Page:A History of Banking in the United States.djvu/215

 elections for the general government, but in State elections, from whence it was inferred that other branches had done the same elsewhere." The specification under this last head was the above mentioned interference in Kentucky, in 1825, which was asserted by Kendall, although, when he endeavored to obtain corroboration for it from his informant, he failed to do so. The "Louisville Advertiser," speaking from an inside knowledge of the managemement of the old court campaign of that year, contradicted the assertion that any aid had been given by the Bank of the United States, and the president and seven out of eight surviving directors of the Lexington Branch published affidavits denying that their bank had ever contributed to the funds of any political party. This one disputed allegation of fact was made to bear a tremendous superstructure of assertion, inference and conviction.

Our narrative will now follow the order of events in time, although the facts were not known to the public until 1832.

June 27, 1829, Levi Woodbury, Senator from New Hampshire, wrote to Ingham a confidential letter, in which he made complaints of Jeremiah Mason, the new president of the Portsmouth, New Hampshire, branch of the Bank of the United States; because, first, of the general brusqueness of his manner and, second, of his severity and partiality in the matter of loans and collections. He added that Mason was a friend of Webster. "His political character is doubtless known to you." He added that the complaints were general, and while referring to the fact, as a matter of common notoriety, that all banks were political, he said that the complaints in this case were made by adherents of all political parties.

Ingham inclosed this letter to Biddle, writing: "The character of Mr. Woodbury justifies the belief that he would not make such a charge upon slight or insufficient grounds, and from some expressions in his letter it may be inferred that it is partly founded on a supposed application of the influence of the Bank with a view to political effect." He said that the administration wanted no favors from the Bank. Public opinion in the vicinity of a bank was the best test of the truth of such charges. Biddle replied that he would investigate.

In his apology "To the Public," in 1832, Ingham interpreted this first letter of his as follows: in transmitting Woodbury's letter he felt bound to let the Bank know "that some jealousy existed as to the integrity of some of their officers," in order to give them a chance to make a defense which he could use against those influential persons at Washington who were pushing him on to take action hostile to the Bank. This is only another way of saying that the purpose was to draw Biddle out. Whether it was from a deep and crafty calculation, or only from a fortunate chance with respect to