820
AMERICAN HIS'.rORICAL ASSOCIATION.
tuinly would have given me credit with some 'Merchant in New Orleans to advance me Cotton Gins and a Vessel, to prepare and transport to market this as well as all other Cotton made in the Country, a.nd thus in One year the Cotton trade would have been in full Opern.tion which is the principal thing that is to raise us from poverty-Besides Another brunch of my plan was to hire as many workmen As I could to build Mills Cotton Gins And Any other ImproYements that would have advanced the Country and thus enable those who did not wish to clear their farms immediately and raise Cotton to pay for their land in that way-And in furtherance of this plan I have already Commenced a Mill on the Creek above Town-The Operation of this plan would have been to save the Old Settlers from being harrassed in any way relative to their lands, for a portion of that part of the Expences which they would have been Compelled to advance under a different System would have been paid by the New Settlers-The Land would have all been ac- curately and regularly run off whereby difficulties both immediate and remote would have been avoided-The Cotton Trade would have been established at once The Country would have been improved by Mills and Machinery without delay, And by these means would have advanced more during the next year than under a different System it probably could have done in four or five- It has been objected to this that I am making an immense for- tune- A great Speculation out of the Settlers- Let us examine Care- fully this subject by the application of Arithmetical calculation to it and see what appears to be the result-The Surveying Averag- ing One League with Another and taking the bends of the Rivers and Oblong Leagues will cost about $70 per League which for 300 would be $21,000- The Taxes clue to the Government independent of the Surveying as fixed by the late regulation is $165.4 Cash on each League which for 300 [is] $49,600.4 making together the sum of $70.600.4 to which I made myself personally responsible for and $49.600.4 of that in Cash to the Government, And :for the Whole o:f which Sum I might have been called on £or in one year- To raise this sum I should have had claims on the Settlers for $555 per League which for 300 would have made $166,500 payable in prop- erty at a distant period and in small installments and that property received at double or treble what it would actual1y bring in Cash- for I appeal to you all to say whether I would now get either here or any where else 40, 50 or 60 DUs for hors.es which I have received at $100. 120 and 150 Dlls and all other property in the Same propor- tion- Independent of this Calculate the risk I run in transporting this property to l\.{arket and converting it into :Money- the proba- bility of being Compelle<1: to force Sales at any Sacrifice to raise
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