Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1884-07-26
THE REAPPORTIoNMENT.


order Of Court in the case Of Mr. John Bel
Bigger, Clerk of the House of Delegate
and ex-officio Keeper of the Rolls, are a
. follows:
Virginia: In the Supreme Court of Ap
peals, held at the courthouse Of Wyth
county, in the town of Wytheville, ON Tues
c day the 22d day Of July, 1854, upon tn,
petition Of John S. Wise, citizen of Rich
mond, Virginia. representing that he is 6
qualified voter therein and now represen
tative in Congress from the State of Vir
ginia at large, and as such interested in hay.
ing the proper represen tation in Congress
to which the State is entitled, secured to
him in common with other citizens, as also
his right to vote for representative at large
from said State, or himself to be voted for
as candidate for such office; that he is ag-
grieved and injured, and his rights aforesaid
endangered by the wrongful enrolment
among the laws of Virginia by J. Bell Biz.
ger, Clerk Of the-.House of Delegates and
Keeper of the Rolls of Virginia, and his re-
fusal to exclude or strike from the said rolls
a certain pretended act of Assembly, entitled
IAN act to apportion the representation of
the State Of Virginia in the Congress of the
United States and alleged to be sin force
on the 22d day of February, 1884," and
which was designated on the Senate Journal
and known as "Senate Bill No. 321": and
also, by the wrongful refusal of Il. u. Dcrr
to omit said pretended act from the Acts of
Assembly, and his proceeding to publish
| and distribute tho same as "Chapter 147n
Of the Acts of Assembly of 1SS3-1SS4 with
the title aforesaid. For said alleged act
having now gone on the rolls, and about
being printed and distributed as one of the
| laws of the State, the officers of the State,
including judges aud commissioners of elec.
! ton, will be bound to respect it and conform
| to it unless declared void by this court. For
whereas heretofore the people have elected
| nine representatives TO Congress by dis
trlcts and one for the State at large, the bill
aforesaid provides that all ten representa-.
tives shall be chosen by the respective cleo
tors of the ten districts described therein;
and, in the present uncertainty, the State
IS IN danger of losing her representation en-
tirely i'll the Forty-ninth Congress for if
the election takes place pursuant to the pro-
visions of said bill, and the 5pI saW9st hepaes
in the Forty-ninth Congress; and when |
petition also alleges that Senate Dill NO; OIL
never. in fact became a law, for that there
i no sufficient evidence that the bill ever
nassed the Senate, the house III which 1t
originated, by such a majority over the
Governors veto as the Constitution requires
that in point of fact it never received an
affirmative vote of two thirds of the Senators
present when the question was put, snail
The bill pass notwithstanding the ohlectlons
of the Goycrnor?" that there were at the
time present in the Senate chamber not less
than twentv-nine Senators, and that only
nineteen of those voted "aye" on such pas
sage of the said bill. Petitioner exhibits the
senate Journal of February %, 1881, and the
rules of that body aver that the Senate had
an official stenographic reporter, whose re-
ports were recognized by the Senate as OF, .i,
| lical, and which reports for that day VIII
show that Senator Williams Z. Wlckham
was present, and not voting on the saio pas
sage of the said bill, he declaring that he
re1aried said bill unconstitutional, and
could not support it under any circums,an-
res And petitioner AYERS that he was so
prcsent, and was not and could not have
bcen lawfully excused from voting; that
in fact the Senate Journal itself discloseS
the fact that said Senator was present vt
That time although it does not IN terms say
so. The petitioner insists that it was not III
the power of the Senate TO so recognize
"pairs' of individual senators so as to con-
vert majority vote into two-thirds vote
to PASS a bill over the Executive veto !;
pravs leave to prove by the stenographlc
report, and other evidence, the facts alleged
in the petition. The petitioner further al
lcges that said pretended act is null and
void on the further ground OF repugnance
to the twelfth and thirteenth sections OF
Article of the Constitution of Virginia, be-
cause the districts into which the State IS
thereby divided are not ''as near as may be
eoual in population" compact" and COM
| and
towns:n and which petition prays that the
. said John Bell Bigger, Clerk Of the House OF
Delegates and Keeper of the Rolls of the
e State of Virginia, and the said r. .. Derr
t Supt. of Public Printing, be served witt
u a rule nisi to show cause, if any they can
:. why the Commonwealth writ of peremp
y tory 1nanddmus shall not be awarded peti
o TONER directed to said Keeper of the Roll
l. and said Superintendent Of Public Printing
commanding John Bell Bigger, Clerk OF tn
House of Delegates and Keeper OF the hoii
l. of Virginia to strike from the rolls, an
$ deliver up to be cancelled, said alleged &C
q, of February %, 1854, described IN salo Pel
10 tiop and commanding the said Il. U. Deri
Superintendent of Public Printing, TO oml
: from the acts Of 1SS3-'S4, which ne Is re
{, uuired to publish and distribute, the sal
c. aallaoed act of Assembly hereinbefore de
.. scribed. 1ob
: If is therefore ordered that the said Jon
Bell Bigger, Clerk of the House of Del
: oates and as such Keeper of the Rolls
IS IS Virginia, and the said R. Z. Derr, Superb
Ts tendent of Public Printing, after beln
c., served with o copy of this order, appea,
here at 12 m. on the 31st day of July, lsS
and show cause, if any they can, whereto
the Commonwealth writ of mandqm 1a1.
should not be awarded to John ); WIS
commanding the said John Bell Blgge W
Clerk of the House OF Delegates ana heep Z
= of the Rolls of Virginia, to strike from e
en- rolls the act entitled IAN act to apportl'
ap- the representation of the State of viIgain il n
in the Congress of the United States" aa cs. q,
ignated ssas in force February 22, lee4
= and also commanding said r. .. De
y. Superintendent of Public Printing, 10 on
a. a. said act from the Acts of the General {
~ sembly for 1SS3-1SS4, which he IS requir
i, y s-k- shx1fn