VIRGINIA. 



tions as it may deem for the public good. It 

 may prohibit the sale or require any amount of 

 license. It could, if it saw fit. require the license 

 to be paid in gold, silver, or diamonds. 



The State also won the case of Vashon rs. 

 Greenhow, in which the judgment of the Vir- 

 ginia Court of Appeals was affirmed. The ques- 

 tion in this case was whether the school tax could 

 be paid in coupons. 



The State Constitution, adopted in 1869, two 

 years prior to the act creating the bondholders' 

 contract, created a separate school fund, which 

 the Legislature was directed to keep intact. To 

 this fund all sums raised for public schools should 

 go, and from it the public schools should be sup- 

 ported. The court held that, as the coupons 

 were useless in that fund for carrying on the 

 public schools according to the constitutional re- 

 quirement, the act of 1871 making the coupons 

 receivable for all taxes was repugnant to that 

 portion of the Constitution of 1869 relating to 

 the school fund, and void to the extent that it 

 attempted to make the coupons receivable for 

 school taxes. ' 



The State gained by these two decisions much 

 more than was lost in the other cases. The 

 school tax, according to the last report of the 

 Treasurer, amounted to $718,428.65, or one 

 fourth of the ad valorem tax on property. The 

 liquor-license tax aggregated $284.709.78, or near- 

 ly as much as was derived from all other licenses. 

 Both of these sums must now be paid in cash. 



For several months after these decisions no 

 further steps were taken in the debt controversy, 

 but later in the year efforts were made to secure 

 the assent of all the bondholders to certain propo- 

 sitions that should be submitted to the State as 

 a basis of compromise. These negotiations had 

 not fully matured at the close of the year. 



A reassessment of property for purposes of 

 State taxation was made this year, which result- 

 ed in adding to the taxable list the sum of $24,- 

 237,832. This will add about $92,000 to the an- 

 nual State revenue. The total valuation of the 

 State was fixed at $290,432,232, against $266,- 

 194,400 for 1889 and $257,607,934.99 in 1885. 



Legislative Session. The regular biennial 

 session of the General Assembly, which began 

 early in December, 1889. terminated on March 1. 

 Early in the session ex-Lieut.-Gov. John E. Mas- 

 sey was chosen Superintendent of Public In- 

 struction vice John L. Buchanan resigned. The 

 legislation upon the State debt question is con- 

 sidered above. 



The interests of farmers were protected by the 

 passage of an act under which every fertilizer 

 company is required to pay annually to the 

 Commissioner of Agriculture a registration fee 

 of $100, and to file a statement showing, among 

 other things, a guaranteed analysis of each kind 

 of fertilizer made or sold by the company. This 

 analysis shall be stamped on all fertilizers sold 

 in the State. The Commissioner of Agriculture 

 is directed to procure from time to time samples 

 of fertilizers sold in the State, to cause an an- 

 alysis to be made, and to publish such analysis 

 at his discretion. Any purchaser of fertilizers 

 may require the seller, in his presence, to draw a 

 fair sample from any package, which shall be 

 sealed in the presence of both and forwarded to 

 the commissioner, who shail cause an analysis to 

 VOL. xxx. 54 A 



be made and the results sent to both |mrti. If 

 any analysis shall fall 10 per <-,-i,i. u-l,,w' Un- 

 guaranteed analysis, tin- further sal.- .f -u.-h f,-r- 

 . tilizer shall be forbidden, and tin- pun 

 he has paid, may recover tin- purchase i 



A law, designed to prevent the Importation of 

 meat into the State, was passed providing that 

 all fresh meat which has been slaughtered ioo 

 miles or more from the place where it is offer.-.! 

 for sale shall be first inspected l,y local inv,,,.,-|. 

 ors and pronounced suitable for Nile. Such in- 

 spectors shall be paid one cent for every pound 

 of meat inspected by them. A fine not 1- 

 $50 nor more than $100 shall l>e impo-cd UJM,M 

 persons selling in violation of these provisions. 



An act regarding elections provide* that " the 

 judges of election, if it shall appear that voters 

 are being intimidated or coerced from any source 

 in the exercise of their suffrage by bystanders 

 about the polling place, or that voters are beinir 

 hindered or tampered with in anv way so as to 

 prevent the casting of a secret ballot, may onler 

 such person or persons ... to cease from .such 

 action, or a majority of them may order the ar- 

 rest of such person or persons," and their confine- 

 ment in jail not over twenty-four hours. Upon 

 later trial and conviction of the offense named 

 in this act such persons shall be fined not less 

 than $100 nor over $500. 



Repeated attempts on the part of the State to 

 obtain from the State of Tennessee a revi.simi of 

 the boundary line between the two States as fixed 

 in 1803. having failed, the Legislature this year 

 sought to force a new agreement by repealing 

 the act of 1803 by which the boundary had Ix-en 

 fixed and leaving the whole question open to liti- 

 gation. .Virginia claims that the line as run in 

 1803, by reason of defective instruments and in- 

 competent surveyors, is several miles north of 

 the true line of latitude 36 30' agreed ujxm. 



The sum of $85,000 was appropriated annually 

 for 1890 and 1891 to pension Confederate veter- 

 ans, and $38,290 for arrears of pensions. 



So much of the law regarding the Colored 

 Normal and Collegiate Institute, at Petersburg, 

 as provides for its government by six colored 

 persons appointed by the State Board of Educa- 

 tion was repealed, and the Governor w.-.- 

 power to appoint a governing board of eight " lit 

 and proper persons." The object of this legisla- 

 tion became apparent when the Governor, in 

 March, appointed a board consisting entirely of 

 white persons. 



Other acts of the session were as follow: 



To prevent the selling or furnishing <>f cigarette* 

 or tobacco in any form, or pistols, dirks, or bowie 

 knives, to minors under sixteen years of age. 



Providing that evry railroad company shall, on 

 three days' notice, furnish transportation for all Bum 

 products delivered at a depot of such (<m]>:iny. T 

 shall have at the o>pot safe borage for the snim-. and 

 that said company shall be responsible tor damages 

 resulting from failure to provide such transportation 



or storage. 



Requiring the chemist appointed by the ( onuin- 

 sioner of Agriculture to analyze, free <>f charge, wim- 

 ples of soil sent to him from any county, and to n 

 ommend what class of fertilizer each sample need* 

 the production of the staple crops. 



Providing for the taxation of shares of bank K 

 in the county or city in which the bank is local 



Adding the 19th day of January (Gen. Kobeit t. 

 Lee's birthday) to the list of legal holidays. 



