Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1822-02-09
ICHMOND, FEBRUARY 8, 1879
KENTUCKY MISSION.

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RICHMOND. FEBRUARY 8, 1922.
KENTUCKY MISSION
| On Thursday, the House of Delegates pro
| ceeded to execute the joint order of the day
The Senate attended seats were, set apart fol
the Judges; the gallery was thronged witt,
ladies', who never before in such numbers gra-
ced the Hall; crowd of citizens attended
and filed every vacant corner. Many of the
Delegates bad to occupy chairs On the floor
Of the Hail. The scene was the most inter
estinS we have ever behold in the Capitol
The multitude waited with anxiety to see
and to hear The respectable representatives OF
sister state those representatives, the native
born citizens of Virginia and the state of
their adoption, herse!f-the child of Virginia.
The reputation of the Commissioners not less
than the interest of the mission WAS calculated
to excite much curiosity.
At IL O'Clock, Messrs. Clay and Bib enter
ed, and took their seats in the bosom of the
House. As soon rs they were seated, the
Speaker of the House, in his chair, proceeded
to read the following written propositions,
which had been handed to him by the Com
missioners:
The undersigned, commissioners from the
State of Kentucky, in conformity To the first
| resolutions, reported by the joint committee OF
the two Houses of the General Assembly, and
adopted on the fifth current by the House of
Delegates, have the honor to propose,
1. That the General Assembly of the Com
monwealth OF Virginia do declare by resolu-
tion or other act, that according to their sense
of the true intent and meaning of the act
which they passed on the 18th day of Dec.
1879, concerning the erection of the District
of Kentucky into an Independent State" the
Legislature of Kentucky was not restricted
from passing two acts, the one on the eth
OF Feb. 1877, entitled Gan act concerning oc-
| cupying claimants ofland," and the other on
the 3lst day Of January, 1919. entitled an
act to amend an act entitled nm act concerning
| occupying claimants of land"
9. That the General Assembly of Virginia,
in such mode as may be deemed proper, do
concur, by convention for that purpose TO
he entered into with the undersigned in con-
stltuting Board ofimpartial Commissioners,
according TO he provision contained in the
eighth article Of the conditions. specified in
the fourth section of the aforesaid act Of Vir-
gnia, To decide upon the validity of the two
acts above mentioned of Kentucky, and also
/ the act passed by lis Legislature, on the Goth
December 1870, entitled san act to amend an
act entitled an act to amend an act concerning
| occupying claimants oil Land
The undersigned viii not now bring Cor.
ward all those facts and circumstances, noI
urge those considerations, which appear to
them 10 authorize confident expectation that
the General Assembly of Virginia, will adopt
one or the other of these two propositions
but will content themselves with referring to
the explanations and discussion which they
shall have the honor of submitting orally, un-
der the supposItion that this course Is in con
sonance with the views of that body They
lay before the General Assembly authentic
i copies OF the several acts of Kentucky above
mentioned; and avail themselves of the oc-
casion TO tender to the General Assembly the
homage of their profound respect.
H. CLAY.
GEO. M. BIBB.
| To the Honorable The Senate
i and the House of Delegates fine
General assembly If Virginit.
| Richmond, 7ih Feb. 1929.
AS soon as this paper had been read, Mr.
Clay rose to address the House. He spok,
three hours. We shall not pretend in this has
4 tyimanner to sketch eventhe substance ola mas
terly speech which occupied such period,
embraced such variety of Illustrations. III
gave long review of the land laws of Kentur
, KY those ofI797, 1919 & 1890. He contende
thatfrom the manner in which Virginia had dis
posed OF her publiclands,a variety of conhictin
titles were produced-that in this way almos
the whole of Kentucky became single,
r over with adverse claims - that unless Ken
; lucky had protected the occupants, who dres
their titles from Virginia, in the improvement
| they put upon the lands, large portion of he
! lands would have still laid waste her peopl
never would have grown to the size and i'm
portance which they had attained and woul
, have been abandoned to he incursions or me
; naces of the Indians. He contended, that III
: law of Kentucky, by paying the successful
claimant for his land, or by compelling hin
to pay the occupant for his improvement:
E had pursued policy, which grew out of tn
: situation of the country that Virginia her
self in her infant condition had adopted 81
milar policy in 1913 and that it was polio
sanctioned by the most received principles G
equity. He admitted, it had been said tina
!, many abuses had been practsed under colo
!, of those laws but commended that their mum
Der had been vastly exaggerated; and that
z was no argument against the justice of any la,
Or political institution that it had been abused
lie commended, in the next place, that thes
laws of Kentucky did not violate the compac
n between the two states.-Hc contended, tina
such conditions were not only not imposed b
$ Virginia, upon the child other creation, uDde
this compact of 1889, but that neither part
could impose such conditions upon the other
4 that the policy adopted by Kentucky was es
4 sential to the settlement Of her lands and tn
security of her frontiers and that TO preten
to lay such restrictions upon her, as SOM
e persons had justified, would have been TO stri
! her ola portion of that sovereignty, which WA
secured to every stately the constitution of tn
! u. ). and almost, ifnot equally as obnoxious
: as the restrictions attempted to be fastene
: upon MssOuri.-llc contended, that Virgiuii
: not only coUtd not, but ,Couh not have in
o posed such conditions upon Kentucky thi
Virginia had most muDi6cently endowed he