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O 9 If the laie nrur« from Europe be true
VAR between Austria nniJ Naples lia* already
commenced. The formet l»v far more p'wer-
fill t'lnn the latter, it to be aided by the jr!gan- J lo
fir strength of R<i«iii and Pru««ia The >ea-
politans have Indeed to cnrouuter fearful odd*,
andean find encouragement only in the iattic*-
jof their ehoe, and Ui# bop*., that ni-cord
among their enetniet, or the tjireed of liberal
principle* in the north of Furope, may produ
some change favorable to freedom.
plead!fit. in wl»i«It Ihe fi.tud. nre^nl.mty rr
mistake is directly put in •-■on*: but that U a
grant be aIhiIiHi Ih cv^rc/ on lUjkct, or life is
suing ot it *%.is r»V//•«ifatUkcniy, or wn«; pro
hibit* J by *t i!:'!<. or the #!*»!*• had ro till* to
thi thing gr.ivtrd, then such defects are rj-
aminable in a court of lav .
The first opinion is maintained in Penn
sylvania and Tennessee—the second in Ma
ryland and Virginia—the third m North Ca
rolina, \ew-Vork, k in the Supreme Court
of the I’nited States.
In doing what is required from me on lhi«
occasion, 1 propose to examine each of these
pinions so fir as such an examination may
la* necessary to explain the conclusion, at
•vhitli my own mind lias arrived
First.—The doctrine, that a grant is me
mended by Ml the** feu i«Uiaihvij«. vhica lb* tnaimUsiiaiers of l!«*
aie vt for* iMy urged f*\ Cl . J. Marshrli, in ;in dot form of law, bow
them « lieforc i*:fe»r«d to, as apjduvdd* to j fact, null
Old i
id ihie grants. r | ne grant*«
* e- j grants in runf*
•I tir
emity tr
•It# ry f made
vroncoiii in (
Kjiifiitiu 1 In aw aril
There in then no 1
qnally surprized, x* belli* r the latent defect Me A.t1 pair ut on iht face of//.# grant. The j
a Hedged were a want of'authority or of title, state had title to the premise# granted,
which would render bis grant absolutely ami the requisite* of the law Ind lu?cn iom-j „ , r .. r „ „„
void, or men ly a uiidnke or false M;gge.->t».Mi 'plied with, wliirh were essential to give to j j,|y of animal labor, to pmdiire ; aod it will
xvUicb would only nuke it xoiih«1»le. Hucli tlie granting officer authority to issue his| ‘ ' * ‘ ‘
seenir indeed to I*e4l»e Jaw of HngUnd on this \ grant. It seem# to me that nothing can Im
ti # community, to pay our Govrrrnr.—
Thinks I to myself, it i* not wonderful they
scuffle m* bard ibr the office,sicd try to set the
people together by the tars on their account.
The salary of the Treasurer, if the above cal
culation lie correct, xxill require 18 hands fcc
I 11 uei es of laud, xvitli a proportionate sup-
fkoH Tin: SATiosxr. gizettv
EXTRACTS
r.'OT.\ A( London Scientific Journal for J,
nuary, 1821. J JU
The Aarratevr de la Meuse, French
paper, contains the following article on
the cure of two deaf and dumb persons
subject : for the rases ol false suggestions. j more elrai, th:,n that such a grant cannot Ik-
misinformation, nr m'nrevilul «>f firmer 11 olkiterally impeached in ;m action of eject
grants, want of title, or iiiformihly. or grant ' merit, hy testimony dehor* tlje gru it, and
Ilf an white contrary to the rules of law, for j inferior to it indignity.
be recollected that no estimate has been made "ho recovered their hearing and speech
of the quantity o( land necessary to produce This novel and successful operation was
wliirh a grant is
dee tired hr Ulai'hltOQe
,11 sow.
Stroud point. — Ifxxi
ipi
■ time far l ight, tbe
tie absolutely roid, are all supposed by him j remaining (j Iter tin r>, which concerns 111
to be apparent on its face,and I rom the tenor tidily cd tire grant to tile heirs of Itubert
| Of the argument lieforr reft .red to in tbe j Shaw, mey I think lie briefly disposed of—
We hare already seen in the pretions part
prima facie evidence of title, and may lie . case in Vernon, it would apiiear Itnd e?
onle-ted collaterally in a eniirl of law seems I iqion a scire facia*, you cannot take admit-
1CT The population <xf the Mate of Tena***e*
bv the late ceiifu* is 421.058—it tv.< in tel '
261,647—making in the tail leu year, au in
crease of 160,600 so all.
The schools of Massachusetts are nr-
gahizod in this manner. The state is di
vided into 450 township*, each sis mites
■square, all subdivided into seven or eight
school di-trirt*, making the number of
■school districts in the n hole state 3600.
