The Norfolk post. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 1865-1866, 1866-02-09

y
make them all voters and let them into
this hall, not one beneficial act for the
benefit of the freedmen or for the bene-
fit of the country could ever be passed.
Their eighty three votes, with the re.
representatives. of the Five Points and
other dark corners, would be sufficient
to override the friends of progress here,
and this nation would be in the hands
of secessionists at the very next Con-
gressional election and at the very next
Presidential election. l do not, there
fore, want to grant them this privilege,
at least for some years. want, in the
meantime, that our Christian men shall
go among the freedmen and teach them
what their duties are as citizens; they
know them now much better than their
master, and hope their masters will
take notice Of what they learn. 1 say l
want our Christian men to 60 among
them, the philanthropists of the North,
the honest Methodists, my friends the
Hardshell Baptists, and all others; and
then, four or five years hence, when
these freedmen shall have been made
free indeed, when they shall have be-
come intelligent enough, and there are
sufficient loyal men there to control the
representation from those states, shall
be glad to see them admitted here. But
1 do not want them to have representa-
toni say it plainly-I do not want
them to have the right of suffrage before
this Congress has done the great work
of regeneraling the constitution as laws
of this country, according to the princi-
Piles of the Declaration of Independence.
Let us try to be practical. On the 5til
day of December last l introduced pro-
position to amend the constitution,
founding representation upon the voting
basis, and excluding the foreign popu,,
lation, as the proposition of my friend
from Ohio does. 1t was dear to my
heart, for had been gestating it for
three months. naughter). But when l
came TO consult the committee of fifteen
and found that the States would not
adopt it, | surrendered it. Now, cannot
my friend from Ohio give up his darling,
too? Uaughter). l had another prop
osition, which l hope may again be
brought forward. 1t is this: "All ma
tional and State laws shall be equally
applicable 70 evely citizen, and no dis
elimination shall be made on account of
race or color.n There is the genuine
proposition That Is the one love; that
Is the one which hope, before we sep
arate, we shall have educated ourselves
up to the idea of adopting, and that We
shall have educated our people up to the
point of ratifyipg. But ii would not be
wise to entangle the present proposition
with that one. The one might drag
down the other and although have
not obtained what l want, l am content
to take what after comparing ideas
with Others, [ believe we can carry
through the States; and | believe
we can can carry this proposition.
There is no necessity, then, unless
desire to exhibit myself, for my pro-
ceeding any further in this matter. Nor
| do propose to go into an examination
of what was perhaps the not quite per-
| tinent argument OF the gentleman from
New York (Mr. Raymond). A want
| is that two thirds of each BRANCH of this
Congress shall vote aflirmatively on this
question. And while l should take
pleasure in having the President APP
prove OF our conduct, yet ha has nothing
TO do about it on this question. We do
not send it To him and ask his opinion
about it, and therefore II was all the
more kind in him to send us his opinion
without being asked for it. But We
know perfectly well that the President
has nothing to do with this matter. The
passage of this amendment by two
! thirds vote of both Houses of Congress
will carry it before the state legislatures
for ratification without regard 10 the
approval or disapproyal of the President.
| 1t IL true that the constitutional amend
ment for the abolition of slavery was,
after its passage by both Houses or Con-
"a esq, sent inadvertently to President
Lincoln for his signature. But although
hnna I,<, xr.,l ~
acting with the sagacity and the modesty
which were so characteristic OF him, he
sent TO Congress d message stating that
that body, iB sending him that joint reso-
luton for approval, had done what the
trouble President johnson by sending
him this amendment If 1t should be
passed by Congress, because it is not ne
cessary to submit it to him for his
approval. AS l said before, do not
Intend to refer particularly to the able,
f frena from New S erk MI. Ray %ond
because that speech had, to great ex-
tent, no connection whatever with this
question, except, possibly, so far as the
status of the states may be affected by
this amendment. He still persists in
saving that the seeded states are, and
always have been in the Union that
the constitution would not allow them
to 90 out. He took the same ground
before. I had undertaken to prove that
they were out of the Union, not by our
consent, but by operation of law. Ihad
stated that they formed the Confederate
government as states: that they had
raised large armies; that they had done
what no state could constitutionally do,
issue letters of marque, which were re-
cogni lied by ns and the civilized world.
There is no doubt, sir, that for three
years we acknowledged that rebel gov
ernment as beligerept rs did the
whole civilized world. But whether We
so acknowledged the rebels or not, the
law of nations declares that when they
had established government and
maintained themselves for suffi
Gient length of time to rise above
the position of mere murderers
or insnrrectionists, they became bel
ligerents and il does not make parti
Gle of difference whether the parent
governmelt recognizes them as belIig.
erents. In this case, however, the ack-
powledgment of our own government
and the well settled doctrine of the law |