Daily Davenport Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1864-1874, 1868-01-16
INAUGURAL AOORGoo
GOVERNOR SAMUEL MERRILL.

INAUGURAL Aoo0eoo
GOVERNOR SAMUEL MERRILL.
Gentlemen IF he Senate and Hoxs If RIP.
restnfsffres
With gratitude ~ the people of Iowa
f,r an election to the responsible office Of
chief mag istrate Of the State, | appear
before you 1, take the solemn obligations
prescribed by the Constitution. and 10
give assurance of iielty to the interests
of the Commonwealth
The period in which We meet Is dis
linguished with peculiar favor The la
pors of tho busbandmsn have been
crowned with plenty Pestiience ana
Want have not visited Us; spirit OF good
sill ana fiaternal regard has prevailed
tbrcng bout All our borders. Let ms CRATE
fully arl nowlodge the bencficent Author
of these ns s-lngs aud recognize onr in
creased obligations ofobedience anu love.
The prospects Of our State were never
more hopeful. The finances are in sound
aud bcaithful condition. Notwithstsnd-
ing the heavy burdens of the war, we find
ourselves untrammeled withsdcbt and free
are kindly and harvests abundant. The
useful and mechanic arts have not been
neglected In the development Of our re-
sources. Never in our history has the
spirit Of internal improvements exhibited
such strength Of purpose rs to-day. and
energy and enterprise are everywhere
striving 20 promote the commercial facili-
ties of the State. Especially is this man
fest in the rapid development Of our rail
way communications In 1859 the number
of miles of railway in operation was three
hundred and ninety In 1865 1t was seven
hundred and ninety three while at the
present time il can not be less than twelve
hundred, and us this estimate embr aces bu
| A fractional part ofchartered lines, VIC sect
how hopeful, how full Of promise is our
future IN this particular. The growth Of
our cities and towns; the spread of
our commerce the multiplication
Of schools and colleges in our midst, are
| evidences of a substantial and progressive
| prosperity.
The representations Of the conditions Of
the State in its details by my predecessor
have givenyou afayorable Introduction TO
| led interests, aud Ibespeak for his rec
ommendations youI careful consideration
| 70 again consider the topics which have
| been SD recently and SO well presented
would seem unnecessary upon the pres
ent occasiun. Hereafter may deem 1t my
| duty TO invlte your attention 20 some par
ticular subjects az legislation. aud there
fore | shalt he parlonei if | now turn to
the more extended field OF national affairs.
| In the war for preserving the unity OF
the Republic. the people Of Iowa bore
leading and brillisnt part. Well may we
congra, ulatc ourselves, therefore, that the
labors In which VIC have shared the sor-
rows in which we have participated, the
hopes and anxictics which We have felt IN
common with loyal hearts all over the
land, have established it upon firmer foun
dations than ever before. The pernicious
dogma of estate Rights" persisted with
the sword which was drawn in its defense
| 1t is one Of the first fruits Of victory that
we are not Republic Of corporations.
but Republic Of the people, end that in
questions affecting the interests Of oil the
States. the ultimate arbiters are the people
of the United States. While the rights Of
none are to suffer eacroachment, and the
prerogatives of each ere to be jealously
guarded by the power of the whole. the
popular will must be the great expoundss
| Of the Constitution Tine cry has beUll
raised that in establishing and certifying
the powers ot the nation, the people are in
danger Of losing their liberties. History
has been cited to show that We are initial
ing the unhappy policy of other free gov.
ernments, in which, first the spirit, and
then the form of their institutions per
ished. But it is forgotten that men have
never before attained a freedom worthy of
the name, and that if they failed they
failed because they were unworthy.
Our own experience has more meaning
lessons for us than any examples of former
su cess or ruin. Disclaiming the heresy
that the nation is every thing and the State
nothing, let us at the same time rejoice
| tha, wc haye established so firmly the par.
amount Sovereignty OF the Union over all
| IS ptrla, that il the hour OF great national
exigency, We shall never again be com
PEELED to listen to the declaration that
there is no power in the general govern
ment to coercc a sovereign State" Cen
triiugal must yield obedience 10 centripe
tai law, or our system peIisbes. And yet
neither can be spared from the perfection
of our theory. With the idea that the
authority of the wh~lc is supreme, must
be coupled the principle that the States
have sphere Of action, limited to I've sure
but nevertheless distinct sphere, which
the general government has neither the
power nor wish to invade.
To vindicate the integrity Of the Union
required large expenditure. Happily
for us and for the success of our cause, the
credit of the nation was equal to the great
emergency which called it into exercise
contain no stipulation OF payment il
specie. A more subtle, insidious and. al
the same time, deadly attack upon the
public credit could lot have been made
Apart from the fact that gold is the rccog
nizcd currency ofthe world and the stand
ard of value, and that we cannot exempt
ourselves from the operation Of this law
there was, in this instance, an implied un
Outstanding with both parties I" the cove
nant that leans to She Government should
he paid in specie. The Secretary of the
Treasury placed this Interpretation upon
the contract at the time the loan wa.
being negotiated All the cotemporane
Gus acts and sayings of the men whe
framed the law are explicit in the assur
ance that no other intention lurkcd in the
| Hlpo~ts GU tile OtNtlHultut. TIC SSitHit
&c rtpaying The putlic loans in an ire
icemablc paper issue, was cunningiy de
vlsed Electromagnetic offspring of a
desire 10 evadc the payment of onr obliga.
tions in accordance with the rules OF com.
mon honesty.
The ability of the American people to
paw the utmost farthing of their indebted.
ness, the least sanguine have never ques-
In times of unprecedented difficulty and
whom our financial ability seemed the
pivotal point of triumph or defeat, il
proved an unfailing rock Of supply. To
maintain that credit constitutes our most
sacred duty; andswhatevcr responsibilities
Il may impose upon US, the highest stand
ard OF national good faith will command
the verdict Of the American people. The
citadel Of financial honor cannot be guarded
too sacredly. should feprobats - the
most calamitous ot misiortunes any legis
ton on the part of Congress. tendise q
invalidatc the plightcd, or even the fairly
implied, faith of the nation.
It has become the conviction Of some
that part Of the national bonds could h
redeemed in currsncy, without fraud upor
the holder The advocates Of this policy
base the righteousness Of such redemption
upon tho fact that the bonds themsslve,
l Toned Al the nresent ratiO IF inrrp ase