An act to authorize the sergeant of the City of Richmond to hold a poll at the next election of councilmen for the said city, to take the sense of the owners of real property in said city, upon the subject of the bonds of the James river company and for other purposes.

An act to incorporate the Mattaponi navigation company.

An act regulating the fishing by foreigners in the waters of the Rappahannock river and its branches.
An act prescribing regulations to be observed in making application for the formation of new counties.
An act authorizing a temporary loan for the use of the commonwealth.

An act to extend the charters of the Virginia Fortsmouth iron company, the Virginia chlorine company, and the South Shenandoah copper company.

An act changing the place of holding the elections in the town of Danville in the county of Pittsylvania. An act to incorporate the Berryville and Charlestown turnpike company.

An act incorporating the German sick assistance society of Richmond.

An act allowing Thomas Duncan, George Scott and Lucy, free persons of colour, to remain in the commonwealth.

An act incorporating the trustees of Columbia academy in the county of Fluvanna.

An act changing the time of holding the third quarterly term of the county court of Gilmer.

An act to provide for the apprehension of prisoners escaping from the penitentiary, and the better security of felons therein.

An act ceding to the United States jurisdiction over St. Helena.

An act authorizing the Shepherdstown and Smithfield turnpike company to extend their road to the town of Winchester.

An act concerning oysters and terrapins, and the penalties in regard to them.

An act to authorize the county court of Augusta to subscribe for stock in the Staunton and James river turnpike company.

An act concerning the state courthouse.

An act to authorize James Castleman of the county of Clarke to build a bridge at his ferry across the Shenandoah river.

An act establishing an inspection of lime in the City of Richmond and town of Petersburg.

An act divorcing Stephen Odell from his wife Eleanor.

A message was received from the senate by Mr. CAPERTON, who informed the house that the senate agreed to the preamble and resolutions relative to the boundary between Virginia and Ohio.

On motion of Mr. STEPHENSON, Resolved unanimously, That the thanks of this house be presented to JOHN W. JONES, Esq., for his able, dignified and impartial conduct as speaker of this house.

Ordered, That Mr. DORMAN inform the senate that this house having finished the business before it is now ready to adjourn sine die.

A message was received from the senate by Mr. BONDURANT, who informed the house that the senate were now ready to adjourn to the first Monday in December next.

Williamsburg, William Howard.

Having been officially notified, that the house of delegates is now in session, and ready to receive the communication required by the constitution, I herewith transmit it to you, to be laid before that body. I have the honour to be,

With great consideration, your ob't serv't,

To the Speaker of the House of Delegates.

To the General Assembly of Virginia:

WM. SMITH.

FELLOW-CITIZENS :

In the performance of a duty enjoined by the constitution, I present to you the condition of our commonwealth, and my recommendation of such measures as are calculated, in my judgment, to improve it.

In the performance of this duty for the first time, I have to regret that I cannot be as full and as precise as to be satisfactory to myself, or as seems to be contemplated by the constitution. With few exceptions, the law requires all reports relative to the public business to be made to you on the first day of your annual session; and I am thus deprived of the assistance they would afford me in the performance of my present duty. Had I possession of these reports, in time, I should not only have my opportunity greatly improved of thoroughly understanding the condition of the commonwealth, but I should be able to detect errors of fact or of principle, if existing, and to make suggestions for their correction with a force and clearness that I cannot hope now to attain. Our fiscal year has for many years commenced on the first of October-the penitentiary year likewise commences at the same period-and, by resolution adopted March 19th, 1839, all internal improvement companies in which the state is interested are, in this particular, put upon the same footing, and are moreover required to furnish their respective reports "to the second auditor on or before the first day of November annually." If this rule were made general, and all the public agencies were required to make their annual reports up to the first of October, to be delivered to those to whom by law they are directed, on or before the 1st day of November, and such reports as are now required to be made to the legislature should, instead of that body, be required to be made to the governor, and to be delivered to him on or before the time last mentioned, to be communicated with his annual message, it is obvious that he would be more able to see "that the laws be faithfully executed ;" and to acquire a much more thorough and comprehensive knowledge of the condition of the commonwealth; and that his suggestions would be entitled to more weight and consideration than, under present circumstances, he can anticipate. And, if it should be your pleasure to order that these various reports should be printed in octavo form, be bound, and be laid upon your table on the day on which you assemble, you would have a large amount of information in a most agreeable and compenduous form, of easy and ready reference, which is indispensable to you, and would be of great interest to every citizen. I therefore recommend the passage of a resolution directing your public agents hereafter to make their annual reports in conformity with these suggestions.

