454 CONGRESSIONAL PROCEEDINGS. 



admit. It wound up the bank, and determined to pay — 

 first, the outstanding notes, and second the special deposits. 

 All these had been paid. At the expiration of the time for 

 which the bonds were given, he had no doubt that they 

 would be paid ; and if the assets of the bank were insuffi- 

 cient, the State would pay them. 



Mr. Yell also showed, from an official document, that about 

 ninety thousand dollars had been paid towards the interest 

 on these Arkansas bonds. He went on to show that the 

 State of Arkansas had been greatly misused by the general 

 Government. The distribution act passed in 1841. He, as 

 the Executive of Arkansas, recommended to the Legisla- 

 ture not to accept the share of that State. That body, 

 though one-third of them were good Whigs, unanimously 

 refused to accept it. But the Secretary of the Treasury 

 credited the sum, not to Arkansas, but to the bank. The 

 bank received it, and there it remained. When Arkansas 

 came into the Union, five per cent, of the proceeds of lands 

 sold in her limits were given to the State. Till 1842, 

 the sum was promptly paid. After that time, the Govern- 

 ment retained the amount. He argued that they had no 

 more right to take it than they had to take the lands set 

 apart for the support of schools. When the Government 

 was disposed to do justice to Arkansas, the people of that 

 State would be better enabled to meet their obligations. 

 The assets of the bank were equal to the payment of all the 

 debts. 



He would not, however, pledge his State to pay for the 

 default of the bank. When the bonds had become due, 

 and the bank was found unable to pay them, then the State 

 might be called upon. 



Mr. Adams said the United States had nothing to do with 

 the bank. The State of Arkansas gave bonds for the 

 money, and they were in the Treasury now. The money 

 was paid to an agent, and the United States had nothing to 

 do with the investment of the money. 



Mr. Yell said the State of Arkansas made a bank. They 

 issued bonds and invested them in the Real Estate Bank. 



Mr. Adams. Sir, I had heard before that the State of 

 Arkansas never received any benefit from this money. But 

 it was paid to their authorized agents. It was received in 

 the name of the State, and not of the bank. As to the 

 argument that the money was invested in the bank, and the 

 bank was broken, he would leave that to such operation as 

 it might have upon this committee, and let it go for what it 



