New-York daily tribune., 1859-01-26
THE CUBA DEBATE.
opEECH OF MIR. SEWARD
=. IN the Senate on Monday, JAM "a, 1859.

., An. Uouse Of Representatives But this ness sue -
sshere1 into our presence by Message nom tne i-A
sutiye palace. 1t is therefore, In its org en
tive measure. Its nature corresponds 70 iD
n preooses 20 relax constitutional sna 'eg
s&rsirts upon the Executive power, aLu " 81
sentrol over the Treasury, tossther WIZ ~ "a e.
.>seotistion in foreign sfairs, from ~, - u;s
tAe Senate to tie President Of the .i.. ,a,p
not an isolated Executive measure % ..'I a. p,a.dept
n ono Of series of such D''dsie lI ,s.ent ,es.
I-,..d S,.,es has introduced at the present D'''
~ One OF this series proposes 'nA'
Ill sr.horize the President 70 move 'N'
~s 80 N.vy of the United States INTO a'Jaoeh'
o. az 49, f,epubic Of Mexico and es'so'sh rfo'
.... tbere Another asks our cohSen' ~ i1'e''
n..s,dspt Of the United States with tue power I"
:, his own di ,cretion and at his own pleas
-. ,ysp,t all, or nearly ell the Spanish-Amencan
states on this continent A.
a nss,ure thus disparsgng TO the intelligence the
;.e snd the independence oftheNational Leg s!ature
....ure 10 dangerous 10 the civil and religious no
.,t., Of the American people, IL must be expected,
,, ,sc,ve at the hands Of Congress csrefal scru'
inv. II is not my purpose, at this time to bestow
thst scrutiny in it's full extent, upon the bl wnen mas
he.n renorteA in accordance with the recommendation
Of the Pre- sden of tbe United States but 40 inteha
70 indicate some of the considerations wnch nave
yeuit stsrces ought TO receive the favor OF Congress
The bill has financial aspect IL has sleo Dioau
political character. In regard TO the huancial sspet,
call the attention Of the Senate 70 tle iact tna. u
bin proposes to appropriate now, at thls tne our u
the TREASURY Of the United States, SSO OooO 10 DC
placed under the control Of The President OF the Une1
States to be paid by him 30 Spain she sha
have consented 10 accept any treaty whlch ne niaJ
male With her for the cession of Cuba TO the United
States without waiting for aIallhcat0n OF that treaty
by the Senate Of the United Sates. This appr0pIla-
lion of $50 600 600 necessarily involves now pledge,
sguarsnty virtually grant, or appropriation OF 90
many more millions Of dollars as the President oi the
United States, without any recourse to the senate OF
TO Congress, and consulting only his own mere amor
top caprice or pleasure shall agree TO give for that
isIand and this last amount is altogether unlimited.
The bill contains no limitation, and the President re-
eommends no limitation 1t is bill then Tor Just 50
many millions as the President shan choose u se %fm
millions? The report Of the majority OF ne c'fl. ~
tee says that it viii probably be $l2J,00O OVo ihiS
s:snsiion is based upon the TACT that sp9ba 9ba bas in
creased IN value $25OOO,OCo acco1dog 70 tIe eSunaS
OF majority Of the couimittee This estimate is N
conclusive sSS aIsI1iU wi SsS we suoocse Gcr to a
Cede ~ this treaty, will be all that she can get and
she amount which the President viii give, it be BIS
purpose to acquire the Island OF Cubs at all events
and under all hazards viii be the least that Spain will
content to take IL may then just as vel and as aocu
ratey be estimated that the TO be written il the
treaty will be 5000 600 900, $3.50 GOO 0OO or $780,
win assume that it authorizes the President to con-
tract de BIT 10 Spain, without again consulting Con-
Rress or the Senate of the United States for the cum
Of $250,000,0OO. This proposition comes at time
when our revenues are reduced to so, QUO, ana
there il confessed deficiency for tho year of sD,OOO
600. Ii is inm material whether we borrow thB SjO-
O00 0O0 to pay TO Spain, the bprOposes or whether
we pay ont Of the receipts OF the revenues hoWins
into the Treasury, and borrow the money to supply
the place of what we thus abstract. 1t proposes
nothing less than to authorize the President OF tue
United States to create at once and absolutely a
debt of OOO and indirectly further debt OF
e22O,0OO, 900, in addition TO n deficit, w1leh IL
virtually an existing debt against the Treasury oil
S3OO0O,0o0; making 500 100000 of new debt certain,
and $22O, 600 900 contingent Ths, added to an al
ready funded debt of $6O,WO,OUO, VIII RAISE the ma
tiopal debt to $3.50 ,0OO The is be- done under
extraordinary circumstances We have at this mo
nent no financial sy stenl-no system of revenue. We
have. indeed, a tarin law winch brought last year
into the Treasury over $40 0G0 900, aud this year is
expected 10 bring in $50 600 OO0 but revenue la Y
which leaves annual deficit cannot be said TO con-
sttute fiscal system. Congress, after being IN ses-
sion ow 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 il you consider that the Pr, ,sident recommends
one system in his annual Message, and that tue
Secretary Of the Treasury, his own responsible Mn-
iser Of Finance submits to US another and widely dli-
ferent one.
This great increase Of the public debt, are
asked to make at the very hour when, In compliance
with the Executive recommendation We sre proposing
20 authorize him to build the Pacific Railroad, at
cost of not less than $250 900 900 more aud simua-
neously with this, In the same Message, We are also
asked 10 authorize the President TO move the Army
into Mexico which cost nothing less than $lOO,,
600 COO more and at the same time, in pursuance oi
Recommendations OF the same weight and authority,
We are asked to authorize him to employ the Army
and the Navy against just many Spansh-A American
States this continent he shall choose, which can
require nothing lees than 500 600 more 80, with
ont any financial system at ALL we are to have great
debt created by this Congress OF the United States
the Recommendation and application OF the Presido NJ,
70 strengthen the arm Of the Executive while weak
ebpg the power and the constitutional foroe OF the
Senate, and the House Of Representatives, debt OF
$500 0U0 0C0.
The honorable Senator from Rhode Island Mr..
Simmons the other day spoke in glowing terms, and
yet most Justly of the credit Of the United States and
showed that, with the small debt that We now have, a
nominal debt, We can 90 into the market, and with q
Eve per cent stock borrow money at premium, or,
Perhaps borrow money on four per cert stock any
where in the markets Of the world. That is because
we novieee, inexperienced, urtried and unknown
in the money market, except for paying such small
debts as We have MADE. But, Sr, when shall have
shown that increase debt IN forty days. for
that the period which remains Of this session from
Soc coo 600 to $500 600 co., beg leave to express the
opinion that the OF interest will be found to rise in
proportion TO the hberahty with which We propose 10
bonow. IL that case you viii find your revenue de-
rved from al sources scarcely more than enough to
pay the interest o the debt which you shall thus have
created, leaving funds whatever for carrying on
the ordinary operations of the Government.
This, however il might be said is fancifdl picture
beeaute the bill sppropr.tes ory $50 OO000, aud noe
the whole $50 OOo,O coo, which have supposed.
Nevertheless, Sir, II aPproprates the whole amount
which tae President shall write "a the tresty. We
give him blank eraA on the Treasury, and author.
ne him to MI up the amount for himself have sup.
posed he viii hl up with $50 coo 900. But am told
that We rctres. from this contract with Spap
NE md fDnp fTsiN nj -.