The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1858-12-15
PACIFIC RAILROAD.
SPEECH OF SENATOR GwIN.

the Senate am called upon to open this discussion and
invoke the grave and earnest dcbeaton OF this body in
its action upon question repete with the most vital
interest 10 the conedercy In again pressing this
10; as hope final and successful vote claim the
iudulgent of tho Senate ior the in which it
presents ITSELF well by the peculiar relations hold
10 it.
This Is the first Congress that has assembled the
great presidential contest of 1856. Three parties
tended in that memorable struggle for the control of
the political destnies of this country.
The democratic party, represented in national oonven
ton at Cincinnati in June, 1885, adopted the following
resolution
Ref That the democratic recognises the great i'm,
y m hh r n % @ lpn, h hsw shs 80. s I"a
tic and Pacific tho union aud that duty tho fed
eal all its constitutional the attain
that object thereby binding Union
dasublo bonds and Tho rich Of
lakes Of the North1
The republican party also met in convention in June,
1856 in Philadelphia, and passed the following rcsoh
ton:
Resolved ocean, by
meravey demanded by the OF the
whole country aud that The federal ought TO render i'm
thereto the immediate construction of emant the line
of tho railroad y
The presidential nominees pledged themselves 10 the
policy Of building railroad connecting Atlantic and
Pacific possessions with the aid of the general govern
ment will not detan the Senate by reading the letters
tho defeated candidates of the reu blican and Ameri
parties, but will read that of the present Chief
Magistrate, brief, but of the powerful
guments in favor of this great that have been
pennsd
wmArLasp Sept. II, 1856.
Sin have rcceyed numerous communications from sources In
California entitled high in reference the proposed
would be impossible them all,
your capacity inrcomng duty
contained in letter accepting the nomination for the presidency
not 10 answer nerogaors raising now and different issues from
has itself adopted resolution in fsvor Of this work
briefly that with the
derive the uthoy do this from the constitutional
war, duty rcpe my
Judgment ngess possesses power appropriations
for the construction Of This road strictly for The Of national
defence
Francisco Indeed the necessity with view repel foreign in
or will there be danger from the precedent FOR almost inn
possible conceive that case attended by such extraordinary and
unprecedented can ever again occur IN our history
Tonrs, very respectfully, JAMES BUCHANAN
Chairman Democratic Committee, California.
The President did not stop here in his advocacy of
government aid in the construction of this great work
In his inaugural address, after referring to the constitu
tiona authority which he makes SO clear that
successfully combat it, he says
Now po protection California and
our Pacific except by means 9. military road through
be sPod transported from tho Atlantic states to and
rcroi the nvaderp' ..a ana
And adds ..m .... ... @ra. ... .s-.4.. 81. ....s
might whether Union
be impaired by neglect refusal provide for them in their
mote and ISOLATED condition The only means by which The power Of
dcicn time to protect against nvasou.n
He further enlarged this pledge to tn, nation in his
taaar address in the following emphatic language, in
his first message to Congress
Long experience has deeply
lion Of the powers granted to Congress- The only vol as the
guide public ,onIuc making
power Congress may appropriate money for the een.rncion oa
absolutely the defence Of any W the siae against
nors 80 sro MAR 80 raise and snppo armies so nroya ns
navy, call forth the ml. rcpe
sponsbe public duties among sacred and
s, as m That Of M our soil from the @ n" Of for
point consuctn but expressly tha hc United
tary necessary to en-
able and repr the invader follows
sequence only tho power
DUTY would aburdi,y
and Al The same time deny to tho only reaching and do
feang the enemy at the frontier Without such road is quite
invasion We cannot by other transport
from the Atlantic States sufficient
successfully defend those remote aud distant portions Of the
public
ra America at best but uncertain and unreliable mode OF
m But yGn 4 this were no. tho s.se they would ?,
much stronger than as enable u to blockade the ports
either end OF these routes After ALL therefore, only rely
military through Territories the
origin Of the Congress has been IN tho practice OF apro
roads. =
road Atlantic and Pacific greatly
aggeracd The distance the thirty
parallel Of north atue between the boundary OF Texas.
the Rio Grante and The boundary CALIFORNIA;
the
IS the favorable For obvious the
ought undertake. the work Itself agents.
THIS ought bo committed other agencies which might
assist either by grants Of land by both terms
Provision might thus be made only rapid
noma transportation Of troops and munitions also OF tho
pub ic mails Tile commercial the whole both
Fast aud West would be greatly promoted by such road and
all would be powerful additional
though advantages Of this kind whether postal commercial pot
c constitutional power they furnih ax
larry arguments in favor Of expciing which, my judg
clearly embraced within the warmaking power.
For those friendly OF
subject of the Pacific railroad without
myself TO any particular route"
His recent message goes further than his previous
declarations in favor of this great measure.
have been thus particular in bringing before the SEN
ate the solemn pledges Of the democratic national
ton and the democratic President, in favor of the
srction OF this great national highway because this body
contains large majority of the members Of that party
But when look round this chamber see member of
the Senate who not earnest advocate of of the
three nominees for the presidency in 1856 who did not
then, and who does not now, profess allegiance to the
parties which contended for supremacy in that contest
and whose party fcalty if not official honor docs not
que a least his earnest consideration of this important
On this side of the chamber, among my demo-
cratic associates the who led tho columns of
the in this last great contest in the popular TO
rum and cannot but entertain the hope that by their
efficient cooperation in the language OF the resolution of
the democratic national convention "the whole consu-
tional power of the government will be exercised to
build the Pacific railroad.
II is not by the voton r.crcly, of any one senator
that this s called up before you but as one Of
the great popular issues submitted to and decided on
vorably by the verdict of the people in 1885, it