26 Luther Martin..a-delegate from the State of Maryland, in his disclosures to the legislature of that State, makes the following remarks: “ By our original articles of confederation, the Congress have power to borrow money and emit bills of credit on the credit of the United States; agreeable to which was the report on this system as made by the committee of detail. When we came to this part of the report, a motion was made to strike out the words ‘ to emit bills of credit;’ against the motion we urged, that it would be improper to deprive the Congress of that power; that it would be a novelty unprecedented to establish a government which should not have such authority. That it was impossible to look forward into futurity solar as to decide, that events might not happen th at should render the exercise of such a power absolutely necessary; and that we doubted, whether if a war should take place it would be possible for this country to defend itself, without having recourse to paper credit, in which case there would be a necessity of becoming a prey to our enemies, or violating the constitution of our government; and that, considering the administration of the government would be principally in the hands of the wealthy, there could be little reason to fear an abuse of the power by an unnecessary or injurious exercise of it. But, sir, a majority of;the convention, being wise beyond every event, and being willing to risk any political evil rather than admit the idea of a paper emission, in any possible case, refused to trust this authority to a government, to which they were lavishing the most unlimited powers of taxation, and to the mercy of which they were willing blindly to trust the liberty and property of the citizens of every State in the Union; and they erased that clause from the system.”—Elliot’s Debates, vol. l,p. 413. “By the tenth section, every State is prohibited from emitting bills of credit. As it was reported by the committee of detail, the States were only prohibited from emitting them without the consent of Congress: but the convention was so smitten with the paper money dread, that they insisted the prohibition should be absolute. It was my opinion, sir, that the States ought not to be totally deprived of the right to emit bills of credit, and that as we had not given an authority to the General Government for that purpose, it was the more necessary to retain it in the States. 1 considered that this State, and some others, have formerly received great benefit from paper emissions, and that if public and private credit should once more be restored, such emissions may hereafter be equally advantageous ; and further, that it is impossible to foresee that events may not take place which shall render paper money of absolute necessity; and it was my opinion if this power was not to be exercised by a State without the permission of the General Government it ought to be satisfactory even to those who were the most haunted by the apprehensions of paper money-; I therefore thought it my duty to vote against this part of the system. “ The same section, also, puts it out of the power of the States to make any thing but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts, or to pass any law impairing the obligation of contracts.”—lb. p. 422; “March the Wth, 1798.— When the bank bill was under discussion in the House of Representatives, Judge Wilson came in, and was standing by Baldwin. Baldwin reminded him of the following fact which passed in “the grand convention.” Among the enumerated powers given to Congress, was one to erect corporations. It was on debate struck out. Several particular powers were then proposed. Among others, Robert Morris proposed to give Congress a power to establish a national bank. Gouverneur Morris opposed it, observing that it was extremely doubtful whether the constitution they were framing could ever be passed at all by the people of America; that to give it Us best chance, however, they should make it as palatable as possible, and put nothing into it not very essential, which might raise up enemies; that his colleague (Robert Morris) well knew that ‘a bank’ was in their State (Pennsylvania) the very watch word of party; that a bank had been the great bone of contention between the two parties of the State, from the establishment of their constitution, having been erected, put down, erected again, as either party preponderated; that, therefore, to insert this power, would instantly enlist against the whole instrument, the whole of the anti-bank party in Pennsylvania. Whereupon it was rejected, as was every other special power, except that of giving copyrights to authors, and patents to inventors; the general power of incorporating being whittled down to this shred. Wilson agreed to the fact.—Jefferson’s Memoirs.” Now, sir, let us consider, for a moment, the several statements made by the delegates to the convention, and of Mr. Jefferson, in connexion with the evidence contained in the journal, and see if an array of testimony be not presented in opposition to the unfounded and impudent assumption—that it was the intention of the convention to authorize Congress to “emit bills of credit”—that is decisive and overwhelming. It appears by the disclosures of Luther Martin, as well as by the original journal, that propositions were repeatedly made, in the convention, to authorize Congress to emit “ bills of credit,” and that all propositions to that effect, were most signally
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