The weekly Oskaloosa herald. [volume] (Oskaloosa, Iowa) 1855-1885, 1874-08-13

iOA viz SoAiSSeihS, SiiOy OuSut W nave
been content. But avarice rarely is
content. This anomalous corpora
ton, with one body, one head, but
two faces, was not content. When
it was ascertained how profitable
they could make money derived
from the work they did not own,
they desired to get more money.
They hit upon the expedient of
hypothecating the canal and raising
money under pretense of enlarging
it. In 1860 Congress authorized the
directors, "with the revenues and
credits of the company, to enlarge
the said canal" Under that act the
company mortgaged the work for
some two million dollars and it is
not yet known whether the Govern
ment will be able to recover it or
not.
OTHER SPECIMENS OF DEMOCRATIC
RULE.
That party did not overturn our
land system, Notwithstanding it was
good one. During the year 1s41
the syetem was much improved ;
that must be confessed. But the
Democratic party was not in power
that year. We ought also grateful
ly to remember that the grants of
land made for educational purposes
were not repealed. The fact fur
nlshes striking illustration of spar
ing mercy. But the phenomenon is
not diflic alt to explain. Such grants
were made only to States in which
the lands were. Such lands were
found for the most part only in new
States. The new States were very
unanimously Democratic in politics.
The States receiving the grants
could alone administer them, and
the party seems to have felt conf
dent that grants SO administered
would not promote the cause of
commerce. All who are familiar
with the early experiences of the
school funds in the Southern and
some of the Western States, will
need no other assurance that that
confidence was misplaced.
The Capital was not transplanted.
But when the Democratic party re.
tired from control, in 1861, scarcely
building belonging to the Govern
ment was finished. Perhaps, how.
ever, the party would have avoided
that cause of reproach if they had
earlier formed the design of trans
ferring those buildings to the use of
another government.
Armies were then maintained.
Their ranks were thin, but they were
sumptuously officered-officered far
too largely by those who had been
educated in every soldierly grace
save that of allegiance.
A navy was suffered to exist, but
as it was found a little too loyal to
desert its flag, and little too gal.
liant to surrender it, when the hour
of national peril arrived, that navy
was scattered in remote seas.
Do-NoTHING POLICY.
The Presidents of those half for
gotten years were diligent, by an
nual and special messages, to ex-
plain why the Federal Government
could do nothing. Like the two
brothers engaged in the temperance,
cause, one of whom lectured on the
evils of temperance, while the other
furnished a shocking example SO
Democratic Presidents were peren-
nially eloquent in expounding the
impotency of the National Govern
ment, while Democratic Congress.
es were as persistent IN illustrating
it.
The pretext for this strange slug
gishness was an amiable one. Con-
stitutionally inhabitions were plead
ed in excuse for all omissions. They
constantly neglected great national
interests, because they feared to in.
fringe upon the prerogative ofstates !;
they proclaimed themselves the
champions Of States rights they
arrogated to themselves the name of
the States rights party.
1t vas specious pretense, but it
was utterly insincere. So long as
our archives remain, so long that
very party will be known as the one
which struck the foulest blow at the
rights of States which could be con.
trived.
That is the party which, on the
18th of September, 1850, wrote the
fugitive slave act in the statute book.
By that act the United States COM
manded the Federal courts to multi
ply court commissioners without
limit. By that act the United States
offered such commissioners a clean
bounty of five hundred dollars each,
for certificates that residents of Mas.
sachusetts, or any other State were
fugutives from Texas or some other
State and when such certificate
was obtained, pledged all its forces
to remove such residents to the
State wherein he was claimed !;
which made that certificate 80 pur-
chased, of such hucskters, conclusive
evidence of the right to remove, and
commanded every tribunal within
the insulted State to be still, and all
its citizens to aid the outrage
statute the very first victim of which
was a free victim from Penn, who,
being declared fugative by a IS
commissioner, was transported to
Virginia by the United States, and
finding no man there base enough to
claim him, he was allowed to get
back at his own expense.
In all these years the national
character had not been raised an
inch. On the contrary, through
them all, it had fallen constantly
lower and lower.
When England and France pre-
posed, in 1852, to join with the
United States in mutual renuncia-
ton of all designs on Cuba, an Amer.
lean Secretary of State did not hesi-
tate to assign as a reason for refus-
ing to JOIN such convention, 'that
it would give new and powerful
impetus" to attacks con the Island
of Cuba, by lawless bands of adven-
turers from the United States. with
avowed designs of taking possession
Of the Island''-attacks which, he
argued, no administration would be
strong enough to resist.
NO POWER TO SAVE THE GOVERNMENT.
A government which denied its
right to aid commerce over the Des
Moines Rapids, and which advertis-
ed its impotency to control its own