{"1": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3114", "width": "1835", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0001.jp2"}, "2": {"fulltext": "vO\\n^^^m^- ^0^\\n4 O\\n^\u00e2\u0080\u00a2V\\n-n^o^\\n.\u00e2\u0080\u00a2^o^\\n.f^\\n-^bv^ ^m^^^\\\\ ^^c^ ^^^k- t,.v\\n^\u00c2\u00b0-7-^ .^i^^ q^ ^i^ iP^.\\n^1,", "height": "2984", "width": "1876", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0002.jp2"}, "3": {"fulltext": "^\u00e2\u0096\u00a0^^a^\\n,0-\\n\u00c2\u00a3^fi-\\n^_^\\n;:ii\\\\\\n,40^\\no\\n^o\\nMl)^ ^S\\n,.0\\n^o\\n^t.. /^W/", "height": "2984", "width": "1876", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0003.jp2"}, "4": {"fulltext": "", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0004.jp2"}, "5": {"fulltext": "", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0005.jp2"}, "6": {"fulltext": "", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0006.jp2"}, "7": {"fulltext": "DOCUMENTS IN PROOF\\nOP THE\\nCLIMATE AND SOIL\\nOF\\nPARTICULARLY\\nNEW YORK:\\nW. LUNT BRADBURY, PRINTER,\\nNo. 2, Hanover Square.\\n1835.\\nV3\\nv.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0007.jp2"}, "8": {"fulltext": "", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0008.jp2"}, "9": {"fulltext": "TO Tim, PEOPLE OF FLORIDA.\\nLttttrt from tha Honorable JOSEPH M. WHITE, to his constituents in Florida.\\nFellow Citizens:\\nIf I had not in accordance with the views I entertain of the duty of a represen-\\ntative to his constituents, prescribed to myself a rule, from which I am unwilling to\\ndeviate, at the end of each successive session of Congress to give you a brief history\\nof what was proposed to be done for your benefit, I should, on the present occasion,\\nhave remained silent.\\nThere has been, in the six months of the session, not yet terminated, so little of\\ninterest, or of congratulation, that I might, with great propriety, have spared you\\nthe trouble of the recital of the causes which have prevented the consideration of any\\nother topics, but those general ones of the deep and pervading interest which havo\\nagitated the whole country, from the meeting of Congress, to the present time.\\nAs, however, you had a right to expect that some subjects of imparlance to you\\nshould be acted upon, it is incumbent upon me to show that the failure to despatch\\nthem did not arise from any want of attention or negligence on my part.\\nWhen I arrived here, after a voyage to Europe, rendered indispensable by causes\\nwith which you are familiar, I found the whole country in the deepest state of distress\\nand excitement, resulting from a contest between the Executive and the Bank of the\\nUnited States. It is not my province to go into the merits of this controversy. Tha\\ncombatants of the respective parties, impute, as usual all their blame to their ad-\\nversaries.\\nAt the end of the preceding session of Congress, the country was in a state of\\nthe most unexampled prosperity. Commerce, agriculture, and manufactures wer\u00c2\u00ab\\nall flourishing. We had a sound currency, well regulated and safe exchanges, a\\ncorrect standard of value, and fixed prices of property. Now, the whole Union\\nbears the appearance of the vegetable kingdom after a black frost. Commerce and\\nmanufactures are languishing, banks breaking, exchanges disordered and fluctuating,\\nand the currency deranged. Importations have been so far checked that a great\\ndeficiency in the revenue is anticipated the land sales will be diminished, and a cor.\\nresponding reduction may be expected in all the appropriations for maritime defence,\\nand the improvement of the Territory.\\nIn this state of things, it would be as unreasonable as preposterous to expect that\\nthe attention of Congress could be directed to, or their deliberations interrupted by,\\nany other objects than those of such a paramount and absorbing nature.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0009.jp2"}, "10": {"fulltext": "Hoping that, at some portion of the session, we might find a little time for mere\\nlocal and teiTitorial bnsiness, I took the earliest opportunity to prepare all the bUls\\nnecessary for such purposes.\\nWe have obtained appropriations to carry on the navy yard, fortifications, and\\narsenal. j .u\\nProvision has been made to prosecute the surveys of the public lands, and the pri-\\nvate confirmed Spanish titles. ,Q04 U\u00e2\u0080\u009e\u00e2\u0080\u009e\\nAbill.drawnbyme, giving the right of pre-emption up to January, 1834, has\\npassed the Senate, and will, no doubt, receive the sanction of the House of Repre-\\nsentatives.\\nThis bill contains a legislative declaration that settlers who reside in the pine woods,\\nand cuUivate in the swamps, are to take a pre-emption at either place. It was with\\nsome difficulty that I induced the committee to incorporate this provision, besause\\nthey considered it was an act ofsupererogation, as, according to their construction of\\nthe existing laws, that right is perfect without further legislation.\\nA bill has passed the House of Representatives, and will doubtless become a law,\\ndirecting the sale of one-fourth part of the lots in the town of St. Rlarks.\\nThe c\u00c2\u00b0ustom-house wiUalso, upon tlie recommendation of the collector, be removed\\nto St. Marks.\\nThe act to equalize representation in the Territory, and for other purposes, was\\nnot in all respects such as I could have desired, but was the best that could be pro-\\ncured under all the circumstances. It is impossible for Congress to lay off the dis-\\ntricts of a Territory according to population, or local divisions and sub-divisions.\\nThis power was conferred upon the Legislative Council, and is still retained by them.\\nI received their resolutions, requesting three new members from certain designated\\ncounties, andhad them referred to the Committee on the Territories. I urged upon\\nthem, a general provision, to give every county in the Territory a member.\\nIt is impossible, in a new country, to regulate this by numbers, because it would\\ntake three or four of the new counties to make up the population of one large one;\\nand yet the new counties, in fact, require, in many instances, more local legislati^\\nthan any others, and ought to have a Representative acquainted with their peculiar\\nsituation, and the persons best qualified for the various necessary subordinate offices.\\nWhen it is considered that the population is daily changing, and that the Legislative\\nCouncil represent the whole Territory, and that there are happily no geographical\\nor sectional divisions to prejudice the interest of one at the expense of another, it is\\nhoped that every portion of the Territory will be satisfied.\\nSome alarm was excited, some years ago, in the middle district, by a proposition\\ntoremove the seat of Government, and a fear entertained that the east and west\\nmight combine against Tallahassee. I never had any apprehension of that sort\\nmyself, and was surprised that any emotion should bo produced, as tlie seat of Go-\\nvernment was fixed by an act of Congress, and could not be removed without the\\nsanction of Congress.\\nThe preponderance of the two extremes appeared to be greater than the neces-\\nsities of their local condition required; and I urged upon Congress the necessity\\nand expediency of giving to the middle district two more members, which has been\\ndone in a bill that has passed the House of Representatives, and will no doubt pasi\\nthe Senate.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0010.jp2"}, "11": {"fulltext": "I trust this will give peace and quietude in a manner of much delicacy and in,\\nterest, in which I liave endeavored to make an arrangement satisfactory to all parts\\nof the Territory. If the necessary expenses of Legislative Council, from this\\nincrease of members, shall exceed seven thousand dollars, there will be no difficulty\\nin having such sum added, if itbe for some useful legitimate object, properly charge-\\nable to the United States. It was supposed that the seven new members would\\nnot receive more than the seven disbanded clerks.\\nFinding that was impossible, in this agitated condition of the country, ever to\\narrive at, in their regular order, any of the bills reported for the Territory, I asked,\\nas a favor, the assignment of a day for Territorial bills, alleging as one reason the\\nnecessity I was underto return to Europe, in this month, for my wife. The day was\\nappointed, without which not a single bill would have been taken up or acted upon.\\nWe have, however, succeeded beyond my most sanguine expectations.\\nA bill iias passed the House of Representatives, appropriating twelve thousand\\ndollars for a road from the Alabama line to Apalachicola.\\nProvisions has been made for the survey of a road from Tallahassee to Cape Flo-\\nrida, intended to pass through the peninsula of East Florida.\\nSince the treaty has been made with the Indians, by which it is expected that they\\nwill remove next autumn, it becomes a matter of great interest to the whole Territory\\nto have that promontory thoroughly examined, and I doubt not that the small county\\nof Hillsborough will, in a short time, rival any one in East Florida, in wealth and\\npopulation.\\nThe sum of fifteen thousand dollars has been proposed by the Committee of\\nWays and flleans for the repair of the road from St. Augustine to Pensacola. This\\nsum being included in a reg..lar appropriation bill founded upon a report and esti-\\nmate of the Quartermaster General, may be expected to pass without objection.\\nProvision has been made for the survey of the east pass into Apalachicola Bay and\\nRiver, with a view to the removal of obstructions, and the improvement of the na-\\nvigation. There is but little doubt that a very liberal appropriation will be given for\\nthis object. A bill was again reported for the contemplated canal between St. An-\\ndrew s Bay and Apalachicola river, but so many restrictions were proposed, and\\ndifficulties suggested, that it was proposed to make an appropriation for a survey, by\\nthe United States engineers, of a sloop and steam-boat passage, to be opened at the\\nexpense of the United States. The cost must be infinitely greater than that intimated\\nin the very imperfect report we had upon the subject and whether commenced and\\nexecuted by individual enterprise or on public account, it is better to have a thorough\\nand scientific examination.\\nA bill has been reported authorizing a survey of the Ausilla, Chipola, and Su-\\nwanee Rivers, with a view to their improvement, and the survey of the route and\\nestimate of the cost of a rail-road from Tallahassee to Jacksonville.\\nAn appropriation has been made to complete the improvement of St. Mark s\\nHarbor.\\nProvisions will also be made for placing buoys in St. Mark s Harbor, and for bea-\\ncons on the East and West shoals.\\nFour large buoys will also be placed at the east end of St. George s Island.\\nThe following objects are also provided for, in a bill, which there is every reason\\nto believe will pass before the adjournment.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0011.jp2"}, "12": {"fulltext": "For a light-house at Musquito Inlet, eleven thousand dollars.\\nFor a light-house at the east end of St. George s Island, ten thousand doUar;.\\nFor rebuilding light house at St. John s, ten thousand dollars.\\nFor a light house at Eginont Island, ten thousand dollars.\\nA bill has also been reported, proposing to appropriate fifteen thousand dollars for\\nthe erection of a custom and court-house at Pensacola.\\nThe sum of nine thousand dollars has been appropriated for counsel fees and\\nexpenses connected with the settlement of private land claims. Judging from tho\\ngeneral sentiment of Congress, this will be the last appropriation for this object.\\nrhe delays ,n the settlement of the land claims have been injurious to the public, pre-\\njudicial to the Territory, and ruinous to individuals.\\nThe President refused to have any estimate made for the continuauce of the\\nrepairs of the fort at St. Augustine, and the reconstruction of the sea wall and\\nwithout the sanction of the Executive, it is most difficult at any time to obtain such\\nan appropriation, and especially at this, when Congress have refused to carry on a\\nnumber recommended by the War Department.\\nI shall, however, move an appropriation of fifty thousand dollars for this object.\\nThe bill for the payment of the losses in East Florida has been ordered to be en-\\ngrossed, and I have every reason to believe will become a law. The numerous\\nfacts and documents wlucii I have obtained to illustrate 9th article of the treaty, can-\\nnot fail to produce conviction upon the minds of all who will read them. It will\\nfollow as a necessary consequence, if the losses of 1812 and 1818 are paid, that some\\nfuture Congress must provide for those of 1814 at Pensacola. Any attempt against\\nthe report of a committee to add that class of claims to those admitted, would em\\nbarrass,ifnotdestroytheindemnityfunded for East Florida; and the further con-\\nsideration of the subject will be postponed until it can be presented under more\\nfavorable auspices.\\nThe old question about the boundary line between Geo^ia and Florida came up\\nlor discussion again, and a bill to run and mark the line agreed upon between the\\ncommissioners of Spain and the United States, under the treaty of 1795 was passed\\n.n Committee of the Whole by a large majority. In other words, Congress decided\\nagainst the pretensions of Georgia, and in favor of i lorida.\\nThe report of a canal route between Pensacola and Mobile Bays was made at this\\nsession of Congress, under a law passed authorizing a survey and estimate. The\\nsum required so far exceeds any former estimate, that we can hardly expect Con-ress\\nto commence it at the public expense in the present condition of the revenues o\u00c2\u00b0f the\\ncountry. I siiall take the survey with me to England and Holland this summer and\\nsee whether capitalists can be found who would, under a good charter, undertake\\nthe work.\\nI ought not to omit to mention to you that the Supreme Court have disposed of\\ntwelve Spanish land cases, all in favor of the grantees, which will, it is hoped, give a\\nnew impulse to emigration.\\nThe Forbes purchase is hung up upon the pretence of obtaining papers in\\nCuba, which I believe any one at all acquainted with the case knows cannot be had.\\nihe agent there demanded three papers, the only ones he ever specified, all of\\nwhich were already in the record, of which he was utterly ignorant.\\nIt was not my purpose, last spring, when I left Florida, to have sulfered my name", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0012.jp2"}, "13": {"fulltext": "again to be placed before the people of Florida for their suffrages. This determina^\\ntion.was formed from a deliberate consideration of the peculiar circumstances in\\nwhich I was placed. It is known to the whole Territory, that the continued iU health\\nof my wife rendered a visit to Europe necessary; and if she had not derived great\\nbenefit from the sea voyage and sojournment in Italy, it was my intention to have\\nresigned at the end of the present session. The late flattering accounts I have re-\\nceived has encouraged the hope of her entire recovery, and it is my intention in a\\nfevv days, to sail for Europe to bring her home. I did suppose, from the incessant\\nefforts of the party opposed to me to persuade you that I was a non-resident and\\nfrom the very great indulgence you had shown heretofore, that there might have\\nbeen a small portion ef my friends who would have been dissatisfied witli mv\\nabsence.\\nIf this had been the case, I should have surrendered into your hands the honorable\\ntrust confided to me with the same pleasure I accepted it because I have too much\\nrespect for you, and for myself, to desire to hold it longer than it can be made useful\\nor agreeable to you.\\nI cannot conceal from you the expression of the very great gratification I have\\nreceived from the assurance that it was the wish of all my old friends that I should\\nremain in their service. This generous expression of continued confidence, under\\nthe circumstance., has penetrated me with the deepest emotions of gratitude, and\\nhas left me no alternative but to say that I am willing to serve the people of Florida\\nagam, if they choose to honor me with their continued confidence\\nIt may be proper to remark, that, in coming to this conclusion, I violate no pled^^e\\ngiven to any man and I deny that any one has the right to claim any such, express-\\ned or implied. Neither of the gentlemen who have presented them s elves oXn\\nsoTr as I ZoT P P\\nI need hardly observe that the silly story of my having entered into a combination\\nhere with an old poht.cal opponent, with a view to the next or subsequent elecul\\nIS entirely destitute of foundation. elections,\\nFl^rr tr f T I h-\u00c2\u00ab ^-r than that in\\nriorida-I have neither home nor property any where else and that aU my interests\\nand feelings are identified with those of the people of Florida nterests\\nAn extraordinary desire has been manifested to introduce into the political contests\\nof th n T? T r\u00c2\u00ab ^\u00c2\u00b0P^^^ I ^he constitution and Lw\\nof the Umted States have denied us a vote, and in the decision of which, therefr\\nwe have no participation. Those who have rendered no service to tii people of\\nFonda, and have no other claim to their consideration and suffrages than a up\\npes d concurrence of political opinion upon theoretical and speculative doctnnes of\\npohtical economy, or constitutional construction mav find it t.\\nS;?;::; i\u00e2\u0084\u00a2i;:r err r\\nft. selecuon of fte,. Delegate is concerned. No one douie. ,he ,\u00e2\u0080\u009ed,ori,y Tf Con\\ngre\u00c2\u00bb,\u00e2\u0080\u009emake,nu,nuU m.provement, mfte Terri^, and yon are n\u00c2\u00ab eld I", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0013.jp2"}, "14": {"fulltext": "to select an orator to debate the other vexed proposition, but to obtain as much for\\nthe latter as talent and industry will enable him to accomplish.\\nI think I perceive, even at this distance, a movement making to involve the Ter-\\nritory in some discussions about State rights. As your Delegate ^viU not be called\\nunon to discuss any other State right than the right of the State of Georgia to take\\none million and a half of Florida land; and as I have so far successfully resisted this\\nState ri-ht, I think I shall not be seduced into a discussion of any other. I have not\\nthe slightest doubt but that, when we come to take our position among the States of\\nthe Union, the opinions I have always maintained, and now hold, will be found to\\ncorrespond with those of a large majority of the people of Florida. I have always\\nbeen attached to the republican party, and am a friend to State rights but I wish to\\nobtain for our Territory, by encouraging emigration, promoting commerce, author-\\nizing canals, and opening roads, the requisite population for a State, before we\\ntrouble ourselves about State rights.\\nI am always ready to discuss, in Congress, or out of it, the question of Territorial\\ninterests and such propositions as will tend to promote the general prosperity and\\nthe happiness of their inliabhants. I would much prefer to discuss the policy of\\nmakiu- a road from Tallahassee to Cape Florida, or opening a steamboat canal from\\nthe Mississippi to St. Augustine, than to begin a controversy as to whether Mr. Ma-\\ndison understood himself in expounding his resolutions of 98, or whether they are\\nbetter understood by others. When Mr. Madison construes his pwn resolutions as\\nbein- opposed to nullification as it is now understood, and when twenty-three States\\nhave decided against it, I cannot perceive what possible benefit can result from an\\nattempt to make Florida a nullifying State in advance. Although I consider nuUi-\\nfication a great heresy, I was not in favor of putting it down by the proclaination and\\nforce bill I thou-ht it a disease of the body politic which would yield to lighter\\nremedies than brimstone and saltpetre. I was in favor of a eompromise of the\\ntarilT; or. to speak more explicitly, I was opposed to the excessive and unequal tariff\\nthat made such a compromise necessary.\\nI have been led thus far in the expression of my opinions, from a desire never to\\nconceal them upon any question, and witli a view also to prevent misrepresentation\\non the subject during my absence. a\\nI have only to request my friends, if any illiberal assaults shall be made upon my\\npublic course or conduct, during my absence, to bear in mind that, in ten years of\\nbittercontroversy, during which every art and artifice have been employed, nothing\\nhas been alleged which has not been satisfactorily refuted. I shall be here at the com-\\nmencement of the next session of Congress, and in Florida immediately after the\\n^Sr that Providence will protect and bless yon, that you may have a healthy\\nsummer tnd abundant crops, I take my leave, with the assurance that I am. with\\nhigh considerations ofrespect,yom- most obedient servant.^^^^\\nWashinston, June 11, 1834.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0014.jp2"}, "15": {"fulltext": "Circular Ldter of JOSEPH M. WHITE, to the People of Florida.\\nFellow-Citizens It is now ten years since you first honored me with the\\ncharge of your public interests as Delegate in Congress, and, without incurring the\\ncensure due to egotism or arrogance, allow me to review, for your satisfaction,\\nwhat has been executed, or attempted by me, for your service in that period. Many\\nof you were not then inhabitants of Florida, and in order justly to appreciate the\\ncomparative prosperity of our present situation, you should be enabled to contrast it\\nfairiy with the past. The great extent of our Territory rendermg personal commu-\\nnication impossible in most cases, and the continued influx of emigrants, to many of\\nwhom I am a stranger, authorize, and, perhaps, demand the detail.\\nMuch it is true, remains to be done by the industry of our citizens, and the fos-\\nterin- care of our rulers, before Florida can fully avail herself of her great natural\\nadvantages. Neither her progress nor the bounty of the General Government may\\nKeep pace with her impatience, yet we cannot be fully sensible of the rapidity of her\\nmarch, or duly thankful for the enlightened liberality of Congress, without carrying\\nback our thoughts for a few years.\\nA calm retrospect of past difficulties will aid in reconciling us to present priva-\\ntions, and enable us to judge more accurately of our future prospects. It will, per-\\nhaps show the inhabitants of the Territory that their reasonable hopes have not\\nproved delusive, while it may serve to confirm and direct the projects of those at a\\ndistance who design at once to advance their own fortunes, and to bring us what we\\nmost want, capital and population.\\nIn the first Legislative Council of the Territory at Pensacola, in the year 1822, 1\\nproposed, and hiTd adopted, a memorial to the President, which he communicated to\\nCon.-ress by special message, recommending a navy yard and fortifications at Pen-\\nsacoTa a road from that place to St. Augustine the establishment of a seat of Gov-\\nernment in the centre a new judicial district in Middle Florida the removal of the\\nIndians, and a survey of our coast.\\nI was elected to Congress in 1825 and the first measure which engaged my atten-\\ntion was to secure to every poor settler upon the public lands a right of pre-emption\\nto the quarter section occupied by him. There had, at that time, been no pre-emp-\\ntion law for ten years; and two reports of the committees of Congress, concurred in\\nby the House of Representatives, had indicated an abandonment of the policy of\\ndontinuing that sort of legislation. These decisions, after a long and earnest de-\\nbate were reversed, and the bill passed, which has since been followed by subse-\\nquent acts of legislation up to tliis period. The benefits of this system to the Terri-\\ntory I need not detail.\\nAt that session acts of Congress were passed, confirming all the Spanish land\\nclaims under the jurisdiction of the commissioners and, subsequently, provision\\nmade for the final adjudication of all others. Although there has been great and un-\\nnecessary delay in these cases, it will be seen that they have, in consequence of the\\nlegislation of Congress, been disposed of much sooner than those of any other State\\nor Territory in which tliese titles exist.\\nThe State of Lbuisiana has never yet succeeded in having a law passed for the\\nfinal adjustment of their Spanish claims and, after thirty-two years delay, they ar\u00c2\u00ab\\nnow in the same state.\\n2", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0015.jp2"}, "16": {"fulltext": "10\\nPropositions were made for a survey of our vviioie coast and country, to ascertain\\nhow far it was capable of beipg benefited by an enlarged system of internal im-\\nprovement. About fifty thousand dollars has been expended in these surveys, and\\nmuch valuable information collected, upon which future legislation may be based.\\nTwenty-two thousand dollars was appropriated for roads in East Florida ports of\\nentry and delivery were established wherever commerce or population required\\nthem. Post routes were established throughout the Territory. Light-houses pro-\\nvided almost in anticipation of, and as an invitation to commerce, upon our whole\\nextended seacoast. The judiciary system reorganized, and our courts and their ju-\\nrisdictions regulated so as to adapt them to the situation of the country, and to de-\\nfine and protect the rights, property, and the liberty of the citizen.\\nAdditional grants of land were made for the seat of Government at Tallahasse\\nand, subsequently, a large reserve, for the use of the town, of the water fall and the\\ncontiguous lands.\\nAt a subsequent session, when I perceived an evident disposition to discontinue\\nthe system of maritime defence projected in the plan of fortifications, I uro-ed the\\ncommencement of fortifications at Pensacola harbor. The proposition was evaded\\nand postponed in various ways, until I obtained the passage of a resolution ordering\\nthe War Department to complete the surveys and plans, wliich was followed by an\\nappropriation for materials to commence the work. If this had not been done at the\\nperiod when it was done, there would not have been at this moment a brick laid in\\nthe construction of the defences at Pensacola.\\nI proposed a radiating marine railway for the repair of frigates and sloops of war\\nwhich was agreed to, and incorporated in a bill for the gradual improvement of the\\nnavy, whenever, in the opinion of the President, such a work may be useful. I fear\\nsuch a work will not be deemed advantageous until after the 4th of March 1837.\\nAppropriations have been made for removing obstructions and improvino- the\\nnavigation of the Escambia, Chactawhachie, Appalachicola, and St. Mark s rivers.\\nThe inland channel between St. Mary s and St. John s, has been opened at the ex-\\npense of the General Government. Buoys and beacons have been placed in all our\\nbays and harbors.\\nBarracks and an arsenal have been provided, under special acts of Congress.\\n\u00e2\u0096\u00a0Resolutions have been passed, at my instance, requesting the President to direct\\nall foreign consuls and commanders of armed vessels, to procure, and send to this\\ncountry, every variety of sugar cane, and other plants and vegetables, which may be\\nadapted to our climate and soil.\\nThe construction of the ninth article of the treatj-, for which 1 have been contend-\\ning for years against the decision of three administrations, has been finally acknow-\\nledged by Congress. The true construction of the eighth article of the s?me treaty\\nhas been indicated, and its import expounded, by the Supreme Court, which .rives\\nto that porfion of our population, the native Floridians, the guaranty of their adopted\\ncountry for the protection and preservation of their rights of property.\\nThe British claims, which covered a large portion of East and West Florida, have\\nbeen rejected by Congress and the Courts, upon the report of the Commissioners of\\nWest Florida.\\nThese are only a few of the general measures adopted for your benefit in the last\\n\u00c2\u00abn years. The sum of fifteen hundred thousand dollars has been appropriated and", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0016.jp2"}, "17": {"fulltext": "il\\nexpc-uJed within the Territory of Florida within that period, in various public worki\\nfor defence and internal improvement. That a portion of this has been squandered\\nin the most useless and profligate manner, cannot be ascribed to any inattention or\\nnecHEence of mine. Whilst I have been~engaged in obtaining it, others, having\\nthe confidence of the Executive, have exerted an influence in the selection of agents,\\nand appointments of disbursing officers, for its application. I have invariably urged\\nupon all the departments here to let out all the appropriations to contractors among\\nthe people who are interested in the improvement and prosperity of the Territory.\\nThis course, to a certain extent, has recently been adopted and I have confident\\nhopes that the future munificent legislation of Congress will be followed by a corres-\\nponding prudence and care in the expenditure.