Duff Green, etc., and detach himself from the great body of the Whig party. A few days will disclose. If he should take that course, it will be on the bank. It is understood that he wants a bank located in the District, having no power to branch without the consent of the State where the branch is located. What a bank would that be! The complexion of the Senate is even better than I anticipated, and although Mr. Adams has created some disturbance in the House, there is a fine spirit generally prevailing there. Mr. E. M. LETCHER. Your faithful friend, H. CLAY. This opinion, given by Mr. Crittenden during his term of Attorney-General, under General Harrison, is the only one which will be published: In respect to your second question, it appears to me unnecessary to go into the general question of interest, or the liability or obligation of a government to pay it. In this instance the single inquiry is, not whether interest ought, in justice, or any principle of analogy, to be allowed, but whether the judge has been invested with any authority to award it; and this depends on the proper construction of the act of Congress of the 26th of June, 1834,-his sole and whole authority is derived from that act. It is the standard by which his jurisdiction must be measured and limited. By the terms of this act he is authorized to receive and examine, and adjudge, in all cases of claims for losses occasioned by the troops in the service of the United States in 1812 and 1813. Interest on the amount of such losses is certainly a thing very distinguishable and different from the losses themselves. It may be that justice would have required, in this case, the allowance of interest as well as of the principal that was lost; but Congress alone was competent to decide the extent of its obligation, and to give or withhold authority for the allowance of the principal,-that is, the value of the property lost, with or without interest. The whole subject was before them for consideration and legislation, and the question of interest was as important in amount as the principal. They did legislate, and provided for the liquidation and payment of claims for losses, but made no provision for any claims of interest. The inference, to my mind, is irresistible that they did not intend to authorize the allowance of interest. It is confidently believed, that in all the numerous acts of Congress for the liquidation and settlement of claims against the government, there is no instance in which interest has ever been allowed, except only when these acts have expressly directed and authorized its allowance. I feel myself constrained, therefore, to entertain the opinion that, so far as relates to the allowance of interest, the decision of the judge is unwarranted and erroneous. Very respectfully yours, Hon. THOMAS EWING, J. J. CRITTENDEN. CHAPTER XIIL 1841-1842. Letters from Clay, R. Johnson, R. P. Letcher-Crittenden's Letter of Resignation of his Place in the Cabinet of J. Tyler-Letter of G. E. Badger-Letters of Crittenden to Letcher. Μ' (J. J. Crittenden to Henry Clay.) WASHINGTON, August 16. Y DEAR SIR,—It is understood that the President concedes the power of establishing agencies or branches, with authority to deal in the purchase and sale of bills of exchange, and to do all other usual banking business except to discount promissory notes or obligations; that with the assent of a State branches may be established, with authority to discount notes and to do all other usual bank business. Upon this basis it does seem to me that a bank may be constructed with a larger recognition of Federal authority and of more efficiency than the one which the President has refused to sanction. It should be done by conferring on the bank and its branches all the usual banking powers, and then, by restrictions and exceptions limiting them to the basis before stated; there is less danger of embarrassment and error in this form of legislation than in the attempt to limit the powers of the institution by specific description and enumeration of them. I pray you to consider this well, with all the great consequences which attend it, and do whatever your known liberal spirit of compromise and your patriotism may direct. Mr. Clay can lose nothing by a course of conciliation; his opinions are known to all, and to whatever extent he may forbear to act or insist upon them, it will be regarded only as another and further sacrifice made to his country. Do not believe that the least selfishness influences me in anything I have suggested. P. S. Consider if it would not be better to drop everything about the assent of States, and making the banking power a mere emanation of congressional authority, exclude it from the discounting of promissory notes. The moneyed transactions of men will be put into the shape of bills of exchange, and the bank thus formed may be easily amended by future legislation, if the power of discounting notes should be found useful or desirable. The political effect of settling this matter now and by your means will be great. J. J. CRITTENDEN. BALTIMORE, August 