It affords me great pleasure to inform you that the finances of our state are in a highly satisfactory condition. On the first day of October 1845, the balance in the treasury was $106,386 06. On the first day of October of the present year, it was one hundred and thirty-seven thousand four hundred and thirty-three dollars. By certain laws of your last session, appropriations were made from the treasury, chargeable upon the then accruing revenue, portions of which, estimated to amount to $97,000, were undrawn at the close of the last fiscal year. Regarding this sum as a charge upon the treasury, and drawn therefrom, there would have been still left at the period afore

said, a balance of $40,433; and this, after promptly meeting every demand upon the treasury, and paying off $45,676 67 of the public debt, which debt was only payable at the pleasure of the legislature. But many of the charges upon the treasury are entirely contingent in their character. Of such charges many cannot, and none may again recur. And I have the satisfaction to inform you, that under a rate of taxation annually decreasing for the last three years, after defraying all the charges of government, and other permanent appropriations, you will have at your command, during the present fiscal year, an estimated surplus of upwards of $150,000.

This prosperous state of our finances would seem to call for a further reduction of our taxes. But instead of such a policy, I earnestly recommend a small increase of them upon licenses, pianos, clocks and watches, dividends, and upon interest, except that payable upon our state bonds. I also recommend a restoration of the tax on money. Money may be regarded as the most efficient form of property. Not content with ordinary profits, the owners of money generally hold it for purposes of usury or speculation. And I therefore think I may safely assume that there is no portion of the property of the commonwealth that can with so much propriety be called upon to contribute to the support of the state.

The Literary fund exhibits the same general features as were presented by the last annual report. Although the permanent funds have received, substantially, the usual increase from fines, forfeitures and penalties, from sales of runaway slaves, &c., from escheats and derelict estates, from delinquent and forfeited lands, and from the Bristoe estate, yet the report will shew the material reduction of $ 63,630, a loss to the fund resulting from the depreciation of the stock of the Bank of Virginia, and now developed under a law of your last session. This fund also sustained, heretofore, a loss of $18,050 on United States Bank stock. This fund, since its creation, has at different periods lost heavily in dividends. It still owns 3767 shares of bank stock, now worth, it is supposed, $313,170. It does seem to me that this valuable fund, dedicated by your enlightened and patriotic predecessors to the intellectual improvement of our fellow-citizens, should not be identified with our monetary system, liable to all its losses, and without any corresponding equivalent. I therefore recommend that the state take this stock on her own account, and pay to the Literary fund a perpetual annuity of $18,790, that sum being an interest of six per cent. upon the estimated value of the stock aforesaid; or that the president and directors of the Literary fund be required to exchange it, as they can at par, for any safe six per cent. investment.

The Literary fund also holds state bonds to the amount of $1,000,500 50, upon which the state pays an annual interest of $61,328 39. Why should this relation of creditor and debtor between the state and the Literary fund be maintained? Wherein consists its utility? The old idea, that the state might refuse to make such an appropriation, is entitled to but little consideration, and certainly less respect. The day is past, if it ever existed, when Virginia, unmindful of her honour and her duty, would refuse to pay a specific and acknowledged debt, destined, too, to the education of her own children. I therefore recommend, that the bonds in question be surrendered to the state, to be cancelled, and that the legislature pay to the Literary fund, for and in consideration thereof, a perpetual annuity of $61,328 39. The two suggestions which I have made in connexion with this subject, if adopted, will put an end to frequently recurring, and sometimes inconvenient enquiries-will, to some extent, diminish the expenses of managing the fund, and assuredly contract and simplify its accounts.

The education of our fellow-citizens, especially the indigent portion of them, has long engaged the attention of our benevolent and enlightened statesmen. Hence sprung the University of Virginia, the primary school system, and the noble fund, to the condition of which I have briefly adverted. Looking to the extent of our territory, the sparseness of our population and the condition of about two fifths of it, we may congratulate ourselves upon the amount of good which we have already accomplished. But much remains to do. The necessity of education is obvious and urgent. The enlightened, patriotic, and indigent, combine to call upon you, as they have done upon your predecessors, to adopt some vigorous and decided system, which will place within reach of our whole white population the blessings of education. In the numerous appeals in behalf of this policy, which have within the last three years been made from the forum and the press, it seems to have been assumed that we are the degenerate sons of distinguished sires, and that we must adopt some efficient system of education to arrest our downward course. This is not true in fact. On the contrary, never, since we took our stand among the nations of the earth, have our daughters been fairer, or our sons more patriotic; never have the blessings of morality, of christianity, and of education, been so highly appreciated or so extensively diffused.

In the anxious consideration which has been given to this subject, the great difficulty has been in agreeing upon a practical and efficient system. Few can appreciate our difficulties, none can do so who are not familiar with our physical and social condition. But, among our difficulties, I am happy to say, indisposition, and I will add, indifference, are not to be found. The prevailing wish of our state is, to spread the lights of science into our remotest glens, and into the humblest habitations of the people. That this will be done, there cannot be a doubt; how and when, it is in your wisdom to decide. I, however, would recommend, that a poll be opened on the day of your next annual election, to test the sense of each county upon the district school system; that a majority of the voters of each county, voting at said election, shall decide upon the adoption or the rejection of the system; that if it be rejected by a particular county, then the districts into which such county may be divided, shall severally vote upon its adoption, within their respective districts; the system to be adopted in each district giving a majority of its resident voters therefor. In these suggestions, my purpose is to compel each county