Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1831-01-15

goie Tor the county to seat in this House? The COM
that he was eligible; and Mr. NJ concurred in their re-
port He believed the opinion of every gentleman
would be the same, who enqursd what the trainers
OF the Constitution should have DONE but what thew
have done-who did not listen to the SUI esons of his
own sense Of right, but attended the strict letter of
tho instroment-and who brought to the enquiry not
the spirit oil the legislator but the candour and mpor
uay oil the judge, whose duty IL is to say, not what
the law ought to be, but what the law u.s. The 18th sec
uon I'D article OF the Constitution contains this prov-
SION AND any person may be elected member Of the
House OF Delegates who shall have attained the age of
twenty-five years, and shall be actually resident and
ueeno.uer wn'n the county, city, town, borough, or
election district qualified by virtue OF his freehold 10
vote Tor members OF the General Assembly, according
to this Constitution" Age, residence and freehold are
the requisites An additional qualification had been
suggested by the memoralist, who had said that each
member must represent his doniciie: but as Mr.
NJ. could not remember this word i'm any mart of the
he did not think it necessary to discuss the
point An idea had been expressed sewhere that the
words "quaihed by virtue OF his freehold to vote SC
purPorted an additional qualification but he was clear
~ oil opinion that the words had no such alton
ana that they were used simply explain the value or
oher qualities OF the freehold which had been preyi
ousy mentioned. If not for these words free.
hold Oh less value than twenty-five dollars, which
mad been In possession for shooer period than six
months, would be sufficient qualification for the re-
preventative because the tenure is the same whatever
be the pecuniary value OF the land; but these words
"quaihed &c" denote that the freehold should be Of
such value, &C. as would entle its osessor to vote
for members Of the General Assembly according 10 the
IOl
lars in possession, of so dollars in remainder or
version The Constitution, instead Of enumeratinp the
quahcatons oil the voter in this section, where they
would have been misplaced and superfuous refers In
general terms another part of the instrument where
they are given i'm detail and where the enumera-
hon Is appropriate. The only enquiry then, as TO
me freehold Is, whether IL be in the county, be of
the value or extent required in the Constitution
ana had been In possession six mon,hsl These facts
eeing admitted in this case, Mr.. Marshall said,
d, would proceed to the inv of the main cues
In
OF this enquiry, he said, he should examine lst the
derence between counties and corporations in their
origin and character and show that the OF
corporation does not, like the creation of county
produce territorial division dsne bsrmen; 2ndy
no proposed to show that the residents of Richmond
ana other towns similarly situated had uniformity been
deemed eligible and had frequently elected for the
counties, during the operation of the former Cop.tu-
ION ana laws; 3D. that the present Constitution has
'de no alteration in this respect to the principle or
practices but has left the subject stand now precisely
where II stood before At early period of our his.
tory as far back as 1884, (Hen St at large vol. p
zz4 the country was divided into shires
to be like the shires OF England. Before ii.
the lew scattered settlements had yariously styl
ed hundreds boroughs or plantations, totally uncon-
neceu WIN each other, and without definite ge o.
graphca boundaries. The counties shires covered
the whole extent Of the then known territory In pro-
cess oil time they were divided and subdvided as the
convenience OF the people required; and counties
were added the country was and the
ments were extended. Whenever a new county was
formed, II was deemed in law a perfect and entire
county; enjoying all the rights and subject 10 all The
burthens of those which had existed previously The
prvieges OF the old county, in like manner remain ed
unchanged within its circumscrbed boundaries. All
eonto' or Jurisdiction over the county was lost
The justices Of tho latter required legislative act 10
enable them to hold court, 10 impose levy for local
purposes nor such act cessary to authorize
an election OF county delegat The aid of the Ies-
ia'ure was no farther required than TO de g nate the
name aud boundaries Of the new countless and to make
such temporary provisional ments as the
oil the case demanded Thus we see that acb coun,v
was complete In ITSELF and terroriay distinct from all
'he ies.IWdeiy diff rent, Mr. nj. said, both to
origin and character are the Cities towns and boroughs
OF ms Commonwealth Like other corporations, they
possess no rights and can exercise powers but those
@n,en hey derive from the law that gave them birth
put Tor This they have no authority TO appoint officers
Tor the regulation OF town police still less have those
emcers the powers and Jurisdiction Of justices Of the
peace Their COURT is the creature of the law
and their right Of separate representation which
exceeded one delegate, not original and inherent
but depended on legislative discretion. The limits of
The city were not Ike the boundaries of a county the
marks Of territorial separations but merely in Heated the
sphere within which the artificial body, created bv The
law, was permitted to operate. The county retain.
ed every privilege which the law did not take a.
way As in other corporate bodies, the law dis
regards the natural persons; so in these il will be
found that the Charter Of Incorporation was design.
ed 10 impart corporate existence only and that nei
Their The persons nor the place, we're in any other
manner effected Having thus shown the original and
distinctive diff renee between counties and corpora
lions, Mr. Mr. NJ proceeded in the second place 10
examine the bearing of the Constitution of I776 upo,
this question, the character of the laws and the usage
whch prevailed IN reference 10 this subject. With
This vie " he read irome Revise Code, p. 81. the 9th
section OF that instrument Can greater difference
ne asked, be found than here made between coun-
ties and corporations? Let new county be formed:
and Immediately II IL entitled to two delegates lie
grsauve sanction is not required; hereas a
is allowed one delegate when, and whsD ONLY in the
opinion Of the Legislatures should be eatite to have
one Agan-'et the right Of county in thi, respect
nave once accrued, and IL yond the comp .ence
oil the Legislature TO cancel or abridge it. No matter
how small iis population might become, either sb,o.
. fora
delegates. Not so with corpora ton Provision was
made mat u ts pop1alien declined in certain
proportion, and Tor certain number OF years the tsh
to send delegate ceased sl'oge Their This sec ton
proves iDconestibly that what in respect to COUNT
was right, with regard To towns was a privilege
j he whole history OF legislation, during the period
referred 10, abounds with proofs that ex,endioe TO cor
pora'ioDsthe privilege of exclusive representation did
not impair tn" pre-exis'iDg rights of the counties on
which such corporations bad been engrated, nor de
sroy their legal, any more than their local identity
Here Mr. M. read sundry extracts from Hening's
Statutes, at large. (vol. 5, PIP. 81, 263, 1861 and l.
Revised Code, p. 2271
The last was s,rikngly in point where the Iaw BRO.
vides for the holding of Circuit Court uenrico
circuit Court OF HeDrco, nornine, is the Circuit
Court OF ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS the city is without one
The Sheriff executes the process of that court upon
the inhabitants OF the cityhe collects the reye nue.
oil the Commonwealth witbia the bounds OF the COR
poaton-he summonsss jurors within the same TO serve
10 the County Court. The court house and Jail are
within the city limits; and finally, the jurisdiction of
the Court oil Hastings, being one OF limited extent,
both as to parties and the Of action would cave
the inhabitants without the ordinary legal remedy in
many cases,f the law did not regard thea as resdeps
OF the county. No inhabant of the city can he bsld