JOciJforit lufiiirer.
BY TUYiB OYER.
mufti? MEssieg.
To the Honoral'lt the Senators and .Members of
the Bouse of Representatives of the Gener
al vlifmbly:
Gentlemen: —Bv the suffrages of your fel
low citizeus, you have been charged with the
duty of representing theoi, and the iutercsts of
tnc (jounuouwealth, in th-' legislative branch of
the government. The responsibilities yeu have
assumed, aud ibe duties tobperformed should
ever be regarded as paramount to every seifish
or partizm consideration. The prosperity of
'he State, and the general welfare of the peo
ple, should receive your earnest attention, and
be the aim ant end of your legislative action.
To promote these objects, I wiit cheerfully, in
every legal au.J constitutional manner, unririg
the continuance ot my official term, co-operate
with you.
The past year, with the exception of recent
fiuancial cnibarasMiicnt, has been one of gene
ral prosper it y. No loreigu wars—no fraternal
strife has disturbed the peaceful quiet of our
homes. Unwonted health, with its blessings,
has been voueh-at'ed to us. Seedtime and har
vest have uot failed—the earth hath yielded
her increase, and richly rewarded the laimr of
the husband men. i'lie arts and -cicuoes have
been advanced, and the great interests "f edu
cation, ninr.dsn and religion liberally encour
aged ami jUstaiuCii. Q,jr barton in in unity—
our free institutions in their isiegr:tv, with
our rights and privileges civil nnd refigiuus.
have l.eioi preserve 1. iv-c.ogn'ziug th these
tdi jsings itic g■ ' -1 -•> of A'migtiiy G>f, we
eh-niid render to iioo the i: ::ti ge of gr. t ful
heart- and the dewoiinn ~f out srucre praise;
and svhil-r humbly acknowledging Hi-, n; rcies
to us as a people, let u- stiii further express
Our gratitude !•> lliut, by acts of imlividyil
<-tiaritv an i kindness to the p""f and hei|d' >s
in our midst, ti irrow now fills til- ti 'art-, ami
alyctsity darkens tlio b.'Miios of tiiauy of our
citizens. Our id.er*lit. saoul tbe gene re us
our benefaction- uiunific 11!; atid ttius, wiiiie
thu wants of the pour ami suffering are relicv
. C
cl,t!e gctttti Ims giver wiil find a rich reward
in the pioasurc that results iVoui cououuniv itcd
giMid.
Th" ft nines nl the <3om:itonCahb' ar© in a
very - .tijifactory conditior. Doing t!;t past
year, every dcinand upon the Treasury has
i'l-.'gu {• oiiipiiy ; .-iiii :ro.u the revenues derived
from the ordinary sources. Tnc orftitjons ol
tuis de;.icrtmeut will be ptrscuted toy mi, iu de
tail, 'in the t-p' r; of rise State T rea*ur?r.
Fr (Iu fi.- .mi year > ruing Noveiuber 3t'Ti,
1857. the receipts > ■ th,- !>• i-uiy. rficiudiug ■
t-alcnec ill lltO r.-eu-tli'V "tl the first, day ni Do- t
■oemhei-, 1850, .f $1,244,7'd0 42, were $5,- j
935,383 20. i'ue aggregate, ex pen iitorcs lor I
tti 5 .same per ml, wore $->,407,270 79. Bai• t
itoje in tbe Treasury, December 1, ISo 1, •
$528,106 47. Kx.duding tl. • balan? •iu t!.e
Treasury on the first day of Dcceiiitx.w, l8:i0. I
tiie iceeip's trom a.l sources were $1,090,587 '
*4. ibe twiiory cxpei.uitures tor the -aim
1.1-riou were $3,992,470 29, cxn.bi uii u !-x
--cess "f receipts over txptuditures y! $098.-
217 55. The • xtri.nrdnj <• y payuieiits fur the
year weru %ii,414,906 50, s tidlow-, to wit:
> hu coinpicuou ot tnc Port'igc 1 Hijruad,
$49,001 92; n> the Nor'ii Brattcb exten.-iou
$138,798 85; to re-lay > vsutli track of the
Oolnmbia railroad, $91,405 40; ;o etilarg":
the Delaware division, $46,263 00; Cor motive
power iu 1850, $81,004 24, for repairs in
1855 and i860,' $19,504 78: for the rt demp-
Mni! of loans, $820,097 03, daiu.ig<:s ou pub
lic works, $46,552 05; oi l claims on the
mailt iitit: adjusted umier the several acts uf
Assembly. $40,548 •>!, an i for Ibe ti-w tstate
Ar.->eu.ii and Fartucrs* High Sclioo!, $15,000
00.
