The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1866-04-05
VETO OF TIL e G VII
RIGHTS BILL.
To THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES:

-
l regret that the bill which has passed
both Houses Of Congress, entitled :. An
Act to protect all persons in the United
States in their civil rights. and furnish
the means of their vindication, con
tains provisions which l cannot approve,
consistently with my sense of duty to
the whole people, and my obligation to
the Constitution of the United States.
am. therefore, constrained to return 1T to
the Senate (the House in which il orig
inated) with my objections to its becom-
ing law
By the first section of the bill. all per
sons born in the United States, and not
subject to any foreign power, excluding
Indians not taxed, are declared to be
citizens of the United States. This pro
vision comprebends the Chinese of the
Pacific States, Indians subject to taxa
ton, the people called Gipsies. as we'll
as the entire race designated as blacks.
people Of color, negroes, mulattoes, and
persons of African blood Every indi-
vidual Of these races. born in the United
States, is by the bill made a citizen of
the United States. 1t does not purport
to declare or confer any other right of
citizenship than Federal citizenship it
does not propose to give these classes of
persons any status as citizens of States,
except that which may result from their
status as citizens of the United States
The power to confer the right of State
citizenship is just as exclusively with the
several States, as the power to confer
the right of Federal citizenship is with
Congress. The right of Federal citizen
ship, thus to be conferred in the several
excepted ratios before mentioned, is
now, for the first time, proposed to be
given by law. IT, as is claimed by many.
all persons who are native born, already
are, by virtue of the Constitution, citi
zens of the United States, the passage of
the pending bill cannot be necessary to
make them such. If on the other hand,
such persons are not citizens, as may be
assumed from the proposed legislation
to make them such, the grave question
presents itself whether, where eleven of
the 80 States are unrepresented in Con
gress at the time, it is sound policy to
make our entire colored population, and
all other excepted classes citizens Of the
United States. Four millions of them
have just emerged from slavery into
freedom. Can it be reasonably snppOs
ed that they possess the requisite quail
icatiOns to entitle them to all the privi
eges and immunities of citizenship of
the United States? Have the people Of
the several States expressed such a con
1t may also be asked whether
It is necessary that they should be de
clared citizens in order that they may be
secured in the enjoyment of the civil
rights proposed to be conferred by the
bill Those rights are by Federal as
we'll as by State laws, securedto all dom
ciled aliens and foreigners, even before
he completion of the process of natural
cation; and it may safely be assumed
hat the same enactmerts are sufficient to
1--WE like protection and benefits to those
or whom this bill provides special legis
alton. Besides. the policy of the Gov
from its origin to the present
ime, seems to have been that persons
Who are strangers to and unfamiliar with
,ur institutions and our laws, should
pass through certain probation, at the
md of which, before attaining the covet-
ID prize, they must give evidence of
heir fitness TO receive and to exercise
he rights of citizens as contemplated by
he Constitution of the United States
The bill in effect proposes discrimin-
ltion against large numbers of intelli-
gent, worthy and patriotic foreigners
Ind in favor of the negro, to whom, af-
er long years of bondage, the avenues
% freedom and intelligence have just
low been suddenly opened He must of
necessity. from his previous unfortunate
condition of servitued, be less Informed
IS to the nature and character of our in
'titutions than he who, coming from
lbroad, has to some extent, at least, ia
himself with the principles of
! Government to which he voluntarily
'ntrusts life, liberty and the pursuit of
happiness Yet it is now proposed by a
ingl legislative enactment to confer the
lights of citizens upon all persons of
African descent, born within the extend
d limits OF the United States. while per
ons Of foreign birth, who make our land
heir home, must undergo q probation
# five years, and can only then become
citizens upon proof that they are of good
moral character, attached to the princi-
,les of the Constitution Of the United
States, and we'll disposed to the good
order and happiness of the same. The
irst section of the bill also contains an
Of the rights to be enjoyed
" those classes SO made citizens in eve
y State and Territory in the United
states. These rights are, to make and
enforce contracts, to sue, be parties and
give evidence, to inherit, purchase. lease,
sell, hold, and convey real and personal
property. and to have full and equal ben
eft of all laws and proceedings for the
security of persons and property as is
enjoyed by white citizens So too they
are made subject to the same punish
nents, pains and penalties. common
with white citizens, and to none others
Thus perfect equality of the white and
,olored races is attempted to be fixed
ny Federal law in everv State of the
Union, over the vast field of State juris-
1iction covered by these enumerated
rights. In no one of them can any
State exercise any power of discrimina-
ion between different races. In the ex-
ercise of State policy over matters ex-
,lusively affecting the people of each
State, it has frequently been thought ex-
oedient to discriminate between the two
races. BY the statutes of some of the
States North, as well as South, it is en-
acted for instance that no white DprSon