Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1840-1842, 1842-07-18

al benefit" and thereby "efcelually remove th'
only obstacle to final ratification OF the articles o
Confederation" and earnestly requesting "the Lee
giSlature OF Maryland to authorize their Delegates
IN Congress to subscribe the said articles" On the
10Th day OF the following month another resolution
/ was adopted by Congress, declaring that "the un
appropriated lands that may lie coded or renquish
| ed to tho United States 10y any particular State
pursuant TO the ndation Of Congress Of III,
6th DAY OF September last, shall he disposed Of for
i the common benefit OF the Unned States" SC
Virginia, thus appealed 10 by Congress, and having
before her the resolutions and declaration Of Con-
gross, and OF Maryland. the 2d Of January 1851,
| passed an act ioe ceding tho whole OF her North
| Western territory to the United States. trust.
Mr. President, IL will DO INDUCED asa pardonable
hlial pride, when say that noih'ag can be nobler
or more elevated than the language Of the preamble
to that mon umenta act OF her patriotism and
6eenee. IL sets forth. that "the General Assembly
of Virginia beng well satisfied that the happiness,
strength and safety Of the United States, depends,
under Providence, upon the ratification of the art
cios for federal union between the States" and
then adding, in that spirit Of generous and self
sacrificing PATRIOTISM which ever has, nnd trust
ever will continue 10 actuate her public councils.
whore the interests and welfare OF the whole Union
are concerned, that "prelerring the good OF their
country TO every object OF smaller Importance
they "Do resolve that this commonwealth will yield
TO the Congress Of the United States for the bent
of the said United States, all right, title, Sc" TO
her North. Western Territory. This act being
the Legislature of Maryland did, on the 30,h day
Of the Same month, pass an &C; empowering her
Delegate. IN Congress 10 subscribe and ratify the
articles OF confederation; and on tho LIST day OF
March following, in pursuance of that authority,
her Delegates, IN the presence OF Congress, signed
aud subscribed the SAID article, "by which act" as
the Journal Of Congress solemnly expresses IT, "thc
confederation OF the United States of America was
completed"
From this connected narrative Of the proceedings
pnrd NJ he al
colatng the remarkably coincident language OF all
the coniemporaneous public acts relating 10 them,
whether OF Maryland and New Jersey who dc.
manded their surrender TO the United States, OF
Congress who recommended it, or OF Virginia who
executed it, can any thing be more indisputably
established that 1t was the purpose intention and
concurrng declaration OF all parties that the cession
made was for the joint benefit Of The United States
and NOT as Is now argued, for the several benefit OF
the individual States7
The act OF cession OF Virgins, referred to above,
was no, Immediately carried into execution, in con.
sequence OF some objection made in Congress TO two
OF the conditions annexed TO the ccssion. On the
18th OF September, 1888, however, Congress passed
an net acceding 10 all the other conditions proposed
by Virginia, and on the goth day of October fol-
lowing, the Genera Assembly of Virginia passed
an act authorizing and empowering her Delegates
IN Congress TO convey, by deed, unto the United
states, Tor the benefit OF the said States, oil her
right, title and claim to the North western Terri
tory, subject to the terms aud conditions agreed
upon. Among these terms and conditions, is the
very clause, ESQ much commented upon to sustain
the new theory IN regard to tho character Of the
cession, which is set forth ia ipsissmis verbs in
| the act. Nothing can more conclusively show what
was the understanding of this clause by the Gen,
eral Assembly OF Virginia than that, in the pream.
BILE OF the very act setting it FORTH together with the
other conditions of the cesson they refer the ces
SONS oil territory which had been invited by Con
gress, as being for the common benefit of the
Cnion," and in yielding TO this recommendation,
they express "the full confidence that Congress will
IN justice to this State, for the liberal cession she
hath made, earnestly press upon the other States
claiming large tracts OF waste and uncultyated ter
ritory, the propriely Of making cessions, equally
liberal, for the common benefit and support of the
Union" The Legislature Of Virgins in this ac,
seemed to have taken especial care by the use OF
the collective term, (Union,) to exclude every ap
pearance OF ambiguity, ard 10 show, beyond all
controversy that the cession made by them was for
the benefit Of the United States in their aggregate
and not their individual capacity. And yet this
pregnant Interpretation OF the character of the
SION m the very act under which it is made is over.
