KIRTLAND, OHIO, JULY, 1837.

It is a well known and established fact, that in the latter part of the year 1836 a bank, or monied institution, was established in this place denominated the "Kirtland Safety Society Bank." Plates were engraved in Philadelphia, paper struck, and the bank commenced discounting in the early part of the present year. It was considered a kind of joint stock association, and that the private property of the stockholders was holden in proportion to the amount of their subscription, for the redemption of the paper issued by the bank. No charter was obtained for the institution, which operated as one cause to limit the circulation of the bills, destroy public confidence in them, and stimulate the holders of them to return them again to the bank and demand the specie for them. Other banks which had been at the expense of procuring charters, refused the bills of this bank in payment of any debts due their respective institutions. This stand taken by other banks operated as might be reasonably supposed, to destroy the currency of these bills with men of business who had deal with the banks already chartered and established by law.

By a clause in an act of the legislature of the State of Ohio passed January 28th, 1834 no bills issued by an unincorporated bank can be collected by law, neither can the bank, banker or bankers collect any note bond or bill taken for the payment of bills of such unincorporated or unchartered bank. We will here insert the clause for the benefit of our readers who have not ready access to the Statute,

It can be found on the 450th page Ohio Statute; and reads as follows:

"That no action shall be brought upon any notes or bills, hereafter issued by any bank, banker or bankers, and intended for circulation, or upon any note, bill bond or other security given and made payable to any such, bank, banker or bankers, unless such bank banker or bankers, shall be incorporated and authorized by the laws of this State, to issue such bills and notes: but that all such notes and bills, bonds and other securities, shall be held and taken in all courts as absolutely void."

Under these unpropitious circumstances the managers of the bank began its operation. There was a fair amount of specie in the vault to commence business, and friends enough who were ready to take the bills, carry them at a distance, and make exchanges for paper of other banks or specie, and return them to this place. But the unpopularity of our religion, together with the institution being an unchartered one, tended to render the circulation, as we before remarked, limited. At that time and a few weeks afterward, specie was promtly paid for the redemption of the bills when they were presented at the bank. It may here be proper to remark, that nearly all the specie had been drawn out of circulation, and most of the bills of specie paying banks to fill the vault, and make a safe basis for the redemption of the paper of this bank. When we say this, we mean, in this vicinity. We can also remark, that the banks generally had been limiting their issues for several months and the general cry was, that money was scarce. But real estate began gradually to decline, and every article of food to rise in price.

The great scarcity of money operated upon community to make every one anxious to have the new bills in circulation. There were two classes of people and both appeared equally anxious, but they were actuated by diamatrically opposite motives. The one part were anxious to pay their debts, supply themselves with food, and build up the place: the other being enemies, had our ruin in view, and were willing to receive the bills, come and demand the specie on them, and when the notes become due that were given for bills at the bank, avail themselves of that clause of the statute which we have quoted to avoid payment, still the officers of the bank continued to redeem, their paper when presented. Previously to the commencement of discounting by the bank, large debts had been contracted for merchandize in New York and other cities, and large contracts entered into for real estate in this town, and adjoining towns, some of them had fallen due and must be met or incur forfeitures of large sums. These causes, we are bound to believe, operated to induce the officers of the bank to let out larger sums than their better judgements dictated, which almost invariably fell into, or passed through the hands of those who sought our ruin. Our enemies foresaw, and every man might foresee without the gift of prophecy, the down fall of the institution, as plainly as Belshazzar saw the hand that wrote his doom on the wall of his palace. The bills, as might be expected, were at this time rather rising in the estimation of unprejudiced men abroad, having assurances when they received them that they were good, and should be made good to the holders. Hundreds who were enemies, either came or sent their agents and demanded specie till the officers thought best to refuse payment. This fact was soon rumored abroad as upon the wings of the wind; some returned their bills with curses, and some with entreaties for their redemption according to the character, temper and disposition of the holders. Some contended that the bank was down and refused to take its paper, others contended that it was yet good or would soon be made good, and continued to use it and buy land and all kinds of property with it. Holders of the bills from abroad came and purchased property of people, in this place and paid in bills of our own bank, while others residing here were actively engaged in recommending the paper, and purchasing property abroad. Speculators and others continued to trade in the bills without any fixed marketable value, sometimes at one rate of discount and sometimes at another, till there was no reasonable hope that it would ever be all returned to the bank.

