The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1882-02-23
THE BIG CANAL JOB

as congress meets, enterprlSGB JoDDers anu
lobbyists are found to be on hand with g
gigantic scheme for cuttings ditch acros:
the Isthmus of Panama or that of Tehuan
tepec, and earnestly besiesing the general
| government for subsidies or guarantees OF
interest on the money invested. And now
Il bill has been introduced into the house by
GENERAL RosEcRAS2 proposing to incorpo-
rate and assist the Nicaragua Canal Com
pany, Among the incorporators are some
very distinguished and imposing names,
such as those of U. s. GRANT, f, d.
MORGAN, IL. j. JEwErr, llowAEp
Porter, W. II. GARRISON, FRED Bill
LISGs, GEORGE B. LoRING. JAMES
r. KEENE. T.. +. BEALE, DANIEL AMMEN,
GEORGE +. BAKER, WILLIAM ii. BARNuN,
A. G. MENoCAL and L. S. GRANT, in. The
bill il it should become law will be simply
one of the many tremendous jobs that have
dsgraccd orr legislation for II number of
years past. The company make the modest
request Of congress to guarantee to them
that the net receipts Of the company for the
period of twenty years shall not be less in
amount than per cent. upon the total
capital stock and this latter is not to
be less than $j000O,0O0 nor more than
SlO0,OOO0OO, so that the government guar
anty is not to be less than 81 $1,000 per
annum, nor more than 100000 And
with this assistance and no bad
luck they hope to pull through
We have, in the first place, never been able
to see who of this nation would be bene-
lifted by canal in the south from ocean to
ocean, other than those people on the
western coast, who have raw material and
products of various kinds 10 ~ to the
east and Europe, and the manufacturers of
the latter countries, who have goods, wares
and merchandise to ship west. Even in
such case Americans would be but SHINY
benefited, as they do comparatively moth
ing with the carrying trade of the world. But
the whole Of the United States are asked to
contribute millions annually to insure that
the net receipts Of 4 private corpora
ton shall reach paying business, The
absurdity and impudence of the proposition
are manifest at once. But what more right
have the incorporators of this proposed
canal to ask the government to guarantee
that they shall make so much money than
have the various gas and water companies
in the land? Or, for that matter, any other
private undertaking? If the United States
should determine itself TO cut Il canal across
some of the Central American states for the
purpose of handling with greater ease and
dispatch its war vessels the matter
would be different, but it is an impo-
sition upon the great body of the
people to ask them to contribute TO the
profits of private individuals who see fit TO
engage in ventures in foreign states. The
indirect benefit or direct even, that might
accrue to the United States from tie enter
prise cuts no figure in the case as long as
the scheme is simply one Of business by
private individuals. This lending the pub.
lie credit to private parties is radically
wrong, and when once commenced has no
earthly limit, The principle would opcr.
ate alike in every department of
trade or commerce. IL the legis-
lators at Washington would fearlcssly do
their duty, they would soon throw such
bold and unconstitutional jobs out of sight
forever, whatever might be the prestige and
significance of the names of those asking
help, But to us of the southwest other rea-
sons exist for combating these costly and
unnecessary canal schemes south of us. We
are Just witnessing the completion of a
great railroad system, placing us upon the
highway from ocean to ocean and from
which we have been expecting great results.
We want to see the trade Of the east and
west, the commerce of Europe and China
and Japan passing over our railroads, and
experiencing its transfers at one of our
own gull ports. We want the ships of ma
lions fed Mt Texas port from
Texas roads which have car
ricd the rich products of the Pacific slope
through our praircs and cities, and do not
desire to see ourselves left away to the
north, with nothing for idle hands to do,
by the worlds shipping passing snugly
through Nicaragua or Panama. With us,
therefore, interest combines with law and
right in opposition to the scheme to guar
antcc NJ, pE LEssErs, U. S. GRANT or CAR
TAIN EAps so much MS net receipts upon
their business ventures in proposed
canals in the Central American
states. II is, therefore, easily demon
strablc that GENERAL RosEoRANz's
bull is not only constitutionally
wrong, unnecessary and unjust, so far as
the central states are concerned, but posi-
lively injurious to the southwest. We are
gratilied to learn, indeed, that our rcprcScn.
tatiycs at Washington do not favor It's pass.
age, and we trust that they will peFsistcntly
and actively labor Tor It's defeat, and in
fact, of all other measures of similar nature.
The present job can be characterized MS
nothing else, In short, but biz steal under
the cloak and color of law.
AN OPERA-iiOUsE
The work OF procuring substitution for