the monied operations of those who engaged in the loan, and to evince a friendly disposition towards such banks as have been liberal in affording their aid to the government; but you were expressly informed that no stipulations whatever could or would be made on the subject of deposits, and that every application by a bank must depend on its own merits, considering the very small amount of revenue that is now received, and the great number of banks already connected with the treasury. It will be with much reluctance the number will hereafter be increased.

"The late extraordinary news from Europe will, it is presumed, raise the price of stocks. Peace on the continent must, in all probability, produce a general peace.

"My health still continues delicate.

"G. W. CAMPBELL,

"JACOB BARKER, esq."

"P. S.-The instructions to collectors of internal taxes are given by the commissioner of the revenue. He will be directed to instruct the collector of internal taxes in the city to deposite a part of the public moneys in the City Bank, conformable to the arrangement made in relation to the collector of the customs, &c."

To which Mr. Barker replied as follows:

"I am favored with thy letter of the 16th; by the contents thereof, I am sorry to observe the course pursued towards me; I am satisfied that it does not arise from an indisposition to serve me, but from an idea that propriety requires it, in which I totally differ in opinion with thee; and it should be remembered that government will want more money, and that if the war continues they will find great difficulty in getting it; therefore, if there was not any other reason, that is sufficient to dictate, not only a liberal course towards those men who have a disposition and ability to supply the wants of the government, but such a course as will foster their ability, if not their disposition, to serve government; and the course pursued towards me is likely to destroy my ability to render further aid, however much my zeal for my country may resist its influence, and continue my disposition to render aid in the next loans. I am aware of my folly in agreeing to make the loan of five millions, without an absolute condition that the banks which might assist me should have at least all the favors mentioned in thy memorandum, and nothing but the most thorough conviction that they would get them as a free will offering, and that, considering the terms of thy advertisement, thee could not with propriety grant such a condition, induced me to make the contract without such a condition; for I always believed, and stated to thee, that it would be

impossible for me to procure a fourth of the money, without I could offer the contemplated inducements to the banks." "I hope and trust, thee will reconsider this business, and by return of mail increase the business of the City Bank to one-third, and give to the Albany Bank one third or one half of the business of that place. Trifling as the difference between one-fourth and one-third is, it is necessary to fulfil my engagements; and if I do not fulfill my engagements, I cannot expect the bank to fulfill theirs-and, besides, once let an individual or institution justly charge me with not having honorably fulfilled my engagement, and all the money lenders and public institu tions will take the alarm, and magnify the offence so as to defeat all my future operations. I waive the favor asked by the Bank of North America, New York, and shall not make any further stipulations about government business, until we understand each other better; but for the City Bank of this place, and for the Mechanics' and Farmers' Bank, Albany, I must entreat thee to do all I ask. Curtailing it, in the smallest degree, will be as fatal to me as to refuse altogether. On Saturday next, I have to pay the second instalment; a letter from thee, in answer to this, may be received before that day, and I beg thee to let me have a letter before that time, saying the City Bank shall have a third of the business. I cannot do without it. It distresses me to have thus to plead; and if selling the stock at any moderate loss would save me from this painful service, it should be done before I would, for a moment, appear in a soliciting attitude. It can only be done by a sale of the stock, and so large a sale could not be effected at 80. Stocks will not bear to be pressed on the market. I shall keep the market supplied with all it can bear without depressing the price. The City Bank has, in times of the greatest distress, furnished a million of dollars, in addition to what they had before done, without receiving a farthing's benefit from government; the other banks, who have been fattening on the favors of government for seven years, and who have never granted any favors to government, and who, at the time when the City Bank lent a million of dollars, did not lend but a fourth of that sum, therefore, instead of having less, I should think that bank should have more of the public business than the others."

[Extracts.]

"WASHINGTON, June 21, 1814. "DEAR SIR: Your favors of the 17th and 18th instant have been received. You will have been informed by my last that instructions were given directing a portion of the public deposits to be made in the City Bank. It is not recollected that the Farmers' and Me

chanics' Bank at Albany applied to this department, since I came into office, to receive a part of the public deposits; and, in fact, the amount of the moneys collected at that place is so inconsiderable that a division of it does not seem expedient; nor would the deposit of a part of it be an object of any importance to a bank. The question, however, has not been taken into consideration with the view of finally deciding it, the application from the bank not having been made.

