The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1852-12-13
QUEER LEGISLATION.

QUEEh LE1lSLA loL>.
A communication TO the Wing Of Saturday,
recalls I, our mind subject upon which we
said much that wa UNDECIDED at the time, and
which Of late has gone entirely out OF nouce'
We are glad to see il revived.
In the winter of 1884,, the Legislature of
Virginia passed law TO brand upon the head
and bulge of all tobacco coming from hen-
,uckv and Missouri, Western. Al the same
time we think, it was required TO pay SORT Oh
duty at the warehouse, previous TO inspecuoh'
This law was passed without any consldera
tion. and even, as well as We recollecf, without
debate. Ii was thus passed, as was said at the
time. and as is now repeated by the writer IN
the Wing, TO CRAFTY certain individuals VINO
owned stemmeres in the West, and wished 10
keep the Western tobacco out OF ihi: Market
and, doubtless, the legislature thought it would
he of service to the interests Of the Virginia
planter to keep it out 1t came in, at the tlme'
at the rate of 5000 hogsheads per anHa"s' Ill
would have been 5000 by this time.
Though this bill was allowed to pass almost
without notice, there were private indiVioua's
who saw its absurdity, and failed not 10 pro-
test against it. Among others, Mr.. william
Grsy of this city then of Manchester look
the field in the papers against 1t. lie puoiisn'
ed in the Richmond Wing, with which the VIII
fer of this article was then associated, about
February or March, 1914, paper OF great
power, and interest upon the subject. The e1-
posure of the absurdity embraced in the law
was complete. The State had, already, ne
said, expended millions in the attempt TO reach
the Ohio river, and command through IT, The
trade of the great West. Ithad been the poll
CIV of Virginia ever since the revolution. Yet
rs soon as it as in reach ofits object-as soon
as the produce began to pour in, the legisla-
ture, which had voted millions to secure H.
passed a law which must inevitably drive away
the most valuable portion of it. Notwithstand'
ing the strsuuous remonstrance of Mr.. g., how
ever, supported as twas by common s2nse'
and by the unanimous judgment OF all tobac-
conists not interested in Western stemmerles,
the law remained on the statute book unrepeal.
ed and there it is to this day. The presiden-
,iai election was just coming on, and people
were thinking about conventions, and not about
tobacco. In the meantime, the effect has been
such as MIR. G.. foretold, and as any man might
have seen at the time. Louisville, according
TO the writer in the Wing, inspected 10000
hhGs. of this very tobacco last year. Balti-
more is not so squeamish as we were. She IN
yites the Kentucky end Missouri weed, and
brands Maryl land upon it. She makes contracts
for the French market out of this very same
tobacco, to the amount Of or 10000 hogs
h,ads every year. Out of all this, Virginia has
been fairly legislaled, under the impression,
doubtless, that the exclusion of foreign tobac
co was an advantage to the growers of the ma
tive. There never was grcsser iailacy, tor
the demand is always enlarged US the market
grows in size.
We suggest TO our neiglbor of the Wing TO
hunt up and republish this article OF Dir. e.,
who can, no doubt, tell the signature under
which he wrote. The Legislature cannot fail
TO be struck with the singularly literal fulfil
men, of prophecy made eight years and nine
months ago. Besides, the author is, and has
always been, a thorough going Democrat, and,
on that account, doubtless, his word will 60
farther with the dominant party in the Legis-
lature than it otherwise would. That body
has plenty of leisure now. There is no Pre-
siden;ial question before the country, and
they are about 10 appropriate large sums to
carry oct noble system of internal improve
ments. Let them give those Improvements all
possible efficiency, which they cannot do with
out removing this bar to their success.