The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1841-06-03


cessons for pro empons for grants TO the new States
TO aid them in education and Improvement and even
for distribution Of the proceeds OF the pubiie iahns
among particular States. They arsyor distribution 10
all conceivable forms and shapes 80 long az the ahus
are 10 be gotten rid Of to particular persons Of pariicn
lar States But when an equal general broad ana us'
distribution proposed embracing all the States .hey
are electrified and honor-struck. You may distribute
land distribute among States, ioo--as long as you
please, and much you please, but not among
al the States"
"And here, sir, allow me 10 examine more minute.
" the project Of cesson brought forward as The nsai
Of the plan Of drtribuon.
"There are upwards of one billion Of acres oil pub
lie land belonging the United States, situated with
in and without the limits of the States and Terrific
RES stretching from the Atlantic Ocean and the Gull
| of Mexico to the Pacific they have been coded by
seven ofhe old thirteen States to the United States
| or ACQUIRED by treaties with foreign Powers. The
| Senator from South Carolina Mr.. CALHous) pro-
poses by his bill TO cede 900 acres OF tins land
10 the nine States wherein they lie granting TO those
States IS per cent, and reserving TO the United
States Is per cent of the proceeds OF those lands
"Now what wish say, in the first place, Is that
il YOU commence by applying the principle OF cesson
TO the nine land States in the Union, you must
extend il other States, they shall he, here
after from time to time, admitted into the Union, I'M
Ill the whole public land is exhausted You will have
10 make similar cessions TO Wisconsin, to Iowa, to
FLORIDA, lin two States perhaps, at least IN one ana
to every State II shall be organized and re-
ceived. How could you refusei When other states 70
the north and 10 the of Missouri Arkansas Iowa,
and the very shores ofthe Pacific shall be
admte ed into the Confederacy will you not be bound by
all the principles ofequalty justice TO make TO them
respectively similar cesslons Of the public land situated
within their limits, To those which you will have
made 10 the nine States Thus your present grant,
although extending nominaly to but l6o acres,
virtually, and by inevitable consequence, embraces
the whole Of the public domain. And you bestow
gratuity 35 per cent Of the proceeds OF this vast
nt thA
exclusion and to the prejudice ofihe Revolutionary
States by whose vaor large part OF il was achieved
"Wi the Senator state whence he derives the
power TO do this Will pretend that il to cover
the expenses and charges ofmanagng and administer
ing the public lands On much the greater part nearly
the whole ofthe G0 millions acres the Indian title has
been and they have been surveyed Moth
ing but tfng expense is to be incurred on either OF
those objects; and nothing remains but TO sell the
land. | understand that the total expense ofsale
and collection is only about two per cent Why,
what are the charges There is per cent allow
ed by law TO the receivers and the salaries OF the re-
gsers and receivers in each land district with some
other uncomfortable incidental charges Put all To-
gether and they will not amount to three per cent.
the aggregate of sales Thus the Senator is prepared
to part from the title and control of the whole public do
main upon these terms To give thirtyive per cent.
TO cover an expenditure not exceeding three Where
does he get power make this cession to particular
States which would not authorize distribution among
ALL the States
"And, when he has found the power, will he tell me
why virtue oft and in the same spirit of wasiefulex-
travagance boundless generosity he may not give
the States instead Of 35 per cent fifty, eighty,
or a hundred Surrender at once the whole public
domain TO the new States The per centage, propos-
ed to be allowed, to be founded no just basis,
the result of no official data calculation but fixed by
mere arbitrary discretion. | should be exceedingly
amused TO the Senator from South Carolina rising
in his place and maintaining before the Senate an a-
thorty in Congress to ccde the public lands to partlcu
lar States the terms proposed and at the same time
denying power to distribute the proceeds equally
and equitably among all the States
"Now, in the second place, although there is nomi-
nal reservation Of 65 per cent of the proceeds to the
United States, in the sequel venture TO predict we
should part with the whole You vest in the nine
States the title. They are to sell the land and grant
titles to the purchasers. Now what security have you
for the faithful collection and payment into the Com
treasury of the reserved 65 per cent. In what
medium would the payment be made? Can there be
doubt that there would be delinquency, collisions,
ultimate surrender of the whole debt Il is proposed,
indeed to retain mortgage upon the lands, in the
possession OF purchasers from the State to the
payment TO the United States Of their IS per cent
But how could you enforce such amortgagof Gould
yuu cxpci from sk.:- ho,n.- perhaps roo 900 sc,
lers under State authority because the State, possibly
without any fault Of theirs had neglected to pay over
to the United States the 65 per cent. The remedy
of expulsion would be far worse than the relin-
quishment ofthe,debt, and you would relInquish IT,
In the bill reported by Mr. Clay in 1882, we have
the following statements;
Aggregate of Incorporated lands within the juris
diction of the United States 090S7 1853 At
the minimum price of 81 IS per acre it would amount
to ST., 1863, $50, Sol. At one half the minimum price,
it would be 1861 ,79i S45. AT present, they yield to
the United States the average annual income of ca
ptal of $50, 100000. Within short period, perhaps
five years. they will probably yield the income OF 300
000 and continue to increase in some such proper
tion n 1886, they yielded the income of 81 O0OOa,-
00O in 1887 of $3.50 900 600 This is vast interest
to any country
To return to the speech. By the operation of Mr.
CaIhoun's 'cession' plan, which proposes to yield
900 900 Of the public domain 10 nine of the
new States within which they may lie, the State of
Ohio, whose population would en,,le her to tenth
of this interest about $40 900 900, will be left with
title in 800 900 acres being all she has in her limits
unappropria,ed. Her Senator's Messrs. Tappan and
Allen voted last winter 10 deprive their State of
their right in the 100 oOo and effectively to their
right in the whole ,O90 81 1853 lying West
appropriated
When Mr. Clay resumed this subject January Goth,
he stated the important fact, that France imposes
average duty f25 per cent the materials i'm
ported from the United States, making 2 cents per
pound cotton; and ye, admit her wines, silks,
and other luxuries, such terms as to leave aancc
of trade against us of ssrenteen millions year.
Mr.. Clay undertakes to show that "irom the mo-
mcnt ofthe adoption of the Federal Constitution, the
proceeds Of the public lands ought to have been dvi-
ded among the States" Mr.. Clay presents the Vir-
gnia cesson to the Confederation as fair model
| which is in terms as follows:
"That all the lands within the territory coded To
the United States and not reserved for appropriated
to any oftbe before mentioned purposes, disposed