Nebraska advertiser., 1858-02-18
LandSaIes.

HE "a "eA AOSARN 4l
1t appears generally to be believed that
we are to have Land Sales in this Terri
tory on or before July next. On what
this opinion is founded, however, we have
been unable to informourself@As TO the
propriety of such a disposition of the soil
or It's operations to retard or advance the
real interests of the country there is a
difference of opinion. In this communi-
ty there is, perhaps, agrOwing one in fa-1
vor of sales. There..are, eve admit, what,
may properly be termed few good ar
guments in favor of bringing the the lands
to public sale. But we are still of the
opinion we have always been, that it is for
the best interests Of the country to defer
for years to come the sales.
If we must have sales, however, we hope
the President will confne them to not over
two townships on the. Missouri river,
within which extent the lands are nearly
all taken up by actual settlers.
The following we copy from the Saint
Louis Republican, as more fully express
sive of our views upon this subject. The
object of the bill submitted to Congress
by Mr.. Grow, prohibiting the proclama-
ton by the President of the sale of pub
lie lands until fifteen years shall have ex-
PRED from the date of their survey, is
said to be to allow the pioneer actual set
tiers fifteen years. pre-emption of their
respective quarter sections before they
can be compelled to pay for them, or
surrender them toany speculator who may
see fit to buy them over their heads.
"We see that Mr.. Grow has introduce
ed into the House, a bill by which it is
proposed to forbid the proclamations by
the President of Public Lands for sale UNI
til fifteen years shall have expired from
the date of their survey. The object of
such a bill is, we presume, to prevent the
further monopoly of public lands in the
hands of spectators. 1t applies only to
the land not yet brought into market. But
we should be glad to see a bill that should
stop as well all private entries of land
now In market, except by those who want
to make entriesin moderate quantities for
actual settlement. Perhaps, however, as
has been suggested, the bill is as well
adapted to stay an enormous evil as m
one that could be framed with any chance
of success. When the country contained
hundreds of millions of acres, the possess
session by one man of ten, or even twen-
ty thousand, acres was of comparatively
small importance to the landless. Because,
if these last could not buy of him they
could go upon the unappropriated domain,
and, at a cheap rate secure themselves a
home. But now things have changed
vastly. With the increased means of
purchase, and under the operations of our
graduation law, it is nearly certain, that if
our Government surveys and sells at the
ordinary rate, there will scarcely be
an acre ottand north having, which IS not
an priUdte hands, fifteen gears from this
time. Lands will be m~onopolized and
held by their wealthy proprietors out of
the reach of all men of small means. Not
long hence the poor emigrant from our
eastern cities and Europe, forming a
large proportion of those who do emf
CRATE will be unable to'obtain land. This
will prevent him from going upon the
land, and keep him in the city, to swell
the aggregate of a population already
bloated or, if he goes upon the land,
will keep him in the condition of a ten
ant or farm-servant, with little prospect
that he will ever attain the dignity of an
independent proprietor. We shall have a
few great lords, with a numerous tenant
ry. We shall have on the one hand a
landed aristocracy, and on the other a
peasant class, not much above similar clas-
ses in Europe.
Gan objection that may bemade to Mr..
Crows proposition, is that such an act
would deprive the States in whichthe pub
lie lands lie, of such a revenue immedi-
ately, as they might derive from lands
sold under the land as it now stands. This
objection may be removed by allowing the
State to tax the land to the pre-emptor,
the second year after his occupation, the
same as it would be taxable, if it were ia
ken and entered under the present pre-
emption law"
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