Weekly national intelligencer., 1847-01-23


he must distinguish between land subject private entry and
land sold at auction.
Mr. VINTON fully aware of that distinction and he
would now explain to the House how this bill would ope-
rate in practice The Government issued scrip each
volunteer to the value of $780, Snpposng The end
the present year, would have issued about 900 such
pieces of scrip We had 900 regulars now enlisted and
we had authorized the enlistment of 1000 This
made $4,000 regular troops Then had about 26, 900
volunteers mustered into service under the law of the last
son which would make in all between fifty and sixty thou
sand certificates to be issued. This would eight mill
lions of Of land which at Sl25 would amount to ten
millions OF dollars The scrip to be without restriction
to its assignment, and it be taken from any land
open entry, any which had been years market
This scrip, then, would all the land offices pay for
land entered
Now Mr.. " would go on to show the great difference be-
tween the provisions Of this bill and Of the bounty law OF the
last war; ...... ....a& ...& ~...
Under this bill the ink of the Presidents signature would
be dry before hundreds and hundreds of would
start for the army to be ready to buy these warrants from
the soldiers Every petty grocery, every suffers shop, all
round the army where the soldiers accustomed go,
would be filled with agents waiting eagerly to buy up these
certificates To say nothing of all the various forms of fraud
which would be pracised the soldiers they would, in
fair way, buy up all the warrants they could lay their hands
What next, These warrants for 100 of land
would sell at various pcessome for 500, $50,
perhaps for $3.50, but all at rate far under what the holders
could get for them at the land offices. #.a# (.
The warrants thus procured would Immediately be carried
of to the various land Offices and each of these offices there
would be- either in the person Of tho register him
self, other broker who dealt in these certificates.
When farmer entered the land office to enter Government
land for farm for himself his son, he would once be
touched the elbow and called ase and told that he could
get the same amount Of land for less price, and
would be sold to him terms agreed between him and
the broker and of the cash entry he had intended would
not be made Should this bill pass proposed these
warrants would meet the demand for Government land that
that source of would soon be entirely dried up This
must be the certain result All the land revenue would come
the offices in the shape of these warrants.
Mr. BOYD here to say that was his purpose to offer
amendment to the bill which should impose the
strictons in the transfer of these certificates provided
amendment which he by the papers had been pro-
posed at the other end of the Capitol
Mr.. FlCkLlN suggested to Mr.. Born modification
of his amendment which Reporter could very distinct
hear he understood to be to give the soldier his
widow interest in the land to continue during their lives
Mr. CUMMINS here also stated his purpose to offer an
amendment to the bill, Gin the form Of substitute which
was read at length at the Clerks table.
Mr.. VlNTON resumed As these warrants would be on
sale below par they would supesede the cash entries of the
public land and in this way the Government would lose
the space of three four nearly the whole of the land
Ievenue which had usually averaged between and half
and three millions of dollars per There would be the
end of and if the should continue till it had been
cessary to issue hundred thousand instead fifty
thousand this of would be dried up for
seven years to come. ..... , ......
This result had been oeseen during the last war when tie
bounty warrants provided, and TO meet it the pro-
vided that the should be satisfied Of peculiar
locality, and nowhere else. Two millions of be
taken in Michigan, two millions in Illinois, and the
amount in Arkansas, hese all being then Territories only
These warrants therefore, could touch the of land
within of the Sates any other Territories but these
i'll these Territories themselves beyond the limits designated
by law. We had in power to do the thing
might lay these warrants in Wisconsin Oregon within
specific district to be surveyed for that purpose Then the
issue Of the warrants would not interfere with the sale OF the
public lands But the bill Stood the warrants might
be laid any WHERE for they would be received as money
Rut nf tho
ment, and that the effect Of this bill in its practical opera
ton the public credit If this proceeded we should
have TO rely that credit to large extent bill
ing up authorizing loan of tw ent three millions, the
Of Treasury notes to that To strengthen the public
credit and induce capitalists to lend their money the Gov
ernRen that bill pledged the public lands of the Government
security for the The proceeds Of those lands
to meet the interest of the loan first and then
by degrees pay of the principal AS this branch of
nuc more certain than any other it equal to the ap
poinmen OF annuity to the amount of two and half
three millions Of dollars This would be amply sufficient to
sustain the public cedtto pay the interest should
crue and gradually to reduce the debt itself The loan
for twenty years but long before that time the public
lands would have paid off every dollar. But should this bill
into effect he questioned If should get the loan at all
without giving other security.
Mr. " said his chief purpose had been call the House
to this view OF the He cnteaed gentlemen well TO
slider the bearing Of this bill upon the public credit, which
resort must be had if tie to go
If the friends of the Administration who had the here
their hands, willing to pass this bill without amend
ments, Mr. v was prepared for and while would
he certainly and obviously better for the Government aud for
the credit of the country, he believed would be better for the
soldier himself the amendments proposed should be adopt
ed the result would he greater and widespread
Of speculation than the country had witnessed before.
He thought however, would he better to pass law giving
stock certificates, bearing interest Of per cent? for the
amount the soldier could get for his land II
would be just well for the soldier for in neither would
he himself settle the land The scrip would almost all go
specuators
Mr. BOYD asked what to prevent the same sort of
speculation in stock
Mr. yINTON REPLIED would be prevented by the fact
that the certificate Of stock would be just good bank
bill and who heard of persons selling good bank
for less than its amount Mr. " said that if the House
would consent to that plan, would in the first place.
the land ID it would million of dollars
Sd, il would maintain the public credit.
As to the amendment proposed by the gentleman from
Kentucky, (M BorD, restricting the sale of the scrip, il il
the that which bad been offered in the Senate,
made the warrants not asgnabe at all before the patent
issued for five years afterwards and then
designate detail the rules of evidence &c in the transfer
On this Mr.. " said that, in his opinion the House had
power to impose such restriction. II had authority to
designate what should be the pursued in the transfer
what should be the of it, If the land be oca
ted in Territory, then indeed Congress might do it but
not land in of the States There the Gov
ernmen parted with the title the land must follow the State
laws Of transfer and descent and the State laws of evidence
must govern in all In respect to Government land
within any of the States the General Government had parted