THE FARMER'S MEANS OF ACQUIRING LAND 217 



sale of land in large tracts. Under the ordinance of May 20, 

 1785, surveyed lands were offered in lots as large as a whole 

 township of 36 sections of 640 acres each, for not less than $1 

 per acre. 1 Under an Act passed May 18, 1796, which provided 

 for the survey of certain lands in the present state of Ohio, 

 surveyed lands were to be offered at public sale in sections of 

 640 acres, and in lots of eight such sections each. The minimum 

 price was then fixed at $2 per acre. 2 Prior to May 10, 1800, 

 1,484,047 acres of land had been sold from the public domain 

 for the benefit of the United States. From these sales was 

 realized $1,201, 725. 68. 3 



Under an Act of May 10, 1800, land offices were opened in the 

 Northwest Territory. The minimum price was kept at $2 

 per acre. Lands were offered for three weeks at public sale in 

 sections and half sections, and what remained at the end of 

 this period was to be sold privately, as wanted, at the minimum 

 price. During the next twenty years the net sales of govern- 

 ment lands were 13,642,536 acres, from which the sum of 

 $27,900,379.29 was realized. 4 In 1820 the minimum price of 

 land was reduced to $1.25 per acre. The revenue idea was 

 gradually abandoned and the settlement of the western country 

 came to be looked upon as the principal end in view in the dis- 

 position of the public domain. 



The preemption system, which gave the preference to actual 

 settlers in the sales of land at the minimum price, was em- 

 bodied in sixteen special Acts between 1801 and 1841. At the 

 latter date a general Act was passed which, with minor changes, 

 remained in force until 1891. The actual settlers were per- 

 mitted to enter upon tracts of land not larger than 160 acres 

 nor less than 40 acres before such lands had been offered at 

 public sale. The requirements were that the person should 

 reside in a dwelling upon the tract, improve and cultivate a part 

 of the land, and after a limited period pay $1.25 per acre. 



" The preemption system," says Donaldson, 5 " arose from 

 the necessities of settlers, and through a series of more than 57 



1 See "The Public Domain," by Donaldson, p. 197. 2 Ibid., p. 200. 



*Ibid., p. 201. *Ibid., p. 203. * Ibid., p. 215. 



