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lattnbag Morning,
MAN'S RIGHT TO THE'Hoft,
SPEECH •OF
EON. r' A. GROW,
priplTl.TialtA, , , •
la Os 11011•0 et Iliptestives; Mirth it), iLkiji,
ON THE HOMESTEAD BiLtp
The House being in the .citemittee of the Whole;
on the state of the‘Union on the bill to encourage
r?Etetina, commerce. manufactures. and l other
ches of industry • by granting to every rnn oho
is the head of a family, and citizen of the United
Mates, a homestead of one hundred and sixty octal;
of land out of the public domain, spon conditioD o f
'occupancy and Cultivation oflhe same, for the yeti
bd therein specified—
Mr. GROW saitl:
Mr CHAIRMAN . The bill under bdnxiileititkon t
thnugh it only provides lor granting tO every head
of s fannly one hundred and sixty acres of-Jana on
So Equal lettlement and cultivation for five yenta,
still it involves the entire qtiliktion t.f The pmper
dispositinn to be made of the publie laude With
a domain of fourteen Lunrlratl and twodhirds mil
lions acres of unsold and onapprtipnated land, it
s wum a grave question what is the best &Vali :
lion tote male of it—whether to eerie it tA
tu ts i n which it lies, to be disposed of as they
think proper, or for internal impmvements and
Ichool purposes. or to grant it in iimined qmintrtins
to the actual settler at, a price barfly snfficient to
toyer the inst - Ct toit'vey'irmi'ltranitter, with such
limas and restrictions as, will prevent its falling : into
the hands of speculattni :Passim:P.-over Jim: the
present, the first two propositioni, tpropotterbriefly
to consider the latter.
;The power given in the Constitinion tt to dispose
of, oil make all needful rules anti resialatinni -re..
sleeting the territory or other property of the United
l eav e s .b, entitle and tnaiiiiet of disposal en
tirely to the di-tretion at tOligirffi; so that it be
comes a question merely 0 1 sound policy and Cm:
tee legislation; it is therefore the linty of Congress
to exercise it ih Orli a way as best to Ornmote the
real and permanent interest: of the country ,
The chief objectiini to granting diesel:mils to sic.
mal student. and the one of seelnitigly greatest plan.
lability, is that they have beer purcha4til by the
common treasure of the country ; and as eabh citi_
zen has contributed his shore to the purchase mon
ey, it is doh g injustice to oneclass, who, from their
circumstance in life. could not avail themselves 01
the benefit of the grant; for, but a small portion of
- those e'hd dun farms in the old Slates would aban
don them lot a.bome ill the Wept, and therefore the
' grant is unequal and unjust. It there be wily natu
ral impediment, or the circumstances of any man
be such in life that he ix unable ID avail himself n
Ile advantages of any particular act of legislatimi
it is his misfortune, and no lank of the law If rhea
lands, then, have reimbursed their entife co-t, then
700 do no injustice to any citizen by this grant, un
less it be proper for the. Government still to hold
them as a adores of revenue: "
By the Tepid nt the Seertitaik nt life intOrinr,
Made to the byti Congresi. we find the attturztte
'lump (mm the tulle et the-public lami. In Janne.
ty 10. 1850, amonnte
tad the entire coal
tank a net hainnee of receipts
ore, expenditures of ' •
inlet Imprint is made , up Of 81S 00(1,00(1 paid
France for Loorgiana ; 85, 0 00.060 ;OW Spain for
ite Flondas ; SI 489,768 66 paid Georgia for Ala
bama and Ali.sissippi ; 5.1.282,161 12 for Yazoo
0;631 9 ander Georgia; 535 589,566 Tor eitingliißh•
in: Indian titles; 86 369,838 07i
_for ourieying
17,466,324 £9 for •riling and nianaging+—making
the above sum of $74 957,864
And, if there be deariCted With the haletiO .
Mexico.. lll
815.000000 we pay Mexico for New
California, and the 510,000,600 paid Texas in stet
ting her boundary, atrd ewety other amount that is
poverty chargeablei t 6 the lands, it will still lesiva
an excess or receipts' flier e'ependitures,if the state
ment of the Secretary tie correct, In, this: calcola
two it is not proper to inelode•ihe Cost - of the auk&
&Revolution, for that was a atai waged I'm; ti e
tights of man and not for' lurid ; and even if it wee,
hem was incorred.and'peitt by a generation that
has Peed away.. Not atioutil the diet of the war
of inebe ihrinded; for that was a Waif Wagers,' iti
d'remtif of the dearest rights of the irretican.eia
zen, alit to' teach the world' Iffitche ie secure against
s ioleareatiSdhong,while adder :she ittoteotket of
the stripes acid alga:
While, then, the amtriiht'etitliiiiiil44lofilOY:
6 . me et our domeih
' 34 " , no citizen mua cam plain tbsibyota-rlo,bim is
yea by this VT21114,5 yow take!fenita him nothing;
t what yno have repaid:OrtleiiiiiiiifirgiitiOadb.;
jta of taxation, and ought, to rho
Go vemment as a snore. of reyenne,l With. equal ,
/inlet, and propriety, yoti might make. the air and,
te gunfight a matte of roviefine-'iltife . 4.o Reah! ` to
iierai . in men, if it were possible to
.7bV:ihnni. : ;, : ll o:
T RY to bottle the atmetrphereand provent•theilying
dten film inhalint theciiniermoutiless 'Aria right isi
"' l mmured by parehmeat-acii'ziliaidel the Eton • lido'
( Inantum of raVs, anti dole , not tit ampiore Men:
aeCortlinit n theif to'pay. }that .
