extended to the arresting and prose cuting any person or persons for words spoken or written, or for any propositions made, or proceedings had in the said Senate or House of Delegates, and to the discharging and liberating any person or persons by habeas corpus as aforesaid, although said person or persons shall by this disqualification, or from any other causes have ceased to be a member of the said Senate or House of Delegates, at the time of such arrest or prosecution, or of the trial, judgment and imprisonment in consequence thereof; Provided, That nothing herein contained shall in any respect extend to the power which either house of the general assembly now hath, or may exercise over their respective members.

"SEC. 4. This act shall commence and be in force from and after the passage thereof."

"AN ACT to amend the act authorizing the Executive to procure Arms for the defense of the Commonwealth. Passed Jannary 18, 1799.

"SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly, That in case the subsisting contracts for arms, under the act entitled 'An Act to Authorize the Executive to procure Arms for the Defense of the Commonwealth,' are not complied with according to their tenor, within the time allowed by the legis lature, the executive be, and they are hereby required to apply the money appropriated to the fulfillment of those contracts to the purchase of other arms, wherever the same can be had.

"SEC. 2. And whereas, it may be thought necessary to distribute any arms which may be procured among the militia: Be it enacted, that so much

"The Solemn Declaration and Protest of the Commonwealth of Virginia, on the Principles of the Constitution of the United States of America, and on the Violations of them.

"We, the General Assembly of Virginia, on behalf and in the name of the people thereof, do declare as follows:

"The States in North America which confederated to establish their independence on the government of Great Britain, of which Virginia was one, became, on that acquisition, free and independent States, and as such authorized to constitute governments, each for itself, in such form as it thought best.

"They entered into a compact (which is called the Constitution of the United States of America) by which they agreed to unite in a single government, as to their relations with each other, and with foreign nations, and as to certain other articles particularly specified. They retained, at the same time, each to itself, the other rights of independent governments, comprehending, mainly, their domestic inter

rally, and of course, remained its original right of appointing each for itself, a separate set of functionaries, legislative, executive, and judiciary, also for administering the domestic branch of their respective govern. menfs.

"These two sets of officers, each independent of the other, constitutes thus a whole of government for each State separately; the powers ascribed to the one as specifically made federal, exercised over the whole; the residuary power retained to the other, exercisable exclusively over its particular States, foreign herein, cach to the other, as they were before the original compact.

"To this construction of government and distribution of its power, the Commonwealth of Virginia does religiously and affectionately adhere, opposing with equal fidelity and firmness the usurpation of either set of functionaries on the rightful powers of the other.

"But the federal branch has assumed, in some cases, and claimed in others, a right of enlarging its own powers by constructions, inferences, and indefinite deductions from those directly given, which this Assembly does declare to be usu.pations of the powers retained to the independent branches, mere interpolations into the compact, and direct infractions of it.

"They claim, for example, and have commenced the exercise of a right to construct roads, open canals, and effect other internal improvements within the territories and jurisdiction belong ing exclusively to the several States, which this assembly does declare has not been given to that branch by the Constitutional compact, but remains

to each State among its domestic and unalienated powers, exercisable within itself and by its domestic authorities alone.

"This Assembly does further disavow and declare to be most false and unfounded, the doctrine that the compact, in authorizing its federal branch to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay all debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States, has given them thereby a power to do whatever they may think or pretend would promote the general welfare; which construction would make that, of itself, a complete government, without limitation of powers, but that the plain sense and obvious meaning was that they might levy taxes necessary to provide for the general welfare, by the various acts of power therein specified and delegated to them, and by no others.

"Nor is it admitted, as has been said, that the people of these States, by not investing their federal branch. with the means of bettering their condition, have denied to themselves any which may affect that purpose, since, in the distribution of these means, they have given to that branch those which belong to its departments, and to the States have reserved, separately, the residue which belong to them separately. And thus by the organization of the two branches, taken together, have completely secured the first object of human association, the full improvement of their condition, and reserved to themselves all the faculties of multiplying their own blessings.

"Whilst the general assembly thus declares the rights sustained by the States, rights which they never have

extended to the arresting and prosecuting any person or persons for words spoken or written, or for any propositions made, or proceedings had in the said Senate or House of Delegates, and to the discharging and liberating any person or persons by habeas corpus as aforesaid, although said person or persons shall by this disqualification, or from any other causes have ceased to be a member of the said Senate or House of Delegates, at the time of such arrest or prosecution, or of the trial, judgment and imprisonment in consequence thereof; Provided, That nothing herein contained shall in any respect extend to the power which either house of the general assembly now hath, or may exercise over their respective members.

