The national Republican., 1866-12-22
The C0urfo.
. - ~ b. Ths Courfs.
SuPREAE CoURr OF THE UNITED SrArEs.--.
TarpAr, December n, 1865.

totrhhhE OOUhI W HE ONiIhD OlATEo.-
farpAr, December n, 1893.
TIE Conisa Sstwssn tie old Dominion and Wsa
Virginia. WAieA has Jnusdict,on ov~ tie Conn
tics Of B~Asisy and Js6rson-zAs Cesstifntionai.
ity efMs State Of Wsa Virginia and Ms Lsgi,ia.
fMree efths Old Commonpsalfh.- The Commonwealth
Of Virsinio, Complainant, % The State of Wesf
Virginia now hlsd the following bin against the
Stats Of West virginia which rsiatss In detail oil
the fass In respect to the territory in dispute bs.
tween the two sovsreigntiss: ....L.-
That on the 18th day Of Nay, 1852, the General
consent Il the State to ths formation and erection
Of new State, within the Jurisdiction Of the Com.
monwsalth, to include the counties named In the
act according 10 the boundaries and under the pro.
visions set forth In the constitution for the State Of
West Virginia, and the schedule thereto annexed.
proposed BY the convention which assembled at
Wheeling on the 10th Of November, 1851.
And In and BY the second section Of the said act
II was further provided that the consent Of the
Lsgislature Of the State Of Virginia was thereby
given to the counties Of Berkeley, Jefferson, and
Frederick, whiohl were not within the described
boundaries Of the proposed new State, and not Of
the counties enumerated and specified as eonsttut.
Ing the territory Of the proposed new State should
be included In and form part Of the State Of West
Virginia whenever the voters Of said county should
rstify and assent TO the said constitution, at an
election held for that purpose at such time and un-
der such regulations as the commissioners named In
the said schedule annexed to the said proposed con-
stitution might prescribe; all Of which will more
fully appear BY reference to COPY Of said act here.
TO annexed and marked Exhibit l." ian act giving
the consent Of the Legislature Of Virginia TO the
formation and erection Of . new State within the
Jurisdiction Of the State, passed May IS, 1897
And the Commonwealth Of Virginia states that
no action whatever was had or taken under or in
accordance with the said second section Of said act
and that Afterwards, whom such proceedings were
had, that on the goth Of April, 1852, II was pro.
claimed BY tho President Of the United States, un.
der the authority Of an act Of the Congress Of the
United States, that the State Of West Virginia, In
sixty days aftsr the aforementioned sct would be
admitted into the Union as one of the States thereof
Neither Of the said counties Of Berkeley Jefferson,
or Frederick was included In or then made part Of
the territory Of the new State. nor were the said
counties or either Of them, part Of the territory
Of tho said nav State at the expiration of the said
sixty days mentioned In the said proclamation.
The Commonwealth Of Virginia further states
that on the 2lst Of January. 1868, an act of the
General Assembly Of the said Commonwealth was
passed, whereby, among other things, It was pro.
yidsd and enacted that polls should be opened and
held on the fourth Thursday Of May then next, at
the several places for holding elections In the
county Of Berkeley, for the purpose of taking the
senss Of the qualified voters Of the said county on
the question Of including said county In the State
Of West Virginia. And in and by the said act II
was further provided and enacted that the Governor
Of the said Commonwealth of Virginia, IL Of the
opinion that the said vote has been opened and
held, and the result ascertained and certified 40.
cording to law, should certify the result Of the
Same, under the seal Of the Commonwealth, to the
Governor Of West Virginia. and that If a majority
Of the votes given at the polls opened and held pur
suant to that act should be in favor of the said
county Of Berkeley becoming part Of the State Of
West Virginia, then the said county should become
part Of ths said new State when admitted into the
same With tbs consent of the Legislature thereof;
I'll Of which pll more fnlly aPpssr by reference to
annexsd and marked Exhibit II, " ("An act giving
The consent Of the State Of Virginia to the county
Of Berkeley being admitted into and becoming
part Of West Virginia" passed January 81, 1893
And tbs Commonwsalth Of Virginia states fur.
thsr that BY an sst Of its General Assembly passed
on the 9Th Of February, 1888, the same provisions
for ballot on the subject Of becoming part Of the
Stats Of West Virginia, was made In respect to the
counties Of Frederick and Jefferson and the fourth
Thursday Of Nay then next fixed for the day Of
slsction, and the Governor Of the Commonwealth
authorized to act as in the case Of the county Of
Berkeley. Exhibit III, ian act giving consent to
the admission Of certain counties into the State Of
West Virginia upon certain conditions Passed
Feb, 4th, 1s63")
And the Commonwealth further states its con.
ssnt was not intended TO bs given to the anneIa-
uoh Oh tne counuee berkeley ana Jenerson 10 tho
State Of West Virginia, except upon the conditions
named In tho acts rsfsrred TO- among which were
that thsre should In fact bs poll opened at each
place Of voting established BY law in each of the
said counties, and that the polling thereat should
bs safely, fairly and lawfully conducted; and that
on tho day named in said acts for opening such
polls the state of the county should be such as to
permit each and all the sad polls to be safely and
fairly held. so that full and free expression Of the
opinion Of the people could be had thereon.
And the Commonwealth further states that at
the time hxed BY the said acts for the opening of
the said polls In the counties Of Berkeley and Jssr
son, the state Of the country therein rendered II
mpraoticable to open the polls at all the places or
any considerable part Of the places Of voting therein
nor In point Of fact were the same or any consider
able part thereof opened or held nor was II prac
tcabe for the voters Of said counties, or any CON-
siderable part thereof to have notice Of such polling
or to attend the same and, In point Of fact, they
did not have notice. and did not and could not at.
tend the same, by reason Of the civil war then and
there being waged and actively carried on, and by
reason thereof there could not bs, and in point Of
fact was not, full and free s1prssslon or any op
people Of said counties concerning the question Of
such annexation and In point Of fact, very great
majority Of the voters Of each Of the said counties
thon were and now arc opposed to such annexation;
all Of which was we'll known to all persons con.
csrnsd In procuring tho certificate hereinafter
toned.
1t 10 stated that upon representations and sug-
gestions falsely and fraudulently made, that the
conditions Of the said acts In respect to the annsIs
tion Of said counties had been complied with In all
respects the Governor being wholly ignorant of the
truth In the premises, did certify the same; and
that thereupon, without any consent Of Congress
had thereto, and before any lawful and binding
compact with the consent Of Congress had been
made between the two States, the State of West
Virginia did proceed to extend Its jurisdiction
the said counties of Berkeley and Jefferson, and
over It's inhabitants, as If the same had fully and
lawfully become part Of its territory, and still
maintsinAthe Same.
It Is then set forth that on the 9Th of December,
1865 the facts having come to tho knowledge Of the
General Assembly Of the Commonwealth, that body
passed an act which was approved by the Governor.
rsoitsd as follows:
Whereas 1t sufficiently appears that the condi.
tions prescribed In the several acts, &C., above
mentioned have not been complied with, and tho
consent Of Congress, as required by the Constitu.
tion the United States, not having been obtained
In order to give effect to tho transfer SO that the
proceedings heretofore had on this subject are
simply inchoats, and said consent may properly be
withdrawn; and this General Assembly regarding
the contemplated dsintegration Of the Common.
wealth, even II within its constitutional compe-
tenoy, as liable to many objections Of the gravest
ch % mt univ In respect IN tha countiea of