fp the XmvU Qctetti.
jTNESSEE land titles,
t,'ecucv on a Ute.Act of the General
T JL'cmbhj cf Tennessee.
f ,m informed that wr late Gene-
Z Mr wing effect That Sar
..,nooiutcti by virtue nf an act
! f the bjt General Assembly of N.
auSuic. 2. That n- grant issued
k th-iuteof North Carolina, under
V . . H u : ' 1 ' n
Ibai ooaf.orncy shatl advocate the
i - Tr n in claim nffinrl
ott o r-;
nib Sutcuoier tmcs iounueu ou
. . jinl N.i rnhna. 4. I haf
. . ....
jjjc gnnis o! -uch claimant?, issuing
fcco tne Sute of Carolina, shall
8c: be reid, as evidence in our courts
cf Judicature.
lrjsct f- our msemoiy, is, in
tj humble opinion, not only entirch
iscooiistcnt "with certain rights of the
Snre of Ni..lh Carolina ; but unwar
j l .U - -onctlritrinn oF i .
Sue. R carding it m these, points
cf fieir, I submit to in, consideration
rfthe public, the lolloping observa
teas rcbtirc to the subject, which
i: act embraces.
The Sute of N. parohna claims
. . r- . I '
thenrtt il niakiDZ imrs io ccrcajn
O -k
hdi in 1 enocssee. u.i tnis claim.
tc act of htT last Legislature above
sluicd to, was predicated ; to over
irow ttm claim is evidently the oh
jett r f the act of our Legislature,
. . . wet
fh:rh we are considering, n tnen,
kschim be jmt, jf N. Carolina ac
tiiiv h2S a right, to make tides to
bd io this State, my position that
fcc Ute art or our 1-igisiature is op
posed to the juit rights of J. Caroli
11 is e jubhshed. Whether JVorth
9
uro::na nas tnis ntrnt or not, is
w - -
fccreforc, the enquiry no before us.
In order to pursue this enquiry, it
till be proper to take a view of the
cession act of North Carolina, passtd
they or 1789, an actcf the Legis-
lore cf the same State, passed in the
car 1803, and an act of Congress
pujediQ the year 1805. Of thest
a order. ,
It is well unchrtood. that :in the
ct, by which No. Carolina ctoed to
it Uoited States her Western Ter
mer) (low Tennessee) usualN called
ie cession act, therichtof making.
tr perfecting tides f certain lands
t"ah:n the l erritory carded, was re
fiTcd to N. Carolina, in tre fol
ftt, or like words. lands
'deff. or intended to be laid fjff. for
4 W f -w
tcScers and soldiers of this Stater
pcrtA Larolin shall be and enure
b&c benefit of the said officers and
jey; and whcrc entries have
mide agreeably to law, and titles
v&t them ' not' perfected bv'trrant.
ctherwise, then ancf ui that case.
governor, for the time being, shall
.ke is hereby required, from time
b t aie, to pcrfc.t such tUlcs, in such
r, as if this act had never bVen
14, hc.v It appears, that under
rr".malIo"n5N Carolina conti
p to issue grams, and make titles
m the ceded Territory, until
mr 1803, when,
oe LesisUti
soein: ,i u.. r
Rotate of Tennessee, so to do, pas
j 10 lcti purporting to transfer to
nseethc right;0f making titles
e lands rrrtwrl n xi Yri;, .
.we r..J r
wu xjus tins aci or
" -'fc3?cu- smnntf ninrr rnn.
