-TREASURY. 51 be three times as great as it is, while the six hundred milhons, which is about the sum now probably due to the banks from the people, would be multiplied into eighteen hundred millions ! ******** " Have gentleman reflected upon the consequences of their sys- tem of depletion '^ I have already stated, that the country is borne down by a weight of debt. If the currency be greatly diminished, as beyond all example it has been, how is this debt to be extinguished? Property, the resource on which the debtor relied for his payment, will decline in value, and it may happen that a man, who honestly contracted debt, on the faith of property which had a value at the time fully adequate to warrant the debt, will find himself stripped of all his property, and his debt remain unextinguished. The gentleman from Pennsylvania [Mr. Bu- chanan] has put the case of two nations, in one of which the amount of its currency shall be double what it is in the other, and, as he contends, the prices of all property will be double in the former nation of what they are in the latter. If this be true of two nations, it must be equally true of one, whose circulating me- dium is at one period double what it is at another. Now, as the friends of the bill argue, we have been, and yet are in this infla- ted state ; our currency has been double, or, in something like that proportion, of what was necessary, and we must come down to the lowest standard. Do they not perceive that inevitable ruin to thousands must be the necessary consequence ? A man, for example, owning property to the value of five thousand dollars, contracts a debt for five thousand dollars. By the reduction of one half of the currency of the country, his property in effect be- comes reduced to the value of two thousand five hundred dollars. But his debt undergoes no corresponding reduction. He gives up all his property, and remains still in debt two thousand five hundred dollars. Thus this measure will operate on the debtor class of the nation, always the weaker class, and that which, for that reason, most needs the protection of government. " But if the effect of this hard-money policy upon the debtor class be injurious, it is still more disastrous, if possible, on the la- boring classes. Enterprise will be checked or stopped, employ- ment will become difhcult, and the poorer classes will be subject to the greatest privations and distresses. Heretofore it has been one of the pretensions and boasts of the dominant party, that they sought to elevate the poor by depriving the rich of undue advan- tages. Now their policy is, to reduce the wages of labor, and this is openly avowed ; and it is argued by them, that it is necessary to reduce the wages of American labor to the low standard of Eu- ropean labor, in order to enable the American manufacturer to enter into a successful competition with the European manufac- turer in the sale of their respective fabrics. Thus is this domi- 62 THE STB-TREASURY. nant parly perpetually changing, one day cajoling tiie poor, and fulminating against the rich ; and the next, cajoling the ricii, and fuhiiinatiri'f aifain.st tlif poor. It was i)iit yesterdav that we heard that all who were trading on borrowed faj)ital, ought to break. It was Jjut yesterday we heard denounced the long-established [)olicy of the country, by whifli, it was alleged, the poor were made poorer, and the rich were made richer. " Mr. President, of all the subjects of national policy, not one ought to be touched with so much delicacy as that of the wages, in other words, the bread, of the poor man. In dwelling, as I have often done, with inexpressible satisfaction upon the many ad- vantages of our coimtry, there is not one that has given me more delight than the high price of manual labor. There is not one wliicii indicates more clearly the prosperity of the mass of the com- munity. In all the features of human society, there are none, I think, which more decisively display the general welfare, than a ■pcrmnncHt iiigh rate of wages, and a permanent high rate of inter- est. Of course, I do not mean those excessive high rates, of temporary existence, which result from sudden and unexpected demands for labor or capital, and which may, and generally do, evince some unnatural and extraordinary state of things ; but 1 mean a settled, steady, and durable high rate of wages of labor, and interest upon money. iSuch a state demonstrates activity and profits in all the departments of business. It proves that the employer can afford to give high wages to the laborer, in consequence of the profits of his business, and the borrower high interest to the lender, in consequence of the gain which he makes by the use of capital. On the contrary, in countries where business is dull and languish- ing, and all the walks of society are full, the small profits that are made will not justify high interest or high wages." The systematic and destructive attack, that was made on the commercial habits of the people of the United States by the Jack- son regime, as developed in this and the preceding chapter, and which remains yet more perfectly to be disclosed — vastly compre- hensive and fearfully ruinous in its operations, entailing upon the country at least an age of adversity, however soon the remedy may be applied — has raised a new question in political economy peculiar to the position of the people of the United States, in their political and commercial relations to other parts of the world — more espe- cially to Europe. The secret of this question has never yet been laid open to common apj)rchension, nor, perhaps, has it been dis- tinctly stated. In all the debates which, for a long course of years, this destructive system, introduced by General Jackson, has exci- ted, it has been felt and declared, that freedom was concerned in THE SUB-TREASURY. 53 a policy that should tend to depress the value of property and the wages of labor ; but the cause, the quo modo, hoio it is concerned, how it operates, so far as the author of this work has observed, has never been shown. It will be found comprehensively stated in the twelfth chapter of this volume ; but, as the application of the prin- ciple is especially pertinent here, and may possibly serve to cast some light on the subject now under consideration, it is thought proper to make some use of it in this place. It is suggested above, that it is a question peculiar to the United States. For practical purposes, statesmen and commercial men have long felt its importance ; but as a question of political econ- omy, or science, it has never been debated. The destructive regime, now in view, has drawn it forward, and must enforce its consideration. The fact of there having been a difference of prices in European capital and labor, as compared with those of Ameri- can capital and labor, was necessarily observed, while the cause or causes have never attracted an equal attention. The secret has, in fact, been hidden from most minds. Not even statesmen have troubled themselves with it as a question of political economy. They have indeed frequently announced, that freedom was con- cerned in it ; it was impossible they should not see and feel it ; but they have never explained liowiand why. In the chapter above referred to, the high prices of American capital and labor, as compared with those of Europe, are repre- sented as identical with freedom — as its own price and prerogative ; that this difference is not an accident, that can disappear, and free- dom remain ; but that it is essential to freedom. It is not true to say, that the values of European capital and labor are real, and those of the United States fictitious, though there is a difference of about half between them. It is the two states of political soci- ety that make the difference ; and so long as they remain, this dif- ference must remain. The wages of labor in Europe are not fixed by the laborers. They have no voice in it — are not parties to the arrangement — but are compelled to work for a bare subsistence — that being often cruelly and inhumanly insufficient. The result is, that the avails of this cheap and forced labor, in every form of its products and of wealth, can be afforded cheaper, apart from the heavy taxes imposed upon them by expensive and tyrannical gov- ernments ; and under all these exactions, money capital in Europe, thus acquired, does not cost probably more than half as much as money made in the United States. Hence, six per cent, interest 54 THE SUB-TREASURY. on the latttT capital, is only cfjual to three per cent, on the former; and as- the vahju of money i.s measured by the interest that qan be obtaineil for it, it is seen, lliat money in tlie United Stales is worth al)out twice as much as in Europe. The price of labor here is abf)iit three to one of the average price in Europe, because laborers in the United States have a voice in determining their wages. The terms are not — work at a given price, or starve. If wages are not satisfactory in one place, they go to another ; if not in one calling, they choose a second ; and if no employer will give enough, ac- cording to their estimate of their own services, wanting cajjital to set up for themselves, as a last resort they can always go to the unseated lands of the west, and be independent. Tiiere is always a virtual indcjjcndcnce in their position, and their labor is never forced. Hence, when the labor of the country is protected, it will always command a fair price — not only sufficient for subsistence, but to give a chance, by frugality and economy, to rise in the world, and acquire wealth. It is the prerogative of freedom, and identi- fied with it. / But this state of things supposes an adequate protective system, as is shown in anotiier part of this work, and protection is indis- pensable to it. It is shown elsewhere, that an adequate protective policy saves to the country at Ipast nn average of fifty per cent, of the costs of the articles protected, which is distributed among all classee, one fraction of which goes to reduce the prices of such articles, another to sustain the wages of labor, and so on. This sustentatioii of the wages of labor effected by a protective policy, is the i)oint wherein American freedom is defended against the en- croachments of European despotism. The wages of labor being high, money and other forms of wealth produced by labor, cost more than in Europe, and are consequently worth more. The value of every species of property is sustained by the operation of the same principle. It is not imnaturally high, but just where it ought to be, and must be, as the concomitant of freedom. With- out a protective policy, prices would at once go down to the Euro- pean standard, labor would be oppressed, and freedom lost. (Jov- ornments are expensive and oppressive, all the world over, just in proportion as the waives of labor are below what freedom requires ; and it is when the governments extort, in various modes of taxation, a moiety, more or less, of the rightful property of laborers, that they arc kept poor, humiliated, and enslaved. Assuming 100 as the cost of American capital, and 100 as the THE SUB-TREASURY. 55 price of American labor, under an adequate system of protection to both, the average cost of European capital is about G7, and the average price of European labor about 33, as ascertained by the best information. This makes the joint value of European capital and labor 100, and that of American capital and labor 200. The difference, that is to say, fifty per cent, goes into the exchequers of European governments, by their various modes of taxation, to support the implements of tyranny, orders of nobihty, religious establishments, armies, navies, and all the paraphernalia of the regal and monarchical conditions of society. But as the govern- ment of the United States costs nothing, but is supported by im- posts which constitute a properly-adjusted protective system, being itself a fraction of this moiety saved to the country by the protective policy, the other fraction saved, being the chief part of it, all goes to the people directly, and is distributed among all classes, of which the laborer always gets his full share, and is more benefited than any other class, first, by the sustentation of his wages, and next, in that he obtains the articles protected, which are necessary to him, at a cheaper rate, because they are rescued from foreign tax- ation, and come to him at a fair price. It will be seen, by this view, that the aggregate costs of society, capital, and labor, are just about »the same in Europe as in Amer- ica, in one region of civilization as in another. The difference is, tliat in Europe, government and its appurtenances absorb a moiety of the avails of labor, whereas in the United States labor, under a system of adequate protection, realizes its own and full reward, as the prerogative of freedom. Here all the expenses of the general government are defrayed by the operation of the protective system, so that the people are relieved from this important item of taxation. Here, by the same means, money capital, and property of every de- scription, maintain a freedom value — a fair price — and every man has his rights. Whereas, in Europe, government and its appen- dages are an incubus on the bosom of the people. Money there is not worth more than two thirds of its value in the United States, the wages are not so high by two thirds, and every species of property is alike encumbered. These brief remarks on this great and important question, in some respects new, if not altogether so, as to the principle involved, will be seen to be pertinent in this place, as they are connected with the wages of labor, the topic in debate by Mr. Clay, which occasioned this digression. It was contended by Mr. Buchanan 56 THE SUn-TREASUIlY. and otluT oj)|)()iic'iits of Mr. Clay, friend?? of the then exisiinjr ad- ministration, that the reduction of the waf^es of labor to whirl) their polifv tended, and which must he its inevitahle result, woidd be merely nominal, and equally good in the end. lUit besides the injustice to all debtor classes, and the ruin of many, as exhibited by Mr. Clay, the direct tendency of the measures proposed, was to identify the policy with the European system, a view of which and its operations are given above. If the American laborer can not retain his wages, he loses his freedoni. Both stand or fall to- gether. Tt is not true, that the reduction f)f the wages of labor, as averred, would be merely nominal. It would be an abatement, a destruction of its rights. The subject of debate at this time was the currency question ; but it will be seen, that the wages of labor are necessarily connected with the protective policy, and the views introduced here could not be given, without recognising that rela- tion. And Mr. Clay, in this debate, was forced to come to a con- sideration of this subject, as the following remarks will show : — " We are told by the president of the United States, in his mes- sage at the opening of the session, that a great moneyed power exists in Lonclon, that exerts a powerful influence on this country; and that it is the result of the credit system. • • • • "But, sir, we must look to higher and much more potent causes than the operations of any bank, foreign or domestic, for the lively interest which is felt in this country, in the monetary transactions of England. In England, the credit system, as it is called, exists in a much more extensive degree than in this country; and, if it were true of the nature of that system, as is alleged, to render one country dependent upon another, why should not England be more dependent upon us, than we upon England V The real cause of our (lej)endence arises out of the unfavorable balance of our foreign trade. Wc import too much, and export too little. We buy too much abroad, make too little at iiouie. If we would shake oil' this degrading foreign dependence, wc must proiluce more, or buy less. Increase our productions, in all the variety of forms in which our industry can be employed; augment the prod- ucts of our soil, extend our manufactures, give new stimulus to our toimage and (ishing interests, sell more than we buy, get out of debt and keep our of debt to the foreigner, and he will no longer exert an influence upon our destiny, "And this unfavorable balance of our foreign trade is wholly iiuli'pendcnt of, and unconuecied with, the nature or the character of the currency of the couiitiy, whether it be exclusively metallic, or mixed with j)aj)er and the jirecious metals, Iwigland, in a great measure, by means of tluit credit or paper system, now so piueb THE SUB-TREASURY. 57 denounced, has become the centre of the commerce, the exchanges, and the moneyed operations of the workl. By the extent, variety, and perfection of her manufactures, she lays most nations that admit them freely, under contribution to her. And if we liad no currency but specie, we should be just as much exposed to the moneyed'power of London, or, which is the true state of the case, to the effects of an unfavorable balance of trade, as we now are. We should probably be more so, because a large portion of the specie of the country being in the vaults of a kw depositaries, it would be easier then to obtain it for exportation, in the operations of commerce, than now, when it is dispersed among nine hundred or a thousand banks. What was our condition during the colonial state, when, with the exception of small amounts of government paper money, we had no currency but specie, and no banks? Were we not constantly and largely in debt to England"? Was not our specie perpetually drained to obtain supplies of British goods ■/ l)o you not recollect yiat the subject of the British debts formed one of those matters which were embraced in the negotia- tions and treaty of i)eace, which terminated the revolutionary war? And that it was a topic of angry and protracted discussion long after, until it was finally arranged by Mr. Jay's treaty of 1794? "Look into the works of Doctor Franklin, in which there is more practical good sense to be found, tjian is to be met with in the same compass anywhere. He was the agent of Pennsylvania, from about the middle of the last century until the breaking out of th# revolutionary war, and a part of the time the agent, also, of the colonies of Georgia and Massachusetts. His correspondence shows, that the specie of the colonies was constantly flowing from them for the purchase of British goods, insomuch that the colonies were left absolutely destitute of a local currency; and one of the main objects of his agency was to obtain the sanction of the parent- country to those issues of paper money, which the necessities of Pennsylvania compelled her to make. The issue was strenuously opposed by the merchants engaged in the American trade, on ac- count of the difficulty which it created in making collections and remittances home. So great was that drain of specie, that we know that Virginia and other colonies were constrained to adopt tobacco as a substitute for money. " The principal cause, therefore, of the influence of the moneyed power of London over this country, is to be found in the vast ex- tent of our dealings with her. The true remedy is, to increase our manufactures and purchase less of hers, and to augment our exports by all the means in our power, and to diminish our imports as much as possible. We must increase our productions, or econ- omize much more dian we have done. New .Jersey, before the revolution, being much pressed for one hundred thousand pounds sterling. Doctor Franklin proposed a plan, by which she could in 5S THE SUB-TREASURY. one vear make up tliat sum. The plan was llii.s: she was in the liahit of importiiii; aimually from Kiii^laud merchandise to the amount of two hundred thousand pounds. He reconimended that the ladies shouhl buy only half the amount of silks, calicoes, teas, and so forth, durin;^ the year, which they had been in the habit of consuming; and in tliis way, by savini:, the colony would make the re(juired sum of one hundred thousand j)Ounds. If we would, for a few years, import oidy half the amount from England that we have been in the habit of doing, we should no longer feel the influence of the London money power. • • * *'• • • • " What people ever consented to increase their own burdens unnecessarily? The effect of this measure is, by exacting specie exclusively from the peoj)le, and paying it out to the official corps and the \ni\)\ic creditor, to augment the burdens of the people, and to swi'll the emoluments of oliice. It is an insult to the under- standing and judgment of the eiyightencd people of the United States, to assert that they can approve such a measure. " No true patriot can contemplate the course of the party in power without the most painful and mortified feclinilion of honor and confidence to wliich their suirrages have devoted him, deliberately wraps around himself the folds of liis Incha-ruhher cdoalv, and lift- ing his umbrella over his liead, tells them, drenched and shivering as they are, under liic beating rain, and hail, and snow, falling upon them, that he means to take care of himself and the ofiicial corps, and that they are in the. habit of expecting too much from govern- ment, and must look out for their own shelter, and security, and salvation ! " Now, sir, put this government bank into operation, and who are to be charged with the administration of its operations V The secretary of the treasiuy, the treasurer of the United States, the register and comi)lroller of the treasury, and the receivers-general, and so forth — every one of them holding his oflice at the pleasure and mercy of the president — every one of them, perhaps, depend- inn- for his bread upon the will of the president — every one ol them taught, by sad experience, to know that his safest course is to mould his opinions, and shape his conduct, so as to please the president^-every one of them knowing perfectly, that, if dismissed, he is without the possibility of any remedy or redress whatever. In such a de|)lorable state of things, this government bank will be the mere bank of the president of the United States, lie will be the yrfnuh'vt, cas/iirr, and tcUcr. Yes, sir, this complete subjec- tion of all the subordinate officers of the government to the will of the president, will make him sole director, president, cashier, and teller, of this government bank. The so-much-dreaded union of the j)ursc and the sword will at last be consummated, and the usurpation, by which the public deposites, in lS:3o, were removed by the advancement of the one, and the removal of another sec- retary of the treasury, will not only be finally legalized and sanctioned, but the enormity of the danger of that precedent will he transcended by a deliberate act of the Congress of the L'nited States ! " .Mr. President, for ten long years we have been warrinir against the alarming L,Mowih of executive power; but, although we have been occasionally cheered, it has been constantly advancini:, and never receding. You may talk as you please about bank e\|ian- sions. There has been no pernicious expansion in this country like that of executive power; and, imlike the operations of banks, this power never has any periods of contraction. You may de- nounce, as vou please, the usurjiations of (yonirress. There has been no usurpation but that of the execiuive, which has been both of the powers of other co-ordinate departments of this government, CURRENCY. 61 and of the states. There scarcely remains any power^ in this government but that of the president. He suggests, originates, controls, checks everything. The insatiable spirit of the vStuarts, for power and prerogative, was brought upon our American throne on the fourth of March, 1829. It came under all the usual false and hypocritical pretences and disguises, of love of the people, de- sire of reform, and diffidence of power. The Scotch dynasty still continues. We have had Charles the First, and now we have Charles the Second. But I again thank God, that our deliverance is not distant; and that, on the 4th of March, 1841, a great and glorious revoludon, without blood and without convulsion, will be achieved." This bill became a law at this (first) session of the 26th Con- gress, 1840, by a vote of 124 to 107 in the house of representa- tives, and 24 to 18 in the Senate ; and one of the first acts of the 27th Congress, elected with General (Wilham H.) Harrison, in the great political revolution of 1840, was to repeal it, when it had been in operation about a year. Nothing contributed so much to the downfall of the Jackson regime, as the audacity of this measure. The importance of the subject of currency seems to require some remarks and facts, which rather appertain to the functions of a political economist, than to the debates of statesmen. Money is the medium of trade, or the means by which trade is carried on ; currency is that which passes for money, and, for the purposes of trade, is money. It is indispensable to the credit of a common currency, that it be always convertible into specie on demand. Otherwise, its credit is instantly impaired, and it sinks just in proportion to the doubts cast over the prospects of redemption — because gold and silver, weighed in the scales, and assayed by common laws, are the universal test. No legislation can force credit into a currency ; — this truth is settled by expe- rience. Many governments have tried it, but without avail. France tried it in her assignats ; Great Britain has tried it in va- rious modes ; America tried it in continental money ; despots have tried it ; but it always fails. The reason is, that gold and silver, weighed, is the only common currency of the world. This test finds its way everywhere, into all countries, and to all currencies, in spite of legislation, or the will of despots. It is an error to suppose, that the value of gold and silver con- sists in the fact, that they are money. On the contrary, they are 62 CURRENCY. appropriated to this use, on account of their superior value and great deniaiid for innumerable purposes of utility, art, and orna- ment, arising from their peculiar and excellent qualities. It is estimated that trade employs ahout one sirth or one seventh of the gold and silver in the world in exchange as money. On this ac- count there can never he a want of money, inasmuch as gold and silver, being worth more for purposes of trade, than in any other use, they will always come forth from their other forms, when trade invokes them, in a sufficient quantity to supply the demand. What is commonly called scarcity of money arises from improvidence in some quarter. If a country wants money, it arises from an inadequate protective policy. The money has gone otF to settle balances. The improvidence of an individual leads to the same result. It is not because there is not gold and silver enough in the world. There is always some five or six times more than the uses of trade require, and if trade be prudently managed, it will always be at hand. Any party, whether an indi- vidual person, or a nation, that is in the habit of buying in excess of sales, must expect a dearth of the precious metals. The constitution of the United iStates has wisely ordered, that " no state shall make anything but gold and silver coins a tender in payment of debts." The eflect, and doubtless the design of this rule, is, to keep the way open for the only legitimate test for all currencies, viz., gold and silver, weighed in the scales. The constitution itself goes no further than the test of coins, which is imperfect; but the aim of government in the mint assays, is to keep the coins as near as possible to the test of the scales, which is near enough for all practical purposes, though seldom exact. Sound policy would require, that the legal coins, thus provided, should rather be under than over their nominal value, to bar ex- portation as an article of trade. If in a slight degree over their nominal value, they will be bought up and exported for prolit, as fast as the mint turns them out. This was the efTect of the gold bill passed under the administration of (General Jackson. An alTectation of being over-honest with the people, robbed the coun- try. It was a waiU of sagacity. Some aver, that the constitutional tender, gold and silver coins, is the only constitutional currency. This can not be maintained, first, because the rule itself grows out of the fart, and is based upon the fact, of the existence ami use of other currencies, and comes in to forbid that any other currency should be forced upon CURRENCY. 63 the public, by forcing it on creditors. So long as the creditor may lawfully demand gold and silver coins in payment of debts, his rights are sufficiently well secured. Secondly, to put an inter- pretation on the constitution, which was contrary to the practice of the time, and which interfe^es with the necessities of society at all times, would be absurd. Thirdly, the rule, as here interpreted, is all-sufficient, as it leaves all currencies open to the test of gold and silver weighed. It is further evident, that the constitutional tender was not in- tended as an exclusive currency, from the fact, that no nation can make an exclusive appropriation of the precious metals as a cur- rency. The accident of a nation's stamp on the face of a coin, is nothing beyond its own jurisdiction. The gold and silver, bear- ing the stamp of the American mint, is still a currency, as truly and equally good, all the world over, as in the United States. The only difference is, that in one case it passes by its stamp, and in the other by the scales. The moment an American coin issues from the mint, it is ever afterward the property of him who holds it for the time being, whether he be in America, in Europe, or in Asia ; and when once it goes beyond the jurisdiction of the United States, it is by no means certain it will ever return again, and the chances are perhaps against it. The chief use — a very important one — of the legal tender, is as a secure and authorized test of all the currencies that may be afloat. This is the practical effect of the law, which was doubtless its intention, and which is as good a protection of the public against false and spurious cur- rencies, as society can conveniently furnish. All civilized com- munities find it necessary, and employ it as such. A law to establish an exclusive metallic currency, would in effect be a law to stop trade — that is, the great amount of it that is now carried on. The exchanges daily made in the market and in banks, if required to be done with gold and silver, would absorb a large portion of the industry, labor, and porterage of every com- munity, and in a little while would cost more than all the money there is in the world — -not to speak of the risks of such a mode of business. The less action of gold and silver in trade, so much the more is saved to all parties. It is only required for small change, and to settle balances between remote points of the commercial world. One of the differences between civilization and barbar- ism, is, that credit characterizes the former, and barter the latter ; and the further a nation advances in civilization, so much less will G4 CURREXCY. be tlie activity of the precious metals as a currency. Tlie great art of trade is to keep them quiet as a basis ; and the great art of government i.s to see that they he ahvays on hand to redeem the evidences of dcl)t. 'J'hc system of hanking in the Lulled .Stales i.s designed to make one dollar in specie answer the purposes of three, not precisely, but as a general rule ; and it is perfectly safe on two contingencies, first and chiefly, that the protective policy of the government, in its regulation of foreign commerce, be adequate to prevent balances of trade falling against the nation ; and secondly, that the statutes of incorporation be adequate in themselves, and adequately en- forced, to prevent mismanagement and fraud. It is supposed, ihat the legislatures have taken care, as is their duty, so to frame the statutes as to secure the community, if faithfully observed, and it is the duty of the government to see that they are executed. A sound hanking system has always a capital, including assets, in excess of its debts, liable to the claims of creditors. It is by a system of this kind, and only by this, that American capital and labor can maintain its ground against European capital and labor, the latter costing only half of the former, as shown in another chapter. The physical and moral capabilities of the Lni- ted States, can employ to advantage all the currency which such a system affords, and they can not prosper against the rivalship of European capital and labor, without it. Reduce the people of this country to a hard money currency, and they are ruined. The currency of a nation is as blood to the animal economy. Disturb it, or vitiate it, or impair it, or tie up its veins, or over- charge it, or drain it, or dam up its courses, or put clogs and tram- mels on its action, or in any way treat it rudely and unskilfully, the effect is precisely the same on the health and wealth oi the nation, as is produced by a like treatment of the vital current, functions, and organs of the human body. In all these and other forms of abuse and rudeness, has the currency of the I'nited States been handled, as shown in this and the preceding chapter. A certain quark doctor gave out that a certain great animal was too plethoric, and rc(|uired bleeding ; but the blood being precious, he proposed to infuse it by injection into the bodies of certain other animals of the same genus. But it only threw them into a fever. He then j)roposed to draw it off aga"n, and infuse it into the veins of the people. But it gave the people a fever. Then he thought it would better suit the bodies of the backwoodsmen, and he gave CURRENCY. 65 it to them by a like process. But, unfortunately, all the bodies thus practised upon, rather grew worse, and showed symptoms of a fatal termination. The virus, once communicated, became a raging epidemic. States caught it, cities and villages caught it, all manner of corporations caught it, individuals caught it, the whole nation was seized of it, new and artificial beings started into mush- room life, to get a little of the blood, and, after a feverish existence, died. At last, the fever being spent, there was a universal col- lapse, and all remedies failed to bring the patients to. The head of a great house, saw the big old St. Bernard family dog, in his path, and cried out to his boys — "Mad Dog!" Whereupon the youngsters seized their rifles, gave chase, and shot him down. But it turned out that he was in no wise mad at all, and the loss was grievous. He had been especially useful in keep- ing the numerous pack of small dogs in order. The moment he was dead, the small curs broke loose, many of them ran mad and bit numbers of the family. One of the family took the carcass of the old dog, and undertook to galvanize it. He jumped a little, and then fell down, to jump no more. To drop figures, and come to facts. The losses sustained by the country in the calamitous vicissitudes, through which it has been forced, must have been vast ; and the aggregate could not be approached, but by adding the results of a prosperity that ought to have been realized, to the positive sacrifices that have been sus- tained. Few persons are accustomed to reflect on the diversity and extent of the losses of those times. But, let every man, who lived through them, calculate for himself what he personally sac- rificed — what chances were lost by him — what he might have done, and what he might have been, if the prosperity of the country had not been arrested by those fatal measures — and he will then be better qualified to appreciate the private and public calamities of that period. JMr. Clay states the average depression in the value of property under that state of things which existed before the tariff of 1S24 came to the rescue of the country, ^iffty per cent. The revulsion of 1837 produced a far greater havoc than was ex perienced in the period above-mentioned. The ruin came quick and fearful. There were few that could save themselves. Property of every description was parted with at sacrifices that were as- tounding, and as for the currency, there was scarcely any at all. In some parts of the interior of Pennsylvania, the people were obliged to divide bank notes into halves, quarters, eighths, and so Vol. n.~.5 66 CURRENCY. on, and a"Tee from necessity to use them as money. In Ohio, with all her abundance, it was hard to get money to pay taxes. The shcrilT of Muskingum county, as stated by the CJuernsey Times, in the summer of 1S12, sold at auction one four-iiorse \va"-on, at S-5 50 ; 10 hogs at Gj cents each ; two horses (said to be worth from S-30 to 875 eacli) at S2 each ; two cows at SI each ; a barrel of sugar for SI 50: and a "store of goods" at that rate. In Pike county. Mo., as slated by the Hannibal Jour- nal, the sherifT sold 3 horses at SI 50 each; 1 large ox at 12^ cents ; 5 cows, 2 steers, and 1 calf, the lot at S3 25 ; 20 sheep at 13J cents each; 24 hogs, the lot, at 25 cents; 1 eight-day clock, at S2 50 ; lot of tobacco, 7 or S hogsheads, at S5 ; 3 stacks of hay, each, at 25 cents ; and 1 stack of fodder, at 25 cents. The United States Almanac stated the losses on five descrip- tions of capital, in four years, from 1S37, as follows : — Losses on bank circulntion nnd deposites $5-1,000,000 " on bank cai.ital failed and depreciated 2-18,000,000 «' on Slate Stock depreciated 100,000,000 " on Company Stocks S0,()00.000 « on Real Estate 300,000,000 Total of these items, $782,000,000 A w'riter of a series of papers published in New York, in 1S40, entitled, " Letters to the people of the United States, by Cox- civis," showing a good deal of ability, and apparent labor of in- vestigation, sums up a catalogue of losses in the whole coimtry, for the same period, as follows : — Losses on wool $20,000,000 « on cotton 130,000,000 " on izrain loO.OOO.noO " on forci;;n merchandise 13(t,()0<),000 " on domestic do .100,0U0.()()0 " on cajiital vested in manufactures 50,000,000 " on capital vesteij in moneved slocks 150,000,000 " on capital vested in slave labor -lOO.OOO.OOO " on capital vested in lands 2,500,000.000 " on capital vested in real estate in cities r)()0.()()().000 " on the price of labor 1,500,000,000 Total $5,930,000,000 A portion of thi>, it will be seen, is a calculation of depression of values in permanent i)roperty, amounting to more thati half of the aggregate, which is restored, at least in part, with the revival of prospcritv, and does not, iheroforo, belong to the score of ab- solute and entire destruction ; though it shows what would continue as the effect, and operate destruction, without a remedy. In all CURRENCY. 67 seasons of general adversity of this kind, however, a vast amount of permanent property is forced to change hands, and is conse- quently a sacrifice to individuals, though not to the country, when its value is restored. With these abatements, and with all allow- ances for the difficulties of coming at exact truth — variations from which being as likely to fall on one side as the other, except in a want of fairness — calculations of this kind lead to stupendous results, of which this is an instructive example. Government can facilitate or embarrass, revive or destroy, the trade of a nation, and it is fair to hold it responsible for unfavorable results in commerce, domestic and foreign. The maxim of Mr. Van Buren — "Let the people take care of themselves, and the- government take care of itself," is subverting the design of gov- ernment, whose appropriate function is a parental care of the peo- ple and their interests. But this maxim destroys this parental relation, fosters unnatural and destructive passions, and seems to authorize rulers to j^rey on the people. It is undoubtedly true, that the American people will take care of themselves, if the gov- ernment will let them. All they require is the protection of their interests vested in labor, art, and capital, which is one of the chief designs of the appointment of governing powers. 68 * REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. CHAPTER III. REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. Care of the Public Funds committed by Law to Cont^rcss, and by Law forbidden to the Executive. — An Opinion of the Supreme Court. — The Secretary of the Treasury nn A^ent of Conirress, not of the Executive. — Required to make his Report to Congress. — The Secretary of the Treasury reads a Lecture to Con- gress, and helps them out of a ditiiculty. — An Employee that has more Power than his Principals. — The Airs of an unrobed Official. — Mr. Clay's Resolutions. — Remarks. — A Revolution. — The Judiciary humbled. — The President takes the Responsibility. — Mr. Clay's Views. — Correspondence between General Jack- son and Mr. Duane. — The President takes Charge of Morals, &.c. — A Csesar. — Mr. Duane's noble Conduct. Tt will not be surprising to those who may have read the pre- ceding parts of this work, that the transaction indicated by the head of this chapter, shoidd have been regarded as an alarming usurpation. When it is considered, that one of the prime and most careful objects of all free governments lias ever been to keep the purse of the state separate from the sword ; that in whatever nation these two powers have been united, it has been used for purposes of despotism ; that the government of the United vStates was carefully constructed to guard against it ; that all the laws erecting and governing the treasury department were framed ex- pressly to constitute it the agent of the democratic branch of the government, and make it responsible to that branch alone ; that it is required to report to that body, and not to tiie executive ; that the treasurer of the United States, and not the secretary of the treasury, is by law made the keeper of the public funds, and re- quired to give bonds for their security ; that the treasurer's duties are clearly defined in the statute, as follows, " To receive and keep the moneys of the United States, and to disburse the same, upon warrants drawn by the .secretary of the treasury, counter- signed by the comj)tr<)ll('r, recorded by the register, and not oth- er wlse ;" that the constitution says, " No money shall be drawn from the treasiuy, but in consequence of appropriations made by law," that is, only by liie authority of Congress ; that the bank of REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. 69 the United States, by the act of its incorporation, was constituted the treasury of the nation ; that, in consequence of these various enactments, made from time to time, creating the treasury, appoint- ing its agents, and regulating its concerns, the president of the United States was as effectually cut off from any lawful power to touch the public funds, or to have any control over them, as any other man in the nation, or in the world, and designedly and espe- cially so, for the reason that they were intended to be kept out of his reach, on the ground of a recognised principle of supreme political importance, that the security of public liberty required it; and when, in addition to these provisions of law, it is considered, that, in consequence of a disposition manifested, on the part of the president, to violate these obligations, and transcend these limita- tions of his authority, the house of representatives in Congress — a majority of whom were his political friends — passed a resolution, in March, 1S33, by a vote of 110 to 46, " That the government deposites may, in the opinion of the house, be safely continued in the bank of the United States," thus emphatically expressing their opinion in advance, as a rebuke of the purpose, and as an admo- nition against its execution ; and when, in addition to all this, it is also considered, that the secretary of the treasury, prompted by the president himself, sent an agent to inquire as to the safety of the public deposites in the bank of the United States, who reported, that they were perfectly safe ; and that, in consequence of the en deavors of the president, in his official documents and otherwise, to excite public distrust in the bank, a committee was appointed by Congress to make the same inquiry, with the same result ; — it can not be denied, that these laws and these facts ought to have been regarded as a very formidable barrier to the executive act of taking charge of these deposites, and removing them, notwith- standing ! To clear the way for this extraordinary assumption of power, it was necessary, first, to assume, that the secretary of the treasury was an executive agent, challenging or overlooking the fact, that he was constituted bv law the accent of the leo;islative branch of the government. That, unfortunately, according to the practice of the government — though it is believed against the design of the con- stitution — he held his place at the will of the president by the power of removal, is true, as is the case with every public officer that is appointed by the co-ordinate power of the senate, there be- ing yraclically no co-ordinate power in removing from ofiice. It 70 REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. should be remarked, however, that thi.s power of removal, as usu- ally exercised by the president, is no further a settled (piestion lliari by the precedent of the casting vote of the vice-president in the first Congress under the constitution, and may therefore be considered an open question. .'J'hc heads of the departments of state, navy, and war, seem to be recognised executive agents, and make their reports directly to the president. The members of the cabinet are no rule to deter- mine this question, as there is no such constitutional body or fac- ulty, it being optional with the president, who he will have as ad- visers, or whether he will have any ; though, as a matter of pru- dence, and in respect for usage, he could hardly dispense with it. General Jackson brought into his cabinet the attorney-general and postmaster-general, not before practised. It will be observed, that Mr. kSecretary Taney, in whose name the deposites were removed, very properly addresses his report of that transaction to the Hon. Andrew Stevenson, speaker of the house of representatives, over his signature of K. B. Taney, sec- retary of the treasury. Though the reports from tiiat department are always made to Congress, ti)ere seems not to have been a uni- formity in the modes of address. Whether there has been at any time a disposition to break loose from that connexion, and form a new one, is not a fact admitting of very clear evidence. Mr. Sec- retary Woodbury, in 1SU7, sends his report as usual to Congress, but addresses it to nobody — that is, to no representative function- ary. It begins thus : " In obedience to an act supplementary to an act to establish the treasury department, the secretary of the treasury respectfully submits to Congress the following report." Mr.* Secretary Spencer, in 1S43, addresses his report to the Hon. Willie P. Mangum, president of the senate, and begins: "Sir: 13y the act of Congress approved May 10, ISOO, it is made the DUTY of the secretary of the treasury," &'c. — a very suitable rec- ojjnition of the authoritv under which he acted. This obvious re- lation, as developed in the history of the action of the treasury de- partment, corresponds, as it should, with the constitution and the laws, and shows, as might be expected, that the secretary is a min- ister of the legislature, and not of the executive branch of the gov ernment. The reasoning in the decision of the supreme court of the United States, given in the note* below, in the case of Mar- • " By the constitution of the United States, the president is invested with cer- tain important polilical (mwcrs, in ihc exercise of wliirh, he is to use his own dis- cretion, and is accountable only to his country in iiis jwlitical character, and to his REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. 71 bury and Madison — making allowance for the position of the par- ties — is directly to this point, and settles the principle. President Jackson inadvertently betrayed his error, in the rea- soning he employed in the paper read to his cabinet on the ISth of September, 1833, in justification of his course : " It is for the wisdom of Congress to decide upon the best substitute to be adopted ia the place of the bank of the United States. . . . Al- though, according to the frame and principle of our government, this decision would seem more properly to belong to the_ legisla- tive power," &c.* So also Mr. Secretary Taney in his report : " The power over the place of deposite, would seem properly to belong to the legislative department of the government, and it is difficult to imagine why the authority to withdraw it [the money] from this bank, was confided cxdusivehj to the executive. But the terms of the charter appear to be too plain to admit of a question." The clause of the charter here referred to, reads as follows : — *' That the deposites of the money of the United States, in places in which the said bank and branches thereof may be estab- lished, shall be made in said bank or branches thereof, milcss the secretary of the treasury shall at avy tiine otherwise order and di- rect ; in which case the secretary of the treasury sliall immediately lay hefore Congress, if in session, and if not, immediately after the own conscience. To aid him in the performance of these duties, he is authorized to appoint certain officers, who act by his authority, and in conformity to his orders. " In such cases, their acts are his acts ; and whatever opinion may be enter- tained of the manner in which executive discretion may be used, still there exists, and can exist, no power to control that discretion. The subjects are political. They respect the nation, not individual rishts, and being intrusted to the execu- tive, the decision of the executive is conclusive. The application of this remark will be perceived by advertina to the act of Congress for establishing the depart- ment of foreign aflairs. This officer, as his duties were prescribed by that act, is to conform precisely to the will of the president. He is the mere organ by whom that v.'ill is communicated. The acts of such an officer, as an officer, can never be examined by the courts. '•'But when the lecrislature proceeds to impose on that ofTicer other duties; when he is directed peremptorily to perform certain acts (that is, when he is not placed under the direction of the president); when the rights of individuals are dependant on the performance of those acts, he is so far the officer of the law ; is amenable to the laws for his conduct; and can not at his discretion sport away the vested rishts of others. " The conclusion from this reasoning is, that where the heads of departments are the political or confidential atronts of the executive, merely to execute the will of the president, or rather to act in cases in which the executive possesses a con- stitutional or le^al discretion, nothing can be more perfectly clear than that their acts are only politically examinable. But where a specific duty is assi_gned by law, and individual rights depend upon the performance of that duty, it seems equally clear that the individual who considers himself injured, has a right to resort to the laws of his country for a remedy." * For the entire document, see Niles's Register, vol. xlv., p. 73. 72 IlKMOVAL OF THE DKPOSITES. commonrcmcnt of the next session, the reasons of such order or direction." ^ 'I'hc words in italics arc all the authority there was for removing the dcposites ; and every one will see, that the common sense in- terpretation of such phrascoio^^y, in such connexion, was to au- thorize the secretary, as the minister of (,'ongress, on a sudden emergency of peril to the public funds — it being his place and duty to know about that — to take instant steps for their security, in which he would of course be approved. Such a discretion might perhaps, in some cases, be extended fiulher ; but it would be haz- ardous, and the secretary would doubtless first satisfy himself, that he could render a satifactory account to his employers, whose agent he was. He was required by the same law " immediately to lay before Congress, if in session, and if not, immediately after the commencement of the next session, the reasons of such order or direction." As much as to say, for the safety of the pub- lic funds, such may sometimes be a necessary, though it is a high, discretion, and should be explained and defended — the case sup- posed would be its own defence — "immediately." It will be observed, that Mr. Secretary Taney does not make his report in the name of " the president of the United States," as is the style of the secretary of state — in all his ofiicial transactions — the latter being an executive agent — but INIr. Taney does it in his own name — with what propriety, except in conformity to law and usao-e, may be questionable, in view of the following facts : The president, in the paper read to his cabinet on the ISth of Septem- ber, says — " The president again repeats, that he begs his cabinet to consider the proposed measure as iiis owx. . . Its respon- siniMTv HAS BEEN ASSUMED." On the 20th of September, his decision was authoritatively announced, and the first of Octo- ber was fixed as the day of execution ; on the 23d Mr. Duane was dismissed from the office of secretary of the treasury, because he refused to execute the order, and Mr. Taney was put in his place to do what Mr. Duane refused to do. But Mr. Taney, in his report to Congress, gives not a word of this history, but ap- pears there with all the responsibility on his own shoulders. The president vanishes out of sight, and the agent of Congress afTccts to give a faithful and tiu'e account, " inmiediately," as the law directs, "after the couunenciMnent of the next session," of the use of his high discretion. The law requires that he should give the " REASONS." Accordingly Congress is instructed and edified — REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. 73 not with a statement of the " reasons," however — but with an exposition of law, and sundry alleged facts. He comes boldly forward, and says : " I have directed" — not, I nas directed by the president. He informs Congress, that they had made an impru- dent contract with the bank of the United States ; but, by a more fortunate blunder, they had conveyed to him, their agent, more power than they, as principals, possessed ; that, by virtue of this power, he had come to their rescue ; that, " it is difficult to im- ao-ine" how this could be, but nevertheless so it was ; that they, Congress, could not withdraw the deposites, but he, their agent, could ; that the covenant between the stockholders of the bank and Congress, is one thing, and that between the stockholders and the agent of Congress, another thing; that by the former. Con- gress were in a difficulty, and by the latter they were helped out of it ; that, although the principals could not act in this matter, their agent could do all that was necessary ; that it was the duty of the agent, in the absence of such power in his principals, to take care of their interests; that the obligation to assign the reasons "of his conduct," can not be regarded as a restriction of his power, which, he says, is " absolute and unconditional ;" that the presi- dent of the United States is " required to take care that the laws be faithfully executed ;" that his [^le secretary's] responsibility is to the executive [not true], and hence his power over the subject; that " the terms of the charter [giving this power] are too plain to admit of a question ;" that " it is the duty of the secretary of the treasury to withdraw the deposites, whenever the change would, in any degree, promote the public interest" — he being judge ; that " it is not necessary, that the deposites should be unsafe, in order to justify the removal ;" that " the general interests and convenience of the people, must regulate his [the secretary's] conduct;" that he would otherwise " betray the trust confided in him ;" that Mr. Secretary Crawford acted on this principle in 1S17 ; that there is no difference between a part of a thing and the whole ; " that the power of removal was intended to be reserved cxcLvsivehj to the secretary of the treasury ;" that "it is the duty of the executive departments to exercise the powers conferred on them ;" that the question of bank or no bank, was " argued on both sides be- fore the tribunal of the people, and their verdict was pronounced against the bank ;" that " it was, therefore, his duty to act upon the assumption, that this corporation would not continue ;" diat he " could only inquire what would most conduce to the public good ;" 74 REMOVAL OV THE DEPOSITES. tliat •* it was obvious the interests of the country would not be promoted" by the other ahernative ; that " tlie abihty of the bank under such circumstances, might be well doubted ;" that the bank owed its credit to the governtnent, not to itself; that the state banks would be as good as the bank of the United States ; that the ques- tion of removal was one of time only ; that he, the secretary, would have done it sooner, if it had been with him to determine ; that, on the whole, it had happened just about the right time, for " the public interest ;" that the recent conduct of the bank, in swelling its loans, augured no good, but was very alarming ; that its arbitrary contractions were oppressive ; that, " under other cir- cumstances," he, the secietary, "would have been disposed" to allow this business to fall into the hands of Congress, though he was under no obligations to do so ; that he " should have preferred executinjr the measure in a manner that would have enabled the legislature to act on the subject, but the bank left him no choice ;" lliat, " the power of removal being reserved exclusively to the sec- retary of the treasury, his action was necessary to effect itV that " it could not have been postponed to a later day, without injury to the country ;" that the bank had violated its duty, and forfeited its rights, by seeking to obtain political power ; that, to conceal its designs, it had established a governing power, not known in the charter ; that, since such criminal transactions can not be proved, they ought to be jiresumcd ; that the bank had agreed to pay a public debt, and had only assumed it ; that it had charged the usual amount of damages for the non-payment of the French indemni- ties, but had made too much money by it in the use of its own facilities ; that the bank had undertaken to defend itself against the hostility of the government, by diffusing information ; that the liberties of the people were thereby endangered ; that the bank had no right to defend itself; that it had "endeavored to defeat the election of those who were opposed to its views;" that " it is a fixed principle of our political institutions to guard against the unnecessary accumulation of j)owcr;" that the bank is unconsti- tutional ; and that, tlicrcfore, ho, the secretary, had felt it his duty to withdraw the public deposites from the bank of the United States. Although some liberty has been taken, as to the form of these statements, and to strip them of cumbrous and artful verbiage, for (he sake of brevity, it is believed, that the ideas and principles they suggest, are fairly derivetl from the document, in connexion with other historical facts.* •See Nilps's Register, vol. xlv., p. 258. REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. 75 Thus was it proved, that Congress was not the master of its employee (an employee, by-the-by, thrust upon them), but that the employee was master of Congress; that the principals had less power than their agent, were indebted to him for protection, and for coming to their rescue, when they were involved in difficulty by their own want of foresight. They were also indebted to him for this lucid definition of their own position and his, and for his able exposition of the various points of constitutional and other law involved in the case. It is true, the secretary says nothing about BY WHOM, HOW, AND WHEREFORE, he came into that po- sition ; how long he had been there when the deposites were re- moved; whether he was active or passive in that transaction; for how could that concern those who had all the benefit? Besides, as he was an agent of the law, for form's sake, there must needs be an appearance of conformity to law. Therefore he speaks in his own name, as if he had really done this thing! True, there was an apparent want of modesty in one — who had come so re- cently upon this theatre, who had not even appeared upon the stage till after the business was all settled, who had not the slight- est degree of experience in this vocation, who was unknown to his employers, whose name had not even been sent in to them, who was therefore yet uninvested with his official robes — to come before them with such airs of authority and power! On the 14th of March following, Mr. Clay said in the senate: "We are now in the fifth month of the session; and in defiance of the sense of the country, and in contempt of the participation of the senate in the appointing power, the president has not yet deigned to submit the nomination of his secretary to the consideration of the senate. Sir, I have not looked into the official record; but, from the habit- ual practice of every previous president, from the deference and respect which they all maintained toward a coordinate branch of the government, I venture to say, that a parallel case is not to be found." Congress might well have said to this unknown person- acre — " Who are you, sir? — who sent you here ?" But the farce at the end of a play is too important a part of the entertainment to be spoiled by such impertinent interrogatories ; and it does not appear that there was any interruption. As this report of the secretary of the treasury was before Con- gress, it must needs be the subject of some notice. Accordingly, on the 26th of December, 1S33, Mr. Clay offered to the senate the following resolutions : — 7G REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. ' Ucsohcd, That hy dismissing the late secretary of the trea?urj', because he uoiihi not, rontrary to his sense of his own tluty, re- move the money of the [Jnited ^^tates in rleposite with the bank of the United States and its branches, in conformity witli the presi- dent's opinion, and by appointing liis successor to efiect such removal, which has been done, the jjresident has assumed the exer- cise of a power over the treasury of the United .States not jnanted to him by the constitution and laws, and dangerous to the liberties of the people. ^^ Resolved, That the reasons assigned by the secretary of tiie treasury for the removal of the money of the United States, de- posited in the bank of the ['nitcd States and its branches, commu- nicated to Congress on the third of December, lS:j:j, are unsatis- factory and insudicient." Tt was, in the first place, fit, that Mr. Clay should be the mover of these resolutions. His position entitled him to the honor, and his moral intrepidity cpialified him for the duty. It is needless to inquire whether anv other member of the senate would have done it, if he had not. A majority were ready to support him, as the result proved. The time had come, when, if any virtue remained in the republic akin to that which established it, a stand was to be taken for liberty. The main bulwark of freedom, to wit, the cus- tody and independent control of the public purse, in the hands of the democratic branch of the government, had, within six months, been broken down, the funds of the nation seized and put beyond the reach of the constitutional keepers. It had been done in con- tempt of the special action of the house of representatives on the subject, at the previous session of Congress, in the shape of a resolution passed for the express purpose of deprecating and pre- ventin'T this violence to the constitution and to public libertv. The twenty-second Congress had adjourned, on the 3d of March, 1833, having the day before recorded their opinion and their mandate, deciding — so far as they had authority and control in the case, both of which were independent and absolute — that the public funds should remain where they were, and that there was no cause of removal ; and the twenty-third Congress assembled in Decem- ber of the same year, to find, that the public funds had, notwith- standing, been abstracted ! that they had neither penny, nor purse ! that the constitution which bad put both into their hands, and bid them keep and use them at their discretion, was a mere nullity ! Even if there had been a (piestion as to the expediency of the vote of the house, March 2, 1S33, ui a financial point of view ; if the REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. 77 public funds had been in jeopardy, no patriot would hesitate to say, better lose them all, and much more — any amount — than allow the constitution to be trampled in the dust. But the funds were not in jeopardy. The secretary — more properly the man who was put forward as the instrument to do this deed, for Mr. Taney was never a secretary of the treasury, but a mere locum tenens foisted into that place for an unlawful object — Mr. Taney never pretended that he removed the deposites, because he deemed them unsafe. On the contrary, knowing that they were perfectly- safe, as the house of representatives had declared, he says in his report, " It is not necessary that the deposites should be unsafe, in order to justify the removal." The violation of the constitution, therefore, in thus contemning the authority and mandate of the only constitutional keepers of the public funds, was flagrant. And it was the more alarming, because it was not a mistake — a venial error — but a naked and meditated usurpation. It was done in the face of a protest ; for no one will pretend to say, that the resolu- tion of the house of representatives, of the 2d of March, 1S33, declaring the public deposites safe in the bank of the United States, was not a protest in advance. The president, everybody, knew that such was the intention and character of that transaction. It was, therefore, against a remonstrance made by a party that was bound to make it, that the public purse was seized, and wrested from its constitutional custody ; and as such, it was a very grave matter. It was an issue made by force and intention. Unless, therefore, the democratic branch of the government was prepared to surrender at discretion ; unless the only lawful keep- ers of the public funds, having been ravished, were so destitute of virtue, as to say, " we give up," there was no alternative but to record their opinion of this affair, and to renew their protest against this invasion of their appropriate domain — this violation of their rights — this obstruction to their high and paramount duties. In this position of this and other quesUons between the demo- cratic and executive branches of the government, when the latter was rapidly absorbing all the powers of both, it will be obvious, that, if a firm stand had not been taken at this time against these encroachments, it might soon have been too late. If any should say, the result proves, that the apprehensions then felt were groundless, it may be answered, that the result rather demonstrates the contrary. Notwithstanding all that was done to check the advance of regal power, it continued to increase, with even more 7S nEMOVAL 01' THE DRPOSITES. alarmin" stride.-, till both houses of Compress were brought under its feet, and made subservient to its will ; and it was not till a coinnlete revolution was proposed, for abolishing the old militia system, and substituting an enrolled army of two hundred thousand men, to be under command of the" president, together with the project of confining all banking operations of the country to the secretary of the federal treasury, that the eyes of the people were opened, and they rose in 1840 to break the bands that had been forn-cd for their subjection. It is fair to conclude, that the reason why these abuses of power did not proceed to greater extremities, was, because there was a determination in the democratic branch of the "-overnment, to assert and vindicate its own independent and constitutional rights. Though the resolutions at this lime pending, and finally passed in substance, were afterward crpungcd, when regal power was high in the ascendant, it was nevertheless a con- servative stand, and was doubtless one of the means of the final rescue. When Mr. Clay rose in support of the resolutions above cited, he said in the most solemn manner : — " We are in the midst of a revolution, hitherto bloodless, but rapidly tending toward a total change of the pure republican charac- ter of'tlic government, and to tiie concentration of all power in the hands of one man. The powers of Congress are paralyzed, except when exerted in conformity with his will, by frequent and ar extraordinary exercise of the executive veto, not anticipated by the founders of our constitution, and not practised by any of the predecessors of the present chief magistrate. And, to cramp them still more, a new expedient is springing into use, of withholding altogether bills which have received the sanction of both houses of Coniiitment to ofiice, and what pa.ssed antecedently to his removal, lie proceeds to say : — " ' Thus was I thrust into oflice ; thus was I thrust from oflice ; not because I had neglected any duty ; not because I had differed with him about the bank of the United States ; but because I refused, without further inquiry by Congress, to remove the deposites !' " Can testimony be more complete to establish the proposition I have advanced / And is it possible — after the testimony of the president on one side, and of his secretary on the other, that the former had decided that the dcposites should be removed, and had removed the secretary because lie would not do it — that any man can doubt that the removal was the president's own act? — that it • was done in accordance with his command '/" I\Ir. Duane's address to the peoi)le of the United States, from Philadelphia, of December 2, 1S33, with the correspondence between himself and the president, pending llieir debate on the removal of the deposites, which terminated in Mr. Duane's dismissal from office, is deemed of sufficient importance and interest for a place here, and will be found in the note below.* It will doubt- • TO THE PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES. Fkm.ow-Citizkns : I announced on the '20th ultimo, that, at an early day, I would appear before you, at least to repel imputations cast upon my character, contained in a publication in tiic (xlobc, the ollieial paper of the executive, of the preceilin? day. If the calumnious attack referred to, had not been obviously sanc- tioned by the president of the United States, such is the character of the newspa- per under his protection, tiiat I shouM not have felt myself called upon to notice it. In addressing you, 1 have hesitated between the adoption of a ^jeneral expo- sition, and of a briif defensive ad'lress, accompanied by tiiat part of tlie corres- pondence between the president ami myself, which theoliicial pajxT seems to have challi-ni^ed nie to produce. I adopt tlie latter course. In the correspondence you will lind ample materials for the accurate comprehension of my case — one of in- sult and oppression. On the 1-lth of December, 1S32, without any solicitation on my part, I was un- expectedly invited to accept the oliice of secretary of the treasury. I souiiht to shun the station, did not consent to serve, until nsUeil for my decision on the '5(lth of January, and then consented reluctantly. No doubt, subse<|ucnlly to, as be- fore, the adjournment of Conv'ress, speculators, for their own selfish ends, ajjita- ted the deposite question, and kept up an excitement felt by the presiiient ; but it was never intimated to me, that he desired to concentrate in himself the power to REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. 87 less be felt, that it places Mr. Duane in a high and proud position, besides that it sheds a light on this point of the political history of the country, which could not be derived from any other quar- judge and execute — to absorb the discretion given to the secretary of the treasury — and even to nullify the law itself. I never heard, until after my entry into of- fice, that he meant to remove the deposites, without further inquiry by Congress, or that he had asked the opinion, of the members of the cabinet on the subject. On the contrary, when, after having entered the treasury department, unpledged, untrammelled, and unsuspicious, I was informed of what was meditated, I felt surprise at the intelligence, and mortification at the manner in which it was com- municated to me. On the 3d of June, the president himself made known to me -what was in contemplation, and that he had taken the opinions of the members of the cabinet on the point — two of whoiy concurred with him, two of whom did not concur, and the fifth had not yet given a written opinion. He said he would sub- mit to me the written opinions of the four members of the cabinet, with his own views, and that he would expect me to give him my opinion frankly and fully. As if to urge me to avoid ail reserve, he assured me, in a letter, dated Boston, June 26, transmitting: the opinions and views, that " it was not his intention to inter- fere with the independent exercise of the discretion committed to me by law over this subject." But when, on the 10th July, I gave my opinion frankly and fully, as an honest minister and man should do, there was every return but that of approbation. On the 22d of July I was asked, whether it was my intention to refuse to remove the deposites, if, after inquiry by an agent, and advisement with the cabinet, the pres- ident should decide to remove them, as, in such a case, " it would become his duty, in frankness and candor, to suggest the course, that would be necessary on his part." Not on my own account, but as an act of duty to the country, I now subjected my pride and feelings to restraint, by tendering, in order to avert a present hostile breach, a future surrender of my post, in case I should not ultimately concur with the president. But before my concurrence or nonconcurrence was made known, and while I still held in my hands the manuscript exposition, which was read in the cabinet on the I8th of September, and then delivered to me by the president for my consideration, he virtually dismissed me as an officer, and insulted me as a man, by causinsj the official communication, hereto appended (No. 1), to be published in the Globe on the 20th of September. Yet, after this, when it must have been obvious, that, independently of other considerations of great weight, I was absolved from all respect for any past assu- rance, my letter (No. 2), which I personally presented to the president, on the 21st of September, according to my promise of September 19, was contumeliously sent back to me, in a letter (No. 3), intimating the existence of improper imputations in mine, calling my attention to my assurance of July 22, and inquiring whether I could concur in removing the deposites. From this letter (No. 3), it must be evident, that when it was written, my dismissal was not then deemed justifiable on grounds sulisequently suggested ; for, when the president wrote it, he knew the contents of the letter deemed offensive, and yet he held the coiTespondence open. AVhat, then, I ask, subsequently occurred ? Instead of treating this new indig- nity, the return of my letter, with silence, or evincing any other mode of dissat- isfaction, I felt that I was on duty at a public post, and that I ought not to suffer it to be taken by surprise. I could not now mistake, in concluding to insult me out of office, or to draw from me some expression which might form a pretext for my removal, on a minor point — so doubtful was the president, after all, on the propriety of removing an officer for not yielding, when desired, the discretion given to him by law. Accordingly, I sent letter No. 4 — subsequently, with- drawn for alteration — and then letters Nos. 5 and 6 — No. 5 especially — because the president did not seem to comprehend me, when, in my letter No. 2, I said, that, after what had occurred subsequently to July 22, I felt myself absolved from all obligation to observe the assurance given at that time. These last appeals, indicative of anything but bad feelin?, or disrespect, were also sent back to me. in a letter (No. 7), declaring my services no longer neces- sary. I submit to all just men to determine, by whom an assurance was given, and without cause disregarded. gg REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. ter. Till this time, he was an ardent admirer and devoted friend of (Jrneral Jackson, and his leave-takinj; on this occasion, is ap- parently in the spirit of one still disposed to look back with an affectinn, cfiualicd only by his mortification and rci^aet. Thus was I tlirM>;t from oincc — not hcrtuise I lnr the chief maiii'Jtrate, or for myself; and 1 deny tiiat, in any letter, there was inaccuracy of fact, with my knowled<;e. As I considered my removal inevitable, I asked, in my personal interview, and by letter (Xo. fJ), such order, as, when shown to the representatives of the people, would be my apology for leavin-.,' tiie station under my care. Had sucb order been given, all siibseiuent unpleasantness would have been prevented. For the pres- ent result, I am not accountable. If any doubt existed as to the propriety of submittin? the annexed letters to the public eye, it is removed by the example set by tlie president in the attack which he has sanctioned, and a'jainst which this is my defence. I appeal to the justice and L'enerosity of all |iuhlislicrs of newspapers, who have inserted therein the at- tack upon me, whether I have not a claim upon them to allow me to be heard, by publishin? the present letter, and the annexed documents. W. J. Dlane. Philadelphia, December 2, 1833. No. 1. (From ike Globe of September 20, 1833.) We are avtiiotuzkii to state, that the dcpositcs of the public money will be changed, from the bank of the United States to the state banks, as soon as neces- sary arran'.'ements can be made for that i)urposc, and tiiat it is believed they can be completed in Baltimore, Philadeli)liia, New York, and Boston, in time to make the change the first of October, and perhaps sooner, if circumstances should render an earlier action necessary on tlie part of the government. It is contemplated, we understand, not to remove at once the whole of the pub- lic money now on deposite in tlie bank of the United States, but to sutler it to re- main there until it shall be gradually withdrawn by the usual oi)cration of the gov- ernment. And this plan is adopted in order to prevent any necessity, on tlie part of the bank of the United States, for pressing upon the commercial community; and to enable it to allbrd, if it think proper, the usual facility to the merchants. It is believed, that, by this means, the change need not produce any inconvenience to the commercial community, and that circumstances will not reipiire a sudden and heavy cmII on llie bank of tlie United States, so as to occasion embarrassment to the iii-tiliilioii or the public. No. 2. {The Secretary of the Treasury to the Prcjidetil of the United States.) Treasury Depart.ment, September 21, 1833. Sir : I have the honor to lay before you — 1. A copy of my commission, empowerin;; and enjoining me to execute my duty according to law, an 1 aiithori/.in',' me to hold my otiice at your pleasure. 2. A copy of my oath of olliee, wherein I solemnly pledge myself to execute the trust conliiled to me with fidelity. 3. A copy of the Hilh section of the law charterini; the bank of the United States, whereby the discn-lion to continue the deposites of the public money in that bank was committed to the secretary of the treasury alone. 4. An extract from your letter to inc of the 2r)th of June, wherein you promise not to intertere with tiie independent exercise of the discretion committed to me by the (ubovementioned) law over the subject. REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. 89 It may also be observed in this place, as an instructive item of history on this subject, that the Hon. Louis McLane, the immediate predecessor of Mr. Duane in the treasury department, whose opinion was known to be against the rem'oval of the dcposites, had 5. An extract from your exposition of the ISlh instant, wherein you state, that you do not expect me, at your request, order, or dictation, to do any act which I may believe to be illegal, or which my conscience may condemn. When you delivered to me on the iSth the exposition of your views, above re- ferred to,'l asked you whether I was to regard it as direction by you to me to remove the deposites, you replied that it icas your direction to me to remove the deposites, but upon your responsibility ; and you had the goodness to add, tliat, if I would stand by you, it would be the happiest day of your life. Solemnly impressed with a profound sense of my obligations to my country and myself, after painful reflection, and upon my own impressions, unaided by any ad- vice, such as I expected, I respectfully announce to you, sir, that I refuse to carry your directions into eifect. 1. Not because I desire to frustrate your wishes, for it would be my pleasure to promote them, if I could do so consistently with superior obligations. 2. Not because I desire to favor the bank of the United States, to which I ever have been, am, and ever shall be, opposed. 3. Not to gratify any views, passions, or feelings of my own — but 4. Because I consider the proposed change of the depository, in the absence of all necessity, a breach of the public faith. 5. Because the measure, if not in reality, appears to be vindictive and arbitrary, not conservative or just. 6. Because if the bank has abused or perverted its powers, the judiciary are able and willing to punish ; and in the last resort, the representatives of the peo- ple may do so. 7. Because the last house of representatives of the United States pronounced the public money in the bank of the United States safe. 8. Because, if under new circumstances, a change of depository ought to be made, the representatives of the people, chosen since your appeal to them in your veto message, will in a few weeks assemble, and be willing and able to do their duty. 9. Because a change to local and irresponsible banks will tend to shake public confidence, and promote doubt and mischief in the operations of society. 10. Because it is not sound policy in tlie Union, to foster local banks, which, in their multiplication and cupidity, derange, depreciate, and banish the only cur- rency known to the constitution, that of gold and silver. 11. Because it is not prudent to confide, in the crude way proposed by j'our agent, in local banks, when on an average of all the banks, dependent in a great degree upon each other, one dollar in silver can not be paid for six dollars in cir- culation. 12. Because it is dangerous to place in the hands of the secretary of the Ircas- urj', dependent for office on executive will, a power to favor or punish local banks, and consequently make them political machines. 13. Because the whole proceeding must tend to diminish the confidence of the •world in our regard for national credit or reputation, inasmuch as, whatever may be the abuses of the directors of the bank of the United States, the evil now to be endured must be borne by innocent persons, many of whom, abroad, had a right to confide in the law, that authorized them to be holders of stock. 14. Because I believe, that the efibrts made in various quarters, to hasten the removal of the deposites, did not originate with patriots or statesmen, but in schemes to promote selfish or factious purposes. 15. Because it has been attempted, by persons and presses known to be in the confidence and pay of the administration, to intimidate and constrain the secretary of the treasury to execute an act in direct opposition to his own solemn convic- tions. And now, sir, having, with a frankness that means no disrespect, and with feel- ings such as I lately declared them to be, stated to you aviiy I refuse to execute what you direct, I proceed to perform a necessarily connected act of duty, by an- 90 REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. been advanced to ilie department of state, to give place, as was sujipoaed, to a man wlio might be subservient to this measure ; and the fact, that the object of calling Mr. Duane to that station, nouncin-/ to you, thnt I do not intend voluntarily to leave the post, which the law has placed under my chafsc and by cjiving you my reasons for so refusine. It is true, that on tlie 22d of July, you siirnilied, in lant;ua?e sutliciently intel- lijjible, that you would then remove me from oJlice, unless I would consent to re- move the dcposites on your final decision ; it may also be true, that I should then have put it to the lest ; and it is also true, thnt, under a well-?rounded assurance that your bank plan, the only one then embodied in the instructions drawn up by me for your airent, would be, as it proved, abortive, that for this and other causes you would be content, I did state my willingness to retire, if I could not concur witii you. JJut I am not afraid to meet the verdict of generous men, upon my refusal, on reflection, and after what has since occurred, to do voluntarily what I then be- lieved I should be asked to do. If I had a frail reputation, or had any sinister purpose to answer, I miiiht be open to censure, for a neslect of punctilious deli- cacy ; but I can have no impure motives; much less can I attain any selfish end; I barely choose between one mode of retirement and another; and I choose that mode which least of all I should have preferred, if I had not exalted and redeem- inj; considerations in its favor. I have, besides, your own example. I do not say, that, after you had promised "not to interfere with the independent exercise of the discretion vested in me by law,"' you were wroir^ in intirferinir, if you really tlioui;ht the public welfare a superior consideration to a mere observance of assurances made to me ; nor can you say, that I err, wlien, upon a solemn sense of duty, I prefer one mode of re- moval from this station to another. This course is due to my own self-preservation, as well as to the public; for you have, in all your papers, held out an assurance, that you " would not inter- fere with the exercise of the discretion committed to me by law," over the dc- posites ; and yet, everytliinij but actual removal of me from office, has been done to allect tiiat end. So that, were I to so out of office voluntarily, you misht be able to point to official papers, that would contradict, if I said you interfered, and I should thus be held up as a weak or faithless agent, who regarded delicacy not shown to himself more than duty to his trust. Sir, alter all, I confess to you that I have had scruples; for it is the first time that 1 have ever condescended to wei'^h a 'luestion of the kind. But I am con- tent that it shall be said of me, that in July last I forirot myself, and my duty too, ratlK'r than that it should be said, that now, knowing the course that you pursue, I had in any way favored it. On the contrary, if I have erred, I am wil- lini; to be reproved ; but my motives no man can impugn. My refusal to resien can not keep me, one moment lonser than you please, in an office that I never sought, and at a removal from which I shall not grieve on my own account. It must, on the contrary, hasten my exit. So that, if you shall proceed in wresting from the secretary of the treasury the citadel in liis posses- sion, the act can only be accomplished by a mandate, which will be my apology for no lon.;er standing in the breach. And now, sir, allow me to repeat to you, in sincerity of heart, that, in taking the present course, under a solemn sense of my oblitralions, I feel a sorrow on your accnnnt. far L'reatcr than on my own. I have been your early, uniform, and steadfast friirid ; I can have nf a man wlio has already anxiety enough. As to 1 . r?! they will know what has been done, without an odicial commit, mention. " Vcrv respectfully, yours, " Srplembtr 19, 1833." '* W. J. Dvank. REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. 