Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1861-09-14

The New state of Knnn1vIIn and At
tOrney General Rates Letter to Mr.


RltChles
G,wIcmrm: We have carefully read the
letter of the Attorney General to Mr..
Ritchie OF thu 18th ult., touching the sub
jcct OF the new State, aud must say that we
differ with him, both ts TO the constitu-
tio.ulity Of the proposed measure, and its
rxnrdiency M his time. Weni!irm that the
measure conforms in letter and spirit to
both Federal and State Constitutions -
Tie Attorney General admits in this letter
that he lad scarcely any time to invcsii-
gate the subject, aud that his views were
only first Impressions.
The Ith section of the Bill Of Rights,
adopted by the people of Virginia on the
18th OF June, lI7G, is az follows: - That
the people have II right to uniform govern
mcnt and, therefore: that no government
separate from. or Independent of the gov
ernmrnt Of Virginia, ought to be erected
or established within the limits thereof
This clause is all there is in the Bill of
Rights or Constitution Of Virginia directly
bearing upon the subject; and taken i'll its
broad and literal sense 1t would seem to
prohibit the erection Of any new State
within its hen existing boundaries, which
ut that time included all the Northwestern
territory, out of which tie northwestern
States have. since been erected also Ken
about 1893. Besides, by the adoption OF
the Federal Constitution by the people of
Virginia in Convention ON the 10th Of
June, 1883, they thereby erected the Fed
eral Government to the extent Of the
power granted, within and over its
then existing territory. The people of
Virginia by their ratification of the Fed
crnl Constitution, adopted with the rest OF
that instrument the Sd section Of the 18th ar
tiClc, which reads thus: New States may
be admitted by the Congress into this
Union, but no new State shall be formed
or erected within the jurisdiction of amy
other State; nor any other State he formed
hy the Junction of two Or more States or
parts of States, without the consent of the
Legislatures of the States concerned as
we'll as of the Congress" SecJ2d, art. 9th
of the Federal Constitution reads thus ::
This Constitution and the laws OF the
United Stntes, which shall be made in pur-
suance thereof, treaties, &C., shall be the
supreme lar Of the land
However exclusive and iudivisiblc there
fore, the good people of Virginia, in l77Gr
intended to make their then existing Gov
ernmeuL and territory the Supreme law OF
the andn and the erection of the new
States afterwards, in pursuance thereof,
clearly modified and restricted the original
clause in their Bill of Rights. Nor bnve
they, by any alteration of their State Con-
stitution since, increased the prerequisites
for forming or erecting new State.
To the Federal Constitution, therefore,
all loyal citizens must look for the requis-
ito steps to be taken 10 form Il new State
out OF nm old Que; aud this requires the
consent of the Legislature of the State con-
Ccrned and of the Congress.
The only remaining question touching
the legitimacy of the measure then is this;
Is the Legislature of the rceorguniaed
Government ut Wheeling the Constitutional
Legislature Of the State of Vrginia7 If
go, thea its consent satisfies the letter and
spirit Of the Federal Constitution,