The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-08-16
FROM RICHMOND.

The Public Debt OF Yirginla,--West
i VIrEinth's POrtlOn-.-The Legality of
the New State Still an Open Ques-
ttOn IN the Estimation OF the Rebels.
Extract from a LettoI. IN the NeiV York Herald.
In April, 1851, the public debt of q
Virginia aamonnted In round NUM-
Interest on the same To- the ist OF
July, 1861 and 5,OTl IS7
Total debt Of the commonwealth,
Including interest on the 1st Of
No IrnISSST c;;
portion Of the Interest on the
state debt, the total amount of in-
terest due on the LIST of January,
This makes the Whole debt Of the
State on the lSt of January laSt.,.. Al ,O79 1856
The debt mp 10 the lst of last July, 80.
including interest, s.,..,...,........,.. 27
The Legislature at its last session
passed an act which provides for the
funding of all the back interest in reg
istered stock of the commonwealth
bearing interest at six per cent. per an
mum. The amount of Indebtedness
herein given does not include the debt
contracted by the State for war pur-
poses, which amounts to something
over six millions of dollars. The Alex
andria constitution, under which the
State Is now acting, ,repudiates thatdeb
but there is hardly doubt but that
provision will be made for its payment
by the convention, which 1t is Thought
will be called here next winter. This
debt of $42 8l2,29 includes the proper
ton properly chargeable to West Vir-
ginia, which, when adjusted, will re-
duce Virginia's Indebtedness by that
amount. That State, however, shows
no disposition to assume her proper
tion. Commissioners were appointed
by the last Legislature of Virginia to
meet Commissioners to be chosen by
West Virginia for the purpose of adj
justing the public debt and fixing the
proper proportion of each State; but no
action was taken by West Virginia in
was unwilling to take any respohsibili-
ty In the premises In the absence Of
legal authority. Virginia will take no
further action in the matter until the
constitutionality of this West Virginia
State government is decided. The first
proper occasion to test the question will
be ayailed of and, in the meantime,
the debt question will be suffered, to lie
In aheyance.s d.lf rI-
Ofthe coupon debt of Virginia there is
payable or held in New York $40, 800 900
And 1n,Iondon.. ................S1, ,S65, 600
The interest upon which since July,
1861, is still due.
WHAT Rlhd1HlA WILL DO IF CONGRESS
REPEAIs THE ACT REoEDINa ALEXAN-
DRIA. 3 ,.a
If Congress shall repeal the act reced-
ing Alexandria to Virginia the Legis-
lature will ,repudiate the ten millions of
her debt due at the North. Even IL
this necessity Is not forced upon her by
the action of Congress in this connec-
ton, she will in all probability resort
to this mode of redress, unless Con-
gress shall restore the integrity of the
State, and with 1t the joint RESPONSE.
bility on the strength of which the debt
was originally incurred. The division
of the State was the act of Congress.
The same power must unite it, or the
Northern contingent of Yirgfnia,s debt
will be repudinted. The saving thus
the war debt without Inconvenience.
The constitutionality of the measure
by which the counties of Jefferson and
Berkeley were violently torn from their
proper spheres anddtackedi on to West
Virginia is about to be tested. The OBJ
ject of this estrangement was 10 take
from Virginia the control Of all the ter
ritory through which. the Baltimore and
Ohio Railroad runs, and thus place that
Improvement beyond the reach of in
terterence by the Virginia Legislature.
Iingi is about to be tried before the Su-
preme Court of the United States. The
procedure, / believe, is an Injunction
to prevent the Sheritfs of West Virgin
la from collecting revenue in these
counties. The issue will be important,
as 1t will involve the general principles
applicable to the whole of the West
Virginia establishment.
GOVERNOR PEIRPoINr..