The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-05-23

that, as q consequence Of the abolition Of sla
! very, change OF the basis OF representation
! has become desirable and necessary. This can
be done only by amending the Constitution Of
! the United States. While Congress are vel
! unable to agree among themselves upon the
! ioim OF such an amendment, the President
says;-
"Let US amend the Constitution 90 az TO nro
! portion representation according to suHragep
These seem TO me TO be the only essentials
Two OF them are already secured by the unre
presented In their constitutions. The third is q
work OF time, requiring the ecton of three
fourtLs OF the States, by amendment of the
Constitution. Why, then, delay the reconcila.
ton when they agree upon essentials?
With some it may be matter of temper.
They ask why should Congress be expected
TO agree with the President upon his plan
rather than he be expected to agree with
O1ngress upon plan 10 be originated by them?
lapswer. Because ,he President has plan,
and Congress has, as yet, proposed none-at
least none that is Immediately practicable
But IN truth, il is not question which of the
two, the President or CONGRESS, has devised or
snail devise plan Of reconciliation. Neither
the President nor Congress could arbitrarily
devise and project one in this case. We speak
habiLually, and even fippantly, of the policy
which the President supports,' as if It were a
plan that has been conceived and framed in his
own brain. 1t is no such thing. Il is plan
which grew up as Topsy grew, out of the una.
Yodable, predestfned change from war to peace
What was required was plan of reconciliation
that should be reasonably acceptable to botb
parties, while it should harmonic with return.
ing Loyalty and renewed allegiance in the States
whch were involved in the Rebellion, and
exact constitutional hts
The present plan, like our republican svs-
TEN OF government was devised by nobody in
particular, but 1t presented itself at once to the
anxious thoughts OF all parties concerned The
Constitution prescribes its chief details. The
other portions revealed themselves as inferior
mechanlsm TO the engineer to bring the device
into successful movement. Congress is to be
expected, therefore, to concur with the Presi.
dent, not in adopting plan which he has pro
lected, Dut In accepting with him actually exist
ing overtures of reconciliation in the form in
which they have occurred.
thlnk that the proceedings of Congress
hltherto indicates not an ultimate disagreement
ana ia1lure, but only p1ocrastlnatlon which to
the IN patient is inconvenient, and to the timid
Is alarming. We are TO remember, however,
the constitutional checks OF legislation Indeed
Congress is designedly constituted so that If
shall not too hastily decide upon any measure.
Hence, time Is always found to be a necessary
condltlon OF safe legislation. The Senate con.
slsts OF fifty persons, who come from TWENTY-FIVE
different States, and individually they are tbe
opponents OF at least two very divergent parties
and 81 multiplied differences of popular opInion
prevailing ln'each OF these parties. The House
OF Representatives, whilst it is more numerous
Is constituted upon the same principle.
No measure can be finally adopted by Congress
uhCl IL mas obtained majority of votes in each
House, sitting aud discussing it IN different
chambers. The sentiments, feelings Jealous
prejudices, and ambitions of their Constituents
necessarily and Justly influence, retard and
modify their deliberations and their votes To
one VINO should be stranger to our system, tt
must seem more wonderful that CONGRESS- shonld
ever agree upon any deeply exciting measure
tnan u would seem # they would fail to agree
On plan of reconciliation between constituents
la1ely SO widely divided in civil war.
Delay IN any enterprise begets new difficulties
ana pnDarra SSmpntS. There ara rort,eo
among us, misguided, think, although honest
VINO deprecate an easy and speedy reconciliation
one class OF these partisans think that some
conditions or forms of reconciliation other than
those upon which the public attention is fixed
are possible, essential, and desirable. They ad.
Vlse Congress to demand concession by the
lately dlsioyal States of protracted disfran-
chisement of all persons who have been in
Volved IN the Rebellion.
On the contrary, there can be no reconcilia.
tlon at all without amnesty in large measure
Even IRE Divine government does not ask sin
ners to repent without promising them forgive.
ness and restoration. The Constitution, which
Is the. supreme law of the land does not
authorize 80 sweeping disfranchsement. The
class ti l speak OF reply to these arguments, that
the Rebels cast of the Constitution and became
lnsolent beligerents; that therefore they are not
cltzens, but conquered enemies. The advo.
cafes OF reconciliation rejoin, that although the
COnstltuuo1 was in many Of its provisions dis
placed or suspended IN the disloyal States by the
war, yet 1t necessarily gains its absolute autho-
rity on the return OF peace,
1t takes time to settle this new dispute. An.
other class OF politicians object that the Pres-
dent ought not to have recognized the plan of
reconciliation; but, on the other hand, that he
ought to have left it exclusively 10 the legisla.
tive department. 1t belongs however, to the
Executive to conduct war with the means fur
nlshed by Congress, and with the exercise Of all
military powers not denied by the Constitution
and the laws of nations.
- Inc tender OF amnesty and pardon by the
President, and his invitation to the Rebels to
return to their constitutional relations, like
the proclamation against slavery, were not
1orDldden by any law of Congress or by the
laws of natioDs. Congress, nevertheless. re-
talns and reserves all necessary powers over
the question OF reconciliation, in their reserved
and lndeieasible right to determine the quail
ncetlons OF members elected to the respective
Bouses.
Another class of politicians. insist that Con
gress shall secure the tight of suffrage for the
African race in the States lately in rebellion.
Six months have been perhaps no: unproft
ably spent in bringing Congress to accept the
TACT that the subject of African suffrage has
only begun now to be debated, with no pros
pect that the assent of a constitutional number
OF states TO an amendment of the Constitution
10 that effect can be, in any way, secured
through any form OF action which Congress
could adopt at the present time.
MIR. Seward continued to speak on other
subjects, including the yetoes of the President
and sald that all three of these measures i'm
y hich the President declined to concur with
Congress are purely extraneous incidents and
nave no necessary or real bearing upon the
question of reconciliation.
ihlnk II may be now assumed that the Presi.
dent has neither sought nor made nor accepted
any occasion for disagreeing from Congress;
ana that, SO lar as the purely incidentally slegisa
uon 10 which have referred is concerned, he
is as loyal 10 its principles ..nd to the national
cause as Congress or any of Its members