The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1853-02-06


The great question Of . railroad from The
heart Of the Mississippi Valley across the
Rocky Mountains to the Pacific Ocean, has been
for some days past under discussion in our
State Senate, and in the Senate of the United
States /; but neither in the debate in our Lee
gislature, nor in the long, windy, har-splitting,
constructive speeches in Congress, can we de-
tect any satisfactory signs of practical legisla-
ton. Agitation, however, is something-in-
deed, it is indispensable to "put the ball in mo-
ton" No great project has ever been accom-
plished without agitation. The more, therefore,
the Pacific Railroad is discussed in Congress
and out Of Congress- the sooner shall we arrive
at that most important Understandable adop-
ton of some practical plan, and the practical
commencement Of the work.
The bill before our State Assembly provides
for the incorporation of the New York COM
pany, whose projet for the Atlantic and Pacific
Railroad we published some ten days ago. The
basis Of their plan is private enterprise starting
out upon the public credit. They propose to
borrow thirty millions of the government, to
be drawn in instalments as the road progresses,
the government to be satisfactorily guaranteed
the repayment Of the money, in addition to the
advantage of many millions of transportation
free of charge. over the entire length of the
road. In connection with this plan of the New
York company we gave, also, an outline OF
Whitneys plan. COL Benton's plan and of the
plan more recently introduced into the United
States Senate by Mr. Gwin, of California
Since that time, Mr.. Rusk, of Texas, from the
special committee on the subject, has introduced
o substitute to the plan Of Mr.. Gwin; and for
several days past it has been the subject of an
interesting debate, though somewhat marked by
cobweb distractions and Observation-Disclosures, on
the part of certain Senators seemingly am
bilious of initiating the fine spun theories of
Mr.. Calhoun. Mr. Rusk proposes, in his bill
from the special committee, that it shall be the
duty ofthe President to cause to be constructed,
as soon as practicable, railroad and magnetic
telegraph line, connecting the valley Of the
Mississippi with the Pacific ocean, at such
points as he may designate; the President to
determine the general route, and to employ
engineers and surveyors to furnish him with in
formation, &c. The bill grants the right Of way,
threehundred feet wide, through the public lands,
for the construction of said road; appropriates
alternate sections Of land, six miles wide on each
side through States, and twelve miles on each
side through territories, and $40 900, 900 in five
per cent bonds redeemable in fifty years-the
road to be constructed in the most complete and
finished manner and to be first class road
as soon as the general route is determined,
proposals to be advertised for, and the work
given to the lowest responsible bidder. The
rest Of the BILL containing fourteen sections, is
occupied in the various details of the above
general provisions.
A variety of objections have been made to
this plan, among the most prominent of which
are, the old hackneyed plea of the Congressional
ignoramus that it is unconstitutional, as if the
constitution tied up the government, hand and
foot, in all things except the pay and mileage
of members Of Congress-the plea that it
interferes with State rights, and the invariable
scarecrow Of the modern demagogue, that it
creates monopoly dangerous to the rights
and liberties Of the American people. This old
song has been sung SO often by the very pa
triotic law makers and law breakers OF Wash
ington that it has become bore ; or it is more
| generally regarded as the idle declarations nf
head afflicted with paucity Of original
ideas. and goes for nothing.
The bill of Mr.. Rusk is, however, open to
serious objections. 1t is too loose, too vague
and general in its provisions too admissible of
indefinite expansion. and too weak. from being
SO indefinite. 1t arranges nothing; but leaves
everything at the discretion Of the President-a
very large power, which, even If he had
nothing else to do, he could scarcely exercise
with the discretion he might think necessary
to secure an early beginning Of the work. Sc
veral years might pass before he could venture
to determine as much as the route for the road;
whereas. before two years are over, 500 miles
of the line might as well be laid down with iron
rails as not. But as for any constitutional
scruples on the subject we apprehend that the
power given to Congress to construct post roads,
and all the other powers necessary to carry this
power into effect cover q margin broad enough
for railroad, or dozen railroads, across the
continent, or around the entire continent of
North America with the consent of our neigh
bors.
1t is not one Of the practical functions of Con-
gress, nor of the President, however, to super
wise and manage the building Of railroads Let
them provide the means, but leave the work to
private enterprise. The superiority of the
Collins steamers over those built by the old
foges'' Of the government, will illustrate our
meaning. And the putting of the work, as Mr.
Rusk proposes to do by contract to the lowest
bidder, would most probably result, as the
printing of Congress has resulted on the same
plan, in the worst kind of work-in an utter
failure Of the contractors to fulfil their obliga-
tons, and finally, in a claim for some thou
sands, or millions perhaps, for losses sustained
under the contract.
The nearest approyimation VIC have soon IN