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THE REFLECTOR. MILLEDGEVILLE, G. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 1, 1818. Georgia Legislature JHepresentati ves—Tuesday, *\ or. 17. —1 semi von, m conformity with * rc- ubstrac; of tlie argument I del vei cd beu ,c tiie , on the application of Messrs. Schultz ami tor a charter. R\ those who heard it ilcliu'r- rei.ilih recognized; hut to such as did not, to reijucst, that they will receive this us a view of the argument only—not a speech, hut Yottr’sjScc. T. l'Oin'. die, November 26,1818. on the Agricultural IIanlc Question. 'OUT, vt Baldwin—Mr. Chairman, resent state of this country, it will enied, that it is to agriculture and *c we are to look for the most desira- ,ts of pursuit. rerce brings to us the luxuries anil nces of other countries, and diffus- tis the blessings of our own. It is that commerce should he brought or of every man, so that lie may pro fit he wants at the easi-st rate, and he makes for the highest price, c experience of all countries prove, nerce cannot tlourish without capi- ‘ wlicncver the merchant trades on a -k, his profits must be large or he bsist. Hence, lie demands a high is goods; and this operates as a farmer. But if there is, at any distance, a place of large trading here the merchant can afford to r for his profits, the farmer will better market for his produce s at a cheaper rate. In this way, own acquires a large capital, it will products of agriculture even against able obstacles to the transportation, aw of commerce is in the present ch augmented in its force by the cl anks. These institutions, by sub- credit for capital, afford to mer- uch facilities in trade as to give the here they are located, a decided ad- over others. Much has been said banks, amt in a government like eir existence is to be deplored. Aris- in their origin, they are the bane of an institutions. Whenever they in- country, the ranks of society divide hem. This is, to a certain extent, itable consequence of wealth in any but by the banking system its pow- bled. Who does not sec amongst us sinking to an insufferable distance rich ? But who ean say these things t be ? Unfortunately it is no longer on whether we shall have banks.— •e already among us, and it is not in »er to destroy them. Nor would their j ion avail us any thing, so long as they our sister states. Such a measure ntail on us a foreign paper medium, the evils and none of the benefits of for say what you will of the banks, mand the commerce of our country, ts tioek annum them, unawed In ity they arc compelled to practice, is said, that we are in want of bank »r the purposes of trade. l)o gen- ink their absurd calculations quab ove it ? Do they know so little oi lation of money, as to suppose we re- irculaiing medium extensive enough ~e a w hole crop at once ? Are they , that our little merchants purchase For produce to four or five times the f their capital every year ? Their ns differ from the truth, uy at least, s the value of a y ear’s produce is money in the hands of individuals je time, in their rage for theory ook facts. Whoever found Augusta o purchase cotton ? or when did issue paper to the extent of their The state hank, I anrauthorised as never done it; nor indeed has to my know ledge. ?ectors of banks have, in all parts .untry, become unpopular. This table consequence of their situa- thc laws that govern them. But it aid that the note of a man living ntry is not put on a footing with citizen of a town, however well se- conutry paper may be. And do suppose ti.ese men prefer to dis- weakesl paper ? This would be ail idiot. But the secret is lliis : rcr of a note is not hound to pay it is furnished with a notice of its non. ntbin a reasonable time thereafter, y one knows this would be imprac- Tliis rule of law wa's made for the the distant endorser* But the this state detest the distinction it to. They are right.—Then let law, as far as it relates to banks, . The people of Georgia will endorsements they make, and ;bound for the payment of such let me say, in this place, this law to the directors of banks, ion before us is local. If it is ic enormous real and artificial e city of Augusta, is the cause nse trade, it becomes us to en- ler it is for the interest of the rity of this state to erect this as a loadstone to draw the pr i- iculturc, at an imuien^* expense rr, from every part ofr'^rgia? easier to transfer a traw^ capi- Iwdr tal to the Altamalia ami its. streams; to draw the commerce of the state into more convenient channels, and save tiie farmer the immense sums lie pays for transportation. Can the establishment of this bank benefit the eastern border of this state l lias not the town of Augusta more than capital en ough to do their trade ? Then why wish to usurp the trade of the whole country ? But if the eastern border of the state can receive blit little benefit from this law, what part of the state can it be expected to advantage ? Not the western.