legal process
to recover these forfeitures, according to the law of the land. The
Frenchman petitioned the Assembly, who passed a law deciding the
question of forfeiture in his favor. These acts are occasional repeals
of that part of the constitution, which forbids the same persons to
exercise legislative and judiciary powers, at the same time.

3. The Assembly is in the habitual exercise, during their sessions,
of directing the Executive what to do. There are few pages of their
journals, which do not furnish proofs of this, and, consequently,
instances of the legislative and executive powers exercised by the same
persons, at the same time. These things prove, that it has been the
uninterrupted opinion of every Assembly, from that which passed the
ordinance called the constitution, down to the present day, that their,
acts may control that ordinance, and, of course, that the State of
Virginia has no fixed constitution at all.

ARTICLE BY JEFFERSON: '_Etats Unis,_' FOR THE _Encyclopedie Methodique_

[The succeeding observations were made by Mr. Jefferson on
an article entitled '_Etats Unis_,' prepared for the
_Encyclopedie Methodique_, and submitted to him before its
publication.]

Page 8. The malefactors sent to America were not sufficient in number to
merit enumeration, as one class out of three, which peopled America. It
was at a late period of their history, that this practice began. I
have no book by me, which enables me to point out the date of its
commencement. But I do not think the whole number sent would amount to
two thousand, and being principally men, eaten up with disease, they
married seldom and propagated little. I do not suppose that themselves
and their descendants are, at present, four thousand, which is little
more than one thousandth part of the whole inhabitants.

Indented servants formed a considerable supply. These were poor
Europeans, who went to America to settle themselves. If they could pay
their passage, it was well. If not, they must find means of paying it.
They were at liberty, therefore, to make an agreement with any person
they chose, to serve him such a length of time as they agreed on, upon
condition that he would repay, to the master of the vessel, the expenses
of their passage. If, being foreigners, unable to speak the language,
they did not know how to make a bargain for themselves, the captain
of the vessel contracted for them, with such persons as h