Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1822-01-05

he'd on by the court, is in the following words
Z" That all private rights and interests of land
within the said district, derived from the laws
of Virginia prior to such separation, shall re-
main valid and secure under the laws of the
proposed state, and shall bc determined by
the laws now existing in this state"
The court in their opinion, say, that il the
only intent of this article was to preserve to
claimants of land determination OF their Ii
ties by the laws under which they were ac>
CURED, it is a mere nullity, because. they say
by the general principles of law, titles to real
estate can he determIned only by the laws Of
the state under which they were derived and
that title, good by those laws, cannot, be dis
regarded, but by departure from the first
principle of justice. They therefore suppose,
the words rights and interests Of lands, mean
more, or something else, than they fairly inn
port or ever have been understood to imply
The position assumed by the court, that
every civilized nation ought To regard Justice,
will not he controverted. The only inference
drawn from it by the court is, that as Virgi-
mia must have presumed that Kentucky would
have regai ded justice, the stipulation WINS I'M
necessary. However this sort of confidence
may regulate the conduct of friends and ac-
qiaintances in private life, it does not seem To
have been entirely relied on by independent
nations, IN their compacts with each other. IT,
is believed, that in most treaties of cession be-
tween them, the ceding party has not trusted
exclusively TO the influence of the general
principles of justice, but has required an ex-
press stipulation in favor ofthe people of the
coded Territory. The Sd article of the treaty
between the United States and France, by
which the latter ceded the territory of Louis
lana To the former furnishes an example of
this kind. 1t is done from abundant caution,
and to impose higher and more definite obi
cations than are to be found in the moral
code. Such, IN fact, We're no doubt the con-
siderations which induced Virginia TO insert the
Ith article. The plain and common sense
meaning of it, as it has been understood by
the parties and the people generally, is, that
the private rights and interests of land derived
from the laws of Virginia. should be valid
and secure under Kentucky (; and that the
laws OF Virginia were to furnish the rule for
the decision of those rights and interests.
| such has been the construction given TO this
| article o; the compact, 10y the courts here
ana the opinion and reasoning of our cnur. of
appeals on the cons,ilu,ionalty of our occu
pylnS claimant laws, in the case of Fowler
against Halbert, reported in the 18th volume OF
| Bibb's REPORTS is believed to be correct and
unanswerable.
To use the language of the supreme court
ut would be ii mockery of common sense
and the principles of equal Justice, to suppose.
that this article was intended not ONLY To qua
rantee the rights Of claimants under the laws
OF Virginia, but to exempt them from the obi
cations, burdens and municipal regulations to
which all Other claimants were liable The
principle OF equal Justice has been strictly oh
served, and our laws operate on all, as wei
those who claim under the laws of Virginia
rs those who derive titles under the Jaws oil
\ fha oil ,,I,.
The state required their passage, no class o!
ciil nants have any just ground of complaint
vi that policy,it was the exclusive preroga-
tive OF kentucky to Judge nor can the owner
OF property within their jurisdiction and I'M
der their projections ightfully claim an excmp-
ton from its operation.
That Virginia had, in this contract, an eve
to the principle of equality. and nothing more,
Is evident from the eth article, in which she
Stipulated for an equality of taxation; for il
yielded AN equivalent, by reciprocatng, tina,
equality IN regard TO the lands of kentuckians
situate IN Virginia. The last branch of thi.
article is more conclusive on the subject, b,
which II is expressly stipulated, &" that n neg
lrct of cultivation or improvement of any LAND
within either the proposed state or this com
monweaith, belonging TO ngSn-residenis, citi-
Zens oil the other, shall not subject such non
residents To forfeiture or other penalty. with.
| IN the term ofslX years after the admission
ot said state into the federal Union" Vir.
Snia was aware of the quantity of unsettled
lands IN Kentucky and OF the necessity and
policy of having them settled. She was aware
also, of the power of Kentucky TO coerce thci
improvement and cultivation, and stipulates fol
hercltlzens an exemption from it for the term o
SIX years only and yet the supreme court
IMPLY, IN the 7th article, perpetual excmp-
| ton.
Your committee would here beg leave to
remind the supreme court of one of the hest
settled rules OF construction known TO iurists
that every special limitation upon the gen.
era and common laws and rights of n people
Is to be construed strictly" aud in NO cas-,
ought that rule TO be implied with mpr,
rlsor, than to Limitation in derogaton of tn,
general powers and sovereignty of a govern.
| ment.
| This general view would seem to be- sulIlci
| ent to silence all doubt as to the true intent
and meaning ofthe 9TH article of the compact
but 1t may be proper to- examine the literal
import OF the words upon which the court re-
| ly. They seem to place much stress on the
omission OF the word title, in the compact and
to draw distinction between the meaning of
the words, rights ami interests, and titles but
your committee cannot perceive the force oil
the argument, or the effect of the distinction
attempted by the court. The words, rights
and interests, as used in the compact, admit Of
no ambiguity. The word, right, in the Ian
glage OF Iurists, means good or perfect title
In the compact it means, that kind Of right
or tile which IS derived from the laws orVir
glnia Tie word, interest, when applied to
land, is generally understood to import an in
choate, Imperfect, or partial right, The land
laws OF Virginia ought To furnish the best ex-
position IN relation 20 the sense ia which il
should be Understand in the compact. The