\\nI shall now proceed, in a hasty manner, to give you an account of what has been\\ndone up to this period of the session, of which now only two days remain. The\\nlargest portion of the following appropriations have passed others have received\\nthe sanction of committees, and will stand for future legislative action, when time\\nand circumstances permit. The early part of every session is devoted to the prepa-\\nration of business, and more bills pass in the last week than all the preceding part\\nunfortunately, however, the news from France arrived, and has prevented the action\\nof Congressupon the light-house bill, and several others of importance, I proceed,\\nhowever, with a catalogue of all reported, the largest portion of which have passed,\\nand many others will, in the remaining two days.\\nFor completing a fort at Pensacola, twenty-six thousand dollars.\\nFor a fort on Foster s Bank, Pensacola harbor, in addition to the balance of former\\nappropriation, sixty-five thousand dollars.\\nFor contingencies of fortifications, ten thousand dollars.\\nFor imorovement and repairs of the navy yard at Pensacola, forty-four thousand\\nsix hundred dollars.\\nFor completing the naval hospitals near Boston, New York, and Pensacola, build-\\ning the necessary out-houses and appendages, and for enclosing them, twenty\\nthousand seven hundred dollars.\\nFor placing buoys in St. Mark s harbor, at proper sites, eight hundred dollars.\\nFor two beacons on East and West shoals, three hundred dollars.\\nFor placing four buoys at proper sites in the channel at the east end of St. George s\\nisland, Appalachicola bay, one thousand dollars.\\nFor placing buoys to mark the channel through the east pass of Appalachicola\\nbay and river, one thousand dollars.\\nFor improving the harbor of St. Augustine, tliirty-five thousand dollars.\\nFor repairing the road from Pensacola to St. Augustine, fifteen thousand dollars.\\nFor clearing out the Ochlawaha river, ten thousand dollars.\\nThis improvement will open a safe navigation to the valuable lands of Alachua,\\nand furnish a safe outlet to the productions of the fertile lands in the vicinity of\\nOrange lake.\\nFor opening a road from the head of Pensacola bay, by Pittman s ferry, on the\\nGhactawhachie river, to Webbville, four thousand dollars.\\nFor continuing the improvement of the navigation of Ghactawhachie river, from\\nCedar Bluff to the Big Spring, two thousand dollars.\\nFor removing obstructions in the Chipola river, five thousand doll rB.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0017.jp2"}, "18": {"fulltext": "12\\nThis last appropriation I have been laboring to accomplish for several years. !t\\nis believed to be the smallest river that Congress ever improved at the public ex-\\npense.\\nFor the removal of five thousand Seminole Indians to their lands west of the Mis-\\nsissippi, thirty-three thousand three hundred and thirty-three dollars and thirty-three\\ncents.\\nFor the subsistence of the same for twelve months after their arrival west of the\\nMississippi, forty eight thousand six hundred and sixty-six dollars and sixty-seven\\ncents.\\nFor a blanket and homespun frock, to each individual of the same, twenty-seven\\nthousand five hundred dollars.\\nFor the difference in value of cattle abandoned by them and of those to be deliv-\\nered to them west of the Mississippi, two thousand five hundred dollars.\\nFor the erection of a light-house on a proper site on Egmont island, at the en-\\ntrance of the northwest channel leading into the harbor of Key West, ten thousand\\ndollars.\\nFor a light-house on the most suitable site at or near the east entrance from the\\nGulf of Mexico into Appalachicola bay, to be selected by the Secretary of the Treas-\\nury, ten thousand dollars.\\nFor a survey of the harbor at the mouth of Svvanee river, three hundred dollars.\\nFor constructing a dredging machine, and for completing the inland channel be-\\ntween St. Mary s and St. John s, fifteen thousand dollars.\\nThere is, in addition to this sum, nine thousand dollars now appropriated, and in\\nthe treasury, for the improvement of this inland channel, which, it is hoped, will\\ndeepen it so as to permit the passage of steamboats of the largest class, and make\\nit the great thoroughfare for the vSouthern states into that magnificent river the St.\\nJohn s, as well as a channel of communication from the northern and eastern cities\\nto New Orleans. The sum of twenty-four thousand dollars judiciously expended,\\nwill be of great service in this link of seaboard navigation. The next step will be, of\\nnecessity, a canal from the St. John s into St. Augustine harbor. With a steamboat\\ncommunication inland to St. Augustme, and a breakwater, and deepening the bar\\non the outer entrance, that ancient and venerable city will become, what it deserves\\nto be, on account of the salubrity of its climate, and capacious bay, the most desira-\\nble residence in the southern country.\\nA resolution has been adopted, requiring the Secretary of War to cause a survey,\\nreport, and estimate to be made of the repairs of the fort and sea wall, which I have\\nno doubt will be granted at the next session of Congress. The difficulty, at this ses-\\nsion, was, that there had been no report under the authority of Congress or the War\\nDepartment; and the useless and profligate expenditure of the twenty thousand dol-\\nlars before appropriated, admonished Congress of the necessity of proceeding with\\nmore caution, and upon certain data.\\nFor the legislative expenses and distribution of the laws, ten thousand dollars.\\nFor other expenses of the Territorial Government, twenty thousand dollars.\\nFor surveys of private land claims, ten thousand dollars.\\nFor surveys of public lands, twenty tliousand dollars.\\nFor the arsenal on the Appalachicola river, included in the general appropriation\\nfor arsenals, forty thousand dollars.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0018.jp2"}, "19": {"fulltext": "IS\\nt*ot a road from Hteamboat navigation, on St. John s, to Pantaffy or Swanee, fif-\\nteen thousand dollars.\\nThis road is intended to be a part of the great mail route from New Yoric to New\\nOrleans,\\nFor the survey of a road on the Gulf side, from Swanee to Cape Florida, in addi-\\ntion to five hundred dollars last year, fifteen hundred dollars.\\nThe object of this proposed examination is to ascertain the practicability of con-\\nstructing a road from some point on the military road between Tallahassee and St.\\nAugustine to Cape Florida, and thus connect the settlements on the coast v.-ith the\\nseat of Government of the Territory, an 1 enable those who are now residing on the\\nKeys to reach every part of the Territory by land, after passing from the islands to\\nthe cape, where this road may terminate. There must, then, be a road from St. Au-\\ngustine, by Palatkia, to intersect with this somewhere about the centre cf the pe-\\nninsula of East Florida.\\nAll these propositions will be made in due season. They must he postponed for\\nthe course of events. We have already pressed upon the liberality ot Congress as\\nfar as it was prudent or politic. When these objects are disposed of, we may\\nhave some prospect of success in an application to improve the harbor at the mouth\\nof Swanee river, and to remove obstructions in the Ausi Ia. I feel a deep interest,\\npersonal and public, in the removal of the obstructions in the Ocilla river, and have,\\nupon three occasions, brought the subject before Congress but there were so many\\nother objects that the couunittees have postponed this until some more favorable\\ntime.\\nI know that there is no task more delicate or difficult than the selection of objects\\nof internal improvement in the Territory in such manner as to do justice to its res-\\npective parts, and to avoid public or private dissatisfaction. Many individuals con-\\nceive that the little i iver on which they live, or the neighborhood in which they re-\\nside, has been neglected because the obstructions are not removed, or a road cut at\\nthe expense of the national treasury by their doors. The advantag-cs of such a work\\nto the public are too often estimated by the particular benefit to the lands on which\\nthey reside, or in which they have been speculating. LTpon these individuals no pu-\\nrity of intention, no public and enlightened policy, which looks to the promotion of\\nthe whole country, have the slightest effect. Whatever will improve the value of\\ntheir lands is of national importance in their estimation and, in proportion to the\\ninsignificance of the work, their zeal is more stimulated, and their complaints louder\\nagainst that negligent delegate who does not clear out each spring branch and make\\na road to each door.\\nThese persons occupy themselves, not in instituting comparisons between our\\nTerritory and others, or between our people and the remainder of the southern\\ncountry. They never calculate the amount we pay into the treasury, and the sums\\nwe draw from it, and the difficulties a delegate has to contend with here in urging\\nupon the National Legislature a variety of local improvements in which no human\\nbeing has the slightest interest, except the delegate and his constituents. Their\\ncomparisons are, whether east or west, middle or south, this river or that, a harbor\\nhere or there, has been more favored or benefited than another.\\nThese.persons are but few, I am rejoiced to say but I appeal from their complaints\\n%o the candor, justice, and good sense of the community at large. I nsk every liberal", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0019.jp2"}, "20": {"fulltext": "14\\n\u00c2\u00bbr,an to loo to my conduct for ten years, and say whether, upon a general survey ol\\nthe whole Territory, there has not been a fair and equal distribution of appropriations\\nof the General Government. I ask whether it is jusi, or generous, to impute to me,\\nas a motive for my public conduct, that, because I own property at Pensacola, I ex-\\nert myself in favor of a vigorous prosecution of the fortifications of that harbor, and\\nthe extension of the navy yard In one part of the Territory it is said I favored the\\nwest, because of my personal interests in that quarter. Again, it is said that I ob-\\ntained appropriations for Appalachicola and Ochlochny, because of my interest in\\nForbes s purchase, and that Leon county was favored, to purchase votes, at the ex-\\npense of other counties. I know that a large majority of the people of Florida give\\nme credit for higher and nobler motives. I know, too, that some worthy men are\\nimposed upon by these incessant and disreputable attacks. Let every one make an\\nestimate of what has been done in each district, and he will find that every harbor\\nwhich was calculated for the concentration of commerce, and the depot of exports\\nand imports, on the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico, has been surveyed at the pubhc\\nexpense, and many of them improved. They will find that every river which was\\ncalculated from its extent to contribiUc to the convenience and advantage of the\\nlargest number of individual?, for the transportation of the products of the country\\nhas been cleared out bj appropriations of Congress. Let any one institute a com-\\nparison with rivers of equal size in Florida, and the respective States in which they\\nhave lived, and say whether as much money v/as ever obtained in any other portion\\nof the Union for the improvement of the country.\\nEvery impartial and just man must admit, upon a careful review of the legislation\\nof Congress for ten years, that it has been directed to the general prosperity and ad-\\nvancement of the whole Territory, without respect to parts or parties, political or\\ngeographical.\\nI have been led into this digression in consequence of the perpetual and annoying\\ncomplaints from several quarters, which are as unjust as they are mortifying to me.\\nTo proceed with the incidents of the session\\nA bill has passed the House of Representatives, and will pass the Senate, to au-\\nthorize the City Council of St. Augustine to open a street through the public grounds\\nfrom the bridge over St. Sebastian s to the public square.\\nA bill has also been reported to put all the clerks of the several counties upon an\\nequal footing with the clerk of the Court of Appeals, as to their per diem of five dol-\\nlars during the sessions of their respective courts, to take effect since 1826, and office\\nrent, with other allowances.\\nA bill has been reported to extend the pre-emption law to all settlers on the pub-\\nlic lands up to this time.\\nA bill has been reported for the establishment of a new judicial district in West\\nFlorida, I succeeded in having it made the special order. for a particular day; but,\\nby successive postponements of all local measures, to act upon the general appropri-\\nation bill, it is now evident that it cannot be acted upon at the present session.\\nThere would have been some opposition to it, on account of the large amount of the\\npresent judiciary expenses of the Territory, and because the title to the town of Ap-\\npalachicola was not decided upon. I have no doubt, however, that, upon such ex-\\nplanations as I could have given, the bill womTl have passed.\\nThis contested title, whiclr has been so long, and I think so unjustly, delayed, to", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0020.jp2"}, "21": {"fulltext": "15\\nthe great injury of the Territory and the claimants, has bee:i ruled for trial at the\\npresent term of the Supreme Court. There is but little question that it will be de-\\ncided in favor of the claimants, as the only two doubts of its validity su?gested by\\nthe land commissioners have been entirely removed by the most conclusive and un-\\nimpeached testimony.\\nAlthough I have been greatly and most unjustly abused and misrepresented in re-\\ngard to this title, I cherish no resentment to any man living within its limits and\\nshould it be decreed to be the property of my clients, I will endeavor to return oood\\nfor evil, by recommending to the owners a liberal and indulgent course to all the oc-\\ncupants. I believe it is, in the end, their true interest to act in harmony and concert\\nwith all the present settlers and, so far as I know their views and intentions, such\\na course will be pursued.\\nThe delays in the settlement of these land claims have greatly retarded the \u00c2\u00abett c\\nment and prosperity of the Territory. I have made an cfioit to procure an official\\nreport of all such as are made by the same officers, and for the same considerations\\nas those confirmed by the Supreme Court, that I may procure the passage of a law\\nto confirm them without ftuther delay or expense to the parties.\\nIt was with great difficulty we procured the passage of the law of 1S28 on any\\nterms; and it never could have been passed, under the state of feelino- then existi n\\nwithoutthe provision inserted in the bill by the Senate, that no claim should be finalfy\\ndecreed agamst the United States over a league square, until it had received the\\nsanction of the Supreme Court. Since that Court has decided many important con\\ntested questions, all that come within their influence ought to be confirmed without\\nexpense to the claimants.\\nIt is my intention, should I be here next winter, to have them all disposed of by a\\nspecial law, if they are not decided before that time. There will, I am sure b- no\\nhesitation on the part of Congress to dispose of all such as are embraced in the ^de\\ncisions previously given byan act of legislation and it will not be difficult to -how\\nthat there are very few remaining which are not embiaced by the principles esta-\\nblished in these adjudications.\\nWe have a bill presented under the sanction of a committee, providino- that where\\nthe sixteenth section of each township, reserved for the use of schools shall be bar\\nren and unproductive, the inhabitants of the township shall be authorized to file with\\nthe Register of the Land Office, a rehnquishment of their claim to said section and\\nto enter another in lieu thereof. This bill was introduced in both House, and has\\npassed the Senate, and will pass the House of Representatives at this, or s ome suc-\\nceeding session the school fund, thus increased and equalized, with the location of\\nthe hco townships selected in sections under a special law passed at my instance\\nsome years since, will, it is hoped, be sufficient to enable us to adopt a system\\nof common schools upon such a munificent and enlarged basis, as to difluse the in-\\nvaluable benefits of education among all classes of our population\\nA bill was reported at the last session, and is now on file, for th e construction of a\\ncustom and court-house at Pensacola.\\nIt was also urged upon Congress and the Secretary of the Treasury to repair the\\ncourt-house of Duval county, at Jacksonville. This may be done, upon the applica-\\ntion of the marshal and district attorney to the Secretary of the Treasury out of the\\njudiciary fund.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0021.jp2"}, "22": {"fulltext": "16\\nThe resolution of the Legislative Council, requesting a grant of land for a court-\\nhouse in Walton county, was received too late to be acted upon. As that county\\nhas not had a pre-emption for a county seat, I have no doubt their request would\\nhave been ;^ranted, if it had been presented in time. At the latter end of a session,\\nwhen there are five or six hundred bills depending, it is impossible to get a commit-\\ntee to report a new one, or Congress to act upon it if reported. The resolution will\\nbe left on file, to be taken up at the next session.\\nTwo or three other resolutions were sent to me requesting my attention to several\\nobjects, which it was impossible to act upon for want of time among others, pre-\\nsenting the claims of Duval, Jackson, and Franklin counties to an additional mem-\\nber toUie Legislative Council. It is to be regretted that there was not a more exhct\\nequality in t!ie representation of the Territory and the power was expressly given\\nto the Legislative Council that they might, from their greater knowledge of the po-\\npulation of the respective counties, make provision on the subject.\\nIt can hardly be expected that Congress will legislate on this subject at each suc-\\ncessive session, or add, by special laws, a member to each county within one year\\nafter the legislative body has been increased eight members.\\nIt is apparent that we shall have to continue for some years longer under aTerri-\\nttjrial Government and, should I have the honor to represent you again, I shall at-\\nfempt to remodel the Territorial Government, so as to give two branches of the legis-\\nlative body, if it can be done without expense to, or taxation upon, the people.\\nIn the first grade of Territorial Governments, the President appoints the members\\nof the legislative department, as well as all other officers.\\nIn the^second grade, the people elect, and pay out of their own treasury, a House\\nof Reptesentalives.\\nWhen I came into Congress we were in the first grade but, as I thought that it\\n-;^as more consonant with republican principles and popular rights to allow the peo-\\nple to select their own legislators, and as I trust I shall never desire patronage at the\\nexpense of the people, I procured the passage of a law to confer on them the right to\\nelect the Legislative Council. In tliis way I secured to them all the benefits and pri-\\nvileges of a second grade of Government, without subjecting them to heavy taxation\\ntj support a legislative body. I am not willing now to create two bodies, which will\\nplace that burden upon them, without their instructions to that effect.\\nIf this new organization can be made without such a result, I shall endeavor to\\nhave it done.\u00e2\u0080\u0094 If not, I desire to know beforehand whether you are willing to pay the\\ntaxes to support another Legislative Assembly.\\nI ask my old and much valued friends in Duval, Jackson, and Franklin, to be\\nassured that if this re-organization can be effected, the greatest regard will be paid\\nto the respective claims and rights of every part of the Territory.\\nPetitions were presented for a custom-house at Indian Key but as the Secretary\\nof the Treasury did not recommend it, of course it was not sanctioned by Congress,\\nVarious other petitions were presented some approved and sanctioned by law,\\nothers postponed, and some rejected. There were, at the beginning of the session,\\nfive hundred bills on the calendar, of which only about one hundred have been acted\\non.\\nThe payment of claims under the ninth article of tire treaty has been delayed, in\\nconsequence of a supposition that the evidence upon which they were founded had", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0022.jp2"}, "23": {"fulltext": "17\\nbeen burnt at the Treasury. The report was found in the Capitol, and they will ba\\nexamined and paid as they are presented by the persons entitled, or to their duly au-\\nthorized agents.\\nI apprehend that the law securing this indemity, which was pursued with so much\\nSolicitude on the part of the claimants, and prosecuted with so much zeal on my part\\nfor nine years, under the most discouraging circumstances, and reluctantly yielded\\nto when the evidence aocumulafed to such an extent as to baffle doubt and carry\\nconviction to the most perverted and prejudiced minds, will be construed with a rio-or\\nwhich will destroy much of the benfits it was intended to secure. The forty thou-\\nsand dollars awarded by the jvidge, it was believed by the committee and Congress\\nwould at once be paid. Every claim is, however, scrutinized with as much minute-\\nness as if the transactions happened a year ago, when all the witnesses were livin\\nand cognizant to the facts.\\nIt was the intention of Congress, as it is the obvious import of the treaty and the\\nlaw, that the inhabitants of Eaf-t Florida, should be entitled to indemnity for all the\\ninjuries occasioned bv the invasion of that province in 1812 and 1813.\\nThe injuries resulting from the direct appropriation of proxasions, or destruction\\nof property, by the American troops, were very inconsiderable, owing to the known\\ncharacter of our arm V and its officers for discipline and respect for private rights.\\nThe treaty was intended to secure, and does provide for, every species of loss occa\u00c2\u00bb\\nsioned, directly or consequentially, by that invasion.\\nEvery loss which can be established to have resulted from the acts of the allies\\nof our troops, the Indians, or followers of the camp, who took advantage of the oc-\\ncasion to commit any outrnges on the inhabitants, the Spanish subjects have aright\\nto claim of the United States indemnity for losses occasioned by their abandonment\\nof their homes in consequence of the apprehension of injury from an approaching\\narmy.\\nThe military occupation of East Florida for eighteen months by American troops\\nhas been decided to be against the laws of nations and subsisting treaties and the\\nUnited States have agreed that the inhabitants shall be placed in the situation they\\nwere prior to that invasion, by a payment of all the damages (with interest) they sus-\\ntained. If this is not done, we must apply for a modification of the law. The prin-\\nciple bavin? been established, the sufferers cannot be deprived of it by refinements\\nof construction.\\nSome complaints have been made in regard to the repeal of all laws taxing the\\nproperty of non-residents higher than residents of the Territory. These laws were:\\nin violation of an act of Congress declaring that no Territorial Legislature shall tax\\nthe property of non-residents hiijher than residents. The act was void without the\\nannulment of Congress and every one who attempted to enforce it was subject to\\na prosecution. I was concerned to learn that it was supposed to have conflicted\\nwith the interests of our stock owners near the dividing line. As soon as I was\\nmade acquainted with the fact, I drew up and sent to a worthy and excellent friend\\nin the Council an act which will effectually attain the object, without violating any\\nact of Congress. I suppose the measure has been adopted by the Legislative Coun\\ncil, and in that way you have secured an effectual protection, in place of the delusiv*\\nand illegal one before subsisting.\\nA mail route will be estabUshed from Pensacola, by Florida town, Blackwatflr,\\n3", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0023.jp2"}, "24": {"fulltext": "IB\\nAlkuirante, to Alaqua, to intersect with the main mail route on the other side. An\\nappropriation has been made to open the road from the head of the bay to Pittman s\\nFerry, and from thence, by Cambellton, to Wcbbville.\\nSome complaints have been made in consequence of the failure to appiopriate the\\nsum of $15,000 for the repairs of the military road, at the last session, from Talla-\\nhasse, westward and this failure has been unjustly imputed to my absence a few\\ndays before the end of the session. The bill containing that item was reported by\\nthe Committee of Ways and Means, and was in the special charge of one of its\\nmembers. It contained a variety of objects, and this must, of course, abide the\\nfate of the others. If the bill had been passed, that provision was in no danger, as\\nit was founded upon a report and estimate of the quartermaster-general.\\nI prevailed upon all my friends, before I sailed for Europe, to assign a day for\\nTerritorial business, on the express ground that I wished to leave. It was agreed\\nto, and in that way we obtained what we never should^ otherwise have succeeded in,\\nif we had waited the tedious progress of events. The suggestion of my intended\\ndeparture and the appointment of a day for my accommodation, were of great bene-\\nfit to the Territory, by enabling me to dispose of all the bills which according to\\nusuage I had a right to claim any control over.\\nThe occasion is not inappropriate, and I trust I shall be pardoned for saying that\\nin ten years service I have never been absent from my place a single day when any\\nthing either came up or could be accomplished for the Territory by my exertions.\\nSince I am in the way of making my defence, I will notice another report which\\nhas been circulated to my prejudice at every election at Key West and Indian Key.\\nIt has been said that I denounced the wreckers as smugglers and pirates in a speech\\nin Congress, The charge is utterly false. I never said any thing against them,\\nnor entertained any unfavorable impression. On the contrary, I thought and spoke\\nof them as a class of men engaged in the most hazardous enterprise, and never fail-\\ning to perform offices of humanity at the utmost peril. It was to afford them a tri-\\nbunal that I exerted myself to have the title to Key West decided, and a court orga-\\nnized at that important point on our coast. A place that I have proposed should be\\nfortified and garrisoned.\\nA bill has been passed authorizing the Tallahassee and St. Mark s Railroad Com-\\npany to construct a railroad over the public lands, and granting them the soil over\\nwhich it passes, and thirty feet on each side, with the privilege of the timber for one\\nhundred yards, and granting to them ten acres, exclusive of the occupied places at\\nthe termination.\\nAfter this bill had passed the Senate, two other applications were made, and as it\\nwas too late to get up a new bill, I had amendments made in the House of Repre-\\nsentatives, placing them on the same footing as that above named.\\nOne of these was an application for a similar grant for the railroad from Pensa-\\ncola to the Chattahoochie, opposite Columbus, in Georgia, by a company organized\\nby the Legislature of Alabama, and by the Legislative Council of our Territory.\\nThe other was a Company organized under the authority of the State of Georgia\\nand of the Territory of Florida, as it was then represented and believed here. The\\nact is baaed upon the supposition that a charter was granted by the Territory of\\nFlorida, concurrently with that of the State of Georgia. The proposition was for a\\nr droad from Black Creek to Swanee river or ha) This company, in their propo-", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0024.jp2"}, "25": {"fulltext": "19\\nfiUions, asked the exclusive privilege of a canal or railroad, with a prohibition to\\nany other within ten miles- This proposal 1 rejected, as highly injurious to the in\\nterests of the Territory, and as being calculated to create a monopoly, which we\\nshould find hanging, like an incubus, upon the resources and energ-ies of our coun-\\ntry.\\nThere is nothing more dangerous in a young and growing country than the cre-\\nation of these indefinite corporations. A railroad across the peninsula of East Flo-\\nrida is so desirable at this time, when efibrts are making in Alabama and Louisiana\\nto establish communications from the Mississippi and the Gulf of Mexico to the in-\\nterior and the Atlantic seaboard, without passing through Florida, that I was willing to\\ngive the sanction of Congress to a company organized under the concurrent acts\\nof the Legislature of Georgia and our own Territory simply to make a road but I\\nshall never give ni} consent to grant such a privilege to exclude or prohibit any other,\\nand thusfijs upon us an irresponsible and indefinite body, with power to burden our\\ncitizens for the transportation of their produce without limit.