Sunder (his trxnress and im-
2ut vorjgrcss inuuio
: bthe measure. The words
pncl'Tl tbir' condition,
nu DS ootatnea mereto,
Ul5 of 1 "ocssec shall Have
etV; ,l- ,cns to enquire,
of -jsol, wii e'ver:
't tf r. u,red b-v the J,eB'
ku r "olins j hi hn
I Qn the 18th April, 1Q06, Congress ;een, is probable, Congress did not
passed an act, respecting, vacant and regard it as such ; the cpnsequence
unappropriated lands in the Territory is in either case, the tame. The act
of the State of Tennessee : which act ol 1803 has never been assented to
tvas prqpoted as a compact oetween ;. oy congress, jn tne manner requirea.
the United States and that State. In J Tennessee of course has no right to
this act. Confess established what is j, make titles to lands reserved to N
called tjie Congressional rcserration ' Carolina in thocession, act. ' 'forth.
l;ne, dividing the State ol Tennessee U-Gifolina. still retains that" right, A
nto two parts ; and it yyas pronosed; jconuitioa on which she ottered to give
i" " iiz. r - . . i: i
that if the said State would relinquish
to' the United States all right; and
claim to the soil. .South and West of
said line, that then Tennessee should
have the right of soil,, and f making
titles to lands NoTth and Jbast of said
liqe. r In as ful and ampev a man-n-r
(says'the act of Congress) as the
United States now have, or as Teq
nesiee might have, by virtue of the
act of N. Carolina of 1803.'l
Here it might ie in place to en
quire what right or claim the State of
Tennessee had, at the time of pass
ing this act, to the soil Squth and
West of the .aforesaid line If she
had any, whence did it arise ? It did
not arise from the cession act; for
that act declares, that, ik All the lands
intended tp be ceded by virtue of this
act, and not appropriated as aforesaid
(i. e. in the reservations) shall remain
a common fund to the ue and benefit
of the United States, North Carolina
included " It did not arise from the
act of 180JV for that act, not having
Heea assented to by Congress, could
have taken no effect. Waving this
enquiry, however, as not necessary
to our present design, we shall return.
a . -
We have stated the tenor -t the
acof Congress of 1806, which some
(I bclirvcT consider as an assent by
Congress, to tke act of N. Carolina,
vf 1803, but how it is so is a matter
of mm h cbscerity. Congress, aftr
taking up the businn s on newgrounds,
ever con'tempbted bv Iorth Caroli
na, after partitioning the state of Ten
nessee into two parts, and proposing
a compact as before stated, with that
Sute ; proceeds to declare, that the
consent of Congress is givn to the
act of North Carolina of 1803, so far
as is necessary to carry into efcet
that compact. Will any man of com -mon
sense affirm, that this was con
senting to the act of Nor;h Carolina,
in the full and unconditional manner
required in that act ? Congress con
sented only in a partial manner, and
under new regulations, not at all
known, nor even contemplated by N.
Carolina. This is an extraordinary
way, indeed, of complying with con
ditions annexed to the acts of Legis-
lative bodies. The act required the
assent of Congress in a plain and ex
press manner, aid certainly, in a ge
neral, not a partial manner. ' No such
assent of Congress was ever given
and of course, the act ot 1803 never
became a lav.. A condition, on which
theict was to take effect, not being
complied wth, the act lticlt fell to
the ground.
In the act oj Congress of 1806, it
said that Tennessee should make
titles to lands North and East of the
Congressional reservation line, and
that the assent of Congress is given
to the act. of 1803. By the manner
n which this declaration is expressed,
viz. " so tar as is necessary nxcax
ry into effect the object of iis com
pact cxc'i It would seem as if Con
gress did not regard this act as anas-
sent to the act of N. Carolina of 1303.