•> No Scholar, says the person who glees
this account in the newspapers! is obliged to
walk farther than three fourths of a mile
from the extremity to the centre of the dis
trict, where (he school is situated. Each
township is hr* law obliged to raise money
for schools not less than 3 300 dollars, if I
mistake not. and as much more as it deems
,, n ,p,. r —the sums raised, usually vary from
6 to 15 hundred dollars, eaeh township, ar-
cording to the ability of its inhabitants, earti
of whom pays his proportion not as a contri
bution or subscription, hut as a tax regularly
assessed, ss other taxes are for other purpos
es. Two method.' for distributing the mo
ney among the peojile are used—1st, the
quantity received hy each is regulated hy it.
number of scholars—2d, the di-trirt receives
no more than was raised in it. Generally
for three or four mouths in the winter a mas
ter is engaged from ten to twenty* dollars
per month—and a mistress for 6*e or six
jn.iiths in the summer at four to five dollars
per month.”
he erroneo i« in principle, mischie-1 tag* of matter of asm iiirre out of Hit grant,
>ous in its consequence*, and not to have | for the rut assigned in that caw; fu.ptn.
been announced under circumstances, which ci-ediug by bill was, that a scire I*
entitle it to be received la the Judicial tribu-1 not ri xeb tin* fraud objected,
na Is of Georgia. J f %ol. ti 4 InsL 3H. peering in (hr body of the
It ia erroneous in principle. A court of | 9 .If*/ \i. grant. Comparing this
law in the trial of an action of eiertment, sit
for the ascertainment of Ikt Ugnt tiilr only
i Ch. It. 158. x>ith various other eases,
(although I have not met with any authnri
This doctrine is firmly settled in England, ly, n hiih lays iloxx 11 the doctrine xvilh a pre-
and the more so since Lord Mansfield’s ah-j r ' M) . ,i L .,v to these distinctions) w« may I
creation rendered it nccessiry mine minute
Iv to arrutinise the rule, iiul in Peoosyltx
think, collect tlie following rules
I. That when the defect is apparent on
Ilia, ill the ease of Mselay’s I—see r. Work.. the face of tie- grant, and i« such as renders
the Supreme Court of III It state expressly ,7 oWu/r/y roid, tiler it may be taken ud
deelann that in a court of laic, in the trial of
an action of ejectment, it lias lieen lh< cvJtiom
to Suffer the validity of a grant to lie contest
• d, and that thr question generally is. nut
who hat got the grant, hat trio tens entitled
to it ujmiii principle, of Mir nnd rnuity whet
it issued. I’rineipU is thus sacrificed at the
•brine of eurtom, hot happily the basis of this
cu-tom, is almost peculiar to Pennsylvania.
The rule is mischievous in its consequen
ces. If ioqraiit may be thus collaterally im
peached in ejectment for matters dehors,
and which only render it vnalalde, the gran
tee is liable to surprize,against which no vi
gilance can guard him. The (dead ngs give
10 notice of the latent ih fects, of w hicli tire
parly means to avail himself: anil accord
ing to this doctrine, each pre-nmuLilo tn
the issuing of the grant, the performance of
which every man lias a right to infer, from
the fact of its having issued, max* he again
drawn into litigation : a rule, which once
admitted here, would unsettle, and bring in
to controversy, half the laud lilies 10 our
(hit the rule has not hce^^^^ounced tin
der circumstances, xv I,i. li entitle it b> he re
ceived in the Judicial tribunals of (seorgis.
In Pennsylvania, it rests on custom, and that
custom originates from the total want of a
Chancery jurisdiction in that Mate; from
whence it happens, that in this anil in many
other instances, the courts of laxv, have felt
themselves bound tn usurp ^Jhaneery pow
ers, Si. so to modify the rules of the common
laix, as to adapt them to the peculiarities nf
their judicial system, and thereby to prexent
a failure of justice. In regard therefore to
’hn«e pgxl rub ,, xxh'.ch ..It fe.m.1,.1 on [lie
"onsideration that there is a distinct equity
existence ol ti les in these l ikes should 1 11 i 1 ’. 1 '!**' 4 " ll,,ll, i ,tle national jurisdiction.! m:_i
1 * r - '•*- * 1 fi«s u<ti*ioni 01 th**
TIDES OF THE TAKES.
A letter from Judge Woodward nf
Detroit to Dr. Mitchell of New-York, res
orting tides in the great Northern Lakes, af
ter staling facts in proof of their existenrr,
concludes thus:
“ Yon mil he a* once aware, "ir, how
important it would he to science, if the
oe saitsiacloriiy uuu unquestionatdv e«
tablislied. The xvater is in all perfectly
fre-b ; and the possibility ol any impulse
whatever from the ocean is utterly pre
cluded hy tbe tremendous precipice ot
Ni igara, on the one side, ami, on the o-
ther, by the elevated barriers of the
fir uni Portage, nort-ivest of Lake Su
perior, which are in no direction per
mealed hy any water-course. No fusion
nf solar ices, according to the ingenious
theory of .St Pierre, can therefore inter
fere. Persons of real science will pro-
bat.lv not require this additional evi
dence in support of the Newtonian theo
ry. Yet, on every physical question, in
which it is practicable,<it is extremely
desirable to become possessed of that
kind of evidence which refers directly to
ordinary sense, ami to ordinary reason
Sng.; requiring no confirmation from
learning, or science. Nothing could be
Imre conclusive, to the most ordinary
mind, that the tides are occasioned by
the attraction nf the monn, than would
be the simple fact, that they exist, and
that they regularly follow the move-
iDcntsof that body, in a mass of perfectlx
fresh water, situated in the heart of a
great continent ; and, unless it shall be
thought proper to except the solar influ-
enre, entirely intercepted from any o-
tber extrinsic agency.”
