The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1857-09-08
NEGRO SUFFRAGE AND BLACK REPUBIIcANISN
IN NEW YORK


IN NEW YORK.
During the past year the backrepublican party
has been very boiserous in its professions Of deyo
ton to negro interests, and especially in comforting
equality Of right of suffrage. But these pretence
have uniformly proved delusve. In Iowa the black
republicans joined in voting down provision pre-
pared for the new constitution comforting upon the
negro the same elective right as the white man
The same party in Minnesota abandoned its past
professions and failed to accord the coored man the
coveted equality. In New York, where its loud pro-
fessions had secured the active exertions of @Yomg
Africa, resolutions were introduced in the legisa
ture and passed with the professcd intention Of
amending tho constitution. But the blackrepubli
can executive of that State has allowed them to sleep
the sleep of death in his hands The constitution
requires that all proposed amendments should, after
being passed by the Legislature, be published GER
tain number of months before the next election
and then be acted upon aflirmatively by a second
Legislature and afterwards submitted to the people
were passed found their way into the governors
chamber, and were there quietly slowed away until
il was too late to give the requisite notice before
the election 1t seems that the solons who passed
them the black-rcpublican press and orators, forgot
all about this great negro-sniirage movement Even
Gov King forgot that he had them in his hands and
has only just now discovered them. The Albany
Evening Journal thus excuses the governor:
.Ihe Joint resolutions amending the constitution In m
orence to colored franchise transmitted by mistake
to tho executive instead of the State department These
resolutions and five other joint resolutions were
from the with bills requiring the approval Of the
governor The private secretary separating the resol
ons from the bills placed the latter before the governor
and by nadvertencc, laid the former aside instead Of
turning them to the senate sending them to the Office
Of the secretary Of State, where they belonged Over
looked in the hurry of business they have laid unob
served ever since These resolutions sent improper
w. but Internationally, by deputy clerk of the senate
to the executive chamber, where by IN unintentiona
oversight of the governors secretary they remained until
the object of their passage has been temporarily defeated
The governor had not seen the resolutions until to-day
and did not know they were in his chamber.
That paper, in the end makes the following con-
fossion:
GIVE CONFESS, on he part Of REPUBLICAN Off
GALS, TO AN UNCONSCIOUS NEGLECT OF DUTY,
through ,rLch joni resolutions adopted By Tic legislature HAVE
BEEN LOST and upon this capital the Atlas, in its zeal
will probably over-tradc
The Journal was ready and free to denounce Gov
ernor Walker for not knowing Of the existence of
law passed long before his appointment and which
was not in his Office 1t insisted that he was greatly
at fault because he did not find out and execute it.
IL would BIO satisfied with no excuse But it excuses
Governor King when he WAS present and knew what
was done, and had these resolutions in his own
tual possession These black-republicans stranged
their own offspring in the executive chamber, and
their Journals are quite satisfied with the excuse. II
Governor King had remained at the capital and at
tended to his duties there instead of deserving them
and going to New York to dabble in the police ques
ton, he probably would have known what acts Of
tho legislature we're on his table; and if he really
in earnest in his professions Of equality with negroes,
he would have sent them to the secretary Of State
for preservation and publication, required by the
constitution laws and his public duty. Such gross
neglect Of plain official duty has few parallels in
the history of the State Whether it was culpable
and uncomfortable carelessness on the part OF the
governor growing ont of his disregard of constit-
tional duties or dislike to be brought to the level
of the negro will long be the subject Of some doubt
with those who have had occasion to doubt tho ac-
curacy of the Journals explanations and apologies.
Ono thing is certain and that is, that negro suffrage
has been srangled by the governor and is dead and
this occurred in the executive chamber occupied by
Governor King at Albany, where everything was
within his control.