Weekly national intelligencer., 1854-01-28
THE TONNAGE Duty QUESTION.
UNITED SraTgs HOTEL,
An 1 c

THE TOSNAGE DUfl QSEoAiON
UsIrrp Srarrs HOTEL,
WASHINGTON, JANUARY 20, 1924.
cpsrIynys avail myself of the first leisure have
had since the receipt Of your kind letter Of the 2lst In
slant to respond your request to favor you with my
views upoa of river and harbor improvements
and particularly upon the measure of tonnage duties re-
commended in the message and accompanying documents
transmitted to Congress at the OF ts pre-
sent session by the President Of the United States"
AS ne Presidents recommendation that subject is
ratha indefinite have looked to letter directed by
distinguished Senator Of State to the Governor
osat State bearing date January 1854 to learn the
dstas of the recommendation well as the reasons IN
favor Of its adoption.
The plan then as UNDERESTIMATE it, consists first, in the
passage of of Congress giving its consent that ne
States may either separately or in confederation improve
all the harbors and navgabe rivers within their limits OF
on their border and that they may for this purpose lay
duties of tonnage upon all boats and vessels navigating the
same and secondly in the complete and entire surrender
Of river and harbor improvements by Congress TO the
States This certainly proposes very important cnahge
in the legislation of the country upon subject OF deep
and increasing Interest," and recommended, as II Is py
having ali; the claim to respect which high official
station can confer it should and doubtless WILL receive
BY Congress and the country full and mature
In determining upon the relative merits of the present
system Of appropriations of money out of the National
Treasury by Congress- be expended under the direction
Of the President and the proposed system to be
ed under separate or confederaed State authority with
money raised by duties of tonnage, efficiency and econo
my are important If controlling considerations and
in both these respects it seems to me- the old system IS
the preferable it certainly the most efficient and
economical Under it the money is in the Treasury, and
there nothing do but to appropriate and expend 1T
whst under the proposed system to improve the navga
on Of the Mississippi river compact or articles OF con-
federation is to be entered into the nine States bound
ed by that rivers each of these States is then to pass
Inv IN conformity with the compact then nine commits
soners are to appointed ports of entry are then to be
established then collecting officers to be appointed at
each port and when they have collected the duties and
paid them into the treasury they will be precisely at the
point from which out under the old system The
nine commissioners will have to appropriate the money
and in doing this they must determine how much small DC
applied to each improvement which, in their opinion, 1t
is make from the Falls OF ST. Anthony to the
mouth of the river 1t would that this simple state
sn was sufficient to show the superiority of the old over
the proposed system in point both of efficiency anu eeono
nv But let look the practical operation little
more in detail First, compact is to be formed by and
between nine States. How is this to be done sup
nose by convention of delegates from each State How
the intiave Is be by legislative executive au-
thorty How ore the States be represented Accord
inc to population or according the extent of their ter
ritory on the river what other principle If only
two States send delegates they to have power form
compact binding the other States, must the whole
scheme be abandoned But let us suppose that these
difficulties are all obviated and the convention duly Or
rsnzed at Memphis What is to be the extent of their
authority? Are they to have power to make compact
obligatory upon the Sates or is to be submitted to and
ratified by the State What is to be the nature OF the
compact Is it be in the nature Of the old articles OF
confederation under which the Continental Congress
held or is it be simply contract between the States!
IF how is to enforced If by the separate legs
laton of States what would be the consequence
of the States should refuse to legsate the subect
But let it be supposed that the conederacy formed and
organized sy the necessary legislation and the appoint
ent of e nine commissioners what is to be the tenure
of their Office and the extent and nature of their
Is it both legislative and executive are the States
tc egsate from time to time the subject! Ii further
Legislation should become necessary, what would be the
if some Of the States should refuse legs
late or if their legislation should be contradictory or in
consistent? The subject is fruitful and might be extend
ed but this is sufficient to suggest to any rejecting mind
the difficulties that must be encountered the moment an
attempt is made put into practice the proposed system
1nQeed, II these as
al experience that led the abandonment of the old con-
federation and the substitution of the present constitution
Of the United States in its stead The confederacy was
found be altogether inadequate to the exgency Of the
times though the thirteen States to be governed by it
contained only population of about three million Of
souls 1t to have efficient government capable Of
making and executing its laws to do for the States
what they could not conveniently do for themselves
through their State Governments that the General Gov
ernment was ordained and established One OF the mos
important things which experience proved could not bet
conveniently done by the Continental Congress and the
separate State Governments the regulation Of
merce and now 1t is gravey proposed in this age
gress to take step backward and abandon Of the
most important functions Of the Government to one
sonfederacy thirteen States but the Mississippi cone-
deracy of nine States the Ohio confederacy of six States
the Delaware conederacy of three States, and number
of other small confederacies
The Importance Of river and harbor improvements and
the power of Congress admitted by learned Senator
in the most emphatic In relation to the power
of Congress he says This power has been a rmed in
some form and exercised to greater less extent by
each successive Congress and every Administration since