An Attempt to Show the Policy of Annexing Part of Mississippi
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AN ATTEMPT TO SHOW THE POLICY OF ANNEXING PART OF MISSISSIPPI TERRITORY TO THE STATE OP I 0 l] IS I A .'-.~' ..! . {f;.":"'""".,..,.""""""""-""""""""""""".,..,., . ~ ..AN A1,TE~1P'I;, &c. , • • • ~ , # • A pe;i~ has arrived, with the return of a rr~ perous a'gricitlture and commtrce, when the: n ind . of every· Citizen must lx- more or lrss occU})i• (1 on .Yr the s\Jbject 'of extending tl:ie 'princip~s of St ·f-go Vemment in this Territory,. ·.. Within the· lim ;t ~ of the United States republican institutions havt n et with a "'success . be,·ond . the· expectation ot ll't'ir warmein1qmirers, ~nd to the utter disappointn ent of their· theoretic -opposers. ' They have becomt ~o interw·ovt>n with the sentiments habits ;md growth of the people, that· w~ have the most just expe-ctati- on thanhey will noer IX- cherished. :.. · It is; therefore-, no m~tte'r of'surprise, that the temporary · expedient· of territorial government should - ~endured wit~ some impatience, and the pu'ret principles of a permanent system sought with anxiety ·and soli('itude. But it ooght to be remem ber~d. that·the system, for which our territorial go vernment may be exchanged, will as to the limits il·may emhrace, be permanent and u"alterable. It is notconly to· affect os in· all our interests and rela tions ; b\lt posterity will· share the beneficial· effects of our ~isdom ; or regret our want of discernment. :Yb~ subject; therefore, of a change of govern ment, becomes one of vast consequence, and de serves the bt'rious and deliberate·attention of evf ry citizen. It deser.ves an impartial consideration· in. depend~nt of the local ·and· a~vt'n~itious ·'politics of the day-::--thcsc: wiU 'pass away-bur tbe system to be aciopted is expected to' endure for ages. The enquiry then, whether this T erritory shall ~o ipto a state government, with its present limits _as, ·-M1ss. 01!M' OF ARCHlVCS & HISTORY... l ·-""' .. ~ .... ( 4 ) ... ·- (f!t. • .. ., • one of the deepest mterest to every person : an(t -a<llrl\' etf()rt to duciclare ap enq\1iry, so intere.:;tiog, b.may ·I)Ot be unacceptable, however humble the at. temp_t, ...... Wt' have-formed the deliberate opinion, that na•. ·...., ttrrc Hevl!r-intended the present limjts of this T erri ·'. ton to b e- emhraced in one State ; and, jf it were ... ,t'ffected, that the interests and welfare of each por ~ - tion of the T erri<orv would be jeopardiz<"d, and . the S<"eds sown of enduring dissention and animosi- ty.__ ~ . The Terntory cons1sts.ofthree prmf.lpal sections of coumr~: : Ftrst, the counties'on the Mississippi, I ~ ing west o:~ Pearl River & extending tu,ahout the SSd. degree -Of North latitucle: Secondlf!, the .. c 0unties on Tombighee, Allabama and M obile : 1 Thircjty, Madison county. The clistance bet\~een . the first and second IS nearly three hundred mdes, . and bellween the first and third more than four hun ... d red 'miles, wi•h two lndian nations intervening. ~ B et\vC'en these sections of countrv then· is no na ~ tural•or c1>mn:iercial connection- · no communit,- of ; inter,ests flr pursuits:· the situation and quality of .• •the soil preclude the hope,' that there t?ver6hould be . a COl1nected :population between the 6rit and second - sections of country ; and the intervening Indian 11ations fornid it between the -first and thirrl. T he . inhabitants of each are "strangers to those of the 0· t her ; ~nd they only meet who are selected to carry on -the optTatiotts•--ur. tlie ten'hot1a1 'g'bveirJment, m uch complained'of for bringing about that indon venience. These districts have been.thrown togetherfortui- .. g_ -=- !2 ( 5 ) tously, by Congress, for the immediate purposes of 'em por~ry government-theY. never had any natu. rat or political connection p re v~ou ~ I y : but a!> ltey ~arne. 