93 "I do not purpose at this time to go into the reasons alleged by the president or his secretary, except so far as those reasons con- tain an attempt to show that he possessed the requisite authority. Because if the president of the United States had no power to do 4. In the Globe of Friday, September, 20, you caused it be announced to the world, that the die was cast ; thus altogether disregarding the rights of the secre- tary of the treasury, and my own feelings and fame; and refusing, besides, to wait even until the next day to receive my decision. Allow me, therelore, very respectfully, but confidently, to say, that I was thus discharged from any sort of obligation, or respect for, or on account of, the past. You gave me no opportunity to let you know, whether I would or would not af- ford you an opportunitv to choose a successor. In short, the secretnry of the treasury was, as far as an executive act would do it, nullified ; and I hold it, there- fore, that, after such a course, I may stand before my countrj', acquitted of any disregard, even of delicacy. Trusting, sir, that you will be so sood as to permit this to enter into your con- sideration, with my former note of this date, and that we may close, without dis- credit to either, the pending matter, I am, with the utmost consideration, your obedient servant, ,,^ ^ ^ W. J. DUANE. No. 6. (The Secretary of the Treasury to the President of the United States.) Treasury Department, September 21, 1833. Sir : As vou had not, in any written communication, given a direction as to the deposites, but, on the contrarv, had left the action to the secretary of the treasury, as a matter of option, I deem'ed it mv duty, when I had the honor to receive from you, your exposition of the iSth inst., to ask you, whether I was to consider my- self directed to remove the deposites, and you replied, that I was du-ected on your responsibility. . . I was preparing to lay before vou an exposition of our relative position and views, from the first moment of mv entry into your administration, when your decision was authoritativelv announced in the Globe— a proceeding unsanctioned by me, that rendered all further discussion needless, and any attempt ot the kmd derogatory to myself. A" communication justificatory of my course, under present circumstances, which I delivered to vou yesterdav, having been returned, on account ot alleged objectionable matter therein, the presence of which, if disrespectful, I regret. It now becomes my dutv, in replv to your letter, returning that communication, re- spectfully to announce mv unwillingness to carrj- your direction, as to the deposites, into effect ; and in making known that determination— without meaning any sort of disrespect— to protect myself, bv protesting against all that has been done or is doing, to divest the secretarv of the treasury, of the power to exercise inde- pendent of the president, the discretion committed to him by law over the de- posites. I have already, sir, on more than one occasion, and recently, without contradic- tion, before the cabinet, stated, that I did not know, until after my induction into office, that vou had determined that the deposites should be removed without any further action by Congress. If I had known that such was your decision, and that I should be required to act, I would not have accepted office. But as soon as I understood, when in office, what your intention was, I sought for all inlormation calculated to enable me to act uprightly in the embarrassing position in wliicn l was unexpectedlv placed. ♦ i .i « You were so good as to transmit to me, to that end, from Boston, not onl\ tlie opinions of the members of the cabinet, but your own views in detail, upon tne deposite question. But instead of intimating to me, that my disinclination to carrj these views into effeft, would be followed by a call for, my retirement, you cm- phaticallv assured me, in your letter of the 26th of June, that " you did not intend to inter^Te with the independent exercise of the discretion committed to me by law over the subject." , ^ ^ , . . „,.„„„; Fullv confiding in the encouragement thus held out, I entered into an exposi- tion of my objections to the proposed measure. Discussion ended in an under- 94 REMOVAL or THE DEPOSITES. lliis tilin"- — if tlic constitution and laws, instead of authorizing it, rcfjiiircd him to kuej) his liands off the treasury — it is useless to iiKjuire into any reasons lie may give for exercising a power which he did not possess. Sir, what power has the president of the standing, that we should remain uncommitted, until after an inquiry which your nu'ciit was to make, should be comjdeted, and until the discussion of the cabinet. Uul, iKMidins tlie preparation of this inquiry, I received your letter of July i22, couv< yinu' what I understood to be an intimation, that I must retSrf, unless I would llien say that I would remove the depositcs, after the inquiry and discussion, in case you sliould then decide to have them removed. I would have at once considered this letter as an order to retire, and would liave obeyed it, if I had not thought it my duty to hold the post intrusted me, as long as I could do so with benefit to the country, and without discredit to myself. In- stead, therefore, of retiring voluntarily or otherwise, I subjected my feelings to restraint, and stated, as you quote in your letter of this day, tiiat, if I could not, after inquiry and discussion, as the responsible a^ent of the law, carry into effect the decision that might be made, I would afford you an opportunity to select a successor, &c. Under these circumstances, the inquiry was entered upt)n. It ended in showing, as I had predicted, that the plan submitted to me on the 2Gth of June, was impracticable — and in a report without any defined substitute, ac- cording to my comprehension of it. After a consideration of the subject in the cabinet, you eave directions, as stated at the commencement of this letter, and I wrote to you, that I would make com- munication to you on Saturday, 21sl instant, and I accordingly did so. as herein before stated. Unto the present time, therefore, I have been struggling, under painful circumstances, not to retain a post that I never sousht, and the loss of which I shall not resrct on my own account — l)ut to maintain it for the country, under a serious sense of duty to it, and to avert a measure that I honestly feared mi?ht affect yourself. Witliout entertaining or desiring to manifest toward you, sir, the slichtest disre- spect, but solemnly impressed with a consideration of my responsibility to the country, and my duty to myself, I now definitely declare, that I will not in any way aid or assist, to cause the public money to be deposited in any other institu- tion, bank, or place, than that provided by the 16th section of the act chartering the United States bank, until Congress shall direct or authorize such change to be made, unless good cause shall arise, such as in my judsment does not now exist. I am further constrained, owing to occurrences and circumstances, that in part have come to my knowledge, or have taken place, of late, to leave it to you, sir, to determine, whether I am or am not to remain any longer a member of your admin- istrntinn. I sincerely hope and beg, sir, that you will consider, that I owe it to mysi'lf, my family, and my friends, not to leave my course, at this most tryin:; mo- ment of my life, open to doubt or conjecture; that my conduct has already sharp- ened the dagger of malice, as may be seen in some of the public prints; tliat you, who have been assailed in so many tender parts, and in whose defence I have de- voted many a painful day, ouu'ht to make allowance for me, in my present position ; that, were I ti) nsiun, I cimld meet no calumniator without breach of duty; that I ask such order or direction from you,, in relation to my ollice, as may protect me an-! my children from reproach, and save you and myself from all present or fu- ture pain; tiiat I desire to separate in peace and kindness; that I will strive to forffct nil unplensantuoss, or cause of it; and that 1 devoutly wish, thai your measures may end in happiness to your country, and honor to yourself. With the utmost consideration, vour obedient servant, \V. J. DUANE. No. 7. {The President of the United States to the Secretary of the Treasury.) September 23, 1813. Sin : .Since I returned your first lctte, I say, are the only powers given l)inj by the charter ; all others are dcnicil to him, and are given to others. The hank is not bound to report the state of its afTairs to him, but to the secre- larv of the treasury ; and it is thus to report whenever he shall call upon it (or information ; but when it becomes necessary to go further, a committee of Congress is authori/ed to examine the books of the bank, and to look into the whole state of its affairs, and to re|)ort, not to the president, but to Cunt or disrepute ; or to excite against them, or either of them, the hatred of the good people of thf L'nited States, or to stir up sedition within the United States; or to excite any unlawful combinations tiierein, for opposing or resisting any law of the United States, or any act of the president of the United States, done in pursuance of any such law, or of the powers in him vested by the consti- tiUion of the United States ; or to resist, oppose, or defeat, any such law or act ; or to aid, encouraije, or abet, any liostile desisns of any foreign nation, against the United States, llirir people, or i,'overnnuMit, then such jierson, beini; thereof convicted before any court of tlie United States havinir jurisdiction thereof, shall be punished by a line not exceeding two tliousand dollars, and by imprisonment not exceeding two years.' f'That if any person shall be prosecuted under this act. for the writing or publishing of any libel aforesaid, it shall be lawful for the defendant, upon the trial of the cause, to pive in evidence in his defence, the tiuth of the matter con- tained in the i)ul)lication charijed as a libel. And the jury who shall try the cause, shall have a riuht to determine the law and the fact, under the direction of the court, ns in other cases.' REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. 99 press, or the freedom of elections, what ought the president to have done ? Taken the matter into his own hands ? No, sir. It was his duty to recommend to Congress the passage of laws for the purpose, under suitable sanctions — laws which the courts of the United States could execute. We could not have been worse off • under such laws (however exceptionable they might be), than we are now. We could then, sir, have reviewed the laws, and seen whether Congress or the president had properly any power over this matter ; or whether the article of the constitution which for- bids that die press shall be touched, and declares that religion shall be sacred from all the powers of legislation, applied in the case or not. This the president has undertaken to do. . . . " Where is the secm-ity against such conduct on the part of the president? Wliere the boundary to this tremendous authority, which he has undertaken to exercise ? Sir, every barrier around the treasury is broken down. From the moment that the president said, ' I make this measure my own, I take upon myself the re- sponsibility,' from that moment the public treasury might as well have been at the hermitage as at this place. Sir, the measure adopted by the president is without precedent — in our day at best. There is, indeed, a precedent on record, but you must go up to the Christian era for it. It will be recollected, by those who are conversant with ancient history, that, after Pompey was compelled to retire to Brundusium, Caesar, who had been anxious to give him battle, returned to Rome, ' having reduced Italy (says the historian) in sixty days (the exact period, sir, between the removal of the de- posites and the meeting of Congress, without the usual allowance of three days' grace), without bloodshed.' The historian goes on: 'Finding the city in a more settled condition than he expected, and many senators there, he addressed them in a mild and gracious manner (as the president addressed his late secretary of the treas- ury), and desired them to send deputies to Pompey with an offer of honorable terms of peace. As INIetellus, the tribune, opposed his taking money out of the public treasury, and cited some laws against it (such, sir, I suppose, as I have endeavored to cite on this occasion), Caesar said, ' iVrms and laws do not flom-ish together. If you are not pleased with what I am about, you have only to '-iilidraw. ('Leave the office, Mr. Duane !') War, indeed, will not tolerate much liberty of speech. When I say this, I am renouncing my own right ; for you, and all those whom I have found exciting a spirit of faction against me, are at my disposal.' Having said this, he approached the doors of the treasury, and as the keys were not produced, he sent for workmen to break them open. Metellus again opposed him, and gained credit with some for his firmness ; but Cajsar, whh an elevated voice, threatened to put him to death, if he gave any further trouble. ' And you know very well, young man,' said he, 'that this is harder forme to say than to do.' " 100 REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. Tlic position occupied by Mr. Diiane in this afiair, is one that will cummand the respect of die aire and of posterity — and the same feeling that applauds him, will regard with deep mortification and regret the consent of Mr. Taney to lay aside the robes of an attorney-general, to commit this outrage on the constitution and laws of his country ! Ii was cruel, indeed, to call Mr. Duane to the head of the treasury, without advising him of the purpose in view. Ilis position was embarrassing and painful in the extreme. In regard to the question of casuistry raised by his refusal to resign, after he had given a pledge that he would not stand in the way of the president, it must be left to the defence which he him- self has made. It can not be denied, that the treatment he re- ceived was a just subject of complaint; or diat it materially affected his relations with the president ; or that it forced him into a defen- sive position ; though a third person could hardly assume to de- cide, that even all this injury, present and prospective, discharged him from the obligations of the understanding which he, by his own voluntary act, had originated and authorized. It is clear, however, that the president, who had set the example of breaking promise — having said, in a letter to Mr. Duane^ that he would "7/0/ interfere with the independent exercise of the discretion tested in hhn b^ / the fiscal opera- tions of the government required it, or for any other reason ; and that, if IMr. Crawford violated the law in imrt, the path was open for Mr. Taney to violate the loJtole with impunity. The length of the secretary's lecture to Congress, and the accu- mulation of his reasons — apparently with a view to supply by their number what they might chance to lack in separate force — is per- haps some apology for seeming to contradict in one stage of his argument, what he advances in another. For example, he states, that " the executive department can not be allowed to speculate on the chances of future change by the legislative authority," from which no man could reasonably dissent. But immediately after- t 110 REMOVAL Ol" THE DEPOSITES. wanl, u lion, in violation of tiiis rule, he comes to " speculate" on the results of the elections, and the questions decided hy tliem, according to his "speculations," he seems to think it incumbent upon him to "speculate" on future legislation, anil to regulate his conduct accordingly. *' The manifestations of public opiiiioi), in- stead of being favorable to a renewal [of the bank charter], have been decidedly to the contrary. L'luler these circumstances, I could not have been justified in anticipating any change in the ex- isting laws ;" and therefore he was justified in breaking covenant with the bank, which was entitled by law and comjiact to the use of the public dejiosites till the 3d of March, 1S3G, about two years and a half after they were removed. These, it must be confessed, were somewhat bold speculations, invading the domain of moral casuistry, not much tq its security or honor. " It is obvious," says the secretary, as if a question of morals were not concerned in it, " that the interests of the country would not be promoted by permitting the deposites of the public money to continue in the bank, until its charter expired." There might be a difference of opinion on the question here so gratuitously and authoritatively decided — though there ought not to be a question as to the obliga- tion of contracts. Morals, in this place, did not seem to come within the purview of the secretary, though, in a subsequent stage of his argument, he would seem to be very anxious lest morals should be injured by another party, and the people corrui)ted. With such a certificate of his qualifications, who could object, that he should preach a sermon on this topic, or remove the deposites as a conservator of morals ? If it was not positively gratifying to the pride and self-respect of Congress, and even if they were in some degree ungrateful, it could not but be regarded as a labor-saving operation, that the secretary should have been able to decide for them the constitu- tional (|uestion, in regard to a bank of the United States, which he did very summarily, mi his own authority, ranking it, of course, among the grounds (»f his own action. If this high duty did not exactly comport with a business document, on matters of finance, it was nevertheless of some importance. The secretary, laying on the shelf the moral question involved in the faith of contracts, apparently as one unworthy of considera- tion, proceeds to discuss the financial economy of the baid^, in which also he thinks he finds ample justification of the measure which, in the use of his " unconditional and absolute power," he REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. Ill had adopted. His first drift carries hiui directly on the credit of the bank, to show, first, that it was borrowed from its rehitions to the government of the United States ; and next, as a consequence, in the operation of the measure executed by him, that it ought to. have very httle or no credit at alL This, certainly, if it had fully succeeded, would have had a momentous influence on the com- mercial affairs of the country, all of which were more or less con- nected with the credit of this bank ; and with all abatements, arising from the use of the sounder judgment of the wide community, did have a tremendous influence as a shock to general credit. This was taking care of " the interests and convenience of the people," with a vengeance ! The secretary not only severs, by violence, the stipulated connexion between the government and the bank, when the convenience and prosperity of the whole people depended on its credit, but he declares that its credit was borrowed from this relation, now no longer existing ! That this was in some sense, and in some degree, true, could not be controverted. And hence the stupendous consequences, of a disastrous nature, which came down so suddenly on the people of the country. In fact the bank was sound, and no man of competent information ever doubted it. But to excite doubts, in the minds of the people, by having its credit assailed from such a quarter, could not fail to produce the results that followed. It moreover forced an exigency on the bank, which compelled it to a cowrse that must force a crisis on the com- mercial affairs of the country. From a patron, friend, and ally of the bank, with mutual interests, the government had become an open and declared enemy, breaking faith, and mustering its reso- lution and enercries for an exterminatinir war — a course of treatment which forced the bank into a posture of defence, in the use of such means as were in its power, and between the two, the government on the one hand, and the bank on the other, the people must be victims of the conflict. The two parties acting in harmony, ac- cording to the intention of the original compact, could not but sub- serve the interest and convenience of the public ; but the moment that one of these parties broke covenant, and declared war, each of them having connexions with the whole country, the controversy must necessarily affect the people disastrously. After this, all the operations of the bank had an eye on the government, and all the operations of the government an eye on the bank. Neither could any longer consult the general good. On the part of the bank, the principle was that of defence ; on the part of the government, it 112 REMOVAL OF THE DEPOSITES. was a war of extcrminalion. No inalter wliicli course tlie bank ddoptcd, ulictlicr by an extension or contraction of its credits, the people must soon kc\ it. If by the former, it would only ajr<,'ra- vate the evil ; if by the latter, the calamity must come instantly, and sooner or later, with distressing effect on the whole people. It could not prudently do the former; but, like a vigilant^ mariner, who, watching the rising storm, takes in sail, and gets all things ready, so the bank began to prepare for that contraction of business to which it was compelled, by the violation of contract on the part of the government, in withholding and withdrawing the public de- positcs, on the use of which for two and a half years to come the bank had depended, and made its arrangements accordingly — for which it had paid a valuable consideration, in an original bonus of a million and a half, and in performing all the fiscal operations of the government without charge for upward of seventeen years ; next, by the injury of its credit in all the assaults of the govern- ment upon it, so long sustained, anro()f of tiie wonderful degeneracy of the times — of the total loss of the true conception of constitutional liberty." ]t shoulil be observed, that the unconstitutional assumptions, by General Jackson, of regal prerogative — prerogative the most abso- lute — gave rise to the rcnival of the party names of whig and TORY, as they were used in England, when lil)erty in that country was doomed to struggle against royal prerogative. Hume says : " This year [l()71)] is remarkable for being the epoch of the well- known epithets of tthig and (<>nj." It was in allusion to this THE EXPUNGING RESOLUTION. ]5>9 new designation of parties in the United States, or rather to the revival of old names, that Mr. Calhoun said : — " But, in the midst of this degeneracy, I perceive the symptoms of regeneration. It is not my wish to touch on x\\e party designa- tions that have recently obtained. I can not, however, but remark, that the revival of the party names of the revolution, after they had so long slumbered, is not without a meaning — not without an indi- cation of a relation to those principles which lie at the foundation of liberty. Gendemen ought to reflect, that the extensive and sud- den revival of these names could not be without some adequate cause. Names are not to be taken or given at pleasure. There must be somefh'nig to cause their application to adhere. If I re- member rightly, it was Augustus, who, in all the plenitude of his power, said, that he found it impossible to introduce a new word. What, then, is that something ? What is there in the meaninof of WHIG and tory, and what in the character of the times, which has caused their sudden revival as party designations ? I take it, that the very essence of toryism — that which constitutes a tory — is to sustain jprerogative against privilege — to support the executive against the legislative department of the government, and to lean to the side of power, against the side of liberty — while the whig is, in all these particulars, of the very opposite principles. These are the leading characteristics of the respective parties, whig and TORY, and run through their application in all the variety of cir- cumstances in which they have been applied, either in this country, or in Great Britain. Their sudden revival and application at this time, ought to admonish my old friends, who are now on the side of the administration, that there is something in the times — somc- thivg in the existing struggle between the parties, and in the prin- ciples and doctrines advocated by those in power, which has caused this new and extensive application of these terms. I must say to those who are interested, that nothing but their reversing their course, can possibly prevent their application. They owe it to themselves — they owe it to the chief magistrate whom they support (who at least is venerable for his years) as the head of the party — that they should halt in the advocacy of the despotic and slavish doctrines which we hear daily advanced, before a return of the re- viving spirit of liberty shall overwhelm them, and those who are leadin<'- them to their ruin. * * * J a^i content with tha [name — whig] which designates those with whom I act. It is, at least, an honest and a patriotic name. It is synonymous with resistance to usurpation — usurpation, come from what quarter, and under what shape, it may." These, certainly, are remarkable sentiments, as coming from a man, who, not long afterward, gave in his adhesion to these high Vol. II.— 9 130 Tlir EXPUNGING RESOLUTION. claims of regal prero<;ative ajrainst liberty ! As 1G70 was tlie epoch when the party d-^sigtialions of whig and lory rose in England, the former having been applied to tiie advocates of popular rights against royal prerogative, and the latter to lho:*e who supported the absolute power of the crown, so ls;3-t was the epoch in American history, when these same party designations, which have prevailed uninterruptedly in England from H)7f» down to this time, and which jire vailed in the Aincrican colonies during the revolutionary war, were revived, in the manner specified by Mr. Calhoun, to com- memorate the regal pretensions of (general Jackson — the one ap- j)Iicd to the jiarty that opposed, and the other to the party that supj)orted them ; and precisely the same reasons for the use of these terms, in such an application, existed in the United States in 1834, as existed in England in 1G79. Mr. Calhoun has shown ])liilosophically, that the revival of the names, proves the existence of the cause. The whijrs of the United States, however, must confess to one of two things, either that the cause of this, or their own virtue, has abated. Mr. Calhoun has demonstrated, that they had good cause for the resuscitation of the name of whig, and for the use of its only opposite — tory. ^\ by have they retained the former, and droj)ped the latter, when there is no use in the one without the other y Will they acknowledge, that the cause no longer exists ? If -u, they ought to lay aside their own name, as no longer appro- priate. Without the name of tory, it means nothing, and is nothing. The truth is, the whigs have yielded to the laws of courtesy, without realizing an equivalent — with infinite loss. They have allowed, ami to a great extent, awarded the name of drniocrafs to tluir opponents, which is the favorite name of the American peo- ple, and have thus contributed to iheir own perpetual disadvantage and defeat. If they had maintained the ground they occupied on the revival of the names of whig and tory, and conscientiously ad- hered to these parly appellations, which designated principles — ft)r they were true and fair designations — thev would lia\e soon gained the ascendency, and maintained it, so long as they j)rove(l them- selves worthy of tin* name of whig, But they preferred politeness in a time of rude strife, when their opponents were not disposed to he c(pially courtef)us. Tbc names were applicable on both sides, and there was what Mr. Calhoun calls a '•something to ca ise iiictT ayplicalion to tnllnn.'''' Precisely the same antagonist THE EXPUNGING RESOLUTION. 131 principles have been in the field ever since ; but the occasion that brought up the names, has passed over. The reward whicli the whigs have received for this forbearance and generosity, is to be themselves called tories by their opponents ! When will the whigs learn wisdom ? They seem not to have considered, that ncnncs, in this country, decide everything; that it is vain to contend against them ; that their opponents are more sagacious ; and that every ' time they apply the word democrats to the party opposed to them, they lose more than they gain by the best argument they can make. That the terms whig and tory were applicable (and never more so in England or America) at the culminating point of General Jackson's power and influence, few will have the hardihood to deny. His will was absolute. Having been met by a resolute expression of the feelings of the senate on the removal of the de- posites, he set himself to the task of humbling that body at his feet, and he succeeded ! In February, 1835, Mr. Benton, of Missouri, brought forward a resolution in the senate, to expunge that of the 28th of March, 1834, disapproving of the removal of the deposiles, which failed on this occasion by a vote of 39 to 7. He continued, however, to agitate the subject, and at the second session of the next Con- gress, lS36-'7, when the proportion of senators in favor of Gen. Jackson had been largely increased, he again offered his expun- ging resolution, which was finally carried, January 16, 1837, by a vote of 24 to 19. Yais — Messrs. Benton, Brown, Buchanan, Dana, Ewing (of Illinois), Fulton, Grundy, Hubbard, King (of Alabama), Linn, Morris, Nicholas, Niles, Page, Eives, Robinson, RuGGLES, Sevier, Strange, Tallmadge, Tipton, Walker, Wall, and Wright. J^ays — Messrs. Bayard, Black, Calhoun, Clay, Critten- den, Davis, Ewing (of Ohio), Hendricks, Kent, Knight, Moore, Prentiss, Preston, Robbins, Southard, Swift, ToMLiNSON, Webster, and White. The debate on this occasion, as might be supposed, was one of great warmth. The question involved was, whether the demo- cratic branch of the government should continue to maintain its independence of the regal power of the constitution, and be per mitted freely to express its opinions ; or whether it should sue cumb to the mandates of the executive ? 1;j2 Tin: EXPUNGING RESOLUTION. Mr. Clay made a speech worthy of himself on this occasion. Tlic followinj^ are a few of his concludinji^ remarks — after wliich he retired from the senate-cliamber, resolved not to witness the act of dcradalion on that body, and of national humiliation, which had heen decreed by absolule power, which was sustained by a majtiritv of obsequious senators, and wiiich was about to be con- sununaled : — "Mr. President, what patriotic j)urpose is to be accomplished by this expunj^jing resolution! What new honor or fresh laurels will it win for our common country? Is the power of the senate so vast that it ou'dit to be circumscribed, and that of the president so restricted, that it ouglit to be extended? What power has the sen- ate? None, separately. It can only act jointly with the other house, or jointly with the executive. And although the theory of the constitution supposes, when consulted by him, it may freely give an allirmative or nei,nitivc response, according to the practice, as it now exists, it has lost the faculty of pronouncing the negative monosyllable. When the senate expresses its deliberate judgment, in the form of resolution, that resolution lias no compulsory force, but aj)peals only to the dispassionate intelligence, the calm reason, and the sober judgment of the community. The senate has no army, no navy, no patronage, no lucrative oflices, nor glittering honors to bestow. Around us there is no swarm of greedy ex- pectants, rendering us homage, anticipating our wisiies, and ready to execute our commands. "How is it witii the prcsid(>nt? Is he powerless? He is felt from one extremity to the oilier of this vast republic. By means of prineiples which he has introduced, and innovations which he has inade in our institutions, alas ! but too much countenanced by Congress and a confiding people, he exercises uncontrolled the power of the state. In one hand he holds the purse, and in the other brandishes the sword of the country. Myriads of dependents and partisans, scattered over the land, are ever ready to sing ho- sannahs to him, and to laud to the skies whatever he does. He has swept over the government, during the last eight years, like a tro|)ical tornado. Every department exhibits traces of the ravages of the storm. Take, as one example, the bank of the I'nited States. No institution could have been more popular with the people, with Congress, and with state legislatures. None ever bet- ter fidfilled tln^ great purposes of its establishment. P.ut it unfortu- nately incurred the disj)liasun' of the president. He sj)okc, and the bank lies prostrate. And those who were loudest in its praise are now loudest in its condenmation. What object of his ambition is unsatisfied? When disabled from age any longer to hold the scej)tre of power, he designates his successor, and transmits it to his favorite. What more does lie want? Must we blot, deface, THE EXPUNGING RESOLUTION. 133 and mutilate the records of the country to punish the presumptu- ousness of expressing an opinion contrary to his own? " What patriotic purpose is to be accompHshed by this expunging resolution ? Can you make that not to be which has been '/ Can you eradicate from memory and from history the fact, that in March, 1834, a majority of the senate of the United States passed the reso- lution which excites your enmity? Is it your vain and wicked object to arrogate to yourselves that power of annihilating the past which has been denied to Omnipotence itself? Do you intend to thrust your hands into our hearts, and to pluck out the deeply- rooted convictions which are there ? or is it your design merely to stigmatize us? You can not stigmatize us. " 'Ne'er yet did base dishonor blur our name.' " Standing securely upon our conscious rectitude, and bearing aloft the shield of the constitution of our country, your puny efforts are impotent, and we defy all your power. Put the majority of 1S34 in one scale, and that by which this expunging resolution is to be carried, in the other, and let truth and justice, in heaven above and on the earth below, and liberty and patriotism, decide the preponderance. " What patriotic purpose is to be accomplished by this expun- ging? Is it to appease the wrath, and to heal the wounded pride, of the chief magistrate? If he be really the hero that his friends represent him, he must despise all mean condescension, all grovel- ling sycophancy, all self-degradation, and self-abasement. He would reject with scorn and contempt, as unworthy of his fame, your black scratches, and your baby lines in the fair records of his country. Black lines! Black lines! Sir, I hope the secretary of the senate will preserve the pen with which he may inscribe them, and present it to that senator of the majority whom he may select as a proud tro])hy, to be transmitted to his descendants. And hereafter, when we shall lose the forms of our free institu- tions, all that now remain to us, some future American monarch, in gratitude to those by whose means he has been enabled, upon the ruins of civil liberty, to erect a throne, and to commemorate espe- cially this expunging resolution, may institute a new order of knighthood, and confer on it the appropriate name of the knight OF THE BLACK LINES. "But wliy should 1 detain the senate, or needlessly waste my. breath in fruitless exertions? The decree has gone forth. It is one of urgency, too. The deed is to be done — that foul deed, like the blood-stained hands of the guilty Macbeth, all ocean's waters will never wash out. Proceed, then, to the noble work which lies before you, and like other skilful executioners, do it quickly. And when you have perpetrated it, go home to the pcoj)lc, and tell them what glorious honors you have achieved for our common 134 Tim EXPUNGING RESOLUTION. conniry. Tell tliein that you have extingui-^licd one of the bright- est and purest h^'hts that ever burned at the altar of civil liberty. Tell them that you have silenced one of the noblest batteries that ever limndered in defence of the constitution, and bravely sj)iked the cannon. Tell ihein iliat, henceforward, no matter what daring or outrageous act any president may perform, you have for ever hermetically sealed the mouth of the senate. Tell them that he may fearlesslv assume what power he pleases, snatch from its law- ful custody the public jjurse, command a military detachment to enter die halls of the capitol, overawe Congress, trample down the constitution, and raze every bulwark of freedom j but that the sen- ate must stand mute, in silent submission, and not dare to raise its opposing' voice; that it must wait until a house of representatives, humbled and sidnlued like itself, and a majority of it composed of the partisans of the president, shall prefer articles of impeachment. Tell them, finally, tiiat you have restored the glorious doctrine of passive obedience and non-resistance, and, if the people do not pour out their indi^^iation ami imprecations, 1 have yet to learn the character of American freemen." When the vote was about to be taken, Mr. Webster, of Massa- chusetts, in his own behalf, and in behalf of his colleague, Mr. Davis, addressed an unil protest to the senate, through the presi- dent, which, not less for its eloquence and pertinency, than for the valuable information which it discloses, is thought worthy of a place here, and may be found in the note below.* • The debate havin? closed, and the question being about to be put, Mr. Web- Bler rose, and addressed the senate as follows : — " Mr. Prrsidt'nt : Upon the truth and justice of tlie original resolution of the sen- ate, nnd upon the authority of tlie senate to pass that resolution, I had an oppor- tunity to express my opinions at a subsequent period, when the president's protest was ix-fure us. These opinions remain altogether unciiaUL'cd. And now, liad the constitution secured the privilei,'e of enterinu' a protest on the journal, I should not Siiy one word on this occasion; altlioutih, if what is now proposed, shall he ac- complished, 1 know not what wouhi have been the value of such a provision, however formally or eari-fiilly it iniu'ht have been inserted in the body of that in- strument. I'tit. MS tliere is lio such constitutional jirivile^e, I can only effect my puri)ose Jiy tliiis iiddri'ssini; the senate; and I rise, therefore, to make that prot- KST in this manner, in the face of the senate, and in the lace of the country, which I can not present in anv otiier form. " I speak in my own behalf, nnd in behalf of my collcaiue. We both speak as senators from the state of Massachusetts, and as such we solemnly protest ni-ainst this whole proeeedinv. We deny that senators from other states have any power or authority to exjjunye any vote or votes which we have civen here, and whieli we have recorded nu'reeuMy to the express provision of the constitu- tion. We have a hieh perstinal interest; nnd the state whose representatives we are, has also a hiu'h interest in the entire preservation of every part and parcel of the record of our conduct, ns members of the senate. This record the constitu- tion solemnly declares shall l)e kkft. Hut the resolution before the senate de- clares that tiiis ri'cord shall be kxpin<;kii. " Wheihir suliterfuu'e or evasion, ami, as it appears to us, the desrnding mock- ery of drawing black lines upon the j..urnal, shall or shall not leave our names and our votes legible, when this violation ..fil.e record shall have been completed, THE EXPUNGING RESOLUTION. 135 The expunging resolution, preceded by a chapter of nine long "WHEREASES," "like a kite or a comet," as Mr. Clay said, "ex- cept that the order of nature is inverted, and the tail, instead of still the terms ' to expunge,' and the terras ' to keep,' when applied to a rec- ord, import ideas exactly contradictory— as much so as the terms io preserve, and the terms to destroy. A record which is expunged, is not a record which is kept, any more than a record which is destroyed can be a record which is preserved. The part expunged is no lonsrer part of the record. It has no longer a legal existence. It can not be certified as a part of the proceeding of the senate for any purpose of proof or evidence. "The object of the provision in the constitution, as we think, most obviously is, that the proceedings of the senate shall be preserved in writin?-— not for the present only, not until published only, because a copy of the printed journal is not regular legal evidence— but preserved indelinitely, preserved as other records are preserved, till destroyed by time or accident. " Every one must see, that matters of the highest importance depend on the permanent preservation of the journals of the two houses. What but the jour- nals show that bills have been regularly passed into laws, through the several sta"-es ? What but the journal shows, who are members, who is president or speaker, or secretary, or clerk of the body? What but the journal contains the' proof necessary for the justification of those who act under our authority, and who, without the power of producing such proof, must stand as trespassers? What but tht journals show who is appointed, and who rejected, by us, on the presi- dent's nomination ? — or who is acquitted, who convicted, in trials on impeach- ment ? In short, is there at any time, any other regular and legal proof of any act done by the senate than the journal itself? The idea, therefore, that the sen- ate is bound to preserve its journal only until it is published, and then may alter, mutilate, or destroy it at pleasure, appears to us one of the most extraordinary sentiments ever advanced. " We are deeply grateful to those friends who have shown, with so much clear- ness, that all the 'precedcnis relied upon to justify or excuse this proceeding, are either not to the purpose, or from times and circumstances at and under which they happened, are no way entitled to respect in a free government, existing un- der a written constitution. But for ourselves, we stand on the plain words of the constitution itself. A thousand precedents elsewhere made, whether ancient or modern, can neither rescind, nor control, nor explain away these words. The words are, that ' each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings.' No gloss, no ingcnuitv, no specious interpretation— and much less can any fair or just rea- ionins- reconcile the process of expunging with the plain meaning of these words^, to the satisfaction of the common sense and honest understanding of man- kind. . . " If the senate may now expunge one part of the journal of a former session, it mav with equal, authority expunge another part, or the whole. It may expunge the entire record of any one session, or of all sessions. It seems to us inconceiv- able how any man can resard such a power, and its exercise at pleasure, as con- sistent with the injunction of the constitution. It can make no difference what is the completeness or incompleteness of the act of expunging, or by what means done— whether by erasure, obliteration, or defacement. If by defacement, as here proposed, whether one word, or many words, are written on the face of the rec- ord—whether little ink, or much ink, is shed on the face of the paper— or whether some part, or the whole, of the originally written journal, may yet, by possibility, be traced. If the act done, be an act to expunge, to blot out, to obliterate, to erase the record, then the record is expunged, blotted out, obliterated, or erased. And mutilation and alteration violate the record, as much as obliteration or era- sure. A record subsequently altered, is not the original record. It no longer gives a just account of the pr(>ceedin2;s of the senate. It is no longer true. It is fn short, no journal of the real and actual proceedings of the senate, such as the constitution says, each house shall keep. The constitution, tlierefore, is, m our deliberate judgment, violated by this proceeding, in the most plain and open man- ner. . "The constitution, moreover, provides, that the yeas and navs on any question shall, at the request of one fifth of the members present, be catered on the journal. 13G THE KXPUNGI.VG UE.SOLUTION. being bcliind, is before tbe body to wbicli it is appended" — citing facts, as a basis of action, wliich were disputed — was coiicbed in the following terms: — •' Rcsn/rcd, TlKit tbe said resolve be expunged from tiic journal ; and for tliat purpose, tliui ilie secretary of the senate, at such lime Tliis itrovision, most manifestly, uivcs a personal risht to those member;! who may dcriuuid it, to the entry and iireservation of their votes on the record of the pro- ccedins;s of the body — not for one day, or one year only, but for all time. There the YEAS and nays are to staml for ever, as permanent and lastin<; irouf of the man- ner in wliieh m'lnbtTS have voted, on irrcat and important questions before tliem. *' But it is now insi.>.t( d, that the votes of members, taken by vkas and nays, and thus entered on the jouniiil, as matter of riu'ht, may still be expunijed — so that that which it requires more than four fifths of the senators to prevent from being put on the journal, may, nevertheless, be struck off and erased the next moment, or at any period afterward, by the will of a mere majority. Or if this i)e not ad- mitted, then the absurdity is adopted of maintaining, that this provision of the constitution is fultiliid by merely preserving the yi;as and .nays on the journal, after having expunged and obliterated the very resolution, or the very question, on which they were -jivc n, and to which alone they refer — leaving the ykas and NATS thus a mere list of names, connected with no subject, no question, no vote. We put it to the impartial judgment of mankind, if this proceeding be not, in this respect also, directly and palpably inconsistent with tlic constitution ? "We protest, in the most solemn manner, that other senators have no autliority to deprive us of our personal riirhts, secured to us by the constitution, either by cxpun^'injr, or oblitcratin;;, or mutilatinu;, or defacins; the record ol" our votes duly entered by ykas and .nays; or by expunnini; and obliterating the resolutions or questions on which these votes were ijiven and recorded. " We have seen, with deep and sincere pain, the leijislatures of respectable states instructing the senators of those states, to vote for and support this viola- tion of the journal of the senate; and this pain is infinitely increased by our full belief, and entire conviction, that ii.ost, if not nil tliese ])roceedings of states had their oriiiin in promptings from Washinjfton ; that they have been urgrnlly re- quested and insisted on as bein? necessary to the accomplishment of the intended purpose; and that it is nothing else bul the influence and power of the executive branch of this government, which has brought the legislatures of so many of the free states of this Union to quit the sphere of their ordinary duties for the pur- pose of coi.perntin'.; to accomplish a measure, in our judijment, so unccmstitu- tionnl, so derogatory to the cliaracter of the senate, and marked with so broad an impression of compliance with power. " Hut this resolution is to pass. We expect it. That cause which has been powerful enough to inlluence so many state leu'islntures, will show itself jiowerful enouirh, especially with sucii aids, to secure the i)assage of this resolution here. We make up our minds to behold the spectacle which is to ensue. We collect ourselves to lf)ok on in silence, while a scene is exhibited, which, if we did not regard it as ruthless violation of a sacred instrument, would api)ear to us to be lit- tle elevated above the character of a contemptible farce- This scene we shall be- hold, and hundreds of American citizens, as many as may crowd into tlusc lobbies and iralleries, will biludd it also — with what feelings, I do not umlertake to say. " Hut we I'ROTisT — we most solemnly i'botkst — nsainst the substance, and against the manner of this jToceeding — against its object, against its form, and nirainst it.s effect. We tell you that you have no right to mar or mutilate the rec- ord of our votes given here, and recorded according to the constitution. We tell you, that you may as well erase the ykas and nays on any other (lucstion or res- olution, or on all questions and resolutions, as on this. We tell you, that you have just as much riirhl to falsify the ricord, by so altering it, as to make us a|>- pear to have voted on any question as we did not vote, as you have to erase a record, and make that page n blank, in wliich our votes, as they were actually siiven and recorded, now stand. The one proceeding, as it appears to us, is as much a falsification of the record, ns the other. " Havin-.' made this i-uotkst, our duty is performed. We rescue our own names, character, and honor, from all participation in this matter; and whatever the way- THE EXPUNGING RESOLUTION. 137 oS the senate may appoint, shall bring the manuscript journal of the session of lS:33-'4: into the senate, draw black lines round the said resolve, and write across the face thereof, in strong letters, the following words : Expunged by order op the senate, this SIXTEENTH DAY OF JaNUARY, IN THE YEAR OF OUR LoRD, eighteen hundred and THIRTY-SEVEN." When the vote was taken, Mr. Benton moved, that the act be forthwith done, and as soon as the secretary had executed the deed, vehement and repeated hisses were expressed in the galleries of the senate-chamber; whereupon, Mr. King, of Alabama, being in the chair, ordered the galleries to be cleared. Mr. Benton objected, and said: "Let the ruffians be apprehended by the sergeant-at- arms, and brought to the bar of the senate. Let him seize the ruffians — the bank ruffians!" The order of the chair to clear the galleries was then revoked, and the sergeant-at-arms directed to bring the offenders to the bar of the senate. This officer soon returned, having in his custody " a tall, well-dressed man, wrapped in a black overcoat," name not given, and presented him at the bar. Mr. Benton, allowing that the public exposure was a sufficient punishment, moved that he be discharged; but Mr. Morris rose and said: "Call you this the jus- tice of the senate of the United States? Are citizens to be treated in this manner — brought to the bar of the senate without a hear- ino-?" Mr. Morris demanded the yeas and nays, and proposed that the man be allowed a hearing and counsel. This Mr. Benton opposed — said he might purge himself with an oath — and added — " No consulting with lawyers." The yeas and nays being called, 27 voted for discharge, and one in the negative. The man then advanced, and addressing the chair, said: "Mr. President, am I not to be permitted to speak in my own defence?" The chairman turned to the sergeant-at-arms, and said: "Take him out!" And thus the matter ended. ■ward character of the times, the headlon?? and plungini; spirit of party devotion, or the fear or the love of power, may have beea able to bring about elscwherf, we desire to thank God that they have not, as yet, overcome the love of liberty, fidel- ity to true republican principles, and a sacred regard for the constitution in that state whose soil was drenched to a mire, by the first and best blood of the revolu- tion. Massachusetts, as yet, has not been conquered ; and wliile we have the honor to hold seats here as her senators, we shall never consent to a sacrifice, ei- ther of her rights, or our own. We shall never fail to oppose what we regard as a plain and open violation of the constitution of the country; and we shouhl have thought ourselves wholly unworthy of her, if we had not, with all the solemnity and earnestness in our power, protested against the adoption of the resolution now before the senate."— (See Niles's Register, vol. li., p. 331, l836-'37.) 188 THE rUOTECTIVE POLICY. CHAPTER VI. THE rROTECTIVE POLICY. A New Doctrine in Political Economy.— The Protective Policy and Freedom iden- tical.— .Mr. Clay's Debut on the Protective Policy.— His first Speech in Con- gress on the Subject. — Protection ol" the Interests of Navigation. — Navigation Acts.— Condition of Manufactures after the War of 1812.— Tarill" of ISlti.— Its Ina(ieut the inequaliiy in liiese comprehensive particulars, and in all their diversified ramifications, is decided and great. Nor is there any immediate prospect, thai it will he diminished. LaJjor is the pro- ducer of wealth, wealth is power, and the state of society in Europe is designed to secure the wealth, and consequently the power, to a few. Lahor in Einope consiinuos the power of its governments, Iiy heinn kept under their control, and beiuir forceil to minister to theii pur|ioses. It is one of their cares to keep lahor under, by robbing it of its reward. On a platform of free trade with the United States, THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 141 they would be able to use this power effectively against American labor. It would be absolutely necessary for them to do so, for the maintenance of their position. Under a system of free trade, either European labor, in such hands, and so employed, must enslave American labor, or the latter must emancipate the former. Such emancipation would be impossible, because American labor could not compete with European labor on European ground — certainly not in any degree sufficient to relieve its condition. It could not compete on its own ground. American labor, therefore, would be obliged to yield, to succumb — would be reduced and enslaved. If, then, it should be asked, why do not the European govern- ments all go for free trade ? it may be answered, first, it is con- tended by some, that they are going for it; and if so, this, doubtless, is the reason, and it is the thing, in such a case, most of all to be feared by the people of the United States, as they must be aimed at as victims of such a seductive example. But, secondly, it does not appear that the governments of Europe are tending that way, and so far as England has relaxed her system of imposts, it is shown in another part of this work, that it is done on the principle of pro- tection. Thirdly, the commercial systems of Europe, so far as they are framed by the governments, are old, and can not be easily modified. All changes in them must be very gradual and very slow, for their own safety. Fourthly, they were not framed in view of the United States, but chiefly in view of each other, or of all the world ; and though their commercial connexions with the United States have been constantly on the increase, they are not even yet sufficient to invoke a change in their policy. They are not likely to consent to a system of free trade, even if the United States should be unwise enough to ask for that which would be their ruin. There is probably no nation in the world, that would be injured so soon and so much, by a system of universal free trade, as the United States — simply because there is no nation where labor commands so fair a compensation. It is labor first and chiefly that realizes the benefit of the protective policy ; and labor would be the first victim of free trade. Not that all other interests are not concerned in it; but labor has the greatest interest. It would, therefore, be fatal to the interests, and death to the freedom, of the United States, to enter into a compact for a uni- versal system of fre(?trade, notwithstanding it has been supposed by some of the advocates of the protective policy, that it might be safely done. This, it is admitted, is a theory which has little chance 142 THE rROTECTIVK POLICY. of beinf reduced to practical operation, for the reason that univer- sal consent can never he obtained. Nevertlielcss, it is a view of the subject uliich adds great force to the argument for protection, and casts mucli liglit on the protective system, as api)licable to the Inited States. It is going beliind the usual purposes of tlie pro- tective policy, which are those of interest, and showing how it slands related to that most precious and most sacred of all American rights — I'REEDO.M. It undoubtedly has a vital connexion with this boon. It is impossible to look at the spectacle of European j)Ower and authority over labor, and not have some sense of this relation. Will that power — diat authority — willingly relinquish its advantages — abandon its position ? It has an iron grasp on the labor of a con- tinent, receiving more than a moiety of its reward, any fraction of which it can allord to part with for a season, in a conflict with American labor, with the view of ultimately realizing an equal por- tion of the latter's reward, and reducing it to the same condition with the victiui of its own constant oppression. It is only by ex- tcudini; the shield of jjrotcction over American labor, that it is saved from this doom. It is for this reason that the United States should indignantly reject, if they should receive, the olTer of universal free trade. But the main object now in view, is to exhibit Mr. Clay's doc- trines on the protective system. His dibut as a statesman, in this cause, was made in 1-808-, at the age of twenty-five, in the legisla- ture of Kentucky, when lie moved a resolution in that body, that the members, as an example to the people, and as an expression of patriotic duty in giving countenance and support to domestic manufactures, should clothe themselves, from head to foot, in arti- cles of domestic fabric and production. The first sj)eech made by Mr. Clay in Congress on the protective L o/ policy, was in the senate, A^itil-O, I^^IO, while in all the freshness of his youth as a statesman. The following is an extract : — " The opposition to manufacturing institutions recalls to my recollection the case of a gentleman, of wliom I have heard. He had been in the habit of supplying his table from a neighboring cook and confectioner's shop, and proposed to his wife a reform, in this |)articidar. She revolted at the idea. The sight of a scullion was dreadful, anil her delicate nerves could not bear the clattering of kitchen furniture. The gentleman persi;|jted in his design : his table was thenceforth chea|)er and better supplied, and his nci;xli- bor, the confectioner, lost one of his best custoniers. In like manner, Dame Connnercc will oppose domestic manufactures. THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 143 She is a flirting, flippant, noisy jade, and if we are governed by her fantasies, we shall never put off the muslins of India and the cloths of Europe. But I trust that the yeomanry of the country, the true and genuine landlords of this tenement, called the United States, disregarding her freaks, will persevere in reform, until the whole national family is furnished by itself with the clothing neces- sary for its own use. " It is a subject no less of curiosity than of interest, to trace the prejudices in favor of foreign fabrics. In our colonial condition, we were in a complete state of dependence on the parent-country, as it respected manufactures, as well as commerce. For many years after the war, such was the partiality for her productions, in this country, that a gentleman's head could not withstand the influ- ence of solar heat, unless covered with a London hat; his feet could not bear the pebbles, or frost, unless protected by London shoes ; and the comfort or ornament of his person was only con- sulted when his coat was cut out by the shears of a tailor 'just from London.' At length, however, the wonderful discovery has been made, that it is not absolutely beyond the reach of American skill and ingenuity, to provide these articles, combining with equal elegance greater durability. And I entertain no doubt, that, in a short time, the no less important fact will be developed, that the domestic manufactories of the United States, fostered by govern- ment, and aided by household exertions, are fully competent to supply us with at least every necessary article of clothing. I there- fore, sir,yar one (to use the fashionable cant of the day), am in favor of encouraging them, not to the extent to which they are car- ried in England, but to such an extent as will redeem us entirely from all dependence on foreign countries. There is a pleasure — a pride (if I may be allowed the expression, and I pity those who can not feel the sentiment) — in being clad in the productions of our own families. Others may prefer the cloths of Leeds and of Lon- don, but give me those of Humphreysville. " The three great subjects that claim the attention of the national ''• legislature, are the interests of agriculture, commerce, and manu- factures. We have had before us, a proposition to afford a manly protection to the rights of commerce, and how has it been treated? Rejected ! You have been solicited to promote agriculture, by increasins: the facilities of internal communication, through the means of canals and roads, and what has been done? Postponed! We are now called upon to give a trifling support to our domestic manufactures, and shall we close the circle of congressional ineffi- ciency, by adding this also to the catalogue?" The British colonial system, commonly so called, as it applies to the Uirted States, has been of serious consequence to the navi- 144 THE rnOTECTIVE POLICY. gatinf^ interests of this country, over which the government is equally bound to extend its protection, as over other interests of the people. It is a branch of the protective policy. After the peace of Ghent, Great Britain adopted measures to exclude the navigation of the United States from the British West Indies and her other American colonies, comprehending a trade estimated at six millions of dollars ; but by a clause in the second article of the convention of London, the right of a countervailing policy was left open to the United States. On the basis of this right, an efibrt was made in Congress, in 181G, and 1S17, to exclude from the ports of the United Slates all foreign vessels, British or other, trading widi those British possessions, from wiiich American ves- sels were excluded, and Mr. Clay supported the measure on the principle of retaliation, with a view to force Great Britain to a reci- procity, and to recover those rights of navigation for American shippinrr- He said : — " The policy of Great Britain was deeply laid in selfish con- siderations — a policy which she had never relaxed, except in peri- ods of war, when it Ijccame her interest to do so. The question was, whether the total exclusion of our ships from the colonial ports of Great Britain, was such a measure as we ought to fold our arms and submit to? The eft'ect was to deprive us of the advan- ta"-es, in the augmentation of our commerce, and in the increase of our seamen, which would result from the carriage of our own produce, to the amount of six millions of dollars. ^^ ith regard to the imjjortance of encouraging our own navigation, he said, he need not resort to argument. Some measure ought to be devised, by which the navigation of Great Britain should be prevented from enjoving peculiar advantages over us, in a trade wherein recijirocity had been solemnly promised by the convention of London." The measure, however, failed. In ISIS, a like attempt was more successful ; in ISl'O, the act of ISIS was superseded by a new one; and so again in lS2:i — the design of each of which was to bring (Jreal T.ritain to terms. Attempts at negotiation were made under the administration of Mr. .lohn Q. Adams, but the death of the British prime minister, Mr. Canning, jmt the question into new iiands, and deferred a selUement. In 1S29, Mr. Louis McLanc was sent to London by General Jackson, with instructions on this subject ; the question was claimed to be advantageously settled, and the transaction much lauded ; the practical operation of which, however, made it worse than it was before, and it has never yet been satisfactorily arranged. Nothing has proved more THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 145 deceptive, or more injurious to the navigating interests of the Uni- ted States, than those commercial treaties, professedly based on principles of reciprocity — a mock reciprocity. The great com- mercial nations, such as England, France, Russia, Sweden, Por- tugal, Holland, and Belgium, have taken good care not to be caught in the American trap, and have sprung it on the trappers, by loaning their own craft to the flags of the small and non-com- mercial states, such as Denmark, Hamburgh, Bremen, Prussia, Brazil, Tuscany, Rome, and Greece, which had nothing to lose, and everything to gain, by arrangements of this kind, with the United States. Thus the larger commercial powers have stolen the benefit, and escaped from the obligation of reciprocity ! With this exception, the navigating interests of the country have received a very fair protection from the government. R is not, perhaps, commonly considered by those engaged in this pursuit, that if this protection were taken away, the American commercial marine would not only be chiefly driven from the seas by foreign competition, but even the coasting trade of the United States would be carried on by craft built and manned in the north of Europe, at about half the expense of American shipping, and at half the wages of American seamen. On the basis of free trade, it would be impossible for the navigation of the United States to compete with foreign craft. But the protection of domestic manufactures, and of other home interests, seems always to have proved one of the most difficult questions in the political economy of the United States, though it is in fact one of the simplest and plainest. The peace of Ghent left the manufactures of the United States, which had been reared during the war to answer the necessities of the country, and of which the war itself was a sufficient protection, in a defenceless condition. The products of British and other European manufacture, poured into the country at a rate to threaten the existence of American establishments, and the ruin of the cur- rency, by the withdrawal of specie to pay for them. The tariff of 1816 was not enacted to go into operation till a year and a half after the peace ; and when it came, it proved equally inadequate to protect American manufactures, and to check the alarming balances of trade which were heaping up against the nation, by the influx of foreign products. Mr. Clay had labored faithfully in 1S16 to get a tariff that would answer the necessities of the country ; but in vain. The disappointment and distress which he predicted, Vol. II.— 10 14G TnE PROTECTIVE POLICY. followed. As the nation was constantly buying more than it sold, the money of the country was necessarily required to pay the balance ; and like a private individual who does the same thing, and precisely for the same reason, the country grew poorer and poorer, till it was compelled to stop payment by a general bank suspension — for that is the only mode in which a nation stops pay- ment, and to which it is necessarily compelled, when, for a length of time, beyond what it can bear, it continues to buy more than it sells. The balance is demanded in specie, which is drawn from the banks, till, in self-defence, they close their vaults. And that is the insolvency of a commercial nation. Nor is it an abuse of tiie monetary system, as some aver. It is real poverty. The money is gone, and has to be made again, by living within means, and by hard work. The general distress consequent on the defects of the tariff of ISIG, led to an attempt in Congress to get up a new one in 1S20; and on the 22d of March, of that year, Mr. Baldwin, of Pennsyl- vania (afterward judge of the supreme court of the United kStates, and since deceased), reported a bill from the committee of the house on manufactures, to supply the deficiencies of the existing tariff. Justice Baldwin, in speaking of Mr. Clay's zeal and efforts for the passage of this bill, once said, that "he discharged the triple duties of a rank-and-file man, captain, and general-in-chief." The bill passed the house by a vote of 90 to 69, but was lost in the senate by 22 to 20. The following are extracts from a speech of Mr. Clay on that bill, in the house of representatives, April 20, 1S20 :— " Mr. Chairman, whatever may be the value of my opinions on the interesting subject now before us, they have not been hastily formed. Jt mav i)()s.-;iblv be recollected bv some irentlemcn, that xnresscd them when the existing tariff was adopted ; and iliat ] then 'ed, that the jjcriod of the termination of the war, during which the maiuifacturing industry of the country had received a powerful springs was precisely that period when government was alike im[)cllL'd, by duty and interest, to protect it against the free admission of foreign fabrics, consequent upon a state of peace. I insisted, on that occasion, that a less measure of protection would prove more eflicacious, at that time, than one of greater extent at a future day. My wishes prevailed only in part ; and we are now called upon to decide whether we will correct the error which, 1 think, we then committed. " In considering the subject, the (list important iiupiiry that we should make is, whether it b«i desiiable that such a portiop of the THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 147 capital and labor of the country should be employed in the business of manufacturing, as would furnish a supply of our necessary wants ? iSince the first colonization of America, the principal direction of the labor and capital of the inhabitants, has been to produce raw materials for the consumption or fabrication of foreign nations. We have always had, in great abundance, the means of subsistence, but we have derived chiefly from other countries, our clothes, and the instruments of defence. Except during those interruptions of commerce, arising from a state of war, or from measures adopted for vindicating our commercial rights, we have experienced no very great inconvenience heretofore from this mode of supply. The limited amount of our surplus produce, resulting from the smallness of our numbers, and the long and arduous convulsions of Europe, secured us good markets for that surplus in her ports, or those of her colonies. But those convulsions have now ceased, and our population has reached nearly ten mil- lions. A new epoch has arisen ; and it becomes us deliberately to contemplate our own actual condition, and the relations which are likely to exist between us and the other parts of the worid. The actual state of oiu- population, and the ratio of its progressive in- crease, when compared with the ratio of the increase of the popu- lation of the counti'ies which have hitherto consumed our raw pro- duce, seem, to me, alone to demonstrate the necessity of diverting some portion of our industry from its accustomed channel. We double our population in about the term of twenty-five years. If there be no change in the mode of exerting our industry, we shall double, during the same teim, the amount of our exportable produce. Europe, including such of her colonies as we have free access to, taken altogether, does not duplicate her population in a shorter term, probably, than one hundred years. The ratio of the increase of her capacity of consumption, therefore, is, to that of our capacity of production, as one is to four. And it is manifest, from the simple exhibition of the powers of the consuming coun- tries, compared with those of the supplying country, that the former are inadequate to the latter. It is certainly true, that a por- tion of the mass of our nwv produce, which we transmit to hei reverts to us in a fabricated foj-m, and that this return augments with our increasing population. This is, however, a very incon- siderable addition to her actual ability to afford a market for the produce of our industry." The unsuccessful attempt to make a new tariff in 1S20, sup- ported so strongly as it was in the house of representatives — of which Mr. Clay was then speaker — but unfortunately lost in die senate, was a very important and eventful point in the political his- tory of the country. Its failure doomed the people to four years of incalculable loss, and great distress, from which they did not 14S THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. beffin to einoro;e till they were rescued by the tariff of 1824. The position of Mr. Clay in the tariff bill of 181G, is recognised in the above extract. He then predicted what afterward came to pass, resulting from the defects of tiiat law, and at this lime, as Mr. .fus- tice Baldwin certifies, labored strenuously for an act that would enable the country, in some degree, to regain what it had lost, and to protect itself in future. The " new epoch" pointed out above, and the reasoning deduced tlierefrom, have been forcibly illustrated by Pubscrjuent events. The .simjilicity of the following citation will naturally produce its proper effect with all fair minds : — '' The wants of man may be classed under three heads : food, raiment, and (k'fencc. They are felt alike in the state of barbarism and of civilization. He must be defended against the ferocious beasts of prey in the one condition, and against the ambition, vio- lence, and injustice, incident to the other. If he seeks to obtain a supply of these wants without giving an equivalent, he is a beggar or a robber; if by promising an equivalent which he can not give, he is fraudulent; and if by commerce, in which tliere is perfect freedom on his side, while he meets with nothing but restrictions on the other, he submits to an unjust and deirrading inequality. What is true of individuals, is equally so of nations. The coun- try, then, which relies upon foreign nations for either of these great essentials, is not, in fiict, independent. Nor is it any consolation for our dependence ujion other nations, that they are also depend- ent upon us, even were it true. Every nation should anxiously endeavor to establish its absolute independence, and consequently be able to feed, and clothe, and defend itself. Jf it rely upon a foreign sup])ly, that may be cut off by the caprice of the nation yielding it, by war with it, or even by war with other nations. It can not be iiulependent. But it is not true, that any other nations depend upon us in a degree- anything like equal to that of our de- pendence upon them, for the great necessaries»to which I have re- ferred. Every other nation seeks to sujjjjly itself with them from its own resources ; and so strong is the desire which they feel to acromi)lish this purpose, that they exclude the cheaper foreign ar- ticle, for the dearer home production. Witness the English poli- cy in regard to corn. So selfish, in this respect, is the conduct of other powers, thai, in some instances, they even prohjbit the prod- uce of the industrv of their nwti colonies, when it comes into com- petition with the jirodure of the pareiit-countrv. All other coun- tries but our own, exclude by hiuli duties, or absolute prohibitions, whatever they can respectively produce within themselves. The truth is, and it is in vain to disguise ii, that we are a sort of de- pendent colonies of England — politically free, commercially slaves. THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 149 Gentlemen lell us of the advantages of a free exchange of the produce of the world. But they tell us of what has never existed, does not exist, and perhaps never will exist. They invoke us to give perfect freedom on our side, while, in the ports of every other nation, we are met with a code of odious restrictions, shuttino- out entirely a great part of our produce, and letting in only so much as they can not possibly do without. I will hereafter examine their favorite maxim, of leaving things to themselves, more partic- ularly. At present, I will only say that I too am a friend to free trade, but it must be a free trade of perfect reciprocity. If the governing consideration were cheapness ; if national independence were to weigh nothing ; if honor nothing ; why not subsidize for- eign powers to defend us ? Why not hire Swiss or Hessian mer- cenaries to protect us? Why not get our arms of all kinds, as we do in part, the blankets and clothing of our soldiers, from abroad ?" That a governor of Kentucky should have furnished such an example, as the following, was not less honorable to himself, than a proud boast of her adopted citizen, who was pleading so great a cause in the American Congress : — " All society is an affair of mutual concession. If we expect to derive the benefits which are incident to it, we must sustain our reasonable share of burdens. The great interests which it is in- tended to guard and cherish, must be supported by their reciprocal action and reaction. The harmony of its parts is disturbed, the discipline which is necessary to its order is incomplete, when one of the three great and essential branches of its industry is aban- doned and unprotected. If you want to find an example of order, of freedom from debt, of economy, of expenditure falling below rather than exceeding income, you will go to the well-regulated family of a farmer. You will go to the house of such a man as Isaac Shelby ; you will not find him haunting taverns, engaged in broils, prosecuting angry lawsuits ; you will behold every member of his family clad with the produce of their own hands, and use- full)' employed — the spinning-wheel and the loom in motion by daybreak. With what pleasure will his wife carry you into her neat dairy, lead you into her storehouse, and point you to the tablecloths, the sheets, the counterpanes, which lie on this shelf for one daughter, or on that for another, all prepared in advance by her provident care for the day of their respective marriages. If you want to see an opposite example, go to the house of a man who manufactures nothing at home, whose family resorts to the store for everything they consume. You will find him perhaps in the tavern, or at the shop at the cross-roads. He is engaged, with the rum-grog on the table, taking depositions to make out some I.jO the protective policy. * case of u.-iiiry or fraud. Or perhaps lie is funii-iliins; to his law- yer the materials to j)re|);)re a loiiji; hill of injunction in some intricate case. The slierilF is hovering ahout his farm to serve some new writ. ( )ii court-days — he never misses attending them — you will fmd him eagerly collecting his witnesses to defend him- self against the merchant and doctor's claims. (lo to his house, and, after the short and giddy period that his wife and daughters have llirleil ahout the country in their calico and muslin frocks, what a scene of discomfort and distress is presented to you there! What the individual family of Isaac Shelhy is, I wish to see the nation in the airefrerrate hecome. But I fear we shall shortlv have to contcm|)Iate its rescmhlancc in the opposite picture. If states- men would carelully ohscrve the conduct of private individuals in the management of their own affairs, they would have much surer guides in promoting the interests- of the state, than the visionary speculations of theoretical writers." The projrt of the following remarks, is one that claims profound consideration hy American statesmen and American citizens : — *' Let us proclaim to the people of the United States the incon- tc.