| Show VALIANT VETO president arthur puts ills his foot root on the eiver river and Harbor harbor steal the friends of the bill aro are busy to sustain it by AV tt IT tele telegraph mph to the tile washington antl aug 1 tho T following is tho full text of the presidents message vetoing the river and harbor bill to the house of representatives ng watched with much interest the progress of the house bill no entitled an act malting making an ap for tho tile construction repair I 1 and preservation of certain works on the rivers and harbors and for other purposes and having since it was received carefully examined it and after mature consideration I 1 am constrained to return it herewith to the house of Rea representatives tives in which it originated without t my y signature and with my objections to its passage many appropriations in tho the bill are clearly forthe general welfare and are niest niost most beneficial in their character cliar acter two of the objects for which whick provisions are made were by me considered so to important that I 1 felt it my duty to direct to them the attention of congress in my annual message in december last I 1 urged the vital importance of legisla legislation tien for the reclamation of the marshes and foi the establishment of harbor lines along the potomac front in april last by special message I 1 recommended an appropriation for ohp the improvement odthe of tho mississippi I 1 kiver it is not nece necessary I 1 should say that when my signature would make the bill of appropriations for these and other valuable national objects a law it is with great t abec and only under the sense of duty that I 1 withhold it my principal objection to the bill is that it contains appropriations for a purpose not for the common defense or general welfare and which will not promote commerce among the states these provisions on ort the contrary are entirely for tho the benefit of the particular localities in which it is proposed to make improvements I 1 regard such appropriations appropriations of public lic money as beyond t the e powers powers given by the constitution to congress and as president I 1 feel more bound to withhold my signature from the bill because of the tile peculiar ps pa culiar evils which manifestly result from this infraction odthe of the constitution appropriations of this nature are to be devoted purely to local objects tending to increase in number and amount citizens of one state inthey if they find that me money ja 0 to raise which they in common with the whole country are taxed is to bo be expended for local improTe improvements i ments in an another other state demand similar benefits for themselves and it is but natural that they should should seek to identify themselves for such of the public funds fund by securing appropriations for similar improvements in their own neighborhood thus as a bill becomes more objectionable it secures more sup support this result invariably ably and necessarily follows tho the neglect to observe the constitutional limitations imposed upon the lawmaking law making power appropriations fr for river and harbot improvements have under the influence to which I 1 have alluded increased year by year out of the proportion to the progress of the country g great reat as that has been in 1870 the aggregate amount of a appropriations for this purpose was ra in 1875 1 in 1880 and while by the present act there is is appropriated 5 jah while ile feeling every disposition to leave to the legislature the res response ability of determining what amount should be appropriated ap opria ted for the purpose of the duill baill so long as the appropriations are confined to the objects indicated by their grant of power I 1 cannot escape the conclusion that as a part of the lawmaking law making power of the government a duty q devolves upon me to withhold my signature from ta the ie bill containing appropriations which in my opinion greatly exceed in amount the needs of the country forthe for the arese prese present nt fiscal year it being the usage to provide money for these purposes by annual appropriation bills the president is in effect directed to expend BO so large an amount of money within so brief a period that the expenditure cannot economically and advantageously be made public money is an evil not to bo be measured by the value of that money to the people telio are taxed for it they sustain greater injury by the effect produced upon those who are ed with the official duty through all the ramifications of the government these objections could be removed and every constitutional purpose readily obtained should congress enact that one half only of the aggregate amount provided for in in the bill be appropriated for ex expenditures endi tures during durina the fiscal fiscal year ant and that the sum s so appropriated be expended only for such objects as are named in the bill as the secretary of war under the direction of the president shall determine provided that in no cases shall the expenditure for an any one purpose exceed the sum now designated by the bill for that purpose I 1 feel authorized to make this suz suggestion b because cause of the duly duty imposed upon the president Fres president ident by the constitution to recommend to the consideration ofton of congress such measures as he be shall judge necessary and expedient and because it is w my earnest desire that public works which are in progress shall suffer stiffer no injury congress will also convene again in four months when the whole subject suba t will be open for their further consideration era tion signed CHESTER A ARTHUR executive mansion aug it washington aug I 1 the members of tile hoesr commerce committee held a meeting tonight to night to uj agree upon op a policy for future action about about the river river and harbor bill the committee was unanimously of the opinion that k the president had bad made a it blunder in vetoing the bill and it was agreed that his suggestion to vote a lump sum to bo be expended under the secretary of war should not be recommended bom mended it is the opinion of the members of the committee that the bill can be passed over the veto and an effort will be made tomorrow to morrow or next day A member of tho the committee said to tonight night that if appropriated d for the mississippi and Alis missouri rivers and potomac hats flats was deducted from the bill its amount would be about every item had been endorsed by the engineer corps of the war department only COO was wa 3 appropriated for new works WASHINGTO aug I 1 thero there ia Is much speculation tion concerning the chances of the success to attempt to morrow marrow to pass tho the river and harbor barbor bia bill 1 1 oyer r t the b e P presidents re si d en t s y veto e to tl the i e b bill 1 or originally aie r in a il y p passed e d t the 1 i e 1 house 1 0 use 0 on n the of june ayea against 47 nays and in in the senate on july y yeas c 39 9 nays 23 with ten senators paired e d the conference report embodying em y 1 g the bill in the present form was agreed to in the house by 95 members not voting A quorum consists of members on the basis of tho the total number of members present and the voting taday ta day one bundred and twelve aari affirmative aln r responses will be required tomorrow to morrow in order to p pass ass the river and harbor bill over the veto in tho tile house if the vetoed bill reaches the senate a change of three votes from the recorded three cases against the original passage passa e will be sufficient to make it law law the house committee on commerce met tonight to night the presidents veto of the river and harbor bill was the topic of the discussion alie sentiment of the members present was decidedly in favor of recommending the pas ag ge of odthe alie vetoed bill it was also ascertained hat that the committee practically arid and unanimously agreed to report a resolution tomorrow to morrow recommending tho the passage of the bill over the veto another meeting of the committee is called forto morrow morning when the members bay say the subject will bo be further considered and a definite plan of action formally determined upon NEW YORK aug 2 the journals of all classes here are jubilant oyer over the the presidents veto the sun democratic ocra flera tic is almost beside itself with admiration and enthusiasm for president arthur |