It itppesrs that to carry into effect the
compact between the United States
and Tennessee, was the principal de-
sign, i he act ot Di. uaroima seems
to have been regarded onlyts a se
condary business How Cosgress
cculd overlook or disregard the just
and indisslub c right ojf the Bute of
N. Carolina, reserved in the ccssioa
act,' so as to assume, to itself the bu
siness efsetUing and .disposing of all
land claims in the State'of Tennessee,
without due at tendon to'theLegisla
ture or .x. Carolina, i, snail not un-
dertake" to explain. Butte the easel
as it may, whether Longress intended
the act of 1806, a an a. sent to the act
of N. .Carolina c803. fwhtcn itc
viocntiy was -not, oemg at pest only jcp j
in part) ot whether as ' wc hay e Just
it up, never havintr been complied
with. Reason, Justice, Law and
common sense declare that she still
possesses it- Taking the subject on
the foregoing graund sortie case is
plain as light, that N. Caroliniv has
the aforesaid right. Put we will for
argqmentN sake, concede a point or
two. ye will meet the advocates
for Tennessee on their own grounds
We will suppose that the act of 1806,
was tne assent ot congress to tne act
of N Carolina of 18Q3. That is, that
Such assent was intended ancWalid,
as to the part of Tennessee, which it
contemplated, to wit f North and
East of the reservation line. Will it
then follow, that N. Carolina has po
longer a right of making titles to lands
in this Sute ! It will not, for,
If the said act of Congress did vest
in Tennessee the right of making ti
tles to tne reserved claims of NfCa
rolina, it could only be in that part
of the former state, which the act spe
cified, viz. North and East of the
aforesaid line. But N. Carolina had
a right to mike titles to lands in' all
or any part ot 1 ennessee ; as any one
...i i- ; :n i i.
wuu rcausuic ccsaiou act win piaiuiy
sei. Any act therefore of Congress,
cr any other body, tending to exclude
the claims of N Carolina, in making
titles to lands from any part ot the
Territories of Tennessee, must be an
infringement of the rights of the for
mer State ; and a complete nullity,
and of no effect. Admitting there
fore, that N. Carolina, has no longer
claims to lands, North and East of
the congressional reservation line-
it must unquestionably be allowed,
that she has still such a right, as to
land South and West of said line.
Taking jjben the opponents of North
Carolina, on their own grounds, we
see that our point is established ; that',
that State still hasaproper right,& legal
authority to' grant lands in-the State
of Tennessee. But those grounds
are not the proper grounds The act
of .1803 never was assented to, in toto,
by Congress ; not being assented to,
in toto, it was not assented to at all.
Not being assented to by Congress,
it never took any effect AH North !
uaronna reserved claims, tneretore,
still are vested in herself, as fully as
if the act of 1803, had never been
passed.
Against these just claims of North
Carolina the late act of our Legisla
ture militates. It stands 'opposed to
the provisions of the cession act, arid
other subsequent acts of N. Carolina.
In this'point of view, it is, at least, an
illegal act, ana win undoubtedly, be
regarded sO, by the proper iurisdlc
tion. To what circumstance it was
owing tjiat our Legislative body pas
sed such an act, is a mystery rathtfr
top dart: lor me,, with ccrtaintv to
solve. I can only impute it to preci
pitancy, want of information, or some
Ovher cause, which I should be sorry'
to find,jexisted, in any degree in the
Legislature of Tennessee.
But the subject is yet to be consi
dered in a still more serious point of
view. We have,T hope, to the satis
faction of every candid, and disinter ,
ested man, established our first posi
tion;' we have shewn that the Interact
is id collision with the just rights of N.
Carolina and her claimants , We will
now .bestow some attention on the
constitutionality of this law. , On this
head, I am afraid, .we- shall find that
our Ipgislature have made a sad blun
der. : 5 v-
The act has the nature of a judicial
sentence.' It is like : the' decree of a
court, decla'rinr; thc ciairrjs'orN. Ca
rolina nulL , tYet It is - Well Jtno wn to
be a principle interwoven into the ge
nius of our constitution, ct of all He
publican ones pth at the legislature and
j udicial powers hall forey er be dbv
tinct, and be vested Indifferent per-ff The dKemma into whichlme legis
sons ; that those whoi make laws, ahajil iaturo has bronirht itself, in this, points '
not decide on laws when madef. How lis so dismally emtMirasslfig, . the ,laif
then could the legislature asqme ju- it has passed is s pitiful, so weak,
dicial powers? how could tjrey eret and'spj uncopstitutional, that it is as-
themselves into a court, and pass an tontshinz a deliberative assembiVj
act, wnicn nas tne cnaracieroi tne ae- nopiaproauce sucn a aeiormea, ana-
ere e of a court for such a charac- unheard of, "s uch ' a spurious angv
ter this act has. ft is noiperely Duogjfing piece ofwork. 'I do, not;
the T making of a law. it amount? to: kpow what to think bt it I cannot
a decision on laws, previously exist- II se0 ho the legislature' could attempt
iog, and affects the property of certain
citizens, acquired under, and accord'
ing to those previously existing law.
