Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1899-12-17
LEE MONUMENT CANNOT ne MOVED
So Conveyed to state That IL ""s'
Hcmnin where II IL.

To the Editor Of the Dispatch:
In your issue OF d, December 9TH, IL
Is stated that there is some talf among
some OF tho members of the Legs
lature In regard to introducing
bill TO have the Lee monument
moved to the Capitol Square Please
permit me TO state that IT IL De-
yond the power OF the Legislature TO
move that monument from It's present
location; for, as Is welkknown, the mohu-
msnt was not erected b. the state OF
Virginia, but by the Lee Monument Asso-
citation. an incorporated body, which col
lccted the funds and whose charter tsee
act amending il OF May a. lsSO, gave
II the exclusive right" TO select the site,
which IL did at the present location,
and entered into n contract" with the
owners Of the land that they were TO
give the circle on which the monument
stands. and were also 20 lay of the re-
mainder of the land In a certain way.
and among other things. were TO have
two broad avenue, each 10 feet wide,
crossing at the monument. the ccnsidera-
ton for al Of which was 10 be that the
site for the monument was to be there.
That contract" signed by General Fitz-
hugh Lee, president OF the association.
and also by its secretary, and by all the
owners OF the property. Is on record I'm
the Chanccry Court Of Richmond and elso
in Henrico county.
And, again. when the Lee Monument
Association conveyed the monument TO
the State, a Joint resolution was passed
by the LEGISLATURE Of date December 10.
1899. authorizing the Governor to accept
the statue Including the pedestal and
circle OF ground" and "tO execute any
appropriate conveyance Of the same In
token of such acceptance and Of the
guarantee OF the state that IL viii hold
said statue and pedestal and ground per-
petually sacred 70 the monumental pur-
pose 10 which they have been devoted"
And afterwards. on March IL. 1850. the
conveyance was executed in the exact
words OF the joint resolution, 10 which
reference is made in IT,, and signed by the
Lee Monument Association as OF the first
part, by the owners Of the land as Of the
second part, and by the Governor, for the
State of Virginia, as Of the third part,
which conveyance IS on record in Hen
rico county.
Thus. then, the Lee Monument Associa-
ton first made a contract with the own
ers of the land that the site Of the monu-
ment should be where it now IS. and the
State Of Virginia recognized that contract
by guaranteeing that that site should be
"perpetually sacred to the monumental
purpose to which II was devoted" If
then. the LEGISLATURE should now pass an
act to removeihe monument 1t would be
nothing more than n law TO impair the
Of q contract. which Is pro-
hibited to every State by the Constitu-
ton Of the United States, and the law
would be null and void.
1t is useless, therefore, to talk about
moving the monument. There is this,
however, which the state can do-viz.:
In the conveyance accepting the monu-
ment at its present site. the State also
guaranteed that she VIII faithfully guard
it and affectionately protect it, But
she has not done So However. for the
mere interest on the money which It
would cost to move IT, if she had the
right to DO So she can employ special
Waterman TO guard and protect 1t. Or she
could, for about one years interest, put
a railing around IL, something like that
around the Washington monument. L.