Mr. WASHBURNE, of Illinois. No, sir; I cannot yield the floor for that purpose now. I will proceed with the few. remarks I have to may 1:. I know, Mr. Speaker, the disadvantages under which I undertake to address the House at this late hour of the session, fatigued as it must be by the s ccchcs which have already been made upon this question; but I would not dare to return to my home and face the incor ruptible, honest, and patriotic constituency that have so long honored me with their support and confidence if I did not oppose, not only by my vote, but by my voice, feeble and uninfiuential though it is, this last, greatest, and most gigantic scheme which has ever been brought into the HoRep of the U.S. Sir, we had a night session the other night. We did not come here to inaugurate some legislation by which we might relieve our tax li den and overburdened constituents. We did not come here for the purpose of considering any bill to reduce their oppressive taxes. But we gathered here, with unwonted alacrity, tovote69 millions of the peoples money out of the public Treasury to a private railroad corporation and sir, I consider it a species of good luck that this scheme, so well lobbied and so well lanued, was not put through, as it was intened to have been put through, on that night under the screws of the previous apestion, without any chance being allorded to se uss and expose its enormities. Sir, I have some little knowledge of the history of this legislatiom in regard to these railroad matters. I recollect how the supplemental Pacific railroad bill was put through the last Congress and I desire gentlemen here, who were sent here by their constituents to protect their interests, and who intend to vote or this bill, to look for themselves and see what obligations have already been fastened upon the country in regard to these railroads. In the 1st instance, the Pacific railroad bill contained an enormous grant of land from the Missouririver to the Pacific coast; and that grant was wade upon the round that the Cen tral Pacific railroad con(1 be built under it and yet, at the last session of Congress we passed a supplemental bill doing, what? Why, incurring an obligation of $95,000,000, ranting more land in addition to all the lan that had been voted theretofore; and further than that, as you will see if you look at the bill, subordinating all our securities to these securities of the railroad company. That bill was passed at a night session, too; and so great was its popularity that we could not even obtain a vote u )011 it by ycas&nays. More than that, sir, that Central Pacific Railroad Company, in addition to these grants, has come here this session and demanded of us something like 60,000 dollars more, 1 believe, to aysxpense s which it is bound to pay itself. Hiook to the record to see who voted for or inst that Pacific railroad bill, but you will nd no vote by yeas&nays; and I can find but few gentlemen here who were members of the last Congress, in view of what is already seen and known in regard to the actions of that company, who are willing to concede that they were for the bill. I know I put myself on the record against it, and by that record I stand today. The ground upon which it was urged that we should pass that bill was this: that we must have a Pacific railroad; one Pacific railroad. [was willing to admit that. I was willin to do everything which it was proper for a itcpresentative of the American people to do tosecure such an object; but I was unwilling to vote for the extravagant bill proposed. But the cry for the road, without regard to the means, overbore eve consideration, and the bill passed. “that then happened? So great a success had been achieved in the passage of that bill that a short time afterward m distinguishe friendfrom Pennsylvania, [Mr. Srnvsss] brought in another bill from the comPacificRR. for the construction of thafl“Northern Pacific railroad.” and I relect well the discussion upon that bill. As it was stated it was an enormous bill; iving a breadth of 20 miles of the public lands on the line of the road in the States, and 40 miles of the public lands in all the Territories through which it was proposed the road should ass; granting for the construction of the roada number of acres running up to untold millions; indeed, so great that you can scarcely state it and what were the arguments that were used when this bill was broug it forward 7 It took the House by surprise, as I well recollect. But the Gentfrom Pennsylvania, with that ability and ingenuity and inlluence which he so justly exercises, convinced the House that it would be iroper to pass the bill for the reason that sue a road might be built and that the rant of land that we made was sufficient to bui d it and what did my friendfrom Pennsylvania tell the House in that respect? I beg leave to call his attention to an extract I will read from his speech on that occasion. He said: “But I have looked a little into this matter.in the fulfillmentof my duties ase hairman of this committee and I satisfied myself.1st, that these uien would built the road without a dollar of subsidy from the Government. I do not call the grant of this land living away anything." Notwithstanding all this, when we came to vote upon the bill, the House voted it down by a vote of55 to 66; and the bill was lost. But afterward my distinguished friend brought in another bill, and under the ressure of the previous question the proceeings occupying but little more than a column in the Congressional Globe, I think the bill was finally passed. But that was not done without the onus being satisfied, not only by what was said by the Gentfrom Pennsylvania, but by what was put into the bill. In reply to the argument that this company, as the Central Pacific Railroad Company has done, would come here and demand some more aid from the Government, he incorporated into the very text of the bill that “no money shall be drawn from the Treasury of the U.S. to aid in the construction of the Northern Pacific railroad.” That was considered a sweetener; that was a pledge to the country by Congress, and a pledge by the company to Congress, that this road would never come here to get anything more from the Government. Now, how is the fact? By the 19thsection of that bill there were certain things to be done in 2 years from the 2d of July, 1864, in order to save the charter; yet since the 2d of July, 1864, now nearly 2 years, these parties have never, so far as it appears, struck a spade into the ground along the whole line of this proposed road, have never done a days work on the road, or made any reparation whatever in fact, have done noting at all toward commencing the work. Now. I call upon the American people to take notice of what is going on here. These parties come I here under these circumstances and demand of us to guaranty the interest upon $57,000,000 for 20 years, amounting to the sum of $69,000,000, which the Government is to as sums: and I want also to call the attention of members to the bill itself. I want them to examine its provisions and to discover for themselves its extraordinary provisions. know something about the manner in which these things are 0t 11, these bills for railroad companies, and or other companies and corporations. It is not what the Government shall exact from the companicz, but what the companies will exact from the Government. They make their bills and present them to us and we are to pass them. ow, I ask my distinguished friendfrom Iowa [Mr. PRICE] to give me his attention while I consider the 2nd section of this bill. There is a portion of the 2nd section to which I desire to call the attentionof members of the House, and particularly my friendfrom Iowa, [Ma Purcell A great deal has been said to prove that eventually the Government will not be called upon to meet any part of the lia bility which it is to assume; that ultimately everything will be aid by this company. Now, sir, there is one thing that we know. We know the extent of the obligation which we are to assume; that is certain. Everythingelse must, of course, be uncertain, so far as reimbursement is concerned. But I ask, where in this bill is there any binding provision upon the part of the company by which the Government shall be certain to receive anything? The obligations are not mutual and dependent; the are all on one side. When this company sha have built a certain amount of the road, then the obligation becomes complete that the government shall guaranty this stock to a given amount. Then, what does the Government get l ask the chairman of the committee what is the absolute certainty that the Government will get anything in return for this?