\\nThe experience of other countries has shown the great danger of organized cor-\\nporations created without limit as to time, and forming monopolies dangerous to the\\nrights and interests of the people.\\nThat the great line of communication from the northern cities to New Orleans\\nmust pass through our Territory, must be evident to every man who will carefully\\nexamine the subject. These lines of communication, from the interior to the Gulf\\nof Mexico, will be from Charleston and Savannah, through the inland channel, to\\nJacksonville and Black Creek, and thence to Swanee and Tallahasse; another from\\nAugusta, over land, to Chattahoochie, and thence to the Big Spring of Chactawha-\\nchie or Cedar Bluff, and the contemplated railroad from Columbus to Pensacola,\\nThe immense intercourse from the North and East will give employment to all these\\nlines, and induce thousands, who take the circuitous and dangerous passage by sea\\naround the peninsula of Florida, to pass through the heart of our Territory. I\\nwould respectfully suggest, for the consideration of our local Legislature, and the\\npeople whem they represent, whether it would not be advisable to retain for the Ter-\\nritory or State the right to take a certain portion of the stock by the Government of\\nthe State hereafter, if it should think proper. It would be well also to require for\\neach charter for a railroad or a canal a bonus for granting it, of a certain per centum\\nupon its profits, which may hereaftsr pay all the expenses of Government, and free\\nthe people from taxes for ever. These charters are often obtained upon mere spe-\\nculation to soil out the stock, and make large sums upon a sale of a privilege grant-\\ned by the people of the Territory, through their Legislature.\\nThe laudable desire of the Legislative Council to see our common country im-\\nproved, from the most patriotic motives, grant charters to all who apply. Since none\\nhave been approved by Congress, except the one for a railroad to Columbus, and the\\none from Black creek to Swanee since it is apparent that large capitalists desire\\nthese privileges, it may be well hereafter to secure some advantages to the Territo-\\nry and future State from those who apply.\\nThe privilege granted to tliis Georgia Company is simply to make a road over\\nthe public lands, and to take timber, c. If no charter is granted in Florida, it fol-\\nlows that the Company, as to its tolls ahd othor operations, will be subject to the le-\\ntrislation of the Territory.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0025.jp2"}, "26": {"fulltext": "20\\ncaa annul it. Concrress never approve a charter until it is submitted To the scrutiny\\nt.^ for H ;nt,. usual .anLi^a consent: ri:;^-:Xt;^^^^^^\\nI think this Company, if the stock can be subscribed and the ZTl,Z\\nized, will do well to extend it to the Appalachicola Th.titf?\\nUavellin, will in a great measure stop, II wtertvi Jat^bl^r\\nconr;::m::n:;;eis:t;:p:L::i T r rv?-?;\\nZ^TuH:: Giulf win be of great\\npower the Tnt? r^^^ P^ ^he utmost of my\\nTur Mv mo t ef ^V da. to encounter nuicli unmerited oblo\\nSed \u00e2\u0084\u00a2verte; \u00c2\u00abf been misrepre-\\nsented or perverted, and my resistance to or acquiescence in such measures or an\\npomt^ents as I could not influence or control, has been alternately imputed to fl\\nt.ous opposition, or grovelling self-interest. This, to a greater or less extent is the\\ncase with every public man.-Those only who do nothmg are exempted tcim th\\nIts; TrsfinT r b ^-t of\\nactmty Trustmg the vindication of my conduct to time and truth, I have seldom\\nrepelled any other accusations than such as touched my personal character, keepin\\nZnlr ^y b temperate selF-\\nI have had the satisfaction of perceiving that this course has been approved by the\\ngood sense and good feeling of my fellow-citizens and however temporary excite-\\nments may, at times, have produced momentary alienation, in the end I have been\\nheld justified when my reasons were known or the result ascertained\\nThus, my fixed determination not to interfere in general politics, but to confine\\nmy attention exclusively to the affairs of the Territory, was at one time urged against\\nme as evidence of defective public spint or self-seeking irresolution. The event has\\nshown conclusively to me, and, I trust, to the people of Florida, that whatever influ-\\nence I have acquired and maintained in the national councils in reference to their\\n^ttairs, has been mainly owing to this forbearance. The secret of that dexterity for\\nwinch ,t IS said even my adversaries give me credit, is simple and obvious.\\nt^iving my whole care, time, and labor to ;he business particularly entrusted to mv\\nCharge, I made myself mnster of every topic imm^iatelv ronnrrted with vour inte,", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0026.jp2"}, "27": {"fulltext": "2\\\\\\nests; and while spiiring no pains to place your rights, your wishes, and your wants\\nin the best and strongest light before the Houses and the committees of Congress,\\nindividual members, the Departments, the Chief Executive, and even the Judiciary,\\nas the nature of the case required, I carefully abstained from any abuse of the confi-\\ndence with which I was honored, and uniformly laid before them all the facts and\\narguments necessary to a full and sound understanding of each question, with the\\nutmost clearness and impartiality in my power.\\nTo these causes it is owing that I have been enabled to do so much during a pe-\\nriod of strong party feeling, replete with events of great public importance, and un-\\navoidably excluding many matters of deep local interest. Had I departed from this\\ncourse of conduct, my usefulness as your delegate must have been greatly diminish-\\ned, without affording you any adequate indenmity for it is not likely that the influ-\\nence or importance of the Territory would have been in any respect increased. The\\nonly instance in which a sense of public duty has compelled me to resist the course\\nof action resolved on by the executive department of the General Government, has\\nbeen in relation to dismissals of honest and competent officers within or improvi-\\ndent appointments of persons taken from without the Territory. In that I now\\nstand fidly justified by events, even in the minds of those who first condemed me.\\nIt remains for me to notice only one cause of complaint, too frivolous to be called\\nan accusation my late absence from the Territory. The reasons for this were of\\na character to be appreciated by every generous man, and are known to you all.\\nHaving been at my post from the commencement of every session of Congress,\\nfulfilUng, by the number and success of my exertions, all your reasonable expecta-\\ntions, wherein am I delinquent? It has been my pride and pleasure heretofore to\\nbelieve that the kind and j^enerous people who honored me with their confidence\\nwere accustomed to estimate candidates for public favor not according to the indus\u00c2\u00ab\\ntry displayed in canvassing for popularity, but according to their ability, fidelity, and\\npublic services. It is not, it cannot be in the nature of such a people, partaking of\\nthe gallant cliivalrous spirit of the South, to require personal solicitations, still less\\nto exact the abandonment of private duties, or to impute to me my respect for them\\nas a fault not to be forgiven.\\nI am duly sensible of your indulgence heretofore, ,and have drawn largely upon\\nit. The recollection of it has accompanied me every where, and cheered and anima-\\nted me in every emergency. Why should it be denied me now My attachment to\\nthe Territory of Florida has not diminished my efforts for her benefit have nor-\\nrelaxed my interest in her soil and welfare is the same and, in my absence from\\nher shores, I have still labored in her cause, making her advantages better known,\\nand urging wealth, enterprise, and industry to engage in the improvement ol her\\nagriculture, and the extension of her commerce.\\nWhatever may be your decision in continuing me in or discarding me from your\\nservice, you can never obliterate from my mind the grateful recollection of your past\\nfavors, nor the proud satisfaction of knowing that I have devoted the best portion of\\nmy life in endeavoring to promote the interests and prosperity of the Territory of\\nFlorida.\\nWashington, March 1, 1S35. JOSEPH M. WHITE.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0027.jp2"}, "28": {"fulltext": "22\\nThe following is from the Hon. Augustus Steele, Judge of the county of Hills-\\nborough, and first published in the Washington Globe, in November, 1831 or\\n1832. The Judge acknowledges the authorship in his letter, dated Tampa (the\\ncounty town,) the 27th February last, and promises further interesting information.\\nTAMPA BAY\u00e2\u0080\u0094 FLORIDA.\\nThe prospect of a removal of the Indians from East Florida, [the bill has already\\npassed and appointments made for their removal theensuingfaliand winter,] is a sub-\\nject which, among other matters of interest and excitement, will naturally direct\\nattention to the country about to be vacated. As but little seems to be known on\\nthis subject, It may be acceptable to those who are desirous of emigratin from colder\\nto warmer climates, to know what inducements this part of our territory offers for\\ntheir consideration. A residence at Tampa for more than two years, and an ac-\\nquaintance with all the oldest settlers in that vicinity, have enabled the writer of this\\nto collect tolerably correct information on the subject; and it is the more desirable\\nthat such information should be made public, from the ciicumstance that erroneous\\nimpressions are generally entertained of the soil and character of the country. The\\nerrors that have thus gained belief; have originated in impressions which travellers\\nhave very naturally received from passing through the country from Tampa north-\\nwardly, on the military road\u00e2\u0080\u0094 the only public one leading from that place. The\\ncourse ol this road was wisely selected over the highest lands, for the obvious pur-\\npose of obviating the difficulties which the occurrence of low wet grounds and marsh-\\nes presented to its construction. Consequently its wiiole course presents to the eye\\nof the traveller little else but a continuation of pme lands, unfit for general purposes\\nol cultivation. Those, too, who have made temporary visits to Tampa by water\\nhave seen but little in its immediate vicinity to convey a very favorable idea of its\\nfertility. From such persons accurate information could not be expected nor is it\\nprobable that any of them had any particular interest or object in obtaining any know-\\nledge on the s^ibject. Their observations have been slight-merely passing noUces\\n-and their remarks, probably not intended to convey any general impression\\nAlong the whole western sea-board of Florida, as fur at least as from Appalacliicola to\\nthe bouthcrn Keys, the coast presents a forbidding aspect. The lands are low\\nmarshy, and generally unfit for cultivation and by reason of the shoals which extend\\nal.most the whole distance, there are but lew points accessible to vessels, even of\\nsmall draught of water. Tampa bay affords the only harbor for vessels of heavy\\nburthen, along the whole coast from t t. Joseph s bay to Charlotte Wbor. This\\nfact alone is of sufficient importance to claim attention and if the country itself be\\ndesirable, must one day or other afford a mart and depot for extensive agricultural\\nand mercantile transactions.\\nThe soil in the immediate vicinity of this place, as has been above stated, is poor;\\nwith some exceptions, however, of shelly mixture, well adapted for gardening, and\\nwhich yield abundantly during nearly the whole year, almost every variety of\\ngarden vegetables. Without these favorable exce, tions, however, the circumstance\\nf its barrenness affords an advantage in the selection of a site for a populous town\\nwhich cannot be too highly appreciated in h southern latitude-this is, its total ex-\\nemption from the usual causes of sickness in such situations.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0028.jp2"}, "29": {"fulltext": "23\\nBut, at a distance of from 12 to 15 miles in the interior, an important change is ob-\\nserved in the quality of the lands the soil is good based in some places with clay,\\nat the depth of from 12 to 15 inches deep and in others, forming large, rich hamocks\\nof heavy growth of timber, consisting of the different descriptions of oak, interspersed\\noccasionally with hickory and magnolia. These, with occasional intervals of excel-\\nlent pine grazing lands, extend east, to the distance of 50 or 60 miks south, as far\\nas the waters of Charlotte Harbor bay, and north and west to a chain of pine ridges,\\nover which runs the military road. Westwardly of this road, and at a distance of\\nabout 25 or 30 miles from Tampa, commence large hamocks. These hamocks em-\\nbrace the most valuable lands probably of any in the territory, and their produce,\\nshould they come into cultivation, must find its way to market through the waters at\\nTampa bay to which, for most of the distance, there are facilities of boat naviga-\\ntion. The largest of these hamocks contains about 80,000 acres, which is stated by\\nrespectable individuals who have explored it to be inferior to none in the Territory.\\nThe whole of the country here desci-ibed is so situated as to be dependent on this\\nplace for a market and shipping port, and is of sufficient extent and fertility for the\\nsupport of a large commercial town.\\nBut the quality of the lands, the convenience of market, and the facilities af-\\nforded by one of the first harbors in the southern country, are far from being all the\\nadvantages and inducements, which the Tampa Bay country offers to the enterprising\\nemigrant. The mildness and salubrity of the climate its adaptation to tropical pro-\\nductions as well as to those of our country, present new incitements to industry,\\nand additional facilities to the acquirement of wealth. The variety of soil which\\nthe country presents, and .hich in colder latitudes would have considerable portions\\nof waste lands, would be here only productive of greater variety of cultivation.\\nPlants introduced from tropical regions, maybe successfullycultivated on the poorer\\ndescriptions of land with great advantage and profit. Those described by Doctor\\nPerrine as natives of Yucatan, and which are of such great value as articles of ma-\\nnufacture, would find here, both climate and soil adapted to their cultivation. Among\\nthe most important of these is the Airave Sisalana or Sisal Hemp. The introduc-\\ntion of this plant alone, if the above respectable authority may be relied upon,\\nwould be a source of wealth of more rapid and easy acquisition, than any which\\nhas been introduced into any part of our country and if, agreeable to Humboldt s\\nauthority, it has become wild since the sixteenth century, all throughout the South\\nof Europe,* the Canary Islands and the coast of Africa, it sufficiently supports\\nthe Doctor s decided opinion, that all the valuable species of the same genus, may\\nbe successfully cultivated in our Southern States. And the fact, that it is suc-\\ncessfully cultivated in the sun of the sterile plains of Yucatan, shows cleariy\\nenough that the poorest of our soils would be adapted to its growth. If the state-\\nment of Doctor Perrine may be relied upon, and from the great attention he has de-\\nvoted to the subject, and the respectability of his character, it cannot be doubted,\\nthis branch of Agriculture would become valuable. Agreeably to his statement\\n361 plants may be raised to the acre; which he estimates to produce seven and a\\nhalf pounds each, giving an annual product of 361 pounds. This at the minimum\\nprice of New York quotation, (say \u00c2\u00a7200 per ton) gives a result of $27075 to the\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2The fact ii confirmed by a respectable Spanish gentleman now at this place.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0029.jp2"}, "30": {"fulltext": "24\\nacre and from the little labor employed in its cultivation, it is evident, that a great-\\ner number of acres could be cultivated to the hand, than of cotton, sugar-cane or\\ncorn. This being the case, whoever will take the trouble to make fair proportion\\nal estimates, will fmd that after making the moet liberal allowances and deductions\\nfor change of climate, soil, and all possible disadvantages to be anticipated in the\\nintroduction of an exotic, in no other branch of agriculture can labor and capital be\\nhalf as profitably employed.\\nIf, then, it be conceded, that in addition to the culture of our own important sta-\\nples, Sea Island and other cottons, sugar-cano, tobacco, c. (for which a large por-\\ntion of our lands are well adapted) these and other valuable plants may be success-\\nfully cultivated, no part of our country can hold out greater inducements for the in-\\nvestment of agricultural capital.\\nTo the laboring and industrious classes, the inducements are still greater. The\\nwants of life are here more easily supplied than in any other portion of the coun-\\ntry comfortable buildings are erected at very little expense, because the mildness\\nof the climate scarcely requires more than a shelter from the sun and rain. The\\nwarm and expensive clothing which is required to guard against the rigid severities\\nof a northern winter, and which to the poor is a heavy drawback on their industry,\\nis here never required. The period of cultivation, which is there limited to a few\\nmonths, is here extended to almost the whole year. The forests are never stript of\\ntheir verdure, and cattle on a thousand hills, unaided by the toils of man, are fur-\\nnished by the bounties of nature. Our herds require no provisions for their winter\\nsupport. The finest beeves may at all seasons be procured from the range, and\\nhorses are reared without the expense of either groom or stalls until fit for the sad\\ndie or harness.\\nThe post, or village of Tampa, (as it may hereafter be termed) is situated in the\\nmidst of an ancient and shady grove of evergreen oaks, and commands a water\\nview of more than 1 5 miles. As a site for a town it stands indisputably unrivalled\\nin the South. A more inviting spot, or a more delightful climate, can no where be\\nfound. Open to a broad expansive bay, it is refreshed daring the summer heat by\\nthe cooling and invigorating sea breezes\u00e2\u0080\u0094 the air is elastic and entirely free from\\nmarshy exhalations or noxious miasma of any description. It is therefore entirely\\nexempt from any and all the diseases incident to a southern latitude.\\nDuring the eight years past, in some periods of \\\\thich the population, including\\nthe troops, amounted to between three and four hundred, most of which was from\\nthe northern States, not a death has occurred from fever or from any cause con-\\nnected with the climate or location. The orange, the lime, the plantain and ban-\\nana, are already in successful cultivation, and yield as delicious fruit as is produc-\\ned in the Havana. The waters of the bay afford us fish in the greatest variety and\\nabundance, green turtle, and oysters of the finest descriptions; and wild fowl, ve-\\nnison and other game, are, in some of their varieties, at all seasons easily procured.\\nUnder these various considerations of the subject, it cannot be doubted, that the\\nremoval of the Indians would be followed by a large emigration, to a country, yield-\\ning on such cheap and easy terms all the comforts and luxuries of life and while\\nnew and valuable products of agriculture would add to private wealth and national\\nprosperity, a strong arm of strength and defence would thereby be given to a por-\\ntion of unprotected country, open in case of war, to every invading foe. A. S.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0030.jp2"}, "31": {"fulltext": "25\\nThe following letter ia from a distinguished citizen of the state of New York, (L.\\nC, Esq.) to a friend in Albany.\\nCorrespondence of the Jllhany Evening Journal.\\nFriend Weed St. Augustine, Dec. 29, 1834.\\nWe sailed in the steam ship Gibbons, Pennoyer, Captain, from New York for\\nCharleston, on the 22d ult., and arrived in that city the-asth. On tiie 29th we sailed\\nin the steam-boat Seabrook for Savannah, taking the in-land passage, formed by\\nthe numerous sounds and inlets that indent the coast from, Carolina to Florida and\\nwhich, though disconnected on the map, are united by narrow channels, winding\\npast islands through millions of acres of sea-marsh flowed by the tide an intricate\\nnavigation, but at this rough season it is preferable to the coastwise, or outside, pas-\\nsage. Like Col. Crockett our steam-boat often went through tight scjueezing.\\nOn Sunday the 30th, a few miles south of Beaufort, S. C, we witnessed a sublimo\\nand deeply interesting spectacle a total eclipse of the sun at the greatest obscura-\\ntion, which lasted two minutes. A thermometer sank several degrees I distinctly\\nremember the eclipse of 1806, in our state. Now, as then, the cattle, fowls, birds,\\nc. retired to rest. It was not as dark now as then and, in this southern latitude,\\nnot as cold. During the progress of the eclipse we came to an island plantation (o\\nland and receive passengers and the swarm of poor negroes at the wharf appeared\\nwholly unconscious of the extraordinary event. December 1st, we left Savannah in\\nthe steam-boat Florida, for St. Augustine, via the inland passage and the St. John s\\nriver. It was dark, the boat under full way, and the passengers seated at tea, when\\nour boat struck a deserted Augusta flat or scow that lay across our path, level to tho\\nwater s edge. The jarring crash sent us quickly to the deck, when we heard the un-\\nwelcome cry the boat is sinking! The accident happened at full tide, within a\\nfew hundred yards of a field of sea-marsh and taking advantage of a full head of\\nsteam, we ran our boat plump into the marsh. On uncovering the hatches, boxes,\\ncasks and bales were afloat in 2^ feet water Fortunately the injury was forward\\nin the bow; and as we succeeded in forcing the boat on nearly half her length, the\\nleak was run out of water. On examination, there was a hole stove in the plank of\\nher bottom 22 inches long and 7 inches wide and through the aperture the sea had\\nbeen gushing in. Ten or fifteen minutes more in deep water, and we must have\\n8unk The danger was not over there was reason to apprehend that with the\\nfalling of the tide, the bulk of the cargo at the stern and the inclination of the vessel,\\nshe would slide back into deep water against the forcing of the engine, before we\\ncould repair the breach. There was no escape through the marsh for, besides its\\ndeep mossy surface, it was separated from the main land by a mile in width of sea.\\nThere wc lay through the live-long night our boat balancing on a mud-bar, and\\nwe between hope and fear. At last the tide fell our boat was too firmly wedged in\\nthe mire to fall off, and another morning dawned irpon us. We were invalids in quest\\nof health. Is there a heart of all that stood upon that deck, without a grateful recol-\\nlection of the Providence by which we were rescued from a watery grave We sent\\nour small boat to Savannah, but a few miles distant, to procure plank and other ma-\\nterials rt-paired damages and floated off with the next tide. The following morning\\nwe touched at the city of Daricn, Ga. in size and business hardly equal to any one of\\ni", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0031.jp2"}, "32": {"fulltext": "26\\nour inconsiderable villages. Passed the beautiful and thriving little town of Sf.\\nMary s, and Amelia island. It is an old adage\u00e2\u0080\u0094 misfortunes seldom come single -S-\\nto illuatrate its truth, we got aground in a narrow pass, and lay thirty -six hours hi the\\nmidst of a vast plain of sea-marsh, and in hearing of the roar of (he ocean. To com-\\npensate us for tliis involuntary quaranfine, we caught and ate fine oysters, sea-bass\\nand trout. December 5, evening\u00e2\u0080\u0094 entered the mouth of the St. John s, territory of\\nFlorida\u00e2\u0080\u0094 a noble river, from three to five miles wide, running parallel with the coast,\\nand navigable for hundreds of miles. Its shores are thickly studded with cypress,\\npme, live-oak, c,; occasionally an orange grove, or a beginning, relieves the\\ngloom of the forest. Passing Jacksonville, we landed at Picolata, seventy miles up\\nthe river, on the morning of the 6th and at 3, P.M., in carriages and on horseback,\\nwe entered the city of Invalids and Oranges. These last, overhanging in golden\\nclusters the high Spanish walls, by the side of which our road lay, reminded us not\\ninaptly of the Yellow Jackets at the north\u00e2\u0080\u0094 very tempting to the eye but as Maj.\\nDowning would say a leetle out of the reach of the uninitiated.\\nThe city of St. Augustine is situated on the eastern shore of the peninsula of Flo-\\nrida, in north latitude 29\u00c2\u00b0 45 It stands upon the bay formed by the junction of three\\ntide rivers\u00e2\u0080\u0094 the Mafanzas, north, and St. Sebastien s, and is sheltered from the At-\\nlantic by Anastatia island. It is of an oblong fonn, intersected by narrow streets that\\nmeet each other at right angles, and it is opposite the inlet to the ocean at the head\\nof the island. The bar at the entrance of the harbor has from 8 to 15 feet water.\\nThe castle of Fort St. Mark gives the town quite a military aspect. Its spacious\\nwalls are of free-stone, forty feet in height, and mounting a large number of heavy\\nordnance commanding the harbor. Its architecture is a mixture of the ancient and\\nmodern style. Its shape quadrangular, with bastions and ditches, and it will contain\\n1,000 men a Spanish nunnery, in a good state of preservation, is now the canton-\\nment of the United States troops stationed here. The houses and shops are gene-\\nrally built of the remarkable free-stone granite upon the island. The outer wfAls are\\nplastered, and have a neat and durable appearance. They are in the Spanish taste,\\nthick walls, spacious entries through court-yards large doors, windows and balco-\\nnies, and beautiful gardens and orange groves, surrounded with high stone walls.\\nThe c ty has a neat public square, in the centre of which is a monument, erected\\nto commemorate the Spanish Constitution. Churches, public buildings and a mar-\\nket face the area of the square. The population of the town is from two to three\\nthousand\u00e2\u0080\u0094 one third colored.\u00e2\u0080\u0094 A great proportion of the whites are natives of the city,\\nof Spanish, Greek, Italian and French extractions the residue are from the north-\\nern and southern states, classed by the natives under the sweeping apellation of^\\nYankees. The market is abundantly supplied with the choicest varieties of scale\\nand shell fish and water fowl and venison and other wild game.\\nAnastatia Island, is separated from the main land by a narrow channel it is from\\none to three miles wide, and stretches down the coast from 25 to 30 miles. There\\nis a light-house erected upon it opposite the city. It is here that the shell-rock or\\nfree-stone is procured\u00e2\u0080\u0094 cut out with an axe of a size and shape to suit; it is quite\\nsoft, when first quarried, but exposure to the atmosphere soon hardens it. This\\nrock is a very great curiosity, and is entirely a concretion of shells, of all sizes and\\ndescriptions, washed from the bed of the ocean, and forming the substratum of the\\n^yhole Island. There is a beautiful and extensive orange grove upon it near the city.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0032.jp2"}, "33": {"fulltext": "t ut it is, for the most part, in a state of nature, and herds of wild deer and other\\njrame have appropriated it for a park. Anastatia is a delightful and romantic re-\\nireat fit for the pavilion of our woithy Host of the Eagle worthy to have been\\nthe birth place of his Feast of Shells.\\nClimate. From June to October the ordinary range of the thermometer is between\\n84 and 88\u00c2\u00b0. The mercury sometimes ri.-es to lOOO, but as seldom as in the adjoin-\\ning states, and probably not as often as in the city of New York. St. Augustine\\nand the eastern and southern coast of Florida, is fanned by the trade winds, which\\ntemper the atmosphere and render the days pleasant and the nights cool and bra-\\ncing. December and January are probably the Florida winter months. The pre-\\nvailing cold winds in these months are west and north, and generally too bracing\\nfor weak lungs; but when the wind is in the south or east the invalids walk and\\nride about or bask in the sun. When we first arrived, the weather Vv-as very fine for\\nseveral days. The range of the thermometer was 60 to 64\u00c2\u00b0 at 7 P. M. 68 to 76\u00c2\u00b0 at\\n12 M.; 60 to 66\u00c2\u00b0 at 7 in the evening. Then came a cold snap. The thermometer at\\n46 to 54 morn. 54 to 62 at 12 M. 52 to 58 evening; followed bytwo days and nights\\nof cloudy rainy weather, and the invalids compelled to keep housed. It then clear-\\ned, and the weather since (for these ten days together) has been delightfully mild\\nand pleasant, such as lo satisfy the most fastidious invalids. On Christmas and the\\nday preceding and following it, the thermometer was at 64\u00c2\u00b0 at 7 P. M.; at 12M.at 78\\nat 72\u00c2\u00b0 at 10 evening. The summer of the north in the midst of winter! while you\\nI suppose was writing editorials, toasting your shins by the fire, with the jingle of\\nmany sleigh bells in your ear. I must not forget to tell you that the most fragrant\\nroses and other flowers are now in full bloom in the yards and gardens of the city.