The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1902-01-24
A PRESIDENT WITH PRINCIPLES.

Recently the birthday of General An
drew jackson was celebrated by demo-
Gratis in different sections Of the coun-
try. Jackson was an extraordinary
man and hero among heroes. His views
upon some questions might not be ac-
cepted today by all democrats, but he
was not the extreme man he is ordinari-
~ held up to be, especially in northern
public prints. A familiarity with the
conditions of the country when he be-
came president in 1928, and Of the pre-
vailing principles n policies of that
time, woul enable the student to bet
ter understand Jackson's character and
environment. We saw a republican pa
per recently c%ensuring him for vetoins
a bill connected with the construction of
what was known as the National
road"-even then Nation" was figuring
in poIitics-and thought it all wrong.
But the old democratic doctrine. long
since departed from even by democrats.
was to vote no moneys of the federal
government to the internal improve
ments. holding that it was strictly a
state duty to perform.
The constitution was held by demo-
Gratis not to permit such a right to the
federal power. OF course like in the
case of the blair bill" of some twenty
years ago. it was to be engineered I'M
der the clause known as general well
fare" The Indianapolis Sentinel re-
ferring to this clause. says appropriate
~, and states that other leaders had
nraoola6 TaaIcAn IN The r;au, he hold.
Jefferson. Madison and Monroe all
held this view. The war of 1912 ON
WINGED the country of the national ne
cessity of some roads. and in 1928 the
movement in this direction was a%cceler-
ated by a scheme for division of the
spoils' by offsetting the harbor i'm
provements of the seabOard states with
internal improvements in the interior
states"
An examination of the records will
show that the internal Improvement
system began with Jefferson's term, and
with $4,000 appropriated by the con-
gres5. Madison's term saw this grow
to $3.50, 900, and then it steadily increased
until in Jackson's term when it ran up
to over ten millions of dollars. The
Sentinel says that the internal i'm
provement craze reached the climax I'M
der Jackson, and but for his firm stand
the government would have been bank
rupted by the wild schemes then pro-
posed. The folly of much of the move
ment was soon realized. and it's strength
rapidly died away as the uselessness
and impracticability of most of the
improvements were seen."
When Van Buren, succeeded in 1895,
the sum dropped to a little over two
millions, and under Tyler about one
million. Now, however, great sums are
voted away yearly by the congress to all
sorts of internal improvements" DEM
ocrats go it as strongly as the republic
cans when their constituency or state
or "deestrict' is to be a~dvanuaged or
considered. We recall that General AL
fred NJ. Scales, one of the purest and
truest of men, a staunch democrat of
the old school of democracy, voted
against an appropriation for the Cape
Fear river upon constitutional and
party grounds. He was simply fearless
and consistent.
The Sentinel draws attention to a
great scheme now before congress-. It
says:
And today the same Jacksonian re-
sistance to hasty and ill-considered eX-
penditures is needed. For example, the
spirit may we'll be applied to the effort
to bluff the Nicaragua scheme through
congress without any due consideration
of other canal routes 1t is the same old
theory of Jackson'S time-ruShing pro-
jects of vast expenditure through on
the plea of national necessity and i'm
mediate need, without n regard to
practical considerations"
1t might have added constitutional
considerations. 1t is extremely doubt
full if the congress has any legal right
to build canals affair off from the United
States. But said a legal friend OF dis
tinguished abilities lately. the demo-
Gratis forget principle when their partic-
ular scheme is to be benefited. He was
referring to the villainous "robber' tax
of the republican party branded as the
Tariff" You will see south
ern democrats, just like so many eck-
less. u~nprincipled Mark Hannas, fight
ing for protection for some special in
terest of their constituents. Sugar In
Louisiana, manufacturing in many
states and so on must all be fed from
this dreadful bottle of high taxation
for the dear, little "muling and puk-
ing darlings in the nurses arms
these '.infant"industries, that have been
giants in size for 40 years. Democrats
should get together. have some well de-
fined principles, and shake off all repuo-
cans in disguise who enter their coun-
ellis and try to dictate their policy and
twist their principles. Be something
PICTURES OF FACTS NOT To BE