It is possible to drag the "System Folder" (the OS 9 folder that is) from the OS 9 volume onto the OS X volume then boot into OS X and in Systems Preferences point to the copy on the OS X partition to be used as the Classic environment in OS X. If you want the OS 9 to be bootable and not just the classic environment it is necessary to "bless" the new location by
  1. Drag the file "System" from the OS 9 System Folder into another folder or onto the Desktop.
  2. Drag the file "Finder" from the OS 9 System folder to the same location.
  3. Select both files together and drop them back into the System Folder you want to bless.
or at least that is how I remember "blessing" an OS 9 folder, but it has been a long time since I did it and memory may have failed me.

If we knew what it was we were doing, it wouldn't be called research, would it?

— Albert Einstein