New-York daily tribune., 1849-10-31


lu Is27 NJ WR,oHr being still u the state senate,
gave the signal Tor attack. ar1 Do hs eaoola.e al
celebrated financial report Of that year, maze va
upon the whole Canal system declaring -s az sue
cesso1s and follower have s-ce s0 nces-Ahit lo-''
that " tie actual income Of tho tanals Was 5it t1
gOQfe1 that 90 DG1nCHf n mo Nf1it it.i NAs
Dot even approaching, '-(the Lre Nanai lAi "a.
been finished wo years. ar7 that " unless -l-t4 o-
auxiliary iu1f. the Canals Coud nlf Iffnm .t"
f,5t within any reasonable time. # tcg trHaf frnf
d1 %, that be debt. WIKI TIE Wlo.e All oi il9s.
funds could not be paid od. 10 a gInf nnrnr eI
p.4rs and finally. that any olFroInatons ior otnir
work. uuless fteu sr0td ~ more froffd.t i'1n if
En- and Cbouflain Canais, " must hasten The p
nod. when 9rrlf '1zQfi0n must be re.oried 20
The fo-riui1 thus furnished By Dir " RIGHT. "a.
been faithfully copied. and ccA'ea oy me u-1s p.
bis political school from that 10 ne present heuI l.
the faf has not quite borne oui ms .sa "a
Erie and Chamriain Canal fcti, Which he declared
could not be raid Oh u great number % years. Wls
fully discharged and cancelled u July, 80, beng
nine years after the date oi his report ana u no" eA
sting in full could be paid with less tla- 9lH yeAls
revenues Of the Eric Canal
The object Of threatening direct taxation, could
not be Misunderstood. 10 &c other way could
the Canals be rendered unpopular. by mere party
politicians, the pro. cuton oi I1pAe "plhs -
ard s.fd 20 be ircorver.ent arl mischieyous- The
auiet and good order Of regua- nominations are 10
ant 10 be disturbed by the people o. the more remote
districts listening in moments Of niaiuaton, 70 PRO
positions for improving their rhysical ana
condition The certainty. security ana resulaIliy OF
,rt, and machinery are thereby eXpOseito
needless uerturbatiOn-the public good denand' llal
bess disturbances shall be restrained. and Nfltl0n
II. evidently the most efficient agent ior tne purpose.
On the death Of Mr. CLINTON, m l.2H the pohiicai
power Of the state passed almost without opposition
into he hands Of hi. late opponents
Mr. WRIGHT became Comptroller, and IN due course
was succeeded by Mr.. fIAGG. Among The machinery
Of that office IL the system Of accounts OF the aha,
and IL Is managed with no little Skin DC c"ss.a -'
treating the Canals as propcrfy0 y ami % mans
arar from the state the treasury and the people -
~ sotoething scrarae and distinct a. u belonging 70
some ueculiar or favored locality The operation oi
the s.s,em it, that while the Canals may De rich 10
overAowinc the treasury may be bankrupt ne one
il cellcd Tie Canal Fnnd" the other the " Gcncsl
Fund" The common sense Of the matter S'
that the State owns them both,-but the peo-
ple and the Legislature baTc been invited al
most annually. for the est twenty years 70 mourn
over the exhausted condition Of the "6cn0m rum.
The general fund cf the state really consists oi al ts
uroperty not specifically devoted 10 particular objects
such as the schools, academies, &c Among TINS
property Is that portion, consisting manly 81 "-G'ion
aud salt duties, which from time 10 time, has peeh
invested in iayug for the canals over and above the
loans made for that purpose. 30 far as the canals
and their may be pledged for the pay Lneh'
of those loans the lender has lien, which endures
until bis debt is paid but when that takes place the
general fund or rather the Treasury TO which IL De-
~
fore is recommended " ~ rspeais fhc General
Ftnd " il simply means a tax TO pay of so much OF
the canal debt. While the .rio Canal was IN pro
gress and its revenues had not been ascerlaned or
realized the people throughout the state cheerlu"S
uad tax for its support, but IN the year $50, ana
M soon as its revenues became apparent, the neccss
IL had ceased and the Legislature refused TO con-
In pursuance. however. Of the same policy which
prompted his Report Of l,25, Mr.. WEIGHT IN Iocl'
= fpt ID Ip .ng
lature 90 levy a direct tax on the people. bul 'no
prorosition found no favor and was not adopted
The recommendation was repeated by him the next
year, but with 10 better success
IN 1884 Mr.. FLAGG became Nomptroher ana re-
ma 1ed in Office until 1899 and in his annual REPORTS
an,ea.ingly continued the system commenced by Mr.
