586 JOURNAL OF PROCEEDINGS [March 14,

storage of tobacco, the funds used in the erection of the pre-
sent warehouses have been raised by the charges on the tobac-
co inspected, and stored in those warehouses, and consequent-
ly those warehouses and the ground upon which they have
been built, rightfully belong to the planters who have paid
for them. The State in fact has never claimed any right other
than that as a trustee for her citizens whose money has been
used for this purpose. Senators are aware that a separate ac-

count has always been kept in the Treasury, showing the
payments and disbursments of this tobacco fund, and all pay-
ments made by the State for the pay of inspectors, the build-
ing and repair of the warehouses, &c. &c., have been charged
to this tobacco fund, and the receipts by the State for inspec-
tions storage, &c., have been credited to the same fund, and
the Comptroller's report for each year shows the relative in-
debtedness of the State to the fund, or of the tobacco fund to
the State. The last report of the Comptroller will show that
for the past year, the gross receipts from the inspection and
storage of tobacco was $118,331,34, and the profits on the
same account was $87,376,22, making the nett earning $30,.
955,12. Senators are aware that the Constitution of the Uni-
ted States prohibits the imposition of export duties by the
States, although they could pass inspection laws so far only
as was necessary to defray the expense of inspection, and
hence the State has always conceded that any surplus of this
tobacco fund did not belong to the Treasury, subject to be
used for present State purposes; but in fact that it belonged
to the tobacco planters.

Your committee submit, therefore, that the State is the
mere trustee for this fund, and bound to use it in such man-
ner as will best secure the interest of those to whom the fund
belongs. The single question, therefore, to be considered is,
whether the proposed sale of the present warehouses, and the

erection of others on deep water, would benefit the tobacco in-
terest ! Not one cent of the money of the State is authorized
by the bill to be used, and the proposed improvements under
the provisions of the bill cannot be effected unless the proper-
ty so held by the State in trust is found adequate to buy the
lots on deep water, and erect the buildings and all other im-
provements contemplated by the bill. The sole question then
is, will the proposed change of location of these warehouses
benefit the tobacco grower ?

Your committee are advised that great loss is now sustained
by the cost of drayage so far from the points of delivery to
the warehouses as now located, and an equal or greater ex-
pense in similar charges from the warehouses to the points of
shipment. By the proposed bill these charges will be ob-
viated, as the bill provides that the warehouses are to be loca-
ted on water of not less than twenty-two feet, capable of float-