New-York daily tribune., 1844-05-30
Internal Improvement Policy and Fi'
nnnces of the State of New ork'
[Concluded.l

unnecessary, unjust and iInPohIiC, IL "ouio ''''
to follow that j, ought 10 be immediately repeal
ed And yet The law of lo+2 IS 50 studlous'y
framed, and the action Of the Commission
ers Of the Canal Fund 50 suited to lis
purpose. that the present absolute repeal OF
the tax law may be Objectionable Loans
have been made unde. that law, and unde' us
pledges, to The amount of some thyee millions OF
dollars. Tne avails OF the tax are pledged by the
terms OF the law itself, and the Commissioners
OF the Canal Fund, under the permissive clause
Of the 7th Section, may" have incorporated
into the scrip i,seli issued for this loan, tins
pledge OF the taxes. No money lender desired
or had the assurance to ask it--no public credit
OF required it, but the pledge was given for the
sole purpose Of so far perPetu0t'ng The tar. INC
object was TO make the system OF internal IN
provements unpopular ,cith the PtoP'e, the tax
PAYERS Of the State. l. for party purposes
and to secure It's authors in political power. Hav-
ing falsely charged the whole debt upon the
whigs-having magnifed it into " forty million
debt" they had only to add the farther false as
sverat:on, that the tax was made necessary By
Whig extravaganza. 1t was, therefore, (as they
represented not only Wing debt, bat 1t was
Whio tar. and however unjust, or unnecessary
Or oppressive the measure might be, their pu'?o-
ses were answered in the possession Of political
power.
The congregated wisdom Of the Legislature OF
1s43 dared not trust the feeble and tickle legsla-
ton that might follow them. Was II not enough
to pledge the faith and credit OF the State oi New
York, or did some Wall street Broker require, and
did the Commissioners of the Canal Fund there
lore subm, to give personal mortgage? to have
it nominated in the bond, that particular, &
specific fund, should be sci apart, and sacsed!y
devoted" to the payment OF this loan? And after
and beyond all this, the State was required to
paw a higher rate of interest than they had PAID
for more than quarter OF a century
But its purposes are temporarily, at least &C
compshed The tax law cannot properly be re-
pea!ed until these particular loans are pad OIL
Fortunately they have not long to run, snd
although the holders of the stock would not value
its specific pledges rush, aud would never take
the trouble to enquire out of what particular
pigeon hole their stocks were paid, yet We
should avoid all appearance Of violating The faith
Of any pledge of the State.
The signs OF the times admonish us to be scru
pulously exact and punctllious upon this subject,
and the minority OF this Committee does not in
tend to subject himself to the modification of
having the Secretary Of State OF either Of the
Commissioners of the Canal Fund "rebukng
SIN in his person, as the seeming advocate, in
any possible foim, of the odious doctrine Of repu-
di0tOn.
But let no more money be borrowed, or scrip
issued, under any such specific pledge; and when
these specific loans are paid Off let the Canal Re
venue restore 10 the General Fund the whole
amount OF the tax, SO far at least, as it shall have
been received and applied to Canal purposes, with
interest at six per cent to be restored to the
raj counties and town for towns and county pur.
poses, in proportion they shall have contrbnt
cd to the fund.
In conclusion the following propositions arc
submitted:
l. That the public debt which has given occasion
to so much clainor, and which has been unJusilt
characterized as u Whig debt, was contracted for
public works aud 10 fulfil existing contracts, au-
thonzed by laws passed by their political opponents
before the Wing party came into power
>. That our Canal and internal improvement poll
cv having now been submitted TO the test OF all ac-
tua experience OF twenty years, cOmmendS Itsri
to us BY the ndispuIable facts which figures demon
s,rate TO be true, that after paying the interest upon
the cost of construction and all expenses OF repairs
and superintcndence, our Canals have Welded nett
revenue OF eight and n half millions OF dollars!
s. That ihe Canal revenues are, and will be, amp
y sufficient without the aid of the 10 pay of the
entire debt of The State, long before The last oil our
stocks fall due.
4. That the imposition ola general tax 10 pay oi the
Canal Debt is unnecessary, unjust, and impolc:
Unnecessary, Because the Canal Revenue does
not need lis aid.
Unjust, Because il compes all TO contribute with
our repard to the benefits received.
IBlpoiitic, Because il is the most expensive mode
of collecting revenue-costng, independent OF the
value OF the money in the hands OF the lax payers
er cent o- the mere expense OF collection, aud be-
cause, if the debt were paid from the tolls, two
thirds of the entire amount would be paid by the
citizens of other Sta,es-rvals in the market with
the TAX payers,-rrceivlng more Than iull equiva-
lent in the facilities and reduced expenses OF cheap
ever the debt is paid by tax would traverse toll
free, the Canals constructed at the expense OF our
own citizens.
5. That so much of the act OF l843, chap. l84, as
authorizes the tolls upon coal, salt, and gypsum,
transported upon our canals to tlde;waier, at Albany
and WestTroy, TO be paid out OF The General Fund,
ough, to be repealed and the moneys that have been
thus paid ough to be refunded by the Canal Fund,
with interest.
g. That however impolitic it may originally have
been to pass laws authorizing The Erie Canal En-
largement the Black River and Genesee Valley Ca
mails, vet having passed them, and entered upon The
work, and after expeniing upon their construction
more than l8,00O,O00 good iailh and sound policy
alike require that they should be completed, as soon
as the necessary funds can be obtained, upon loans
or otherwise, at reasonable rate OF interest.
T. That so much o. the stop law OF 1912 as
thorizes the borrowing of money by the Comptroller
or Commissioners OF The Canal Fund, upon the
pledge OF the ayails OF lhe tax, OF any specific
iund, or 10 invest any such pledge in the scrip be
issued and so much as streets the entire suspension
OF the works in progress ought 10 be Immediately
repealed.
g. That so much of tie same law as authorizes