.ft.t. Of urging the Legislature TO levy a TAX ~
,. teaist me GcnrOi FiDld.
,n 1876 the revenues having accumulated TO an
amount sufficient to pay OF The whole oi the deo' o
the Eric and Champlain Canal, and the subsequent
receipts being thereby relieved from any lien on the
part Of the public creditors. the Legislature virtually
settled the whole matter by enacting that slv,uW
should annually be taken from the canal und ana
paid to the General Fund, which beng interpreted
into plain English, means that 50 much OF the Oanal
tolls should be applied to the support OF the Govern
ment This annual Appropriation was existing IN the
year le,- in addition TO which an annual amount v
about $4,000 was also received IRON the auction
and salt duties Nevertheless, the opening Oi the
Iecisia,ure of that year in ls:-, Mr. FLAGG, once
more renewed his recommendation OF a direct tax
The subject was referred to the Committee Of ways
and Means Of which the present writer was Dharhah
and they resolved at Once a. their predecessors hai
done for many years that the TAX was neither neces
cary nor expeaient The Committee however, iol-
lowing the example Of Mr. WRiGHT, in leZ7, deemed
uro1er TO 20 beyOnd that single inquiry, ana 70 as
certain what would be the fiscal elects oil proceeding
with more expedition in cnlargng the fte Oahai. ~
WAS this examination that led o. the report when
the Whig Of Rochester have been pleased to We" WITH
APPRECIATION IL has been the subject oi much msIe-
piesentaton and party c!amor and the writer WiI
perhaps be pardoned for entering into some paTucu-
lars OF It's contents. .-.,.i,
nreserted for the examination OF the committee
was what would probably be the future revenues oi
the Erie Canal ~
In conducting this inquiry, the Committee atten-
tivev considered the report made 10 the h''enoi,
but few davs previously, by Mr. BoucS and his col
leagues Canal Commissioners whch contained the FOL
lowing prediction: Ia.
Ill is not extravagant TO suppose, nat ma f'g
1cGrs after the completion OF this great mpfoN
ltbe enlargement the tolls on the -ne Oanal 81
the present rates, would exceed three mlCrs y do-
lars annually, and that at least one halt OF TINS SUN
would be received on property Ias'ing 20 anu ron
other states and Territories. hu-, wnic our lH
proVements would be giving life aAd Ngor 20 'ne en-
terprise of the Mcs. and enuchns ner cluheiS' 'n1
state Of New York would be securing % herself re-
amply sufficient to reimburse A'i 'Oi "'' '~f'N
ditures. " -, go.
c6el among other localities, the Valley OF the Mo
hawk and the canal through the mountain ridge oi
Lockport as places where the immediate enlArg
would be advantageous 10 the navigation, anu 'ney
then beg leave to add that they believe the puonc
interest would be essentially promoted by as SPECIFY
completion Of the enlargement Of the Lre Canal
from the Hudson River to Lake Erie a. the taeH-
ties for obfammg mans, and proper economy III IT,
ference to the expenditure, will justify
rtisa fact also deserving of notice, that more than
thirteen wears before this period, to VIII IN the year
l~25 the Canal Commissioners, Of whom 'ir. DOO a
vas fben one had come TO similar results, in estima-
ing the prospective increase Of the tolls In the report
made on the 4th March, ls25, 10y Colonel SAMVkL
Y0rNs. Mr BorcK. General STEPHEN ~ kENs-
srrAER, and Mr.. HENRY SEYMOUR, then eons'l,a'-
inr the Board of Canal Comm ssioners, they enter
Quite AZ large into the prospective business and rev
enue Of the Erie Canal. and embrace within tneI W.
Som. period Of fifty years They declare that their
sr,i'initions A. 10 the tolls have uniformly fdilln
short of the reality they aad nor have we We
any doubt. but that the same fate awaits our ir.
=. sent caleulation But, say they II IS safer 70
err on this side than on the other. IL Is better 70