Jthmrj. Omnlland t," Orme ;
Uifliretil opinions have been entertained
upon the main point determined in the fol
lowing very ablr opinion of Judge Berrien.
The important case dismissed, occurred *1
tVdkiiuon Superior Court—As I was inclin
ed to dis«ent from the opinion which hail
prevailed in this Circuit, I consulted Judge
Berrien, when he politely forwarded the o-
pinion which I now submit for publication,
believing that it will he equally interesting
to gentlemen of till Bar and beneficial to the
-community.
Respectfully yours,
C. B. STRONG.
IJECTMKIIT.
Shaw's Lessee,
vs.
B'nins, ct al.
Ties case presents two questions for con
sideration.
1. Whether the grant from the «tate to
Hubert Shaxv cal) be impeached, in m, action
of ejectment, by the production of extrinsic
evidence, of evidence dehors the grant and
inferior to it, or for any other and xvliat rails,
of ovidenee, than that which is apparent on
the face of the grant itself?
2. Whether the grant to the heirs of Ro
bert Shaw, is or i« not a x*alid grant?
First point.—Upon the first of these qnes-,
lions, there an- three distinrt opinions to he
'mud in the books, each of which is support
' V resDerluhle advocates. The fust
,,, " t ' is only prima facie endenee of
cunt IIX e itfe, and consequently tliatif-
bnre on th a'i lily may he contested col
ed like a l trrally, f»y extrin-ic
ceui se to rn ’ce in a court xjf laxv,
b .t they fo ires,
that I s unk a mat appear on the fare of
mummies, w. court of law to declare
and wood- <*{ ^°*d, and when such
, . JefW-t ari«t*# from rir-
du-M, n# * * iimstiinre# dtljom tlir
of ,.n no 1. •'«> le on |y su j t j u „
I . 011I1I n >t rrne
ever, without 1 nlarges the rule laid
gtew I took I cril.d affirms,
pla. e or other. '*5 nr
jt 18 xoidaliM* only,
from ai.cha pi** b(l
it. through n pr g regular courK of
f. ot in length. »
ii ,.4y roi'td be fot
gd witti mnmmtf
•lUMiit putting
courts of Pennsylvania cannot be safely re
ceived, except hy courts exercising their
powers under a Judiciary system, alike im
perfect xxitli their own.
The decision of the Supreme Court of
Tennessee, was pronounced hy two Judges
against line, 'is adoption was opposed by
the latter Judge, in a very elaborate argu
ment, to w hich no other answer is afforded
hy his opponents, Ilian that it had been the
practice of the Courts of that state to receive
such evidence; although it is at the same
time admitted, that the decision on which
that practice rests, wax in opposition to the
opiaioti of the Bur, and also of one of the
Judges, who now on the score of practice af
firmed the rule. This decision therefore,
however authoritative in the courts of Jwui-
uessce, affords no guide to the opinions^; nu
independent tribunal. It N n derision, in
x incutis. But the rule itself is manifestly er
roneous, since it confounds ihe powers of
courts of common law and Chancery. It is
defensible in Pennsylvania, xvhere no distinct
Chancery jurisdiction exists, and in the ab
sence of a power liy Legislative provision,
to the courts of common law, to issue xx 1 its
of scire facias, for the evidence of grants im
properly obtained ; and it is so defensible,
on the broad ground, that b it for this as
sumption of poxver by those courts, under
such a system of jurisprudence, a failure of
justice xvoutd in many instances tie inevita
ble. Tile error therefore, if the viexv which
I have taken of the subject he correct, does
not rest with the Judges, hut emanates from
the «ystem which they are called in admi
nister. But in a state, w hich possesses a
common law, k Chancery tribunal, k. which
recognizes the limits of each jurisdiction,
there is no motive or excuse for its adopti
on. Assuredly such motive or excuse is not
to be found in the allegation made hy the
advocates of the rule, that proceedings for
avoiding grants surreptitiously obtained in
England, could emanate only from the
common law side of the court of Chancery,
and that there is no Corresponding jurisdicti
on in any of the courts of tlir United States ;
for in addition to the remedy hy scire facias,
there is another by hill on ihe' Equity si,I
of the court of Chancery, as appears from
the case of the Attorney General vs. Vcr-
I Perm]277- 370 moot; and in Maryland,
both before and since the revolution, it has
hern the settled practice to vacate grants, hy
a decree in Chancery founded on hill, infor-
I Harr. \ Me lien, nialion, or scire faiias.
