The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1860-10-04

speculation becomes a mania. and men wan.
to be ''monarehs of all they survey"-,he
DO nos survey their own folly. The pooy
settler IS far beyond the bounds of civilixar
'ion' and the bowling wolves and whoopioo
saVsges, where he leads . rude and half
civilized tfe. without the influence of civil.
lied associations. His furniture. a. his
CABIN, IS of the rudest description, and his
eye rests upon no beautiful work Of Art
within his dwelling. 1t is days journey
to the postoff7ce, 50 he takes no papers, "A Il
would take him one sixth Of his working
time th. indeed. he keeps the Sabbath) 70
get them. after paying for them. Thus he
lives. isolated from his kind, left alone to
grspple with want, and government which
is simply great. unfeefng speculasor. that
would as soon sell his claim 10 the land pi-
rate as any other part of the public domain.
Il takes him week with his team, to
carry load Of produce to market, SO he
consumes half Of it going and coming. The
road is lined with taverns, in every one of
which liquor is sold. He 6nds plenty of
companions, who, like himself, feel q need
of q little hilarity. So the evenings pass in
drinking, smoking and telling coarse stories,
if not something worse Who that has seen
life on the frontiers does not know that this
is perfectly truel
The children of the settler grow up al
most wholly without the influence of schools,
books, and newspapers. They get their
education from surrounding circumstances.
and these are decidedly unfavorable to lem.
perance. Consequently they grow up .
class of spreeing Young men. and contrib
ute largely towards giving Western commu.
mites that kind of character
Have the friends of temperance ever
thought of this? Have YOU searched for
the caus Of the Tntempersnce which pre-.
walls in almost every new community?-
Have You asked yourselves why the cause
OF Temperance. in The Western States, is so
far behind the same in the older Ssates-why
prohibition has become a fixed policy in
New England; while licen sc is the order OF
the day in the West? You viii perhaps
say that it is because society ia new; but
this is not answering the qnestion' at all,
for there is no reason in the nasure and con-
stitution Of things why . community should
be immoral simply because it is new. A
pioneer community is chiefly composed Of
men and women in the prime OF life-the
very cream Of the old settlements--and un-
der favorable circumstances. they would
doubtless build up even better institutions,
and be even more temperate and moral than
the people among whom they grow up. and
hat forthwith. But if we study the mat
ter at all philosophically, we shall fied that
the true cause of the prevalent Intemper.
ance In Western States and Territories, is
that system of land sales which permits
capitalists to buy up large tracts Of the
public domain, thus compelling the actual
settlers to settle far from each other. Aad
| from the older settlements. depriving them
OF the advantages of schools, churches,
quick exchange. and the thousand ameni.
ties of civilized life. thus producing . low
state of public morals.
II the public lands were given to actual
settlers. in quarter section lots, what a
change would come over cur country
Thousands Of poor men. who now struggle
Tor breath in the choking atmos phere of our
great cities. yearly swelling the army of
drunkards. vagrants and criminals, would
gather up their few 't,aps." and move west
ward. They could ge. along somehow, for
they would feel that they had as big farm
as any body, after they got it. When they
got to the verge Of the thick settlement.
they would be at their journeys end. for
they would not have to travel day after day
over unoccupied land, belonging to specu-
iators, and get clear ont of sight and hear.
ing. to find place TO "squat" on. As
most of the land in the West is good. most
Of the settlers would take the lot next to the
last one taken. If some of them were
poor. and had not even a team to begin
with. it would make but little difference,
for there would be ncghbors close at hand
tina, would have teams. the use of which
could be had in exchange for work. If
they couldn't farm il very vigorously at first
for wast of means. no matter; they would
have no anxiety about being driven forth
from house and home in default of the $500
to pay for their land. and they could easily
raise enough to live on, while an occasional
lamb or calf. received in exchange for work,
won'd lay the foundation Of future focks
and herds.