Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1871-02-09
Grants, Subsidies and "Cor-
ruD(iOn.''


The following remarks by the edi-
tor Of the Gate city, in answer to
some inquiries by the Constitution,
are eminently sound and sensible
Read them, friends:
1--WE have steadily opposed these
land subsidies ever since they have
grown into n wholesale business that
threatened to swallow up all the pub
lie lands. And we will remark just
here that here is a marked difference
between the Republican and Demo-
cratic parties. In the old days Of
Democratic supremacy the papers of
that party stood by it, right or wrong.
Aud Of all the "cussedness" going on
inside of it you never got an linking
from the Democratic papers. They
kept mum. And they are not great
~ different yet. OF all the rocking
corruptions of Democratic completely
that sprung up SO soon as Andy
johnson went over to the enemy, Of
all the corruptlon in the New York
City government, and Of Democratic
Ontrage and violence in the South,
you hear nothing In Democratic pa
pers, or would hear nothing but for
the Geographic news, which they
can't well leave out.
On the other hand. there isn't an
act of Republican misdoing but Re-
pubiicans can learn through the Re-
publican papers. The papers are UNI
muzzied; ask no odds Of the politi-
clans; praise their officials if they are
praiseworthy, aud pitch into them
when they think they are not. These
grants are denounced as "grabs'' and
.4swindles'' to- bring the system into
disrepute. Not because there is any
evidence Of dishonesty in this, that,
or the other case. The system itself
was iiiaugurated BY Stephen A. Doug
lastand the Democratic party. After
it was once inaugurated, it has prov
ed n mighty difficult thing to get
stopped. For the same arguments
that Douglas and the Democracy used
in making the grant to the Illinois
Central, are applicable, in greater or
less degree, to every subsequent case.
Each new locality that has not a rail-
road, thinks itself as much entitled
to land aid as the rest that have got
them. And the company that pro-
poses to build the new road shares
that belief. And Congress having
helped the one road, there was the
like reason that. it should help the
other. And as population has ex-
tended, and railroad projects multi
piled, of course the applications for
grants have multiplied. But there is
no more proof Of fraud in the very
last case than in that first one ofDen-
Mratie Inauguration. The system
has reached pernicious extent, and
should be ended without regard to
whether there is any dishonesty in
the individual case or not.
SO AS to the steamship subsidy lines,
Of which our contemporary complains.
They are part of the same pernicious
system. Hut there Is as much pro-
priety and benefit to the country in
helping steamship lines as in helping
railroads. The same argument APP
plies to both. And Roscoe Conkling
is no doubt rs honest and justifiable
in trying to get subsidies for a steam
ship ling as Stephen A. Douglas was
in getting subsidies for a railroad
line. We are dead opposed to Mr..
Conkling's plan But because the
scheme is Objectionable On principle,
that does not prove that itisa specie
ic case Of stealing.
Again, our contemporary wants to
know what we think ''of the 'corrup-
ton which, according to Senator
summer, Carl Schurz. and other good
Radical authority, lies at the fouida-
ton OF Grants famous San Domingo
joh:Y ISL
Il We think there isn't scintilla Of
prof of such corruption" Moreo-
yer, we don't believe there is any |
such corruption. Grant Is in earnest
about getting San Domingo, as JEFF
ferson was In earnest to get Louisia-
1a. Grant has stubborn opposition
inside and outside Of his partyAfo this
pro;cct,a as Jefferson had. And We.