About this time the two first officers of the bank resigned, sold out their interest and withdrew from the institution. All banks throughout the country, one after another suspended specie payment. Some of them were as illy able to continue when they stopped as was ours, but they had charters, were popular and waited till it was popular to suspend payment, and then they could do so with impunity whether they had five dollars or five thousand to redeem their paper. It is unnecessary to say that confidence has failed in all paper money, though we would not be understood to say that it has failed equally with all. Gold and silver has risen in value in a direct ratio with the depreciation of paper. Many of the monied institutions are thought to be unsound, and from the best evidences that can not be obtained, will never be able to redeem their bills. The public begin to look upon them as privileged monopolies, whose sole object has been to amass wealth at the expense of the best interests of the honest and industrious part of community. They have expanded their circulation, and flooded the country with their paper, while the public was impressed with the belief that it was good, and convertible into the precious metals at the will of the holders. Confidence in them is now impaired just in proportion to the current price of Gold and silver above the nominal value of paper.

The marketable value of all articles of trade is unsettled and fluctuating in consequence of the deranged state of the currency: credit is destroyed, confidence impaired, and every human appearance of a worse state of things instead of better, until a new system of trade or a complete revolution takes place.

Such must inevitably be the effect of all monopolies sooner or later, they give privileges to some, withhold them from others, make the rich richer and the poor poorer. We care not what the Government of a country may be, whether it be a monarchy or representative democracy: give one class of citizens in it facilties for making money faster than others and on a fictitious capital, and it is but indirectly giving them power to oppress the other class.

Here we will remark, that all past history goes to assure us that privileged orders and institutions, with all the checks and balances that can, or we will say have ever been imposed on them by the wisest legislatures, have always found means to transcend the bounds marked out to them by their creators and abridge the real liberty and vital privileges and interests of the citizens.

Privilege is but a legal right, to one class of citizens to make money faster, and in a way that others may not take. It in fact gives many of them more than compound interest on, not only their real capital, but on a fictitious capital, and converts the fictitious into a real capital at the expence of the non privileged class of citizens. The two grand objects are wealth and power. Money we all know is power, and he who possesses most of it, has the most men in his power. If we give all our privileges to one man, we virtually give him our money and our liberties, and make him a monarch, absolute and despotic, and ourselves abject slaves or fawning sycophants. If we grant privileges and monopolies to a few, they always continue to undermine the fundamental principles of freedom, and sooner or later, convert, the purest and most liberal form of Government, into the rankest aristocracy. These we conceive, are matters of history, matters of fact that cannot be controverted. Well may it be said, if we thus barter away our liberties, we are unworthy of them. The sirene song of liberty and independence, is but an empty name, and he who does not allow himself to think, to speak, to reason and act only as his wealthy landlord shall dictate, has virtually resigned the dignity of an independent citizen and is as much a slave, as if the manacles were upon his hands. His boasted liberty is a deception, and his independence a phantom. We will here remark, (although a little digressing from the subject under discussion and the particular object we had in view when we commenced this article,) that whenever a people have unlimited confidence in a civil or eclesiastical ruler or rulers, who are but men like themselves, and begin to think they can do no wrong, they increase their tyranny, and oppression, establish a principle that man, poor frail lump of mortality like themselves, is infallible. Who does not see a principle of popery and religious tyranny involved in such an order of things? Who is worthy the name of a freeman, who thus tamely surrenders, the rights the privileges, and immunities of an independent citizen? He who barters liberty for gold exchanges the authorities of man for that which is but glittering dust or a shining toy without them. He who vainly supposes man infallible, may as well admit him independent and not accountable to the God that made him, for one is as consistent as the other, and if we would go thus far we can hardly conceive that we would violate any command in the decalogue to worship such an one: for most assuredly, there is nothing in the heavens above or earth beneath like unto him, of which we have any account. But to return from our digression.

