418 



KENTUCKY. 



of its framers, furnishes no fund sufficient to main- 

 tain free schools for the colored children in any por- 

 tion of the State. It even operates as a hinderance, 

 in many cases, by encouraging the expectation of free 

 schools, and thus preventing private subscriptions. 



The fund for white children is generally acknowl- 

 edged to be inadequate, yet, considering the fact that 

 white children are enumerated from six to twenty, 

 while the colored children are enumerated from six 

 to sixteen, it is, this year, almost nine times as much 

 per scholar as the funds for colored schools. The 

 result is that our colored people are becoming dis- 

 heartened, the efforts they formerly made are dimin- 

 ished, and the children in the country are, to a great 

 extent, growing up in ignorance. 



This state of things cannot continue without great 

 injury to all classes of our people, and great detri- 

 ment and disgrace to the State. We believe the State 

 should furnish the means of a common-school educa- 

 tion to every child within it, giving, as far as possi- 

 ble, equal advantage to all. 



To accomplish this, we appeal first to the colored 

 people to interest themselves more thoroughly in the 

 education of their children, to hold educational meet- 

 ings, and stimulate each other to provide schools for 

 their children, even at a pecuniary sacrifice. 



We urge upon the preachers to present the subject 

 frequently to their congregations, and to all we say : 

 See\ for 'yourselves equal school advantages with 

 the white people. Ask for nothing less, yet make 

 the best possible use of those you have. 



We also beg of the white people of the State to 

 consider that they cannot neglect the colored popu- 

 lation without involving themselves in the conse- 

 quences of the ignorance, indolence, poverty, vice, 

 and corruption that must follow. We appeal to 

 preachers to present this subject to their congrega- 

 tions, and to editors and writers for the press to pre- 

 pare and publish frequent articles in all the papers, 

 setting forth our necessities and delinquencies in 

 this respect. 



We also recommend to all the people to petition 

 the Legislature, soon to convene, to so modify the 

 school law as to furnish equal and adequate facilities 

 for a common-school education to all children of the 

 State. 



Under the authority of the Legislatures of 

 Kentucky and Indiana, commissioners were 

 engaged during a portion of the summer in 

 surveying and establishing the boundary be- 

 tween the two States above and near Evans- 

 ville, Ind., a place which had become the 

 refuge of thieves, because it was not known 

 which State had jurisdiction over it. The 

 survey was completed and a report drawn up, 

 with an accompanying map, about the end of 

 July. The commissioners were governed by 

 the original survey made by authority of the 

 national Government in 1806. The result 

 shows that Green River Island belongs to Ken- 

 tucky, and that the boundary-line between the 

 two States is a short distance from the present 

 bed of the Ohio Elver, on the Indiana side. 



The Court of Appeals decided a case in Oc- 

 tober involving the title to certain shares in 

 the Maysville & Mount Sterling and the Mays- 

 ville & Bracken Turnpike Companies. In March, 

 1871, the Legislature had authorized the com- 

 missioners of the sinking-fund to sell the stock 

 of the Commonwealth in all the turnpike com- 

 panies on certain terms. In December of the 

 same year the Senate by resolution requested 

 them to withhold all propositions and to con- 

 summate no sales, and in February, 1872, the 



previous act was repealed. Meantime W. W. 

 Baldwin had made bids for the stock in the 

 companies already named, which bids had been 

 accepted and the terms of sale complied with 

 on his part, though the contracts had not been 

 signed or the bonds executed when the com- 

 missioners suspended their operations under 

 the resolution of December, 1871. Mr. Baldwin 

 was anxious to consummate the bargain, and 

 took all the action he could for the purpose, 

 but the commissioners refused to complete it. 

 Both the State and the purchaser claimed the 

 dividends on this stock. The lower court de- 

 cided the case in favor of the Commonwealth, 

 but the Court of Appeals reversed the decision 

 on the ground that the act providing for the 

 sale entered into the contract with Mr. Bald- 

 win, which was virtually completed so far as 

 the agreement between him and the commis- 

 sioners was concerned, and that the repealing 

 act could in no way impair the obligation of 

 such contract. Judge Gofer, in delivering the 

 opinion of the court, said : 



The act under which the stock was sold is a part 

 of the contract, and the General Assembly had no 

 more power to repeal the act, and thereby render the 

 contract unenforcible, than to enact that the agree- 

 ment between the commissioners and appellant 

 should be esteemed and held to be utterly void. 

 When the appellant purchased the stock, he not 

 only had a vested interest in so much of the act as 

 authorized the commissioners to make that contract, 

 but he had a like interest in that part of it which 

 authorized them to transfer the stock to him upon 

 the payment of the purchase-money. He cannot sue 

 the State ; and if, after his purchase, the power of 

 the commissioners to transfer the title can be re- 

 voked, he would be effectually deprived by indirec- 

 tion of a right that could not be taken from him by 

 direct action. He may, therefore, sue the commis- 

 sioners, and compel them to perform their duty 

 under the act, so far as may be necessary to secure 

 to him the title to the stock, for to that extent the 

 act is unrepealed. * * * * 



The act, under which the sale was made and the 

 transfer is to be made, must therefore be held to be 

 still in force so far as its provisions are necessary 

 to carry into complete effect the sales to the appel- 

 lant. No relief can be granted against the State, and 

 none is needed. It is clear that, if no repeal had 

 been attempted, the courts coula have compelled 

 the commissioners of the sinking-fund to transfer 

 the stock upon payment being made without grant- 

 ing any relief whatever against the State ; and, as 

 the attempted repeal is ineffectual to destroy the 

 right of appellant to have a transfer, it is equally 

 ineffectual to deprive the commissioners of the 

 power to make it, or to deprive the courts of the 

 power to enforce performance of the contract. 



Wherefore the judgment is reversed, and the cause 

 is remanded with directions to adjudge the divi- 

 dends in contest to the appellant, but to be paid into 

 the Treasury under the order of the court, for the 

 benefit of the sinking-fund, as a credit on appellant' 

 purchase, and upon payment of the balance of the 

 purchase-money, to cause the stock to be transferred 

 to him in accordance with the act of March 7, 1871. 



The regular biennial session of the Legisla- 

 ture opened at Frankfort on the 31st of Decem- 

 ber. One of its first acts was to elect the Hon. 

 James B. Beck to the United States Senate for 

 the full term of six years, beginning March 4, 

 1877. Mr. Beck was born in Dumfries-shire, 



