Washington sentinel., 1854-05-06

Of acres went into the hands Of speculators
but to the precise extent to which these lands
are thrown into the hands of spectators, TO
that precise extent will the regular sales by the
government be diminished in the long run.
by no human device can you sell more LANDS
IN the long run than are necessary mean IN
a long period of time, not in this year or IN the
next year, but in, say fifteen or twenty years
no more land can be sold than is necessary to
supply the demand for occupation and cultlva-
ton. And that depends upon the increase OF
population. And if by any stimulant, you
drive the purchaser into any one particular To-
cality, by that inexorable law, to which have
referred, will you withdraw an equal amount OF
sales from some other locality. therefore say
that all these statements, that are made here
with SO much plansibility, that by such and
such course you will increase the sales OF the
public lands, are utterly falacious; than which
nothing can be more fallacious and, but for
the high respect which | entertain for some of
those making them, should be compelled to
say that they were down right charlatan. As
far as the disposition of the public lands are
concerned, believe that the whole purpose OF
the Virginia delegation, and of the whole south
ern delegation in Congress, has been to pre-
serve them for the purposes for which they are
held in trust If anybody can show single IN
stance III which they have not been disposed to
fulfill that trust faithfully, desire that it shall
be mentioned. The very reproach of the gen.
teman from Ohio, that we have been very lib
eral on some occasions, where it is very certain
we had no personal interest, vindicates us. He
has reproached us for voting to surrender the
useless swamp lands--not only useless to us, but
injurious to the States in which they lie. He
could not have produced an instance that would
have gone more completely to vindicate the
truthfulness and integrity with which we have
acted on this question. For what interest could
we have had but to do our duty as trustees?
The gentleman from Ohio, in referring to the
case of Illinois, said that Illinois was PROSTATE;
that her credit was gone; that she was on the
eve of Reputation but that we, by our magni
cent grants to her, had raised up her credit,
had put her upon her feet, and had enabled her
to look the world in the face, so far as her
credit was concerned. Has it come to this, sir,
that the States of this Union are to come here
| to this government TO ask for succor? Are we
to be the great almoner of the States? 1t
there be anything in this government in which
| take pride, it is the independence of the
States
| Mr.. CAMPBELL, [interrupting. / desire
the gentleman to quote me correctly said,
| further, that the general government had lost
nothing; and went on to prove, blythe report OF
the Commissioner of the General Land Office,
that the sales had been largely increased, and
the government had not lost, and would not
lose, a dollar
Mr.. BAYIY. | have already answered that
point, think, although not in detail. But |
do say that whenever the States Of this Union
shall turn their eyes to this government as the
source from which their relief from pecunary
embarrassment is to come, or to look to this
government for any other protection than grows
out of our foreign relations, the relation Of the
parties viii be changed and the government
practically subverted.