4ir;4v  J 
SEPT.  2 
MOORE’S  RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
THE  OLD  SCISSORS’  SOLILOQUY 
In  the  treaty  of  1783  and  the  free  navigation  of  the 
Mississippi.  Spain  had  occupied  a  considerable 
portion  of  the  country  on  the  river  for  several 
hundred  miles  above  31',  while  an  active  trado 
had  sprung  up  In  the  settlements  In  the  Oh'o 
valley,  the  natural  outlet  for  which  was  down 
right  acquired  by  the  treaty  of  1783.  in  favor  of 
this  plan  were  the  seven  Eastern  States;  opposed 
were  Maryland,  Virginia  and  the  Carollnas. 
The  spirit  of  the  Western  people,  unused  to 
re-stralntof  any  kind,  was  Impatient.  They  be¬ 
lieved  they  aaked  no  more  than  their  rights  and 
promote  harmony  between  the  Western  settlers 
and  Spain  and,  for  a  while,  there  was  a  feeling 
against  riie  Federal  Government  that  might.,  with 
little  Influence,  have  been  wrought  up  to  a  point 
of  separation.  But  this  was  of  short  duration. 
Spain  drew  the  lines  closer  and  tho  Western  peo¬ 
ple  again  became  antagonistic. 
^foantlmo  setricrs  crossed  the  claimed  Spanish 
lines  and  the  Court  at  Madrid  was  w.arned  that 
tho  American  nmblllOD  on  the  subject  of  tcrrltoiy 
would  not  bo  apponsed,  and  that  the  only  truo 
policy  wa.s  to  .atlempt  f  he  (il.smcmbf'rment  of  tho 
Union.  'I'hU  advice  wus  well  received  and  the 
actions  based  upon  It  reMilr.ed  in  a  senes  or  con¬ 
troversies  tlini  e.TtendFcl  through  many  years. 
And  now  war  broke  not  between  France  and 
Spain  and  French  emissaries  enden  vored  to  Incite 
tho  West  to  Invado  Louldana.  Spain  knowing  of 
this,  sought  to  couniorai.d  it  by  holding  out  In- 
diiccinenls  for  and  inviting  disunion,  jiromlslng 
aid  therein  on  Ihfs  mio  hand  and  threatening  to 
close  tho  navigailon  of  tho  river  forever  It  such 
disunion  was  not  erfecled. 
At  length,  wearied  with  the  maltcr,  Spain  ex¬ 
pressed  a  willingness  to  negotiate,  and  a  treaty 
was  concluded  In  liy.i  winch,  it  was  supposed,  cov¬ 
ered  and  settled  tho  whole  (inestion. 
Hut  Spain  could  not  be  salKfled,  a  a  1  again  pro¬ 
posed  that  a  now  sonth-wcsiern  Government  he 
estahllshcd,  but  without  olTeet.  WHh  ihc  freo 
use  or  the  Atfsslsslppl  tho  West  had  no  occasion 
or  deslro  for  dismemberment;  iho  boundaries 
were  soon  fixed,  tho  po.sis  surrendered  ns  had 
been  provided  for  in  the  treaty,  and  the  contest 
that  had  kept  ihe  country  In  a  state  of  ferment 
for  more  than  ten  years,  w.as  at  an  cud. 
I  AM  lying  al  rest  lo  tho  nanotum  to-night— 
The  place  is  de.ierted  and  still— 
To  my  right  Ito  exebang-es  and  manuscripts  white. 
To  tho  left  are  iha  Ink  and  the  quill— 
Yes,  the  quill,  for  my  master’s  old-fashioned  and 
quaint. 
And  refuses  to  write  with  a  pen. 
He  insists  that  old  rranklin,  tho  edltor-saint. 
Used  a  quHl,  and  ho'lJ  Imitate  Ben. 
I  love  the  old  fellow— topether  for  years 
We've  manared  the  Farmer’s  Gazette, 
And  although  t  am  old.  I’m  his  favorite  shears. 
And  oan  crowd  the  compositors  yet. 
But  my  duties  are  rather  too  heavy.  I  think. 
And  I  oftentimes  envy  tho  quill. 
As  it  lazily  lays  with  his  nib  in  the  ink, 
While  I'm  slashing  away  with  a  will. 
But  when  T  was  ne  .v— 1  roinorahcr  it  well. 
Though  a  score  of  long  years  have  gone  by— 
The  heaviest  share  of  the  editing  fell 
On  the  quill,  and  I  think  with  a  sigh 
Of  the  days  when  I’d  scissor  an  extract  or  two 
From  a  ticiBrhborlnir  editor’s  leader, 
Then  langh  in  my  sleeve  at  the  quill  as  It  flew 
In  behalf  of  the  srcncral  reader. 
