him.

He may violate the laws, sacrifice the interest of the general government and they have no power to control him."

The memorial was then adopted.

On the 11th of January a memorial to Congress was adopted asking for the division of the Green Bay land district and the establishment of a new land district.

On the 12th of January an animated debate took place upon a resolution offered on the previous day by Mr. VINEYARD, that the governor be requested to call the next Legislative Council to meet at Cassville.

Mr. SLAUGHTER moved to strike out "Cassville" and insert" Fond du Lac."

Mr. BURNETT and Col. HAMILTON opposed the amendment, and on taking the question it was lost.

Mr. KNAPP proposed to substitute "Racine" for Cassville, which was sustained by Mr. SLAUGHTER, but the amendment was not agreed to.

Mr. SLAUGHTER now suggested that the law required the Council to meet at Green Bay. He did not think it competent for the executive to alter the place.

Mr. HAMILTON concurred with Mr. SLAUGHTER and moved that the committee rise and report against the resolution, which was done and the resolution lost.

On the 13th of January Mr. EDGERTON from the committee on internal improvements, reported a memorial to Congress asking for

"An appropriation sufficient to cover the expense of surveying all the necessary harbors on the western shore of Lake Michigan, and also for the construction of two light houses; one at Milwaukee and the other at Root River."

Also for the survey and examination of the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers, and for the removal of the obstructions at the rapids in the Mississippi River."

The attention of Congress was also called to

"The opening and building of the road from Chicago to Green Bay, the surveys of which were completed last season.”

The memorial set forth that

"The subject of constructing a railroad from Lake Michigan, passing through the mining district, terminating at or near Cassville on the Mississippi River, is one which claims the attention of all who take an interest in the prosperity and growth of our country; and we would pray your honorable body to make provision for the survey and examination of the route."

It also asked Congress

"To declare Navarino at the head of Green Bay, and Cassville on the Mississippi River, ports of entry."

Mr. SLAUGHTER made an ineffectual effort to have inserted among the surveys asked for

"A survey of the Manitowoc river to its source, with a view to ascertain the practicability of connecting Lake Michigan and Lake Winnebago by slack-water navigation, and a canal of about two and a half miles."

The memorial was adopted without material amendment. A resolution introduced by Mr. VINEYARD, that the printers to the Council be instructed to print five hundred copies of the journal was adopted.

At an early day of the session, Hon. JAMES D. DOTY had been appointed Fiscal Agent of the Territory without any express understanding as to the extent to which he was to provide for the expenses of the Council. As the close of the session was approaching, it appeared that some members of the Council supposed that Judge Dory was to defray all of the expenses, which would probably be $2,000 or $3,000, while he had expected only to defray the necessary contingent expenses, amounting to about $500.

On the last day of the session, Judge DOTY addressed a communication to the Council stating his understanding of the extent of expenses he was to defray, and his perfect willingness to make the advance, as originally proposed by him, or to decline the situation.

A resolution was then introduced

"That the terms proposed by JAMES D. DOTY, upon which he will perform the duties of Fiscal Agent for the Council, are satisfactory; and that it is the wish of the Council that he may accept the appointment of Fiscal Agent."

After considerable debate, in which Judge DoTy's motives were assailed and defended the resolution was adopted.

On the 7th of January, Mr. VINEYARD introduced a resolution that the Council adjourn sine die, on Saturday the 9th of January. It was laid on the table.

On the 11th of January, Mr. VINEYARD again offered a resolution that the Council adjourn on the 12th. This resolution was also laid on the table.

On the next day, the 12th, he again offered a resolution that the Council adjourn on the 14th. On motion of Mr. SLAUGHTER it was amended by substituting Friday the 15th,

After a resolution had been reported by the committee on expenses, and adopted by the Council, that there should be paid by the Fiscal Agent, from the sum appropriated by Congress for defraying the contingent expenses of the Legislative Council for the year 1836, various specific sums to the members, printers, officers etc., amounting to the aggregate sum of $2,371.72;

And after the report of the committee on enrollment as correctly enrolled of the memorials and resolutions adopted by the Council;

And after the introduction, discussion and passage of the resolution in relation to the Fiscal Agent, the seventh and last session of the Legislative Council of Michigan Territory, on Friday the 15th day of January, 1836, adjourned sine die.

CHAPTER XVI.

ORGANIZATION OF WISCONSIN TERRITORY.

The Indian possessory right of occupancy of that part of the Territory south and east of the Wisconsin and Fox Rivers having been extinguished by treaty, the surveys of the public lands were prosecuted with vigor soon after the close of the Black Hawk war, and that part of the Territory became subject to settlement.

