Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1863-04-21

| OPINION
OF Hon. N. W. Isbell, Judge Of the 9Th Iowo
Judicial District, upon the Constitution ma lity o.
The lao authorizing Soldiers out of the State ID
pote. ...
WM. G SPRINGER, Incumbent, }
%. #.
| A ]. MORRISON, Contestant.
Geo. ]. Boal, H. M. Martin,
/. ]. Teagarden, ]. H. Murphy
Atys for Incumbent. Att'ys for Contest.
In the District Court, Benton county, on chang,
Of uenue from Iotoa county ......
| The cause comes before the Court on ceytio-
Tari directed to the Court for the trial of the
contested Clerksbip of Iowa county between
the parties.
The incumbent received the greater number
OF votes, including those cast IN the military
camps out OF the State. under the act of Sept.
llth, 1862; and tho contestant the greater mum.
ber, provided those Out Of the State are to be
rejected. o..
| Minor questions are raised as to the admis
sibIlity OF testimony, and the like; but the vi
tai questianis, ae TO the constitutional ty of the
| act authorizing soldiers TO vote out of the
State. -...-s. t..-I - -.
A vide field has been taken in argument, but
we see no force in any of the obiec,iona ~ ~, ,ha
constitutionality of the act excent this. vbo,ber
our Constitution reouires a DeysonaI n,s,enes
of the voter pithin The countu Of his ye,idsncs n,
the last sixty days in order 70 yote.
We think the question ia narrowed dow, n
this, and the only clause of the Constitution
bearing upon il, except by remote inference, is
that contained in Art, 2, Sec. l, which provides
that every white male citizen of the United
shall have been resident of tbis state s;y
months next nreceding tba aIao,inn "nS 81 20
the county in which he cloims b;s uots sixt
days, shall be entitled 10 vote at ali eIact;ons
which now or hereafter NAV he authorized bv
law"
That the affirmative deserintion of a vo,er
contained in this clause i,nDli,s neoofin, no N
all not eomipq ,pithin il We have no donht
Otherwise the Leoislature conla have strnck ont
the word ",otite" without a snhm;ss;on. 10 The
people. IN -
But ia claimed on thu mart of tho ;Dcnr,hen,
that the leading idea and ohisct Of th;s saotion
is to define ,cho sbalI enov he ,; obt of
and not soheye II shall hs exercsed. nd N ot tb
words "of the county in which he claims h;s
vote" must be taken in characterization to the
leading idea, and held To oualify the word real.
depce only. and mt marx q dia,;nctive fsatnre
In the deccription. And n ia insistsS tbat to
construo these words onv othar wav vonla hs
to deprive the Legialature from afixino town.
ship residence. or prevent a person coming with,
in the description tbua underatond from 1o,,no
at any township. sebool districs. mr. cosnor,t;o9
election in the county he might choose onjv an
that the election was authorized nv law.
We have no doubt tfe LEADING obiect of tb;s
clause IA 10 define ,p6o shaIl he emitted 10 vote
But we have as little donbt that I, entjtIe nor
son 90 vote he mu.t fiji the desctintion in snsy,
material particular.
We mI,st not confonnd tbs po,er ,u;th tho ma.
son of the voter. A voter sa dsf;nad S nv ~, ,bo
clauae. represents. a comnle. ;daa mads m of
SEVERAL lsss comnlay Tbs xo,J oorohin. 81 p ,hn y,
idea of a white person-a male citi1sn NJ
The United States resident of the State NJ
iowa for six months nert nreced;nr ,ba sioc"
ton. and rssident of tbe countv IN which be
claims his vote sixty days.
Ia not the clainino iis pote in The eount. n,
hin yesidenee as essential To the nerfact idea ~
voter as that he be ,ohite? TINE. the incidsnts
of citizenship, residence In the oonntv. and .he
claiming his vote therein. do not iDisre IN ths
PERSON Of the voter, as do those of age. sex
and color. But do they not equally INHsRE In
the VOTER by force of the constitutjonnI do.
scription2 Sfg a =. DrSm.
While the primarv or leading ob;sot of tho
section NAV be to define who shall enjoy Inc
right of suffrage, in.tsad of where he shall ex.
ercise the righs, il is to our mind clear that in
describing the voter, an incident Ia attached 10
him, which q, necessarily limits tho place Of
the enjoyment of the right to the county of his
residence (that Is, recurring him to claim hi.
vote there), az though IL had been the primary
object Of the section TO determine where The
right should be exercised. If this is so, It is Of
Intlle consequence whether the end is attained
by attaching such incident to the description Of