1804.] Objfervations on Remarks on the Coffion of Louifiana, 
reftlefs, enterprifing, and ungovernable 
horde; no better thana horde of Tartars ;”” 
and this character he gives generally to 
the inhabitants of the Weftern territory. 
—‘* If a family leave a hut to go about 
their daily labour, at their return, they - 
find it perhaps taken poffeffion of by new- 
comers, who will difpute with them the 
pofleffion—no tenure being acknowledged 
among them, but that of occupancy; no 
right, but that of fupericr force.” This, 
indeed, is a moft tremendous blow aimed 
at the charaéter of Weftern America; 
but it is fo very eafy to affert without 
proving, that any perfon may write an. 
account of people at a diftance, which 
fhall grofily mifreprefent and flander 
them. I am forry this feems to be the 
unfortunate predicament of this writer; 
and it behoves every. friend to truth and 
mankind to fet him right, if he be mif- 
taken, and to «xpofe him, if he be guilty 
of wilful mifreprefentation. The fettling 
of America from eaft to weft, has gene- 
rally been preceded by what is called the 
Back Woods people, who, being fond of 
hunting and a wild life, affimilate them- 
felves as much as poflible to the Indians 
in their drefs, manners, and habits. 
There is a confiderable number of them 
in the back woods of the Weftern coun- 
try, out it bears a very trifling propor- 
tion, not one to twenty of the whole po- 
pulation of regular fettlers. All the un- 
appropriated land in the North Weftern 
territory, Kentucky, and the South Wef- 
tern territory, belongs to Congrefs; and 
in every county of thefe ftates there is, 
what is called a Lecation-ofiice, for land 
purchafed of Congrefs by individuals. 
When a perfon has fixed upon a lot of 
Jand, he has it meafured conjointly by 
his own furveyor and one appointed by 
authority ; after which, he takes poflefion 
by putting a few logs of wood together, 
as if going to build a hut. He then re- 
celves a map of it from the location- 
office, which deicribes the figure, contents, 
fituation, &c. of it; and, likewile, acer- 
tificate of the purchale, the time it was 
made, name or names of the furveyors, 
&c. which is to him a bona fide deed of 
fale. It is by this legal mode, and not 
folely by occupancy, that the lands are 
generally taken poffeffion of and held by 
the Weltern people. It is well known in 
America, that the prefent adminiftretion 
had no occafion, as a temporary fhift, to 
gain popularity, which this writer boldly 
afferts, to purchafe Louifiana. They had 
already fecured the applaufe of a very 
great majority of the Americans, by pro- 
525 
curing the abolition of odious and un- 
conititutional laws, by recurring to the 
genuine and found principles of their con- 
ititution, by a rigidly economical ma- 
nagement of their finances, and by a truly 
enlightened love of liberty and their 
country. If this purchafe of Louifiana, 
and thefe'deeds of patriotifm and difpo. 
fitions of heart, entitle them to be thought 
*‘ weak and impolitic’’ by the writer, 
the Americans differ from him in opi- 
nion, 
America can no more be involved in 
the vortex of European politics by this 
purchalfe, than fhe was when groaning 
under the fpoliations committed upon her 
trade by the belligerent powers during 
the lait war. Let her conduét be fuch 
as it was then, in cafe any untoward cir- 
cumftances fhould call forth her energies 
to affert her rights and procure redre({s for 
her wrongs. Let her ufe the mild lan. 
guage of reprefentation, remonftrance, and 
negociation ; and if dire neceflity fhould 
force her to the dernier refort, let her 
courage be as great in war, as her mo- 
deration is in peace, and fhe need not fear 
the refult. 
But America, though right perhaps, 
in forming commercial alliances, fhould, 
by all means, avoid political ones, as 
having a fure tendency to Jead her into 
that ftate, which your Correfpondent af- 
fects to deprecate. 
In his firft declamation againft ty- 
ranny, he would imprefs the Americans 
with a profpect of the deplorable dilem- 
ma in which they will be placed, in cafe 
Britain is proftrated at the feet of France. 
America hates all fpecies of tyranny, 
and her fate would be truly pitiable, were 
fhe to attend to the fuggettions of felf- 
interefted and impaffioned European po- 
licy, by forming alliances with powers, 
who are inflated by ambition, and whofe 
fole objects are riches, dominion, and felf- 
aggrandizement. Let her be true to her- 
feli, and one word marks her charaéter— 
one word fhews the nature of her alli- 
ances, and the extent of them—it is, 
Peace with all the world! 
Prefcot, April 26, 1%04. Wick. 
To ihe Editor of the Monthly Mogazine. 
SIR, 
S your valuable Magazine feems to. 
be particularly addreffcd to the li- 
terary world, I thali beg leave to direét 
the attention of your readers to a work of 
confiderable merit, in the hope that it may 
find among thema tranflater, The work 
I al- 
