The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1876-07-15

thrown out to catch "grangers." This part |
of the platform reads as follows: "Reform
" is necessary to put stop to the proiiigate
/" waste of public lands, and that diversion
" from actual settlers by the party in
I" power, which has squandered two hun
=" dred millions of acres upon railroads
=" alone, and out of more than thrice that
" aggregate has disposed OF less than
" sixth to tllers of the SOIL"
Remembering that this declaration came
from the democratic party, and that SAM
uel ]. Tilden and Thomas A. Hendricks
were placed in nomination thereon to give
it a practical Interpretation, we did not, for
a moment, think that any comment was
needed to expose the hollowness of the
pretenco contained therein, but, alas for
the gulliblity of mankind, we find that we
are mistaken. 1t, perhaps, may prove
that the people will be deceived by the pre-
tense, but we do not believe it. We have
not word to say in defense of the course
of the republican party in granting railroad
subsidies-the policy may have been right
or may have been wrong,or, as is undoubt-
edly the case, it may have been right in
part and wrong III part. Be this as it may,
we ask the people to look at the facts aud
the record, and then decide for themselves,
what hope for reform in this direction there
is from the democratic party?
The policy Of granting lands to states in
| aid of the construction of railways was 10
| augurated, in 1850, by the democratic par
| ty. With whom the idea originated is I'M
known, but it is certain that Stephen A.
| Douglas of Illinois was the first person to
| Introduce q measure of this kind to the no.
| iice of congress In 1850, the Illinois
| Central railroad company, through Stephen
| A. Douglas, then senator in congress
from Illinois, applied for grant of land
! to aid in the construction of railroad
| from Cairo to Chicago and Dunleith. 1t
met with hot opposition, but, through
Senator Douglas persuasive championship,
it passed through congress, receiving the
votes of the majority of the democratic
senators aud representatives. BY this
measure over two and half millions OF
the public domain were parted with to aid
in building railroad. This was the orr
gin of the land grant policy, and for it,
right or wrong, the democratic party is re-
sponsiblc.
Two years later, some two millions OF
acres of lard were granted to the state OF
Missouri TO aid in the construction of the
Hannibal and St. Joseph and the Pacific
and Southwestern branch railroads, anC
Thomas A. Hendricks, now the demo,
cratic candidate for vice-Presldent of the
United States, then representative il
congress, from Indiana, voted therefor
The yeas and nays on the passage of the
bill, are not preserved, but Mr.. Hendricks
stated in the senate, May %, 1864, in &
discussion on the bill making a grant tc
the Pacific railroad company, as follows
LAS member of the house of represen
tatives several years ago, felt it my
duty to vote in favor of land grant tC
" enable the state of Missouri to build tha
" very important road, and gave reason
:" in the house so far back as that, that
"voted for the grant because | though
"that road would at some time be con
"pecting link with the Pacific line o
=" railroad
This policy Of granting land in aid of tn
construction of railroad to the Pacific
which was avowed by Thomas A. Hen
, bricks in 1852, was made democratic prin
5 ciple in 1860, and we find, both in tn
Douglas and Breckenridge Democrat
platforms of that year, planks pledging tn
2 party to the support of Pacific railroad
3 and, in one of them at least, demand tha
3 the government should aid in the construe
: ton of such road. The legislation c
! 1862 found the democrats standing on thei
2 platform of 1860, and voting with the II
publicans for the charter of the Facifi
railroad company and the accompanying
2 land grants. This brings US down to 1866
i when the second, and the most objection
3 able, grant was made to the Pacific railroa
! company, and we find Thomas A. Her
! bricks, now the democratic candidate fc
vice-president in the senate not only n
. framing from making any oppositio
2 thereto, but actually voting in its favol
3 and eating against a proposition hmitin
5 ! tie subsidy in United States bonds granite
2 TO tile road to one million t,c0 hundred Moe
. sand d0ll1rS.
5 But Thomas A. Hendricks and his fe
i low democrats did not confne themselvt
to voting subsidies and lands to a sing
. railroad to the Pacific. At the same SCI
4 sion of congress-1S64-w find them vo
2 ing for land grant to the Northern Pac.f
= railroad, and Thomas A. Hendricks urgin
4 the grant, and Directing to certain ament
g ments, because sit was not proper to bu
"den a great national enterprise wit
amendments" proposing grants to oth'
= roads, that might imperil its passage,
70 But he did not confne his land graz
u policy to Pacific railroads alone. He di
>, not base his objections to the amendmen
referred to, on opposition to their merit
but simply because he did not desire
} "burden" the bill with other grants tn
), might lead to its defeat For he voted al
g favored the very propositions contained
the amendments when presented as sep
rate measures. To use his own language
a 81 have favored grant of lands to ii
I, Z" state of Minnesota where thought
= "was right. was in favor of grant
y, LANDS to aid the road from st. Paul ,
"to Lake Superior. Let that road
"made.' 1--WE, that is the committee
10 which he was member, "did recommel
9, ga grant of ten sections per mile on ca
as A" side of road from st. Paul to Lake S
H. "peror and similar grant was made