Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??, 1854-08-09
PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.
VETo OF THE RIVER AND HARBoR Bill.
o tho House or Representatives

To the House or Representatives:
have received the bin entitled IAN act making
appropriations for the repair, preservation an COM
pleton Of certain public works heretofore common
ced under authority of law" 1t reaches me in the
expiring hours of the session. and time does not A.,
low full opportunity of examining and considering
its provisions, or OF stating at length the
which forbid ME to give it my signature 1t belongs
to that class of measures which commonly known
internal improvements by the general government
and which, from very early period, have been
deemed of doubtful constititutonaty and expedien-
cy, and have thus failed to obtain the appreciation
CT successive Chief Magistrates.
On such an examination of this bill as it has been
in my power to make, recognise in it certain pro-
Visions national in their character, and which if
they stood alone, it would be compatible with my
convictions of public duty to assent to- but at the
same time it embraces others which are merely To-
cal and not in Judgment warranted by any safe of
tBue construction of the constitution To make proper
and sound discrimination between these different
provisions would require deliberate discussion of
general principles well careful scrutiny of de-
tails for the purpose of rightfuy applying those
principles to each separate item Of APPROPRIATION
Puplic opinion with regard to the value and i'm
portance of internal improvements in this country
is undivided. There is disposition on all hands to
have them prosecuted with energy and to see the
benefits sought to be obtained by them fully real
lied. The prominent point of difference between
those who have been regarded as the friends of a
system of internal improvements by the General
Government, and those adverse to such a system
has been one of constitutional power, though more
or less connected with questions of expediency My
own judgment, it is well known, has, on both
grounds been opposed to general system of inter
nal improvements by the Federal Government I
have entertained the most serious doubts from the
inherent difficulties of its application as we'll as
from past unsatisfactory experience by the General
Government, as to render its advantageous to
the country at large efecual for the ACCOMPLISH
ment of the object contemplated.
shall consider it incumbent upon me to present
to Congress at its next session matured view of
the whole subject and endeavor to define approx
imately at least and according to my convictions,
what appropriations of this nature by the General
Government the great interests of the United States
require, and the constitution will admit and sanction,
in substitute should be devised capable Ct
reconciling difficulties both of constitutionaty and
expediency.
In the absence of the requisite means and time
for duly considering the whole subject the present.
and discussing such possible substitute it becomes
necessary to return the bill to the House ofRepresen
atyss, in which it originated and for the reasons
thus briefly submitted to the consideration of Con-
gress to withhold from it my approval.
FRANKLIN PIERCE.
Washington D. c. Aug f. 1854