ring the present session of Congress, to make great and important changes, affecting all branches of the revenue, and all the sources from which money comes into the public Treasury, calculations, estimates, conjectures, might be made as to the revenues of the present year; but all such calculations, even in that case, would be most vague and uncertain at best. The experience of the last two years has demonstrated the impossibility, with all the information which can be reached by those officers of the Government whose sole business and duty it is to manage our fiscal affairs, of so perfecting estimates upon this point that they may not disappoint us many millions. Distinguished and experienced legislators, too, have frequently attempted estimates with no better success, and no member of the Committee on Finance can pretend to information, or judgment, superior to those who have thus erred in their conjectures as to the receipts into our public Treasury for a given future period.

Add, then, the consideration that both branches of Congress are, at this moment, considering bills designed to diminish, for the future, the receipts into the Treas. ury from the sales of public lands, the impossibility that the committee should know whether any bill upon that subject will finally pass, and become a law; what may be the provisions of the bill which shall pase, in case any bill do pass; and what may be the effect, in practice, upon the receipts of money for land sales, of any given provisions which may be incorporated in any bill, and Mr. W. said he could not suppose it would be expected by the Senate that the Committee on Finance would have attempted any estimate of the amount to be reduced from the revenue from customs, in order to reduce the whole receipts into the Treasury to the standard of the economical wants of the Government. Against a body of contingencies and uncertainties of the magnitude and character specified, added to those which must always attend estimates of future revenue from uncertain sources, estimates in name would be more loose than ordinary conjectures; and so loose as to be of no other value than the mere conjectures of so many members of the body to which their report would be submitted. So much for the reasons which have led the committee to come to the conclusion not to attempt estimates, or calculations, or conjectures, as to the amount of money to come into the national Treasury during the present or any future year. They have satisfied themselves that the reductions from the revenue from customs proposed by the bill they recommend can be spared by the national Treasury, and leave it able to meet the necessary calls upon it. They do not pretend to say that further reductions will not be required to bring the revenue to the point so much desired, that of the economical wants of the Government. The receipts into the public Treasury are now greatly above that point. The committee have already said their examinations have convinced them that the great measures of reduction must be directed to that branch of the receipts arising from the sales of lands. They feel strongly the soundness of the principle, that reduction should be proceeded in cautiously and carefully; and, so far as that can be done, with a certainty that, while we are remedying one evil, we do not fall into another; that while we omit nothing which can be properly done to reduce the revenue to the wants of the Governmen', we do nothing calculated to carry us so far below that point as immediately to produce the necessity of again raising revenue by an increased rate of duties upon imports. These constant fluctuations, sudden and excessive changes in our revenue laws, and consequent agitations of the public mind, and uncertainties in the operations of mercantile and commercial men, Mr. W. said, he thought it most important, in any legislation, to avoid. Hence, he, as a member of the committee, had determined to pur

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sue what he considered a safe course, neither endangering nor disturbing any important protected interest of the country, or the public Treasury in meeting the necessary calls upon it. He had not attempted to determine that the bill would do all that a full remedy for the existing evil demanded, but merely that, in the present state of uncertainty as to the other important branch of the public receipts, and the influences upon it of the instant legislation of Congress, it was all the committee had concluded, at present, to recommend, and that so much might be done safely.

Mr. W. said there was no less difficulty in making calculations and estimates upon the other side of this great account, the public expenditures. The ordinary expenditures of the Government, that portion of the expenses required to keep all the departments of the Government in organization and operation, were laid before us by the proper fiscal officer of the Government, and appropriations to that extent might be very safely calculated upon. All the information within the power of the committee upon this class of appropriations had been equally fully in the hands of every member of Congress, from the commencement of the session. No benefit here, then, could be derived from any report the committee could have made. All beyond this was within the pleasure of the two Houses of Congress and the President. What extraordinary appropriations they might see fit to make for fortifications, for the navy, for public defence generally, or for any other of the great objects calling for expenditures of money, it was not only out of the power of the committee to say, but would be in vain for them to attempt to conjecture. They could not, therefore, with any certainty, estimate the expenses of the year. Mr. W. said he felt conscious that the appropriations of Congress would, as he thought those appropriations should, be graduated by a due regard to the ability of the Treasury to pay, and the public and national wants to be supplied; but he also further believed that a redundant Treasury always promoted, not large merely, but extravagant appropriations; and one of his greatest anxieties to reduce the national revenues to the national wants arose from the conviction that in that way only can we preserve a system of economical expenditures. He would add no more upon this branch of the subject, hoping the Senate would find in these suggestions sufficient apology for the action of the committee in submitting the bill without any attempt at a report upon these vague uncertainties.

