The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1866-01-13
THE DUPIECfTY OF THE ARO-
L1TAON PARTYN REGARD TO
THE ~AMENDMENT TO THE
CONSTITUTION.

1ne extraordinary construction now given
By the Abolition leaders to the second
section of the Amendment to the Consti-
tuition, and which had not been publicly
suggested or mentioned until after the
official announcement by the Executive
that the Amendment had been ratified BY
the required number Of States. We
propose to still further expose the fraud
and duplicity which the Abolition leaders
have practiced with reference to this
measure. The Amendment is as follows:
Section 1. Neither slavery nor Involuntary
-eervitude, except as punishment for crime.
whereof the party shall have been duly con.
victed, shall exist within the United States
or any place subject 10 their jurisdiction.
Sec. 2. Congress shall have power to en-
force this article by appropriate legislation.
The last section seems merely to invest
Congress with the authority to enact laws
70 enforce the provisions of Section /.
ao-wit: that neither slavery nor %involun-
kary servitude, except as a punishment
for crime, shall exist IN any part of the
United States. Not one out of every one
hundred voters who read. and re-read the
Amendment during the many months it
was before the people for consideration
eve imagined that the last section was
susceptible Of any other construction than
this We have just repeated. Yet, no
sooner is the official announcement of the
ratification of the Amendment made than
Senator Wilson presents a carefully pre-
pared Bill in the Senate, by which the
people are informed, for the first time.
that the interpretation given the con-
Guiding section by the party in power is
10 this effect that it empowers Con-
gress to enforce upon all the States of the
Union, without regard to the wishes.
views o voice of the people of the sew
-eral States. a uniform system of Negro
Equality, by which the negroes are in
vested with every civil and political right,
privilege and prerogatye, possessed BY
white citizens As NE stated last week
had the people ever fancied or feared that
such an Interpretation could have been
given to the Amendment they would
have repudiated it from one end of the
Union to the other. The Abolition Lead.
-er were well aware of this, and therefore
withheld from public channels every init.
nation of their real purpose in proposing
the Amendment, and the peculiar inter
probation they aimed to put upon it in the
event Of Its ratification, so as to more
surely accomplish their nefarious ends.
But if none outside of their4own treas
enable circle suspected all the inquiry
which this Amendment was made to con
tain and to conceal, there we're those wht
feared lest the plain construction appar
ent on its face would be ignored, and tina
another and very mischievous interprcta
ton would be given to it by the part
which proposed it. Among the eminen
citizens who entertained a fear of thi
kind was the Hon. B. f. Perry, the Pro
xisional Governor Of South Carolina. Il
writing officially to President johnson, il
reference to the feeling in the Legislature
Of that State on the Amendment question
he used the following language:
There is 40 objection to the adoption 0
the proposed amendment to the Federal Con
statutien, except an apprehension that Con
gress might, under tie second section Of Md
amendment, claim the right to t~eggsLQse fol
tee aegrO after stace7y aoas abolished.
To this he received an official repl,
from Secretary Seward, by direction 0
the President, dated Nov. 6, 1865, from
which We quote a follows:
The objection which you mention to til
Fast clause Of the Constitutional Amendmen
is regarded as querelous and unreasonable
because that clause Is really restraining IN II
ELECTS, igstead Of enlaggia9 the poaeer Of Con
.gress.
Here, then, we have the assurance o
the President, by his FIRST Cabinet officer
that Che last clause Of the Amendment
,wss intended as really restraining
npon Congress, instead Of charging it
power. Accordingly, if there be an,
faith IN the Administration, no other in
depreciation than this intimated by tn
P-residentand Mr.. Seward can be receives
On the part Of z the Government
But from another source We derive th
Information that either the President an
N. Seward differed widely from some .
ppspicu0ns leaders of their party, i
deas IS to the intention of thi
p~slharly written second clause of tn
Amendment, or they were leagued to
gether; with those leaders, in q very basi
and fraudulent scheme to conceal from
he people the actual purposes of tn
ApeAdment until It's ratification wers
aecrnsd Tie New York Tribune. il
@ommsating upon the language of Mr.
Seward II his rude reply to Gov. Perry
asserted that the digestion urged BY til.
latter gentleman vas wen founded. Blu
r. vii quote the TnbuDe's very words
Hsays:
The Constitutions Amendment aims at til,
absolute, unconditional abolition of SLAYER,