Oregon Republican. [volume] (Dallas, Or.) 1870-1872, 1870-10-01
10 he Orfgon 3rpub.irau.
COUNTY OFFICIAL PAPER.
The school Fund Again.


The question as to what shall be done
with the proceeds arising from tho sale
of the SOC, 900 acres of land originally
donated to tho State, for internal inns
provemeAts, seems to absorb all other
questions pending in the Legislature.
This fund was, by the Constitution of
Oregon, set apart as an irreducible
school fund, the interest of which
should only be used for the purpose of
common schools. The people of the
State have always supposed that the
money arising from the sale of those
lands vas to be used for that purpose !;
but now, after the State has been in
operation for ten years, new light
suddenly breaks in upon the minds of
some of the gentlemen who now rep
resent the people Of Oregon in legis>
.latiye capacity.
The true state Of the case is this, IN
1S41, Congress donated to States then
existing, and to those that should af.
,terward come into the Union, 100000
acres Of the public lands in each State,
to be selected by the officers of the
State and if the selections should be
approved by the Government, then the
lands could be disposed of by the State
apd the proceeds applied to internal
Improvements. On tho coming In to
the Union of some of tue Western
States, the people feeling greater an
xisty to educate the youth of the land
than for the accomplishment of any.
thing else in the State, agreed to use
this fund for school purposes, provide |
Congress would consent. Oregon and
Iowa were found among the States who
decided thus to appropriate this fund,
and provided in the Constitution of the
State this: : "All the proceeds of the
100000 acres Of land to which the
State is entitled by the provisions Of
an act Of Congress, entitled an act to
appropriate the proceeds of the sales of
the public lands and to grant pse.emp-
zion rights, approved the 4th of Sept,
1871, and also the FIVE per centpm of
the net proceeds of the sales of the
public lands to which this State shall
become entitled on her admission into
the Union (if Congress shall consent TO
such appropriation of the two grants
last mentioned shall be set apart as o
separate and irreducible school fund, to
be called the common school fund"
Now, let it be understood that the two
grants mentioned above were both do
mated to the State for the special pur.
posc of Internal improvement. Our
Constitution, of which the above pro-
vision formed part, was presented to
Congress, and Oregon was admitted in
to the Union under and with that Con-
,stitution. Now, in the act of Congress
admitting the State into the Union,
they say: Whereas, the people of
Oregon have framed, ratified, and adopt
ed Constitution Of State government,
which is Republican in form, and in
conformity with the Constitution OF the
United States, and have applied for ad-
mission into the Union on an equal
footing With the other States, therefore
be it enacted, that Oregon be, and she
is hereby receged into the Union
We hold that if Congress had stopped
right here, and said no more upon tho
subject, their consent would have been
complete; but we arc not left here t
.cavil. Congress expressed their assem-
in other terms, too strong to be misun.
,derstood, for in the act of admission
section four, they ask the people of Or
egon to consent by % resolution irreyo
cable, that the FIVE per centum above
referred to, and which is made by th'
act of Congress part Of the interna
improvement fund, shall be diverted
from the purpose to which il has beer
applied by the Constitution of Oregon
lanA assented to by Congress in the ac
of admission), hack to the purpose fol
~hichit originally applied by the sale
act Of Congress, or, in the language 0
the act itself, "for the purpose Of max
Ing public roads and internal improve
meDts, as the Legislature may direct.
And the act further provides that th
State Of Oregon shall not consent tha
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