Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1841-03-06
CONGRESSIONAL.
SPEECH OF Mir. WISE-[CoNcLUpED.l

SPEECH OF Mr.. WlSE-[CoNcLUDED.l
Bnt am looking to the future, and / ask whether
IL is not that it changed with the times
Is it likely to continue to pour out blessings upon
this country, Has it not been working some evils
with its great good, which ought to be arrested
and which, If not arrested, will more than counteToa
lance all its greatest good' Look back to lib origin
At the time this ordinance framed, we were two
or three millions of people only, scattered over
wide and wild of virg continent, roamed by sa
wage tribes hostile TO the white man. We were in debt
n hundred millions for Revolutionary conquest
We were agricultural. And it entered not into the
mind of man TO conceive that TO be any thing
else for centuries 10 come than poor and burdened
people, struggle hard for ages for the means from
year year Of supporting precarous national exist
ence. The probability and the rational fear then
was, that we were to be too ,oeak. When, 10! We
not only left mother country at very early age
the age Of infancy and chldhood-but were found IN
Empires temple contendlng with the mighty nations
of the earth There has been something miraculous
almost divine, in the progress OF this People FROM
TINT time TO this we have been rising like godl g.
mt in stature and in strength Thirteen Colonies are
twepty-six States-three millions have become near
twenty millions-and who would have mag lined that by
1856 in less than hafof century, we would have paid
off all the debts oftoo wars and have had more than forty
millions of surplus revenue to distribute, besides max
inc thirteen powerful Republics out of the public lands
And who could i'll 1857 have foreseen the mighty &C
erection Of power in the Federal Executive which has
grown with the growth and strengthened with Inc
strength of these wonderful results II our fathers, the
trainers of this ordinance, had foreseen these unex
pected effects would they have organized the land sys
tenn as they dld How did they organize it, Sir, they
placed the whole power of the system in the President
The whole patronage of the public domain is IN the
Executive. The President appoints and removes at
will the surveyors the registers the receivers, the land
and Indian agents of every description he treats win
the Indians holds salaries, and annu'ties, and pur'
chase money in his hands; he opens roads, builds
bridges court-houses state houses, and appoints 60
otl,or nff,ra ~, Tor tnrtpC ha
Gates land districts, opens and appoints the time OF
land sales the surveys and Sales and entrees and pa
tents are in his hands bidders and purchasers, and
settlers and squatters and spectators are IN his grasp
the banks and their notes. and specie and every descp
ton of currency with which lands 10 be bought
subject TO his will he holds judicial power in the issue
of pate nts to an immense extent; legislative power IN
the control Of Territories and States and OF their
Representatives and Senators in Congress- and the very
new States are nursed from their chrysas territorial
condition into existence upon federal pap from the Ex
ecutive spoon. He has, By this ordinance, become
the sgreat father" Of States. And oil this power
and patronage is welded over millions OF popuia
ton and millions of millions of acres OF land such as
are living the great valley of the Mississippi Some OF
these powers gentlemen may say, belong to Congress
Congress passes the law, II is true, bnt the President
executes it, and dispenses its bountes. Sum up this
power of the public domain, then-caE you do IL No.
1t too infinite, too multliarous too ramhed TOO exten
siye and vet minute in its Influences TO be traced or
seen all at once But it embraces immense money pow
er-immense ctfciat power over officers and agents
immense indiridual power over persons natural ana
eorporae-immenscp popular power over electIons-im-
euse territorial power the organization and adms-
sion of Embellishments Legislative power over
judicial power over persons and pro-
perry under paents-mmense State power over the new
States coming into the Union, and long there
large quantities public lands within them and over the
Senate which intended to be check the Executive.
ask gentlemen to reflect solemnly upon three facts
which will call their attention 10. member of Con-
gress from State told me, during the last land
MANIA that ifhe would permit himsefto take compensa
ton for labor and influence here besides his eight dollars
per diem-a man whom believe to be honest, and who
no more would have touched such extra compensation
"wh a pair Of longs than | would-he could make
from ten to twenty thousand dollars every session
year he in Congress. Some lands selling at
$40 and $50 acre. they were entered at 81 % per
ucre-SS00 only for six hundred and forty acres Of
land there would be dispute about the patent about
who was entitled to enter the land appeal would
be taken from the Register and Receiver of the Land
office TO the Commissioner here and from him to the
President. In every such case-and there were hun
dreds from Alabama and Mississippi, especially under
the Choctaw and Chckasaw treates-there would be
from five to ten thousand dollars involved on stake Of
eight hundred dollars only and the claimants would
readily give oneha to any agent who would get them
the patents Members of Congress were sought, of
course as agents. because they had rotes here and in
the Senate If they were friends Of the Admnistra
ton, they held by golden chain to their party
aegiance: if in the Opposition they sllenced and
kent $; H. f By their interests by the interests
and stake Of their constituents dependent upon Exc
cutive favor. Thus the Executive welded an omn
potent land influence the independence of the le
gislative department.
Again: Will gentlemen reflect upon the amount OF
jurisdiction over property and persons both the Pres-
dent wields single year in he ssuiag Of land pa
fentse The land receipts in ]S"6 alone, were from
TWENTY-FIVE 10 thirty millions This judicial power
Now sum up the whole amount of property, and the
whole number of persons involved in all the cases of all
the Federal and State courts of the Unon and the u
rsdc,ion over persons and property will not be found
great venture TO say, as that OF this patent Juf,sdic
,in, Of the President Twenty-Five or thirty millions
ndudicated by him in single year!
Again Not only has there not been delegate from
a IeYriory since the foundation OF the Government,
from Gen Harrison himself down to my friend before
me from Florida, (Mr Downing) who was not Obliged,
In duty his people and in regard to their interests,
20 keep on the right side Of the Execu,ve-who is the
fountain Of all honor and favor to Territory but,
neac STATE has come into the Unon matter who
President-wbether it was an Adams or Jefferson
no matter what party in power, the Democratic or
the Federal, the Wing or the Loco Foco-which has
not at first and as long rs the land offices nune
rous and large quantities of land were IN market IN
yarably sent Senator's not to check the President
but 10 defeat the theory Of the Constitution making
the Senate check upon the Executive Look at the
whole line ofyour frontier, from Michigan to Louisiana,
until atey-see how they all have voted, and how ma
jory now vote in the Senate. The Senators and Re-
representatives. from new State are obliged, no matter
how honest the are, to be land politicians. They
constrained by the necessity Of this system The
fault is in the system.
Shall we add, then, to this system, SO enormously
overgrown, the distribution featured Sir, if ses,
the sagcs who framed this ordinance and this Const
tuition, could now from the tomb, what astonish-
ment and modification would they moi feel and ex-
press at the nroads which the former has made upon
The latter Of these two instruments They were meu
who saw far beyond their own times, and who, judy
inc. as they had judge, from the past, established
every possible guard against known or apprehended
iasgers to liberty They were men, too, who "snutfed
yranny in every tainted breeze" but here was dan
fer which they-which set of men in their day
which mo- human foresight could oresee But seeing
low, would they not reform it, imagine the shade
f Nathan Dane walking in this Hall aghast at the
eighty changes which have been wr0agh'' 1t ap'