Edwardsville spectator. [volume] (Edwardsville, Ill.) 1819-1826, 1822-05-18

aooNsn your present system OF SaieSS
and abandon your minimum price alto
gether; or close up your land Offices Tor
TWEEN y, thirty, or ioriy years 10 come.
lake then, sir, if you please, the
other alternative, tina, the government
shall dispose oil the land for tic benefit
oil those states. To this, some senl!e-
men seem to think there can be no OBJ
lection, because The constitution has de-
iesaled 10 Congress the power OF dis2o-
sing OF the property OF the OnHed
States, though that power is, by express
stipulation, and plain and obvious nier- .
ence, coupled with the posi- I've du'Y Ut
disposmg OF such properly tor the oehe-
~ efthe Unaoa. BY mis- plan, howe' CT,
the Injurious effects OF competition might
be avoided, and the present minimum
49, ----A n.4 a. haz hlsn al-
ready SHOWN, Il would require some
twenty years, al least, TO dispose oil the
land, though moi an acre should III the
mean time, be sola for the benVtlt OF
the Union. This would indeed be Trans
forming federal INTO safe agents; ab-
'stracting them from duties, tor whose
performance, they were solely created;
aud deVoilns them to pretty long ser
vltude, 10 mere STATE farHo8es. Now,
sir, admitting, VIC ha'e right 10 give
away laGd to the states, whence do we
detlVe the fogper, 10 consiru ourselves,
and our surt essors too, nor agents and
trustees Or 10 convert this govern
mcnt INTO such state machinery!
But, sir, putlns the best possible as
pect upon this plan, II can amount to
nothing less than virtual grant II mo-
ney, to be paid GU. Of ,he public lreasu-
y, win pledge OF GU, already plugged,
repled6ed, triple, quadrnpie, qnmtlp,e
pledged public lands, Tor It's pay ment.
ie, tncn, that proper time, Tor making
such an afpropria ion, when, the re-
ccpts oi the Tteasury are no more
han adequate to the current expenses OF
iae gOvelninont WbAn, the govern
nient has 20 supper, itself by loans OF
five millions time Aud wien, We
~ man II the nation oicrtnary sasael-
+, must be convinced lhal Nc aus soon
resort To ptrn.anen system OF internal
,a&auon /? SIR, said Air. L. ii cannot be
disguised from tic psopie oil this cation
that, III proportion rs Ne nisappiy, or ,m-
par any oil The Ordinary sources o, re-
venue, additional butdeus must he im-
posed upon them. Aud can It be supposed
| that they vii be reconciled 10 all appro-
rfiztiVn {. seo IA al. t-t--lf1ruuCd win
| such cons, Guencts--- z8ithout cUea the
hretence SfAoqeer on thr ha'9 Of on
sTesa IL e':faree lis afhhcation II the
>lyecta Jar gplocA II is 10 be granted !?
| BIT, sir, wha, is 10 BE- he extent,
0 which the new doctrines upon which
the present proposition is supported, arc
to lead us One false step begets emo
der. Il, because one thiiy-sixlh part
o, The nationa. domain in the rev STAGES,
has been appropriated to lhe support Of
education therein, tho states IN Wiigh
here is no public land, are entitled to
an appropriation OF tqual amouc', as
contendea by the Scaf,eman FROM N n.y.
land, VIII, may they MOI with equ pro-
priety, and justice, clam q much iarger
proportion Of the nett proceeds o, the
ale Of public lard, tor diff, rem, pur-
pose -and one too, which has not eseap-
ed the attention OF tic honorable eei,tle-
mal,, but has been several times ref red
o by h..n in the course Of his remarks.
B j supua,ions with the new states. one
menlieth OF taosc proceeds is approp,ia-
led 10 making o, roads in, and leading 10
hem. Are rot toafs, rs well as educa-
lion, equally necessary TO every state in
he Union Aud il you grant the pro-
posed appropriation for the support of
education, upon the principles oontend-
ed for by the gentleman from Maryland
mot asked; as favor, but according
o his own language, demanded as "a
gh,"---upon what gfounti,. can you re-
fuse the suggested appropriation for
public roads ! II the latter be granted,
then, will not only this source OF NATHAN
al revenue be completely annillilated,
Gut other sources must be rendered tria
Ibutary to lhe states. For il a sum equal
TO onc-,wonsieth OF the proceeds of the
sale of public land is, to be granted 10
each state, then, as certainly as that
twenty twentielhs are the whole, those
proceeds can only satisfy twenty states,
and the balance must be paid out OF some
other branch ofthe revenue.
In short, sir, ii appears to me that we
have no more right 10 grant away to the
states, the funds, than the powers ofthls
government, for take from it, its pecuni-
airy resources, and destroy its character
for good faith, il would be idle mockery
TO pretend to talk abour its hogvers.
Mr. President, said Mr.. L. in the
} remarks which have had the honor to
submit To your consideration, l have at