Staunton spectator, and general advertiser. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 183?-1849, 1846-10-29


should be visited upon such injustice. Resistant
would only prove us worthy Of the enjoyment {
those rights which we claim. Submission, base
cowardiy submission, might secure the contempt
and pamper the pride Of our Eastern brethren, bu
at the same time would assuredly convince tina
brave and hberiy-loving people that we were I'm
worthy the name of Vrginians, unworthy that the,
should foster cur friendship. Why, then, will sh
insist ON placing MS in that dilemma, where we ar
forced either to contend with her i'm eternal warfare
or to deoase ourselves by an unworthy submission
Are not our broad valieS and fertile fields our fret
mountains and bold hills, all teeming with a rapid
~ increasing population, worthy of her care Of he
respect and esieem2 Does not sound wisdom ane
policy suggest that such people should be cult
waited as allies and valuable friends, that their spir
1t should lie enlarged and not broken and that ,he
confidence and affection should be secured? Nav
does not the preservation of those very rights, abou
winch Eastern Virginia is sensitive, dictate the
policy OF preserving Virginia entire and instead o.
rousng the jealousy and hatred of half our own
State against those rights, as the avowed and i'm
mediate cause of the inequality that prevails-o
rec1ncling the whole State 10 their existence and
binding 1t together by indissouble bonds of brother
nOCd, Tor their defence against world i'm arms +?
surely 1t is enough that more than half the Union
and all the rest of the world, are arrayed against
that peculiar interest in dire and unreasonable hos
uliy. Is 1t the part of true wisdom, or of rash
ness and folly for Virginia by her policy to arouse
intestine jealousy towards that same interest, by
claiming tvr 1t protection at the expense of the
just and equal rights of her own citizens? pro-
lection unknown to the pristine spirit ofour govern
ment and laws, anti-republican in its nature, and
destructive of the rights of the people.
Nearly allied to the objection which has Just
been discussed, and flowing from the same bitter
source, is that of the great and growing inequality
oil the basis of representation in our Legislature.
When our present Constitution was adopted, that
part of the State of Virginia lying west of the Blue
hitge had white population Of 3l9 sos, which
entitled 1t TO representation of Sc i'm the House of
Delegates and l3 in the Senate--gving a consti-
tuency 10 each Delegate of sos | g white souls,
and 10 each Senator of "a $50 white souls, in the
Nest. That part of the State lying East of the
Blue Ridge had white population of 375. 947
winch entitled 1t TO a representation CT rs i'm the
House of Delegates, and 70 in the Senate--givinp
constituency TO each Delegate of 1890 white souls.
and to each Senator Of 1876 l-2 white souls, in
The Fast; making an average inequality against
the West then, the basis of white population of
900 Tor every delegate, and of 1888 for every Sena-
tor. Suppose we admit, for the sake of argument,
that this was just disparity, properly accorded to
me East on account of her greater wealth. and for
me greater protection of her property against I'M
Just taxation. This is certainly admitting all that
Eastern gentlemen can ask. And then the ques-
ton arises, since this disparity was the measure of
protection which the East (havng the power i'm its
own hands,) chose to require for lis property-since
the Constitution, no doubt, with a view to the con-
slant vibration of property and population in the
State, provided tire means by which the Iegisla-
ture might meet and correct those vibrations by
re-apportoning the Delegates and Senators through
out the Commonwealth, after the year 1871 , and at
intervals thereafter of not more than ten wears is
1t not plain that the trainers of the Constitution did
not intend that that disparity should be materially
increased and that it is the duty of the Legislature
under the Constitution, to make such re-apporlon-
ments as would prevent the disparity from greatly
increasing? Yet the census of 1910 was taken and
showed white population in the West of 81 =
745, and in the East of 5000 Upon the Con
stltutional basis, without having any regard to a
change of the proportion of property in the East and
West, the white population of the West would
have entitled her to fraction over 65 Delegates.
and to 10 Senators; or to an increase Of 9 Dele
gates and Senators; while the East should have
lost one Delegate. But, in the mean time. West
ern taxation had increased about thirty thousand
dollars and Western property had increased in val
ue about twentysX millions Of dollars while East
ern taxation had decreased about S24 800 and East
ern property had decreased in value about $40 600
UOO. Take. then, the ratio of population and pro
Perty contended for, and the West was entitled by
the census OF 1910 to an increase OF ten Delegates
tered loss ola least two Delegates and one Sena-
tor. Yet no respect was paid to the demands of
the West for an increased ratio of representation.
though that increase was required by the principle
imposed on her, against her will, by Eastern poll
tlcIans-or, in fixing which, one would s,lppose
Eastern gentlemen had a sufficiently careful eve TO
their own safety and power. Had the re- arrange
ment of representation, evidently contemplated by
the Constitution, been made by the Legislature in
/ l.
by the Constitution. would now have contained 66
members from the West, and rs from the Fast
and the Senate would have contained, on the same
ratio, IL members from the West, and Is from the
East-glving to the East majority of | | on Joint
ballot, instead Of a majority Of Is, which she now
mas. On the same ratio of Western increase and
OF Eastern decrease, from the year 1871 till the
year 1851, which had been exhibited for the ten
years next preceding the year lS41 the West
would, on the principle Of representation according
to population and taxation, fixed by the present
Constitution. be entitled in 1851 to a majority in
the Legislature of both Senators and DELEGATES
Yet ii the Constitution remains unchanged and il
the Legislature shall persist, as there is every rea-
son to expect ii viii, in refusing TO make General
re arrangement of the representation over the State
In 1881, Western Virginia, after that year. with
an immense majority of white population. and with
vastly increased ratio of wealth and taxation will
W ""'" ' " "'ihoIity III her Legislative halls
OF dead ana insurmountable twenty eight. The
lives and liberty and property of her citizens mns
be disposed OF and settled there-=-rohts equally
dear, and much greater in amount than those Of the
East yet she is left poweress TO control them. and
the government Of the State will be in the hands Of
minority, both in numbers and interest. The
Bill OF Rights, solernnly adopted as a part of ON
present Constitution, declares that all power is vest
cd IN me people yet under the practical operation
OF that Constitution, it has been dvested and mi
nority OF the people reigns over the people. Shall
1t be said that the governed majority is safe in tbt
hands of ruling minority? The same plea might
always be urged in favor Of an arisiocracy. But
our Constitution, whose provisions were dictated
and controlled by thee WHO now cnnstiintn a..