"SEC. 4. This act shall commence and be in force from and after the passage thereof."

"AN ACT to amend the act authoriz

ing the Executive to procure Arms for the defense of the Commonwealth. Passed Jannary 18, 1799.

"SEC. 1. Be it enacted by the General Assembly, That in case the subsisting contracts for arms, under the act entitled 'An Act to Authorize the Executive to procure Arms for the Defense of the Commonwealth,' are not complied with according to their tenor, within the time allowed by the legis lature, the executive be, and they are hereby required to apply the money appropriated to the fulfillment of those contracts to the purchase of other arms, wherever the same can be had.

"SEC. 2. And whereas, it may be thought necessary to distribute any arms which may be procured among the militia: Be it enacted, that so much

"The Solemn Declaration and Protest of the Commonwealth of Virginia, on the Principles of the Constitution of the United States of America, and on the Violations of them.

We, the General Assembly of Virginia, on behalf and in the name of the people thereof, do declare as follows:

"The States in North America which confederated to establish their independence on the government of Great Britain, of which Virginia was one, became, on that acquisition, free and independent States, and as such authorized to constitute governments, each for itself, in such form as it thought best.

"They entered into a compact (which is called the Constitution of the United States of America) by which they agreed to unite in a single government, as to their relations with each other, and with foreign nations, and as to certain other articles particularly specified. They retained, at the same time, each to itself, the other rights of independent governments, comprehending, mainly, their domestic inter

rally, and of course, remained its original right of appointing each for itself, a separate set of functionaries, legislative, executive, and judiciary, also for administering the domestic branch of their respective govern. menfs.

"These two sets of officers, each independent of the other, constitutes thus a whole of government for each State separately; the powers ascribed to the one as specifically made federal, exercised over the whole; the residuary power retained to the other, exercisable exclusively over its particular States, foreign herein, cach to the other, as they were before the original compact.

"To this construction of government and distribution of its power, the Commonwealth of Virginia does religiously and affectionately adhere, opposing with equal fidelity and firmness the usurpation of either set of functionaries on the rightful powers of the other.

"But the federal branch has assumed, in some cases, and claimed in others, a right of enlarging its own powers by constructions, inferences, and indefinite deductions from those directly given, which this Assembly does declare to be usu.pations of the pow ers retained to the independent branchcs, mere interpolations into the compact, and direct infractions of it.

"They claim, for example, and have commenced the exercise of a right to construct roads, open canals, and effect other internal improvements within the territories and jurisdiction belong ing exclusively to the several States, which this assembly does declare has not been given to that branch by the Constitutional compact, but remains

to each State among its domestic and unalienated powers, exercisable within itself and by its domestic authori ties alone.

"This Assembly does further disavow and declare to be most false and unfounded, the doctrine that the compact, in authorizing its federal branch to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay all debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States, has given them thereby a power to do whatever they may think or pretend would promote the general welfare; which construction would make that, of itself, a complete government, without limitation of powers, but that the plain sense and obvious meaning was that they might levy taxes necessary to provide for the general welfare, by the various acts of power therein specified and delegated to them, and by no others.

"Nor is it admitted, as has been. said, that the people of these States, by not investing their federal branch with the means of bettering their condition, have denied to themselves any which may affect that purpose, since, in the distribution of these means, they have given to that branch those which belong to its departments, and to the States have reserved, separately, the residue which belong to them separately. And thus by the organization of the two branches, taken together, have completely secured the first object of human association, the full improvement of their condition, and reserved to themselves all the faculties of multiplying their own blessings.

"Whilst the general assembly thus declares the rights sustained by the States, rights which they never have

yielded, and which the States never will voluntarily yield, they do not mean to raise the banner of disaffection, or of separation from their sis ter States, co-parties with themselves to this compact. They know and value too highly the blessing of their Union, as to foreign nations and questions arising among themselves, to consider every infraction to be met by actual resistance. They respect too

affectionately the opinions of those possessing the same rights, under the same instrument, to make every difference of construction a ground of immediate rupture. They would, indeed, consider such a rupture as among the greatest calamities which could befall them; but not the greatest. There is yet ONE GREATER-submission to a government of unlimited powers."