The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1855-11-09
ronAIITY OF THE STATES.


Wonder continues TO be expressed by two of our
city contemporaries how it should happen that in
yoving questions of the equality of the States and of the
relative jurisdiction and sovereign rights of The old and
new States come before any of the departments in the
binary of business and referred to the Aito
ney General We on the other hand repeat the express
sion Of our wonder how is that persons of intell
gence end experience should now for the first Time become
aware of the fact that cases in this branch of public law
are presented continually, growing of disputed land
titles applications for extradton prosecution Of offences
grants of public land for internal improvements, policies
regulations rights of navigation condemnation of prop
ery for public uses passenger laws license and tax laws
reservations of public domain for military naval pur
poses and long list of other involving conflict of
jurisdiction between the United States and individual
Sta,es.
Ii is impossible for TO in what respect Is now
material to go into the particular in which the At
orney General expressed the views in question The only
thing important is whether the opinion according to
law. If the views expressed Of such nature to
disturb existing impressions surely attention should be
fixed the merits of the question, not on the secondary
consideration of how it up by which department
it was referred to the Attorney General
We think hasy inspection of some of the many de-
justify his opinion, but also demonstrate the very
place and ordinary character of the questions which in
voved and their familiar relation to the business of the
departments
The cases of Pollard Hagan, in the Sd volume OF
Towards Reports of Goodttle Kibbe in the 9th vol
ume and of Halle, Beebe in the 18th volume all
of the competing claims of individuals piece of land in
the State of Alabama and in these it adudged
according the statement in the head notes. that
The stipulation contained in the 9th section of the Of
Congress- p.s2a the I'd Of March, 1919, for the adms
of the State of Alabama into the Unon--viz that
all nGvgabe waters within the said State shall forever
main public highways free to the citizens of said State and
of the United States without any tax duty impost toll
therefor imposed by SAL State-conyeys power
the navigabe waters OF Alabama the
the United States than possesses the nsvgabe
of other States under the provisions of the constitution.
And leaves much right in the State Of Alabama
them the original States possess navgabe waters
within their respective limits.
The shores of navgabe waters and the soils under them
granted by the constitution to the United States
reserved the States respectively and the
States have the rights sovereignty and jurisdiction
this subject the original States
The United States held any municipal sovereignty
Jurisdiction right of soil in and the territory of which
Alabama of the States formed except for
temporary purposes and the created by the
acts of the Virginia and Georgia legislatures and the deeds
of cesson executed by them to the United States and the
trust created by the treaty Of the 30h April lS03 with the
French republic ceding Louisiana.
Upon the admission of Alabama into the Union, the
right of eminent domain which had been temporarily held
by the United States, passed to the State. Nothing
manned in the United States but the public lands.
The United States hold the public lands in the
States by force of the deeds of ceon and the statutes
neeted with hem and not by municipal sovereignty
which may be supposed they possess have received
compact with the States for that particular purpose
That part OF the compact respecting the public lands is
nothing than the exercise of constitutional power
vested in Congress- and would have been binding the
pie of the States whether they consented be bound
or not.
t results from these principles that the right Of the
United States the public lands and the power Of Congress
to make all necdu rules and regulations for the sale dis
position thereof conferred power to grant land Ala
bama which below usual highwater mark at the time
Alabama admitted into the Union"
The case of Permo the city of New Orleans in the
Sd volume of Towards Reports question of the ef
feet of city bylaw CT the city of New Orleans Among
the points adjudged are these
The act of February 2Oh 1911 authorizing the people
of the Territory of Orleans to form constitution and State
government contained in the third section thereof pro-
vsoesone in the nature of instructions how the consu
ton be formed and the other reserving the United
States the property in the public lands their exemption from
State taxation, and the right to navigate the Mis-
sissippi 98N
The first of these provisoes fully satisfied by the
of 1872 admitting Louisiana into the Union equal
footing with the original States The conditions and terms
referred to in the admission referred solely the second
provso, involving rights of property and navigation
The act Of 1905, chapter 49, extending TO the nhabit
ants of the Orleans Territory the rights privileges and adj
vanages secured the Northwestern Territory by
dnance of 1857 had further force after the adoption
the State constitution of Louisiana than other of
gress organizing the territorial government and standing in
connection with the ordinance. They are, of hem in
force unless they adopted by the State constitution
In the Of Strader Graham in the 10th volume Of
Towards Reports the question whether certain slaves
belonging parties in Kentucky became emancpated by
attending ball the other side Of the river Ohio Here
according to the head-note, II was decided that
So "The laws Of Kentucky alone could decide
upon the domestic and social condition of the dom
cled within its territory except far the powers of the
States in this respect restrained duties and obiga
tons imposed upon them by the constitution Of the United
States.
Thcre nothing in the constitution Of the United States
that any degree control the law of Kentucky upon
this subject
The ordinance of 1857 cannot confer Jurisdiction upon
this court 1t itself superseded by the adoption Of the
constitution Of the United States which placed all the States
of the Union upon perfect equality which they would
be IL the ordinance continued be in force after its adop-
tion.
Such Of the provisions Of the ordinance yet in
force owed their validity to Of Congress passed under the
present constitution, during the territorial OF
the Northwest Territory and since to the constitution and
laws OF the States formed in it,"
of A.. ,-o-