Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1860-03-15

The House being IN the Committee Of tho Whole on the
state Of the Cuion.
Mr.. GROW said ! ..
Mr. CHAIRMAN At the close OF the Rev.
oution the colonies claimed dominion, based
upon their respective colonial grants from the
Crown of Great Britain, over an uninhabited
wilderness of two hundred and twenty million
acres of land extending to the Mississippi on
The west, and the Canadas on the north. The
disposition Of these lands became subject of
controversy between the colonies even before
the Confederation, and was an early obstacle
to the organization of any government for the
protection of theft common interests.
The Toioffes, whosecharter from the Crown
extended over Hode Of the uuoccup pied lands
claimed, ia the language of the instructions
of Maryland in l77s, to her delegates in Con
greSS
"That country unsettled ct the commence
ment of this war; claimed by tke British
Crown and ccded to it by the treaty at Paris,
if wrested from the common enemy by the
blood and treasure of the thirteen States,
should be considered as a common property,
subject to be parceled out by Congress into
free, convenient, and independent governments,
in such maaner and at such times as the wis
The proprietg snd the justice of ceding these
lands to the Confederation, to be thus parceed
ont into free AID iOdepeadeut States having
become the topic Of discussion everywhere in
the colonies, Congress, in order to alay the
controversy and remove the only remaining
obstacle to final ratification of the Articles
of Confederation, declared by resolution, on
the 10th Ooctber, 1880: .Tr
"'That the unappropriated lands which may
he ceGed or'relinquished to the United States
iby any particular State"
O." shall be disposed of for the common benefit
OF the United States and be settled and
formed into distinct republican States, which
shall become members of the Federal Union,
and have the same rights of sovereignty. free
dom, and independence, as the other States,
&c. Tint fhe sad iaads HdH be granicd or
settled at such finrs, and Under such rcguLaiions
az shall hereafter I. agreed on by Tie United
States in Congress assembled, Oy rjrc or norc
of hrm."
In pursuance of the provisions of this res
,olution, New York, Virginia, Massachusetts,
Connecticut, South Carolina North Carolina,
and Georgia, ceded their claims, including title
and jurisdiction. to the waste lands, as they
were called, outside of their respective State
limits all of them, except eOrgia and North
Carolina, without any conditions annexed to
their respective grants, save those contained
IN the resolution of Congress just referred tc.
The reservation in the grants or Georgia and
North Caroiina were not, however, as to the
future disposition of the lands but a condi-
1ioD that slavery should not be prohibited
zherein by Congress The territory thus con-
<litionally graEec4 is contained within the
States of Tennessee, Mississippi, and Alabama.
With the exception Of tae grants of North
Carolina and Georgia, land the reservations
even in these relating only to the form Of their
future governmeRt,l the pubic bands claimed
10y the colonies at the close Of the Revelation,
were ceded to the General Government TO be
settled and disposed of " under swck rfsWsa~
eions as shall hereafter be agreed on by the z.
s. IN Congress assembled"
Since that time the Government has acquir-
ed, by treaty, of France, the Louisiana pur-
chase of Spain, the FlOridaS; of Mexico,
Utah, New Mexico, and California contain
ing, altogether, over twelve hundred million
acres of land. So the General Government
by cesSions from the original States aE4 par
chases from other nations, has acquired, ex-
Clusively Of water, as computed by the COm-
missioner Of the Land Office, fourteen hun
dred and City Tillion acres Of public lands
of whick tAcCe have been sold, to September
80, 1855, ,one hundred and forty-seVen million,
lightweight thousand two hundred and sew
enty four acres and otherwise disposed of in
grants and donations to individuals, corpora,
tions, companies, and Stale, as per annexed
tyyy55le, including grants since 30th Jure, 1851,
tRo hFadFcd aRa fqrty,Qne million seven hun
Ared aud seventy &hGEss2S ard a&ftytBo acres;
leaving the pqhic lands belonging te theG oy-
ernment uDdispQsed Of on t4e 2eth SeptembeF,
1859, one thousand and siEty-oue million one
hundred and forty-one thousand six hundred
and seVenty-iVe acres.
What disposition shall be made of this vast
inheritance is question of no small magni-
tude? Three times, within seven years, q
homestead bill has passed this House, and
been defeated each time by the Democratic
majority in the Senate. On the vote on the
homestead bill in the House, last Congress,
out of the one hundred and thirty Democrats,
but thirty-one voted FOR it RRd in the Senate,
on the test vote between taking Hp the home
stead bill, after it bad passed the House, and
only required the vote Of the Senate to make
it law, SO far as Congress was concerned, or
10 take mp the bill for the purchase of Cuba,
bnt one Democrat voted for the homestead
and only six at any tme while every Repub-
llcan in the Senate, and every one in the
House, with single exception, was for the
homestead. OF all the Representatives of
the slaEe States, but three iG the House voted