-lahle truth, that our foreign trade must he circumscrihcd hy the alterctl slate of tlie world ; and, leaving it in the possession of all the gains which it can now possibly make, let us present motives to the capital and labor of our country, to employ themselves in fabrication at home. There is no danger that, by a withdrawal of that portion which is unprofitably employed on other objects, and an application of it to fabrication, our agriculture would he too much cramped. The produce of it will always come up to the foreign demand. Such are the superior allurements belonging to the cultivation of the soil to all other branches of industry, that it will always be preferred when it can profitably be followed. The foreign demand will, in any conceivable state of things, limit the amount of the exportable produce of agriculture. The amount of our cxportations will form the measure of our importations, and, whatever these may be, they will constitute the basis of the reve- nue derivable from customs. " The manufacturing system is favorable to the maintenance of peace. Foreign commerce is the great source of foreign wars. The eagerness with which we contend for every branch of it, the temptations which it oilers, operating alike upon us and our for- eign competitors, produce (constant collisions. No country on earth, by the extent of its superfices, the richness of its soil, the variety of its climate, contains within its own limits more abundant facilities for supplying all our rational wants than ours does. It is not necessary or desirable, however, to cut off all intercourse with for(Mgn powers, liut, after securing a supply, within ourselves, of all the great essentials of life, there will be ample scope still left THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 151 t for preserving such an intercourse. If we had no intercourse with foreign states, if we adopted the policy of China, we should have no external wars. And in proportion as we diminish our depen- dence upon them, shall we lessen the danger of the recurrence of war. Our late war would not have existed if the counsels of the manufacturers in England had been listened to. They finally did prevail, in their steady and persevering effort to produce a repeal of the orders in council ; but it was too late to prevent the war. Those who attribute to the manufacturing system the burdens and misfortunes of that country, commit a great error. These were probably a joint result of the operation of the whole of her system, and the lars-er share of it was to be ascribed to her foreign com- merce, and to the ambition of her rulers, than to any other cause. The war of our revolution, in which that ambition displayed its monstrous arrogance and pretensions, laid the broad foundation of that enormous debt under which she now groans." The most suicidal principle of free trade, '' laissezfaire," let things alone, or let foreign commerce take care of itself, is well treated by Mr. Clay, as follows : — " Gentlemen say, ' We agree with you ; you are right in your first proposition ; but, ' let things alone,' and they will come right in the end.' Now, I agree with them, that things would ultimately get right ; but not until after a long period of disorder and distress, terminating in the impoverishment, and perhaps ruin, of the coun- try. Dissolve government, reduce it to its primitive elements, and, without any general effort to reconstruct it, there would arise, out of the anarchy which would ensue, partial combinations for the purpose of individual protection, which would finally lead to a social form, competent to the conservation of peace within, and the repulsion of force from without. Yet no one would say, in snch a state of anarchy, ' let things alone' ! If gentlemen, by their favorite maxim, mean only that, within the bosom of the state, thingfs are to be left alone, and each individual, and each branch of industry, allowed to pursue their respective mterests, without giving a preference to either, I subscribe to it. But if they give it a more comprehensive import; if they require that things be left alone, in respect not only to interior action, but to exterior action also ; not only as regards the operation of our own government upon the mass of the interests of the state, but as it relates to th operation of foreign governments upon that mass, I dissent Irom it " This maxim, in this enlarged sense, is indeed everywhere proclaimed, but nowhere practised. It is truth in the books of European political economists. It is error in the practical code of every European state. It is not applied where it is most appli- cable ; it is attempted to be introduced here, wliere it is least appli- cable ; and even here its friends propose to limit it to the single l;jO Till-: I'ltDTKCTIVi: l'()I,IfY. branrli of manufacturing iuflustrv, while every otlier interest is encoura), in the senate of the United States, apparcMitly going as much beyoml what he did in lSi24, as in ls24 he left in the shade his own earlier exertions. But in 1832, the great fpicstion had |)nt on new aspects, had in- volved new and momentous matters, roused to ;iction a new set of feelings, and stood forth before the world in the forms of nullifica- tion and civil war I Patriotism in 1S32 had two things to look after — the preservation oi the protective policy, and the salvation THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 155 of the country from domestic strife and bloodshed. A compari- son, therefore, of these two mighty efforts of 1S24 and 1832, properly to appreciate them, should be made in view of the differ- ent states of public affairs at these two points of time. On both occasions the theme was exhausted, as to all the materials of argu- ment then visible and tangible; and it is remarkable, that no new idea on the subject, involving a principle, has at any time since, by anybody, been advanced. New facts, indeed, have transpired, illustrating and establishing those principles, and the field of argu- ment, by reason of such facts, has been widely extended. By the aid of new facts, the subject can now be made more clear, and Mr. Clay's position has been thoroughly and impregnably fortified by time and events. That he should have been able so completely to survey the field for the time being, is a fit occasion, not less of admiration for his talents as a man and his abilities as a statesman, than of gratitude for his services and fidelity as an American pa- triot. As nothing like justice to these gigantic efforts can be done, without copying the whole of them, and inasmuch as they have long been before the public in a variety of forms, it is only pro- posed to make a brief review of them here, and a few extracts. First, the speech, or speeches, of 1S24. The following extract exhibits at the same time the most succinct and lucid statement of the difference of opinion on this subject, and an amiable example of charity toward opponents: — \ojL " Two classes of politicians divide the people of the United States. According to the system of one, the produce of foreign industry should be subjected to no other impost than such as may be necessary to provide a public revenue ; and the produce of American industry should be left to sustain itself, if it can, with no other than that incidental protection, in its competition, at home as well as abroad, with rival foreign articles. According to the system of the other class, while they agree that the imposts should be mainly, and may under any modification be safely, relied on as a fit and convenient source of public revenue, they would so adjust and arrange the duties on foreign fabrics as to afford a gradual but adequate protection to American industry, and lessen our de])end- ence on foreiirn nations by securing a certain and ultimately a cheaper and better supply of our own wants from our own abun- dant resources. Both classes are equally sincere in their respec- tive opinions, equally honest, equally patriotic, and desirous of advancing the prosperity of the country. In the discussion and consideration of these opposite opinions, for the purpose of ascer- 15G THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. tainitii,' which has the support of truth and reason, we should, therffore, exercise every iu(hili:ence, and the L^rcatest spirit ol niu- lual moderation and forhearance. And, in our deHberaiions on this irreat (juestion, we shouhi look fearlessly and truly at the actual condition of the country, retrace the causes which have brouj^ht us inlo it, and snatch, if possible, a view of the future. We should, above all, consult experience — the experience of other nations, as well as our own — as our truest and most unerring guide." Then follows a glowing picture of the distress of the co\intry; next, an inquiry into the cause, which need not here be told; the changed aspects of the world, from a state of war to general peace, as they affect the interests and policies of nations, are considered; the necessity of providing a home market for agricultural produce, grows out of this view; the more rapid increase of population in the United States, than in iMiropcan countries, and the consequent multiplication of producing power, come into the scale, and de- mand employment, which other countries will not give to it; lor- ei'Mi consumption of the products of American labor and the American soil, instead of increasing, and keeping pace with the ratio of increase of producing power, had Allien off, with the ex- ception of cotton ; it was therefore necessary to create a home market; the foreign demand for American produce, in times of peace, must continue to decrease, in relation to the ratio ol the increase of population, here and elsewhere ; such had been the fact; and liberal quotations are made by Mr. Clay from public and other documents, to establish these positions. "We must then [said Mr. Clay] change somewhat our course. We must give a new direction to some portion of our industry. We must speedily adopt a genuine American policy. Still cher- ishing the foreign market, let us create also a home market, to give furlhcr scope to the consumption of the produce of American in- dustry. Let us counteract the policy of foreigners, and withdraw the support which we now give to their industry, and stimulate that of our own country. It sliould be a prominent object with wise le"-islators, to midii[)ly the vocations and extend the business of society, as far as it can be done, by the |irotection of our interests at home, against the injurious effects of foreign legislation. Sup- j)ose we were a nation of fishermen, or of skippers, to the exclu- sion of every other occupation, and the legislature had the power to introduce the pursuits of agriculture and manufactines, would not our happiness be* promoted by an exertion of its authority? All the existing employments of society — the learned professions — commerce — agriculture — are now ovcrllowiii^i:. ^\'e stand in each other's way. Hence the want of enq)loyment. Hence the eager THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 157 pursuit after public stations, which I have before glanced at. I have been again and again shocked, during this session, by instan- ces of solicitation for places, before the vacancies existed. The pulse of incumbents, who happen to be taken ill, is not marked with more anxiety by the attending physicians, than by those who desire to succeed them, though with very opposite feelings. Our old friend, the faithful sentinel, who has stood so long at our door, and the gallantry of whose patriotism deserves to be noticed, be- cause it was displayed when that virtue was most rare and most wanted, on a memorable occasion in this unfortunate city, became indisposed some weeks ago. The first intelligence which I had of his dangerous illness, was by an application for his unvacated place ! I hastened to assure myself of the extent of his danger, and was happy to find that the eagerness of succession outstripped the proiiTCSS of disease. By creating a new and extensive business, then, we should not only give employment to those who want it, and augment the sum of national wealth, by all that this new busi- ness would create, but we should meliorate the condition of those who are now engaged in existing employments. In Europe, par- ticularly in Great Britain, their large standing armies, large navies, lari-e even on their peace arrangement, their established church, afford to their population employments, which, in that respect, the happier constitution of our government does not tolerate but in a very limited degree. The peace establishments of our army and our navy, are extremely small, and I hope ever will be. \\ e have no established church, and I trust never shall have. In proportion as the enterprise of our citizens in public employments is circum- scribed, should we excite and invigorate it in private pursuits. " The creation of a home market is not only necessary to pro- cure for our agriculture a just reward of its labors, but it is indis- pensable to obtain a supply of our necessary wants. If we can not sell, we can not buy. That portion of our population (and we have seen that it is not less than four fifths) which makes compara- tively nothing that foreigners will buy, has nothing to make pur- chases with from foreigners. It is in vain that we are told of the amount of our exports supplied by the planting interest. They may enable the planting interest to supply all its wants; but they bring no ability to the interests not planting; unless, which can not be pretended, the planting interest was an adequate vent for the surplus produce of the labor of all other interests. It is in vain to tantalize us with the greater cheapness of foreign fabrics. There must be an ability to purchase, if an article be obtained, whatever may be the price, high or low, at which it is sold. And a ciieap article is as much beyond the grasp of him who has no means to buy, as a high one. Even if it were true that the American man- ufacturer would supply consumption at dearer rates, it is better to have his fabrics than the unattainable foreign fabrics, because it is 15S THE PROTECTIVK POMCY. better to he ill-supplied than not supplied at all. A coarse coat, \vhi«"h will conununicate warmth and cover nakedness, is better than no coat. The superiority of the home market results, first from its steadiness and comparative certainty at all times ; secondly, from the creation of reciprocal interest; thirdly, from its irrcater securii}' ; and lastly, from an ultimate and not distant augmentation of consumption (and consequently of comfort), from increased quantity and reduced prices. ]hit this home market, hii^hly desi- rable as it is, can only be created and cherished by the puotection of our own legislation against the inevitable prostration of our in- dustry, which must ensue from the action of foreign policy and legislation. The effect and the value of this domestic care of our own interests will be obvious from a few facts and considerations. Let us suppose, that half a million of persons are now^ employed abroad in fabricating, for our consumption, those articles, of which, by the operation of this bill, a supply is intended to be provided within ourselves ; that half a million of persons are, in elFect, subsisted by us; but their actual means of subsistence are drawn from foreign agriculture. If we could trans])ort them to this coun- try, and incorporate them in the mass of our own population, there would instantly arise a demand for an amount of provisions equal to that which woidd be retpiisitc for their subsistence throughout the whole year. That demand, in the article of flour alone, would not be less than the quantity of about nine hundred tliousand bar- rels, beside a proportionate quantity of beef and pork, and other articles of subsistence. But nine hundred thousand barrels of flour, exceeds the entire quantity exported last year, by nearly one hundred and fifty thousand barrels. \\'hat activity would not this give, what cheerfulness would it not communicate, to our now dispirited farming interest! J5ut if, instead of these five hundred thousand artisans emigrating from abroad, we give by this bill employment to an Cfpial number of our own citizens, now engaged in unprofitable agriculture, or idle, from the want of busi- ness, the beneficial elfect u])on the productions of our farming la- bor woidd be nearly doubled. The (piantity would be diminished by a subtraction of tlu; prodiicr from the labor of all those who should be ut is altogether incidental, and perfectly voluntary. *' It has been treated as an imposition of burdens upon one pan of the community by design, for the benefit of another — as if, in fact, money were taken from the pockets of one portion of the people, and put into the pockets of another. But is that a fail representation of it? No man pays the duty assessed on the lor ei"-n article by compulsion, but voluntarily ; and this voluntary duty, if paid, goes into the common exchequer, for the common benefit of all. Consumption has four objects of choice. First, it may abstain from the use of the foreign article, and thus avoid the payment of the tax. Second, it may employ the rival American fabric. Third, it may engage in the business of manufacturing, which this bill is designed to foster. Fourth, or it may supply itself from the household manufactures." In this speech oi' 1 ^:i 1 — now more than twenty years since — Mr. Clay answered most triumphantly the objection of the cotton- planting interest, that the tariff would cut off the market for cotton, not only by showing a tacit compact between the cotton grower and the British manufacturer, which put the former in the power of the latter, but by the exhibition of the fact, as it then stood, that, out of the five millions sterling worth of the raw material bought by British manufacturers of American planters, after supplying the home con- sumption of the British empire with cotton fiibrics, they sold to foreign parts to the amount of twenty-one millions and a half ster- ling, only one million and u half of which came to the United States. It was therefore absurd to suppose, that the British man- ufacturers would not continue their demand for the raw material, to the extent of their market for the manufactured products ; and if the American tariff should operate to supply the American de- mand, to the amount of a million and a iialf sterling, the raw ma- terial would of course come from the American planter, and the country would save the increased value of many to one, in the fabrics, in which the American planter would have his share. In confirmation of the validity of this argument, such, since that time, have been the results of actual ex])eriencc. Mr. Clay shows very clearly, that navigation is second in the ord«;r of nature t(j agriculture and manufactures, and can only prosper as they do. ♦'It is next contended [says ^fr. Clay] that the effect of tlie measure [the proposed tarilf] will be to diminish our foreign com- merce. The objection assumes, what I have endeavored to con- trovert, that there will be a reduction in the value of our exports. THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 165 Commerce is an exchange of commodities. Whatever will tend to augment the wealth of a nation must increase its capacity to make these exchanges. By new productions, or creating new val- ues in the fabricated forms which shall be given to old objects of our industry, we shall give to commerce a fresh spring, a new ali- ment. The foreign commerce of the country, from causes, some of which I have endeavored to point out, has been extended as far as it can be. And I think there can be but little doubt that the balance of trade is, and for some time past has been, against us. I was surprised to hear the learned gentleman from Massachusetts [Mr. Webster] rejecting, as a detected and exploded fallacy, the idea of a balance of trade. I have not time nor inclination now to discuss that topic. But I will observe, that all nations act upon the supposition of the reality of its existence, and seek to avoid a trade, the balance of which is unfavorable, and to foster that which presents a favorable balance. However the account be made up, whatever may be the items of a trade, commodities, fishing indus- try, marine labor, the carrying trade, all of which I admit should be comprehended, there can be no doubt, I think, that the totality of the exchanges of all descriptions made by one nation with an- other, or against the totality of the exchanges of all other nations together, may be such as to present the state of an unfavorable balance with the one or with all. It is true that, in the long run, the measures of these exchanges, that is, the totality in value of what is given and of what is received, must be equal to each other. But great distress may be felt long before the counterpoise can be effected. In the meantime, there will be an export of the precious metals, to the deep injury of internal trade, an unfavor- able state of exchange, an export of public securities, a resort to credit, debt, mortgages. Most of, if not all, these circumstances, are believed now to be indicated by our country, in its foreign com- mercial relations. What have we received, for example, for the public stocks sent to England? Goods. But those stocks are our bond, which must be paid. Although the solidity of the credit of the English public securities is not surpassed by that of our own, strong as it jusdy is, when have we seen English stocks sold in our market, and regularly quoted in the prices current, as American stocks are in England? An unfavorable balance with one nation, may be made up by a favorable balance with other na- tions ; but the fact of the existence of that unfavorable balance is strong presumptive evidence against the trade. Commerce will regulate itself! Yes, and the extravagance of a spendthrift heir, wdio squanders the rich patrimony which has descended to him, will regulate itself ultimately. But it will be a regulation which will exhibit him in the end safely confined within the walls of a jail. Commerce will regulate itself! But is it not the duty of wise governments to watch its course, and, beforehand, to ]irovide ]f)G THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. a"aiii?t oven distant evils, by prudent legislation stimulating the industry of tlicir own people, and rliecking the policy of foreign j)o\vers as it operates on them? The sui)i)ly, tlien, of the sub- jects of foreign commerce, no less than the supply of consump- tion at home, requires of us to give a portion of our labor such a direction as will enable us to produce them. That is the object of the measure under consideration, and I can not doubt that, if adopted, it will accomplish its object." Without pretending, but professedly declining, to discuss the subject of the hahmce of trade, which has been so much mystified by theorists, Mr. Clay, in the foregoing extract, has shed more light upon it, by a few common-sense and practical remarks — which, in fact, comprehend the whole question — more, perhaps, than all the tomes which political economists, so called, have im- posed upon tlip world, too often to darken it. Mr. Clay has clearly indicated what things are to be considered to determine the balance of trade. But to say, that there is no such thing, or that it is a " detected and exploded fallacy," is as false and as ab- surd, as to say, that two arc equal to three, or more than three ; or that there can be no such thing as a balance due from one party to another. A nation that habitually buys more than it sells, is as truly a loser as an individual person that does the same thing, and will for the same reason get in trouble, and sooner or later be- come insolvent ; and the balance of trade between any one nation and all othn- nations, is precisely the same thing practically, as the showing of the books of a counting or a banking house, when all the proper items are considered. It is a singular fact, that iNfr. Clay was obliged to show, that the tarifl'of ]S24 would not diminish the revenue. The same objec- tion was made to the tariff of 1842 bv the successful candidate for the presidency in 1*^44, and by others of the same school. Mr. Polk, in his speech at Madison, Tennessee, 1S43, is represented to have said : " It [the tarifl' of 1S42] will not j>roducc annually HALF the amoiuit of revenue wliich would have been produced by the lower rates of the coiiipioinise act." These "lower rates," that is, for die condition of things, .Tune 'JO, 1S42, as shown in House Document No. 420, 1st session, 2Sth Congress, did not exceed 812,800,000 annually; and half of this, ^U. Polk's maximum gauge for the revenue under the tarifl' of 1842, would be SO, 400, 000 ; whereas, it has produced about four times as much. THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 167 Another objection earnestly brought against the tariff bill of 1824, was, that it would be a failure. Nature, it was contended, had in dicated the natural occupation of man in North America, to wit, a culture of the soil. As if nature had not given the same hints in other quarters of the world ; as if the countless rivers, streams, and waterfalls of the United States, had given no advice on this point ; as if the lakes, bays, and other inland water-channels, did not invite trade, which could have no occupation without the arts ; as if this great continent, abounding in all the resources of nature, were to afford no other sustenance to the human family, but the milk of its own breasts ; as if all its tenants, like the aborigines, served by woman in slavery, were destined to vegetate on corn, and decay for want of employment ; as if the Anglo-Saxon race, transplanted to another and better country, would consent to fall behind the rest of the world, or allow their brethren of the original stock to outstrip them in art or enterprise ; as if that people, known to all the world as Americans, and who alone are thought of in Europe under this name, would willingly be dependent ; as if they would for ever sweat and toil in the field to supply the raw material for a more delicate and refined race, that would condescend to return them the wrought product, wrung in agony from their own slaves, at a cost five or ten times enhanced, and draw away all the earn- ings of the American laborer ; as if iVmerica were not a world in itself, and able by its ingenuity and skill to supply every luxury, as well as every necessity ; as if the lovers of freedom had turned their backs on the old world, to become greater slaves than they were before ; as if the powers of invention were native only to the European continent, or the Eastern world ; as if the moment a man crosses the sea from east to west, he is doomed to repress all the nobler faculties of his soul ; as if genius and art could not flourish in the western hemisphere ; as if, in short, America were fit only to be a dependent colony of Europe. The question involved is neither less nor more than that of de- pendence or independence — whether America can do without Eu- rope, or is to have connexions on fair terms, and equally honorable to both parties. A people without art are fit only to be slaves, and are easily made such. A nation that is only the producer of raw materials, can never claim equality with nations, which, by science and art, add many values to those materials, and send them back as a tax on those who consent to do such service. It is a state of dependence, and not of independence. IGS THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. Another form of argument employed hy tlic opponents of the tarifT hill of 1824 — one that is common at all times — was, that manufactures would rise of themselves, without the aid of i)ro- tcctioii. To this, Mr. Clay rfplicd : — " If I am asked, why unj)rotcctcd industry should not succeed in a struggle with protected industry, I answer, the fact has ever been so, and that is sufTicient; I rcj)ly, that UMroiiM expkriexce evinces that it fan not succeed in such an unequal contest, and that is sufficient. If wo speculate on the causes of this universal truth, we may difler ahout them. Still the indis])utahle fact remains. And we slujuhl he as unwise in not availing ourselves of the guide which it fin-nishes, as a man would be, who should refuse to bask in the ravs of the sun, because he could not asfree with .ludije Woodward as to the nature of the substance of that planet, to which we are indcljtcd for heat and light. If 1 were to attempt to par- ticularize the causes which j)revcnt the success of the manufactur- ing arts, without protectif)n, I should say that they are, first, the obduracy of fixed hal)its. Xo nation, no individual, will easily change an established course of business, even if it he unprofita- ble ; and least of all is an agricultural jjcople j)rone to innovation. With what reluctance do they not adopt improvements in the in- struments of husbandry, or in modes of cultivation ! If the farmer makes a good crop, and sells it badly, or makes a short crop, buoyed up by hope, he perseveres, and trusts that a favorable change of the market, or of the seasons, will enable him, in the sucfced- ing year, to repair the misfortunes of the past. tSecondly, the un- certainty, fluctuation, and unsteadiness of the home market, when liable to an unrestricted inllux of fabrics from all foreign nations; ami thirdly, the superior advance of skill, and amount of capital, which foreign nations have obtained, by the protection of their own irulustry. • From the latter, or from other causes, the unprotcited manufactures of a country are exposed to the danger of being crushed in their infancy, either l)\- the design, or froni the neces- sities of foreign manufacturers. (Gentlemen arc incredulous as to the attempts of foreign merchants and manufacturers to accom- plish the destruction of ours. \\'hy should they not make such attempts? \'i the Scottish manufacturer, by surcharging oiw mar- ket, in one year, with the article of cotton bagging, for examjile, should so reduce the price as to discourage and put down the home manufacture, he would secure to himself the monopoly of the supply. And now, having the exclusive possession of the market, perhaps for a long term of years, he might be mor6 than indemnified for his first loss, in the subsequent rise in the price of the article. What have we not seen under our own eyes ! 'J'he rompetition for the transportation of the mail, between this place THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 169 and Baltimore, became so excited, that to obtain it an individual offered, at great loss, to carry it a whole year for one dollar ! His calculation no doubt was, that, by driving his competitor off' the road, and securing to himself the carriage of the mail, he would be afterward able to repair his original loss by new contracts with the department. But the necessities of foreign manulacturers, without imputing to them any sinister design, may oblige them to throw into our markets the fabrics which have accumulated on their hands, in consequence of obstruction in the ordinary vents, or from over-calculation ; and the forced sales, at losing prices, mav })ros- trate our establishments. From this view of the subject, it follows, that, if we would place the industry of our country upon a solid and unshakable foundation, we must adop)t the protecting policy, which has everywhere succeeded, and reject that which would abandon it, which has everywhere failed." England commenced her war on American manufactures in 1699, and continued it to the war of the Revolution. Lord Chat- ham said, in parliament, " He would not have the Americans make zJiobnaiW'' Another noble lord added, "Nor a razor to shave their beards." Mr. Brougham, now Lord Brougham, said, in the house of commons, in 1816, " It was well worth while, by this glut [excessive exports to America], lo stijlc in tlic cradle those rising manufactories in the United States, which the war had forced into existence." ]\Ir. Robertson, another member, speaking of British policy, confessed, that it " was nothing more nor less than for us [the English] to get a monopoly of all marlcets for our manufac- tures, and to prevent other nations, one and all, from engaging in them." The London Spectator, in 1S43, says : " More general considerations tend to show, that the trade between the two coun- tries most beneficial to both, must be what is commonly called a colonial trade — the new-settled country importing the manufactures of the old, in exchange for its own raw produce. Li all econom- ical relations, the United States still stand to England in the rela- tion of coloiiy to motlier-covntryy Again : " Both England and the United States are suffering, because the colonial relation has been broken ; because the surplus capital of England does not find its way to America, along with the stragglers of its surplus popu- lation ; and because the raw produce of America, through the in- fluence of restrictive duties, and for want of that capital, can not find its way to England." This reasoning of British statesmen and British writers, is cer- tainly plain enough to be understood and appreciated on this side 170 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. of the Atlantic, and sufllcienlly evinces the correctness and valid- ity of Mr. Clay's argument on this j)oint. Immediately after the war, as stated by Mr. Clay in another part of this speech, " the influx of the Scottish manufacture of cotton bagging, prostrated the American establishments. The consequence was, that the Scotch possessed a monopoly of the supply, and the price of it rose, and attained the year before last [l8:2:i] a price which amounted to more than an equivalent for ten years of protection of the Ameri- can manufacture." Tliis tempted the American manufacturers to resuscitate their establishments, which reduced the price, and they would have fallen again in the competition, but for the protection of the tariff of 18:21. This case is an exact picture of all others. The fallacy of what is called the incidental protection of a mere revenue tariff, was exposed by Mr. Clay at this time, and made obvious how it might be no protection at all, because inadequate. As now, so also in 1824, it was urged, that Great Britain was relaxing her prohibitory and restrictive policy. But Mr. Clay showed, that, in every case of fact adduced in evidence, she relaxed in one point, only to gain a greater advantage in another — to extend and fortify her system ; and it is the same now as then. It was also urged, that the continental powers were relaxing, wiiich proved to be equally true as what was alleged of Great Britain. Russia, it seems, tried the relaxing policy for a short season, but soon got sick of it ; and Mr. Clay quotes the following remarkable passages, put forth in 1S22, by Count Nesselrode, Russian prime minister, as the result of their experience : — *' ' To produce happy effects, the principles of commercial free- dom must be generally adopted. "J'he state which adopts, while others reject them, must condemn its own industry and commerce, to pay a ruinous tribute to those of other nations. " ' From a circulation exempt from restraint, and the facility afforded by r(!ciprocal exchanges, aliuost all the governments at fust resolved to seek tin- means of repairing the evil which Europe had been doon)e(l to suHer : Imi experience, and more correct cal- culations, b(!c!Uise they were made from certain data, and U])Ou the results already known of the i)i'ace that had just taken place, forced them soon to adiien; to the pr(diii)ilory system. " ' JMiglatul preserved hers. Austria remained faithful lo the rule she had laid down, to u;uard herself against the rivalship of foreign industry. France, with the same views, a(lo|)te(l the most rigorous measures of precaution. And I'russia published a new tariff in ( )ctol)er last, which proves that she found it impossible not to follow the example of the rest of Europe. THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 171 " In proportion as the prohibitory system is extended and ren- dered perfect in other countries, that state which pursues the con- trary system, makes, from day to day, sacrifices more extensive and more considerable. * * * Ji offers a continual encouragement to the manufactures of other countries, and its own manufactures perish in the struggle which they are, as yet, unable to maintain. " It is with the most lively feelings of regret we acknowledge it is our own proper experience which enables us to trace this i)ic- ture. The evils which it details have been realized in Russia and Poland, since the conclusion of the act of the seventh and nine- teenth of December, 1818. Agriculture without a marlict, indus- try ivithout iwotection, languish and decline. Specie is cxjinrlcd, and the most solid commercial liouses are shaken. The public prosperity would soon feel the wound inflicted on private fortunes, if new regulations did not promptly change the actual state of affairs. " ' Events have proved, that our agricidture and our commerce, as well as our mdnvfacturing industry, are not only paralyzed, but brought to the hrinlc of ruin.'' " The thousand-times-repeated charge of the tendencies of a man- ufacturing system to create an aristocracy, was dissolved by one sli"ht touch of the wand of Mr. Clay, and driven back to the shades whence it so often emerges. The following brilliant introduction by Mr. Clay, of a brilliant actor on the theatre of the world, studded by a preface of histori- cal gems as a vestibule of access, is not less worthy of a place here, than those condensed and sage remarks on the protective policy, reported from the lips of the exiled hero : — " The principle of the system under consideration, has the sanc- tion of some of the best and wisest men, in all ages, in foreign coun- tries as well as in our own — of the Edwardses, of Henry the Great, of Elizabeth, of the Colberts, abroad; of our Franklin, Jefferson, Madison, Hamilton, at home. But it comes recommended to us by a higher authority than any of these, illustrious as they unques- tionably are — by the master-spirit of the age — that extraordinary man, who has thrown the Alexanders and the C^sars infinitely further behind him than they stood in advance of the most eminent of their predecessors — that singular man, who, whether he was seated on his im[)erial throne, deciding the fate of nations and allotting kingdoms to the members of his fomily, with the same coni- posure, if not with the same affection, as that with which a Virginia father divides his plantations among his children, or on the miser- able rock of St. Helena, to which 'he was condemned by the cru- elty and the injustice of his unworthy victors, is equally an object 172 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. of lli(! most intense aclmiration. lie appears to liave comprehended, with tliu rapidity of intuition, the true interests of a slate, and to have been able, hy the turn of a single expression, to develop the secret springs of the j)olicy of cabinets. We find that Las Cases rej)orts him to have said : — " ' lie opposed the principles of economists, which he said were correct in theory, though erroneous in their application. Tlje political constitution of dillerent states, continued he, must render these principles defective ; local circumstances continually call for deviations from their uniformity. Duties, he said, which were so severely condemned by j)olitical economists, should not, it is true, be an object lo the treasury ; they should be the guar- anty and protection of a nation, and should correspond with the natme and the oijjects of its trade. Holland, which is destitute of productions and manufactures, and which has a trade only of transit and commission, should be free of all fetters and barriers. France, on the contrary, which is rich in every sort of production and manufactures, should incessantly guard against the iu)j)orta- tions of a rival, who might still continue superior to her, and also against the cupidity, egotism, and indiliercnce, of mere brokers. " ' 1 have not fallen into the erior of modern systcmatizers,' said the emperor, ' who imagine that all the wisdom of nations is centred in themselves. Experience is the true wisdom of nations. And what does all the reasoning of economists amount to ? They incessantly extol the j)rosperity of England, and hold her up as our model; but the custondiouse system is more burdensome and arbitrary in England than in any other country. They also cou- deum prohibitions ; yet it was England set the example of prohi- bitions ; and they are in fact necessary with regard to certain ol)j(;(ts. Duties can not adequately supply the place of prohi- hitions ; there will always be f(ni ml means to defeat the ohject of the legislator. In France we are still very far behind on these delicate points, which are still unperceived or ill understood by tiir mass of society. Yet, what advancement have we not made ; what correctness of ideas has been introduced hy my gradual clas- sification of agricidturc, industry, and trade — objects so distinct in themselves, and uhich present so great and positive a grati nation. " ' First : Ai^rlni/furc — the soul, the first basis, of the empire. " ' Second : liulusinj — the comfort and happiness of the popu- lation. " ' Third : Ft>rri^ or very earnest debates, was at last roused, in replying chiefly to ^l General ITaync, of South Carolina, to one of the greatest, most p** brilliant, and most eflVrtivc cflorts of his life, continued for three days, the 2d, 3d, and (ith of February, 1S32. At this point of the history, and at this juncture of the affairs, of the United States, Mr. Clay was well entitled to suppose, that he had fairly fought and won the battle for the protective policy. THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 181 and that it would never again be disturbed. In ordinary circum- stances, and but for extraordinary causes, this conclusion would have been realized. How could a nation be blinded to such facts ? It had been in distress ; it was relieved ; and everybody knew the cause. Nobody can understand the great political game in hand at that time, without an eye on the moral causes which influ- enced and controlled results — without looking steadily at the facts, first, that General Jackson had gained his ascendency, and ob- tained power, by injustice to Mr. Clay; and next, that, to retain this position, it was necessary to obscure Mr. Clay's steadily-grow- ing fame, as it beamed out from the healthful and salutary opera- tion of the American system, by destroying the system itself! That being gone, with all its blessings, there would be nobody to thank for it, because nobody could see a thing that was not. Or, if it should only be partially destroyed — ^marred, fettered, embar- rassed, so as to fail of its legitimate and best results, questions might then be raised as to its merits, and a controversy might be maintained that should put the public mind in doubt, which party was right. So, in fact, was this system impaired by the onsets of power made at that time, and sustained for many years, that it was thrown more and more into the dark, till at last it was well ni,o-h strangled. It obtained a new lease of life and breath — no one, perhaps, can tell how long- — in 1S42. But the man who, by a life of devotion to the cause, had so steadily fought, and so gloriously won, this great battle, in the so- cial and political conflicts of the country, was, by the events al- ready recognised, doomed to fight it all over again, and to bequeath the rights of conquest and the rewards of triumph, to those who should come after him, if luckily victory should ever again be ac- quired. To behold him taking up his position, in the senate of the United States, in 1S32, with this prospect before him, and under these recollections of the past, and opening by such words as these: "I feel but too sensibly and unaffectedly the effects of approaching age" — after having been forced from his retreat at Ashland, by the call of his friends and his country, for this express purpose — is a kind of spectacle that rarely occurs in the progress of human society. There he stands, and he begins on this wise : — " 1 stand here as the humble but zealous advocate, not of the interests of one state, or seven states only, but of the whole Union. And never before have I felt, .more intensely, the overpowering 182 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. wei"lit of that share of responsihility which belongs to me in tliese delihcralions. Never before have 1 liad more occasion than 1 now have, to lament my want of liiose intellectual powers, the posses- sion of wiiich might enable me to unfold to this senate, and to illustrate to this people, great truths, intimately connected with the lasting welfare of my country. I should, indeed, sink overwhelmed and subdued beneath the a])palling magnitude of the task wliich lies before me, if 1 did not feel myself sustained and fortified by a thorouirh consciousness of the justness of the cause which I have espoused, and by a persuasion, I hope not presumjjtuous, that it has the ap[)robatIon of that Providence who has so often smiled upon these ['nited Slates. " Eight years ago, it was my painful duty to present to the other house of Congress an unexaggerated picture of the general dis- tress pervading the whole land. We must all yet remember some of its frightfuf features. We all know that the people were then o]i|)ressed, and borne down by an enormous load of debt ; that the value of property was at the lowest point of depression ; that ruinous sales and sacrifices were everywhere made of real estate ; that stop laws, and relief laws, and paper money, were adopted, to save the people from impending destruction ; that a deficit in the public revenue existed, which compelled government to seize upon, and divert from its legitimate object, the appropriations to the sink- ing fimd, to redeem the national debt; and that our commerce and navigation were threatened with a complete paralysis. In short, sir, if I iccrc to select amj term of scvni years since the adop- tion of the present constitution ichich exhibited a scene of the most widespread dismay and desolation, it icoidd he exactly that term of seven years which immediately preceded the cstahlishnent of the tariff of 1824. " T have now to perform the more pleasing task of exhibiting an imperfect sketch of the existing state of the unparalleled prosper- ity of the country. On a general survey, we behold cultivation extended, the arts nourishing, the Aice of the country improved, our j)eople fully and profitably employed, and the public counte- nance exiiiiiiting tran(|uillity, contentment, and happiness. And if ' we descend into particulars, we have the agreeable contemplation of a people out of debt; land rising slowly in value, but in a se- cure and s;dut;uy degree; a ready though not extravagant market for all tjje surplus productions of our industry ; inmmierable flocks and herds browsing; and iramboling on ten thousand hills and plains, covered with rich and verdant grasses ; our cities expanded, and whole villages springing up, as it were, by enchantment ; our exports and imports increased and increasing ; our tonnage, foreign and coastwise, swelling and fully occujiied ; the rivers of our in- terior animated by the pi-rpetual thunder and lightning of count- less steamboats ; the currency sound ami abundant ; the public THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 183 debt of two wars nearly redeemed ; and, to crown all, the public treasury overflowing, embarrassing Congress, not to find subjects of taxation, but to select the objects which shall be liberated from the impost. If the term of seven years were to be selected, of the greatest iirosperity ivhich this 'peoi'ile have enjoyed since the estab- lishment of their ijrescnt constitution, it would be exactly that ])eriod of seven years which immediately followed the iiassage of the tariff of^ 1824. " This transformation of the condition of the country from gloom and distress to brightness and prosperity, has been mainly the work of American legislation, fostering American industry, in- stead of allowing it to be controlled by foreign legislation, cherish- ing foreign industry. The foes of the American system, in 1824, with great boldness and confidence, predicted, first, the ruin of the public revenue, and the creation of a necessity to resort to direct taxation — the gentleman from South Carolina [General Hayne], I believe, thought that the tariff of 1824 would operate a reduc- tion of revenue to the large amount of eight millions of dollars ; secondly, the destruction of our navigation ; tiiirdly, the desola- tion of commercial cities ; and, fourthly, the augmentation of the price of objects of consumption, and further decline in that of the articles of our exports. Every prediction which they made has failed — utterly fuiled. Instead of the ruin of the public revenue, with which they then sought to deter us from the adoption of the American system, we are now threatened with its subversion, by the vast amount of the public revenue produced by that system. Every branch of our navigation has increased." That it should be necessary to defend a system of policy, which had produced such decidedly beneficial, such magical, such stu- pendous effects on all the great and minor interests of the country, public and private — effects which everybody knew, everybody saw — is indeed a just subject of wonder, and can only be account- ed for by that unreasonable, unnatural hostility, armed with power, which was arrayed against it, for reasons and feelings personal in the breast of the chief magistrate of the nation, toward the au- thor of this system, to maintain a position gained at the expense of this public benefactor ! It is possible that the cotton planter's opposition should hav been the result of honest convictions ; for many have not even ye. discovered, that the more rapid growth of the nortli in wealth, is owin"- to its exemption from slavery ; that where all men work, all must thrive ; and that where the {ew depend on the involunta- ry labor of the miniy, they must look for the causes of slow-paced >hrift, or apparent decline, not in national laws, but in local insti- IS4 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. tutions. Protection is equally necessar}', and equally beneficial, to one part of the country as to another, and that which makes the nation rich, can not make a fraction of it poor. They who occu- py a narrow sphere, are liable to contracted views ; but he whose duty as a statesman, is to survey the whole field, can not be ex- cused, if lie looks at only a part, and judges from tliat part. It was not possible for those who administered the government of the United States in 1832, if they iiad the first qualification for their position, to be ignorant of the prosperity and wealth, which the protective policy was then pouring into the coffers of the nation, and dispensing with bountiful hand to every class of the indus- trious and frugal. It is therefore impossible to find an apology in that quarter for hostility to the system — for a fixed and settled plan to undermine and destroy it. (Jne can not but feel an interest in the position of Mr. Clay at that time. He could not say what may be incumbent on an histo- rian, in his exposition of moral causes, to suggest ; but he was obliged to face the storm, and confront the assailants of his long- cherished policy, organized in the government, as if the onset had sprung from the most patriotic and j)raiseworthy views. The op- position of those not connected \\ itii the government, was a differ- ent thing. It was fair, and could not be judged severely. Tliat which emanated from the federal administration, for such reasons as have been supposed, also required a respectful treatment. It was impossible to dive into the heart, and expose the secret springs of this hostility. The president was high in popular fiivor ; his will was law, and his wishes had only to be exj)ressed, to be exe- cuted. It was in this state of things, that Mr. Clay returned to Con- gress as a senator, in 1S31, to encounter an administration plan for the destruction of the protective policy — not, indeed, by open, but insidious action. The inducnces brought to bear from that quar- ter, were prodigious — overwhelming. Added to these were the feelings of the south — :ui agency managed on its own account — ripening into the alarming designs of nullification. It is only in view of these farts, that the position of Mr. Clay at that time can be appreciated, not alone as one of anxious concern to himself, but as one of momentous consequence to the country. After Mr. Clay had opened his argument, of February 2, 1832, as noticed i:i a foregoing extract, he proceeds to the exhibition of THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 185 some facts in answer to the predictions of the opponents of the tariff of 1S24, that it would desolate commercial cities, he the ruin of internal trade, &c. "I have in my hands," said Mr. Clay, "the assessed value of real estate in the city of New York, from 1S17 to 1S31. This value is canvassed, contested, scrutinized, and adjudged, by the proper sworn authorities. Jt is, therefore, entitled to full credence. During the first term, commencing with 1S17, and ending in the year of the passage of the tariff of 1824:, the amount of the value of real estate was, the first year, fifty-seven millions seven hundred and ninety-nine thousand, four hundred and thirty-five dollars, and, after various fluctuations in the intermediate period, it settled down at fifty-two millions nineteen thousand seven hundred and tliirty dollars, exhibiting a decrease, in seven years, of five millions seven hundred and seventy-nine thousand seven hundred and five dollars. During the first year, of 1825, after the passage of the tarifl', it rose, and, irraduallv ascendino; throughout the whole of the latter period of seven years, it finally, in 1831, reached the astonishing height of ninety -five millions seven hundred and sixteen thousand four hundred and eighty-five dollars ! Now, if it be said, tliat this rapid growtlj of the city of New York was the effect oi foreign commerce, then it was not correctly predicted, in 1824, that the tariff would destroy foreign commerce, and desolate our commer- cial cities. If, on the contrary, it be the effect of internal trade, then internal trade can not be justly chargeable with the evil con- sequences imputed to it. The truth is, it is the joint effect of both principles, the domestic industry nourishing the foreign trade, and the foreio-n commerce in turn nourishing the domestic industry. Nowhere more than in New York is the combination of both prin- ciples so completely developed. In the progress of my argument, I will consider the effect upon the price of commodities produced by the American system, and show that the very reverse of the prediction of its foes, in 1824, actually happened. «' While we thus behold the entire failure of all that was fore- told ao-ainst the system, it is a subject of just felicitation to its friends, that all their anticipations of its benefits have been fulfilled, or are in progress of fulfilment." Speaking of the variety and extent of interests comprehended in the protective policy, Mr. Clay says : — "Why, sir, there is scarcely an interest, scarcely a vocation in society, which is not embraced by the beneficence of this systenri. " It comprehends our coasting tonnage and trade, from which all foreign tonnage is absolutely excluded. " It includes all our foreign tonnage, with the inconsiderable ex- ception made by treaties of reciprocity with a few foreign powers. 186 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. " It embraces our fisheries, and all our hardy and enterprisin'' fishernien. " It extends to almost every mechanic art — to tanners, cordwain- ers, tailors, cahinet-inakers, hatters, tinners, brass-workers, clock- makers, coach-makers, tallow-chandlers, trace-makers, rope-makers, cork-cutters, tobacconists, wliip-niakcrs, j)aj)er-makcrs, umbrella- makers, glass-blowers, stocking-weavers, butter-makers, saddle and harness-makers, cullers, brush-makers, book-binders, dairy-men, milk-farmers, blacksmiths, type-founders, musical instrument-ma- kers, basket-makers, milliners, potters, chocolate-makers, floor- cloth-makers, bonnet-makers, hair-cloth-makers, coj)per-smiths, pencil-makers, bellows-makers, pocket-book-makers, card-makers, glue-makers, mustard-makers, lumber-sawyers, saw-makers, scale- beam-makers, scythe-makers, wood-saw-makers, and many others. The mechanics enumerated enjoy a measure of protection adapted to their several conditions, varying from twenty to fifty per cent. The extent and importance of some of these artisans, may be es- timated by a few i)articulars. The tanners, curriers, boot and shoe makers, and other workers in hides, skins, and leather, pro- duce an ultimate value per annum of forty millions of dollars; the manufacturers of hats and caps, j)roduce an annual value of fifteen millions; the cabinet-makers, twelve millions; the ^iianufacturers of bonnets and hats for the female sex, lace, artificial flowers, combs, and so forth, seven millions ; and the manufacturers of glass, five millions. " It extends to all lower Louisiana, the delta of which might as well be submerged again in the gulf of Mexico, from which it has been a gradual conquest, as now to be deprived of the protecting duty upon its great staple. " It afTects the cotton-|)]anter himself, and the tobacco-planter, both of wiiom enjoy protection. " The total amount of the capital vested in sheep, the land to sustain them, wool, woollen manuAictures, and woollen fabrics, and the subsistence of the \;ui()us persons directly or indirectly employed in the irrowih and manufacture of the article of wool, is estimated at one hundred and sixty-seven millions of dollars, and the nuiubcr of persons at one hundred and fifty thousand. " The value of iron, considered as a raw material, and of its manufactures, is estimated at twenty-six millions of dollars per annum, ('otton ltooiIs, exclusive of the caj)ital vested in the man- ufacture, and of the cost of the raw material, are believed to amount, annually, to about twenty millions of dollars." Of course, it will \)v. observed, that all these interests have (greatly enlarged, since 1S'V2. " Such," sa^s Mr. Clay, '• are some of the items of this vast system (jf protection, which it is now pro])osed to abandon. We THE PROTECTIVE POLICy. 187 might well pause and contemplate, if human imagination could conceive the extent of mischief and ruin from its total over- throw, before we proceed to the work of destruction. Its dura- tion is worthy also of serious consideration. Not to go behind the constitution, its date is coeval with that instrument. It began on the ever-memorable fourth day of July — the fourth day of July, 1789. The second act which stands recorded in the statute-book, bearing the illustrious signature of George Washington, laid the corner-stone of the whole system. That there might be no mis- take about the matter, it was then solemnly proclaimed to the American people and to the world, that it was necessary for ' the encouragement and p-otection of manufactures,' that duties should be laid. It is in vain to urge the small amount of the measure of the protection then extended. The great principle was then es- tablished by the fathers of the constitution, with the father of his country at their head. And it can not now be questioned, that, if the government had not then been new and the subject untried, a greater measure of protection would have been applied, if it had been supposed necessary. Shortly after, the master minds of Jef- ferson and Hamilton were brought to act on this interesting sub- ject. Taking views of it appertaining to the departments of for- eign affairs and of the treasury, which they respectively filled, they presented, severally, reports which yet remain monuments of their profound wisdom, and came to the same conclusion of protection to American industry. Mr. Jefferson argued that foreign restric- tions, foreign prohibitions, and foreign high duties, ought to be met at home by American restrictions, American prohibitions, and American high duties. Mr. Hamilton, surveying the entire ground, and looking at the inherent nature of the subject, treated it with an ability, which, if ever equalled, has not been surpassed, and earnestly recommended protection." Mr. Clay notices the transient seductive influences of the great French revolution on the commercial enterprise of the country, while the United States realized all the benefits of a neutral posi- tion, which, for a season, diverted attention from domestic manu- factures, and checked their growth. " Then came the edicts of Napoleon, and the British orders in council ; and our embargo, non-intercourse, non-importation, and war, followed in rapid succession. These national measures, amounting to a total suspension, for the period of their duration, of our foreign commerce, afforded the most efficacious encourage- ment to American manullictures ; and accordingly they everywhere sprung up. While these measures of restriction and this state of war continued, the manufacturers were stimulated in their enter- prise by every assurance of support, by public sentiment, and by legislative resolves. It was about that period [iSUSj that South ISS THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. Carolina l)orc her liigh testimony to the wisdom of the poHcy, in an act of her legislature, the preamble of which, now before me, reads : — *' ' Whereas, the establishment and cncourof^emmt of domestic manufactures, is conducive to the interests of a state, by adding new incentives to industnj, and as being the means of disposing to advantage the snr|)lus |)roductions odhcugriculfi/ri.st ; and whereas, in the ])resent unexam])lcd slate of the world, (heir establishment in our country is not only expedient, but politic, in rendering us inihpnulcnt of foreign nations.' " This surely, was a remarkable and instructive position for South Carolina to occupy, compared with that of 1S32. "Peace, under the treaty of Ghent, returned in ISlo, but there did not return with it the golden days which preceded the edicts levelled at our coimnerce bv (Jreat Jjritain and France. It found all J'iiirope tran(|iiiily resuming the arts and the business of civil life. It found l">urope no longer the consumer of our surplus, and the employer of our navii^ation, but excluding, or heavily burden- ing, almost all the productions of our agriculture, and our rivals in manufactures, in naviLjation, and in commerce. It foimd our country, in short, in a situation totally dill'erent fiom all the past — new and untried. Jt became necessary to adapt our laws and es- pecially our laws of impost, to the new circumstances in which we found ourselves. * * * It has been said, that the tariff of ISKi was a measinc of mere revenue, and that it onlv reduced the war diuies to a peace standard. It is true, that the question then was, how much and in what way should the double duties of the war be reduced V Now, also, the question is, on what articles shall the duties be reduced so as to subject the amounts of the fu- ture revenue to the wants of the government? Then it was deemed an inrpiiry of the first importance, as it should be now, how the reduction should be made, so as to secure proper encour- agement lo our domestic industry. That this was a leading object in the arrangeuient of the tariff of ISIG, I well remeniber, and it is demonstrated by the language of Mr. Dallas. He says, in his report: ' There are few, if any governments, which do not regard the establishment of domestic manufactures as a chief object of public policy. The United iStates have n/irai/s so regarded it.' The measure of prot{>ction which he proposed was not adopted, in regard to some Icadin.^ articles, and there was great dilliculty in ascertaining what it ought to have been. But the principle was then distinctly asserted, and fully sanctioned. " The subject of tlit- Anjerican system was again brought up in 1S2U, by the bill reported by the chairman of the committee of manufacture^-:, now a member of ihc bench of the su|)reme comt of the United States, and the priu(i[ile was successfully maintained THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 189 by the representatives of the people ; but the bill which they passed was defeated in the senate. It was revived in 1824, the whole ground carefully and deliberately explored, and the bill then intro- duced, receiving all the sanctions of the constitution, became the law of the land. An amendment of the system was proposed in 1828, to the history of which I refer whh no agreeable recollec- tions. The bill of that year, in some of its provisions, was framed on principles directly adverse to the declared wishes of the friends of the policy of protection. I have heard, without vouching for the fact, that it was so framed, upon the advice of a prominent cit- izen, now abroad [Mr. Van Burcn], with the view of ultimately defeating the bill, and with assurances that, being altogether unac- ceptable to the friends of the American system, the bill would be lost. Be that as it may, the most exceptionable features of the bill were stamped upon it, against the earnest remonstrances of the friends of the system, by the votes of southern members, upon a principle, I think, as unsound in legislation as it is reprehensible in ethics. The bill was passed, notwithstanding, it having been deemed better to take the bad along with the good which it con- tained, than reject it altogether. Subsequent legislation has cor- rected the error then perpetrated, but still that measure is vehe- mently denounced by gentlemen who contributed to make it what it was. " Thus, sir, has this great system of protection been gradually built, stone upon stone, and step by step, from the 4th of July, 1789, down to the present period. . In every stage of its progress it has received the deliberate sanction of Congress. A vast major- ity of the people of the United States has approved and continue to approve it. Every chief magistrate of the United States, from Washington to the present, in some form or other, has given to it the authority of his name ; and, however the opinions of the exist- ing president are interpreted south of Mason and Dixon's line, on the north they are at least understood to favor the establishment of V. judicious tariff." There was something very sarcastic in these words, " under- stood," "judicious." " The question, therefore, which we are now called upon to de- termine, is not, whether we shall establish a new and doubtlul system of policy, just proposed, and for the first time presented to our consideration ; but whether we shall break down and destroy a long-established system, patiently and carefully built up and sanc- tioned, during a series of years, again and again, by the nation an( its highest and most revered authorities? And are we not bound deliberately to consider whether we can proceed to tjhis work ot destruction without a violation of the public faith ? 1 he people of the United States have justly supposed, that the policy ot pro- 190 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. tectini^ their inrlustiy against foreign legislation and foreign indus- try, was fully settled, not by a single act, but by repeated and de- liberate acts of government, performed at distant and frerpient intervals. In fidl conridence that the polirv was firmly and un- changeably fixed, thousands upon thousands have invested their capital, piu'chased a vast amount of real and other estate, made permanent establishments, and accommodated their industry. Can we exj)Osc to utter and irretrievable ruin this countless multi- tude, without justly incurring the reproach of violating the national faith V " When f^entlemen have succeeded in their design of an imme- diate or gradual destruction of the American system, what is their substitute? Free trade ? Free trade ! The call for free trade is as unavailing, as the cry of a spoiled child in its nurse's arms, for the moon, or the stars that glitter in the firmament of heaven. It never has existed, it never will exist. Trade implies at least two parties. To be free, it should be fair, equal, and reciprocal. But if we throw our ports wide open to the admission of foreign pro- ductions, free of all duty, what ports of any other foreign nation shall we find open to the free admission of our surplus produce? We may break down all barriers to free trade on our part, but the work will not be complete, until forciuni powers shall have removed theirs. There would be freedom on one side, and restrictions, prohibitions, and exclusions, on the other. The bolts, and the bars, and the chains, of all other nations will remain imdisturbcd. It is, indeed, possible, that our industry and commerce would acconuuo- date themselves to this unecpial and unjust state f)f thini^^s ; for such is the (lexibility of our nature, that it bends itself to all circumstan- ces. The wretched prisoner, incarcerated in a jail, after a long time, becomes reconciled to his solitude, and regularly notches down the passing days of his confinement. " (lentlemen deceive themselves. It is not free trade that they arc recommending to our acceptance. It is, in efiect, the British colonial system that we are invited to adopt ; and, if their policy prevail, it will lead substantially to the recolonization of dicse states, under the commercial dominion of Great Britain." The opponents of Mr. Clay were much addicted to quote for- eign authorities, especially liritisli. in support of the doctrine of free trade, ^^'hereupon Mr. Clay Hung back in their face the fol- lowing citation from a si)eech of a member of parliament: — " ' // wax idle for ii.i (o cmJciiror fo pcrsiiadr other nations tn join with lis in adoi'ting the ■j)rincij)les of what teas called ^ free trade.'' Other nations hncw, as well as the noble lord opposite, and those jcho acted with him, what we meant b)/ ^ free trade,* was vothincr more nor less than, by means of the great advantages we enjoyed, to THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 191 get a monopoly of all their marlcets for our manvfactnres, avd to prevent them, one and all, from ever becoming manufacturing nations. When the system of reciprocity and free trade had been proposed to a French ambassador, his remark was, that the plan was excel- lent in theory, but, to make it fair in practice, it would be neces- sary to defer the attempt to put it in execution for half a century, until France should be on the same footing with Great Britain, in marine, in manufactures, in capital, and the many other peculiar advantages which it now enjoyed. The policy that France acted on, was that of encouraging its native manufactures, and it was a wise policy ; because, if it were freely to admit our manufactures, it would speedily be reduced to the rank of an agricultural nation; and therefore, a poor nation, as all must be that depend exclusively upon agriculture. America acted, too, upon the same principle with France. America legislated for futurity — legislated for an increasing population. America, too, was prospering under this system. In twenty years, America would be independent of Eng- land for manufactures altogether. * * * g^j since the peace, France, Germany, America, and all the other countries of the world, had proceeded upon the principle of encouraging and pro- tecting native manufactures.' " Mr. Clay also edified his opponents, and all whom it might con- cern, with some curious and instructive citations from the work of Joshua Gee, published in 1750, setdng forth how the British col- onies ought to be treated, under the following heads: — " 'First, that manufactures, in American colonies, should be dis- couraged, or prohibited. * * * We ought always to keep a watchful eye over our colonies, to restrain them from setdng up any of the manufactures which are carried on in Great Britain; and any such attempts should be crushed in the beginning; for if they are suffered to grow up to maturity, it will be difficult to sup- press them. " ' Our colonies are much in the same state Ireland was in, when they began the woollen manufactory, and as their numbers increase, will fall upon manufactures for clotlung themselves, if due care be not taken to find employment for them, in raising such productions as may enable them to furnish dicmselves with all their necessaries from us. * * * * * * " 'Secondly, tbe advantages to Great Britain, from keeping the colonists dependent on her for their essential supplies. " ' If we examine into the circumstances of the inhabitants of our plantations, and our own, it will appear, that not one fourth part of their product redounds to their own iimfl; for out of all that comes here, they only carry back clothing, and other acommo- dations for their families, all of which is of the merchandise and manufacture of this kingdom.' 192 THE PHOTECTIVE POLICY. •'After showing how this system tends to concentrate all the sur- plus of uciiuisition over absolute expenditure in KuL^dund, he says : — " 'All these advantages we receive by the plantations, besides the morto-ages on the planters' estates, and the high interest they pay us, which is very considerable; and therefore very great care ought to be taken in regulating all the affairs of the colonists, that the planters be not put under too mamj d'lJjicuLues, but encouraged to go on cheerfully. " 'New Ku'dand and the northern colonies have not commodities and products enough to send us, in return, for purchasing their necessary clothing, but are under very great difficulties, and there- fore any ordinary sort sells with them. And wlien they have grown out of fashion with us, they are new-fashioned enough there.' " After having made liberal citations of this kind from this author, Mr. Clay says: — " Sir, 1 can not go on with this disgusting detail. Their refuse "■oods, their old shop-keepers, their cast-off clothes good enough for us ! Was there ever a scheme more artfully devised, by which the enerf cheapness and superiority, as upon impregnable ground, (icn- THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 201 ilemen may tax their ingenuity, and produce a thousand specula- tive solutions of the fact, but the fact itself will remain undisturbed. " I take tliis to be a true principle, that if our country is pro- ducing a raw material of prime necessity, and with reasonable pro- tection, can produce it in sufficient quantity to supply our wants, that raw materal ought to be protected, although it may be proper to protect the article also out of which it is manufactured. The tailor will ask protection for himself, but wishes it denied to the grower of wool and the manufacturer of broadcloth. The cotton planter enjoys protection for the raw material, but does not desire it to be extended to the cotton manufacturer. The shipbuilder will ask protection for navigation, but does not wish it extended to the essential articles which enter into the construction of his ship. Each in his proper vocation solicits protection, but would have it denied to all other interests which are supposed to come into collision with his. " Now the duty of the statesman is, to elevate himself above these petty conflicts — calmly to survey all the various interests, and deliberately to proportion the measures of protection to each, according to its nature and to the general wants of society. * * * The success of our manufacture of coarse cottons is generally admitted. It is demonstrated by the fact that they meet the cotton fabrics of other countries in foreign markets, and maintain a success- ful competition with them. There has been a gradual increase of the exports of this article, which is sent to Mexico and the >South American republics, to the Mediterranean, and even to Asia. The remarkable fact was lately communicated to me, that the same in- dividual, who twenty-five years ago was engaged in the importation of cotton cloth from Asia for American consumption, is now en- gaged in the exportation of coarse Auierican cottons to Asia, for Asiatic consumption ! And my honorable friend from Massachu- setts, now in my eye [Mr. Silsbee], informed me, that on his departure from home, among tiie last orders which he gave, one was for the exportation of coape cottons to Sumatra, in the vicin- ity of Calcutta ! 1 hold in my hand a statement, derived from the most authentic source, showing that the identical description of cotton cloth, which sold in 1S17 at twenty-nine cents per yard, was sold in 1819 at twenty-one cents, in 1821 at nineteen and a half cents, in 1823 at seventeen cents, in 1825 at fourteen and a half cents, in 1827 at thirteen cents, in 1829 at nine cents, in 1830 at nine and a half cents, and in 1831 at from ten and a half to eleven. Such is the wonderful effect of protection, competition, and improvement in skill, combined ! The year 1829 was one of some suffering to this branch of industry, probably owing to the principle of competition being pushed too far. Hence we observe a small rise in the article of the next two years. The introduction 202 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. of calico-piintiiirr into the United States, constitutes an iniportanl era in our niunurucluring industry, ll connneiict'd about the year 182o, and has since made sucli astoni.sliini^ advances, that the whole quantity now annually printed is but little short of forty mill- ions of yards — about two thirds of our whole consumption. It is a beautiful manufacture, combininLj ^^eat mechanical skill with scientific discoveries in chymistry. The enji^^raved cylinders for makint^ the impression require much taste, and put in re(juisition the «^fenius of the fine arts of design and engraving. Are the fine graceful forms of our fair countrywomen less lovely when envel- oped in the chintzes and calicoes produced by native industry, than when clothed in the tinsel of foreign drapery ? *' Gentlemen are no doubt surprised at these facts. They should not underrate the energies, the enterprise, and the skill of our fellow-citizens. I have no doubt they are every way compe- tent to accom[)lish whatever can be cfiected by any other people, if encouraged and protected by the fostering care of our own gov- ernment. Will gentlemen believe the fact, which I am authorized now to state, that the United States, at this time, manufacture one half the quantity of cotton which Great liritain did in ISIG ! We possess three great advantages : first, the raw material ; second, water-power instead of that of steam, generally used in England ; and, third, the cheaper labor of females. In England, males spin with the mule and weave ; in this country, women and girls spin with the throstle, and superintend the power-loom. And can there bo any employment more appr()[)riate "? Who has not been de- lighted with contemplating tlie clockwork regularity of a lari^^e cot- ton manufactory? I have often visited them at Cincinnati and other places, and always with increased admiration. The women, separated from the other sex, work in a|)artments, large, airy, well wanned, and spacious. Xeatly dressed, with ruddy complexions, and happy countenances, they watch the work before them, mend the broken threads, and replace the exhausted balls or broaches. At stated hours they arc called to their meals, and go and return with light and cheerful step. At night they separate, and repair to their res])ectivc houses, under the care of a mother, guardian, or friend. * * * In respect to woollens, every gentleman's own observation and experience will enable him to judge of the great reduction of price which has taken i)lace in most of these articles, since the larilfof J S2-4. It would have been still greater, but for the hii;h duty on the raw material, imposed for the partic- ular benefit of the farniin;^ interest. But, without going into par- ticular details, I shall limit mvself to invitinir the attention of the senate to a single article of gtMieral and necessary use. The j)ro- tection given to (lannels in I ^:JS was fully adecpiate. It has ena- bled the American maiuifactmer to obtain complete possession of the American market ; and now, let us look at the ellect 1 have THE PROTECTIVE POLICy. 203 before me a statement from a highly respectable mercantile house, showing the price of four descriptions of flannel during six years. The average price of them, in 1826, was thirty-eight cents and three quarters ; in 1827, thirty-eight ; in 1828 (the year of the tarift'), forty-six; in 1829, thirty-six; in 1830 (notwithstanding the advance in the price of wool), thirty-two ; and in 1831, thirty- two and one quarter. These facts require no comments. I have before me another statement of a practical and respectable man, well versed in the flannel manufacture in America and Eng- land, demonstrating that the cost of manufacture is precisely the same in both countries ; and that, although a yard of flannel which would sell in England at fifteen cents, would command here twen- ty-two, the difference of seven cents is the exact difference between the cost in the two countries, of the six ounces of wool contained in a yard of flannel. " Brown sugar, during ten years, from 1792 to 1802, with a duty of one and a half cents per pound, averaged fourteen cents per pound. The same article, during ten years, froni 1820 to 1830, wuth a duty of three cents, has averaged only eight cents per pound. Nails, with a duty of five cents per pound, are selling at six cents. Window-glass, eight by ten, prior to the tariff of 1824, sold at twelve or thirteen dollars per hundred feet ; it now sells for three dollars and seventy-five cents. ********** " Of all human powers operating on the affairs of mankind, none is greater than that of competition. It is action and reaction. It operates between individuals in the same nation, and between dif- ferent nations. It resembles the meeting of the mountain torrent, grooving, by its precipitous motion, its own channel, and ocean's tide. Unopposed, it sweeps everything before it ; but, counter- poised, the waters become calm, safe, and regular. It is like the segments of a circle, or an arch : taken separately, each is nothing, but in their combination they produce efficiency, symmetry, and perfection. By the American system this vast power has been ex- cited in America, and brought into being to act in co-operation or collision with European industry. Europe acts within itself, and with America; and America acts within itself, and with Europe. The consequence is the reduction of prices in both hemispheres. Nor is it fair to argue from the reduction of prices in Europe, to her own presumed skill and labor exclusively. We affect her prices, and she affects ours. This must always be the case, at least in reference to any articles as to which there is not a total non-intercourse; and if our industry, by diminishing the demand for her supplies, should produce a diminution in the price of those supplies, it would be very unfair to ascribe that reduction to her ingenuity, instead of placing it to the credit of our own skill and excited industry. 204 THE rnOTECTIVE POLICY. " Practical men understand very well ibis state of tlie case, wlunlicr they do or do not coniprcliend the causes which produce it. 1 have in my possession a letter from a respectable merchant, well known to me, in which he says, after complaining of the op- eration of the tariff of 1S2S, on the articles to which it applies, some of which he had imported, and that his purchases having been made in England, before the passage of that tariff was known, it produced such an eOect upon the English market, that the arti- cles could not be resold without loss. He adds : ' For it rrdlhj appears, that, when additional duties are laid upon an article, it then becomes lower instead of Iiig/irr.^ This would not probably happen, where the su])ply of the foreign article did not exceed the home demand, unless upon the supjiosition of the increased dutv havinf excited or stimulated the measure of die home p'ro- duction. " The great law of iirice is determined by supply and demand. Whatever afiects either, affects the price. If the supply is in- creased, the demand remaining the same, the price declines ; if the demand is increased, the sui)j)ly remaining tlie same, the price advances ; if both supply and demand are undiminished, the price is stationary, and the price is inlluenced exactly in proportion to the degree of disturbance to tlie demand or supjily. It is, there- fore, a great error to suppose that an existing or new duty lucissa- rili/ becomes a component element to its exact amount of price. If the proportions of demand and sujiiily arc varied by the duty, either in augmenting the supply, or diminishing the demand, or vice versa, price is affected to the extent of that variation. But the duty never becomes an integral part of the price, except in the in- stances where the demand and the supply remain, after the duty is imposed, precisely what they were before, or the demand is in- creased, and the supply remains stationary. " Couipeiition, therefore, wherever existing, whether at home or abroad, is the parent cause of cheapness. If a high duty ex- cites production at home, and the quantity of the domestic article exceeds the amount which liiid been previously imported, the price will fall. This accounts for an extraordinary fact stated by a sen- ator from Missouri. Three cents were laid as a iluty upon a j^ound of lead, by the act of 1S2S. The price at Galena, and the oilier lead mines, afterward fell to one and a half cents per pound. Xow it is obvious that the duty did not, in this case, enter into the price ; for it was twice the amount of the price. What jiroduccd the fdl ? It was stiinutatrd production at home, excited by the temp- tation of the exclusive possc'ssion of the home market. This state of thini^s could not last. Men would not continue an un|)ioriiable pursuit : some abandoned the business, or the total fpiantity |)ro- duced was diminished, and living prices have been the consequence. But break down the domestic supply, place us again in a state of THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 205 dependence on the foreign source, and can it be doubted that we should ultimately have to supply ourselves at dearer rates ? It is not fair to credit the foreign market with the depression of prices produced there by the influence of our competition. Let the com- petition be withdrawn, and their prices would instantly rise. On this subject, great mistakes are committed. * * * * It is not, therefore, those who, by keeping on duties, keep down prices, that tax the people ; but those who, by repealing duties, would raise prices, that really impose burdens upon the people. " But it is argued, that if, by the skill, experience, and perfec- tion, which we have acquired in certain branches of manufacture, they can be made as cheap as similar articles abroad, and enter fairly into competition widi tiiem, why not repeal the duties as to those articles ? And why should we ? Assuming the truth of the supposition, the foreign article would not be introduced in the reg- ular course of trade, but would remain excluded by the possession of the home market, which the domestic article had obtained. The repeal, therefore, would have no legitimate effect. But might not the foreign article be imported in vast quantities, to glut our markets, break down our establishments, and ultimately to enable the foreigner to monopolize the supply of our consumption ? America is the greatest foreign market for European manufactures. It is that to which European attention is constantly directed. If a great house becomes bankrupt there, its storehouses are emptied, and the goods are shipped to America, where, in consequence of our auctions, and our customhouse credits, the greatest facilities are afforded in the sale of them. Combinations among manufac- ' turers might take place, or even the operations of foreign govern- ments might be directed to the destruction of our establishments. A repeal, therefore, of one protecting duty, from some one or all of these causes, would be followed by flooding the country with the foreign fabric, surcharging the market, reducing the price, and a complete prostration of our manufactories ; after which the for- eigner would leisurely look about to indemnify himself in the in- creased prices which he would be enabled to command by his monopoly of the supply of our consumption. What American citizen, after the government had displayed this vacillating policy, would be again tempted to place the smallest confidence in the public faith, and adventure once more in this branch of industry? " Gentlemen have allowed to the manufacturing portions of the community no peace ; they have been constantly threatened with the overthrow of the American system. From the year 1820, if not from 1810, down to this time, they have been held in a con- dition of constant alarm and insecurity. Nothing is more prejudi- cial to the great interests of a nation than unsettled and varying policy. Although every appeal to the national legislature has been responded to in conformity with the wishes and sentiments of the 206 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. great majority of the peojile, measures of protection have only been carried by such small niajorities as to excite hopes on the one hand, and fears on the other. Let the country breathe, let its vast resources be developed, let its energies be fully put forth, let it have tranrpiillity, and, my word for it, the degree of perfection in the arts, which it will exhibit, will be greater than that which has been presented, astonishing as our progress has been. Althou;,^! some branches of our manufactures inii^ht, and in foreign markets now do, fearlessly contend with similar foreign fabrics, there are many others, yet in their infancy, struirirling with the di/Ticulties which encompass them. We should look at the whole sv.-tcm, and recollect that time, when we contemplate the great movements of a nation, is very different from the short period which is allotted for the duration of individual life. The honorable gentleman from South Carolina well and elorpiently said, in 1*^24: ' Xo great in- terest of any country ever yet grew up in a day ; no new liranch of industry can become firmly and profitably established, but in a long course of years; everything, indeed, great or good, is matured by slow degrees ; that which attains a speedy maturity is of small value, and is destined to a brief existence. It is the order of Prov- idence, that powers gradually developed, shall alone attain perma- nency and ])erfection. Thus must it be with our national institu- tions, and national character itself.' «** *»#•♦ " I have now to consider the remaining of the two pro|)ositions which I have already announced. That is, that, under the oi)era- tion of the American system, the products of our agriculture com- mand a higher price than they would do without it, by the creation of a home market, and by the augmentation of wealth produced by manufacturing industry, which enlarges our powers of consump- tion, both of domestic and foreign articles. Tlie importance of the home market is among the established maxims which are imiver- sally recognised by all writers and all men. However some may differ as to the relative advantaires of the foreign and the home market, none deny to the latter great value and high consideration. It is nearer to us, beyond the control of foreign legislation, and undisturbed by those vicissitudes to which all international inter- course is more or less exposed. The most stupid are sensible of the benefit of a residence in the vicinity of a large manufactory, or of a market town, of a good road, or of a navigable stream, which connects their farms with some <;reat capital. If the pursuits of all men were perfectly the same, although they would be in possession of the greatest abundance of the particular |)roduce of their indus- try, they might, at the same time, be in extreme want of other necessary articles of human subsistence. The uniformity of the general occupation would |)recln(le all exchanges, all commerce. It is only in the diversity of the vocations of the members of a THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 207 community, that the means can.be found for those salutary ex- chanoes which conduce to the general prosperity. And the greater that diversity, the more extensive and the more animating is the circle of exchange. Even if foreign markets were freely and widely open to the reception of our agricultural produce, from its bulky nature, and the distance of the interior, and the dangers of the ocean, large portions of it could never profitably reach the foreign market. But let us quit this field of theory, clear as it is, and look at the practical operation of the system of protection, beginning with the most valuable staple of our agriculture. " In considering this staple, the first circumstance that excites our surprise, is the rapidity with which the amount of it has annu- ally increased. Does not this fact, however, demonstrate that thtf cultivation of it could not have been so very unprofitable ? If the business were ruinous, would more and more have annually en- gaged in it? The quantity in ISIG, was eighty-one millions of pounds; in 1826, two hundred and four m i 'lions ; and in 1S30, near three hundred millions ! The ground of greatest surprise is, that it has been able to sustain even its present price with such an enormous augmentation of quantity. It could not have been done but for the combined operation of three causes, by which the con- sumption of cotton fabrics has been greatly extended, in conse- quence of their reduced prices : first, competition ; second, the improvement of labor-saving machinery ; and, thirdly, the low price of the raw material. The crop of 1819, amounting to eighty- eight millions of pounds, produced twenty-one millions of dollars ; the crop of 1823, when the amount was swelled to one hundred and seventy four millions (almost double that of 1819), produced a less sum by more than half a million of dollars ; and the crop of 1824, amounting to thirty millions of pounds less than that of the preceding year, produced a million and a half of dollars more. " If there be any foundation for the established law of price, supply and demand, ought not the fact of this great increase of the supply to account satisfactorily for the alleged low price of cotton? Is it necessary to look beyond that single fact to the tariff, to the diminished price of the mines furnishing the precious metals, or to any other cause, for the solution ? * * * If there be any truth in the facts and principles which I have before stated, and endeav- ored to illustrate, it can not be doubted that the existence of Amer- ican manufactures has tended to increase the demand, and extend the consumption of the raw material ; and that, but for this in- creased demand, the price of the article would have fallen, possibly one half lower than it now is. The error of the opposite argument is, in assuming one thing, wdiich being denied, the whole fails ; that is, it assumes that the whole labor of the United States would be profitably employed without manufactures. Now, the truth is, that the system excites and creates labor, and this labor creates 208 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. wealth, and tliis new wealth cogimunicates additional ability to consume, which acts on all the objects contributing to human comfort and cnjoyinent. The amount of cotton imported into the two ports of Boston and Providence alone during the last year (and it was imported exclusively for the home manufacture), was one hundred and nine thousand five hundred and seventeen bales. " On passing from that article to others of our agricultural pro- duction, we shall find not less gratifying facts. The total quantity of tloiu- imported into Boston, during the same year, was two hun- dred and eighty-four diousand five hundred and four barrels, and three thousand nine hundred and fifty-five half barrels ; of which, there were from Virginia, Georgetown, and Alexandria, one hun- dred and fourteen thousand two hundred and twenty-two barrels ; of Indian corn, six hundred and eighty-one thousand one hundred and thirty-one bushels ; of oats, two hundred and thirty-nine thou- sand eight hundred and nine bushels ; of rye, about fifty thousand bushels ; and of shorts, thirty-three thousand four hundred and eightv-nine bushels ; into the port of Providence, seventy-one thousand three hundred and sixty-nine barrels of flour; two hun- dred and sixteen thousand six hundred and sixty-two bushels of Indian corn, and seven thousand seven hundred and seventy-two bushels of rye. And there were discharged at the port of Phila- delphia, four hundred and twenty thousand three hundred and fifty- three bushels of Indian corn ; two hundred and one thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight bushels of wheat, and one hun- dred and ten thousand five hundred and fifty-seven bushels of rye and barley. There were slaughtered in Boston during the same year, 1S31 (the onlv northern city from which I have obtained re- turns), thirtv-three thousand nine hundreil and twenty-two beef- cattle ; fifteen thousand and four hundred calves ; eighty-four thousand four hundred and fifty-three sheep, and twenty-six thou- sand eifdit hundred and seventv-one swine. It is confidcntlv be- lieved, that there is not a less quantity of southern flour consumed at the north than eight hundred thousand barrels, a greater amount, probal)ly, than is sliipped to all the foreign markets of the world together. " What would be the condition of the farming country of the United States — of all that portion which lies north, east, and west of James river, including a large part of IS'orth Carolina — if a home market did not exist for this immense amount of agricultu- ral produce? Without that market, where could it be sold? In forcii^n markets? if their restrictive laws did not exist, their ca- pacity would not enable them to purchase and consume this vast addition to their present supplies, which must be thrown in, or thrown away, but for the home market. 