The western Democrat. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1852-1870, 1857-03-24
rHE punL1c LAMns.

The question of distribution of the pub
lie land is one that was looked upon as set
tied after the canvass of '53, but it has been
resurrected and the probability is that the
subject will be before the people again for
discussion. 1t seems plain to us that the
true policy of the South is to take a stand
for applying the public domain wards IL
quidating the expenses of the general gov
eminent in order to reduce the tariff on i'm
ports. The Wilmington Journal ola late
date has well written article on this sub
ject, in which the distribution policy is re-
viewed. In the event of distribution of
the lands among the States, that paper per-
tinently asks "what sort Of land system,
or, rather, what sort of absence of all sys-
tenn, would we then have, with 81 sellers
all in the market, and all anxious to realize
from their claims What speculative
schemes would we not then see to induce
settlement and, of course, sale of land, and
the return of money to the treasures of
each and every one of the States? If these
lands and land schemes produce corruption
in Congress, would that corruption be les
sened, or the tendency in that direction
checked, by introducing this element Of
corruption into every State Legislature in
the land? How would the southern abet-
tors of this scheme relish the organization
of every free-soil Legislature at the North
into gigantic emigrant aid society, voting
day and daily grants of lands to abolition
settlers, for the purpose of excluding south
ern settlement? And yet this would be ex-
actly the result of things. And what an
engine this would be in the hands of Mas
sachusetts, and Vermont, and Maine, and
all that tier of States! Instead of the pub
lie lands, if coded to the States, ever be-
coming a source of revenue, they would all
be squandered in heated contest after
sectional supremacy. The South, or at
least the States of the south, would be COM
PEELED to enter the field with grants of land
to southern settlers, to counterbalance those
made by Northern States to abolition set
tiers. The public mind would be excited,
the sectional breach widened, population
diverted from the old States at terribly
accelerated pace, and when the wild excite
ment was over, and people returned to their
senses, they would find the States poorer
in their treasures, poorer in their popula-
tons, more deeply exasperated against each
other, and paying into the U. S. Treasury
a largely increased tax to supply the def
cheney caused by the diversion of a federal
fund fror@ its proper and legitimate channel.
THE BRITISH TREATY.-A Washington
letter from Gen. Webb, says:
Il have been permitted to examine care
fully the alteration made by the Senate in
| its conditional ratification of the Dallas
Treaty and l have no hesitation in saying
that they are such as will be acquiesced il
by England. No one of the changes re-
commended, affect in any way the princi-
Piles upon which the treaty is based; and
those articles relating to questions that have
heretofore produced disagreement, remain
untouched. l congratulate, very sincerely,
the whole country upon this most satisfac-
tory termination of every question pending
between Great Britain and the U. States.
Congress at its late session appropriated
twenty five thousand dollars for the survey
of Ship Canal across the isthmus of Daren,
by engineers and officers of the army and
navy, to be selected and detailed by the
heads of the Navy and War Department.
u Prior to the adjournment of the spe-
cial session of the Senate, Hon. 7. j. Rusk,
of Texas, was elected President of that bo-
dy by vote of 90 out of AZ.
TEXAS ITEMS.
Recent Texas papers furnish the follow