The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1865-10-11
Berkeley and ! iIBfgfS6l C6anHes
Reply OF Hon. BeHjRInin stanton ID
the LfIAitss EfAits Letter Of 1IF., Dawes .J63

J
have received the NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
OF the 18th ult., containing tho letter OF
Mr.. DI les, in reply to letters of Mr.,
Van Wlnkle and myself in re16ti on, 70
the status Of the Counties OF iBerlSeleV
and Jefferson, West Yirginin.
Me, Van Minkle Is 6bnndnntly able
X 70 take carao himself, and i only, pro-
R9se , Prtef f!;l notice Of his reply TO my
colcur With Mr.. Dawes In regret
ting this controversy, ON account or It's
tendency 70 htlenRte One Of the best
and most tnhue1ttal friends West Yir-
\ giniR has had i'd Congress, nom the
support Of her capse..I am greatly
not a man a1tog gethet above befnP IN
huenced in the discharge Of his official
| duties by ANY personal cbnsidefaf fiods!
| Two questions. are nihde in the COM
troveTsy between Mr.. Dawes and my
self lstsfIsf the Isettl dement, of q ibOuiIs
Diary between adjoining States, or the
cession OF territory by, One State to
another, by e1hcfTre1it te0fsEdti01i5 an
s'agre lent or &c OmpRct p within tho
meaning OF sec. TO-. art. 1 OF the consfi.
tuition Of the United States3 ID. NJ it
is, may the consent of Congress be
Egtyen IN adNanSe OF such legislaion,
a subsequent ratification of the specific
chnngeG9!ld lOi bfEi 10 SitzHIRV
" AS 70 the first q question, all the rules
OF CONSTRUCTION recogni1edl by Courts.
treat the object, and reason, and spirit
of tho law, as the controlling. cOIisId-
erations IN aseetta ming It's meaning.
The history, OF the colonies, prior to
| the Revolution, md Of the Slates under
the articles OF confederation, furnish
many Instances OF partial combinations
OF the colonies and States, for the ttir=
pose q regutFtilg trader With the In.
dian tribes as well as for pnfpbSes of
nutnat defence and protection, flhey
stYe, and e1ercised all the powers of
independent confederacies.
But probably the leading considera-
! ton for the adoption of this clnusa gVSas
to prevent partial combinations of the
states, 70 counterqct or resist the atis
As thesrsbel conGederacy organized iit
1861. 70 - ~ : p -
BiItswllat object Congress could have
in interfering with the adjustment Of
boundaries between adjoining StRtes In
which tho other States could have no
possible interest, passes my leompre-
hension. Another provision of the
ConstitutionyProhib the creation OF
new StatGs5 orlthe axtingutaliIhe OF 4
state without tho consent of Congress.
Ihese arc questtons-in-which all the
pontlcnt ppYerqI the St0tes.p A HT
All powers not granted 70 the Federal
Goyernments nre reserved "a the people
ana the States respectively.
And the franprs of the Constitution
did not regard this provision OF the
constitution, as hnVing any application
to a change of boundaries by concur
A 'ldomphct1 81 itiTsstnenttti iIbnii55ii ibii5iiSt,s
negotiations between the parties, promo
sitions submitted byonU' party 10 the
otheE lSE e9nfFfderatiQn n and adoption or
A compact or agreement between Ma
tons or States, Gun only be entered into
by agents duly authorized, or by the
rndhe1tton of the acts Of parti ieS aS5tini.
ing TO aet{as the agents of the p6rt36s.
Where Stntes net upon their own, mo-
ton, without consultation upon a sub
ject OF interest toobothj Ghndl lfheIIeSis
ton OF the States eopcpr. r., accom- plish-
ing en- object desirable to- both. such
legislation or separate action does NOT
constitute compact or agreement.'JE
And so u was in this cases The Goy-'
ernofs OF Virginia and West Virginia
appointed no agents TO enter into any.
Compact or agreement had no personai
fconsultnt1onss or correspo pondence, but
the Leg giSlatufes of the two ;Stfi g. eacf
acting npon Its own Judgment of whit
the public welfare ,FeqHig "a, ly concur
rent IeBlslatlohA c1auge their $boun-
dnr1eS ana ttnnsf sferred the countless of
Berkeley and Jefferson from the state
OF Virginia to the State of West Viz
gtntn5 fi-,''-.. -, ~, - - ~, fssis
In constttuttonalq questions L consid-
er eotempoFaueous construction as
or the utmost inPortansej II not
certainy that In the early history Of
the country, while the Federal and
Sthtel9 el9oyernmentsw were under the conE
troll OF the men who ffamedthe Consfi-l
tuition they did not consider this.
prnyt ION of the Copstitntioni as appli-
cable TO any adjustmentGo OF. hounaa-i
Stnte to another, ieb6iT the other States
had no inteTeSt IN he,shtbject.
b And the. dieeRsof fhh Supreme Court
in the case of Florida VS.. Georgia, quo
ted by Mr.. Dawes, only holds that in a,
8, s9ss e nae 19s nthSr state gntfpst-
are involved, no change Of boundaries
ca4 made lbyI the fStptes wi bogtlt1q-
assent of Congress-. And in that case
the fact that the public lands in Flori-
da belonged TO the United States, and
that in Georgia they belonged to the
state stat; TS aha Therefore 9qy shange qf
portion of the State Of Florida to the
State of Georgia, WOULD deprive the
General Government of the title to the
public lands I'M the ltRrTitoFV so tfAnS-
fefred, gave to the other States an in
tetest in the tiop,. audi made the
assent OF Congress necessary to the va
idity of the transfer. but when no
such interest in the other States exists
held neosssarS. d $Rd T61S "
On the 7th day of December, 1871, the
Legislature of Virginia passed the fol-
lowing act:
I 9SEqs A. WHEREAs, Official infarma-.
i4tion hath been receiPeda abyith Gener-
stal, Assembly that the IseislatnFe al
North Carolina have resolved tose3li
tswalkerss iline, lAbl the b6iindhry Jbel
tween, North Carolina and this Com
''monwealth, and 1t Is 1udged Sxpedi-
cent 70 confirm and est9 blIsh the same
ron thetpart OF this Statep be q, there's
Tore, enacted by the General Assem-
'bly,, thnt the Line c0mmqTlly called and
'tkf6Yn by tho hhli1is Of WalKef's line
stshall@ l@be and the same Is hereby de-
.'elRred to be tie DO oufldHTy, line OF this
i'State.n Vol: 4 Revised Code of 1918,
On the ga day of iIlaInaFy,, il. b.
1903 the egislntpre ofe'V VirgintR passed,
an act yyhiciiaa d ftAff oitinn fhe Action
of Cpmmissioner preyi1uslS 6ppoInted-
to run the b6und dAry betweefi fgfnia
and Tenn see, decl lnfed 6, That THE said
fsboundnFys line between, thiSi State and
ttl1e9 state. Of INeuIie iessee, iu3 laid DOWN.
.h1ed and aseeTtAiIied by, said Conn =
- :. ssioii iiets above named ID their said
report above reetted, shall be, and is
Thereby fdlly ind Edll1S ol itsl v to AL in
ttents and purposes SytatsoeVe
1thed, hstlb bllshed and con iirmed are the
"paSt 6fttie o6mnioffwe ealth tts the true,