°memment to titoriopolire any of the cif,- of Got , .
in man, and make thelir- !ha minliter of Ifnett4"6:l
dim and traffic?
. " •
Bet even it it be mike Or: the; G4venltYtellt In:
liak toll* lands at a santee of veyendeoalialpiebj
44 4 hythere nl , tleriviniomy from Them for
next g ustier o f - 2 'repeal , 'Secretary of ;'the!
F ury; in hii Wahl It*
" 11 9 the 'various nene, of Consume aPtirnrillingi
,patdia landwie objects' 'which - withimilir do*
uar n ordinary revenue room, it is Tsitireittiikr
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l=llll3=
CE=EMI
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. ottAmm i : 40FoRD _ cum •
rf*y f
1 - 1!;‘-=_•Dtrucia.
0 00, ! ,. /.S IPr - 4, ft'. ALF inallinar::EVEilt. .::.SILTURDAIt! E. .
:„„i;,„ ; . . _ _
Olitiltk;GOODßleg.
-that:lnritesenil, protein- mine the flrresittt* - • at
-be- Mainly:it 'net smtirely - . - IlependeriVfor ifs reciitiptai
tiliolt tholes leviedlipon kireign morefienditre.. f'
The wirstuna,yet 10Aterelletiold Ooderittsblio lets
'will Minim 784211113 items reined V 18.853,140
At the *korai ntrerage. of —4.909.247 46' acres -per
introvii,ever' Pi litrOft OfifitArill 'be regeired- 'eti
imrb andeinify the' warrants yet to be • issued,. is'
'estimated, tmderrherseterel'bounty land nom now
liiedditfon'to the abeidestimate.ahoold be idd
elOfFkliiii)o4-flgiiO4-85114(12. rarer here
h*tre granted for certain , pirrpeliss end consequent:
lyeemain unsold in the Market. •
. Add by' itib hind ivitiraniliimigniztisni . bin, paled
46.114 or:, land
Mem:Li:Po : me marketin the form ot. 60 1 11 lee to
soldiers: 'Sc, that, jatteing firim these Aistintants,
there is 416 tit0611)1111 nf ' the tinviiiii4seiit denying
any, revenue horn.,the fall& mrir yearit to come, for
the prirchaver.ean haY•the vitriol it lase than the
Government pries And, while the receipts knits
the lat i. ula thtis . diminishing, the e?rpenses of leg
' lilatton relative to , them areincreasing, There are
already before this Cimgegat some thirty:4l,6ot ton:
sy bills aging - grants of lam! to aid in the' construe
Lion of railroads, the whole length of whiehissoms
thing diet' nine thousand miles, being almost three
ilinusandiftilee greeter than the entire length of all
the railroads now conttrocted in Gratatiritain, and
ti bale newe than ti thointand Miles fess than those
oftlie Voited States, and requiring aftogether slime
thirty-five ecreenf land . On an average
it will weakest least four days to consider eaeb of
these bills. and determine the propriety of its pas
sage. Anil each day's legislation costs the Covert'•
meet about three thonsand dollars. So that near hall
& million of dollars witl be-spent. this season of
Congress - in dircassing anti settling the propriety of
' making grants of the pnbliclands lb railroad corn
pantos, and localimproormeuts, with 41111 ii*teas:
ituttlentvinds at each snbsequent session of Con.
Oresiti , bore; leltile the clause 'of the Constitution
eiving %O . flaw lir indispose of these gine 7
rat in hi teretts, is it correct legislation, to exercise
tids.power in such. Way, as to bringVi incocifixt w:th
other powert• of the. Constitution I The- power of
Congress over commerce is to regulate and-Nacre
s& it. it m4y thereicite improve ' and retake safe
the channels of trade that already but, ei
what 'right under ,the Constitution can .Congresi
open entirely new avenues or channels? -Is itsomod
policy; theii, tor theboverntiteni to nridertaki iridi•
'reedy id do, unlit this clause, what they-would not
have the ;tower to do directly? Such being the
prospective condition of the revenue to be derived
from the public lands, the opinion of Andrew Jack-
Win, in - his mil sage of as to the Goveruutept
embarking in A sCherne of antemetimprovetterds,
may well oppty to the present In opposing the
policy and wisdom of such legislation he says':
1 : Besides the danger to which it e.iposea CA&
Kress tif snaking hasty appropriations : to works Ail
die character pt which they
,may be frequently ma
numit. it promotes a roischteirous and corrupting in
Boehm, upon elections, by holding out to the peo
ple the fallacionwsholie Met the, success of a ttlitaill
cartilidate will orate navigable their ~ n etellbeonftl
creek or nver, bring coinmeiceto theirsloors, and
increase the value 01 'heir property. it thus faros.