I  am  belnc  paid  off  for  my  merrimont  then. 
For  my  master  is  wnn’dcd  and  Rray, 
And  seldom  l.aye  hold  of  his  primitive  pen 
Except  when  he  wishes  to  say.- 
“  We  arc  ncr  liny  some  money  to  run  Ibis  machine, 
And  subsitrlbers  will  please  to  remit; 
For  tho  last  load  of  wood  Jones  brought  us  was  green, 
And  so  knotty  It  couldn't  be  split." 
He  Is  nervons  and  d,'af,  and  Is  (retting  quite  blind, 
(Though  he  bates  lo  acktiowledgo  the  latter.) 
And  I’m  sorry  lo  say  it’s  a  puzzle  to  find 
Hea  d  or  tail  to  the  most  of  bis  matter. 
The  compositors  plague  him  wbnnovor  they  see 
The  result  of  a  luckless  endeavor. 
But  the  darling  old  rascal  Just  laj’s  It  to  me, 
And  I  make  no  remonstrance  whatever. 
Yes,  I  shoulder  the  blamo— very  little  I  rare 
For  the  Jolly  compositor's  Jest, 
For  I  think  of  a  head  with  the  silvery  hair 
That  will  soon,  very  soon  be  at  rest. 
Ho  has  labored  f  uU  long  for  the  true  and  the  good 
’.Mid  the  manifold  troubles  that  irk  oe. 
His  only  emolument,  raiment  and  food. 
And— a  pass  now  and  then  to  the  circus. 
Heigho !  frpm  the  past  coine.s  a  tnomory  bright 
Of  a  lass  with  a  freshness  of  cloomr, 
Who  used  me  to  clip  from  her  tresses  one  night 
A  memorUl  lock  for  her  lover. 
That  dear  lutio  look  Is  sCUl  glossy  an<l  brown, 
But  the  lass  is  much  older  and  fatter. 
And  tho  youth— he’s  an  editor  here  In  the  town— 
I’m  employed  on  the  staff  of  the  latter. 
I  am  lying  at  rest  in  the  sanctum  to-nlght— 
The  place  is  deserted  and  bUU- 
Tho  stars  are  abroisd  .and  tho  moon  Is  in  sight 
Through  the  trees  on  the  brow  of  the  hill. 
Clouds  burry  along  in  nndlgnlfled  haste 
And  the  wind  rushns  by  with  a  wall— 
Hello !  there’s  a  whopping  big  rat  in  the  paste. 
How  I’d  like  to  shut  down  on  his  tail ! 
IParmenas  Mix. 
TENNESSEE. 
Early  In  iTfio  people  from  Nortli  Carollpa 
formed  tho  nucleus  ol  the  first  whito  settle- 
mimt  In  TennesBee.  This  woa  In  Iho  Watau¬ 
ga  conntry,  It  was  renily  only  nn  enlargement 
of  a  scttlemont  of  Virginia  near  by  and  wns 
Riijiposecl  to  be  winiin  tho  limits  of  Virginia,  Oth¬ 
ers  soon  foll()w(3d  and  some  pushed  lurlher  Into 
tho  wilderness.  Thia  was  about  r  lie  time  Bonno 
went  to  Kentucky.  Tlm&eiUement  on  tho  Wa¬ 
tauga  soon  received  nddti  Ions  from  North  Caro- 
Una,  Souirh  Cnrolln/i  and  Virginia,  and  became  tho 
center  of  a  Rniiied  territory  of  considerable  ex¬ 
tent. 
In  tho  meanllmo  political  dinicullles  arose  In 
North  Carolina.  A  nijmh<'r  of  men  calling  them- 
RPlvc-s ‘‘Regulators.’’ opposed  ilio  Government  In 
what  they  claimed,  and  Is  now  believed  Ju.stly, 
Illegal  taxation;  but  not  being  able  to  sustain 
themselves,  they  crosaed  the  mountains  and,  bc- 
yoiul  roanli  of  the  ofQelils,  wore  gladly  welcomed 
at  Watauga.  Doubile.sa  rhclr  enmity  to  tho  Gov- 
ernment,  arldod  to  tho  fact  that  the  settlement 
was  so  far  dJsr.ant  that  ic  received  nelUier  aid  or 
protection  from  It,  linsiened  tho  action  which  In 
1771  was  taken.  eventiDl log  In  a  determination 
to  pay  no  furiher  atteniion  to  the  laws  of  the 
provlnoe  but  to  govern  t  hemselves,  which  they 
did  through  a  board  of  live  coinmisi-lonera  elected 
by  thescMlers.  A  lease  lor  eight  .rears  was  ob¬ 
tained  from  the  Glierokee3f0r‘‘allthe  country 
on  the  wai.era  of  the  Watauga."  and  the  laws  of 
Virginia  wero  mainly  adopted  as  their  basis  of 
Government.  In  tho  Bamo  jonr  the  boundary 
line  between  North  Carolina  and  Virginia  was 
dechared  to  be  In  latitude  86*  SO'  -this  fixed  the 
Hue  between  'I’rnnessee  and  Kentucky. 