15 ut their laws exclude us from their markets. I shall content myself by calling the at- tention of the senate to (Jreat Britain onlv. The duties in the THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 209 ports of the united kingdom on bread-stuffs are prohibitory, ex- cept in times of dearth. On rice, the duty is fifteen shilhngs sterhng per hundred weight, being more than one hundred per centum. On manufactured tobacco it is nine shilhngs sterhng per pound, or about two thousand per centum. Of leaf tobacco three shillings per pound, or one thousand two hundred per cent. On lumber, and some other articles, they are from four hundred to fifteen hundred per centum more than on similar articles im- ported from British colonies. In the British West Indies the duty on beef, pork, hams, and bacon, is twelve shillings sterling per hundred, more than one hundred per centum on the first cost of beef and pork in the western states. And yet Great Britain is the power in whose behalf we are called upon to legislate, so that we may enable her to purchase our cotton ! — Great Britain, that thinks only of herself in her own legislation ! When have we experienced justice, much less favor, at her hands? When did she shape her legislation in reference to the interests of any for- eign power? She is a great, opulent, and powerful nation; but haughty, arrogant, and supercilious — not more separated from the rest of the world by the sea that girts her island, than she is sep- arated in feeling, sympathy, or friendly consideration of their wel- fare. Gentlemen, in supposing it impracticable that we should successfidly compete with her in manufactures, do injustice to the skill and enterprise of their own country. Gallant as Great Brit- ain undoubtedly is, we have gloriously contended with her, man to man, gun to gun, ship to ship, fleet to fleet, and army to army. And I have no doubt we are destined to achieve equal success in the more useful, if not nobler contest for superiority in the arts of civil life. " I could extend and dwell on the long list of articles — the hemp, iron, lead, coal, and other items — for which a demand is created in the home market by the operation of the American sys- tem ; but I should exhaust the patience of the senate. TVhcrc, tvhcrr, should we find a market for all these articles, if it did not exist at home ? Wliat would be the condition of the largest poi- tion of our people, and of the territory, if this home market were annihilated ? How could they be supplied with objects of prime necessity? What would not be the certain and inevitable decline in the price of all these articles, but for the home market? And allow me, Mr. President, to say, that of all the agricultural parts of the United States which are benefited by the operation of this system, none are equally so widi those which border the Chesa- peake bay, the lower parts of North Carolina, Virginia, and the two shores of Maryland. Their facilities of transportation, and proximity to the north, give them decided advantages. " But if all this reasoning were totally fallacious ; if the price of manufactured articles were really higher, under the American Vol. II.— 14 210 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. system, than without it ; I should still ar^i^ue that high or low prices were themselves relative — relative to the ability to pay them. It is in vain to tempt, to tantalize us with the lower prices of J^uropean fabrics than our own, if we have nothing wherewith to purciiase them. W, by the home exchanges, we can be sup- plied witii necessary, even if they are dearer and worse articles of American jjrodiiction than the foreign, it is better than not to be supplied at all. And how would the large portion of our country, which 1 have described, be supplied, but for the home exchanges ? A poor people, destitute of wealth or of exchangeable commodities, has nothing to purchase foreign fabrics with. To them they are equally beyond their reach, whether their cost be a dollar or a guinea. It is in this view of tiie matter that Great Brit- ain, by her vast wealth, her excited and yrotccted industry, is enabled to bear a burden of taxation, which, when compared to that of other nations, appears enormous ; but which, when her immense riches are comjiared to theirs, is light and trivial. The gentle- man from South Carolina has drawn a lively and flattering picture of our coasts, bays, rivers, and harbors ; and he argues that these proclaimed the design of Providence, that we should be a com- mercial people. I agree with him. We differ only as to the means. Ilr; would cherish the foreign, and neglect the internal trade. 1 would foster both. \\ hat is navigation without ships, or ships without cargoes '( By penetrating the bosoms of our mountains, and extracting from them their precious treasures ; by cidtivating the earth, and securing a home market for its rich and abniidant products ; by employing the water power with which we are blessed ; by stimulating aiul protecting our native industry, in all its forms, we shall but nourish and promote the prosperity of commerce, foreign and domestic. " 1 have hitherto considered the rpiostion, in reference only to a state of peace ; but a season of war ought not to be entirely overlocjked. We iiave enjoyed near twenty years of peace ; but who can tell when the storm of war shall again break forth ? Have we forgotten, so soon, the privations to which not merely our brave soldiers and oiu' gallant tars were sid)jecte(l, but the whole coMummity, during the last war, for the want of absolute necessa- ries ? 'J'o what an enormous price tlu-y rose ! Ami how iuade- f|uate the supply was, at any price! 'J'he statesman who justly elevates his views, will look behind as well as forward, and at the existing state of thing's ; and he will graduate the policy, w Inch he recommends, to all the probable exigences which may arise in the republic. 'I'aking this comprehensive range, it would be easy to show that the higher prices of peace, if prices iccre higher in peace, were more than compensated by the lower prices ol war, dtu'ing which, supplies of all essential articles are in(lis|)ensal)le to its vigorous, effectual, and glorious prosecution. 1 conclude this THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 211 part of the argument with the hope that my humhle exertions have not been ahooether unsuccessful in showing: — "First, that the policy which we have been considering ought to continue to be regarded as the genuine American system. "Secondly, that the free-trade system, which is proposed, as its substitute, ought really to be considered as the British colonial system. " Thirdly, that the American system is beneficial to all parts of the Union, and absolutely necessary to much the larger portion. "Fourthly, that the price of the great staple of cotton and of all our chief productions of agriculture, has been sustained and up- held, and a decline averted, by the protective system. " Fifthly, that if the foreign demand for cotton has been at all diminished, by the operation of that system, the diminution has been more than compensated, in the additional demand created at home. " Sixthly, that the constant tendency of the system, by creating competition among ourselves, and between American and Euro- pean industry, reciprocally acting upon each other, is to reduce prices of manufactured articles. " Seventhly, that, in point of fact, articles within the scope of the policy of protection, have greatly fallen in price. " Eighthly, that if, in a season of peace, these benefits are ex- perienced, in a season of war, when the foreign supply might be cut ofl", they would be much more extensively felt. " Ninthly, and finally, that the substitution of the British colo- nial system for the American system, without benefiting any sec- tion of the Union, by subjecting us to a foreign legislation, regu- lated by foreign interests, would lead to the prostration of our manufactories, general impoverishment, and ultimate ruin." Thus was Mr. Clay obliged, in 1832, to fight over again the battles of former years, when the protective policy was supposed to have been for ever settled and established in the country. A new political era was opened in the ascendency of Andrew Jack- son to power, and to maintain that ascendency, it was necessary to break up that system of national policy, which Mr. Clay, more than any other man — which Mr. Clay as leader — had been the in- strument in originating, organizing, and establishing. The pro- tective policy was indeed but one part of that system ; but it was a fundamental and vital part. Mr. Clay's soul as a patriot, was embarked in it, and his fame as a statesman was, in a great meas- ure, staked upon it. After a protracted and painful struggle, he and his coadjutors had succeeded, in 1824, in rescuing the coun- try from ruin, and it had gone on for a series of years, in a ca- 0]0 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. reer of prosperity, unparalleled before or since. Notwithstanding the puhlic odium which had been brouglit upon Mr. Clay, by the temporary success of the conspiracy to accuse him of " bargain and corruption," in the election of JNIr. Adams, he was rising again to eclipse his foes, by the beneficent operation of his plan of public policy. To assail it directly and openly, on its merits, would not do ; to let it live, and flourish, and bless the land, was to let him live and flourish, his fame being identified therewith. It must therefore be undermined by indirection — broken up — overdirown. The wisdom of his policy must be confounded, by confounding and annihilating its results. No person, having read the foregoing argument of Mr. Clay on the protective policy, extracted from his matchless efforts of 1S32, if that person is at all interested in understanding the subject, would consent that it should be abridged. Considered only as a speci- men of eloquent, logical, unanswerable reasoning, it is unsurpassed ; but as an exposition and defence of the protective system, it may, without fear of contradiction, be pronounced comiiJctc in the most essential attributes of all argument — clearness, fact, and logical deduction. It was the peril of the cause that put him to the task, and his own fitness for the duty that enabled him to discharge it with such brilliant and triumphant success, so far as its convincing power is concerned, in its influence on unprejudiced minds. And the argument is not more remarkable for its irresistible force, and for its consummate structure, than for its beauties. While it re- mains, the cause is defended, and there is no answer that can be made to it. Amplifications there may be on new facts, and fresh developments of history ; but the germ and full maturity of the policy arc there, comprehending equally the past, the present, and tlie future. THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. 213 CHAPTER VIII. THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. Mr. Clay's Views of Public Policy in a Letter to the Hon. J. S. Johnston. — Con- troversy between the President and Vice-President, General Jackson and ]VIr. Calhoun. — Pilate and Herod agree in one Thing. — Nullification. — General Jackson attempts to kill two Birds at one Throw. — Fails to kill either. — Publication of the Ordinance of Nullification. — General Jackson's Proclama- tion. — Governor Hayne's Counter Proclamation. — South Carolina in a State of Rebellion. — Mr. Clay's Opinion of General Jackson's Proclamation in a Private Letter. — The Proclamation a Failure. — General Jackson misses his Game. — Mr. Clay on the Alert to save the Protective Policy. — Difficulties of his Posi- tion. — Matures his Plan. — Proposes the Compromise. — Explains it to the Sen- ate. — Analysis of the Bill. — Its favorable Reception. — The Administration (Mr. Verplanck's) Bill under Par. — A Private Letter from Mr. Clay of this Date. The following extract from a private letter of Mr. Clay to his particular friend, the Hon. J. S. Johnston, U. S. senator from Louisiana, will disclose some of his views of public policy, before he returned to the senate, in 1S31. It is dated at Harrodsburg (Kentucky), July 23, 1831 :— " Of the events at Washington, which have occurred since I saw you, I need say but little. Every one, fond of his country, must have seen them with mortification and regret. The only consola- tion deducible from them is, that they may contribute to dispel the delusion which placed those in power, who have occasioned them. " You request, and I have pleasure in communicating, my views of the policy which ought to be observed by the general govern- ment, in respect to the tariff, after the payment of the public debt. "1. I think the principle of protection, both in theory, and its practical application, must be preserved. "2. That, as the wants of the government, supposing the con- tinuance of peace, will not then require more than about twelve millions of dollars, duties of impost ought to be reduced or totally repealed, upon articles of foreign growth, not competing with the productions of domestic industry, to such an amount as will leave the revenue about that sum. This, I believe, can be effected without touching any of the leading or essential articles which are now protected. 214 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. "3. As for internal improvements, I never would lay one cent of tax or duty for tlieir prosecution; but, from time to time, as surpluses of revenue accumulate, they siioukl be applied to the object of their promotion. "4. The renewal of the charter of the bank of the United States, with any modifications which may have been suggested by experience. "These are the general principles. Details are unnecessary. You will at once see their application. You will also perceive the expediency of your considering this communication confidential. The country is at present so much excited, on most of the above subjects, that neither party is prepared impartially to consider any proposition which does not compreiicnd all it asks, in whatever sjjirit of extravagance. Any publication of my views would prob- ably expose me to misconception with both parties. And I do not think, on the other hand, that, during the contest now existing, any oi)ini()ns of mine should be put forth, which might be construed into an appeal, on my part, to the public." A FEW historical reminiscences here, as between General Jack- son and Mr. Calhoun, will perhaps cast some light on events now rapidly maturing to a crisis. These two eminent individuals, the former as president, and the latter as vice-president, had gone on with tolerable harmony — possibly in sincere friendship — till some third persons had forced upon the president's notice the facts, that Mr. Calhoun, as secretary of war, under Mr. Monroe, had not only taken the ground, in cabinet counsel, that General Jackson had transcended his orders, in the Seminole war, by occupying the Spanish posts; but that he was in favor of censure — of punish- ment. It is not material to the present object, who hoped to profit by stirring up these ashes ; but the coals touched the president to the quick, and he immediately called on the vice-president, by a note, transmitting a newly-discovered document as the ground of his action, for an explanation. Whereupon the vice-president, very properly, threw himself back on his reserved rights, and de- clined to answer a private intpiiry into his olTicial conduct. The president wrote back, that it was unnecessary to say more"; and fioiii that moment the personal feud between them commenced, the conse(pirncc3 of which were very important and momentous. It is one of the instructive lessons of history to observe how such personal matters among men of exalted station and great influence, afTect states and nations. Mr. Calhoun, by this event, was cut off from his chances of the succession. It is remarkable, that before THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. 215 General Jackson was installed for his second term, South Carolina nullification burst forth upon the land ! The opposition of some portions of the south to the protective policy, was not in itself sufficient to shake its foundations, and menace it with overthrow. It was the junction of that force with the personal feelings of the president in another direction front: Mr. Calhoun, that made both formidable, and precipitated the country into a new and unexpected crisis. It was not material that these two agencies, these two wills — that of General Jackson and that of Mr. Calhoun — should have the same ultimate design, so long as they could act together in removing an obstacle which lay in the path of both. They might hate each other as much as each hated their common opponent, and yet unite for the destruction of the latter. That there was a moral affinity of this kind between the head of the national administration and the leader of nullification, though in a deadly quarrel with each other, it is supposed, will not be questioned. South Carolina, led on by Mr. Calhoun, had already made some strong and decided demonstrations of her purpose, when Mr. Clay was engaged in this debate in the senate of the United States, in February, 1832. It was impossible, therefore, that this state of things in that quarter should be disregarded on such an occasion. In allusion to it, Mr. Clay said: — " With respect to this Union, Mr. President, the truth can not be too generally proclaimed, nor too strongly inculcated, that it is ne- cessary to the icliole and to all the parts — necessary to those parts, indeed, in different degrees, but vitally necessary to each — and that threats to disturb or dissolve it, coming from any of the parts, would be quite as indiscreet and improper as would be threats from the residue to exclude those parts from the pale of its benefits. The great principle, which lies at the foundation of all free governments, is, that the majority must govern — from which there is, or can be, no appeal but to the sword. That majority ought to govern wisely, equitably, moderately, and constitutionally, but govern it must, subject only to that terrible appeal. If ever one or several states, being a minority, can, by menacing a dissolution of the Union, succeed in forcing an abandonment of great measures, deemed essential to the interests and prosperity of the wiiole, the Union, from that moment, is practically gone. It may linger on, in form and name, but its vital spirit has fled for ever! Entertain- ing these deliberate opinions, I would entreat the patriotic people of South Carolina — the land of Marion, Sumpter, and Pickens — of Rulledge, Laurens, the Pinckneys and Lowndes — of living and 216 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. present names, wliich I would mention if tliey were not living or proM'iit — to j)au'""/' revenue as might be necessary for an eco- nourual administration of the government; consequently exclu- ding all resort to internal taxation, or to the proceeds of the pub- lic lands. For, contemporaneously widi the pendency of the com- promise act, a bill was pending for the distribution of those pro- ceeds THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. 225 " Fourth, that after the thirtieth of June, 1842, all duties should be paid in ready money, to the exclusion of all credits. " Fifth, that, after the same day, the assessment of the value of all imports should be made at home and not abroad. " Sixth, that after the same day, a list of articles specified and enumerated in the act, should be admitted free of duty, for the benefit of the manufacturino- interest. " These are the principles, and all the principles of the com- promise act. An impression has been taken up most erroneously, that the rate of duty was never to exceed twenty per centum. There is no such limitation in the act. I admit that, at the time of the passage of the act, a hope was entertained that a rate of duty not exceeding twenty per centum would supply an adequate revenue to an economical administration of the government. Then we were threatened with that overflow of revenue with which the treasury was subsequently inundated ; and the difficulty was to find articles which should be liberated from duty and thrown into the free class. Hence, wines, silks, and other luxuries, were ren- dered free. But neither the act, nor any part of the act, when fairly interpreted, limits Congress to the iron rule of adhering for ever, and under all circumstances, to a fixed and unalterable rate of twenty-per-centum duty." It would be impossible for any one to examine, if he could un- derstand, this bill, in all its relations and bearings to so many inter- ests, sectional and other, and in its adaptation to the critical con- dition of the country at that moment, and not be struck with admiration, not less of the consummate statesmanship which it demonstrates, than of its impartial kindness toward all parties, and of tliat comprehensive, lofty, disinterested patriotism, which Mr. Clay has so often displayed in great and critical emergencies — which never fails him when his country calls. The very proposal of the bill was a triumph, which everybody saw, and which its author no doubt felt with satisfaction. But it had its difficulties to encounter. Friends were disturbed, and in danger of going off into opposition to it. Some did. But what was lost on that side, was more than made up by the yielding of opponents. The various, and somewhat complicated aspects of the measure, burst upon the senate, upon. Congress, upon the country, like the sudden advent of a stranger, whose character, standing, and mien, claimed universal attention and respect. There were many who could not comprehend it, some were vexed, all admired. INIr. Verplanck's bill, put forward, if not at the insti- gation, at least with the sanction of the president, and which struck Vol. II. — 15 22G THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. at the roots of the protective poHcy, having been for six weeks under consideration in the iioii.le her to raise money, and to sustain the attitude of an independent power. If she shouhl liave no force, no navy to protect lier, she wouhl be exposed to piratical incursions. Their neighbor, St. Domingo, might pour down a horde of pirates on her borders, and desohite her phmtations. She must have her embassies ; tlierefore must she have a revenue. And, let me tell you, there is another conse- quence, an inevitable one : she has a certain descri|)tion of persons recognised as property south of the J'otomac, and west of the Mississippi, which would be no longer recognised as such, except within their own limits. This species of property would sink to one half of its present value, fur it is Louisiana and the southwestern states which are her great market. ******* " If there be any who want civil war, who want to see the blood of any portion of our countrymen spilt, I am not one of them. I wish to see war of no kind ; but, above all, I do not desire to see a civil war. When war begins, whether civil or foreign, no human sight is competent lo foresee when, or how, or where it is to terminate. But when a civil war shall be lighted up in the bo- som of our own happy land, and armies are marching, and com- manders are winning their victories, and fleets are in motion on our coast, tell me, if you can, tell me, if any human being can tell its duration? God alone knows where such a war would end. In what a state will our institutions be left '? In what state our lib- erties / I want no war ; above all, no war at home. " Sir, i re])eat, that 1 think South Carolina has been rash, in- temperate, and greatly in the wrong; but I do not want to disgrace her, nor any other member of this Union. Xo : I do not desire to see the lustre of one sinirle star dimmed, of that glorious con- federacy which constitutes our political sun ; still less do I wish to see it blotted out, and its light obliterated for ever. Has not the state of Soiuh Carolina been one of the members of this Union in ' days that tried men's souls?' Have not her ancestors fought alongside our ancestors? Have we not, conjointly, won together many a gloricjus battle? If we had to go into a civil war with such a state, how would it terminate ? Whenever it should have terminated, what would be her condition? If she should ever return to the Union, what would be the condition of her feelings and affections ? what the state of the heart of her i)eople ? She has been with us before, when her ancestors mingled in the throng of battle, and as I hope our |)osterity will mingle with hers, for ages and centuries to come, in the i\niie(l defence of liberty, and for the honor and glory of the Union. I do not wish to see her degraded or defaced as a memb(!r of this confederacy. THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. 233 " In conclusion, allow me to entreat and implore each individual member of this body to bring into the consideration of this meas- ure, which I have had the honor of proposing, the same love of country which, if I know myself, has actuated me, and the same desire of restoring harmony to the Union, which has prompted this effort. If we can forget for a moment — but that would be asking too much of human nature — if we could suppress, for one moment, party feelings and party causes — and, as I stand here before my God, I declare I have looked beyond these considerations, and regarded only the vast interests of this united people — I should hope, that under such feelings, and with such dispositions, we may advantageously proceed to the consideration of this bill, and heal, before they are yet bleeding, the wounds of our distracted country." The following extract from a private letter of Mr. Clay to Judge Brooke, of February 14th, 1833, is applicable here: — " I had foreborne to communicate to you the plan of accommo- dation which I intended to submit, because, although I had long since setded in my mind the principle of the plan, I had not finally arranged the details. That work was only completed a few days ago. You will see in the papers, that I have presented it to the senate in the shape of a bill. I was fully aware of all the personal consequences, and personal risks, to which I exposed myself. The measure has been well received. Still, every contrivance will be resorted to by the Van Buren men, and by some of the administration party, to frustrate or defeat the project. That, you know, I anticipated. What will be the final issue of the plan, I can not certainly say. I hope for success." That there should have been loss and gain in the compromise, resulted from the nature of the measure : it was a compromise. But the design and tendency of the act, by a faithful execution, was, that this loss and gain should be distributed among citizens of the same great republic. It was based on a principle that lies at the foundation of the government and institutions of the country, viz., mutual concession for general good — a principle, "which," as Mr. Clay said, on that occasion, " gave birth to the constitution itself, and which has continued to regulate us in our onward march, and conducted the nation to glory and renown. If the measure should be carried by the common consent of both parties, we shall have all security ; history will faithfully record the transaction ; narrate under what circumstances the bill passed ; that it was a pacifying measure ; that it was as oil poured from the vessel of the Union, to restore peace and harmony to the country." 234 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. CHAPTER IX. THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. Mr. Clay's Reply to Objections. — The Perilous Position of the Protective Policy al the Momenl. — Triumph of the Compromise. — Its Immediate Kdcct. — The Compromise Act not carried out by General Jackson. — Partially Defeated by Stranulins tlie Land Bill. — Mr. Clay's later Statements on the Subject. — His R»'|.ly to Mr. Calhoun, in 1840.— The Grand Result.— Hon. John M. Clayton's Account of the Compromise Debate. — Mr. Dallas's Motion in the Senate, and Mr. Polk's Statement in Tennessee. — Letter from Mr. Clay to the Hon. John M. Clayton. — Mr. Clay, and Mr. Randolph. 0.\ the 2'5th of February, 1S33, about two weeks after tlie in- troduction of the conijnoniise tarifi' bill, Mr. Clay ro.«e to reply to some objections it had encountered. Inasmuch as there were dif- ferences of oj)inion among iiis political friends at the time, and in- asmuch as it has to some extent been a subject of debate from that time to the present, it seems obviously proper to introduce here the substance of his reasoning after the objections had been stated : — " 1 have long, with pleasure and pride, co-operated in the pub- lic service with the senator from Massachusetts [Mr. Webster], and I have found him faithfid, enlightened, and patriotic. I have not a particle of doubt as to the \)uvc and elevated motives which actuate him. Under these circumstances, it gives me deep and lasting regret, to fmd myself compelled to differ from him as to a measure involving vital interests, and j)erhaps the safety of the Union. On the other hand, I derive great consolation from fmd- ing myself, on this occasion, in the midst of friends with whom T have long acted, in peace and in war, ami especially with the hon- orable senator from Maine [Mr. Holmes], with whom I had the happini'ss to uiiiu; in :i memorable instance. It was in this very chamber, that senator presitling in the committee of the senate, and I in committee of twenty-four of the house of reptescntatives, on a sai)i)ath-day, that the terms were adjusted, by which the com promise of the Missoini (piesiion was effecteil. Then the dark clouds that inmg over our beh)\e(l coimtry were dispersed ; and now the thimders from others, not less threatening, and which iiave been lonsxer accumnlatin^r, will, I hope, roll over us harndess and without injury. THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. 235 " The senator from Massachusetts objects to the bill under con- sideration, on various grounds. He argues, that it imposes unjus- tifiable restraints on the power of future legislation ; that it aban- dons the protective policy, and that the details of the bill are practically defective. He does not object to the gradual, but very inconsiderable, reduction of duties which is made prior to 1842. To that he could not object, because it is a species of prospective provision, as he admits, in conformity with numerous precedents on our statute-book. He does not object so much to the state of the proposed law prior to 1842, during a period of nine years ; but, throwing himself forward to the termination of that period, he contends that Congress will then find itself under inconvenient shackles, imposed by our indiscretion. In the first place, I would remark, that the bill contains no obligatory pledges — it could make none, none are attempted. The power over the subject is in the constitution, put there by those who formed it, and liable to be taken out only by an amendment of the instrument. The next Congress, and every succeeding Congress, will undoubtedly have the power to repeal the law whenever they may think proper. Whether they will exercise it, or not, will depend upon a sound discretion, applied to the state of the whole country, and estimating fairly the consequences of the repeal, both upon the general har- mony and the common interests. Then the bill is founded in a spirit of compromise. Now, in all compromises there must be mutual concessions. The friends of free trade insist, that duties should be laid in reference to revenue alone. The friends of American industry say, that another, if not paramount object in laying them, should be, to diminish the consumption of foreign, and increase that of domestic products. On this point the parties divide, and between these two opposite opinions a reconciliation is to be effected, if it can be accomplished. The bill assumes as a basis adequate protection for nine years, and less beyond that term. The friends of protection say to their opponents, we are willing to take a lease of nine years, with the long chapter of accidents be- yond that period, including the chance of war, the restoration of concord, and along with it a conviction common to all, of the util- ity of protection ; and in consideration of it, if, in 1842, none of these contingences shall have been realized, we are willing to sub- mit, as long as Congress may think proper, to a maximum rate of twenty per centum, with the power of discrimination below it, cash duties, home valuations, and a liberal list of free articles, for the benefit of the manufacturing interest. To these conditions the opponents of protection are ready to accede. The measure is what it professes to be, a compromise ; but it imposes, and could impose, no restriction upon the will or power of a future Congress. Doubtless great respect will be ])ai(l, as it ought to be paid, to the serious condition of the country that has prompted the passage of 236 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. this bill. Any future Congress tliat might disturb this adjustment, would act under a liigh responsibility ; but it would be entirely within its competency to repeal, if it thought proper, the whole bill. It is far from tlie object of those who support this bill, to abandon or surrender the policy of protecting American industry. Its protection or encouragement may be accomplished in various ways — first, by bounties, as far as they are within the constitutional power of Congress to offer them ; second, by prohibitions, totally excluding the foreign rival article ; third, by high duties, without regard to the aut in that event, the atonement must in some measure THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. 241 correspond with the severity of the course ; and having clearly in- timated, in his official communications to Congress and to the pub- lic, that the wrongs which the south complained of, ought to be redressed, it is not to be supposed, that anything less than a com- plete prostration of the protective system would have followed — a prostration from which it could hardly, if it could ever, recover. When would the nation be willing to re-enact a system of policy, which had cost a civil war ? A sore spot it must have remained for ever. The evidence was abundant, that the tariff, as a protective measure, could not live another year, if left in the hands of the ad- ministration, and the nullifiers preferred to setde their difficulties with the friends of protection, rather than with General Jackson. Are not such reasons of great force ? It is evident that Mr. Clay felt, for he uttered them. Actuated by such powerful con- siderations, he almost plunged into the fire, to save a doomed vic- tim. He at least risked much, and lost much — lost for the occa- sion, friends whom he loved, in bringing to his side heartless opponents, who, as soon as they found their own necks safe, would seek the first opportunity to turn against him ; and so diey did. AH this he foresaw — knew ; and yet he did not pause. The pro- tective system, the country, demanded the risk, and, if need be, the sacrifice. But, said Mr. Clay : — " The objections of the honorable senator from Massachu- setts are principally directed to the period beyond 1842. During the intermediate time, there is every reason to hope and believe that the bill secures adequate protection. All my information assures me of this ; and it is demonstrated by the fact, that, if the measure of protection, secured prior to the thirty-first of Decem- ber, 1S41, were permanent; or if the bill were even silent beyond that period, it would command the cordial and unanimous concur- rence of the friends of tiie policy. What then divides, what alarms us ? It is what may possibly be the state of diings in the year one thousand eight hundred and forty-two, or subsequently I Now, sir, even if that should be as bad as the most vivid imaginadon, or the most eloquent tongue could depict it, if we have intermediate safety and security, it does not seem to me wise to rush upon cer- tain and present evils, because of those which, admitting their pos- sibility, are very remote and contingent. What ! shall we not extinguish the flame which is bursting through the roof that covers us, because, at some future and distant day, we may be again threatened with conflagration ? " I do not admit that this bill abandons or fails, by its provisions, Vol. II.— 16 242 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. to secure reasonable protection beyond 1S42. I can not know, I pretend not to know, what will then be the actual condition of this country, and of the manufacturing arts, and their relative condition to the rest of the world. I would as soon confide in the forecast of the honorable senator from Massachusetts, as in that of any other man in this senate, or in this country ; but neither he, nor any one else, can tell what that condition will then be. The degree of protection which will be required for domestic industry beyond lS-42, depends upon the reduction of wages, the accumulation of capital, the improvement in skill, the jirotection of machinery, and the cheapening of the price, at home, of essential articles, such as fuel, iron, and so forth. I do not think that the honorable senator can throw himself forward to 1842, and tell us what, in all these particulars, will be the state of this country, and its relative state to other countries. We know that, in all human probability, our numbers will be increased by an addition of one third, at least, to their present amount, and that may materially reduce wages. We have reason to believe that our capital will be augmented, our skill improved ; and we know that great progress has been made, and is making, in machinery. There is a constant tendency to de- crease in the price of iron and coal. The Ojiening of new mines and new channels of communication, must continue to lower it. The successful introduction of the process of cooking, will have great effect. The price of these articles, one of the most ojmlent and intelligent manufacturing houses in this country assures me, is a j)rincipal cause of the [)resent necessity of protection to the cot- ton interest ; and that house is strongly inclined to think that twenty per centum, wiUi the other advantages secured in this bill, may do ijeyond 1842. Then, sir, what effect may not convulsions and revolutions in Europe, if any should arise, produce? I am far from desirini; them, tliat our country may profit by their occurrence. Her greatness and glory rest, I hope, upon a more solid and more generous basis. But we can not shut our eyes to the fact, that our greatest manufacturing, as well as commercial com|)etitor, is undergoing a momentous jiolitical experiment, the issue of which is far from being absolutely certain. Who can raise the veil of the succeeding nine years, and show what, at their termination, will be the degree of competition which Great Britain can exercise toward us in the manufaciiuiiig arts? " i^upposc, in tile progress of i^radual descent toward the revenue standard for which this bill provides, it should some years hence become evident that further protection, beyond 1842, than that which it contemplates may be necessary, can it be doubted that in some form or otiuM-, it will be applied? Our misfortune has been, and yet is, that the public mind has been constantly kept in a state of feverish excitement, in respect to this system of policy. Conventions, elections, Congress, the public press, have been for THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. 243 years all acting upon the tariff, and the tariff acting upon them all. Prejudices have been excited, passions kindled, and mutual jrrita- tions carried to the highest pitch of exasperation, insomuch that good feelings have been almost extinguished, and the voice of reason and experience silenced, among the members of the confed- eracy. Let us separate the tariff from the agitating politics of the country, place it upon a stable and firm foundation" and allow our enterprising countrymen to demonstrate to the whole Union, by their skilful and successful labors, the inappreciable value of the arts. If they can have what they have never vet enjoyed, some years of repose and tranquillity, they will make, silently, more converts to the policy, than would be made during a long period of anxious struggle and boisterous contention. Above alL I count upon the good effects resulting from a restoration of the harmony of this divided people, upon their good sense and their love of justice. Who can doubt, that when passions have subsided, and reason has resumed her empire, that there will be a disposition throughout the whole Union, to render ample justice to all its parts? Who will believe that any section of this great confederacy would look with indifference to the prostration of the interests of another section, by distant and selfish foreign nations, regardless ahke of the welfare of us all? No, sir; I have no fears beyond 1842. The people of the United States are brethren, made to love and respect each other. Momentary causes may seem to alienate them, but, like family differences, they will terminate in a closer and more affectionate un*ion than ever. And how much more estimable will be a system of protection, based on common con- viction and common consent, and planted in the bosoms of all, than one wrenched by power from reluctant and protestinr-- weakness ? " That such a system will be adopted, if it should be necessary for the period of time subsequent to 1842, I will not doubt. But, in the scheme which I originally proposed, I did not rely exclu- sively, great as my reliance is, upon the operation of fraternal feelings, the return of reason, and a sense of justice. The scheme contained an appeal to the interests of the south. According to it, unmanuftictured cotton was to be a free article after 1842. Gentle- men from that quarter have again and again asserted that they were indifferent to the duty of three cents per pound on cotton, and that they feared no foreign competition. I have thought otherwise; but I was willing, by way of experiment, to take them at their \yord; not that I was opposed to the protection of cotton, but I believed that a few cargoes of foreign cotton introduced into our northern ports, free of duty, would hasten our ^oudiern friends to come here and ask that protection for their frreat staple, which is wanted in other sections for their interests. ^That feature in the scheme was stricken out in the select committee, but not by the 244 Tlin PROTECTIVE POLICY. consent of my friend from Delaware [Mr. Clayton] or myself. Still, after 1842, the south may want protection for sugar, for to- bacco, for A'irginia coal, j)erliaj)s for cotton and other articles, wiiile other quarters may need it for wool, woollens, iron, and cotton fab- rics ; and these mutual wants, if they should exist, will lead, 1 hoj)e, to some amicable adjustment of a tariff for that distant period, satis- factory to all. The theory of protection supposes, too, that after a certain time, the protected arts will have acquired such strength and perfection as will enable them subsequently, unaided, to stand up against foreign competition. If, as 1 have no doubt, this should prove to be correct, it will, on the arrival of 1S42, encourage all parts of the Union to consent to the continuance of longer protec- tion to the few articles which may then require it." It may be observed, that the remark of Mr. Clay above, as to what "the theory of protection supposes," is apparently in conflict with the doctrine announced at the opening of chapter six, of this volume, to wit, that universal free trade, by general consent of all nations, including the United States, would be destructive of Amer- ican freedom. Mr. Clay may be right, if he meant all he appears to say in that sentence, and the author may be wrong in the doc- trine he has advanced, and endeavored to explain, in the place re- ferred to. Or, possibly, IMr. Clay intends merely to announce a common opinion, or a proposition usually taken for granted, with- out being responsible for it. It doubtless has been a prevalent opinion, and is so yet. The question involved in it, as presented by the author, has in fact, as he supposes, never been debated ; but, as he sincerely believes in the doctrine he has ventured to propound, and regards it as one which, at a future time, will be- come of great practical importance, he has thought proper to state it. lie indeed thinks it of great importance now, and that, if it were understood, it would at once and for ever settle the contro- versy regarding die protective policy in the United States. It will be recognised, die moment it is mentioned, that many persons have dwelt on die Aicts, and on those relations which com- bine the elements of this doctrine, and in speaking of them, have maintained, that freedom was concerned in the protective policy. Statesmen have seen it, felt it, and talked about it eloquently ; and yet it does not ajipear, that the doctrine has been reduced to form — that the pivot on which it rests has been pointed out. It lies in the difTorcnce between that state of political society which secures to labor a fair compensation, and that which robs labor of its fair reward. The doctrine which grows out of this diflcrence is, that THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. 245 the labor of the former state of society must be protected against the effects of the labor of the latter, considered as it is wielded by those who deprive it of compensation, and appropriate it to them- selves. This labor, thus wronged, is employed by its oppressors, as a power — a tremendous agent to enslave the masses of mankind. This is the reason why American labor will for ever require pro- tection against such an agency, so long as the present state of soci- ety exists in Europe, or in other parts of the world, with which the United States have commercial intercourse. The theory of protection, therefore, as above stated by Mr. Clay, and as usually stated, to wit, that, "after a certain time, the protected arts will have acquired such strength and perfection as will enable them subsequently, unaided, to stand up against foreign competition," is obviously in conflict with this doctrine. If this doctrine is sound, this theory is unsound. In other words, although the theory may ansvt'er a temporary purpose, or be innocent, the time must come when it will be insufficient — when it will be found, that American labor must be protected under any circumstances, or freedom be lost. It can not but be observed, that the debate on the protective policy has often approached this point, touched it, handled it, al- though, possibly, it did not distinctly understand what it was handling. Instinct often arrives at truth before reason does, and independent of reason. " The pauper labor of Europe," has been in everybody's mouth, and that, as opposed to American labor, involving the relation of the two, suggests and comprehends the doctrine which the author has thought incumbent on him to pro- pound. And he thinks there is an advantage in it, because it re- duces the question regarding the protective policy to a point, from which, when it shall be understood, there will be no possibility of escape, and which will operate with irresistible energy on the masses of the American people. When once they shall see, that freedom is at stake on the free trade platform ; that, by going upon that, they put themselves in the power of European and other for- eign oppressors, who live and riot on the enslaved condition of human labor, it will no longer be difficult to secure their suffrages for those who understand their rights, and will protect diem. The fact, that the substance of this doctrine has been, for so many years and so often, used in argument, by politicians and statesmen — and the fact, that the idea that " the pauper labor of Europe," brought into competition with American labor, invades 246 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. and impairs the rights of the latter — liave taken so strong a hold of a very large portion of the laboring classes of the United States, and are instinctively felt by them, as matters in which they are deeply concerned — are strong j)resumpti\ e evidence, that the doc- trine is not without foinulation. It is manifest, that politicians and statesman have long had this idea in their heads, though perhaps not in a definite shape. It is not less mavtifest, that no inconsid- erable fraction of the common mind is possessed of it. It only re- mains that the doctrine should be made palpable — that the plainest man should be able, forced to see, that " the pauper labor of Eu- rope," and of odier foreign parts, as an agency in the hands of oppressors, is hostile to the labor of American freemen ; that the two things can never subsist together on the same platform ; that, on the principles of free trade, one must yield to the other ; that, in such a contlict, American labor will inevitably be deprived of its rights ; and then the whole controversy, as a political question, is for ever decided. The power of foreign pauper labor over the labor of American freemen, is not vested in itself, but in the arm of its oppressors. It is a mere agent of the latter. Nor can that power be abated, except by a change of political society in those quarters, for the emancipation of labor. So long as political society is the same there, and the same here, there can never be a time when " the protected arts" in the United States, " siiall have acquired such strength and perfection as will enable them subsequently, unaided, to stand up against foreign competition." No matter what strength, no matter what perfection, they may acquire, they will never be strong enough, never perfect enough, to employ free labor at a fair price, in a field of competition with the same arts worked by forced labor at a price which barely supports existence. But to return to the position occupied by Mr. Clay, in the sup- pe)ri of the compromise tariiV. It was objected to by the advocates of the jjroteciive policy, because it was obtaining the concurrence of the opi)onents of that policy, Mr. Calhoun and others. What was the use of a coinpromise — how could any measure be of that character — if it did not tend to bring those who occupied extremes nearer together — on common grountl ? It was inq^ossible that both parlies should occupy their respective jjosiiions, and yet come together. Mutual concessions were necessarily implied in a com- promise. The objection was founded on a fact, which ought to remove all objections, so that the concessions were fairly made THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. 247 by each party. It should not have been surprising, if the nullifi- ers, whose heads, under the proclamation of General Jackson, were not safe on their shoulders, had sought protection under any com- promise, having sufficient appearances of concession from their opponents to justify their own self-respect. That they were willing to come over, to unite in a healing measure, was rather a subject of gratulation, than a just occasion of opposition. Mr. Clay very justly remarked, that the proposed measure should rather be judged by its nature, than by those who might happen to vote for it. The bill to enforce the federal laws in South Carohna, had passed, whereby the rights of the general government, and its posi- tion in this matter, were duly asserted. The government having taken this ground, was it not due to the Union, and to humanity, to hold out the olive branch ? The contingent prospects and re- sults of a collision, were fearful to contemplate. The enforcing bill vindicated authority ; the compromise extended the hand of conciliation. Mr. Clay concluded his speech on this occasion, as follows : — " There are some who say, let the tariff go down ; let our man- ufactures be prostrated, if such be the pleasure, at another session, of those to whose hands the government of this country is con- fided ; let bankruptcy and ruin be spread over the land ; and let resistance to the laws, at all hazards, be subdued. Sir, they take counsel from their passions. They anticipate a terrible reaction from the downfall of the tariff, which would ultimately re-estab- lish it upon a firmer basis than ever. But it is these very agita- tions, these mutual irritations between brethren of the same fam- • ily, it is the individual distress and general ruin that would neces- sarily follow the overthrow of the tariff, that ought, if possible, to be prevented. Besides, are we certain of this reaction? Have we not been disappointed in it as to other measures heretofore ? But suppose, after a long and embittered struggle, it should come, in what relative condition would it find the parts of this confed- eracy ? In what state our ruined manufactures? When they should be laid low, who, amid the fragments of the general wreck, scattered over the face of the land, would have courage to engage in fresh enterprises, under a new pledge of the violated faith of the government? If we adjourn, without passing this bill, having intrusted the executive with vast powers to maintain the laws, should he be able by the next session to put down all opposition to them, will he not, as a necessary consequence of success, have more power than ever to put down the tariff also ? Has he not said that the south is oppressed, and its burdens ought to be relieved ? And will he not feel himself bound, after he 248 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. shall have triumphed, if triumph he may in a civil war, to appease the (liscoiiteiits of the .south hy a nioclifiraiion of tlie tariff, in con- formity with its wishes and demand.s / i\o, sir ; no, sir ; let us save the country from the most dreadful of all calamities, and let us save its industry, too, from threatened destruction, r^tatesmen should regulate their conduct and adapt their measures to the ex- igencies of the times in whirli they live. They can not, iuflced, transcend the limits of the constitutifinal rule ; but with respect to those symptoms of policy which Ail! within its scope, they should arrange them according to the interests, the wants, and the j»reju- dices of the people. Two great dangers threaten the public safety. The true patriot will not stop to inquire how thev have been brought about, but will fly to the deliverance of his country. The difference between the friends and the foes of the compro- mise, under consideration, is, that they would, in the enforcing act, send forth alone a flaming sword. We would "send out that also, but along with it the olive branch, as a messenger of peace. They cry out, the law! the law! tiie law! Power! power! power ! We, too, reverence the law, and bow to the supremacy of its obli' revenue for tlie suiiport of government was to be derived, should be fixed at JD per cent., or at TjO per cent., or at any otiier rate, was, of course, a subject left for the future consideration and action of Consress, whenever it should be discovered that the maximum rate of 20 per cent., adopted bv the first section of th. " Mr. Clayton and Mr. Clay regarded tlie language as autiior- izim; -NO SUCH co.nstuuction, and denied liiai any one wuuld was taken on the engrossment of the bill, on the nisjht of Saturday, the 23d of February, 1833, and it was ordered to a third rcadine in the senate by an over- wheltnins,' majority. At this sta'jo, we arrested lurtlier proceedings in the senate, in consequence oC the constitutional difficulty of orieinating a revenue bill in that body. Itut we had secured our object, by thus indicatiu? to the house tlie meas- ure to wliicli we were disposed to accede. On the Monday fullowin;:, bein;; the 25tli of I'ebruary, a successful motion was made in the house to strike out the whole of -Mr. Verplanck's bill, and substitute the compromise in lieu of it. The bill thus amended was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading on the same day, ntid shortly after became the law of the land. " It is too late now, aftf-r the experience the nation has had of General Jack- son's iiilluence while president, to prftend that it was not in his power in If^'.i'.i to have crushed the protective policy. His party was in the zenith of its power. He vetoed the bank bill in July, 1832, and, within six months after that, he made war on the tarilf. Can any reasonable man doubt what would have been its fate, if Henry Clay, with all the nllection of a parent for the protective policy, had not rescued it iVotn destruction by tlie coini)romise act of the 2d of .March, 1833 i But for the interposition of Mr. Clay, the passage of the bill rei)orted by the com- mittee of ways and means in the liouse, would, at no very distant day, have been inevitable. What miu'lit have been the fate of the Union, I leave others to con- jecture. My business now is with the taritf alone, and I confine myself to that. " Henry Clay was at the head of the committee which reported the compromise act. James K. Polk, of Tennessee, was at the tail of the committee of ways and means in the house, which reported the bill to which I have referred. To under- stand Mr. Polk, it is now necessary to understand that bill. Although he was the last-named member on that committee, and in the rear of the column which at- tacked the tariff, there was no more thorough-going, no more denunciatory enemy of the protective policy, than James K. Polk. But let us try him by the bill which he and his colleagues on that committee reported, and by his votes, us they stand recorded on the journals of Conirrcss airainst the protective policy. This bill, which will be found to be the 1 1th document in the volume of reports of committees, at the second session of the twenty-second Congress, reduces the duties on the 2d March, 1835, as follows — all assessable, be it remembered, on the foreign valuation: On voollens, to 15 per cent.; on all not exceeding 35 cents the square yard, 5 per cent.; on worsted stulf goods of all kinds, 10 per cent.; on worsted and woollen hosiery, gloves, nets, binding's, and stockinets, 10 per cent.; on all other cloths, merino shawls, flannels, baizes and cassimeres, carpet- ings and rugs of all kinds, 20 per cent. ; on clothing, ready made, of all descrip- tions, 20 per cent. ; on all fo//o7» gooih, 20 per cent., except Nankins from India, on which Mr. Polk's duty was 15 per cent. ; and cotton hosiery, gloves, mitts, and stockinets, on which his iluty was 10 per cent. ; as well as upon cotton twist, yarn, and thread; on all manufactures of jlitx and hniip, or sail-duck and eotton-bag- ping, 15 per cent.; on all manufactures of tin, japannint:, gilt, jdated, brass, and polished steel, 20 per cent. ; on common saddlery, 10 per cent.; on earthen and Stone ware, 20 percent.; on all side and fire arms, rilles and muskets, 20 per cent. ; bridle-bits and class-ware, 20 per cent. ; on manufactures of iron and steel generally, a duty of 20 per cent.; on salt and coal, 5 per cent.; on everything produced by the farmer in the middle and northern states, Mr. Polk, who is a cot- ton-grower, recommended, in this bill, one unvarying standard of only 15 per cent.; 15 per cent, on potatoes; 15 pet cent, on oats; 15 per cent, on wheat and wheat-flour, butter, bacon, beef, and pork. " Such wns the character of that bill, from the passage of which Henry Clay saved the country by the adoption of the comjnomise. Had a tornado passed over all the manufacturing establislunents of the co\intry at that time, it would scarcely have proved a greater cur-i- than that measure, which had the earnest support of Mr. James K. Polk, of Tennessei-. ]\\- reducing I, e duty on wool to 15 i>er cent., it put the knife to the throat of every sheep in the country. By a duly of 20 per cent, on readv-made clothing of all descriptions, it struck down a whole class of the most industrious and useful mechanics of the nationC If it had been a bill THE COMPROMISE TARIFF. 257 be justified in inferring that there was to be any abandonment of the system of protection. It was insisted by Mr. Clayton, that the government could not he kept together, if the principle of protection were to be discarded in our poUcij ; and he declared that he purposely designed to set fire to most of the mechanic shops in the countrj', it would hardly have had a worse ellect upon the laboring classes. It would have fed us on potatoes from Ireland ; and, at those periods when the farmers of the middle and northern states were suffering most from the pressure of the times, our bread-stuffs would have been grown on the borders of the Baltic and the Black sea, instead of on our own soil. " Search the records of Congress, and you will find that, in every instance where the American system was attacked, while he was in Congress, he was its assailant, its constant and uncompromising foe. On the 23d of June, 1832, he voted for the motion of Mr, IMcDuffie, of South Carolina, to reduce the duty on cotton goods, costing not exceeding fifteen cents the square yard, to 12| per cent, ad valorem. On the same day, he voted for Mr. McDuffie's motion to abolish the duty of S30 per ton on rolled iron. On the previous day, he voted to reduce the duty on salt to 5 cents on 56 lbs., and voted against the duty on boots and boolees, on cabinet wares, hats and caps, whips, bridles, saddles, carriages and parts of carriages, blank books, earthen and stonewares, and manufactures of marble; and also against the duty on wool. " On the 28th day of February, 1834, within one year after the passage of the compromise, Mr. Hall, of North (Carolina, in the house of representati\'"es of the United States, introduced a resolution, the object of which was to procure from the committee of ways and means a report of a plan, accompanied by a bill to re- peal the protection guarantied by the compromise, under the pretext of immedi- ately reducing the revenue to the necessary expenses of the government; and James K. Polk, of Tennessee, who was at that time the chairman of that very committee of ways and means, voted for that resolution. There were 69 yeas in favor of that resolution, and 115 nays against it. In voting for the resolution, the deliberate design of which was to violate all the pledges given in the compro- mise, Mr. Polk was backed by six of the nine members of that same committee, and by all the nullifiers and ultra anti-tarifl' men in the house. This movement shows the dissatisfaction with the compromise cherished at an early period by the enemies of protection. They were sensible that Mr. Clay had triumphed, by the salvation of his favorite policy ; and the strength of the vote against the resolu tion, shows how great that triumph was- But one year previous to the introduc- tion of Mr. Hall's resolution, it would have passed the house by an overwhelming rnajority. The votes on Mr. Verplanck's bill at that time, proved that conclu- sively. But the fact is, that the evil spirit of the storm — the spirit of disunion — which had been raised by nullification, had been subdued by that master spirit, which, for thirty years, had exercised so great an influence in our public councils. That same master spirit had quelled the same demon, at the great crisis of the Missouri compromise. On both occasions, Henry Clay saved the Union ; and, in the judgment of many, in each of them, he saved the Union at its last gasp. " But the vote of James K. Polk and his allies in the war on domestic industry, was not the first exhibition of their hostility to the compromise. Within six weeks after the passage of the act, the executive of the United States began to violate ' its true spirit and its legitimate construction, for the purpose of breaking down our American policy. On the 20th of April, 1833, the secretary of the treasury under President Jackson, issued his lUmous treasury circular to all the officers of the customs in the United States. That circular contained an executive decree, ab- rogating all tlie specific duties and the whole system of miidmums in the existing tariff laws. Under a pretext as foreign from the views of all the m.en witli whom I acted in the passage of that law, as anything the most remote, this arbitrary edict declared, without one syllable in the act to support it, that it was our inten- tion, in passing it, to repeal these specific duties and minimums. It is scarcely possible that any human being could have been so ignorant as not to know tliat a specific duty could at any time be as well ascertained as an ad-valorcm duty, and that these duties were convertible. By the compromise, we simply provided, tliat all existing duties (whether specific or ad valorem) should be reduced according to a fixed ratio. This outrage on the law, which, because the executive, whose province it was to collect the duties, had perpetrated it, was utterly without ren>- VoL. II.— 17 258 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY WOULD PAUSE BEFORE HE SURRENDERED THAT PRINCIPLE, EVEN TO SAVE THE UNION." James K. Polk, in an address to ihc people of Tennessee, pub- lished at Columbia, bis place of residence, under bis own super- edy, proved of great injury to all those manufactures which depended for protec- tion upon tiic minimums and specific duties. "The injury inllictcd on the manufacturinij interest did not admit of legal re- dress, for the i'riends of protection could not by any possibility bring the question before any judicial tribunal, wliile the executive otiicers refused to sue for or col- lect the duties in pursuance of their instructions. Nothing remained for us to do but to submit in silence, until the returning sense of justice to the country should induce the people to drive the enemies of domestic industry from the high places of the republic. • • ♦ Although they continued in power from the passage of that law [compromise act] until the year 1841, they never attempted, in a sin- gle instance, to provide, either by prospective legislation or by any executive reg- ulation, for any mode of assessing duties on the home valuation ; nor did they at- tempt to pass a law raising the duties, prospectively, after the 30th of June, 1842, to the real wants of the government; although they knew, as well through the whole session of Congress of 1840-'41, as we know now, one or both of these measures ou!;ht to be prospectively adopted, to save the government from the dan- ger of bankruptcy. The principle of the home valuation was a sine qua non, at the time of the passage of the act, with many of those who, like myself, voted for it for the purpose avowed by me at the time, of saving the protective policy. We considered that a vote for the duties fixed by the act, to be assessed on this princi- ple, was essentially, to all intents and purposes, a vote (or protection ; and we de- termined, therefore, to compel Mr. Calhoun and his peculiar friends in the senate to record their votes, in the most unequivocal form, on the journal in favor of that principle. And here I can not help complaining of the conduct of 3Ir. Calhoun, after the passage of this law, and especially after the period when most of us friendly to the protective policy, who had voted with him for its passaire, had left the senate of the United States. How well his conduct comported with that feel- ins which a man, who had received at our liands a shelter from the storm which threatened to annihilate him, should exhibit, I leave for him and others who are in the same category to determine. To explain his conduct I must refer to a few facts. " While the motion was pending to amend the bill by directing the assessment of the duties on the home value, a debate sprung up, in the course of which Mr. Calhoun repeatedly argued tiiat the amendment was unconstitutional, and declared tliat it was impossible for him to vote for it. A number of taritf senators, friendly to the compromise act, with whom I was acting in concert, including, amoni: oth- ound, and have a lin/ti( pro/it. • * » 'piie cotton culture then is sure to go on in this country, at any price, from three cents up, that the market warrants, and with increased energies. These facts warrant us in asserting, which we do broadly ami nn(|uali- fiedly, that we can grow coiion cheaper than any other people on earth, not even exc(;pting the Hindoos. The consequence of A SOUTHERN PLANTER. 283 this will be, that we will take the market of the whole world, and keep it supplied with cotton. * * * I am not speaking hypo- thetically, when I say the United States can grow all the cotton wanted — have slaves and land enough to do it, and even overdo it. This country can raise three million bales, just as easily as it now does two millions, when that much is wanted, and then keep ahead of the consumption far enough to jirevcnf. any advance in tlie p-ice. * * * If we keep cotton down,- not to its min- imum price, but to five or six cents, it will cease to come around the cape of Good Hope, and the United States have the marl«et of the world just as certainly as at three cents. * * * She [England] dare not decline taking our cotton, for it is cheapest, and because she has built up her manufactories on the minimum price of the raw material, and buys it wherever cheapest, and has conformed all prices of labor and goods to that principle. Eng- land has in France and Germany, as well as in us, rivals to her cotton manufactures, and such skilful rivals, too, that she dare not pay more for the raw material than they do. If she were to pay two cents a pound more for cotton than we do, or than the conti- nent of Europe does, she would lose her hold on the cotton man- ufacture, and her opponents would take her markets. The lialf- lienny-a-yound duty now levied in England, will have to give uay to insure her success. * ^ * According to the opinions of our most deserving and most skilful commission merchants and fac- tors, our own spinners are now worth fully two cents a pound to the cotton market each and every year, by the competition they create with the Europeans. * * * Fears have been expressed, that ' should we get under way by the stimulus of a protecting tariff, we" would not only pass the dead point, but go ahead beyond our own consumption, so as to aim at supplying the whole world with manufactures.' * * * Such arguments cut like two- ed"-ed swords, and show how much might be done under protec- . * tion. " Five hundred thousand laborers put to work, with all the aids of machinery, could, according to estimates well established from facts in England, produce two hundred million dollars' worth of goods. If we went up to the consumption of the country only, less ilian one half of this sum would produce much wealth and prosperity, and work wonders upon this nation. If we went beyond the home supply, the overplus would be the means of a vast bar- ter or trade with South America, the West Indies, the Levant, and China. We would use the foreign market then as England now does, that is. to vent surplus manufactures upon. Our home mar- ket would increase much and rapidly from the increased ability all this would give, and the thousand springs of industry that would be touched by the operation, including its transportations, storages, 284 REASOXIXOS OF commissions, agencies, and all concerned in such extended trans- actions. • • * There is no interest that ought to hail the establishment of manufactures louder than this [cotton], both in reference to its supplies and markets ; yet nearly all the growers of tills icreat staple are extremely hostile to manufactures. It is dis- courau;in"- to a patriot and a political economist to see this hos- tility from so enlightened a source — to see that prejudices and party do carry on blindly a whole people to the most suicidal acts, without frivini,^ them time to think and calculate their own interests. The shelves of every merchant would convince ihem, if they would look, that all their supplies are already cheaper, and belter in quality, and better fitted for their purposes, than they were for- merly ; and this brought about by a partial or very imperfect carrying on of manufactures. Their own factors tell ihcm that the Americian spinners, by their competition, are worth annually two cents to the cotton market. 1 Reason, too, tells us that a great deal more cotton is used now by the circumstance of the Ameri- cans makin"- coarse goods, weighing heavier, and out of our own cotton, than would be if we got those things from England, be- cause she would make them much lighter and out of the worthless Surats. Our taking the coarse-goods market from England will banish altogether these Surats, because they will not do for fine goods such as then would be left to England to make. • ♦ • Nothing has led me so much to despair of this country and its institutmns, as the want of thought and the right understanding of their interests that these otherwise enlightened and independent cotton-o'rowers have manifested, and their disposition, in the most reckless way, to throw all to the four winds, and their own inter- ests ainom,^ them. Manufactures can not fail to benefit all raw mate- rials. An increased consumption of cotton in any part of die globe, in the present free and enterprising intercourse, will be useful, be- cause markets find their level ; and let a vacuum or demand be cre- ated in any quarter of the globe, the article would rush in to fill it. "We have extra labor enough to grow all the silk that England and the north of Europe need, cheaper, and of a better quality than Italy and I'rance can furnish. The sort of labor that we are putting to the silk culture, consists of women and children, such as will not be missed from our agricultural operations. • • • The first duty of all good government is to look to its lulior — insure it not only full occu|)ation, but the greatest product- iveness. Political economy abhors idleness worse, if possible, than nature does a vacuum. It is worse than a vacuum, because gravity rushes forth to fill the vacuum ; but idleness is a grave where lies dead and buried the creative genius of man — the ineans given to him by the (!od of nature to improve his condiiiou. • • • It would appear to one drojjped from another world, unacquainted with all our interests and resources. Uiat our whole A SOUTHERN PLANTER. 285 Cono-ress or national legislature were taken or subsidized by Eu- rope to favor all their productions or operations exclusively^ — even to the total disregarding of those of this country. It would seem to such that Great Britain sat enthroned in all our legislative halls, and dictated all their enactments regulating industry and a tariff; and if told otherwise, could not be made to believe that some laws and most important regulations were not the results of bribes on the body politic by the superior wealth and foresight of older and wiser nations. Every idle finger will be pointed some day against those short-sighted and unpatriotic legislators, who left it in sloth, and to vice, and mischief, instead of stimulating it to proper action and usefulness. * * * Capital, when not permanently invested, merely seeking interest annually, is almost sure to do more harm than good, because those branches most depressed and in debt, are the first to come forward to take offered loans, to pay their old debts, under a hope their business will revive so as to justify the transaction. Alas ! soon they become convinced that the capital- ist will absorb all and end in a break-up for both. * * * This country, like a young giant, knows not its strength or its resources, because it has never exerted the one or examined the other. Nothing is wanted to bring forth all this, but a permanent policy, a certainty of protection, a security of the home market. All would then come forth and show themselves — capital, labor, raw materials, a market, wealth, comfort, elegance, taste, and indepen- dence. As soon as confidence was established, they would flash forth, as the gas-lights when touched by a match. No country is underlaid so universally with valuable minerals ; and they lie in its extended fletz or secondary formation in horizontal strata, that can be followed into the thousands of hills and ridges, and, lying above the valleys, can be poured forth, without shafts or drainings, to the fertile plains, water powers, and navigations, that are there found. Had this young giant, with its free limbs, hold of these mines of wealth, in the real skilful way, he could glut or monop- olize all markets, both in the raw and wrought state. These hid- den treasures need a protecting tariff' to uncover them — its induce- ment to make them available, and wiser statesmen than we yet have, to put all in train, and on the certainty of the reality. * * * The raw materials give much more support to lines of intercom- munication, than the wrought goods that a country needs. In the carrying of raw materials and agricultural supplies to our manufac- turers, and interchanging with them for their goods, the whole operation is American, and as gratifying as profitable to Americans. When, however, a selfish foreigner uses them to start along his flimsy drygoods, perhaps half smuggled in, too light and useless to pay much toll, yet valuable enough to greatly tax our industry, if bought and used, the scene becomes changed, and the patriot feels that such great works are prostituted to unworthy purposes, 2S6 REASOMNOS OP for wliicli they .should not he constructed or intended. Tlie inter- chanijes that would go on hctween the agriculturists and nianuCac- turers, and the growers or producers of the raw materials, and those who give to them availahle shapes, or ship them off to a for- eign market, would he great, and offer a most pleasing jiicture of j)rosperity. • ♦ • Commerce has as deej) an interest in se- curing the home market and supply as manufactures can have — they are both taken up in suj)j)lying it, pflr 7io^t7csoror?<7/j. • • • C'immcrce has no juifriofi.sm in if, ic/icn based upon foreign supplies. * * * Had we not seen and felt the truth of the fact, we never, // jirio?-/, would have believed for a moment, that any nation would, by a brave and bold effort, establish liberty and indepen- dence, without immediately, as a first principle, looking to and insuring, by proper laws and protection, the production of all things necessary to the daily wants of the ])eople, and the indepen- dence and defences of its government. These L'nited .States have too truly shown a case to the contrary of all this ; and, after a struggle that called down the applause of all the world upon them, have slouched on in their productions and consumptions, as it were by accident, regardless of any system that covered their wants, secured their indej)endence, and guarantied wealth. When we did awake to these things, we found our hands manacled by foreign ties and bonds, and domestic party spirit, in such a way that we could not act. '* We, or nilher our politicians, or, more properly still, our demagogues, have always been too busy studying party-interests, and too much under the influence of party spirit, to think enouf'h about the great relations of commerce and manufactures, to under- stand them, or know anything about their bearings. Hence our mamifacturing interests are a foot-ball, continually banded about, and up and down, uulil no one knows on what to count. * • • When the fulcrum is furnished by nature's God to this young Ar- chiniedcs [tli(> United States], it still fails to move the commercial world. Oiu- commerce, if we demanded it, might double with Kugland around the great capes of South America and Africa, aiul sweep the bays of Bengal and liombay, scour with her the West Indies, run with her through all her various colonies, and in every p(M-f, place, colony, or mother-country, be a part of herself as to fariliiies secured i)y treaty. i\o nation could gainsay us, for wn would be in possession of all seas. .\o nation could war upon us, for we would be fidl of resources and wealth. No nation could countervail us, for we would control all the productions necessary to her existence. Wo would stand on high and envia- ble ground, placed there by our own wisdom, that made use of natural advantages and resources too valuable to nations to be placed on any doubtful footing. This young He'-cules, that stran- A SOUTHERN PLANTER. 287 gled not the serpent in its early grasp, will fall like Laocoon in • the foldings of its wrath. « * * * * * * " One third pari of the people who produce a raw material, cotton, wool, iron, hemp, silk, tobacco, flax, or any other such things, can and do work them up, and impart to them, by the operation. Jive values. In plain mathematics, one manufacturer produces in value, or money, five times as much as the one en- gaged in raising the raw material. * * * ^11 the profits of commerce are incidental, and have reference to its basis and sup- port. Like the light of a satellite, the profits of commerce are borrowed and reflected, not inherent as the centre sun of business, not creative as the producers are. * * * England has, for instance, four hundred millions of money spinning cotton, and makes Jifty millions of 'profit. ******* " England stands at the head of the list, both for wealth and manufactures. She lives in wealth and luxury, and has capital enough to buy the world, if off'ered for sale. In other words, she has as much money as all Europe besides. The question natu- rally arises, how did she acquire it ? Not by her agriculture, for the utmost that it ever did was to feed and support her, and now does not do that much. Not by her fisheries, for they barely sup- ply her with the luxuries and products of the ocean. Not by working gold, silver, and diamond mines, for she has none of them. It is the fruit of her labor, her manufacturing labor and skill, and the commerce that is based upon it. * * * Eng- land, her writers say, has a clear income in money, after supply- in"- herself every year, of two hundred millions to add to her cap- ital ; whereas we have not one cent, and often fall in debt and behind, after supplying and buying what we ought to make at home. * * * 'Let us have our workshops abroad,' said the worst politician [General Jackson] that ever a nation was cursed with. We have them abroad, by his influence mainly, and our masters are there, too ; for we have been all the time dependent on them for our necessaries. As well might we say, let our cap- ital be abroad — let our liberty, our independence, be in foreign keeping. Had he lived to the age of a patriarch, under full pen- itence, he could not have atoned for all the mischief he entailed on this nation, and the disappointment the friends of liberty, the world over, felt, and are destined to feel, from his visionary acts and policies. " The staples produced in this country by slaves, say cotton, sugar, rice, tobacco, and hemp, that would have had no existence without them, for the last fifty years, have averaged fifty n)illion dollars a year, which, in the fifty years, amounts to the enormous 288 REASONINGS OF A SOUTHERN PLANTER. sum of twenty-five hundred millions. This sum has been realized, and constituted nearly the whole of our ability with which to pur- cliasc supplies abroad. Foreign nations, England more than all the others, have got, enjoyed, and realized, in the shape of capital, this twenty-five hundred million dollars, and we iiave consumed it, and not a vestige of it left behind. * * • This people never would have remained inefiicient had they not been flattered and lulled by the proceeds of this slave labor. It employed our shipping and commerce so much that, by the aid of our merchants, the slaveholders have governed the country, and kept back every Other great interest. The country is now, or will be, in a situa- tion like an annuitant, who, depending literally on the annuity, finds, by some revolution, that suddenly stopped. » » » Our active statesmen have turned demagogues, and are serving their own base purposes by the meanest and most unprincipled intrigues and corruption, instead of studying the true policies of the country and carrying them into effect. " Had we not a scouring trade with other portions of the world, that brought in some profit, or a balance in our favor, our trade with England would ruin us in a few years. It now not only takes our precious gains elsewhere, but all the spare cash we have besides, to keep it uj). It is an un{)leasant idea, that our active, enterprising whalemen and traders have to put in requisition all the seas, all the climates, and encounter dangers, disease, and in- tense labor, not to enrich us, but to meet this English balance that is swallowing up all thus raked together, as well as all at home. * * * Had we saved for fifty years the annual balance Eng- land enjoyed against us, it would have amounted to fnc hundred ' milUons, which, realized at home, would have much enriched us, and might have put (piite another Aice on our circumstances. It is of little consequence, though the foregoing extracts, selected from a work of three hundred pages, are thrown out, as a sower scatters seed from his hand over the fieUl. It is sowing light and information that few can fail to profit by. It is a new and hopeful symptom, when " a southern planter, who raises cotton, and owns slaves," can make such an argument as this. It is a light shining in a dark place, and may tend, not a little, to dissipate the shades, which have so long brooded over that wide region of the Ameri- can mind. He speaks from experience, and is evidently a man that understands iiis subject. It is an impressive contrast, from the same quarter, to the argument of nullification in 1832— '33. He speaks " right on ;" and he is " a southern planter." THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 289 CHAPTER XL HISTORY OF OPINIOX ON THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. Opinion of Presidents in Messages to Congress. — General Jackson's Letter to Doctor Coleman.