The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1860-09-05

man who settles upon the land and makes
it his home; and that is my object in the
amendment
Mr.. Wade-All right, Mr.. President,
let us have vote.
In reply to Mr. Pugh, Mr. Douglas,
after showing the beneficial effects of the
presumption system, and the advantage it
gave the settler over the specnlator, said:
"The effect of this amendment is, that
there shall be one dollar an acre difference
between the speculator and the settler; that
the actual settler may take land at twenty
five cents, and that the speculator shall
pay $l,25. But the Senator from Ohio
avs the speculator will send in advance
his agents to go and get claim under the
homestead. Sir, do you think that, in
order to reduce tract of land from
|$l,25 an acre to twenty-five cents, the
speculator will send his agent there to
hold the land five years and pay five years
salary in order to save $l0O? No Sir.
You protect the settler against the specu-
lator, by requiring five years. residence
under this bill. and cultivation upon the
land. The speculator cannot bear the ex-
pense of keeping settler for FIVE years
in order to reduce the price, 1t would
cost him three times as much as he would
gain by it. This bill, therefore, furnishes
the only efficient preventative against this
system of fraud and speculation that l
have seen devised.
II am aware that the effect of this bill
with my amendment, will be to make the
public lands large source of revenue. l
do not think the country will suffer by
Withdrawing that source of revenue, and
for this reason: any one who will trace the
reports of the sales of public lands for
the last thirty years, will find that when
ever the country was prosperous; when
ever money was plenty; and you had a
surplus revenue in the treasury that you
did not know what to do with, your land
sales ran up to ten, twelve, fifteen, twenty
or twenty.four million dollars year; but
the moment the revulsion came, and money
became scarce and your imports began
to fall off, the land sales stopped; you
could scarcely get dollar into the treas
ury during the very year you needed it
most. This source of revenue failed you
when you wanted it. 1t creates a surplus
when the surplus becomes a curse to you
and fails you when you need it to supply
the deficiency in the treasury. This very
system of public land sales is one of the
causes of pecuniary revulsions in this
country; and it will benefit the country,
benefit the treasury, benefit the communi.
ty, and the moneyed affairs of the entire
Union. to have this system cut off. 1t
will remain partially under the bill where
lands are entered for speculation, but it
will be cut off in regard to the actual set.
tier. He pays only twenty-five cents an
acre, which is about the cost of the ad.
ministration of the land system.
Mr.. Mason-I wish to ask the Senator
from Illinois whether the effect of this
amendment will not be to enable the pre-.
emptioners who now are such, to take their
pre- emption lands at quarter of dol.
lar an acre.
Mr.. Douglas-Unquestionably.
The amendment proposed by Mr.. Doug
las was, lost by vote of 26 to 81. A
vote was then taken on substituting the
House bill for the Senate bill, but the
amendment was rejected--ayes 25, nays
I 30--as follows:
Ayes = Messrs. Anthony, Bingham
Cameron, Chandler, Clark, Collamer, Dix.
on, Doolittle, Douglas, Durkee, Foster
Grimes, Hale, Hamlin, Harlin, King
Rice, Seward, Simmons, Sumner, Ten
Eyck, Trumbull, Wade, Wilkinson, and
Wilson-25.
| Nays-Messrs. Bayard, Bigler, Bragg
Bright, Brown, Chestnut, Clay, Cling
man, Davis, Fitzpatrick, Green, Gwinn
Hammond, Hemphill, Hunter. johnson
of Ark, johnson, of Ten, Lane, Latham
Mason, Nicholson, Pearce, Polk, Powell
Powell, Pugh, Sebastian, Slidell, Tooms
Wigfall, and Yulee-3O
Mr.. Douglas having endeavored tt
improve the Senate bill-having voted il
favor of substituting the house for th'
senate bill-but failing in both-urget
the passage of the Senate bill as the bes
which could be obtained, as follows:
I desire to say word in this stage O
the proceedings. If the object of tht
friends of the Homestead bill be truly sin
cerely to promote the interest of the set
tiers on the public lands. do not thinl
that there can be moments hesitation
in voting for the bill as it now stands be
fore the Senate. No man can deny bu
what there are provisions in this bill whicl
are of vast Importance to the settlers
1t may not accomplish all the objects tina
we have in view. 1t does not accomplish
near all the objects had in view. 1t il
not what desire. had entertained tn,
fond hope that we could have done better
!, But. Sir, we have done so mach now tha
! we cannot stand justified if we refuse t,
take what is now SO generously extended
to us. merely because we cannot get all w
want. Sir, there is one feature in thi
bill of itself of vast Importance. 1t give
to these settlers two years, at least, t.
save their homes. If they do not get an.
better provision at the end of that time