Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1845-01-09
THE PU BLIC LANDS.

fraud Tie treasury OIL amount
i, entitled If il do not belong the Siaes) from the
sales Of the Public Lands This bill bears the very in
nocent title of ian graduate the price" Of these
lands but. like many other titles have read, far
from being explanatory of the objects cOnemp plated by
the BILL it i, utterly ialacions and deceptive and If
course designedly 50. In Mr. Clay's late reply 10
committee of his fellow citizens Of New Haven, advert
ing the defeat Of the great policy Of Distribution, by
the resul, Of the late Presidential election, he makes
remark the notification Of which the oldest among
us may live to witness. 81 shall be most agreeab!y
disappointed Says he) if the Lands be not wasted in
few years. by graduation and other projects OF alienation.
leaving 10 traces Of permanent benefit behind" The
work of spoiation has indeed, already comnenced aud,
the members IRON the new States. pointing exungly /"
the census and 10 their almost magical increase Of mum
Der in the halls Of Congress, do not hesitate to Intimate,
in language bold it Is Shameless that the day i.
rapidly approaching, when INSTEAD Of sup?licalng the
poor boon Of graduation BILL by which large porols of
the public lands III be sold for sung ard other portions
will fall as gratuity into the hands Of those who my
think fiji squat upon them. they will. adopting the
Rob Roy rule Of morality, seize with The strung hand
upon the entire Public Domain in the name and for the
benefit Of the sovereign States, which is silna,ed
graduation bill, possesses aware some nausih
y but when s0ed, il is found 10 be deceptive the
policy it is employed 10 sustain. Ii is this: that
large bodies of public laad remain unenered in of
tibet Oldest Of the States at the government mini
mum price Of 81 25, they cannot be worth tina, sum
consequently, that, after the better qualities Of these
lands have been disposed Of the should be grad
ually reduced in price, 10 70, so and % per
after lapse OF successive aid shor periods Of time aud
that after the expiration of the latest designated period
the remainder shall be free the entry of any person.
who may be disposed settle up them The aacy of
this assumption is demonstrated by the fact that in ma
ny instances. (Which would be cited Fit were nccessa.
ry,) some Of the lands which have been ongps, in mar
ket unsod. have ultimately from the rapid settlement
and improvement OF the country, commanded higher
prices than those first entered and sold Indeed the
western members, well persons o,herw n,eres
led in alternating the great national inheritance from lis
just and legitimate destination, are in the habit of under
estimating their value; for the purpose Of inducing be-
lief that the sacrifice is matter of little consequence
the old States. striking illustration of ,hir tendency
IS found statement laid before The Goth Congress by
the Secretary of the Treasury, (do 'umen No. % III
response resolution Of the Senate abstract of
which has recently heen communicated the National
ntelligenccr for pubcaton BY William Cost Johnsun
Esq. That document exhibits in parable, columns the
quantity Of public land in market and uusod the 3oth
Of June, 1923, in each Land District with the aggre-
gate value Of the same, assessed estimated by the
Land Oicersand the quantity thereof sold from June
30, le2S, up 10 September, 1910, and the aggregate
value of said sales We invite the particular attention
OF readers 10 the facts exhibited.
The quantity Of land in market and
unsold. the 3olh June. 1898,
| was 81, 800 1874 acres, and the psli-
mated value of the whole, by The
| Land Officers, $4,000. 5GG GS
Or considerably less than 50 cents per lurnlsi,>
ing of course, powerful argument favor of gradua-
ling the price, Of prudential economy
and source of revenue.
But now look at the strong contrast to this es innate
afforded by the actual result:
The quantity of land sold from the
30th Of June, lo2S, Cat which pc
rod this estimate was furnished by
the Land Oficers,) to September,
1S40. 1927 6il acres,
which yielded the sum of 1921. 053. n32 II
Beig the full minimum government price oi 81 q
per acre In other words nineteen millions of acres o
land yielded TO the government four mons OF dollars
more than the OF which the Land Officers cstima
ted the entire amount of fifty and half millions of a,
cres
1t is by arguments like these that the policy of gradu
alton is advocated and sustaned-a policy which might
be readily tolerated by tie old States if lis only
miscellaneous effect its robbery the treasury But
there is another aspect Of the question of equal if not
even VI greater importance to The old States. We refer
TO lis inevitable tendency by stimulating emig ration t.
drain them OF their population. and thus lnure them
in threelod point of view-rst in the decrease of
their physical strength secondly in the decline in the
value of their lands the consequence If their de-
creasng population, and fhe facility of obtaining lands
ipr comparatively song in the West-and thirdly in
The loss Of political power On each of these themes
the bare mention of which ought to be sufficiently suo
geslive OF serious reflection in the mind every lover of
the land of his nativity, and which is destined to be the
inheritance Of his children, essay mie h be written
but we rave no leisure for the ashland witlou,
further application upon them, we leave the subject
tor the present, to their reflections.
! faiSy'cnaia Senatorial District
several writers. through the Danvile Reporter have
nominated Thus Grassy, (W.) Pirfsy lvania las suit
aoie person 10 represent that Senatorial District for The
nex Tour years. The of service Of Clark Penn ESQ.
the present Senator expires at the end Of the present
session. ard we hope the Wings of the District will moi
Su'er themselves 10 be longer misrepresened. They
l"aFe large majority in the District anil c.n a,su,