Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1866-02-08
To the Honorable, the General Assembly
of the State of North Crroiin

Oft State Of North Carolina:
The undersigned, Committee appointed by the
late provisional Governor, in pursuance of reso-
luton passed at the recent session of the Conven
ton directing that committee of three persons
be appointed "to prepare and report to the Legis-
lature at its next session system of laws up
on the subject of freedmen, and to designate
such laws, and parts of laws, now in force, as
should be repealed in order to conform the statutes
of the State to the ordinance of the Convention
abolishing the institution Of slavery" have con-
sidered the matters intrusted to them and here
with submit, as their report, "a bill concerning
Negroes, Indians and persons of color, of mixed
blood ;; and also several other bills differing some
what in character, from that one,
The Committee, in presenting theirreport, deem
it proper that they should explain the course they
have pursued and to some extent, the reasons by
which they have been governed.
Prior to the emancipation of slaves there had
existed, in the State, three classes of population,
besides Indians towit: the whites, the slaves, and
the free negroes and for many purposes. there
existed special legislation for each class. Upon
the emancipation Of the slaves, the laws specially
respecting them, ceased to have any force and
that class fell under the laws respecting free
groes the political and civil condition of all the
colored population became that which had already
been established for the free negro. It became the
duty, therefore, of the Committee to look through
the entire body OF the laws of the State, for the
purpose Of ascertaining what part of them govern
ed the free negro as distinguished from the white
man. In performing this dnty your Committee
have deemed it the advisable course, las this
species of specialegisaton scattered through
ont the civil and criminal laws to advise the
peal of ell laws that specially affected the colored
race, and re-enact such as in their opinion ought
to exist and also to recommend other and origi-
nal legislation, when it was deemed expedlent--
Believing that brief synopsis of the several sec
tons of the first named BILL and also, of the other
bills, would not be unacceptable they proceed to
| furnish it
The first Section of the bill concerning negroes,
30, defines who shall be deemed negro or color
| ed person, or person of mixed blood, within the
generations designated.
The second declares that in all statutes and Judi
cial proceedings, such person shall be properly
described by the term ''person of color"
The third declares persons of color to be citizel
| Of the State
| The fourth confers On them all the privileges OF
white persons in conducting their SUITS and in the
mode of trial by jury.
The fifth places the colored apprentice on the same
footing with white one and leaves the law declar-
| ing in what cases they should be bound as it now
exists in the Revised Code.
By the sirth certain marriages, deemed to be not
void but voidable though celebrated in due form,
between slaves or between slaves and free negroes,
| are declared valid.
By The seventh, certain past marriages between
them, existing at certain fixed periods, by mere
consent and without due celebration, are validated
and provision made for perpetuating the evidence
| thereof by being recorded
By TIE eighth, iducements are held out to such as
are thus married under section Z, to have their
marriages recorded.
It has been held, that under our laws. the mar
rlages of slaves by their own consent and sim
ply consented to by their masters are void and, as
the Legislature is forbidden to legitimate persons
born in bastardy, the provision for such legitima-
/ ton, which was contained in ordinance offered
before, but rejected by the Convention, because
of the adoption of the resolution under which the
Committee are now reporting) must be Rgain sub
| mitted to that body, or the freedmen now living
will all be bastards, and incapable of inheriting
from their fathers any estate which he may chance
| to die possessed Of
| It is believed that marriage merely voidable
may be validated by the General Assembly and
that when thus confirmed all the incidents of rati-
cation follow; of which is the legitimation OF
| the issue previously born But, it is more than
doubted whether such result follows the enactment
! of q marriage under section Z.
! By the ninth section, contracts between persons of
color, and between them and whites for live stock,
are required to be in writing. The numerous
thefts of such species of property, in which the
whites and blacks associate together require this
provision as thereby the thief will be the more
certainly detected. The section also embraces
other contracts of certain value. And, one of
its main objects is to protect the colored person
| from imposition by cunning, and the white man
| from the effects of corrupt evidence.
| The tenth section makes void all marriages be-
tween WITHSTAND persons of color.
Section eeren allows persons of color to bear wit
ness where their rights of person property are
concerned. In respect of this action the Commit
tee will comment more at large hereafter.
Sections t,celre and thirteen require no comment
| By section fourteen the criminal code affecting
whita rarNOnR In eYtended 10 cOlored persona in