er denominations
for the larger purposes of circulation, but not for the small.
Leave that door open for the entrance of metallic money. . . .
Providence seems, indeed, by a special dispensation, to have put
down for us, without a struggle, that very paper enemy which the
interest of our citizens long since required ourselves to put down,
at whatever risk.

"The work is done. The moment is pregnant with futurity, and if
not seized at once by Congress, I know not on what shoal our bark
is next to be stranded. The state legislatures should be immediately
urged to relinquish the right of establishing banks of discount.
Most of them will comply, on patriotic principles, under the
convictions of the moment, and the non-complying may be crowded
into concurrence by legitimate devices."

I also quoted another extract to show that this matter filled the
mind of Mr. Jefferson. He said:

"Put down the banks, and if this country could not be carried
through the longest war, against her most powerful enemy, without
ever knowing the want of a dollar, without dependence on the
traitorous classes of her citizens, without bearing hard on the
resources of the people, or loading the public with an indefinite
burthen of debt, I know nothing of my countrymen. Not by any novel
project, not by any charlatanry, but by ordinary and well-experienced
means; by the total prohibition of all paper at all times, by
reasonable taxes in war, aided by the necessary emissions of public
paper of circulating size, this bottomed on special taxes, redeemable
annually as this special tax comes in, and finally within a moderate
period--even with the flood of private paper by which we were
deluged--would the treasury have ventured its credit in bills of
circulating size, as of five or ten dollars, etc., they would have
been greedily received by the people in preference to bank paper."

On the 26th of January, 1863, I introduced in the Senate a bill to
"provide a national currency, secured by a pledge of United States
stocks, and for the circulation and redemption thereof." This bill
took the usual course, was referred to the committee on finance,
was reported favorably with a number of amendments, and was fully
debated in the Senate. On the 9th of February, 1863, a cursory
debate occurred between Mr. Collamer, of Vermont, and myself, which
indicated a very strong opposition to the passage of the banking
bill. Various amendments were proposed and so