\\nI wrote home to my friends in the rainy seasoii complaining of the weather. In the\\nmidst of the verdure and foliage of summer, I forgot that it was in fact winter. I\\nam now satisfied my prejudices were without foundation and take the climate alto-\\ngether its sky of mild azure its southern breezes and fine air, there is nowhcic\\nperhaps on the globe, a more salubrious one than this of St. Augustine. From two\\nto three hundred invalids are quartered here, and the number increasing with the ar-\\nrival of every vessel. Some from England, Scotland and Canada, but mostly from\\nthe several states of the Union. Our own Empire State is but too well represent-\\ned. There are instances here of remarkable longevity. One in particular is worthy\\nof notice an aged female, a native of Smyrna, in Greece she cannot tell how old\\nshe is all that is remembered is that she was quite an old woman when she came\\nto reside here, which was seventy years since. She still wallis about the streets\\nand attends the Catholic church. It is related of her that for these twenty years,\\nwhenever the bells toll the death of any one, the poor old lady exclaims, ah\\nthere is the death-bell again God has forgotten me There is an Episcopal, Ca-\\ntholic, Presbyterian and Methodist church here, and the service is well attended.\\nWe had divine service in the Episcopal church on Christmas eve and day. In-\\nteresting and impressive discourses from the Rev. Mr, Brown, late of our state, set-\\ntled here. The church was tastefully decorated with the dark shining evergreens of\\nFlorida.\\nBut one newspaper is printed here the Florida Heiald. It is respectably\\nedited and has a gradually increasing patronaec.\\nThe average price of wild lands in the territory is from one to ten dollars per acre.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0033.jp2"}, "34": {"fulltext": "23\\nThere is every variety of soil, but a great proportion of it is pine land, light and san-\\ndy and compared with our northern woods and fields, would be pronounced sterile\\netill if we examine the qualify and quantity of maize, beans, peas, Irish and sweet po-\\ntatoes, pumpkins, melons, rice, limes, lemons and oranges it produces, we are com-\\npelled to admit there is more in it than meets thfi eye. It is admirably adapted to\\nfjrazing, nature having clothed the pine lands and savannas with an abundant sup-\\nply of rich and nutritive grass for cattle and horses. It is supposed that the vegeta--\\nble kingdom of Florida is richer and more varied than any other in the United States.-\\nNothing can exceed the beauty, iuxuriance and grandeur of the shrubs and trees\\nthat abound in the large tracts of the richer lands. The live oak, so valuable\\nfor ship building, is found here in great perfection, and the palmetto, date, banana\\nand pawpaw trees are e.xquisitely beautiful. Tobacco, indigo, rice, coffee and su-\\ngar will be the principal articles of culture in the rich bottom or hammock lands.\\nThere are already very many sugar and cotton plantations in the territory in a thriv-\\ning condition, profitably conducted; and thousands of planters may still be accom-\\nmodated with the choicest lands. But oranges engross the attention of our nor-\\nthern emigrants; these can be grown on a thin soil, with less capital, less labor ard\\nmore profit. These oranges are considered the very best in market in point of fla-\\nvor and for keeping well. The orange groves of Florida are her gold mines, The\\nlimits of a sheet will not permit me to dip too far at this time, and 1 1 an only speak of\\nthe growth of the St. Augustine, to say nothing of the great orange region St. John s\\nriver. An acre will contain more thali one hundred trees with ease these will ave-\\nrage one thousand oranges each, worth at the grove one dollar per hundred, is for\\nthe one hundred thousand oranges ou the acre, one thousand dollars. At even fifty\\ncents per hundred they will doubtless afford a better profit than any other product of\\nthe soil. Atpresent the demand for Florida oranges far exceeds the supply and there\\nare not enough grown here to make them a regular article of commerce. The whole\\nexport of St. Augustine last year, was but four millions the produce of forty acres.\\nForty acres of oranges, wh re there should have been at this time five thou-\\nsand acres. What a commentary on the industry and enterprise of the natives of\\nthis city and region. Northen men with and without capital, are every day pouring\\nin from the north party after party arrive here, and immediately go back into the\\ncountry to reconnoitre and explore lands, with a view to a purchase and settlement.\\nSeveral gentlemen are now here from our state for the purpose; and numbers of\\nthe invalids, if so fortunate as to regain their health, decide to settle here.\\nThis year the city crop of oranges v.as short, and they commanded at the groves\\n$1 50 per hundred. A gentleman who owns a grove upon the St. John s, informs\\nme that !a?t season he picked from twenty-six trees, fifty-three thousand oranges.\\nThis occurs but seldom. The second crop is coming on, and will be ripe in Febru-\\nary. There remains on many of the trees a part of the first crop and the mixture\\nof green and gold, the ripe and unripe oranges, as they hang in clusters side by\\nside, on the same limb,is abeautiful sight: and the orange tree itse!f,with its smooth\\norange bark, green polished foliage and conical form, is exceedingly beautiful, it\\nblossoms again in February, and its flowers are said to be of surpassing fragrance.\\nA ^ricullure here is principally conducted with slave labor. Our northern men are\\nin the habit of hiring slaves of their masters. It is no more than justice to the slave\\nholder to say, that wherever my observation has extended, the slaves appear well fed,", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0034.jp2"}, "35": {"fulltext": "29\\nwell cJothed and kindly treated but it is slavery still. In conversin r with a trenlle-\\nnuin* of St. Augustine, a native of New York, who has been here many years, and is\\neminently blessed in basket and in store, 1 was delighted to find that altho a slave\\nholder, it was in a qualified sense. There is in every instance an existing contract\\nfor their freedom and a majority of his hands, once slaves, are now freemen, draw-\\ning wages. For instance he purchases a slave of his Georgia master, and imme-\\ndiately opens an account with the slave, allowing him fair wages, to be applied to the\\nextinction of the purchase money, to the purchaseof his freedom on his own account.\\nThe prospect of future freedom, surrounded as he is by colored freemen, stimulates\\nthe slave to the more faithful perfonvance of the labor assigned him and if he meets\\nwith no accident in seven years from the commencement of his contract of service,\\nhe is free\u00e2\u0080\u0094 to go or stay\u00e2\u0080\u0094 to hire his services to his late master or to any other, la\\nnot this admirable, and does it not open a way to the final abolition of slavery\\nMany of the blacks here, slaves and free, sustain a good character for integrity and\\nindustry, and many of them are very devout. I attended a conference meeting on\\nSabbath afternoon, conducted purely by colored persons. It was deeply affecting\\nand interesting to hear the class leader, as each gave utterance to his joys and\\nsorrows, exhort them to be patient in tribulation.\\nShouH mv health improve with the approach of spring, I will write you again. I\\ncannot close without a word of advice to invalids laboring under pulmonary afflic-\\ntions. The climate of St. Augustine is highly efficacious to those who come in sen-\\nson before the disease is deep seated. In those instances where the change is defer-\\nred until the disease is evidently in the last stages, the chmate, and the fatigue and\\nexertion of the journey, instead of benefiting the sufferer, precipitates his end and\\nyet vast numbers, without any expectation of living, come here to die Adieu.\\nYours, very truly, LOT CLARKE.\\nFrom tke JVetu York Gazette.\\nWe have been favored with the following letter for publication. It contains a highly\\ninteresting account of the delightful country and climate of Florida, and cannot\\nfail to gratify the reader. The source from which vre receive it, entitles it to im-\\nplicit faith;\\nDear Sir Columbia, S. C, Feb. 28, 1835.\\nI have just returned from a tour in Florida, exceedingly gratified by the excursion.\\nThis territory, so recently an adjunct of these United States, has not excited all the\\ninterest which it deserves among its neighbors\u00e2\u0080\u0094 particularly on account of the cli-\\nmate, which is at once the restorer of invalids: and with the soil susceptible of pro-\\nducing the fruits of tropical as well as northern climes. For a few days in this month\\nthe cold was more severe than had ever been experienced before but generally in\\nwinter the thermometer rarely falls to the freezing point, and then only the tropical\\nplants suffer. In summer the thermometer ranges from 80\u00c2\u00b0 to 90\u00c2\u00b0 Fahr. but with\\nthis temperature comes a regular, refreshing, and cool sea breeze, which is wholly\\nunknown in our Atlantic states.\\nThere is no high land until you arrive at the Appalache mountains. The face of\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2Dr. Anderson.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0035.jp2"}, "36": {"fulltext": "30\\nthe country isjin-lulating, the liighost parts never exceeding 60 or 80 feet above tl.e\\nlevel of the sea, except m some abinpt and picturesque places. The soil is a rich\\nvegetable mould, from 12 to 18 inches deep, upon a foundation of lime-stone, and\\nbetween this sometimes clay or sand. The staple commodity raised is cotton, of a\\nquality not equal to the Sea island, but much superior to Uplands. The produce of\\nIndian corn is from 15 as high as 60 bushels per acre, according to the lands. There\\nare several plantations of sugar, of various success and profit to the owners; but\\nmany are not sanguine of great emoluments fpr the future from this cultivation. I\\nsaw several plantations of tobacco, of which the experiments were highly interest-\\nmg, as to quality. The orange grows in great profusion already: and I have no\\ndoubt of seeing the mulberry (white), the olive, the vine, the date, and generally the\\nproducts of France and Spain, introduced here and cultivated to great advantage.\\nThere is a grass, called the crab, indigenous to the country, which is much appreci-\\nated m grazing; but all kinds of grasses can be produced there, upon the meadows\\nor prairies, as amongst the pine woods. Cattle are already in the wildest abundance,\\nas are sheep, hogs, fowls, venison, and above all, the wild turkev, duck, and other\\ngame, of the finest flavor, which you obtain for shooting while the sea coast abounds\\nm the most beautiful shells, and moreover provides such an infinite variety of the fin-\\nest fish, oysters, clams, c., that you who live in cities can form little idea of the\\nfineness and extreme cheapness of food in that delightful country.\\nOf the trees of the forrest we could not fail to see\u00c2\u00b0thc eternal pine which, howe-\\nver, is not there in a barren soil, as in the Carolinas the soil there, on the contrary,\\nIS very susceptible of cultivation. The sea coast abounds with live oak, for ship\\nbuilding and throughout you find the superb magnolia grandiflora, the most mag-\\nnificent laurels, the cedar, hickory, beach, lime, sassafras, black mulberry, and many\\nothers which I cannot describe to you.\\nThe rivers are even now most interesting objects but what will they be when\\ntheir banks shall be studded with habitations, and vessels floating upon their surface,\\nrichly freighted\u00e2\u0080\u0094 the Appalachicola running far into the state of Geor ^ia, and trans-\\nporting already 40,000 bales of cotton for shipment at her sea-port of the same name\\n\u00e2\u0080\u0094the Ocklockny, Wacullah, Suwanee, and above all the magnificent St. John s,\\nwith Its lakes, its islands, and its rapids\u00e2\u0080\u0094 unfolding scenery as picturesque as the\\nConnecticut or the Hudson, and presenting an unexplored field to the naturalist, of\\nthe most interesting kind\\nIn speaking o^ioater, I ought not to omit the lakes of this territory, which are of\\nsingular beauty, and so transparently clear, that, sitting in a vessel upon them, the\\nhead becomes giddy from the impression that one is in empty air. Another curios-\\nity is found in the natural bndges of this country, where a broad river plunges into\\nthe earth, and re-ascends to pursue its course at the distance of several miles\\nOf the towns, the most important in a mercantile point of view is Appalachicola,\\nwhich is rising daily. St. Mark s will bs the seaport of Tallahassee, the capital of\\nthe Territory, and a rail-road of 18 miles is proposed to unite them. Pensacolahaa\\nsunk in population and importance since the Spanish time, and is only now support-\\ned by the United States Navy Yard an i its accompaniments; but symptoms are\\nalready appearing of rail-roads and other improvements, which are again causino-\\nthe enhancement of property. Tallahassee contains a great court house, and aboul\\n1,000 mhabitants among whom are found some pleasing and even elegant society.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0036.jp2"}, "37": {"fulltext": "31\\nSt. Auo-ustine, with its fine position, has long been considered as the garden of\\nAmerica; and is now, as you know, the resort of the poor inviilid, particularly for\\nconsumption, from the noithern states. Let these testify to its efficacy in these cases.\\nThe numerous orange groves are here the beauty and the attraction the fragrance\\nemanating from so many plantations at once, is almost overwheln;ing.\\nInternal improvements, as m cU as for navigation, have made rapid strides latterly\\nm Florida, to which Congress has contributed liberally through the active medium\\nof the intellig-ent Delegate, Jos. M, White, who is unceasing in his exertions for\\nthe advancement of the country.\\nIn Florida, no epidemics are known. Once Tallahassee suffered from an overflow\\nof water, which was imprudently allowed to stagnate; and once Pensacola and even\\nSt. Augustine suffered from the riotous habits of some new comers; but since then\\npeace and health are restored, and greater salubrity can be found no where than\\nhere. In the new settlements only, fevers and agues accompany the felling of the\\nwoods, as is the case every where. But these are never fatal.\\nBut I fear I tire you with this long detail, reserving, therefore, what I have still to\\nsay against our meeting, I am, c.\\nTO INVALIDS.\u00e2\u0080\u0094 TAMPA BAY, FLORIDA.\\nThe subscriber, the ensuing fall, will be able to accommodate comfortably from\\n50 to 70 individuals, at $20 per month, at the village cf Tampa, the county town of\\nHillsborough county.\\nFor a description of this beautiful bay and surrounding country, reference may be\\nTiad to the Evening Post of the 5th March, and Mercantile Advertiser and ISew\\nYotk Advocate of the 1st inst. suffice it here to say, that it is healthy at all sea-\\nsons, and that persons who have tried it for pulmonary complaints, have been restor-\\ned to health in a short time. Fish and oysters of the finest kinds, turtle, venison,\\nwild turkies, and almost every description of game and water fowl, are to be had at\\nall times in abundance. The beef and pork are deemed excellent.\\nIt may be said, that a line of steam-boats runs from the city of NewjYork to with-\\nin 73 miles of this village. There being a continuance of steam navigation from\\nCharleston to Savannah, and from thence to Picolata and Valusia, on the river St.\\nJohn s, and should encouragement be given, the subscriber intends running a stage\\nregularly to meet the steam-boat Florida, at Hope Hill, opposite to Valusia. Those\\npersons desirous of escaping the rigors of the northern winty, and fond of exercise,,\\neither in carriage or on horse-back, or of gunning and fishing, will here have an op-\\nportunity of enjoying these delightful recreations in great perfection in the vicinity\\nof this pleasant and romantic village, and in a delicious climate. The object of the\\nsubscriber being to accommodate, with every possible comfort, such persons as may\\nbe desirous to pass the winter at Tampa, it is requested that application may be made\\nto R. S. Hacklcy, No. 65 Broadway, New York, or by mail to the undersigned, as\\nsoon as may be convenient, that he may calculate on the probable number that may\\nvisit his house, and prepare accordingly.\\nI. B. BENJAMIN.\\nVillage of Tampa Tampa Bay, Territory of Florida.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0037.jp2"}, "38": {"fulltext": "32\\np. S. The lines of packets to Savannah are Te^ul T, and the vessels of the fir\u00c2\u00bbt\\nclass therefore, persons inclined to take passage direct to Savannah, will there meet\\nthe stcani-boat Florida.\\nSUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES,\\nJanuary term, 1832. {Peters^ R^V-, t 6, p. 691.)\\nUnited States, Appellants, versus Fer. de Maza t Aredondo Son.\\nForty-nine pages. The Court gave as a reason why they have extended their de-\\ncision to such a length, That this being a case which will decide all similar ones,\\nwherein the United States may be concerned, they had thought it necessary to view\\nthe whole ground, so far as the United States might be concerned, to prevent future\\nlitigation. ]\\\\Iany authorities are quoted and cases referred to.\\nThey decided upon the treaty as valid from \\\\isfirst ratification by the United States,\\n22d February 1819 and that all grants made by Spain prior to 24th January, 1818,\\nor by its authorities having power to grant, are good and further that if any grant\\nxcas imperfect, and could thereafter be perfected by Spain, this government was bound\\nto perfect it so far as the Spanish government could have done so.\\nFraud an argument used by United States Counsel. Such a plea could not be\\npermitted to have weight with the Court the evidence before the Court did not\\nshow fraud they must consider the documents good. The United States was bound\\nto prove the fraud, if any existed.\\n(Quantity. On this point the Court decided that it was unimportant to them the\\nquantity they were the last resort both in law and equity, and were bound to decide\\nupon both principles, under the 8th article, as they had decided it to be. It mattered\\nnot to the Court whether the titles were in form of patents, cedulas, or decrees,\\nprovided the title was perfect, or could have been made perfect by Spain, had she\\ncontinued her sovereignty over the Floridas. The United States was bound to per-\\nfect so far as Spain could have done.\\nThe Counsel for the United States argued, that almost all the large grants bore\\ndate but a short time previous to the 24th January, 1818, which rendered very doubt-\\nful their validity the Court had nothing to do with this as they conceived the 8th\\narticle, if not proved otherwise, they were bound to deem all grants good prior to\\nthat date they conceived it might be just as proper for them to declare all grants\\nexcluded by the 8th article valid, as to decide that grants protected by that article to\\nbe invalid.\\nTHE CONVENT.\\nWe understand that those concerned have abandoned the idea of rebuilding the\\nConvent in this city or in New England and that the Ursulincs will go either to\\nCanada or to Florida, at which latter place it is contemplated to purchase a large tract\\nof land to be connected with a Nunnery,", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0038.jp2"}, "39": {"fulltext": "33\\n{^Extract from the Report of the Land Commissioners for East Florida, reported to\\nCongress January ISth, 1830. Page 95]\\nNo. 17.\\nPETER MERANDO, Claimant\u00e2\u0080\u0094 d68,6i0 acres of Land.\\nAs this is a large grant, and one which has been ninch spoken of, we shall give\\nat length the petition of the party, and the decree of the Governor.\\nSenor Governor Don Pedro Meraudo, second pilot of the launch of the bar of\\nthis port, with the most profound respect, states to yonr Excellency, That he has\\nhad the honor to serve his most Catholic Majesty (whom God preserve) from the\\nyear 1783, when he was employed as a rower in said launch in which capacity he\\ncontinued, until, by his distinguished merits and skill, he was appointed to his pre-\\nsent employment. Furthermore, yonr Excellency well knows the truth of his good\\nmanagement, fidelity and love of the service of his Majesty, proved in divers expe-\\nditions, which, by order of this Government, the deponent made in the year 1795,\\nin the rivers of this province, when it was ravaged by the rebels and as for such\\nremarkable services, and others latterly performed, to the satisfaction of your Ex-\\ncellency Wherefore, ho prays yonr Excellency to be pleased, in recompense of\\nwhat he has set forth, and in consideration of his impoverished situation, to grant\\nhim an absolute property, eight leagues square, in the royal lands which are on the\\nwaters of the bays of Hillsborough and Tamjia, in this province, by virtue of the\\nroyal orders for the granting of lands gratis, to the Spanish subjects, a favor which\\nhe hopes to obtain from the justice of your Excellency. St. Augustine, Florida\\nthe 19th of November, 1810\u00e2\u0080\u0094 Pedro Merando. St. Augustine, Florida, 26th No-\\nvember, 1810. The merits and services which this party sets forth, being well\\nknown and established, let there be granted to him on the terms which he solicits,\\nthe quantity, of land at the points indicated, without injury to a tliird person, and to\\nauthenticate this grant, at all times, let a certified copy of this memorial be issued\\nfrom the Secretary s office for his security. White.\\nThe witnesses examined in this case before the former Board of Commissioners,\\nare Gabriel W. Perpall, F. Bethune, James Hall, Antonio Alverez, and B. Segue.\\nThe only point upon which their examination goes, is the authenticity of the original\\nand the signature of Governor White. Perpall says that it looks like the signa-\\nture of White, but he cannot swear to it. That, from the finishing of the flourish\\nattached to the name, he cannot believe or disbelieve it to be genuine, as the differ-\\nence might arise from the position in which the writer s hand was placed, or from\\nsome other cause.\\nCarrado has never seen the Governor write, and knows nothing about it.\\nBethune does not think the writing as perfect as Governor White s signature\\nusually was, the Governor being remarkable for great precision therein but it may,\\nnevertheless, be his, as it may have been written when he was unwell. When\\ncross-examined, he says, the Governor died in 1811, and had been indisposed\\nseveral months before his death, but was not confined to his bed. That he had\\nseen the Governor sign different decrees, some of which were for land, and some for\\npassports, but neither, within a few months before his death. When asked wiiether\\nhe had seen Governor White write on any other occasion than those mentioned\\n4", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0039.jp2"}, "40": {"fulltext": "34\\nabove, so as to enable him te acquire a knowledge of the Governor s hand writing,\\nhe answered in the negative. He says, furthermore, That the Governor, a few\\nyears before his death, drank a little hard in the afternoon, though he did not usually\\ntransact business at that time. The witness, in 1810, lived on the river St. John s,\\nand came occasionally to town.\\nJames Hall was acquainted with the Governor from 1798 until 1810, and has often\\nseen him write. When the original was presented to him, he says, The signature\\nof White looks something like the Governor s, but witness had never seen any of\\nhis writing done so incorrectly as this. That his opinion is formed from the\\nlatter part of the name, JHiite, which appears to have been written lower down than\\nwas usual with the Governor. That this is the only material difference perceived\\nby the witness, though the whole does not appear so correct as he. White, usually\\nwrote.\\nThe above witnesses seem to have been sworn on the part of the United States,\\nand those that follow on the part of the claimant. Antonio Alverez deposes, That\\nhe is acquainted with the hand writing of Governor White. That he has been a\\nclerk in his office, in which situation he has often seen him write. That he entered\\nsaid office in the year 1807, and continued there, with two shght intermissions, until\\nthe change of flags in 1821, when the original concessions, brought before the\\nBoard, from the office of the public archives, by the keeper thereof, was exhibited to\\nthe witness, and he was asked whether he believed the signature llliitc to bo\\ngenuine he answered simply in the affirmative. When cross-examined he deposes,\\nThat his opinion of the genuineness of the signature is formed both from the sig-\\nnature itself and the flourish immediately under it. He has no particular recol-\\nlection of the Ts or Es, in Governor White s name, or the manner in which the\\nfirst was crossed, or the second joined to it, but from the general appearance of the\\nsignature, believes it to be genuine. He does not believe the E is made totally dif-\\nferent from the manner in which Governor White usually made it, but it seems\\ncloser to the T than Governor White placed it usually; that the Governor signed\\nhis name with great uniformity, and he considers the signature regular and uniform.\\nThe witness knows nothing of the making of this grant. He says that conces-\\nsions for lands were deposited in the Government Secretary s office. When asked\\nif it was within his knowledge, that, since the time at which this concession was\\nmade, it had always been in the said office, he adverted to the date of the concession,\\nand answered in the affirmative. He furthermore deposes, that vacant lands, situat-\\ned at a distance from St. Augustine, were not considered of much value or im-\\nportance about the year 1810; and, to the question of the District Attorney, he\\nanswers, That Governor White was always cautious and sparing in granting to\\nindividuals any part of the public lands. B. Segue is well acquainted witli tho\\nhand-writing of Governor White, having seen him write many times. Witness\\nlived in the Government Notary s office, from whence it was his duty, almost every\\nday, to carry papers to the Governor for his signature. In this office he continued,\\nwith a few intermissions, from the year 1800 to the year 1812 or 1813. When the\\ngrant now under adjudication was presented to him, and ha was asked whether he\\nbelieved the signature to be genuine, he answers, that he has no doubt of it. He\\ntays further, that he became acquainted with tho existence of this grant a few days\\n\u00c2\u00bbfter it waa made, as ho (the witness) drew the memorial at the request of Mr. Ma-", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0040.jp2"}, "41": {"fulltext": "35\\nrando and tliat the lands, situated at such a distance from St. Augustine as those\\ngranted by this concession, were then considered of very little value.\\nOn a question of the District Attorney, whether the Governors of this then Pro-\\nvince were not regulated in the distribution of lands to individuals, more by the\\nprinciples and rules they had adopted and established for the granting of lands than\\nthe value of lands granted tho witness answers, That the Governors were re-\\ngulated, in the granting of lands, by the merits of the individual, the number of his\\nfamily, or the value of the lands asked for, according to his own discretion. Wo\\nhave tlius given, at full length, the documentary evidence upon which this claim is\\nbased, and an abstract of the evidence taken before the Board of Commissioners,\\nnearly as long as the depositions themselves, adopting, for the most part, the lan-\\ngnage of the witnesses not that we have deemed tliis testimony at all important to\\nthe decision of the case, if our decision was final, but it may be satisfactory to tho\\nnumerous claimants under the pretended grantee. It seems to us strange that the\\nname of White should be attached to a grant like this, whose uniform practice and\\nunvarying declarations have shewn, in the language of the witness Alverez, that\\nhe was always cautious and sparing in granting to individuals any part of the public\\nlands. There are many letters of Governor White to the Superintendent at Cuba.