The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1866-02-22

|
time The naked truth, the palpable truth
lis-we must not shut our eyes to it-thes,
men have not surrendered their cause Thi.
committee mernoli,Iizing the committee OF
reconstructiH;;ii tell the truth when they say
u''S sentiments, opinions and purposes Of
that people are unchanged. We must,
therefore, furnish protection for his class Of
population to which alluded the other
day. the class which is not black but which
il almost equally as unfortunate by reason
of having been loyal. Sir it was but a few
days since that a lady whom know to be
a daughter of man formerly resident Of
charleston South Carolina, and whose name
10 known and honoTed throughout the whole
Union where loyalty is honored, told me
that soon after the bombardment of Fort
Sumpter she had to leave Charl ston be-
cause of her known devotion to the flag of
the nation. During her absence her whole
estate. which was in the hands of trustees,
was sold for sum utterly inadequate to It's
purchase, aud the price paid in the money
OF that con federate government which was
not recognized as a valid government either
| by the United States of America or by any
government in the known world; and we
propose to leave all cases Of contscation in
| fact-for that is case of con6scation-
unredressnd, to recognize the existance of
! these political organizations which are in
the bands OF the very class of men enacting
and enforcing such laws. as | have lust i'm.
stanced. Nay, Mr.. President; it is an act
If criminal disregard to both the men we
have made free and to the men wa comman-
ded to be loyal, which this Government
cannot venture upon with safety to itself.
However much we may declaim about
the sanctity Of the states and about the
greatness of the Government resulting from
the states, L must conclude by asserting
what | said before, that estimate the
greatness Of this country not by the mum
Der Of organized states within it, but by the
number Of people obedient to its command
When, therefore, gentlemen meet me with the
assertion that there are thirty six or forty
six states in the Union, answer them by
saying that | stand upon the proposition
that there are thirty million people in the
Union. 1t is for us and not for them TO
say whether they shall be organized into
thirty-six fifty six or seventy-six states.
The senator from Maryland insisted the
other day that we must not recognize the
possibility Of the people of a state destroy
ing their Own government, because one
state after another might do it until there
Vas but one state left and that, he assumes.
would be an unconstitutional condition of
things Sir deny it. 1t is entirely with
i'll the limits Of possibility that thirty five
out OF shirty states might enact ordinan-
ces Of secession, might put their local au-
thority into hands Of tribunals sworn, as
Were the agents of South Carolina and of
Mississippi, not tn Uphold the Constitution
Of the United States, but to resist it, and
still there be a vast majority of the people
OF the United States loyal To the flag and
obedient TO the Union There would be
but one community, in my Judgment. which
could elect Senators and representatives to
Congress III that contingency; but stand
here and say, that if there was but one
state, ii the State of Rhode Island alone was
the only political organization which had
Legislature sworn to support the Constitu-
ton of the United States, Rhode Island
could send two senators here and two rem
resentatives TO the other House and SIC
4''s1''"''' oo'''' ..,...u lne allegiance,
an her laws would demand the obedience
of every citizen within the Uu'ted States;
and it does by no manner OF means follow
that she would not be able to enforce the
authority of the United State. 1t does by
no manner of means follow that there
would not be number of loyal people, il
spite of the action Of their local government,
in each Of the states which would railv
around the flag and enforce obedience to ita
laws.
Mr.. President, have stated as we'll as |
could the reasons which induce me to be.
lieve more firmly that if we recommit the
the powers Of the states to those people to
day, the rights and the dearest interests of
those two classes Of men. one of which we
have made Free and The other Of which we
have found loyal, will be utterly Disregard
ed aud traniple6 upon. | conclude by say
ing that the Congress of the United States,
If 1t means 10 secure loyalty hereafter or if
1t means to secure respect for its supremacy
or for its laws hereafter must not and can
not restore the functions of states to those
people until they have secured ample and
complete guarantees that the rights, the
political rights, of both these classes of peo-
pie shall be respected.
If we conclude to organize pro DIVISIONAL
governments for those people, it seems to
me to result necessarily that the organiza.
tons lately created by the people of those
districts will have to follow in the foote. o,,.
Of those organizations which ~ ;.ted tGar,
az '"0 M ~. Va" .iIon surrendered its
"''''S' ley represent precisely the same
people precisely the same constituency
substantially the Legislatures and Govern
ors were elected by the same people The
President of the United States said to thu
Governors and Legislatures which existed
there in April last. You must retire pass
aside; You are disloyaI." For some reason
or Other lie said to them Step aside" Thu
same people who elected those Governor
and those legislatures have, for some reason
and under the permission of somebody, cleo
ted Governors and Legislatures again. l
we say after all that these people have moi
been restored and cannot be restored now Il
the right to choose Legislatures and Gov
errors, these Governors and these Ltgisla
lures. these political organizations, mus
pass away with the former Ones and TO
precisely the same reason
They are more loyal themselves in the main.-
individuals may be more loyal, but as body the.
are no more loyal and represent no more loyal con
stituency than those which existed there in April.
But the contrary, il say they are states, Civ
them all the rights OF states ! do not object partic
ulary to the individuals who 1t Is said to be
here as senators and representatives who it is salt
are elected governors and members of their egis IA
lures. have no doubt they are great deal bette
than many you viii see FROM there Tor good man
years after you recognize theTe organizations; but OF
the other hand, do not care 10 say that they an
worse than great many whom We hold eligible t
Office in the northern states; that is. they would b
eligible if they could get The people to vote for them
l do not hold that the men who made this war an
fought in it against the Government of the Unltet
STATES than the men who IN
communitiys at home have kept out OF both our arm
les and theirs but who have given al their pray er
and all their encouragement and all their Sympathe
10 the men who have been fighting against us. Thei
purpose was the same. One was just disloyal t
the Government of the nation as the other One we
little boider than the other; that the only deI
lence.
Sir l put it to you, which of all those miscreant
who went out to capture Jesus do you think was &C