Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??, 1854-06-07
. = 2. .ss.s,..- For the Standard.
THE DISCUSSION IN PETERBOROUGH.

n.
day between Messrs Bragg and Dockery TOOK piace
in the Court House before large and deePiy inte-
rested auditory Gen. Dockery leading OH IN speech
of nearly two hours in length Wi.lesse" tue uS
NOT vonch for this sketch being accurate IN every
narticuar or as full it ought to be to do them JUS
tics. 49,
free school systemsaid he friend to the cause
of education-had always been so. That since nc
had been nominated for the office of Governor inc
defects in his education had been made the su'Ject
of abuse and sneers on the part of the democratic
press of North Carolina-ehat if his own advantages
had been limited he wanted to see the rising genera
ton blessed with superior advantages. lie ci'iiieu
the present free school system as a Whlg measure
Said that the Wings had got the 1unds &C. Hn ~
this was question of the first mportance-thaI tie
Whig doctrine was the lands should be sod ana Tue
proceeds distributed from year to year among an
the states in the ratio OF their federal popuiat'o
Tbat # was nothing but justice for the Old States 10
have their share--that the public lands had oeeh
given to the States by millions Oh acres 10 et
ahle them to build railroads, dig canals, endo" Col,
Iepes build court-houses, jaiiS &c While the olu
States could get nothing-that the State of Illinois
had gotten a tract of country five miles wide ana
fiue hundred and ninety miles long-that they hao
then sent an agent to European captain sS, 10 Who,
he sold this land and that they had built the road
and cleared an immense fortune for themselves be-
sdes-that the States said that IN 1861 or 1oto
they would have the power and would take the Janus
anv how. Gen. Dockery contended that the gentle,
man and his party were opposed to this equal ana
ad fair distribution by which North Carolina would
get her share--that the State was in debt and we
wished to extend roads and Improve our iree
school system that there were fourteen or nlteen
hundred millions of acres OF public land, ana Norm
Cardinals share of this land would enable hcrat the
ordinary price they sold at to improve the state rom
the highest mountain top to the seaboard-that the
system of the Democratic party was opposed TO nS
that President Pierce had recently vetoed the OIL
-. II. of
for the relief of the insane, while that party hao
given away and still giving away millions OF
acres to the new States. He contended that 1t was
idle TO suppose it constitutional to give away these
lands to part of the States while 1t was unconst
tutional to make distribution among all the States
lie admitted that for several years to come there was
mo nrospect of obtaining this distribution which he
desired.
Cen Dockery was in favor of a liberal system OF
Internal improvements. He wished to see the re-
sources of North Carolina developed, mineral agrl-
cultural and commercial. He wanted to sec the east
and the west brought together by railroads he
was in favor of completing the central raroad-tnat
II would take 81 500, 900 more to complete lt-tnat
the State ought finish this road, subscribing In
the same relative proportion in the first Instance
He was in favor of the State extending this road east
to the seaboard and west across the mountains tah
ing the same relative amount OF stock lie SAID thaI
if these improvements were carried out the State
debt which now might be put down at S5,OOo,Oo
would be increased to eight ten millions OF dollars
that he for Internal improvements upon the
same principle that man would cut ditch through
his swamp iands-that if neighbors wanted neigh
bourhood road they could build it, but that to COM
plete great system of internal improvements the
united character and means of the whole State
be called into requisition.
On the subject of Free Suffrage Gen. Dockery de-
clared himself in favor of it. He had always been
for it. He was peoples mamie had been IN favor
of Free Suffrage in 1885. Hehad voted in the Con-
yenon to give the election of Governor to the peo
IT. D. To 90
convention, and wrote to Mr.. Mcintyre in 1852 to
20 for Free Suffrage. He eontended that the differ
ence between him and his opponent on this question
was as to how Free Suffrage to be engratted on
the Constitution. He and the Wings preferred
Convention, while his opponent and his party pre-
ferred the legislative mode OF eectlng It, lie repro
bated the policy of having the fundamental law OF
the land tinkered with by the politicians in the leg
stature That the last Convention was composed
of the ablest and best in the State 1t was far
to suppose that it the safest and best to amend
the Constitution by the Convention mode-that the
Democrats had been trying for several years to effect
this amendment their plan, and that after all 1T
failed the Senate at the last session by the casting
vote of their own Speaker.
Mr. Bragg commenced his reply by stating that he
did come here to make any appeal to the pas
sions preiudices CT the peoplc-he desired to ad
dress himself to their understandings and asked the
audience as they had extended patient hearing to
Gen. Dockery, to extend the same courtesy to him.
His opponent stated the Free School system to be
Wing measure, and that he was warmly in fsvor of
it. Why, asked Mr.. B. bring this system into party
discussion? All parties in favor of this system
Of cducation-that lie longcd to the day when
every poor boy in the country should have the bless
ngs of good English education. AS to the remark
Of the gentleman that the system Wing mea-
sure that if he would take the trouble to inform
himself he would find that he entirely mistaken
that the bill securing US the fund passed Congress
during the administration of Gen. jackson; he sane
toned it and that the bill which passed in North
Carolina establishing the system was drawn by VIM.
Fl. Haywood and passed Democratic Legislature
in 1S36-that the Wings at various times since had
debts of the railroad instead of assuming the respon
sibiiity of laying tax on the people, which they
feared TO do and therefore borrowed portions of the
very fund set apart for education and yet after all
this, the gentleman claimed the Free School system
as Wing measure! But why, he would again re-
peat, bring the cause of popular education into the
arena of party strife =? He was willing to admit that
Ill parties were now in favor of t-that the gentle
man had been in the habit of referring to the defects
in his own education and complaining in the most
doloreus terms of the remarks of some writer in a
Democratic newspaper about those defects. That
for his own part it was matter he never alluded to,
and he could no for his opponent bringing
this matter before the public unless it was to excite
a little sympathy. That on the other hand, he had
every where attempted to excite prejudice against
him the ground of his belonging to the profess
ion of the law-of his being engaged, he said, in
special pleading, &c-that the gentleman's course
in crying every where he went his want of an
education has system of trckery to catch votes
and that if occupying the distinguished position
that he did the candidate of great party for the
highest Office in the gift of the State not asham
ed to descend to such little, petty artifces he Mr.
Bragg, was very sure his friends ashamed for