— Opinion of the Tammany Society, in 1819. — Opinion of the Framers of the Constitution— of the First Convention at Annapolis, 1786— and of the First Congress under the Constitution. In the debate of the compromise tariff, Mr. Webster said, that the protective pohey began with the tariff of 1S16. Mr. Clay said, that it began with the adoption of the federal constitution. Both were correct, taken as they meant. Mr. Webster intended to say, that the then present system of tariff legislation began with the tariff of 1S16, as in fact, it was the first tariff for protection in the history of the country. Mr. Clay agreed ; but for the purposes of his argument, was entitled to call attention to the chief political design of the constitution, which was to lay a platform on which to build the protective policy, and to the fact that the first Congress under the constitution made it their first business to legislate on the subject. •The following are extracts from messages of presidents of the United States on this topic : — " The advancement of agriculture, commerce, and manvfactures, by all 'pro'pcr vicam, will not, I trust, need recommendation ; but I can not forbear intimating to you the expediency of giving effec- tual encouragement, as well to the introduction of new and useful inventions from abroad, as to the exertions of skill and genius in producing them at home." — Wnshingt oil's Armual Address. " Congress has repeatedly, and not without success, directed thei attention to^ the eyicouragemcjit of mamtfactures. The object is of too 7mich consequcjice not to i?isure a contimiaiice of their efforts in every way which shall appear eligible.''^ — Washington'' s Last An- nual Address. " To cultivate peace, and maintain commerce and navigation in all their lawful enterprises ; to foster our fisheries, as nurseries of Vol. II.— 19 290 HISTORY OF OPIXIO.V navi"-ation and for the nurture of man, and to protect the manufac- tures mlnptcd to our circumstances — these, fellow-citlzens, are the lanihnarks hy whlcli we are to L^uide ourselves in all our proceed- ings." — Jrfj'rn^on s 2d Annual Mcsiagc. '* The situation into which we iiave heen forced has impelled us to apply a portion of otu- industry and caj)ital to national manufac- tures and improvements. The extent of conversion is daily in- creasing, and little doubt remains that the establishments formed and forming, will, under the ausj)ices of cheaper materials and sub- sistence, the freedom of labor from taxation with us, and of pro- tecting duties and prohibitions, become iKrmanent^ — Jrjferson^s Sth A V n iia I Message. " We have experienced what we did not then believe, that there exists both profligacy and power enough to exclude us from the field of interchanges with other nations ; that to be independent for the comforts of life, we must fabricate them ourselves. We must now place our manufacturers by the side of the agriculturist. Tiie former question is now suppressed, or rather assumes a new form. The grand incpiiry now is, shall we make our own com- forts, or go without them at the will of a foreign nation ? He, therefore, who is now against domestic manufactures, must be for reducing us either to a dependence upon that nation, or be clothed in s/iins, and lire like beasts in dens and caverns. I am j^roud to iaij (hat I am not one of these. Experience has taught me (hat manufactures are now as necessary to our indcjiendcncc as to our comfor(.''^ — .hfjcrsoii's Letter to Bcnj. Austin, Esq., Boston, ISIG. " The revision of our commercial laws, proper to adapt them to the arrangement which has taken place with Creat Britain, will doiibiless engage the early attention of Congress. It will be wor- thy at the same time of iheir just and provident care, to make such further alterations in the laws as will more especially inotcct and foster (lie several branches of mannfacture which have been recently instituted or extended by the laudable exertion of our citizens." — Madison'' s Special M'ssagr, May 23, 1809. " I recommend also, as a more effectual safeguard, and as an cncourgement to our growing manufactures, that the additional du- ties on imports which are to exj)ire at the end of one year after a peace with (I real Jiritain, be prolonged to the end of two years after that event." — M(idisoii\s Sprrial ^[ess^lgr, May 31, J 814'. " liut there is no subject which can enter with greater force and merit into the deliberations of Congress, than a consideration of the means to preserve and |)roniote the manufactures which have sprung into existence, and attained unparalleled maturity throughout the United States durin;; the period of the Kiuopean wars. This source of national indejjendence and wealth I anxiously recommend to the proni|)t and constant i^iiardianship of Congress." — Madison\t Special Message, Eebruary lJ!t, It? 1/5. ON THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 29] " In odjusting the duties on imports to the object of revenue, the injlncnce of the tariff on mamfactures will ncccsmribj irrcscnt itself for consideration. However wise the theory may be which leaves to the sagacity and interest of individuals the application of their industry and resources, there are in this, as in other cases, excep- tions to the general rule. Besides the consideration which the theory itself implies of a reciprocal adoption by other nations, ex- perience teaches that so many circumstances must occur in intro- ducing and maturing manufacturing establishments, especially of a more complicated kind, that a country may remain long without them, although sufficiently advanced, and in some respects pecu- liarly fitted for carrying them on with success. Under circum- stances giving a powerful impulse to manufacturing industry, it has made among us a progress, and exhibited an efficiency, which jus- tify the belief that, with a protection not more than is due to the enterprising citizens whose interests are now at stake, it will become, at an early day, not only safe against occasional competition from abroad, but a source of domestic wealth and external commerce. In selecting the branches more especially entitled to public patron- age, a preference is obviously claimed by such as will release the United States from a dependence on foreign supplies, ever subject to casual failures, for articles necessary for the public defence, or connected with the primary w^ants of individuals. It will be an additional recommendation of particular manufactures, where the materials for them are extensively drawn fi'om our agriculture, and consequently impart and insure to that great fund of national pros- perity and independence, an encouragement which can not fail to be rewarded." — Madiso7i's 1th Anmial Message. " Our manufactures will likewise require the systematic and fos- tering care of the government. Fosscssing, as we do, all the raw materials, the fruit of oiir own soil and, industry, we ought not to depend, in the degree we have done, on supplies from other coimtries. While we are thus dependent, the sudden event of war, unsought and unexpected, can not fail to plunge us into the most serious difficulties. It is important, too, that the capital which nourishes our manufactures should be domestic, as its influence in that case, instead of exhausting, as it must do in foreign hands, would be felt advantageously on agriculture, and every other branch of in- dustry. Equally importayit is it to provide at home a marhet for our raw materials ; us, by extending the competition, it will enhance the price, and protect the cultivator against the casualties incident to foreign markets.^'' — Monroe s Inaugural Address. "Uniformity in the demand and price of an article, is highly de- sirable to the domestic manufacturer. It is deemed of great im- portance to give encouragement to our domestic manufactures.'''' — Monroe^s 3d Aimual Message. " It can not be doubted, that the more complete our internal 292 HISTORY OF OPINION resources, and tlie less dc[)endent we are on foreign powers for every national as well as domestic purpose, the greater and more stable will be the j)ublic felicity. By the increase of domestic manufactures, will the demand for the rude materials at home be increased ; and thus will the dependence of the several parts of the Union on each other, and the strength of the Union itself, he proj)ortionally augmented." — Monruc's 5(h Annual Message. " Satisfied am J, whatever may be the abstract doctrine in favor of unrestricted commerce, provided all nations would concur in it, and it was not liable to be interru])ted by war, which has never occurred, and can not be expected, that there are other strong reasons applicable to our situation and relations with other coun- tries, which impose on us the obligation to cherish and sustain our manufactures." — Monroe's Q>(h Annual Message. " The great interests of an agricultural, commercial, and manu- facturing nation, are so linked in union together, that no perma- nent cause of prosperity to one of them can operate without ex- tendins; its influence to the other. All these are alike under the protecting power of legislative authority, and the duties of the representative bodies are to conciliate them in harmony together. "Is the self-protecting energy of this nation so helpless that there exists in the political institutions of our country no power to counteract the bias of foreign legislation ; that the growers of grain must submit to the exclusion from the foreign markets of their produce ; that the shipjicrs must dismantle their ships, the trade of the north stagnate at the wharves, and the manufacturers starve at their looms, while die whole people shall pay tribute to foreign industry, to be clad in foreign garbs ; that the Congress ol the Union are impotent to restore the balance in favor of native indus- try destroyed by the statutes of any realm ?" — AJams^ 'ith An- iiual Mcssarrc. " The power to impose duties upon imports originally belonged to the several states. The right to adjust these duties, with a view to the encouragement of domestic branches of industry, is so com- pletely identical with that power, that it is dillicult to suppose the existence of the one without the other. The states have delegated their whole authority over imports to the general government, with- out limitation or restriction, saving the very inconsiderable reserva- tion relating to the inspection laws. This authority having thus entirely j)assed from the states, the right to exercise it for the pur- pose of protection does not exist in them ; and, consqiiently, if it be not possessed by the general government, it must be extinct. Our i)olitical system would thus present the anomaly of a people stripped of the right to foster their own industry, and to counteract the most selfish and destructive policy which might be adopteil by foreign nations. This surcily can not be the case ; this indispensa- ble power, thus surrendered by the states, must be within the scope ON THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 293 of authority on the subject expressly delegated to Congress. In this conclusion I am confirmed, as well by the opinions of Presi- dents Washington, Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe, who have each repeatedly recommended this right under the constitution, as by the uniform practice of Congress, the continued acquiescence of the states, and the general understanding of the people."- Jacksoii's '2d Annual Messacre. The following is an extract from a letter of Genera. Jackson, to Dr. L. H. Coleman, N. C, dated Washington City, August 26, 1824 :— * * * * " Heaven smiled upon and gave us liberty and inde- pendence. The same Providence has blessed us with the means of national independence and national defence. If we omit or refuse to use the gifts which he has extended to us, we deserve not the continuance of his blessing. He has filled our mountains and our plains with minerals — with lead, iron, and copper — and given us a climate and soil, for the growing of hemp and wool. These being the great materials of our national defence, they ought to have extended to them adequate tjnd fair protection, that our manufacturers and laborers maybe placed in a fair competition with those of Europe, and that we may have within our country a sup- ply of these leading and important articles so essential to war. "J will ask, what is the real situation of the agriculturist? Where has the American farmer a market for his surplus produce ? Except for cotton, he has neither a foreign, nor a home market. Does not this clearly prove, when there is no market at home, or abroad, that there is too much labor employed in agriculture ? Common sense at once points out the remedy : Take from agri- culture in the United States six hundred thousand men, women, and children, and you will at once give a market for more bread- stuffs than all Europe now furnishes us with. " In short, sir, we have been too long subject to the policy of British merchants. It is time we should become a little more Americanized, and instead of feeding paupers and laborers of England, feed our own; or else, in a short time, by continuing our present policy, we shall be paupers ourselves. " It is therefore my opinion, that a careful and judicious tariff is much wanted, to pay our national debt, and to afford us the means of that defence within ourselves, on which the safety of our country and lil)crties depends ; and last, though not least, give a proper distribution of our labor, which must prove beneficial to the happiness, wealth, and independence, of the community. " I am very respectfully, " Your obedient servant, " Andrew Jackson." 294 HISTORY OF OPINION In the iMstory of pojii/hrr opinion on this subject, the most re- markable item is to be found in the '• Address of the Society OF Tammany, OR Columbian Order, to its absent members, AND THE members OF ITS SEVERAL BRANCHES, THROUGHOUT THE United iStates, New York, 1S19." Such is the title of the document. It was ushered upon the public under a solemnity and sanction of previous official action, the record of which, as a preface to the address, is as follows : — "TAMMANY SOCIETY, OR COLUMBIAN ORDER. " EXTRACTS FROM THE MINUTES. '' Avsrvst 30, 1S19. " Resolved, Tl^at a committee be appointed to take into consid- eration the subjects of Natiomd Ecoftunnj and Domestic Manufac- tures, and that the said committee draugiit an address and report the same to this society, enforcing the necessity of encoui-aging such desirable objects, and that the said address be directed through the public prints to the several brandies of this society throughout the nation. " October 4, 1S19. "The address on the subjects of National Economy and Domestic Manufactures, draughted by Brother Woodward, and reported by him from the committee of seven members of this society, having been twice distinctly read, at two several weekly meetings, and de- liberately considered and discussed as to all its parts and conse- quences at four several weekly meetings, the members having been previously notified of the said meetings respectively through the medium of the public prints, it was, on motion, "■ Jirsoired, That the said address be adopted, and that it be signed by the grand sachem and secretary. '^Resolved, That- a committee of correspondence be appointed, whose duty shall be to cause as many copies as they may think proper of the said address to be printed in a neat pamphlet form, at the expense of the society, and distributed in such manner as to them may seem fit, and that they also countersign the same, aniL have general powers of correspondence on all subjects embraced therein, and connected with the good of this society." The following are extracts from the address itself: — "Brothers: A deep shadow has passed over our land: a commercial and individual gloom has created a imiversal stillness. In our remotest \ ilkiges the haimner is not heard, and in onr larger cities the din and bustle of thrifty iiulustry have ceased. The phi- lanthro|)ist, the philosophor, the statesman, the patriot, and the good man of every des(ri|)ti(»n, anxiously intjuire the cause. " 'JMie cause, it i- believed, is not lii/im i/f in the nation ; for, thanks to the Almighty Dispenser of good gifts, our country pos- ON THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 295 sesses the germs of interminable progression, the sources of inex- haustible wealth and prosperity. But it is justly to be feared, that the cause is seated in the abuse of those inestimable gifts. And if this should be found to be the truth, sound reflection, and the timous and prudent adoption of means, may turn our subjects of complaint into partial and transient evils, and their effects into a radical and perennial good. * * * Perhaps a proportion of even the present embarrassments may be traced from the first re- strictive measure down to the termination of the late war, owinsr to the restraint of remittances and outward cargoes, and the em- barrassments in procuring foreign receipts. This cause, so far as it is defined and not abused, is hallowed at the shrine of patriot- ism ; it grew out of a principle of national necessity and riorJtt, to which every citizen is bound to bend with alacrity, and which the bright column of character and glory which arose out of the war casts entirely in the shade. * * * ^]-^Q j-,g^^ cause of distress is the sudden introduction of inordinate quantities of all species of foreign production, arising from false peace calculations, which have either deadened on the hands of our merchants, or paralyzed other operations ; which have produced large balances against them, and extended in their effects to the immediate or indirect dealers in the remotest corners of the community. * * * The evil is within the scope of legislation, and a remedy, although sim- ple in its character, would be universal in its effects upon the wealth and morals of the community. " As to the inundation of the country hy foreign goods, that is a subject of wide magnitude, and most radical interest to the Amer- ican people. A remedy for this evil would be precious as rubies to him who values the institutions of his country, and glories in its indigenous greatness. It is true that the false peace calculations constitute but a partial evil, which will in the event remedy itself, so far as the nation is concerned. And it is equally true, that each individual should import no more than he may think he can sell to advantage. But after all, it will be found, that the importa- tions on most occasions will be far beyond our wants, which, to- gether with false calculations and unfortunate enterprises, will create a balance against us. The remedy for all this is one most grateful to the American ear, and nearest to the American heart. Tt is the encouragement of our own manufactures. One objectioa to manufactures is, that they are established and nourished by a prohibition of the articles manufactured from foFcign countries, and that the government willjose some of its impost. * * * Better to encourage a more limited commerce, and to an extent just com- mensurate to our wants, after the most magnanimous scope had been given to our domestic resources. Suppose a material pro- portion of the articles now imported were the staple manufacture 296 HISTORY OF OPINION of the country, wc would then always know the exact stock on hand, and capable of being produced, and graduate our transac- tions accordingly. In despite of the abstract reasoning of the ene- mies to manufactures in the Lnited kStates, it will, upon close ex- amination, be found, that for chcaj) livinfr and c/tcup labor, the United States may in a short time be rivalled by no country on the globe. * * * 'pjje eastern states present many strong in- ducements to manufacture. Even the slave population of the south- ern states would be a facility to manufactures ; and its easy and profitable occupation in this way, from the now useless child to the grown man, might advance the cause of humanity, greatly aid con- ditional laws of emancipation, and at last remove the greatest objec- tion to the freedom of that unfortunate race of people, the inordi- nances which they might commit by coining as a deluge upon the country. * * * 'i^\\e mines of subterranean wealth and material which the country contains, can best be imagined from the infallible evidences which the experience of every year brings forth. The institution and wide spread of manufactures will be the strong lever to disturb their hoary slumbers, subject them to the analysis of science, and convert them to the most [)ractical purposes of domes- tic comfort, while it will administer a kind of national wealth which will never forsake us. The country might then exclaim, that that government was wrong, which, fastidious of popularity and some factitious system of finance, would neglect advantages so incalcu- lable ; that that nation was unwise, which, from false delicacy to the people, and the fear of a few direct taxes as substitutes for what is indirectly paid, should suffer so beautiful a fabric of internal polity and resource to be lost to the present and coming genera- tions. * * * '['he almost total absence of our own fabrics has caused the introduction of those of the most spurious kind from other countries ; and it is a notorious fact, that articles to a serious amount are manufactured abroad for the express purpose of being sold at auction in the United States. By this our manufacturer is undersold, and, what is as mortifying, he is a sufierer from the frauds of strangers. The remedy against our being surcharged with foreign goods, and the means of introducing manufactures, is to fur/j/il tii/irchj the importation of articles which can be on any tol- erable terms innnvfactiirnl hij ourselves. 'J'his would not only apply the cure, but, from the identity and stamps of the dumestic fai)rics, prevent its bcinir evaded bv sinuiriirm^. Conri-. Clay has with great candor admitted, in a part of his speech of February 12, 1S33, that " in general it may be taken as a rule, that the duty upon an article forms a portion of its price." But this was an incidental remark, candidly rendered, in connexion with a showing of an unwarrantable, because uncertain and unre- liable, conclusion arrived at by the secretary of the treasury, as part of the basis of his estimates. It is on account of the falla- cious character of this technical proposition — which may be al- lowed to be technically correct, though practically deceptive — that this part of the estimate of the secretary, based on the assumed principle, that duties are parts of prices, was justly arraigned by Mr. Clay; and if it had occurred to him at the moment, or been thought necessary, he would probably have shown the fallacy or deceptive character of the rule. That he so regarded it, is plain from his own words : " Now no calculation can be more uncertain than that." But the proposition, as a technicality in political sci- ence, is applied alike when the consumer gets the article cheaper in consequence of the duty, as when he pays more. But Mr. Clay has proved abundantly, that the operation and effect of the protective policy in this country has generally been to cheapen the articles protected, by extending the range of competition, and in- creasing supply relative to demand. In the early history of infant establishments, protected by duties on imports, prices of the arti- cles thus protected may, in some, perhaps in most cases, be, for a time, enhanced ; but it does not follow, that even then they are a tax to the consumers. The consumers may be benefited in finding a market for their own products, in consequence of this protection, to a greater amount than the increased prices on these articles. This is a sound doctrine of political economy, and is the invari- able operation of the protective policy. The benefit may not fall precisely, and in exact measure, where it is due ; but sooner or later, directly or indirectly, in one form or another, all consumers of protected articles, thus enhanced in price, will get their equiva- lent. IIow much more are the consumers of protected articles benefited, when these articles are cheapened in consequence of protection V The technical proposition, therefore, that duties form parts of prices, seems to lend to practical error. It can not, except in cer- tain cases, be true, as for example, it is not true when the duties are greater than the prices. Mr. Clay mentions an instance when duties on lead were two to one of the price. It is absurd to sup- THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 307 pose that such duties enter inlo the price. On unprotected arti- cles, when imposed for revenue, generally, this rule applies, though it is not a certain and exact measure. On protected arti- cles, it is rarely true, and never in any case can it be a reliable measure. The false notion, that protective duties are a tax, in the sense of a burden, has led to all the hostility which the protective policy has encountered. To arrive at the truth, the proposition should be reversed, and read thus : Free trade, on one side, leads to a system of taxation by foreign pou-ers and foreign factors, and the protective iioUcy operates as a rescue from and a shield agaitist such wrongs. On account of the importance of this proposition, it may be well to spend a few words in illustrating it. In the first place, when a manufacturing nation, like Great Britain, has gained an exclusive market for any of its products in a foreign country, the factors are able to command their own prices. The home govern- ment, aware of this, imposes exorbitant excise and other duties on these articles, all of which, in such a case — there being no com- petition — enter into the prices, and are paid by the consumers. Suppose the consumers are citizens of the United States. It will follow, that these taxes, amounting to not less than 50 per cent, of the cost, are paid By American citizens, for all that they con- sume of such articles, to support the British government, estab- lished church, aristocracy, and all other institutions of that em- pire. It is a tax — and an enormous one — without disguise or ijualification. Such was the actual condition of the American col- onies previous to 1776. Though the evil has been relieved since the establishment of American independence, it has never been entirely abated. The United States have always been one of the best customers of Great Britain, on such terms as to pay all the British imposts and excises on the articles consumed. To show how the people of the United States have been taxed as customers of Great Britain, in the consumption of her manu- factures, it is only necessary to exhibit, as nearly as practicable, the average amount of her imposts on the raw material of her manufactured products, and of her excises on the implements and business of manufacture, through all stages to the final act of ex- port. The following extracts from a congressional document of the house of representatives. No. 296, 3d session, 27th Congress, pp. 500—501, may serve as a basis of this calculation : — 308 POLITICAL ECONOMY AS I'l EESPECTS •'England levies no (lirect taxes upon lit: colonies, or rarely is it done. But by indirect taxes they gwe four fijVis of their pro- ductive wealth to the support of the motiier-country. It was that support which she derived from tiie thirteen [.North American] colonies, and it was for that alone she resisted their independence. Siie desired to jiroducr, and that they should be forced to consume ; and of all that they consumed, at least foiirjijy is went into the na- tional treasury at home, after supporting her farmers and mechan- ics. ... It is generally alleged, that a man j)ays 1-5 shillings for the use of government, out of every 20 shillings he spends in England, k^ome have stated the public tax at 17 shillings in the pound. Let us take one instance in the article of beer. The land pays a tax ; the barley, when malted, pays an excise of six- pence a bushel ; hops pay one penny a pound ; the beer, when brewed, pays an excise greater, in some cases, than the original value ; all the persons who labor in the premises contribute to the national revenue, by their sundry consumptions, to the amount of three fourtlts of the whole price of their labor. It follows, then, tliat the people of this country contribute in like proportion to the support of foreign governments, upon all that they purchase. In 18'i0, we imported more than $70,000,000 worth of foreign arti- cles//'ee of duty. The effect was, that they who purchased these articles, paid not one cent to the support of our own government, while at least four Jif/hs of that amount went into the treasuries of foreign governments, to support kings on their thrones, parlia- ments tiiat make laws prohibiting our prodJ^tions, and foreign ar- mies and navies." It is supposed by the writer of these pages, that the above esti- mates of indirect taxes paid by British colonies, and of the public domestic tax of Great Britain, may be too large. It is at any rate large enough for the purpose now in view, to reduce it to an av- erage of fifty per cent., which could doubtless be maintained. It will be seen, that all these taxes must necessarily enter into the prices of the articles to the consumers in foreign countries, beside the profits of the manufacturer, the costs of transportation, and die charges of jobbers and retailers. The following rhetorical sketch of British domestic taxation, ascribed to the pen of Henry Brougham, now Lord Brougham, could not have been without foundation, considering the quarter from which it conies, and though it furnishes but few specific facts, is not less instructive, than eloquent: — "Taxes on every article that enters the mouth, or cover? the back, or is placed under the feet; taxes upon everything that is THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 309 pleasant to see, hear, feel, smell, or taste; taxes upon warmth, light, and locomotion; taxes on everything on tlie earth and the waters under the earth — on everything that comes from abroad, or is grown at home ; taxes on the raw material, and on every new value that is added by the labor and art of man; taxes on the spices that pamper man's appetite, and on the drug that is admin- istered to his disease; taxes on the ermine that decorates the judge, and on the rope that hangs the criminal; taxes on the poor man's salt, and on the rich man's dainties; taxes on the ribands of the bride, and the brass nails of her coffin ; — at. bed or at hoard, couchant on, levant, ivc must pay. The schoolboy spins his taxed top ; the beardless youth manages his taxed horse, on a taxed sad- dle, with a taxed bridle, on a taxed road ; and the dying English- man, pouring his medicine which has paid seven per cent., into a spoon that has paid fifteen per cent., flings himself back on his chintz bed which has paid twenty-two per cent., makes his will on a stamp that has paid eight pounds, and expires in the arms of an apothecary who has paid one hundred pounds for the privilege of putting him to death. His whole property is then taxed from two to ten per cent, in probate, and large fees are demanded for bury- ing him in a church. His virtues are handed down to posterity on taxed marble, and he is gathered to his fathers to be taxed no more." The last is a questionable statement, judged by the preceding one. If his marble monument is taxed, he is taxed till the morn- ing of the resurrection, if marble can last so long. It would seem, according to this, that the Englishman is taxed for the priv- ilege of coming into the world, taxed all the way through the world, and not only taxed on his passage out of the world, but EVER after! But according to the table exhibited by Mr. Clay, cited in a former chapter, he can afford it. His industry is pro- tected by his government, and all the world, foreign to Great Brit- ain, with which she trades, bears the chief burden of her taxes, as the result of her policy. The taxes paid to Great Britain, in countries foreign to herself, by the consumers of the products of her manufactories, amounting to not less than fifty per cent, of the cost, will exhibit the range open for reduction of prices in the protected articles of American manufactures, and for other items of saving to the people and gov- ernment of the United States, under adequate protection. It «iay be assumed as an average of fifty per cent, under the system of commercial intercourse now and of late existin<2: between the two countries. Of course, though the American tariff were much higher than it is, so long as it is not prohibitory, and so long as any 310 POLITICAL ECONOMY AS IT RESPECTS I fraction of this fifty per cent, remains for the British exchequer, the trade is beneficial to that government and country, and will be desired. It will be seen by this view, that the protective policy of the United kStates, encouraging and fostering domestic manufac- tures, so that they can come into competition with British products, and rival them, not only in the home market, but abroad, there ought to be and must be a reduction of prices in the articles pro- tected. Accordingly it has been found, that such is the result. Mr. Clay proved it in 1S32 and '33; and the Hon. Charles Hud- son, in a report from the committee on manufiictures, in the house of representatives, document 420, 1st session, 28th Congress, has proved the same thing. The following are some of the facts: The depression in the price of 23 different kinds of manufactured iron, from 1S40 to 1S44, ranges from 10 to 4G per cent. — average 23 per cent. — a result effected under the increase of protective duties. In a list of twenly-two different and chief materials for ship-building, such as are imported, the fall of prices from 3 842 to 1844, ranges from 2 to 35 percent. — average 17^ per cent. — all under the tarifl' of 1842. In a list of iiine articles of Ameri- can hardware protected by increased duties of the present tariff, the fall of prices from 1841 to 1844, ranges from 13 to 30 per cent. — average 15 per cent. The tables appended to Mr. Hud- son's reportgo on with quotations of prices current, before and after the present tariff, in regard to numerous articles of domestic manuf\icture enjoying increased protection against foreign produ- cers, and showing an almost universal depression of prices as a conscfjuence of protection, in a measure corresponding with the above-cited instances. But the experience of the people in sup- plying their wants, will have been to them the most conclusive ar- gument. The free-trade orator will in vain cry out, that the poor man has to pay six cents more a yard for his shirt, in consequence of the tariff, when the poor man himself is able to look him in the face, and say, "Why, sir, how can that be? — I gave only Jive cents a yard for the shirt I have on. Do you mean to say that, without the tarilf, I could have got it for anc cent a yard less than not hi II ^T^ The prices on cotton fabrics, since the system of j)rotcction commenced in 1S1(>, though it has been imperfect and fluctuating, have fallen, for shirts, from 25 cents a yard to 5 cents; for sheets, from 32 cents to 7 cent.- a yard; checks, from 32 to 8 cents a yard; striped and plain ginghams, from •-'•> lo 8 cents a yard; THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 311 printed calicoes, from 20 cents a yard in 1826 to 9 cents in 1844; and so on. Doubtless improvements in machinery, and reduced prices of the raw material, have had something to do with it; but these facts would only account for a fraction of the difference. The following statement, made with great care and accuracy by a commission merchant of Boston, trading in the goods enumer- ated, exhibits the wholesale prices at Boston, of the principal arti- cles manufactured at Lowell, &c., for eleven successive years, on the first of May : — 00 7—< CO CO 00 1—1 • CO 00 00 CO 00 CO 00 o 00 00 00 CO 00 t— 1 00 in 00 Light sheetings Heavy sheetings... Light shirtings .... Drillings 101 Hi 101 9 lOi ~i 7 6i 5f 7 6f 12| 12i m 10 111 8 7| n 6§ 8i 7i n H 81 6 n 5f 5| 5 4| 5f H m m 14 11 nh 9 9 7f H 8i H A comparison of the average of the above prices before the tariff of 1842, with the average afterward, is probably a fair ex- hibit of the effect of that measure. The following is an extract from a letter, written in 1845, by a gentleman, allowed by high authority to be "one of the most saga- cious merchants in this or any other country," speaking from his knowledge and observation, in answer to inquiries on this subject: — "The prices, however [of cotton goods], will be reduced within a year by the introduction of the product of a portion of the three hundred thousand spindles now in a course of construction. You may safely maintain that every article that can be exported by our own manufacturers, and compete with British merchandise, must be sold to the consumer at home chcaj)er lluin it can he imjjorted. This is the case with every description of coarse cottons. The iron of Pennsylvania requires, and now enjoys the highest protec- tion, and we shall have iron low enough, if the duty on it stands for seven years. There is no doubt in my mind that the country will derive immense advantages from such protective duties as will invite capital to develop the natural resources that exist around us. Iron, coal, wool, cotton, hemp, &c., we can produce in abun- dance, and use them too in every shape and form that they can in England. Supply and demand always did and always will regulate prices." It is supposed by some, that it will not take more than three years, under the tariff of 1842, to accomplish the object regarding iron, for which the writer of this letter allows seven years. 312 rOLITICAL ECONOMY AS IT RESPECTS Mr. Clay has shown in the citations already made from him, HOW the protective pohcy operates to rechice the prices of manu- factured articles, and it is seen that the facts correspond with the doctrine. Tiiere are occasional and transiently existing excep- tions, arising from accidental causes, as for example the high price of the raw material. When that is wool, the American farmer has the henefit ; or if the raw material be any other American prod- uct, it is all saved to the country, and in various ways distrib- uted among all classes. It is manifest, therefore, that duties imposed to bring American manufactures into existence, and to sustain them, are so far from being a tax, on consumers of the articles thus protected, that they actually reduce the prices. A man who chooses to drink London porter, pays twice as much as for American porter equally jrood ; and a nightcap of British manufacture costs three times the price of the American fabric of the same descrij)tion. In these little things the prices of foreign products are still kept up, and the im- positions still practised ; though in most things prices have been brought down by competition. But the saving to the country is of vastly greater importance than this difference in prices to consumers. It is the saving of the whole 50 per cent, of the cost that goes into the British ex- chequer, or some other foreign exchequer, not to speak of the profits of foreign factors, and costs of importation. This 50 per cent, remains in the country, instead of going out of it, and is dis- tributed, one fraction among consumers by reduction of prices ; another fraction among the operatives in the manufactories and me- chanif shops, to afford them subsistence and sustain the price of American labor, which are three to one of wages for the same kind of labor in Europe ; another fraction goes to pay interest on investments ; another to farmers, gardeners, fishermen, wood and coalmen, and all the varieties of other American labor and indus- try wliicli are employed to supply the wants of these establish- ments ; another to the various branches of transportation and traf- fic, to commissioners, storage, and agencies, which they j)ui and keep in operation ; and another goes into tlic j)ublic treasury from im|)osts, which afford this protection, and thus saves the |)eople from being taxed to snp|)ort their own government. In these and other wavs, which people rarely, almost never, think of, the entire 50 ]ier cent., or one h.tlf of the costs of manufactured products, which v.ouid otherwise go into foreign exclietjuers, to support THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 313 kino-s, princes, aristocrats, nobility, and all the various extrava- gances of monarchical governments and institutions, with their ar- mies and navies, is saved to the country, and distributed among all branches of American labor and industry. Thus does the pro- tective policy, by rearing and maintaining domestic manufactures and mechanic arts, rescue the country from an enormous and op- pressive system of taxation by foreign powers and foreign factors, and retain the funds for the increase of national wealth and private prosperity. Is it not then a gross misnomer to call protective du- ties a TAX, when, in fact, they are a deliverance from being taxed bv foreign powers, and when they cheapen the articles protected, in exact proportion as the home products are encouraged and sus- tained ? It is sometimes said, that the protective policy takes more care of manufactures and mechanic arts, than of agricuhure. That may be true, while the former are in the infancy of their existence, or when the object is to call them into existence. A man does not require the same nurture as a child. Agriculture is the natu- ral vocation of man, and may perhaps be said never to be in any other state than that of manhood. It has at least been claimed to be the natural calling of the American people by the advocates of free trade, and is generally asserted by them to need no pro- tection. But for thirty years past, during the general peace of the world, since the cheaper labor of Europe and other foreign parts, began to send its surplus agricultural products to the United States, thereby showing that they required litde or no supply from this quarter, it has been found necessary to throw the shield of the pro- tective policy over the interests of agriculture in the United States, as well as over those of navigation, manufactures, and the me- chanic arts ; and the average amount of protection given to the following agricultural products, by the tariff of 1842, is 50 per cent. — which is higher than the average protection given to man- ufactures — to wit : on cotton, wool, beef, pork, bacon, lard, cheese, butter, potatoes, flour, wheat, oats, and hemp, in all thir- teen articles, besides which adequate protection — or that which was intended to be adequate — is extended to the remaining list of the products of husbandry. The annual average aggregate of imports into the United States, for the five years preceding 1S42, of cotton, wool, hemp, beef and pork, hams and bacon, cheese, butter, lard, potatoes, flour, and wheat, thirteen articles, was $2,341,600 — of which the potatoes imported into Boston in one 314 POLITICAL ECONOMY AS IT RESPECTS year amounted to S41,000 ! And the annual average of exports of agricultural products, other than cotton, from the United States to England, Scotland, and Ireland, including animal food and an- imal products, for the abovenamed five years, was only SI, 474,- 71!J ! Hence the necessity of a more eflectlve protection to the interests of agriculture, which was given in the tariff of 1S42. It will be seen, therefore, that the statement, that agricultural in- terests are not cared for in the protective policy, is incorrect. But the indirect protection extended to the interests of agricul- ture by the tariff, is more important and more effective, than that which is direct, because it is much greater in amount. It has been ascertained, and well certified, that the Glenham woollen fac- tory, at Fishkill, New York, with a capital of 8140,000, gives profitable employment to $1,422,000 worth of other American capital, chiefly agricultural, in items as follows : GG,000 sheep, $2 a head, 8132,000 ; 22,000 acres of pasture-land to feed the sheep, in Dutchess county, supposed to be worth SoO an acre, 81,100,000; farms employed to the extent of 2, GOO, worth 870 an acre, 8182,000 ; other capital to furnish teazles, firewood, coal, provender, &c., &c., 88,000. Total 81,422,000. Consequently, if 8140,000 of a manufacturing capital employs 81,422,000 of other capital, then the 8300,000,000 of manufacturing capital of the United States, at the same rate, would employ other capital of the country to the amount of 83,047,142,857, or about three thousand millions of dollars. This is doubtless an unexpected, it is even an astonisliing result. It may be, that other manufacto- ries, different in kind, do not employ an equal proportion of other capital ; there are doubtless some which do not ; but some may employ a greater proportion, enough even to swell the aggregate. TIk; vastness of the amount, at the lowest possible estimate, is sufiiciciit to show the imj)ortance of manufiictories to the various occupations and interests of the country, more especially to agri- culture. There is no occupation, however humble, no man, how- ever poor, that is not materially affected and essentially benefited by them. Thr wool-growing interests of the country, which are chiefly connected with manufactories, and sustained by them, are estimated at (no hundrtd millions of dollars, and the farmers of the country receive annually from the manufactories, for all their various supplies, an aggregate of sixti/-si.r millions of dollars, which is nearly nitir f/mrs as much as the avails of all exports of flour, beef, and pork, to all parts of the world. JNIassachusetts, a THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 315 great manufacturing state, alone consumes annually more ihanfortij millions of dollars of the products — chiefly agricultural — of other states, which is nearly a moiety of all exports of every descrip- tion to foreign countries. It is estimated, that the manufactories of the United States con- sume annually twenty millions of dollars' worth of flour, corn, pork, beef, rye, buckwheat, oats, barley, rice, fish, potatoes, butter, cheese, fowls, and other esculents; and the countless variety of the mechanic arts and handicraft pursuits, doubtless consume as much more. But the most important function of the protective policy on the interests of agriculture — so silent in its operation as scarcely to be noticed by common observers, but which, when mentioned, must strike every one with great force — is its effect in steadily sustain- ing a demand for, and the prices of, agricultural products. Foreign markets for the agricultural products of the United States, other than cotton, are always uncertain, continually fluctuating, and in a time of general peace the whole foreign world does not consume so much of them as the state of Massachusetts alone demands from other states, over and above the products of her own soil — and that solely in consequence of the existence of her manufactories and mechanic arts. It has indeed been found necessary to impose protective duties to prevent the influx of foreign agricultural prod- ucts to cheapen those of the United States — a fact which shows that American farmers can not depend on foreign markets, and would be essentially injured by free trade in the products of their labor. The prices of agricultural products are subject to more fluctu- ation than the products of manufacture, on account of excess or deficiency of supply by more or less favorable seasons. But the tables of Mr. Hudson's report, before cited, show that they have generally and considerably improved under the operation of the tariff of 1842. The average fall in the prices of some products, from 1S42 to 1844, has been 9^ per cent., while the average rise in the majority has been 25 per cent. But the saving to agricul- turists in the prices of the products of manufacture, by reason- of a protective tariff, should be added to this account for the true economical result, which, as will be seen, would very nuich en- hance the benefit. The practical operation of a protective tariff, for the increase of prices of agricultural products, is very simple, and may be thus explained : All agricultural products are com- 316 POLITICAL ECONOMY AS IT RESPECTS paraiivcly gross and heavy, and consequently more expensive in being carried to a remote market. Suppose the cost of transpor- tation from the remote west to the eastern marlvet be 100 per cent. In other words, that the products are only worilj //////'as much in the place where they are grown, as in the place where they are consumed. Add as much more for the expense of delivery in a forei'm market, and the price to die producer is reduced to one third of the price at the place of destination. But bring the mar- ket half way toward the producer, and tiie price is raised ujic third, Briu"- it to his door, and his j)rice is trebled. This is precisely the principle of the theory of protection, and its practical efibct on a( every second man do as he jdcases. It will then be found, that all men are 7iot erpial, and that one is able to knock down another, and rob him. This is khke trade ! On the ground of free trade, European capital and labor, which cost fifty cents, as seen above, will knock down and rob American cap- THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 329 ital and labor, which cost one hundred cents. It is as certain to follow, as that the sun will rise in the east and set in the west to- morrow. Some are deceived in supposing, that, wherein the British par- liament have reduced the scale of duties, they are departing from the protective policy. It was found, that the growth of American cotton manufactures had not only enabled them to rival, but to un- dersell the British manufacturers, in the markets of the world. The British parliament, therefore, was compelled to extend protection to their own manufactures, by taking the duties off from cotton, to enable them to compete whh Americans. The ink of the " Southern Planter," quoted in chapter x., was scarcely dry, after writing, " the half-penny-a-iiound duty [on cotton] now levied in England, will have to give way to insure her success,'' before it was done ! So it is in all other cases : The British parliament never reduces the rate of duties, but to secure a greater amount of protection. The very principle on which free trade is advocated in England, is to increase protection ; and if she had been willing to sacrifice the great interests protected by her corn laws, an unre- stricted trade with all the world, begun in season, would probably have been her best policy. In that case, her position, in the perfection of her manufacturing arts, in her vast machinery, and in her cheap capital and labor, would have put her far ahead of the rest of the world, and would probably have enabled her for ever to maintain it. But this policy would have been based on the principle oi protection, and only proves that all other nations would have been crippled by this so-called free trade of Great Britain. It would be equally true to say, that a weak man can contend with a strong man, with hope of success. It is imagined by some, that the protective policy diminishes foreign commerce. Experience, however, does not justify this apprehension. But, suppose it does. It augments in an equal or greater proportion a far more profitable home trade. The things wanted, being manufactured at home, the three, sometimes four, not unfrequently five and more values added to the raw material, in the process of manufacture, are retained, instead of going abroad, besides that it gives a more profitable employment and a better subsistence to a portion of the American people, enhancing the wealth of all in a general distribution of benefits. But all experi- ence teaches, that the more a nation produces, and the greater the variety of its products, so much the more extended, and so much 330 POLITICAL ECONOMY AS IT RESPECTS the more active, will be it.s foreign trade. Kich at home, it can afiord to buy abroad, and will make corresponding exclianges. Of all reasons that can be urged in favor of a protective policy, no one perhaps can be named of greater cogency, tlian its necessi- ty for a good and adequate currency. The currency of the coun- try — a sound currency — does not depend on banking, or the modes of banking, or whether banking be done by a national institution, or by state corporations, or by both, or by neither, though doubt- less there is a choice in modes — a better way. There can be no sound currency, where there is no money ; and there never can be money enough for the currency of a country which is con- stantly sending off more than it brings back — unless one of its products be money, as has been the case with Mexico, and some of the South American states. In that case, money is not the medium, but an article, of trade. But the United States do not produce money in any quantity sufficient to rely upon, either as an article, or basis, or medium of trade. They are obliged, therefore, to depend on getting and keeping money enough by trade, to an- swer the purposes of a currency. A man may iiavc a very large estate, well stocked, well worked, and be making extensive improvements ; but if he buys more than he sells, his money, or active capital, is all the while growing less ; and unless he has a great deal of it, he will soon find himself em- barrassed. When this state of things arrives, he is precisely in the condition of a nation that has been guilty of the same improvi- dence. Without money, neither he, nor a nation, can do business to advantage. An income is as necessary to a nation, as to a private individual ; and the income of a nation is the money it gets by selling more than it buys. While this is the case, it is impos- sible that the currency of a nation should be bad or inadequate. A baiik here, and a bank there, may fail, as private individuals do. and for like reasons of mismanagement, or misfortune ; but there can be no such thing as a general baidc suspension, where the pub- lic policy is such as to secure the coming in of more money than goes out ; or, wliiii there is enough in, to prevent more going out than comes in. 'I'liese results, in one case or the other, are al- ways contingent on the sufficiency or insufficiency of the protective policy. The intimate and indissoluble relation of the protective policy to the currency of a country, commends it, therefore, as a point for consideration too important to be overlooked. No man can THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. 331 trade safely, and with a warrant of prosperity, except on the basis of a credit which solid capital afibrds, and with such means as that credit will constantly supply him. The moment his means, and with his means, his credit, fail, he is stopped. There is no use in his trying to go on ; it is impossible, except by a transient career of fraud, which only makes it worse when he is found out. It is precisely the same with a nation in its trade with the rest of the world. When, for the lack of an adequate protective policy — which is the same thing as the improvidence of a spendthrift — it is habitually buying more than it sells, and its money goes off to settle balances, its means of trade, domestic as well as foreign, are all the while growing less and less, and without a change, a reform, that nation must fail. Its insolvency is as inevitable, as that of an improvident individual, who conducts business on the same prin- ciple. The way in which the insolvency of a commercial nation shows itself, is, first, by a scarcity of money, which everybody feels ; as a consequence, a general contraction in all monetary op- erations, by which business is carried on, necessarily drawing along with it commercial inactivity, dulness ; diffidence in all credit transactions ; and at last, if no relief comes, the banks suspend. This last act is the consummation of a nation's commercial insol- vency. The banks, at the moment, and during the whole time of suspension, may be sound, as the specie in their vaults is not the exponent of their capital. Being allowed by their charters to issue more paper than they have specie, the heavy commercial exchanges against the country operate directly on their vaults, to draw off the specie into foreign parts, and they are compelled to suspend, or part with the last cent. Even then they must suspend, so long as they have more paper out, than specie in. It is the unfavorable state of foreign exchanges, the large commercial balances against the country, which occasion a general bank suspension. It is be- cause there is not money enough in the country to pay its debts ; and like a merchant, who finds himself in a like condition, to avoid complete and irretrievable ruin, that would incapacitate the coun- try for all trade, the banks stop payment, to the injury of their own credit, and the credit of the country. They can not help it. They are forced into it by the effect of the policy of the government, which tempts the people to buy more than they sell, and the nation to do the same, till, after repeated and long-continued drafts on the money of the country, the pressure begins to be felt, and before the remedy can be applied — for it is too late when the effects of 332 THE PROTECTIVE POLICY. such imj)rovi(Jence have already come — the uliole community is involved in the general calamity. It is only for the want of an adequate j)rotective policy. So long as an industrious and pro- ducing nation does not buy more than it sells, it is imj)ossihle it should he involved in general commercial distress — ahsolutely im- possible in the nature of things. A nation of such resources and wealth as the United States, with such an enterprising population, can bear a great deal of loss in its foreign trade, and yet prosper. Think of nine hundred millions of loss in fifty years, as aj)pears from public documents — or reduce it even to five hundred millions, for the reasons before suggested — this has been more than the nation could bear ; and hence its frequent calamitous vicissitudes. Under an adequate and uniform protective policy, such disasters could never come. There can not be an effect without a cause. Such a country as the United Slates — which is a world in itself — physically capable — and much more capable in the genius, arts and moral energy of its tenants — of producing everything essen- tial to the complete and perfect independence of a nation, in arti- cles of luxury as well as of necessity — a nation capable of an equal pace in science, and in all improvements of art, as any other peo- ple, not to say more so — ought never, by the improvidence of legis- lation, to be in debt to other nations. There is no apology for such a nation to be in the habit of buying more than it sells, which is the only cause of debt and embarrassment. There can be no other. It has heretofore been set up in defence of the government, that such a state of things comes from the fault of the peo])le. But this will not answer, so long as the government permits the foreign factor — who is not a citizen, and who has no other interest than to make his fortune, and then carry the money away — to bring his goods and merchandise, without paying for the privilege — or, if he pays, pays nothing adequate to protect American citizens in the same business — and thus tempt jobbers, and jobbers tempt retailers, and retailers tempt the people, till the latter are in debt, which can only be discharged by a remittance through the same channels backward — and the foreii,ni factor departs with the money of the people in his pocket ! The parties concerned in all the stages of the trade, have doubdess profited by it ; hut the people are ruined, because their money has gone out of the country, and they have little or nothing left to pay other debts, and do business with. MR. clay's eastern TOUR OF 1833. 333 CHAPTER XIIL MR. clay's eastern TOUR IN 1833. Private Letter and Project of this Tour. — Public Gratitude. — Reception at Balti- more. — At Philadelphia. — At New York. — At Providence. — At Boston. — At Charlesto^vn. — At Bunker's Hill. — In Faneuil Hall. — At Lowell. — At Danvers. — At Salem. — Sundry interesting Occurrences in Boston and Vicinity. — Cor- respondence, Addresses, and Answers. — Reception at Worcester. — At Hartford. —At Springfield. — At Troy. — At Albany. — At Newark. — His Return to Wash- ington, through New York, Philadelphia, and Wilmington. — Recognition of this Tour in a Private Letter. In a private letter from Mr. Clay to Judge Brooke, dated A.sh- land, May 30, 1833, he says : — " I shall leave home early in July, to make a journey, which I have long desired to perform. I shall go through Ohio to Lake Erie ; thence to Buffalo, Niagara, Montreal, Quebec, Saratoga, and toward September, to Boston, where I have a young son of six- teen. The papers have attributed to me an intention of visiting New England, as if it were the principal object of my excursion. It is the least important one, and I should not go there, but for the sake of my son. I intend travelling with as much privacy as prac- ticable, and absolutely to decline every species of public enter- tainment. I had wished to be accompanied by Mrs. Clay, my son, and son-in-law, and their respective wives; but neither of the young ladies can go, and my wife hesitates about going without them. " You perceive that the journey I have sketched will not admit of my having the pleasure of meeting you at the White Sulphur springs. I visit no place in the summer with more gratification than that finest of all our mineral springs ; — but I have never seen the falls of Niagara, and unless I avail myself of this summer to go there, I shall probably never have another opportunity." Unexpected events prevented Mr. Clay from executing the first part of this project of a summer's tour ; but he went to Boston. It can not be denied that the arduous labors of the XXII Con- gress had given Mr. Clay some tide to relaxation ; and its event- ful enactments, in which he bore so important a part — though 334 MR. clay's easterx tour of 1633. sonic of tlicin wcro strangled in the birth by e\eciitive vetoes, and by unconstitutional usurj)ations of regal power — had inspired the public mind, throughout the country, with a lively sense of its obligations to the patriot who stood in the breach, and dared to protest against the aims of despotic pretensions. The great meas- ure of the compromise tariff had just been consummated, and tUe people breathed freely again from the apprehensions they had suf- fered of civil disturbances. Though Mr. Clay succeeded in reaching Baltimore, without any remarkable demonstrations from the public, it was impossible after that to repress the outbursts of popular gratitude. Mr. Clay arrived in Baltimore early in October, and was so- licited to accept a public dinner there by the following note : — " Ba-LTIMOke, Octobers, 1S33. " Deah Sir: Wo have great pleasure in tendering to you, on the part of many of your fellow-citizens in Baltimore, an invitation to a public dinner, to be given at the City Hotel, on any day which may suit your convenience. " The sensitive and honorable delicacy by which your conduct has ever been distinguished, seems, while you were a candidate for the highest office of this country, to have denied to us the op- portunity of illustrating to you the hospitality of Baltimore, and of affording the manifestation of that cordial respect and friendship, which are, at once, the fruit and the ornament of vour conduct and lame. While we claim a connexion with you by the common "ties which bind the patriot to his country, we ask to be honored with the more intimate relation that springs from that deep, personal esteem of your character, which has known no change, but that of increased confidence in your virtues and talents. " Lndor the influence of these feelings, we request, that you will name some day, when we may have the honor of your com- pany. We are, dear sir, your friends and servants, "John M'Kim, Jr., and 27 others. "To the Hon. IIlinkv Ci-av." (.MH. clay's REl'LV.) " Baltimore, October 9, 1S33. "Centlemen: I receive, with deep sensibility and the most grateful feelings, the testimony of confidence and attachment, con- veyed by your note of yesterday. Jt is true, as intimated by you, that the restraint which I recently felt bound to impose on myself, in respect to public entertainments, no longer exists; and 1 slioidd be extremely happy to meet you and other of my fellow-citi/.ens of Baltimore, in the niaiuier most agreeable to you and them MR. clay's eastern TOUR OF 1833. 335 But, gentlemen, on my present journey, undertaken in reference to duties growing out of private relations exclusively, I am accom- panied by my family, and I could not accept a public dinner, without violating a rule, prompted in some measure by their con- venience, which I had prescribed to myself at its commencement. I hope that, in this determination, there will be a ready acquies- cence, since Baltimore requires no fresh proof of its well-estab- lished hospitality, nor I of the cordial respect and friendship which I have always experienced from its citizens. ' While I feel, however, constrained to decline the honor of a public dinner, which has been so obligingly tendered, it will afford to me the highest satisfaction, at all times, to cultivate, in any other less formal mode of social intercourse, the esteem and friendship of yourselves and other inhabitants of this enterprising city. I am, gentlemen, with sentiments of the highest regard, your friend and obedient servant, "H. Clay." At a meeting of the citizens of Wilmington, Delaware, the 4th of October, announced as "friends of Henry Clay, of the con- stitution, and of American industry," the Hon. Arnold Naudain in the chair, the following preamble and resolution were adopted: — " Understanding that Henry Clay, the illustrious statesman and patriot, whose public services entitle him to the gratitude of his country, while his talents will for ever adorn its annals, is expected at New Castle on this evening, and being desirous of testifying to him in person the sentiments of respect and admira- tion we entertain for him — ^^ Resolved, That a committee be appointed to wait on Mr. Clay at New Castle, and tender to him the respectful and heartfelt salu- tations of this meeting, and in its name invite him to favor his fel- low-citizens of Wilmington widi his presence in this place, and partake of a dinner at such time as his convenience will permit." A committee, consisting of the chairman and thirteen other gen- tlemen, was appointed on this mission of hospitality, and performed their duties, as the following correspondence will show : — "Wilmington, October 11, 3 833. " Sir : At a public meeting, held at this place to-day, the undersigned were appointed a committee to wait on you at New Castle, and tender you the respectful and heartfelt salutations of our fellow-citizens, and in their name invite you to favor our city with your presence, and partake of a dinner at such time as your convenience will permit. We should, however, sir, but in part fulfil the purpose of our appointment, if we stopped with tendering you their hospitality. By far the more agreeable portion of our office, is to inform you of the motives whence their wishes 336 MR. CLAV'S EASTERX TOUll OF 1833. spring. They arise from the deep conviction they entertain of your merits as a public servant — from their admiration of your sterlinfj integrity — your enlightened patriotism — your manly vir- tues — and though last, not least, your unshaken courage in resist- ing the cruel and unjust persecution hy which faction has pursued you for many years — qualities which shine in brighter relief, from a contrast with tiie character of those who have originated and fostered it. Permit us to add, that, as citizens of a state which has, we are proud to say, in all the j)ersecutions to which you have been subjected, borne constant testimony to the integrity and patriotism of your life, we have a right to indulge the hope, that the invitation of which we have the honor to be the medium, will receive your favorable consideration. We are, sir, with great respect, your friends and fellow-citizens, " A. Naudain, and others. " Hon. Hexry Clay." (.MR. clay's reply.) " Philadelphia, October 14, 1S33. '• Gen'Tlemex : The letter of the 11th instant, which, at the instance of a public meeting held in Wilmington, you have done me the honor to address to me, inviting me to visit and partake of a public dinner at that place, has been received, witii sentiments of the liveliest gratitude. I thank them and you, most heartily, for their and your friendly salutations, and for the approbation be- stowed on my public exertions, and especially for the generous testimony uniforndy borne by the state of Delaware, in my behalf. Penetrated by grateful feelings, I accept with pleasure your friendly invitation to visit Wilmington, although I can not, con- sistently with the rule which I have marked out for njyself, have the honor of accepting that which has been given me to a public dinner. "On my return from the eastern excursion which I am now making, I will give you previous notice of the day when I will have the pleasure of presenting my respects in person to you, and such other of my fellow-citizens of Delaware, as may clioose to honor mi; with their society. I am, gentlemen, with high respect, your hienil and obedient servant, ,, xy n ^ " 11. C lav. " Messrs. A. Naudain, and others." Mr. Clay was met at Frenciitown, Delaware, by a committee from Philadelphia, to wait upon him to his lodgings provided in that city. Sometime before the expected arrival, by steamboat, the wharves at the foot of Chestnut street were crowded with a concourse of citizens, and Mr. Clay was received and escorted to the United Stales hotel, with every demonstration of popular re MR. clay's eastern TOUR OF 1833. 337 gard, and in the midst of the huzzas of the miihitudes ; after which the following correspondence took place : — " Philadelphia, October 14, 1833. " Dear Sir : It is highly gratifying to us, that we have been deputed by a large and respectable meeting of the citizens of Philadelphia, to congratulate you on your arrival here, and to ex- press to you their most cordial approbation of your public and private character — of your honorable career, distinguished by zeal and ardor in the cause of liberty, not only in our own beloved country, but in distant climes, when she maintained a long, a perilous, and a dubious struggle with grinding despotism — a career, moreover, which displayed the most profound views of the only true and solid interests of a nation — protection of its industry in every shape — agricultural, manufacturing, and commercial — which you have at all times supported in the full exercise of those splen- did powers with which Heaven has endowed you — and manifested a consistency of conduct as a statesman, which, unfortunately for the happiness and best interests of mankind, has been at all times too rare among that class — a class which so powerfully operates upon the destiny of nations. " After this expression of our feelings toward you, we respect- fully beg leave to be gratified by your acceptance of an invitation to a public dinner, on such day as may best suit your convenience. We are, sir, very respectfully your obedient humble servants, "Mathew Carey, "John Sergeant, "J. R. Ingersoll, " W. FiTLER, "G. Scull. " Hon. Henry Clay." (mr. clay's reply.) " Philadelphia, October 14, 1S33. " Gentlemen: 1 hasten to present my cordial and respectful thanks for the friendly congratulations, communicated in your note of to-day, just received. I have never visited your fine city with- out high gratification, but on no other occasion with greater than the present. I feel, with deep sensibility, the approbation of my character and conduct, which you have so kindly expressed. If gentlemen, as I am quite sure, you estimate too highly my exer tions in the cause of human liberty, and that of promoting the general prosperity of our country, your partiality does not exag- gerate the zeal and ardor with which I have honestly strived to maintain its freedom and secure its interests. I regret that I have been able to do so little ; but the time has arrived, which I long ago apprehended, when our greatest exertions are necessary to Vol. II.— 22 339 MR. clay's eastern tour of 1833. maintain the free institutions inlieritcd from onr ancestors. Yes, gentlemen, disguise is useless. The time is come, when we must decide, whether the constitution, the laws, and the checks which tiicy have respectively provided, shall prevail ; or the will of oxE MAN' shall have uncontrolled sway V \ri the settlement of tiiat (juestion, I shall liK roiND wheue I have ever beex. " 1 pray you to convey lo the citizens of Philadelphia, whom you represent, my grateful acknowledgments of their friendly re- ception of me, and to express to them my regret that circumstances will not allow me to accej)t the honor of a puhlic dinner, which they have been jileased to offer. 1 add, gentlemen, for yourselves, assurances of the high respect and regard of your friend and hum- ble servant, .. ^ ^^^^,^ " Messrs. M. Carey, &c." 'J'he pointed character of some parts of the above reply of Mr. Clay, will be appreciated, when it is considered, that tiie decisive and momentous event ol the removal of the public deposites had, within a few days, taken place, the detail of which, and the conse- quences thereof, are given at large in another part of this work. While the guest of Philadelphia, Mr. Clay was visited by many thousand persons, but with as little ceremony as possible, in conformity with his known wishes ; and when he left for New York, a vast concourse of citizens assembled to take leave of him. lie was accompanied by a committee of Philadelphians as far as Amboy, where he was met and received by a committee from the city of New York, at which place, on landing, he was welcomed by an immense throng of citizens, and escorted by a procession to his lodjrinfrs at the American hotel. On Wednesday, the KUli of October, Mr. Clay received his fellow-citizens publicly at the governor's room, city-hall, which had been politely tendered by the municipal authorities, the nuiyor of the city doing the honors of the occasion. He was there waited upon by numerous merchants, members of the chamber of com- merce, and others, in a body ; by the grand jury ; and by crowds of citizens and strangers. Having dined with the committee, he visited the mercantile and mechanics' libraries, where he was hon- ored with more formal notices than he desired, and was forced to make some brief replies. On the 17th he visited the fair of the American Institute ; went to the theatre in the evening, where strong demonstrations were made in recognition of his presence ; and concluded tlie day at ;i supjier, in the city saloon, with the committee of the American Institute, where, being honored with a MR. clay's eastern TOUR OF 1833. 339 sentiment, he made a brief address. Constant calls were of course made upon Mr. Clay at the American hotel, and various compli- ments were tendered to draw him into parties, and before the pub- lic — which, for the most part he was constrained by a general rule he had adopted for his journey, to decline. Among the rest, the following note was addressed to Mrs. Clay : — "New York, October 16, 1833. " Madam : The young men of the city of New York, through us, as their committee, beg leave to tender to you an invitation to a ball, to be given on your return from the east, in honor of the arrival among us of yourself and your illustrious husband. In performing this office, we are confidently assured, that we represent the wishes of a large and distinguished portion of our citizens, and indulge the hope, that, by the acceptance on your part, they may be gratified in thus furnishing you an additional evidence of their respect and esteem. We have the honor to be, madam, your obedient servants, " David Graham, " Samuel D. Jackson, "Simeon Draper, Jr. " Mrs. Clay." To which a reply was made by IMr. Clay, in behalf of his lady, as follows : — " New York, 17th October, 1833. " Gentlemen : Mrs. Clay has received the invitation with which the young men of the city of New York, through you, have honored her, to a ball, on her return from the east ; and she charges me to communicate her respectful acknowledgments for it. If she had not ceased to participate in that description of en- tertainment, she would accept with pleasure, the offer of one from a source so highly respectable, and made with a motive so gratify- ing to her feelings. In declining it, she requests the young men, at whose instance it is tendered, to be assured, that she will long retain a grateful sense of their friendly purpose. I also pray the acceptance of my acknowledgments, and assurance of the high respect with which I am their and your friend and obedient ser- ^^"^' " H. Clay. "Messrs. Graham, Jackson, and Draper." The following note from Mr. Clay, is a recognition of the politeness of the steamboat company between New ^ork and Boston : — " New York, IGth October, 1S33. " Sir : I received your obliging note, tendering the use of one of the steamboats of the New York and Boston steamboat com- 340 mi;, clay's eastern tour of 1833. pany, l)v their direction, for tlic conveyance of myself and family to ifiiode Inland. 1 request, that you will coniniunicate to the company my respectful acknowledgments for their friendly offer, and to say to them, tiiat I will so far avail myself of it, as to take a passage for myself in the hoat of Friday next, at the customary hour of her departure. 1 heg, however, that we may be considered as ordinary passengers, and that no exclusive arrangements may be made for us. 1 am with great respect, your obedient servant, "H. Clay. " To the President of the New York and Boston Steamboat Company." The following extract from the New York "Evexixg Star," a political opponent of Mr. Clay, is a grateful record of good feelinu, indited at this lime : — " We opposed his election [in 1S32], and rejoiced at his defeat. But, we can not forget the steady uniform efforts he made in the great struggle of 1812, to sustain the country at a period of dark- ness and peril, when many, very many, of those who now claim to be influential leading democrats, were in the ranks of our bitterest opponents. We can not forget the voice of the man who elo- quently pleaded the cause of South American independence. We can not forget the man who assisted to negotiate an honorable peace at Ghent; nor, at a more recent period, when, by an honorable compromise, he arrested the uplifted sabre on our own soil, as he did on the celebrated Missouri question." Mr. Clay embarked on the ISth, for Boston, in the steamer President, decorated with flags, and was honored on his departure with the attendance of a numerous concourse of citizens, whose cheers, as the boat left the wharf, expressed the good feeling that followed him. About 11 o'clock in the evening, the President met the steamer Franklin, from Providence, on the bosom of Long Island sound, where a brilliant display of fireworks was made from both vessels, as they passed each other, gorgeously illumina- ting the scene, and creating a rare spectacle for the entertainment of both parlies, but especially the numerous company on board the President, for whose guest the compliment was intended. After a short stop at Newport in the morning, the citizens as- sembled to honor the distinguished visiter, were reluctantly forced to acquiesce in his departure for Providence; but a committee from Newport joined the company. A committee from Providence was also on board, who had been appointed at a public meeting on tlie 12lh of October, from the doings of which the following is an extract : — MR. clay's eastern TOUR OF 1833. 341 "This meeting having been informed, that tiie Hon. Hexry Clay, of Kentucky, will visit New England in the course of a few days, and desiring that so eminent a statesman, orator, and patriot, may receive in this state appropriate testimonials of respect and gratitude for his public services — ^^ Resolved unanhnoushj , That a committee be appointed to in- vite Mr. Clay to visit this state and city, and to receive him here on his arrival — to invite him to a public dinner, and to offer him such other tokens of public regard, as they may deem expedient. "Joseph L. Tillinghast, Chairman.''^ This committee, consisting of twenty citizens, acting in obe- dience to their instructions, addressed a letter to Mr. Clay, and received an answer on his arrival, of which the following is an extract : — "Nor can I suppress the gratification which I have derived, from a survey, in this prosperous place, of the rich and abundant proofs of that true policy of our government, which inculcates reliance upon our own ample resources and undoubted skill, rather than dependence upon foreign supplies. If I had ever doubted the wisdom of that policy, heretofore, the many proofs which I have seen of its effects, during my present journey, would have ban- ished my doubts." Mr. Clay was compelled, by the rule he had adopted, to decline the dinner. His reception in Providence was enthusiastic. He visited the university, the various manufacturing establishments, and after resting on Sunday, and attending divine worship at the first Baptist church, he proceeded on Monday, escorted by the committee from Providence, to the great manufacturing village of Pawtucket, where he met the committee of reception from Boston. Having surveyed the manufacturing establishments, Mr. Clay left for Boston, and arrived there the same day, in company with the committee, having been met at Roxbury by a numerous cavalcade of young men, who escorted him to the Tremont house, receiving a federal salute as he passed the common. Notwithstanding the inclemency of the weather, the streets were thronged, and he was cheered through the whole line of march, after his reception by a committee of forty as he entered Boston. At the Tremont, he was addressed by Mr. Winthrop, in behalf of the young men of Boston, to which Mr. Clay briefly responded: — "That he begged the young men of Boston to believe, that lie was not ungrateful for this mark of their respect and fricndshi|>; that he had hoped to pass along as a private citizen ; that, since lie 342 MR. clay's EASTERN' TOUR OF 1833. crossed the mountains, he had been deprived of his liberty, taken captive — was in custody — but found his bondage so pleasant, that he bad as little desire, as ability, to <:ain bis freedom. Mr. Clay said, he was happy to agree with his fellow-citizens of Boston on almost all public questions; but politics apart, there were associa- tions, historical, revolutionary, and local, connected with that soil of the pilgrims, that awakened a strong and thrilling interest in his mind." Mr. Clay bowed, and retired ; but instead of finding repose, through the folding-doors that opened to receive him, he was ush- ered into die presence of the senior citizens of Boston, and was again eloquently addressed by Mr. William Sullivax, in be- half of his compeers ; and was again tasked with a brief recognition of the honors bestowed. It is unnecessary to say, that the characteristic hospitality of the city of Boston did not evince a falling off in the entertainments proffered to their distinguished guest. The day after Mr. Clay's arrival, he visited ex-president Adams at Quincy, and on his return in the afternoon, he was waited upon by the mayor and aldermen of the city in a body. Committees from Portsmoudi, N. H., and from Portland, Maine, were deputed to invite Mr. Clay to visit those places — which, however, he was compelled respectfully to decline. Numerous other towns in that quarter of New England sent deputations on similar errands. The following correspon- dence is a part of the history of this occasion : — " Boston, Ocfober IS, 1S33. "Sir: At a public meeting of citizens of Boston, assembled to consider in what manner they should express the high grat- ification which they feel in learning your intention to visit diis city, and to make known the sentiments entertained of your public life and individual character, a committee of forty persons was selected to communicate these sentiments. "This committee has now the honor to assure you, in behalf of their numerous constitutcnts, Uiat they rejoice in the opportu- nitv of testifying the respect and esteem in which you are held by them, for your eloquent exertions in both halls of Congress, for the wisdom by which you were guided in a dignified and most important diplomatic mission, and for your labors in the depart- ment of state. 'I'hey are pleased to see among them an eminent citizen from the western region of our extensive republic, con- nected with the citizens of the east, by commercial, social, and kindrcMl relations, as well as by the national bond, which you have ever held to be indissoluble and sacred. MR. clay's eastern TOUR OF 1833. 