—They are already paying a tribute of tiie land carriage of their cotton entirely across the state ; and shall wo he tiie men who will perpetuate this evil? As to the low country their interest is clear: The town of Savannah is sufficiently remote from most of them ; but transfer to Augus ta the whole commerce of the state, and they are the most remote and inconvenient section in it. I now come to the delicate subject of the applicants for this charter. I beg leave to consider them only as capitalists, totally un connected with any moral character they may deserve. I cheerfully grant that they have been very liberal to tiie up county peo ple. But have they not met with their re ward? Have they not been liberally paid for all the loans they have made ? and where have they obtained the overgrown fortunes by which they are enabled to make this pro position. Surely I should delight in seeing the fruits of gratitude ample as the bounty ol Heaven. Hut do the people of Georgia owe a debt of gratitude to Messrs. Schultz He M'Kinnec ? If it was ever due it has been amply paid. I should think, ttiat these men are doing a business large enough in all con science. W by then do they urge, their claim for a charter at this time ? The reason is plain : loaning money is a popular business : but collecting it is far otherwise. They wish a charter to place them out of the reach of popular resentment. For now it lias become necessary that they should send out the she- riff and the marshal. This year’s continu ance of their operations and the knell of their departed popularity, has tolled. And who blames them ? They only pursue their own interest, and it is for us to avoid legalizing their operations, w hen they arc destructive of the ends of society. But it is said, that our rivers (tiie Alta- malia and its branches,) arc not sufficiently navigable to answer the purposes of com merce. Can such an extravagant notion prevail for a moment? Boats from Mil- kdgeville arc of sixty tons burthen ; they descend to Darien and return in forty days ; they arc navigated by sixteen hands—and yet our farmer’s find it to their interest to waggon their cotton to Augusta. And why is this so ? Because we have neither capital here nor at our sea-port. Our little mer chants, after purchasing a few bales of cot ton. must stop business till they make sales. They cannot wait longer than a waggon will run to Augusta for a return of their funds—and this is the case with all the west ern section of this state. The price of trans portation is the tribute we pay ; how long shall we, who are so rich in the products of agriculture, and convenient to navigable streams, remain tributary to 1 he mercantile ascendency of a few men ? Let us offer a- mong us facilities to trade, and the merchant and his capital will immediately follow. Can this policy, so obvious, be overlooked ? Can the legislature he duped into the passage of this bill, so palpably against the interest of a great majority of the people of Georgia ? I trust not. Mr. B. WILLIAMS, of Putnam.—Mr. Chairman,—It must he well recollected, that I have, ever since 1 have had the honor of be ing a representative of the state, opposed the principles of banking ; because the constitu tion of the United States, art. 1st. and sect. 1 Oth. states, •• that no state shall enter into any treaty, alliance or confederation, grant letters of marque and reprisals, coin money, emit bills of credit, make any thing but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts, pass bills of attainder, expost facto law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts, or grant any title of nobility.*’ The present banks are monopolizing a large part of the wealth of the state on a false capital, and at tlie expense of the balance of the cit izens of the state ; and it must be well un derstood that money will force its way, and 1 fear, that it will not only draw the wealth of the state out of the hands of the balance of the citizens, hut also, the reins of gov ernment. I am therefore in favor of the present bill ; because 1 wish it restricted in such a way as to make all of their private property hound for the payment of their bills, and on their refusing to pay gold and silver for their bills, they shall forfeit their char ter ; and that will compel other banks to pay gold and silver for their bills, or they will loose their credit. This is, in my opin ion, the best way to check them, as they have got a cha - * contrary, to what I be lieved at the ti \ ranted, to be right, and am of the y ii as yet—and w ill ever preserve, ■ i ■. k to be the true interest of the MR. T. I. . < -i .. (of Greene.) Mr. Chairman—I . "*h i view of testing the general pr the Banking sys tem, I therefor at the committee rise and report that they have disagreed t the bill. In making this motion, it inaj bo expected that I should give some of the reasons whirlt will influence my vote. To go at length into the origin of Banks would require more time than this committee would feel willing to bestow, and would be a task to which 1 feel myself totally inadequate. I am well aware that the friends of this hill will contend that at this time it would be im proper to go into the original question as to the policy of banks, but for myself I must acknowledge that thequestion