The Sumter banner. [volume] (Sumterville, S.C.) 1846-1855, 1851-01-15
corresponaence Of the couriar,
WAsIIJNGroN. Jan. q

h'ia' hehtncRY, ana Ons or WO other South.
ern States, has been returned tntthe bui.
rcan. Maryland has gained about Il, OOC
inhabitants, since lS4h. There is an in.
crease OF only one thousand in the slave
population. The whole population is 59I,,
uOU. Estimates have hcen made Here oil
the population of every State, derived from
The returns, so far as they come in. The
aggregate population is supposed To be %
and half millions. The number ofReptesen.
tatives IN Congress- is fixed at l3:3. So; The
ratio will be about ninety five thousand.
The Southern States will, according to thi4
estimate, have cighty-six members, under
the new appointment.
Mr.. Whitney explained, The other night.
to n large audience, his Rail Road project.
which is now before Congress. and has been
recommended by the State Legislatures of
twenty-one States. Ills proposed route is
from Lake MichIgan. Praric du Chen, and
thence TO the South Pass. Thence, he
follows The streams which furnish the wa
tcrs of the Co umbia river. The terminus
OF the road will be ut PUGET Sound. The
whole distance is 2,:3OO mi. es. Every por.
ton OF the route nc practicable, and no other
route Is. No road can be made to Cali
lorna. Mountains and deserts render il
impossible. The route from Memphis 10
San Diego, which has hecn talked OF, is Ut
terly ,nrraclicable. The first 500 miles
OF Nh'tncy,s route is through p prairie
country, and one OF the most fertile in
the world. The lands on this portion of
me route are to supply means for colnplet-
ing 600 of the road, one half Of the dis.
tancc OF the route lying through a poor
country. But after reaching IT,, head wa.
faro nj fln rI,,nrn .I.n -.. -. -. Eli
Pacific, The country again becomes fertile.
MIR. Whitney asks from the Government,
a belt Of land sixty mics wide on the route
Of the road, from the sales of which no
proposes to build it. Upon the completion
of the road, he is TO give il, 10 the Govern
neni, and pay, besides, ten cents an acre
for the land.
MIR. Ben,on's proposed route is the same
vidcs for appropriating lands on the road,
and 10 pay any deictency out"f the Urea
snry. The public lands. il is agreed, mrn.
ISL The only means by which the Govern
mcnt viii ever coastruc, the road, and thcy
VIII, after a few years, he squandc;c cd.
Their proceeds All! never go into the Trea-
sury-and, il the rou,o is desirable, they
might as we'll be appropriated 10 that. I
doubt whether Congress will pass ally bill
on the subject at tins session, bur, alter a
year or two. the lands now relied upon az
The means OF constructing the road, viii.
have been given To the now States and
Territories, or 10 actual settlers. There is
sad tn he a route for n Rail Road from the
Atlantic 10 tho Pacific, through the North
ern possessions .oi Grn,t Britain, and that
the British Government viii take up the
enterprise.
WASHINGTON, JAN. IL
In the House, Yesterday, Mr. Julian
offered TO present 4 petition from a society
Of Frieinls, in Indiana, ior the repeal of tho
tugit We act, and stated that he should move
lis reference IN Il Committee, with inst,uc-
tons To bring in a bill for the repeal Of the
act. But The House refused lc.tve by a
very maicrity. Several petitions on the
subject have heen presented. and will lay
on the Fable. There is nc cxcitcmenton
tho anh.n3ct in Congress. "A bill was YES
Ierday reported, 10 expedite The issuc4Asf
land warrants. under The land bounty act Of
the late Session. Five hundred warrants a
day ougI,, 10 be issued. The number of
expected applications for warrants, is
250.0GO.
At the laic session, a bill passed the Sen
ate for the establishment of n Board OF.
Commissioners 10 ascerlain and adjus,
claims against the United States. The
House, by a very large majuritv, yesterday
made it n special order for the 22d If JAM,
uary. 1t viii not 90 back Ia the Senate.
The business OF tic late session was taken
up at this, al the same stage al which it was
LEFT.
The Postage bill Will probably be disposed
of to-day. The trends OF postal reform will
not accept nay reduction hort OF three
cents. They VIII prefer to lei the rates re-
main rs they are, il they cannot get q re-
duction IN three cc:itS.
The French Spo!Iatitn bill has been
made n SPECIAL oracr IN The Senate, and IL
will probably pass.
MIR. Rlctt appeared Yesterday in the
Senate, and was quail fed, and took his seat.
Mr.. Maneum made a speech on Brad
bury's resolution, viudtcatimg Gen. Taylor
for removing Gen. Lame rs Governor OF
Oregan, . ia" ground that Gen. Lane had
impcachcd his personal honor, in the con
trovcrsy about the conhnc, Of The I'd Regi-
mcnt OF Indiana volunteers, nj Buena Vista
WASHINGTON, JAN. 8.
All the new. and some OF The old Safes,
are applying 10. Grants of land from the
General Government, and re, them they
probably viii, through, the log rolling sys-
ten. Mr.. iuiec introduced a bill to-day,
for a grant Of alternate sections OF land Ia
Florida, IN ard oi the construction Of a Rail
Road from the Atlantic 10 the Gulf OF
Mexico The projects for building mail
and war steamers arc also numerous, and
it is known that the Comm,ttcc OF Naval
Affairs of the House, Will report a bill pro-
vIdlng for a contract with Thompson. OF
Philadelphia, Tor a Inc of mail packets 10
ran from San Francisco to Shanghai, by
the way % the Sandwich Islands. 1t is a
matter OF grave consideration, whether
these Government projects de- moi interfere
with. and rc.ald private commercial enter
prise. We see that .inring the last year,
some thirty ocean steamers have beer put
on Ike stocks and been completed, ioi the
purpose III foreign comm rec.
Mr.. Chandler, OF Philadelphia, on the
part Of himself and Two Wing colleagues,
explained yesterday that their votes for Mr..
Juiian's proposition, were given IN respect
TO the right o! petition. Mr.. Julian insisted
that the Journal should be so amended, as