The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-01-22
President johnson and the Negro Suffrage
Bill in Congress.

From He Herald.
The bill striking out the word "white" from
the election laws of the District of Columbia,
and thus, in effect, comforting the right of suf-
frage upon all the negroes in the District, without
distinction, limit, or qualification has passed the
House of Representatives by a two thirds vote
This bill may be designed merely to frighten the
President from the position which he has taken
upon the reconstruction question, and the fact
that Mr.. Raymond, of New York, has moved a
reconsideration, gives some slight pausibility to
the idea. If such be the design OF the radicals
it will prove failure. The President is not TO
be frightened and coerced. On the other hand,
if the bill is to be seriously pressed to its
final passage by the Senate, in our view
or the Constitution, its adoption will be per-
tectly legal under the recent Constit ution al
amendment. That amendment places the freed
negroes in the position OF foreign immigrants
so far as the right of suffrage is concerned. Con-
gress has always had charge of the subject of
naturalization, which conters the privilege of
voting upon class OF people who cannot pos
sess it except at the option OF Congress- In the
same way the recent Constitutional amendment
authorizes Congress to pass laws securing 10 the
freed negroes the benefits of freedom, aud if
Congress sees fit to pass negroSufirage law
embracing all the States as well as the District
OF Columbia, we believe that no legal objection
can be raised which the Supreme Court will
not overrule. The question of negro suffrage is
| therefore, net one OF legality but of expedi-
ency. As such the President and the country
will doubtless consider it.
Whether a twothIds vote for the House bill
can be relied upon in the Senate is disputed
point. Should that vote be cast it will, of
course, be useless Tor the President to veto the
bill, since the. same vote can pass it over his
veto at any time In that case he will proba
| bly, return the bill without his signature, thus
| throwing the whole responsibility upon Con-
gress, and leaving the members to explain
| their action to their constituents as they best
can. But II the bill should pass the Senate
without tWo-thirds vote we predict that the
| President will veto It, In his veto message he
will state his position in regard to negro suf-
| trage, and as he understands the whole subject
very thoroughly, having been born and edu-
Gated among the non-slaVehol0ing whites of the
| South, the country will await this exposition
with the greatest interest. The President NAV
be opposed to negro suffrage upon the ground of
neXpediency; he may be in favor of granting
| the right of suffrage to the negroes under a
property qualification, as in New York; he
| may suggest an educational limitation or he
| nay hold that onlS those negroes who served
| in our army during the recent Rebellion should
be admitted az partners with the whites in the
government OF the republic We do not pre-
| tend to define his exact views upon the sub
| ieet; but sIill we venture the prediction that
| his veto viii promptly follow the passage of
the House bill by the Senate unless that psssape
| tween the PIeslenT and the radicals will then
| be clearly and Enthusiastically marked, and the
| people will nave 20 decide between them. We
| believe that the Leople are with the President,
/ and that the thousands who are claimed by the
| radicals as ardent supporters OF negro SUI
| mage law, unconditional and universal, are lust
| as mythical those thousands of aboi-
| ton solSlers whn according 10 Governors
Andrew and Yalcs, were to crowd the
highways and bywGys as soon as the eman-
cipation proclamation was Issued but who
could never be discovered bv the Government,
sven aitsT repeated crafts, We are quite ready,