It comes to the claimants under N
Carolina, like a decree of court, and
attempts to oust them of their proper
ty, fairly and legally, acquired, and a-
greeab tp laws passed by the uene
to eqcrpach on the rights of' the bar.
as well as of the claimants. I cannot
see how it coulcj ente the courti' in
character bfV mclge, aflS prohibit the
lawyers fro rrj i'pcajf ing Surely at-
torneys -will not feel themselves
bound to ohserye such an unaccount-
Die ana unconstitutional law. it m-
ral Assembly of N. Carolina; and volves Ihiir ' owi rights,1'. as"-weil ai
laws, iuuwuich inac n.ssemuiy naa a; tne rignts or otner citizens, ai cur-
right to pass; not laws violating the tails theri i of their emoluments'. The '
rights of other states, nor uncQnstitu most atrocious criminal cannot be
tional in themselves, -if the claims of debarred therpfiyilege of counJ5
N. Carolina were illegal, why was it Are then the claimants under North1 I
not left to the courts of justice to de- Carolina less entitled to the phvile
feat them ? Was it necessary for the ges secured to us by the constitution,
legislature to assume judicial powers t(ian criminals ? Or upon what no; Jt
for that purpose I To 'decide on the vel, and unheard of principle, did the
merits of the claims was the proper legislature presume to command at
prpyince of the courts. Were they torneys rk5t tp advocate the claims of
not to be trusted ? Was it supposed certain citizens ? These questions, -
they would have given wrong deci- I own, are too piizzleing for me to
sions ? Was iheegislature under the resolve j; if 'ny one, whose superior
miserable necessity of stretching' forth abilities may enable him, satisfactory .
its poWerfui arms to. wrest from the ly to answer them, will dp so, I shall
claimants under N. Carolina, their I be thankful,
land's ? There could have ! been no J ir Another ground upon Which, the
need of any such a singular extension late act appears to be lincbnAitution- v
of legislative power. Had those al, is the tendency wliicti" it lias to o
claims been illegal, the Courts J verthrow contracts subsisting between;
could have quashed them. The cir-jj the United' States; andorth Card; I
cumstance of legislative interference Una, and between the latter, arid her
being necessarvj for that purpose, grantees. The 20th section of the
proves that those claims are just and j declaration of rifchts, or 1 1th article i
legal. But what are we td think of bf the constitution declares that u No
this business ? Are we to suppose, Jj law irapjiring the obligation of con
that our legislators, knowing the tracts shall be made." Yet this act
claims founded on the laws of N. Ca- evidently strikes at the contract msVc
rolina, to be good and legal claims, between the United States and: v
and being determined, at any rate, if (Carolina,- in trie , act of cession, hy at
possible, to defeat them, were under tempting to defeat certain provisions
the necessity of. encroaching on the of that" act ; nd also impairs the
exclusive rights of the judicial depart- obligations subsisting between jtforth
ment, in order to Carry their poipt H QaroUna and her grantees, b endit?a-x
To draw, sach a conclusion would be jt yoring to take away from both, the
fixing a deep stain on the character of object of contracts Much micht be
our legislature : To draw such a coa said on this heati, but further com'--elusion,
must be matter bf serious re- ments, on so plain a point,' are need
gret and alarm to the citizens of our less. It isvo a piece, with the rest 'of
state. let wnatomer conclusion lg j the absurd consequences of this ab
umstances relative o the subject be
ing considered,.! ara completely at a
loss to know.
