Edwardsville spectator. [volume] (Edwardsville, Ill.) 1819-1826, 1824-09-14

| Mississippi rivers. In addition to this,
an act was passed, directing the Presi-
dent to employ engineers in making sur
veys and estimates for national roads and
canals. In the very first movement that
has been made under this act, the eyes
ofMe Government have been turned to
the West"
The address again proceeds: " Who
does not recollect the expensive expc-
ditions up the Missouri that were under
taken some years ago. Millions were
expended on that hroject. We have
reasons for believing that, liberal and
enlightened as the views OF the govern
ment may have been, in that affair it was
pressed on its attention by the Vest, for
the hnrho8e, mainly, of PROCURING the
disbursement OF large sums of money in
the region west OF the Allegheny noun
tains."
The first assertion quoted is, that Geor-
gia has not shared equally in the dis
bursements OF the public money Is This
complaint well founded /? At the close
Of the revolutionary war, New. York,
Massachusetts, Connecticut, South Ca
rolna, Virginia, and Georgia, all claim
ed considerable quantities of vacant ter
| rltory within the boundaries of the Unit
ed States. In order to give peace to the
Union in relation 10 the boundaries Of
those states, respectively, and also to
furnish the government with the means
OF raising fund to pay off the debt in
Cured by the Old Congress in carrying
on the war OF our independence, all these
states ercehf Georgia, granted 10 the
United States, without being paid for so
doing, all their vacant territory which
was not embraced within their Permanent
safe boundaries. Georgia, however,
held on TO her wild lands, until The year
1902, and did not hen cedc them to the
Ualted STATES until Congress agreed to
pay her one million and tzvo hundred and
| b/fy thousand dollars, IN cash, and also
10 extinguish the Indian title TO all lands
in the stare of Georgia, and for the sole
use of Georgia, and tor which purpose
very large sums have already been paid
out by The United States. And in addi-
ton 10 this, Georgia was to share equally
with the other S stes the moneys that
might arise from The sale of the lands so
pad Tor by the United States, lying with
| ons the limits Of that state.
The truth of this statement NAV be
tested by reference to the ASH page
OF the Isl vol. Of The laws of the United
SlaieS.
Georgia, then, instead of being denied
an equal participation in the public dis
bnrsemenls, has, in fact, received all OF
those disbursements, ouer ana above her
equal snare OF all others. While the
| other states we have mentioned, freely
came forward and gave up for the com
mon good the wild lands which had been
wrested from common foe, Georgia
neid back until she was richly paid for
hers Georgia has also enjoyed every
protection that any other state has-her
frontier has been defended when lhrea-
tened with invason--her coast has been
sorttled-and her commerce, with that
u tho Other states, protected. Yet Geur.
sia complains and will complain untii
.he can GET the National Scepre in her
own hands--lne hands OF William II
Crawford. When the Missouri frontier
IS threatened by savage invaders, the po-
pu!alloD OF The country arrested by sa-
vape menaces, and the government pro-
,des for It's proteclion-the cry is raised
IN Georgia that " Millions are expended
N hryect," and that, too, tor the mere
hurhoSe OF procuring disbursements Of
the public money in the Hest. The
empty cry ofretrenchmcnt and economy,
| made by the advocates Of This Georgia
sures OF defence a few years ago. And
what followed SO soon as it was known
that Congress decil giving full pro-
lection to our en'erprlzlng traders, and
frontier settlers in that quarter-the soil
was stained with the blood Of our ci,i-
zens-the capital of our traders wrested
IRON them; and our disasters are now
Knocked at by Georgia, by the applica-
ZION Of the term project to the measures
proposed for our defence, and by the
uDtounded charge of mere mercenary
views on the part OF the West, in asking
that protection. The west again obtains
the small pittance of 875, 900 to improve
the navigation OF the ONO and Missls-
slppi, the great highways Of our com.
,nerce--a sum less than has been appro-
priated for single fertilization in Geor-
sia, and we are again insulted by being
told that Georgia sis tributary to the
North West" When he whole COM