343 "Our constituents have directed us, as one mode of expressing their sentiments, to ask of you the honor and favor of your pres- ence at a public dinner in Faneuil hall, where the eloquent, the wise, and the patriotic, have been often heard, on such day as may best suit your own convenience. We are aware that similar invitations have been ofFered and declined in other cities. But we venture to assume, that the reasons for declining may be referred to the haste in which you passed through those cities, and that your sojourn here will be sufficiently prolonged to permit the gratification most earnestly desired, of meeting you at the festive board. " We have the honor to be, sir, for our constituents and our- selves, most respectfully your friends and fellow-citizens, "Thomas H. Perkixs, And thirty-nine other citizens of Boston. "Hon. Henry Clay." (reply.) "Boston, October 22, 1833. "Gentlemen: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt, at Providence, of your note of the 18th instant, addressed to me at the instance of a public meeting of the citizens of Boston, wel- coming my arrival here, and tendering me the compliment of a public dinner at Faneuil hall. If anything could induce me to depart from a rule adopted at the commencement of my journey, and which I verbally communicated to your chairman, it would be the distinguished manner in which that compliment is offered, the place at which it is proposed, and the eloquent and patriotic asso- ciations, ancient and modern, in the midst of which I should there find myself placed. But I have thought it best to adhere to a rule, the convenience of which I have tested by experience ; espe- cially as I have been unable to discover any reasons for an excep- tion, the force of which is felt by myself, or would be admitted by others. "I would limit myself, therefore, gentlemen, to an expression of my respectful and grateful acknowledgments for the honor de- signed me, for the approbation of my public services, which has been so flatteringly conveyed, and for the cordial greetings and salutations with which I have been favored. " The necessity which obliges me to decline the honor of the proposed festive meeting, is regretted less because as my sojourn . here will be extended to a week or two, I shall, I trust, have many and various opportunities of mixing with my fellow-citizens of Boston in an unreserved and social manner, which best comports with my feelings and disposition. "I pray you, gentlemen, to accept my thanks for the very obli- ging mode vviiich you were pleased to adopt for the delivery of your communication; and also assurances of my best wishes for 344 MR. clay's eastern tour of 1833. the continued prosperity of your renowned city, and for your indi- vidual welfare. "1 am, with high respect, faithfully your friend and fellow- citi/.en, "H. Clay. "Thomas H. Perkins, and others." On the 2.3d of Octohcr, in compliance with an engagement with a deputation of the citizens of Charlestown, Mr. Clay visited that town and Bunker Hill. On this hallowed eminence, a platform having been erected for the occasion, Mr. Clay was addressed by the Hon. Edward Everett, chairman of the committee, as follows : — "Sir: I take great pleasure, on behalf of my colleagues of the committee, and of our fellow-citizens present, in bidding you welcome to this celebrated spot — the scene of the first general ac- tion of the revolutionary war. Feelinir that the career of civil ser- - O vice is as arduous, as important, and as meritorious, as that of the warrior and the hero, we take a pride, sir — on this theatre of mil- itary renown — in paying our liuinble respects to one, whose life has been devoted to the untiriiiir and successful discharc:e — and often in difiicult times — of the duties of the leijislator and the Statesman. " We feel a pecidiar satisfaction in a visit to this part of the country, of a distinguished citizen of the west. When the battle was fought, which has immortalized the heights of Charlestown, the great and i)rosperous state, sir, of which you are a citizen, was the unshared domain of the savajre. None but a few darinc; hunt- ers had burst the gates of tiie Allegany mountains, and a party of them gave to their encampment in the woods — now the place of vour residence, the citv of Lexinirton — the name of the beautiful village in this neighborhood, where the first blood of the revolution- ary war had, a few weeks before, been shed. Fifty years only have elapsed since the close of that war; and we behold the mighty \vcst — then untenanted, unexplored — teeming with a greater population than that with which the thirteen colonies plunged into the contest. " 'J'hat vast and flourishing region justly boasts of you, sir, as one of the most distinguished of her sons; but we also claim a share in your reputation, as one of the treasures of our common country. And as your talents and eflbrts have been employed to augment the blessings of our independence, we feel that we do no more than justice in thus bidding you a public and cordial wel- come to tiie spot, where our fathers laid down their lives for its establishment." The following is an imperfect sketch of Mr. Clay's reply: — " I thank you, Mr. ('Iiairman, and you, gentlemen of the com- mittee, and fellow-citizens, fur this cordial and (lattering welcome. MR. clay's eastern TOUR OF 1833. 346 1 can not express to you the feelings of satisfaction with which I receive these assurances of your friendly feeling, on a spot so justly celebrated. I ascribe it to your partiality, rather than to any merit of my own, that you have been pleased to connect my name in so honorable an association, with the gallant and patriotic men, who, upon this distinguished spot, sealed their devotion to their country with their blood. " They laid down their lives for the independence of their country, and when that great object was attained, they deemed it equally important, and still more incumbent upon them, to secure that independence on the basis of knowledge and virtue. They were as anxious to build up those institutions, which w'ere neces- sary to make our liberty the source of blessings to the people, as they were to triumph in the field of battle. " You have been pleased, sir, to allude with kindness to my ef- forts in the public service. If I may flatter myself, that I have in any degree cooperated in the great w^ork which our fathers had at heart, as the final object of their toils ; if I have done anything wordiy the acceptance of my fellow-citizens, in laboring to aug- ment the blessings of our independence, I shall feel myself more than compensated for the discouragements, which, according to the common estimate of things, have attended my public career. " Permit me again, sir, to thank you for this kind reception, and to renew to my fellow-citizens the assurance of the gratitude which warms my heart at these proofs of their hospitality and good will." After this ceremony on Bunker Hill, Mr. Clay, under the guid- ance of Commodore Elliott, visited the navy-yard, and was there presented with an imitation volume, by the hand of the daughter of the commodore, wrought from the timber of the frigate Con- stitution, and labelled " Old Iron Sides." An interesting incident occurred on the 24th — next day — at Mount Auburn, where three revolutionary soldiers, brothers, of a family of seven then living, two of the three being twins, were in- troduced to Mr. Clay, each of whom served through the war, and the twins were in the engagement at Concord. These old sol- diers, the twins 86, and the other 7G, were yet fat and stout, each of them weighing over 200 pounds. Notwithstanding Mr. Clay had declined the dinner at Faneuil hall, advantage was taken of the occasion of his visit there, to make it somewhat formal, and to let it generally be known. He was cpnducted from an adjoining room, by the honorable T. H. Perkins, to the platform at the west end of the hall, when Mr. Sullivan embraced the opportunity to address him as follows : — Mr. Sullivan said, " he had been requested by his fellow-citizens 346 MR. clay's eastern tour of 1833. to wolcome Mr. Clay, on their belialf, to Faxeuil hall, which tiicy were accustomed to speak of as the Cradle of Liberty." He said, that "here, in occasional meetings, in the performance of the duties of citizenship, were commemorated tho sterling pa- triotism and undaunted eloquence, which roused our country to gain the freedom now enjoyed. It was here," said Mr. Sullivan, "that the fiust act was done, which decided what the charac- ter of the contest must be, between the colonies and the mother- country. In December, 1773, it was resolved here, that no du- ties should be paid on teas imported from England, and that no teas should be landed on our shores. " Among other names often mentioned as of those times," he said, " were those of Quincy, Otis, Hancock, and Adams, hon- orably associated with the revolution ; and that, in short, almost every important measure of those days, was in some way associa- ted with Faneuil hall. " That, since the adoption of the national constitution, many interesting and eloquent discussions had occurred in this place ; and that the names of Quincy and Otis, but in another generation, again appear, and that the eloquence of these, as well as of Dex- ter and Ames, had often been heard here by applauding multi- tudes ; that, at a more modern date, other men had been heard in this hall, the voices of some of whom had been heard by himself [Mr. Clay] in other halls; and that no one could better judge than himself, of the justice of the respect in which they were held, for the manly truths which they had expressed. " That this hall was also a place of assembly on some festive occasions, and that it had been earnesdy desired to have met him [Mr. Clay] here, at a festival to be given in honor of his visit ; that, if this had been so, be would have seen all classes niinirlinir here, on the true principles of republican equality, orderly and decorous, and deeply impressed with a jirojicr sense of the uses to which freedom may be applied in social enjoyment. " That, although they were not to have the honor and pleasure of so meeting him, they were bound to respect his reasons for de- clining, and would not trespass on the ground which he had re- served to himself. " It was, however, a gratification to the citizens of Boston to see him in this hall, as all of them knew his public life and char- acter, and the part wliicli he had taken in establishing the national welfare and iiiilcpendence ; and especially as they could readily associate him with tlie grateful recollections, which fdl the heart of every IJostoniau ulic-n he comes wllliin these walls." Mr. Clay, thus lakin by surj)rise, made a few remarks, as fol- lows : — " That, on leaving home Kj perform the journey which termin- MR. clay's eastern TOUR OF 1833. 347 ates here, it had been his wish to pass on quietly, without attract- ing any notice on his own account, or coming into contact with large portions of his fellow-citizens. It was especially his desire to avoid all public entertainments, with which it might be proposed to honor him. But no self-imposed restraints, no considerations of expediency, could induce him to remain silent, after the address which he had just heard, or to withhold the expression of his heartfelt gratitude, for the warm greeting, the cordial welcome, and the enthusiastic demonstrations, with which he had been re- ceived ; and especially this day, in this venerable hall. Among his earliest recollections — recollections which served deeply to -im- press upon his mind an attachment to civil liberty — were revolu- tionary events and incidents, of which this hall, this city, and this state, were the patriotic theatre. And if, as history assures us, in the progress of human affairs, human liberty shall be once more exposed to danger in this favored land, he trusted that this hall will again resound with inspired eloquence, and that a spirit will here go forth to sustain its interests, and vindicate its rights." jNIr. Clay said, that " he had everywhere, since he passed the mountains, received testimonies of respect and attachment, far transcending the value of any public services he had ever per- formed. They were gratifying rewards of the past, and powerful incentives to fresh exertions in future, if it should ever become his duty to make them, in behalf of our common country. At all events, he should carry to the retirement, which he most anxiously desired, a cherished recollection of them. Mr. Clay said, " he should have been pleased to have found himself able to accept the public hospitality, so cordially offered him by the citizens of Boston, and to have met them in another manner in this hall. But, having declined all similar invitations in other cities, he could not make an exception, without an invidi- ous discrimination. It was some compensation for this privation, that, as his sojourn here would be longer than in any other places, he hoped to find opportunities of meeting all who might be dis- posed to honor him with a friendly intercourse. And he embraced the occasion to tender to them collectively, as he hoped he might do individually, his respectful salutations, and his best and earnest wishes." Some five to six thousand persons, it was supposed, were indi- vidually presented to Mr. Clay, on this occasion. On the 25th of October, he visited Lowell, passed through the manufacturing establishments, and was waited upon by the people at the town hall in the evening. A pair of silver pitchers, with appropriate devi- ces, w^eighing 150 ounces, was presented to Mr. Clay by the young men of Boston, on which occasion, being taken unawares, as was 34S MR. clay's eastern tour of 1833. frequently the case in tlie lienors contrived, be delivered a capti- vatin"- address. As the American advocate of the manufacturinor arts, these everywhere claimed and received his attention, of which the following correspondence is an example : — " BosTox, October 25, 1833. "Dkar Sir : Allow me to offer for the acceptance of Mrs. Clay, a straw bonnet — a specimen of an article manufactured in New England, in various styles, to a great extent. The bonnet is truly American, every article used in its manufacture, including the silk, warp, and sewing-thread, having been j)ro(luced in Xew England. It is but an act of justice to inform you, that the bon- net was shaped at the establishtnenl of Miss 8. H. Bingham. " It may not be uninteresting to you to learn, that 1 am now putting in operation one hundred looms for the purpose of weav- ing straw, which will give employment to one hundred and fifty persons. "This is olFcrcd, not only as a tribute to your exertions in pro- moting American industry, but as one of the evidences of the liappy results arising from the success of those great principles which you have advocated with so much zeal, and in the realiza- tion of which our citizens are enjoying a degree of prosperity un- paralleled in the history of any nation. " I am truly your obedient servant, " Seth S. Lyxde. " Hon. H. Clay." (reply.) " Boston, Octohcr 2S, 1S33. "Dear Sir: Mrs. Clay desires me to offer her thanks, as I do mine, for the straw bonnet, shaped at the establishment of .Miss S. H. Bingham, which you have done us the favor to present. Both the material and the form are very pretty, and Mrs. Clay will derive satisfaction in wearing it, from the fact, that every arti- cle employed in niaking it, including the silk, is American. " I am glad to hear of the success of this branch of manulac- tures. It proves that our women, no less than our men, are skil- ful in tlic application of their taste and ingenuity to any objects which engage their industry. " With my Ijcst wishes for the prosperity of your business, and for your individual welfare, 1 am, with great respect, your friend and obedient servant, " H. Clay. "Mr. Seth S. [.vxde." On the 20di of October, Mr. Clay visited Lynn, Danvers, and Salem, accompanied by a large cavalcade of citizens of the town and country, greeted everywhere by dense throngs of people. In reply to an address made to biin at Danvers, Mr. Clay said : — MR. CLAY S EASTERN TOUR OF 1833. 349 " It gives me great pleasure, sir [addressing John W. Proctor, .Esq., chairman of the committee], to meet the citizens of Dan- vers — a place, of whose industry and prosperity I have been made in some degree acquainted, and the evidences of which are mani- fested all around me. You have been pleased, sir, to allude to the policy I have pursued, in the concerns of the national govern- ment ; and it is gratifying to me to learn, that the measures I have advocated — and with what zeal and sincerity my friends present who bore a part with me can testify — meet the approbation of my friends at Danvers. I long ago came to the conclusion, that a country possessed of all the means which this country possesses, was in duty bound to bring those means into action, and to unite in one common interest all the branches of useftd industry of which it is capable. It has seemed to me, that our prosperity as a nation depended on this, and I have cheerfully lent my aid for this purpose — not the advancement of any one interest, to the ex- clusion of others ; but the adjustment of a proper balance, among all the several branches of industry. " At the last session of Congress, to the measures of which you have alluded, it did seem to me, that an important crisis in our national concerns had arrived — dminion on the one hand — destruction on the other. It then seemed to me, that, without abandoning any of those principles, for which I have always con- tended (for I have never changed in the least my opinion on this subject), a compromise was the only way in which these great principles could be secured. And it is highly gratifying to me to learn, that here, and in the country generally — now that there has been time to reflect on the subject, and properly to appreciate the motives with which tlie measure [the compromise act] was brought forward — that the bill of compromise, suggested upon the impulse of the moment, has met with sucli general approbation. I surely thought it, at the time, the only thing that could be done. " You say right, sir, in regard to my wishes to avoid all public display, on my visit to my friends in this section of the country. It is my desire to travel in as private a manner as possible, and to have completed the objects of my journey, without interrupting the ordinary pursuits of my fellow-citizens. But, sir, I should do injustice to myself, and should not be possessed of the feelings of a man, did I not say, that the cordial reception with which I have been greeted, in this and many other places, has been to me most gratifying. These expressions of kindness from my fellow-citi- zens, will long have a place among my most cherished recollec- tions. "And permit me, sir, to say to you, and through you, to the citizens of this town, that their cordial welcome on this occasion will long be remembered by me, and that they have my most sin- cere and ardent wishes for a continuance of their present pros- perity." 350 MR. clay's easterv tour of 1833. In Salem also Mr. C'lay'.s reccplion was enthusiastic. At tlie Lyceum in the evening, on the occasion of an ordinary lecture, some twelve hundred persons being present, wlien Mr. Clay en- tered, they all rose, and saluted him with cheers. In replv to a welcome tendered him on his arrival in that town, he said, among other things : — / " 'J'hat it afibrdcd him the highest gratification it was possible for him to feel: and that he had lone: known this town as anions: tlic first in promoting the welfare of the whole country by its ex- tensive commerce, bringing from other climes the comforts and luxuries which we could not produce. He liad been considered the friend of one particular branch of industry [manufactures], but ii was a mistake to consider him the friend of that branch alone, to the exclusion of agriculture and commerce." This common mistake was not altogether without cause. Agri- culture was the natural pursuit of the country, especially in its early history. It was the great primary interest, and naturally ".^.took care of itself — grew uj) into manhood with the growth of the country — and was comparatively impregnable. Commerce, as its handmaid, kept company, and both flourished together. But, as no nation can be independent without manufactures, and as these arts aik'ays belong to a more advanced state of society — being y*larts^ — tuey require nurture in their infancy, and training in after ♦ ^time, till they shall have attained a maturity and vigor capable of "" taking care of themselves. They can not start without aid, nor become independent without protection ; and while Mr. Clay, as a wise and patriotic statesman, was engaged in nurturing this ten- der plant, some, perhaps, erroneously concluded that he had less regard for those great interests which had already acquired vigor and independence. It was only, therefore, doing justice to him- self, to say, " It was a mistake to consider him the friend of one branch of industry aloxe." But a sagacious people will in the end appreciate the motives of such a statesman. It would seem, from the reception Mr. Clay everywhere met with in this tour, that bis views and purposes, and the measures he advocated, were well appreciated. After a stay of about two weeks in Boston, making frequent ex- cursions in dillerent directions, visiting manufacturing establish- ments, making acquaintance with the people of all classes and conditions, daily followed by the multitudes who were sensible of the value of his public services, and partaking of the hospitalities MR. clay's eastern TOUR OF 1833. 351 that were tendered, Mr. Clay left that city on the 4th of Novem- her, to return. The Worcester iEgis of the Sth records, tliat — " The Hon. Henry Clay, whose name has been a household word with Americans for a quarter of a century, is now in this town. He arrived here on INIonday by invitation of tlie people without dis- tinction of party, and was escorted to his lodgings by the committee of arrangements, and a large cavalcade of citizens. Yesterday, at 11 o'clock, he met the citizens generally in the town-hall, where the Hon. John Davis, in their behalf, bade him welcome to Worcester, in a few perUnent remarks, in which he happily alluded to the prom- inent events of Mr. Clay's pohtical life — his efforts in behalf of the government during the dark hour of our second war of indepen- dence, and as a pacificator at its close ; his able advocacy, in the halls of Congress, of the cause of civil liberty in Greece, and among the struggling republics in South America ; and his adop- tion and maintenance, on the same theatre, of that system of na- tional policy, to which the country, in a great measure, owes its present prosperity. " Mr. Clay replied in a speech of half an hour, which was fre- quently interrupted by spontaneous bursts of applause. We have time only to say, that, besides other topics of interest, he recapitu- lated the facts relating to his compromise bill of the last session of Congress, which confirmed the opinion we had previously formed, that the origination of the measure, and its adoption by Congress, under the circumstances then existing, showed Mr. Clay to be one of the most consummate statesman of this or any other age. Mr. Clay said, that he did not go forward with that measure, without a full view of all its consequences. He saw that the American sys- tem would be utterly prostrated at the coming session of Congress, unless the threatened blow could be averted by its friends. He saw in the south the torch already lighted to destroy the Union ; and he saw also, that he was in imminent danger of losing many of his personal and political friends ; but in view of it all, he in- quired, ' What is a man good for, if he will not risk himself for his country?' His measure was carried, and his anticipations as to its beneficial effects are fully realized, in its general approval, as allaying the dangers that threatened the country, and preserving substantially the system of policy, which he had ever regarded as of paramount importance to our three great branches of labor — agri- culture, manufactures, and commerce." A deputation of the citizens of Hartford, Connecticut, waited on Mr. Clay at Worcester, and accompanied him to that city, whence, after two days — having in the meantime received the hon- ors of the place, well appointed and bestowed, and addressed the people in the city-hall — he proceeded to Springfield, Massachu- 352 MR. clay's easteun tour of 1633. setts, where he was received witli a national salute, and a numerous concourse of citizens of that town and others. In the evening, at the town-hail, he was welcomed to the hospitalities of Springfield, and introduced to a large assemblage of ladies and gentlemen, with a pertinent and eloquent recital of his public services, by Judge (Oliver B.) Morris, to which Mr. Clay replied in a short speech, that was received with strong marks ,of satisfaction and delight, being frequently interrupted with bursts of applause. He closed amid the deafening cheers of the audience. \\*hile at Springfield, he visited the public works and the Chickopee factories. From Springfield, Mr. Clay next visited Northampton. " Curi- osity," says the Courier of that town, " to see so distinguished a man — who has occupied so conspicuous a place in our political history, and done so many deeds worthy of national gratitude — was not small." In passing to Pittsfield, through the woollen-factory village, near Northampton, the operatives came out, with their aprons on, to cheer him as he passed, and slyly tossed a roll of fine broadcloth into his carriage. At Troy, New York, on being presented by the young men with a superbly-mounted and highly-finished rifle, made in that city, accompanied with an address, the close of which wished him a long life atid a career of usefulness, Mr. Clay replied : — " I reciprocate your kind w'ishes of a long life and a career of usefulness. But, my young friends, it is known to you all, that Ion:: life is not for the aijed. In the course of human nature, we who are now upon the stage, must soon resign the bustle, the bur- den, and the cares of public toil — of upholding our republic, and of preserving our institutions and liberties. IMiey are a precious inheritance, and have been handed down to us unimpaired by our fathers. We, in turn, will soon be called upon to hand them over to you. Tpon you, then, will rest all these responsibilities. Let me, therefore, exhort you — and through you, all with whom you stand connected, to ])ri'[)are yourselves by your devotion to principles, and your attachment to virtue and religion — to gi'akd TiiKM WKLi. — so that, when you, in your turn, cast oft' this 'mor- tal coil,' this priceless inheritance, our happy institutions, may still pass on to the next generation — and from generation to generation — pure and unimpaired," The public welcome given to Mr. Clay, in the courthouse of Troy, by an adilress from the mayor of the city, and the reply of their distinguished guest, constituted one of the most interesting and MR. clay's eastern TOUR OF 1833. 353 instructive occasions of Mr. Clay's tour. Mr. Clay said, in con- clusion : — ' That " he had but one complaint to make — it might seem very ungracious for one who had received so much kindness to com- plain — but he was like the countryman who could not see the towti, because there were so many houses. He [Mr. Clay] had made his journey to see the country and its improvements. But the people would not let him see anything but themselves." Mr. Clay's reception at Albany was worthy of the place, where they drew forth a speech from him, by presenting him a cloak that had been made up in three hours. The dignitaries of the city and of the state waited upon him, and proffered, not an empty and heartless hospitality, but a cordial welcome, and good entertain- ment. The masses of the people were all in movement to do him honor, and were hea7-d as well as seen. On Mr. Clay's return to New York, he visited the city of New- ark, New Jersey, renowned for wealth created by its manufacturing establishments, where all were emulous to do him honor, which honored themselves. While there, Mr. Clay left orders for a car- riage. It came quicker than he expected. After having been set down at his hotel in New York in the evening, from a new carria"-e of the same description he had ordered, drawn from Newark by six milk-white steeds, in company with a host of citizens, General Darcy made a brief address, and asked leave, with the compliments of the citizens of Newark, to send the carriage to Ashland for Mrs. Clay. The generous offer took Mr. Clay entirely by surprise. He hesitated in receiving a present so valuable, until he was persuaded that his declining its acceptance would occasion some mortification to his Newark friends. Mr. Clay returned to Washington at the opening of Congress, through Philadelphia, and Wilmington, Del- aware, at which places he was honored with the usual greetin<'-s. In a note from Mr. Clay to Judge Brooke, after he had re- turned to Washington, dated December 11, 1833, he speaks of the agreeable impressions he received from this journey, as fol- lows : — " My journey was full of gratification. In spite of my constant protestations, that it was undertaken with objects of a private na- ture exclusively, and my uniformly declining public dinners, the people everyv.here — and at most places without discrimination of party — took possession of me, and gave enthusiastic demonstra- tions of respect, attachment, and confidence. In looking back on Vol. II.— 23 .3-54 MR. CLAV'S EASTERN TOUR OF 1833* the scenes throui^h which I passed, they seem to me to resemble those of cncliaiitmcnt, more than real life." Mr. Clay has had occasion to make several journeys, north and south, durin<^ his public life, for private purposes ; in all of which, it was equally impossible to repress demonstrations of popular re- gard, as in this of 1S33, which may be taken as a specimen of the wiiole. There will have been observed several allusions in this chapter to Mr. Clay's generous, disinterested patriotism — no doubt with perfect sincerity. There is one form in which this character is exemplified in Mr. Clay's history, not before noticed in this work, and never yet observed by the public, because the evidence is of a negative character. Eminent as Mr. Clay has been, long as was his public life, with numberless opportunities, and with almost boundless influence for such purposes, he has never bestowed an office, nor been the means of its being bestowed, on a family con- nexion, notwithstanding those connexions have been numerous ; and at this time Mr. Clay has no relation or connexion holding any office whatever under the government of the United States. This is not an accident, but the result of principle ; and Mr. Clay has not escaped reproach for his scrupulous observance of this rule. His son-in-law, Mr. Duralde, of New Orleans, at the in- stance of the Louisiana delegation in Congress, and without any aid from Mr. Clay, was appointed in 1841 to the office of surveyor of the customs ; but has been dismissed by President Polk ! Every one will see, that it has been in the power of i\Ir. Clay to provide for every family connexion living, to the remotest cousin ; but not one of them has been the better for his eminent position and commanding influence. MR. CLAY AND THE TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 355 CHAPTER XIV. MR. CLAY AND THE TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. General Harrison's Accession.— His Death.— A Vice-President not a President.— The Great Apostate.— Proud Position of a Party prostituted by a Faithless Chief. — What could have been done. — One good thin? achieved. Mr. Clay's Position in the Twenty-Seventh Congress.— The First Act of Executive Per- fidy. — The Traitor known to Some before. — Xotice of Mr. Clay's Speech on the Veto of the Bank Bill.— Mr. Rives's Reply.— Mr. Clay's Rejoinder.— Its Over- powering EHect. When General William Henry Harrison came into power, on the tide of the great poHtical revolution of 1S40, with a strong majority in Congress, it was expected, that the policy advocated by the party would be carried out. To begin the work of cor- recting the errors of the past, and laying the foundation for the future, an extra session of Congress was immediately convoked by proclamation, to assemble on the 31st of May, 1841. In the meantime. General Harrison died, and John Tyler, the vice-pres- ident, succeeded to the chair of chief magistrate. By courtesy, Mr. Tyler, while in office, was usually honored with the title of president; but it will be seen, from the nature of the case, and from the recognised principles of such official rela- tions, that he could not be president, without action de novo, on the part of the authority which confers the appointment. A vice- presidency and a lieutenancy are the same in principle. Althoufrh the lieutenant, in the absence, or death, or disqualification, of his principal, succeeds to the authority and functions of the latter, he is not CAPTAIN, without his appointment and commission as such. The meaning of the word will show, that he is not even a lieuten- ant IN FACT, till he succeeds to the functions and authority of his principal ; for how can a man fill or occupy the place of another, till it is vacant ? Till that time, his office lies in abeyance, and is merely nominal ; but, being in service, and on pay, other and sub- ordinate functions are in the meantime assigned to him. It is the same with a vice-president. He is not such in fact, till the 356 MR. CLAY AND THE ofiice of liis principal is vacated. Tlien he is vicj:-presiclent, and can not be more, without an appointment and commission. An (ictiKiL lieutenant, or an (ictual vice-president, actualhj liolds the place of his principal. He is then a vice, not before, for that would be impossible. There are obvious reasons of propriety, why this question — if it can be one — should be rightly settled in history, apart from the consent of mankind, which woidd willingly exclude from the highest honors, one who has done so little credit to the most elevated social position. The fidelity of history, as well as the good of society, require, that public men, who have proved faithless in their relations, should be represented according to the facts. As there is but one opinion among all parties, of Mr. Tyler's conduct, it can not, perhaps, be better described, than in the terse and laconic phrase of a gifted gentleman, who — when he read the letters of the members of the retirinf' cabinet, in the early part of September, 1S41, and observed the mofal turpitude which had forced them to fling up their com- missions in disgust — exclaimed impromptu: "False to his COUNTKY, false TO HIS FRIENDS, FALSE TO HIMSELF, HE STANDS BEFORE THE NATION BRANDED, AS WANTING ALIKE IN THE DISINTERESTEDNESS OF A PATRIOT, THE FIDELITY OF AN ASSOCIATE, AND THE HONOR OF A GENTLEMAN." There was probably never an instance in history, wiiere infidel- ity in the social relations brought so little advantage to die oflender, and was at the same time of equally momentous consequences to society. Dragging out a pitiable official existence ; administering the government, not for his country, but for himself; breaking faith wiUi all parties and all men; hoping to profit, but always losing; ridiculed by the fawners that pandered to his vanity; enacting farces in the state with ludicrous gravity; setting up for president, and l)uying supporters with the funds of the people; trusting to luck, that helped him before, and fled from him now; selling his party and his country, after having sold himself; with increasing poverty of friends, making new compacts with deceivers, himself a deceiver; prodigally wasting the bounties of patronage on 1-ep- tiles waiting to bile him, and offensive to all mankind; the only irladness he brought to the nation, was in the act of his retirement. .Mr. Tyler came to power, on the lamented death of the presi- dent, at tlie head of a jiatriotic party, occupying the proudest po- sition known in the annals of history. By a protracted series of sulTerin"- and calamilv, the whole nation had been stirred up to a TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 357 sense of its wrongs, and was armed with a determination to iiave them redressed. The path was cleared, and nothing remained but to go forward, and re-estabhsh the people in their lost pros- perity — TO CONFIRM IT FOR AGES. Tlic tariff, indeed, which had well-nigh failed by the obstacles which the acting president reck- lessly threw in its path, was a great redeeming measure, and while enjoying its blessings, the masses of the people are not likely to see what else was necessary to render the system, of which this was only a pari, perfect. The whole field was open, and the party which came to power in such decided popular favor, was entitled to a full and fair experiment of its entire system of policy, and it was impossible to do them justice without it. The man who deceived those who trusted in him, has enjoyed the apparently congenial satisfaction of subverting the great designs of the move- ment on which, as a subordinate, he came into place, and after- ward, by an unforeseen event, succeeded to supreme authority. Mr. Clay, who had long desired to retire from public life, main- tained his post during the whole period of the abuses of the regal power of the constitution, battling against it, and defending the rights of the democratic branch of the government, not without success in resistance, thou2:h without much avail in arrestinir the public calamities which those regal pretensions necessarily occasioned. For twelve long years he sustained the conflict, and in 1840 realized the reward of his protracted labors, in wit- nessing the triumph of his principles. One duty more remained for him to discharge — a co-operation with the twenty-seventh Con- gress in reconstructing that system of national policy, which he had so long advocated, but which had been broken down, and lay before his eye, in the desolating effects of its overthrow, a heap of ruins, in the length and breadth of the land. In the progress of the extra session of Congress, the apostacy of Mr. Tyler was made manifest, and his first public and official act of bad faith, was the veto of the bank bill. They who had known Mr. Tyler most intimately through life, were not disappointed in this development of his character. Ilis first address to the people, after his accession, was charitably enter- tained, though it was not without concern that sagacious minds observed its weak points, and they were startled with some of its expressions. The opening message at the extra session, was still more alarming, for the air of magisterial importance, which cliarac- '^.Tized it — so unbecoming, so indecorous in one, who, by a mel- 358 MR- CLAY AND THE anclioly event, occupied a place never intended for liim. He had evidently made up liis mind to break faith with his party, form a new one, and ride into power in 1844, as president elected by the pcojdc; and he only waited an opportunity for the rupture. That moral infirmity for which he was so remarkable, had left him open to tlic seductive influences of two or three unprincipled, turbulent, factious spirits, who obtained his ear, flattered his self-esteem, and set before him, in dazzling and captivating colors, his power and his chances. If he was ever capable of any degree of fidelity, there were evidences to those who were near, that ten days had not elapsed, after General Harrison's death, before the party, to whom he was indebted for his power to injure them, were doomed to be opposed by him, and if possible, divided and overthrown; and it has already been seen, that die regal power of the constitu- tion is capahle at any time of disappointing the public will, and that it i)uts the country at the feet of the cliief magistrate, wlioever and whatever he may be. The twenty-seventh Congress had undertaken faithfully to dis- charge the duties for which they were appointed, and Uiey had scarcely begun to act, before rumors, not ill-founded, of the infi- delity of the acting president, were constantly reaching their ears, and exciting concern. Having repealed the sub-treasury, it was a necessary part of their plan to erect a suitable fiscal agent of the government, which they intended to endow with banking powers, in aid of the currency. It was when this measure was submitted to Mr. Tyler for his approval, that he embraced die opportunity to strike his blow, by returning it with his veto. When the veto message came up for consideration in the senate, on the 10th of August, Mr. Clay, after a few introductory remarks, relating to the history of the bill, and defining his own position in the case, said : — "On the fourth of April last, the lamented Harrison, the i)rcsi- deiit of the United States, paid the debt of nature. President Tyler, who, as vice-president, succeeded to the duties of that ofiice, arrived in the city of Washington, on the sixth of, that mondi. H(* found the whole metropolis wrapped in gloom, every heart filled with sorrow and sadness, every eye streaming with tears, and the surrounding hills yet flinging back the echo of the bells which were tolled on that melancholy occasion. On entering the presidential mansion, he contemplated the pale body of his i)rcde- cessor stretched bi-foro him, and clothed in the black habihmcnt.S of death. At that solemn moment, 1 have no doubt that the heart TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 359 of President Tyler was overflowing with mingled emotions of grief, of patriotism, and of gratitude — above all, of gratitude to that country, by a majority of whose suffrages, bestowed at the preceding November, he then stood the most distinguished, the most elevated, the most honored, of all living whigs of the United States. " It was under these circumstances, and in this probable state of mind, that President Tyler, on the tenth day of the same month of April, voluntarily promulgated an address to the people of the United States. That address was in the nature of a coro- nation oath, which the chief of the state in other countries, and under other forms, takes, upon ascending the throne. It referred to the solemn obligations, and the profound sense of duty, under which the new president entered upon the high trust which had devolved upon him, by the joint acts of the people and of Provi- dence, and it stated the principles, and delineated the policy, by which he would be governed in his exalted station. It was em- phatically a whig address, from beginning to end — every inch of it was whig, and was patriotic. " In that address the president, in respect to the subject-matter embraced in the present bill, held the following conclusive and emphatic language : — '"I shall ijrompthj give my sanction to any constitutional measure, which, orio-ina/hisr in Consrrcss, shall have for its object the resto- ration of a sound circulating medmm, so csscntuUy necessary to give confidence in all the transactions of life, to secure lo industry its just and adequate rewards, and to re-estaUlsh the 2>iMic iwos- perity. In deciding upon the adaptation of any such measure to the end' proposed, as icell as its conformity to the constitution, I shall resort to the fathers of the great rejmblican school for advice and instruction, to be drawn from their sage views of our system of government, and the light of their ever-glorious example.^ " To this clause in the address of the president, I believe but one interpretation was given tiiroughout this whole country, by friend and foe, by whig and democrat, and by the presses of both parties. It was, by every man with whom I conversed on tiie subject at the time of its appearance, or of whom I have since in- quired, construed to mean that the president intended to occupy the IMadison ground, and to regard the question of the power to establish a national bank as immovably settled. And I think I may confidendy appeal to the senate and to the country, to sustain the fact, that this was the contemporaneous and unanimous judg- ment of the public. Reverting back to the period of the promul- gation of the address, could any other construction have been given to its language? What is it? 'I shall p/w/^p/^y give my sanction to any constitutional measure, which, originating in Con- gress,'' shall have certain defined objects in view. He concedes 360 MR. rn.VY AND THE the vit:il importance of a sound circulatiriij inediuiii to indiistrv, and to the piiljlic prosperity. He concedes that its oris;in must be in Coiiirress. And to prevent any interference from tlie quahfica- tion, which he prefixes to the measure, hein;,^ interpreted to mean that a luited ."!^tates bank was unconstitutional, he declares, iliat in deciding on the adaptation of tlie measure to the end proposed, and its couformitij to the constitution, he will resort to tlie fathers of the trreat republican school. And who were they? If the father of his country is to be cxrltided, are ^^a(lison (tlie father of the constitution), .leirerson, Monroe, (Jerry, (laliatin, and the long list of republicans wiio acted with them, not to be regarded as among those fathers V But President Tyler declares, not only that he should ajipcal to them for advice and instruction, but to the light of their evcr-irlorious example. What cxamj)le V \\'hat other meaning could have been possibly applied to the jihrase, tiian that he intended to refer to what had been done during the admin- istrations of Jeflerson, Madison, and Monroe?" Mr. Clay having put the interpretation here given on this docu- ment — a charitable interpretation — proceeds to state the satisfaction it had allbrdcd him, and the agreeable feelings with which lie came to attend the extra session. He then alludes to the rumors that had been afloat, and the influence which they had on Congress, in shaping the bill, so, if jiossible, as to escape a veto. *' Under the influence of thai s])irit [said Mr. Clay] the senate and the house agreed, first, as to the name of the proposed bank. 1 confess, sir, that there was something exceedingly oiifrc and revolting to my ears, in the term ' fiscal bank ;' but I thought, ' What is there in a name ? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.' Looking, therefore, rather to the utility of the substantial faculties, than to the name of the contemplated institu- tion, we consented to that which was proposed."' Tliev also yielded as to the location of the bank at Washinirton, and as to the branching power, sacrificing their own choice and judgment. lUit, said Mr Clay : — " Nolwillistaiiding all our concessions, made in a genuine and sincere spirit of conciliation, the sanction of the president could jiot be obtained, and the bill lias been returned by him with his objections. "And I siiall now proceed to consider those objections, with as much brevity as |)ossil)lc, but with the most perfect respect, ollicial and personal, toward the chief magistrate. " After stating that the power of Congress to establish a national bank, to operate per sc, has been a controverted (juestion from the origin of the government, the jtresident remarks : — -TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 361 " ' Men most justly and deservedly esteemed for their high intel- lectual endowments, their virtue and their patriotism, have, in re- gard to it, entertained different and conflicting opinions. Congresses have differed. The approval of one president has been followed by the disapproval of another.' •' From this statement of the case it may be inferred, that the • president considers the weight of authority, pro and con, to be equal and balanced. But if he intended to make such an array of it, if he intended to say that it was an equilibrium, I must re- spectfully, but most decidedly, dissent from him. I think the con- joint testimony of history, tradition, and the knowledge of living witnesses proves the contrary. How stands the question as to the opinions of Congresses? The Congress of 1791, the Congress ■ of 1S13-'14, the Congress of 1S15-'16, the Congress of 1S31- '32, and, finally, the present Congress, have all respectively and unequivocally, affirmed the existence of a power in Congress to establish a national bank to operate _per se. We behold, then, the concurrent opinion of five different Congresses on one side. And what Congress is there on the opposite side ? The Congress of 1811 ? I was a, member of the senate in that year, when it deci- ded, by the casting vote of the vice-president, against the renewal of the charter of the old bank of the United States. And I now here, in my place, add to the testimony already before the public, by declaring that it is within my certain knowledge, that that de- cision of the senate did not proceed from a disbelief of a majority of the senate in the power of Congress to establish a national bank, but from combined considerations of expediency and con- stitutionality. A majority of the senate, on the contrary, as I know, entertained no doubt as to the power of Congress. Thus the account, as to Congresses, stands five for, and not one, or, at most, not more than one, against the power. "Let us now look into the state of authority derivable from the opinions of presidents of the United States. President Washing- ton believed in the4Jower of Congress, and approved a bank bill. President Jefferson approved acts to extend branches into other parts of the United States, and to punish counterfeiters of the notes of the bank — acts which were devoid of all justification, whatever, upon the assumption of the unconstitutionality of the bank. For how could branches he extended, or punishment be lawfully inflicted upon the counterfeiters of the paper of a corpora- tion which came into existence without any authority, and in viola- tion of the constitution of the land ? James Madison, notwith- standing those early scruples which he had entertained, and which he probably still cherished, sanctioned and signed a bill to charter the late hank of the United States. It is perfectly well known that Mr. Monroe never did entertain any scruples or doubts in regard to the power of Congress. Here, then, are four presidents of the 302 MR. CLAV AXD THE United States who have directly or collaterally borne official testi- mony to the existence of the hank power in Congress. And what president is there, that ever bore nnecjuivocally opposite testimony — that disa])proved a hank charter, in tlic sense intended by President Tyler ? General Jackson, although he did apply the veto power to the bill for rechartering the late bank of the United States in 1S32, it is within the j)erfect recollection of us all, not only testified to the utility of a bank of the United States, but declared, that, if he had been aj)plied to by Congress, he could have furnished the plan of such a bank. " Thus, ISIr. President, we perceive, that, in reviewing the" ac- tion of the legislative and executive departments of the government, there is a vast preponderance of the weiglit of authority maintain- ing the existence of the power in Congress. But President Tyler has, 1 presume unintentionally, wholly omitted to notice the judg- ment and decisions of the third co-ordinate department of the government upon this controverted question — that department, whose interpretations of tiie constitution, within its proper jurisdic- tion and sphere of action, are binding upon all ; and which, there- fore, may be considered as exercising a controlling power over both the other departments. The supreme court of the United States, with its late chief justice, the illustrious Marshall, at its head, unanimously decided that Congress possessed this bank power ; and this adjudication was sustained and reaflirmed when- ever afterward the question arose before the court. " After recounting the occasions, during liis public career, on which he had expressed an opinion against the power of Congress to charter a baidv of the United States, the president proceeds to say : — " ' Entertaining the opinions alluded to, and liaving taken this oath, the senate and the country will see that I could not give my sanction to a measure of the character described, without surren- dering all claim to the respect of honorable men — all conhtlence on the part of the people, all self-respect, all regard for moral and religious obligations ; without an observance of which no govern- ment can be prosj)erous, and no people can be happy. ]t would be to coMunit a c/iinc, which 1 would not wilfullv commit to irain any earthly reward, and which would y«.s7/y subject me to the ridi- cule and scorn of :ill viiliious men.' " .Mr. I'residuut, 1 must tliiidc, and hope I may be allowed to say, with profoinid (Kfcrunce to the chief mai,nsirate, that it appears to me he has viewed with too lively sensibility the jiersonal conse- quences to himself of his approval of the bill ; and that, surren- dering himself to a visid imagination, he has depicted them in much too glowing and exaggerated colors, and that it would have been most happy, if he had looked more to the dc|)loraI)le conse- quences of a veto upon the hopes, the interests, and the happiness TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 363 of his country. Does it follow that a magistrate who yields his private judgment to the concurring authority of numerous decisions, repeatedly and deliberately pronounced, after the lapse of long in- tervals, by all the departments of government, and by all parties, incurs the dreadful penalties described by the president? Can any man be disgraced and dishonored, who yields his private opin- ion to the judgment of the nation ? In this case, the country (I mean a majority), Congress, and, according to common fame, a unanimous cabinet, were all united in favor of the bill. Should any man feel himself humbled and degraded in yielding to the conjoint force of such high authority? Does any man, who at one period of his life shall have expressed a particular opinion, and at a subsequent period shall act upon the opposite opinion, ex- pose himself to the terrible consequences which have been por- trayed by the president ? How is it with the judge, in the case by no means rare, who bows to the authority of repeated precedents, settling a particular question, while in his private judgment, the law was otherwise? How is it with that numerous class of public men in this country, and with the two great parties that have di- vided it, who, at different periods have maintained and acted on opposite opinions in respect to this very bank question. " How is it with James Madison, the father of the constitution — that great man whose services to his country placed him only sec- ond to Washington ; whose virtues and purity in private life, whose patriotism, intelligence, and wisdom in public councils, stand un- surpassed? He was a member of the national convention that formed, and of the Virginia convention that adopted, the constitu- tion. No man understood it better than he did. He was opposed, in 1791, to the establishment of the bank of the United States, upon constitutional ground ; and, in 1816, he approved and signed the charter of the late bank of the United States. It is a part of the secret history connected with the first bank, that James Madi- son had, at the instance of General Washington, prepared a veto for him in the contingency of his rejection of the bill. Thus stood James Madison, when, in 1815, he apphed the veto to a bill to charter a bank upon considerations of expediency, but with a clear and express admission of the existence of a constitutional power of Congress to charter one. In 181G, the bill which was then presented to him being free from the objections applicable to that of the previous year, he sanctioned and signed it. Did James Madison surrender ' all claim to die respect of honorable men, all confidence on the part of the people, all self-respect, all regard for moral and religious obligations?' Did the pure, the virtuous, the gifted James Madison, by his sanction and signature to the char- ter of the late bank of the United States, commit a ciimc which juathj subjected him ' to the ridicule and scorn of all virtuous men?'" 364 >IIl- CLAY AND THE Ml. (J lay next proceeds to a consideration of the alternatives before the acting president, either of which would have been hon- orable. •' Was there no allernutive," said Mr. Clay, "but to pro- Ion" the sufferings of a bleeding country, or to send us this veto ?" He nii'dit, in the first place, have allowed it to become a law with- out -his si'mature. Deferrinj; to the legislature, and to other au- thoritics above cited by Mr. Clay, and declining a positive oppo- sition to the wishes of the country, would only have added to his credit. Examples of this kind had occurred, with beneficence Jo the public, and honor to the parties. Mr. Madison's positive sur- render of his own judgment, and signing a bank bill, never injured him, but on the contrary advanced him in public esteem. It was regarded in the light of deference — was in fact so. It may be supposed even that his conscience demanded the act. Is it not rio-lit — is it not often a duty, and of course a conscientious obliga- tion, to doubt one's own infallibility, and chfcr to eminent author- ities ? " If it were possible [said Mr. Clay] to disinter the venerated re- mains of James Madison, reanimate his perishing form, and place him once more in that chair of state, which he so much adorned, what would have been his course, if this bill had been presented to him, even supposing him never to have announced his accpnescence in the set- tled judgment of the nation ? He would have said, that human controversy, in regard to a single question, should not be perpet- ual, and ought to have a termination. This, about the power to establish a bank of the United States, has been long enough con- tinued. The nation, under all the forms of its public action, has often and deliberately decided it. A bank, and associated finan- cial and currency questions, which had long slept, were revived, and have divided the nation during the last ten years of arduous and bitter struggle ; and the party which put down the bank, and which oceasloned all the disorders in our currency and finances, has itself been signally put down, by one of those great moral and political revolutions which a free, a patriotic people can but sel- dou) arouse itself to make. Human infaHlblllty has not been granted by (iod ; and the chances of error are much greater on the side of one man, than on that of the majority of a whole people and their successive legislatures during a long period of time. I yield to the irresistible force of authority. I will not put myself in op|iosltlon to a nu-asure so imjieratively demanded by the j)ub- lic voice, and so essential to elevate my ilepressed and suffering countrymen. " Ami why should not Tresident Tyler have suffered the bill to l)(M()iiie a' law without lils signature? Wltlioui meaning the TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 365 slightest possible disrespect to him (nothing is further from my heart than the exhibition of any such feeling toward that distin- guished citizen, long my personal friend), it can not be forgotten, that he came into his present office under peculiar circumstances. The people did not foresee the contingency which has happened. They voted for him as vice-president. They did not, therefore, scrutinize his opinions with the care which they probably ought to have done, and w'ould have done, if they could have looked into futurity. If the present state of the fact could have been antici- pated — if at Harrisburg, or at the polls, it had been foreseen, that General Harrison would die in one short month after the com- mencement of his administration ; that Mce-Prcsident Tyler would be elevated to the presidential chair ; that a bill, passed by decisive majorities of the first whig Congress, chartering a national bank, would be presented for his sanction, and that he would veto the bill, do I hazard anything, when I express the conviction, that he would not have received a solitary vote in the nominating con- vention, nor one solitary electoral vote in any state in the Union ? " Shall I be told that the honor, the firmness, the independence of the chief magistrate might have been drawn in question if he had remained passive, and so permitted the bill to become a law ? 1 answer, that the ofiice of chief magistrate is a sacred and exalted ti'ust, created and conferred for the benefit of the nation, and not for the private advantage of the person who fills it. Can any man's reputation for firmness, independence, and honor, be of more importance than the welfare of a great people ? There is nothing, in my humble judgment, in such a course, incompatible with honor, with firmness, with independence, properly understood. Certainly, I most respectfully think, in reference to a measure like this, recommended by such high sanctions — by five Congresses, by the authority of four presidents, by repeated decisions of the supreme court, by the acquiescence and judgment of the people of the United States during long periods of time, by its salutary operation on the interests of the community for a space of forty years, and demanded by the people whose sufirages placed Presi- dent Tyler in that second office whence he was translated to the first that he might have suppressed the promptings of all per- sonal pride of private opinion, if any arose in his bosom, and yielded to the wishes and wants of his country. Nor do I believe, that, in such a course, he would have made the smallest sacrifice, in a just sense, of personal honor, firmness, or independence. " But, sir, there was still a third alternative, to which I allude, not because I mean to intimate that it should be embraced, but be- cause I am reminded of it by a memorable event in the life of President Tyler. It will be recollected, that, after the senate had passed the resolutions declaring the removal of the public depos- ites from the late bank of the United States to have been deroga- 366 MR. CLAY AND THE tory to the constitution and laws of the United States, for which re-sohition, President, then Senator Tyler, had voted, the general assembly of \'ir;[,^inia instructed the senators from that state to vote for the expunging of that resolution. Senator 'J'yler declined voting in conformity with that instruction, and resigned his seal in the senate of the United States. This he did because he could not conform, and did not think it right to go counter to the wishes of those who had placed him in the senate. Jf, when the people of \'irginia, or the general assembly of Virginia, were his only constituency, he would not set up his own particular opinion, in ojiposition to theirs, what ought to be the rule of his conduct when the people of twenty-six states — a whole nation — compose his constituency? Is the will of the constituency of one stale to be respected, and that of twenty-six to be wholly disregarded '? Is obedience due only to the single state of Virginia"? The pres- ident admits, that the bank question deeply agitated, and continues to agitate the nation. It is incontestable, that it was the great, ab- sorbing, and controlling question, in all our recent divisions and exertions. I am firmly convinced, and it is my deliberate judg- m6nt, that an immense majority, not less than two thirds of the nation, desire such an institution. All doubts in this respect ought to be dispelled, by the recent decisions of the two houses of Con- gress. I speak of them as evidence of popular opinion. In the house of representatives the majority was one hundred and thirfy- one to one Imndrcd. If the house had been full, and but for the modification of the sixteenth fundamental condition, there would have been a probable majority of forty-seven. Js it to be believed that this large majority of the immediate representatives of the peo- ple, fresh from among them, and to whom the president seemed inclined, in his opening message, to refer this very question, have mistaken the wishes of their constituents "?" Mr. Cv'lay, notable as the author of compromises in difiicult, some of them momentous public emergencies, had caused a com- promise to be introduced in this bill, regarding the branching pow- er, which was obnoxious to many of its supporters, but tolerated ill anticipation of this — which may now be safely called — quibble of conscience in the acting president. It was known that he was disj)osed to make diniculty, and every possible pains was taken to avoid it. He wanted to quarrel with Mr. Clay ; — for what hope could he have for the attainment of his ambitious object, while Mr. ('lay was in his path ? lie therefore fell with great harshness, with rudeness, on this very clause of compromise in the bill, which was put in for the beneficent purpose of removing objections. " This 1K().\ rule is to give way to no circumstance — it is unbend- ing and inflexible. It is the language of the master to the vassal. TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 367 An unconditional answer is claimed forthivithy After such an assault on an act originating in a purpose so kind, it would require much charity to expect good from that quarter. And the assault was personal, the author of this part of the bill being known. There was other harsh language in the message on this point. " Now, Mr. President [said INIr. Clay], I will not ask whether these animadversions were prompted with a reciprocal spirit of amity and kindness, but I inquire whether all of tiiem were per- fectly just?" Mr. Clay shows — as is inherently obvious — that they were very unjust. The hypotheses erected by the acting president are extreme cases, which fall to the ground by the mere suggestion of the opposite extremes. "Extreme cases," says Mr. Clay, "should never be resorted to." " The president, I think, ought to have seen, in the form and language of the proviso, the spirit of conciliation in which it was drawn, as I know. It does not assert the power ; it employs the language of the constitution itself, leaving every one free to inter- pret that language according to his own sense of the instrument. " Why was it deemed necessary to speak of its being ' the lan- guage of the master to the vassal,' of ' this iron rule,' that ' Congress wills, and submission is demanded?' What is this whole federal government but a mass of powers abstracted from the sovereignty of the several states, and wielded by an organized government for their common defence and general welfare, according to the grants of the constitution ? These powers are necessarily supreme ; the constitution, the acts of Congress, and treaties being so declared by the express words of the constitution. Whenever, therefore, this government acts within the powers granted to it by the constitu- tion, submission and obedience are due from all — from states as well as from persons. And if this present the image of a master and a vassal, of state subjection and congressional domination, it is the constitution, created or consented to by the states, that ordains these relations. Nor can it be said, in the contingency supposed, that an act of Congress has repealed an act of state legislation. Undoubtedly in case of a conflict between a state constitution or state law, and the constitution of the United States, or an act of Congress passed in pursuance of it, the state consti- tution or state law would yield. But it could not, at least, be for- mally or technically said, that the state constitution or law was repealed. Its operation would be suspended or abrogated by the necessary predominance of the paramount authority. ******* " I understand that some of our friends are now considering the practicability of arranging and passing a bill in conformity with the views of President Tyler? While I regret that I can take no 3G8 MR. CLAY ANT> THE active part In sucli an experiment, and must reserve to myself the rif^lit of determining, whether I can or can not vote for such a hill after I see it in its matured form, I assure my friends that they shall find no oh.stacle or iinj)ediment in me. On the contrary, I say to them, go on — (lod speed you in any measure which will serve the country, and j)reserve or restore harmony and concert between the departments of government. An executive veto of a hank of the United ^States, after the sad experience of late years, is an event which was not anticipated hy the political friends of the |)resident — certainly not by nie. Jjut it has come upon us with trcMKMulous weight, and amid the greatest excitement within and without the metropolis. The question now is, what shall be done? What, under this most embarrassing and unex[)ecte(l state of thiiiijs, will our constituents expect of us ? What is refpiired by the duty and the dignity of Congress? I repeat, that if, after a careful examination of the executive message, a bank can be devised which will afford any remedy to existing evils, and secure the president's approbation, let the project of such a bank be pre- sented. It shall encounter no opposition, if it should receive no support, from me. "But what further shall we do? Never, since I have enjoyed the honor of partici])ating in the public councils of the nation, a period now of nearly thirty-five years, have T met Congress under more happv or more favorable auspices. Never have I seen a house of representatives animated by more patriotic dispositions — more united, more determined, more business-like. Not even that house which declared war in 1812, nor that which, in 1S15- 'JG, laid broad and deep foundations of national prosperity, in adetinate ])rovisions for a sound currency, by the establishment of a bank of the Lulled iStalcs, for the payment of the national debt, and for the protection of American industry. This house has solved the problem of the competency of a large deliberative body to transact the public business. If happily there had existed a concurrence of oj)inion and cordial cooperation between the diller- ent departments of the government, and all the members of the party, we should have carried every measure contemplated at the extra session, which the peo|ile had a right to expect from our pledges, and should have been, by this time, at our respective homes. We are disappointed in one, and an important one, of that series of measures ; but shall we therefore despair ? Shall we abandon ourselves to unworthy feelings and sentiments? Shall we allow ourselves to he transported by rash and intemperate passions and counsels? Shall we adjourn, and go home in disgust? No! No ! No ! A higher, nobler, and more patriotic career lies belore us. Let us here, at the east end of Pennsylvania avenue, do our duty, our whole duty, and nothing short of our diuy, toward our conunon country. We have repealed the sub-treasury. We TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 369 have passed a bankrupt law — a beneficent measure of substantial and extensive relief. Let us now pass the bill for the distribution of the proceeds of the public lands, the revenue bill, and the bill for the benefit of the oppressed people of this district. Let us do all, let us do everything we can for the public good. If we are finally to be disappointed in our hopes of giving to the country a bank, which will once more supply it with a sound currency, still let us go home and tell our constituents, that we did all that we could under actual circumstances ; and that, if we did not carry every measure for their relief, it was only because to do so was impossible.- If nothing can be done at this extra session, to put upon a more stable and satisfactory basis the currency and exchanges of the country, let us hope that hereafter some way will be found to accomplish that most desirable object, either by an amendment of the constitution, limidng and qualifying the enor- mous executive power, and especially the veto, or by increased majorities in the two houses of Congress, competent to the passao-e of wise and salutary laws, the president's objections notwithstand- ing." The Hon. Wm. C. Rives, of Virginia, replied to Mr. Clay, in defence of the acting president, the unjustness of which could hardly be accounted for, except by the supposition, that the honor- able senator had prepared his remarks, in anticipation of what Mr. Clay would probahhj say, and was somewhat hampered in adapting them to what he did say. Mr. Clay was obliged — a thing very unusual with him — frequently to interrupt and correct him ; and he did not think of rejoining, till Mr. Rives sat down, and a sen- ator at Mr. Clay's elbow, jogged him, and said : " You must answer that." It is usual for a member of a deliberative body, when he thinks of a reply, to take notes. On this occasion Mr. Clay had taken none, and rose at the prompting above stated, and made one of the most eloquent speeches of his life : — "I have no desire," said Mr. Clay, "to prolong this unpleas- ant discussion ; but I must say that I heard with great surprise and regret the closing remark, especially, of the honorable gentleman from Virginia, as, indeed, I did many of those which preceded it. That gentleman stands in a peculiar situation. I found him sev eral years ago in the half-way house, where he seems afraid to re main, and from which he is yet unwilling to go. I had thought, after the thorough riddling which the roof of the house had re- ceived in the breaking up of the pet-bank system, he would have fled somewhere else for refuge ; but there he still stands, solitary and alone, shivering and pelted by the pitiless storm. 'J'he sub- treasury is rej)ealed ; the pet-bank system is abandoned ; the Vol. 11.— 24: 370 MR. CLAY AND THE United {^tatcs bank bill is vetoed ; and now, wlien there is as com- plete and perfect a reunion of the purse and the sword in tlie iiands of the executive as ever there was under General Jackson or Mr. Van Buren, the senator is for doing'nolhing! The senator is for goinf^ home, leaving the treasury and the country in their lawless condition ! Yet no man lias iieretofore, more than he has, de- plored and deprecated a state of things so utterly unsafe, and re- pugnant to all just precautions, indicated alike by sound llieory and experience in free governments. And the senator talks to us about a|)])lving to the wisdom of practical men, in respect to banking, ami advises further deliberation ! Why, I should suppose that we are at present in the very best situation to act upon the subject. Besides the many painful years we have had for deliberation, we have been near three months almost exclusively engrossed with the very subject itself. We have heard all manner of facts, state- ments, anil arguments, in any way connected with it. \\ e under- stand, it seems to me, all we ever can learn or comprehend about a national bank. And we have, at least, some conception too of what sort of one will be acceptable at the other end of the av- enue. Yet now, with a vast majority of the people of the entire country crying out to us for a bank ; with the |)eople throughout the whole valley of the Mississippi rising in their majesty, and de- manding it as indispensable to tiieir well-being, and pointing to their losses, their sacrifices, and their sufierings, for the want of such an institution ; in such a state of things, we are gravely and coldly told by the honorable senator from \'irginia, that we had best go home, leaving the purse and the sword in tiie uncontrolled possession of the president, and above all things, never to make a party bank ! Why, sir, does he, with all his knowledge of the condicting opinions which |)revail here, and have prevailed, believe that we ever can make a bank but by the votes of one party who are in favor of it, in opposition to the votes of another party against it? I deprecate this expression of opinion from that gentleman the more, because, although the honorable senator professes not to know the opinions of the president, it certainly does turn out in the se(piel, that there is a most remarkable cohicnlnicc between those opinions and his own ; and he has, on the present occasion, de- fended the motives and the course of the president with all the so- licitude and all the fervent zeal of a member of his j'/'/r// cnu/iciL There is a riunor abroad, that a cabal exists — a new sort of kitchen cabinet — whose object is the dissolution of the regular cabinet, the dissolution of the whig party, the dispersion of Congress without accomplishing any of the great purposes of the extra session, and a total change, in fact, in the whole face of our jiolitical atfairs, I hope, ancJ 1 persuade myself, that the honorable senator is not, can not be, one of the component members of such a cabal; but 1 must say, that there has been dis[)layed by the iionorable senator TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 37] to-day, a predisposition, astonishing and inexplicable, to miscon- ceive almost all of what I have said, and a perseverance, after re- peated corrections, in misunderstanding — for I will not charge him with wilfully and intentionally misrepresenting — the whole spirit and character of the address which, as a man of honor, and as a senator, I felt myself bound in duty to make to this body. " The senator begins with saying that I charge the president with 'perfidy!' Did I use any such language? I appeal to every gentleman who heard me, to say whether I have, in a single in- stance, gone beyond a fair and legitimate examination of the exec- utive objections to the bill. Yet he has charged me with ' arraign- ing' the president, widi indicting him in various counts, and with imputing to him motives such as I never even intimated or dreamed ; and that, when I was constantly expressing, over and over, my personal respect and regard for President Tyler, for whom I have cherished an intimate personal friendship of twenty years' standing, and while T expressly said, that if that friendship should now be interrupted, it should not be my fault! Why, sir, what possible, what conceivable motive can I have to quarrel with the president, or to break up the whig party ? What earthly mo- tive can impel me to wish for any other result than that that party shall remain in perfect harmony, undivided, and shall move undis- mayed, boldly and unitedly forward to the accomplishment of the all-important public objects which it has avowed to be its aim? What imaginable interest or feeling can I have other than the suc- cess, the triumph, the glory of the whig party? But that there may be designs and purposes on the part of certain other individ- uals to place me in inimical relations with the president, and to represent me as personally opposed to him, I can well imagine — individuals who are beating up for recruits, and endeavoring to form a third party, with materials so scanty as to be wholly insuffi- cient to compose a decent corporal's guard." The words " coi-poraVs guard,'''' dropping from the lips of jMr. Clay on this occasion, will for ever adhere to some half dozen members of the twenty-seventh Congress, of which gallant and re- nowned corps, Caleb Cushing, of INlassachusetts, Henry A. Wise, of Virginia, and George H. Pro/fit, of Indiana, were members, and distinguished themselves in fighting the battles of "Captain Tyler," as he was generally termed, for like reasons. These gentlemen, together with Mr. Gilmer, of Virginia, and one or two others, did valiant service for the " captain," on die floor of the house of Yc\ne- sentatives. More fortunate than most of those who trusted in this perfidious man, "the guard" were rewarded. Mr. Gilmer was made secretary of the navy, and afterward killed at the burst- ing of Captain Stockton's big gun on board the IVinceton. Mf 372 MR. CLAY AND THE Gilmer had been governor of Virginia, was a man of excellent character, of exemplary manners, and highly respected. His per- sonal worth carried him through the senate, to the head of the navy department, notwithstanding the objection to his position as a member of "the guard" — in which service, however, he was moderate, and always sustained his character of a gentleman. There was a universal sympathy at the manner of his death. Mr. Proflit was packed ofT, in a recess of Congress, as minister to Brazil, before his name was sent into the senate — probably with the expectation of having leave to return, when the senate should deliver their opinion. He was not disappointed, ^h. Cu?hing was presented to the senate for secretary of the treasury, and Mr. Wise for minister to France, and were each of them rejected three times in one night's session (March 3, 1843), the acting president having sent back their names, apparently to force them on the sen- ate. But the regal power, in tliis instance, did not avail. The votes at each time were as follows : For INIr. Wise — first vote, 24 to 12 ; second vote, 26 to 8 ; third vote, 29 to 2. For Mr. Gush- ing — first vote, 27 to 19 ; second vote, 27 to 10 ; third vote, 29 to 2. When Mr. ProfTit was rejected, by a vote of 33 to S, Mr. Wise was nominated to succeed him, and confirmed by a vote of 30 to 10. An embassy to the Celestial Empire being resolved on, as important to the commercial interests of the United States in that quarter of the world, and the co-ordinate power of the senate in all such cases being defunct, they were obliged to accept such a nomination as the acting president should be pleased to make, and he presented Mr. Cushing ! It can not be denied, that it was an executive retribution. The conclusion of Mr. Clay's reply to Mr. Rives rightfully claims a place here : — " I rose not to say one word which should wound the feelings of President Tyler. The senator says, that, if placed in like cir- cumstancfs, I would have been the last man to avoid putting a di- rect veto upon the bill, had it met my disapprobation ; and he does me the honor to attribute to me high qualities of stern and unbend- ing intrejjidity. I hope, that in all that relates to personal firmness, uli that concerns a just appreciation of the insignificance of human life — whatever may be attempted to threaten or alarm a soul not easily swayed by opposition, or awed or intimidated by menace — a stout heart and a steady eye, that can survey, unmoved and un- daunted, any mere personal perils that assail this poor, transient, perishinij frame, I may, without disparagement, coM)i)are with other men. but there is a sort of courage, which, I frankly confess it, TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 373 I do not possess, a boldness to which I dare not aspire, a valor which I can not covet. I can not lay myself down in the way of the welfare and happiness of my country.' That I can not, I have not the courage to do. I can not interpose the power witli which I may be invested — a power conferred, not for my personal benefit, nor for my aggrandizement, but for my country's good — to check her onward march to greatness and glory. I have not courage enough, I am too cowardly for that. I would not, I dare not, in the exercise of such a trust, lie down, and place my body across the path that leads my country to prosperity and happiness. This is a sort of courage widely different from that which a man may display in his private conduct and personal relations. Personal or private courage is totally distinct from that higher and nobler cour- age which prompts the patriot to offer himself a voluntary sacrifice to his country's good. " Nor did 1 say, as the senator represents, that the president should have resigned. I intimated no personal wish or desire that he should resign. I referred to the fact of a memorable resignation in his public life. And what I did say was, that there were other alternatives before him besides vetoing the bill ; and that it was worthy of his consideration, whether consistency did not require that the example which he had set when he had a constituency of one state, should not be followed when he had a constituency commensurate with the whole Union. Another alternative was, to suffer the bill, without his signature, to pass into a law under the provisions of the constitution. And I must confess, I see, in this, no such escaping by the back door, no such jumping out of the window, as the senator talks about. Apprehensions of the impu- tation of the want of firmness sometimes impel ns to perform rash and inconsiderate acts. It is the greatest courage to be able to bear the imputation of the want of courage. But pride, vanity, egotism, so unamiable and offensive in private life, are vices which partake of the character of crimes in the conduct of public affairs. The unfortunate victim of these passions can not see beyond the litde, petty, contemptible circle of his own personal interests. All his thoughts are withdrawn from his country, and concentrated on his consistency, his firmness, himself. The high, the exalted, the sublime emotions of a patriotism, which, soaring toward heaven, rises far above all mean, low, or selfish things, and is absorbed by one soul-transporting thought of the good and the glory of one's country, are never felt in his impenetrable bosom. That patri- otism which, catching its inspirations fiom the immortal God, and leaving at an immeasurable distance below all lesser, grovelling, personal interests and feelings, animates and prompts to deeds of self-sacrifice, of valor, of devotion, and of death itself — that is public virtue ; that is the noblest, the sublimest of all public virtues ! 374 MU. CLAY AND THE *' I said nothing of any obligation on the part of the president to conform his judgment to tiie opinions of the senate and house of representatives, although the senator argued as if I had, and per- severed in so arguing, after repeated corrections. I said no such thing. I know and respect the perfect independence of each department, acting witliin its proper sphere,, of other departments. Dut I referred to the majorities in the two houses of Congress as further and strong evidence of the opinion of the j)eople of the United States in favor of the estabhshmcnt of a bank of the United States. And I contended that, accortUng to the doctrine of instruc- tions which prevailed in A'irginia, and of which the president is a disci])le, and, in jiursuance of the example already cited, he ought not to have rejected the bill. " I have heard that, on his arrival at the seat of the general government, to enter upon the duties of the oflice of vice-president, in March last, when interrogated how far he meant to conform, in his new station, to certain peculiar opinions which were held in Virginia, he made this patriotic and noble reply : ' 1 am vice-pres- ident of the United States, and not of the state of \'irginia ; and I shall be governed by the wishes and opinions of my constituents.' When I heard of this encouraging and satisfactory reply, believing, as I most religiously do, that a large majority of the people of the United States are in favor of a national bank (and gentlemen may shut their eyes to the fact, deny, or dispute, or reason it away as they please, but it is my conscientious conviction that two thirds, if not more, of the people of the United States desire such an in- stitution), I thought I beheld a sure and certain guaranty for the fidfilment of the wishes of the people of the United States. I thought it impossible, that the wants and wishes of a great people, who had bestowed such unbounded and generous confidence, and confefred on iiim such exalted honors, should be disregarded and disappointed. It did not enter into my imagination to conceive, that one, who had shown so much deference and respect to the presumed sentiments of a single state, should dis])lay less toward the scnliinciits of the whole nation. •• 1 iioj)e, Mr. Presideut, that, in performing the painful duty which liad devolved on me, I have not transcended the limits of legitimate debate. I repeat, in all truth and sincerity, the assurance to the senate and to the country, that nothing but a stern, reluctant, and indispensable sense of honor and of duty could have forced from nie the response which I have made to die president's objec- tions. J')Ut, instead of yielding without restraint to the feelings of disa|)p()intuient and mortification excited i)y the perusal of his mes- sage, 1 have anxiously eiuleavored to temper the notice of it, which 1 have been com[)elled to take, by the respect due to the oflice of chief magistrate, and by the personal regard and esteem which J have ever entertained for its pn-sent incumbent." TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 375 None can fail to perceive, that these remarks are not of an ordi- nary character, even for Mr. Clay. But the calm dignity of their aspect from the pages where they lie recorded, in an imperfect report, can afford but a very faint idea of the manner, voice, into- nations, pauses, bursts, thunders, low yet audible whispers, and all other attributes ascribed to this orator, on such occasions, in chapter iv., of the first volume. Many were starded from their seats, in admiration and ecstacy, and then sat down, as they after- ward declared, because they could not stand. The senate imme- diately adjourned, as if conscious of the overpowering solemnity of the occasion, and a troop of friends — among whom were some political opponents — involuntarily surrounded Mr. Clay, offering him wine and water, while he wiped the floods of passion from his brows. Not more than once since this occasion — probably it will never occur again — has Mr. Clay burst forth with all his astonishing powers, as a public orator. That was in May, 1843, as described in the chapter of this work above alluded to, when he addressed his fellow-citizens of Kentucky, at Lexington, in defence of him- self, and of the twenty-seventh Congress. He was then strongly moved by two unlike emotions — pain that his friends had ex- pressed some regret for the appointment he had made, and a vir- tuous indignation for the base calumnies that had been propagated against him ; and these sentiments set in motion every other of which man is susceptible, and raised them to the highest pitch. From the first word he spoke, to the end, he was everything of which he was capable, as an orator, and the effect was prodigious. In the same manner, in this reply to Mr. Rives, powerful emotions roused every passion of his soul. The state of the country, the disappointment occasioned by the conduct of the acting president, the fact that one senator on that floor could rise in vindication of such conduct, and the manner of his doing it, with a thousand thoughts rushing out from the past, and looking into the future, as allied to the momentous interests of the republic, for the preserva- tion and success of which he had labored so long and wilii so much concern — and rising as he did from a sudden impulse, im- parted by a friend — all combined to stir up his soul to one of those mighty efforts, which, in the course of his life, have now and then excited so much amazement, and produced such marvellous effects. 