Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1866-06-07
st. gainesville, Ohio, June Z.
EquaIizing Representation.

800 NhfNh tNal
At q late political meeting in Philadelphia
Senator Cowan, of Pennsylvania, is reported
to have declared that he was opposed to any
amendment of the Constitution at this time.
The importance OF any opinion OF Mr..
Cowan's is due entirely to the impression
that he speaks for the President. But that
he does so upon this subject w cannot believe.
For can it be seriously supposed, even by
Senator Cowan, that the loyal people OF this
country intend that the late rebel States
shell have gained political power by their
rebellion? Are the States which conspired
sgaiust the Union not only to have caused
the countless sacrifices of life, the enormou
debt OF the country, aud the universal de-
raDgement Of all commercial and social re-
l~ations, but, also, to have increased their
weight in the National Government? Yet
such will le the result If no amendment is
made to the Constitution equalizing repre-.
sentation.
Dir. Oven, in his admirable letter, shows
that in the eleven States lately in insurrcc.
son the population is in the proportion Of
three ifths white to two ffths colnred. II
tho three ffths, to which belongs the dan
gerous element in those States, exclude the
two'ittbs from voting, aud the Constitution
remains unchanged. every three uhite u0ters
in those States will have AS much political
power in Congress and in all Presidential
elections as every flee whie rioters in the
other States. Is it for Ibis result that Shiloh
was fought and the fiery battles of the
Wil1erness2 Is it for this that Sherman
marched to the sea, that our brothers were
tortured to idiocy and death at Anderson
vile and Belle Isle, and that untold thous-
snds Of them are buried in unknown graves?
Nj, Alauanl,, III Gto,l,n. all, a., A.,
the opinions Of those who led the rebellion
are unchanged. Do We, then, propose to
give them an unjust Advantage in the polit-
ical arena to which the debate is now adj
journed1 Senator Cowan says yes. We
trust he may live long enough to hear the
loyal country. the citizens who have beer
the soldiers and sailors, and their brethren
and friends, answer the question.
The eleven late insurrectionary States arc
entitled under the present apportionment
reckoning the whole population white anC
colored as the basis, to .ffy eight represen
~tatives; under a purely white basis the!
would be entitled to forty tiCo. Even thcI
they would have an unchanged representa-
ton in the Senate. and consequently in
Presidential election the white voters o
those States would have an advantage owe
the white voters of the other Starcs. Thi
should be remedied by the election of Pres
ident directly by the people.
The question is simple. Shall we, by
leaving the Constitution unamended upor
this point, say to the chief insurrectionar.
States that 50 long as thor white population
which supported the rebellion chooses tc
disiranchise the colored population which
WAS loyal, every white voter shall hav,
twice or twice and a third as much politica
power 10 the Government as the white vote
Of the States that did not rebel? This il
the question which should be put to tn,
country nnembarrassed by any other propo
sition. This is tho amendment suggested
bv the Committee of Congress, which W,
hope will be freed from tho four years dis
franchi.ement of those who adhered to tn,
rebellion and then offered to the Legislature
of the States. The result, we imagine
will teach Senator Cowan that a victoriou
people can be magnanimous without folly
and conciliatory without forgetting commo
sense and Justice.