Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, IA [i.e. Ind.]) 1839-1854, 1848-08-16

- During the last Congress bin was ps
4 sed making an appropriation from the pu
;: lic lands 10 pay the indemniiies due
:, French spolialions prior 10 13O8a Ii
blifv which had been assumed bv Il
r. Government in the treaty with France :
u The passage of the bill was an act of lor
Y deferred justice to a meritoriouS class
V ciiizrns. it presented no Constitution
question. II is not pretended tina, it.
r any possible degree. interfered with an
\ of the rights of the executive department
D II had no possible relation 10 any Of t!ioS
: cases in which the trainers of the Consi
: tuition supposed the President would l.
justified in using the veto power-and -
, President Polk vetoed the bill. lie sal
he thought it was not eypedient to pa
those claims. The question is here dis
tinctly presented upon this veto Shal
n cR2 1pNsaienicy. IN the application of tn,
public money. be exercised by the Repre-
scn,atives Of the people. or shall il b.
controlled by the President, If this pow
or can be controlled bv the President. the
character of our Government is essential
" diff rent from what we have supposed
it to be. The theory of our Constitution
is not what il was supposed to be by those
who framed it. Our form of government,
is, in fact. an elective monarchy instead
Of Republic. Why. Mr.. Speaker. every
gentleman here knows that this is a stretch
Of power which the Crown Of En- gland has
not exercised for more than Il century.
and which il dare not now exercise.
wish now. Mr.. Speaker. to examine the
manner in which this power has been cx-
crcised by President Polk. upon more
important subject. and one of more gene
raj intcrest--the subject Of internal i'm
prove,nents. Ever since the Organiza-
ton of orr Government it has been Il ia
vorte policy with large ma Iority of the
people to aid and facilitate the commerce
Of the country by the improvement of our
harbors and rivers. The power of max
ing appropriations for these objects has
hardly been seriously questioned until
very recently 1t has been steadily exer
ciscd with great benefit to the country.
and to the entire satisfaction ofthe people.
from the time of the first Congress TO the
commencement of MIR. Folks Ad,ninistra-
lion:
Tho first attempt If n President to ar
rest appropriations for this object was
made bv Con. jackson in his veto Of tho
'M1yStll|C lAO1U DIV. MS WIS n Otti
authorizing the Government to subscribe,
for portion Of tho stock in tho Mays
Vile mud Lexington road. II was vetoed
bv Gen. Jackson on tho ground that tho
work was local and soc:ionalin its charac-
tor, and not of such general Importance az
10 warrant the Gcncra Government to aiG
in lis construction. In his veto of this
bill. Con. jackson expressly recognised
the power and propricty Of making npPro-
priations for works o! national Importance.
an! he repeatedly give his sanction to ccts
Of Congress Of this character. In all tho
different phases which modcrm Dem ,cra
ry has assumed upon this question, II has
never, until tho commencement Of Mr..
Polk Administrations, vcn,urcd TO take
tho broad ground of opposition to nppro-
priatons for works Of informal improve
ment. Sometimes it has been assumed
that il is constitutional to make improve
mcnts on salt water. but not on fresh wa
ter. Hence, while tho I'm rbors upon our
Atlantic son const might be improved. our
western lakes and rivers must be ncyiec.
ted. AT other times il has been gravelv
put forth as tho very concentration OF
Dcmoc ratio wisdom and constitutional con.
struction. that Congress has power I'M
der the Constitution to improve n river
which runs through two or more States but
that it has no such power If tho river wa
tcrs bu, ono State. Again, it has been
admitted that our finland seas" gre emit
tied to tho fostering caro- Of the General
Government, but nothing which cannot
CLAIM, so diynificd name can cons,itu
tionally be improved. But it has remain
oI for Al, D,il, in tho mr. IF IL,
mocracy, 10 ovcrlcap and disregard all
these nice and subtle distinctions, and
plan; himself upon Tho broad ground tina,
no appropriations for improvements Of
this kind can be made by tho General Gov
ernmcn:. No appropriations of this char
acter havo been made since Mr.. Folks
Administration commenced. and none will
be made whi'o it continues. The river
and hal bills which have been passed
by Congress by largo majorities have
found grave in the Presidents pocket, or
have fallen beneath his veto. In his spe-
cial message. sent to tho House during
this session, no has far outs,ripped his
Democratic predecessors IN his opposition
to Appropriations of this character. All
the fine spun theories and refined dis,inc-
tons heretofore set up rs prctexts and ex-
cuses for evading appropriations, which
the public interest demanded, havc been
abandoned, and the broad ground has
boon assumed that Congress, has no RICH,
10 appropriate ono dollar for tho improve
mont Of rivers and harbors. Allow me
to read an extract from this message to
show the ground no assumes. He says:
'1s the power to improve a harbor be admitted,
it is not EASY pc rceive how the power deep
en- every inlet on the ocean tn. lakes, and
make harbors where there none, can be de-
MED Ii the power 10 clean out or deepen the
channel of rivers their mouths be adntted.
it is not easy TO perceive how the power to I'M
prove them to their fountain he ad, and make
them navigabie to their sources, can be denied.
Where shalt the rcise Of the power, IL it be
assn med, stop Has Congress the power, when
an inlet is deep enough to admit schooner. to
deepen It still more, that IL will admit ships Of
heavy burdenf and has il not the power, when
inlet will admit a boat. to make il deep nough
to admit . schooner! May il Improve rivers al
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