Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1853-03-09

furnish the two fiths of private subscriptions they
40 not exist Nor upon your wealthy manufactu-
rerS tor they are unknown n class in your State.
Nor upon your rich capitalists of any class for they
belong only tocommercial and manufacturing COM
munities. Nor upon yonr banking institutions, for
they have not capitalsufcient for the limited mer-
camille demand Of our cities. Nor upon your lar
Iners, they have no means to spare
Sir, the naked truth is, that all the spare mearS
OF our citizens have already been devoted TO our in
ternal improv ements. What they could part with, |
has already sought that patriotic investment. And
though, in this debate, our people have been re-
preached for the scantiness of their subscriptions
our public works, allow me 10 say there ground
Tor the reproach. statement furnished me by the
second auditor shows, that individual subscriptions
nave been made to our railroad and navigation
companies, and actually paid up. 10 the amount of
S9.365,OOO, exclusive OSubSCripGOnS made to turn
pde companies which would largely swell the
amount.
If we look into details, we shall perceive at once
that private means must be well nigh exhausted.
Atwhat point are they to be lad?
AT the termini fthe Danville road and along its
line, am informed that the private stock had been
taken that can be had. Along the line of the Vir-
gna and Tennessee road, the same state of things
exists. The Central railroad, west of the noun
talnS, has b. en- sustained only by the liberal sub
ScrlptIonS OF the counties OF Augusta, Greenbrier
and Monroe.
Our corporations too, have pretty much exhaus.
ted their means. The city of Richmond has taxed
her people on account OF the Dansville road and
other improvements. until the patience of her tax
payers IS well nigh exhausted, until, in fact, she
dare not raise few hundred thousands TO remove
the bars from the lower James river, measure of
| lncalculable importance to her commerce, without
which, indeed, she can never aspire to 4 commerce
beyond the insignificant coaSting trade she has.
The gallant Cockade city has been spending her
treasure she did her blood in time of war-witl-
out stint.
And epterprisng Lynchburg, that, for her pa
| triotic public spirit, deserves q monument more
lasting than than the eternal hills which her en-
terprse hns helped 10 level with the plain, has i'm
posed upon her people almost uncomfortable bur
den of taxation to carry on The great improvement
| IN which she is much interested, the Virginia
| and Tennessee Railroad.
| County subscriptions have been tried with but
poor success. The plan is too slow and uncertain.
Months, perhaps years, of discussion must be had,
and, most generally, the demagoguc who raises the
cry of taxes to alarm the voters into the recognition
OF his miserable pretenSonS off victor in the
contest. The cry Of taxing the poor for the benefit
OF the rich goes forth, and the county tax is scou-
led, and its advocates overwhelmed with popular
| odium! Alas! that doctrines so pernicious should
prevail and delude!
Sir, (ifI may be allowed the digression) if there
| be any one thing tue above another OF the rail-
road SYSTEM it is this that Isl pre- eminemtly, the
poor mans policy Most mistaken idea it is, that
1t ministers to the exclusive benefit of the rch.-
Sir speeds comfort we'll to the cabin as to the
palace. 1t reaches, with its blessed influence the
| humble owner of the truck patch, and the lordly
proprietor OF his patrlmonial thousands. 1t ena-
| bleS the poor man to send to market, at almost
double prices, those little SurpluSeS of hard earn
| lngS, which, 10 him, are as much as hogshead of
tobacco or bales of Cotton TO the Weather planter
1t creates, indeed, at every railroad depot and stop
ping place. home market, not existing before
which abSorbS the small SURPRISES along the whole
| line OF the road, and enables the poor man to buy
with his half dozen eggs two yards of 'tton or two
pounds OF sugar, where he bought but one before.
And 1t is this happy bearing of the railroad system
upon The fortunes oil the poor man, that so COM
mends 1t to my regard, and that constitutes in my
| Judgment n moral consideration in itS hpbo hot
should challenge for it the sympathieS and the favor
oil every Trend OF humanity and lover of his Spe-
| cieS.
| On The uncertain resource, them of county sub
Scrptions, cannot rely for the fifths of pr-
vate subscription. More than this, even if there
be abundance of private capital along the lines of
onr railroads, 1t cannot now be provoked to in
veStTncnt Ill them. There is something in our egiS-
lation that utterly foTbidS it. Sir, do gentlemen
expect the private citizen to risk his capital in GU
public works, after the late action Of this general
| assembly i'll regard TO the James River and Ka ma
villa Company! With this act of incipent contis
cation on statue book, dare they to expect the
citizen to enter into partnership with the State
and when, too, by GencIal law of the land, the
State may, al will, forecloSc her mortgages upon
| inc private property invested IN her internal i'm
provementS! Sir, you invited your citizens TO in
vest their capital with you to build up this great i'm
pTOVeInent You were 10 have put in three millions
against two millions of private stock, but with
nggardly spirit unworthy of Virginia, you reQuir-
| cd the new company to take the works OF the old
company at 100 200, when, in fact they were
| not worth copper to the new company, besides an
annuity Of 1000 to the old company, SO that,
instead of putting in n cash capital of 50, 100000
you put in only 81 100000. And after having
| decoyed your citizens into the partnership, and
Just as the company under better auspices had
| every prospect OF augmented IeeourceS and i'm
proved revenues, you resolved TO break up the
partnership, sell out the concern, and buy in at
song! You have not, it is true, forccloSed the
mortgages, but you have laid the foundation for it
taken the initatory step land the effect upon pub
lie credit IS just the same If the decree of fore
| closure had been pronounced and executed. Now,
with this example Of legislative confiScation be-
tore US, dare we hope the citizens 10 go into a
partnership with us? Sir, let our legislation be
honest; let it be just to the citizens; let us modify
the law that gives to the State the power instant
| contiscaticn; let us wipe off the foul stain which
our late action has put upon the States eScutcheon;
| let us give back to the jewel of her honor the
undmmed ustre which once sparkled from it and
| then we may expect our citizens to bring forth
their private means and aid the State in her internal
| Improvements.
| There is something, too, in the constitution of
ourlnternal Improvement policy, that strongly dis
advises the private subscriptions. | refer TO the
principle OF antagoniSm so infused into system,
winch is adverse to remunerating profits, and
which has the effect of lettering capitalists from
investing in our public works. How can we evoke
private capital for investment i'll railroads. when
| the gentleman from Harrison rises in his place. and
graVely proposes to construct railroad from the
North W est Railroad to the mouth of Big Sandy
which would forever blast the commercial prospects
OF Virginia, make her Province OF the city Of
Baltimore, and render totally VALUE IS all her great
lines OF III provement? Sir, We must give up this
poHcy OF building up one improvement, and then
starting competing one alongside OF it, or cease
to look TO private subscription for the means of
completing our public works.
With these gloomy prospect for private subscrip.
tons, 1t is not policy to rely upon that
II IS too precarious altogether. If available at all,
1t will be by small degreesby step so tardy, that
ere the private stock be TAKEN the supcrstructure
OF the works in progress will have rot away, and
the State have been subjected 20 the loss Of mil
lions fin the way of interest, rise in the price of
labor and materials, and other losses incident 10