"Instructions have been given to the cashiers named in your letter, and to some others, to receive such payments on account of the loan as may be made in their banks, and credit the same in the manner therein stated; being the only practicable mode in which the object you have in view could be effected without producing irregularity in the treasury accounts. This will, it is presumed, answer your purpose; a copy is herewith enclosed for your infor

mation.

"I think it proper, however, to remark to you that it is extremely inconvenient to make unexpected innovations on the mode of conducting the business of the loan; and nothing but a strong desire to facilitate the operations that relate to it would have induced me to accede to such a course on the present

occasion.

"NEW YORK, sixth month, 26th, 1814. "DEAR FRIEND: The mail has arrived this day, and I have not received an answer to my letter of the 20th. Do reflect on my humiliating condition, and contrast it with what it would have been but for a mere trifle; nothing too little to deliberate on a moment; only the difference between the advantage to a bank in doing one third or one fourth of the public business at this place, the whole of which is scarce worth $1,000. I do not mind defeat or misfortune, but it is truly mortifying to be

destroyed by a mere shadow. It will, however, if the war continues, prove the value that my services might have been to government far better than if I had succeeded.

"In the latter case my services would have been forgotten or never known by seven-eighths of the nation, and now, all will feel the ill effects of not getting the money that could so easily have been got through me. "G. W. CAMPBELL."

The directors of the City Bank had assembled at my request. I appeared before them, pointed out the consequences that would inevitably result to the bank, then a very large holder of stock to the nation and to myself, if they withheld the anticipated aid, expressing the most confident opinion that the business of the treasury would be extended to their bank to the one third promised, and begged them to name the terms on which they would let me have the money; they did so, doubtless believing that it would be impossible for me to accept the required terms, which were that I should invest $550,000 dollars in six per cent. stock at 88, and deliver it to the bank as a security for the repayment of the $500,000 they proposed to let me have, and that I should add thereto $450,000, and deposit the whole $950,000 in their bank to the credit of government, to be drawn out as the treasury might have occasion to use it; and further, that I must return one half of the money thus lent me, if government did not, within twenty days, extend their share of the public business from one quarter to one third; to all which I promptly agreed, although it withdrew from my business for a whole year the capital of fifty thousand dollars in cash, in lieu of the note of fifteen thousand dollars, mentioned in our agreement, without my having any stock for it; and although the deposit of the additional $450,000 to the credit of government in one of the other banks would have enabled me to procure from such other bank an additional loan of at least $200,000, and notwithstanding it would subject me to a sale of my stock at a loss, to repay the half of the sum borrowed within the twenty days, if government did not extend its portion of the public business from one quarter to a third. A most trifling difference, yet it afforded an excuse for vacating a bargain which a change of public affairs had made the bank regret having made; thus circumstanced, it had a legal right to

make the best bargain in its power. If this one third had been originally granted, and surely I had every just claim and reason to expect it, all my difficulties with this bank would have been avoided.

So,

Yielding it after having refused to do and after having notified the bank that the treasury would not increase their proportion of public business, went far to establish my right to demand it, and is the best commentary can be made on its being withheld.

Anticipating difficulty from having received scrip certificates on payment of the first instalment, as I wished to pay other instalments in other banks, I represented this difficulty to Mr. Campbell, and requested him to instruct the cashiers of other banks to receive the money and endorse it on the scrip certificates;

in reply to which he informed me that I might pay the money in such other banks, and get them to place it to the credit of the banks issuing the scrip certificates, and who, on the receipt of a certificate of such deposite, would endorse the scrip certificates; and that he would by draft transfer the debt back to the bank where I paid the money, so that they might have the benefit of the deposit to the credit of government. This plan, although very inconvenient, obviated some of the difficulties, so far as it applied to my payments in this city, but rendered it very difficult to accomplish my payments at other places. With respect to the monies obtained from distant parts, I was obliged to furnish the stock as security at the same time of receiving the money. Now, by this arrangement, stock could not be procured until after the money had been paid at a distant place to the credit of the bank issuing the scrip certificates, and a receipt produced for it at such bank, when the cashier would endorse it on the scrip certificate, after which the Commissioner of Loans in this city would fund it, and the stock must then be returned to the distant place where the money had been procured before the promised security could be given. This difficulty prevented my obtaining large sums at distant places, therefore I was obliged to make all my payments in the banks in New York, excepting one hundred thousand dollars in the Bank of Cape Fear, and three hundred thousand dollars in a

