The Athens post. [volume] (Athens, Tenn.) 1848-1917, 1857-06-19
TO THE VOTERS OF THE THIRD
CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT.

candidate 10 represent you IN the congress
of the United States. This announcemen mt
| have ample reason for believing, is in &C.
cordance with the wishes of the party gen,
orally with which ! act and have long acted
Flattered with this belief, do not feel al
liberty to disregard the call, and | therefore
announce myself candidate. The short time
allowed me until the day of election, pre-
cludes the possibility of thorough canvass
of so large District. | have been among
yoa, and one Of you for many years; and
though personally acquainted with some,
much the largest portion ofyou are strangers
to me. In more humble capacity, | had, on
former occasion, the honor to serve por.
ton of the people whom now seek to rep
resent. With my labors on that occasion,
feel proud to believe, my constituents were
satisfied. Will you, then, receive this brief
Card in the plae, of my personal presence,
where the lack o. time will not allow me to
60? In an address of this kind, | can barely
allude to only ore or two subjects which the
Lext Congress will be required to act upon,
and which conceive to be of vital impor-
lance to the peope, both rs measures Of relief
and Of future prosperity. 10 my humble opin-
ion, the people lave now no source to which
they can look for reief-no other means to
relieve them from the buhhen Of taxes under
which they groan-no means to continue
their improvements, unless Congress passes
a law to divide the proceeds of the public
lands among all the. States. The State of
Tennessee, at this time, is bound in debt of
not less than twelve millions of d0llars-for
she may hav, to pay every railroad bond she
has ever issued. The railroad companies, all
of them at least, cannot pay them, and
think am not assuming too much in saying
that all of them do not expect to pay. At
any rate, the State is responsible, and for tho
responsibility thus incurred, the property Of
of every mnn whom address is liable. The
State Indebtedness can only be paid by tax,
and heavy tax on the people. The public
lands are owned by the States in their aggre.
gate capacity. The general government, act
ing in the capacity of trustee, holds these
lands as q common fund for the benefit of the
whole. When they are Deeded-when the
people are borne down with debt and taxa
fon-when their public Improvements are
crippled for the want Of means-wheA edu-
cation is langulshing for the want OF schools
in all soberness have not the people the
right to their own lands their own property,
TO BIZ applied to their relief and for the public
good! This seems so reasonable, and so
right, that it APPEARS strange there should be
an individual to oppose it, or that any should
object to it's conaitutionaliiy. In 1882, Gen.
Jackson declared that it was in the discretion
of Congress to dispose of the public lands
in such a way Ms best to couducs to the quiet,
harmony and geieral interest Of the AWsr-
can people. Democratic Virginia, with all her
sticking for strit construction, in her Legis-
lature in 1929. pissed resolutions on this sub
ject, in which they say: the most just and
equitable plan for dispensing OF the nett pro-
ceeds of the pubic lands is by distributing
the same, in jus proportions, amongst The
States. Dir. Buchanan, in the Senate of the
United States on Inc 28th of February, 1887,
said: Now, sir, the distribution Of the pro-
ceeds of the public lands among all the
States, would remedy oil these evils and cor
rect all these e,ormties of our system. 1t
would secure to US a settled policy on which
the country might rely. 1t would draw oil
from the geneial government this abused
source of revenue and distribute II among the
States. We woad then be left where the
Constitution intended to place us. The gov
eminent would then be administered on its
original principle. All the deeds of cession
confer on Congress this right. The Consttu'
ton gives Congress the right to dispose OF
and make all De,diul laws and regulations
respecting the territories. And, first OF all,
Congress passed law, Immediately alter
Virginia made her cession of land to the
general government, distributing the lands
not the proceeds-among the States. This
law was repealed in two or three years after
its passage, because il was inconvenleEt TO
divide the lands themselves among the States,
and not because there was amy doubt of It's
constitu,ionaity.
But my limits 10 not allow me to adduce
but very few Of TIE many authorities in sup
port of the consttutioDality OF the principle.
Distribution is destined 20 succeed. The
people are aware of the sophistry OF those
who oppose it. Nothing can much longer
arrest it. shall, therefore, if elected, give
my cordial support to any bill having for its
object division among the States of the
money arising from the sales Of the public
lands.
Whilst gepudiute the idea or any wish to
create any prejudice, or arouse any uuklnd
feeling between men of different professions,
| mnst be allowed to insist that the farming
community are entirely too much overlook
ed, il they are not altogether neglected. IN
having Office conferred upon them from the
hands Of the people or appointments from
those high in power. Where do you find a
farmer holding an appointment from the
Governor of State? Can you point to one