In  1775  the  Indians  ceded  to  the  Watauga  Asso¬ 
ciation  all  the  lands  lying  between  tho  Kentucky 
and  Cumberland  Rivera,  and  early  in  17Ifl  tho 
Association  w.ns.  on  petition,  annexed  to  North 
Carolina  ns  a  Dl.'^trlct  and  wa.s  allowed  to  send  a 
delegate  to  tho  Provincial  Congress.  The  District 
was  named  Washington— tho  firat  time,  I  think, 
any  territory  was  SO  honored. 
In  1777  Wa.slitngion  District  w,a.«i  mado  into  a 
County.  The  Henderson  purchaRo— before  spoken 
of  (sec  Kentucky)— e,nend<’d  Into  tho  Watauga 
District  and,  for  a  llmo,  occasioned  considerable 
trouble. 
In  1734  Norih  Carolina  passed  an  act  ceding  to 
the  United  States  her  title  to  lands  west  of  the 
mountains,  embracing  the  now  .State  of  Tennes¬ 
see,  then  divided  Intofour  counties— Washington, 
HiiHlvan,  Orcono  and  Davidson— reserving  Juris¬ 
diction  and  .sovereigntv  unlil  tho  conditions  of 
cession  should  be  accepted,  hut  on  further  con¬ 
sideration  repealed  tho  act  the  s.iine  year.  Tho 
settlers  In  the  country  thus  cedod  and  not  ceded, 
feeling  that  North  Carolin.a  had  vlriually  aban¬ 
doned  them  and  having  need  of  an  active  govern¬ 
ment,  called  a  Convention,  by  the  action  of  which 
they  erected  themselves  Into  an  independent 
State  and  called  it  tho  ‘‘Stale  of  Franklin." 
Thereupon  they  were  declared  by  North  Carolina 
to  be  In  revolt  and  were  both  entreated  and  com¬ 
manded  to  return  to  ibelr  allcgUmco.  But  the 
new  state  continued  to  exi.st  unill  177.8,  when  Its 
Governor  (Sevieh)  was  arrested  on  a  charge  of 
high  treason.  While  on  trial,  by  theald  of  friends 
he  escaped  from  ilia  court  room.  Meantime,  the 
State  had  ceased  to  exist  and  the  territory  was 
once  more  under  the  JuilsclJctlon  of  North  Caro¬ 
lina.  8e  vie»  was  subsequently  pardoned  and  was 
the  first  member  of  Congress  from  the  Mississippi 
vauey. 
In  17S9  North  Carolina  again  voted  to  cede  the 
territory  to  the  United  States,  subject  to  the  land 
warrants  already  Issued  which  covered  a  greater 
portion  of  It,  and  also  to  the  ro-strlctlon  that  no 
regulation  should  bc  made  by  Congress  tending 
to  the  cmanclpii  lion  of  slaves.  Congress  accepted 
the  cession  in  the  same  year  and  scon  after  passed 
a  law  tor  the  government  of  llie  Foutliwest  Terri¬ 
tory,  which  included  TcnncEsco  and  Kentucky. 
Much  e.xcltement  tvas  caused  in  Tennessee,  as 
elsewhere  In  tho  Mississippi  Valley,  by  the  Span¬ 
ish  claims  relative  to  the  navigation  of  the  Mls- 
ON  TFIlfl  J  trig  I  AT  A 
the  Mls.sl8«lppl  River.  Spain  established  posts  on 
the  river  and  forbade  tho  passage  of  any  boats 
unless  they  had  first  paid  such  impost-s  and 
taxes  as  It  was  thought  fit  to  demand.  Payment 
of  those  taxes  were  In  many  instances  refused,  la 
consequence  of  which  cargoes  were  seized  and 
confiscated  and  persons  fined  and  Imprisoned. 
