Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1828-1831, 1831-05-05

Just title claim to- legal equitable, bonaAde
;laimed, derived and held under any grant OF the
Commonw ealth. which shall hx e been issued before
he passing of this act and who shall have discharged
Ill taxes duly assessed against slch person persons
upon such lands, and all taxes which ought tn have
been assessed thereon, from the time when such per-
son persons acquired his, her their title thereto,
whether legal or equitable.
10. And whereas it is known to the General Assem-
bly,, that many cases. divers large OF land have
been escheatcd to the eath tor want of any
known heirs at the original grantee grantees there
o', or OF persons caimg under them and such lands
by reason at such cschest, have become vested ac-
cordng To law, the President and Directors of the
Literary Fund, while at the time of the eschcat.
the same lands, parts parcels thereof, bona
hdc claimed, held and occupied by numerous other
persons deriving title thereto, from, under other
grants of the Commonwealth and having actually set,
tied and improved the same and discharged all taxes
Charged against them, upon the lands so claimed held
and occupied by them; and it is reasonable aud just
that the titles of such actual holders and bona hde
claimants ct lands cschcated should be quoted and
perfected far the transfer tn them of the rights
vested in the said President and Drectors-and. there
fore, subject to the disposition of the General Assem-
bly,, may accomplish that object:
Belt therefore, further enacted, That all the right
title and interest of the said President and Directors
in or To any lands Except such shall be herein after
eXcepted) which have been shall h rcattcr be ves
ed in them by of any eschcat thereof for want
OF known heirs of the original grantee grantees
III persons claiming from under them, shall and may
be, the herein after prescribed transferred
to, and vested in any and every person persons,
who shall be- at the time of escheat, in actual
aid occupation OF the said eschested lands,
any part parcel thereof, for much thereof, AS
such person persons have just title claim le
gal equitable, bona fde claimed, held and derived.
from r under any grant of the Commonwealth, issued
before the date of the escheat, and who shall have dis
charged all duly assessed against him. her or
upon such lands and all that ought to have
been assessed charged thereon, from the time when
he she they acquired his her or their title thereto,
whether legal or equitable
| IL. And to the end, that fit and certain remedy
ma lie al. q "
such actual holders and bona hdc claimants afore-
sad of the said forfeited lands, of any part par
eel thereof, and for vcstng in, and assuring to them,
all the right, title and interest IN ana to the same,
which have heretofore been vested by law, which,
by the provisions of this act SHALL may be herea>
ter vested, in the President and Directors of the Liz
tcrary Fund and also for ascertaning the rights of
such actual holders and bona fde claimants afore-
said of the said cschcatcd lands, of any part par
eel thereof, and for vestng in and assuring to them,
all the right title and interest of the said President
and Directors, in and to the said escheated lands
BE it, therefore, further enacted, That any such
tual holder and bona fde claimant of any of the
said forfeited lands, of of the said escheated
lands of any part parcel of either, may prefer
his petition TO the Superior Court of Chancery, hav
ing jurisdiction over the county wherein the Said for
feitsd escheacd lands, the parcel of the same
held and claimed by the petitioner the greater part
thereof may lie, setting FORTH specially and precise
all the facts, which, in the opinion of such petitioner
entitle him, according to the provisions of this act,
herein above contained, to have the right title and
interest, of the said President and Directors in to
the said forfeited lands, the said escheated lands
the may be, any part parcel of either
tcrred to, and vested in the SAID petitioner pursu
of the provisions of this act, stating and detuc
ing his right title legal equitable, to the
land by him claimed and held, exhibiting the docu.
menaTy evidence of such his right title and sho
np the local situation and quantity of the land by him
claimed and held specifying also, far the same
are known, the person persons, in whose name or
names the lands held and claimed by him, stand for
eited tor non payment of taxes, or escheacd, in
aforesaid, If the lands shall have been forfeited
for more than delinquency, or escheated in more
than right the several dclinquences for which for
FIXTURES shall have been incurred the several right
escheated, as the may be; finally setting forth
any other matters, which the petitioner may deem ma
terIal to his case, and praying the Court decree
that all the right title and interest of the said Pres
dent and Directors, in to the lands claimed anc
held by him, shall be transferred to and vested in tht
petitioner.
~. Such petition may be preferred in Court OF
filed at any time in the Clerks office; and wheneve
it shall be preferred fled il shall be forthwith
set down tor hearing without further pleadings an,
without any proceedings at rules, but shall not b.
heard till the term after it shall be preferred o
hled; nor shall such petition be heard, until a COP,
thereof shall have been served the Attorney fol
the Commonwealth, for the Superior Court of Law O
] the County wherein the petition shall be preferred
and another copy served on the Second Auditor an,
affidavit OF St ch service shall have been returned ant
filed with the petition at least month before tn,
hearing.
/ i. Any Agent or Counsel Of the President and hi
rcctors OF the Literary Fund, may appear and defen,
their interests in such lands; and if there be no sucI
Agent or Counsel employed by them for the purpose
shall be the duty of the said Attorney for the Com
monwealth to defend their interests.
Ii. When the petition shall be thus regularly pre
pared for hearing the Court may and shall proceed
consider the matter of the petition, upon the exhibit
filed with the same, and such evidence of witnesses
taken and fled according to the course Of proceeding
~ Chancery, as shall be adducCd for against thc
petitioner, and may order surveys and direct issues
try the questions Of fact. It's discretion-and if upor
the whole, the material facts forth in the petition
shall be satisfactorily proved to- the Court and tb,
facts so proved shall in the opinion of the Court en-
title the petitioner, according TO the provisions of Thu
act To the decree prayed for in the petition, the Cour
shall the-eupon declare AMI decree, that all the right
title and interest of the said President and Directors
~ or To the lands mentioned and claimed in the pet
ton, be transferred 20 and vested in the petitioner
specifying IN such decree the situation, description
and quantity of the land, with all convenient and prac
ucable accuracy:-and If upon the whole, the Court
shall be OF opinion, that the petitioner is entitled
to The decree prayed for in his petition, it shall dismiss
/ the same:-Provided that in either event, the pet
toner shall be decreed TO pay all the costs of the pro
ceedlng il. the said Court of Chanccry.