bank at Albany. I considered the Treasury Department bound by the terms of our contract to grant funded stock at each place on the payment of the money, without going through the scrip operation, in my case a useless contrivance to embarrass my operations and defeat me, to which the Secretary yielded assent, (not perceiving the object,) on the suggestion that it would compel me to leave part of the stock as security. In the letter of contract I am put at liberty to pay the money in any bank I may name. On the receipt of that letter, I informed the Secretary that I would pay the money into such banks in the different parts of the United States as I could borrow

it from, but that I could not name them before I had made my contracts with them, and he agreed to leave that part of the business open,

desiring me to name them from time to time as

soon as possible. I had, however, no time to dispute about the perplexities of forms, but continued my exertions to fulfil my contract with the City Bank and to complete the payment of my second instalment. Such payment I had the good fortune to accomplish and to pay a small amount in advance on my two last instalments, although most people on the exchange at Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, confidently calculated that I should not be enabled to raise the money on account of its exceeding great scarcity, and because it was impossible to effect any considerable sales of stock. The Secretary, having declined extending further the public patronage to the banks which were willing to lend me money, without which he knew I was not bound to furnish a dollar, imbibed the same opinion, and inconsiderately expressed it to John Donald, D. A. Smith, and David Parish, with whom he was endeavoring to negotiate a further portion of the loan, and probably to others.

I communicated every particular of my negotiation and contract with the City Bank to Mr. Campbell, and my success in paying my second instalment, and the following is the

answer received from him:

"WASHINGTON, June 29, 1814. "DEAR SIR: I congratulate you on having completed the payment of the second instalment announced in yours of the 27th instant, just received. It is hoped that all will do well.

Having completed such payments, it was necessary for me to commence my operations for the money to pay my third instalment, to accomplish which I was very anxious to visit Boston, but I was under the necessity of repairing to Washington, to get the Secretary to extend the business to the City Bank, from a quarter to a third; to bestow upon the Mechanics' and Farmers' Bank, at Albany, a third of the public business at that place; to extend patronage to such other banks as might assist me in pursuance of my original plan. I accordingly proceeded to Washington, where Iarrived on the fourth of July, and immediately had an interview with the President of the United States, when I explained to him the course that had been pursued, and what was necessary to be done; he was knowing to the assurances given me by the Secretary when the contract was made, and approved of them; he sent for Mr. Campbell, they conferred to gether on the subject. The President pointing out to Mr. Campbell the consequences likely to result from the course pursued by the Treasury, that good faith required he should promptly carry out every assurance given me when the contract was made. Immediately after which, I called on the Secretary, when he promised to extend to the City Bank the business of the department at New York, making it one-third in place of one-fourth, and to confer on the Mechanics' and Farmers' Bank, at Albany, onethird of the business of the department at that place.

replied to a letter which I wrote, complaining that the condition had not been put on the face of the stock, I asked his reason for omitting it. He replied, generally, that he meant at all events to do right; that his reasons for ordering the stock to be issued without bearing the condition on the face of it was, that the stock was to be permanent, and when the additional stock was issued the condition would be at an end, after which it should not appear on the stock, and once put on it, it could not be

taken off.

He mentioned, that he had not the least intention of changing the rights of the parties by omitting it, and that it could not injure them, because they could prove their title without difficulty, it being a thing of public record, of public notoriety, contained in a circular letter to all the subscribers to the loan, and not a special condition with any particular individual.