The interest 011 the funded debt due in Feb
ruary aud August last, was then promptly paid,
and that falling due in February next, will be
paid out of available means now in the Treas
ury. in virtue of the precisians of the act oi
the 13'h of October, 1857, emitted -*Au Act
providing tor the resumption of spe.ic pay
ments by tiie banks, and for the relief of debi
tors," the State Treasurer will be enabled to
pay the interest duu iu February, in specie or
Us equivalent. The credit of the IJontuion
wealih has been fully und honorably °ustained.
Tiie prompttiess with which every legitimate
demand upon the Treasury has Wo met, has j
inspired public confidence in our securities;
sud although receut and existing financial re
vulsion may euibarass the operations of the
ot the Ireasury, and reduce, to some extent,
the revenue, ye; the ability of the Biate to
meet her engagements and maintain bt?r credit, ,
under an honest •, ] economical administration j
ot her finances, is undoubted. The horor and j
credit ot the bute must and can be preserved •
lutact.
The Commissioners of the Sinking Fund re
port the sum of $414,920 29 as" now in rbe I
I reasury to the credit ot that fuml. This
amount will be applied to the redemption of
relief notes yet in ciaculatiert, aud to the pay
ment of the funded deft of the Commonwealth
The commissioners of this fund, on tho 7th
d iy of September last, reported to me h sum
ot ono million forty-two thousand eight hun
dred an i fifty seven dollars and sixty-four
ccuia, ($1,042,857 64) of the dei-t of the
Commonwealth, was lield by them, as follows,
vtz:
iioaus of 19ih of April, 1853,
over due, temporary, $400,009 00 !
laoans of 9th Ot May, 1854, do, 104,000 00 !
Certificates of stock, loans of
April 11, 1848,6 per cent., 66,501 00 '
Do., leans uf various dates at 5
, P cr cent > 9,316 04 |
Relief Uiites CauOL'lled ut
, stroyed, 373,040 0c 1
Treasury, set aside for
Cancellation," 30,000 00 j
r "* aJ . 1,042.857 64 i
As required by law. T dtrrc*>id the ecrfifi- •
A Weekly Paper, Devoted to Literature, Politics, the Arts, Sciences, Agriculture, &c., &c---Terms: Ono Dollar and Fifty Cents in Advance.
eates and evidences of thin indebtedness to be
cancelled: and ou the 1 Orb of September, 1857,
issued my proclamation declaring the payment
; extinguishment und final discharge of one niil
lioii forty-two thousand eight hundred and fifty
seven dollars and sixty bur cents (1,042,-
857 04) of the public debt.
In addition to the amount reported to he in
the Treasury to the credit of the sinking fund,
| and applicable to the payment of the public
| debt, the comnhsMouers of the fund BOW h<dd
: the sum of seven and one halt millions of dol
i iars, ($7,500,000) bonis of the Pennsylvania
| railroad company, pledged by law to the pay
ment of the funded debt of the (JouiaiemveaJih.
j By the fourth section of the eleventh article
! of the Constitution, as amende 1 and ratified by
| a majority of the qualified voters of the Bute,
.at the general election held on the second
| Tuesday of Oeybcr, 1857, it is made ;ii duty
jof the Legislature at its first sessiou after th©
j adoption of this arneu iment, to craaje a sinking
1 fund, -which shall be sufficient to pay the am- '
! cruing interest ou the present public debt, and I
, any additional debt thereafter constitutionally
I contracted, an i aunualiy to'reduce the princi
pal ih-teoi by a sum not less th in two hundred i
and fifty thousand dollars, (§250,000,) which
'Sinking fund shall consist of the net annual |
.income of the public works fruui time to time,:
i owned Ity the fitute, or the proceeds of the sale j
of the same, or any purr, thereof, ami of the iti
; eyiue or proceeds 1 sale of si owned bv
; the State, t gct'ucr with oilier funds Of re- !
sources that may tie designated by law. Ti •
said sinking.funu nuy be increased Iruht tiiu"
to time by assigning to it any part of the tax
! os or other revenues of the State, not required I
| Ibr the ordjosry and ouiimt t*xp©m>e m 'iov
tinuroi.t, Mid, unless iu ease of * ;r, invasion •.
insurrection, r.o par: of suit! tanking fund shall
he used or applied otherwise than in xtin
g'lishmeiit ot the public debt, until fhc a I'm utt
|<f such debt is reduced below the u.n of t tiyi? I
millions of dollars," {55,009,009 )
'lbis being th? tirt sessiou of th ■ L->gw| a- 1
:ure Mi:ce the adoptioti or this amendment, th?
duty therein eiijoiue t devotes Upon you, mi i
.sbculd be promptly an 1 t aiihiuliy diuli ug-u. |
d ue fu-uje-l au.l nuftiuic-i dent of tin State,
including temy 'riryibuj*, mine tins yiy
December, 1006, us per report* of Audio.
