The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1871-11-25


ereign State was carved out Of her. EN-
bracing at least one-third OF her terri
tory, population and material wealth.
And this was done without her consent
This partition of her territory intro
duces another principle OF international
lava principle adapted to the dis
jointed and dismembered condition OF
the State. When the State itself is
severed, or,,its territory partitioned, the
public debt is settled upon the principle
OF apportionment of the public debt,
when the State is divided into several
independent powers, is fully sustained
by the writers on international law, and
has been repeatedly recognized and
acted on in European politics.
In Wildman's international law the
principle is thus clearly laid down {:
Where State is divided into distinct
States, by war or mutual consent. the ob-
legations 10 which il ,cds liable was not
affected by such division, and must be
charged eithrjointly or ssveralIy y in ratable
proportions. In like manner, where two
States are united, their several rights
and obligations are not extinguisked,
but incorporated"
Grotius, ,Campbells edition, states the
principle with equal distinctness, in the
following language: "On the other
hand, it may happen that nation,
originally forming but one State. may
be divided, either by mutual consent or
by the fate OF war, as the Persian EN-.
pre was divided among the successors
Of Alexander. When this is the case
many sovereign powers arise in the
place of one, each enjoyign its independ-
ent rights. Whatever belonged to the
original State in common must either
continue to be governed as a common
concern, or be divided in equitable
proportions
Phillimore, in his treatise on inter
national law, after reviewing all the
authorities on this point, arrives at
the conclusion that this reciprocal OBJ.
servance Of good faith, whether it be
pHghtedto tie payment Of debts, or to the
fulflment to the stipulations oftreaiies.
is binding upon nations. And then
adds: at remains only to add propo-
sition, which is, indeed, a corallary
from the foregoing statements. II
nation be divided into rariouS distinct
societies, heobIgations which hadocarre
TO the whOLe before the division are unless
they are the subject Of a special agreement,
rataJy binding upon the different parts.
Chancellor Kent, in his commenta-
ries, states the principle in this language;
so il a State should be divided in
respect to territory, its rights and obi
cations are not impaired; and il they
have not been apportioned by special
agreement those rights are to be en-
joyed and those obligations fulfilled by
all the parts in common"
And Mr. Justice Story, in delivering
the opinion OF the Supreme court in the
case Of Terrett and others vs. Taylor
and others-9 Crouch, 50-substantially
recognizes the same principle when he
saws: at has been asserted as a prin.
ciple Of the common law that the divi-
sion OF one empire creates no forfeiture
OF previously vested rights OF property,
and this principle is equally consonant
with the common sense Of mankind
and the maxims OF eternal justice
This principle, thus well established,
has been practically applied in numer,
Gus instances. When Belgium separa
ted from the kingdom OF the Neither
lands, the five great European powers
interposed and proposed treaty OF sep
aration, which was finally acceded to
and among other provisions it regulated
a division Of The common deJt bet,ceen
Belgium and Holland. Again, when
Lombardy was ceded to Sardinia by the
treaty OF Zurich, she assumed part Of
tie public dsJt, in proportion TO tie popu.
Ldi0n Of Lombardy. And we have a
more striking application Of the princi-
pie in the following case When Upper
and Lower Alsace and other places,
two-thirds Of a province,
liable to a certain debt, were ceded to
France by the treaty OF Munster, il was
stipulated that France should pay two
thirds OF the debt A more striking in.
stance Of the application Of the princi-
pie OF apportionment could not be fur.
nished-France takingtwo.thirds OF the
territory, assumed two-thirds OF the debt.
And the same principle was substan.
tally acted upon by the United States
in the annexation Of Texas.
This principle OF apportionment OF
the debt when State is partitioned is
eminently just, because the formation OF
the new State go alters all the securi
ties the creditor looked TO, that the new
State has a general obligation to see
that he does not suffer by the change
1t is peculiarly Incumbent on West
Virginia to do this. This obligation
rests on her in an eminent degree, be-
cause the separation ia her own voIun.
tary act-she did it OF her own accord
Virginia never assented 10 the separa-
ton in any legitimate form, and hence
the highest obligation is imposed On
West Virginia to see that the holders
VI DtdAc DObu5 uO uOt huucI Dt VIC
division OF the State into two distinct
sovereignties brought about By her own
act.
The authorities cited establish these !
two propositions
/. That the public debt OF a State is !
not affected by change in the form Of
It's Government, nor by the partition OF |
its territory into two States, but re-
mains in full force and must be dis
charged.
2 That If a State be divided into two |
or more States, the debts which had
been contracted by the whole before the |
division are, unless they have been the |
subject Of a special agreement, ratably
binding upon the different parts in
proportion to territory and population.
MR. JARED RoBrSETTE, who was a.