The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1866-08-04
Gov. Swann's Record.


vative," opposed to radicalism, and all that
He, Of course, opposed the Personal Liberty Bill,
which proposed as its main feature, the granting
to the negro Of the right of testifying in the
Courts of law. 1t has not been long since Gov.
Swami advocated this very doctrine, as will be
seen by the following extract from his message
to the last Legislature
The system of negro Slavery having been abol-
| ished throughout the country, it becomes a duty
that the status of the freedmen in Maryland should
now be distinctly and clearly defined under our
laws. From the origin of our State government,
! Slavery has been more or less interviewer with
our whole domestic economy The result has
| BEEN that our statue books are burthened with
laws-some long time since obsolete, but unre-
pealed--and mostly all calculated TO confuse and
lead to embarrassment in theaction OF our courts.
| The relations existing in the past between master
| and slave being dissolved, the entire system OF
| laws relating to the coored population should be
carefully revised by some competent authority,
and such changes ard notifications recommend
| ed as may lead 10 the adoption OF Defined ana
| uniform system tor their protection and guidance
in the future In proclaiming freedom to the color
ed race the State of Maryland designed to confer
upon the negro something more than Il mere nom
inal benefit she intended freedonAin all that re-
lates to person and property. This would not be
accomplished, if, after being made free by the
provisions of your organic law, the freedman are
left without proper direction under system of
just and equitable laws, or denied the fullest pro-
lection in their new relation. There should be
entire conformity between these laws, and the
principles recognized and proclaimed in your
free Constitution. In connection with this re-
communication, SHOULD HOPE THAT STEPS MAY BIZ
Am " To THE
FREEDMAN THE PRIVILEGE OF TEsTlFYING IN OUR
COURTS right which has already been conced-
ed in some of our sister States of the South, and
which is urged by the strongest considerations
of Justice and fair dealing.
Gov. Swami is also an opponent of the Regis
try Law now Let us see what he thought OF 1t
less than year ago. We give an extract from
the same message
The Act passed for the registration of voters,
in furtherance of the requirements of the Constl-
tuition has been threatened, regret to say, with
resistance, in some parts of the State, chiefly
among those, who, in the face of the decision of
the highest judicial tribunal persist in denying it's
constitutionaity, and object to the oath of aleg-
ance which it imposes. / trust and belive, that
such threats are confined to very small class OF
our citizens. The intention Of both the COnstitu-
ton and registry law s0as simply, to protect tie
State AGAINST treason and to shoa0 distrust Of those
sUho had been connected a0ah Il. Complaints have
been made that abuses have arisen in the execu-
ton of this law and that qualified voters as well
as others have been arbitrarily dsfranchlsed, up
on frivolous and irrelevant issues, growing out of
mistaken views, of the purpose and meaning of
that Act lam sure that the Legislature design
ed no more than that the provisions of the Con-
stitution should be strictly complied with, with
out the remotest intention of interfering with
any loyal citizen, entitled to the right OF suffrage.
The law, would have been less liable to abuse
had it embodied the feature of appeal TO some
competent tribunal. The Registrat ton Act was
passed, as is well known, at time when the
ravageS of civil war, were deSolatng our State
Large numbers of our citizens, variously eSt-
mated at from ten to fifteen thousand had left
their homes-taken up arms against their State
and subscribed to the most stringent oath of al
legience to the so-calIed g Confederate States"
do not propose at this time 10 discuss events
that have passed. farther than TO refer to the acts
Of the Union men of that day, IN their
praiseworhy efforts, to save their State, from the
threatened ruin which lowered over it. would
rather forget the past than reopen afre6h these
fruitful sources OF irritation, which should now
be permitted TO sleep. # these acts Uere radical
and ultra, much more so, sooS the attempt to TeUo
lutionize the State, and break up the Union Ma
duty of self-preservaton. II has been alleged,
that the dominant party who now control the
State, represents minority OF her aggregate,
population. fit be So it is the more regretted,
that SO large number of our citizens, should
have identified themselves with the rebellion, as
to suffer the power which this majority control
led, to pass into other hands. Small, however,
as the minority may be, it canuot be denied, that
it is the fair and legitimate representative, Of
bo4ax thara &c e lnuolfv
They are the men to whom you are indebted for
the safety Of your State, and the property which
you now enjoy, and without whose uncomprom-
ising devotion to the Union, Maryland would
have been hand over TO indiScriminate deStruc-
ton
The elective franchise is function of the State.
To confer or withhold it, is the province of those
who are entrusted with the formation or your
organic law. Our citizens engaged in this rebel
lion have been received with kindness and tolera-
don they come back, however to be dealt with
as the people in their wisdom may deem most
expedient Threats of resistance 10 the Constitu-
ton and Laws could hardly be expected to faci-
tate them in resumng the privileges of citizenship
which they have deliberately abandoned. In the
meantime they have no just right, in any fair
view of their existing relations, to complain of
the har6ships of a law which they have them
selves deliberately provoked, and which intended
no more than to place the Government of the
State, at time Of imminent danger, in the hands
of its loyal defenders. Are they not the legit-
mate guardians and depositaries of its power?
The Repeal of the Registration Act, in my
Judgment, will not materially benefit any class
Of voters who have been heretofore disfranchised
under its provisions. The oath Of allegiance pre-
scribed by The Constitution makes it incumbent up
on the Judges Of Election, to do substantially s0hot
the Registers are required to do under fair and
proper Interpretation cftheir lDwers, AS the Ex-
ecutve of the State, I DO not feel authorized to
recommend a reputation, by the Legislature, of
the organic law Of your State, by any radical
modification of the terms of the Registration Act.
M9- The Southern papers advocate the cleo
ton of men who have tonight for the South as
delegate to the Philadelphia Convention the
Copperheads insist upon sending men who oppos-
ed the war the Conservatives, men who affirm
that Congress in 1866 is as treaspaable as the
South in 1861 And such body as this Is TO be
called Union Convention We have yet to
learn that Rebels, Copperheads and renegades
| can make a loyal Union of any kind.