New Oregon plaindealer. (New Oregon, Iowa) 1859-1866, 1860-10-05
HOMESTEAD BILL.

Il Irlehu mas asked me 10 eNplatn my
position upon the Homestead bill. l
an Il little surprised, that I should be
called upon to define my position on
that subject. For twelve or fourteen
years, l have devoted more time to the
passage of a homestead bill than any
other live man. (Cries of Good, and
cheers.) There never has been a Home
stead bill before Congress which have
not supported. .(Applause.) Iintrodu-
ced one in the House of Representatives
fourteen years ago, before l was Sena-
tor, and I have renewed it year after
year in the U. S. Senate. (Cries of
Good y Last year when the House of
Representative passed a Homestead
bill and sent it to the Senate, and Sena-
tor Johnson of Tennessee, offered a sub
titute for it, supported the House bill
in preference to his, because I thought it
was the best. When I failed to get that
| offered an amendment, which | believ-
ed to be better even than the House
bill, but it failed, and I then voted for the
Senate bill, as I thought it was better
than nothing. (Applause.) In brief, l
am in favor now, as l have been for
years, of that line of policy, which au
thorizes every man to 50 upon the pub
lie lands, record his claim, build his
house, make his fences, and split his own
rails, QLaughter,) and when he shall
have lived on it long enough to have es
tablished his intention of becoming a
permanent settler, give him his tile free
tremendous applause,) Ibelieve 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 ap-
plause.)
PUBLIC LANDS.
The Public Lands have not been a
proper and legitimate subject CT rev.
enue to this government. On the con-
trary they have tended to disorganize
the monetary affairs of the country.
Whenever the country is prosperous,
imports are large and money is plenty,
every speculator will fill his pockets
with cash. go West and buy up the pub
lie lands in vast quantities. We then
get revenue of ten, twenty, or twenty
five millions of dollars year into the
treasury, from the sale Of Public Lands,
at the very time we do not want it, be-
cause we have surplus without it, but
the moment hard times come, the i'm
ports fall of, the banks curtail their
issues and money is scarce, not a dollars
worth of land is sold, and the Treasury
becomes bankrupt for want Of money.
(Sound doctrine.) Hence the land sys-
TEN brings money to the treasury when
we do not want it. (Laughter.) I there
fore would change our whole land sys-
tenn and never have another sale of pub
lie lands in the world. Good I would
apply the presumption law, by which each
settler may 60 and take up his land,
build his home, live upon it and cult
vate it. and then get his title, and I
would not let any man get title un-
less he was an actual settler upon the
land. (That's it, and applause.)
I did not intend to refer to this sub
ject. and would not have done so, but
for the fact that I have been informed
that the small leaders of the Republi-
cans have been representing me as not
being in favor of the Homestead BILL
Cries Of That's true! They have! &c.
A SAMPLE of Republicanism.