The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1854-08-14
CITY OF EVANSVILLE.
MONDAY MORNING,::::::::::::AUG. IA
vsss Of the River and Harbor Bill.

The Message of President Pierce with
holding his signature to the River and Har-
Dor Bill, has, ere this, been scattered far and
wide through the West. The friends OF pro.
lection to our internal commerce and naviga-
ton, know only through this message that
the bill has been assassinated by the Presi-
dent. He confesses to the commission o.
the deed, and says in justification that he had
not time to dispose fit in any other way
This is the chief OBJ lection to this great meas
ure of the people, and carries no other con.
viction than that the President has been
indulging in the grossest Incidence and un-
concern respecting the action OF Congress
upon the measure which should imperative
ly engage his official observation.
Few persons, even in the more humble
walks in life, would voluntarily convict them
selves of such rare stupidity as the President
does in protesting ignorance of the provi-
sions Of this bill. IT is passing strange real
ly, that measure, second in importance to
to none before Congress, should be originat-
ed, discussed, reported upon by committees
Of both Houses, published and circulated
right under Mr.. Pierce's Presidential nose,
and should entirely escape his observation.
Perhaps the pleasure which he anticipated
in his first message, it would afford him to
cooperate with Congress in its delibera-
tons" has not been realized-therefore he
will not perplex himself to enquire into
their doings.
The constitutional objections urged
against this bill have been ignored by sever
al Of his predecessors, and the doctrine OF
protection and improvement to inland rivers
and harbors by the General Government ap.
proved and sanctioned. The great apostle
of Democracy, Gen. Jackson. it will be re.
collected, approved and sanctioned a bill OF
similar character to THE, notwithstanding
Mr.. Pierce in his wisdom voted against it,
Gen. Jackson did not believe the doctrine
applied to highways through the States and
Territories, hence his veto of the appropria.
ton bill for the National Road.
Gen. Pierce can see no improperly in
granting lands to individuals and corpora.
tions for the construction of railroads; he
urges no hair-splitting constitutional objec
jections to railroads on the score of their
being local and not national i'm their charac
ter. The objections to the late bill are rem.
dered fatal to the whole measure for the
reason that part of the .appropriationfre re.
late to local improvements. The inconss.
tency Of the Presidents logic appears upon
its face, in his views of certain railroad cor
porations as national enterprises, while the
great Western rivers, the highway OF all ma.
tons, are regarded as local improvements
and not entitled as such, to the aid or protec.
ton Of the Federal Government. The Pre-
sident's views of the capabilities of the
West are exceedingly limited and as erron
eous as they are contracted. The prejudice.
which he has ever entertained in antagonisn
to the progressive spirit and enterprise o
the people of the West, are founded in error
and executed in conceded ignorance of vel
established principles.
The Presidents ideas upon this subjec
are palpably wrong. and are only equaled il
folly by the act of the people of the West
who blindly aided in placing him, with hi.
wrong-headed views, in position to con
troll and thwart their prosperity.