Boon's Lick times. [volume] (Fayette, Mo.) 1840-1848, 1841-07-03

made of the question of the Crown lands.
The argument they urged as to these lands,
in waste and unappropriated state, was,
that they had been conquered by the COM
mon valor, the common exertions, and the
common sacrifices of all the States; that
thew ought therefore to be the common pro-
pertv of all the States, and that it would be
manifestly wrong and unjust that the States
within whose limits these Crown lands hap
pened to lie should exclusively enjoy the
benefit of them. Virginia, within whose
boundaries by far the greater part of these
Crown lands were situated, and by whose
separate and unaided exertions on the
bloody theatre of Kentucky and beyond
the Ohio, under the direction of the renown-
ed George Rogers Clarke, the conquest of
most of them was achieved, was, to her i'm
mortal honor, among the first to yield to
these Just and patriotic views, and by her
magnificent grant to the Union powerfully
contributed to restore harmony, and quiet
all apprehensions among the several States.
Among the objects to be attained by the
cession from the States to the Confedera-
ton of these Crown lands, very impor-
tant one was to provide fund to pay the
New York (Mr. WRrGHT) made it the OBJ
ject of large part of the argument which
he addressed to the Senate, to show the con-
trary; and SO far as the mere terms of the
deeds of cession are concerned, admit the
argument was sustained. No such purpose
appears on the face of the deeds, as far as
have examined them.
Mr.. WRIGHT here interposed, and said
that he had not undertaken to argue that the
cessions made by the States to the Union
were not for the purpose of extinguishing
the public debt, but that they were not ex-
clusively for that purpose,
1t is not material whether they were
made for the sole purpose of extinguishing
shall be able to show, in the progress of my
argument, that, from the moment of the
adoption of the Federal Constitution, the
proceeds of the public lands ought to have
been divided among the States.
But that the payment of the Revolution
airy debt was one of the objects of the ces-
sion, is matter of incontestible history
We should have an imperfect idea of the
intentions of the parties if we confined our
attention to the mere language of the deeds.
In order to ascertain their views we must
examine contemporaneous acts, resolutions,
and proceedings. One of these resolutions,
clearly manifesting the purpose have sta
ted, has probably escaped the notice of the
Senator from New York. Ii was resolu-
ton of the old Congress, ado pied in April,
1888, preceding the financial cession from
Virginia, which was in March, l7S4.-
There had been an attempt to make the ces-
sion as early as 1881, but, owing to the con-
ditions with which it was embarrassed and
other difficulties, the cession was not con-
summated until March, 1884. The resolution
/ refer to bears a date prior to that of the
cession, and must be taken with it, as indi-
cative of the motives which probably ope-
rated on Virginia to make, and the Confed-
Grafton to accept, that memorable grant.
will read it:
Resolved, That as further mean, as well of has
tenng the extnguishment of the debts as of estab-
fishing the harmony of the United States it be re-
commended to the States which have passed no acts
} towards complying with the resolutions of Con-
gress of the 9th of September and 10th Of October
1850, relative 10 the cession of territorial claims
to make the liberal cessions therein recommended
and to States which may have passed acts comply.
ing with the sand resolutions in part only, to revise
and complete such compliance.
That was one of the great objects of the
cession. Seven of the old thirteen States
had waste Crown land within their limits
the other six had none. These complained
that what ought to be regarded as property
common to them all would accrue exclu-
sively to the seven States, by the operation
of the articles of confederation; and, there
fore, for the double purpose of extinguish-
ing the Revolutionary debt, and of estab-
fishing harmony among the States of the
Union, the cession of those lands to the
United States was recommended by Con.
gress.
/ And here let us pause for moment, anC
contemplate the proposition of the Senator
: from South Carolina and its possible conse
f quences. We have seen that the possession
! by seven States of these public lands, wor
/, by the valor of the whole thirteen, wa
a cause of so much dissatisfaction to the othe
/ six as to have occasioned serious impedi
D ment to the formation of the Confederacy
: and we have seen that, to remove all jeal
: ousy and disquietude on that account, il
conformity with the recommendation o
s Congress, the seven States Virginia takin!
). the lead, animated by noble spirit of jus
: tice and patriotism, coded the waste land
: to the United States for the benefit of all tn
i States. Now what is the measure of tn
j. Senator from South Carolina! 1t is in ei
n feet to restore the discordant and menacin
It state of things which existed in 1888, prio
IS to any eession from the States. 1t is wors
IN II