The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1867-06-05
General schofeld's Order as to the Dis
franchised.


franchised.
There is no room for doubt as to inc
meaning Of General ScHorIELp's order J.
regard TO the persons who are disfraneniSe"
by the reconstruction acts. Inc cons""o
ton which we placed upon it yesterday IL
undoubtedly the correct one. AS, now
ever, there are some persons who do not
clearly understand the order, we will ex-
plain its meaning more fully.
l. In the first paragraph Of the instruc-
tions General SCHorrELD states who are
voters-namely. all malestwenty-one years
old who are not disfranchised for partici-
patton in rebellion or for felony.
2. In the second he states what classes
Of these males are DISTINGUISHED. No one
is DISTINGUISHED unless he belongs to one
Of the classes named in the second para.
graph and so DESTROYS was General SCHo-
FIELD not to be misunderstood upon this
point that he inserted paragraph third for
no other purpose than to prevent misap-
prehension in this regard. 1t is as fol-
lows:
3. "No one is disfranchised for partici-
patton in rebellion unless he previously
held some one ofthe Offices above named"-
to wit, Offices under the United States Go
vernment, or member Of legislature, OF
an executive or judicial Office under State
government.
4. And as all who before the war held
office under the Federal Government and
all who were members Of our Legislature
before the war are disfranchised, If since
they have rebelled,) there was no further
explanation needed as to them, and SO the
order analytically and Systematically pro-
ceeds to tell us who are Executive and
judicial officers" There is nothing else
in paragraph fourth except list of eek
ecutive and judicial officers" The mayor.
recorder, and aldermen of cities and towns
are included among "judicial officers
not as municipal servants, but because, il
addition to their duties to the city, they
are in virt,ae oticit servants of the State
They are, in fact, just as much Judicial
officers as the justices of the county courts
and if they had not been included, com
plants would have been made of partially
No city official is diStranchiSed as such.
The members Of the Common Council, the
city sergeant, the city collector and asses
sor, the city auditor, and all city officers,
are properly and wisely excluded from the
list of the DISTINGUISHED. So also all mi
litia officers, sheriffs, commissioners Of the
revenue, constables, overseers Of the poor,
clerks of courts, commissioners in chance
ry, notaries public, members of secession
conventions, &C., &C., are voters.
5, 6, 7, s. Having specified the classes o.
persons who are disfranchiscd il they haue
engaged IN rebellion, General SCHOFIELD's
"eDgaging in rebellion" Accordingly, in
the next four paragraphs, he explains that
certain specified acts constitute "engag-
ing in rebellion" And these are the para
graphs which have misled many persons.
But these four paragraphs are merely eX-
panatory. They name the acts ,chich these
officers must hare done in order to disfran
chise even them. Even these officers are
not DISTINGUISHED because they held these
offices, but because, having held them
they afterwards engaged in rebellion. The
-, In. sans NH 1iI oyl
thereby "engaged in rebellion" not tina
they are thereby disfranchised. And So
undoubtedly they did. No one will ques-
ton that every man "engaged in rebel
lion who reformed the acts specified i'll
the order. But neither General SCHo-
FIELD nor any one else asserts that the mere
fact of having "engaged in rebellion " dis
franchises any one. He merely tells Us
what it is to have engaged in rebellion "
so that the officers specified may know
whether they are DISTINGUISHED. There is
no necessity for arguing this point. 1t is
really so plain that there should not be a
moments doubt upon the mind Of any
man. If, however, there had been any
ground for doubt, the sixth paragraph would
have removed it for i'll this General
SCHoFIELD declares that a man may have
held any Of these Offices before the war,
and may have held some of them during
the war, and yet not be disfranchised. We
can best explain his meaning by giving all
illustration: Judge MEREDITH held his
high Office before the war he continued
to be Judge after Virginia seeded; and
yet, says this order, he is not disfranchised
because he held this important office in the
seeded State, nor at all unless he per-
formed some one Of the other acts specified.
The functions of the Office of Judge were not
"of q nature to aid in prosecuting the
war;" and therefore neither Judge MERE
pITH nor Judge Lyons is DISTINGUISHED or
disqualified for holding a judgeship under
the reconstructed State government,
unless they have, besides being judges be-
fore the war and during the war done some
of the other acts which operate disiran-
chisement. And so of any other executive
or judicial office whose functions are of
the same peaceful kind.
The rest of the order will occasion no
dispute. We repeat what We said yester-
day that it is fair, impartial, and candid
exposition Of the reconstruction acts. Ii
will not disfranchise five thousand men in