The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-08-23
FIFTEEN STATES FOR s1e,ooo,ooo.
The Grand Bargain Uncle Sam Made
in the Louisiana Purchase.

in the Louisiana Purchase.
From the Boston Advertiser.
The recent admission TO the union Of six
states in the far west emphasizes the fact of
the immense area Of our country; and when
it is remembered that the great region out
of which these and so many other states
have been carved was bought from France
at one stroke for sic, 000, 900, the magnitude
Of the transaction and the comparatively
trifling cost Of this territory are equally
striking. LESS than 2 cents for each 100
acres OF land conveyed" is the statement of
L. f. Munson, in O leading historical article
on THE Louisiana Purchase" in the "New
Englander" for August. Truly may we say
tnat Louisiana cost us next to nothing. The
exceedingly interesting fact Is made PROM
lnent in the article to which we have re-
ferred that France had only a nominal DOS
session of Louisiana at the time Napoleon
sold II under treaty to this country Spain
had just previously coded back this terri
tory 20 France by secret treaty of Oct. l.
1900, but the Spanish flag still fioated in
New Orleans and generally throughout
the settlements of Louisiana. aud CONNER
clal rights were denied the United States In
New Orleans by Spanish authorities for two
years after this secret treaty. President
Jefferson had, however, learned Of the
treaty, and it was for the purpose of secur-
ing commercial privileges, not for the pur-
pose OF negotiating for the purchase of
Louisiana, that James Monroe was ap-
pointed special minister to France. Every
thing favored the United States at this time,
1t will be remembered. France needed
money not only, but England had twenty
warships in the Gulf of Mexico waiting for
the signal to move up the Mississippi and
seize Louisiana. Napoleon was not in posi-
ton to defend his American possession, and
seeing that he was be und to lose them if he
did not sell them really played a brilliant
part In turning them over to the United
States for au amount large in those days,
and which enabled him to prepare more
suitably for the final struggle with England.
1t is of interest to note that Spain actually
gave over the province of Louisiana to
France only twenty days before France
formally relinquished the province to the
United States.
1t is little difficult to exactly describe
the limits of the territory included in this
purchase, because there was not a single
boundary line given or referred to in the
treaty. Louisiana, as it came to the United
States was larger than the thirteen original
states 1t embraced q territorial area, as
Mr.. Munson points out, $50 times larger
than Massachusetts, and twenty-six times
as large as New York. In the eighty-sevep
years since this grand acquisition there have
been admitted to the union from Louisiana
twelve great states east of the Rocky noun
tains, each nearly twice as large as the EN-
pire State, and the three states of Oregon,
Washington aud Idaho west Of the Rockies.
Estimating our population at 65, 900, 900,
there would be less than fifty to the square
mile, if all we're located In the Louisiana
purchase, while by the census of 1880 Massa-
chusettS has 22S to the square mile, and
New York log 1t is not to be won
dered at that Jefferson's purchase i'm
pressed itself very favorably upon his own
generation after a very short period of
criticism at the extr6constitutional nature
Of the treaty. In our day the purchase of
Louisiana appears to be the most important
territorial acquisition of the kind ever made.
Several more states are still to be created
out of this territory, and tee rapid develop
ment of the states already in existence have
made of Louisiana as it was in Napoleon's
day populous AID prosperous region.
whose like jefferson himself doubtless ne yer
Orpapnad Of