If there are citizens claiming lands
in this state, under titles derived from
How the difficulty rit
surd taw.
voives is. to oe got over ; orw tne
act of our Jegisiature can Jje ref oncf-
led with' the clause of tho c'ons.titutTofj,
abo ve re cite d, it wdulo requires?a jriv
ser head than mine, and 1 1 belieVel
N Carolina, those titles ought to have than ai' any of those who passeil tht
been left tq judicial exanji nation. To J act; to pbipt but- j v '
oar up tne courts or justice against
the claimants is a most novl method
of proceeding. A and are content
ding for a piece of land. ' The legis
lature without even admittipg A to
defend the merits of his claim, with
out allowing him to r.ead in evidence,
his grant, without suffering him to
employ counsel to. assist in asserting
the legality of his claim, decrees the
land to B Would riot.f his be a strange
proceeding would it be constitution
al ? Yet like this, in principle, is the
nature and character ot the act' which,
we. are . considering.
jQf the several parts Af this spurious
law none is perhaps, more unprece
dented, or more contrary to the prin
ciples of pur government,. thanr that
which goes' to seal up the lips of at-;
torneys, from defending the claimants
under J. Carolina ' A law of this
j description was, certainly never before
passed m the u. p. ine privilege
of having, the assistance of counsJ is
guaranteed J by 'the icohstitutibn. ; In
hynamerbf.woilder, in tJieT'name'of
common sense,' ' what necessity (not
considering i lhtj could there bt to
debar, the r claimants horn, having
counsel. i4jrhcir claims are either just
and legal, or not sd. I f just andlegal;
then deftainlyitb interdict 'them from
having counsel to defend the mi Was
highly unjust, arhitra.ry and cruet " If
neither j ust or JegaUwhat hann could
the y having of counsel .hiver done ?
C9uidt it 'haYc'cstabliihcd unlawful
claims? .
The Remainder, in our next
EXCHANGE
OF
Old Six Per Pent & Deferred Steaks
PyitSUANT to tRe Acr oCpongress, enti
"tled tCArtf Act authorising a Subscription
" for the OLD SIX PERCENT anapefei'-
-red. Stocks, and providing for be exchang
u of the tame,Mpassed on 'the.6ibdaof Jy
181g, bobjes wilt he opened on' the 1st fay f
October next, at the Treasury,, and at the"t?-'
veralteanfficesi.andwil! continue" open kM'
the 1 7th day e .Marcb nexV f reeeiyi
SubsCfiptibns, of the Oid Six Per Cent.?arki "
Deferred Stoccs, in the mannrei prsdibe'b
the sajd act. New Certificates, barirfgistef.
teret hom the st day cf theuarrer in wttlcf
ihc Subscription shall be made, ;f at the fat I
Six Per Centum Per Annutn, payablv u'iTter
yearly, lor! rh inwedeemcd amount of jfrtncf
pal of the Old Six PacjCenuim and lDfeferfea
Stocks wh ith may "be S ubsciibe w il o4 vtrJx
ed at the Treasury or at fhe, lcrtkfffic'es?reV
pactiyely w'ere tne Old StV?ubseritad nfr ,
at tHe same time stand 'creiiiTte Nerr "
United Staes at ahy' time aficr-'the; jHst. cay
oi uecemoer, xmnt ;. qn no reimoursen.eu , ,
"wiirbe made exevhf fot t'he wbIe trabunt if
-
the Stock trending at the time, to thVcrtidit t
any proprietor, on the books' of ih& TifcaiV--
or of "the Commissioners of Loans' jesfteettNL' . .
jy, nor tin atter ar least six montas prevrou :
public notice of soch imended rsimbcrtects ' V
Tremtttn Hextrttncnt $e6tem&er ;1D; 1 812 -
: A LIQHj; CARRIAGE,
With. Harness; Catbtonraad Boxes.: It easy
t ' be had on mddcraie'reMQi.V f n fiy ;
V; ' " '! Apply at this OSrv '
pec 18.
V
mi
1 1 b
is;
I'M
si- n
pi
h
n4
A
r
4 1 I
A1
. it K
m
- J
"I ' - -