\\nThere are many of his decrees and regulations, in all of which he has invariably de-\\nclared, that he would conform to the laws in granting of lands. Nay, more, he has\\nby his own act, made those laws more rigorous than they were, and circumscribed\\nwithin narrow limits his own authority. He has said in his letter to the Governor\\nGeneral of Cuba, that the regulations of Quesada were too liberal, in granting one\\nhundred acres to the heads of families, and one half of that quantity to its members\\nand by liis (Governor White s) own decree, he has reduced the relative quantity to\\n59 and 25 acres.\\nIf we examine the laws of Spain, we shall see by the laws of the Indies, pub-\\nlished in the recent copy of the land laws, page and in the Royal order of 1754,\\n60 much spoken of, published in the same book, for the first time, page we\\nshall find by those laws, that no authority is given for a grant like this. The only\\nsubsequent decree upon the subject of land, which we have been enabled to dis-\\ncover, is the Royal order of 1790, made specially for this Province, That order\\napplies exclusively to foreigners and it was a matter of courtesy on the part of the\\nGovernors, to extend its provisions to the native subjects of Spain. It has been\\ncontended tiiat, by the provisions of that order, there is no fiixed quantity of acres\\nnamed, to which the party should hp entitled or, in other words, the power of the\\nGovernor, upon that subject, is left without limit. Without adverting to the many\\ndeclarations of his Catholic Majesty, made in his Royal orders, of dates both pre-\\nvious and subsequent, that lauds should be granted in proportion to the workers of\\na family, or, in other words, that no man should have granted to him more lands\\nthan he could cultivate and, furthermore, that lands should only be given for tho\\nsake of cultivation and improvement, and not for the sake of speculation: we might\\nadmit, for the sake of argument, that the quantity to be granted was left only to the\\nGovernor s discretion. That discretion has been exercised by Governor duesada,\\nin the first place, and afterwards by Governor White. This last Governor, in liis\\nletter to the Marquis De Someruelos, the Captain General of Cuba, dated 15th Oc-\\ntober, 1803, uses these words: My predecegsor has assigned on\u00c2\u00ab hundred acres of", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0041.jp2"}, "42": {"fulltext": "36\\nland to the fathers of families, and fifty to each child or slave, whether full grown or\\nsmall, a quantity really excessive, and could only have taken place at that time in\\nwhich there were few strangers who came in solicitude of lands but at present\\nthere are many who come, and, consequently, there would result the greatest injury\\nin the improvement of the Province, unless said number of acres be diminished, on\\naccount of its being more than one individual can cultivate in a year, even divided\\ninto three parts, for the purpose of giving rest to the lands. Which circumstance I\\nhave had also present for the deduction which has been made.\\nAfter this, it is impossible for us to believe that Governor White, either before or\\nafter dinner, ever made a giant of 368,040 acres of land to any individual whatever.\\nThe grantee cannot claim the land under the laws of the Indies, or the royal orders\\nof 1754 or 1790, and we know of no authority vested in the Spanish Governor, be-\\nfore the year 1815, to make a grant to any individual for services, however much\\nmore than Governor W., that governor may have been disposed to be liberal.\\nIf we look at the grant itself, and take the claim and merits of Merando, as set\\nfortli by himself, to be true, how contemptible and ridiculous do they seem, when\\nviewed as a basis for a grant like this. P. Merando, second pilot of the launch of\\nthe bar of this port, promoted by his distinguished merits and skill, from a common\\nrower on board of said launch, claims a principahty as his reward. In addition to\\nhigh services as pilot and rower, he represents that he has made some magnificient\\nexpeditions in the rivers of this province, and then, for his services and his poverty,\\nmodestly begs for eight leagues square, by virtue of the royal orders for the granting\\nof lands gratis to Spanish subjects.\\nWe will not pronounce this grant a forgery, and dnis debar the party of the rights\\nwhich he may have acquired by the law of 23d May, 1828. We are prevented from\\nthis by the deposition of Segue and Alvarez but we think it our duty to say, that\\nwe view any grant purporting to be made by Governor White to a larger amount\\nthan is prescribed by the Royal orders, and by his own regulation, as extremely sus-\\npicious. We consider him the most correct Governor who has ever presided in\\nEast Florida, the most strictly observant of the laws, and the most parsimonious of\\nthe public lands; and we do firmly believe, that, if his example had been followed\\nby his successors, and if his name had never been signed after his death, there would\\nnow be no confusion in the land titles of East Florida. We furthermore believe,\\nthat previous to the year 1803, Governor White never made a grant of land more\\nextensive than that prescribed by the regulations of Qnfisada nor, subsequently to\\nthat period, more extensive than was permitted by his own. VVe do not believe\\nthat he has ever yet made a grant for services, nor for any thing other than head\\nrights that he has never made a grant, when living, of 20,000 acres to one in-\\ndividual, whatever he may have done since dead and that he has never made a\\ngrant within the Indian boundaries, within which limits this land then lay. It is true\\nthat the original of this document, or claim, has been found in the office of the Pub-\\nlic Archives, but it is a matter of history, that the papers now deposited there were,\\nfor a long time after the change of government, most loosely kept and guarded\\nand it was a matter of equal facility to take a paper out, or smuggle it in. From the\\nbest evidence we have been enabled to acquire upon this subject, it appears to the\\nBoard that there were two offices at this place under the Spanish Government\\nThe Escribano office, which was regularly kept in books, stitched together in con-\\nsecutive pages, with all the records closely following each other, so as to make it", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0042.jp2"}, "43": {"fulltext": "37\\nextremely difficult to interpolate a grant. For the records of this office we have higli\\nrespect it seems to have been a place where all grants were recorded when fully\\nmatured. The other, the office of the Governor s Secretary, was of a dilTereut\\ncharacter hero, all the papers were in loose and detached sheets, easy to have been\\ntaken away, or to have had a forged document thrust among them, without tho\\npower of detection. This is the office in which all the memorials for lands, with the\\ninchoate decree of the Governor, were first thrown; and it does appear to the Board,\\nthat Uiese first decrees do, in no case, amount to a grant, but barely give to the ap-\\nplicant the right to become a settler upon the performance of all the conditions im-\\nposed by the law. We will give an exemplification of our ideas: A. B. upon com-\\ning into the province, if he is a new settler, writes his memorial to the Governor,\\nand applies for 50,000 acres of land the Governor says, let it be granted, until,\\naccording to the number of his family, the portion to which he is entitled is allotted\\nto him. This paper is thrown into the Governor s Secretary s Office, and, as we\\nconceive, is itself no record, and conveys no title. It is a bars iiermission to the\\napplicant to settle in the country, and to receive his lands if he shall take the oath\\nof allegiance: 50,000 acres if he has workers enough to justify the grant, and 500\\nif, by the number of his family, he is entitled to no more. It will not be pretended\\nthat the party could claim the lands thus granted, if he never afterwards took the\\noath of allegiance, nor can it be pretended that, by the mere grant, as above sup-\\n2)osed, the 50,000 acres are conveyed, until some subsequent step is taken by the\\nparty to consummate his title. In addition to the oath of allegiance, he was re-\\nquired to swear to the number of his workers and, when this was done, according\\nto the number of his workers was the quantity granted, and subsequently surveyed by\\nthe i^ublic surveyor. Then it was that the documents were all transferred to the\\noffice of the Escribano, fairly written out in a book of records, and entitled to the\\nfullest confidence but the loose papers in the Governor s Secretary s office, the first\\nmemorial and decree, such as we have just described it, do not seem to have con-\\nveyed any title, to have been considered any record, or worthy of any preservation.\\nIt was over this last office that Thomas do Agnilar presided it is from this office\\nthat so many monstrous grants have emanated it is from this office that the originals\\nof Thomas de Aguilar s certifisates of grants are lost and it is in this oHice that\\nthe original of the grant before us is to be found. It may be, as well from the loose\\nmanner, in which these documents in the Governor s Secretary s office, were kept,\\nas from tho little faith to be attached to Aguilar s certificates, that so many of the\\noriginals of those certificates are lost; and, if the view which wo have taken of this\\nmatter be correct, Aguilar may have been a meritorious officer, his certificates per-\\nfectly genuine, and the grants which are pretended to be conveyed by them of no\\nvalidity. It is possible that, after making the application for the lands, as certified\\nby Aguilar, the party, unable or unwilling to comply with the conditions, had aban-\\ndoned his intention of becoming a Spanish subject, and a Spanish grantee, and yet,\\nhaving scriipulously preserved the certificate of Aguilar, given at the time when tha\\noriginal, known to be of no value, was thrown away, has come before this Board,\\nsince the change of flags, and applied for the lands and such a case, if it were not\\nfor the grant on absolute property, might we deem this of Merando s to be. If\\nhe had asked for ten leagues square of Governor White, and the Governor had said,\\nlet it be done in proportion to his family, and Merando had proved that he had", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0043.jp2"}, "44": {"fulltext": "38\\nleOO negroes, or a thousand children, Merando would have been entitled to thn\\namount, however large, which, by the regulations, he could claim for them but, as\\nhe has proved neither the one nor the other, and has never surveyed the land, even\\nif the grant be genuine, he can take nothing by a title like this.\\ntTRANSLATION.]\\nIn the borough of Madrid, this twenty-seventh day of February, in the year\\nt nc thousand eight hundred and eighteen, before me, a Notary of the King s Su-\\npreme tribunal and public of these Kingdoms, and in the presence of the witnesses\\nthat shall be named: His Excellency Lord Don Francisco Ramon de Sp6s, Fernan-\\ndez de Cordobo y Alagon, Glimes de Brabante, Aragon, Bazan, Martinez de Luna,\\nMoncayo Palefox, Herrera Roxas y Guzman, c. Duke of Alagon, Baron of Sp6s\\nand Alfajarin Count of Castelflorido, proprietor and Lord temporal of said Barony\\nof Sp6s and tomes of Spds Chirivila and Mongay, and of the Barony of Alfajarin,\\nand borough of the same name, and of the towns of Nuez and Farlete, of the Castle\\nof Anzano and Pardina de Cureros, and Grandee of Spain of the first class, Grand\\nCross of the Royal and distinguished Spanish order of Charles the Third, and of\\nthe Royal and Military order of St. Ilermeniqueldo Knight of the illustrous order\\nof St. Johns of Jerusalem, Commendary of Ademir and Castelfavi in the military\\norder of our Lady of Montesa, decorated with the Fleur de Lis of France Hono-\\nrary Member of the Royal .Academics of Madrid, Saragoza and Valencia; Protector\\nof the Royal Canal of Manzanares, Counsellor ex oficio of the Supreme Council of\\nWar, Gentleman of H. Majesty s Chamber in Exercise, Lieutenant General of tha\\nRoyal Armies, and Captain, Commander, Inspector, and first chief of the Royal\\nCorps of personal Guards of the King, said, that the King, our Lord, (whom God\\npreserve) by his royal Decree of the seventeenth day of December, of the year last\\npast, one thousand eight hundred and seventeen, was pleased in compliance with\\nthe prayer of His Excellency, dated on the twelfth day of July of said year, and in\\nconsideration of his distinguished merit and well proved zeal for the Royal Service\\nof His Majesty and His Sovereign person, to grant him in full property for himself\\nand his heirs, the uncultivated lands not before granted in East Florida, situated be-\\ntween the banks of the River St. Lucy and St. Johns, as far as their mouths, where\\nthey fall into the sea, and the coast of the Gulph of Florida, and the adjoining Islands\\nto the mouth of River HijueJoz, by the twenty-sixth degree of north latitude, and\\nalon- the left bank of the said River up to its source, drawing thence a line by the\\nLake(or Pond) Macaco, coming thence down the River St. Johns to Lake (or Pond)\\nValdes, and d! awing another line from the northernmost part of said Lake (or Pond)\\nto the source of the River Amanina, thence persuing the left banks of said River to\\nits mouth by the twenty-eigth and twenty-ninth degree of latitude, and going along\\nthe sea coast and all the adjoining Islands to the mouth of the River Hijueloz, the\\ncorresponding Royal order having been issued at the Royal Palace of this CoHrt,", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0044.jp2"}, "45": {"fulltext": "39\\nander date of the sixth inst. signed by His Majesty s owu hand, and counteriiigned\\nby Signior Don Estaban Varea, his Secretary of the Supreme Council of the In-\\ndies, granting thereby to His Excellency, authority, to irapoirt negroes, free of duty,\\nto work and cultivate the land as it does more fuliy appear from the tenor of said\\nRoyal order, which authentic, and for the greater validity of what will be hereafter\\nmentioned, is here inserted, its tenor being as follows\\nRoyal i THE KING My Governor and Captain General of the Island\\nOrder. J of Cuba, and its District. The Duko of Alagon, and Baron of\\nSp^p, represented to me in his memorial dated the twelfcth of July of last year,\\nwhat follows\\nSire The Duke of Alagon, Baron of Spds, Captain of the Guards of the Royal\\nPerson of your Majesty, with the greatest respect sets forth that it being the\\ninterest of the Crown to grant to great Capitalists, the uncultivated lands, in order\\nthat they may be settled upon and cultivated, whence great advantages ariso\\nwhich are fully demonstrated and recommended by all politicians, and there being\\nmany lands, perhaps the greatest part ia the fertile soil of the Floridies, not in a state\\nof cultivation, and your Majesty having the right as absolute proprietor of distribut-\\ning those lands for the benefit of Agriculture, and by way of reward and remunera-\\ntion for important services rendered to the advantage of your Majesty, and of your\\nwhole kingdom. Anxious to obtain this mark of consideration from the magnani-\\nmous heart of your Majesty, and of contributing on my part to promote population,\\nan object of so great importance to the public welfare: Prays your Majesty, to bo\\npleased to grant him the uncultivated land not before granted in East Florida, sitnato\\nbetween the banks of the Rivers St. Lucy and St. Johns, as far as their mouths,\\nwhere they fall into the se^, and the coast of the Gulph of Florida and adjoining\\nIslands to the mouth of the River Hijueloz, by the twenty-sixth degree of north\\nlatitude, and along the left banks of the said River up to its source, drawing thence\\na line by the lake (or Pond) Macaco, coming thence down the River St. Johns to\\nLake (or Pond) Valdes, and drawing another line from the northernmost part of\\nsaid Lake (or Pond) to the source of the River Amanina, thence persuing the left\\nbank of said River to its mouth by the twenty-eighth and twenty-ninth degree of la.\\ntitude, and going along the sea coast, and all the adjoining Islands to the mouth of\\nRiver Hijueloz, in full property for himself and his heirs, and permitting him the\\nimportation of negroes, free of duty, to work and cultivate said lands, a favor which\\nhe hopes to obtain from the natural benevolence of your Majesty. Having taken\\ninto consideration the purport of this memorial, and paying attention to the dis-\\ntinguishod merit of this individual, and to his well known zeal for my Royal service,\\nas also the advantages which acrue to the State, from the increase of population in\\nthe tract of Country which he solicits. I have been pleased to accede to his solici-\\ntude as far as it may not be in opposition to the laws of those my kingdoms, and com-\\nmunicating the same to my Council of the Indies in my Royal decree of the se-\\nventeenth day of December of said year, for its execution Wherefore, I com-\\nmand and require you, by this my Royal order, that in conformity with the laws\\ntouching this matter, you lend the necessary assistance to the execution of said con-\\ncession, taking all the measures proper to carry it into effect, without prejudice to tho\\nrights of others, and in order that said Duke of Alagon, may proceed immediately\\nto carry into execution his design, agreeably to my benevolent wishes in favor of the", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0045.jp2"}, "46": {"fulltext": "40\\nAgriculture and Commerce of said possessions which demand a populatioH propor-\\ntioned to the fertility of the soil, aud the defence and security of the sea coast, in-\\nforming hereafter of the progress that will be made, it being understood that the\\nimportation of negroes allowed in said concession, is to be made in conformity with\\nthe regulations of that trade prescribed in my Royal order of the nineteenth of De-\\ncember nit., for such is my will and pleasure. This Royal order shall be registered\\nin the Coiitaduria, General of the Indies, Given at the palace, this sixth day of\\nFebruary, in the year one thousand eight hundred and eighteen. I THE KING.\\nBy the command of the King our Lord, Esteban Varea, Fees Seventy rials\\nPlate, Four flourishes, Duplicate To the Governor and Captain General of\\nllie Island of Cuba and its District, that he may talce proper measure to render\\neflectual concession granted to the Duke of Alagon, of certain lauds situate in\\nEast Florida, and the rest herein expressed, corrected, one flourish, registered in\\nthe Contaduria General of North America, Madrid, this sixteenth day of February,\\nin the year one thousand eight hundred and eighteen.\\nJOSEPH TEXARDA.\\nIt agrees with the original, which was for the purpose presented to me by His Ex-\\ncellency Lord Duke of Alagon, to whom I returned it, which I attest, and to which\\nI refer myself: In testimony thereof, I, the undersigned Notary of the Supreme tri-\\nbunal of the King our Lord, and Public of those Kingdoms, and one of the quorum\\nof this Court, do give and sign these presents in Madrid, this twenty-seventh day of\\nFebruary, iu the year one thousand eight hundred and eighteen.\\nD. ROMAN LORENZO CALBO.\\nIt agrees with the original which remains united and incorporated to this instru-\\nment in the register thereof, enrolled at my oflice, which I attest, and to which I\\nrefer myself; eonsequently his Excellency not being able, both from the weighty\\nmatters which are committed to his care, and occupy his attention, and his constant\\nservice immediately about the Royal person of Hia Majesty, to go personally to take\\npossession, assume the management and administration himself, direct and devise\\nproper means to carry into full and complete effect, the resolution of His Majesty,\\nclearly manifested in said Royal order of the sixth inst. has determined after mature\\nconsideration, to commit this important business to some one, in whom he may have\\nfull and entire confidence, and such being the case with regard to Don Nicolas Gar-\\nrido, at present residing at this Court, both from his integrity, and his information\\nand talent?, he has accordingly made choice of him for the execution of the busi-\\nness, and by these presents, His Excellency knowing and exercising his right, has in\\nthe most legal manner agreed to grant, and by these presents does confirm and grant\\nthe most complete and general power, which by law may be required for the purpose\\nand matters which will be hereafter mentioned, unto the said Don Nicolas Garrido,\\nin order Uiat in the name of the Lord Duke, or Alagon, his constituted and repre-\\nsenting his own person, rights and actions, may repair to the place, and make appli-\\ntion to His Excellency the Captain General of the Island of Cuba, Governor of the\\nHavana, Intendant Governor of Florida, and other authorities, Ministers and Jus-\\nticas of those Dominions, to whom it may appertain, and after obtaining their assent", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0046.jp2"}, "47": {"fulltext": "41\\nand permission, as it is fit to proceed, in conformity with the laws there in force to\\ntake actual possession in fact and in due form, for the uncultivated lands which His\\nMajesty has been pleased to grant in full property to His Excellency for himselfand\\nhis heirs in East Florida, in the above mentioned Royal order, and which lands aro\\nsituate between the banks of the Rivers St. Lucy and St. John s as far as their mouths,\\nwhere they fall into the sea, and the coast of the Gulf of Florida, and the adjoining\\nIslands to the mouth of the River Hijneloz, by the twenty-sixth degree of north lati-\\ntude, and along the left bank of said River up to its source, drawing thence a line by\\nthe Lake or (Pond) Macaco, coming thence down the River St. John s, to Lake (or\\nPond) Valdes, and drawing another line from the northernmost part of said Lake (or\\nPond) to the source of the River Amanina, thence pursuing the left bank of said\\nRiver to its mouth, by the twenty-eighth and twenty-ninth degree of latitude, and\\ngoing along the sea coast, and all the adjoining Islands to the mouth of the River\\nHijneloz, and directly after said Don Nicolas Garrido, shall himself assume the man-\\nagement and administration of said lands, taking proper measures for the most\\nprompt opening and clearing of such parts and places as he may deem most neces-\\nsary and fit for settlements he is likewise to adopt the most energetic and suitable\\nmeasures to make in the shortest time possible, a beginning to the settlement, endea-\\nvoring to promote progressively the increase of the same, as also the building of\\nHouses, and introduction of Mechanic trades, in which His Excellency will receive\\nthe most complete satisfaction, as he will see thereby, the just and wise views of\\nthe King our Lord accomplished. Likewise-, His Excellency grants and confers full\\npower and authority to said Don Nicolas Garrido, to introduce in the name and\\nbehalf of His Lordship, to import the negroes necessary and indispensible for the\\ncultivation of said Lands, which importation shall be free of duty, agreeable to what\\nHis Majesty has been pleased to provide in his Royal Order of the sixth inst. as also\\nto eff-ect sales, and alienate such parts of the above mentioned lands as he may think\\nproper, conveying the same to any person or persons, companies, or bodies cor-\\nporate, that he may think fit, for such sums, stipulating such manner of payment\\nand instalments, as he may deem most useful and advantageous to His Excellency s\\nrights said Garrido being authorised to grant upon this, as upon any other matter\\ntouching the premises, such bills of sale and instruments of conveyanee as maybe\\nrequired, introducing in them such clauses, agreements, conditions, terms, and cir-\\ncumstances, as in his judgment, will be mostcasonant with the intentions of H.3\\nExcellency which instruments of conveyance with all the terms and conditions\\ntherein contained His Excellency the Lord Duke from this time approves of, sanc-\\ntions and ratifies, in the same manner as if they were granted and executed by him-\\nself, were he present, in consequence of the great confidence and full trust which\\nhe reposes in said Don Nicolas Garrido, who is to act according to the usage, cus.\\ntoms and practice of those coumries, and in conformity to the laws which may prevail\\nin them, as also with the Royal Order, dated the sixth inst. which has been herein\\ninserted, and agreeable to the orders and instructions which His Excellency will in\\nconsequence of its tenor, furnish him with in any letter or letters, which shall have\\nthe same utility and force, as if they were expressly and verbatim inserted m this spe-\\ncial and general power of attorney and His Excellency also authorises him to\\nsubstitute this power, at His Excellency s own risk, in one or more persons, for\\nthe particular and only p.npo-se of managing and making settlements upon th\u00c2\u00ab", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0047.jp2"}, "48": {"fulltext": "42\\nsaid Luiida and to make said substitutes, and name new ones. His Excellency\\nmoreover ivea him power to demand and examine all accounts from any\\nperson or persons, companies, liodies corporate, .or corporations, or from any\\nother from whom such accounts may be rightfully demanded, charging whatever\\nin his opinion he may have a right to charge, simply approving said accounts\\nwhenever he may find them just, and not being so, make the proper objection to\\nthem which he will support until the cause be removed, appointing one or more\\naccomptants, and an umpire in case of dissention, or acting judiciously in case of\\ncontumacy, giving receipts for any sums paid to him, or signing any other document\\nthat may be required of him for the security of those mailing such payments for\\nthemselves, or in behalf of others, in full proof of the sums so paid, which by the\\npresent clause shall stand good, for which purpose the laws touching the matter, if\\nopposed to this intention arc heraby revoked. He is further authorised in all matters\\nand cases, where he will not be able to come to a settlement and simple adjustment\\nwith any person, corporations or authorities, to have reference to arbitrators, and\\nfriendly compromises, requiring of the other party to do the same, and binding him-\\nself to abide by, and submit to the award, judgments, penalties, and divisions of\\nsuch arbitrators, and finally he is hereby empowered and authorised in case he should\\nfind it necessary, in the transaction of this business, thus committed to him, or any\\npart of it, to sue, to sue in the name of His Excellency, to do so before any superior\\nor inferior Court or tribunal, having ecclesiastic, military, or civil jurisdiction, as\\nthe case may require, writing and presenting such petitions, memorials, remon-\\nstrances, requisitions, citations, oppositions, witnesses, instructions of writing, ob-\\njections, contradictions, claims, and their replies, protests, affidavits, and recusations\\nwhen upon the proof or otherwise, to bring forward whatever he may think useful\\nand favorable to the rights of His Excellency. To demand executions, arrests, en-\\nlargements, seizures and releases of property, sales, transfers, auctions, with the\\nright of possession, to attend to decrees and sentence, whether interlocutory or defi-\\nnitive, and to assent to such as are favorable, and appeal when they be adverse,\\nwhenever such an appeal will be under the law, and following up such an appeal\\nthrough the diff erent formalities and tribunals, to apply for and try to obtain Royal\\nprovisions, orders, and all kinds of resolutions, which he will endeavor to carry into\\nfull and complete execution and in conclusion, he is authorised to do and perform\\nall other acts in the name of His Excellency, and to adopt whatever measure and\\nsteps be necessary, judicially or extrajudicially, and all such as the Lord Duke grant-\\ning this power, would himself adopt, were he personally present, for His Excellency\\ngrants and confirms on Don Nicolas Garrido, the special and general power which\\nhe may require for all these acts, without any limitation, with all incidents, depen-\\ndencies, things annexed and connected, giving him in all cases the full, free and\\ngeneral administration, with an exoneration on his part, and an obligation on the\\npart of His Excellency to confirm all his acts His Excellency submitting to the\\nJustice, and competent authorities, having jurisdiction o\\\\er such cases as may occur,\\nand he subjects himself to the jufisdictiou and authority of all, and each of them,\\nrenouncing at the same time his privileges, his own jurisdiction, domicil, laws, im-\\nmunities and rights making in his favor, includiug the general law upon this matter.\\nHis Excellency also gives him power to name, substitute and substitutes in suits and\\nlegal proceedings, and to revoke at pleasure substitutes, and appoint others. It was\\nthus ex\u00c2\u00abcuted, granted and signed by His Excellency, whom I attest, to know per-", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0048.jp2"}, "49": {"fulltext": "43\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2onally, ia the presence of the following witnesses, to wit: Don Vicente Murilfo y\\nMontes, Don Lorenzo Linares, and Don Hilarion de Baraza, inhabitants and resi-\\ndents of this court P. El Duque De Alagon, Baron De Sp^s.