At  this  tho  feelings  of  tjie  people  of  tho  entire 
West  were  ui  oused. 
those  they  woro  deterrnlned  to  maintain.  The 
feasibility  of  the  plan  of  fitting  out  an  expedition 
to  .seize  New  Orleans  and  take  pos.se.sslon  of  all 
Spanish  territory  east  of  the  Ml,s.sl3slppl,  with  or 
without  Federal  aid,  was  openly  discussed. 
At  this  period  Col.  Wilkinson  visited  New  Or¬ 
leans  and  obtained  some  concessions  from  tho 
Government  by  which  tho  rigor  of  the 
laws  was  somewhat  relaxed.  There  are  dlffer- 
AMERIOAN  SOENEEY, 
Having  given  a  series  of  cuts  Illustrating  sce¬ 
nery  m  the  famed  Far  West,  wo  give  this  week 
views  of  characteristic  bits  Of  scenery  near  the 
Atlantic. 
The  Juniata  River,  which  wends  Its  devious 
way  throiigti  Pennsylvania,  presents  a  succession 
of  exquisite  views,  and  nowhere,  perhaps,  can  the 
lover  of  still  life  Indulge  his  fancy  as  fully  a.s 
among  these  .Bylv.m  scenes. 
On  tlie  other  hand,  the  “  Scene  la  Lake  Supe¬ 
rior  Country"  approximates  to  the  wild  beauty  of 
the  Yellowsrone  Park.  The  cool,  limpid  sireams 
and  fresh  mountain  breezes  of  the  northern  pe¬ 
ninsular  of  Michigan,  have  offered  strong  attrac¬ 
tions  to  the  lover  of  nature  as  also  the  Insatiable 
sportsman.  In  brief,  wherever  we  go  In  our  most 
favored  country,  exquls-.llo  scenes  open  up  be¬ 
fore  Us  that  ■  differ  In  beaury  only  In  degi-eo. 
When  the  famous  New  Zealander,  o(  Macacley, 
shall  have  turned  lil-i  steps  hliherwnrd  and  stamp¬ 
ed  our  scenery  as  the  "  Authority’’  of  his  hyper¬ 
borean  Judginent  (V)  wc  Americans  may  finally 
realize  that  there  are  m  i rvcls  of  natural  scenery 
existing  In  uur  midst  that  are  unequalled  by  the 
famed  European  localliios. 
OUR  COUNTRY; 
ITS  ACQUISITION  AND  DIVISION, 
(CoDtlDued  from  page  141 J 
Spanish  Claims  to  the  Mississippi  River.— 
Soon  after  the  treaty  of  1783  between  Great  Brit¬ 
ain  and  the  United  States,  Spain  made  claim  that 
her  ti'eaty  with  Great  Britain  In  1730  conveyed  to 
her  the  country  hounded  as  follows A  right 
line  should  be  drawn  from  the  eastern  angle  of 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico  w  Fort  Toulouse,  in  Alabama ; 
thence  up  the  river  Loulshatchle  from  the  mouth 
of  which  a  right  Hoe  should  be  drawn  to  the  Fort 
Of  Quesnassle;  thence  by  the  course  or  the  Hlar 
wassa  to  the  Tennessee ;  down  the  Tennessee  to 
the  Clinch ;  thence  In  a  right  line  ro  the  Cumber¬ 
land;  down  which  to  the  Ohio.  All  west  of  this 
Spain  claimed  and  ruivlutalued  that  its  possession 
g  ive  them  the  sole  ownership  of  the  Mississippi 
from  latltudo  31"  to  Its  mouth.  The  country  thus 
claimed  embraced  parts  of  Kentucky  and  Ten¬ 
nessee  and  nearly  all  of  Mississippi  and  Alabama. 
The  United  States  claimed  all  described  for  her 
SCKTSfn:  IIS'  XjAICK  feSUnCRIOR. 
Meantime,  the  Spanish  Government  was  nego¬ 
tiating  Mdth  the  Federal  Government  for  a  settle¬ 
ment  and  In  view  of  some  concessions  favorable 
to  the  older  portions  of  the  Union,  .Mr,  Jay,  then 
Secretary  of  Foreign  Affairs,  proposed  io  forDear 
to  use  the  Mississippi  River  below  si*  for  tweniy- 
or  thirty  yeare,  while  still  claiming  ro  use  the 
COUlN'rK,Y. 
ences  of  opinion  as  to  whether  he  acted  In  entire 
good  faith— whether  or  not  he  was  intriguing 
for  his  own  aggrandizement,  to  separate  the  West 
from  the  Uiilou  and  establish  a  Southwestern 
Confederacy.  But  It  Is  evident  he  had  not  the 
interests  of  Spain  in  mind;  although  his  policy 
appeal's  to  have  been  to  prevent  antagonism  and 
