46 FOREST commissioner's REPORT. 



paper currency worth, in the market, scarcely 10 per cent of its 

 normal value — her commerce next to nothing — her utmost 

 exertions barely able to discharge the ordinary expenses of gov- 

 ernment, in time of peace ; and no resources for the payment of 

 the debts created by the war, except what might possibly be 

 derived from the sales of her wild lands, or from direct taxes 

 on the people. The latter they had already borne to the extent 

 of their ability, and they could not be increased. The former 

 seemed to promise some relief. 



THE LOTTERY SALE. 



The attention of the legislature was, at an early period, called 

 by Governor Hancock, to the eastern lands, as a fund from 

 which they might hope to obtain some relief from the pressure 

 of the public debt. Accordingly in 1783 a land office was estab- 

 lished, and measures were taken to survey the lands, and open 

 them to the market. In 1786, finding that the sales proceeded 

 slowly — the public debt still unpaid, and accumulating — 

 and the credit of the Commonwealth below par, the legis- 

 lature resolved to make an effort to redeem the public debt, by 

 a lottery sale of 50 townships, which had been recently sur- 

 veyed, between the Penobscot and Passamaquoddy. The land 

 intended to be sold was represented by 2720 tickets, the price 

 of each of which was fixed at 60 pounds, payable partly in 

 specie, and partly in evidence of the public debt, or what were 

 termed consolidated 'securities ; by which it was expected to 

 redeem upwards of half a niillion dollars of the debt. 



The effects of the war, however, were too recent, and the 

 value of the lands too little known, and too lightly esteemed, 

 to encourage very extensive purchases at that time, and the 

 tickets in the land lottery were not all disposed of. At the 

 conclusion of the sales it was found that but 437 tickets were 

 sold, which had produced the sum of 26,220 pounds, or equal 

 to $87,400. On the drawing of the lottery the prize lots 

 amounted to 165,280 acres. The average price therefore 

 received for these lands, was nearly 52 cents per acre. 



The sales still continued slowly, for a number of years, until 

 the increasing prosperity of the country, and a farther acquaint- 

 ance with the intrinsic value of land, excited the attention of 