376 MR. CLAY AND THE CHAPTER XV. MR. CLAY AND THE TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. "Whnt fiained and AVhat lost. — Perfidy of the Acting President. — Mr. Clay's Position. — His Plan of National Policy and Reform, submitted in the Form of Resolutions. — Statement and Consideration of this Plan. — Objects aimed at in 18-10. — Doom of the then existing Administration. — Could not reform. — Must therefore force Chains. — Project for a Standing Army of 200,000. — The Sub- Treasury. — Disclosures of Extravagance and Corruption made by the Twenty- Seventh Congress. — Their Fidelity. The great measure of the twenty-seventh Congress was the tariff of 1S42, which rescued the country, and was sufiicient to secure its prosperity, under many disadvantages. Nearly all the otiier great measures of national policy, contemplated by the party which came into power with such an unprecedented and over- whelming majority — among which as most prominent, were the re- establishment of a national currency, and the distribution of the proceeds of the public lands among the states — were defeated by the political defection and faithless conduct of the acting chief magistrate. Nothing of material consequence was effected for the relief of the country, at the extra session of the twenty-seventh Congress, except the repeal of the sub-treasury, and the rescue of the debtor j)oriion of the community by the passage of a bankrupt law — a most undesirable necessity, created by the wide-spread disasters of misrule, and a measure, which is always sure to make as many more enemies than friends, as the number of creditors exceeds that of the debtors relieved, and therefore demanding eminent moral courage and patriotic resolution to put it in operation. It was the beginning of the misfortunes of the party raised to power, that the only new and great measure whicii the perversity of the acting chief magistrate, in the use of the regal power of the con- stitution, woidd allow thein to pass at this session, was an obnox- ious one That very power, for ever subverting the public will. TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 377 as expressed by its representative organs, which Mr. Clay had been fighting against so long, had started up, with new and hydra heads, at the moment when it was supposed to be crushed, and in the very agent, who was appointed to suppress it! And it appeared again to disappoint the nation of the object of its great and agonizing effort for relief. Nevertheless, even in these discouraging circumstances, Mr. Clay was still at his post; and his plan of public policy, which he thought it his duty to submit to this Congress, before he retired for ever from that field of labor where he had toiled, with little in- terruption, nearly forty years, was propounded to the senate in the resolutions he there offered on the first of March, 1842, and ex- plained and advocated in his .speech made on the same occasion. He beo;ins as follows : — "Mr. President, the resolutions which have just been read, and which are to form the subject of the present discussion, are of the greatest importance, involving interests of the highest character, and a system of policy which, in my opinion, lies at the bottom of any restoration of the prosperity of the country. In discussing them, I would address myself to you in the language of plainness, of soberness, and truth. I did not come here as if I were entering a garden full of flowers, and of the richest shrubbery, to cull the tea-roses, the japonicas, the jasmines, and woodbines, and weave them into a garland of the gayest colors, that, by the beauty of their assortment, and by their fragrance, I may gratify fair ladies. Nor is it my wish — it is far, far from my wish — to revive any sub- jects of a party character, or which might be calculated to renew the animosities which unhappily have hitherto prevailed between the two great political parties of the country. My course is far difli'erent from this; it is to speak to you of the sad condition of our country; to point out, not the remote and original, but the proximate, the immediate causes which have produced, and are likely to continue our distresses, and to suggest a remedy. If any one, in or out of the senate, has imagined it to be my intention, on this occasion, to indulge in any ambitious display of language, to attempt any rhetorical flights, or to deal in any other figures than figures of arithmetic, he will find himself greatly disappointed. The farmer, if he is a judicious man, does not begin to plough till he has first laid off his land, and marked it off at proper distances, by planting stakes, by which his ploughmen are to be guided in their movements; and the ploughman, accordingly, fixes his eye upon the stake opposite to the end of the destined furrow, and then endeavors to reach it by a straight and direct line. These resolu- tion> are my stakes." 37S AIR. CLAY AXD THE The position which Mr, Clay occupied at this moment, is one that justly claims, and will naturally excite, the profoundest inter- est. He had done all he could, in a struggle of many years, to save the country from the calamitous efTects of former usurpations of regal power; he had magnanimously fought through the political revolution of lS-40, on the stump, in .support of the candidate who had received tiie suffrages of the IlarrLshurg convention, of ISoD, to the exclusion of liimself, whom every just-minded man knew ought to have been the nominee; he had reluctantly retained his seat in the senate, to assist in establishing the measures of the new administration ; the lamented Harrison, who enjoyed the sincere friendship and respect of Mr. Clay, by an inscrutable dispensation of Providence, had descended to the tomb ; a miserable creature, on whose faith, in the social relations, not the least reliance could be placed, succeeded to power, who, after he came to act as chief magistrate, could not command the respect of one honorable man, and was surrounded only by the vilest sycophants; and as a consequence of tiiis infidelity, all the contemplated measures of the new administration were put in jeopardy, and some of the most vital were already sacrificed by the perfidy of this man, when Mr. Clay brought forward these resolutions on this occasion. Labors lost, and universal gloom, overshadowed the minds of all true pa- triots. All that Mr. Clay could do, was to submit his propositions to Congress and the nation, if, peradventure, a more fortunate pe- riod of the republic might yet come round, when they would chance to receive due consideration. Mr. Clay proceeded to say : — " 'riio first resolution declares — " ' Tiiat it is the dutv of the "-eneral government, for conductiiif its administration, to provide an adequate revenue widiin tiie year, to meet the current expenses of the year; and that any expedient, either by loan or treasury-notes, to supply, in time of peace, a de- ficiency of revenue, especially during successive years, is unwise, and nuist lead to pernicious c()nse(juenccs.' " 1 have heard it asserted, that this resolution is but a truism. If so, I regret to say, that it is one from which governments too often depart, and Irom which this government especially has departed during tin: last five years. Has an adequate revenue been provided wiiliiu each ol those years, to meet the necessary expenses of those same years y No; far otherwise. "In JS37, at the called session, instead of imposing the requi- site amount of taxes on the free articles, according to the provisions of iho compromise net, what was the resort of the administration ? To treasury-notes. And the same expedient of treasury-notes has TWEiSTTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 379 been ever since adopted, from year to year, to supply the deficit ac- cruing. And, of necessity, this poHcy cast upon the administra- tion succeeding, an unascertained, unhquidated debt, inducing a temporary necessity on that administration, to have resort to the same means of supply.* * * * # " The next three resolutions all relate to the same general sub- jects — subjects which I consider much the most important of any here set forth ; and 1 shall, for that reason, consider them together. " The second resolution asserts : — " ' That such an adequate revenue can not be obtained by duties on foreign imports, without adopting a higher rate than twenty per centum, as provided for in the compromise act, which, at the time of its passage, was supposed and assumed as a rate that would supply a sufficient revenue for an economical administration of the government.' " The third resolution concludes : — " 'That the rate of duties on foreign imports ought to be aug- mented beyond the rate of twenty per centum, so as to produce a net revenue of twenty-six millions of dollars — twenty-two for the ordinary expenses of government, two for the payment of the ex- isting debt, and two millions as a reserved fund for contingencies.' " 'The fourth resolution asserts: — "'That, in the adjustment of a tariff to raise an amount of twenty-six millions of revenue, the principles of the compromise act generally should be adhered to; and that especially a maximum rate of ad-valorem duties should be established, from which there ought to be as little departure as possible.' "The first question which these resolutions suggest, is this: what should be the amount of the annual expenditures of this gov- ern mentV Now, on this point, I shall not attempt, what is impos- sible, to be exact and precise in stating what that may be. We can only make an approximation. No man, in his private affairs, can say, or pretends to say, at the beginning of the year, precisely • It was in the revenue bill of 1841 (extra session), ihat Mr. Clay moved an amendment for the protection of silver ware and jewelry. The duties on these ar- ticles had been 12 per cent. ; the bill went from tlie house to the senate, reduced in this item to 5 per cent. Mr. Clay's amendment raised tiie duties on silver ware to 30 per cent., and on jewelry to 2.5, which passed, and the same are incorporated in the tariff of 1842. In gratitude for this service, the New York gold and silver artisans — refusing subscription from the dealers — alone raised $1,000, and jirosented Mr. Clay with a splendid silver vase, weifrhin'j: 275 ounces, surmounted by the American easle, perched on a rock dashed by the waves of the sea, surrounded by a circle of hearts, the whole exhibiting various appropriate and elesjant devices,, and displaying the following inscription : "Presented to Hknuy Ci.av, by the gold and silver artisans of the city of New York, as a tribute of their resjiect for the faithful and patriotic manner in which he has dischari^ed his his;h public trusts, and especially for his early and untiring advocacy of Pkotkction to American Industry. 1845. Wm. Adams, M. G. Baldwin, A. G. Peckham, Edwd. Y. Prime, Dan. Carpenter, David Dunn, committee." It is proper to observe, that a commit- tee of the above two classes of artisans, had been sent to Wasiiington to implore protection against foreign competition and the frauds of fureiiin factors, and that the bill was about to pass, when Mr. Clay moved his amendment, and saved them 380 MR. CLAY AXD THE wiiat sli;ill \)C the amount of Ijis expenses during the year; that must depend on many unforeseen contingencies, wliich can not, with any precision, be calculated bcforeliand ; all that can be done is to make an approximation to what ought to be, or what may be the amount. liefore I consider that rpiestion, allow me to correct iK^rn, an assertion made first by the senator from South Carolina [.Mr. Calhoun], and subsequently by the senator from Missouri near me [Mr. Linn], and I believe by one or two other gentlemen, namely, that the whig parly, when out of power, asserted that, if trusted with the helm, they would administer this government at an amount of exjienditure not exceeding thirteen millions of dollars. 1 ho])e, if such an assertion was actually made by either or all of these gentlemen, that it will never be repeated again, without re- sorting to proof to sustain it. I know of no such position ever taken bv the whig party, or by any prominent member of the whig party. Sure I am that the party generally pledged itself to no such reduction of the public expenses — none. " No — but this was what they said : ' During the four years of the administration of Mr. Adams, the average amount of the |)ublic expenditure was but thirteen millions, and you charged that admin- istration with outrageous extravagance, and came yourselves into power on promises to reduce the annual expenditure ; but, iiaving obtained power, instead of reducing the public expenses, you car- ried them up to the astonishing amount of near forty millions.' " It may, perhaps, be supposed that there is an inconsistency between what Mr. Clay says here, and his private letter to Mr. Johnson, of 1831, inserted at the opening of chapter viii. of this volume, and that, if he thought twelve millions would do then, twenty-two millions was a largo allowance for 1S42. As to consistency, it can not be a question, as Mr. Clay, in 1S42, was speaking of a matter of fact, not of opinion. Next, the phrase '' nlioHt twelve millions," used by him in !->:;!, shows that he did not pretend to be defmite, nor was it for public purposes, but in a private conununication. Thirdly, it shows that he was moderate, and not extravagant. iMiiirtiily, it does not appear, that twenty- two millions for 1842 was greater iliaii twelve for 1831. l^ut, fifthly, Mr. Clay's opponents, who had brought up the public expenditures to an average of over thirty-five millions, from IS37 to I^K), inclusive, are the last who are entitled to complain of his opinion in 1831, or his estimates in 1S42. Mr. (ylay proceeds: — " The question recurs, at what sum can the expenses of the government be now fixed ? " I repeat that the exact amount is diflicult to be ascertained. TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 381 I have stated it in the resolution I now offer, at tivcnty-tivo mill- ions; and I shall soon show how I have arrived at the amount. But, before I do that, allow me to call the attention of the senate to the expenditures of the preceding administration ; for, in at- tempting to fix a sum for the future, I know of no course but to look back upon the experience of the past, and then to endeavor to deduce from it the probable amount of future expenditure. What, then, were the expenditures of the four years of the past administration ? In 1837, the amount was $37,265,037 15 In 1838, it was 39,455,438 35 In 1839, « 37,614,936 15 In 1840, " 28,22 6,533 81 Making an aggregate of $142,56 1,945 46 " Which gives us an average per year of thirty-five millions six hundred and forty thousand four hundred and eighty-six dollars and thirty-eight cents. " The sum I have proposed is only twenty-two millions, which deducted from thirty-five, as above, leaves a reduction of thirteen millions six hundred and forty thousand dollars — being a sum greater than the whole average expenditure of the extravagant and profligate administration of Mr. Adams, which they told us was so enormous that it must be reduced by a great ' retrenchment and reform.' " It is manifestly not very encouraging to upright statesmen to be obliged to encounter such charges as were made against the ex- travagances of Mr. Adams's administration, when brought by men who contrived in a {e\\ years to increase the expenses of govern- ment nearly three to one. The political revolution of 1840 was fortunate enough for those who had for many years been in charge of the government. They were committed to principles and measures, that would have in- volved them in inextricable financial difliculties, before another four ' years could have accomplished their round. It is true the sub- treasury was a good device to pay the salaries of the president and his ofhccholders, and if the people would have submitted to direct taxation, without anything to pay, for the support of these public functionaries, it might have done. But the feeling manifested in 1840 showed, that it was at least an age too early to rely on such measures. How, then, was the treasury to be supplied on free trade principles? The revenue for the last four years had been inadequate for the expenditures of the government by some thirty millions, or more, and was rapidly falling ofT every year. Even 3S2 MR. CLAY AND THE with the check of tlic transient tarifT of 1^41, it went down to less than thirteen millions at the expiration of the term of the compro- mise act. How could a government, spending thirty-five millions a year, get along with such a revenue ? — a government wjiose principles and measures were necessarily cutting it down every year. The creditors of the United States, and the capitalists of the world, were lookers-on. They could not hut see the tendency and the end of such a course. It is well known, that the credit of the government was already used up. and not a dollar could he horrowed, till the tarilT of 1842 was enacted. The system of credit resorted to in the issue of treasury-notes, was a buhhle wiiich had had its day, and was on the eve of bursting. There was no apjKirent prospect of reducing the expenses of the government, while it remained in the same hands. Every succeeding annual report of the secretary of the treasury presented nothing hut more dis- couraging and yet darker prospects. .Mr. Woodbury, speaking, in his report of J ^10, of the descending scale of duties, said : "If the imports then [18413] should not differ much from those of 1S3S, this [statement just made] would leave an income from them not probably exceeding ten or eleven millions of dollars yearly." \Vhat could be done in a persistance in such measures, on such princi- j)lcs ? The seven-to-eight millions annual deficit in the revenue, which must soon be ten millions, soon fifteen, soon twenty, and so on, swelling up a national debt like mountains, were prospects which the most courageous financier could not comfortably face, and which the sympathies of a dependent and imploring government could not at all relieve. liiii it is altogether unnecessary to carry out these contingent results in such forms — forms which had a fair promise of growing into substances. The government of tlu> ['nited States could not liave subsisted two years longer under such a policy, without falling into baid to 1841, the number of steamboats and sail craft employed in the transportation service for the Florida war, was 737, for which a very extrnvaijant llir(.^.was generally paid. About lifty of these are named in house document No. 458, 2d session, 27th Contrress, and tlieir rates of hire speci- fied. The following are specimens: The steamboat .John Crowell, estimntrd to be worth $15,000, was hired at $300 n day, provided for and insured, till the TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 397 clent evidence of what the twenty-seventh Congress achieved, in the way of retrenclimait and reform. They found every depart- ment of the government more or less ill organized, inefficient, ex- travagant, and corrupt, exerting a most pernicious influence on the compensation amounted to $82,555. The Reindeer, 42 days, at $175 a day — being $7,350. The Georgiana, 32 days, at $200 a day— $6,400. The Charleston, 10 months, at $4,400 a month— $44,000. The Mobile was paid $1 1,G25 for 25 dayp. The Minerva, 73 days, at $300 a day.— $21,900. The Merchant, 85 days, at $450 a day— $38,250. Many other vessels were hired for short periods, at rates, which, on settlement, quadrupled the price at which they might have been purchased in the outset, so that much money would have been saved, if they had been bought and manned, and then burnt in the end. Grant's concentric wheel wagon cost the government $2,303 50, of which Mr. Grant was paid $654 50 for superintending the construction of it, and $15 was paid for engraving plates on the wheels, to travel in the sands of Florida. The purchase and delivery of 206 oxen was made to cost $12,187 20— for the oxen, $9,170 00; to the agent, $1,980 00; and for expenses in the transaction, $1,037 20. A house at Picolata was rented at $3,600 a year. For 30 saddles, $o0 each was paid. For 12 saddles, $87 50 each. At Pilatka, in 1840, when the end of the war was every day expected, more than $100,000 was expended in public buildings, on -private lands, when there was government lands hard by. It was of course sacrificed. The foregoing items of extravagance are hastily selected from heaps of evidence of the same class brought before the 27th Congress, by which it is proved, that the Florida war was generally carried on, in whole and in particular, at a rate of most astounding prodigality. All the public agents in these transactions, from the Treasury Department at Washington, down to the last recijiient of the public money, were perfectly familiar with this daily round of facts, for a course of years. Can it be imagined, that in any state of society, however corrupt, such extrava- gance and waste would be tolerated, under the eyes of so many agents, if there was no collusion among them, and if they did not all profit more or less by it ? Do not these facts reasonably account for the protracted period of that war, when so much money was to be made out of it by all engaged ? The removal of 16,533 Creek Indians was made to cost the government $590,448 58. It was proved pretty fairly, by the committee on public expendi- tures, that these 16,533 Indians might have been removed for $186,530, thus ma- kin" a clear savins;, in this single transaction, honestly done, of $303,909 42 — nearly two thirds of the actual cost. (Doc. No. 458, 2d Sess. 27th Cong.) It is proved in house Doc. No. 454, 2d session, 27th Congress, that Capt. Buck- ner was paid $37,749 for doing nothin-r, after having been paid a very exorbitant price for what he did do, in removins? Indians; and the most remarkable part of the disclosure is, that a high public functionary received $18,000 of this as a loan from Captain Buckner, apparently for his company and presence at the treasury department when the requisition was being made out. Whether such company silenced the scruples of the auditor, this deponent can not say. The evidence be- fore the committee standeth thus: Witness (Captain Buckner) asked—" U hat he could do for him ?" Answer. "Witness could loan him some money. U here- upon witness agreed to loan him $18,000." All these accounts were allowed at the treasury department ! It is also proved that Captain Collins was intrusted with large sums of; money, as disbursing agent, to the aggregate of $582,290, after he had proved himself a defaulter to one third of this amount, and that the government lost by hnn in inc end the sum of $215,369. If settlements had been insisted on accordin- to law, it would have been impossible, in any case of the most wilful fraud, to lose more than a small fraction of this amount. (Ho. Doc, No. 453, 2d Sess., 2ackat:es. The stationery and i)rintin<:, under ^fr. Iloyt, for 1838, '39, '40, and first quarter of 1841, cost $r)l,T03 1^2— avcra-jing $275 7(j a year to each persem employed, being nearly double the average cost of stationery for each member of the house of representatives in the 25th Congress, that being $287 for two years. It was by allowing $22 a gross for steel pens, when they could be Iwucrht for $1 50; $3 .")0 a peck for sand, the fair price being 12.J cents; $S() a ream for paper, worth $15; $12 for one card of Perryan pens, or $1 .50 for each pen; .^c, &,c. No difficulty in makin*; it up in that way. The revenue rollreted in the first year of Jonathan Thompson, 1825, was $15,754,827; employed 142 men, at a cost of $21 1,471 ; or at the rate of 1*34 per cent. The revenue collected by Mr. Hoyt, in 1840, was $7,591,7li0 ; men cm- ployed, 470, nl n cost of $563,829; or at the rate of 7-42 per cent. In addition to the collector's salary, Mr. llnyt, in violation of law, as alleged by the committee on jjublic expenditures, took to himself, in all, $29,883 3(j for stornsre of merchandise in buildiniis rented on his private account, while the sov- ernment is charged S29,2!t4 21 for salaries of storekeeper, clerks, and inspectors, and for stationei^, employed and used in said buildings. Mr. Hoyt was reported to Con-jress by the secretary of the trensuiT, as n de- faulter for $22ti.295 31. Hut .Mr. Hoyt, nnticipatin? this, charged the govt rnmenl (with his own hand, his clerk refusing) $201,580, that is, 1 per cent, on $20,158, TWENTY-SEVEXTH CONGRESS. 399 a salutary earnestness, brnnght the expenditures back again — fullij haclc, if the growth of the country be considered. Boldly did they undertake to apply remedies to existing evils, and the result is announced to the world. They spared not the estimates 000 paid over by him to the orders of the secretary of the treasury — that is, 1 per cent, for the banking part of the collector's functions — a part of his duty. In two years and four months, Mr. Butler, district attorney, was paid by Mr. Hoyt, collector, for services, $02,690 50. Mr. Hoyt's gleaninij.9, it would seem, were somewhat less than a quarter of a million for about three years' service. (House documents Nos. 202 and 669, 2d session, 27lh Congress.) The branch mints were designed, especially the one at New Orleans, /o make ^old Jlow up the Alissisiippi. It seems they luive rather tended to make it flow out into the sea. That at New Orleans cost $554,470. The three branches cost $822,457. They were established in 1838, and previous to 1842 had coined $2,884,708. The Philadelphia mint cost $209,230, and in 1836 alone coined $7,764,900. The cost of coining at the branch mints has been 28 cents and 3 mills for each dollar. The cost of coining at Philadelphia 13 cents and 9 mills for one hundred dollars. Items expended on the New Orleans mint : $8,099 for four bath-houses, flagging yard, and paving side-walk; $3,846 for paving yard; $1,700 for seven baths and one water-closet ; $818 for finishing water-closets; &c., &c. The voucher list of expenditures, numbering 272, is a curiosity— especially edifying to those who pay for it. (House Doc. No. 462, 2d session, 27th Congress.) From house document No. 989, 2d session, 27th Congress, it appears, that the cost of mail-bags, from 1831 to 1841, was $336,000; that Mr. Jewett, of Ohio, contractor, was'paid $68,124 13 for 4,782 bags; that, in November, 1840, there were on his (Jewett's) hands 4,020 bags, not wanted, which cost $65,000 ; that a large overplus was in the hands of other contractors ; that bags could be got at 50 per cent, less than was paid in those years; that, for blanks, $300,000 was paid between 1829 and 1841, generally at about 50 per cent, more than fair price, leav- ing a supply on hand for twenty years to come ; that storage for these surplus ar- ticles was charged and allowed; that, by these and other frauds, the expenditures of the post-office department were made to exceed its revenue, one year, by $386,759 19, and another year by $220,000, thus requiring special appropriations out of the revenue from customs and public lands; that Cyrus Barton, Concord, N. H., for blanks, from 1836 to 1841, received $13,927 14 ; Beals & Greene, Bos- ton, Mass., from 1829 to 1832, for do., received $51,732 76; Paine & Clark, New York, from 1836 to 1841, for do., received $18,883 81; S. Penn, Jr., Louisville, Kv.. for do., from 1830 to 1841, received $26,942 58; S. Medary, Columbus, Ohio, in'l836, for do., received $17,546 34; &c., &c. All these, and other like favors, " for being always at their post, actively en- gaged" — " Slopping at no sacrifice that would insure success" — " in promoting the interests of the noble cause"— which " heartily entitled them to executive favor" — S^c, as stated in letters to the president. (See Doc. 989, as above.) The same committee (on public expenditures) speak of the establishment of many new mail-routes and postoffices, not required, at great exiiense, for the ben- efit of partisan favorites, and of the "deep, dark, and unf^\thomablc sinks," out of which these facts were fished, where many more of the same kind yet abide, which could not be hooked up. From document No. 756 of the house, 2d session, 27th Congress, it appears, that the commissioning of ships, and the increase of officers in the navj-, liad been at the discretion of the executive; that tiie expenses of the navy had been (hnibled in ten years; that naval officers had been multiplied beyond former example, without sufficient cause; that the number in 1835 was 1,051, and in 1812, was 1.512, when 365, with an aggregate pay of $350,000, were "absent on leave, or waiting orders," that is, doing nothing; that many had been thus unemployed lor ten, twelve, or fourteen years, receiving pav, and being promoted. It also appears, that, from 1834 to 1841, seventy-two naval officers, at diflorcnt times, luul been detailed into the "coast survey" service, and while thus occupied, received double pav ; that tlie revenue cutler service, being at liie discretion of tlie executive, rose from an annual cost of $163,755 in 1830, to $274,803 in 1837, 400 MR. CLAY AND THE sent in by the executive departments, but cut them down by milHons. The cases to which the knife of excision was apphed, are too numerous for specification. while the revenue collected had decreased about one third ; that the expenses of the lam! cilice rose in one year from $23,500 to $108,7oO, and remained in 1841 at $1)8,500, when the land revenue was only $1,100,000 ; and that the expenses of the army had risen from $2,100,935 in 1829, to $4,197,028 in 1841. The above instances of seventy-two naval officers detailed in the " coast-sur- vey" service, with extra pay, is an example of extra allowances. This license, unwarranted by law, had pervaded the army and navy, and crept into other branches of the public service, to such an extent, as to amount, in the a^sregate, to scarcely, if at all less tiian a million a year. It was a germ of corruption, of alarming srrowth, corresponding with the plurality system under the British gov- ernment, which the reformers of that nation are fast breakins down, and which has always been allowed to be one of the greatest enormities in the British empire. Exi>enditures without authority of law, to a great extent, were made in the progress of the two administrations that preceded that of 1841 to 1845. A very licentious practice of voting large contingent funds, for the different departments of government, had obtained, wliich presented temptations, and opened a floodgate of corruption, to the higher and lower iniblic functionaries. Many hundred thou- sand dollars had in tliis way been put at the discretion of the administration, no small portion of which was sriuandered for most unsuitable partisan or private ends. The sacred deposites of trust-funds of various descriptions, were invaded and exhausted, without sanction of law. The new practice of having large outstanding appropriations, lying over from one year to another, which often amounted to many millions, enough in some cases for tlie annual expenditures of the government, was introduced and carried on, and was often abused by applyins such appropriations to objects not designated by law, at the discretion of the administration. In this way, tiiere was never any want of funds, when a partisan object required it, or a private whim was to be gratified, or favorites wanted patronage. Secret and partisan emissaries were by this means sent out, under the guise of government agents, for this, that, or the other object, the chief errand being con- fidential. It was only necessary to have a nominal government design, though unauthorized by law, to find an ajiology for drawing on contingent or trust funds, or on dormant outstanding appropriations. Special agents, almost without num- ber, were, from time to time, put in commission for home or foreign missions, on the basis of this practice. Mr. George Plilt was sent abroad, as postoffice agent, under Amos Kendall, at $l(j a day, till the expenses ran up to $9,()()6 ()4, the payment of which was sanc- tioned i)y Mr. Van Buren, as i)resident, without autliority of law. In tiie same manner tiirec young men were sent out in 1839, by Mr. Poinsett, secretary of war, to the cavalry school, at Saumer, in France, and three more in 1840 — all without authority of law. Americans sent to Europe to learn to ride and manage a horse, at the public expense, at the caprice of a public functionary, and without legisla- tive sanction ! A partisan press also experienced tlic benefits of contingent and disposable funds in tlie hands of the executive and his asents. In the two years of 1838 and 1839, Mr. Kendall, postmaster-general, contrived to run up bills for adver- tising and printing in one newspai)er ollice, the Statesman, Columbus, Ohio, to the nmoiinl of $9,818 21. (Hlue Book.) And so it was done all over the Union, by the didVrent executive (lci)«rtments at Washington. It should be observed, that the quotations here made, showing extravasancc and corruiition in the govcrnnient, are only a few selections, extracted from volumin- ous and authentic public documents, furnished principally by that laborious and indefatigable committee on ])ublic expenditures, whose toils in the twenty-seventh Congress brought so much of concealed frauds to the light of day. The number and extent of them are hardly credible, the entire of which will readily account for the extraordinary and otherwise unaccountable expenditures of the two admin- istrations, from whose books the fads and figures come. TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 401 Some millions were lopped off from the expenses of the army, by an act which reorganrzed and reduced it largely, and abolished numerous sinecures, and the corrupt custom of extra allowances, which sometimes exceeded regular pay, and which, as a whole, The expenses of the government down to the end of Mr. Jefferson's administra- tion, appear to have been frugal and exemphiry. The cost of Washington's administration, comprehending eight years, was only $15,892,188 Of John Adams's four years 21,450,351 Of Jefferson's eight do 41,300,788 As the war with Great Britain came under Mr. Madison's terms of ollice, eight years, the expenses were of course extraordinary, and mounted up to $144,684,939 Monroe's eight years 104,463,400 J. Q. Adams's four do 50,501,914 It may be thought that the expenses of Mr. Monroe's and Mr. J. Q. Adams's ad- ministrations, were disproportionately large, as compared with the earlier days of the republic. But the growth of the country may account for a part of it, and the grander projects of the nation, suggested by the experience of the war, for the other part. But it is somewhat startling to find the expenses of General Jackson's adminis- tration of eight years mounting up to $145,792,735 being greater than the cost of Mr. Madison's eight years, which had the war with Great Britain on hand. But yet more startling is the announcement of the fact, that Mr. Van Buren's administration of only four years, cost the nation. .$140,585,321 In eight years, at this rate, it would have been 281,170,642 There are no apparent reasons, aside from the facts disclosed by the investi- gating committees of the twenty-seventh Congress — nor are these very satisfac- tory — for this rapid and amazing increase of national expenditures. Besides, that the Florida war was unnecessarily protracted and unnecessarily expensive, as has been shown, by the corruption and frauds involved in it, that, even as it was, will not account for but a small fraction of this great excess of expenditures above all former example. Appropriations are generally in excess of the expenditures, with a view of grantinET a liberal supply. The appropriations of the twenty-seventh Congress for 1842, being the last half of one fiscal year and the first half of another, fal- ling in 1842, were $21,603,784 58. It should be observed, however, that the charges of the postoffice department, about four millions and a half, were a part of this appropriation, which should be deducted for a fair comparison, as the revenues and disbursements of that depart- ment have heretofore been kept by themselves, and not reckoned with those of the government. Nor was the debt of the District of Columbia, one million and a half (assumed), or the two per cent, land fund and land distribution appropria- tions, falling in this account, properly chargeable to that administration — all of which deducted, would reduce the appropriations for 1842 to less than sixteen millions. The appropriations for the six months, between January 1, and June 30, 1843, were $8,166,418 00; and for the fiscal year, ending June 30, 1844, they were $16,332,837 00. Compare the appropriations of the twenty-seventh Congress with the annual expenditures of Mr. Van Buren's administration, as reported by the treasury de- partment, Julv 2(1, 1841 : — Expenditure of 1837 $37,265,037 15 " 1S38 39,455,438 35 » 1839 37,614,936 15 " 1840 27,249,909 51 Total $140,585,321 16 The annual average of the expenditure of Mr. Van Buren's administration ft'ould be : $35, 146,330 29 Compare this average with the appropriations of the twenty-seventh Consrrcss for the vear ending June 30, 1844, viz.: $16,332,837, which is less, by $1,210,- 328 14, 'than half the annual average of the expenses of Mr. Van Buren's adminis- VoL. XL— 2G 402 MR. CLAY AND THE were enormou?. The abuses that had crept into the army, aug- menting expenditures, were flagrant and startHng. They were boldly taken in hand, and provided against for the future. Tliere was the board of navy commissioners in their easy chairs at Washington, disappointing the aim of their functions, and wast- ing money in vast sums by their decisions. It was aboHshed; and the whole navy department was reorganized by an act of Con- gress, introducing a new system of economy and efficiency, as well in the machinery of the department itself, as in the various branches of the naval service — thereby retrenching from one to two millions in the general service. An act was passed amending the organization of the civil de- partments, suppressing the system of contingent and general appro- priations ; cutting off the power of pensioning a partisan press, by ordering the public printing to be done on contract with fair deal- ers, in open market ; ordering purchases and other government jobbings, on the same principle ; reducing and limiting allowances of various kinds. The vast peculations and frauds in the Indian department, land offices, and customhouses, were hunted out and reformed — nothing more needed. The contingent expenses of Congress were cut down to an honest level, and former abuses corrected. All branches of the public service were thoroughly overhauled, exam- ined, retrenched, and reformed, so far as legislation could do. If nation; or less by $18,813,493 29, than the entire average; or less by $23,122,- (501 35 than the highest annual expenditure of Mr. Van Biiren. Mr. Van Buren came into power with six millions of dollars in the treasury; he took for the uses of government the eight millions of United States bank stock that was owned by the government; he also took the fourth instaltncnt due to the stall's by the deposite act of 183tj, which was nine millions ; the treasury-notes outstanding on the 4th of March, IS II, when he retired to give place to General Harrison, were somewhat over six millions and a half; the whole amounting to about tliirty millions, which is the amount he expended, during his four years, in excess of the revenues of the government. In addition to this, the outstanding appropriations on the 4th of I\Iarch, 1841, were about twenty-nine millions. These, of course, were so many liabilities of the treasury, and consequently so much additional burden or debt on the incoming administration — swelling the whole account to nearly sixty millions, in excess of the revenues of the period of his administration. It is fair, however, to credit l\Ir. Van Biircn the nine millions of outstanding appropriations that were imposed \ip(in him, when he came into power, March 4, 1837. The result is, that the ex- penditures of Mr. Van Buren's administration, incliuling his appropriations thrown upon the succeeiling one, were about fifty millions in excess of the rev- enues of iiis term of oliice. Further than this, the conditions of the compromise act of 1833 were about to strike off some five millions of revenue in 1811, and a like amount in 1842. Vet th(! government, in full vi<>w of the excessive expenditures of the past, and (if this diminishing reviMui'- fur liie fut>ire, had made no provision for this extra- ordinary and overwhelming stale of things, brought about by its own prolligacj and improvidence. TWENTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS. 403 the executive, in consequence of his apostacy, did not fulfil his ob- ligations, it was no fault of the twenty-seventh Congress. They were faithful to the public vows of 1840. Mr. Clay was accused of being " a dictator" in that Congress. That he had some influence there is quite probable ; it will hardly be denied that he was entitled to it ; and so long as he used it, in conjunction with his felloiv-laborers of that body, in bringing down the annual expenditures of government ten millions or more, it will not be brought in charge against him as a crime. His project of reform, which he submitted on the 1st of March, 1842, has already been considered. The average annual expenditures of the pre- ceding administration had been upward of thirty-five millions ; he proposed to reduce them to twenty-two millions, and showed liow it could be done. Mv. Woodbury, secretary of the treasury, had notified Congress, in his annual report of 1840, that the public revenue thereafter, from existing sources, " would not probably exceed ten or eleven millions of dollars." Thus was the government of the country, already involved in debt, without credit, spending at the rate of thirty-five millions a year, with nearly thirty millions of outstandino- appropriations, and a prospective income not exceeding one third of the demand of its prodigal habits, transferred to the new admin- istration of 1841, imposing on the twenty-seventh Congress the task of managing, as best they could, this appalling condition of the public finances. They, in the first place, reduced the expendi- tures ; next, they funded the public debt ; they immediately passed the revenue bill of 1841, imposing duties on free articles, which was an essential relief; and they enacted the tariff of 1842, which revived public credit, relieved the treasury, has paid off the public debt, and placed both the government and people of the country in an easy condition, in regard to public and private finances. 404 MR- clay's resignation CHAPTER XVI. MR. clay's resignation AND VALEDICTORY ADDRESS. "Washington, Senate Chamber, " February 16, 1S42. " To the honorable, the General Assembly of Kentuchj : — "When I last had the honor of an appointment as one of the United States senators from Kentucky, T intimated, in my letter of acceptance, the prohahility of my not serving out the whole term of six years. In consequence of there having been two extra ses- sions of Congress, I have already attended, since that appointment, as many sessions of Congress as ordinarily happen during a sena- torial term, without estimating my services at tlie present session. "I have for several years desired to retire to private life, but have been hitherto prevented from executing my wish from consid- erations of public duty. I should have resigned my seat in the senate at the commencement of the present session, but for several reasons, one of which was, that the general assembly did not meet until near a month after Congress, during which time the state would not have l)ecn fully represented, or my successor would have had only tiie uncertain title of an executive appointment.^ "The time has now arrived, when I think that, without any just reproach, I may quit the public service, and bestow some attention on my private affairs, which have suflered much by the occupation of the largest portion of my life in the pubHc councils. If tiie Honian veteran had title to discharge after thirty years' service, I, who have served a much longer period, may justly claim mine. " I beg leave, therefore, to tender to the general assembly, and do now licrcby tender, my resignation of the office which I hold, of senator in the senate of the United States, from the state of Kentucky, to take eficct on the 31st of March, 1842; and I re- quest that the general assembly will appoint my successor to take his seat on that (hiy. I have fixed diat day to allow me an oppor- tunity of assisting in the completion of some measures, which have been originated by me. " I emiirace this opportunity to offer to the general assembly my most profound and grateful acknowledgments for the numerous and AND VALEDICTORY ADDRESS. 405 distinguished proofs, by which I have been honored, of its warm attachment and generous confidence during a long series of years. " I have the honor to be, &c., "H. Clay." Simple and unimpassioned as is the character of this document, it can not for that reason easily repress the thoughts and emotions which the occasion naturally awakens. It was now thirty-six years since INIr. Clay first took his seat in the senate of the United States, nor was that the beginning of his public life. From ISOG to 1842, with only two short intervals — one to repair his private fortune by professional labors, and the other for a little repose after his four years' labors as secretary of state — he had been uninterruptedly engaged in the service of his country, in connexion with the gen- eral government, first as United States senator ; next, as speaker of the house of representatives, in all about thirteen years ; as one of the commissioners at Ghent in 1814, to negotiate peace with Great Britain, returning to reoccupy the speaker's chair in Con- gress, which was resigned in 1825 to take charge of the state de- partment ; and last, as United States senator again, from 1831 to 1842. His assiduous, untiring, laborious, and eminently influen- tial services in these various positions, have been considered in these volumes. The document above recor.ded severed this long- protracted connexion with the public, and opened the door to his retirement. It was his leave-taking, as a public officer, with his adopted commonwealth ; and it remains only to notice his farewell to the senate of the nation, of which the following are extracts: — "And now [said Mr. Clay], allow me to announce, formally and officially, my retirement from the senate of the United States, and to present the last motion I shall ever make in this body. But, before I make that motion, I trust I shall be pardoned, if I avail myself, with the permission and indulgence of the senate, of this last occasion of addressing to it a ^ew more observations. "I entered the senate of the United States in December, 1806. I regarded that body then, and still consider it, as one which may compare, without disadvantage, with any legislative assembly, either in ancient or modern times, whether I look to its dignity, the extent and importance of its powers, the ability by which its individual members have been distinguished, or its organic constitution. It compared in any of these respects with the senates either of France or of England, that of the United States will sustain no derogation. "Full of attraction, however, as a seat in the senate is, suflicient as it is to satisfy the aspirations of the most ambitious heart, I have 400 MR. clay's resignation long determined to relinquish it, and to seek that repose which can be enjoyed only in the shades of private life, in the circle of one's own Aimily, and in the tranquil enjoyments included in one en- chanting word HOME. "It was my purpose to terminate my connexion with this body in November, 1840, after the memorable and glorious political struggle w^hich distinguislied that year; but I learned, soon after, what indeed I had for some time anticipated from the result of my own reflections, that an extra session of Congress would be called ; and I felt desirous to co-operate with my political and personal friends in restoring, if it could be effected, the prosperity of the country, by the best measures which their united counsels might he able to devise; and I tiiercforc attended the extra session. It was called, as all know, by the lamented Harrison; but his death, and the consequent accession of his successor, produced an en- tirely new aspect of public affairs. Had he lived, I have not one particle of doul)t that every important measure to which the coun- try had looked with so confident an expectation would have been consummated, by the co-operation of the executive with the legis- lative branch of the government. And here allow me to say, only, in regard to that so-much-reproached extra session of Congress, that 1 believe, if any of those, who, through the influence of party spirit, or the bias of political prejudice, have loudly censured the measures then adojitcd, would look at them in a spirit of candor and of justice, their conclusion, and that of the country generally, would be, that if there exist any just ground of complaint, it is to be found not in what was done, but in what was not done, but left unfinished. " Had President Harrison lived, and the measures devised at that session been fully carried out, it was my intention then to have resigned my seat. But the hope (I feared it might prove vain) that, at the regular session, the measures which we had left undone might even then be perfected, or the same object attained in an equivalent form, induced me to postpone the determination ; and events which arose after the extra session, resulting from the failure of those measures which had been proposed at that session, and which seemed for the moment to subject our political friends to the semblance of defeat, confirmed me in the resolution to attend the present session also, and whether in prosi)erity or adversity, to share the fortune of my friends. But I resolved, at the same time, to retire as soon as I could do so with propriety and decency. '• From 1800, the period of my entrance upon this noble theatre, with short intervals, to the present time, I have been engaged in the |Miblic councils, at home or al)road. Of the services rendered dining that long and anluous period of my life it does not become me to speak ; history, if she deign to notice me, and posterity, if the recollection of my humble actions shall be transmitted to pos- AND VALEDICTORY ADDRESS. 407 lerity, are the best, the truest, and the most impartial judges. When death shall have closed the scene, their sentence will be pronounced, and to that I commit myself. jNIy public conduct is a fair subject for the criticism and judgment of my fellow-men ; but the motives by which I have been prompted are known only to the great Searcher of the human heart and to myself; and I trust I may be pardoned for repeating a declaration made some thirteen years ago, that, whatever errors, and doubtless there have been many, may be dis- covered in a review of my public service, I can with unshaken confidence appeal to that Divine Arbiter for the truth of the decla- ration, that 1 have been influenced by no impure purpose, no per- sonal motive; have sought no personal aggrandizement; but that, in all my public acts, I have had a single eye directed, and a warm and devoted heart dedicated, to what, in my best judgment, I be- lieved the true interests, the honor, the union, and the happiness of my country required. "During that long period, however, I have not escaped the fate of other public men, nor failed to incur censure and detraction of the bitterest, most unrelenting, and most malignant character; and though not always insensible to the pain it was meant to inflict, I have borne it in general with composure, and without disturbance here [pointing to his breast], waiting as I have done, in perfect and undoubting confidence, for the ultimate triumph of justice and of truth, and in the entire persuasion that time would settle all things as they should be, and that whatever wrong or injustice I might experience at the hands of man. He, to whom all hearts are open and fully known, would, by the inscrutable dispensations of his providence, rectify all error, redress all wrong, and cause ample justice to be done. "But I have not meanwhile been unsustained. Everywhere throughout the extent of this great continent I have had cordial, warm-hearted, faithful, and devoted friends, who have known me, loved me, and appreciated my motives. To them, if language were capable of fully expressing my acknowledgments, I would now offer all the return I have the power to make for their genu- ine, disinterested, and persevering fidelity and devoted attachment, the feelings and sentiments of a heart overflowing with never- ceasing gratitude. If, however, I fail in suitable language to express my gratitude to tlicm for all the kindness they have shown me, what shall I say, what can I say at all commensurate with those feelings of gratitude with which I have been inspired by the state whose humble representative and servant I have been in this chamber? [Here Mr. Clay's feelings overpowered him, and he proceeded with deep sensibiHty and difficult utterance.] " 1 emigrated from Virginia to the state of Kentucky now nearly forty-five years ago ; 1 went as an orphan l)()y wlio had not yet attained the age of majority — v.ho had never recognised a 40S MR. clay's resigxatiox father's smile, nor felt liis warm caresses — poor, pennyless, with- out the favor of the great — with an imperfect and neglected educa- tion, hardly sufficient for the ordinary business and common pursuits of life ; hut scarce had I set my foot upon her generous soil when 1 was embraced with jjarental fondness, caressed as though I had been a favorite child, and patronised with liberal and unbounded munificence. From that period the highest honors of the state have been freely bestowed upon me ; and when, in tiie darkest hour of calmnny and detraction, I seemed to be assailed by all the rest of the world, she interposed her broad and imjien- eirable shield, rej)cllcd the poisoned siiafts that were aimed for my destruction, and vindicated my good name from every malignant and unfounded aspersion. I return with indescribable j)leasure to linijer a while lonirer, and minrisi(lr/tf.^ »> # # # (■J3.) • • * "The deplorable result of tlif late election has here, as everywhere, filled the hearts of your friends with |niin and mortification. And this fcelinu; has not been confined to voters, but has extended itself through all ages, sexes, and conditions, ' from lisj)ing infancy, to hoary age.' We were not aware, until THE DISAPPOINTMENT. 449 we saw our anticipations blighted, how strong a hold you had upon our affections." * * * (24.) * * * "We know not how to express what we feel; but we assure you, that never — jiever, even in the days when you were universally recognised as the guardian genius of our country never, when your triumph was deemed most certain, have you held so deep, so warm a place in every whig heart, as at this hour." * * * ^ (25.) * * * u The prostration of those high and glorious prin- ciples, of which thou hast been so long the great and unwearied champion, is our country's loss. It is for this I mourn, that, in thy retirement, one of the strongest advocates of those great prin- ciples, is removed. " ' But thou art freedom's now, and fame's — One of the few, the immortal names. That were not born to die.' " * « * (26.) * * * "I have been reluctant to admit, that, republics are ungrateful." * * * (27.) "London, Nov. 27, 1844. In an hour I shall be on board a steamer for the continent. I will not lose a moment in conveying to you the heartfelt emotion, amazement, and grief, with which I received the news, just arrived, of the result of the presidential election. Great God! Is it possible? Have our people given this astonishing, this alarming proof of the madness to which party phrensy can carry them ! The hopes of the wise and the good, in the new and the old world, rested upon you. But my heart is sick. May God for ever bless you." * * * (28.) * * * " Could the people of this country erect to the name of their noblest citizen, a monument as high as heaven, Rhode Island would claim to lay the cap-stone, and would prove her right. The devotion of this state is iiersonal, as well as political. '^ Could my life hmire the success of Henry Clay, I would freely lay it down this day,' said an old sea-captain at Providence, on the morning of our late election. Nor would this language be mere hyperbole in the mouths of very many of our citizens, who have already exposed their lives, and are ready to do so again, in de- fence of 'law and order,' with which cause your name has be- come identified among us." * * * (29. Translated from the French.) "I am a Louisianian, sixty- six years old, am sick, and have to employ both hands to trace imperfectly these few lines. The ingratitude of the United States heightens in my eyes the brilliancy of your reputation for the pages of history. Your enemies themselves pay tiie tribute of admi- ration to your high capacities, truly American, and are surprised that Henry Clay has not received the palm due to his eminent ser- vices. They recall to my mind Aristides banished, Socrates poi- soned. To be the benefactor of a nation, demands a concurrence Vol. II.— 29 450 THE DISAPPOINTMENT. of circumstances, which do not often occur in a succession of age-" • * * (:30. From a Iddi/.) "1 liad indulged the most joyous antici- pations in view of that poHtical campaign, wliich has now been so ingloriously ended. I considered, that the nation could never feel satisfied, until it had cancelled, in some degree, the onerous obli- •"•aiions so long due to its faithful and distinguished son. I con- sidered, too, that in an exigency like ours, the spirit of liberty would once more be enkindled, and that you, who had shielded it in the most dangerous conjunctures, would alone be looked to as the only safety of the republic. * * * Apart from all the feelings of patriotism, and the poignant remorse, which a nation's ingrati- tude must bring upon us, I must say, sir, that for yourself you have much cause for gratulation. You could not have been hon- orud by the presidential station. I do not presume, therefore, to olfer the language of sympathy to you as an individual, but in behalf of that country, that party, and the great principles of that party, with which you are so inseparably identified." (:3].) "As thou art undoubtedly loaded with letters at the pres- ent time, it may appear singular to thee, that an entire stranger should take the liberty of addressing thee. But so strong are my feelings of attachment and respect for one, who has so faithfully and successfully devoted his whole life to the public good, that 1 can not well refrain. I do not condole with thee on thy own ac- count — for the presidency would add nothing to the honored name of Henry Clay. * * * 1 pray that the elasticity, which thou hast always displayed, when pressed most heavily, and by which thou hast been enabled to rise for thy country's good, when in many an exii,fency she has most required thy help, may still be vouchsafed to thee. My wife and four boys desire their hearty love to thee. I would not add a feather to thy burdens, but I should much value a single line from thee, that my children may look upon thy auto- graph, wiien you and 1 shall have ceased to mingle in the turmoil of this fleeting scene, and as I humbly trust, through the mercy of our Redeemer, may be united to that glorious host, that sur- rounds the throne of Cod." {:y2.) • • • " I do assure you, sir, that my poor sorrow-stricken heart, is incajjable of [lattery. 1 only wish, in truth and honesty, to describe to you my feelings. 1 have been a child of misfortune all my life; I have sustained many severe losses of dear friends; but nothing has hurt me like this. Oh, (lod ! Is there no consti- tutional provision, by wiiirh illegal votes can be purged out, and the legally-elected president restored to tliis nation V * * * I have no children to be enslaved, and am an old man. They can't liuri me, or my wife. But it is for my country, that my heart bleeds." (:i:3.) • • • " The sentiments of vour Connecticut friends are echoed from every rpiarter of the Tnion, with e(pial fervor and sin- THE DISAPPOINTMENT. 451 cerity. I avail myself of the occasion to blend with them those of one, who, for many years, has bent iiimself to the work of giving permanence to our institutions, and substantial prosperity to the country, by placing the reins of government in your hands." (34. From a lady.) " My mind is a perfect chaos, when T dwell upon the events, which have occurred within the last few weeks. My heart refused to credit the sad reality. Had I the eloquence of all living tongues, I could not shadow forth the deep, deep sor- row, that has thrilled my inmost soul. The bitterest tears have flowed like rain-drops from my eyes. Never, till now, could I believe that truth and justice would not prevail. Among the indi- cations of decadence of the republics of olden times, was ingrati- tude to the great and wise. Then, as their punishment from an avenging God, came the avalanche of northern barbarians, which swept away all but their memory. In the dim mists of the future, I seem to discover the downfall of tlds republic for a similar cause — ingratitude to you, who, for so many years, have been the sentinel on the watch-tower, guarding her liberties, and pouring out the treasures of your great and mighty mind in her service. I feel the patriotic blood of my brave grandsire rush in indignant torrents to my heart, when I see the situation of my country, for which he fought and bled." A counterpane, of fine needlework, was made by Mrs. Ann Warner, of Harford county, INIaryland, in the ninetij-third, year of her age — done in a few weeks without aid — composed of almost numberless pieces, and forwarded to Mr. Clay, in the centre of which, inwrought by the needle, is the following inscription : — "TO THE HONORABLE HENRY CLAY, THE ORATOR, PATRIOT, AND PHILANTHROPIST, In token of admiration of his genius and his virtues, Is presented this piece of needlework, by Mrs. Ann Warner, Executed by her own hands, in tlie 93d year of her age. Baltimore, 1845. " "While lingers still my setting sun, And life's last sands in silence fall, Ere death's rude hand the glass shall break, And o'er its ruins spread the pall— " I lift the voice which 'mid the storm Of war our early patriot blest, And with its dying accents hail The patriot hero of the west. "Oh, hallowed be thy matchless worth, By a whole nation's love and prayers ; And thy eventful being close, Lamented by a nation's tears." The following is an extract from the records of a meeting of ladies, in Richmond. Virginia, held Decejnber 9, 1844, to take 452 THE DISAPPOINTMENT. measures for the erection of a statue of ^Ir. Clay, at the expense of the hitlies of N'irginia: — «' The ladies here assembled, desire to express, in the enduring form of a statue of Henry Clay, to be provided by voluntary con- tributions by the ladies of Virginia, and erected in the capital of his native state, their respect and gratitude for the distinguished public services of that eminent citizen and patriot — their sense of his private worth — and their heartfelt admiration for the genius, eloquence, and wisdom, with which at all times, and often in her hours of extremest trial, he has adorned, enlightened, and guided the councils of his country. And believing that this sentiment is largely shared by the ladies of Virginia, generally, toward the man who, beyond all her living sons, has by his life and character shed a lustre on the state of his and their birth, and acquired for him self a fame, which is the boast of his own, as it will be a light and a lesson to succeeding ages, they are cordially and respectfully invited to unite in the purposes, and to become members of the association hereby formed." Mrs. Lucy Barbour, widow of Governor Barbour, was placed at the head of this association, whose grateful and patriotic design is as sure to be consummated, as the hearts of ladies are^ true. This proposal originated as follows : — " Barboursville, November 17, 1844. " Mr. Pleasants : I was not a little surprised by my two granddaughters, who reside with me, suddenly entering my cham- ber this evening, and exclaiming: ' Grandmother, what can we do for Mr. Clay? Some token of respect ought to be given him by the whig women of America, and we have been devising many plans, but, on further consideration, none of them pleased us.' But before I could answer the interrogatory, one of them said : ' Suppose you undertake to raise, by subscription, a sufiicient sum of money to purchase a handsome plate, with suitable whig emblems and inscriptions V I was much pleased with the thought, and our views expanding, as we conversed on the subject, we con- cluded at first to extend tlic privilege to the whole state of Vir- ginia ; but at last determined, if it should appear practicable, to embrace the whole Union in our scheme. Ostentation should be avoided, and a small contribution from each would be sufiicient for the purpose, and enable every one, however humble, to aid in its accomplishment, without the fear of being overshadowed. Xow we wish you to adoj)! the scheme as your own, if you think it feasible ; and we ask the aid of your powerful pen, in addressing the whig women of the L'nited States on the subject, remembering the admirable injunction : ' Whatsoever ye do, do it quickly, for the artisan knows he is to strike while the metal is hot ;' and if the THE DISAPPOINTMENT. 453 feeling of the moment passes away, it will be difficult to arouse it a second time. "I know our sex are thought by many, unstable as water; but I hope, after crowding the whig festivals, and manifesting so much enthusiasm, few will be found so hollow-hearted as to refuse a small sum to aid so good — I had almost said, so holy — a cause. We leave the manner of raising the money entirely to your judg- ment ; for perhaps, if the subscription is too limited, we should not be able to raise a sufficient sum. " With great respect, " Lucy Barbour. " To the Editor of the Richmond Whig^ Concurrent with the foregoing letters, and the same in charac- ter, the many hundred whig organizations throughout the Union, expressed their feelings on the same occasion, in a manner, of which the following are specimens : — ^^ Resolved, That we, the whigs of Chatham county [Georgia], hereby express our undiminished confidence in the purity and patriotism of our late candidate for the presidency, Henry Clay, of Kentucky ; that our esteem and affection cling to him as closely now, when rejected by an ungrateful people, as ever in the proud- est days of his prosperity and power ; and that, regarding him as one of that glorious band of patriots, whose genius and virtues have imparted a lustre to the history of our country, w'e look with confidence to that period, when malice, which always aims the arrows of calumny at the noblest heads, shall have perished, and a grateful posterity, reversing the unjust judgment of our times, shall enshrine him in the hearts of his countrymen, second only to Washington." By the whigs of New Haven, Connecticut, on the 11th of November, 1844: — ^^ Resolved, That, for our candidate for president, at the late election, Henry Clay, we cherish the most deep and devoted attachment, the most profound respect and regard ; that, as a patriot and statesman, he has no superior; that, for services ren- dered to his country, he has no living equal ; that his election to the presidency, though it w^ould have greatly honored and bene- fited his country, would not have added a single ray to the bright- ness of his fame." Addresses from whig associations, in every part of the Union, of this class, and on this occasion, might be extended to fill a vol- ume — all equally pertinent and eloquent, giving utterance to the same sentiments, pouring out their sorrows and regrets on the same 454 THE DISArPOIXTMEXT. theme, and expressing iheir admiration of tlie character of the same man. The following is an extract from an address of the New York Central Clay Committee, dated March 4, 1S45, when Mr. Clay should have been installed as president, having received the major- ity of the LEGAL vote of the peo})le of the United States. It was enclosed in a silver case of elegant workmanship, and forwarded to Ashland : — " Standing at this peculiar point of time, in the void present, between a melancholy past and a future of impenetrable mystery and unusual gloom, we for a moment forget our dark forebodings, and our renewed toils and vigils, in the feeling of what we yet owe to him whose name was our strength, whose glory was our boast, whose sjjlendid services to his country, and whose stainless public virtue, were our just claim to that country's confidence in him as the necessary means of the people's security and liaj)pine3s. For, in looking around among the wrecks of vain hope, we find that all wiiich embodied and personified our principles, which gave life and reality to our j)urpose, is left to us unchanged in Hexuy Clay. " And, therefore, to you, the first and most cherished object of our political devotion — whose name was already illustrious in the history of our country at the period of our earliest personal remem- brances — to you, the defender of the Union and its republican constitution, the chief advocate of every measure of beneficial and protective legislation, the unchanging and dauntless opposer of tyranny and corruption, our ever-faithful and heroic leader, chief, and friend — to you, with a sincerity and disinterestedness now above suspicion, we renew our vows of fidelity in this peculiar moment ; and millions all over the Union join in these pledges. " Our relations to you have not been the ordinary obligations of partisans to the regular nominee of an authorized convention. I] ad you never been a candidate for the chief national office, you woidd not have been to us less than you have been, and, therefore, defeat can not afiect these relations ; for you are still to us all that you JKivc been throughout our livrs — still great, honorable, just, pure, patriotic, and wise — still first of living men, and ' first in our liearts' — still ' riixbt,' and willini,' to 'be right, rather than be presi- dent' — still greater than president or monarch, for you are still Hi;.\KV Clay. " '.riiough the people, the country, and the world, have lost so much, we rejoice that no evil has befallen vou, and that to you remains all the honor which could have been yours in actual tri- umph, free from the wi'ighty responsibilities which would have been involved in the possession of jiower. Falsehood, calumny, and treachery, have done their work, and arc now hushed in already THE DISAPPOINTMENT. 455 half-iepentant silence. While the energies and traits that enobled you are still yours, the hearts of your innumerable, devoted friends are also yours, beyond the reach of a thousand unfortunate influ- ences which might have arisen from the peculiar and varied obli- gations of success. " When the appalling result was first known here, many, ' un- used to the melting mood,' shed bitter tears for their country's dishonor, and groaned in sad appreciation of the dangers and woes impending and now already falling on the nation. Gray-haired age, and strong manhood, and beauty, and youthful hope — all at- tested a common feeling of the country's misfortune by the same touching manifestations of sorrow. It was many a ' child's first grief:' fathers and tjieir children wept together the death of patri- otic hopes which had grown and strengthened throughout the life- time of both. Even mercenary libellers and deceivers forgot their base triumph for a moment, ashamed of their victory and afraid to boast, and stood silent in the first full consciousness of the evil wrought by them ; and they vainly sought to plead with the grief thus excited, and to extenuate their own shame. *' The testimonials of your worth, and of a people's grateful re- membrance, derived from these impassioned tokens of feeling, are not to be outweighed by the vain privileges of an ofiice which has been disgraced by the incumbency of some of the worst and mean- est of men. The treasures of an empire, and the dominion of a throne, could not have brought to their possessor honors so noble, offerings so precious, or devotion so faithful and enduring. The statue and the column will less firmly and loftily evince a people's sense of your merits and achievements, and the emblazoned page of history, which would be incomplete without the commemoration of your patriotism, wisdom, and eloquence, will but imperfectly express the strength of devotion with which you inspired the wise and intelligent of the age. The monumental marble will be cold in its testimonies of your greatness and renown ; but our glowing spirits and burning words shall bear you better witness. The granite shall sooner moulder, than these living memorials shall fail ; for the warm hearts in which our blood will beat, shall swell and thrill in other ages at the utterance of your name, witl> instinctive emotions of gratitude and affection derived with life from us, and inherited while any remain worthy of America and liberty. " The history of our country and of your life will warrant these impressions of the importance and grandeur of the services which you have rendered to the nation, of the good which you have actu- ally promoted and accomplished. To you, to your labors and eloquence, to your counsels and influence, extending in their con- sistent and beneficial operation through more than forty years, we owe the enactment and maintenance of the present tariff law by SOUTHERN votes. To you we owe every national measure of re- 456 THE DISAPPOINTMENT. lief, protection, and harmony, which ux have been permitted to enjoy. To you we justly ascribe the merit of purposing and effect- ing that great prosperity and honorable peace, of which our coun- try, for a time, yet retains possession. The whole land is brij^^ht, and vivid, and vocal, with the tokens of your wise policy and active patriotism ; and the movements of enterprise in art and trafiic, bear witness of your foresight, judgment, and practical statesmanship. And these, with our national honor, peace, union, and justice, will long endure as monuments of your glory, or perish only in realiza- tion of your prophetic warnings. The land which your toils and aspirations have blessed — the paradise created from wilderness and from waste, under the legislation which you suggested, directed, and aided — the very streams converted, in the grand movements of art, to the employment, support, and hap|)iness of millions — the splendid fiibrics and stately structures of harmonious wealth and labor — the winds which waft, over the seas whose freedom you vindicated, to every shore, the products of our protected indus- try, under the flag whose rights you first asserted and maintained — shall all attest your worth, and shall prolong your unfading glory beyond their being. " Of those, who in classic ages have thus served their country and honored humanity, and have fallen in the protracted struggle with malignity, treason, folly, and tyranny, it has been well said, in terms which richly express our sense of your claims, that — " 'They fell, devoted, but undying ; The very gales their names are sighing ; The silent jjiilar, lone and gray, Claims kindred witli their sacred clay. Their spirits wrap the dusky mountain; Their memory sparkles o'er the fountain; The meanest rill, the mightiest river, Roll mingling with their fame for ever.' " REFLECTIONS. 457 CHAPTER XX. REFLECTIONS. Disappointment of the Destiny of American Political Society. — A Heresy. — The Efi'ect and Result of Mr. Clay's Labors on American Society. — Recapitulation of the Doctrine of the Protective Policy. — The Disturbing Question. — What has been proved. — Restatement of the New Doctrine. — Mr. Monroe's Views. — What the Country has lost by Opposition to Mr. Clay's American System. — Recon- sideration of the Cause of General Jackson's Power and Influence. — Its Disas- trous Effects. — The Regal Power. — The Jackson Regime dissolved in 1840. — Rally of its Fragments in 184-1. — Their Success. — What they propose to do. — Mr. Clay settled the Oregon Question Twenty Years ago. — A Great Question settled by a "Southern Planter." — Light shining on the South. — Mississippi Cotton Planters come over to Protection. — Pennsylvania on the Protective Pol- icy. — Coadjutors of Mr. Clay. — The Public Land Policy. — Difference between Foreign and Domestic Debts. — The Currency. — Fickleness of Legislation. — Who responsible for it. — The Harrison Administration. — Character of the Tyler Ad- ministration. — A Glance at the Future. The history gone over in this work suggests some important and practical reflections, among which, not the least — one, indeed, of momentous character — is the great fact, as developed in the current narrative, that, for a series of years, the United States have been chiefly governed by the regal power of the constitution, and to a great extent, by an absolute power. This will be a disappointment — a disappointment to the world, not less than to the ordinary feeling of the country, as to what was intended in the es- tablishment of the government and institutions of the United States, and as to what is probably still the prevalent desire of the people. First, it will be a disappointment to the world. It has been generally understood, down to this time, that the government of the United States is democratic. Such, doubtless, was the in- tention of its founders, in the most usual and most enlarged sense of the term, to wit, a popular, as contradistinguished from a mon- archical government. They supposed that the people were to be the GOVERNORS. The world will be surprised to find, that the practical operation of the government of the United States, under a democratic name and form, has not only been tending to the use and toleration of regal prerogatives, but that, for many years, its 45S REFLECTIONS. policy and Icftding measures have actually been controlled by regal sway, not unfrequently absolute and arbitrary; and that, though notes of warning have been sounded by faithful sentinels on the watch-tower of freedom, and though one great popular movement was made in 1S40, to rescue the country, it was itself thwarted by that very power, which it aimed to restrict and bring within constitutional limits. It will be seen, that tlie name of democracy is more easily abused than was supposed possible, and that a con- stitutional monarchy may be more denrocratic than a republic. It will be said with triumph by British monarchists, that the British sovereign can not, and dare not veto the democratic branch of the government. The sovereign can not do it, because the purse- string is in the hands of the people, and is instantly drawn tight by the commoners of the realm, when regal power is stretched beyond their will; and for this and other reasons, the sovereign dare not do it, as is proved from the fact, that it has not been done for more than a century. As has been seen in this work, General Jackson, in 1S33, seized the purse of the nation, and took it into his own keeping — not, indeed, without remonstrance — nevertheless, he was sustained in it. That such a transaction should be tolerated, in a professedly-democratic state, is a just subject of concern among all the friends of true democracy. The possession and control of the purse by the people, tiuough their immediate representatives, in the democratic branch of the government, is the only security of freedom. Such is the practical operation of the British con- stitution, and this is the constant, the effective, and the only check on the abuses and usurpations of regal power. 'J'lie impunity with which the regal power in this and other forms, has been exerted in the United States, will astonish man- kind, inasmuch as it is generally supposed, and with truth, that the government of the United States was set up for the very purpose of escaping from it. It will also be said, that a monarchy regu- lated by the constitution, is better than a mere nominal republic, the head of which transcends the constitution at his will, and thus in fact becomes an absolute monarch. It will be adduced as evi- dence, that monarchies are necessary, and that the doctrine of re- publics is an impracticable theory. Absolutism is the dread of mankind in every settled state of society, and if it can not be avoided in a republic, men will Ijy back to monarchy. They can not always be deceived by a name. Freedom and repose are the two great objects of the masses; and when they discover, that REFLE0TIOJ\S. 459 both are wanting, where both were promised, they will begin to look and strive to better their condition. It can not but have been observed, that no small fraction of the people of the United States have already shown symptoms of doubt and discouragement, as to the probable and ultimate success of democratic institutions, in view of the facts embodied in this portion of the history of the country. The unyielding firmness with which Mr. Clay has held on to the democracy with which he started in life, the labors he has gone through, the risks he has en- countered, and the sacrifices he has made, to defend it, against the encroachments of regal power, have been fully set forth in this work, and can hardly fail to be seen and appreciated. That he has had his increasing anxieties on this subject, is often betrayed, not unfrequently expressed, in his speeches, and in the history that has been given. That this concern has been more profound, and more oppressive to his feelings, than has been obvious, may be and not unlikely is true. So long as faith in American democratic institutions could be felt, it was the part of wisdom and patriotism to evince it, even in the midst of such causes of disturbing appre- hension. Among the heresies applied to the practical operation of the government, by General Jackson, tending to monarchy, was the assumption, that the executive has a full co-ordinate power and responsibility in legislation, and may put his own interpretation on the will of the people as his constituency, in deciding upon the laws he may think best for them. On this principle, the executive may assume all power of legislation with the aid of the veto. This assumption is not simply a paradox in a democratic state, but an absurdity in the light of a just interpretation of the constitution, which uianifestly erected the two branches of the executive and the legislature for the separate functions indicated by their names. When law-making is vested in the executive, or usurped by it, that is a pure and simple monarchy, and utterly inconsistent with a democratic government. When it is used, in violation of con- stitutional authority, it is naked usurpation, and tends to despot- ism—may be despotism in the very first stage— that, however, de- pends on the degree and the intention. It is, in all cases, a demo- lition of the only opposing barrier to despotism. It is manifest, that the constitution of the United States intended to keep each branch of the government within the orbits indicated by their respective denominations— one to make, one to execute. 400 REFLECTION'S. and the other to judge the laws; and when either transcends its splierc, it is out of place, and must necessarily produce derange- ment in the system. In a democracy, the prerogatives of the pop- ular hranch can not be held too sacred, or guarded with too much jealousy. 'I'iiat the people of the United States will be disappointed, when they come to reflect upon the oj)eration of their governmem, in the recent stages of its history, is extremely probable, if not cer- tain. They have hitherto supposed they were living under a democracy; but the simple and naked facts, that the policy and leading measures of the country, for the best part of an age, have been controlled by the will of one man, for the time being, and that the democratic power of the constitution has been gradually yielding to the forcible encroachments of the regal power, till the latter has become bold by impunity, arrogant in its pretensions, and not unfrequently absolute and tyrannical, can not long be con- cealed. The public history of Henry Clay involves the political history of the country, not only in general, but especially in the light now under consideration. It is seen, all along, that when the regal power of the constitution began to shoot from its orbit, and invade the democratic prerogatives, Mr. Clay displayed his shield, and never laid it aside ; that he took his station on the democratic platform ; that in defence of the popular branch of the govern- ment, and in vindication of its constitutional rights, he opposed these regal pretensions witli vigilance, constancy, and resolute de- t-^rmination; that his notes ol warning never ceased; and that, btiore he retired from public lile, instructed by the experience of the past and the omens of the future, he proposed a plan of reform in the organic and fundamental law, to restrict and limit the regal, and to recover and maintain the democratic power of the con- stitution. ]>iit. important as this resistance of unauthorized regal power may seem, and in fact is, it is yet one of the more inconsiderable functions discharged by Mr. Clay in his public career as a states- man, in respect to his actual innucnce on that current of affairs which constitutes political history. Though his plan of public policy has been, at one time marred, at ant)thcr thwarted, and at another interrupted by opjjosition, it will yet be found, that his per- sistance from the beginning in one uniform course, aided by his great talents, has not only left the impress of his mind on all the REFLECTIONS. 