Edwardsville spectator. [volume] (Edwardsville, Ill.) 1819-1826, 1821-03-27


revived now-he should vote to strike
out the first section, &c.
Mir. LiDermore, Of New-Hampshire
| then moved the committee to rise, thai
he might better and more fully under
stand the subject: And the committee
rose, and reported progress, and had
leave to sit again.
IN the House of Representatives
Jan. "a, Mr.. Cox, from the committee
on the Public Lands, made the following
report.
The Committee on the Public Lands, to
whom was referred the memorial of
the Legislature of the state of Illinois,
respecting the title TO the land upon
which their seat OF government is To-
Gated,
REPORT:
The memoralists state, that Congress
granted to the state of Illinois four Sec
tons of land, b be selected by commits
sioners appDirted under the provision Of
| the 18th settbn of the schedule OF the
constitution thereof, for the purpose Of
| locating threupon the seat of govern
ment Of sad state for twenty years; that,
in making such selection, the commits
sioners With three other adjoining Sec
,ious) mae choice of section number
sixteen township number six north,
range nulber one east, of the third prin-
cfpal meldian; that, by virtue OF the
authority vested in them by law, the
commissioners proceeded to lay out a
town, ans at gre attXpense, have erected
"a state hIuse upon the said section NUM-
Der SIXTEEN. The legislature, fearing
the title ofthe state to the said section
may be Considered doubtful, in conse-
quence ofthe grant previously made by
the United States of the sixteenth sec
ton in each township TO the state, FOR the
use OF such township, for tae encourage
ment of earning, pray Congress to pass
a law dec arlng the validity of is title,
and to direct the issuing Of a patent
AMI, also, to authorize the
state to make a selection OF another sec
ton in said township, in lieu OF the six
teenth, for the use Of the inhabitants
thereof.
The committee, upon examining the
subject, find, that, prior to tho passage
of the act, entitled Gan act to enable
the people oil the Illinois territory to form
a constitution and state government, and
for the admission of such state into the
Union, on an equal footing with the
original states," passed the 18Th April,
1918, the section number sixteen in
every township was reserved for the
maintenance ofpubic schools within the
township. This reservation, for that
purpose, has, at no time, however, pre-
vious to the organization OF state gov
ernment, been held absolutcl, 10 pess The
title thereto in the township; on the
contrary, Congress has repeatedly dis
posed OF such section, both by granting
it a6sotutciy to midi, iduals who, by viz
tue OF ancient settlement thercupon,
nave rccei. cd donations GOV ering their
improvements, aad quaHfedly to those
to whom the right CT pre-enption was
granted, who had settled upon that sec
ton in any township. Congress seems
to have acted upon the principle that a
simple reservation of land for a specific
purpose does not amount to an ahhAca-
ton of such reservation to that purpose !;
bnt remains subject to the authority OF
the reserving power, until some posi-
tive enactment declares its application
and appropriation TO that object.
Tie sixteenth section, therefore, III IL
lnois was not ahhiied to the use OF, nor
vested in, the township, until ii became
so by the compact entered into between
that state and the United States, com
pact which forms part of her constitu-
ton. BY virtue Of that compact, the
right of each township is guaranteed to
the section number sixteen, or, when IL
" has been sold or otherwise disposed OF,
to other lands equivalent thereto" 7vith
the exception, hozve0er, in The ohinion Of
The committee, Of this particular case.
BY tie thirteenth section OF the sche-
dule of the constitution it is provided,
" That the seat OF government Tor the
state shall be at Kaskaskia, until the
general assembly shall otherwise pro-
vide. The general assembly, at their
first session holden under the authority
of this constitution, shall petition the
Congress of the United States to grant
to this state a quantity of land, to consist
of not more than four nor less than onc
section, or to give to this state the right
Of presumption in the purchase of the
said quantity of land; the said land to be
situate on the Kaskaska river, and, as
near as may be, east of the third prnci'
pal meridian Oh said river. Should tbs