23—02—185 There is indeed spent-
l llarr.tf AlrHm. liar propriety in resort-
l ll-MI-tt l iug to a Court of Equity
for this purpose, for the reason, w hich arc
detailed hy Ch. J. Marshall in the case of
•J Crunch it7 Polk’s lessee c.i. Woodall. |
conclude therefore that the opinion which af
firms that a grant is mere puma fane exi-
donr ■ of title, sad that its validity may h,
contested collaterally hy extrinsic k inferior
evidence in a court of law , is not consonant
to tin* principle* of Engli-li jurisprudence.
will hereafter appear, tntlie current of
decision* in I lie United States, and might not
tn he adopted in tile dccisiou of the present
question.
Second—If the question ivcrc res integra.
or could lie regulati d liy considerations of
expediency. I -lidhhl incline to adopt the se
cond rule—That every mattistldf avoidant*
tage nf collaterally ia a court of law.
2. Where although so apparent, it renders
the great only voii'nbU. a scire facias is ne
cessary tn avoid it.
3. B it if the defect lie latent, dependent
upon ex hltnce dehors the grant, and inferior
to it, wli itever is its rhararter, the proceed
ing to annul it, must he bx hill, on the equity
sid. of llie Uiiurt of C'lianr, ry.
In Virginia, the Court nf Appeals, *; an
early period had d 'cidvd. that fraud in a
grantee, in obtaining his grant might lie giv
en i.i exiilenee, in an action of ejectment,
'.he pstentee luring in that ease a |»rty to
the suit. But Judge Tucker in the valuable
nnter, attached tn his edition of Hl.irk*tone,
strongly combats the doctrine, and after
wards in the case of Washington rs. Met)n-
I ll< n.tfMunf. .306. nald. theCourt of Ap
peals, of wliirh he xx is a memlier, unani
mously deckled, that in an action of eject
ment, evidence would not tn- introduced ta
prose, that a grant was irregularly obtained.
In the subsequent ease of Alexander r. Gree-
1 Munf. 134. nop. tl.e same court express
ly recognized the principle, that a grant per
fect on its fare, is only to lie avoided fur mat
ter dehors Ougrant, hy a proper and regu
lar proceeding, hut that a grant may carry
on its face, intrinsic evidence of its mvn nul
lity, and therefore In* considered void wben
exhibited in the progress of a trial. In the
4 Hen.tfJI/un/. 140. case of Lasley r. Font
aine, in liie same court, it was decided, that
the validity of a giant of a sister state cannot
he drawn into question, on the suggestion,
lhat the survey on which it was founded,
was a forgery. In Maryland, the rule laid
down is, that if the fraud
1 g. »feffen. sppta- IT. t!.r fan cf II, t
irrant. it is mid if it »•••
from circimistanees de
hors, it is only voidable, and therefore suit
must l.e instituted for vacating it.
Third.—But the doctrine is very strongly
laid down hy Ch. J. Marshall, (in the case of
Hulk’s lessee e. Wer.ilall, before referred to!
in tc'ms of the third rule originally stated in
this argument. After remarking that in ge
neral a court of Equity is the more eligible
tribunal fur these questions (concerning the
validity of patents) ami that they ought to he
excluded from a court of law, hr adds,
“ But there arc eases, in X7liirh a grant is
absolutely void, as where the state had nn
title to the tiling granted, or w lu re the offi
cer had no authority to i*sue the grant. In
such rases, Ihe validity of the grant is neces
sarily examinable nt laxv,’’ and the Supreme
Court of the United States did thereupon
proceed to deride, that a survey made with
out hii entry, xxas unauthorized by the laws of
North Carolina; that the agents nf the state,
hail no power to issue a grant for landao
surveyed, and consequently, that such grant
was void.
Tail! Ill Tile case of the University r.
“ " ‘ Sawyer goo no further than
to deride that evidence may he received to
prove that the lands granted, had been pre
viously appropriated, and ronxrqucnlly that
Ihe ofneersappointed hy government in •»!!
k. convey meant lands, hud no authority to
grant them.