Knowing that Mr. Sheldon had the principal arrangement of the detail of the business of the treasury department, and had the reputation of understanding it very well, and although it was manifest the person who had the arrangement of conducting the business with me understood very well how to reject every request I made, and how to embarrass all my proceedings, yet I applied to him, and desired him to cause such a course to be pursued as would prevent further perplexity. At the same time I pointed out to him, that if they had determined to break me down, they could not have pursued a course more likely to effect that object; to which he replied, that he had nothing to do with it; that he was opposed to the terms of the contract made with me, and as Mr. Campbell had thought proper to make it in opposition to his opinions, that he would not interfere with respect to the carrying it into effect; no motive could possibly exist to induce a wish of breaking me down, except it was to prevent the receipt of the money, and thereby to injure the administration and

Mr. Sheldon added, that he had the submission of the plans for conducting all the business of the department, but that he had not submitted, and would not submit, any plan for the conducting of this business, nor would he even read the letters I wrote to Mr. Campbell on the subject; that he had not read them, ex

cept one or two, which he required him peremptorily to peruse. I replied to him, that however proper it was for him to give his opinion and advice to the Secretary before the contract was made, that I considered he, as a clerk in the office, was bound to do every thing in his power to carry into effect such contracts as the head of the department thought proper to make. I left him, and waiting on Mr. Campbell, informed him of the conversation with

Mr. Sheldon, adding that it was no longer strange that I had been so much perplexed, since an experienced clerk in so difficult and extensive a business as fell to the lot of his department could at any time derange a portion of the business, without its being possible for the head of the department to discover it, especially if such principal had not occupied the station sufficiently long to become acquainted with its details.

The Secretary had been but a short time in office, during the whole of which time he had been in bad health. He was not experienced in the detail of the department, and although of industrious habits and with the best intentions, he was not, under those circumstances, equal to the task.

When he was appointed the office was in the most deranged state, having been for six months, in the absence of Mr. Gallatin, conducted by

hostile clerks.

The duties of the acting secretary, as Secretary of the Navy, occupied nearly all his time in his own department.

The treasury was also almost destitute of money; its revenue inadequate to the discharge of the expenses of the war; the accustomed receipts greatly reduced by the restrictive system and the war.

The opposition took advantage of this state of affairs, and denounced Mr. Campbell as an ignorant backwoods-man.

On my return to New York, I found that in formation of the difficulty thrown in my way by the treasury had preceeded me from those persons who had repaired to Washington, and who were negotiating a new loan, and that it was already in possession of the Wall-street gentry, which greatly impaired my operations, and rendered it. exceedingly difficult to perform the whole operation in relation to an instalment

under the regulations of the treasury in the one day prescribed.

"WASHINGTON CITY, July 14, 1814.

"DEAR SIR: Enclosed you will receive copies of two letters relating to deposits yesterday, written to effect the objects under consideration when you left this. Should we make advertise to receive proposals, &c. A certain no contract for a loan, in a short time we may portion of the fifteen millions, at least as much as was contemplated, will, however, in Europe, probably by our ministers there. It according to our present views, be negotiated is hoped prospects will brighten. There is nothing known to the writer of this to justify the editorial paragraph in the National Intelligencer of this morning. "In haste, with due respect, I am, sir, your most obedient, "G. W. CAMPBELL.

"JACOB BARKER, esq."

For the purpose of gaining time necessary in which to obtain the money and transfer the promised securities to the lenders, I applied to the loan office to ascertain whether, if I paid in in anticipation, they would fund the scrip certificates before the day mentioned. They referred to their instructions, which being silent on that subject, but directed the date to be inserted in the certificate on which the interest commenced, they replied to me, that if I was willing to lose the few days' interest, they did not discover any objections to granting the stock. I therefore determined to pay a part before it became due, and, accordingly, dollars on the fifteenth, sixteenth, eighteenth, paid about one hundred and fifty thousand and nineteenth of July, which was endorsed on the scrip certificates, and the Commissioner of Loans issued funded stock for it, bearing interest from the twenty-fifth of July, the day I was bound to pay, as I preferred losing the interest for those few days to being embarrassed in my operations for the want of power to give security in time. The stock was transferred to my agents, McEwen, Hale and Davidson, of Philadelphia, who were to have furnished me with funds on it in season to have made additional payments on the twenty-fifth of July. The certificates were sent to the Treasury Department to be transferred to the Philadelphia books, when that department, after keeping them many days, returned them to the loan office in this city for the purpose of obtaining an explanation with respect to the interest