combinations mrsquarider the treasury of the coun
try upon a multitude 01 local objects as Wel tp just
tegislatron es to the purity of.public men. t
The danger and eaptititie of this kind of legitlA
lice - would be avoided by gr a nting ilseilitit6 to the
!enter, while at the Fame .time it would be an ad
vantage to the States and add revenue to the fltriv.
emment,by their seitiethent.„ For, from every per
son that 'ymat induce by this grant to settle upon the
lends, you derive more revenue then you would by
a sale ar :hoot settlement to a speculator. You sell
one Minaret] and sitty•acres fur 'AM, the interest
at which, al six per cent., would be twelve dollars t
arid that is your yearly revenue-unless u be settled.
Every moo r however, bear you induce to settle upon
the pbbllo lands, by the passage of this act, yeti
Makca consumer of the articles imported into the
gauntry , And it is by your detiesou imports alone,
with the wieeptiner id a few minimiser dollars ; dun
the reitnee IO the dseiethritent ie nollieted. The
average,ainount of impOrted articles consumed by
each person, tor a series of yearsf is etalinsiled et
about seven dollars worth.-
Calling the averagei theni consumed by - each
person seven dollars, and seven: in a' fainily, it
wetly malke rorty..nine dollars of imported articles
consoMed annually by each . family. And as the
!live:age oldotieti ender the present twig is about
tfiinifer cent, each family of seven would pay iii
the Gbirinnmelit yearly fir een dallars-4fireit dol•
tars more then'you derive from thcame 4thintiiy
of land sold‘tothespewalator without a settlement.
Thitnie interest eTtfieGovemnientind ttib Siatei
is net the vatei but the ac t ual vehleirtink of . Pais.
lands. It, is important .to.the Sates, tar lbeivittif
Mehutiortifatiim Ws thit
means - of 'developing, thbir. fleapit:ea.. ettheiti:;
*ante "you would hlso inetta .the iiiiniernb4t
liuldl tong' rite
Might. be of poorer goalltyanil noiin - so desirable
toolitititt asoonta Others - more' rerigite;' sell
ere Many ..
;/;efereb4"4 t '
o'
going i'llitfriiki4pi'thift:iiilerpeirek, though they might "
nab° , witting, or if i therwere, thevreight unt be ,
able tors ythisOriverottimis ' hied is brii•
tont ritiaehedfli the seetatitothiqhilillltietil'and this
ithin ' e tie I adoppor:
AcinitY:fur a Centrartittilti.los i atiortlor lite, help
ers:A
to finish, amid the scenes of his schoolboy. dayi, , ,
rather t` in 11 1 71 - a htithe thrilifsdrengersikastferige i
seidernerit InOtie:,!yom
would 0104 , , in:servle degree therthjectim Matte'
*by the landStatasythat the Goverameht it ''pre-;
I demi Wit haii'MA bar hnitemobket - to,thei:r"l4
risdiction ,
Mirk bill - indent any per.'
soutp,aettioupnntlie.ptrbfie•frsnclilthet'would riati
under the present eystetni ; We.often beer,ittrid, r .
2514 e;skitati ptite: ,'litt4:l4, o o: nf
!kftY, 6 !!!fl i Pr i _ ll9 , FORPO 4 SWOP orti gle
Thig may:be u in , theoiy; - tatin•ininetA .
tor thenah the Government sells it et h
6135 339.092
74.957.879
460.9141 , 213
• • i ,
ErII
lek ) Ikr
- 1 •
I,.!ltzetuomEls,filt. Eu1)11130471021 raolit ANT qvai l irt.: * " -- 1,
• L "
lr:;:f; i•I e..
not:the pretethe venter, in 'Motweattea, has 7-" L
„The 'ff .
dte'bistlend rtit_ 'tit'
Ai'
Jut Weems of. two or. threchandrad per cent., o
take an inferior location, or prase still farther of in
le ifte'wildeMetat.` To trinit'dises,'Ae:OeMil hips;
his money arid
Buiibout your cities and in the densely.:
popnlinedporticins of the century, 'hetes* there
is katirpidititopklation, yott . will find
Men who , are but just. able feebtairteltv,eli
hood, by centime of such -surplusohe tendency :Of
whir, by-its constant competition, is gradually to
reilbeb'wegai to the !nervation point; and' therefore
'they ereenittili to save from their earn' ',ga a' sum
..,sofficient , to.pgrchaseq hulk out the public-lead.
and '
:remove their !amity tti it. • Theygive bar
thotight, however; iu that Mode of beiterlntibeir
Condition, for they shill* trom the trials oka.biwiler
life, and they have not, and.see no prospect of ever
having,"the mauls to stop•shorcof the extreme lim
its ofeivilization ; and thus they grope on in their .
