Republican vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1857, 1857-05-02

fathers before you did, propagate the prin-
ciples Of liberty, and become the founders
of mighty republics. Beside this recital of
what has been done for you by the efforts
of the Democracy, how sounds the pitiful sto-
~, that you are now every day hearing, of
what are, said 10 be, your rights to a frac-
ton of the proceeds of the public lands
But how stood Continued Mr.. s. } my
opponent and myself in that great struggle
for State equality, of which have just spo-
ken? He supported for the Presidency
man, who-whateyer his private virtues
may be declared, in substance, that the
repeal of the Missouri restriction was "a
breach of pighted faith, that that repeal
like the opening Of pandora's box had
flooded the country with evils leaving
scarcely hope behind" and further. that
the attempt to restore it (the Missouri re-
strction) at the session of Congress (after
its repeal) was defensible on the ground
that it mas mc1 to offer to the Senate an
opportunity to reconsider its action" which
action had been in favor CT that repeal
And this he (Mr. STUART had done, we'll
knowing the opinions of the candidate he
favored. While I, (said Mr. S. on the
other hand, lent my humble aid to the cleo
repeal of that restriction and the set
Element consequent thereupon ''should be
infexibly maintained, "and that in his
opinion" the only mode now left of putting
down the fanatieal and reckless spirit of
Aholitionism in the North, was to "adhere
to the settlement without the slightest tho't
or appearance of wavering, and without re-
gardng any storm which might be raised
against it." And, said Mr.. S., to crown
with triumph the labor of my party, the
Supreme Court Of the United States, the
highest judicial exponent in the land of the
Constitution of the country, have recently
declared, that the restriction, which WE re-
peo5ed, was unconstitutional, null and void
in derogation of the rights of the States, and
a transgression of the powers of Congress
thus, in effect, indicating the positions of
the Democracy in support of your rights,
and silencing forever The aspersions of my
opponent and his associates, that we have
been unceasing agitators Of the slavery
/ question, for mere party ends. And now,
when the Black Republican Legislatures of
i New York and Ohio, and other Northern
States, unwearied in their fanaticism, are
seeking to nulify this decision of the Su-
preme Court and when almost the only
friendly voices from that quarter are issuing
from the conservative ranks of the Democ-
raey, you, Southern men, are invited to re-
fuse to me, as a Democrat, your support,
because, forsooth, in the mighty, uital. all
important Gas it is represented) matter of
the public lands, | oppose the policy of a
distribution Of their proceeds among the
States, and demand that those proceeds shall
have their legitimate destination. and be ap-
Piled in support of the Federal Government
IN diminutioa ftle ta1es, which must,
otherwise, be imposed upon you for its sup
port.
This issue of distribution" said Mr. s.,
which has been made in this canvass, is the
forlorn hope of forlorn hope. 1t is des-
perate effort to unite the incoherent materi-
ais of the opposition by the cohesive pow
err of public plumber. To distribute the
proceeds of the public lands among the
States is to violate the Constitution, to rob
the people under the name of benefit, and
to subyert the true theory Of our govern
nent
Tie public lands have been derived, in
part, from csssion by several of the States,
but chiefly By purchase, by the General
Government OF the lands ceded, there
certainly do not remain, unappropriated,
more than 10 900 GOO of acres, while the
whole public domain contains about twenty
FIVE times that number of acres, or nearly
l, 400 200, 600; and yet the common falla-
cy in which the distributionists indulge, is
to endeavor to establish claim to distribu-
ton from the deeds of eession, and then to
apply the claim, thus set Ito the lands ac-
quired By purchase out of the Federal treas
ury, which rest altogether upon another aud
different footing. He would first consider
the case of the lands derived from cessions
made by seven of the original thirteen
States-of which seven, Virginia was one
The deeds of cession, made before the adop-
ton Of the Federal Constitution, would ceg-
tainly be compelled to yield, so far as the
powers of Congress were concerned, to the
provisions and limitations of that instru-
ment but, leaving this consideration out
Of view, the deed of cession of Virginia
(Which differs in nothing material from
those made by the other States) or rather
the act authorizing the cossion, speaks of
the cession us made .for the common hene-
fit and support of the Union" and provides
that the lands eeded shall be ''a common
fund for the use and benefit of such of the
United States as have become, or shall be-
come, members of the confederation or fed