Delaware gazette and state journal., 1896-01-09

Editor Gazette and journal: In
recent issue Of your paper appeared
report concerning the recently surveyed
circular boundary Of Delaware.
| cannot resist the conviction that
the Joint commission of the two States,
under whose supervision the work of
remarking said boundary was at
tempted have misconceived their
duties, and committed blunders that do
grievous wrong to portion Of our citi
zens, moro especially towards the
western end of the boundary In so
doing they appear also to have assumed
powers with which they were not
legally endowed, and to have disfe-
garded on some important portions the
old markings, traditions and sacred
memories which still linger with us
concerning the boundary, as relics of
by-gone centuries of the colonial times
of our fathers,
= Will you, then, allow citizen Of
Delaware, living in sight Of said bound
ary, and for long years acquainted as
surveyor with sundry Of its markings,
to state through your columns in plain
language what he knows Of the errors
that have been connected with and
adopted by the commission aforesaid?
First, The Constitution of tho State
Of Delaware, article ,, section y, de-
clares: "No Senator or Representative
shall, during the time for which he
shall have been elected, ho appointed
TO any civil Office under this State
which shall have been created or the
emoluments of which shall have been
increased during such time - Now,
Mr.. Editor and all readers, please note
that this extract from our Constitution
speaks plain language for plain pur-
pose, TO prevent corruption by legisla-
tors in creating offices and securing
their own appointments 10 the same.
DiEregarding this clear constitutional
provision the Legislature of Delaware,
by enactment dated April 25th, 1889,
then and there created the office of
State Boundary Commissioner and ap-
pointed two of their own members,
along with the Hon. I. +. Bayard, as
acting commissioners of Delaware. 1t is
useless here to attempt explanation or
modification of this singular fact, but
all citizens endowed with political hon
esty must perceive that the Legislature
of Delaware in acting as it did in this
matter threw itself open to the charge
of unconstitutionality And when they
operated with the joint commission
from Pennsylvania all their joint acts
were weakened to the foundation and
should be reviewed. In this State and
Pennsylvania also, when any man land
is trespassed upon under order of the
superior court, by the laying Of public
road through the property he holds ir
feotfment his rights of review both as tt
its need and to his claim for damages,
are amply protected by law. Surely tht
people Of Delaware should, through theii
Legislature, protect her citizenssby caus
inga like right of review to those OF then
who have been improperly deprived oi
their rights of citizenship, as held fol
many generations. even from before the
founding of our republic, cutting then
off from the school conyeniences they
had provided for their children anl
turning them from their old nolitica
home associations into sister State tl
form new and unwonted connections il
what is, comparatively to them, a lanC
of strangers.
Secondly, Even should we assum,
that the Delaware commission was law
fully appointed, it is easy to perceive
that the joint commission did not dt
their work as petitioned for by the neo
pie nor according to the principles o
common law, nor even Consistentl
with the true meaning OF tho enact
ments ordering the commissions The
did not restore and re- establish tn
old boundary according to The oil
markings thereof, but ran new line
from new centres. with new radii, ac
cording to their own crude notions, "a
which they had no authority, as thei
review is made to show.
The preamble to the act OF 1880
which appointed them, reads thus
appears that the boundary has b
reason OF the destruction, removal G
mutilation Of the monuments
become uncertain, therefore, = &C
Here let us ask in parenthess how i
the boundary to be restored and mad
certain otherwise than by finding tn
place Of and being guided by the Oh
marklngs?) Section ! of said act goe
on to read "hon T. Il. Bayard, Hon
y. Il. Lewis and Hon. John NJ. Hol
fecker are hereby appointed to act i
conjunction with a similar c0mmissio
from Pennsylyania TO examine, surye
and re establish the boundary" Wha
can that mean bit 10 mark ana re es
tahlish it wncre it had been for nearl
200 years.
Thus do both preamble and section
plainly imply restoration and ro.ugtal
liFhmout according 70 the old niarkins
and other well proven traditional ev
denccs.
This papahle fact is further an
most fuily confirmed BY the old act {
be found in chapter j, section ,, ,
the Digest Of the Laws Of Delaware
amended IN 1874. Therein. the hou,
dary in question is declared TO b,
The circular limo between Dolawa,
and Pcnnsl yania ag SURVEYED M
marked in l10l under warrant issu,
by William Penn, in pursu, of III
fcoilment from tile Duke Of York. daf,
August 2lth, 1859, Us the same hi
been held, occupied and recognized /
tne said States respectively. oyrr SIM
the tilun That no rtnent has ney,
be, repealed and cannot now bn Iay
fully ignored by any Legislature "a ii
oileet "f irampiug upon long vest,
rights 4 the citilrnz VI either Sta
WIZ right Of ~ p.irw or payment
pto1fr daungls. Hence nl plain
duty should haze Been maniia4t to /,
intelligent ana. honorable cdumissi,
sl"1 tuat ul searching most UTefu!
3r the od mgrks Indicating the la,
fG boundary as The same lla be-,
held occupied gul rec1gnized lv bot
states nyGr since l7Oi.
The rights ofthis circular bouga lr
as thus plainly and amrly defined, s
other! y
1t was held occupied and re,o
niizod for moye than Go years brfa
Mason and E5an mark,d and c-tn
lished the northern and c9s,"
boundaries of Alawiaad dH M,