Misery, and perhaps end their days .. tb paiipeiistri l
or came.. Open yOor public domain, an I yen in
duce a , large number of that thit, too, the
better potion of it, to beeoMe'prodicere of Menet
entities
u f file; instead of iiiireCunetinters ; and
you then place them .in a Coritiltioii to help support
the Government, instead ores now being the nieatte; l
in a greater or lees degree, of abstracting from the
earnings of thp ;Wpm; to support your elmi tiousearl
and criminal jurisprudence. And, in addition to the
'amount of 'Capons earth family may consult*, .the
market for domestic ininutactores is' enlarged and
extended. The . Beeretary of the Treatairy estimates
that each individual.consumes, annOally 8100 wont,
• '
of all kinds of products, including !milers and
clothing, seven of which . being for • iniports; some
thirty `or forty of the remaining 223 ought, probably,
to beset apart for the purchase Of articlecnot mane.
Lectured or produced by himself. This, in 'every ,
family of oilier, you fomi'sh an annual home mark
et tothendomesticmauufactorer to the amount of!
some two or threeimmlred dollars, while they wel
producing the necessaries-of life to make the ez
change with; and thus add 'so much to the real,
wealth - oftlie nation: . „ • I
But even it the Government 'could derive-any
revenue by the '*anal sale of the public lands, it
is neither knit; noir ariUtitt prdil to hald''them for
{lint, purpose , Ai long age as. 1832, Gen. Jackson,
whOsesympathies were ever with the sons of toil,
and whose heart woe as warm as his 'will was stem
bihis intellect penetrating, said in his annual Ines- ' I
1M144) if; 0311;04 On this subject:.
"It cannot - be doubted that the speedy settlement
of these hunie.einuititute the true interest of the Re
public • The wealth and strength Of a country are
its piipolation, and the bets. part of the population
wet 'hit c ittivators of . the soil. • Independent (arm
eveare.everysilters ttje basis of society, end -tree.
friends of libery.' l * -*• "To put an end forever
to all Partial end interested lestiislationrow this sub
ject 4 and to afford to every American citizen of en
terprise t'.o opportunity of Searing in independent
freehold. it seems to me. therefore, best to abandon
the idea of raising a future revenue out of the pub
lic lands"
'Thenglt the Mil Hem ol the Hermitage ii wrepe'
ed in hie shron.l, he is not dead. Stich Olen never
trten the tomb they speak to the living
Though man's life is *Vet and anon pulses weep,
yet the pinto plea he may develop an! eerftat
aside frum the question of eounttpoliey, the Haw
eminent has no right Intintled in *aeon aid the na
ture tit thing, to make the public iatls'a source o I
revenue.
Aware, however, sir, that it is • poor -place, -an
der a one hour rote, to attempt so diens, any of
tittini,rights of men, for, itiroonded by the in
thiirity oreges it tier.orit'i:a necessary, without the
time to do it, first to brush away the dust that has
gathered open (heir errors; yet it is well sometimes
to co back for the authority of hooka and treatises
—oomphied by men reared and educated on ler
monarchial institutions, whose opinions and habits
of thciuttle consequently wets more or testi shaped
and moulded by theiritilitisind examine, by
- the light, of reason into of nature, the true foinitfa;
tiurt Government and the inherent rights of men.
For power everywhere has a tendency to augment
and strengthen itself, and in this Government, its
dangeri ire two ttld44tne,:)bat dill tydiral Gov
ernment,. in its centralising tendencies,, may en-,
croach upon the reserved rights of the Slates; the
other, which is comnionlalikit to both, is, Mit the
GriiirnMent and States, by their /out and special
- leg‘lation, are constantly encroaching upon the
tights of the enlace.
The fundamentep rights,ofMan Mii*, be summed
,01)iti" kid words, Life and,HiPpines• Ths kid is
thp gib. el the Creator, and may be bestowed at his
pleasnrer btit it ro riot distisistant'arith'his citaiseter
f i cii* %measlier?, thin
other purpose,didn to be:pi:gait and
hoppioeos. • Tharefonf r ehateeereatorebet Fetid:
ed for tireoOriirigihe ooe t . ar Oreniotifig,the ether,
betongitMike' e>i at r may, of
(>;)acii 1'41014:
emery misepply hi); iiiiesar,wanfo. Asi so 1118' 1
efiettaofoirtaining life are derieed - altneol 'entire:
lititinErhe'iicdl; ever* person`' ha * right to eeli
much (!flfiti'446l",ll4l.necess a ry for.
