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


to those contracts, referen:e must be had
to the law under which tley were made
1t may safely be premis.d, that all the
terms offered, and inducements held out
to purchasers by the law, when acceded
to by them, became, upon Every fair prin-
ciple of legal construction as well as of
moral justice, obligatory lpon the gov
eminent, and, consequently, that the lat
ter could not, without plpable viola
ton of such obligations, leprive those
purchasers of any advantages which the
positive declarations Of tie law, at the
time of contracting, promied them, and
which may fairly be considered as hav-
ing constituted a part, and 10 nconsider-
able part either, of the inducements to
enter into those contracts.
By the law it was explicit declared,
that no public land should beyold for
less price than two dollars pc acre
The payments v,re divided n,o four
equal lnstalments, one of who was TO
be paid down at the time of maing the
purchase. On completing his pyments,
any purchaser was entitled to hi patent.
But, If he did not choose to py within
five years from the date of his prchase,
the land was to be sold, and al that it
might sell for, above what was dc npon
it, was to be returned to the fist pur-
chaser. Thus every one in purchasing
had the two alternatives presented to
him, either to purchase Will view to
obtain his patent, or 10 receive the pro-
fits upon bis money, arising from the
enhanced value Of the lard within five
years. Both alternatives were equally
fair, and legitimate objects Of the CON
tract, because equally authorized by it.
The latter alternative was doubtless pre-
scented by the government, TO promote
sales. Its acceptance, therefore, by
purchasers, was fair and authorized
speculation, consistent with the views of
the government, whose object has al
ways been to sell as much land as posi-
BILE, without any discrimination with re-
gard to the objects of purchasers. 1t,
therefore, cannot excuse itself from
granting relief to those persons, by af-
fectlng to consider them as the less en-
titled to it for being spectators, in yield.
ing to the very temptations with which
it seduced them, if indeed there were
any thing wrong in the speculation itself
There are, however, vast number oil
persons who have been induced TO rely
wholly upon the latter alternative, from
necessity, not choice. No one who
purchased with such objects, particular
ly at the minimum price, and made iu-
dicious selections, could have lost by it,
and many would have made considerable
profit had not the price Of public land
been reduced, contrary to the plishted
faith OF the government.
The adoption Of this measure has not
only deprecated the lands heretofore
sold, impaired the ability of purchasers
to pay for their lands, and made it their
interest to surrender them, but, in rea-
ton to all those who relied upon the sale
ofthe lands according to law, for the re-
endorsement of the instalmen's paid up
on them, with a reasonable profit upon
their money, it has most iniuriously az
fected their condition, deprived them OF
advantages which were connected with
their contracts, subjected them to great
losses, that could not have been antici-
pated at the time those contracts were
entered into, and would, most unques-
tionably, were it case between indi-
viduals, render it the duty of court of
equity to decree that those contracts
should be set aside altogether.
Let me suppose, Sir, that the public
lands had belonged to an individual who,
under similar circumstances, had sold a
part of them, not barely with an under
standing, but with positive, unequivo-
cal dec aration, that he would not reduce
the price of the residue. Can it, ask,
be doubted, that if he had totally disre-
garded that declaration, as the govern
nent has done with SO much injury to
the purchasers, a court of equity would
hesitate to grant relief? These purcha-
sers are er equo ct bono entitled to a re-
turn of their money, and the govern
ment ought, for its own sake, to be glad
to compromise with them upon the
terms proposed by the measure now un-
der consideration.
Mr.. Edwards further contended that
this measure, by enabling the govern
ment to cause to be settled large guam
tity of lands, now held by persons who
can never pay for them, and therefore
will not improve them, would have a
tendency to consolidate our settlements,
and impart additional strength to our in
land frontier, and that it would give a
spring to industry, which, by increasing
our stock of national wealth, would be
felt advantageously by the whole Union.
But, said he, Mr.. President, though