Abridgment of the Debates of Congress, from 1789 to 1856.

630:'ABRIDGMENT OF THE SENATE.] Expunging Res0olution. [FEBRUARY, 1835. character of injustice to President Jackson. The condemnation of the President is indisHis accusers should have specified the law, and solubly connected with the cause of the bank! the clause in the constitution which was vio- The first form of the resolution exhibited the lated; they should have specified the acts connection; the second form did also; every which constituted the violation. This was due speech did the same; for every speech in conto the accused, that he might know on what demnation of the President was in justification points to defend himself; it was due to the of the bank; every speech in justification of public, that they might know on what points the President was in condemnation of the to hold the accusers to their responsibility, and bank; and thus the two objects were identical to make them accountable for an unjust accusa- and reciprocal. The attack of one was a detion. To sustain this position, Mr. B. had fence of the other; the defence of one was the recourse to history and example, and produced attack of the other. And thus it continued for the case of Mr. Giles's accusation of General the long protracted period of nearly one hunHamilton, then Secretary of the Treasury, in dred days —from December 26th, 1833, to the year 1793. Mr. Giles, he said, proceeded March 28th, 1834-when, for reasons not exin a manly, responsible manner. He specified plained to the Senate, upon a private consultathe law and the alleged violations of the law, tion among the friends of the resolution, the so that the friends of General Hamilton could mover of it came forward to the Secretary's see what to defend, and so as to make himself table, and voluntarily made the alterations accountable for the accusation. He specified which cut the connection between the bank and the law, which he believed to be violated, by the resolution! but it stood upon the record, its date and its title; and he specified the two by striking out every thing relative to the disinstances in which he held that law to have missal of Mr. Duane, the appointment of Mr. been infringed. Taney, and the removal of the deposits. But For the purpose of exposing the studied the alteration was made in the record only. vagueness of the resolution as passed, detecting The connection still subsisted in fact, now lives its connection with the Bank of the United in memory, and shall live in history. Yes, sir, States, demonstrating its criminal character in said Mr. B., addressing himself to the Presitwice retaining the criminal averment, " dan- dent of the Senate; yes, sir, the condemnation gerous to the liberties of the people," and show- of the President was indissolubly connected ing the progressive changes it had to undergo with the cause of the bank, with the removal before it could conciliate a majority of the of the deposits, the renewal of the charter, the votes, Mr. B. would exhibit all three of the restoration of the deposits, the vindication of resolutions, and read them side by side of each Mr. Duane, the rejection of Mr. Taney, the fate other, as they appeared before the Senate in the of elections, the overthrow of Jackson's adfirst, second, and third forms which they were ministration, the fall of prices, the distress made to wear. They appeared first in their meetings, the distress memorials, the distress embryo, or primordial form; then they as- committees, the distress speeches; and all the sumed their aurelia, or chrysalis state; in the long list of hapless measures which astonished, third stage, they reached the ulitmate perfec- terrified, afflicted, and deeply injured the countion of their imperfect nature. try during the long and agonized protraction [The three different forms of the sentence were of the famous panic session. All these things are connected, said Mr. B., and it became his here read.] duty to place a part of the proof which estabHaving exhibited the original resolution, with lished the connection before the Senate and the its variations, Mr. B. would leave it to others people. to explain the reasons of such extraordinary. B. then took up the appendix to the metamorphoses. Whether to get rid of the report made by the Senate's Committee of bank association, or to get rid of the impeach- Finance on the bank, commonly called Mr. ment clause, or to conciliate the votes of all Tyler's report, and read extracts from instrucwho were willing to condemn the President, tions sent to two-and-twenty branches of the but could not tell for what, it was not for him bank, contemporaneously with the progress of to say; but one thing he would venture to say, the debate on the criminating resolutions; the that the majority who agreed in prassing a object and effect of which, and their connecgeneral resolution, containing a criminal charge tion with the debate in the Senate, would be against President Jackson, for violating the quickly seen. Premising that the bank had laws and the constitution, cannot now agree in despatched orders to the same branches in the naming the law or the clause in the constitu- month of August, and had curtailed $4,066,000 tion violated, or in specifying any act consti- and again in the month of October to curtail tuting such violation. And here Mr. B. paused, $5,825,000, and to increase the rates of their and offered to give way to the gentlemen of exchange, and had expressly stated in a circular the opposition, if they would now undertake the 17th of that month, that this reduction to specify any act which President Jackson had would place the branches in a position of entire done in violation of Iaw or aonstitution. security, Mr. B. invoked attention to the shower of orders, and their dates, which he was about [No answer was made.] to read. He read passages from page 77 to 82,

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Title: Abridgment of the Debates of Congress, from 1789 to 1856.
Author: United States. Congress.
Canvas: Page 630
Publication: New York, [etc.]: D. Appleton and company [etc.]; 1857-61.
Subject terms: United States -- Politics and government

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Abridgment of the Debates of Congress, from 1789 to 1856.

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