Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1859-02-16
THE PURCHASE OF CUBA.

Mr.. President, the bills which engage the
attention of Congress generally originate eth
| er in the Senate or in the House of Represen-
tatives. But this measure is ushered into our
| presence by a Message from the Executive
! palace. 1t is, therefore, in its origin an Ex-
ecutive measure. Its nature corresponds to
| its parentage. 1t proposes to relax constitu-
| tiOnal and legislative restraints upon the Ex-
| ecutiye power, and to transfer control over the
| Treasury, together with the power of negoti-
| alton in foreign affairs, fromCongress and from
| the Senate to the President of the United
| States. 1t is not an isolated Executive mea-
sure of this kind, but it is one of a series of
! such measures which the President of the u
nited States has introduced at the present ses-
| sion in the same way. One of this series pro-
| poses that Congress shall authorize the Prcsi-
| dent to move the Army and the Navy of the
| United States into adjacent States of the Re-
public of Mexico and establish Protectorate
! there. Another asks our consent to invest the
President of the United States with power to
make war in his discretion and at his own
pleasure against all, or nearly all, the Spanish
American States on this continent.
The bill has financial aspect. 1t has also
a broad political character. In regard to the
! financial aspect, / call the attention of the
Senate to the fact that the bill proposes to ap-
| propriate now, at this time, out of the Treasu-
ry of the United States $50 900 600 to be plac-
| ed under the control of the President of the
|
| whenever she shall have consented to accept
any treaty which he may make with her for the
cesson of Cuba to the United States, without
waiting for a ratification of that treaty by the
| Senate of the United States. This appropria-
! tion of $4,000, 900 necessarily involves now
a pledge, guaranty, virtually grant, or ap-
! preparation of so many more millions of dol
lars the President of the United States,
without any recourse to the Senate or to Con-
| gress, and consulting only his own mere am
bition, caprice or pleasure, shall agree to give
! for that island and this last amount is alto
| gether unlimited.
The bill contains no Limitation, land the Pres
ident rec ommends no limitation. 1t is bill
| then for just so many millions as the President
shall choose to write in the treaty. What will
! be the number of those millions The report
! of the majority of the committee says that it
will probably be S125, 900. This calcula-
] tion is based upon the fact that Spain refused
| S100, ,000, 900 ten years ago, and that Cuba has
| increased in value 25,00O,O 900, according to
the estimate of a majority of the committee.
| This estimate is inconclusive, and, therefore,
unsatisfactory. The amount which Spain will
| ask, FIVE suppose her to accede to this trea
| twill be all that she can get, and the amount
which the President will give, if it be his pur-
pose to aeq tare the Island of Cuba at all e.
vents and under all hazards will be the least
| that Spain will consent 10 take. 1t may then
| just as well and as accurately be estimated
|
$500, 600 900, $3.50 900, or $500 ,OOo,0 900,
as that it shall be only Sl25, 100000.
| / will assume that it authorizes the Presl-
dent to contract debt to Spain, without "a
| gain consulting Congress or the Senate of the
| United States, for the sum of S250,0O0,OOO.
| This proposition comes at a time when our
revenues are reduced to $50, 900 900, and there
is confessed deficiency for the year of $780,
| 000, 600 1t is immaterial whether we borrow
| this $50 100000 to pay Spain, as the bill pro-
poses, or whether to pay it out of the receipts
| of the revenue flowing into the Treasury, and
| borrow money to supply the place of what we
thus abstract. 1t proposes nothing less than
to authorize the President of the United
| States to create at once and absolutely a debt
of $50, 600 600, and indirectly further debt
of $500, ,000, ,900 in addition 70 defcit,which
is virtually existing debt against the Trea-
Sury. of $50 200 900 making S6O,0O0,0O0 of
new debt certain, and 1920 900, GOO contingent.
This added to an already funded debt of $780,
900, 900, win raise the national debt 10 $3.50
000,0 900. This is to be done under extraordi
nary circumstances. We have at this moment
no financial syStem-no system of revenue.
We have, indeed, tariff law which brought
lasa year into the Treasury over S4U,0O0, ,OO0,
and this year is expected to bring in ,000,-
COO; but revenue law which leaves an annu-
al deficit cannot be said to constitute fiscal
system. Congress, after being in session now
near two months, has utterly failed to devise
any kind of revenue system whatever. Nor
has the Executive Administration submitted
to Congress any system for this emergency.
This statement is strictly true, If you consider
that the President recommends one system in
his annual Message. and that the Secretary OF
the Treasury, his own responsible Minister OF
) Finance, submits to us another and widely
different one.
This great increase of the public debt, we
! are asked to make at the very hour when, in
compliance with the Executive recommends
tion. we are proposing to authorize him to
: build the Pacific Railroad, at cost of not
less than S125, 900 600 more and simultane-
ously with this, on the same Message, we were
also asked to authorize the President to move
the Army into Mexico which can cost nothing
less than SI0O, ,0OO, 900 more, and at the same
time, in pursuance of recommendations Of
: the same weight and authority, we are asked
to authorize him TO employ the Army and the
Navy against just SO many Spanish-Americar
States on this continent as he shall chose
which can require nothing less than $1,000,
600 more; so, without any financial system a
all we are to have q great debt created by
: this Congress Of the United States, on the re
commentator and application of the PresI
dent, to strengthen the arm OF the Executive
while weakening the power and the constltu
Y tional force of the Senate, and the House o
2 Representatives, a debt of $500 ,O0O, 900.
n The honorable Senator from Rhode lslano
! Mr. Simmons) the other day spoke in glow
: ing terms. and yet most justly, of the credit o
n | the United States, and showed that, with the
n | small debt that we now have, nomlnai deot
we can go into the MAJ ket, and with hve pc
cent. stock borrow money at premium, or
, perhaps. borrow money on a four per cent
/" stock anywhere in the markets of the world
That is because we are noyices, inexperienc
:, ed, untried, and unknown in the money mar
| ket, except for paying such small debts as w
= have made. But, Sir, when we shall hav