He

A single other remark, (said Mr. W.,) and he would relieve the Senate from listening to him further. had not forgotten that another bill had been introduced elsewhere upon this same subject, and proposing to accomplish the same great purpose. He hoped he should not be considered as infringing, unpardonably, upon the rules of order, in making this reference to that measure. It might be supposed by some member of this body, it might be supposed by some member of the other House of Congress, or it might be supposed by some portion of our common constituents, that this bill, coming from the Committee on Finance, was designed to conflict with the measure referred to. For himself, (said Mr. W.,) he could say, with perfect truth, that no such motive or feeling had entered into his action. He was sure he could say the same for his colleagues upon the committee. They had considered the reference of the Senate, in the special manner in which it had been made, positive and mandatory upon them. A report of some sort was their duty, and the report which they believed most conformable to their duty, under the reference, was the bill he was about to present. The time for making their report was not a matter of their pleasure. If made in the shape of a bill, they were bound to make it in time to permit the possibility of action upon it; and they had

ones are at length to be reached which are essential to the prosperity of the national industry.

I have now discharged what I believed to be a duty. You have the power, both in this House and the other; you can do in this matter as you think proper. Go on, then. Disturb, distract the country; reagitate the community; reopen its wounds, just closed; do this, if it seems to you good; take upon yourselves the awful responsibility; but you shall never do it with my consent, nor without my solemn protest.

Mr. WRIGHT, in reply, observed that he should not argue the bill at this time. He had at present but one duty to perform, which was to report the bill. lle would say again that the Finance Committee considered the amount both of revenue and expenditure for the coming year so entirely dependent on the action of Congress, that, beyond the documents already on the tables of members, the committee could state no valuable fact for their consideration. He would move that the bill be made the special order of the day for Thursday next, and that, in the mean time, the statement which had been presented in company with the bill might be printed.

The printing having been ordered,

Mr. DAVIS observed that this measure was one of great importance, and worthy of great consideration. He considered it desirable to keep the country out of agitation; its prosperity depended more on that than this body seemed to be fully aware of; prosperity was impossible, under any policy, unless the nation had the assu rance of something steady in that policy. The nation wanted rest; the people need repose, that they may know what to do. He had almost said that even a bad policy, if steady, was better than a comparatively good one, if unsteady and perpetually fluctuating. This was pecu. liarly true in relation to the manufactures of the country, because those who conducted these establishments, if they were able to look a few years ahead, could shape their mode of conducting business so as to meet the policy of the Governmennt. The bill proposed seriously to affect, among other articles, that of salt, in which Mr. D's State was largely interested, inasmuch as very large capitals were vested in establishments for its manufacture upon the seashore. Inasmuch, therefore, that the country might understand what was doing here, and what was sought to be accomplished by this bill, he would ask that one thousand extra copies of the statement which bad accompanied the bill be printed. This was agreed to.

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on account of the public dues; and from and after the thirtieth day of December, eighteen hundred and thirtynine, the notes of no bank which shall issue or circulate bills or notes of a less denomination than ten dollars shall be so receivable; and from and after the thirtieth day of December, one thousand eight hundred and forty-one, the like prohibition shall be extended to the notes of all banks issuing bills or notes of a less denomination than twenty dollars.

Sac. 2. And be it further enacted, That no notes shall be received by the collectors or receivers of the public money which the banks in which they are to be deposited shall not, under the supervision and control of the Secretary of the Treasury, agree to pass to the credit of the United States as cash: Provided, That if any depos ite bank shall refuse to receive and pass to the credit of the United States, as cash, any notes receivable under the provisions of this act, which said bank, in the ordinary course of business, receives on general deposite, the Secretary of the Treasury is hereby authorized to withdraw the public deposites from said bank.

