Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1841-07-06

Ii the States must first beg and then rob, at least let
them keep their rapacous hands oil the palrmony Of
the old soldiers.
But Mr.. +. would here refer the committee 10 ano-
Their fact whic went to show that the proposed disr
button ough, be made, and that was that the land
had not reimbursed its own cost in its acquisition and
administrations But gentlemen had discussed this
point, and Mr. F. would not dwell upon it.
There further reason, and that found in
the effect of the proposed distribution the relation
subss,inu between the State and General Govern
mens He had ever looked upon the deposite act IS
of the most alarming acts that had ever been pass
ed. Its operation was to bring the States ano the
General Government into the relation OF Debtor ana
credtor-of slave and master but tins bill was sun
worse-it placed them in the relation OF beggar and
almoner This was but the commencement OF the sys
tenn The present bill gave the states but thef hrsl
douceur this taken out OF the public lands the next
would be drawn directly out OF the Treasury. And
No thincs would continue go till It would come to
be felt by the States be far convenient to carry
on their schemes of internal improvement and all their
.other State operations by getting the money TO do u
from the General Government than 10 ask the People
for IT, Did gentlemen believe that the good and wise
men who framed our Constitution ever contemplated
such relation this between this Government anu
the States: If they had conceived such thing posi-
ble not man of them would ever have voted Tor 1t
MIR r invited gentlemen TO place 11oO and 1871 IN
;uxtanosition and to compare them little In one OF
these wears they would behold Luther Martin, the DIS
tnguislsd jurist and statesman OF Naryiand-in inc
darkest DAYS of the Republic-when the country was
surrounded by dangers without and torn by distractions
w;,bn-animated with becoming jealousy for the doc
trne of State rights generally and for the rights OF his
own MARYLAND in particular, rejecting the Constitution
willing forego all the advantages promised to the
country lest is adoption should SUBJECT Maryland 70
the undue preponderance of other States. But what
did they behold in IS4l A distinguished gentleman
from that same Maryland which rejected the Consttu'
ton for the sake of State rights came here anu pro-
posed TO Congress bill to reduce his beloved aryiana
1,ntnrn /,
placed her hor hneo holding out the beggar cup
for charity and crying in pieous accents, "pray give
me something for the sake of sweet charity, that may
nav nv debts" He thought there some difference
beiween 1880 and 1871 He would submit whe ther
the doctrine urged by the gentleman from Maryland
who lately addressed the committee was entirely con-
sistent with that which had been assumed by Luther
Martin, If Maryland had just right TO her share OF
the public lands now it just perfect at the very
moment the lands were first ceded to the Union. And
il Luther Martin urged with all his power the cesson
of the lands, he surely knew whether, when coded,
they would nure TO the benefit of the Union at large
or Of the several States in their individual capacities
If the latter then his high wrought State rights feel
ing dwndled down Of once into low and selfish at
tempt cozen the other States to cede the lands that
Maryland ght get her share
There another view Of the matter. Fit was
not permitted 10 gentlemen much as to touch the
relation of rich and poor among the People, still he
surposed he should be safe in saying that the effect
of this bill would be to ertlize the field of The rich
man by the sweat oil The poor man DroW mat iie
believed was capable of demonstration by figures
This was an attempt (ike many other measures pro-
ceedng from the same quarter) TO transfer the hard
earnings of the laborng man to the golfers OF those
who nev YER labored, by sort OF cdgerdeman 10
compel the poor man TO pay the debts OF the rlch-
What would be the practical effect Of the bill? Mary
land had largely engaged in works OF internal M
provement, and for whose beneht For the beneht
doubtless Of the landed propretors OF the State And
now heavy debt rested upon Maryland, ana Inc ques
n he ma
Government, OF course ii must be by tax upon the
landed property Of the State. But how did the gen.
teman from Maryland propose to pay TINS uebt: Out
of the public lands Now, II the pnOd anns were
the poor and the rch if they ours By cessIon
from the States the fact the same. The man who
owned but one hundred dollars in the world had the
same interest with the man who owned one thousand
dollars vet the gentlemans bill went to take property
which belonged alike to poor and rich to pay debt
only one-tenh of which rested on the poor man, while
nlne-tenhs rested the shoulders of the rich man
Was 1t not so?
Every body knew that the effect of the bill would
be to produce deficit in the revenue; and The House
had already had bill reported to 1t for loan of twelve
millions. How the money thus drawn from the
Treasury be eplaccd' BY taxes the necessaries
of lte articles which every body wore and every body
consumed But Mr. T. would not 60 further into
this as he reserved himself the privilege of writing
out his remarks more fully for publication lie had
sought this occasion to present few remarks as the
ground work Tor fuisr extension OF HIS sLouiu
he ever prepare them for the public eye. lie had not
intended to speak upon The bull at so early day, but
he had yesterday heen informed by the honorable
chairman of the Committee on the Public Lands, (hr
w. &. JohnsonO after ne had himself maze Two
days opening speech in defence Of the bl that but
five days would be allowed for all the other "a MEM
bers of the committee He had, therefore, resolved to
obtain the floor he could, and to occupy as
short portion of the little time left to the opponents OF
the bill as possible.
of called
ford for the documentary evidence on which he based
the made by him yesterday, that the expendl.
lures account of the public lands had exceeded all
the receipts from then. by the OF fourteen or H.
teen millions of dollars.
Mr.. CLIFFORD said in reply, that his assertion
had been based upon written statement furnished
30 him by the Commissioner Of the General Land
Office He would send it over to the gentleman 1t
was entirely at his service.
MIR. C. here brought the paper to Mr.. FL.
MIR II. resumed The gentleman has been polite
enough to furnish me, here, with document of great
length and filled with many complicated items which
It would be quite impossible for me now to examine
II 10 be private paper, formed, presume, upon
n special application of the honorable gentleman from
Maine: what the particular nterroga.ories which
the Commissioner was called upon to answer is more
than know.
Rut TO show the true state Of the the rea-
five amount Of receipts and expenditures from the pub
lie lands also have before statement which gen
tlemen NAV find in Senate Document No l56, Isl
Session of the Goth Congress- in the shape OF re-
port from Mr. Senator Benton TO that body. MIR. Is.
here states the receipts from the public lands at the
sum Of SlO4, 945 400 IS. Now is possible that the
expenses of administering this tua! fund.- placed under
the control of the U. S. in Congress assembled, has
for fory-sx years amounted to the enormous sum oil
one hundred and four millions of dolars-nay, of one
hundred and twenty millions think it was stated
by the gentleman from Maine At first blush, the
naked statement strikes the mind with astonish-
ment
LIE, me call the gentleman's attention TO an authority
which am he will admit as authentic and ndis-
putable: il the veto message of President Andrew
Jackson, of the 4th December 1888, returning the bill
for the distribution of the public lands, bill passed
with very remarkable unanmity by both Houses OF
Congress. In this document that distinguished po!iti-
cal enconomst and great arthmetican certified to Con-
ercss that the expenditure upon the public domain
amounted, up to that time, TO $4?,70l ESQ This was
IN the Attn December 1893 and the calculation extends