Gcfinrul and Bute H r-usurc-r, was us follows,
v r.
v . . gIXV lvitlf JaJE&g. a
0 per con', loans •? > i 1, i i •' 1
38,866,934 50
41 d„ UU
4 do 100,000 00
Total funded dolt. $30,860,975 0'
UNFUNDED IALUT.
Belief notes in etrciilaiiun, $220,550 00
lt.tcv.xt certifiaate- out.standing, 24,091 37
IVi m. :aimed, 4,448 3S
Domes! ic ore liters, 1,104 00
Mi hi nee temporary loan, Ap'ii
19.1853,' 400.000 00
D May"9. 1854, 184.000 "0
'ioiai i.iifuu'led uchf, 834,8.;9 $ ..•
1f*,701,835 25
The funded mul unfunded cfnbt, ,u t|,e close
of the ia>t fiscal year, December 1, 1857, was
as follows, iz:
FUNDED DEBT.
G per cent, loan, $445,1 SO 00
5 J,., 38,773,212 52
4i do, 388,200 00
4 do. 100,000 00
Total funded debt, $39,700,592 52
UNFUNDED DEBT.
Relief notes in circulation, $140,421. 00
Interest certificates outstanding, 23,478 82
Do uricla-med, 4,448 3*
\ Domestic creditors, 802 5U
Total uafanJed 81 ot, 175,145 70
Total debt, Dec. 1,185 i, 39,881,788 22
Total debt, lice. 1, 1850, $40,701,835 25
Do do 1, 1857,' 39.881,738 22
Decrease during late fiscal year, 820,097 55
These statements exhibit he gratify it g fact,
that during the past fiscal year, -.lie public debt
has been reduced eight hundred and twenty
thousand niucty-seven dollars and fifty five
emus. During the same period large appro
priations and pay incuts wort made on account
of uur public improvements, for old ami unset
tled claims adjusted under the act of iast ses
sion, and for other extraordiu try purposes.
The condititiun of the Treasury prior to the
suspension of specie payments by the Batik*,
ju.st.fied the appropriation of at least $200,000
mere in payiueut of the public debt, ami ar
rangements were made by the Treasurer, under
the direction of the Commissioners of the Sink
ing Lund, to liquidate (hat amount; but after
the suspension and the consequent liuaneial em
barrassment of the country, the proposed pay
ment, from prudential motives, was postponed.
11-ul this payment bo-n made, in addition to
the payment, already reported, tiie statements
and calculations submitted iu utv last annual
Message in relation tn the early payment aud
final extinguishment* f the public debt, would
thus far have been unstained by their actual
verification. The causes that prevented their
realization, it is believed, will soon cease to
affect injuriously the reveuue of the Com
monwealth. Actuated by that indomitable
energy that has ever characterized the American
people —faltering for a moment, hut nut dis
heartened by adverse circumstances that sur
rounded us—roused to more vigorous action by
disaster and defeat, our progress cannot long
be checked, nor our prosperity long be inter
rupted. Confidence, the sensitive, yet pow
erful agency, that binds in unity and strength
the great financial, commercial and industrial
interests of our'country and the world, has liven
suddenly impaired, producing Snsoe'uJ nuj
BEDFORD. PA.. FRIDAY, JANUARY 15, 1858.
commercial distress, and affecting the rer*uus |
of the Ooiuniouwealtir, but with the advantages j
resulting from the rapid development of our re- j
sources during the last quarter of n century — j
the immensely valuable iucrease of our agri- j
cultural, mining and manufacturing industry i
during the same period—the abundant birvests I
of tbe past year—our completed improvements, j
aud all the oiemeote of iflat-iriui wraith in our ■
midst, its restore! ion at an early period is not '
problematical. Returning confidence wiil be j
the herald of returning prosperity. Notwith- j
standing, then, the present embarrassment and
gloomy condition pf the country, after a careful
oou.-iunration of the present aud pro-peetjve
Condition of the finance* and resources of the
flonnuonwrahh, 1 cannot hesitate to re- iffirin
my belief "that the time what tar distant when
Pennsylvania wiil stand redeemed from the op
pression of her public debt, and Iter people te
relieved frotu n taxation iinpns J to meet its
accruing interest ami uiitntdn the faith and
credit of the U num unreal h," ami that "hv
practising'strict economy iu all departments ot
tli! (jiveriuiHUit—avoiding extravagant ex
penditure—refu-ing to under:.an any new
schemes of internal improvement, and holding
t'> a rigid accountability the receiving and dis
bursing agents of tbe State, tbe n alitaJou of
these view.suny be anticipated with confidence."' ;
As corroborative of the opinion now :<"ti )
hereto.-..; p pxpressod, a brief review of the |
operations of tbe Tre tsuty during the p jt three :
years, as <;<>unectfl with the p.t-ymouc of the :
debt or :ho Coinntmtwealth, may not b? i;-
•tppvoptiate. In toy first uur.u ti message to the |
lj'jis.4a.tore te p.,-t *, a s stated, that, during j
the three years intervening between Deocmbei j
1,1851, an 1 December 1. IHo I, th* public'
debt had been increased $ 1 ,f)B4> 309 SI; ami ,
ti. it the to *1 debt at tin close of tin fiscal year, :
I).'.eember 1, 1854, was $41,693,595 74. - ;
At the close of tti • late hsi'.u yc..r, December ,
i, 1357, three years later, tlic funded and on- I
drilled dc-ht, as before shown, was
7->H g*2i decrease iu three years § 1,816,8.>7*52.