.whjoiTer 4;flocil;Piet! porti on ajtv
therefore, he stall'apply his labor for tha t prirpose,:
from that time forth it becontee siipropriVed to his
fdit`r '." — d''‘iiniiv f
owl - lege et, l ie an A 4 , Atop! m bqu
h , e-ma, IflSife• by his ilfibusii becalms proper
fy,Auni owbjeci to'hilirtifitorel • Rot , the °flirt*
toundatinit nil ifiiifirtdprepedi Itr"himiOrlsiber.'
ajar : has , ijtaiio soeh .1:W144441k thee, an Abe,
,aramarrnit- , hate ittilie;POil of w•wiM midvtteuhi
mated . wildirriestrt 'Or' Whit tight to ',Hewitt' Dior*
- thin inotiiiiirtin
- not 'fedi§ nor lifer opidiod' s to ;
„Make more
,Frifrivei. end-ereiwer grad ; , for
vsliinti it }tint 0! 1 4ed• * ) !eiliP4 4
sit is sent by die gmitairpoentheArttia efftilMilibt
iw in his CommontariesOkat 18 dun
1.47 . 1
ontose,or natural law, sirhpa-sset of-worda
apoki pasobnenylhossid convey the notitinion'
1: 14 ; 41 0 . #4_
in #.9. /!111,081.44,PrittM,FoOnigliiiim",sa
live tight In rntain., its •ils portnanant manner, that
specific' land • which , befoto belonged generally . to
.
ev i r Y ,
it ii tnin~ ,
b° 47 buL Thltlic"°ll4 l 7 'lo , l r ,b 6 dYP
spylicsf to the silt - that
givei biaka 'la I° his amprorsoisote..for by us•
one be is entitled-to the product. of big icidosbyy.r
lo`he is 'intittea to I etifSoetbiS , sektieyy , Of if*.
Ta al erijoyrneet.of bis
igerie3yempeisi foy,eiscsl is necessary ; for building
purposes, lensing; , and fire ami& pereGna,* be
-becomes entitled Our al WI; common' fund to a tea
ianable ainaant of by 'in implied
conventional. Apoololookamong mem each would ba
plunived to retain. in Os exclusive possentioo n , as a
necessaryappetidage to hid !mprotorgeata '
. .
A n d 10 proveni en - 01cui, to,what patinas, are
aoproriale4:lo each.intlivulbal use, it is weeps,:
q that this clam shook! - be defined and this
•beatlo be -aim by a atitvey.:The refora, ilia prop
er that the. under eltOuld pay the 'Government the
'emu; Of survey ;...lor'llait,anrveys as conduetal by
the land office is 'the bast and that convinlent
mode of layincoVaild. .
Besides, he . rmps hlti fide
~recorded In sochway
cclfnPilled.fo rely & upon the memory of
men, or .be exposed to tbedangeri of perjury. It
therefore proper that he should pay tbeneeesse
expense of the pspefttfle, tot fox notbit.g .else.
As property is the only propersubjeet of taxation,
nor should the Government look to aught elm for
,
its . soppott, it has no flight to hold this public lands
as a source of revenue. It may be liaid,Tme, such
wookl be menivrighw to the foil in , a state of na
ture; but when he entered into sbeiely, he gave op
• part of his natural rights, in order to enjoy the ad.
vantages of an organ ited community.
This, is, a doctrine, lam aware, of the books and
treaties on society and government ; Eut is a doe.
trine of despotiem, and belongs not to enlightened
(gatemen in h age. It is the excuse of the
despot, in, encroaching upon the , rights of the subject
- Readmits the encroachment, bet elaires that the (fit.
izen gave up part of hie natural rights wherhe en
tared into society'; and why is to judge What ones
he relinquished butlhemling power I It was - nnt
necessaryihatany of man's natural -rights should
be yielder, to the State in the formation of society, he
yielded no right but thi right to do Writig", ind that
he Oeitirhal dy !law!, All he yielded in enter.
ing into society was a Punkin, of his unrestrained
liberty, and that was, that he would submit bloom
duct, that before was subject to the control of no
living being, to the tribunals to be estibliihed by
the State, and with the tacit consent that society,
or the Government, might regulate the mode and
manner of the exercise of his rights ; but why
should he consent to he deprived of them It iw
upon this ground that we justify resistance to tyr
ants. And whenever the ruling power we' far en
croaches upon the natural rights of men that an sp.
peat to arms becomes preferable to submission.
they appeal from human to divine laws, end plead
the natural rights of man- in thei. justification- That
Gosermitent, end that alone; id jnst which enforces
ad.! defends ail of inan'a righti, and protects him
agamit the wrongs of his fellow-man
Bat, it may be Said, althmighSuch might be the
rights bf men, yet the Government has right to these
sands. sell may can then* age source of revenue,
;miler the doctrine of eminent domain. Thiti claim
by Goiernrnent had its origin tn the Inexim, that
whatever was cajaifile of owrierShip mast have a
legal and determinate owner. Therefore, whiney
er vliaa not appmpriateri by - individuals, as it belon
ged in eceTimon to the whole Btale, was vested in
the King as its head. Not only was foresmovastk,
ground., lind wrecks, bet the sole proprietorship of
his empire ; and he might grant it to his lords, and
deal- it out in manors to the favorites of his enact.