Intelligence of the people is the only guarantee against encroachments upon their liberties, whether those encroachments are from the civil or eclesiastical power. All chartered companies privileged orders, or monopolies are more or less dangerous to liberty, and destructive to a free Government. Intelligence then, that such is the fact is necessary, that the people may appreciate their rights and guard them with that vigilence that prudence dictates to prevent any infraction of them. The great object of all privileged classes is money and power, and the universal undeviating course of all who possess both, is to add to both at the expense of the liberties and best interests of their fellow citizens.

From a review of what we have written we remark.

1st Relative to the paper, purporting to be bank bills issued in this place, we say there is much of it in circulation, but not much in this place. It has been bought up here and elsewhere, sometimes at one rate of discount and sometimes at another, and carried to a distance: we have frequent rumors from different places respecting its currency; in some places reports say it is good and current as other bank paper, but here and in other places it is not. We are aware that the currency of any paper circulating as money, depends on one simple fact, to make it so. The public mind must be impressed with the belief that it can be converted into the precious metals, to the same amount that is stamped on the bill or bills; so long as the current of public opinion goes to establish that point, just so long and so far, any paper will be current and no farther. If there are but five dollars in the vault of the bank that issued the paper, while the public mind is satisfied that it is perfectly solvent and good, the currency would be no better were the same vault the depository of half a million. What then is our duty under existing circumstances? Shall we all unite as one man, say it is good and make it so by taking it on a par with gold and silver? We will answer no, for the simple reason that we are few in number, compared with the world of mankind by whom we are surrounded and with whom we must necessarily have intercourse, though we may give and receive it, still it must be confined in its circulation and par value currency, to the limits of our own society, and that society small, dependent, comparitively speaking, and of consequence subjected daily to the imperious necessity of a dead loss, or a total failure in prosecuting the necessary avocations of life or procuring the bare means of subsistence. Shall we then take it at its marked price for our property? We answer no. Our enemies far out number us, and as we have before hinted, we are measurably dependent on them, and if they receive any of our paper they receive it at a discount, and return it upon us again as soon as may be, and if we received it at par we give them, voluntarily and with our eyes open, just that advantage over us, to oppress, degrade and depress us, that our paper differs in par value from other current paper, or gold and silver. Thus we see it is abundantly evident to the most obtuse intellect, that all the wealth, and industry of this people, would soon be wasted and exausted in building up our enemies and we be left in a state of complete mendicity.

Our brethren ought so far to inform themselves on this subject and the subject of the currency generally as not to become the willing dupes of their enemies. It is a duty they owe to themselves, and their families to provide for, and sustain them, and it is directly in accordance with the laws of God and man, to do so by industry and good economy, and good economy must consist in a fair reciprocity in trade. -- The principles of trade and commerce have long since been settled in the main, and will be pursued, and the zeal for our religion, or our bank should not be suffered to eat us up and destroy us; and we believe, the God we worship, the God who made us, and our little ones, requires no such thing of us.

2 Respecting the management of our banking institution, much has been said, and various opinions and conjectures offered by friends and foes. We are not bankers, bank stock holders, or financiers. We believe that banking or financiering is as much a regular science, trade or business, as those of law, physic or divinity, and that a man may be an eminent civilian, and know nothing of consequence of the principles of medicine. He may be a celebrated divine, and be no mechanic no financier, and be as liable to fail in the management of a bank as he would in constructing a balloon or the mechanism of a watch if he had never seen either.