Tints iii three vcari Ihe nubile debt his bctr.i
deerewsod by .usual payment and without IT-
Mirting to ti.e expedient of tesi.pnrurv 1 *ans,
§l. SI-,, S-'i7 02. If to t:u- be added lookiwu
of SHi. 9do 29 iio-v in the aiukjiii fun 1 and
upplte.it t.Su to the payment of the iuitdei debt,
tttu re iuotion will be $2, 231, 777 -I.
These . fuels are not Wily grati' V ittg but en-
- A-*4Si.e. 1-^l.--. _J-' j J 1 .ei i-L-U.
• .< H: <miir . lift ti UitJ stain t-f vjt i p.'-V,-
Q -Q—bom!- ■ f the PctmsviviHti* li lilmvl Com
pany, b'jiiafr intere.-t ;>t the rate 5 per centum
ti"r au-.uiu, p iva'de seua-atttiUaiiy, a:-d pledged
t > the pavian.t oi tde funded debt. It this suui
he- adde-i tu the reduction before stated, we
nave presented to HS a virtual if not an actual
dec reuse of the Stale debt, of nine millions
seven hundred and thUry-ouo thousand seven
hundred and seventy-seven dollars and eigh'y
otio ccuts ($9,731,777 81,) showing the total
funded and unftm ied debt "I the -Slate on llie
first day of December, 13.57, to have t en
tiiiiiy-otie millions mm hutotrcd ami MXty-st*
iiii.ii —. ml t igbl liuodreu aril cigciren ituTar
aioi foi:y one (§31,4106.818 Ti.)
in anticipation v the *uie o; the maii; line
slot iins decrease in the public debt, the State
tax, -jy an ai i of the last regt.Lt S' ssnui, was
ru.uCvd from three to two and olio-half nous
uti (be doil 'i; reduction equal to niie-fixih of
the tax imposed for State purposes prior to that
act. These facts speak fot tiieinscivcr. Well
may the people fie congratulated on su i a:i
auspicious beginning in the process of liquida
tion, and wli may tliev wiih cor-fide nee anti
cipate the day of limit deliverance trout State
taxation, hiiiancial nnd commercial embar
rassment may posfpore —nothing tut unwise
iegi-lation, and the imprudent or dishonest
management of our fiumces, can prevent the
early realization of their well founded antim
paliot.s.
The condition of ihe public works, their
general operation, the iteoip'sand expenditures
during 'lie past fiscal year, will be presented
to you m dciaii in the report of the Canal
Couiinis iouevs.
The total receipts at the Treasury, from tiro
public wot ks,for the year ending Noveiu : r GO,
iSS7, inciudiug receipt's from the main line up
to tin- first day of August last, veto one
Luiiiion three hundred and eight thousand five
huofir- I aud ninety-eight dollars and sixty-two
cents, ('?] .3dH,n9B 6*2.| Tfic aggregate ex
penditures for the same period were oueiudlion
tbrto hundred and twelve thousand scveu huti
dred and five dollars and sixty-seveu cents,
the revenues four thousand one hundred aud
seven doll are and five cents, (54, 107 05.)
The receipts at the Treasury from the several
divisions were as follows, viz:
Main line, to August 1, 1857. 5796,550 35
5u.-qnelmntu and North aud West Jsranch di
visions. 287,718 9.)
Delaware division. 22-4,329 34
The receipts from the Delaware division are
less thaTi those of tlic previous year. The com
pletion of rival rail oads and other causes, have
lessened the receipts froin this important
division of our public works; and it is feared
will continue to decrease them. Its manage
ment has been satisfactory, and compared with
other divisions of the public improvements,
economical* The net revenue, at the Treasury,
was $174,001 87, a decrease of 590,093 53,
as compared with the receipts of the preceding
year. In addition to the ordinary expenditures,
the sum of §46,263 wis paid for the enlarge
ment and improvement of this division.
