The national Republican., 1866-11-26


MONDAY MoRNINa::::::NovEM 70. 1855.
THE CONsTITUTlONAL AMEND
MENT. 7H
This amendment" so-called, tfor to
"amend is to improve or make better, " is
not generally understood. Let us partially
analyse IL. ..
The first section makes "aH persons born "
Gin the United States"
Citizens Of the United States, and Of the
State wherein they reside" and provides,
further, that mo State shall make or enforce
any law which shall abridge the privileges
Of such "citizens" This gives unlimited
scope to the late slave, and places him
squarely upon an equality with the whitest
and most intelligent man in the Union. In
short il politically levels CHARLES SUMNER,
Of Massachusetts, with his black servant,
and brings !" HENRY WILSON," providing his
late conversion was sincere, up to the stand
ard Of the Rev. Mr.. GRIMES, (colored,) of
Boston.
The second section provides that repre-
sentation in the several States shall not be
based upon voters but inhabitants, which ad-
mits all the colored population who were
late slaves in the South, and grants the priv
ilege ofvoting to all male inhabitants twenty
one years of age, which suddenly converts
the ignorant slave into voter and knocks
the Massachusetts, reading and writing I"
basis for suffrage out Of the statutes of that
State, and admits to the polls, by the side of
CHARLES SUMNER, the most ignorant blacks
and whites in the land A Apenalty is affixed,
in the same section, if suffrage is not granted
1t provides that the State refusing it shall
not have additional representation under it,
apparently leaving it discretionary with q
State to grant the suffrage and receive the
advantage Of the representation guaranteed
thereby, or not to grant it and be deprived
Of such additional representation. A glance
at the fifth section ITO pass over the third
and fourth for a moment) will show that
there IS no discretionary po,0er 0hdteuer
left to the States, by the amendment, to reg
ulate the important question of suffrage, and
we are safe in saying that Congress did not
intend that there should be. The fifth sec
tion confirms our judgment on that subject.
Read it upon our outside, where we have
placed the whole article for information. 1t
distinctly declares that Congress shall have
power to enforce by APPROPRIATE
legislation the provisions of this article"
1t will be thus seen that the word "appro-
pirate" as used in the article, is unlimited
by any law, and makes Congress the consti-
tutional agent to tinker SO much Of the
Constitution as is embraced in this proposed
article at any time and to all eternity; for
who is to declare void what Congress may
vote to be appropriated" ?" THE PRESIDENTS
veto will be disregarded on the subject.
Should the amendment become constitu-
tional law we warn the malignant gentlemen
Of the North that the extraordinary Congress
sional power thus granted perpetually to al
Congresses hereafter by the Constitution, and
put there now by this Congress in its worst
temper as thorn in the side Of the rebel.
lious South, may come back some day to
plague them, and before they have the power
to correct their error. Let them remember
how they complained, and justly, too, of the
wicked legislation created by the Border
Ruffian Congresses under PIERCE and BU.
cHASAS, and beware lest they split upon the
same rock.
The third section provides that no person
who ever took an oath to support the Consti.
tuition Of the United States, in any capacity
whatever, who participated in the rebellion
or gave laid or comfort to the enemies of the
United States, shall hold any office, civil or
military under the United States or under
Gsy Slater Now, If it was the intention Of
Congress to disfranchise whole States, the
amendment, if adopted, will accomplish the
desired end. We are informed that in Ala
bama, for instance, under such q law, there
would not be enough respectable, intelligent
men left to carry on the State government, to
say nothing about Federal Offices. The article
strikes down such men as Gov. PARSONS, who
was forced into the rebellion. He did not
believe in secession. After his State seeded
he gave assent to rebellion against his will
Everybody knows that Gov. PARSONS was
among the first to get his State out Of rebel
lion and to restore her to her national rela
tions with the Federal Government. Gov
PARSONS is one Of thousands living in the
South who did not attempt to lead their
States out Of the Union and make rebellion
success, but the very reverse. Now, if the
article provided for the dsfranchisement oi
all persons who voluntarily engaged in re.
bellon, &C.. it would be just, and the present
leading men Of the South, who are loyal, and
anxious to obliterate oil past differences,
could cooperate with Congress in its work
Of restoration, and that body, which has
already admitted to seats in the two Houses
members who took the rebel oath, would
present q consistent official record to the
world.
The fourth section, guaranteeing the pub.
lie debt of the United States and declaring
the rebel debt illegal and void, is rights not
objected to by the South, and, as a separate
proposition, would be adopted by every State
in the South.
The fifth article is a Congressional usurpa