\\nBefore me, Roman Lorenzo Calbo. I, Don Lorenzo Calbo, Notary of the Si;.\\npreme Council of War, of the King our Lord, of the CollecUon General of Spoils\\nand vacancies of the Kingdom, of the corps and troops of the Royal Palace and its\\njurisdiction, particularly Commissioned in the Royal Canal of Manranares, Notary\\nPublic to these Kingdoms, and one of the illustrious quorum of this Court, do attest\\nto have been present, and I make my signum crucis, and sign these presents in\\nMadrid, this fourth day of April, in the year one thousand eight hundred and\\neighteen, in a sheet of jiajier of the stamp No. 2, and the inside sheet of the stamp\\nNo. 4, which paper is likewise used in the Register.\\n(Signed)\\nI Signum Crucis. 1 ROMAN LORENZO CALBO.\\nLEGALIZATION. We the Notary Public and of the King our Lord, and of\\nthe illustrious quorum of this Court, who make our Signum Crucis and sign these\\npresents, do testify and attest, that Don Roman Lorenzo Calbo, who has executed\\nand signed the preceding document, is what he styles and calls himself, that he is\\nfaithful, loyal, and entitled to full confidence, and that full faith and credit is, and\\nhas always been given to all instruments of writing done and authorised by him,\\nwhether considered judicially or e.xtra-judicially In testimony whereof, we give\\nthese presents, to which we have affixed the sea! of our said quorum, dated set setro.\\n(Signed)\\nI Signum Crucis I JOSE VARELA.\\nSignum Crucis. ZACARIAS DELGADO.\\nSignum Crucis. 1 JULIAN JUAN DE LA CRUZ MELGAR.\\nSeal of the\\nQ,uorum.\\nI, Don Santon Sanchez, of his Majesty s Council, his Secretary, first Clerk of the\\nSecretary Otfice of the Royal and Supreme Council and Tribunal of the Indies,\\nwith regard to New Spain, Certify That the preceding power of Attorney, granted\\nby His Excellency Lord Duke of Alagon, to Don Nicolas Garrido, a resident of this\\nCourt, having been examined by their honors of said Supreme Council of the Indies,\\nin their session of this day, they have been pleased to authorise said act in the usual\\nform. In testimony whereof, I sign these presents in Madrid, this fifteenth day of\\nApril, in the year one thousand eight hundred and eighteen.\\n(Signed) SANTON SANCHEZ.\\nI, Antonio Argote Villalobos, Esq., His Catholic Majesty s Consul, resident in the\\ncity of Charleston, do hereby certify, that the preceding is a faithful and literal trans-\\nlation of the original Spanish hereunto attached.\\nIn testimony hereof, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed my seal of office,\\nthis eleventh day of March, in the city of Charleston, in the year of our Lord one\\nthousand eight hundred and nineteen.\\n(Signed) ANTONIO ARGOTE VILLALOBOS,", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0049.jp2"}, "50": {"fulltext": "44\\nJln ict to Incorporate the East Florida Rail-road Company,\\nSec, 1. Be it enacted by tho Governor and Legislative Council of the Territory of\\nFlorida, That Thomas Penney, John Binney, Samuel S.Lewis, Daniel D. Broad-\\nhead, Amos Binney, J. B. Danforth, J. Kettelle, John Henshaw, George Hallet,\\nJohn Brovi^n, Francis J.Oliver, Stephen White, C. W. Cartwriglit, James C. Dunn,\\nJonas L. Sibley, Mark Healey, Edmund Monroe, L. M. Parker, Joseph L.\\nSmith and A. M. Frink and their associates be, and they are hereby incorporated\\nby the name and style of the East Florida Rail-road Company, and by that name,\\nall who shall become subscribers for stock, and members of said Company, their\\nheirs, successors or assigns, shall be capable in law, to purchase, receive, retain and\\nenjoy to them and their heirs, successors, or assigns, any lands, tenements, goods,\\nchattels and effects, of what kind soever necessary to carry on the concerns of the\\nCompany, and making and maintaining said road and the same to grant, sell, mort-\\ngage, and dispose of; to sue and be sued, plead and be impleaded, to make a com-\\nmon seal, and at pleasure to break or alter the same; to ordain, establish, and put\\nin execution, such by-laws and regulations as may be deemed necessary and expe-\\ndient for the government of said corporation, not being contrary to the constitution\\nor laws of the United States, or laws of this Territorj\\nSec. 2. Beit further enacted. That the capital stock of this Company shall\\nnot amount to more than five hundred thousand dollais, to be divided into shares of\\none hunred dollars each, books of subscription for wliich, shall be opened on the\\nfirst day of May next, at Boston, (Mass.) under the superintendence of .Samuel S.\\nLicwis, John Henshaw, David Henshaw, J. B. Danfoith and Stephen White, at\\nSt. Augustine, under the superintendence of Benjamin A. Putnam, Charles Down-\\ning, Peter B. Dumas, Joseph S. Sanchez and John M. Hanson, at Tallahassee, un-\\nder the superintendence of James Gadson, Benjamin Chaires, John G. Gamble,\\nWm. B. Nutall and Abraham Bellamy, at Appalachicola, under the superinten-\\ndence of E. J. Wood, Thomas Penney, E. J. Hardin, G. J. Floyd and Wm. G.\\nPorter, at Jacksonville, under the superintendence of James Dell, Joseph B. Lan-\\ncaster, J. D. Hart, Stephen Eddy, E. Williams, M. K. Pinckston and John W. Ri-\\nchard, jr. at Marianna, under the superintendence of Peter W. Gaiitier, Duke W.\\nHorn, Jacob Robinson, Thomas Orman and Richard L. Watson and atPensacola,\\nunder the superintendence of Joseph Licarr, Edward L. Drake, John Campbell,\\nCharles C. Keyser and G. W. Barkley, commissioners under this Act, any three of\\nwhom at the places designated, shall be competent io receive subscriptions for stock\\nProvided, that the persons named in Sec. 1. of this Act, and their associates, shall\\nhave the right and privilege to subscribe for, and own by precedence, two-thirds of\\nthe capital stock as aforesaid, at their discretion. And the books shall be kept open\\nfor thirty days, at the expiration of whicli time they shall be closed and if, alter the\\nabove subscription of two-thirds, it shall appear that the remaining subscriptions\\ntaken up have caused the whole subscription to exceed five hundred thousand dol-\\nlars, the excess shall be deducted from such remaining subscriptions, pro rata. If on\\nthe contrary, it shall appear that a less amount than five hundred thousand dol-\\nlars has been subscribed, it shall be competent for such commissioners as are here-\\ninafter constitxited a provisional directory, or the President and Directois of said\\nCompany to cause books to be opened from time to time, at any places they may ap-", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0050.jp2"}, "51": {"fulltext": "45\\npoint, and under the superintendence of such agency as they may choose, until the\\nsubscription be filled, or until so much be subscribed as they shall deem necessary\\nfor the prosecution of the work. Provided, however, that the capital stock may be\\nincreased to one million and a half of dollars, if the Company shall hereafter deem it\\nnecessary.\\nSec. 3. Be it further enacted, That there shall be paid upon each share of the\\nstock, five dollars at Llie time of subscribing, and five dollars within at least six months\\nafter the fiist closing of the books, and the residue at any time, at the discretion of\\nthe President and Directors, by giving sixty days notice previous to a call for any\\ninstalment, by advertisement in three or more newspapers published in this Territory,\\nand one or more at Boston, Massachusetts, or at such other place or places as books\\nmay have been opened and if any stockholder shall fail to pay within ten days after\\nthe time designated the amount of such instalment, the stock upon which the delin-\\nquency occurs shall be forfeited to the President and Directors, to be disposed of at\\ntheir discretion, for the use and benefit of the Company; the purchaser of such stock\\nbecoming subject to the same conditions and regulations as the original holder; or\\nthe President and Directors may sue for and recover the amount in arrears, with\\ndamages.\\nSec. 4. Be it further enacted. That each share purchased and held in the stock\\nof the Company shall be enlitled to one vote upon all questions submitted at any le-\\ngally convened meeting of the Company, which vote may be exercised either person-\\nally or by proxy; and every stockholder not in arrears shall be eligible to be chosen\\na Director, but no stockholder who shall be in arrears shall vote or be eligible to office,\\nor receive any dividend while he shall so continue. A majority of votes shall deter-\\nmine all questions and elect ons.\\nSec. 4. Be it further enacted. That this Corporation shall be governed by twenty\\nDirectors, who shall be elected by the stockholders at the first organization of the\\nCompany, they choosing a President from their own body at their first meeting and\\nthe directory so elected shall meet and be qualified for oflice by taking and sub-\\nscribing each an oath or affirmation in writing, administered by some competent au-\\nthority, to discharge faithfully the duties of his office; and the same shall be fiKd bv\\nthe Secretary and the directory so formed phall continue in office until the first Mon-\\nday in February, ensuing, and on that day, and annually thereafter, sixty days pre-\\nvious notice being given by the President, or his order, by public advertisement, in\\nmanner as described in section 3, there shall be elected twenty Directors, who shall\\nenter upon office under the same provisions as at the first election, and in like man-\\nner elect their President, and the President and Directors for the time bcinof shall\\nbe competent to make, alter, and amend all by-laws, rules, and regulations for the\\ngovernment of this Corporation, subject to revision by the stockholders in general\\nmeeting, and to create and fill all necessary oflices, make all appointments and re-\\nmovals, and manage the entire affiiivs of this Company, minutes of their proceedings\\nbeing regularly recorded, and held subject to the examination of the stockholders\\nduring office hours. INot less than nine members of any directory at its first meetinc\\nsubsequent to their election shall be competent to choose a President but at all other\\nmeetings five members shall constitute a quorum, and the first meeting of any new-\\ndirectory, including the first, shall always be held within five days after their election.\\nIt is provided, however, That if from any cause w hatever, there should at any time", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0051.jp2"}, "52": {"fulltext": "46\\nbe 110 election of Directors, the Cc poration shall not for that cause he dissolved but\\nthe Directors then in office shall continue in office, and have power over all concernB\\nof the Company until a new dir.clory shall be qualified for office; and in any case\\nwhere delay may arise in the formation of a new board after any election, the old di-\\nrectory shall continue to act until they are legally and officially superseded and if\\nany vacancy shall occur by resignation, removal, or death, it shall be competent for\\nthe President and Directors in office, or a quorum of the same, to fill any such vacancy\\nfrom the body of the stockholders.\\nSec. 6. Be it further enacted. That when the directory first chosen under the\\nprovisions of the prpceding section, shall have entered upon office, the commission-\\ners appointed as hereafter, a provisional directory shall forthwith deliver to the said\\ndirectory, or their secretar) all boolvs and papers in their custody, and shall render\\nand settle their accounts of expenditure, and thereupon their functions shall cease,\\nand shall devolve upon and be exercised by the Board of Directors, who shall have\\nauthority to keep open the books of subscription for stock, as elsewhere provided:\\nand it shall be incumbent on the commissioners in this Territory, to cause the amounts\\nreceived by them for subscriptions of stock to be deposited in the nearest solvent and\\ncreditable bank,immediately after the closing of the books and to obtain a certificate\\nfrom the cashier of said bank, (which may be duplicate,) that the amount is held at\\nthe credit of the East Florida Rail-road Company, which certificate shall be trans-\\nmitted to the directory, or the provisional directory, as the case may be, wliich pro-\\nvisional director) shall themselves be subject to this rule, and shall file orhand over,\\naa the case may be, such certificate.\\nSec 7. Be it further enacted. That when the books of subscriptions are first\\nclosed, the commissioners appointed at each place in this Territory, or any of them,\\nshall immediately thereafter transmit by mail, and duplicates by succeeding mail, to\\nthe commissioners in Boston, Massachusetts, authenticated copies of the sub criptions\\nmade at their respective places and if it shall appear that an amount equal to one\\nthird part of the capital stock has been subscribed at all the places where books\\nwere opened, then the commissioners last named shall within ten days thereafter\\ncall a meeting of the stockholders to choose a directory, by giving thirty days\\nnotice by public advertisement in three or more newspapers published in this Terri-\\ntory, and one or more at Boston, Massachusetts; but until an amount equal to one\\nthird part of the capital stock be subscribed, the commissioners at Boston, as afore-\\nsaid, shall act as a directory for the management of the concerns of this Corpora-\\ntion, any three of whom may form a board, choosing their own chairman, and ap-\\npointing or removing their agents, and making such regulations as they shall deem\\nexpedient, and suppl^-ing vacancies in their own body, by death, absence, or refusal\\nto act and they are hereby enjoined and required to supply all such vacancies,\\nwithout delay, that the business of this Company be not liindered or impeded and\\nthey shall so continue to act as a provisional directory until the said amount of one\\nthird part of the capital stock be subscribed, when they shall proceed to call a meet-\\ning of the stockholders, in manner, and for the purposes as before directed in this\\nsection.\\nSec.^8. Be it further enacted, That the stock of said Corporption shall be\\ntransferable and assignable under such rules and regulations, and subject to such\\nrestrictions and co sditions as the B^ard of Directors may from time to time esta-\\nblish, and that the ^p.me shall be deemed personal piop?rty.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0052.jp2"}, "53": {"fulltext": "47\\nSec. 9. Be it further enacted, That the said Company have the riglit and privi-\\nlegeto construct a Rail road, of one or more tracks, through the Territory of Florida,\\nfrom any point on the St. John s river or its tributaries, or south and east of said river,\\nto the Gulf of Mexico, or waters emptying therein to connect by this means the wa-\\nters of the Atlantic ocean with those of the Gulf of Mexico, together with the right\\nand privilege to own steam-boats and vessels, and piers, wharves and docks, and no\\ncharter shall be granted by the Legislature of Florida conflicting with the rights and\\nprivileges hereby granted Provided, That nothing herein contained shall be con-\\nstrued so as to warrant this Company to interfere with the route of the Florida\\nPeninsula and Jacksonville Rail-road but the Company may, with the consent of\\nthe Florida Peninsula and Jacksonville Rail-road Cornpany, connect their road\\nwith Jacksonville, in this territory, or adopt the route secured to that Company by\\ntheir charter, or make any other compact or arrangement with that Company which\\nmay be mutually agreed upon.\\nSec. 10. Be it further enacted, That the said Company are empowered to make\\nlateral or branch roads from the main one, to any point or points in the Territory of\\nFlorida, where it may be deemed important to extend such facilities Provided, That\\nthe same shall not interfere with any routes for which charters have been already\\ngranted but in such event the parties may compromise and agree upon any mutual\\ngrounds of accommodation.\\nSec 11. Be it further enacted. That the said Company by its President and Di-\\nrectors shall have power to purchase with the funds of the Company, and to place on\\nsaid Rail-ioad, all machines, wagons, vehicles, cars, carriages and teams of any des-\\ncription whatsoever, which they may deem proper and necessary for the purposes of\\ntransportation. All such iiiachines, wagons, vehicles, cars, carriages and teams,\\nand all the works constructed under the authority of this act, and all profits which\\nshall accrue from the same, shall be vested in the respective Shareholders of the\\nCompany for ever, in proportion to their shares, and the same shall be exempt from\\nany public charge or tax whatever; and they are hereby authorized, at those points\\nin the line of their Rail-road, where it may appear to them important for the accom-\\nmodation and business of the road, to establish depots and ware-houses, or any other\\nnecessary and convenient houses and buildings, to be used by them for all purposes\\nof the said road, or to be disposed of by them, when it may be necessary; and to\\ncharge and receive for the storage of produce, merchandize and other articles, at such\\nware-houses or other buildings as they may find it necessary to construct, rates not\\nexceecing the ordinary ware-house duties.\\nSec. 12 Be it further enacted, That in constructing the said Rail-road, it shall\\nbe lawful for the said Company, by its President and Directors, or by its proper agents\\nor servants j to enter upon and takv possession of any land whatsoever which may\\nbe necessary for the completion of the work contemplated by this act Provided,\\nThat no land shall be taken from private individuals or corporations, and appropria-\\nted to the purposes aforesaid, without compensation to those owning the same and\\nit shall and may be lawful for said Company, in like manner, to take from any land\\nconvenient to said Rail-road, at all times, such lumber, stone, or other materials, as\\nmay be necessary for the construction of and keeping in repair said Rail-road\\nProvided, That nothing belonging to individuals shall be taken without adequate\\ncompensation, to be determined in the manner hereinafter provided.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0053.jp2"}, "54": {"fulltext": "48\\nSec. 13. Be it further enacted, That whenever it shall become necessary for the\\nsaid Company to take possession of and appropriate or use any land, timber, stone,\\nor other materials, owned by private individuals or corporations, for the route or site\\nof said Rail-road or works, or for constructing or keeping in rejiair the same, or any\\npart thereof, and the parties do not agree on the value of said land, stone, or materi-\\nals as may be so taken and appropriated, it shall and may be lawful for the President\\nand Directors of said Company, or their proper agents, on giving ten days notice, at\\nleast, in writing, to the party owning the same, or to his, her or their agent, that ap-\\nplication will be made to the judge of the superior or county court, for a writ of ad\\nquod damnum, which shall be granted, and directed to the sheriff, to summon five\\ndisinterested persons, house-holders, of lawful age, to meet and value said property\\non oath administered by any justice of the peace, whose duty it shall be to attend in\\nperson said inquest, and receive their report; the amount thus fixed upon by said\\nvaluation, the said officer shall receive from the said President and Directors, or their\\nproper agent, and pay the same over to the person or persons entitled to receive it,\\nand to take an acquittal or refusal of the same. On this tender of the sum awarded\\nto the party entitled to receive it, or to his, or her, or their agent or attorney, it shall\\nbe lawful for said Company, or their President and Directors or their agent, to enter\\nupon and take possession of, and use, any such land, timber, stone and other mate-\\nrials but all the expenses and costs incurred by the writ of ad quod damnum shall\\nbe paid by the President and Directors of said Company: Provided the appraisers\\nshall not be allowed more than three dollars each per day while engaged in such du-\\nties Provided, That if any person or persons shall purchase or appropriate any of\\nthe public lands over which the Rail-road shall pass, after the same shall have been\\nsurveyed or located, then, and in that case, the said Company shall not be required\\nto make compensation for any of the said lands, timber, stone, or other materials,\\nwhich it might be necessary to take from the same for the use of said road.\\nSec. 14. Be it further enacted. That all property so assessed and paid for by the\\nPresident and Directors of said Company, or their agents, agreeably to the provi-\\nsions of this act, and all donations made to and for the same, shall for ever afterwards\\nbelong to and become the property of said Company, their heirs, successors, or as-\\nsigns, in fee simple, in proportion to the shares owned respectively.\\nSec 15. Be it further enacted. That any Stockholders of said Company may\\nand shall have a right to dispose of and transfer his, her, or their interest in the same,\\nor any part thereof, to any other person or persons, or any corporation, which said\\ntransfer shall not be binding,nnless entered on the books of the Company Provided,\\nThat nothing in this act shall be so construed as to prevent the members of said Com-\\npany from using the property and dividends that may be declared upon said stock\\nto his, her, or their individual purposes.\\nSec 16. Be it further enacted. That the President and Directors of said Compa-\\nny shall have a right to demand and receive such prices and sums for transporting\\nby their own means and carriages on said Rail-road, passengers, produce, goods,\\nand all other articles whatsoever, as may be from time to time authorized by the by-\\nlaws of said President and Directors for said Company: Provided, That such prices\\nand sums shall not at any time be increased without, at least, thirty days notice, in\\na public print or prints in the Territory and the said Company shall continue to\\nreceive such prices and sums for the transportation of passengers, produce, good?,", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0054.jp2"}, "55": {"fulltext": "49\\nand all other articles whatsoever, as may be prescribed by the By laws of said Com-\\npany so lono^ as the said Rail-road is kept in operation: Provided the said Company\\nbecome Tsponsible for any damages which said passengers, produce, goods, and\\narticles of whatsoever kind may receive in transporting the same on said Rail-road,\\nsaving and excepting such damage or hurt as is caused by unavoidable accident, or\\nwhich shall be a proper risk of insurance and all produce, goods a:rd articles, of\\nwhatsoever kind, transported or conveyed on said Rail-road, shall be liable for said\\ntransportation, and may be detained until the same be paid and discharged; and if\\nthe same be not paid, and if such goods, produce and articles remain in possession\\nof the Company for the space of twenty days, they shall be sold at public auction\\nand after the expenses of transportation, storage and auction charges shall be paid,\\nthe remainder shall be handed to such person, persons, or corporation, or their agents,\\nwho shall be entitled to receive the same: Provided, That when the tolls upon said\\nroad shall have paid the Stockholders the full amount of its cost, together with all\\nexpenses, the Company shall then pay two per centum on all profits over ten per\\ncentum into the treasury of this Territory.\\nSec. 17. Be it further enacted. That the said Rail-road Company shall, at all\\ntimes, have the exclusive right of transporting or conveying persons, goods, produce,\\nor articles of any description on said Rail-road to be by them constructed, while they\\nmay see fit to exercise such exclusive right Provided, That if the said Company\\nshall think proper, they may rent or farm out all such exclusive privilege to any per-\\nson or persons, or corporation, for such term as may be agreed on, subject to the\\nsame responsibilities, for which the Company herein before mentioned shall still be\\nheld bound for damages to individuals or corporations which may accrue, by reason\\nof any of the provisions of this act.\\nSec. 18. Be it further enacted. That if any person shall intrude upon said Rail-\\nroad, ora.ny part thereof, or upon the rights or privileges connected therewith, with-\\nout the permission, or contrary to the will, of said Company, all the vehicles, ani-\\nmals, or locomotive power, or other articles, which may be so intrusively introduced,\\nmay be seized by the Company or its agents, or recovered by suit at law and more-\\nover, the person or persons so offending shall be liable to be indicted for a misde-\\nmeanor, and upon conviction, fined and imprisoned by sentence of the superior court\\nof tJie district in which the offence may be committed and if any person shall art-\\nfully or maliciously destroy, or in any manner hurt, damage or injure, or obstruct, or\\nshall artfully or maliciously cause and assist, counsel and advise any other person or\\npersons to destroy, or in any way to hurt, damage, injure, or obstruct said Rail-road,\\nor any part thereof, or any edifice, vehicle, right or privilege granted by this act, and\\nconstructed for use under authority thereof, such person or persons, so offending,\\nshall be liable to be indicted, and on conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned not more\\nthan six nor less than one month, and pay a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars\\nnor less than twenty-five dollars, at the discretion of the court, before which such\\nconviction shall be had, and shall be further liable to pay all the expenses of repair-\\ning the same. The one-half of all the fines under this act shall be paid to the in-\\nformer, and the other half to the use of the Territory.\\nSec. 19. Be it further enacted, That the President and Directors be required to\\nmake a full report to the Stockholders of said Company, at their yearly meeting, for\\nthe election of Directors, on the state of the Corporation and its concerns. The Pre-\\nsident and Directors shall have power also to call a general meeting of the Stock-\\n7", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0055.jp2"}, "56": {"fulltext": "50\\nhjlders whenever t!.e affairs of the Company, in their estimation, shall render it ex^\\np^dient and necessary. The Directors shall have power to flll any vacancies in their\\nbi Jy, which may occnr, as bafore more particularly provided: and it shall be their\\nduty to fill such vacancies whenever they do occur.\\nSec. 20. Bo itfiiithrr enacted, That the surveys to determine the route of saitJ\\nroad shall bacommeiii ed within twelve months after the pass:i\u00c2\u00a3:e cf this :itt, and the-\\nwork itself within eighteen months. There shall be made one-tliiid part of the road\\nin three years, or work equivalent two-thirds in four years-, cr work equivalent, and\\nthe whole work shall be completed in five years, or thia charter shall be forfeited.\\nSec. 21. Be it fiuther enacted, That the said Company shall report annually to\\nthe Governor and Council after the said road goes into operation-, and the books shall\\nbe subject to an annual inspection by a Committee of die Council, if it shall be S9\\nrequired.\\nPassed Feb. 7th,. 1835. Aj-pboved Feb. 14th, 1835,\\nAn Act to Incorporate Ike Southern Life Insurance and Trust Company.\\nGec. 1. Be it enacted by the Governor and the Legi^ative Council of the Tcnt-\\nto y of Florida, That fiom the time this Act shall take effect, Andrew Anderson,\\nDaniel S. Griswold, John B. La Forge, John M. Hanson, Joseph M. Hernandez,\\nJohn D.ysJale, Williatn H. Simmons, Edwin T. Jencks, J. D.Hart, James Dell,\\nJosepli B. Lancaster, John W. Richard, D. L. Clinch, John H. McInto^h, Joseph\\nM. White, Richard K. C.ill, Ben. Chaircs. Abraham Bellamy, W. G. Poller, E. J.\\nHarden, J. C. McClay, Wm. H. Chace, Walter Gregory, H. Hyer, P. C. Green,\\nF. A. Brown, O. O Tlarra, and R. Fitzpatrick, their associates arid successors be,\\nand they are hereby constituted and made a body politic and corporate, under the-\\nname of The Soulhern Life Insurance and Trurt Company, to be located at the\\ncity of St. Augustine and by that mme may sue and be sued, plead and be im-\\npleadel, answer and be answered unlo, in all courts having competent jurisdiction\\nand may have and use a common seal, and the same break, alter and renew at plea-\\nsure and are vested with all the powers and privileges necessary to the objects of\\ntheir incorporation, as hereinafter defined.\\nSec. 2. The said Company shall have power 1st, to make insurance on lives\\n2 J, to orant and purchas3 annuities 3d, to make any other contingent contracts,\\ninvolvinr? the interest of money and the duration of lifo 4th, to receive monies in\\ntrust, and to accumulate the same at such rates of interest as may be obtained or\\na ^reeJ on, not exceeding at the rate of eight per centum per annum, or to allow such\\ninterest t:ier2on as may be agreed on 5th, to accept and execute all suL-h trusts, of\\nevery description, as may be committed to t iem by any person or persons whatsoe-\\nver, or miy be transferred to them by order of any of the courts of this Territory, or\\nby any court as a cou. t of Chancery 6lh, to receive and hold lands under grants,\\nwith s jcli general or special trusts, or covenants, so far as the same may be taken\\nii paym.