The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1863-12-11

nal and beneficial illustration in recent
/ enaotmenis granting homesteads to ae-
/ taal settlers. Since the first day Of jan
usry last, the before. men toned quantity
I o. ,456, 514 sores Of land has been taken
} undsr its possessions. This fact and
tle amount Of sales furnish gratifying
1 evidence of the increasing settlement
upon the public lands, notwithstanding
be great struggle in which the energies
of the nation have been engaged, ard
which have required so large with
draWal of our citizens from their sec as
timed pursuits.
! ! cordially concur in The recommends
tim of the Secretary OF the Interior, sug-
/ Costing q modification of the act in favor
o Ii ole regikthed in the military 81 d
naval service of the United States. l
,ubt not that Congress will 'cheerfuily
adopt such measures ss will secure,
without essentially changing the general
features Of the system, to the greatest
practicable extent, its benefits to thote
/ who have left their homes in defence of
their country in this aTduous crisis.
invite your atteL tion to the views of
the Secretary of War as to the prophet y
| of raising By appropriation by legisls-
/ ton a revenue from the mineral lands of
the United States.
The measures provided at your last
session for the removal of certain Indian
tribes have been carried into effect Sun
! dry treaties have been negotiated, which
will in due time be submitted for the
constitu ional action of the Senate.
| They contain stipul atoms for extingush-
ing the possessive rights of the Indians
to large and valuable tracts of land.
It is probable that the effects of thefe
| treaties will result in the establishment
| Of permanent friendly relations with
such of those tribes as have beeE brought
into frequent and bloody collision with
our outlying settlements and emigrants.
Sound policy and our imperative duty 10
these wards of the government demand
our anxious and constant attention to
their material Well-being, to their pro-
gress in the arts of civilization, and,
above all, 10 that moral training which.
under the blessings of Divine Providence
will confer upon them the elevated and
saactifying influence of the hopes and
consultations of the Christian faith.
suggested in my last annual message
the prOpriety of remedying our Indian
system. Subsequent events have salts
fed ME of its necessity. Details set
forth in the report of the Secretary will |
eVince the urgen. need for i'm Mediate |
legislative action
commend the benevolence of the iRsti- !
tutions established and patronized by the |
Government in this District, to your gener-
Gus and fostering care.
The attention of Congress during the last |
session, was engaged to some extent, with |
a proposition for enlarging the water COM |
munication between the Mississippi River |
and the northeastern seabOard, which pro- |
position however, failed for the time Since /
then, upon call Of the greatest respeeta
bility, convention has assembled at Chi |
clgO upon the same subject, a summary of |
whose views is contained in a memorial ad- |
dressed to the President Of Congress, and |
which l now have the honor TO lay before /
you. That the interest is one which, ere |
long, will force its own, do not entertain |
a doubt, while it is submitted entirely 10 |
your wisdom, as to what can be done now |
Augmented interest is given to this subject |
by the actual commencement of the work |
upon the Pacific Railroad; under auspices |
favorable to its rapid progress and compile
ton, enlarged navigation becomes a palTa a.
BILE need to this great road.
transmit the second annual report Of |
the Commissioners of the Department OF /
agriculture, asking your attention to the |
developments in the vital interest Of the |
nation.
When Congress assembled year ago,
the war had already lasted nearly twenty
months, and there had been many conflicts
on both land and sea, with varying results.
The rebellion had been pressed back |
into reduced limits. Yet the tone of pulls
lie feeling and opinion at home and abroad /
was not satisfactory. With other signs, the
popular elections, then Just passed, indica-
ted uueasiness among yourselves. While |
amid much that was cold and menacinC,
the kindest words coming from England
were uttered in accents Of pity that We
were too blind to surrender. Our com
merce was suffering greatly by few armed
vessels built upon and furnished from for.
eign shores, and we were threatened with
with such additions from the same quarters
as would sweep our trade from the sea and
raise our blockade. We had failed TO elicit
from the European Governments anything
hopeful upon this subject. The emancipa-
ton proclamation, which was issued in
Septembes was running its assigned period
20 the beginning of the new year. A
month later a final proclamation came, in
Guiding the announcement that colored men |
of suitable condition would be received into /
the war service. The policy of emancipa-
ton aud of black soldiers gave to the fu.
ture new aspect, about which hopes, fears
and doubts contended in uncertain conflict,
according to our political system, as mat
ter of civil administration.
The General Government has no lawful
power to.effect emancipation in any State,
and for long time it had been hoped that
the rebellion could be suppressed without
resorting to it as military measure. It was
81 the while deemed possible that the me-
cessity for it might come, and that if it
should, the crisis Of the contest would then
be presented. 1t came, and, as intended.
it was followed by dark and doubtful DAYS.
Eleven months having passed, we are per
mitted to take another review. The rebel
borders are pressed still further back, and,
by the complete opening of the Mississippi
ItNtEg tue Country uOmludLeO over DIV the
rebellion is divided into distant parts, and
there is no practical communication be-
tween them. Tennessee and Arkansas have
been substantially cleared Of insurgents BY
the control and influence of the citizens in
each and the owners of slaves, and the
advocates of slavery at the beginning Of the
rebellion, now declare openly for emanci-
patton in their respective States.
OF those States not included in the
emancipation proclamation, Maryland and
Missouri, neither of which years ago would
tolerate any restraint upon the extension
Of slavery into their territories, only dispute
now as TO the best mode of removing it
from within their own limits. 0fthose who
were slaves at the beginning of the rebellion,
fully one hundred thousand are now in the
United States military service, about One-
half of which number actually bear arms
in the ranks, thus giving the double adyan>
tsge Of taking so much labor for the insur-
gents cadse and supplying the places which
otherwise must be filed with so many white
men