which, with the interest on the public stock in the bank, might yield a dividend sufficient for the purpose, until a change from war to peace should enable it, by a flow of specie into its vaults, and a removal of the external demand for it, to derive its contemplated emoluments from a safe and full extension of its operations. On the whole, when it is considered that the proposed establishment, will enjoy a monopoly of the profits of a national bank, for a period of twenty years; that the monopolized profits will be continually growing, with the progress of the national population and wealth; that the nation will, during the same period, be dependent on the notes of the bank for that species of circulating medium, whenever the precious metals may be wanted, and at all times for so much thereof as may be an eligible substitute for a specie medium; and that the extensive employment of the notes in collection of the augmented taxes will, moreover, enable the bank greatly to extend its profitable issues of them, without the expense of specie capital to support their circulation; it is as reasonable, as it is requisite, that the Government, in return for these extraordinary concessions to the bank, should have a greater security for attaining the public objects of the institution, than is presented in the bill, and particularly for every practicable accomodation, both in the temporary advances necessary to anticipate taxes, and in those more durable loans which are equally necessary to diminish the resort to taxes. In discharging this painful duty of stating objections to a measure, which has undergone the deliberations, and received the sanction of the two Houses of the national Legislature, I console myself with the reflection, that, if they have not the weight which I attach to them, they can be constitutionally overruled; and, with a confidence that, in a contrary event, the wisdom of Congress will hasten to substitute a more commensurate and certain provision for the public exigencies. JAMES MADISON. WASHINGTON, January 30, 1815. AN ACT TO INCORPORATE THE SUBSCRIBERS TO THE BANK OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That a Bank of the United States of America shall be established, the capital stock of which shall be thirty millions of dollars, divided into three hundred thousand shares, of one hundred dollars each share; and that subscriptions for thirty millions of dollars, towards constituting the said capital stock, shall be opened, on the last Monday of February next, at the following places, viz: at Portland, in Maine, Portsmouth, in New Hampshire, Windsor, in Vermont, Boston, Providence, New Haven, New York, New Brunswick, in New Jersey, Philadelphia, Baltimore, the city of Washington, Richmond, Raleigh, Charleston, Savannah, Lexington, in Kentucky, Nashville, in Tennessee, Chillicothe, in Ohio, and New Orleans, under the superintendence of the following persons, as commissioners to receive the same: at Portland, Matthew Cob, Isaac Isley, Joshua Wingate, junior; at Portsmouth, Editor's note: Text of the bill vetoed by President Madison, American State Papers, Finance, Vol. 2, pp. 892-895. John Goddard, Nathaniel A. Haven, Henry S. Langdon; at Windsor, Elias Lyman, William Leveret, Eleazer May; at Boston, Israel Thorndike, Thomas H. Perkins, William Gray, Aaron Hill, Samuel Brown; at Providence, Seth Wheaton, Ebenezer K. Dexter, Henry Smith; at New Haven, Abraham Bishop, William W. Woolsey, Henry Jones; at New York, Robert Troup, William Paulding, junior, Robert Lenox, John Jacob Astor, Samuel Tooker, Isaac Bronson, Henry A. Coster; at New Brunswick, James Vanderpool, John Bray, Peter Gordon; at Philadelphia, Jared Ingersoll, Thomas M. Willing, Stephen Girard, Chandler Price, Anthony Taylor, John Sergeant, Caldwallader Evans; at Baltimore, James A. Buchanan, Henry Payson, William Wilson; at the city of Washington, John Mason, Robert Brent, John P. Van Ness; at Richmond, Benjamin Hatcher, John Brockenborough, John Preston; at Raleigh, Sherwood Haywood, Beverly Daniel, William Peace; at Charleston, John C. Faber, Thomas Jones, Stephen Elliot, Charles B. Cochran, Thomas Blackwood; at Savannah, John Bolton, Charles Harris, James Johnson; at Lexington, in Kentucky, Charles Wilkins, Lewis Sanders, John H. Morton; at Nashville, Robert Weakly, Felix Grundy, John R. Bedford; at Chillicothe, Samuel Finley, Thomas James, William M'Farland; at New Orleans, Dominick A. Hall, Benjamin Morgan, Paul Lanuse, Thomas L. Harman, and William Flood: which subscriptions shall continue open every day, from the time of opening the same, from ten o'clock in the forenoon, until four o'clock in the afternoon, until the Saturday following, at four o'clock in the afternoon, when the same shall be closed; and immediately thereafter, the commissioners, or any two of them, at the respective places aforesaid, shall cause two transcripts or fair copies of such subscriptions to be made, one of which they shall send to the Secretary of the Treasury, one they shall retain, and the original shall, within three days from the closing of the same, be by the said commissioners transmitted to the said commissioners at Philadelphia, or to one of them; and on the receipt thereof, the said commissioners at Philadelphia, or any three of them, shall immediately thereafter convene and proceed to take an account of the said subscriptions; and if more than the amount of thirty millions of dollars shall have been subscribed, then the said last mentioned commissioners shall apportion the same among the several subscribers, according to their several and respective subscriptions: Provided, however, That such commissioners shall, by such apportionment, allow and apportion to each subscriber at least one share; and, in case the aggregate amount of the said subscriptions