The North Drench extension of the Pennsyl
vania canal, although so far completed iu the
fall of 18-56, that boats freighted with coal and
other piodubts, were successfully passed
through its entire length from Pittston to the
.Junction nana!, yet in consoqueneo of a large
portion of the "Horse R.icj dam"' having beeii
carried away by teo freshet of last spring
business on ihec-inai was.suspended the greater
part of the past year. It. during
the summer, and In the |'*!! buiin wa- re-
I sumed along its entire length. Soon after the 1
I sutne daui was again extensiveiy injured by a
j saddva and heavy freshet, ami the greater part
j of the canal rendered useless for business. Au
i appropriation will be required to re-ooustruct
: the dam.
I This canal, although useful and valuable,
j appears to be doomed to failure and disaster, j
| These are the fruits T former mismanagement
j .i) 4 fraud in its construction, hi very effort
' has been made to repair the errors of its early
luattreiaeul, ait 1 to complete and render useful
this <i wis ion of our public works. Under proper I
j management it can be successfully uocoui- 1
plifheii. j
1 . jbi pursuance of the uc; of the 16th day of j
i May, ltj{>7, providing for the sde of the main j
fine of the public works, afici giving the notice j
; required by Jaw, I caused the said main line to |
: be exposed to public sale, at the Merchants'j
Kxobuuge, in the city of Philadelphia, on the
j *J.>{b day of June last, aud sold toe same to the ;
I'r^iiisyivauia railroad company, for the sum of
-oven uiilliou* five hundred thousand dollars,'
the highest price bid for the saute, an j the
uimimuni pi be fixed in the act.
Alter a tell compliance by tiie purchasers
! wifcb the conations of the act authorizing the
; sab, and the delivery ol their bonds lu number
; and for the aniuiiuts equal to and faliiugdu : at
; the time provided for too payment of the res
pective instalments, the Secretary of the (Join- '
oruwo;(it!i, on tlnj iJlsi uuy of July, A. 1)., j
I&>7, a> direoted by the act, transferred, under j
;Ue great seal of 100 State, to the PeniisyUa- i
i uiu r tiiioad company, their successors or it-,-j
; sign.-, tiie whole main hue of the public works,
| between Philadelphia and Pittsburg, together i
with ail liie right, title aud interest, elr.im and j
(Hmaud, of the (Jpunuoii wealth of Peau-v Ha- j
uia, to ail property, real, personal aud mixed,
j belonging io or used iu oonueetiou with the
, Mine Ly the Uouiiir nwealth; and ihc ptirch.is, i s
i having given uoiiee of their readiness to take
: possession of the said works, possession of ihe j
aecoiuuigly delivered to the 0 >upaiij j
on toe first day of August last: of winch notice j
■ was given to ail Superintendents and Agent* oi '
i4k' (Jotuiui'iiwealth, by prpclaui iti-m bearing
• dine tii 31st day of July. 1557, required
by 'fic law authorizing ihe sal-,
i 'life bonds <d* the Pcutuylvauia l'aiiroad
Ct iupauj, :n the sum ut sewn and one-fcaif
an nous id dollars, were received by thu fc'aic
L.|rua"re r urn. are f.Hfirt*^m*-
j coeds ut the sale being required by the I'Jih
section ot the act to be paid to tiie Sinking Fund
j and applied tiMlm payment of the State debt.
1 cannot forbear congratulating the peupit' of
| the Couimooweaitli oa the consummation of this
i sale. I'ubiic ceuiiuictit as expressed through
the bailor box. and m other tonus equally sig
nificant, demanded it—public polity aou tuo
interests of the voumioiiw.-uilu required i;.—
it is doue. Xue many approve; lew complain,
(hose most, who have gained au unenviable
reputation by a reckless disregard of the pub
ic interests, as exhibited in the ex Pa vr mint,
ilseiess aud fiautluieul expeudltuies of ihctpuii
, lie money uu fish or par izui purposes,
j The M,in of the Main Line has directed pub
lic attention to the importance and necessity ni
' disposing id ihe remaining divisions of the pub
lic improvement*. Tim reason* nn. policy that
i required aud justified tin? sale of the one, apply
i witii equal force to the sale ot the other, Tins
i propriety of separating the State from tiie care
uuu control ot the pubiic work*, is uot only
; evident to ail whohave given the subject a
| candid mid impartial Ct usidcriition, but the
. necessity is cieaiiy established, by the history
;of thei: construction and maaagmmn!. Tney
! have tailed to be t source of revenue to ilie
Common wealth, and if retained by toe State,
: will require au expenditure in their repair aud
1 man igmiKUt, largely exceeding liny revenue,
1 that under the most favorable ei.eumstunec#,
can be derived from them. In any phase ol
! the question, this separation is desirable, but iu
connection \nili the payment uf the public uebt
j and the redufc ion ot State taxation, it becomes
MII object of more than ordinary interest. A
: silo, at the earliest practicable period, of the
: whole of our public work*, for a lair ooiiiideiu
i lion, upon perms just and liberal to the purcha
sers, aud at the same time amply protective of
the'rights and interests of the people, should be
authorized, by the Legislature, boon sale,
with the upplteatiori ol the proceeds to tiie pay
ment ol the publ.c debt, would secure its stiii
more rupid extinguishment. The subject is
reeonmicuded to your unbiased consideration.
