The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1856-05-24

last Congress He was for donating bounty land to them
for giving them an increased quantity 10 make IL
one hundred and sixty acres And now what Il be doing
he now for donating these lands 10 eorporons know
ing as he does that since the Iowa and Florida railroad
s We're passed the land warrants have been steadily GO
ing down IN price lie y for shutting all these lands
required for railroads and thereby shutting OF the old
soldiers from every opportunity oiocang their warrants
and thus diminishing the price Of them, rs'a .~.1
Mr. COBB. win the gentleman from Virginia allow
70 state that introduced the bill Of 1850 and
voted for that also?
Mr.: LETCHER Very well, sir. And now the gentle
man 10 trying TO destroy those who reap the bene
ht OF his legislation am sorry see one who thought
then that there was something due to the old soldiers and
who helped TO procure their land warrants seeking
destroy their vad TO make what be considered
an act OF justice entirely worthless them Now take
this case OF the Iowa railroad bill When that bill was
passed the Commissioner Of the General Land Office teIe
grapned 10 the land officers there to close their Offices
Land no longer 10 be taken those warrants The land
no longer 10 the market The railroads mast be accom-
modatsd They must make their selection. The value Of
the land warrants Immediately fell three four
acre. 30 with the Wisconsin, bill When il becomes law
the land warrants will of course take further fall
which ought to have some weight ia Controlling The action
OF the House on this subject should like to know Mr.
Speaker how many more bills there yet behind this
should like TO know how many miles of railroad
yet to be madehow many more acres OF public ands are
yet to be taken for their construction under the
ments entered into by the Committee Public Lands
should like TO hear from the chairman of that committee
how many more bills he has upon the stocks ~
Mr. BENNETT. The committee has agreed to report o
bill for the State Of louisiana 7
take f''f~.' :"
Mr. BENNETT cannot give you the exact quantity i;
something less than half million Of There another
bin for the State Of Mississippi.
Mr. LETCHER. How many acres is that
MT. BENNETT. little over half a million.
barna roads?
Mr.. COBB, Ito Mr.. BEssErr) Say million Of acres so
Il TaEf IEToaass rs Soa sSm would like to know how
friends from the South have permitted themselves to be
taken in According TO the Commissioner Of the General
Land once the land required under this Iowa bill is four
million three hundred and twenty thousand the Wis.,
eonsn bill takes one million nine hundred thousand acres
the Michigan bill gives about million Of acresn all
some seven million two hundred thousand Now let
us see how Is with the South Here Is Mississippi she
s to get FIVE hundred thousand acres Louisiana is to get
hve hundred thousand and then here the Alabama
bill giving one million of This makes two millions
Of acres for the South against millions for the North
How much is Florida to have2 .. !, ..s. s5r..
Mr.; BENNETT. want to correct mistake or two into
which the gentleman has fallen, Internationally doubt
The fact was that the Iowa bill and the Wisconsin bill
were printed and lay here where every gentleman could
obtain copies do not know whether the gentleman from
Virginia was aware Of the fact but the bills by
great many gentlemen then Now, to the lands for
Iowa II is true there Is statement showing under
the State gets six sections for each mile Of road And then
assumes that the railroad companies will get sx sections
per mile and that they do get six sections per mile that
will make over four millions Of acres hut the fact that
il all the roads in Iowa get The six sections per
mile 1t would only be about three millions Of acres the
length of the roads overestimated. ..,.,.s.. ..
But these four roads viii not take up in the whole as
much AZ two roads would II there lands already
entered Those roads being In the course Of construction
entries re been largely made along the lines Of those
roads. The roads would obtain a million and half
Of acres according to the estimate but when that es
mate made there returns Of the entries made
since the first Of March, which ought 10 be embraced
There have been great many entries made these routes
since the first Of March, which would reduce that estimate
very much am confident that the estimate Of million
and half will be found TO be too high rather than too
low for all Of the Iowa railroads. The statement in the
newspapers is calculated to produce wrong impressions
Is estimated that these railroads get land for all the
length named which is really not the They do not
get lands for half their length and woud have been
gave TO Iowa less than the grants made other States
they were inclined to make fair division among all the
roads.