Iooked-a circumstance the more rema rka Die mas
much as the whole act is forth and recei i'm tho
Deed Of cession itself.
MIR SMITH, OF Indiana, chairman of the Commit
tee on the Public Lands, here remarked that an or
| dinance was passed by Congress, very soon after
the cession by Virginia, providing for distribution
| among the States.)
MIR RIvEs said he was quite surprised that a gen
teman presumed TO be so conversant with the his
tory of our land laws as the honorable Senator from
Indiana, should, for moment, have been deceived
as 10 the true character Of that ordinance. What
was it, Mr. President 1t provided for the appoint
| ment OF surveyors and geographes TO lay off the
pubic lands into suitable and convenient divisions
ana subdivisions, and directed the plots OF these
| surveys TO be returned 10 the Board OF Tressurv
when the Secretary Of War was TO draw by lot one
seventh part of the townships and fractional PARTS o,
townships TO satisfy the military claims, and "ihen
the Doad OF Treasury was to cause the remaining
/ numbers 20 be drawn for, in the name of the thir
teen States, respectively, according TO the quotas in
the last preceding requisition on all the Statesn-
Bnt what, then, was 10 be done with these town
ships and parts OF townships, so drawn for in the
name OF the respective S,ntesl Were thew 10 be
come the property OF the respective States in whose
name they had been drawn, or to be sold for the
particular benefit OF those States respectively No
such thing. The Plais were simply TO he sent ia
The states IN whose name they may have cen drawn
10 Oe there sold at public ueldas by the Commits
sloncrs oil the Loan Oices; and hc proceeds of Ia
sale were to be paid over, not the States but e
! the Treasury Of tho United States, a. my honorn.
bic friend would have seen, II he had looked lid,
father into the ordnance Is this the sort Of dis
Irritation which would satisfy tie honorable Seua
| tori fancy not. II WAS simply an expedient 10,
! distributing the sale OF the lands THROUGH IN,
St'tes," as Mo Madison described il in letter Il
Governor Randolph, (Which will he found in ia,
second volume Of The Madison papers) and not ,
9JaAtW iVi uiailOuilhh lne pfOCeeu5 OF The Sa,
among the States. II was probably resofed to- !,
order TO enlarge the sphere Of competition in the "a
OF The lands, and 10 give 10 the ctz ems vi the re-
specIye States fair opportunity Of participnt,ns
IN the purchase, according TO the r means Wbatey.
or was the motive Of il, it very soon ablndo 3D.
aud gave way TO another ordinance, which directed
thar the sales OF the lands should be made Al "tb,
place where Congress shill Git" My honorabl
friend, think will find quite as mu,h in the one OF
these ordinances in the other to sustain the moi
ern doctrine Of an absolute vested right in the Sc
yeral States 10 dis,rbutive shure of the proceed,
Of the public lands.
But does not the honorable Senator perceive thu,
even II his theory Of the rights OF the States undo,
the Virginia Deed Of cession were correct IT, by ne
means, iustiies the Distribution which he 50 ally
carried through, during the last session Of
lie must show that he has pursued md cOnformoI
10 the deed, under which he Claims Can / e do so2
The decd ofces'ion provides that the States should
receive the benefit Of the common fund according 10
their usual respective proportions in the general
charge and expenditure. But tho law OF the last
session wholly departs from this principle which The
consistency OF The title set up would necstady
require 10 DO pursued, and distributes the proceeds
Of the lands among the States, by the substituted
and entirely different rule Of fede al numhers.
Having traced the question OF the ceded lands in
is origin and progress under the articles Of coafedc-
ration, let us now see how they were considered
and treated at the adoption Of the osent Cons;itu-
ton. DO you find IN that instrument, or in any Of
the con'empor1ncous public acts aud documents
the slightest color given 70 the idea h,t they were
10 be REGARDED as the property Of the States ind
vidunilyl On the contrary, the Constitution ex
pressy speaks Of the public territory (Which then
consisted exclusively Of the lands embraced by the
Virginia Deed OF Cesson) "as property belonging
to the u. g." and such invested Congress with
1.-THE pOweT TO dispose Of and mako all nefdluf