The Tucson citizen., 1902-05-14
A BAD PRECEDENT.

= I'Cre is a sample;
or course it was Democrat, Under
vooJ OF Alabama. whose objection
: Saturday to the bill for the relief oi
tho people of Martinique made 1t ne
cessary for the measure TO go over
until Yesterday, and Underwood was
among the nine who voted yesterday
against the proposition. And it Is
safe conclusion that most, IL not all, OF
the nine Congressman who thus voted
TO withhold the assistance OF the only
nation which Is situated near enough
to the scene to extend immediate
assistance. were Democrats.
1t la ungracious to complain OF an
act of charity under any circum-
stances; nevertheless we desire to In
form the Phoenix Republican that the
government Of the United States is not
an eleemosynary institution. The
Congress of the United States has no
more right to vote the money OF the
people to relieve suffering in Mar
tinioue or elsewhere than 1t has to do
many other acts of which 1t has been
guilty. but without Constitutional war
rant.
The preamble to the Constitution
sets forth clearly the objects and pur-
poses of the government of the United
States. Here 1t is;
We, the people of the United States.
in order to form more perfect union
establish justice, insure domestic tran
guilty, provide for the common de-
fense. promote the general welfare and
secure the blessings of liberty to our
selves and our posterity, do ordain and
establish this Constitution for the
United States of America.
There is nothing In this about char
ity. There is nothing in the Consti-
tuition that warrants the generous
gentlemen who compose the Congress
to seize the money OF the American
taxpayer and bestow 1t on a foreign
people, no matter how deserving they
may be of sympathy, no matter how
much in need they may be of immi-
Idiate aid.
1t is we'll to keep in mind that the
government hasn't got dollar 1t can
call it's own. The government doesnt I
own mines, operate railroads, run
steamship lines or sell beef to retail
ers. The government has not dol
lar that 1t does not take from the citi-
zen. and the Congress has no more
right to be generous or prodigal with
the peoples money than an ordinary
thief who seizes what does not belong
to him, by force or strategy.
Grover Cleveland well expressed the
relation OF government to the people
when he said that the people should
support the government and not the
government support the people. Mr..
Cleveland when President. vetoed a
bill appropriating $35 900 to purchase
seeds for drought sufferers In western
Texas, and he was clearly right. Con
gress did not appropriate dollar for
the relief Of Galveston when that proud
American city was swept into the sea
and 5000 lives sacrificed to the will
of God.
Mr.. Underwood of Alabama, and the
other gentlemen who voted against ap'
propriatlng the money OF the American
taxpayers for the relief of the Martin
ique sufferers, are entitled to tht
thanks OF the American people rather
than to such ignorant rebuke as the
Phoenix Republican administered t.
them. 1t Is very nice to be generous
with other peoples money. The di
rectors OF great corporations seldom
take it upon themselves to donate thu
money of their stockholders for privat'
5 charity. and their limitations are no
: regulated by an oath to be faithful t
their trust.
We admit that 1t is ungracious, per
i haps. to be too scrupul0us under tn
awful circumstances of the late dis
) aster. but right is right and wroni
1 is wrong. The German emperor con
tributed 10000 marks from his privat
: purse. and the king Of England sen
n q, 900 francs from his pocket for tn
relief of the sufferers. We have no
heard of any nation but our owl
$ assessing it's taxpayers to relieve tn
{ distress. and we have not heard of tn
: President of the United States, nor o
= any of our millionaire Senator'S, de
e pleting their own private incomes IL
n the interest of aid to the Martinique
q sufferers.
! The precedent established is a bat
! one. There will be no excuse In tn,
10 future for not being equally generous
0 If disaster strikes with heavy hant
- in any nation in the world Twenty
- five or thirty people were killed a
tt Pittsburg on Monday night. and much
Il property was destroyed and mucl