^nt of their debts, or in security of their capital or bans, or debts due t lem,\\n01- purchased upon sales under any law of this Territory, as may be necessary tJ\\nprotect the rights of the saiJ Company, and the same again to sell, convey, and dis-\\npose of; 7th, to buy, discount, and sell drafts, promissory notes, and bills of ex-\\nehinge 8th, to e.st.iblsh and locate brancbei for carrying on their business.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0056.jp2"}, "57": {"fulltext": "51\\nSec. 5. In all cases ^hcre any court has jurisdiction for the appointment of a\\nguardian of any infant, the annual income of whose estate shall exceed the sum of\\none hundred iiollars, such court shall have power to appoint the said Company as\\nguardian of the estate of iSuch infants.\\nSec 4. On any sum, n(Jt less than one hundred dollars, v.-hich shall he collected\\nor received by the said Company in its capicity of guardian or rcct ivcr, an interest\\nshall be allowed by the said Company of not less than at the rate of four per centum\\nannually, which interest shall continue until the monies so received shall be duly C7.-\\nipended or distributetl.\\nSec 5. Where the annual income of an infant, of whose estate the said Compa-\\nny shall be guardian, shall exceed the sum allowed, or which may be sufficient for\\nthe education and support of such infant, such surplus income shall be at the sole\\nrisk of said Corporation and for all losses of such monies, the capital stock, proper-\\nty and effjcts of the said Corporation shall be absolutely liable.\\nSec 6. The capital stock of the said corporation shall be two millions of dollars,\\nwhich shall be divided into shares of one hundred dollars each, and may be increas-\\ned by tho said Company from time to lime, in like shares, to four millions of dollars;\\nand if at any time, when the books shall be opened, a larger amount of stock be\\nsubscribed than is proposed for, the higher and larger subscribers shall bo curta bd\\nso that all who apply for stock may be enabled to procure it. The whole of said two\\nmillions of capital shall be loaned and invested in bonds or notes drawing interest,\\nnot exceeding eight per cent per annum, secured by unincumbered real and person-\\nal estates, lying and being in the Territory of Florida, of double the value, iij each\\ncase, of the sum so secured which real and personal estate shall be cosveyed to the\\nPresident of said Company, his successors in office, and assigns, with an express trust\\npower, on default of the payment of the principal and interest, according to the tenor\\n\u00e2\u0096\u00a0of such bonds or notes, to sell the said real or personal estate, or so much thereof as\\nmay be necessary to pay the sum in arrear and the incidental expenses, and to pay\\nthe surplus of the proceeds of such sale, (if any,) on demand, to w lom the same shall\\nbelong but before any liability as is hereinafter provided shall be incurred l)y this\\nTerritory, the valuation to be made shall be approved, and said approval shall be en-\\ndorred bv one or more commissioners, to be appointed by the Governor and Legis-\\nlative Council, or by the Governor, in the recess and the Governor, from time to\\ntime, shall have power to appoint and displace said commissioner or commissioners;\\nand for every approval made by thrm, each one shall be entitled to receive five dol-\\nlars, to be paid by the owner or applicant and every one who shall be so appointed,\\nbefore acting, shall take and subscribe an oath, before a judge of the superior court,\\nthat he will faithfully juJge and report on the value of said mortgaged property sub-\\nmitted to him: said valued and mortgaged property, when received by the Company,\\nto be recorded in the county of SL John s, and the registry thereof shall be held suf-\\nficient in law to bind the property, and thereafter the same shall not be assignable,\\nbut shall remain as a security for the ultimate payment and redemption of the princi-\\npal and interest of the liabilities of this Territory for said Company and the Presi-\\ndent and his successors in office, in case of any default, arc hereby enabled and au-\\nthorised to take, hold, and convey such real or personal estate in pursuance of said\\ntrust, and to sell the same at public auction but in all cases shall ive twelve week\u00c2\u00ab\\npublic notice of such sale, by advertising the same in one or more newspapers pub-\\nbilled ftt the aeAt of government, and also in a newspaper nearest the premises, to", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0057.jp2"}, "58": {"fulltext": "52\\nbe sold at the time and place of such sale or sales said advertisement to be publish-\\ned at least once in each week Provided, That no increase of capital shall at\\nany time be ordained by the said Company without the written consent of the hold-\\ners of a majority in amount of the stock, their agents or representatives.\\nSec 7. All tlic corporate powers of said Company shall be exercised by a Board\\nof Trustees, and such officers, agencies and branches as they sliall establish and lo-\\ncate. The Board of Trustees shall consist often persons, all of whom shall be stock-\\nholders to tlie number of thirty shares; and three Directors to be appointed annually\\nby the Governor and Legislative Council, after the guaranty shall have been requir-\\ned, who may or may not be stockholders, they shall annually elect a President from\\ntheir own body, and shall have power to declare by a by-law what number of Trus-\\ntees, less than a majority of the whole, shall be a quorum for transacting business\\nand the expense of drawing securities and other papers, and examining titles, and\\nso forth, shall be paid by the applicants for loans.\\nSec 8. The Trustees shall severally hold their offices during good behavior;\\nbut the Court of Appeals shall have power to remove a Trustee, on such notice to be\\nheard as they shall deem reasonable, on the application of a person interested, for a\\nmisdemeanor in office. The said Byard of Trustees shall be divided into five classes,\\nconsisting of two members each, and so arranged that the term of service of one of\\neach of said classes shall expire at the end of every two succeeding years to be di-\\nvided by lot, so that two Trustees shall be appointed every two years. Every vacancy\\nhappening in the Board of Trustees, by death, resignation, or otherwise, other than by\\nthe expiration of classes, shall be supplied by the choice of the remaining Trustees;\\nand in all cases the votes of two-thirds of all the Trustees, for the time being, shall be\\nrequisite to a choice. No person shall be eligible who shall not have been openly nomi-\\nnated at a meeting of the Trustees, at least one month before the day on which the\\nelection is held and the name of every person so nominated shall be published for\\nthree successive weeks previous to the day of election, in one or more of the news-\\npapers printed in the Territory of Florida Provided, That when vacancies shall\\nhappen by expiration of classes, the same shall be supplied by elections to be held\\nby the stockholders of said Corporation and elections held for the purpose of sup-\\nplying such vacancies shall be held as near as may be, in pursuance of and accord-\\ning to the provisions of the 10th section of this act, except that the notice of the time\\nand place of holding such elections shall be given by the Trustees of said Corpora-\\ntion instead of being given by the Commissioners, as is in said section provided.\\nSec. 9. That Lot Clark, Robert Raymond Reid, and Thomas Douglass shall\\nbe, and are hereby appointed Commissioners, whose dutv it shall be, within nine\\nmonths after this act shall be in force, at the time and place, in said Territory, fixed\\nby said Commissioners for that purpose, to open books for receiving subscriptions to\\nthe capital stock the books shall be opened at the hour often in the morning, on the\\ndaytixedby the Cjnitnissioners, and shall be kept open from time to time, by adjourn-\\nment, until the whole stock shall be subscribed, not exceeding thirty days public no-\\ntice shall be given for at least sixty days, in three or more newspapers published in\\nthe Territory, the time and place of opening the books for receiving subscriptions\\nto the capital stock of said Corporation Provided, That if the said stock shall not\\nbe subscribed within thirty days, the said Commissioner shall have power to re-\\nopen the books at any time or times thereafter, within three years, under such regu-\\nlations as are hereinafter specified.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0058.jp2"}, "59": {"fulltext": "Sec. 10. So soon as said stock shall be taken, the said Commissioners sluill no-\\ntify thi subscribers to said stock, by publication in one or more newspapers publish-\\n\u00c2\u00abd in the said Territory, fo thirty days, to meet ai such time and place, as in such\\nnotice thev may direct, to elect ten persons from among the said svibscribers, to\\nconstitute the first Board of Trustees under this cliartcr and when the said sub-\\nscribers, or so manv thereof as may have assembled at the ti i e and place fixed for\\nthe opening- the polls of the said election, they shall appoir.t four disinterested and\\nrespectable freeholders of the Territory of Florida, judges of the said election, who\\nshall proceed to discharge the duties hereby required of them; that is to say, they\\nshall receive the votce of the said subscribers, either by person or proxy, duly au-\\nthenticated, in writing, allowing to each subscriber one vote for each share by him\\nheld, and they shall carefully note each vote in duplicate books prepared for that\\npurpose, and after having taken all the votes which may be offered within the time\\nfixed by said notice, the said judges shall count said votes, and certify the number\\nof votes given to each person, and thereupon they shall forthwith hand over the said\\npoll books to the said Commissioners, the one for the Company and the other to bo\\ntransmitted to the Secretary of the Treasury and the ten persons having the high-\\nest number of votes shall be the said Trustees, and thereupon their powers and au-\\nlliorify as said Trustees shall commence.\\nSec. 1 1. That so soon as the said Trustees are elected, they shall organize and\\nnotify the Governor of this Territory, that they are ready to commence business,\\nand thejeupon the said Governor shall appoint some suitable person to examine and\\nascertain the amount of monies paid in upon the first instalment of said capital stock,\\nwhose duty it shall be, at the expense of the said Company, to make such exami-\\nnation, and ascertain by the oath of the President, that the said capital has been\\nbona fide paid in by the said stockholders of the said Company, in payment of the\\nfirst instalment under the regulations of the said charter, and for no other purpose\\nwhatever, and that it is Intended to be and received as part of said capital stock,\\nand forthwith make due return thereof to the Governor, who, on the return being\\nmade to him as aforesaid, that the sum of two hundred thousand dollars of the capi-\\ntal stock of said Company has been paid in, in specie or its equivalent, shall cause\\nproclamation to be made of the same, under the great seal of the Territory, which\\nshall be published at the expense of said Company, in one or more newspapers\\npublished in said Territory, and on the first publication of said proclamation, it shall\\nbe lawful for said Company to commence business, and not before.\\nSec. 12. Each subscriber shall, at the time of subscribing, pay to the Commis-\\nsioners receiving the same, the sum often dollars on each share by him subscribed,\\nand after the shares shall hBve been subscribed, each stockholder shall pay an instal-\\nment often dollars on each share so held by him at the expiration of six months there-\\nafter, at such pJace or places as the Trustees shall appoint, of which time and place\\nor places, at least six weeks public notice shall be given, and within three years after\\nthe said stock shall have been subscribed, the whole amount remaining due, shall be\\npaid in such instalments as the trustees may direct, of which the same notice shall\\nbe given. The shares of every stockholder omitting to make such payment, shall\\nbe forfeited, together withall previous payments made thereon, and the books shall\\nbe again opened as directed in the 9th Sec, for subscription, and so from time to time\\nuntil all shares are subscribed and paid for.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0059.jp2"}, "60": {"fulltext": "54\\nle amount\\nSec. 13. Every trustee of said Corporation shall be a stockholder to f\\nSec. 15. The trustees shall have a dis-rctiomwnnu..,. f\\nc\u00e2\u0084\u00a2....o\u00e2\u0080\u009eer, be ,p,.oi\u00e2\u0080\u009e,.d ...J co,:,;, -v^d tr f;!\\n-PO,, hi. \u00e2\u0080\u009ep;\u00e2\u0080\u009e,\u00e2\u0080\u009en i\u00e2\u0080\u009e \u00e2\u0080\u009eln,i\u00e2\u0080\u009e. ,\u00e2\u0080\u009etho ahili,ya\u00e2\u0080\u009ed?\u00e2\u0080\u009e,cXZ whKlT-\\nma,a,od-,h.-. p,\u00e2\u0080\u009eJ..\u00e2\u0080\u009ecc and sure, \u00e2\u0080\u009ef i.L,,\u00e2\u0084\u00a2\u00e2\u0080\u009e,sl,l rn^\\nt .ie conit on and state of s-iid hr..)v r, i ^sh.ill be to examino\\n^inntes of proceed nlrof J ebot7oft 7\\nor.ler a,,cu-e Ariz, to be issued by th. said Cour of Z P\u00c2\u00b0 to\\n.\u00e2\u0084\u00a2n,...=,u,oeha,,\u00e2\u0080\u009e.rL.;at\u00e2\u0080\u009e^:r;:-:fjr;:t-^^^^^^^^^^\\ntent that trustees ar. now by law responsible, in law or equity\\nSec. 19. The Company shall have power .o issue b.Ib or notes other thnn drart,\\n1; p? r i d notes to be si .ned by\\nt 3 Prescient and Secretary, or Cashier of said Corporation; and said Corporation\\nsaall never refuse or suspend the payment in specie of any of their notes o ob\\nan 1 .f he sa.d Corporafon shall refuse or suspend payment, the bearer of an^ no eo^\\nObhga,.on. or any person havm. the right to demand or receive the amoun/oJ? nda\\ndeposited as above mentioned, shall be entitled torecover interest at the rat of ule\\nper cent per annum, u.ul they shall tender payment thereof, .ith interest ashore", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0060.jp2"}, "61": {"fulltext": "55\\nsaid, in specie at their counter, and unless payment shall be so rnaii* or a tender\\nthereof, within ninety day^, the charter of the said Company f-b.all Ix -i io?\\nforfeited, and they shall cease all operations as a Corporation, vscf, ;,l\\nbe necessary to c1liS3 their concerns and fulfil cxistin^r contruf\\nSec. 20. I he capital stock of said Corporation shall bo tiixci i iiie same rates\\nas all other personal property of the sp.i;l Territory, and not o(h wise; and that no\\ntax snail at anytime or times be hereafter levied against tiic ui! Corpoialion beyond\\nthe amount of live thousand dollars in any one year.\\nSec. 21. To enable the said Company to make loan? lu-.-l discounts beyond the\\namount of their^capital, to be paid in by the stockholders ;is ai urcsaid, they may is.- uc\\ncsrtificates of ^ne thousand dollars each, bearing net more tiian s!x percent interest,\\nredeemable v^ithiu the range and limit of the charter, at such times as the Governor\\nand the Company may agree on, and present the same to the Governor, or acting\\nGovernor of this Territory, whose duly it shall be to endorse thereon guaranlced\\nby the Territory of Florida, and sign his name and title of office thereto, and return\\nthe same to the said Company and the faith of the said Tenitory is hereby pledged\\nas security for said Company, for the faithful payment ofsuch ceitificates, aecoiding\\nto the tenor and effect of the same but no greater amount of certificates shall be\\nat any time endorsed than may be equal to the debts placed under mortgage to the\\nCompany at the time of making application, to be secured after the mode, and in\\nconformity to the manner pointed out and directed in the sixth section of this act.-\\nAnd in case t .ie sai J Company shall make default in payment of the principal or in-\\nt3restof su^h csitiiioates, it shall be the duty of the Couit of Appeals ol said Territory\\nOT beini: certified of tire tact by the Governor, to issue an appropriate process to any\\nIMarsaall of said Tenitory, commanding Inm to take so much of tiie money, chose-\\nin action, or olhor efijcts or property of llie said Company, and bring the same into\\ncouit forthwiih, as will be r,; Ticient to nidemnify the Goveinmenl from loss by reason\\nof suel default, and the court is hereby empowered to direct the disposal of the same\\nProvided, when this guarantee is asked for, the Governor and Council shall have\\npower to appoint three directors, who may or may not be stockholders.\\nSec. 22. This Act shall not be construsd to confer on the said Company anv\\nright or power to make any contract, or to accept or execute any trust whattver\\nwhich it Would not be lawful for any individual, when net restrained by statute,.\\nunder the general rules and law which are or shall be in force, to make, accept, or\\nexecute.\\nSec 23. The said trustees shall on the first Monday of January and July, an-\\nnually, make and declare such dividends resulting from the profits of the said Company\\nas they miy think proper, but shall notimpair, nor in any wise lessen the capital stock\\nand shall cause the sai l dividends to be paid on demand to the stockholders thereof,\\natsucli place or places ashy a By-law they may appoint.\\nSec. 24. The said t:usteesmay choose annually f.omtlicir body a Vice President,,\\nwho sh dl perform all thj duties of the President in ease of his absence oj inability to\\npe:form said duties.\\nSec. 25. This law shall remain unalterable without the consent of the Trustee*\\nof the said Company, until the expiration of fifty years from its passage; nor shall\\nit at any time hereafter be so altered as to prevent tlic execution by the Company of\\nany eubaisting contract.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0061.jp2"}, "62": {"fulltext": "56\\nSec. 26. This act shall be taken and received in all courts, and hj all judges,\\nmagistrates, and all olhei public olticers, as a public act and shall receive, on all\\noccasions, a favorable construction and all printed copies of the same, which shall\\nbe printed by, or under the authority of, the Legislative Council, shall be adnutted\\nas good evidence thereof without any other proof whatever.\\nPassed, Feb. 12th, 1835. Approved, Feb. 14th, 1835.\\nFortress Monroe, November 10, 1^33.\\nMy dear Sir:\\nYour letter of the 2d inst. is now before me, and I hasten to answer to the iu-\\nqiiiries contained in it.\\nCurlew Point is, I have always thought, the most eligible site for a Town in\\nCharlotte Harbor. It is high, and dry, the drinking water very good and abundant,\\n(The Spaniards at the Rancho opposite get all their water there.) And the channel\\nruns close in shore. Of the appearance of the country back of the Point, I know\\nnothing from my own observation.\\nPine Island I never was on, but saw excellent timber brought from thence,\\nand was informed by Mr. Willis, that he had planted there one season, and had\\nmade excellent corn, peas, potatoes, c. and considered the quality of the soil very\\ngood. Boca Grande Island contains some hammocks of very rich land, covered\\nprincipally with cabbage tree, and live oak. The balance of the Island, is an ex-\\ntensive, open savanna, or prairie, with a luxuriant growth of grass fresh water is\\nabundant and good. There are great numbers of deer on this Island.\\nCharlotte Harbor is certainly the most delightful situation on the whole coast of\\nFlorida. In beautv of scenery, as well as in salubrity of climate, and quality of soil,\\nno place on the coast can be compared with it.\\nSarazota Inlet is said to be the best site for a fishery on the coast there is a\\ngood depth of water on the Bar, and it affords a safe harbor for vessels to run into\\nin bad weather. Opposite to the Inlet on the main land, there is, I am informed, a\\nlarge body of first rate land, and as far as I have penetrated into it, (only a few hun-\\ndred yards) it certainly is. Here also is a well of good water.\\nThe Manatee River runs east and west, and empties into Tampa Bay, about three\\nmiles north of the entrance into Sarazota. It has about 10 feet of water on the bar,\\nis one mile wide for the distance of twelve miles up, and has high, bluff banks.\\nOn the south side it is all prime land on the north, hammocks, heavily timbered\\nwith live oak, water oak, and hickory, the latter very large; one I had the curiosity\\nto measure, and found to be fifteen feet in circumference.\\nTerasia Bay (the mouth) is about three miles north of the mouth of the Ma-\\nnatee it is a small but a very beautiful sheet of water, and I am told (on good\\nauthority) that an excellent tract of land lies on it. I have never been ashore there.\\nIn regard to Pine Lands, it is generally conceded in Middle Florida, (and from\\nmy own observation, I am convinced of the fact) that the good quality produces as\\nwell, and lists longer, than the heavily timbered hammock lands. Pine forests,\\nnear navigation, are numerous. There is Pine island in Charlotte Harbor the\\nsouth side of the Manatee River, c.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0062.jp2"}, "63": {"fulltext": "57\\nAs to the health of the climate from Tampa Bay to Sanybel Island, I am firmly\\nconvinced, from luy own experience, and that of Others, that Con the coastal least)\\nit is as healthy as any country whatever.\\nThe distance between the Manatee, and Alifia, is I think about 25 or 30 miles\\nthe Little ftlanatee lies between them about half way, and Indian River lies between\\nthe Alilia and the Cantonment.\\nAnthen is settled about 10 miles from the mouth of the Manatee, and it is called\\nfifty miles by land to the Cantonment.\\nI am, my dear Sir, very respectfully,\\nAnd sincerely, yours,\\nJ. H. RANDOLPH.\\nNew York, Dec. 9, 1833.\\nR. S. IIackley, Esq.\\nSir: In answer to your enquiry relative to the lands in Florida, as to rearing\\nand grazing cattle, I am of opinion that cattle may be grazed between the latitudes\\nof 26 and 30^ as cheap, if not cheaper, than any other section of country in Florida.\\nSome few miles from tlie sea board the praires are very extensive, and afford fine\\ngrazing both Winter and Summer. Cattle are cheap, and may be bought at an\\naverage from five to eight dollars per head good cows and calves from five to eight\\ndollars. Respectfully, your ob t. ser vt.\\nWM. G. SANDERS.\\nNeio York, Dec. 13, 1833.\\nDear Sir Florida is by climate and soil well adapted to the breeding of cattle\\nto any extent. I have purchased one hundred head of cattle from the Indians for\\nfour dollars a head, payable in trade at an advance of 300 per cent. My neighbors\\nhave done the same. You receive them in 2 roportions, bulls, cows, calves, and\\nsteers, of all ages. The breed is a most excellent one, and to an experienced man\\nin cattle, he may recognise the best English kinds, somewhat deteriorated by a long\\nresidence in the country since the possession of it by the English, who, no doubt,\\nintroduced at the time, their most approved kinds. As the verdure of the country\\nis perpetual, no provision is requisite for the winter s consumption.\\nYours, most respectfully,\\nHENRY M. CRITGER.\\nN. B. Suydam Jackson, Pearl Street, can supply the articles necessary for\\nthe trade.\\nFort Brooke, Tampa Bay, East Florida, March 6, 1834.\\nR. S. Hackley, Esq.\\nSir: In answer to your enquiries relative to the lands near Tampa Bay, I will\\nendeavor to give you the desired iaformatiou, as near as my recollection will permiti\\n8", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0063.jp2"}, "64": {"fulltext": "58\\nThe country near Tampa Bay is generally level with a gradual ascent sufficient to\\ndrain the water from any crops that may be planted on the lands. Tha lands in this\\nvicinity are generally covered with pine timber of large size, sufficient to be sawed\\ninto scantling or plank, and also would malie boards and shingles. Some of the\\nbest of the pine land has been cultivated and produces fine corn, cotton, cane, c.\\nand would, with a Utde manure being added, produce fine crops for many years to\\ncome. There are several hammocks interspersed through the pine lands of small\\nand large size, covered with live oak, hickory, white oak. Magnolia, red and white\\nbay, c. which, when cleaned, produce fine crops of cotton, corn, cane, c. and\\nwhich from the crops that have been made on them already, yield equal to any lands\\nin Florida. The soil is of a black rich loam, and would no doubt from its being so\\nnear the Gulf Stream, produce the finest of Sea Island Cotton.\\nFort Brooke, now a military garrison, is a delightful spot, situated at the head of\\nthe eastern arm of Tampa Bay, having a commanding view of the Bay for several\\nmiles. There are several buildings of considerable size in the garrison, built chiefly\\nof logs and handsomely arranged, having in the centre of it a large grove of live oaks,\\nwhich afibrds a fine shade both for Winter and Summer, and also springs of fine\\nwater at the door. Vessels drawing ten feet of water can approach within three\\nmiles of the town, and those of a lighter draft, say five feet, can at all times come up\\nto the wharf There is a grove of sweet oranges at this place, and the sour oranges\\ngrow in all directions through the eastern and southern part of Florida. The village\\nand country around has always been healthy, and considered so by every resident\\nhere. Fort Brooke, now called Tampa, is the county town of Hillsborough County.\\nThere are several fine sites for dwellings on tlie Bay, and on the rivers making into\\nthe Bay. After leaving the Bay a few miles, you pass into a large body of fine land\\ncontaining several thousand acres, having about the centre of it several lakes, near\\nwhich, are several prairies or natural meadows, which afford fine grazing for horses\\nand cattle both winter and summer, and when drained would produce fine corn,\\ncotton, cane, lice, c., and might be drained at a very trifling expense. One of\\nthose lakes called Clonotoscasser Lake, about five miles in length and about three\\nin breadth, abounds in fish of different kinds, and afibrds fine sites for dwellings.\\nThe lands on the margin of this lake are covered with hickory, live oak, white oak,\\nmagnolia, bay, c. The country is healthy, and the water good. There are some\\nfine lands on the Alifia River about twelve miles from Tampa in a south direction,\\nwhere vessels can ascend the river for several miles drawing four feet of water, and\\nI have been told that there are one or two good mill seats on this river. There are\\nsome fine hammock lauds on the sides of this river, but in detached pieces, say from\\nforty to one hundred and fifty acres in a body. There are some fine pine lands on\\nthis river which have produced good crops for the last year. I am informed that\\nthere is a mill seat on the Hillsborough river about eight miles above this place. I\\nknow of no other mill seats near Tampa except those on the Alifia and Hillsborough\\nrivers. There are several cypress swamps near Fort Brooke, which afford an abun-\\ndance of shingles, boards, rails, scantling, c. of easy access to the water, say about\\na mile. I am of opinion that the pine lands near the Bay might be kept up for years\\nby manuring, which might be had from the salt marshes near it.\\nThere are several bodies of fine lands about twenty miles from Tampa in a north\\ndirection, which now abound in hickory, oak, c., and when cleared, would pro-", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0064.jp2"}, "65": {"fulltext": "59\\nduce the finest of Sea Island Cotton. This land hes in the Indian Nation. Th\u00c2\u00abr\u00c2\u00ab\\nare several rivers of small size, making up from the Bay into the interior of the\\ncountry for several miles, on the borders of which, are an abundance of oak, cy-\\npress, and eome red cedar, and which with a little clearing, the timber that i\u00c2\u00bb on\\nthem mi^ht be brought to vessels at a small expense.\\nRespectfully, yonr ob t. serv t.\\nWILLIAM G. SANDER3.\\n251 Pearl Streel, April 1834.\\nDear Sip I believe I have taken occasion before now, when I have had the\\npleasure of conversing with you, to express my opinion generally of the lands of\\nthat part of Florida, over which my duty as Surveyor for the Company led me.\\nThat opinion, I need hardly remind you, was a favorable one. It may not be amiss,\\nhowever, to briefly repeat what my own belief and impressions are respecting the\\nsoil, and its resources, the climate, c. c. and I believe I may say that my\\nopportunities of observing, and of forming a judgment, (whether correct or not time\\nwill tell,) were as ample as those afforded any other individual.