'The law incorporating the Pennsylvania
Railroad Company imposed a tax ot tnreo mills
per ton, per mile, on ail tonnage pissing over
that road, as an equivalent for any decrease in
the revenues of the Commonwealth, that might
arise from the anticipated competition of the
road, with the business of the Main Line of the
public improvements. This tax is not imposed
upon the Company, but upon the tonnage, and
ts paid by the owners of the freight trausport
ed over the road; the company acting MS agents
in its collection and payment to tiie State. It
is virtually a tax upon the trade and commerce
of thu Commonwealth, and upon the commerce
of other States whose production* sees an
Rasters market over this road; and thus by iu
creasiug the rate of charges aud the cost ol
transportation the produce of the West is forced
upon the competing rail toads of other fctates
and to other markets thau our own. The
nroessity that required this tax, as regards the
('hmmon wealth and her improvements, has
eihsed. Its Continuance can ouly he justified
ai a revenue measure. It should bo the policy
oj the State to iuvito the transmission of the
oloductsof other States through her tertitory
t<| her owu markets, and, therefore, the pro
priety of relieving the trade aud busiuess ot
tie Oouimotiwealth utid country frotn this tax
ulon it, t* respectfully submitted for you eon
.* iteration.
In consequence of the suspension of specie
pjymcpts by the banks of this, aud thu other
antes of the Uhimf. and financial euibnrrasnient
[ aid general prostration of business, I deemed
' it my duty to call, as authorized by the Con
i ufitution, an extra session of the Legislature,to
j meet at tlarrisburg ou the sixth day of October
I iast. Although the relief provided by this ex
; Uaordinary acszioa of the General Assembly,
wrs not as ample as the exigency of the case
1 required, ye? it was productive <4 tuany bene
; tictal results, and served to allay the iuteuse
exott"ni"Bt and alarm tint pervaded the enure
community. 5y the act providing for the re
sumption of specie payments by the bunks, ali j
1 banking institutions accenting the provisions <>r!
that law, were required to pay into the Trea- |
; snrv one-fohrth of one per cent, on their cupi- j
; tal stock. The amount realized by the payment' j
; "f this bonus has not only defrayed nil the ex- !
[ pen.se* of that session, but will leave a balance i
i in tiie Treu-urv of not less titan thirty-five thou- |
; sano dollars—a result oci'tninly not injurious j
; to the finances of the Commonwealth.
My views expressed in former couimufiiea- |
tioris ou the subject of banks and bankingc.api- i
til, in their relation 3to the currency and the
genera) interest of trade, rem'in unchanged.—
However diverse our opinions may bo on this
| subject, it must he admitted by all, that the '
banking and credit systems arc so intimately
interwoven with the business and commerce of
I the country, that their sudden separation, or a
| rash innovation, would produce eouat-quciices of
i fearful magnitude. That the present system .f
: banking is perfect, is not pieten-jed; that it
I cou'd be aaseniialiy modified and improved,will
I not be denied. The present derangement of the
j currency may and will suggest tho necessity of
reform, not otiiy in the system itself, but in the
I management of our banking institutions.
Unlimited credits by corporations r individ
uals have and will ever be u onmitigatsdevil.
They contribute to hank ex pensions, rash spec
ula! ions, extravagant .tviug and excessive wer
-1 riding ; always .sure to be followed by ruinous
revulsions. What the remedy should i>e, Ido
not d<em it my province, umbr existing cii
cunist iticrs, to suggest; but to be permanent
V.ud effectual, i: must accord with the natural
and necessary laws of trade. The currency of
a oouhn v tortus no exception to these laws,and
should be Lft to their operation and control,*o
; far a> may be consistent with the pubiiu good.
