Constitutional Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1824-1832, 1824-03-02

ltal OF the State could be expended. The cost
OF the canal has been, understand, about six
millions, the annual interest ON which, is three
hundred thousand dollars, Now, believe, the
amount OF tolls last year, was but one hundred
thousand dollars, from which are to be de-
Quoted the cost of management and repairs,
leaving, probably, little more than an interest of
about one and half per cent.
| And this, MI. Chairman, said MT. T. brings
me TO notice the remark of the gentleman who
introduced this bill (Mr. Hemphill,) who, aware
OIL the objections that would ARISE from the small
Proht offered by some of the projected canals,
said' that canal may be profitable to the COM
Imunity, though it may not be so to the stock
holders This proposition is sometimes true,
BUTT must be received with much allowance and
caution. 1t lstrue where the tolls are not as great
as the saving in the labor of transportation
would justify. But, wherever this saving of
labor IS not sufficient to yield profit as well to
those who make the canal as to those who use It.
I'VE may safely Pr8nounce that country is not
ripe for it.
Great stress was laid by the gentleman from
pennsylvania, on the canals of England. But,
Mt. i. SAID, he thought their example might
have furnished that gentleman with a stronger
argument against the policy of the system he re-
commended than In ITS favor. 1t is not enough
| Tor HIM to rely on the superior cheapness of wa
| ter over land carnage. Sir, the construction
OF canal may be good or bad thing according
| TO circumstances. 1t is very advantageous in
rich and thicl.y settled country to exchange the
surplus products of the different parts, and to re-
ieve their reciprocal wants; but In a country
| that IS poor, and thinly settled, and passing
through barren mountains, in which there is no.
thing to exchange, it would be mere waste of
| the national capital. OF the four thousand miles
oil canal OF which England can boast, and the
n nr orph rtrnl -
She has so many, | believe am warranted in
saying, not one mile was ever made by the go1
lYernment. Their turnpike roads and canals
are always made by joint stock companies,
and whenever one would be really benefi-
cial, individual capital and enterprise are always
found ready to engage in the undertaking. And
can 1t be supposed, if the system now proposed
was good one, that that Government, which
so well understands its interests, especially its
Ilconmercia interests, would not have discovered
Tits advantages?
/ 1t may, however, be objected that, from the
redundancy of private wealth and capital, in
| that country, their system of making roads and
canals, by Incorporated companies is easy and
proper, while here, from the scarcity of CAPT.
tall it Is impracticable. But, SO long, Mr.. hair
man, as your government can borrow money at
five per cent. and your hank stocks yield an an
nual profit of but or per cent. thercwill be no
difficulty In finding men ready to undertake any
road or canal that will yield something like the
same interest. 1t is to no purpose to say that
the natural interest of money is higher i'm this
country than it is in England-for, be that ma
tural interest what it may, whether you suppose
1t SIX, eight or ten per cent, if your road or ca
nal do not afford that profit, it shows that the
country is not ripe for that undertaking, and
| that the money required to execute it, will find
some more profitable employment, if left in the
hands of the people. Let, however, any road
or canal be proposed, whose profit will repay the
!. cost, according to the standard of the country
and, be assured, sir, there will be no difficulty in
procuring the money to execute it.
| The advocates for the system of Internal inn
provement insist that the constitutional power
of the States is not sufficient to execute those
great works, in which the interests of several
states, or perhaps of the whole nation, are in
volved. But there is no difficulty on this SUBJ
ject, whether the proposed road or canal passes
! through one state or many. 1t has been re-
peatedly stated, in the course fthe debate, that
two or more states cannot enter into compact,
| but the prohibition in the constitution extends
only to treaties. The ID clause of the 10th Sec
ton lst art. OF the constitution expressly recog-
nlzes their right to make compacts with the
consent of Congress, and it can hardly be sup
posed that if they wished to enter into a com
pact for the purpose ofmaking canal, Congress
would refuse It's consent. But, if you were to
refuse,t they may act independently of you. They
can effect their object by concurrent acts of
their own legislatures. On this subject, / do
not speak from speculation, but from actual his
I tory. The state ofwhich arm a representative,
Iunited with the State of North Carolina to i'm
prove the navigation of the Roanoke, and by
concurrent legislative acts, without asking
your consent, they incorporated Joint stock
company, which has lately accomplished its OBJ
jects. The States of Maryland and Virginia have
| in the same manner united in making the Poto-
mac Canal
Mr.. T. said, that, before he sat down, he
would call the attention of the committee to the
celebrated report of Mr.. Gallatin, on which
some of the advocates of this bill had SO much
relied. 1t would appear that the power which
they now deem so clear, it was then taken for
granted, Congress did not possess, land here he
read passage from the report.) He thought
this oughtto producei in their minds some doubts
whether they really possessed this power.-
| But, five had the power, and no dangers
were to be apprehended to the Just equilibri-
um which ought to exist among the different
branches of our complex system ofgovernment
still the example of England ought to teach us
| that the proposed plan of making roads and ca
uals is not a wise one. He had much more to
say,but he had already trespassed too long on
The patience of the committee. He hoped The
| committee might he induced to take some of his
suggestions into consideration; and he begged
them TO remember that our legislation at the
present tinc went far to give to our government
its future character; that this nation was as yet,
comparatively in its infancy, and " as the twig
| is bent the trees inclined.n
| IN SENATE.