\\nThe soil in general consists of a rich vegetable matter, decomposed shells, sand,\\nand in some places, alumen. This however is saying but little to those unacquainted\\nwith the fertility of such ingredients, and who may be unaware how admirably a\\nsoil composed of them is calculated for the raising of indigenous vegetable pro-\\nductions. In my opinion, rice, cotton, tobacco, and the sugar cane, together with\\ntlie intertropical fruits can be cultivated successfully upon the Island and mainland\\nand I diink I have already stated that I myself, in common with many other individ-\\nuals, partook, (much to our gratification,) of excellent potatoes, (Irish) Indian corn,\\nand some other vegetable productions not indigenous to Florida, which were raised\\nin the neighborhood of Sanybel Island, with apparently little or no trouble.\\nAs to the climate I think it useless to say anything. I can myself personally bear\\ntestimony to its decidedly beneficial effects upon my own health, although exposed\\nto many privations, and to its agreeableness, and salu^ I certaiiily is the most\\ndelicious climate I ever experienced.\\nI could say a great deal more upo c lese matters, but tlie limits of a letter admon-\\nish me to break off before I t^wnge too deeply into a subject, which is to me, I\\nconfess, a favorite top oi discussion. I shall just observe, however, that I think\\nI am giving tolerably good evidence of the sincerity of my opinion and views\\nregarding Florida, by the fact of my accepting of land, instead of money, in lieu of\\nmy professional services, and from my determination to settle upon the River Cool-\\nosahatchie, and to cultivate a plantation there.\\nI remain, dear sir, in haste,\\nRespectfully, your most ob t. serv t.\\nR. S. Hackliy, Esq. EDWARD ARMSTRONG.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0065.jp2"}, "66": {"fulltext": "60\\nDUPLICATE.\\nPittsfieM, Mass. Sept. 20, 1834.\\nMy Dear Sir: Your favor of the 15th has just come to hand, and I hasten to\\nreply. I regretted much that it was not in my power to give you a call as I passed\\nthrough your city on my way from Washington, but advices I had received, relative\\nto the health of my family, were of such a nature as to forbid any unavoidable delay\\non my journey to it. In answer to your call for a statement of sales made by me\\nof your lands in Florida, I have to say, that my transactions in that respect, have\\nbeen very limited, in fact I have made no sales but conditional ones, subject to your\\napproval. Numerous applications have been made for sections, particularly in the\\nregion of Taa)pa Bay, which for reasons that ap^.-eared tome of sufficient weight,\\nI only granted, subject to a proviso. On my arrival at the Bay, which I visited in\\nthe early part of January last, for the purpose of making a thorough and satisfactory\\nexamination of laws, c, I was informed by individuals, residents there, that your\\nson William, who had recently been on the spot, had given them the refusal of the\\nlands on which they had settled at a rate (one dollar per acre) which I esteemed\\nconsiderably below their real value. His motive seems to have been (and it is\\ndoubtless a just and proper one) to place those enterprising early settlers upon the\\nfooting of pre-emptioncrs, and to give them advantages, even greater than they could\\nhave enjoyed had the soil belonged (as they supposed it did when they took pos-\\nsession of it) to the United States. They are, most of them, industrious and valuable\\ncitizens, entitled to liberal encouragement.\\nI made while at Tampa the following surveys, which are promised, subject to\\nyour sanction, at the same rate at which your son had previously sold. The indi-\\nviduals for whom these surveys were executed, had with the exception of one,\\n(myself) made improvements upon the tracts for which they asked.\\nOn the river Alifia, for Capt. William Graliam, U. S. Army, 200 acres; for John\\nWarren, at the mouth of the river, 200 acres for Ezekiel Stafford, on said river,\\n150 acres for G. Humphries, 500 acres on Humphries, or 3Ianatee river, for\\nJoshua Stafford, 400 acres for G. Humphries, 500 acres near the village of Tampa,\\nfor William Ellis, 100 acres and for Judge A. Steele, 25 acres. In addition to the\\nabove, I had (after my retui,^ r,.o,r, niy tour of exploration to the northern part of\\nAlachua,) thirty to forty applications n-om persons who wished to remove and be-\\ncome settlers at Tampa. They wiU in all priA..,bility, if enabled to purchase lands\\nupon liberal terms, change their locations and go down to your lands in the neigh-\\nborhood of Tampa Bay, the ensuing winter. Permit mc to su est the propriety\\n\u00c2\u00a9f giving to them all reasonable encouragement. They are of the laboring class of\\npeople, and will be exceedingly useful in the present comparatively unsettled con-\\ndition of the country.\\nI have for months past been intending to write, giving you a detailed account of\\nthe observations made during my last winter s excursion to the Gulf, but various\\ncauses have combined to prevent my doing so. Nor have I, even now, leisure to do\\nthe subject justice. I cannot, however, consistently close this letter, without saying\\n(and It is no small acknowledgment for one to make who has been twelve years past\\nresiding in East Florida, and who has, during that time, made repeated visits to\\nTampa Bay) that my knowledge of that country was lamentably deficient, and that", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0066.jp2"}, "67": {"fulltext": "61\\niis importance, in almost every point of view, has been altogether nnderrated. I\\nfound on the exauiiiiaiiou, which I was near a montli actually and actively engaged\\nin making, that my estimate of the quantity of rich hammock lands in that section of\\ncountiy was entirely too low. Tracts, that on former occasions I had, upon a\\ncursory view, tis true, estimated as containing only a few hundred acres, I found by\\nactual survey contained as many thousands, and in most cases, the soil is of very\\nsuperior quality, well timbered and finely watered. With these advantages, and a\\nclimate not surpassed in salubrity, by that of any other country on the globe. It\\nseems to me that nothing but capital and enterprize are wanting to render that\\ndelightful region one of the most desirable portions of our country.\\nVery respectfully, your ob t. serv t.\\nG. HUiVIPHRIES.\\nTo Richard S. Hackley, Esq. New York.\\nNeiD York, Oct. 15, 1834.\\nMr. R. S. Hackley,\\nDear Sir: I left the Island of Sanybel in Florida on the 9th of April last, for the\\npurpose of examining the River Sanybel and the lands on said river, and beg leave\\nto state, that after ascending the river about forty five miles, I came to what is termed\\nHammocks, which is a thick growth of oak and cabbage trees. On examining the\\nlands on the said Hammocks, I was under the impression that they would produce\\ncotton and provisions; in fact, I thought they would produce any thing that may be\\nplanted. The Hammocl.s are about half a mile in width, and you then come to a\\nplane of a sandy soil, intermixed with vegetable mould. Through this soil, say\\nfourteen or sixteen inches deep, I there came to clay, and continued digging for\\nthree or four feet, and the clay was yet to be found. The clay had a large quantity\\nof small living roots in it. My. opinion is that all the lands in the rear of the Ham-\\nmocks is based on clay. Mr. Pitcher, who also accompanied me, and professes to\\nbe a judge of land, is also of that opinion. I do not profess to be a judge of land\\nmyself, and may be mistaken in relation to its producing, yet I sincerely think, all\\nthat I examined will produce, and that several plantations may be advantageously\\nformed on that river, of from four to eight hundred acres each. The River Sanybel\\nis one of the most beautiful and romantic streams I ever saw. We carried, as far\\nas we went up the river, say twenty miles, about eight feet of water. Any other\\ninformation that may be wanted, and that I may be enabled to give, will be cheer-\\nfully done. Very respectfully, yours,\\nJOHN HARRIS.\\nNew York, Oct. 16, 1834.\\nR. S. Hackley, Eso..\\nSir: Having occupied for some time past, and resided on one of your Islands,\\nor small Keys, in Charlotte Harbor, Florida, I have had opportunifies of examining\\nin person, and of obtaining information from others (in whose judgment in such", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0067.jp2"}, "68": {"fulltext": "63\\nmatters 1 have full confidence,) of the islands called Pine Island and Boca Gr ndo\\nor Casparilla Island, both of which contain a very ronwidernhle quantity of fine\\nlands, well timbered and I believe watered, and abounding in Deer and other game,\\nwith one or more good harbors in each. I am, sir, your ob t. serv t.\\nE. GRIFFIN.\\nJoseph Camming, George Hall, Ralph King, William Duncan and William\\nCrabtree, Jr. have been appointed at Savaaah, Directors of the Atlantic and New\\nOrleans Seaboard Line Company.\\nThe trade of Apalachicola is now 29,000 bales of cotton exported the last year,\\nand the first two months of this alone it is 30,000 bales.\\nTRANSLATION\\nFrom The India Code. (Spanish.) By the Ilonorahle Joseph M. While, under a\\nresolution of Congress of the 23nl May. 1828. Book the 3rd, Title Zth. Law Ist,\\nVol, 2d, Page Idth, Code of Indias, of Royal Donations, Grants, Privileges, 8(c.\\nRoyal Grants cannot be revoked, without some fault of the Grantee, and decreed\\nto his heirs.\\nThose things which the King gives to any one cannot be taken from him, eitlier\\nby the King, or by any one else, without soma fault of his and he to whom they are\\ngiven, shall dispose of them at his will, as of any other things belonging to him and\\nin case of his dying intestate, it shall decend to his heirs, nor shall his wife demand\\nany part thereof. In the same manner, the husband shall not demand any part of\\nwhat may have been given by the King to his wife.\\nTRANSLATION.\\nExtracts from Documents Legalized in my possession, deciding legally tchat de-\\nscription of titles, viay interfere or take jnecedence of the grant to the Duke of\\nAlagon.\\nDecree. 20th November 1790. Governor D. Juan Nepamunecono de Que-\\nBade. His grants were for 100 ancs to the head of each family, and 50 acres for\\nevery other person composing it, black or white. These grants were not in fee sim-\\nple, but is tended to lease, and were not transferable held during occupancy and\\ncultivation, and no longer than six months after.\\nDecree. 12th October 1S03. Governor Henry White, (Blanco,) modifies the\\nforegoing decree 1st. Applicants for Lands, shall swear allegiance to H. C. IM. and\\nalso, to the number of his family, ages, servants, c. These lands shall be [ap-\\nportioned to them as follows 50 acres to heads of families; 25 do., to others over 16\\nyears 15 do. to those between 8 and 16.\\n2ndly. Those soliciting lands, shall designate in their memorial, the position of such\\nlands. The above grants are not transferable, and shall be cultivated within six\\nmonths after date of grant or the title is forfeited.\\nDecree. ^7th July 1815. The Captain General of Cuba, Apodaca, under thif", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0068.jp2"}, "69": {"fulltext": "63\\ndate, accedes to the proposition of the Governor of East Florida, Kinderlan, unde?\\nRoyal order, to grant lands to applicants, from three companies of troops, engaged\\nin quelling an iiisiirrectiou in East Florida, McQ,ueens (Capt.) memorial, dated 17th\\nFebruary, 1804. He liowever held his lands under the fust decree. Possession for\\n10 years, and his merits as Captain in tho late instruction, confirmed his title in fee\\nsimple.\\nDecree. 12th March 1815. Kinderlan, Governor, granted lands upon the prin-\\ncipal adopted by Quesado, and White.\\nDecree. I2th March 1804.\u00e2\u0080\u0094 White, Governor, doscrihag three kinds of con-\\nditional titles, page 23, 24 and 26. Ultimate decision of the Judge Fiscal, or Asses-\\nsor of War, page 30.\\nAll grants, such as that to McQueen, and Estrada, that had been complied with in\\ntheir conditions, dated prior to the grant to the Duke of Alagon, are declared good\\nand legal, and all others are declared null and void. RlcQueen, had held his grants\\nunder the former Governors Quesado, and White had jierformoJ all the requisites\\nimposed by these Governors occupied and cultivated tiie lauds for ten years, and\\nthen performed important service.^, as Captain of one of the h. ff)rp. named compa-\\nnies, against the insurgents. His (AlcQ, s) gruiii, bears a form entirely ditferent from\\nother grants. Such others, as those for pasturage for cattle, \u00c2\u00bbS:c. mills, and other\\nimprovement.Sj arc not transferable, and are null, whenever the Grantee ceases to\\noccupy. An examination of all the Decrees shew this principle as unchange-\\nable and the lands granted, must be occupied and cultivated within six moiuhs, aud\\nwhenever ceased to be so for six months, the rights of Grantee ceased forever, as\\nfar as I have been able to ascertain. There is not 1000 acrr s, that can interfere with\\nmy titles. This legal discussion has been most important for me, both in expense\\nand trouble. The original papers are in my possession, and may be examined at the\\npleasure of any person.\\nTHE PROPRIETOR.\\nContinuation of Documents in proof of the Climate and Soil of Florida, particularly\\nthe Southern Section.\\nFrom the Charleston F. T. Post,\\nKey West, Sept. 2.\\nMy Dear Sir: The sloop Associate, Capt. Bunce, arrived here from an explor-\\ning voyage this day, in the course of which .she visited the Main laiirl, from thirty\\nmiles south of Cape Remain, East Florida, to Charlotte Harbour. This vessel was\\nfitted out by an Association of Gentlemen from New York, who contemplate estab-\\nlishing a colony on the lands of R. S. Hackley, Esq.\\nThe observations made by the persons on board the Associate, are highly satisfac-\\ntory. I have derived the information which I communicate from them.\\nAfter running along and surveying the coast, the party explored two rivers of\\nconsiderabla size. The Sanybal was traced for eighty miles, sixty of which is sup-\\nposed to be navigable for vessels of light draught and steam boats. The banks of the\\nriver are found 4 to 12 feet high above the level of the water\u00e2\u0080\u0094 they descend perpen-\\ndicularly. After entering the mouth of the river, the water was found of equal", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0069.jp2"}, "70": {"fulltext": "64\\n(iepth in all parts, offering but few obtructions to navigation this river is lined with\\nlive oak hninaiocks, pine barrens, prairies, c. in some of the prairies, large quan-\\ntities of white grapes, of excellent flavor and large size, as vyell as a species of indi-\\ngenous cotton, is found.\\nThe river Mayaco, (sometimes called the Carlos) was also explored for about\\nseventy miles it was considered navigable to that distance the stream is bold and\\nrapid, and in many places at a distance of fifty miles from its mouth, is fifteen feet\\ndeep. The banks of this river were also studded with valuable tracts of land, live\\noak hammocks, pine barrens, cypress swamps, c. An immense quantity of live\\noak timber, suitable for building vessels of all descriptions, was found on this river.\\nSanybal Island has been fixed upon as the site for the location of the town, and for\\nthat purpose possesses great advantages. Its harbor is a remarkably fine one, it\\nbeing easy of access to vessels drawing fourteen feet water, and of sufficient extent\\nto accommodate at one time three hundred sail. The site of the town is level and\\ndry, situated at the east end of the Island vessels drawing fourteen feet may ap-\\nproach within from five to twenty yards of the beach good fresh water may be\\nobtained nt three feet below the surface of the ground. A fine white sand beach,\\nlined with beautiful shells, extends nearly around the Island the Island itself is about\\neight feet above the level of high water mark, free from low bottoms or stagnant\\npools, and open to the land and sea breezes in every direction. The soil is of excel-\\nlent quality for all horticultural jiurposes. There is a branch of fresh water arising\\nat the west end of the Island, and running nearly through it, which has never been\\nknown to fail, and yields an abundant supply of excellent water. A single glance\\nat this location will convince us of its importance situated within a few miles of the\\nmouth of the Sanybal, a navigable stream which passes through a rich tract of coun-\\ntry, and within eigliteen miles of the mouth of the Mayaco, a similar navigable stream,\\nit may naturally be calculated that the whole produce of this section of the country,\\none hundred and fifty to two hundred miles around must in the natural course of\\nevents, pass through this town.\\nI think, from the observations which I have made on this climate, that the whole\\nsection of country must in time become very valuable. The temperature is mild\\nseldom exceeding, in the midst of summer, an average of 85 degrees, and very rarely\\nsinking below GO in the winter. The air is pure and exhileratiug, possessing a\\ndegree of lightness and buoyancy, of which words can convey no adequate concep-\\ntion. There are no frosts, consequently the Sugar Cane maybe cultivated without\\ndifficulty, and to great advantage. I have seen fine specimens of Cotton grown m\\nthis latitude, and I know from my experience, that the jjlant will produce without\\ndeterioration in the qualities of Cotton, for three successive years. It is said that\\nIndians on the high lands near the sources of the Sanybal and Mayaco rivers, raise\\ntwo or three crops of Corn in one year. From experiments which have been made,\\nitis evident that Tobacco, no wise inferior to Cuba, may bo raised in Florida. Limes\\nand Cocoa nuts, of the finest description in the world, are already to be found at the\\nSpanish fisheries and I have seen a bunch of Bananas, weighing from 30 to 40 lbs.\\ngrown on the Florida Keys. It is very possible that Coffee may succeed. Another\\nconsideration, which is valuable above all others, is the healthiness of the climate.\\nThe Siianish fishermen who have been settled there for 20 or 30 years, declared it to\\nbe the most salubrious diuiate iu the world they affirm that fever is uxjluaowii", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0070.jp2"}, "71": {"fulltext": "65\\namong them. I imagine also, that the returns of the Surgeon attached to the United\\nStates troops at Tampa Bay will do no discredit to that place. But there is one fa ct\\nwhich speaks volumes. Nine persons have been engaged in exploring, from the\\nmonth of June to October, the warmest and most unhealthy months in the year.\\nThey have been most of the time exposed in the open boats, and not a single individ-\\nual has been indisposed for a day. They ail returned here in excellent health.\\nThe tract of country explored abounds m Game, Deer, Wild Turkies, v c. A\\nspecies of Ibis, (perhaps the Wood Ibis) measuring nearly five feet in height, was\\nshot by the exploring party. They also saw a Roseate Spoonbill, the Flamingo, Pa-\\nroquets, c. The water abounds in every variety of fish, and oysters and clams of\\nvery superior quality. On the surrounding Keys, Turtle of various description\\nmay be taken.\\nEvery effort will be made to settle this section of the country as speedily as pos-\\nsible contracts have been made for building five houses, for the accommodation of\\nworkmen on Sanybal Island, where the first settlement will be made.\\nI am satisfied you will do an essential service by publishing this communication.\\nI am personally acquainted with the gentlemen who were engaged in this expedi-\\ntion, and their statements may be relied on as correct.\\nI remain yours truly,\\nB. B. STROBEL, M. D.\\nFro7n the Neio York Gazette.\\nEast Florida. I would inform you that I have just returned from the St. John s\\nRiver, in East Florida. I found the country of every promise for new settlers, first\\nas regards the climate, and next the soil. The climate is perfeclly healthy, so much\\nso that invalids at a very low stage of health resort to it for its benefit, and astonish-\\ningly recover and regain themselves whereas had they remained in a cooler cli-\\nmate, no doubt they would have been numbered with the dead. The soil is very\\neasily cultivated, being level and sandy, and its staple productions are corn, sweet\\npotatoes, cotton, canes, and oranges all these are profitable and of immediate sale\\nalso immense quantities of moss, which is spontaneous. The land in its natural\\ngrowth is that of five oak and common yellow pine and cypress, with abundance of\\npasture for cattle, the price of which is from one dollar to five dollars the acre, ac-\\ncording to quality and richness of soil. The orange groves are very productive, and\\ntake five years before they are at full growth, though three years after their taking\\ngrowth from the seed or strip plant, they produce oranges, and increase yearly its\\nfruit, until the fifth, when they are at their heighth and the only trouble and care\\nrequisite for the orange tree, is to wash the body about three times in the year, to\\nkeep it free from insects and weeds some groves give a yearly income of from\\neight to twelve hundred dollars this is independent of your other productions that\\nthe land affords, as an orange grove of three hundred trees is the largest tliat should\\nbe on one spot and this only occupies about five or six acres of land. I would also\\n9", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0071.jp2"}, "72": {"fulltext": "66\\nmention for the information of those persons travelling towards St. Augustine, that\\nthe conveyance to that place is now much more comfortable in consequence of a\\nsteamboat having been put on the route from Savanah to Jacksonville, on the St.\\nJohn s River, inland; thus enabling invalids and others, who travel that way, to leave\\nNew-York in a Charleston packet, and thence to Jacksonville, on the St. John s\\nRiver, inland; and from Jacksonville to St. Augustine, with only a journey of\\nthirty miles by land.\\nVERITAS.\\nFrom a Florida Paper.\\nIt is a fact that may be proved by reference to J. C. Lavvton, merchants\\nCharleston, S. C. that Col. Dummett, of Tomoka, Florida, manufactured from\\none acre of cane, four hogsheads of sugar, averaging more than 1000 lbs. each,\\nworth 9 J cts. per lb. This is an extraordinary product, and may stagger those who\\nare unacquainted with the superior capacities of the Florida soil. But the incredu-\\nlous may be satisfied upon proper application. The prospects of Florida are\\nbrightening, and many capitalists are looldng out for settlements. Col. Dummett s\\ncrop of sugar will be necir 100 hhds. and bears a much better price in market than\\nthe Louisiana sugar.\\nCommunicated by Henry Crugcr, Esq. of Florida.\\nCol. Dummett made 97 hhds. sugar on his plantation at Tomoka, East Florida,\\nwith 18 hands,\u00e2\u0080\u0094 each hhd. being 1000 lbs. net, which sold at $9 the 100 lb., aud is\\n$90 the hhd.\u00e2\u0080\u0094 97 hhds. at $90 each, is $8730 00\\nValue his hands at $450 each, 8100 00\\nNegroes paid for by one crop, and a balance in his favor of 630 00\\nCol. Clinch, of Alachua, made 196 hhds. sugar, with 46 hands.\\n190 hhds. sugar, at $90, is $17640 00\\nAlso 14000 gallons molasses, which sold for 2800 00\\n4000 bushels com, do 1000 00\\nOther crop sold for lOOO 00\\n22440 00\\n46 hands worth $450 each, 20700 00\\nNegroes paid for by one crop, and balance in his favor of $1740 00\\nCol. Mcintosh, with 22 hands made 90 hhds, which at $90, each is $8100 00\\n5000 gallons molasses sold for 1000 00\\nCorn, rice, peas, beans, c. sold for 1100 00\\n$10200 00", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0072.jp2"}, "73": {"fulltext": "67\\nDoctor T s, one of the settlers, in the Aradondo Tract, with 12 hands mada\\n50 hhds. sugar, which sold for $90 each, is\\n7000 gallons molasses, sold for\\n2000 bushels corn,\\nRice, beans, peas, c.\\n$7700 00\\nAll the above are proceeds of the crop of 1832-3.\\n$4500 00\\n1400 00\\n1200 00\\n600 00\\nExtract of a Letter from Col. G. Humphries, dated Wantons 23 Z Aug. 1833.\\nOur summer has been thus far healthy, and the seasons have been favorable to\\nthe planting interest; the provision crop, which is more than abundant, is made and\\nbeyond the reach of casualty or the incertitude of the weather, and prospects, as to\\nsugar and cotton, are most promising and at this advanced period of tlie year, there\\nis little room to apprehend a failure.\\n(Signed) G. HUMPHRIES.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0073.jp2"}, "74": {"fulltext": "ca\\nbO\\ns\\na\\nrt\\na\\nca\\nCi!\\nc: TS 2\\na .a _,\\n^-5 2\\nP^\\nPi\\n.5 .9\\nC3 rri rt\\n-OOOOOOO O -a T3 T3 O T3 O O--- OOOOOOOOOO\\no\\n,1^ o oW o^\\nw .a o W^;\\no W W\\n9 o clock, p. m,\\nI o clock, p. m,\\ncoo)oco;os^C30L.ooooocr:rooooo-;ccmoococ5coi^C2t\\nt^ GO GO O ;j t CC i^ CO o o o eg t^ t^ 00 to t^ o t t^ 05 f. t^ t^ t^ i^ t\\n7 o clock, a. m.\\nFebruary.\\n!4\\no js\\nkT k- O C O\\n^-3 O T3\\no -a -a\\nOOO-sOOOOO\\nO O o O^ ^yJ\\n9 o clock, p.m\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2i o clock, p. m.\\n7 o clock, a. m.\\nJanuary.\\nUJ t^ 1.^ f* t t- 1^ L s^^ VW UJ U.J UJ lA.i t^ -i..^ 1\u00e2\u0080\u0094 J.\\nc? ocoai a3roino\u00c2\u00bbi^05\u00c2\u00bb^-^CD-\u00c2\u00abj ciGoaoioc -*-^oocoL 5i .roo5 g\\nint t^t^ t t ^oDt cococottt .tocototococo\u00c2\u00ab-t .tocoto at^t^oa f", "height": "2964", "width": "1808", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0074.jp2"}, "75": {"fulltext": "i?^\\no o o o o o 0-- o o \u00c2\u00a9.o-a-g o 0-3 0000 o-s-= 0000\\nI TS TS TS 13 -a T3 -O r? 13 -O TS 2 O c\u00c2\u00a3 O cS c2\\nL\\no oW\\nT3 TS\\nm\\n-O TS T3 W W\\no.jHooooo\\nT3 W T3 T3 13 O\\n9 o clock, p. ni.\\nooooaocpcDi-^cocoi\\n2 o clock, p. m.\\nij t-.^i .i .oaoQOi\\nCO QD 00 GO 00 CP OP t\\n7 o clock, a. ni.\\n)oooDQOOoaoooaoaoGO 00 t^\\nJuly.\\nr-( MMTStio\u00c2\u00aboi ooa50i\u00e2\u0080\u0094 iC co iooi^Qoai\\ns\\n1\\n1\u00c2\u00ab\\n000000000000 OT3--; 000 O-a--; O O -a\\n-O T3 -TJ -a T3 -a 13 13 13 -O 13 I^O^ ^O [S ^O\\n9 o clock, p. m\\n2 o clock, p. ni.\\n5^0000 o,.;H o oW ,a 0000 00 00 \u00c2\u00a9Wo\\n5l-^^T3Tj-ai3W .Wl3 0 .W .Hl3131313131313 013.13\\nt .l f.| t -0Ot^t t^t^00t^GOQOt^TOgJO0 X0O0O 33t^0Ot^r-\\n7 o clock, a. m\\nrt ci o lO o o o j^ j^ ic o to S to ira I-- 1;. i^ I;- 1^ ;5^ ;5! m Ir!\\n00 t^X nO0D00T000COQDaD00XiCP 1OQOCOTO(OGO X)CD0O0OGD/-)i-\u00c2\u00ab-\\nTCOCOC )l^\u00c2\u00bb^0;-J3-^CrjODO -iC50X CsOrH\u00e2\u0080\u0094 .fJJ B\u00e2\u0080\u0094 grlj^\\nJuue.\\n1 t f* I f f* l*J \u00e2\u0096\u00a0JJ f I.", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0075.jp2"}, "76": {"fulltext": "January,\\nFebruary,\\nMai ch,\\nApril,\\nMay,\\nJune,\\nJuly,\\nAugust,\\nSeptember,\\nOctober,\\nNovember,\\nDecember,\\no\\np\\nOS\\nre\\n3\\nc\\n3\\nCD\\nn\\n1^\\nODQOCCGCGOQDQOaCQDGOODGO\\nCi Ci ^J f -^J Ol ^1 Oi Ot\\nO ^f GO f f Si f O Ci\\nQDii^CiCOO C GDCnCOKi^Oi\\nlO\\no\\no\\n3 t^\\no\\nfQOCCaOGOQDa) !^^l^l\\n^GOH-020303*i-H-rfi. :OiC\u00c2\u00a9\\n05 -t ^1 ~3 QD -1 ^1 Ci Oi\\nGDOSCiOGCOOiOOCOOD-.!\\n1-- ts tc IS lo ts\\n0-3aCC50Cih;^Cni(ikG(Drfa.Cn\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2Xup lS9p[0Q 1,\\ntS 1\u00e2\u0080\u0094 OitS tOtStOt\u00e2\u0080\u0094H-\\ng\\n05CO*\u00c2\u00bbl^SOOOiOl,3 05aoE\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2M 1\\nsi c(j\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2AVNJ\\nsiBQ\\ng\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2a NJ\\nsXbq\\nH- C^OiOiC^GCOlOCOiOOiii.\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2a 1\\nS^BQ\\nil\\nH-iOh-H-ti)0DCAl 3O5h-05*\u00c2\u00bb.\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2a s 1\\nSj{bQ\\nol\\nOOOtSOSOOO)-\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2s 1\\nSjCbq\\n51\\nOh- t\u00e2\u0080\u0094WCii\u00e2\u0080\u0094 OlwiH- Oi--0\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2AV S 1\\nsiBQ\\n^1\\nOOOOOOOOtOOOtS\\n1\\nsXbq\\n*o\\n\u00c2\u00a9OOOjaoOPPO\\nP5 P5 P p\\n00 00 g TO S. w\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2SuiIlBA9JJ\\nSI\\ni- a5-jcocncio-}i:nc;iQDo\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2JIB J 1 sAv-a\\n4\\np\\n1\\n?l\\nH- 1\u00e2\u0080\u0094 1\u00e2\u0080\u0094\\n-30rfi.05WOiOCO*i.COOi\u00e2\u0080\u0094\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2%io\\n|s/bq\\n^1\\n05 hfti. (fa. Or tfi.. 1 Ci 03 05 GO C\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2UIBU\\nSiCB(J\\n1\\n.OOOOOOOOOOOO\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2AVOUg\\nsXbq\\noooooooococc.\\n\u00e2\u0080\u00a2SuyiiBAajj;", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0076.jp2"}, "77": {"fulltext": "", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0077.jp2"}, "78": {"fulltext": "", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0078.jp2"}, "79": {"fulltext": "", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0079.jp2"}, "80": {"fulltext": "-^^0^", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0080.jp2"}, "81": {"fulltext": "v -i^\\n-4-\\n.K^^\\nv^^.\\nt t,.*^ v^^", "height": "2969", "width": "1762", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0081.jp2"}, "82": {"fulltext": "LIBRARY OF CONGRESS\\n014 499 676 8", "height": "3067", "width": "1798", "jp2-path": "documentsproofof00hack_0082.jp2"}}