The question being on the passage of the bill,

Mr. BENTON rose and commenced his speech against its passage with stating the reason why he had not spoken the evening before, when the question was on the engrossment of the bill. He said that he could not have foreseen that the subject depending before the Senate, the bill for limiting the sales of the public lands to actual settlers, would be laid down for the purpose of taking up this subject out of its order; and, therefore, had not brought with him some memorandums which he intended to use when this subject came up. He did not choose to ask for delay, because his habit was to speak to subjects when they were called; and in this particular cause he did not think it material when he spoke; for he was very well aware that his speaking would not affect the fate of the bill. It would pass; and that was known to all in the chamber. It was known to the Senator from Ohio [Mr. EwING] who indulged himself in saying he thought otherwise a few days ago; but that was only a good-natured way of stimulating his friends, and bringing them up to the scratch. The bill would pass, and that by a good vote, for it would have the vote of the opposition, and a division of the administration vote. Why, then, did he speak? Because it was due to his position, and the part he had acted on the currency questions, to express his sentiments more fully on this bill, so vital to the general currency, than could be done by a mere negative vote. He should, therefore, speak

The bill was then read a second time, and made the against it, and should direct his attention to the bill reorder of the day for Thursday next.

TREASURY CIRCULAR.

The following bill, which was yesterday ordered to be engrossed for a third reading, was accordingly read a third time:

A bill designating and limiting the funds receivable for the revenues of the United States.

ported by the Public Land Committee, which had so totally changed the character of the proceeding on this subject. The recision of the Treasury order was intro

duced a resolution-it went out a resolution-but it came back a bill, and a bill to regulate, not the land of fice receipts only, but all the receipts of the Federal Government; and in this new form is to become statute law, and a law to operate on all the revenues, and to reBe it enacted, &c., That the Secretary of the Treasu- peal all other laws upon the subject to which it related. ry be, and hereby is, required to adopt such measures In this new form it assumes an importance, and acquires as he may deem necessary to effect a collection of the an effect, infinitely beyond a resolution, and becomes, Mr. public revenue of the United States, whether arising in fact as well as in name, a totally new measure. from duties, taxes, debts, or sales of lands, in the manB. reminded the Senate that he had, in his first speech ner and on the principles herein provided: that is, that no on this subject, given it as his opinion, that two main obsuch duties, taxes, debts, or sums of money payable for jects were proposed to be accomplished by the rescindlands, shall be collected or received otherwise than in ing resolution: first, the implied condemnation of Presithe legal currency of the United States, or in notes of dent Jackson for violating the laws and constitution, and banks which are payable and paid on demand in the said destroying the prosperity of the country; and, secondlegal currency of the United States, under the followingly, the imposition of the paper currency of the States restrictions and conditions in regard to such notes, to upon the Federal Government. With respect to the wit: from and after the passage of this act, the notes of first of these objects, he presumed it was fully proved no bank which shall issue or circulate bills or notes of by the speeches of all the opposition Senators who had a less denomination than five dollars shall be received spoken on this subject; and, with respect to the second,

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atic exclusion of the terms used in the constitution, even after their insertion is solicited; but all room for mistake vanishes when we come to look to this proviso, and to see that the deposite banks are not only required to credit paper as cash, but are to be punished by a loss of the public deposites if they do not so credit it!

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a most wretched bargain on the part of the United States a bargain in which what she receives is ruinous to her; for the more local paper she receives in payment of her revenues, the worse for her, and the sooner will her Treasury be filled with unavailable funds.

But what is worse is, that in order to make this ruinous bargain-a bargain by which the Treasury would be immediately filled with many ten millions of unavailable funds--we shall have to reject the proper, cheap, speedy, and effectual mode of suppressing these small notes which is now in our power, and not only in our power, but offered and pressed upon us. Mr. B. alluded to the propositions of the deposite banks to effect this suppres sion, not only for themselves, but on other banks also, which were now in the Treasury Department, and waiting the action of the Government. He himself had communicated with a great number of these banks, both personally and by letter, and knew that many of the most respectable deposite banks were not only willing, but ready and anxious to enter into arrangements with the Treasury Department for the effectual and speedy accomplishment of this purpose. Two years ago, he said, the Secretary of the Treasury had addressed a circular letter to the deposite banks, to know if they were wil

the conditions on which they were to retain the public deposites. He held a copy of that circular in his hand, and knew that many favorable answers had been received, and was certain that they presented the ready and far preferable mode of suppressing this small-note circulation.