'lt is, therefore, that a system of free banking,
based ou undoubted public *eeuvi<ie*, and coin
in such piop atati to circulation uud deposits
- ij,3. ! ,"ity. he. jj vymud suffi.• i,ut to ?ecare their cou
iiuiitatious and r< strict ion-, i- deemed prefera
ble to tiie pr*soii" sys euj. Its introduction
would correct uianv existing,abuses not only in
the sv-tx-m i > If, In! i the preseu; mode of
tanking. These question*, however, with the
remedies necessary to prevent a recurretlce of
the evils under which we .now suffer, together
with the nature anJ extent of the relief, if any,
that may yet b■- re ;aired by the biuks of the
f-oiumonweaitii, to enable theui to resume the
payment of their liabilities in specie, are all rs
f( ncii to the wisdom of the Legislature. They
arc practical and iu.noiiant businessquestions,
and :.s in h s mold receive your intelligent cow
sideration.
Tne present cenJoirm nf our Comiuoiiweaith
rid country deserves at least passing remark
\ severe fitiaucul revulsion has occurred; in
ducing H suspension of specie payments bv tint
banks, not culy of this UcmuitmweHitti, but of
ail the S'ates of tin; Union, deranging die cur
rency and affeeuitg disastrously nil the great
interests of commerce and the industrial pursuits
of Ul3 citizen Labor is without employment,
uu i iliiiustunl# of strong, active men are now
asking for work or bread. The causes assigned
for these evils are ;.!ui,vst as various as the in
terest or prejudices of those who undertake their
explication. To win lever cause or causes they
uny be teferred, it is neither just, nor proper,
to charge all our present liuatpiaf and commer
cial dis ties* to the banks aa-i their nmnageuictti.
; However, much they have contributed, other
cases have operated still mere directly and pow
erfully to produce these results; and among
' tueni first in importance and influence is the
present system of low duties, in connection with
the watvlicusing system, adop'od as ti.e policy
of the GeuefaJ Government ni lS4tj. Ttie
abaud inuicat of the protective policy, us eiu
bodicd in the tariff wet of IStff, was rest-led
by Pennsylvania with a unanimity almost u
pa.railclod in her history. Her repieseutalives
iii both branches of the National Congress stren
uously opposed the ropuul of that act. 'i lie
evils under vvhiah wc are now suffering were
predicted, us a consequence of such repeal.—
Jiut other counsels prevailed, the act was re
pealed, uud the itidustiy of the country exposed
10 a ruinous competition with the cheap labor
of foreign nations. The disastrous Sects of tiie
repeal were postponed by the,operation of caus
es well understood by every intelligent citizen.
Famine abroad created an uupreeedcut demand
for our breadstuff.-, and the gold of California,
although it may have added to the excitement
of our progress, and contributed its tuii share
in producing existing financial and commercial
euibarrasnicnt, in millions, supplied the means
of paying the overwhelming balances against us
on our foreign importations. Under the pres
ent system of low duties, the excess of imports
over exports has been beyond the most estrav
agaut wants of the country . They hue boon
enormous anil ruinous—destructive of domestic
industry, and iuvolviug the homo manufacturer
and homo laboi, iti one common ruin. We have
imported more than we could pay lor, ami much
more than wo needed, Pennsylvania abounds
in iron ore. Iron and its manufactures arc
justly regarded as imported elements of her
material wealth; and from her abundance, ii
properly fostered and pr.tooted by a wise na
tional policy, could supply the markets, of th.
world; and yet, since the p >ssuge of the ;.ct 01
IST6, we hive imported of iron and steel am
their manufactures, uiore tiuu two bundle
millions of dollars iu value; paid foe in gold 01
our bonds aud stocks, uow heid by foreign cap
italists—the interest on which but adds t:. ib<
burdens imposed upou us by our foreign in
debtedness. The same is true of many otb*'i
VOL. 31. NO. 3.
important branches of borne industry. Man
millions in value of eoiton and woolen good*
hive, during the same period, been imported*
(bat should have been made in our own work
shop*,should have been woven on American,and
not on British, French or German looms.