shall exceed thirty millions of dollars, the said commissioners, after having apportioned the same as aforesaid, shall cause lists of the said apportioned subscriptions to be made out, including in each list the apportioned subscription for the place where the original subscription was made, one of which lists shall be transmitted to the commissioners, or to one of the commissioners, under whose superintendence such subscriptions were originally made, that the subscribers may ascertain from them the number of shares apportioned to such subscribers, respectively; and, if the amount of thirty millions of dollars shall not be subscribed during the period aforesaid, at all the places aforesaid, the subscription to complete the said sum shall afterwards be and remain open at Philadelphia, under the superintendence of the said commissioners appointed at the place and the subscription may be then made by any corporation, copartnership, or person, for any number of shares not exceeding the amount required to complete the said sum of thirty millions of dollars. And, in case of the death, or refusal to serve, of any of the commissioners aforesaid, it shall be lawful for the President of the United States to supply the vacancy or vacancies thus created, by appointing some suitable person or persons. SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That it shall be lawful for any person, copartnership, or body politic, to subscribe for so many shares of the said capital stock of the said bank, as he, she, or they, shall think fit, not exceeding three thousand shares, except as is hereinafter provided for the subscription on behalf of the United States, and the sums respectively subscribed, except on behalf of the United States, as is hereinafter provided, shall be payable in the manner following; that is to say: five millions of dollars thereof in gold or silver coin of the United States, or of foreign coin at the value heretofore established by the act of Congress, entitled "An act regulating the currency of foreign coins," passed the tenth day of April, one thousand eight hundred and six; ten millions of dollars thereof in gold or silver coin, as aforesaid, or in the public debt of the United States, contracted by virtue of the act of Congress, entitled "An act authorizing the loan for a sum not exceeding eleven millions of dollars," passed the fourteenth day of March, one thousand eight hundred and twelve, or contracted, or to be contracted, by virtue of any subsequent act and acts of Congress heretofore passed, authorizing a loan or loans; and fifteen millions of dollars thereof in gold or silver coin, or in treasury notes, issued under the act of Congress, entitled "An act to authorize the issuing of treasury notes," passed the thirtieth day of June, one thousand eight hundred and twelve, or issued, or to be issued, under the authority of any subsequent act or acts of congress, authorizing, or which shall authorize, treasury notes to be issued, previously to the final closing of the subscriptions to the said bank. And the said payment shall be made and completed in the sums and at the times hereinafter declared, that is to say: at the time of subscribing there shall be paid six dollars and sixty-six cents and two-thirds of a cent on each share, in gold or silver coin; twenty dollars in the treasury notes aforesaid; and thirteen dollars thirty-three cents and one-third of a cent in the public debt of the United States, contracted, or to be contracted, as aforesaid; at the expiration of four calendar months after the time of subscribing there shall be paid the further sum of three dollars thirty-three cents and one-third of a cent on each share, in gold or silver coin; ten dollars in the treasury notes aforesaid; and six dollars sixty-six cents and two-thirds of a cent in the public debt of the United States, contracted or to be contracted as aforesaid; at the expiration of six calendar months from the time of subscribing, there shall be paid the further sum of three dollars thirty-three cents and one-third of a cent on each share, in gold or silver coin; ten dollars in the treasury notes aforesaid; and six dollars sixty-six cents and twothirds of a cent in the public debt of the United States, contracted, or to be contracted, as aforesaid; at the expiration of eight calendar months from the time of subscribing, there shall be paid the further sum of three dollars thirty-three cents and one-third of a cent, in gold or silver coin; ten dollars in the treasury notes aforesaid; and six dollars sixty-six cents and two-thirds of a cent in the public debt of the United States, contracted, or to be contracted, as aforesaid. And the subscriptions in public stock and treasury notes, as aforesaid, shall be taken and credited for the principal and so much of the interest thereof, respectively, as shall have accrued on the day of subscribing the same. And, at the time of subscribing to the capital stock of the said bank, as aforesaid, each and every subscriber shall deliver to the commissioners at the place of subscribing, as well the specie amount of their subscriptions, respectively, as the certificates of stock for the stock proportion of their subscriptions, respectively, together with a power of attorney authorizing the said commissioners, or a majority of them, to transfer the said stock, in due form of law, to "The President, Directors, and Company, of the said Bank of the United States of America," as soon as the said bank shall be organized; and also, treasury notes for the proportion of the subscriptions, respectively, payable in treasury notes as aforesaid: Provided, always, That if, in consequence of the apportionment of shares in the said bank among the subscribers, in the case and in the manner hereinbefore prescribed, any subscriber