OF JAMES CLARKE, ESQ. OF INDIANA, DELIVERED IN THE CONVENTION To Amend the Constitution of Pennsylvania, ON THE FIRST OF DECEMBER, 1897. IN SUPPORT OF AN AMENDMENT TO PROHIBIT BANKS FROM ISSUING NOTE: OF A LESS DENOMINATION THAN TEN DOLLARS, FOR THE PRESENT, AND LESS THAN TWENTY DOLLARS FROM AND AFTER THE YEAR 1842. PHILADELPHIA, PRINTED BY JOHN WILBANK, No. 2 Shoemaker Street. 1837. FOR SALE AT THIS OFFICE-PRICE 6 CENTS TO THE READER. The publisher of the National Laborer, would recommend to the reader, in conjunction with the remarks of Mr. Clark, a consideration of the facts elicited by the remarks of Mr. Scott, concerning the stoppage of the banks in May last. From the report of the proceedings of the Reform Convention, published in one of the daily papers we extract as fellows: "Mr. Scott then, in Committee of the Whole resumed his speech. He said that at the time of the stoppage of specie payments there were drafts on board the steamboat from New York on the Banks in this city to the amount of half a million of dollars. He intimated that the captain of the steamboat in the Delaware sus pected thatth se drafts were on board the bout, and delayed the passage so that the boat did not arrive until after 3 o'clock. That evening the Banks, at the request of a number of citi. zens, agreed to suspend, and thus t e specie was prevented from going to New York-He thought this a wise measure. The Banks judged of what was for the welfare of the com. munity at large, and acted accordingly. The specie would all have gone off, if they had not stopped."— Scott and others are entirely disinterested in their apologies? A Let us suppose a similar case, in which the parties are neither bankers nor men of wealth and worldly consequence. Suppose an obscu re individual, A, were to intrust to another indivi. dual, B, a sum of money, redeemable at a cer. tain period; and that, as the time for giving up his trust approached, B should determine to elope with A's money, but from some accident, could not accomplish his design unless by some means A should be compelled to postpone his demand; and that a third individual, C, an accomplice of B, should seize and forcibly detain A until B had made his escape. What ought to be our opinion of B and C ? Ought we to convict them of breach of trust and swindling, or ought we to look upon their conduct as "a fair business transaction?" The parties being obscure vulgar men, perhaps mere mechanics, we would, one and all, de. mand their legal punishment. We will now suppose them on trial, and all the facts estab. lished; and that a fourth individual, a lawyer' Mr. Scott, wanting the honesty to condemn their conduct and the modesty to blush for his own, should justify the breach of trust, and et In what respect is the conduct of the banks logise the swindling; telling us "he thought it better than swindling? Can any man believe a wise measure." Now what, on this supposi that he captain had no interest in the transaction, ought to be our opinion of Mr. Scott? tion? Would he risk so much without expecta- Let the people reflect on this. Here is something on which the people may ponder. Here is an admission on the part of a leading advocate of the banks, that their bank ruptcy was the resuit of a conspiracy. If they had not previously determined to stop payment the "captain of the steamboat" could not have known that they would stop, and, of course, would not, by "Jelaying his passage," have enabled them to defraud their creditors by the nonpayment of the drafts. tion of reward? Or can any man think that Mr. Philadelphia, Dec. 1837. SPEECH OF JAMES CLARKE, ESQ. ON THE ISSUE OF BANK NOTES. Remarks of JAMES CLARKE, E37., of Indiana, rule of the house. The party to which delivered in the Convention, to amend the he belonged had never called the preConstitution of Pennsylvania, on Dec. 1, 1837, in support of an amendment to prohibit banks from issuing notes of a less deno nination than ten dollars, for the present, and less than twenty dollars from and after the year 1842. vious question before the subject was fully discussed. Fair, open and honorable debate ought to be allowed, and fair reports should be made of what Mr. Clarke of Indiana said he had desired to be excused from discussing gentlemen say, but he was sorry to observe that some of the peany-a-liners this question at present, as he was unwho write for the Conservative presses well and not prepared to do it ample in this city had attacked, misrepresent justice. He had hoped that some gentleman more competent to the task, el, and annihilated his friend from Suswould have taken the floor; but inas. quehanna, (Mr. Read,) and they might, much as the question was about to be perhaps, attack and annihilate all who were opposed to the banks. I suppose, taken, he yielded to an imperative sense of duty to deliver his sentiments on the (said Mr. C.) that before we leave subject. He knew not how soon free Philadelphia these scribblers will not discussion might be arrested by a call leave of us a single vestige more than for the previous question. Gentlemen was left of the Kilkenny cats after their of the conservative party had lately fight. become very familiar with the previous He was surprised to see the President question, and had arrested debate on and other gentlemen of the Convention some very important questions. (said exhibit such warmth of feeling on the Mr. C.) by putting the screws to us; bank question. He could only account and the previous question mig t be for it on the principles of the old proverb again sprung upon the Convention be- that "the truth bites sore." In some fore they were aware of it. He depre- observations which he had made at cated such a use being made of that Harrisburg respecting the manner in levellers, agrarians, ‘locofocos' and other such names. He knew that they were accused of agrarianism,desiring to equalize property, &c, but he denied that any such thing was desired by any of them. They were not so radical as which the United States Bank of Pennsylvania obtained its charter, he had said that the act was passed with inde cent haste. To this expression the President of the Convention had taken exception, and had taken him to task for spealing so disrespectfully of the that. They only went so far as the Legislature and of the Institution. He Declaration of Independence, which dehad hoped that the worthy President clares all men to be born free and equal. had said all he wished to say on that He did not say that all men were equal subject, but to his surprise, he found the in intellect or industry, but that they President in his remarks of yesterday, ought to be so politically: they are harping on the same string. That ex equal in their inalienable rights, and he pression, indecent haste, seemed to be wished to protect the people in the