The rule is laid down hy the Supreme
Court of the state nf New-York, in the case
10 Johns. H. 23. of Jackson r. Lawton, in the
following terms. A patent issued hy mis
take, or upon fal«« suggestions, !# Voidable
only, and unices letter- patent are. nbsulalrhi
void upon the face ofthtm. or the isiuiug of
them xxas iciihout authority, or xcas piohibit
ed by statute, they can only he avoided in a
regular course nf pleading, in xvli cli the fraud,
irregularity or mistake i« directly put in is
sue. The court prucei ded to Mate, that the
principle lias been frequently admitted, that
the fraud must appiar mi the face of ilu* pa
tent, to render if noid in a court of l»xv, and
that xx hen the fraud nr other defect, arises on
circumstances dehors the grant, it is voidable
only by suit. That the regular tribunal f nr
e draxvers, into the le>ok ft. fo
liar rutin Chamber. I,axe hy mix-
of this discussion, that the nrdv legitimate
modes of avoiding a grant, mu h as that to
Robert Shaw, has been determined to he,
ins would 'are hy bill,iiifoitoatum,or scire facia*. The
il mil op- Legislature had indeed Ly the net of 1808
p. iuided a manner of avoiding grants obtain
ed on fraudulent (Iran “ in the land lottery ;
toil having annexed to it a pruxision, that it
should he availed of xxilhin one year, Imm
the date of the act, it i« of course inapplica
ble to the pi< sent controversy. They have
also nutllwirizrd the Governor to h-ne new
grants in c.v-es where the Commissioners of
the land lottery, in Ii ansi rihmg Ihe nairu s of
the fortunate
sited tn the Kircutite
take entered the names of persons who
were not fnrlonatedr.vivers, in Heu of those
who were. But the present is not such a
case. The evidence "Hi red, lends only In
shew n mistake on the part of the original
entry laker in the county of Columbia. In-
diqwndently then of Ihe operation of the le
gal principle, Expressio nnius, eat cxchisio
ailcriua, that the grant of the power hy ex
press provision in the above cate, would im
ply its non-existenrr im very other, it seems
very clear, that to decide 4 grant to he void,
i« not within the srfqie of the authority,
ivliirh the Constitution lias confided to (lie
Executive department. The Judicial pow
ers exercised by that department, the vali
dity ofxvliici) it is not intended here to ques
tion, have been hitherto confined to the de
cision of matters, arising anterior to the issu
ing of Ihe grant. When that art i<- perform
ed, the Executive is functus officio. The
grantee has acquired a right to the thing
granted, under a contract executed, between
the statp and himself, and suclicontract can
not lie annulled hy the net of one of the con
prm iriona for the hands and horses, which
xvonlil require 50 per rent on the respective
ari oiints: in -hurt lire account w ill iioxv, tho’
it is hoped not long stand thus:
(rnvzK.von’i! Sai.xrv—the use of
.'III bnnris al AIMi dullari caeh, - - 51”* (lf>:i
240 acres of land in cotton, at 12 1-2
dollars per acre
120 aere, to raise j rovivinm nt 3 12
,x.-r
IA koiscsal^' 100 each, - - . •
J 3,000
| 1,600
1,600
S 21,000
TnrAsiRr.it
13 hnn<I«,
1J4 Hrrca hn<l for rotlnn, - -
7*2 do fur jirovinions, - -
l> horfifi, . - v . . .
5 9,000
- 1.728
$ 12,492
A TAX TATEK.
EROSTT.CTS IN KENTUCKY.
Erlrnrt of a letter J'tom a gentleman in Frank
fort. to his fiend in llichmond, la. dated
Ftbrunn/ 27.
“ Hard times are just commencing in this
state. Tiie twelve months replevin bonds
are expiring daily and executions going out
on them—and on these tilings the money
must come, if it can lie hail—hut “ there’s
the rub;’’—for I do not think there i« money
enough in the roim'ry to pay one fourth of
the debts. The Bank of Kentucky lias in a
few* days past determined to sue all of her
deh»ors. xx ho have failed tn pay the discounts
and calls on them—and in this singh- county
she lias commenced within the la«t two days
TWO HUNDRED AND SEVENTY-
FIVE suits, and the «mn sued for amounts
tn 887.154 dollars. This is a fart which
comes within my own knowledge.”
~^N
It ii y«t too early to 1j
which the resolution of Congress h*» met
with amonj the people of Missouri. It w ill
be
i
Enquirer.
f the reception
this porjiuse is Chancery, founded upon a
proceeding by srire facias, or by hill or in-
fnrinati
dent, and
Th nil would lie ag.rimt prere-
if dangerous consequence to titles,
armlv recommended by persons of
tracling parties, nor the rights acquired nil-1 standing and ability among them—xve pre
fer it, be divested, except by due course of j -nine from what xve hear, that it will be n-
law, ns that is administered in the Judicial
tribunal* of the country. The grant there -
fore to the heirs of Knlirrt Shaw, appears to
me to he merely void. Whatever may l>c
their rights, they cannot he enforced in this
mode. According to tire authorities refer
red tn under the first head of this argument,
and especially pursuing the analogous case
of Jackson v. Lawton, the grant to Robert
c haxv, moot Im |U»t ». L a-ide iiy a regular
course of pleading, in which the fraud, irre
gularity, or mistake ill obtaining it, shall he
:.;rcc*'y pul in t**ue. t otu tins is done it
must prevail over a junior grant, for the same
land.
.‘lugust, 1820. .
lopted hy the Legislature—perhaps xx ilh a
declaration, expressed in very strong terms,
oft lie light in wliirh they view it—that it is
not jn the slightest manner to trench upon
their rights—and that they are <0 oecijpv
Ihe same ground and enjoy the. same privi
leges and immunities, in every sense, with
the original states in the Union.—Ibid.
Mnar Pics Tit .xx Tfats.—It is nnffer-
s'ncd th: ? tl.c appuCstiuu* fur office* in Flo
rida. at the s,*»t or^-overnmcnt.srcirrmruet,
and that many members of Congrrss are a-
mong the candidates.—Halt. ,M. Chron.
f Richmond, March 27. .