As previously stated, this part of the Territory was in June, 1834, divided into two land districts the "Wisconsin" district, with land office at Mineral Point, and the "Green Bay" district, with land office at Green Bay. The Green Bay district was subsequently divided and the " Milwaukee" district established with land office at Milwaukee, containing the ten southern townships west of range eighteen, and the twelve east of range seventeen.

The first public sale of lands was at Mineral Point on the 10th day of November, 1834, in pursuance of the proclamation of the President, dated July 7, 1834, by which all the lands south of the Wisconsin River and west of the fourth principal meridian, were offered for sale, corresponding with the townships now forming Grant county.

On the 6th of May, 1835, the President issued two other proclamations for public land sales; one for sales at Green Bay on the 17th and the 31st days of August, the other for sales at Mineral Point on the 7th and 21st days of September, 1835.

These sales brought into market all the lands in the present counties of Iowa, La Fayette, Green, Dane, Manitowoc,

Kewaunee, Calumet, so much of Brown, Outagamie and Winnebago as is east of the Fox River and north of Lake Winnebago; Rock county, except seven towns on the eastern side of it; the towns of Lowville, Wyocena, Marcellon, Portage, Pacific, Dekorra and Arlington in Columbia county; the towns of Kingston and Marquette in Green Lake county and that small part of Marquette county south of Fox River. Fractional townships seven, eight, nine and ten, of range 22, in Milwaukee and Ozaukee counties, embracing almost the entire city of Milwaukee, were also offered at the sale held at Green Bay on the 31st of August.

The lands south of Fox river, which were not offered at these sales, embraced the entire counties of Kenosha, Racine, Walworth, Waukesha, Jefferson, Washington, Dodge, Fond du Lac, and Sheboygan, and a part of the counties of Winnebago, Green Lake, Columbia, and Rock.

By a proclamation of the President of August 15, 1835, another sale was held at Green Bay on the 16th day of November, at which all the lands in Sheboygan county, five townships in Fond du Lac, two in Washington, and four in Ozaukee counties were offered for sale.

By the second section of an act of Congress, approved May 29, 18:30, it was provided that when two or more persons were settled on the same quarter section it was to be equally divided between the two first actual settlers, and each should be entitled to a pre-emption of eighty acres of land elsewhere in the same land district, so as not to interfere with other settlers having a right of preference.

Such rights of pre-emption "elsewhere" were called "floats," and were in very great demand by speculators in lands, for the purpose of securing desirable locations in advance of the public sales, and many town sites, supposed at the time to be very valuable, were entered with these "floats."

The pre-emption laws in force at the time of these land sales in August and September, 1835, required that the settler, to entitle him to a pre-emption right, should have cultivated some part of his land in the year 1833.

In a great many instances, settlers had gone upon lands. offered by these proclamations, with their families, in good faith, to make homes for themselves and their children, in the hope that the pre-emption laws would be extended to them. But as the bill for this purpose had failed they were

without the protection of any pre-emption law, and a serious and widespread fear existed that they would be deprived of their hard-earned possessions by the greed of heartless speculators.

But when the time for action arrived at the Green Bay sales, a spirit of justice and honorable dealing proved to be paramount to the demands of grasping rapacity. A meeting of the settlers was held, a committee appointed to determine the justice and good faith of the claims of settlers to their respective "claims," and in every case the decision of the committee was respected by the speculators, many of whom had come from the eastern cities to purchase lands offered at the public sales, and some probably expecting to bid upon the "claims" of some of these settlers; but all the settlers were allowed to purchase their "claims" at the minimum price. The good feeling which resulted was evidenced by the following card, published at the time:

"The settlers of Milwaukee tender their most cordial acknowledgments to the gentlemen who attended the land sales for the handsome manner in which their claims were regarded. And they take pleasure in saying that no case occurred which was not justly entitled to the consideration which it received.

There was but little conflict between the settlers and speculators at the Mineral Point land sales, and in all cases the just rights of the settlers were respected.

It is difficult for those of a generation living half a century after these events to appreciate the importance attached to them by those whose interests and feelings were so deeply involved.

The land sales being over, the next subjects to attract the attention and excite the interest of the early settlers were territorial and congressional legislation.

The last authoritative legislation affecting the inhabitants of the territory west of Lake Michigan and prior to the organization of the Territory of Wisconsin, July 4, 1836, was that of the sixth Legislative Council of Michigan Territory at Detroit in January, 1835, and at the special session in August of that year.

The seventh Legislative Council, which met at Green Bay on the 1st of January, 1836, in pursuance of the proclama