Bat it is not neeeskary for me to 'Tana time in no.
tieing the origin "of, or the wrongi indieted Tatman
. under thin doctrine, el eminent domain ; for the
Mahn of this Government, so far as this point is
concerned, is embraced in the , right el discovery
This is a claim, alsb,,open which, the books vest a
' tight to the Pod .1 1 the King, or ruling power, under
whose rumnsee land is discolored not before
'known - in divilisid man. It might be proper that s
nation that-has sent •lorth a. fleet,, end divcovered
band, ehnoW have the, direction of the legislation
.tor the government of the men who should mule it
—have jurisdiction of the laws'of the tenithrf;lin t
how can it acquire rights which man "himself can
not acquire by theemeeenacesel It is a reasona
ble 'Joan attenhod to the Sloe
Augment aotilnatitotionset his - fatherland; and if the
• men who fret tliseaver a country Wire to mettle in
it ella.erierittclietote.etle yie r tat!
°Lye th_eferktla_ptle lttnieli 6t hßet 6 r 'Jew' of
.their Janda& t-TherefOre, there ism- properieti in
giving tat nations -forixdiationi Weser the men and
rifblienj &Ode, bat
-•111*°0406.1:4404 • • . • •
It lalthiy neceasarir bristly to sabot to , the lots
andJustory of,twieveriesewthia continent, *show
-the want ofAsseaionittle foundation bin vinraliims
'to the/lima lisle
Spatd bean 'the flrs(tOencodrlge voyages oft es
tern: tscotreaf, was: ; zinopean - Power .to
_claim any rightism land - on thiti.side the' ocean
'But as Col e tebtrt melte:Phis ftrsifinaieketi SA island
othhe mikin .404
000liimot toCiaor,iiwoo,oieito :Or othel.coy-
Ape, the right ttf.aminertitiortiain I:us:lpe dew ith
ed with other nations. John and Sabattiii•Tabot,
• ,
sailing near / the_ausfilges fitglaq, ktal. Plfrov;
.erit
h.. . i t--tkeetiethieel . 9 l .4etth Amines , the *hems el
_ck ItniwAlhemado , Soond to • notth • of Nova
Scotia 'werfafterparde v ixtiikeo 1? , / die Fiore
I „ A hat i itcfpfth e opttctb \IR
le Aceallr•ort the tact that.thecivilisesi sins** gas
sesiisufaiefitia• roOkraaais l orNew En
otthaviowiniteisi
•la becomes the aisikoro(s' vast eentivint
,:,;L.i: .. s , t; ,; l .i F i r h r::i-..ilt:.•ti !1 , !, ,, ,
f ,. .., -;•,i'i
EWE
. 1.-.-
.
Mil
fiat taied
which . nom p his.gles never
cns
'limes Carper, a native of Si. Mato, lands at the
pled OrGe!pe, tin, the ahore of Canada, and erects
there a shield "Silk the Lillie. of France and hence.
forth a wide,lenantlets territory is to be esteemed a
part of the of Fiance s intl !objected to
dot TP*ltrallt• or ler . ' •
Juan Ponce di Leon plants tbe cross on the coast
of Florida, end throwing to the brute the trade*
led linne r et Spain, takett taweassitm Of the country
.in the name of Charlet the Figh. Nineteen yawls
later, Ferdinand de into gaire.to the world the Gnu
tnoarledga a the Mississippi, and sank to his grave
beneath da 4theffreitiot these! discoveries'
- Spenn eleime ihe:'Floridas. •
,Spch, is the origin of
thelights ciaimed by France; angland,, and Spain,
-to thichlotth American continent; and by - conquest
and parchment, this Cinienurient has taken their,ti-
llpto the territory now compiling the United States:
that of England by the Revolution and runty to WI.
lonial oubjecto and proprietori;; of France by the
eession of Nail 30, 1303, anti nrSpain`by the tree-
February 2t, 1019. 14ebeianke- vested, ills
true r !Rh .4W - their rights, but•they had nothing to
convey, Site that a anbject of theirs was the first to
discoter land never hem in their own quaint lan •
go" 'age ) " looked, Upon by the; bitristian eyes." What
•I‘ind of a foontlationie Ahlti upon which to base a
right affecting the happiness of man - and the destiny
of the fecal Whitt is there id 'the constitution of
.001;givittii 19 o'ne . individeal the ecqee,n4l eselu
sire right to any of the bounties provided by nature
for the benedivond support of the -whole race, be.
cause, perchance; he wait the, tint to.' look upon a
There fragment of the creation
_I By thq same pro.
can of reasoning, he who should lust ituicover the
source or month of a rhea, would be entitled to a
monopoly of the waters that 'time in the channel
Or he who should first look upon one of the sills or
fountains of the earth, might prevent tainting man
from quenching there his Thins, unless this right
was first secured by parchment. Why has this
Maim* of min to monopolise! any of thelifis of God
o man been confined, by legal' codes, to the eo
alone! Is there any other reason than that it is a
right which, hav,ing its origin in feudal times—un
der a system that regarded man but .as an appen
dage of the 'oil that he tilled, and whose lite, liber
ty, and happiness were but means of increasing the
li:erasures, pampenng the passions and appetites of
his !lewd lord—and, having once found a place in
the books, it has ..beeri retained by the reverence
which man. is wont te pay-to the put and.to time
honmedrecedenta: The human mind is to con-
slanted, that it le prone to regard as right what has
come, down to us approved by long usage and hal-
lowed by grey age. It is a claim that had its origin
with the kindred idea that royal blood flows only in
the veins of an exclusive few, whose souls are
more etheriai, becanse borri,amiil the glittet of coon,
and cradled amid the pump of lords and - courtiers;
and therefore they are to he installed as rulers and
law *ivers of the race. Most of the evils that affli•
_
cats society have had their origin, in siolence and
wrong enacted into law by the experience of the
past, and'retained 'by the prejudices" Of the pros.
