Canton herald. (Canton, Miss.) 1837-1839, 1838-01-05

tnsl sMfg &c fha s4eMH halafs
f'At nlf haW flaiet aai iaffiia sis
wth be nilaifigai eHl Independent
population
lhf modification most pereffnns
" pressed uffn conmefa, Wh.rb H..
occupied At DHeh VI lis hna n.
gears pose cad $50 probably ds m
i9f 3 bong ihns t1 euma. II not sn1bei
satisfactorily adjusted, isa reduction
~ ihe cost " such portions ~ he
public landsas ere asecfftlned ~ NJ
unsuitable NJ she mte noW esnlli.isd
W lnw, uud d graduation, ACCORDING
20 Their relative ,aIrc. of The prices
~ which they may hereafter be- sold.
y g worthy ~ consideration whether
justice may not he dome Nv every in.
iotcst ln This matter, uni tctrl
question set ~ resL perhaps fit ever.
by reasonable compromise Of con.
ilicilng opinions. Hitherto, after be-.
ing offered az public sale. lands have
been disposed Of no enc uniform price.
whatever difference there might be IN
their intrinsic value.
The leading considerations urrcd
IN favor OF the measure referred to.
are that in almost AN Che land districts.
am. particularly in those in which the
Iands have Leen surveyed and exposed
to sale, there arc still rcmainInr nu-
merous and large tracts of every IRA
datlon OF value, from the government
price downwdrds; that these lands
VIII not be purchased at the govern
ment price, SO long as better can be
conveniently obtained for the same
amount; that there arc large tracts
which even the improvements of the
adjacent lands will never raise to that
price; and that the present uniform
price, combined with their irregular
value, operates to prevent desirable
compactness of settlement in the new
states, and to retard the full dcvelope.
ment OF that wise policy on which
our land system is founded, to the in
jury not only Of the several states
where the lands lie, but of the United
States rs a whole.
The remedy proposed has been 4
reduction of prices according to the
length Of time the lands have been in
market, without reference to any
other circumstances. The certainty
sa{s thf 5agG se & Sl tyne nNd 9 PR9Fnds not
even generally, furnish true critic.
rion of value; and the probability
that persons residing in the vicinity,
as the period for the reduction of
prices approached, would postpone
purchases they would otherwise make,
for the purpose of availing themselves
of the lower price, with other consid-
erations of similar character, have
hitherto been successfully urged to
defeat the graduation upon time.
May not all reasonable desires upon
this subject be satisfied without en-
countering any of these objections?
All will concede the abstract prlnci-
pie, that the price of the public lands
should be proportloned to their relative
value, so far as that can be accom-
plished without departing from the
rule heretofore observed, requiring
fixed prices in case Of private entries.
The difficulty of the subject seems to
lie in the mode OF ascertaining what
that value is.
Would not the safest plan be that
which has been adopted by many of
the states as the basis Of taxation
an actual valuation Of land, and clas-
sification OF them into different rates?
Would it not be practicable and ex-
pedient to cause the relative value OF
the public lands in the districts, which
have been for q certain length of time
in market, to be appraised, and classed
into two or more rates below the pre-
sent minimum price, by the officers
now employed in this branch of pub
lie service, or in any other mode
deemed preferable, and to make those
prices permanent, if upon the coming
in Of the report they shall prove salts.
! factory to the congress' Cannot all
tho objects of graduation be accom-
plshed in this way, and the objections
which have been urged against II
avoided? 1t would seem to me thai
such a step, with restriction OF the
sales to limited quantities, and Tor &C
tual Improvement, would DC Tree iron
i all Just exception.
~ 4 .sHif ~