'vithin the JUrisdiction of the U nited S es b~ the cessio!) or relinquishment of Spain, or r.ue popu_~tM by an une xpc:;~ted migration, were I Ii tts tt:ffij){lrarily d\ !; po ~ ed of, witho.ut reference to m..ru. rat ho.tii'ldaries or cpnnections-tht'refore no'anci,ent -· ~imi~_i 'can be pre~cribed for, as having fitly encom-- passed them. · From the unconnected-sitltation ofthese districts they 'muSt be ·expected7 ever to remain, in ·some measurt·, separate CQmmuni t i ~s , wirh separate and distinct i"n tcrests, never to be brought: in unison. What will be their·bafe(l!l effects when brought 'ogether under a statt: government ?. '{qe asst:ss- . ment of a rt-venue will 'be made with jeatous partia l it~ '· collected with waste; and appropriated, not ·· for ~ h~ ag~randisement of the sta,te, b.ut for pur. post s, Which will contipue and p t: rpetuat~ disst'n. tions. E ach sectinn, as its majority m~ _v· happ~n, will take to its<;'lf ('very thing in turn. '•Has it oc,. curred to l\n} one w~ere th~ seat of government will be, where the sessi.ons of a supl'('me- o~ appt'l. late court" will ~ held, and \\'ht-re the siteS of a. coilege and public schoo l s~- Tht y, most probably, would be migratory, fi xed by one; ~ajo rit y at vast exp~nce, and removed by another at eqQal.expence. If it were endeavored, for sake of'theor)r; ' to ascer ~" tain the mt'>~t cemral situation, it would .J>rob bly' be found in the Chactaw nati'on. · A t present the seat of government iS' near the Mb:~issippi. But under a Stitte government, em. _.. :;::::ao ( 6 ) \;racing the present ten·itorial limits, ran the inha. \:l t,nts of the countits on the Mississippi fl a t te~ tht- msdves tha~ it "·ould be continued among them for a single ); e~ ?_ ')'he increasing numbers of the other sections· pf country would furnish a majority to remove it to Tombigbe~ , Mobile or to a . more tli!>tant plf1ce: · T tle- supreme or appellate c-ourt, \lndcr the; s~atc gQV e ~ nment, would, of course. fot. low it : '!nd ~h~ sarne majority coul.d not be ex. pec(ed' to lea ...· e Jdit.·rson college, or am· otht<r pub. ltc institution of learning. The revenue, derived fronlThe industrY. anq wealth of the inhabitants in the counties near. th~ MississipJ)i, would he t>X· pended in a section. pf country, with which they would have ouly a forced connection throu gh the mal-confirmation of their government. The great in conv enienc~ , it~ ~av ing al\ the legtslative ann ex ecutive ope~at~o11s of the ~overnm~n t carried on at ~o great a dt stan~e , wou\c\ l;>c most !)everely felt. B ut could it be endured, that all the important causes, involving life. liberty and property . !:!hould b~ determined in the last resort at either of those distant places, or in Madison county ? Would not an imrnediate depression in the value of lands i11 the Mississippi portion of r,ou nt r~r take place? In fact, wo~ld nGt th_is section of country, whilst it em\ured a severe taxation, lose nearly all the ad vantages ·and bles-.ings of self-government ?- Might it not, with as much convenienc<:>, be ap pendt'd to t he..stet~J.. ef Cee:g":a, e: ~ ci\\l(t of --. ·c arolinas? But if it were even believed hv the •t .c._ • people on the Mississippi, that the seat of g~;vern. w ent and sites of public institutious might be re. ... ... •. ·--- ( 7 ) . tained among them,~he i!lhabitan~ of the _other districts would expe ence the same mconvemence and oppression, whi h thost on the :vt.isSil>lSippi would avoid : aod, in either event, the most ran cOr-ous jealousi<;s. and animosities ''-:buld ~nsu c: .- The local pft'juctices ofdetacned communities, un. fitly brought together'} ar~ strong'and unconquera bie. W e think we might, with confide!)ce, appeal. to our moo;t intdligeht cit i t_en~ froAl evety part .of tlit Territory_, who have' been stlede4 a~ ~i.s la tor's; ifthey hayt ~ ob.fl,erved the ~ti'on bf·the'Se pre. judices in oux territori~J assembli1s ? W e bdieye they woul~ .reply, ~hat they had, w_ith re,gr~t •. m"rl\-' ed th~ progre... s u1. those ! ~cal prtJUd•g:s 'aJld Jea l ousit~, which.~d cr<iPtri~d much to 'tJ\e hi n~ drance of pu.blit; bu!>·hress· and tp t~e annoyance of' gener_:al rileasur~s ; ~u.a . \\ hich. had introduce~ a &) stem ofbartc:n ng one loc:ll measure, unconnected 'fllb the gener.tl im~re~ts, tor another of similar im- • port. ft is irot intended,~y these observinions, to cast ~·esl' a shade, of rdle:-ctipn · on former legisl.a-• fines. The error is not attributed to theirmotives, blrt to, the sy~tem of limits, \Vhich brought toge: · ther the heterogenious intei't-sts: T o what othc:f. cause can be attributed the unprosperous course pf dur territorial government f Systems have. beeri atlopted and abandoned, laws i-nacted, amended 8r'd rt:txaled, with a profusion, that wouTI! ~m to ~sti mate tht·m of little value- local laws and !:!lf<i•_ aures rscha~d by one db"trict for simila.! ~ dic:nts for another, with the rapidity of a dnvi11g t rad.c:. Mul'h revenue ha" bt-en collected-taxes havt been high, and the people have paid tht:m: r !! ( • 8 - ) t .