Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??, 1854-06-21


limits and exercised with judgment and discretion
<it would no doubt be attended with highly benef
cial results the land States, without detrinent tc
4 the Common interest. &
As this grant to the Illinois central railroad seems
4 to be the most Objectionable one in the estimation
of my colleague, and which more than all others
creates necessity for the change in our land policy
which he advocates, it may be well to pause here
to inquire who mainly responsible for this act
Why, sir, will it be believed that the very gentle
who has signaized himself as the advocate for
division OF the public lands on account of these
very grants, among others, together with nearly
cry gentleman in Congress who is in favor of his
project voted for this very grant? In the Senate,
the two gentlemen who then represented the State
] of North Carolina Messrs. Badger and Mangum, not
only voted for the bill, but they so anxious to
its passage that they voted for it. against the
amendment offered by Mr.. Dayton providing that
the proceeds of the sales of the sections reserved to
! the United States should be distributed among the
States according to the principles of the act of 4th
September, 1941. In the House it voted for by
MIR. Stanly, and it was sanctioned by that model
wing President, popular in North Carolina, Mr..
Fillmore. Then, too, after the bill to grant lands
to Florida had been killed in the House during the last
Congress, Messrs. Dockery, Outlaw Stanly, and Cad
WELL the entire wing delegation from North Carolina
Mr. MoreheadeXcepted voted for reconsideration.
There is one view of the question to which have
incidentally alluded, to which, if the committee will
indulge me, will again Advert very briefly that is,
as connected with the tariff My colleague quotes
and adopts principle as laid down by Mr.. McDuffie
and take occasion here to congratulate my friend
upon his having acquired such sound and catholic
views upon the tariff question.
at is a generally admitted principle of CONNER
cal law that the amount of imports is regulated by
the amount of exports and since is
raised upon duties upon imports, it follows if it
be shown that two-thirds of the domestic exports
of this country the products of slave labor that
the proposition is sustainedthat two-thirds of the
entire revenue from imports is paid by the labor of
slaves"
Upon this principal he bases his declaration that
general treasury a northern State of equal repre-
sentation upon this floor. Now, 1 always thought
that was toerably straight out this question,
but my friend has shot little ahead of me- | be-
lieve that according to the present system, taxation
falls very heavily and unequally upon the planting
States, but am not prepared to say that the inc
quality is as great my colleague makes it, who
seems to have fully adopted what has been called the
forty-bae theory. But shall now adopt his own
premises No one feel assured, will deny that if
the money derived from the sales ofthe public lands
be distributed among the States, it will give rise to
the necessity OF imposing an additional amount of
taxation to supply the deficit thus created; and in
supplying this deficit my colleague says two-thirds
of the burden of taxation would fail upon North
Carolina and the other southern States and yet he
would persuade the people of North Carolina that
this policy would be to their advantage. But this is
not all. have already shown how the southern
States would be the losers necessarily in this game
OF distribution based upon representation in this |
hail. by which they would count only three out of
five of their slave population while the whole north
ern population would be enumerated and by reason |
of the determinations which have been made in all |
the distribution bills offered in Congress- and
by the double amount of taxation they would be |
compelled to pay in making up the deficit, which l
have shown by data furnished by my friends
speech and will now show that the loss to the
southern States would not stop here. Suppose that
the sales amounted to So, O0O, 900 per annum, as
they 10 doubt will on acreage let this fund be
distributed among the States, you would then be
compelled to raise the tariff high enough to make
he
treasury you would be compelled to impose tax of
So, 100000, because it costs the government 10 per
would go into the treasury ofthe U. S. and $780, 900
nto the pockets Of government officials engaged in
collecting the revenue. Nor would the loss stop
lere; for supposng that additional tax to be levied
lpon some article to which similar is manu-
actured in the United States, the tariff thus imposed
would enable the domestic manufacturer to raise the
'rcc of the home made article, and if the quantity
IT that article consumed in the United States should
nly be double that of the imported one and the
Increase OF the price should only be equal to one
alf OF the tax imposed upon that imported, the re-
ult would be that the consumcrs-that is the peo-
lie generally-woud be compelled necessarily to
ay So, 600 900 more, which would 60 not into YOUR
reasury but into the pockets of the manufactu-
crS. I
l regret that have not time to elaborate this ar
ument; but viewed in any light this policy of dis
ributon never be anything but an unmixed evil
} the Southern States, and can only benefit those
lterested IN the protective system of which distri-
ution is part being nothing moro or less than a
rotective measure in disguise. .
My colleague, in the course ofhis speech INDUCED
piece of dry humor, with which was highly
unused. With gravity altogether becoming Sc
Gus subject, he made of these words: e
'Had the principle of distribution been established
was contended by great party in this country it
loud be years ago. the blessings of education would
ave penetrated many humble cottage where n
DIV no traces of them be found, but in their $
cad ignorance and misery" Il
To my mind that passage equals anything to be Fl
: found in the Pickwick papers. Lest however 81
hers may think he was serious let me ask, whose
ut is it that this distribution policy over which he VI
ourns, has not been adopted and carried out? NV T
lleague, who is very young, cannot 60 back with
c in his memory, and recall the events of 1910; :
1t sir, who have almost (thank Heaven not quite)
ached the age of the and yellow leaf remem-
r the circumstances which attended the mighty m
'uggle of that year. You remember that the party
which my friend belongs, made distribution one IN
the issues in that contest Nv colleague has con-
nsed into the brief paragraph have read one of
e little stump speeches which his friends were
en- accustomed to make. Many time and often
| hear them describe in eloquent phrase the rich
essings that would flow from their policy MANY
re the promises they made to the people ofNorth
rolina, the resources of the State were to be de-
oped-rairoads were to give every farmer a ready
cess to the markets-education was to be dffused -
Its blessings were to penetrate many an humble II
tage.' All these benefits to flow from their at
icy OF distribution which was to be carried out to
the people would only place them in power Well, de