receive from my negotiations, which was prevented by the suspension of the state bauk.

Yours,

Respectfully,

JNO. NORTON, Jr.

(P.)

Levi S. Humphrey, Commissioner, in account with the Michigan

State Bank.

Personally appeared before me, J. O. Graves, a justice of the peace in and for the county of Wayne, state of Michigan, E. A. Hathon, a citizen of said state, who maketh oath to the following facts, viz: That he has acted as clerk to the committee of inves tigation of the affairs of the board of internal improvement, and that after having examined and arranged all the vouchers in the office of the Auditor General belonging to L. S. Humphrey, he applied to the committee for further papers, if any there were, and received an order upon A. H. Adams, secretary of the board, for the same.

That the said Adams refused to deliver them unless sanctioned by the board, and that as Mr. Robinson, a commissioner of said board, being present, Mr. Adams observed he might do as he pleased. Mr. Robinson replied, that he saw no impropriety in giving them. That the said Adams delivered, what he said were all the papers belonging to the said Commissioner, L. S. Humphrey. That on Monday, 4th March, deponent returned said papers, with an order from the chairman of the committee, for the vouchers of D. C. McKinstry, and was refused them by Mr. Adams, who said that the president of the board, (E. H. Lothrop,) would soon be in, and he might do as he liked about complying with the order of the committee; that the president shortly after came in, and was handed the order of the committee by Mr. Adams; after reading which, he gave me a note directed to the chairman of said committee, to whom I gave it, who immediately directed the sergeant-at-arms of the House to wait upon the president, (Mr. Lothrop.) with a subpoena, which brought said president before the commitee, with the vouchers sought for, together with those of J. B. Hunt. That the said Mr. Lothrop was discharged from attendance upon the committee, but sat down, and turning to deponent, asked if I would make any objection, after examin

ing D. C. McKinstry's vouchers, to come to the office of the board after the remainder, as they were daily wanted; that deponent replied, that he had no objections if it suited the committee, and appealed to it for an answer; that the answer was in the affirmative, and Mr. Lothrop took J. B. Hunt's (in part) vouchers with him, as I supposed, to the office of the board. That on the 14th of March, as near as deponent recollects, he called at the office of the board for the papers, and found neither president or vouchers; that the next morning, deponent called at the Exchange for Mr. Lothrop, who was at breakfast; afterwards met him in at the hall of the third story, and was taken into his room and received the required papers.

That deponent on the 22d of March, was sent by the committee to the board, for copies of the accounts of the acting Commissioners generally; that Mr. Adams laid the ledger upon the desk, and opened it at the account of L. S. Humphrey, which he took some papers to copy, but Mr. Adams prevented him, saying that no man should take a copy of his books, save himself, when he drew out the account, but did not subscribe it; that deponent returned, and the committee did not think it in a proper form for examination, and ordered it to be returned for Adams' signature, which Adams refused to attach, but gave deponent another document, marked (F.) in the report of the committee, dated 27th March, 1839.

At the committee's request, deponent asked Mr. Adams to sign document (C.) in said report, it being in his own hand-writing, which he refused to do, saying "that he only copied it for General Humphrey, and that he should not vouch for its accuracy." Deponent then asked him (ir. Acams,) to sign the statement of the Commissioners' appointments, &c., in the hands of the committee.

That deponent avers to the fact that L. S. Humphrey was present at all the examinations of witnesses on the southern railroad, with the exception of one afternoon, when L. G. Budlong was examined, whose testimony, however, was subsequently handed by the chairman to Gen. Humphrey, with permission to recall witness for further examination.

Deponent saith that General Humphrey, or any other Commissioner, has never been denied access to the arrangement of their vouchers; on the contrary, Gen. Humphrey has examined the same himself, as also J. S. Dutton. On the 6th April, 1839, Mr. Adams was called before the committee, and asked if there were any more papers or accounts of the board that had not been given to the committee, to which he replied in the negative. All the vouchers and papers given to deponent for the committee, by Mr. Lothrop himself, and by Mr. Adams, have been

returned to the office of the board and a receipt required for the

same.

A. E. HATHON.

Sworn and subscribed before me, this fifteenth day of April,

1839.

J. O. GRAVES, Justice of the Peace.

(No 48.)

Message of the Governor.

To the House of Representatives:

I return without my signature, to the House in which it originated, a bill entitled "An act for the relief of certain settlers on university and state lands." In refusing my sanction to the provisions of this bill, I am governed by an imperious sense of public duty, urged upon me by the solemnity of my official oath. The determination I make, is a painful one. It has been framed, however, after mature and anxious deliberation, and cannot be resisted.

The ostensible object of the bill, is to secure to certain settlers on public lands, their just rights under the pre-emption law of Congress, which it is alleged have been interfered with by the state. Does the bill meet the object intended, and are its provisions limited to the designs of the legislature?

me.

I will not permit myself to inquire into the equity of the claims of these settlers. I do not stop to ask, how far the eager hopes of the people of Michigan in an institution fraught with benefits to thousands yet unborn, are crushed by the measure proposed to The pre-emption law was framed for the protection of the bold and daring pioneer, who leads the march of civilization, and proclaims to the world the unknown beauties and hidden resources of our western wilderness. For the protection of such men, was the law designed, and if the applicants under the bill before me, are entitled to the right of property in the lands in question, not even for the holy purposes of education, should that right be disturbed. How far then these claimants come within the spirit and intentions of the legislation of Congress, I leave the legislature to determine. To the representatives of the people properly belongs the decision of all such questions. Appreciating as they ever should, the high interests committed to their charge, I am bound to believe, that such claim, under this bill, has undergone the most rigid scrutiny, and that none other save a disinterested sense of justice, an anxious desire to protect the rights of the citizen, and a high sense of what is due to the character of the state and our institutions, could have induced your sanction to the measure proposed by the bill before me. If then a mere question of expediency was involved in the bill, it might become my duty to yield to it my unhesitating assent. But my solemn convictions sanction no such conclusion.