Richmond daily Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1842-1861, 1854-07-25
Tn. Homestead Bill in the Senate.

The uomesteau In tne Se"a'e-
The Washington Sentinel, OF Sunday morning. con
,ans the Homestead Bill, as passed by the Senate.
We extract the following sections of the Bill nvolv'
ing the Homestead principle:
sne Andbe Jart,er enacted That free white peon'
i% Sho h, so,sIS a. the Snss he
y ,Ss state N which the e g they u. IN rs5ro,y
then ANY s,.srr as. ss.s. .S. and
. entitled to enter one Gnarer o Ss %ay the
made be .sSise 10 pTss Sso sa
.SSdrisons Of the public Osiis Tha, Ind.
s s . %
be raLee, operations Of this act except at the
AL enacted ms. the person applying for
the register in which she e seoa; to
family or Is, Of or ' Ssn
S Sa ss.s sss.e %,at S9
reety or Indirectly the aud Sensn, OF any OnsI
aa1i, :. herein required with tie register; =.
s ss iS. Fssr
Or ps., :ss .n and ans the
the land paid for the
ss.rs WE'VE and saT cent. per hs aIa9
S s sss. or IN e s.t, Silsq
ssS, Tsspf sais ss se efT s 4
to reside upon and ate . Al lna '
sStd to patent PrGvi I'd ~ Hy Lto.'a
hs S s sOsh es upon land. sast e,n
ss.,s T.; . - S:2a.. oP1 1a5 iAI $500
death Of both f,,hr ani mother. LEAVING an i pI es
.h.I insure 10 b=nedt Q; said infant child OF '1l
snsI the te "a no OF aHs IN @ Ss ,nG
sen SAID land, ADD apply h- PToes, S5 , ~ to M
h stsd s si.s .of az. sf he Tia. a,.
Tor 40 Ss pi,Ps ana ses psi to patent S Ss Tinted
And the benefits OF this aud The pe5nf 'eS.' ~ on
sis. upon payment d dollar per Annum.
The title of the Bill has hecn amended so MS 10 read
"An act to provide homestead for actual settlers t'
graduate the price OF the public lands and Tor oihef
purposes" This is the substitute of Senator Hunter
of this State and it passed the Senate by the over
whelmng vote OF 30 ayes to II nays Not single
Democratic Senator, it appears, voted against the
Bill. II differs somewhat from the Homestead I'LL
passed by the House of Representatives, bnt not to
extent sufficient, we presume, to render II unac-
cepable to that body In the debate on the passage
Of this Bill Senator Douglass said that the principle
of the graduation and of the Homestead Bil, I"
actual settlers were both iavori,c measures ct
the people OF Illinois, and as this bill secured them
both, he had difficulty in voting for it Senator
Stuart, OF Michigan, another Democratic member
contcnded that this Bill did not abandon tbs
Homestead principle but secured it The endorse
ment of the Homestead feature embodied in Mr. liun
ter's Bill by such distinguished Democratic Senators
and the ratification of Thy the Democratic members
Of the Senate, without single member OF that party
appearing in opposition, would indicate its paSSLG
10y the House of Representatives, where there is
strong majority Of the same party. y Democratic
President could certainly not be expected to veto TIN
Bill under such circumstances. And from the FOL
lowing extract we make from the Washington S"tI'
mel, should not suppose that our cotempora'ies o
that Democratic organ anticipated any such thing rs
the defeat of the Senate Bill in the House Of Repre-
sentatveS or the veto OF it by the President. The
Sentinel of Sunday says:
"The Homestead BILL in the shape in which it came
from the House. apple o! discord in the democratic
party threatening dssenson moment when that party
III afford TO indulge ia any differences leading tg
alienation
"To avoid this evil the senator from Virginia Or
Hunter) undertook to prepare bill which, while it EN-
bodied principles acceptable to the friends OF the Home
stead BILL avoided those features which gave rise TO nsu
perabe objections 10 the minds OF many democrats
The task no easy one for necessary only
accomplish this union Of the party upon the question: bu
TO do IL in such manner render this great Issue
upon which the democratic party plants ITSELF impre5nG
BILE against all attacks from the combined opposition.
10 this endeayor the senator from Virginia has sue
ceeded in accomplishing measure alike the most diicu
IN arrangement aud important in its bearings 1t wi
have the post of honor the demo cratic standard
" In the final vote, entire the ratification By tn
democratic party that not single member OF the part
appeared In opposition.
"Thus has the democratic party a great ralyng point
around which It's members will flock wherever the prou
standard OF the party is uniurled."
So, after tnkerng at a Homestead Bill in bot
Houses Of Congress, for the whole OF the session, "
are now informed that the Democratic party has
grand ralying point around which its members wi
flock; and the honor of that magnificent invention
due to one Of the Democratic Senator's from tn
State His bill is 10 have "thc post Of honor on tn
Democratic standard" And pay what does that hi
propose to do? How far docs it relieve the console,
tiou scrhDtes Of the party against voting away Il
public lands, against the Gree farm system" viii,
we have heard 50 loudly denounced by our Dem
cratic coteuporares Of this region 1t places
nominal price upon the public lands thus throw
open to settlers, and that price amounts to the emo
nous sum Of from toete, ami u hdij to tTCHiy.G
cents per acre. Thi- is to obyiate all the difficult
the Democratic creed encounters in giving away Il
public donlin. So il fixes price il is all RICH
Had that price been one cent per acre it would hay
doubtless, been just as potent in removing al col
scentous scruples on the subject Tho revenue Il
Government will derive from that source is a matt
also which is not 10 be lost sight Of twill count
Prodigiogiy at the rate of from twelve and a half
twenty-five cents per acre when sold ont in HON
steals. The "poor emgrant" will be very much
debted to the patrons Of Senator Hunters hin
cher generosity, but those who look TO the pub
lands, honestly, a. source OF revenue for the &
Sernment, and whose political faith IS really oppos
10 giving those lands away for nothing. or to Il
which is equivalent to doing 50, we apprchend y
bo somewhat at loss to know how to swallow, "
a good grace, the Hunter substitute We undcrsta
that il removes any objections the President m
have had to the original Homestead Bi, and sccu
his sanction. But we have not heard from our
mocratc contemporaries in this quarter on the subje
We, therefore, respectfully suggest to them
neghbOr Of the Ea7uirSr particularly that it is Ii
to speak out their sentiments this revised edition
the Homestead Bill, and let the public knog how
twenty-five cents per acre for the public domain v
overcome their conscientious scruples, aud acc,
with tie Democratic creed.
cOHlenatiSe Northern Msn.
u lisa matter Of deep regret that the conseryat
men Of the North-those who have heretofore ste