Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1863-02-06
From The Guernsey JefIersonian /
The Franchise of the Army.

The Franchise of the Army.
Early'in the session of the Legislature las,
winter, Mr.. Dresel, of franklin, Democratic
member of the House. introduced bill to allow
soldiers to vote. The bill Wse read the first
and second times, and referred to select com.
mittee-MesGrJ, Dfestl, CcnYerse, Sayler, all
Democrats-Who matured and reported bill
against which no reasonable objection could be
brought. sThis bill Was allowed to be printed
but the Republican members were never vii.
ling to put it upon it's passage, while the Demo
cratic members labored Increasingly to get il
through.
Meanwhile, Mr., GunckIe, member of the
Senate, introduced a bill of the same character
in that body, which had it's several readinRe,
and was passed there with little or no opposition.
There were some Ia the Senate who voted for il
with the assurance that their brethren in the
House would kill it. IL went there and had lis
first and second readings, when 1t was referred
to q select committee-Messrs. Uhl Smith and
Odlin--two OF whom were bitterly opposed to it,
while the Chairman desired its passage, and
labored for it. He succeeded in bringing il be-
fore the House, to the great CONSERVATION of the
Republicans, who wanted it TO sleep the sleen
of death in the hands Of the committee. The
fight then occurred which result cd in killing the
bill by the Republican votes-the Democrats
voting TO bring ABOUT ite passage.
At the last Fourth of July Democratic State
Convention, the following resolution Was unan-
imously passed:
nResolued, That the reiusal # the General
Assembly to permit our gallant soldiers In the
field the right to vote, was great and unjueti-
fable wrong to them, that ought not TO have
bsen committed"
This course of the Democratic members Of
the Legislature was eminently practical, iuet
and worthy of adoption in all the Northern
States In the Southern States the Ccnfe 1erates
have already adopted the principle; and in their
service the soldiers Of the several States voted
regularly in all elections both domestic ard
general. It ia not creditable that the like right
should be denied to our soldiers. If any men
In the country are entitled to voice In matters
of public policy it is the men who are imperil
| ing their lives for tho safety Of the State. To
depsive these men Of their just weight in deter
mining the course Of public affairs Is to say that
our bayoneis ehall not think, and tn convert the
loyal soldier fighting for objects which be under
stands and approves, into military machine,
who may be used as warrior to subvert oil that
aa O citizen he holds dear. BOSS
Had the measure proposed by the Democratic
party been the law Of oil the States, such
voice would have gone up from the army az the
late elections 40 must, when combined With the
verdict of the civilian public, have compelled
the maddest radical At Washington into the
popular will The predominant conservatism
of the army is attested by all honest and com
netent observers. To deny that conaervatism
its legitimate expression through the bailo is
not to change its nature, but to turn 1t in tirec
Itions which might we'll prove compatible neither
With military efficiency norpublie order. There
10 q point beyond which American scldiere can
not be safely driven in violation their instincts
and their convictions. 'easi
= Let US have law that will aecuye the fair
and unbiased expression OF the army, but let ms
have no such packed, infamous swindle as Gov
ernor Kirkwood, Of Iowa, perpetrated on Iowa's
soldiers. seRif7