250 The Winning of the West 



which they could acquire in their own right. This 

 was one of the many bad effects which resulted from 

 the Government's policy of disposing of its land 

 in large blocks to the highest bidder, instead of al- 

 lotting it, as has since been done, in quarter sections 

 to actual settlers. 6 



Harrison was thoroughly in sympathy with the 

 Westerners. He had thrown in his lot with theirs ; 

 he deemed himself one of them, and was accepted 

 by them as a fit representative. Accordingly he 

 was very popular as Governor of Indiana. St. Clair 

 in Ohio and Sargent in Mississippi were both ex- 

 tremely unpopular. They were appointed by Fed- 

 eralist administrations, and were entirely out of 

 sympathy with the Western people among whom 

 they lived. One was a Scotchman, and one a New 

 Englander. They were both high-minded men, with 

 sound ideas on governmental policy, though Sargent 

 was the abler of the two ; but they were out of touch 

 with the Westerners. . They distrusted the frontier 

 folk, and were bitterly disliked in return. Each 

 committed the fundamental fault of trying to gov- 

 ern the Territory over which he had been put in 

 accordance with his own ideas, and heedless of the 

 wishes and prejudices of those under him. Doubt- 

 less each was conscientious in what he did, and each 

 of course considered the difficulties under which he 

 labored to be due solely to the lawlessness and the 

 many shortcomings of the settlers. But this was an 



6 Mr. Eli Thayer, in his various writings, has rightly laid 

 especial stress on this point. 



