The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1860-10-12

lor the Senate bill, as thought is was bet
ter than none. Applause, In brief, am
10 favor now, and have been for years, OF
that line OF policy which authorizes every
man to go upon the public lands, record his
claim, build bis house and his fences, and
split bis own rails, (Iaughter) and, when be
shall have lived on it long enough to have
established his intention of becoming a per.
manent settler, give him his title free. Tire
mendous applause.) believe that to be
the true policy of the country.
A person in the crowd-How long will
he live on it?
Mr.. DOuglas-I hope he will live on it
forever. (Cries Of "Good" and applause.)
The public lands have not been a proper
and legitimate subject of revenue to this
government. On the contrary they have
tended to disorganize the monetary affairs
OF the country. Whenever the country is
prosperous, imports are large and money is
plenty, every Spectator will fill his pockets
with cash, 60 West and buy up the public
lands in vast quantities. We then get a
revenue of ten, twenty or twenty-five mill
lions of dollars year into the treasury from
the sale OF the public lards, at the very time
we do not want it, because we have sur.
plus without it; but the moment hard times
come, the imports fall off, the banks cur
tail their issues and money is scarce, not a
dollars worth of land is sold, and the treas
ury becomes bankrupt for want of money.
l"Sound doctrine."l Hence the land sys-
TEN brings money to the treasury when we
do not want it. Laughter.l 1 therefore
would change our whole land system, and
never have another sale of public lands in
the world. "Good."] l would apply the
presumption law, by which each settler may
go ard take up his land, build his home, live
upon it and'cultivate it, and then get bis
title, and would not let any man get IT,
tie who was not an actual settler upon the
land. ["Tbat's it," and applause.
l did not intend to refer to this subject
and would not have done so, but for the
fact that l have been informed that the
small leaders of the Republicans have been
representing me as not being in favor of the
Homestead Bill. Cries of "That's true"
"They have," &c.
The following extract from letter writ
ten by Horace Greeley in January last,
from Davenport, Iowa, shows where the
great Republican editor placed Mr.. Doug
las before the latter was nominated for the
Presidency:
"Mr. Douglas has hitherto stood By the
principle of free Homesteads, or the grant of
quarter sections of the public lands to actual
settlers aUlthout charge. That principle
always stronger in the Free West than any
party-has gained immensely in power to
control votes from the pecuniary disasters
of the last three years. Thousands who
where grabbing all the land within sight of
their log cabins, few years since, and
fondly expecting to become speedily rich by
land speculations, have suddenly awakened
to realization of the fact that their grab
bling has ruined them, and that they have
hard chance before them of obtaining even
livelihood. TO these, and to ten thou
sands besides, the Homestead bill seems of
more consequence than all other topics of
political controversy. No other Democratic
statesman than Douglas, unless it be An
drew johnson, of Tennessee, could hope for
their support. MIR. Joe Lanes ugly record
last winter renders him conspiculously una
valuable. Mr.. Dougles, on this question,
could probably hold his own against Re.
publican; no one else but johnson could
begin to do it."