whether banks were originally right or not, considerably in fluences the vote 1 shall give—That banks were originally instituted for the benefit of commerce, and were solely intended to apply to commercial men, is a fact confirmed by history. In Europe as well as in this country as commerce extended it has been thought that it was necessary to increase the number of banks, and such lias been the enormous extension of this system in many of the states, that it is viewed as an evil of such magnitude as to excite the fears of every re flecting man. We have only to direct our eyes to some of the northern states, & we will readily discover the ruinous consequences resulting from this system. Indeed in the state of Kentucky, I have recently received information of the deplorable condition of tiie people of that state, since this mammoth of distraction lias been established am oiigst them. I will acknowledge that hanks properly restricted may be advantageous to commer cial men, in facilitating the means of ex change, but whenever you transcend those limits you attack the first principles of our government, and sap the morals of the whole community. By them you establish a mon ied aristocracy, opposed to every feature of a republican form of government, and you change the character of our citizens, by con verting the Agriculturist into a speculator— such has been the result in all countries where banks have been the order of the day and such will be the effect produced in this state if we should charter the banks applied for at this session. I shall first endeavor, Mr. Chairman, to satisfy this committee, that the banks already chartered in this state, have already had a bad effect on the. community. One of the evils which lias been consequential on this system lias been the total disappearance of specie from among us. It is to be sure contended that notwith standing specie is not in general circulation, yet it remains in the rc.ff rs of the banks, and that the bills of chartered banks are the fair representatives of gold and silver. If this position was literally true, the friends of this bill might be able to occupy a strong ground ; but when we recollect that specie is above par even at the very doors of the banks, it will appear evident that hank notes are not the proper and fair representatives of specie. To give to them full credit it is import;; ii. that the holders of these bills should be able to command the specie at par not only by presenting them at bank, hut from individuals in the neighborhood of those banks ,vhu have specie on hand.—It is a notorious fact,that tiie banks already eliar- lered have discovered an unaccommodating disposition towards the payment of specie, even since they have pledged themselves to redeem their hills by the payment of specie, for when you present their hills and demand gold, they will tender you silver, and so vice versa, which is a clear demonstration that they were desirous of avoiding the payment of specie, and if forced to pay it, they will pay you off in just that kind of specie which you did not desire ; and depend on it, Mr. Chairman, notwithstanding the boasted spir it of liberality aud accommodation spoken of as belonging to the petitioners who have pro duced this bill towards the farmers of this state, grant them a charter, and you will soon discover that like other bankers, they will pursue their own individual interest and security.—1 have heard it suggested by hon orable gentlemen, that as we have gono so far in the hanking establishment in this state that w e, cannot recede, and that although it was originally wrong, we must pursue the evil, ami suffer it to cure itself: adnetrineas absurd as it is ridiculous, and which is well calculated to subvert every moral principle. 1 am fully sensible, Mr. Chairman, that this measure is presented to us under eircu in stances very auspicious, and dressed in col ours very specious and plausible ; but we should take especial care, that although the draught may be sweet and pleasant to the taste, that (hero is not poison ingeniously concealed, which will leave its sting behind. In the second place, I am clearly of opinion, that there is at present sufficient circulating medium, to purchase up all the produce of our country, and to answer all the purposes of commerce. It is ascertained that the ex ports from this state the last year amounted to about fourteen millions of dollars, and yet the price of cotton was higher than over was before known, and was readily sold by the planter. If there had been a deficiency of circulating medium, it must have followed, that the price of produce, would have been lower in this state, (in the ordinary pro portion) than in South Carolina, where they have much more banking capital ; hut such was not the fact; yet say the friends of this hill, w o wis{i to expel foreign bapk paper, and give to onr citizens the profits arising from the circulation of this paper, to accom plish which they contend it is necessary to charter this bank; for myself, Mr. Chairman, l believe that a certain portion of foreign paper is necessary to commerce, aud tlnit if we had ten