enan indigestible one, an stuck in the joyment of these rights. President's stomach. He had used the expression because he did not think of a milder one, and although he had been sorely belabored on this account, yet he was prepared to say, and would now say, that the passage of the act charter ing the United States Bank of Pennsyl vania, was the most outrageous and high handed act of tyranny and aristocracy which he had ever witnessed. He knew the risk he ran in speaking against that bank, or any other bank, in this place. But being a free representative of a free people, from a mountain district, he was not afraid to beard the lion in his den' and say those things of banks and bankers which he thought they merited, even in this city of brotherly bankers. The question before the Committee was whether the banks should be restrained from issuing small notes. It was proposed by the amendment before the Committee to prohibit them from issuing notes under ten dollars, for the present, and under twenty dollars after the year 1842. It must be conceded by all honest men that abuses had grown up under the present banking system, and that some restriction was necessary. He was very sorry to hear his friend from Chester (Mr. Bell) declares that he could not vote for this amendment because it was insufficient to cure all the evils appertaining to the present system of banking. It was not proposed as a remedy for all the evils of banking. The amendment that had been proposed the other day to make stock-holders liable in their individual capacity for the debts of the Company was offered as one correction, in part, of the evils we suffer, and this amendment was offered as an additional safe-guard. He was sorry that the Convention had thought proper to negative the first of these; and the declaration of the gentleman from Chester made him apprehensive that this might share the same fate. These amendments were intended only as the pannels of a fence, which, when followed up, might make a complete enThe party with whom he had the closure, so as to hedge in the lawless honor of acting were accustomed to manufacturers of rag money. Our have their motives and principles mis. President has deprecated the throwing represented. They were called jacobins, of the fire-brand of party among us. The subject (said Mr. C.) is of immense importance not only to ourselves but to posterity, not only to our own State, but to the Union and the world. He acknowledged his inability to do the subject full justice, as he was no lawyer, nor was he a public speaker; but he had the honor to represent four counties which, he was happy to say, contained no bank; nor was there a bank in any adjacent county to the South, West, or North of the district he represented: he could therefore speak Els sentiments with entire freedom, and he hoped with impartiality, He (Mr. C.) had observed that the con- tions are radically wrong. They are servatives had been rallied by the gen- against the genius and spirit of our free tleman from Beaver, and he regretted institutions. They are unequal, unjust, that party spirit had, apparently, blinded and fraudulent: unequal because they the "whigs" and Antimasons to all the make distinctions among the citizens evils of the banking system; but it was who ought all to possess the same opvain to reason with men whose politi- portunity of advancing their interests; cal system is based on avarice: " for unjust, because they give advantages the love of money is the root of all evil." to a favored few that are denied to all Avarice, Mr. Chairman, is the most in- others; fraudulent, because they take curable vice of the human heart. Ava- the power from the many and give it to rice is the vice of old age. We have the few. Should a few designing men seen, and heard, and read of many in- ask the legislature for a donation in stances of prodigals being reformed, but money without equivalent, it would be it is a remarkable fact that there is no immediately refused, as all would see account in sacred or profane history of that any sum taken from the treasury a miser having ever repented. Men, would be drawn from the pockets of the (said Mr. C) were originally created people; but the same men ask for a equal in rights and privileges, but that charter of incorporation under some equality had been destroyed in all coun- plausible pretext of public good by tries and in all ages, by force or fraud. which they can realise the same amount. Savages and barbarians used force If the charter be granted, it is equally in despoiling others of their property; true, though it may not be so readily while fraud was resorted to in civilized perceived, that the people, the whole communities. The simple, the honest, people are divested of their rights the unsuspecting have been defrauded to the extent of the favor or privi of their earnings, and of their rights, by lege included in the grant. Such char kings and nobles, demagogues, quack ters are therefore fraudulent and unjust. doctors, pettifoggers and speculators of Another objection to corporations for all grades and conditions. The gentle- money making purposes, is, that they man from Philadelphia, on his right, (Mr. are monopolies, such as the corrupt Biddle,) deprecated this constant chang- monarchs of the old world have been in ing; but, sir, this cry against change, is the habit of bestowing on their favorites. and has been in all ages and all coun- Our coal companies, companies for maktries the war-cry of those who are for ing coke, and for other business objects perpetuating abuses. But in the march are of this kind. They are also objecof civilization and the progressive im- tionable because they are perpetuities, provement of mankind in government, and as such they render nugatory our changes become necessary to secure to wholesome laws for the distribution of the productive classes their inherent estates, and those forbidding entails, as rights, and to restore to them those of through them property was handed which they had been divested by force down from one generation to another. or fraud. He therefore gloried in stand. They are an aristocracy that will natu ing there as the feeble advocate of such rally and necessarily create and pera change in our present pernicious bank petuate abuses. It is true the stocking system as will have a tendency to holders may die, or be changed, but restore their lost rights to the produc- the corporation still lives; and whoever tive classes of society. has the management of such corporation It may be necessary, Mr. Chairman, will use all the power transmitted to to make a few observations respecting them or within their reach;-for man corporations for money making pur- is seldom known to relinquish power, poses. In a free country such corpora- and is generally indisposed to inquire |