The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1866-10-05

the qualification OF voters and proclaim
that nobody should be excluded from Cotin.
on account Of color. 1t has salways seem
ed to me best to attempt that which il
attainable; and when ] say to You thai
no man can really believe that we car
keep these States out from representa-
tion here until we can educate the people
of the United State up to change o.
their constitution so as to compel any
State to adopt negro suffrage, IL is Q
proposition so clear that. l need scarcely
discuss it. -.----
IF we propose to exclude those eleven
States from the Union until we can com.
| pei three fourths of the States to vote
for negro suffrage, then these eleven
States will be a Hungary, Poland, an
Ireland, to be ruled over by the military
rod for years to come. You may depend
upon it, the people of the United States
will not acqniesce in that demand.
They will not waste their energies and
their money in enforcing so impossible a
proposition"
Int us now pass to the speech of Mr.
Henderson, of Missouri. one of the most
radical members of the Senate, who Of
fered the following amendments to the
Constitution: (See Globe of 1866, page
ll5.)
ARTICLE IA No State in prescribing
the qualification requisite for electors
therein shall discriminate agsinst any
person on account of color race"
In speaking against the proposition to
amend the Constitution, as it is now Of
fered by the Radical party, he said;
EXTRACTS FROM HENDERSON'S
SPEECH.
CFron the Congr essional Globs, OF 1856 Page
u.s. ll6. &c)
"Mr Heudersou-At an early period of
the session the prevailing sentiment,
lookisg,to the object have indicated,
was in favor of q simple constitutional
provision by which representation should
be bassd on uoters qualified as electors un'
der the State Constitutions and laws -
This, it was thought, tCoald force the
South to acknoUIede the political rights Of
the neGro. Indeed it had no other object l
am not for Disgusting, nor will / disguise
for party purposes, the object had in
view for this and other measures. 1t IS
no time for assembling. The questions
are too great, the interests at stake too
large for Discrimination. Any attempt
now at concealment is absurd Ia it not
worse than absurd} Is it not crimiuelf
II refer to this measure (basing repre-
sentation on voters) it's former popular
ity and the strange and sudden distavor
into which it fell, to warn Senator'S
against the danger of sectional or selfish
-, tho
great question before US. Absolute JUS
tice seemed to be stamped upon the lace
of the measure, aGdrepresentatiyes were
ready to accept it, as they would accept
a demoustra 5ion OF Euclid. 1t was falr,
would apply to all the States alike, ana
its great merit was that it secured be-
yond doubt the great end desired-negro
sufirase il, the Southern States. The polltl'
TOO neuvy -[~@ tn its denial was
ment yonng and talented representa-
tive from Maine Mr.. Blaine) thought he
would examine the figures. He betook
himself to the census aud found the pro-
position would not do. 1t suddenly be-
came unjust. Why unjustl Because,
if adopted, the Eastern and Atlantic
States would lose pOwer comparatively
with the West. The active and enter
prising young men of those States are in
the habit of emigrating West. The
tu0meN are left, but men seek their for
V~pes in larger fields of adventure.
.i0 he e;",, He;a,,,TFered that in 1860 the entire
PopuIaT!on Sl tIoH GI'tH>NSi9 mia was 379 994i and
males and only l06,657 were temSSes.
He discovered also that Illinois had s95,'
04l white males and only 500, $50 femalesi
an excess Of 93,59I, enough to give Hi
nois an additional member Of Congress
under tho contemplated rule. He dis,
covered also that Louisiana had an ex'
cess of males over females of $4,000; Kan
sas II 600: Iowa $4,000 Indiana 4S,OOOi
| Missouri $1,000, and other Western and
FSonthwesteIn- States in like proportion
while Connecticut, New Hampshire, New
York, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and
the Atlantic States generally have an
excess of females over males. Hence
while the rule might cOerce the Southern
States to adopt negro suffrage, IL woulu
at the same time weaken the representa-
tive power Of the East in other words
while it might coeTCe the South to adoP'
negro suffrage, it might drive the Nortt
and East to ,Coman suffrage, tor which
thew were not prepared. The very mo
ment Mr. Blaine made some figures OF
the subject and laid them before th'
House Of Representatives, the PROPOSE
tion was dead forever.
Representation was purposely mad
UNEQUAL in the Senate, but in the lowe
House it was purpOsely placed where tn
States could not alter it if they would
1t was based not on voters, but on th
masses of the people, old and young
black and white, sane and insane, ex
cluding Indians not taxed, and lnclud
: ing three. ffths of slaves. There was,
contest as to whether slaves should b
represented in the federal basis. Their
was never any contest as to free persons
All admitted the justice OF includiD
them in the ratio. In the fifty. .fourt
number of the FederGlst, Mr. Madlso
says:
of people in each State ought not to b
1 | s. Lot rho nTnnQl