ent
Is it not time you smeltt (ram your statute-,!:vwa
its still lingering relies of feudalism ti wiped out the
principlesingrafted u?on it by the narrownunded
policy ofroh#t tittles, and adapted the legislation of
the country to the spirit of the sue, it to the true
ideas of man's rights and relations, this govern
mentl. • -
For if a man hai a right'on earth, he has a right
to land enough to rear a habitation on. If he has a
right to live, he right to the tree use of what
eirer onions has provided for his sustenance—nir to
breathe, water to think, and land rawnigh to culti
vate for his subsistence. For these are the necess.
cry and indispensable means for the enjoyment of
his inalienable rights, at "'life, liberty, and 'the pur
suit of bappipess." And is, it . for a Government
that dells to dispense eon'sl evict jostice to all elms
ass of meti, and that has laid down correct princi
ples Visit chart of human ei hts toViolate
:hoe" prippiple", and its solemn declination" in its
'legislative enactments? ..
The struggle between capital and,labor is' an nn
equal one at best. It is s ptraggle betweek the
bones anti sinews of men and Aollars and cents ;and
in thattsrunde, it needs no pmphet,'shen to ((Ireton
the issue... , And in that - Styr :41e, is it for th:lsGovern.
'mem to sissich forth its arm to aid the strohesgainst
the weak! 'Shall it continue, by its legislation, to
elevate and.enrich idleness on the wailarid the woe
of industry?
Poe if the rule. DA correct a's, applied to the-goi
well as individuate, that whatever a
liaison ;writs another to do, having the • right and
*mate le prevent it,,he'doet himself, then indeed..
is lire Goveritinetii reepoolitibli"for alt the uiila . that
May fo.rillffMP,. ll lW 4ll 4 o ntul,kand monopoly in
-yonsinblierdomain: For itisoot-deniedihat Con
-entsirhas the pester to Mate any regulations *the
'dtePitsil rif - fhOsi landi, notrincurisuk to , tjte general
welfare Now whin a new tract ii_surveyed; and
-you, °pinyon* land office . awl etimise it to We, the
shun *Meth" matt inetieY is the largest purchaser.
The mew deilrehre: and availablelocaiions are seiz.
ttrl apon by , ihe capitalists of the century ) , who seek
.tbat kind 01 investment. Tour settler vrhffehances
. not to haves preemption right, or to be there at the
titne . ol sate, when he'mtMes to for
hiSiSelf and'hikfamily; he mast pay the speculator
three or font Winifred. per tent. on his investment,
or encounter the trials' and havdshipl of a still more_
testicle border' g fe r ' . And thyt", under; the operation,
uOtarictjnit you• lake fro
the three or:!oar dollars Tier acre, , and- OW • it'
is thepoehitt_of the:speculator: Thus, brit* Mr/.
elan efiyhartatv; abiltanthiisis much of: hieltinit
: 1 0:9 1 2 , *t* #lll.oe.kliVrti."l;ftl'
, tty:tbs:Gcurernmsmtotor ia it-mare ,valuable •• to the
'seder. Illiternee the iettrittiew *V to coitraTif el;
*04,44 *Nat .- tient/4i bi
ail 1' enniibilisPortion.erite
. .
rot th e Inlet 01 thetaliteliet 1 BO nut trtiln
MI
-.-Isrp,..
•,
.•
o=-=:7
14
4 C•':::y
-
‘" • -
.7;
MatEMTo
01 e cePitaii 49lo i dre t!POuttiOf (!roper that
,'fie
blainti should tall.. ii,:itStriteek
and do business under the Irma of themountry; and
whatever rights ha may acquire : unite[ ISO fairs,
though ; they . be wrong, yet, the wellbeing of
ty requires that they be respected and faithfully ob
served: If a person engage in a buitiiteris legaliz
ml and tegulated.by the laws; ant' usie.rieffiti,d_r
deception in itsfurtoik tunley,de result to the corr.
triunity, let them 'pp!, the remedy to the proper
source; that is; to the law•makinePorier'l The
lase anti the law.tnalters are responsible for *hal.
ever evita' necetsatily grow out of their rise.
teents.
