Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1838-03-10

oil they ask; butlhey nrp Just and generous pro.
pie, and they ARE willing thst those advantages which
hey inherit from the bounty of Providence shall be ex.
tended, ny artificial means to their less fortunate brei
rem Of the West hope, Sir, an example so worthy Of
imitation will not beSwlhou its effect
The second obstacle TO Internal Improvement. (said
MIR , Is the unfortunate and mistaken idea which has
long prevailed that on this subject the East and the
West have different interest The impression has
been long in lower Virginia TINT il is unequal
aud urus that any portion OF the money Of the East
should BE- expended on Improvements in the West that
the Eastern and Western sections Of the State have not
4 common interest in this policy; aud that public in.
PoYements enure exclusively 10 the benefit Of the
West For the truth of this assertion, appeal could be
safely made to the Delegation from the tide
try and to the Journal Of the House it is matter of
record that TO all plans for the general improvement Of
the State, the East has almost invariably res ponded in
The negative. Either 'palSied by The supposed will Of
their constituents, not nppieci pg the benefits Of
the policy, her Representatives have thwa,ted every
generous sRozsto obtain for the Commonwealth good
systetst-of lnsragemcnt fnd, Why Because ef the
erroneous az absusd rssson that by developing The
RESOURCES OF the Western Portion of the State the value
OF the productions Of the deprecated by the
tering OF the ormer into competition with the atter-
Ihrre never was n more basrlPss argument than this
The reasoning is alse-alsc from beginning end. And
il is strange, passing strange. said Mr. S. that gross
and e3ecrabe allacy should ever have been nculca,ed
by sensible men, and imposed upon the crcduity Of
deceived and deluded people.
Let US examine the reasoning The notion ia. that If
the productions Of the West brought the MAJ kets
Of the East, there 10 into PETITION with the pro-
duce of The East the latter will be essened in price For
example II the and wheat made in the West
brought, by Of railroads and canals to East
ern markets, shall receive less price for The
aud whent made in the tide water countless This has
been, time out Of mind tlvorIe argument against In
ternGl improvement. There Country yet,
possessing easy 10 MARKET that did not dispute
the like privileges remoter sections. The people
the Hudson opposed with Yehcnence, the construction
of the Erie Cuna because said Iey if the produce of
the Western counties Of New York be permitted to
in competition with onIS, shall get nothing for
what produce But all such reasoning is founded in
utter ignorance of the first principles OF Political Eco
n"my The truth ID, that the demand increases with the
supply. Whatever stimulates production nultIpes the
demand for il Population, Of the great elements of
demand, always increases with the increase Of pr"duc
ton ana the progress Of public improvements. The gr
neral market Is enlarged, while markets added
in The cities, which rapidly grow up under the genial in
huencc vi Internal Improvement Nor Is this all The
increase Ut production attracts capital TO purchase
up that production. Accordingly, the people on the
Hudson, who had demonstrated against the Erie Canal
found 10 their surprise and not rss 10 their advantage that
whereas before the uction OF that canal the de-
uland for barrel n Il ,ur, EDWARDS il for
twenty; and, whereas, before there thousand
d0la rs IN The Eastern cities 10 buy up tins rur, there
afterwards hundreds of thousands for the same
purpose In other words in consequence Of the incfeas
cd activity of trade in lis various departments, the in
Of population, and the competition Of capital de-
namd kept pace with supply. There was more produce
buy. This is the solution Of the whole difficulty, aud
satisfactory rrfuation of the trite argument that the
East is 10 be injured by The policy Of Internal Improve
men And BESIDES said MIR. s., to render this argu
ment available, il must be shown that the staples OF
Western production Identical with those OF The East,
which is by means the fact
But the East is not only not njuIinusy affected, but
is equally, if not principally, benefited by tins policy
is beneficiary in the increased activity impaired 10
trade in all It's branches-a benefit Of most diusve
character, To. and gpnallY affecting every Sec
ton Of the Stale. But is benefited in another way,
to much greater extent The people Of the East, as
well of the whole State, large consumers OF I'M
ported prctandza. Not being importers, We
purchase our supplies Of Northern merchants Every
arlics Of this kind COMES 10 The Virginia consumer lax
ed it is generally computed, al the rate OF twenty hive
per cent Estimating then, the annual consumption OF
the tide wafer region at three mil"ns, which is heow
the real amount the tax paid TO the Northern importers
will be- $50 900 per annun. Now said vi , n, ls per.
frctly manifest that the people of the last mus, look TO
the Internal improvement Of The State as their only
hone Of relief lrnm Ibis taxation. Our cites
without back country trade, which could he provided
alone by system of public works, can never become
importing citIes and until they do, this enormous annual
tax must continue be levied upon the people of the
Eus nay, without such system, the tax will be per.
petual. 1t is impossible that our towns can become
commercial empouns, but BY means of the produce OF
Western and Valley regions There he the sub
strata Of whatever cunercIu Importance is destined of
Virginia.
Mr. S then illustrated the position that The Eastern
would be ben, fitted 10y having tine productions OF the
Western section opened TO the Atlantic market towns OF
The State Suppose SAID he, the surplus of the Valley
and the West taken eff To Baltimore by means OF
improvements constructed by the Stale Of Maryland,
iustrad of going To Richmond and Norfolk Would it
be pretended that Baltimore in particular aud the State
of Mary land in general would not be most materially
benefited by the trade thus passing from our territory
to The principal seaport of our neighboring sister: Would
ii not be element, and important element, IN The
commercial prosperity of that Stale; Would it not help
10 ui int IN inn
relieve the ciizens of Mary land from the burdensoIne
taxation which otherwise They would pay to Northern
importers Why, Sir, said MIR S. the people oi Mary
land would word run railroad down the rich VAL
ley of Virginia. if The Stale would grant them permits
sion Yet forego this valuable trade, and set our
faces against public improvements because The clizrns
of the East are be nuriuusy affected by the opera
ton AT least mol 10 be proited by IT. miserable
argument indesd
Away them with the idea that these sections have
rival interest So far from being natural enemies as
we have been long wont 10 Think they natural allies
and friends God aud Nature have made them 50. They
are naturally dependent upon each other. The East
cannot do without the West, the West without The
East. They unite their means, and they must unto
their rotes else neither section advance beyond lis
present condition. The East will TO pay lis yearly
tribute the North-continuc 10 be bound down by the
depressing incubus of commercial dependence while
the rich Of the West must remain as they have
dome from The beginning Of lime, locked up in The fast.
nrsses OF her mountains And do moi despair, SAID Mr.
s. of seeing long, This unnatural hostility OF the
great sections of the State substituted by Close and
inseparable alance-the alliance Of interest and muu
al dependence. And if we Of The East properly I'm.
derstood our interest in this matter, would not per-
mi, exist for day longer, this unreasonable and III
advised enlargement
The third to the of Internal Improve.
Inent whose operation will be disastrous Tor the
future and end unless removed, in the enre desruc'
tiun of the system The lvose and dlsJonted policy
we have hitherto pursued Our plan has been that OF
local appropriations of local Improvements. Made as
thew have been, and as they must, without change
continue 10 be- without reference to fixed sysfn, com
nosed or leading lines of improvement the aggregate
drbt of the State rapidly eniargirg and without any
nrnsnec, of returning profit. Grntemen know well the