As an example of the practical working of
the system, official documents exhibit the fact,
that during the past four years the imports ot
foretgu uieiehaudise, exceeded our exports 000
hundred and eighty-four millions two thousand
seven hundred and sixty-eight dollars; aud as a
consefjuenee, the drain of the precious metals
was correspondingly great. The amount of
specie sent out of the country during that pe
riod, was two hundred and thirteen millions and
three hundred and sixty-four thousand three
hundred and eighty-four dollars specie im
ported twenty -six millions nine hundred end
| twenty-seven thousand four huodied and twen
ty-seven dollar.-: leaving a balance against us
| oa specie account of one bundled aud cghty-six
millams lour hundred and thirty-six thousand
nine hundred and li.tt-seven dollars, this de
pie! ing process, aggravated by excursive impor
tations, unsettled the currency und induced an
' inflated pa{s;r circulation, resulting in bank
suspensions and financial euibarmsiut-nt. Bet
the evil does not end here. An inflated paper
; currency, by cheapening tbe price of money,
increases in this country the cost production,
and thus, whilst the American Manufacturer is
i exposed, under a system of law duties, to A ru
i iuous competition with the cheap labor of Eu
rope, he is paid for his goods in a cur rency less
callable than that paid to his foreign competi
-1 tor. As a necessary icsuit the home fabric is
; driven ftou ihe market, and tho borne tnanu
j facturer ruiued. The operation of the causes,
! stimulated by low duties, is sufficient to destroy
j the industrial energies of any people.
With these facts before us, it is no mutter
i of surprise that our mills, factories and furnaces
have been closed, and thousands of houcil la
borers throwu out of employment; that commerce
| has scarcely art existence, that bankruptcy and
ruin are around us, and our gem ral prosperity
paralysed. To avoid these disasters, to which
j we have been periodically exposed, reform not
1 only in our system ot banking, hut in our rev
enue laws, becomes indispensable.
It the principle of the act of 1842 i.ad been
preserved —even if its late of duties had hseu
reducer', our specie by mil lions would not hare
! ypno ipo foreign cftfft-'is to build up and ffiy
w oil Id he prosperous, and riic cry *-we want
work," issuing trom a thousand lins, in onr
large cities and manufacturing districts, w,.u!d
not now be heard; nor vtouid a foreign unit i f
neaily five hundred millions of dollars exist to
startle and alarm us. That system that practi
cally prefer* fortign to home labor—that keep.*
our workshops iu Earape, instead of bui,diog
and supporting them here —that takes our gold
to pay the wages of the British laborer, whilst
our own iro without employment and without
bread,—that fills the country with foreign mer
chandise to :he exclusion of the home fabric, —
that lays the British rail upon tbe loud through
ur iron district it and by our rolling mills,whilst
they .tie silent and deserted, and that inches
to speculation and extravagance, i at war with
overv ir >• American interest and should be At
once abandoned.
A period of low duties lia-. always been mark
ed by excessive importations.-—large exports of
specie—overtrading—bank expansions and sus
pensions, and financial and commercial revul
sions. Under the protective policy these pecu
liar and startling characteristics of free trade
have all been wanting. The history of the
country establishes these facts. A well regu
lated tariff, adjusted to protect the productive
industry of tbo country, is uot only the true
po icy of tho G v rnm- nt, but is a l etter rage
later of the currency and a worecertstu secur
ity against bank expansions, than any system
of pains ami penalties yet devised for the con
trol of banking institutions, or tha operations
of capital. To i11..-we should return. Peun
sslvaun is yet true to her ancient and long
cherished convictions of i propriety and ne
cessity. She uiay havo bafamisled. Political
ami on zm pressure may have forced her from
ti-i true-position. This was hermisfdi:uue,not
her fault. She sees and feels the wrong, and
with an emphasis,, intensified by ber injuries,
will (ieuußd redress; protection tor herself and
the groat. industrial interest of her people.
The agricultural interests of the country
should ever ba fostered and sustained by the
State. They afe first iu necessity and useful
ness, and constitute the basis of State and NH
iionai prosperity. Upon their progress and
development depend the success ol our me
chanical, manufacturing and commercial inter
ests.
Agriculture, in its varied and multiplied re
lations, is the unfailing source of national
wealth, and to its promotion all should contrib
ute. Individual enterprise and liberality, State
and county associations, have done much to ad
vance tills important branch of protective iu
dnstr.r* have aollected and circulated much
valuable information; mid encouraged by their
honorable exertions, the progress of scientific
and practical agriculture. Science ami art
have nobly proffered tlreir aid—the State should
not withhold her < t courage ment and snp
jiorf.
I have heretofore rceoiumendcrf the estab
lishment of an Agricultural Bureau, in connec
tion with some one of the State Departments,
to give efficiency to the collection and diffusion
of useful knowledge on this subject. Impres
sed w.'tU tbo necessity and usefulness of su?b a
Bureau, i ugaiu earnestly rccoimnewd it to your
fa V a ruble consideration. *
•'The Farmers' High Sch£l of Pennsylva
nia,'' an institution incorporated by the Legis
lature iu 1555, is entitled to the especial at
; tendon of the friends of Agriculture. Iu the
teachings of this institution, the scientific and
i tie practical arc united; and whilst ihe art of
I farming and all that pcrtaius to the manage
' Oicur-, busi l s., aud work ola tarui, will be the