We are not prepared in our feelings to censure any man, we wish to extend that charity to others, which under similar circumstances we should claim at their hands. We believe in that "charity that suffereth long and is kind" and we further add, "which thinketh no evil." Permit us also further to remark, that it is no more consistent with our feelings and our wishes, than our duty, to say who under the then existing circumstances would have done any better. Other men under far more propitious circumstances, possessing knowledge, skill and experience, and backed by the strong arm of the law, have failed. Thousands and tens of thousands have failed, and it is easy to see, when the deed is done, the die cast and the time gone by, where there were errors, but we are not now to judge any man. They may have been errors of the head and not of the heart: we should impugn no one's motives, but as far as truth and reason can go, exercise that grace, "that thinketh no evil."

3 Relative to currency generally, we have few remarks to make. We all know that the paper circulation, is unsound, fluctuating and precarious. We believe that, from present appearances it will be more so, and that our brethren as prudent men, should not exchange real estate or any other property for it, other than according to their currency, in market, and then only so far as is to be laid out and expended for immediate use and present benefit. Although bank bills, nominally may pass for the price stamped upon them, still it is a notorious fact, that they have in reality fallen in value, and that brokers and bankers will pay a premium on gold and silver above its marked or estimated value, while the best of paper is below it. We have made these remarks because we have considered all monied institutions at the present time unsound and precarious.

4 Relative to monopolies generally we are unfriendly to them, any farther than their privileges tend to foster a spirit of improvement, in labor saving, in the facilities of procuring means of subsistence for a greater number of inhabitants, and are identified with the best interests of the people. But to those monopolies or companies with exclusive privileges of making money and oppressing the people, and that too, with a fictitious foundation, we are opposed as they are generally conducted, toto coelo. They arm one class of people with the legal power of oppressing the other. They are in fact, armed with power, as we have heretofore said, to make the rich, richer, and the poor poorer: and we will further add, with all the checks and balances that have ever been imposed on them, it is contrary to experience and past history to say, the power has not been exercised, transcended and abused, the poor, been oppressed and made poorer, the line of distinction between rich and poor, become more and more visible, the poor sinking into a state of dependence and vassalage, while in a direct ratio, the rich were rising into a proud haughty, bloated aristocracy.

5 We had intended to point out in a distinct section of this article, the effects of monopolies on trade, and commerce, but our circumscribed limits, and what we have already anticipated in the preceeding section must suffice. We therefore recommend to our brethren to be good and peaceful citizens of that Government which protects them and guard all their present rights, and privileges with a vigilant eye. We ask you, we entreat you, to continue, in a sound, righteous and constitutional manner, to exercise the right of bold, free, and independent citizens, in the fear of God.

Respecting what we have said relative to the independence of this or any people, we will here remark, that the perpetuity of it, depends on two points, (viz:) virtue and intelligence. Virtue is power, and so is intelligence, and without these no government can be good, nor can rulers or ruled be happy. The faithful pages of history are full on these points and they are now held up as beacons and way marks to light us through the chequered scene that surrounds us.

It would be folly in the extreme to suppose that that cause which once existed and produced certain effects, will not produce the same effects now, under similar circumstances; so in like manner will men abuse power when clothed with it, and we should as soon look for the whole order of nature to be reversed, as for the effect to be otherwise. All our reading, all our experience, yea and almost fifty years, close observation as we were capable of making, are all vain and worse than vain, If we are not now prepared to say we know these things to be true.

7 We therefore, in conclusion, say to our brethren, let your time be all judiciously employed. Set a part a suitable portion for the service of God, acts of devotion and the study of his word, a portion for the study of the science of our own government and the current news of the day, that we may be able understandingly to exercise our rights as free citizens, and a portion for refreshment and sleep. No man or set of men are worthy of liberty unless they so appreciate it as to endeavor to perpetuate it. Neither are we worthy, nor can we enjoy the peaceable fruits of righteousness, unless we are exercised thereby.