The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-03-16

OAhCCs7 II 10 hO u6G ~
for the power in one case, aud deny the
power in the other. Allow all these
scoundrels to vote-and, as the gentle
man from Ohio has we'll said, some
men will take any kind of an oath; all
you have to do is to elect a rebel who
will disregard his Official oath (and then
he is perfectly eligible to any ottice) and
then in large portion of the counties
just as soon as this war is over If you
allow these men to vote, they will elect
rebels who will take the oath and as
soon as they get majority here, will
repeal every restriction you have i'm
posed on them.
Now, want the House distinctly to
understand, according to the argument
of the gentleman from Ohio, five have
a right to prescribe a further qualiiica-
ton of the right of man to hold Office
than that prescribed in the ConStitu-
tion, then we have the same right to
| prescribe the same Limitation upon his
| rightof voting. If we have no power
to prescribe any Limitation on his right
of holding office beyond that in the
Constitution; then we have no right to
prescribe any further limitation on his
right of voting. The two rights stand
precisely on the same ground, and 1t is
for this House to say whether or not
they will sanction the argument of the
gentleman from Ohio, defeat this bill,
anu .LlGltpYt Otl VIC
necessity, to be consistent, of going
back and repeating the act of 1868.
But what more have you done. You
have passed a law that every man
who has left his home and gone. into
the rebellion shall be deemed II non
resident of this State, and that law is
now in existence; and the bill now
under consideration does nothing more
than affirm the principles laid down by
that law. Under the argument oil
the gentleman from Ohio, that law is
unconstitutional, too; because if one OF
these persons does reside in the State, he
is citizen of the United States, and
you cannot declare him NONRESIDENT
ofthe State. Does anybody want to
have left their homes and gone into tile
rebellion and who are TO be deemed in
all legal proceedings non-residents OF
this State, come back and vote just as
if they were citizens?
What more have you done? You
have passed law for the forfeiture OF
rebel property. That law, under
by the gentleman from Ohio. And what
does that law do? 1t declares every
one of these parties public enemy. No
matter whether they are in this State or
out of it, il they are engaged in armed
hostility against the government of the
United States, they are declared by
this law TO be public enemies; and 1
would like the gentleman, in all his
logic, to show me why it is that the Leg
islature of West Virginia cannot de
clare public enemy of the State not to
be resident of the State within the
meaning of that portion of the consti-
tuition comforting the right of suffrage.
1t is most extraordinary argument for
learned gentleman of age and expe-
ltn. nl1in
have ever heard advanced in legis-
lntive body or elsewhere. They are
public enemies, denounced by the law
which he himself prepared and engi-
neered-deemed public enemies now,
henceforth and forever, until that law
is repealed declared to- be non-resi-
dents ofthe State of Virginia by anoth-
erlaw now in existence-declared to be
incapable of holding office, and ever2,
other person unUlIn ne LaKeS an oatn nOG
prescribed by the constitution at all,
THAT they have never been engaged in
armed rebellion, or in other words,
that they are not the persons denounced
by the act declaring them enemies of
this State.) But still our hands are tied
down so that we cannot prevent these
rascals FROM coming forth mt the cleo
tions and controlling the elective fran
chise of the State. Not tied down for
ANYTHING else: but we must allow these
gentlemen TO vote. Just let them vote,
and everything else you have done to
cut off the privileges of rebels, as mat
ter of course, goes by the board; for
tell you just as surely as the sun shines
in the heavens, stop this war in u short
time, let these men come back
and exercise the right of suffrage
and they will control counties enough in
this State to have Il majority of this
Legislature, and all the laws any way
affecting the prerogative of rebels will
be stricken from the statute book.
DON'T let any gentleman suppose that
because we cast unanimous votes for
Mr.. Lincoln, Gov. Boreman, or any
body else, in large portion of this
State, that that is the unanimous sentl-
ment of the people. Mr.. Speaker, that
is the sentiment of the loyal people :
itration-and there are five or six around
me precisely in the same situation-it
the vote was taken in the county of
iCabell to- morrow, and every rebel vo-
ted they would beat US more than five
hundred, with the persons now there.
They do not vote now. Let this war
stop SO they can with safety come to the
10 the election of Union men in that
county-nnd in great many others
that am personally acquainted with.
But the gentleman wants to let this
thing go on now. while the danger par
ticularly exists, and after it is all over
after the war is over and the rebels
are back again so they can all vote, he
wants to go to work and amend the
constitution! Apretty time that Is. "A
beautiful time to assemble convention
tn take up a constitution for the pUr-
nose of making amendments affecting
The rights of rebels, when the rebels are
ali here to vote for members to take
seats in that convention. am very
much like the old fellow from Ken
tucI5y irving man for murder, When
the fury retired some fellow on the
inrv said there was not evidence enough
10 convict him now, "but he has been
ruiIty of a great many other things,
and While we have him let's hang him. 7"
And, sir, am for excluding these reb-
els while we have the power 70 40 ~.
want to do it while we know we can DO
IL. and 1 tell you now if we do not do It
while we have the power, we never VIII
do it-just as sure as to-morroW's sun
will rise in the heavens.
But great deal is said, and very
feelingly by my friend from Ohio ABOUT
the rights" of these men. The rights
of these men! Sir, / am very much OF
the opinion of Parson Brownlow, and
that is, las he is parson i suppose l
can quote his language with propriety,)
he saws. in his opinion, a rebel has but
two rights: ''the one is to be hanged,
and the other is to be damned" And
that is very much my opinion. Talk
about the "rights'' of these men. Why
according to theirown story, they didn't
have any "rights" under the old Gov
ernment and the old Constitution. All
their Irights" were taken away; and in
order to get back their rights they took
up arms and went off into the repel
army after their ''rights." say let
them get them where they have gone 70
5,,ty 11f tha ,fsrrfslatllre of West Virginia