ROBBERY OF THE MAIL.
Yesterday Evening, nn examination
was had nt the Market Mouse, (before
Chief Justice Marshall,) of Wm, Bow ler,
a free man of colour of this City, char
ged with robbing the mail of the United
States. It appears, on the 24th Februa
ry, a letter was mailed nt Philadelphia
for Petersburg, addressed by Messrs
Biickmnn and Benson to their correspon
dent in Petersburg—enclosing jl 2000
in notes of the North Carolina Hanks
ami some drafts. The packet, enilira
ring that letter, totally failed—and this
which I feel confident will saxe considerable | eltnr wns advertised as wii«mg. A few
money anil work no injury to tbe public -
vice.
performed by a young practitioner, a
doctor of medicine, of the faculty of 'lv
ris. ex-surgeon to the fourth regiment of
ruira«siers, and now established at Mihi-
el (Meuse.) The two deaf and dumb
w ho underwent the operations (where
by lie perforated with dexterity and sue-
cess the meatus auditorial) are Made
moiselle Bmer de St. Mibiel, aged If!
years, and the Sieur Toussaint, son of
the assistant magistrate of llans-sur-
Meuse, aged twenty-eight years.
The young girl is doing extremely
well. It is more than a month since she
M4.underwent the operation. Her left ear
is perfectly healed, and the opening
made to the tympanum always continues
—which is absolutely necessary. She
takes notice of the least sounds am! be
gins to articulate words in a very satis
factory manner. Her vivacity pleases
and her figure changes for the’betler
She is incessantly humming various airs
which her sister teach her.
1 he young man of Hans-sor-Meuse,
who was operated upon a short time since,
hears as well as his comrades, and even
more lively. His right ear is finer than
his left ; he makes ronstant efforts to
pronounce nil sorts of xxords. The sur
geon from whom we hare (he particu.
lars, hopes that in three or four months
the two objects xvill speak perfectly. It
is evident that they must be instructed
like children, who begin to make tbe first
efforts to articulate.
Mr. Duleau informs us that he is con
structing a n instrument, xvhicli -will af
ford the happy facility of finishing the 0-
peration in three minutes, by which its
success will he more certain. By mean*
of this instrument he w ill rai«e on the
tympanic membrane enough of substance
to prevent the necessity of introducing
probes into the perforation during from
thirty to forty days. He is of opinion,
that he can restore the hearing nf all
those who have been deprived of it hy
tho obstruction of the Eustachian organ,
and by the obesity of the membrane of
the tympanum.
(COMMUNICATED.)
The Governor has hy l’rnri.tmat inn re
quired the nt'eudixnee of the Legislature nn
Ihe SOth inst. for the purpose of disposing nf
tlie land lately acquired by a treaty made xvitli
the Greek Indians—tie says lie was induc
ed to do this from considers! inns of economy,
an object which the present situation of the
country commands us never for a moment
tn lose sight nf; nn object, which together
with some other matter., which may come
up during thp called *es«inn, now induces me
tn address Ihe public through the medium of
your paper, and to pm puss tn the Legisla
ture the adoption of the following measures,
1st. Direct the managers of the lottery to
place the names in one xxhetri and the prizes
in Ihe other, leaving out blanks entirely, hy
which means there xxtil he a nett saving of
two thirds the expense heretofore incurred is.
the residue nftlio names after the prizes are
drawn nvty as well he considered as blanks,
without the tedious, useless, and expensive
process of drawing a blank to each name.
1. Instead tiffourdollars per mile,(the pay
heretofore allowed surveyors), reduce the
compensation to two dollars per mile, and
there xvill no doubt lie numerous applicants,
(even ut that price): and as there is no prin-
eiple better established than that every citi
zen liable to do duty ami pay taxes is equal
ly entitled to public patronage, and has an
equal claim to the benefit- arising from the
acquisition of territory hy Ihe stale, and as it
is knoxxn and acknowledged on all hands,
that almost any person w ho can jierform mi
litia service, oris fit fnr service 00 a jinx, is,
or in u very short time (say a week) may lie
fully rompxtent to Ike surveying of a dis
trict, it is proposed, that the Legislature
should enter into a resolution, that 110 person
shall lie considered eligible as a surveyor,
xvho may have at any former period survey
ed a district, unless there should not lit ap
plicants enougti xri<limit. This it is humbly
conceived will have n tendency to encourage
genius, in ns niurli as it w ill lie saying to the
young men of our state, qualify yourselves
to permit letter* patrut, (xx hirh are solemn ; for appointments and you need not fear coill-
grants ol record) to tie impeached collate- .iug in competition xxitli the ci
rally, hy parol proof in the action 1
merit. The circumstances of lin
ing in competition xxitli the constant expec
jeet-1 tants, who Lave made it their business to
e, ofl court legislative patronage hy rxssiduou:
Jackson x. I, niton are so analagous to that tention, and who are always open-mouthed
““ examining, that I cannot forbear to j for whatever crumb* may drop from the
present an abstractor them. Letters pa
lent Is lied I" ill. for a lot of land dated 2(llli, |
Get. 18II. and afterward* n patent issued for
the same land to H. dated 5th March |tl2,
reciting and allrdging a mistake in issuing
the first patent to./. In nn action of eject
ment mi the demise of./, it xx as held ihnt
the first patent was conrlilsrvr, us to the lillr
of the b-sor, and that the second patent xxas I
inoperative and void.