shall have delivered to the commissioners, at the time of subscribing, a greater amount of specie, stock, and treasury notes, than shall be necessary to complete the payments for the share or shares to such subscriber, apportioned as aforesaid, the commissioners shall only retain so much of the said money, stock, and treasury notes, as shall be necessary to complete such payments, and shall forthwith return, on application for the same, the surplus thereof to the subscriber lawfully entitled thereto. And the commissioners respectively shall deposite the gold and silver, certificates of stock, and treasury notes, by them respectively received, as aforesaid, from the subscribers to the said bank, in some place of secure and safe keeping, so that the same may and shall be specifically delivered and transferred, as the same were by them respectively received, to the said president, directors and company, of the said Bank of the United States of America, or to their order, as soon as shall be required after the organization of the said bank. SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That the United States may, at any time before the expiration of this act, in pursuance of any law which may be passed by Congress for that purpose, cause to be subscribed, for the use of the United States, to said bank, fifty thousand additional shares, to be paid in public stock, bearing an interest of four per cent. per annum, redeemable in any sums, and at any periods, which the Government may deem fit. SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That whenever and as often as any of the treasury notes, subscribed as aforesaid, to the said capital stock of the said bank, shall be due and payable, it shall be lawful for the Secretary of the Treasury (and he is hereby authorized and required) to pay and redeem the same, principal and interest, by causing certificates of public stock for an equal amount, bearing an interest of six per cent. per annum, and redeemable in any sums, and at any periods, which the Government may deem fit, to be prepared and made in the usual form, and the same to be delivered to the president and directors of the said bank, in satisfaction and discharge of such treasury notes. SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That the subscribers to the said Bank of the United States of America, their successors and assigns, shall be, and are hereby created, a corporation and body politic, by the name and style of "The President, Directors, and Company, of the Bank of the United States of America," and shall so continue until the third day of March, in the year one thousand eight hundred and thirty-five; and by that name shall be, and are hereby made, able and capable in law, to have, purchase, receive, possess, enjoy, and retain, to them and their successors, lands, rents, tenements, hereditaments, goods, chattels, and effects, of whatsoever kind, nature, and quality, to an amount not exceeding in the whole thirty-five millions of dollars, including the amount of the capital stock aforesaid; and the same to sell, grant, demise, alien, or dispose of, to sue and be sued, plead, and be impleaded, answer and be answered, defend and be defended, in all courts and places whatsoever; and also to make, have, and use, a common seal, and the same to break, alter, and renew, at their pleasure; and, also, to ordain, establish, and put in execution, such bylaws and ordinances, and regulations, as they shall deem necessary and convenient, for the Government of the said corporation, not being contrary to the constitution and laws of the United States; and generally to do and execute all and singular the acts, matters, and things, which to them shall or may appertain to do; subject, nevertheless, to the rules, regulations, restrictions, limitations, and provisions, hereinafter prescribed and declared. SEC. 6. And be it further enacted, That, for the management of the affairs of the said corporation, there shall be twenty-five directors, who shall be elected at the banking house in Philadelphia, on the first Monday of January, in each year, by the stockholders or proprietors of the capital stock of the said corporation, and by a plurality of votes then and there actually given, according to the scale of voting hereinafter prescribed. And the directors, so duly chosen, shall be capable of serving by virtue of such choice, until the end or expiration of the first Monday in January next ensuing the time of such election, and no longer: Provided, always, That the first election and appointment of directors shall be at the time, and for the period, hereinafter declared. SEC. 7. And be it further enacted, That, as soon as the sum of twelve millions of dollars in gold and silver coin, and in the public debt and treasury notes, shall have been actually received on account of the subscriptions to the said capital stock, (exclusively of the subscription aforesaid on the part of the United States) notice thereof shall be given by the persons under whose superintendence the subscriptions shall have been made at Philadelphia, in at least two public newspapers, printed in each of the places where subscriptions shall have been made; and the said persons shall, at the same time, and in like manner, notify a time and place, within the said city of Philadelphia, at the distance of at least twenty days from the time of such notification, for proceeding to the election of directors as aforesaid; and it shall be lawful for such election to be then and there made. And the persons who shall be then and there chosen, as aforesaid, shall be the first directors, and shall proceed to elect one of their number president of the said corporation, and they shall be capable of serving, by virtue of such choice, until the end and expiration of the first |