The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1866-10-24
The Basis OF Representation.


article which is as full of falsehood :" as
an egg is full of meat" /" says, in relation
to the second section Of the proposed
constitutional amendment, that it pro-
vides "That while the States claim and
exercise, the power of denying the
elective franchise to part of their peo-
pie, the weight of each State in the
Union shall be measured by, and based
spon its enfranchised population"
The second section of the proposed
amendment provides for no such thing.
This is not mere question of veracity;
it is capable of determine ton by every
man who has an idea above frog and
who understands the meaning of plain
words in the English language. The
amendment provides that Representa-
tives shall be apportioned among the
several States according to their respec-
tive numbers, counting the rhole number
of persons in each State, excluding In
uldnS HOl tdAtu he IeuldllitlcI VI tliS
section restricts the portion we have
quoted, by providing that where the
elective franchise sis denied to any of
the male inhabitants being twenty-one
years of age and citizens of tine United
States, or in any way abridged,
except for participation in rebel,
lion or other crime, the basis shall
be reduced" in certain specified pro-
portion. There is, therefore, no reduc-
tion of the basis of representation ex-
cept that caused by the disfranchise
ment of male citizens over twenty-one
years of age. 1t is well known that the
only large class of rhite male citizens
who are disfranchiscd in any of the
States are those who have participated
in the rebellion. But, as may be OBJ
served, these are expressly excepted
from the benefits of the amendment,
and their disfranchisement causes no
reduction in the basis of representation
in any State The only male citizens
whose disfranchisement will reduce the
power of State in Congress
are, thercfore-the negroes. The
States may disfranchisc as many white
men rs they please and the amend
mcnt will not interfere with their
representation. but let them
prevent one brutal and ignorant
negro man who is twenty-one
years old from voting, and Immediately
the representation of that State is re-
duced. If this be, as the Mtelligencer
asserts, basing the weight of each state
in the Union upon its enfrGnchised pop
uIatiop," we have studied the English
language in vain. Bear in mind that
"thc whole RumJer Of persons IN each
State" men, women, children, unnatu
rallied foreigners, paupcrs, lunatics,
and all, black and white, are To be
counted in the basis of representation,
according to the proposed amendment,
and that the disfranchiscment OF none
of these except the male negroes alone
will reduce the basis, and then see what Il
ridiculous figure ourneighborcuts when
he says that the amendment bases the
representation feach State "uponitsen-
hqnchised population The only popu
lation he seems to think of is the negro
population, and his remark is not true
even of them; for the negro women and
children are not to be permitted to vote,
and yet they are included in the basis
of representation.
The editor of the Mtelligencer has not
read the constitutional amendment
which he says the radicals have deter
mined to ratify, or else he is convicted
of a gross attempt TO deceive his read
crs and the public at large. He is GER
tainly not ignorant enough to believe
that the proposed measure bases the rep
rcsantation of any State upon its en-
franchised population"