461 great measures of the country, and on the people, but that, in spite of all opposition, he has succeeded in establishing, with a prospect of permanence, in its most substantial parts, that Amer- ican SYSTEM, which he originated and organized, and which comprehends all the great, with all minor and private interests of the country. Several times it has been on the verge of destruc- tion ; often have its foundations been shaken by the attacks and partial success of its foes; it has never even yet been allowed a complete and fair experiment; but the untiring perseverance of its author has given the nation such a taste of its blessings, that, in every time of trouble, when it is put back and depressed, the peo- ple hanker and call out for it, and are not likely to be satisfied without it. To have succeeded in making such a great and lasting impression on the American mind, under such disadvantages, is sufficient evidence of the superior powers of the man, and of his indomitable moral courage ; and to have persevered in this mighty task, at every personal risk, and with constant sacrifice of personal advantage, evinces a patriotism rarely to be found. The development, and — so far as it has been achieved — the es- tablishment, of the protective policy, is the great triumph, and is destined to be the unfading glory of Mr. Clay's public hfe. It has been seen, in the progress of this work, that the great ob- stacle, which this policy has had to contend with, is the common impression, the false assumption, and the alleged fact, that protec- tive duties are a tax. This removed, there can not be a sol- itary objection in any quarter; and it is singular, that so large a portion of the public mind of the country, should have remained so long under this delusion. It originated, doubtless, in the de- ceptive technicalities of political science; and these apparent ad- missions, that duties are parts of prices, have been seized upon, to sustain a false doctrine. That protective duties can not possibly be a tax to the country, as a whole, and that an adequate protective system is a positive relief and saving to the country, of about fifty per cent, on the ag- gregate cost of the articles protected, it is hoped, has been made sufficiently clear in this work. The only remaining question, which may perhaps for a while embarrass some minds, is, whether any parties whatsoever — whether any sectional or local interests, or the interests of any classes or persons, in the wide community — are injured by the protective policy; and whether they are not all necessarily benefited in some degree, though not perhaps equally? 4G2 REFLECTIOXS. It may with confidence be affirmed, that no party in tlie country, compreliensive or single, embracing sectional or private interests, can be injured, and that each and all must necessarily be benefited. Such an immense saving to the country, as is secured by an ade- quate protective system, is constantly distributing its round of ben- efits to all parties in the community, in innumerable forms and ways. It has been shown, that the aggregate of losses to the country, since the adoption of the constitution, for want of an ad- equate protective system, can not be less than the largest fraction, or more than half, of a billion of dollars, weighed in the scales! What could not the country have accomplished, with half a billion of money, more than it has had, distributed through this period, and applied to the most productive purposes! One hundred mil- lions of cash is about enough for the uses of the country at any time, in existing circumstances. What would not five times this sum, to which the country was justly entitled, and which it has lost for ever, have produced in the progress of half a century, dis- tributed and used by fractions In the successive stages of this pe- riod, multiplying its products in manifold forms, in the practical concerns of life, as all active capital does? It is scarcely possible to estimate what the country would have been, or what it may yet be, under an adequate protective system. None of the commer- cial revulsions, with their immense ruin, which the country has so often experienced, would have occurred, for that would have been impossible; nor, on the same condition, would they ever again oc- cur, as, for the same reason, it would be impossible. Neither a private person, nor a nation, with a steady income, can ever fiiil; and the income of a man, or a nation, depends alike on the pru- dence and foresight with which the interests of the parties are watched and protected. But the disturbing question, whether the benefits of the protec- tive j)olicy are eipially distributed, will still be agitated. If all are benefited, that is enough for its vindication. No state of society will bring equal benefits to all, even when it opens to all ecjual chances; because all are not equally industrious and frugal. " Mo- nopoly" has been the watchword of dcmasroirues, in their denun- ciatlons of the policy of protection. But every practical man knows, that if great profits in any specific business, open for com- petition, are realized at a given time, cn])ital immediately rushes in, and in a short time, reduces those profits to a reasonable stan- dard. This is die invariable consequence of such a fact. Nor, REFLECTIONS. 463 in the meantime, is any party injured — certainly not laborers and operatives, who, by this means, are more sure of employment and high wages. The reason of large profits and large dividends, is not usually, scarcely ever, the result of high prices of the prod- ucts, in the case of manufactures; but prices will naturally be reduced, as soon as new investments of capital, thus invited, shall augment the supply, by increasing competition. Large profits in any specific business, under protection, are necessarily transient, as competition will soon reduce them; and at the same time reduce the prices of the products. So long as prices are cheapened by protection, nobody has a right to complain of the profits made by producers. They can themselves go into the business, and share the profits, if they please ; or, if they have nothing but the capital of labor to invest, these profits are sure to give it employment and reward. Labor capital, under the American manufacturing sys- tem, can easily clear an average profit of fifty per cent, on wao-es as the investment, which is many times more than the usual profits of moneyed capital in the best investments. Surely, the laborer will not complain, that he was not born rich, and require those who happen to be rich, or who have acquired riches by industry and frugality, to divide with him, so long as the capital of the, rich gives him wages, on which he can save half, and himself become rich. The prices of labor in the manufacturing and mechanic arts are usually higher than in other callings, and in that way sus- tain and raise the prices of all other kinds of labor. It is impos- sible that labor should not be benefited by the protective policy, so long as the articles protected and necessary to the subsistence and comfort of laborers, are not raised, but cheapened. It might be benefited, even if the articles consumed by laborers were raised, if their wages are raised in the same proportion. But it is unne- cessary to argue this point, as it has been proved, that the prices of protected articles, when protection is not prohibitory, are cheap- ened by a wider range of competition, or which is the same thing, by the law of supply and demand. Even when protection amounts to prohibition, home competition, after a short season, brings the prices far below what is usually demanded by foreign foctors having the monopoly. Admitting that, in some few instances, and in a small degree, the prices of protected articles may be enhanced by protection— as is perhaps the fact, though even that may be ques- tioned—nevertheless, it can easily be shown, and is a fair deduc- tion from the facts and reasonings of this work, that no party or 4G4 nEFLECTIONS. person can be found in the United States, having interests vested in capital or labor, who is not, on the whole, essentially and greatly benefited by a protective system, and whose chances of acquiring wealili, and realizing happiness, are not greatly augmented thereby; and none are so mucii benefited as the laboring classes; and if each several party is benefited, how much more the whole comnuinity? The great opposition to the protective policy in the United States, has arisen from the southern planting interest. But Mr. Clay, "a Southern Planter," and many others, have proved con- clusively, that this policy is equally imj)ortant to the south as to the north. "A Southern Planter" has apparently shown, that cot- Ion can never be brought around the cape of Good Hope, so cheap as can be afforded by the American planter; it is proved by Mr. Clay, is indeed self-evident, that two markets are better than 'one; it was also shown by Mr. Clay in 1832, that not more than five hundredths of the raw American cotton, purchased by British manufacturers, returns to the United States, in a manufactured form, which proportion must have been constantly diminishing since that time ; it is proved, that the British manufacturers can not possibly do without this ninety-five hundredths, or more, to supply their market in other parts of the world ; it is established, that the American cotton-factories now use up about one fourth of the American product of raw cotton, and that this consumption is constantly increasing in amount; it is already settled, that the com- petition of American manufacturers of cotton, with British manu- facturers, in the markets of the world, has compelled the British parliament to abolish duties on raw cotton, to protect British man- ufacturers; all which shows, first, that British manufacturers can not subsist without American cotton ; and next, that the demand for the raw material has been greatly enhanced, and the prices sus- tained, by the American protective policy. What, then, becomes of the argument of the southern opponents of the protective sys- tem '( It is annihilated. No part of the country is more inter- ested in the protective policy, than they are — and no part is so much benefited by it. They pay a greater price for nothing, and buy everything which they consume cheaper. They have two markets for one open to their own products, and get a better price for all they have to sell. Kngland can not subsist a day without their raw material, and hy the American protective system, the demand for it is constantlv widcninn; and iiicreasins:. The advantages and profit of the svstem, to all parties, and to REFLECTIONS. 465 the whole country, being decided, the most potent of all consider- ations demanding it, is that which has been stated and explained in chapter xii. of this volume, regarding the relative position of Eu- ropean capital and labor, as producing powers, to American capi- tal and labor acting in the same capacity, in respect to the influ- ence which these two agencies have on the rights of man and po- litical freedom throughout the world. It has been seen, that the united cost of European capital and labor, the former at 67 and the latter at 33, is not more than half the united cost of American capital and labor at 100 each. This, as near as can be ascer- tained, is the difference between the two. Hence 3 per cent, for the use of European capital, is as good as 6 per cent, for the use of American. Some, at first sight, might think this is absurd. It is nevertheless true. Labor is the producer of all wealth; and where it costs 33, as in Europe, it is obvious, that its avails can be afforded at a less price than when it costs 100, as in the United States. If it should be said, this proves that Americans can obtain the products of manufacture from Europe cheaper than at home, it is not true, because, as has been shown in this work, all those prod- ucts, before exportation, are taxed by European governments, in various forms, up to an average of fifty per cent, on the cost to the American consumer, which he has to pay — all which is saved by home manufacture, and distributed among all classes — and what is most important, it is saved to the country. This is the reason why the prices of labor in the United States are sustained, and why money capital is worth so much more, at the same time that the prices of protected articles are kept down. The country and the people are saved from a tax of fifty per cent., that would other- wise be imposed by foreign governments, and from being impover- ished by drafts on their money by this cause. This saving is so much more capital at home, that employs labor, and enters into all the business departments of life. If it should be said, that, since American capital is worth so much more than European capital, the latter ought to come and would come here for employment, the answer is, first, that money never flows into a quarter whence money is due; next, it does not naturally go where credit is bad, and where repudiation is practised; thirdly, it is well known, that all European capital- ists, when they felt safe, have always sought American investments; and the reason is, because money is worth more in America. Vol. II.— 30 466 REFLECTIONS. It has been suggested, that the reason of this difierence between the prices of European capital and labor, and Amer- ican capital and labor, is to be found in the different states of jjolitical society in these two quarters — one being despotic and the other free, and that the high value of American capital and labor is indissolubly connected with freedom. This is the fact which imparts momentous importance to the protective pol- icy in the, United States, because it is one and the same thing as protection to freedom. Break down the protective system, and down comes the value of every species of property, down the high value of money, down the wages of labor, and up the prices of all the articles which, having been, but being no longer protected, will be supplied by the cheap labor, but burdened with the high taxes of Europe and other foreign parts. The money of the country will go off to pay for them, the spirits of the people will be bro- ken, and reduced to an humiliation fit only for slavery — it will BE SLAVERY. Americans can not work at the low wages of Eu- rope, and retain their freedom. It is impossible. But without the protective system, wages would inevitably be reduced to tiiat standard — as certainly as water seeks a level. An American sys- tem and American freedom are bound together, and can not be divorced. If the former falls, the latter falls with it. This doctrine of political economy, regarding the relations and indissoluble connexion between the protective policy and freedom, as advanced in this work, asserts no other pretension than the slight merit, if it be even so much as that, of an endeavor to render pal- pable an indistinct notion which has long existed in the American mind, and which has been frequently shadowed forth by American politicians, economists, and statesmen. The author was no doubt indebted to these hints for his own conceptions on the subject, and for the result at which he has arrived. The experience of the United States could not have failed to give birth to this doctrine. It is distinctly presented, in a more palpable form, perhaps, than will be found anywhere else, in an extract from one of President ■Monroe's messages, chapter xi., page 292, of this volume, which reads as follows : — " Satisfied am I, whatever may be the ahsfract doctrine in favor of unrestricted comwrrrr [froo trade], ])roviiIc(1 all 7iations would concur in it, and it was not ruihie to be interrupted by war — which has never occurred, and can not be expected — that there are other strong reasons applicable to our situation and relations with other REFLECTIONS. 467 countries, which imiiosc on us the obhgatioii to cherish and sustain our manufactures." As a matter of, fact, the author did not observe this coincidence of opinion, in this particular instance, till he had written all that he has presented on the subject. But it will have been seen, that he does not claim to be the originator of this idea, but that he takes it as he finds it in the common mind. The pride of originating^ a new and valuable idea, could not be more gratifying to him than to be found in good company at the end of an independent course* of thinking. He is pleased to observe, that Mr. Monroe has ex- pressed himself in almost precisely the same terms. He clearly revealed the doctrine in the shape of a hint — of an incidental re- mark. It will be noticed, that he expresses himself with great confidence — that he seems to have had a deep and profound con- viction of the truth thus incidentally announced. ' " Satisfied I am," &c. It is not easy to present the doctrine more fully, or in a more naked form, than Mr. Monroe has done in this single sen- tence. It is imperfect only in not defining the relations of things which illustrate the doctrine. That is rather the task of a political economist, than of a statesman in an official paper. It is clear, first, that Mr. Monroe throws to the winds, " the ab- stract doctrine" of free trade, "though all nations would concur in it," as inapplicable to the United States. Next, he is "satisfied, that there are other strong reasons applicable to our sitmition and relations with other countries, which impose on us," &c. Mr. Monroe w^as manifestly " satisfied," as he expresses himself, that there was something 'peculiar " in our situation and relations with other countries," which ought to keep the United States out of the pale of a fraternity of all nations, associated on the platform of free trade, even if such a compact could be effected — which, however, he very justly represents as impracticable. It only re- mains to determine what that peculiarity is. It is several times presented in this work, in different forms, as consisting in the rela- tion of labor to power. Labor in Europe, and in many other parts, is the mere agejit of power ; in the United States, and wherever freedom reigns, labor and power are identical. It is attempted to be shown in this work, that, unless American labor is continuously, under all circumstances, and in any event, protected against the pauper labor of Europe and other parts of the world, where it is not free, but employed as the agent of power, American freedom 468 REFLECTIONS. will be lost — that protection and freedom are bound together, and can not be. separated. The peculiarity, therefore, that is sought for, is nothing more or less than the right and duty of American labor to protect itself against that power in Europe or anywhere else, which employs labor as an agent — including as a part of this peculiarity, the rela- tive situation of these parties. The two parties in conflict, and which must for ever be in conflict, so long as freedom is in one place and slavery in another, are the labor of American freemen, on the one hand, and European and other powers, on the other, which have reduced labor to a state of bondage, and use it as an agent of their will. The moment that free trade is opened between these parties, the rights of American labor will be invaded, and will inevitably fall into the power of those who, in other parts of the world, hold labor in a state of bondage ; and the end of the contest must be, that American labor will be reduced to the same state — that is, a condition of bare subsistence, and that not very tol- erable. It is impossible, in the nature of commercial transactions, that labor which realizes a fair compensation — it is never fair when there is no alternative left — should come into competition on the basis of free trade, with forced labor, which has no alternative, on wages differing as widely as 100 for the former and 33 for the latter, without falling a victim to those who retain the latter in such a forced service. Hence the necessity of protection for ever for freedom against despotism. The essence of political freedom is that state of society which secures to the industrious and laboring classes a fair reward for their toil. It is not usually the rich in any country that are oppressed, or that ask for a greater amount of freedom. It is the toiling millions. It is remarkable, that a system of policy opposed to protection, so utterly subversive of freedom — of the rights of the masses — should have gained such favor in the United States, under the au- thority of one man (General Jackson), and that the policy advo- cated by Mr. Clay, which alone secures the rights of labor, should have had to encounter such adverse storms, should have been forced through a thousand perils, and nearly wrecked, by this op- posing influence ! The gallant ship, however, still rides the waves, though it can not be said, there are no breakers ahead. If the system of protection advocated by INIr. Clay, had been early established, and never disturbed, it is impossible to estimate REFLECTIONS. 469 the wealth and happiness it would have produced in the United States and among all industrious and frugal classes. Allowing that the whole country has lost a billion of money in fifty years for want of it — this, probably, is not a high statement, all things con- sidered — it is scarcely a beginning in the reckoning of the entire loss. To this must be added the producing power of such a cap- ital, in the hands of an enterprising people, distributed among them, and profitably employed, along the line of half a century. The reproduction can not be counted. Then come the negative considerations, in the effects of embarrassments for want of such capital, and in the stupendous results of frequent periods of gen- eral bankruptcy. Who can estimate this part of the account? As poverty cripples a man, so does it cripple a nation. It has been shown in this work, that, under an adequate and uniform protective system, well sustained, it is impossible that a time of general commercial distress and bankruptcy should ever occur — equally impossible, as that a private individual, with an annual in- come always exceeding his expenditures, should become insolvent, and for the same reason. What, then, would not the United States have been in wealth and greatness, and what would not the people have been in prosperity and happiness, under such a system, with- out interruption for fifty years past? These reflections, well founded as they doubtless are, suggest, with great force, the tremendous responsibility of those who have stood in the way of this prosperity, w^ho have fought against and obstructed this system, who have prevented its establishment, who have broken it down when it has been partly set up, who have brought distress on a great nation, who have done everything they could to make that distress perpetual, and who still aim, by such means, to destroy the well-being of so great a commonwealth ! In regard to the critical condition of the country in 1S33, from which it was rescued by the passage of Mr. Clay's compromise bill, there is an important item of evidence, omitted in the proper place, showing how narrow was the escape from civil war, or from troubles of the most serious kind, which wei-e averted by Mr. Clay's measure. All, it seems, depended on the firnmess of the Hon. Hugh Lawson White, the president of (he senate pro tem- pore, who refused to yield to the dictation of General Jackson, in the appointment of the committee on Mr. Clay's bill. The im- propriety of this interference with the business and duties of another branch of the government, will be sufficiently obvious ; 470 REFLECTIONS. but it was iiotliii)g strange under iliat regime. The facts are dis- closed ill tlie note below.* The main cause of General Jackson's power and influence, as suggested in this w(Mk, if true, is a feature of history of no small importance. As the result of the success of the conspiracy car- ried on against .Mr. Clay, to wit, a general impression and belief among the people of the United States, that (Jeneral Jackson was wronged, it is proved, that it was not vice in the people, but vice in those who deceived them. The people were actuated by the most generous and praiseworthy feelings. That this power and influence could not have been the sole effect of militarv fame and force of personal character, has been shown from the fact, that these two causes had been operating for ten years after the victory of New Orleans, without any remarkable and decided effect — noth- • TESTIMONY OF THE HON. HUGH LAWSOX WHITE, BEFORE A COMMITTEE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, FEB. 13, 1837, ON OATH (EXTRACT). " Mr. Clay introdiu-fcl what is commonly called the Compromise bill, and upon its second readini,' it had been referred to a select committee, composed of seven members. This committee it was ray duty as presidini^ officer" (of the senate) " to appoint. Before the members of it were named, I received a note from the president, requestini; me to ^o to his house, as he wished to see me. I returned the answer that while the senate was in session it was out of my power to no; but that, as soon as it adjdurned, I would call on him. I felt the high responsibility which rested on me in appointing the committee. The fate of the bill, in a great measure, depended on it; and if the bill failed, we would probably be involved in a most painful conflict. I endeavored to make the best selection I could, by taking some tariff men, some anti-tariff, one nullificr, and Mr. Clay himself— hoping, that, if a majority of a committee, in whicii all interests and views were repre- sented, could a'j;ree on anytliin?, it was likely it would pass. Taking these princi- ples as my cuide, 1 wrote down the names of seven members, Mr. Clayton, of Delaware, being one; and immediately before we adjourned, handed the names to the secretary, with directions to put them on the journal, and in the course of the evenini: waited on the president. Soon after we met, he mentioned, that he wish- ed to see me on the sulijeit of appoinlins a committee on jMr. Clay's bill, to ask that Mr. Clayton miiht not be jnit on it, as he was hostile to the administration, and unfrieiiilly to Mr. McLane" (secretary of the treasury, who had given the project of a bill, commonly called " Verplanck's bill"). " He feared he would use his endeavor to have a ])reference given to Mr. Clay's bill over that of the secretary of the treasury, or words to that effect. I observed in answer, that it would always give me pleasure to conform to the wishes of my jioliticnl friends, whenever I could do so with inopnciy ; but that the treasury bill had been so altered and mau'.'led, and that, as I understood, in a good deuree by the votes of his own party, that it had but few friends; that we seemed to be on the eve of a civil war, and tliat for the sake of avrrtin? such a calamity, I would further all in my power any measure, come from whom it mii,'ht, which would sive peace to the country, and that any bill, haviu',' that for its object, was esteemed by me a measure above parly, ami any man who was the author of it, was welcome to all the credit he could u'ain by it. But, nt all events, it was too late to talk on the subject, as I had handed the names of the committee to the secretary before we adjourned ; and Ihnt, as I had a vcr)' bich opinion of Mr. Clayton's talents and liberal feelings, I had put him on the committee, without knowing he was personally unkind to the secretary of the treasury. He (tiie president) then asked me, if I could not see the secretary of the senaf that evening', and substitute sonx- other name lor Mr. Clayton's, before the journal was made up. I told him I could not — in my juilg- Dienl it would be wroni:. And there the interview terminated." REFLECTIONS. 471 ing more than may generously be supposed to have been due to merit. The presidential campaign of 1S24 — General Jackson being in the field as a candidate — passed over without any of that popular enthusiasm in his favor which was nfanifested in the cam- paigns of 1S2S and 1S32. It was not till the people believed that General Jackson had been wronged in being rejected by the house of representatives in 182-5 — and wronged as alleged by "bargain and intrigue" — that they came to his support with such overwhelm- ing power. And they continued to support him under the same impression, to the end of his administration of eight years. This belief was incorporated with and controlled the machinery of the general mind. It has never been but very partially, and never will be thoroughly, eradicated from the mind of the generation which so deeply imbibed the feeling, and for so many years acted under its influence. The conspiracy was completely successful, and the people acted all the while from the most praiseworthy motives. This presents the history of the country, for the last twenty years, in a very different light from that in which it has generally stood. . So far as that it proves, that the feelings of a free people are susceptible of being led astray, and of being practised upon to their injury, to the peril of freedom itself, it may be too true, not to be a just subject of concern. But it may be hoped, that the instances in future history will be rare, when such a stupendous conspiracy will find means of being carried out with success. The virtue of the people, at least, in the midst of all these misfortunes, stands thoroughly acquitted. They believed that General Jackson was wronged, and that is the solution of the problem. That party leaders became interested in keeping up this deception, that they are yet so interested, and will be so for some time to come, is un- doubtedly true. Nevertheless, the people were honest, and they are generally so. There must be a time for the reaction of truth. Twenty years have elapsed, and not a particle of evidence has ever been adduced in support of the charges against Mr. Clay by General Jackson and his friends, notwithstandinc: all that time has been' diligently employed for that purpose. All the witnesses to the fact or facts alleged against Mr. Clay, were in the house of rep- resentatives when Mr. Adams was elected in 1S2-5. Every mem- ber of that body, indeed, was a witness, and every friend of Gen- eral Jackson was interested in the issue. And yet, not one of the latter class has ever been brought forward as a witness, except Mr. 472 REFLECTIONS. Buchanan ! 'I'lic position which he occupies in tins affair, it is supposed, has hecn pretty well determined! It has heen seen, that the last effort to sustain this charge, made hy the Hon. Linn Boyd, on the floor of the house of representatives, in 1844, ended in the acquittal of Mr. Clay, hy the confession of the accusing party ! But time and events have placed this whole matter in new and clear li,i,dit. It seems it does not end with the acquittal of Mr. Clay. The very unexpected result has transpired, that the accu- sing party were themselves guilty of the crime they alleged against the accused! If, now that they are put on their defence — that is their position — after having, in a laborious effort of twenty years, exhausted the entire range of evidence, such as they sought for, they shoidd, in desperation, attempt to bring forward any new facts, it will be a just mark of suspicion. They are apparently compelled to defend on the old ground of debate, or surrender. If they should say, that one side is as well entitled to present new facts, as the other, the answer is, that they are not convicted by new facts, but by their (y.vn evidence, and by the disclosure of some of their own transactions, which had been suppressed at their own request, and from magnanimity to themselves. Mr. Clay now stands forth before the world as the innocent AND INJURED MAN. That his acquittal should involve those who have attempted to injure him, in fault, is a result of which they can not justly complain. It is undoubtedly true, that Mr. Clav, after this investigation, will stand precisely where he did before, in the esteem and respect of all those who were possessed of com- petent information to decide this complicated question, or who were capable of seeing the moral impossibility of the truth of the charge alleged against him. But it is believed, that the whole case is now brought under the eye of every one, who may take the trouble of looking at it, in a manner to qualify the plainest man for a decision. All are interested in the triumph of truth and jus- tice. In this matter, the whole nation is profoundly interested. The world is interested in an injustice done to one of its shining lights. Posterity, remote ages to come, will be interested. Great as have been the effects on the interests of the United States, involved in the question, whether General .lackson or Mr. Clay was the injured man, they are not greater than, they are not even equal in importance to, those which are still pending on the decision of the same question. The virtue of the people, as admit- REFLECTIONS. 473 ed — it is believed to have been the cause of the first and long- continued result — originally enlisted impetuously in its sympathies with the accusing party. It remains to be determined, whether intelligence and virtue united, will come to a right conclusion on the evidences of this case. The question undoubtedly presents one of the most important features in the political history of the United States, past, present, and future. The uses that have been made of the executive veto, and of the. appointing power, since the commencement of the Jackson regime, are just subjects of profound concern with every American patriot. It is impossible that a free people should be too vigilant of their rights. The tendency of power is always to usurpation, and never, perhaps, was that tendency more strikingly manifested, than in the short history of the United States. When changes steal into the administration of the government, involving radical, fun- damental, or revolutionary principles, hostile to the original inten- tions of those who founded the government, such facts can not safely be overlooked, or suffered to pass without remonstrance. Mr. Calhoun, while speaking on the protest of General Jackson sent to the senate in 1834, against the censure of that body, on the removal of the deposites, said, that whenever the senate allowed the frontier of their rights to be passed by an assailant, they were more than half conquered. It is the same with a na- tion, and the people of the United States have long exhibited the melancholy spectacle of being more than half conquered. Exec- utive vetoes, never authorized by the spirit, however they may have been by the letter, of the constitution, have been showered upon them, as freely as stones in a hail-storm. It is a regal pre- rogative, and not a monarch in Europe would sit safe on his throne, that should use it so arbitrarily, as it has been used in the United States. It is fatal to democratic authority and influence. The arrogation of the treaty-making power by the executive, to originate and negotiate such international arrangements, indepen- dent of the co-ordinate authority of the senate, is a feature of the practical operation of the government of the United States, never contemplated, either by the framers of the constitution or by the people, and never practised- in the early days of the republic. It has been a gradual appropriation of power by the executive, which belonged equally to another branch of the government. The pres- ident's control over executive appointments has become absolute, and the senate, co-equal in constitutional power as to this matter, 474 REFLECTIONS. is a mere cipher. The custom of controinn to Rich- ard Denny, i. 19; is transferred lo f'e I'lfice of the Virginia Court of Chancery, i. 20; his character there, i. 20; attracts the attention of Chancellor Wythe, and becomes his amanuensis, i. 21 ; his education not defective, i. 22, 23 ; the star of the rhetorical society, i. 25; purity of his character, i. 25,26; cherished and patronized by eminent men, i. 26; removal of his mother and family to Ken- tucky — letter from his mother, i. 26, 27; student at law with Attorney General Brooke, and admitted to practice, 24, 28; a universal favorite at Riclimond, i. 2!) ; removes to Kentucky a pcnnyless youns; man, and is cherished there, i. 29, 30; marries — Mrs. Clay's family — their cliildren, i. 31-33; his domestic char- acter, i. 33, 31 ; ns n neii;hbnr and citi/.cn. i. 35-37; as a man of feelinir, i- 37-42; his hospitality, i. 43 ; his pecuniary condition^ und rescue from debt, i. INDEX. 491 43, 44 ; his moral character, i. 45-53 ; his religious sentiments, i. 53-57 ; a favorite with children and youth, i. 57-59; his person, i. 60; his temperament, i. 61-63; his manners, i. 63; his voice, i. 63; attributes of his eloquence, i. 64-69 ; examples of his eloquence, i. 69-76 ; his professional career, his school of preparation and qualifications, his success, examples in several civil and criminal causes, i. 77-94 ; his blunder in a debating club, i. 78. Mr. Clay's Wit and other Brilliant Qualities, i. 95-124; Mr. Clay as a politician, i. 125-127; as a statesman, i. 127-130; as a diplomatist, i. 131- 140 ; his congressional career, i. 140-142 ; his character as speaker of the house, and as senator, i. 141, 142; his part in the negotiations of the peace of Ghent, i. 134-137 ; his instructions to the representatives to the Panama congress, i. 137-140. His Patriotism,!. 143-158; his own definition of patriotism, i. 143, 144; his mission as an American statesman, providential, i. 146 ; his early study of, and devotion to, the American system, as the only true national independence, and the greatness of the effort, intellectual and moral, i. 147-152; his patriot- ism tried in the war of 1812, i. 152, 153 ; in the Missouri question, i. 153 ; in the crisis of nullification, i. 153, 154; in adjusting General Jackson's quarrel with the French government, i. 154, 155 ; in acquiescing in the decision of the Harrisburg convention, of 1839, and in his generous support of General Harri- son, i. 155, 156; in all his public labors as a statesman, i. 157; a comparison between Mr. Clay and Washington, i. 157, 158. Mr. Clay and the War of 1812, i. 159-185; causes of the war, i. 159; preparations for the war, i. 160 ; Mr. Clay's influence over Mr. Madison, i. 161 ; his early antipathy toward Great Britain, i. 161, 162; declines a seat in the senate, and goes into the house, i. 162; his efforts in Congress to raise ade- quate land and naval forces, i. 162-171 ; Mr. Madison proposes to make Mr. Clay general-in-chief, i. 172; reverses of the first stages of the war, i. 172; po- sition and functions of a statesman in war, i. 173; Mr. Clay's vindication of the war, and of the administration, against assailants, i. 173-181 ; the character and result of Mr. Clay's efforts in the war of 1812, i. 182; his own account of the treaty of Ghent, i. 183, 184. Mr. Clay on Domestic Slavery, i. 186-210; distinction between his feel- ings as a MAN, and his principles as a statesman, in regard to slavery, i. 186, 187 ; his efforts in behalf African colonization, i. 188-192; Mr. Clay an eman- cipationist, i. 192; political abolition in the free states arrested the tide of emancipation in the slaA'e states, i. 193-209 : Mr. Clay's speech on abolition in 1839, i. 194-207; his answer to Mr. Mendenhall, i. 197, 198— also, 207, 208; the great evil of political abolition to the cause of emancipation, i. 209. Mr. Clay the Advocate of Universal Freedom, i. 210-251 ; the text of his principles, "I have," &c., i. 210; his claim as the earliest and successful advocate of South American independence, supported by a letter from the Hon. Richard Rush, i. 211 ; Mr. Canning's claim, i. 211, 212; Mr. Clay's efforts in Congress in behalf of the South American states, in 1817, i. 212-216; in 1818, i. 216-236; in 1819, i. 236, 237; in 1820, i. 237-240; carried in 1822, i. 244; Mr. Monroe and his administration opposed it, i. 235, 236, 239, 240 ; the triumph, i. 242-244; correspondence between Bolivar and Mr. Clay, i. 244, 245; Mr. Clay the advocate of Greece, i. 246, 249. The Cause of Great Effects. — Mr. Clay's first offence to General Jack- son, i. 252-275; action of Congress on the Seminole campaign, i. 252, 253 ; the question of General Jackson's responsibility in that campaign, i. 253-257 ; cab- inet action, secret history, on the subject, i. 257, 258; Mr. Clay's views of the treaty of Fort Jackson, i. 263; Mr. Adams's position, i. 264; hanging the Indian chiefs, and execution of Arbuthnot and Ainbrister., i. 266-270 ; taking 492 INDEX. thr Spanish posts, i. 271, 272 ; Mr. Clny's reply to ISIr. Holmes, i. 272, 273 ; failure of the resolution to disapprove, i. 275. Mr. Clay on the Missouri Question, and Mr. Clay's efforts thereon, i. 276- 28(i; reasons of the opposin? parties, i. 276, 277; beginning, i. 277; Mr. Tay- lor's action, i. 278 ; Mr. Clay's arrival and first proposal, i. 281, 282; its fail- tire, i. 282 ; turbulent scene of counting the electoral votes, i. 283 ; Mr. Ran- dolph's resolutions, i. 284; Mr. Clay's second proposal, i. 285; its success, i. 286. Mr. Clay on Internal Improvements, i. 428-452; definition of the Amer- ican system, i. 428; objects of internal improvement, ib. ; the great barrier, i. 429; the Cumberland road, i. 430; effects of Mr. Clay's influence on internal improvements, i. 430, 431 ; Mr. Clay's great design modified by events, i. 451 ; obstacles from executive scruples, i. 432; the constitutional question, i. 433; Mr. Clay's resolution that Congress had the power for internal improvement, i. 434, et .leq.; resolutions of '98, i. 438; the princij le cf " postroads," ib. ; the language of the constitution, " necessary and proper," i. 439, et seq. ; military roads, i. 440, et seq.; "state-rights," i. 442; Mr. Clay's examina- tion of the views of Mr. Madison, Mr. Monroe, and Mr. IMonroe's practice, i. 444-418; Mr. Clay's resolution passed, i. 450; Mr. Jeflerson's views on the general question in 1805, i. 450; General Jackson's, in 1830, i. 451 ; triumph and results of Mr. Clay's policy, i. 452. Mr. Clay's Public Land Policy, i. 453-484; Mr. Clay's report of 1832, i. 453; importance of the subject, i. ,456; Mr. Clay's report of 1832 imposed ujHjn him with bad design, i. 460, et seq.; the object defeated, i. 463; the counter report, i. 464, tt seq.; Mr. Clay's bill passed, and pocketed by the president, i.465; Mr. Clay's remarks, ib., et seq.; second land bill of 1835, passed in senate, failed in the house, i. 467, 468; veto of Mr. Tyler, i. 468; examination of the whole subject, with statistics, and tables, i. 468-481 ; state debts, i. 482; remarks, i. 483, 484. M;{. Clay's Times, Political Character of, i. 485-504; Mr. Clay a Jef- fersonian demociat, i. 485 ; importance of names in politics, i. 485, et seq.; rise of Jeffersonian democracy, i. 486; Mr. Clay's claims as a disciple of this school, and his denial of democracy to his opponents, i. 487, et seq.; Amer- ican love of democracy, i. 4fl0 ; the Jeffersonian and INIadisonian era, i. 491 ; thr Jackson era — its regal character, i. 492 ; Mr. Clay's views of it, i. 493-503 ; spirit of '76, i. 503. Mr. Clay on the Currency, ii. 9-67 ; Mr. Clay's views of a national bank in 1811, ii. 9, 10; reasons of change, ii. 10-13; the change, no change, ii. 10: his cow and turkey story, ii. 13; the constitutional question, ii. 11, et seq.; " necessary and proper," ii. 14 ; which party passed the bank of 1816, ii. 14; not banks, but protection, that supplies money, ii. 15 ; losses to the country by state banks, ii. 16; false reasons allesred by General Jackson for his bank veto, ii. 16-18; General Jackson's rule of interprotins; the constitution, ii. 19; Mr. Clny's sum of public evils, in 1832, ii. 20; motives out of si':ht,and revolution meditated, ii. 20: iron will of General Jackson, ii. 21 ; Mr. Van Buren's bank- ins operations in New York — he don't like banks, but turns out a heap, ii. 21- 22; an hypothesis, with cood reasons, showing why General Jackson turned asainst the bank, ii. 24 ; a fishtins: cliaracter, ii. 25 ; an intermediate plan, ii. 26; down with internal improvement, next the bank, then the tariff, ib. ; re- sults, ii. 26-28. Mr. Clay's Eastern Tour of 1833, ii, 333-354; his letter to Jud?e Brooke, announcing the project of this journey, ii. 333; his reception at Baltimore, with correspondence, ii. 334, 335; addressed by citizens of AVilmin^ton, Del., and his reply, ii. 335, 336; journey to and reception at Philadelphia, with corres- INDEX. 493 pondence, ii. 336-338; arrives at New York, reception, and correspondence, ii. 339, 340; generous tribute from an opponent, ii. 340; departure from New York, and passage to Boston, via Newport and Providence, incidents, and cor- respondence, ii. 340, 341 ; reception at Boston, and correspondence, ii. 341-344 ; visit to Charlestown and Bunker hill, Mr. Everett's address at Bunker hill, and Mr. Clay's reply, ii. 344, 345 ; incidents, ii. 345; reception at Faneull hall, Mr. Sullivan's address, Mr. Clay's reply, ii. 345-347 ; visit to Lowell, ii. 347 ; a straw bonnet presented to Mrs. Clay by Mr. Lynde, correspondence, ii. 348; Mr. Clay's visit to Lynn, Danvers, and Salem, with addresses and honors, ii. 348 -350; relative position of agriculture and manufactures, ii. 350 ; his visit and reception at Worcester, Hartford, Springheld, Northampton, Troy, and Albany, ii. 351-353 ; his reception at Newark, N. J., orders a carriage, and is obliged to take one as a compliment, ii. 353 ; his return to Washington, and letter to Judge Brooke, ib. ; his disinterestedness, ii. 354. Mr. Clay and the Twenty-Seventh Congress, ii. 355-403 ; position of that Congress, ib. ; repeal of the sub-treasury, and veto of the bank, ii. 358; Mr. Clay's remarks on the veto, and examination of Mr. Tyler's objections, ii. 358-369 ; Mr. Clay's compromise in the bank bill, ii. 366, 367 ; Mr. Rives's reply, ii. 369; Mr. Clay's rejoinder, ii. 369-374; " the corporal's guard," their services, and reward, ii. 371, 372; overpowering effect of Mr. Clay's rejoinder to Mr. Rives, ii. 375; the tariff of 1842, the great measure of the twenty-sev- enth Congress, ii. 376 ; the bankrupt law, a patriotic, but unpopular measure, ib. ; the hydra-heads of regal power, up again, ii. 377 ; Mr. Clay still at his post, ib. ; propounds his system of reform and retrenchment, ib. ; his position, ii. 378; his revenue system, ii. 378, 379; an incidental notice of his service for the gold and silversmiths, and their gratitude, ii. 379 ; a misrepresentation by political opponents chastised, ii. 380; expenses of Mr. Van Buren's administra- tion, ii. 381 ; the prospective bankruptcy of the nation in 1840, and the financial difficulties impending, ii. 381-383 ; Mr. Clay's estimates for wants of govern- ment, ii. 383 ; no flowers for fair ladies, ib. ; the statesman of forty years' ser- vice, ii. 384 ; the ad-valorem mode of assessing duties, ib. ; the land revenue, ii. 385 ; retrenchment, ib. ; prodigal habits of the government, ii. 385, 386 ; diplomatic relations too many, ii. 386, 387 ; abuses of the franking privilege, ii. 387 ; invocation of the aid of executive departments (useless), ib. ; the acting president in the way of reform, ii. 388; drain of the precious metals to foreign parts, ii. 389 ; Gen. Hayne's predictions falsified, ii. 390 ; the secret of all the difficulties, ii. 390, 391 ; Mr. Clay's hopes, ii. 393; character of the twenty- seventh Congress, ii. 393; object of the political revolution of 1840, ii. 394; aims of the then existing regime, sub-treasury, and new plan for a standing army, ii. 394, 395 ; Mr. Van Buren's approval of this plan, ii. 395 ; labors of the twenty-seventh Congress, reduction of public expenditures, and the dis- closures of its investigating committees, ii. 395-403 ; what that Congress in- herited, and what it bequeathed to the country, ii. 403. Mr. Clay's Resignation and Valedictory Address, ii. 404-411 ; his letter of resignation to the general assembly of Kentucky, ii. 404; reviewof his pub- lic life, ii. 405; his valedictory to the senate of the United States, ii. 405-410; character and dignity of the United States senate, ii. 405; Mr. Clay's hopes, on Gen. Harrison's accession, blasted in his successor, ii. 406 ; a glance at the past, and a religious reference of his motives, ii. 406, 407 ; he had not been without enemies, but had many friends, and had been gallantly sustained by Ihem, and his adopted commonwealth, ii. 407; his own reviewof his life, ii. 407, 408; called " a dictator," and, with liis own definition, was willing to wear it, ii. 408, 409; confesses the ardor of his temperament, forgives all, and. hopes to be for- given, ii. 409 ; presents his successor, the Hon. J. J. Crittenden, to the senate, 494 INDEX. and takes hie final leavp, ii. 410; the scene that followed, and a reflection on the exit of such a man from public life, ii. 411. Mr. Clay in Retirement, ii. 412-422; the Lexington barbecue, and toast in honor of the guest, ii. 412; Mr. Clay's remarks, ii. 412, et seq. ; his personal relations to his audience, and people of Kentucky, ii. 413, 414 ; never changed his opinion on a public question but once, ii. 414, 415; thinks he made a mis- take in accepting the secretaryship under Mr. Adams — over-estimated general intelligence — an anecdote in illustration, ii. 415-417; has been accused of am- bition — confesses he has desired approbation, ii. 417; considers the state of the country, not then auspicious, and notices the causes, ii. 418-420; calls on his fellow-citizens " not to give up the ship," but to awake to renewed exertion, ii. 421 ; the hoary statesman in private life, ib. ; Mr. Clay a part of the history of the country, ii. 422. Mr. Clay, public property, i. 5; his card in National Intelliirencer, Jan. .31, 1825, i. 297; his appeal to the house of representatives) i. 301 ; his address to the public, June 29, 1827, i. 330 ; his address to the public, December, 1827, i. 359 ; his position in relation to the charge, i. 375, 376 ; letters to Judse Brooke, i. 385, 38U, 393, 394 ; the Genito letter, i. 387; his letter to Geo. McClurej i. 387; strategy of the campaign of 1824 toward Mr. Clay, i. 3.59; Mr. Kremer a tool — his character, ib. ; his letter to the Columbian Observer, probably written by Mr. Eaton, with Gen. Jackson's knowledge, ib. ; Mr. Eaton convicted of having written Mr. Kremer's card, i. 360; internal evidence of the authorship of the letter to the Columbian Observer, ib. ; first acquaintance between Mr. Clay and Gen. Jackson, i. 361 ; state of feclin? between them after Mr. Clay's speech on the Seminole camjiai^n, ib. ; Gen. Jackson's slight of Mr. Clay, at Lebanon, Ky., ib. ; attempt of Gen. Jackson's friends to make up, in 1823, by getting Mr. Clay and Gen. Jackson together, at a dinner at Washington, ib. ; politeness of Gen. Jackson and JNIr. Eaton to Mr. Clay, on this occasion, ib. ; Mr. Clay did not write to Gen. Jackson, to ask his company to Washington, in the fall of 1824, i. 362; Mr. Clay and Gen. Jackson met at dinner at Baron Tuyll's, Dec. 24, 1824, ib. ; Mr. Clay's feeling regarding the slight at Lebanon, ib. ; the assiduous attentions of Gen. Jackson's friends to Mr. Clay, at the first meeting of Congress, December, 1824, i. 363; the transition to intimidation, ib. IVIu. Clay's letters touching the election of Mr. Adams, i. 385, 386, 387, 393, 394, 395. Clayton, Hon. J. M., his account of the compromise, ii. 252-259. Compromise Tariff, ii. 213-264; a private letter from Mr. Clay on public pol- icy, ii. 213; quarrel between General Jackson and Mr. Calhoun, ii. 214; its eflect in precipitating nullification, ii. 215; Mr. Clay deprecates nullification, ib., et seq. ; danser to the l^nion, not in the American system, but in its aban- donment, ii. 216; growth and extension of the protective policy, ii. 217; Mr. Clay supported it for the poor, ib. ; it benefits all, ii. 218 ; tariff of 1832, ib. ; nullilication declared by South Carolina, ib. ; proclamation by the president, ib. ; followed by Gov. llayne's, ib. ; position of Mr. Calhoun, ii. 219; Mr. Clay's vi/'ws of this crisis, in a private letter, ib. ; Gen. Jackson bent on puttinsrdown Mr. Calhoun and the taiilJ", ib. ; Mr. Clay brings forward the compromise, ii. 220, et seq. ; its plan, ii. 223; home valuation, ii. 224 ; character of the bill, ib. ; explained by Mr. Clay, ii. 224, 225; consummate statesmanship of Mr. Clay, ii. 225; triumph of the bill, ii. 225, 226 ; the difficulties it had to en- counter between friends and foes, ii. 226,227 ; executive violations of tl)e com- promise, ii. 229; protection not abandoned, ii. 230, 231; South Carolina sus- pends her ordinance, ii. 231 ; Mr. Clay gives her some advice, ih.,et seq.; Mr. Clay's appeal to all, ii. 233; his letter to Judge Brooke on the subject, ib. ; his reply to Mr. Webster, ii. 234, el seq.; one object of the tariffs of 1816, INDEX. 495 1824, and 1828, to pay national debt,ii. 237; Mr. Clay's motives, ii. 238; this measure always sustained, ii. 239 ; though not without opposition, ii. 240 ; the anti-protection symptoms and tendency of the time, ib. ; Mr. Clay's risk, ii. 241 ; sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof, ii. 242; theory of protection, as it contemplates a termination, considered in the light of the new doctrine, ii. 244-247; the folly of defying the worst, ii. 247; Mr. Clay accused of ambi- tion, and confesses to it, ii. 248; the crisis stated, ii. 249, 250 ; a prop of the compromise knocked away by Gen. Jackson, ii. 250, 251 ; other props destroyed, ib. ; Mr. Clay " flat on his back," ii. 251, 252; the Hon. John M. Clayton's account of the compromise, ii. 252-259 ; Mr. Dallas's motion, ii. 253 ; Mr. Polk's statement, ii. 258 ; Mr. Clay's letter to Mr. Clayton, in 1844, ii. 259 ; aim-s of the compromise impaired by its administration, ii. 261 ; Mr. Randolph's reliance on Mr. Clay in this crisis, ii. 263. Clay, Henry, Jr., birth, i. 33 ; at West Point, i. 48 ; correspondence with his fa- ther, i. 49. Compensation bill, Mr. Clay among the Kentucky hunters, electioneering, i. 99. Conspiracy, the Great, i. 287-427 ; reason for calling it so, i. 287 ; Gen. Jack- son's renewal of the charge, in 1844, i. 287,288; Mr. Clay's statement of the Charge, i. 288, 289; claims of private and public justice, i. 289; Mr. J. Q.. Adams's 8th of January party in honor of General Jackson, and its effect, i. 289 ; claim of General Jackson and his friends to plurality of votes, the princi- ple decided in favor of Mr. Adams, i. 290-293 ; delicacy of Mr. Clay's position in the presidential election, in the house of representatives, 1825, i. 293 ; the practices on him by the Jackson party, i. 294, 295 ; Mr. Kremer's letter to the Columbian Observer, i. 295; the attempts to intimidate Mr. Clay, i. 297 ; no belief in the charge at Washington — made for distance, i. 296 ; Mr. Clay's card, i. 297 ; his apology for one expression in it, 298 ; Mr. Kremer'a card, ib. ; Mr. Kremer's character, i. 299; Major Eaton suspected as the author of Mr. Kje- mer's card, i. 300; Mr. Clay's appeal to the house, i. 301 ; Mr. Forsyth's res- olution for a committee of investigation, their appointment, i. 303 ; Mr. Kremer fathers the charge in the house, ib. ; remarks of Mr. Forsyth, i. 304; of Mr. Wright, ib. ; of Mr. Storrs, i. 305 ; report of the committee, i. 306 ; Mr. Kre- mer's letter of decline to the committee, i. 307; analysis of the letter, i. 308- 312; the real author of this letter suspected — proofs, i. 315: position of the parties at the end of the first stage, i. 317; a non sequitur argument by Mr. Buchanan, Mr. Benton, and others, to prove the charge against Mr. Clay, i. 319, 320; the Fayetteville letter, i. 320 ; notices of the press, i. 323; General Jackson's letter to Carter Beverley, of June 6, 1827, i. 324 ; how it got into the hands of Mr. Clay, i. 329 ; published by Mr. Clay, with an address from him to the public, i. 330 ; also published by Mr. Beverley, i. 329 ; General Jackson's address to the public, of July 18, 1827, i. 332-337; examination of this address, i. 337-349 ; Mr. Buchanan's letter to the Lancaster Journal, i. 352; P. S. Markley, in reply to Mr. Buchanan, i. 355; Major Eaton's letter to the public, i. 358 ; Mr. Buchanan's letters to the editor of the United States Telegraph, i. 359; Mr. Clay's address to the public, December, 1827, ib. ; re- view of these documents, i. 353-373 ; proof of a negative, i. 374-403; array of the witnesses, i. 377-397 ; examination of their evidence, i. 397-402 ; wit- nesses on a question of veracity, i. 404-408; what they prove, i. 411-413 ; the denouement, Mr. Buchanan addresses Mr. Clay, and Gen. Houston addr'esses Mr. Sloane, friend of Mr. Clay, both on the same errand, i. 418-420; relative position of Gen. Jackson and his friends, in the outset, i, 421, 422; their rela- tive position when each got into difficulty, 1,422-424; last attempt by Mr. Lynn Boyd, in 1844, i. 424 ; what it comes to, i. 425 ; crime and consequences of the plot, i, 425-427. 49G INDEX. Codfish, Mr. Clay has no taste for it, i. 110. Cromwell, Oliver, and Gen. Jackson, i. Ill, also ii. 84, Corsets, Mr. Secretary Taney in, i. 112. Colonial system, British, its ellects on American rights, negotiations, and legisla- tion, ii. 143, 144. Commercial treaties, effect of, ii. 145. Colonization, African, Mr. Clay's efforts in its behalf, i. 188-192. Confederation, character of, i. 469, el seq. " Corporal's Guard," ii. 371, 372. Craiir, Sir James, governor of Canada, his connexion with John Henry, i. 160. Crawfurd, Wm. H., his letter to Mr. J'orsyth, on the Jackson and Calhoun con- troversy, i. 254 ; his letter to Mr. Clay about the " bargain," i. 394 ; evidence on the conspiracy, i. 394 ; candidate for the presidency, 1824, i. 290. Crime and consequences of the plot, i. 425. Crowninshield, Mr., his evidence about Mr. Kremer, 1. 299. Crittenden, Hon. J. J., evidence on the conspiracy, i. 382. Crowi-dill, Wm., evidence on the conspiracy, i. 405. Currency, ii. 9-67. CcHRKNCv, ITS PHILOSOPHY, ii. 61-67 ; definitions of money and currency, ii. 61 ; legislation can not force credit, ii. ib. ; what constitutes the value of gold and silver, ii. 62 ; proportion of the precious metals used as money, ib. ; cause of scarcity of money, ib. ; objects and uses of a " lawful tender," ib. ; not the only constitutional currency, ii. 63; an exclusive metallic currency im- practicable, ib. ; system of banking in the United States, ii. 64 ; its relation to labor, ib. ; functions of currency in the body politic illustrated, ii. 64, 65; effects of perverting its functions, ib. ; losses to the country by the revulsion of 1837, ii. 65-67. Cushing, Caleb, member of " the guard," his rejection as nominee for secretary of the treasury, and mission to China, ii. 371,372. D. Dallas, Geo. M., in for a bargain, i. 115 ; his motion in the senate on the compro- mise, ii. 253. Davidson, Hon. Jas., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 381. Democratic press, about Fayetteville letter, i. 323. Dedication, i. 3. Denny, Richard, takes Henry Clay as an apprenticCj i. 19. Deacon, Peter, pedagogue of the Slashes, i. 18. Dei'ositks, Rimoval of, ii. 68-121 ; the constitution and laws regarding the national treasury, ii, 68, 69 ; who the keepers of the public purse, ib. ; the secretary of the treasury an agent of Congress, not of tiie executive, ib. ; re- ports to Congress, ii. 70; the principle settled by a decision of the supreme court, ii. 70, 71 ; the law, ii. 71 ; its exposition, ii. 72 ; General Jackson's mani- festo, ib. ; analysis of the secretary's report, ii. 73, 74 ; a servant above his masters, ii. 75 ; airs of an unrobed official, ib. ; Mr. Clay's resolutions on the removal of the dcposites, ii. 76 ; history of the removal, ii. 76, 77 ; the position assumed by the senate a hitjh, a paramount duty, its moral ellect, ii. 77, 78; ex- ordium of Mr. Clay's speech, announcing a revolution, ii. 78 ; the then position of affairs, ii. 79; violations of tlip judiciary, ib. ; what of the public interests had been crushed, general dcspondtncj , IMr. Clay's hortatory counsels, ii. 80; Patrick Henry's opinion, ii. H\ ■ tlic cabinet meetinu of the 18th September, 1833, its remarkable chnrnrter, an unto ilttfi\ ii. 81-81; Mr. Clay's remarks on this cabinet meeting, ii. 84-86 ; Oliver Cromwell and General Jackson, ii. 84, 85; Mr. Secretary Duane's address to the people of the United States, and his INDEX. 497 correspondence witli General Jackson, ii. 86-95 ; Mr. Taney not secretary, ii. 101, 102; his agency a violation of the constitution, ii. 102; his name kept back from the senate, ib. ; the discretion of the secretary defined, ii. 102, 103 ; the mandatory resolution of March 2, 1833, ii. 103; subterfuge of the secretary, ib. ; a democrat superseded by a monarchist, ii. 104 ; a maitre d'hotcl and scul- lions, ii. 105; apology for errors of necessity, ib. ; logic of the secretary, ii. 105, et seq. ; is right and wrong, ii. 106 ; conscience leans one way, loyalty an- other, ib. ; strategy, ii. 107; jumping to conclusions, ib. ; a hangman that wants business, ib. ; usefulness of a servant that knows more and can do more than his masters, ii. 108, 109; "speculating," right and wrong, ii. 109, 110 ; morals of the secretary, ii. 110; a labor-saving official, ib. ; taking care of "the inter- ests and convenience of the people," ii. Ill; a parent tliat kills his own off- spi'ing, ii. 111-113; nineteen millions of currency withdrawn in four months, ii. 112; consequences, ii. 113; self-defence a crime, ib. ; a man that wont die ought to be killed, ib. ; " sufficient evidence" is sufficient, ii. 1 14 ; a false posi- tion, ib. ; abstractions distilled, ii. 114, 115; are most potent, ib. ; afraid of truth, ii. 115 ; a thing that is and is not, ib. ; a "most wonderful financier," ii. 116; operations of a modern Turgot, ii. 116, 117; Mr. Clay's resolutions re- duced to one and passed, ii. 118; effects of the removal of the deposites, ii. 118-120; President Washington's respect for the co-ordinate power of the sen- ate, ii. 121 ; Mr. Taney nominated, rejected, and made chief justice, ib. De Stael, Madame, and Napoleon, i. 26, 27 ; Madame De Stael and Mr. Clay at Paris, i. 97, 98. Disappointment, the, ii. 444-454; the agony of 1840, ii. 444; discourage- ment of the people after the apostacy of John Tyler, ib. ; hopes of the nation on Mr. Clay in 1844, ii. 445 ; his defeat unexpected to all parties, ib. ; extracts from numerous letters, from all parts of the country, and from all classes, ex- pressive of the disappointment, ii. 446-451 ; Mrs. Warner's counterpane, and lines on it, ii. 451 ; statue for Mr. Clay by ladies of Virginia, ii. 451-453 ; hon- ors to Mr. Clay by whig associations, ii. 453-456. Drake, Dr., evidence on the conspiracy, i. 388. Duane, W. J., his correspondence with Gen. Jackson, ii. 86-95. Duralde, Mr., Mr. Clay's son-in-law, guillotined by President Polk, ii. 354. Duelling, Mr. Clay's opinion on, i. 298. E. Election, Presidential, of 1844, ii. 423-443 ; death of Gen. Harrison — apos- tacy of John Tyler, ii. 423 ; Mr. Clay's magnanimity in supporting Gen. Har- rison as the nominee of the Harrisburg convention, ib. ; rush of the people, after the disappointment, to Mr. Clay, ii. 424; his early nomination, throughout the country, for 1844, ib. ; enthusiasm and hopes of the Baltimore whig convention of 1844, ib. ; Mr. Frelinghuysen, ii. 425; confidence of the whig party, ib. ; causes of defeat, ii. 425, et seq. ; permanent and chief cause, party names, ii. 426, 427 ; the Texas question, ii. 427 ; political letters of candidates, ii. 427, 428 ; many and local issues, ii. 428 ; driving Mr. Van Buren oli' the course, ii. 429 ; executive patronage, ib. ; Native Americans, ii. 430; abolition and the mission of C. M. Clay, ib. ; defects of whig organization, ii. 430, 431; betting on elections, ii. 431, 432; election frauds, ii. 432, et seq.; frauds in Maryland, ib. ; Plaquemine frauds, ii. 433; frauds in Pennsylvania, ii. 433-436; in New York, ii. 436, 437 ; in Georgia, ii. 437, 438; the frauds all on one side, ii. 438; betting one of the chief causes, ii, 438, 439; gambling on elections, ii. 439-442; Mr. Clay the legally-elected candidate, ii. 443. Everett, Hon. Edward, his statement at the agricultural meetin?, Derby, England, ii. 316 ; Ills address to Mr. Clay, at Bunker hill, with Mr. Clay's reply, ii. 344. Vol. II.— 32. 498 INDEX. Expunging Resolution, the, ii. 122-137; secret of Gen. Jackson's power, ii. 122-124; its culminating point, ii. 124; remarks of Mr, Calhoun on Gen- eral Jackson's protest, ii. 125-129; the tyrant's plea, ii. 127; Gen. Jackson's war on the senate, ib. ; a half conquest, ii. 128; origin and revival of the parly names of Whig and Tory, ii. 128, 129; Mr. Calhoun a whig, ii. 129; philosophy of party names, ib. ; why whig is retained and tory dropped, ii. 130; influence of the word democrat, ii. 131 ; yeas and nays on the expunging reso- lution, ib. ; remarks of Mr. Clay, ii. 132-134; Mr. Webster's protest, ii. 134; the ominous comet, ii. 135; the resolution, ii. 136; the scene in the .senate after the act, ii. 137. F. Fish, Orlando, his protective hat, i. 122. Forrest, B. S., Esq., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 384. Frankfort, Ky., " an inverted hat," i. 96, 97. French decrees, i. 159. " Free trade and seamen's rights," the perversion of these terms, i. 181. Free trade, effects of, as compared with protection, ii. 319-321. Frclinghuysen, Hon. Theodore, ii. 425. G. Gee, Joshua, on political economy, ii. 191,192, 321, 322; his doctrine the rule of British policy, ii. 322. Germans, two, father and son, tried for murder, and acquitted, by Mr. Clay, i. 85. Gibbons, Hon. Charles, on election fraud?, ii. 436. Goulburn, Henry, Esq., British commissioner at Ghent, sends a joke to Mr. Clay, and gets one back, i. 98. Gouverneur, S. D., Esq., his controversy with I\Ir. Blair, of the Globe, regarding Gen. Jackson and Mr. Monroe, i. 254-257. Graham, David, and others, note to Mrs. Clay, with Mr. Clay's reply, ii. 339. Groves versus Slaughter, U. S. court, Mr. Clay counsel, i. 83. Grundy, Hon. Felix, "defending stale criminals," i. 1 13 ; a " specie-ous" man, i. 1 16. Gurley, Hon. H. H., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 380. H. Harrison, William Henry, president, his accession and death, ii. 355. Hale, E. J., evidence on the conspiracy, i. 393. Hamilton J., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 392. Henderson, Joseph, evidence on the conspiracy, i. 405. Henry, John, the British spy, i. 160. Henry, Patrick, his mistake, and way of getting out, ii. 9; his opinion on the purse and sword question, ii. 81. Houston, Gen., his ovirture to Mr. Clay, i. 420. Hughes, Robert, his toast to Henry Clay, i. 27. Hudson, Hon. Charles, evidence of his report to the 28th Congress, on reduction of prices of protected articles, ii. 310. I. Introduction, i. 5. Ingham, Hon. S. D., pockets Mr. Kremer's paper to keep it from Mr. Clay, i. 299. « " his speech a twin to Mr. Kremer's decline, i. 315. Internal imi>rovemcnts, i. 428-452. Iron manufactures, ii. 310-312. / INDEX. 499 J. Jackson, General, passim in the great conspiracy; passim in the protective policy, removal of the deposites, and expunging resolution, which see. Jeflerson's red French breeches, i. 103. Johnston, Hon. J. S., letter from Mr. Clay to, ii. 213. Johnson, Hon. F., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 379. Johnston, Hon. J. S. " " " i. 382. Jones, C. T. " « " i. 407. Johnson, Hon. R. M. « « " i. 425. K. Kent, Gov., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 387. Kentucky senate, " " " i. 392. King, Hon. Rufus, touching the public lands, i. 473. L. Lafayette, General, his evidence on .the conspiracy, i. 382. Large, Daniel, " " " i. 404. Letcher, Hon. R. P., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 380, 418. Liverpool, Lord, asks Mr. Clay a question, i. 98. Lincoln, Hon. Mr., Mr. Clay's proposal to abate his wish, i. 113. Little, Hon. P., his evidence about Mr. Kremer, i. 299. Lowell, Mass., its manufactories, investments, and profits of labor there, ii. 325. Lynde, Seth S., note to Mr. Clay, with bonnet for Mrs. Clay, and reply, ii. 348. M. Marshall, chief justice, his opinion on the public land question, i. 473; and evi- dence on the conspiracy, i. 388, 389. Madison, James, on the public lands, i. 474 ; and on conspiracy, i. 390. Manufactures, as connected with agriculture, and other interests, ii. 314, et seq. Marshall, Humphrey, his duel with Mr. Clay, i. 47. Markley, Hon. P. S., his letter in reply to Mr. Buchanan, i. 355. McArthur, Hon. D., his evidence, i. 377. McDuffie, Mr., not an accuser of Mr. Clay, i. 345-349. McKim, John, and others, letter to Mr. Clay, with his reply, ii. 334. McLane, Louis, mission to London, 1829, to negotiate a commercial treaty — more hurt than good, ii. 144. McLean, Hon. Wm., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 378. McLean, Hon. John, « « « i. 388. Metcalf, Hon. T., " « « i. 379. Morgan, Mr. Thos., « " « i. 405. Mercer, Hon. Mr., his remark on the Missouri question, i. 279. Monroe, James, and General Jackson, on Seminole campaign, and secret orders, i. 253-257. N. Napoleon, Mr. Clay proposes to make him a democrat, i. 98 ; his policy, ii 171-174. Naudain, A., and others, letter to Mr. Clay, with his reply, ii. 335, 336. Niles, Wm. 0., his evidence on conspiracy, i. 388. Nullification declared, ii. 218; extracts from the official documents of the nulli- fiers, showing their views, ii. 2G5-267 ; reply to them, ii. 267-273 ; change of views in the south, ii. 273 ; " Notes on Political Economy, by a Southern Planter," being a defence of the protective policy, ib., d seq. ; extracts from this work, ii. 274-288. 500 INDEX. k O. ) Opinio.v, liistory of, on the protective policy, ii. 289-304 ; General Washington's opinion, ii. 289; Jefl'erson's, ii. 290; Madison's, ii. 290, 291; Monroe's, ii. 291, 292; J. Q. Adams's, ii. 292; Jackson's, ii. 292, 293; opinion of the Tam- many society, in 1819, ii. 294-300 ; of the first convention of the stales, at Annap- olis, 1786, and of the convention to form the constitution, ii. 300, 301 ; of the first Congress under tiie constitution, ii. 301; remarks on the position of the Tammany society in 1819, and of General Jackson in 1824, ii. 301-30 I. Oregon question settled by Mr. Clay, i. 139, 140. P. Patterson, Hon. Jno., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 379. Panama congress, i. 137-140. Perkins, T. H., and others, letter to Mr. Clay, with his reply, ii. 342-344. Phelps, I\Irs., tried for murder and acquitted, Mr. Clay counsel, i. 84. Pitkin's, Timothy, statistical view on British colonial policy, ii. 192, 193; on bal- ance of trade, ii. 318. Phimer, Hon. Wm., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 384. Polk, President, his opinion of the effect of a protective tariff on revenue, ii. 166 ; his statement in Tennessee, 1839, about the compron)ise, ii. 259. Polk, President, turns out of ollice Mr. DuralJe, son-in-law of Mr. Clay, ii. 354. Political Economy, ii. Notes on Political Economy, by a Southern Planter, ex- tracts, ii. 273-288 ; demagogues go for free trade, ii. 275; old nations never go for it, ib. ; it would be wealth to a few, and poverty to most, ib. ; the internal improvements of the United States have enriched foreigners, and made bank- rupts of Americans, ii. 276, 277 ; protective duties can not be a tax, ii. 277, 278; spendthrift nations, like other spendthrifts, are doomed to poverty, ii. 279, 280; the United States can produce raw cotton enough for all the world, cheaper than any other part of the world, ii. 282, 283 ; under protection, American cot- ton manufacturers can compete with British, ii. 283 ; manufactures benefit all producers of raw materials, ii. 284 ; Americans have heretofore legislated for the benefit of foreign nations, ii. 285; income of England, two hundred millions, of the United States, nothing, often minus, ii. 287. Political Economy as it respects the Protective Policy, ii. 305-332; pro- tective duties not a tax, but a rescue from taxation, ii. 305-313; errors arising from the technicalities of political science, ii. 306; the true proposition, ii. 307; the fact that decides the question, ii. 308; fifty per cent, tax, in cost of im- ported articles of manufacture, ib. ; sketch of British taxation, ii. 308, 309 ; ev- idence of Mr. Hudson's report to 28th Congress, on reduction of prices of pro- tected articles, ii. 310; reduction of prices on cotton fabrics, ii. 310, 311 ; how protection atl'ects iron manufactures, ii. 311, 312; how the fiAy per cent, saved is distributed, ii. 312; protection as it affects agriculture, ii. 313-317; amount of wool grown, ii. 314; difference between a home and foreign market explain- ed, ii. 316; Mr. Everett's statement on agriculture, at Derby, England, balance of trade, ii. 317; Pitkin's statements on balance of trade, ii. 3 18 ; history of protective policy in the United States, ii. 318, 319 ; balances of trade in Great Britain and United States, and tlieir respective tariffs, compared, ii. 319, 320; Mr. Triplett's statements on tariff, ii. 321 ; foreign duties on American tobacco, ib. ; Joshua Gee's doctrine, the uuide of British policy, ii. 321, 322 ; a<;!jregate of balances nsainst the United States, from first, ii. 323 ; results of the tariff of 1842, on revenue and currency, ii. 323, 324 ; United States have kept their im- provements, and lost all their money, ii. 324 ; domestic exchanges, and importance of home trade, ib. ; effects of British machine-power on American manufactures, INDEX. 501 ib. ; effects of protection on wages of labor, ii, 325; on prices of protep^^ed ar- ticles, ib. ; Lowell, its establishments, investments, operatives, their pi-ofits — profits of labor 10 to 1 of money, ib. ; Captain Marryat's statement, ib. ; report of British house of commons, showing who are their best customers, ii. 325, 326; the Illinois farmer pays 26 bushels of corn for a British cloth coat, ii. 326; Mr. Kennedy's report to 27th Congress, revealing the secret of American debts abroad, ib. ; the principle of the new doctrine of political economy, ii. 327, 328; the great battle of freedom, ii. 328; the "let-alone" principle, ib. ; Brit- ish policy not tending to free trade, but the contrary, ii. 329 ; the protective pol- icy does not diminish, but extends, commerce, ii. 329, 330 ; effects of the pro- tective policy on the currency, 330-332 ; how foreign factors fleece the Ameri- can people, ii. 332. Protective Policy, the, ii. 138-212; a new doctrine, ii. 138-142; universal free trade hostile to American freedom, ii. 139, d seq. ; relations of American labor to European and other foreign labor, ib. ; free trade a license to foreign taxation, ii. 140 ; labor the arm of despotic power, ib. ; the protective policy the only shield of American freedom, ii. 141, 142; Mr. Clay's debut on the protec- tive policy, ii. 142; his first speech on the subject in Congress, ii. 142, 143; protection of navigation and navigation acts, ii. 143-145 : fraudulent use of flags under commercial treaties, ii. 145; what would be the effect of free trade on American navigation, ib. ; condition of American manufactures after the war of 1812, ib. ; tariff of 1816, its inadequacy, and Mr. Clay's predictions, ib. ; Mr. Clay's great efforts on the tariff bill of 1820, ii. 146-153 ; Mr. Justice Bald- win's evidence, ii. 146; a new political epoch, ii. 147; wants of man, ii. 148; the United States dependent colonies of England, ib. ; Isaac Shelbj-, ii. 149 ; in- fluence of manufactures and foreign commerce on peace and war, ii. 150 ; the principle of "let things alone," ii. 151, 152; the nation that is Jewed, ii. 152; failure of the tariff bill of 1820, ii. 146; disastrous consequences, ii. 153; Mr. Clay's feelings, ii. 154 ; his great efforts for the tariff of 1824, ii. 154-174 ; two plans of policy, ii. 155 ; the increase of producing power, and decrease of for- eign demand for its products, requires an American system, ii. 156, etseq.; they .who can not sell, can not buy, ii. 157 ; the machine, or artificial power of Great Britain, ii. 159 ; a nation without the arts, weak and vulnerable, ii. 160 ; Mr. Clay's statistical measure of the wealth of nations — interesting and instructive results, ii. 160-163 ; anomalous policy of the United States, neither fit for peace nor war, ii. 163 ; a statistical argument on the cotton-srowing interest, ii. 164; navigation follows agriculture and manufactures, ii. 165; balance of trade, ii. 165, 166 ; Mr. Clay's and Mr. Polk's views of the effects of a protective tariff on revenue, ii. 166; dependence and independence, ii. 167; manufactures re- quire the aid of protection, ii. 168; British policy for the United States, ii. 169; European powers not relaxing their protective policy, ii. 170; Russian policy, ii. 170, 171 ; Napoleon's policy, ii. 171-174; opinion of British statesmen and economists, on the policy of the United States, ii. 174, 175; retrospective view of the American protective policy, ii. 175 ; passage of the bill of 1824, ii. 175; opening of a new era, ii. 176-178; General Jackson's feud with Mr. Calhoun, and jealousy of Mr. Clay, ii. 176 ; he resolves to pluck Mr. Clay's honors from him by destroying the protective tariff, ii. 177, 178; nations foot-balls to kings, ii. 177 ; moral causes control history, ib. ; Mr. Clay returns to Congress, ii. 178 ; comes to the rescue, by a resolution in the senate ii. ib. ; its parliament- ary advantage, ii. 179; who responsible for the tariff of 1828, ii. 178, also 189; Mr. Clay considered the policy of protection as " established," ii. 179; his pa- cific and patriotic professions not reciprocated, ii. 180; General Hayne, of S. C, commences the attack, ib. ; Mr. Clay is roused to one of his greatest efforts, ib. ; the battle all to be fought over again, ii. 181 ; two cycles of national poverty 502 INDEX. and wealth, noticed by Mr. Clay, ii. 182, 183; position of Mr. Clay at this time, ii. IHA; an item of statistics, ii. 185; interests embraced by the protec- tive policy, ii. 185, 186; authorities for protection, ii. 187 ; doctrine of South Carolina in 1808, ii. 188; protective principle of thetarilfof 1816, ib. ; free trade bays the moon, ii. 190 ; confession of n British statesman, ii. 190, 191 ; doctrine of Joshua Gee, ii. 191, 192; British old clothes pood enous^'h for Amer- icans, ii. 192 ; historj' of British colonial policy for a century previous to the American Revolution, ii. 192, 193; Mr. Clay's arcument on the cotton-planting interest, ii. 193-200; increase of the home market for raw cotton, ii. 197 ; Mr. Clay's argumentum ad absurdum, ii. 198; the alleged grievous tax on South Carolina examined, ii. 198, 199 ; another absurdity, ii. 199 ; prices of protected articles cheapened, ii. 200, et scq. ; duty of the statesman, ii. 201 ; effect of competition, ii. 203, ct acq. ; supply and demand, ii. 204 ; duties not a part of prices, ib. ; evils of fickle legislation, ii. 205, 206 ; protection favorable to all branches of agriculture, ii. 206-209; importance of the protective policy to pre- pare for war, ii. 210 ; nine things proved by Mr. Clay, 211; a finished argu- ment, ii. 212. Q. Quincy, Hon. Mr., Mr. Clay's reply to him and others, in the war 1812, i. 173-181. R. Reflections, ii. 457-488 ; regal power risen in the United States, ii. 457, 458 ; disappointment to the world and to the people, ib. ; misgivinss as to the perma- nence of republican institutions, ii. 459 ; heresies of General Jackson, ib. ; Mr. Clay merged in the history of the country, ii. 460 ; has endeavored to save it from regal power, ib. ; the effect of his services on the public mind, ii. 460,461 ; his fame associated with the protective policy, ii. 461 ; review of parts of the argument for the protective policy, ii. 461-464 ; restatement of the new doctrine, ii. 465-468; President Monroe stated it incidentally, ii. 466 ; what the nation has lost for want of protection, during the term of its existence, ii. 468, 469; the Hon. Hugh L. White's evidence regarding the compromise of 1833, ii. 470; a new aspect of political history in the cause of General Jackson's ascendency, ii. 470-473 ; the executive veto fatal to democratic power, ii. 473 ; the treaty- making power arrogated by one branch, but belongs to two, ib. ; executive con- trol of lesislation by uttering opinion in advance, an arrogation, and destructive of freedom, ii. 474 ; the nation half subdued by regal power, ii. 475 ; the Jack- son reciine dissolved in 1840, ib. ; rally and success of its fragments in 1S44, ib. ; what they propose to do, ii. 476 ; Mr. Clay settled the Oregon question, when secretary of state, ib. ; importance of " a southern planter's" argument, ii. 477 ; doctrine of a Mississippi convention of cotton-planters, ib. ; the HoUi- daysburg (Pennsylvania) tariff convention of 1845, ii. 478, 479; coadjutorsof Mr. Clay, ii. 479, ISO; the public land question reviewed, ii. 4S0-4S2 ; differ- enrr- between domestic and foreign debts, ii. 480, 481 ; protection and distribu- tion twin helps, ii. 481, 482 ; protection and the currency, ii. 482 ; national and state banks, ii. 482, 483 ; fickleness of public policy, its evils, ii. 483, 484 ; the war of classes, ii. 484; rrsulls of the action of the Harrisburg convention of 1839, ii. 485-487; the Harrison administration, ii. 485; resignation of his cab- inet under Mr. T\ler, ib. ; the aim of Mr. Tyler, ii. 486; vigor of whi;; princi- ples, ib. ; character of Mr. Tyler's administration, ii. 487 ; position of the whig party, ib. ; a clanceat the future, ii. 488. Rnnilulph, John, his duel with Mr. Clay, ii. 262, 264 ; letter from Mr. Clay to Judge Brooke, concernini; the duel, ii. 262 ; reconciliation, ib. ; letter from Mr. Clay to Judge Brooke, concerning the reconciliation, ib. ; Mr. Faulkner's state- INDEX. 503 ment of Mr. Randolph's speech, in which he expressed reliance on Mr. Clay to hush the storm of nullification, ib. ; carried to the senate in a -weak state to hear Mr. Clay on the compromise, ib. ; his interview with Mr. Clay on the Missouri question, ii. 263 ; Mr. Clay's remonstrance with him about his conduct in the house, and his going to the speaker (Mr. Clay) for protection against a threatened assault, ii. 264 ; his resolutions on counting the electoral votes, in 1821, i. 284 ; taunts Mr. Clay for defects of education, i. 23 ; Rives, Hon. Wm. C, his debate with Mr. Clay, on Mr. Tyler's veto, ii. 369. Robertson, George, Esq., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 383. Robertson, A., Esq., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 385. Robertson, Mr., British statesman, his definition of British policy, ii. 169. S. Sample, Wm., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 405. Scott, Hon. John, his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 380. Shelby, Isaac, governor, Kentucky, a model character, in domestic economy, ii. 149 Simms, R., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 405. Sloane, Hon. J., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 378, 419. i South America, its cause, i. 210-251 ; not hopeless, i. 250. Spectator, London, its plan of policy for the United States, ii. 169. Storrs, Hon. Mr., of New York, his speech on Mr. Clay's appeal, i. 305. Sub-Treasury, ii. 29-61, passfm; extra session of 1837, ii. 29 ; Mr. Van Buren proposes the independent treasury, ib. ; Mr. Clay's first speech on it, 30-36, passim; Mr. Van Buren's and Mr. Buchanan's misstatements about causes of public misfortune, ii. 31, 34; Mr. Clay's statement of the causes, ii. 32; cor- rection of an error about the United States bank, ii. 32-34 ; want of free gov- ernment cause of trouble, ii. 34; divorce of bank and state, ii. 35; executive power, ii. 35, 36 ; Mr. Clay's great speech on the sub-treasury in 1838, ii. 36- 48; the solemnity of his exordium, ii. 36; plan of this speech, ii. 38; proof of General Jackson's aim at a government bank, Irom 1829, ii. 39-41 ; Mr. Van Buren a particcys criminis, ii. 41-43; Mr. Van Buren's bad faith about the treasury order, ii. 43 ; a new bankrupt bill, ii. 44 ; character and tendency of a government bank, ii. 44, 45; receivers-general, instruction of history, ii. 46; efl'ects of sub-treasury under Pharaoh, king of Egypt, in Spain, Rome, Greece, and other countries, ii. 47; Mr. Clay's peroration, ii. 47, 48; the sub-treasury the political ruin of Mr. Van Buren, ii. 49 ; Mr. Buchanan's theory on the wages of labor, and Mr. Clay's reply, ii. 49-52; a new doctrine on this subject, ii. 52-56; the credit system in England, and in the United States, teachings of history, ii. 56-58 ; the president in a storm with his India-rubber cloak, ii. 60; the president, cashier, and teller of a government bank, the national executive, ib. ; passage of the sub-treasury bill, ii. 61. T. Tariff, British, and American, compared, ii. 319-321 ; tariff of 1842, its fruits, ii. 323. Taxes, taxation, tax, protective duties not' a tax, but a rescue from taxation, ii 305-313 ; sketch of British taxation, ii. 308, 309. Tennessee legislature, the non sequilur, i. 320. Thompson, Hon. P., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 380. Thomas, Roland,- his evidence of Henry Clay's character in youth, i. 20. Tillinghast, J. L., sends compliments of citizens of Providence, R. I. to Mr. Clay, ii. 341. Tilford, John, his letter to the author, about Mr. Clay's rescue from debt, i. 44. Tinsley, Col. Thomas, takes an interest in the boy, Henry Clay, i. 20. 504 . INDEX. Tinsley, Peter, takes Henrj' into his ofllce, i. 20. Tobacco, American, duties on, in foreign ports, ii. 321. Todii, C. S., Esq., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 383. Tory ministers, Mr. Clay's toast at Mr. Van Buren's table, i. 109. Tory, origin and revival of the name, ii. 129, 130. Trimble, Hon. D., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 379, 381. Triplett, Hon. P., his statement of comparative duties in United States and in Eu- rope, ii. 321. Trotter, George J., kills Charles WicklifTe in a duel, i. 93. Truesdall, J., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 405. Tyler, Mr. John, never president, ii. 355, 356 ; his infamy, ii. 356-358; V. Van Burcn, Mr., a speech of, to his Britannic majesty, i. 109; his "three great battles," i. 113; he" underrates himself," i. 115; "the honored tool," i. 116, ii. 42; " a good democrat," i. 116. Vance, Hon. Joseph, his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 377. Vertner, D., Esq., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 384. Vinton, Hon. S. F., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 378. W. Warner, Mrs. Ann, her counterpane to Mr. Clay, ii. 451. War of 1812, i. 159-185 ; causes, i. 159 ; Mr. Clay's agency — see Mr. Clay. Waring, J. U., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 408. Washington, General, his respect for the co-ordinate power of the senate, ii. 121. Watkins, Capt. Henry, marries Henry Clay's mother, i. 19 ; his kindness to Hen- ry, i. 19, 20, 21. Webster, Hon. Daniel, his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 390 ; his resolution to send a commissioner to Greece, supported by Mr. Clay, i. 246-249; cites Gen. Washington's executive deference to the co-ordinate authority, ii. 121 ; his prot- est on the expunging resolution, ii. 134. Wellington, Duke of, and Mr. Clay, at Paris, i. 98. Whig, origin and revival of the name, ii. 129, 130. White, Hon. Hugh L., his evidence about the compromise of 1833, ii. 470. Whittlesey, Hon. E., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 378. White, Hon. D., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 380. WicklillV, Charles, Mr. Clay's defence of him, i. 90-93. Willis, the murderer, cleared by Mr. Clay, i. 86 ; Mr. Clay tells him he ought to have been hanged, i. 96. Wise, Henry A., member of "the corporal's guard," rejection as nominee to the court of France, and mission to Brazil, ii. 371, 372. Wit, definition of, i. 95. Wooley, A. W., Esq., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 384. Wool-growing interests protected, &,c., ii. 314, et seq. Workman, Samuel, his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 405. Wright, Hon. J. C, of Ohio, his speech on Mr. Clay's appeal, i. 304 ; his evid«»^cc on the conspiracy, i. 378. Wylie, Rev. A., his evidence on the conspiracy, i. 406. Y. Youn?, John S., his evidence on the conspiracy (official), i. 391. Yeas and nays on the expunging resolution, ii. 131. THE END. .,^ -r ,0 o v^^ % ^.^. ^A V ^. ..-^^ '^.- v^^ -<> .^x^~