While the publie lands ate expretedln indiscrint.
inate sale, as they have been smce the organization
of the Government, it opens the door ro the W Rifest
'system of land monopoly—one of the, direst, ileadtl.
est curses that ever paralized the energies of ns.
thin, nr pelpierl the arm of indestry. It needs - it°
lengthy dissertation to portray its evils . Its 'history
in the Old IVorld . is written in sighs aeiltertis. yr].
der its influence,you behold. in England, the prpri c t.
est and Most splendid aristocracy, side by !qtre
with the most abject and debased people; vast mi
nors hemmed in by hedges as a sporting ground
for her nobibity, while men are dying beside the
liverwurst for the, want of land to till. - Thirty them
and proprietors hold the tele.ileeds to die . sokof
Great Britsin, while in Ireland alone there are two
and a halt millions of tenants that Own. ne part of
the )and they cultivate, nor can they ever acquire a
title to a foot oi ii; yet they pay annually from their
hard earnings S20.000 ; 000 to absentee landlords for
tbeinivilege of dying, oa their soil. under its blight
ing influence you behold industry.in,rags, anil, pa,
pence in despair.. Such are come of the fru - es of
land monopoly to the Old World ; and shall we plant
iteseeds'in the virgin and of the few? Our system
isetubject to like evils,not so great in magnitude, per,
baps, but similar in kind. Let the public domain then
be set apart as the patrimony 01 labor, by prevent.
ing its being absorbed by capital, and thus, instead
of blessing the race, become its curse. Antl, while
asked to grant these hinds to corporations and. States,
in order to develop the resource of the reentry, and
thereby add to its greatness, let ur not forget in whet
its true greatness consists. We are pointed to the
cities and villages that, will spring up along the
lines of 'host' improvements, as a reason why such
appropriations of the land should be made. Every
American will rejoice at whatever adds to the great
ness and glory of his country. Bat it is doubtful
whether the appearances of greatness that grow up
under a system of local and spelal legislation are to
be considered as adding to the real glory.of a cone.
tr).
_ _ .
It is not a sure indication that the people of that
country are moat prosperous and happy in which
you behold the most spleriltd edifices, the greatest
profusion of wealth and concentration of capital. Ile
who .bases his opinion of the real happiness of
people noon such evidences alone, is equally fool-
Rah with him who, in view. of a vast city, judge*
the co-dition of its inhabitants by the lofty spire
and towering dome, forgetting that beneath those
georgenns structures, in damp cellars, deep in the
earth, dwells the moat squalid poverty, misery, and
woe---while in its streets-are to be seen the hag
gard and careworn laborer, the over-taxed seams.
tress, and the child trained to beggary arul to
If you would raise fallen mart from his degrads.
lion, elevate the servile fiorn.hisgrovelMg, pursuits
to the rights ar d dignity of men, son
to place within their reach the means for supply
ing their pressing physical wants 'SO that religion
may evert its influence on the Soul ant! soothe the
weary pilgrim in Gis polite ay to the tomb. For it
is in vain yon talk of the goodness and benevolenee
Of an Omniscient Ruler to him, whose lite from the
cradle to the grave, is hot one continued scene of
pain, misery and want. • Talk not of free agency in
him whose only freedom is to choose Lis own
method to die. In vain you entreat - him to rultivaie
the intellect and purify the heart whose days are
dragged out in procuring a morsel to sustain life.
aml whose last prayer, as he falls broken.heiiited
into his kennel of straw,ls that he May never be
held the light of another day. 1n such cases, there
might, perhaps, be some feeble conceplinn — of reli
gion anti its duties—of the infinite, cierlasting, and
pure ; but nide , . there be a more *than common
mina. they would be like the dim abattoirs that
float in the twilight.
Riches, it is true, are not necessary to man's en
' jOyment ; but the means to prevent Starvation .are.
'or is a splendid palace necessary to his rein! hap
piness ; but a shelter against the stem and winter's
' blast
II you *mould lead the erring baCk from the paths
of-vice and crime to virtue and to honor, give him
home--give him a hearthstone; 'and he will sur
round it with household gods. if yon would make
men wiser and better, relieve your almshousert,
close the doors of your peniteetiariris; and break in
piece, your gallows—purify the •infitiencee of the
domestic fireside. • For that is the school in which
human character is formed, and there its dertny
is shaped ; therethe,soir receives its first impress,.
ant Men his first lesion, and they go with him for
well or through life. For purifying tho
,
senri
inent, elevating the thonp,hts,, and developing the
noblest irripnl , es of man's nature, the influent as of
":a oral firesiide and agricultural life are tho noblest
and the best. In the obscurity of the cottage, far
removed nom the Seductive itillueni.ea of rank and
dighience, is nnStifibed,the viitues that connteract
the 4ecay of human institntions—..the courage that
defends themational indepentleace„and the indus
try that supportaall classes of the State.
Tt 7as saidby, Lord Chathern, in his appeal to
the House of Commons in 1773, to withdraw the
'British troom (rem Boston, .hat , ttrade. is.
if creasesthet . glory and wealth of a country; brit its
it tree strength anti stamina are to be looked Mr, fa
"the eoltivatore of the land fn the simplicity of
lieei in found the simpleness of virtue,
ritran.i manger of freedom. These tray- geniis
!!ine sons of the soil are invireible."
Disc EntotTit sae! 1
:~:~,
M=
IS
mai
-