The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1842-04-26
MORE AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTR


| ics have been desfous OF abridging the righ
of suffrage.
The great principle Of our beautiful Republic
Is based upon universal suffrage, and we call
upon the People 10 guard this sacred right from
any and every Infringement. Il has been whis-
pered around for sometime that the next sliera-
iion proposed for the Constitution would be a
moneyed qualification To entitle republican TO
a vote We did not believe that the time was
50 near at hand when the organ Of these gentle
men would venture openly 10 avow lis readiness
TO storm ,h,s great citadel Of liberty but in a
Clay paper u April ped, 1--WE note the date fully,
We lind an article openly advocating the aboli-
ton Of the righ, 81 suffrage. Ia speaking Of an
lrshman, named Carr who had been sent 20
PRISON IN New York for illegal voting, the indie
pendent uses the following strange language;
Decidedly, Mr. Bernard Carr whose Hame in
dicates that he u fiom the Green lse"-is very
III used man. lie has only yielded 20 the Universal
Passion ofihis country u voting which, in the
common apprehension, - the summit Of cisl enjoy
mens. En- unfit 10 be trusted with u, all SIGH for
that privilege; and when they have secured H. think
themselves lords " the creation al That charm
ing idea OF gOrernihg other people particularly in
toxicating 10 those rho cannot goFern hemseIrss--
gross, ignorant, the IL too,
give peculiar delight Ia Ia deal mischief around
them, by mixing with those things which hey don
understand and IA which, having neat 10 no stake
they can hurt every body more than themselves
| This article comes with peculiar grace from
the dainty man who could not 60 on his mis-
sion after being paid for it, because there were
mechanics on board the vessel.
| The above extract, is an article that demands
serious attention for more reasons than one -
The Independent paper was established by the
enemies Of the present administration, and is the
organ OF The very men who are at this moment
preventing Congress from relieving the distress
ofthe country. II Is the organ Of The majority
in Congress. Ii is the organ Of the new lights,
or those who ish to alter the Constitution /;
and although the abridegment of the right OF
suffrage has not been broached in either House,
il is one of the grand and leading changes de-
manded by these Kentucky new lights
| We are rejoiced that the imprudence Of the
Independent editor has, al this early day, torn
the veil from The worst feature of the proposed
innovation on our glorious Constitution We
are glad that the curtain has been raised, that
the People may see who il is that is so anxious
to change our form of government, and the ex
tent 10 which they intend TO carry their change.
We glory in the opportunity given US by this
laundering editor, who has spoken before his
cue was given, TO put the People on their guard
about the right of suffrage
No doubt the friends of the paper will scod
at the qualification Of their grand spokesman,
but the thing is out, and those who have plotted
TO alter the Constitution, are at last exposed by
their own stupid advocate.
We call on the People, far and near to note
this open avowal Of black design on their free
dom. The mechanic, the laborer-all who do
not own lands and houses, are to be deprived Of
! the right of suffrage, no matter how intelligent
or useful members Of society they may be.
| We call on all parties to stand by the sacred
right guaranteed by the Constitution, and to
meet those open royalists face to face. The
People at large we speak to, and not to their
delegates who misrepresent them. The People
are crying in agony for relief, and here is the
organ of certain great man boldly advocating
the destruction Oft the right Of suffrage.
We will make one more extract from this i'm
prudent article of the New Lights editor:
az, seems to US that in country where all liberty
is thought to begin and end in voting, no matter how
/ and where the whole business of the Government is
electioneering il is great pity to limit men in this
enjoyment In truth # there's any reason why they
should vote once, it would equally justify their voting
fifteen times in every election. Nay If fairness is at
all the obj ct, strongly inclined to think that
the only practicable way of attaining il will be to
make every vote in each of the seventeen wards
of New York All should have the same chance
Then it would make the hishmen and Dutch SO
happy"
This is not only an intmation of his I'M
principed attack on the right of suffrage, but it
is small edition of his ancient disgust for The
poor He now assails the honest Irish and
German immigrants, who, because they fly from
oppression TO our universal asylum for the free,
are to be here hunted down by such dainty souls
as the neat and perfumed editor of the Indepen-
dent.
No man loves liberty more than the honest
Irishman, be he Catholic Oh Protestant, and yet
the New Lights would deprive him Of all part-
cipation in our free laws, simply because he
comes to our shores poor.
We have no better settlers in the Union than
the German farmers, and yet they can have no
vote until they are able to own land free from
all incumbrance
Let the People ponder well on these things,
and consider who is right the New Lights, who
would take away entirely the constitution Of Ii
berty, or the President, who boldly and fearless
| ly does his duty for the good of the whole Peo-
| pie.
Approving voices reach Us from every quar-
ter. "The measures of the Administrations
will be sustained by majority of the American
People Every day we see journals-boh
! Wing aud Democratic-respondng nobIy to the
independent and honest course pursued by the