The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1853-02-22
THE DAILY DISPATCH
Tuesday Morning.. Feb. 22. 1S..
FIom the Enquirer, Of Monday.

A.. .. AND OHIO RAILROAD.
os AIs~au.: au:t deeply affecting the prosperity
gin;a rs;i1a.s ana !ne interests of all the Wiz.
Obi ,;.ar !. -, mnicn aim TO connect with the
~. ~. 20 WIN not be uninteresting TO frace
.ns line OF attack upon the Balt;mors nd OI;o
Iahioad company, contemplased hv ~. W.
Una legislature. To Comprehend the nos;.
uon ol tne questions, there are cer,a;r cs,5;anI
points which must be fully unders,aods s''u'"ai
!. rTss, the Charter ofl847 granted ri. n,
umore company was most liberal and n,,,n:c
cent TO Baltimore, and most careless aS ~.
nghls ana interests OF Virginia citizens. n,
has enabled Baltimore to sustain her .,..,. :.
unjust and unequal impositons ON ,hs ~. "
Virgins interests adjacent to the road M !.
has given powers which oppress the legitims,s
commerce Of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
aud minister solely to the trade and intercourss,
OF Baltimore city. 1t is further seen ami fsI,
that this improvident gran, has endowed Raj.
timore, already an overmatch, with right arm
ofpowerfui offence, to crush the rivalry of AN
our tide.water cities. From these pervadinr
considerations, almost every interest Of the
Commonwealth is directly aniagonistic to that
law OF lS47-and universal hope exists that
ID some way, by L0rful means, that great char.
ter may be brought within the grasp of Virgi.
mia authority.
Stick a pin here The wish to recall that
grant Of lS47-and greatly to modify it, at
least, so as to protect Virginia localities from
unjust exactions-and to guard great Virginia
lines of improvement from unequal and over
whelming competition, is universal all over
the State. II is natural, il is proper. Ifit may
lawfuiiy be done, it ought TO be done. There
is Willis there way?
repeat, is there way, to effect this Just
and general wish of the people of Virginia p
De the facts, disclosed in the controversy with
Mr.. Marshall, and the record admission, of the
company, taken in connection with the secret
and curious history of the means adopted to
reach their purpose, furnish grounds of forfei.
ture to sustain a judgment Of con6scation p
To form judgment on this point, il is essen.
tial, before give the facts-which will be pre-.
sented 10 judicial scrutiny-that shall lay
down certain broad and established principles,
applicable TO the subject, and from which there
can be no dissent.
Laws are classified into laws of general, or
laws OF a private nature. Laws of general
or public character are such as regulate State
policy or public morals or prescribe rules of
descent, &c. Laws of al private nature, are
such as on petition regulate individual inter.
ests or grant special privileges of incorpora.
ton, &c. Laws of the first class are repeala.
bic by the Legislature Mt pleasure. They are
binding ON every citizen until repealed. 1t
matters not how such laws are obtained:
Fraud and bribery of the whole Legislature
will not lessen the obligation of the general
law-repeal is the ready and sole remedy
1t is otherwise with laws of private nature
They may not be repealed or touched by the
Legislature. Under the decision of the Su.
preme Court of the United States, laws of in.
corporation, bestowing specia grants of priv.
ilege on an individual or on associated indivi
dua s, when accepted, become contract with
Il. sixo
tended to contracts by the constitution of the
United States. Charters are contracts and are
inviolate TO State legislation. But whilst as
matter ofcontract, they are thus guarded from
infraction, the corporators and the sovereign
State granting the charter, occupy in all
other respects also the relation of contracting
parties. Questions touching their charter
must be referred to the courts Of justice. The
charter, like all other contracts, may there be
impeached for fraud deception, or any mate.
rial imposition practiced on the Legislature by
ths parties who procured this grant of special
favor. The judicial enquiry relates back to
the original grant, and becomes an issue OF fair
dealing towards the legislature making the
grant.
Baltimore, helding the advantage of this i'm.
portant grant of 1S47, and using il to her own
aggrandizement at tine great cost of Virginia
citizens, shelters under the sanctity OF her
chartered privileges. This charter is how
ever onlya contract, and the court will re.
lieve the State, lone ofthe contracting parties,)
if Baltimore has inveigled her into this con-
tract by unlawful means. and by imposing
false and fraudulent statements of important
facts, calculated to influence and misiead the
Judgment. This brings up the facts of that
winters legislation.
One important misrepresentation, calculated
III of nnto 1f
ia, was this-and to appreciate the extent of
its inhuence. the mind must cast back to the
condition Of Western Virginia at that day. In
1847, trans.Alleghany Virginia was shut out
from all access to the Atlantic seaboard, and
was hopelessly sealed up, with all her vast
mineral wealth, within impossible BARRIERS
Baltimore, by her road, year after year, offered
to unlock these Businesses, aud open upon
them her broad avenues of eastern commerce
The Legislature of Virginia. over and over
again, from motives of high public policy, re-
jected this rich boon rendered to her Western
people, unless Baltimore would build her road
on terms aud BY a route that wsuld not con.
fict with the major interests of the Common.
wealth. Virginia was the granting power. and
had no restraint upon her action except the in
terests of her own people. She knew the ne
cessities OF Baltimore, and knew thar through
these necessities, she could compel Baltimore
to build her road in subordination TO the para
mount interests of the State. In this state OF
facts, Virginia Tor years steadily rejected all
the solic tations of Baltimore, except on the
terms OF guarding her own cherished interests.
In the winter OF I847, Baltimore again came
here TO bargain for her chartered privileges.
She knew if the facts remained unchanged, she
could get no grant other than that of previous
winters, which she had always rejected. II be-
came necessary, therefore. to change the facts
in the case. And in 1847 Baltimore came here
with changed state offacts, presenting a new
and cogent argument to our Legislature, to
change its past pulley, and assent to a contract
or charter, whieh had SO often been rejected.
In l847, the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad
Company, impressed upon her agents and au.
thorized this statement 10 be made. They
stated that they had acquired from Pennsyl-
vania another outlet tor their road and were no
longer dependent on Virginia for passway to
the Ohio. This statement was urged with
earnestness and most por,enfous effect. The
Company went q step further in the statement
offacts impressed on the Legislature, through
their agent here. They gsve their agent re-
peated and written Instructions to urge upon
the Legislature. az a fixed and assured fact,
that ia The event of a refusal 90 make them a
grant, their road would inevitably be built 10
Pitsburg, under their said Pennsyivania grant,
and that Western Virginia would thus forever
lsse this opportunity Of development.
-. az II. a x>f fon srA