Ilaxiug thus examined -uch rases as seem- I
i d to me III he apposite to the questiuu we I
arc considering, I proceed to remark, that
the utmost extension of the rule, which can
I think he ndopli il hy the common l ux
courts, xvill not authorize Urn introduction of
the. exidence often d hy ihe plaintiff in the
j case we are examining. According to th
which Would he availed of cifflatorally in a| most liberal consideration winch can lie g,x.
i imrt of Isw should he patent 011 Ihe fare of,
the grant, or should lie raanifiwted In
deuce of equal dignity ; and that all la
tent defects resting upon interior exi-
ilenrc, whether rxluring a want of au
thonty or of title tn the grantor, or prnx
iug a statutory inhibition, should only he
lahiii advantage of, hy a proceeding for
that particular purpose, and that auch pro
ceeding ahould be in Chancery. This opi
nion might moreover, if it were necessary to
the derision of Ihe case nr are considering,
he shewn not to he entirely un*Hp(Mirtssl by
authority; audits adoption would lie recom-
it, a grant ran lie collaterally impeach
ed in a court of laxv (ex gr. under tin- plea of
not guilty in an action of ejectment) only
where the defect is patent on tile face of the
grant, or where the evidence offered dehors,
goes to shew a want of title in the state, or
•fauthority in the officer granting. 1 have
nlreadv intimated my opinion upon the lat
ter put of the rule, lint tlie ease of tlie plain
tiffs, certainly comes under neither branch of
it. Tlie mistake alledged in this rase, upon
lire supposition that Ihe facts relied upon hy
the plaintiAs ran he proved, was tlie mistake
of the original entry taker. Tire return of
public table. It will also.it is bolirxcd, have
a tendency to relieve the Legislature from
description of sturdy beggars who, after hav
ing sought and obtained two or three minor
"Hires iifprofit,demand as aright and as
compensation for past services, some office
of more importance, and for which natmi
never intended them, and really pretend to
consider the State ungrateful if alt their de
mauds are not complied with.
3d. As Colton, tile staple of Ihe state, is
iioxv reduced to a limit one third the price
ixliirh it commanded when the fees anu sa
laries of all tlie officers tvere raised, and as
there is not the most di.tant prospect of tin
price gi thug Ik Iter, it is Imped aruj believed,
that when embodied, the Legislature will
lose no time in placing our finaneea onllre
most ernnnmirnl fooling; arguments are not
considered necessary to elucidate this point
—lint <u older tu place tbe subject in Ihe
plainest point of xiexv, we will takelhr Go
vernor’s and Treasurer’s salaries a* a criteri
on for the rest. The Governor’s salary is
three thousand dollars. A good hand can
tend eight acres of cotton, wliirh at five hun
dred weight to the acre (more than an rue-
rage crop I is 4000 lbs, of seed, or 1000 llw. of
giucil Colton this, ten cents being taken as
a fair price, xvill make 3 100; requiring the
rent of 2 to acres of land and the work of 30
days since Mr. Burkinan came on to thi
city, to attempt some discovery. Here
lie came across two small notes, which
lie recognised as having been in his let
ter ; for they bore the stamp wliirh he
had put upon all the notes ; viz. stam
ping the date “ Fob. 23,” in type let
ters. No clue was however vet obtain
ed to lend to detection—when within (he
Inst txxo day* he received from his friend
in Petersburg two 100 dollnr notes with
the type stumps, and which notes had
been sent to Petersburg by n broker in
this city. On enquiring nmong the bro
kers, one of these notes wns recognized
by n broker as having been presented to
him lu*t Saturday week for exchange—
he did not exchange it, but asked the lit
tie mulatto boy, w ho bad it, where lie
got it—lie said from ,\V. Bowler, who
was then waiting for him. This nt once
fastened tho suspicion upon that per-on
—and yesterday he xxas accordingly de
coyed from his house and apprehended
—heat first refined to make any confes
sions—hut the police in thmean timi
searched his house, anil found a packet
which had arrix i d ut this Post Oflirf only
on Saturday night last, from \Vaihington
for Norfolk. The disclosure of thi
coxery being 11,.0'e to Bowler, he I
xva* induced to confess the opening of the
Feb. packet—sax ing that lie had got then
from the hands ot Richmond, a Irk k man
employed in the Host Office, xvho Irk
hitherto home a good character. Boxy ■
ler conducted the officers to his house, A
shewed where he had concealed the mo
ney to the amount of near £ ! 300—said,
he had parted xvilh some of the rest
the notes in buying a horse, gig, &r. and
lhat some others had been welted in the
place of deposit, and rotted. The Chief
Justice upon thi-* testimony, committed
Bow ler to jail—to take his tri ll on the
22d May lie*?. It is suspected and be
lieved, that Richmond slipped off the
packets in some xvav or other from
the office. Richmond i« confined, hut
his case not acted on. No possible im
putation lies upon the young men of the
office.
