That the time will come

utility or indispensable necessity. when the country will feel the fullest conviction of this necessity, I do not doubt; but that conviction, I think, is likely to be brought about only by experience. If, while I remain here, there shall be a general call of the country for a new national institution, I shall, of course, be ready to aid in its establishment, on principles which have been proved to be safe, and with any amendments which experience may have suggested. But for myself, it is my stated purpose to do nothing more in relation to a national bank, till a decisive lead shall be given in that direction by the public opinion.

In the next place, I wish to say, that the "experiment," upon the success of which gentlemen have felicitated themselves, has not, in my opinion, undergone any trial at all. It has been put to no test.

There are two public objects, both of great importance, in the accomplishment of which the Bank of the United States, in my opinion, has been generally successful. I mean the transmission of public funds, and other facilities to the operations of the treasury, as one of these objects; and a safe, cheap, and admirable system of internal exchanges, as the other. These objects were both attained by the skilful administration of the bank, to such a degree as left little or nothing to be wished. By internal exchanges, I intend the whole operation of internal bills of exchange, and the circulation, also, of a paper currency, always safe, founded on solid capital, and everywhere, in every nook and corner of the country, as well as on the exchanges of the great cities, always of the same value as gold and silver, except, indeed, where the bills of the bank have been preferred to gold and silver, as being better suited to the purposes of remittance. Now, Sir, it has been predicted that the State banks, selected as deposit banks, could equally well accomplish all these objects; that they could as readily, and as completely, facilitate the operations of the treasury; and that they could, and would, also furnish a general currency, as sound and as well accredited; and that they could, and would, conduct the internal exchanges of commerce as safely and as cheaply. Of all this I have doubted; but the day of argument is passed, and the system now awaits the unerring result of experience. But the time for that experience has not yet arrived. Up to the present moment

the country has enjoyed, and does now enjoy, the benefit of the circulation of the bills of the Bank of the United States. The amount of that circulation is now eighteen or twenty millions, and it is diffused over every part of the country, and abounds, more especially, in those places where it is more particularly needed, and, indeed, is kept there because it is there most needed. Here is a medium of exchange everywhere to be had, and to be had without charge. A hundred dollars in gold and silver buy a post-note of the Bank of the United States in New Orleans, or Mobile, or St. Louis, and it is remitted to Philadelphia or New York without danger and without expense. The whole mass of the circulation of the Bank of the United States, therefore, is, at this moment, in active operation, in expediting and facilitating exchanges, and, indeed, in assisting the operations of the treasury, and the deposit banks themselves, by affording a medium of universal credits. The present system, therefore, still rests, substantially, on the Bank of the United States.

It is the credit and the circulation of the bills of that bank which still sustain the accustomed operations of internal commerce; and the bank still exercises all that wholesome control over the currency of the country which it has heretofore done. But the bank is about to expire. These eighteen or twenty millions must be gradually withdrawn from circulation, though they may come in very slowly, and be drawn very reluctantly, from the hands which hold them; so that the circulation of the bills may, more or less, continue for a considerable time after the charter shall expire. In this way I have no doubt of its continuance to do good, for some time after its legal existence shall have ceased. There will be no rush for payment of its notes and bills, because there will be no doubt about the sufficiency of the fund. There will be no haste to get rid of them, because they will be better than any other paper, and better than gold and silver.

But the bank must wind up its affairs; its debts must be collected, and its circulation, after a while, entirely withdrawn. And when this takes place, or begins to take place, then, and not till then, the existing government "experiment" will begin to be put to the proof. At present, all is fair weather; the question is, How will it be, when it becomes necessary to fill up the void occasioned by withdrawing the bills of the Bank of the

United States by notes of the deposit banks? When these banks shall be brought to rely on their own means, their own credit, and their own facilities; when the substantial succor of a universally-accredited paper currency of twenty millions in amount shall be withdrawn, then the "experiment" will be put on trial.

It is known, Sir, that I am one of those who believe in the impracticability of an exclusive, or of a general, metallic currency. Such a currency is not suited to the age, nor to commercial convenience. The return of the golden age is a dream. There will continue to be banks, and the mass of circulation will be a paper circulation of some kind; and the question is, whether State institutions, associated together as deposit banks, can furnish a sound and universally accredited circulation.

At present, they are not proved capable of any such thing. If a gentleman here wishes to remit money to New England, or to the Ohio River, he certainly does not send bills of the deposit bank of this District. If a single individual has done that, by way of trying the "experiment," he probably will not repeat the trial; and, at any rate, the example is not generally followed. The deposit banks pay specie, which is, so far, very well; and a person with a check on one of those banks can obtain specie, and with that specie he can obtain bills of the Bank of the United States; and this is the process he will go through, if he wishes to remit money, in the shape of bank-notes, to places at any considerable distance. In fact, this is well known to be the only practice. How this is to be effected, when there shall be no longer notes of the Bank of the United States to be had, remains to be seen.

I have said, Sir, the day of trial has not come, and that all as yet seems clear weather. But I have lately learned that there are symptoms of approaching squalls. Some little specks of cloud, at least, make their appearance above the horizon. I learn, from authority not to be questioned, that, within the last week or ten days, a treasury warrant was drawn on a deposit bank in one of the cities, payable in another city. The bank on which the warrant was drawn offered to pay in a check on a bank in the city where the warrant was payable; and when the check was presented, it was found to be made payable in current banknotes. Here, I think, Sir, there is, as I have said, a small cloud darkening the early dawn of the new golden day of our curren

cy. Even so soon as the present hour, treasury drafts are thus offered to be paid in current bank-notes. I have very good reason to believe, Sir, that other deposit banks draw their checks in like manner, payable in current bank-notes. And I have called the attention of the Senate to these occurrences, not merely to expose the practice, but to correct it also. I wish to stop it at the threshold, by declaring it illegal; and I have prepared a section, which I trust the Senate will see the importance of inserting in this bill.

ON THE LOSS OF THE FORTIFICATION BILL IN 1835.*

It is not my purpose, Mr. President, to make any remark on the state of our affairs with France. The time for that discussion has not come, and I wait. We are in daily expectation of a communication from the President, which will give us light; and we are authorized to expect a recommendation by him of such measures as he thinks it may be necessary and proper for Congress to adopt. I do not anticipate him. In this most important and delicate business, it is the proper duty of the executive to go forward, and I, for one, do not intend either to be drawn or driven into the lead. When official information shall be before us, and when measures shall be recommended upon the proper responsibility, I shall endeavor to form the best judg ment I can, and shall act according to its dictates.

I rise, now, for another purpose. This resolution has drawn on a debate upon the general conduct of the Senate during the last session of Congress, and especially in regard to the proposed grant of the three millions to the President on the last night of the session. My main object is to tell the story of this transaction, and to exhibit the conduct of the Senate fairly to the public view. I owe this duty to the Senate. I owe it to the committee with which I am connected; and although whatever is personal to an individual is generally of too little importance to be made the subject of much remark, I hope I may be permitted to say a few words in defence of my own reputation, in reference to a matter which has been greatly misrepresented. This vote for the three millions was proposed by the House

* A Speech delivered in the Senate of the United States, on the 14th of January, 1836, on Mr. Benton's Resolutions for appropriating the Surplus Revenue to National Defence.