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Internal Improvements

Internal Improvements image
Parent Issue
Day
25
Month
July
Year
1873
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

The Cincinnati Commercial declares against all the internal improvemenl schemes at national expensa recently broached in Congress and elsewhore It recites the history of the refusal of thr Constitutioniil Convention to confer in the 8upreme luw the power to tuaki them. It recurs to the fiict that the river and barbor appropriations fiom 1824 till now were made as incident to tho granted powers to regúlate commerce and collcct duties, but that internal comuiunication by rond, canal, railways or otherwise, had nothing to do with eustom-revermos. It quoteg Madison'a veto to the infernal improvewenf bill of 1817, Mónroe's veto to the Cuinberl'ind Road bill of 1822, Jaekson's veto of the Maysville Road bill of 1830. It quotes the uniform doctrine of the Demo cratio p.trty in opposition to that policy, reiteratcd in every uational platform froni 1840 to 1856 in these same woids: " Resolved, That the Coiistitutioi) doesnof confer upon the General Government the power to oommence auil earry on a general systein of internal improvemento." It quoten trom the platforms of the old Wbig, the Buffulo Pree Soil, and the Republioan party ta show that even the lutitudinarians never pretended to affirin more tban eould be shown incident to the coiuineree-regolatfiig grunt of power, and, thongh hunkering after the floèhpotR, nefer pretended to aiithurity in DoDffreus to go after tht-m. This ï'roui the Lincoln platform is sample : "That appro))ri;itions by Conress for the impTOvement of rivers and harbors of a national char:icter required for the accoraodation aiul security of our existin commerce, are authorized by the Constitution and justifierl by the oblif,'ation of the Government to protejt the lives and property of its citizens." It is an interesting and correct citation of one chapter in the history of the Government and of the great political parties, wliich the Cincinnati Commercial gives. But to Demócrata like ourselves it, is ;i vory old story Wout ín new and surpnsing and important in the matter is th;tt o able and popular a jonrnal nuw opposes tho opinión of its sectiou nuil oí the dominant party, learns in the Credit Mobilier expeiienoe that the dogma of the Democraoy is a conclusión of praetical wisdom, and, with the Dumocraey demanda the cunh'nement of Congtess within the ring-feoea of the power ot ' reserved to the States respoctively or to the ppople." We shull ünd it very hard to quarrel with such a Free Trade and Statu liights journal, even though it woulcl cali )he rose of its Democracy by any other name that will sniell as sweet. -2K Y. World.

Article

Subjects
Old News
Michigan Argus