times as much bank paper of our own state, that this foreign paper would find its way here with aiview of facilitating com merce in the remission of money to other states,but if for argument sake, we admit that there is a deficiency of circulating medium, I do not believe, that the legislature would actwisely in granting this charter, but would do much more justice in applying this neces sary circulating medium, to another section of this state, where they have at present no banking institution. If any applicati n of this kind should meet with legislative sanc tion, the one from Darien is the only one that deserves (lie fostering hand of this legis lature -S .me of the friends of this bill have urged, that banks have greatly benefited the planter, because, the price of cotton, since tlu-ir establishment, lias so greatly increased. Tills doctrine is illusory ; for while nominal ly, we receive a greater sum of money than formerly for our cotton, if the planter de sires to purchase either land or negroes with the surplus profits of his crop, he is unablo to purchase as much land or as many slaves, as when he received less for his cotton.— The prices of land and slaves, have increas ed in a greater ratio, than cotton, since the establishment of banks in this state. There fore the planter cannot b< benefited by tho chartering of other banks. It lias also been contended, by the friends of this bill, that (lie planter would be peculiarly benefited, by one feature in the bill, which authorizes him to draw money from the bank by giving a country endorser. For my part, Mr. Chair man, I doubt very much, whether you would benefit the planter by affording him the fa cilities of going into bank, for his crop or harvest comes in only once a year, and there fore, the punctuality required in banks might essentially injure him. The planter, in my opinion, had much better (if he. is obliged to borrow money) apply to Ids neighbor ; for with him an accidental failure in payment would not impair his credit, nor injure Ids standing in the estimation of the community, while a failure in bank is well calculated to destroy both. To draw to a close, Mr. Chairman, I do not believe that banks art* productive of general good. I am also, clearly of opinion, that we have already en ough chartered in this state, for the purpos es of commerce ; and feeling satisfied that tho hank bills already in circulation, are not the true representatives of gold and silver, I ain constrained to oppose the further pro gress of this bill ; and while I give this vote, I feel conscious of a faithful discharge of my duty, towards my God, my country, and tny- selk I shall therefore, close my remarks, Ibr the present, and patiently wait to hear the reasons in support of tins important measure. Mr. BLAIR, (of Franklin) said, as to tho banks generally, lie had been against them, lie voted for the charter of the State Bank, thinking that all persons would be equally benefited. He was mistaken—it only bene fits a few to the injury of the farmers, and more particularly in the back country, as tliey cannot obtain town endorsers. It has been suggested by some gentlemen that the charter prevents money being advanced to planters without town endorsers. He denied the fact—It was the directors who made those regulations. He was determined, lie said, during the time lie Itad the honor of a seat in this house, never to give his vote to a hank ing institution for any given time, beyond the reach of the legislature. The bill on the table was shaped differently from all charter ed banks in the state—It was completely un der the controul of any future legislature. He would further observe, that M’Rinncc He Schultz, lie was sorry to state, had been by some gentlemen who had spoken, not on ly abused, but it had been roundly asserted that they were not honest men, and tiiat it was an insult to this legislature for them to have made such propositions : For his part, he viewed them as honest men ; and be as serted that the Bridge Bills were letter credit in the up-country, than the bins of any of the chartered banks. The reason of this was obvious—will any gentleman under take to say that specie was ever refused when the bills of the Bridge Company were pre sented ? No, they eannot. Is this the case with the chartered banks ? No—destroy that bill on your table, and you prevent the far ming interest of tiie back country from be ing on an equal footing with the merchant of your cities and towns ; aud these very mer chants will make you take their prices for your produce—you will be compelled pi take it, if your necessities call for money. Then, Mr. Chairman, farmers that cannot obtain town endorsers, and have no opportunity of getting money by a deposit of produce or on country endorsement, must go without—then comes home to us the want of money. Thus far L have given my opinion on the subject—. 1 shall certainly support the bill. Mr. HUDSON spoke in supportof the sub stitute proposed by bis colleague to the origi nal bill. He agreed with the. gentleman from I'wiggs (Mr. M. Fort,) that tho question be fore the house was a general, anil not a Ip.