30, 1841. (Reverdy Johnson to J. J. Crittenden.) MY DEAR SIR,-I have just heard, from a source which I know may be relied upon, that Mr. Alexander Hamilton, of New York, who, it is understood, has been for several weeks in Washington and almost an inmate of the President's house, came over last evening from Washington to have an interview with Mr. Maher, of this city, and Judge Upshur, of Virginia, who has been in this place several days. Not being acquainted with either of the gentlemen, he obtained this morning an introduction to them. Mr. M. at once introduced the President's course in regard to the bank bill, and heard only the most decided opinions against it from him, which seemed to surprise him, and in a few moments, without more being said of a political character, the interview terminated. He then went to see Upshur, and was with him in private for several hours. Now, sir, our impression is (that is, the impression of the few to whom these facts are known) that he has been sent up to sound these gentlemen in regard to a new cabinet, and Mr. M., in respect to the department you hold; so thinking, I deem it due to you-to the friendship existing between us that I lose no time in making this fact known to you for your consideration. It is exceedingly improbable that the visit of Hamilton could have any other purpose, and, if half the reports we hear from Washington are true, it is almost certain that the object I suggest is true. If you think it proper, you are at liberty to show this to any member of the cabinet you please. Assuming my conjecture to be right, I forbear to speak of the movement, because I cannot do it without using terms of the President that should not be applied to him except in the last emergency. Sincerely your friend, J. J. CRITTENDEN. REVERDY JOHNSON. (R. P. Letcher to J. J. Crittenden.) FRANKFORT, September 3, 1841. DEAR CRITTENDEN,-I have just read your letter of the 26th with the liveliest interest. All your trials, difficulties, and vexations were fully understood by your friends in Kentucky as accurately as I now understand them after reading your interesting communication. No friend blamed you for not writing. Your silence told everything. We talked matters over and expressed our sympathies and our heartfelt regrets that official connection, obligations, and prudence necessarily limited your freedom of speech and action. No one, so far as I know, has intimated that you ought to have resigned upon the coming in of the veto. Some of your friends believed you would do so; others feared that in a moment of indignation and disappointment you might do so; but those who knew you best thought you would take no hasty action, but be governed by circumstances which should or might control a majority of the cabinet in their movements. I rather think that, under the influence of that opinion, I wrote you some five or six weeks since to keep wide awake and be cool. The veto did not surprise me. I was fully apprised of the Captain's intention for some considerable time before. I had rather indulged in the hope that his heart might fail him before the time for final action. Duff Green told me the President told him he would veto the bill. The Van Buren party, in this quarter, announced that the veto would come weeks before it reached us. After I saw he had some four or five Virginia schoolmasters around him, I confess I lost all hope. Ah, that was too bad!our chief cook, in whom we placed all confidence, to poison our favorite dish! Yes, I believe most confidently he has the arsenic ready for the second dish, and will certainly dash it in if Wise and Rives and Mallory tell him. Just let those fellows say "Go it, my Captain Tyler, old Virginia is at your back; Clay is trying to head you; don't be frightened by one of Clay's mobs. If you do, Virginia will disown you; Virginia will be everlastingly disgraced in your person if you yield. Jackson carried everything before him by his firmness, and so can you. You are the most popular man in America; you elected Harrison, and can elect yourself again easily. If you give way, you are a lost, ruined, disgraced, discarded creature, and Clay will be the next President!" Then let Calhoun make him a secret visit, and the poison goes in to a dead and moral certainty. The motives by which the Captain is influenced are as distinctly known throughout all the land as his illustrious name is. All parties speak of it openly, mixed up with abuse, scorn, and ridicule. Should the cabinet be placed in such a situation by the President as to force them to resign, he will have no party. He may have five or six miserable, vain, foolish abstractionists, three nullifiers, and one Anti-Mason,-not enough for a decent funeral procession. The Whigs, before they adjourn, in the event of a dissolution of the cabinet, ought to hold a meeting and solemnly devote him, transfer and assign him over to the "Locafocos." They ought, furthermore, by resolution, to declare " that no honest Whig should hold office under such a faithless public servant." Then let the Captain VOL. I.-II |