It ii «aid that Governor Knee, of Maine,
Mr. Livrrmorc of New-Hampshire, and
Iimoiiiv Pitkin of Connecticut, are
candidate* for the office of Commissioner
under the Spanish Treaty. There are
three Commissioner* to be appointed, ut
$ 3000 salary per annum each. We do
not believe a more suitable man for thi*
office, than Timothy Pitkin, could be
bands, with a proportionable quantity oft found in the United Stale*,
horse labor, draw n from the n orkrng class of' [.V, Y. Spectator.]
4111.
a
1NTFRNA7 TtFft' t ATI0N OF TRANCE.
A late ’111101101* of the Edinburgh Review,
•3 an lxciIS, id .illicit* on Um aituation and
linformil »'*‘£**!*»*;r»vjw nf I'Vm»x-«, ilic ful*
low ring account of the caution exercised hy
the government, in regard to the most Iri-
fliog town and village concerns. This is the
r* suit of the system of universal centraliza
tion established by Bonaparte, and w hich, it
seems, has been preserved entire under tliu
restored dynasty. “ The smallest commune,
(says the Reviewer,) was referred to the cen
tral power. The repairs of a bridge, fur ex
ample, across a brook in a remote village,
required Ihe following preliminary steps :—
1st. There was a petition to the Mayor.—
-2d. The Ma yor applied to the sub-prifet.—
3d. He obtained of the prefect permission
fnr the municipal council to assemble. 4th.
The municipal council being assembled, ap
pointed commissaries, (erpeiis.)—5th. T‘‘
commissaries reported, (ilh. Thu mimic,
council deliberated, and sent the opinio!
the suli-prefct, and he tn the prefect. . .^
Thy prefect applied to the Minister of the In
terior. 8th. The Minister of the Interior to
his Imperial Majesty, giving an opinion on
the Can. Dili. His Imperial Majesty affixed
his signature, and the petition went to the
Conseil d'Flat, section de I'lnirrieur. 10th.
The president of the section nf the interior
appointed a rapporteur. 11th. The latter
explained the business to his section. 12th..
The business was railed up, in due time, be
fore tlie Counseil rl’Etat—a derision obtain
ed, and sent hack to the Secretary of Stain,
who sent it to the Minister of the Interior,
xvliii sent it to the I'refcct, who sent it to tho
Sub-Prefert, xvho sent it to the Mayor, who
gave permission for tlie bridge over the
brook to he repaired!—Any miitake in point
of form, the omission of a stamp, or other
irregularity in any of these proceedings,
made it necessary io begin the whole process
anew. Of all tne authorities consulted, not
one knew any tiling about the matter, ex
cept the .Mayor and Municip)i/ Council—and
the whole might as will liaxe been left to
tliesp local authorities. The proceeds of tbe
octrois nf towns, or municipal duties, altho'
lex ied expressly for local purposes, were al-
ways remitted to Haris—and the money nr-
ressary to defray local expenses, sent hack
again from Paris, where no proper cluck
could exist on cither rsreipts nr disburse
ments. When llnllam! Iielonged to Bona
parte, it was necessary to send to Paris, lie
fore a It) ke, the state of xxhicli threatened
1 Ik .whole community xvith submersion, could
be rtpnirrd.” Tlir people, it is added, are.
sq fashioned to this omnipresent administra
tion of despotism, that they scarcely suspect
its existence!
raoM tux* ciiatxTi a * joi rnai tor javcary.
•s/.vf. t /..•//,' fu si.nr.rnaM
An interesting article upon Ihe colony
of Good Hope, appears in a Into English
periodical work, in vhicli the emigrants
iro about to settle ; pom tray ing its ad
vantages and disadvantages, with the si
tuation the emigrant is likely to he plac
ed, on his first arrix al. In noticing the
unerring skill of the lazior, lor KebourJ
Colonist with lus musket—the writer ot
the article rclates*the following little nar
rative ; the hero of xvhicli was a person
of the name of Van Wyke—and the sto
ry of his “ perilous and fearful shot” in
Ins 1 .xn words.
It is now,” said he, " more than
two _vear«, in the very place where we
stami, I ventured to take ono of the most
daring shoots that ever was hazarded.—
My wife was sitting within the house,
near the door; the children xvere play
ing about her; and I was without near
the house, busied in doing something to
a waggon, when suddenly, though it was
mid-day, an enormous lion appeared,
came up, laid himself quietly down in
the shade upon the thresh hold oftlie door,,
My wife, eitherfror.cn with fear, or •-
xvare of the danger attending any at
tempt to fly, remained motionless in her