He

Mr. B. repeated, it was not in Congress only that he had worked at this object; he had communicated with many banks; and, from those of large business and high character, he had invariably received the strongest assurances, not only of a readiness, but of a wish to cooperate with the Government in this good work. would read from one communication, a letter from Mr. Campbell P. White, president of the Manhattan Bank, New York, and would show the resolutions which that gentleman had drawn up and sent to him (Mr. B.) at the commencement of this session, to accomplish this ob ject. This is the extract:

Having remarked upon the phraseology of the bill, and shown that a paper currency, composed of the notes of a thousand local banks, not only might become the currency of the Federal Government, but was evidently intended to be made its currency; and that, in the face of all the protestations of the friends of the administration in favor of re-establishing the national gold currency, Mr. B. would now take up the bill of the committee under two or three other aspects, and show it to be as mistaken in its design as it would be impotent in its effect. In the first place, it transferred the business of suppressing the small-note circulation from the deposite branch to the collecting branch of the public revenue. At present, this business was in a course of progress through the deposite banks, as a condition of holding the public moneys, and, as such, had a place in the deposite act of the last session, and also had a place in the President's message of the last session, where the suppression of paper currency under twenty dollars was expressly refer-ling to give up their small-note circulation, as a part of red to the action of the deposite banks, and as a condition of their retaining the public deposites. It was through the deposite banks, and not through the reception of local bank paper, that the suppression of small notes should be effected. In the next place, he objected to the committee's bill, because it proposed to make a bargain with each of the thousand banks now in the United States, and the hundreds more which will soon be born, and to give them a right--a right by law--to have their notes received at the federal Treasury. He was against such a bargain. He had no idea of making a contract with these thousand banks for the reception of their notes. He had no idea of contracting with them, and giving them a right to plead the constitution of the United States against us, if, at any time, after having agreed to receive their notes, upon condition that they would give up their small circulation, they should choose to say we had impaired the contract by not continuing to receive them; and so either relapse into the issue of this small trash, or have recourse to the judicial process to compel the United States to abide the contract, and continue the reception of all their notes. Mr. B. had no idea of letting down this Federal Government to such petty and inconvenient bargains with a thousand moneyed corporations. The Government of the United States ought to act as a Government, and not as a contractor. It should prescribe conditions, and not make bargains. It should give the law. He was against these bargains, even if they were good ones; but they were bad bargains, wretchedly bad, and ought to be rejected as such, even if all higher and nobler considerations were out of the question. What is the consideration that the United States is to receive? A mere individual agreement with each bank by itself, that in three years it will cease to issue notes under ten dollars, and in five years it will cease to issue notes under twenty dollars. What is the price which she pays for this consideration? In the first place, it receives the notes of such bank as gold and silver at all the land offices, custom-houses, and post offices, of the United States, and, of course, pays them out again as gold and silver to all her debtors. In the next place, it compels the deposite banks to credit them as cash. In the third place, it accredits the whole circulation of the banks, and makes it current all over the United States, in consequence of universal receivability for all federal dues. In other words, it endorses, so far as credit is concerned, the whole circulation of every bank that comes into the bargain thus proposed. This is certainly

"I submit to you two resolutions that I think should be passed by a concurrent vote of the two Houses of Congress. The large amount of specie, above seventy millions of dollars, now in the United States, makes it a favorable moment, if not an imperative duty, to repress the circulation of all bank notes under the denomination

of twenty dollars. As some persons question the con stitutional power, and others the expediency, of resorting to taxation for this purpose, none can object to making it a condition for retaining the public deposites, that the deposite banks shall check and repress the emission of paper, so as to secure to us that portion of the money in circulation in the world which our exchangeable products bear to the whole exchangeable products of the world, and which we should ever enjoy, were it not driven out by the substitution of the shadow for the substance--the substitution of paper for gold and silver."

This is the extract of the letter, (said Mr. B.,) and the sentiments in it are worthy of the gentleman who, as a former member of Congress, was one of those most instrumental in reviving the gold circulation, by taking a lead in correcting the erroneous standard of our gold. The following are the two resolutions communicated at the same time:

"Resolved, That from and after the 4th day of July, 1837, no bank shall be employed, or continued in the employment of the Treasury of the United States as a deposite bank, unless they shall previously engage, in writing, under their corporate seal, to issue and put in