The Ebensburg Alleghanian. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1865-1871, 1866-08-16
Suffrage the True
Basis.

Referring to the proposed amendment
Of the National Constitution by which all
persons born or naturalized in the United
States and under their jurisdi ction are
made citizens thereof the Democrat of
Johnstown holds the following language /:
''If this amendment could De passed by
three-fourths of the States, every NEGRO in
Pennsylvania and in the United States
could vote, 'rould be eligible to office, set as
judges and enter the jury bor." OF the
Democrats editor has no grammar, We
will lend him one.) In endeavoring TO
give definition of the word citizen, 1t also
says he is "a person, native or natural
lied, leho has the privilege of exercising the
e1ectire franchise, or the qualifications rhicH
enable him to rote for rulers. Any one
who has Weoster's Dictionary car read
ily satisfy himself of the correctness of
this definition"
OF course all this attempt at logic is in
a vain endeaTor to create the appearance
that the extension of the ballot 70 persons
of African blood, is part of the platform
and teachings of the Republicans of
Pennsylvania. We are not in the habit,
as the Democrat seems to be, of compiling
our editorials from Webster's Dictionary,
but being referred TO such reputable
authority, we at once opened the pages of
our unabridged edition of '65 and found a
citizen to be thus described ga person.
native or natuIalized, who has the privil-
ege of voting for public officers, and who
is qualified to fill Offices in the gift of the
people also any natire born or natoralized
person of either sex who is entitled to
full protection in the exercise and enjoy
ment of the so-called private rights" We
felt that the Democrat mar had deceived
US, or was ignorant, or else had a very
old copy of Webster. So we hunted up
a Webster Of 80, and after fumbling a
moment through It's pages, We came across
the following "Citizen, n. In
the United States, a person, native or nat
uralized, who has the privilege of the
elective franchise, or the qualifications
which enable him to vote FOR rulers, and
to purchase and bold real estate" 1t was
hard to resist the conclusion that the
Democrat man is a fossil. 1t came to
memory, also, that about '52, cne Martin
Kosta, an Austrian BY birth, who had
declared his intention of becoming a citi-
zen of this country, was defended and
rescued in his person from the seizure of
Austria, because, as was maintained bv one
Daniel Webster, then Secretary of State,
he was, for all irtents and purposes, a
citizen of the United States. Yet he
could not hold Office, he could not vote.
Foolish mar, that Daniel Webster, aecor-
ding 10 the sage of the Democrat But
this thirteen year old definition describes
a citizen to be a person 0) who has the
privilege of the elective franchise, or %
the qualifications which enable him to
vote for rulers and to purchase and hold
real estate. Then according to the Dem
ocrat's pet deinition, citizens are composed
of two classcs-those who vote composing
the first class, and those who have the
qualifications to vote and hold property
composing the second class. The Demo
Gratis editor is citizen of the first Glass,
having the right of ballot not by any vir-
tue of his own, but By an accident of
BIRTH Under the second enumeration,
we suppose the Democrats man would
also be citizen, if it is taken for granted
that he has the qualifications to vote, just
as we take for granted that brave black
soldier who helped to storm Fort Wagner
has like qualifications. The Democrats
man may not like this, and may say that
as the black soldier does not vote, the
assumption is that he is not qualified to
vote. By a parity of reasoning, we say
sha. as the Democrats man does not hold
any real estate, he is not qualified to hold
any; and, therefore, under the second
enumeration, could not be citizen.