River Navigation Quotes
The case was one of the first that allowed the building of bridges in America—a right well established today even if navigation is inconvenienced.
This statement was made by a group of priests when considering a projected canal in Spain
This was one of the early suggestions for providing jobs for the unemployed to work at developing the national infrastructure. In this case if highways and the river could be improved, transportation would allow goods to be reach more of the country cheaper. The CCC and the Job Corps of America would use a similar reasoning for public employment.
The reason that there were tolls on rivers is that the king or one of his predecessors had granted someone (often one who paid the king) the right to do so. However, the practice became a stranglehold on commerce.
This quote is interesting because it itemizes some of the things that Jefferson clearly felt was beyond the constitutional powers of the Federal government. Yet all of these things were done by the Federal government after Jefferson passed away. The Corps of Engineers commonly builds and /or maintain rivers and canals, the military does some of its own manufacturing even today but far less than in the first half of the 20th century when much of the munitions were made in government factories. The federal government has and does maintain special farms. Some opponents of big government point to this quotation to illustrate how we have deviated from the concepts of the Founding Fathers.
