Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-07-22

to all the lands that comprise tne
public domain. By the Articles OF
Confederation agreed to In
November Is, 1777, and ratineo oy
the several states in the four SUD.
seouent years, the government OF
thu United States of America was
organized and pursuant to that ac-
ton took possession of the unappro-
priated Crown lands of Great Brit
air. as the successor TO that gov
eminent. The treaty of 17S3 was
England's formal REIMBURSEMENT OF
ali proprietary and territorial rights
in this country, leaving the owner
ship of the United States and the
Individual states undisputed.
The Continental Congress next
passed a resolution recommending
that the several states should sur
rel der all their waste and unappro-
priated lands to the central govern
ment, as a measure toward paying
the debt incurred by the War of
the Revolution. Each OF the states
! held or claimed vast acreages out
side their own geographical boun-
daries. Virginia, for example, had
almost 200, 000, 900 acres in the ter
ritory lying north Of the Ohio river
and east of the Mississippi; Massa-
chusetts had millions of acres now
included in Michigan, Illinois and
Wisconsin; Connecticut had a tor
ritory almost as large in what is now
northern Ohio, Indiana and Illinois;
South Carolina held a strip fifteen
miles wide which now forms the
northern part of Georgia, Alabama
and Mississippi; North Carolina
claimed what is the present state of
Tennessee and Georgia had 56,000,-
900 acres In what are now the states
Of Alabama and Mississippi.
One by one these holdings were
coded to the federal government in
some instances subject to certain
financial obligations. until eventually
the United States had acquired in
this manner some 100000 square
miles or 100000, 900 acres, at a
cost of $4,000. 900.
Then came a series Of treaties
through which we took yer hold
ings of foreign governments as a
result of purchase or war, or a COM
biration Of the two. First Of these
was the transaction with France in
1903 whereby the United States
came into possession of $780,
92o acres, now known as the Louis
lana Purchase, constituting a part
of Mississippi, Alabama, Texas, Colo
iduO, NJOIlAli6y XlOuldIld, anu IIlC
states lying between them and the
Mississippi river. The purchase price
was ~$15.000,000 but by the time the
deal was contaminated interest
charges. claims. etc., had brought
this amount up to $~27,267,621.
From Spain we purchased what
is now the state of Florida in 1919
and in 1S4S Mexico ceded us 1884,
443,520 acres, comprising the pres
ent states of California, Nevada,
Utah and parts of New Mexico, Ari-
iona, Colorado and Wyoming. Two
years later Texas gave us title to
some sixty-odd million acres, now
constituting a part of New Mexico,
oklahoma and Colorado, and then
came the Gadsden Purchase from
Mexico of 30,000,0 600 acres now in
included in New Mexico and Ari-
IONA.
One of u biggest real estate
deals was the purchase of Alaska
from Russia in 1857, when we paid
$7.200,000 for 3~7S,165,76O acres.
Hawaii was moi as large a t~ransac-
ition, but a very important one, fol-
lowing which came our troubles
with Spain as a result of which we
acquired Porto Rico. Guam and
the Philippines, in 1898. The year
towihS, ny treaty with
ano Great Britain. we took over Tu-
tuila and other small Samoan ISL
ands by annexation. The Oregon
country embracing more than $780,
Ooe,0OO acres was claimed by this
government through discovery and
exploration, and this claim was
recognized by treaty with England
and Spain. More recently we pur-
chased the Virgin Islands from Den
mark.
In. all, the area which the United
states has acquired from foreign
governments In n way and an
other amounts to about 400 00
square miles. or 1900, 900, 600 acres,
The total cost was slightly less than
$4,000, 600, or a little more than 4
cents per acre. which any real
estate agent will tell the world was
a good investment.