The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1859-02-03

NC pOWCI SOTdicS Auu oupYvsS Ss'saS~S
the power to provide for and maintain =
navy; the power to provide for the com
mon defense and general welfare Of the
country; and the power to regulate COM
mercs. It is proposed to accomplish all
these objects to very great extent, by
the construction Of this Pacific railroad.
Now, if this be true, ! enquire of Sena-
tors here, as constitutional question,
whether the members of the Congress of
the U. s., have the right to transfer this
legislative discretion to an agent to be
selected by some other officer of the
Government? If it we're the enactment
of law merely, none, perhaps, would
contend that Congress could transfer that
direction; but it 10 not only the enact.
ment Of law establishing national
mail route and military road, but the
creation Of iron ligaments, with which to
bind together discordant States, and the
establishment ola great avenue for tray-
ell and commerce across the continent,
the people of this country,
by "a direct line of railroad and ocean
steamers, with the populous and wealthy
Asiatic States, and the East India Is
dands, which, it is said, is to control the
trade, Of this continent, Of Europe, and
of, the world, And it is proposed to
confer power of such vast consequen.
ces, not on the President Of the U. s.,
or on any Of the high functionaries of
the Government, but ON mail and army
contraclorssa.-rs~zs1zuassssa,sasaa.osag, a.osag,q1zzzss
But it seems to me that the location
Of the general route Of the road by Con-
gress is necessary for. the purpose of Sc.
curing competition among bidders for
contract. It is agreed that the construc-
tion Of a railroad on any Of the rropo-
sed routes will cost in the neigh borhood
of one hundred million dollars. This
would be one third Of the entire surplu.
products ef.the U. s., estimated by the
statistics Of our foreign trade. Lg
Thisbill provides thatit shall be CON-
pleted in ten or twelve years from the
commencement, which willrequire the
expenditure of from eight to ten million
dollars per annum, No one can, in good
faith, become bidder unless he can
control a capital yielding this sum per
annums deductihg the' $40. 900 per mile,
to be drawn from the Treasury Of the
United States, as the work progresses
Hence, each bidder must be able to con-
troll in the neighborhood Of one thirtieth
Of the entire productive capital of this
country before his bid to construct this
road can properly be considered by the
President of the United States. / fear,
sir, there are but very few individuals or
companies in the United States able to
centrol such an immense productive cap
ital. The capital of this country is in
vested I'm bank stock, iu ships, inforges,
in furnaces, In faetories,o ip rmaebiue
shops, in.staple products, that may have
accumulated from year to year, in hous-
es and lots, afarms and piantations and
their equipments, in canals and in rail
roads. One hundred million dollars
cannot very readily be diverted from the
usesto WHICH Il isnsw applied. by pany
individuals or companies in the u Stand
if competition is to come, directly or in
directly, from sbroad;if we'are to appeal
to the capitalists Of France, under the
provisions Of this bill, what guarantee
would we haveithat the raaa might not
be built in southwestern direction from
the eastern terminus proposed to the
Gulf Of Mexico, and terminate, leaving
the trade Of the world to pass through
the ship canal now being constructed
under the protection of the Emperor of
the French And if VIC seek the capital
of England what guarantee have We that
it will result in q branch road running
up in . northwestern direction, intsrsec-
ting the great Canadian railroad to Pu>
get Sound' .s,..or .a1y-:1
To,secare . fair competition amsag