The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-08-07
- - 80

y A-NN~AS .lltAy44A1-AyE .Ns-EAsS u " I'm
worthy or unfit to receive and enjoy
| political rights, they shlll not be made
the basis for comforting political rights
4 and powers upon others.
Against this amendment the Demo
cratic party has PLACED itself In direct
opposition, Democratic members oi
Congress voted against it, and Demo
cratic politicians are misrepresenting it
all over the land. They demand that
no cpnshtuH amendment shall. be
passed until the eleven rebel States are
fully represented in Congress, when
they know full well no amendment can
be passed abrtdging the power of the
I South, imposing cond ditions upon rebels
1 or exacting security for the future.
They demand that South rebels shall
retain the enormous advantage they
now have, whereby each one OF them
Government than has a citizen of Indi-
ana, orany other Northern State, and
/ they demand it because these rebels
belong to their party, will vote their
| ticket, and assist them in getting into
power. 20 49,
NEGRO SUFFRAGE.
The first section of the amendment is
In these. words: la p&se
| LHAn persons born or uatnralized in the
/ United States, and subject to the Jurisdiction
thereof, are citizens OF the United States and
OF the states wherein they reside. No State
Hhau make or enforce any law which shall
ahrtdge the privileges or fmmunlties Of citi-
zens Of the United States; nor shall any State
ty without due proeess s 81 law. nor Ss aeSS Is
any person within its jurisdiction the equal
protection of its laws" ,sflis51sif7 -
The first clause of the section declares
who shall be citizens of the United
States, but does not add to their privi-
leges or immunities as citizens. It
gives no right, power or privilege to
citizens of the United States which they
have not always possessed. s,5ja
The first part of the second clause
prohibits any State from making or en-
forcing law which shall abridge the
privileges or immunities. of citizens of
the United States. Citizens of the Uni
ted States, as. such, though they may
not be the citizens of any State, have
certain great privileges or immunities,
which are not to be abridged or inter
fered with by the laws. of any State.
This has been done heretofore in many
cases, whereby great wrongs were in
tticted; and hence the necessity of this
provision.
The second part of the clause declares
that no State shall deprive any person
OF life, liberty or property without due
process of law, nor deny to any person
within its jurisdiction the equal pro-
lection Of the laws.
By this it is intended to throw the
equal protection of the law around
every person who may be within the
Jurisdiction of any State, whether citi-
zen or alien, and without regard to con-
dition or residence, not only as to life
and liberty, but also as to property. 1t
has happened in times past that several
of the Southern States Disseminated
against the citizens of other States, by
withholding the protection of the laws
for Life and liberty, and denying to
them the ordinary remedies in the
Courts for the vindlcation of their civil
rights, and hence the adoption of this
provision. 4
But 1t IS now being desperately argn-
ed, to redeem desperate cause, that
the first section of the amendment con-
ters the right OF suffrage upon negroes
In Indiana and every other State, I
confess my astonishment' that any re-
spectacle lawyer who has the slightest
regard for his legal reputation should
be willing TO commit himself to such a
proposition, and argue against the clear
meaning of the English language, and
the manifest spirit and purpose of the
amendment. They, might as we'll try
TO extract negro suffrage from the
Ninth commandment, which says,
NThou shalt not bear false witness
against thy neighbour" and in fact, I
commend these gentlemen to the par
tlcnlar study of that commandment
1t is one of the most fragrant and inn
upon the public mind of which have
any knowledge, and should be held
up to general execration and contempt.
And so shameless is it that Judge Per-
kins, in communication published
only last week, in referring to this sub
ject uses the following language:
MCDONALD seeks 70 nun the campaign on
ment to the Constitution confam negro sun.
rage, but that Is plainly a false proposition,
and one on which defeat must of course re-
suit. The proposed amendment does not
confer negro suttfage.a
Whether he correctly represents Mr..
Mcdonald lam unable TO say, asI am
not familiar with his speeches but it is
very certain that he Justly denounces
the shallow pretence that this section
confers negro suffrage.
1t is as we'll settled as any other
proposition. connected with constitu-
tionall law, thata person may be citi-
zen of the United States, and yet not a
citizen of any State. The man of for
eign birth may be naturalized by the
Courts, and thus made q citizen of the
United States, although he is not cit
iZen of any States and native born
person may lose his residence and citi-
zenship I'M one State, andJfor a long
time fail to acquire themiin any other:
ably citizen ofthe United States.
AS to what constitutes citizenship in
a State, depends upon its constitution
and laws. The conditions are different
in different States.
It is from the first part of the second
clause of the section, which says s'that
no State shall make or enforce any law
which shall abridge the priH lleges i'm
munitieS of citizens of the United
States, y that it is pretended to- extract
negro suffrage. Now ifthe right ofsuf-
frage is q privilege or immunity be-
longing to citizens of the United States,
as such, then these segentlemen'arer right:
but II, onithe other hand, the right OF
suffrage is conferred, regulated, be.
slowed or withheld, by the several
States, then tits not a privilege of inn
munityi of citizens of the United States,
as such, and there Is no logic or truth
in their position. Nor is the right of.
Suffrage an Immunity or privilege be-
longing to the citizens of State, as
such, but is conferred upon such citf-
2ens as the Constitution and laws there
of prescribe. Women and chfldfen are
citizens of the State, but have not the
right of suffrage. II the right OF suE-
frage Is privilege or ofimmdnity OF cit
izens of the Omitted States; asiauch, then
itshas always been so, for the aInend-
ment only dehnesswho shall be e:citizeis
of the United States, but does not COM
fer new privileges or itnmunities. and
in that case would always have been
under the CONTROL of Congress, and not
OF the States. sss - S z
That the right Of ufrage is conferred
and regulated by the States exclusive
", Is q, ,proposittont too well understood
to be argued here, and springs directly
from pEoyisipns in the Constitution OF
the United States. Citizens of the