The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1865-10-06

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every ordinance Of secession. every oct Of the
legislatares, ofthersbel States in that direction
Wa anullity, unconstitutional and void, having
no legal force or effect whatever, and that g
these States were, according to law, in the On.
ion, their standing could not be affected by The
action Of the people -tAst the people Of thsse
States were personally respoasible for their
conduct just ~ man il responsible Who NO
lates the statute in regard to the commimion
Of murder; and to be treated = criminals,
Just As the .at6crities thought propsr-that
the people ofa State can forfeit their rights,
but that - fnR q thsir ac4ieuis concerned in
|a legal point Of view, they hAd no power 70
affect the condition Of the State in this Union.
Every proclamation, and every act of Con-
gess have proceeded upon shis hypothesis.
Mr.. Buchanan started out with the PROPOSE
tion that this was . rebellion of States. He
said We could not coerce State. Our reply
was, we have nothing whatever to do with
States; We will coerce the people Of the States,
holding every man responsible for his conduct,
and the States cannot lose their vitality. in
legal point of view, by going over to the
policy of secession. This was our answer 10
Mr.. Buchanan. Upon this hypothesis we
have just put down the rebellion. But it is
proposed by some that We shall practically
admit that the Southern States did secede-
that they did 60 out of the Union-that the
work of secession was perfect, was accom-
pllshed-that the States are out of the Union,
that government de facto was established,
and that we now hold these States as conquer
ed provinces, just as We should hold Canada
# We we're to invade it and take possession Of
1T. As consequence Of this doctrine, JEFF
Davis can not be tined for treason, not because
he Is not traitor-not q Nolator of the laws,
but the head of government de fdcto-
the rule Of a conquered province, but We have
no more power to try him for treason than we
an offense, in case he should fall into our
hands during . hostile invasion of his terri.
tory. That is what this doctrine leads TO. II
leads to thousand other evil and pernicious
things never contemplated in the nature Of our
Government.
THE RKBEL DEBT.
Another consequence which would How
from the admission of that doctrine, land
propose to argue that at some other time. !
would be that We would be called upon to nav
the rebel debt. If we admit that these States
were out of the onion for one moment, and
were to be regarded in the light Of beliige-
rents, it would and could be insisted upon at
once that when We took them back, We took
them with their debts, as we would take any
other conquered province or State. do not
propose to argue that question further at this
time.
COLONIZATION.
The question of negro suffrage is one which
threatens to divide us to soma extent and il
surrounded with many practical difficulties.
! reject, in advance, all schemes of coloniza-
ton. as they are impracticable, whether upon
this continent or any other continent We
have no right TO insist upon colonizing the
negro. He Is an American, born in this
country. and be has no other country When
he desires TO emigrate he has perfect right
TO do so, but his emigration must depend up.
on his volition. / believe that the time will
come when every man in this country, white
and black. will have the right of suffrage.
and that suffrage should not depend upon
color-that there is nothing in that which
should make distinction. believe that in
the process Of years, every man. wha ere his
color, is naturally, whether in Indiana or
in South Carolina, viii come to enjoy equal
political rights.
The right to vote carries with ii the rie hit to
hold Office. You cannot say that the negro
has natural right to vote, but that he must
vote only for white men for Office. The right
to vote carries with it the right to be voted
for. When that right is conferred, you can
make no discrimination, no distinction against
the right to hold Office and the right to vote
in State carries with it the right 10 vote for
President and members Of Congress, and for
all Federal Offices. The right Of suffrage
being conferred on South Carolina, for State
purposes, under our Constitution. as have
before pointed ont, carries with il the right to
vote for President and Vice President and
members of Congress
THE CONDITION OF THE NEGRO.
In regard to the question of admitting the
Freedmen of the Southern States to vote,
while admit the equal rights of oil men. and
that in time all men will have the right to vote
without distinction OF. color or race, | vet be-
leve that in the case of four millions OF
slaves, just freed from bondage, there should
be period of probation and preparation be
fore they are brought to the exercise of DO
lih0 power. Let us consider for one mo-
ment the condition Of these people in the
Southern States. You can NOT Judge Of the
general condition Of the Freedmen and the
negroes upon the plantations by what we hear
Of the schools establi,hed at Hilton Head,
Norfolk and other places, where few enthu.
siastic and philanthropical teachers are in,
structing the negroes. have no doubt many
of them are making rapid progress, but these
are only one in q hundred, or one in q thou.
sand. Einety-nine out OF every hundred ol
the negroes in the South live on the planta
tons, and you cannot Judge Of the conditio
Of the great mass by those who live in the
towns. You must consider the condition ol
the whole mass. What is that condition
Perhaps not one in Eve hundred-I may say
one in . thousand--can read, and perhaps
not one in FIVE hundred is worth FIVE dollar,
in properly Of any kind. They have no pro
perty, personal or real. They have Just come
from bondage, and all they have is their owr
bodies.
Their homes are on the plantations of these
men, and they must depend for subsistence
on the employment they receive from tIese
men. Look at their condition. As said
before, only one in FIVE hundred that car
read-many of them until within the last few
months never off the plantation, most of them
never out of the county in which they live
and were born. Can you conceive that body
of men, white or black, who have been II
this condition, and their ancestors before
them, are qualified to be Immediately lifted
from their present state into the full exercise
Of political power, NOT only to govern them.
selves and their neighbors, but to take part
in the government Of the United States. Car
they be regarded rs intelligent or independ
ent voters7 The mere statement Of the fac
furnishes the answer to the question. To SAY
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