The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1866-02-01
ARTICLE XIII.

SECTION l. Section of Article of the
Constitution of this State is hereby sc
amended as to axtend the elective fran.
chise to every male person, whether nat
uralized or not, and without regard to col
or, OF the age of twenty-one years, who
shall nave been a resident of this State si x
months, and of the county in which he
claims his vote sixty days, and who shall
have enlisted in any Of the military forces
offris State, and alter such enlistment shall
have been duly mustered into the military
service of the United States during the
war of the Great Rebellion, and shall have
served therein for period of one year and
been honorably discharged therefrom;
P'Orided, no idiot or insane person, or
person convicted of an Infamous crime,
shall be entitled to the privilege of an
elector.
SEC. 2. At no election held by the peo-
pie under the Constitution or i'm pursuance
of any law of this State, shall any person
be deemed a qualified voter and entitled to
the privileges of an etector who has ever
voluntarily been in armed hostility to the
| United States or to the lawful authorities
thereof: or has ever given aid, comfort,
countenance, or support to persons engag-
ed in such hostility; or has ever in any
manner, adhered to the enemies, foreign
! or domestic, of the United States; or has
ever disloyally held communication with
such enemies; or has ever advised or aid
ed any person to enter the service of such
enemies; Or has ever, except under over
powering compulsion, submitted to the
called aConiedderatee E States of America" :"
with the purpose of adhering to said arm
les; or has ever been a member of or con-
nected with any order, society or organi-
zation inimical to the Government of the
United States or of this State; or who has
| by reason of reasonable or disloyal acts
or sentiments. been disfranchsed by any
law of the State where such acts or senti-
ments were committed or expressed; or
has ever left or come into this State for the
purpose of avoiding enrolment for or
draft into the military service ofthe United
States. ...e..
SEC. 8. After the first day of January
one thousand eight hundred ana seventy
two, every person who was not qualified
voter prior to that time, shall, i'm addition
to the other qualifications required by
Section of Article of the New Constitu-
ton, be sble TO read in order to become a
qualified voter, unless his inability to read
shall be the testtft of physical disability;
but GtteF said date. no person shall ever be
excluded from the privileges Of an elector
merely on account of race, color or relig-
ion, nor shall the same ever be made a
test of the exercise of the elective fran
chise.
SEC. 4. Afieirr fhies first day of Jaruia,ir,y;
eighteen hundred and seventy-four, the
General Assembly shall have power, if a
majority of all the members elected con-
cur therein, to suspend or repeal any part
of the second section of this article. On
the passage of any act suspending or re-
pealing said section, or any part thereof,
the woes of both houses shall be taken by
yeas and nays and entered on their respec-
tive journals. ...... .....
Sec. 5. The General Assembly shall
pass all laws necessary to carry into effect
the provisions of this Article. s...
Resolred, That the foregoing proposed
Amendments be entered on the Journals of
the two houses, with the yeas and nays ta-
ken thereon, to be referred to the 18th Gen
eral Assembly, and that the Secretary Of
State be required to publish the same for
three months previous to the election of
the members of the said General Assem-
bly,, in one newspaper in each Senatorial
District OF this State in which there shall
be newspaper printed, and shall lay the
proof Of such publication befor the next
General Assembly. d. .. .f.H