The Tipton advertiser. [volume] (Tipton, Cedar Co., Iowa) 1856-1962, 1865-09-07
For the Upton ADVERTISER
The word White In our State COnstitut16n
Null and Void

/ ~~~sssseS000
| Null and Void.
The Constitution of the United Statea
| is the supreme law of al the States, end
il makes no distinction Of color; there
fore, no State in its constitution or laws,
has the right to make distinction Of color.
LIS preamble says, "We the people" &C.,
its articles and subdivisions recognize
tho people as persons aud citizens; no
where 10 it, is a certain color represent.
ed a. an essential prerequisite to citi.
sen, and in no instance is a certain time
| of residence required of the native. born
| citizen or subject. It is true, that Art.
LIST provides, that no person, shall be q
representative who shall not have attain
ed to the age of twenty FIVE years and
been seven years a citizen of the United
States and, that no person shall be .
Senator unless he has been nine years o
citizen; and Article I'd provides, that
no person except a native born citizen,
or one who has acquired fourteen year.
residence within the United States, shall
ever be President. So that the free
black or red man was at the time Of the
adoption of the Constitution and even
now as eligible to the Office of President,
Vice President, Senator, or Representa-
tive, az any other white citizen; prodid-
ed he had the same qualifications, as to
age and residence. All, therefore, ire
spcctive of color, who were citizens of
any one of the several States at the time
Of the adoption of the National Constitu.
ton, became citizens of the United
States hence, the I'd Section of the 4th
Article of the instrument, Declares
"The citizens of each State, shall be en-
titled to all privileges and immuui.ies Of
citizens in the several States" Had all
the States at the time of the adoption of
the Constitution, recognized the white
man as alone worthy of citizenship, the
trainers of that instrument would have
so designated. But the fact is so we'll
established, that free persons of color in
most of the States at the time the Con-
was framed, were entitled to all
privileges and immunities of citizens
within said States. that no one having
any ordinary claim to intelligence, will
attempt to deny it. Ergo, the word
white in our State constitution is null
and void; because, it excludes the color.
ed citizens of other States from becom-
ing citizens of this State, in direct viola
ton of the sacred guaranty of the Ma
tional Constitution, which emphatically
and impsratively declares, that, the citi.
zens of each State, shall be entitled to all
privileges and i,nmunities Of citizens ia
the several States. But it is urged, that
in the naturalization laws Of Congress
the term white is used and no one doubts
its constitutional propriety or pertinen.
cy. l admit this; but by it do not ad.
nit, that the power delegated to Congress
to enact an uniform rule for the naturali-
cation Of aliens, does At all, confer any
power to disfranchise native born ci.i
zeos, because of color. The power 10
alone delegated to confer citizenship
upon foreigner and for nothing more
nor less and, in accordance Herewith,
Congress in its discression may be partial
to aliens of any color but it can uever
change the status Of the native born by
virtue Of this provision or any other
The word white should for these reasons
be stricken from our State constitution
in accordance with the provisions of the
10th Article. Consistency, humanity
and justice do alike demand it. So long
as this change is not made, the LIST Art.
Of the constitution is made to assert
base hypocritical falsehood; for which
the people of Iowa will have to give an
account before the tribuna! of Him who
has made of one blood all nations of the
earth and is no respector Of PERSONS
They will be made to see in that tr Dunal
if not before, that the blood Of all men
under the sun, irrespective of color, is
red and thus be made to confess to their
shame and utter Punishment, that the
Supreme Architect and Ruler of the
Universe does not lie.
For the sake Of truth and consistency
the word white should be stricken out OF
our constitution, or the 1st Article in i,
should be amended to read as folIows:-
All men are not by nature free and
equal and have not certain inalieDabe
rights, among which are those of enjoy
ing and defending life and liberty &C
curing, possessing and protecting prop
ersy, and pursuing and obtaining safety
and happiness; to the native born and
purely white male citizen belong alone
these rights and to no other person Of
persons
The proposition to amend the consti
tuition as l have indicated is the onl,
sure and safe basis to remedy great ant
augmenting evil. To accomplish it, i
will ,ake time, but it will pull up tn,
root of the evil and lay deep and firm tn.
foundation Of the temple of our civil aue
religious liberties This done we coule
look for the first time the Founder Of al
good government unblemishingly in tn,
face and ask Him to bless and pros PEI
US, as q people, that delights in doins
justice: Our prayers for divine guidance
would then no longer ascend in vain
and could indulge the patriotic hope, tina
our country will be bound BY ties ant
interests which will render it indssolu