The Daily clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1866-1888, 1867-05-29

bereiubefOre stated. ana nTsl as " liz "a
clause declaring disfranchlsement- 1ne nlth
| section of the original act denies the rlSnt 10
| vote n such as NAV be DISTINGUISHED for par
tieipation in rebellion, or for 1eiony At cohV o
! law. The words = IN the rebtlioh hiut
| taken to mean recent rebellion; put uLc supPIc
/ mental act enlarged the dIsquallhcatlon anu
requires the applicant to swear lhat ne nas my
been disfranchil ed for participation IN an re-
belion civil war against tile M Is2vs Of
| nor for felony committed against Ine 1--WE VI
| any state or the United States. W nat theh,
| works disfranchisement under tlts9 pi Pr
| ious2 Whether we consider TINS qistDi'lty d
arising from participation III reoelloll ol 'oLE i
| oission of felony the mere fact of such pdrtl-
| ciDation or commission OF 1eloIlous OnehsT-
does not of itself work dlsfranchls6hle II
must be ascertained by judgment OF couht VI
legislative act passed by competent authority:
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT for felony committed against
laws of State or the United states, consequent
an A conviction in coui Is either OF the Unl'eu
States or of a State. or declared by laws OF
either would be fatal under these acts. 1 am
not aware of any law of the United states
which works disfranchisement as 10 rlght ol
suffrage by force of act itself, nor does sucn
consequences follow II ON conflctlohI'I tie">on
or conspiracy to commit treason. or Tor any
other act of participation IN reDtllloP: lhG
provision In the Constitution OF the Uhiteu
states as to treason against the Uhlteu 0tates'
does not declare what shall be punishment on
conviction of treason-that is left for congress,
with limitation that corruption OF blood shal
not follow as consequence, or any forfeiture
QXcpnt
ercise of its power to declare punishment, mas
limited such punishment, as consequence, 10
conviction. to penalty of death or imprisonment
freedom of slaves of party, and 10 dis quaIlnca-
ton from holding any once uhdef the Cnlte 5
states. | am not advised of any statute now
in force in either of these ten States, except,
perhaps, Virginia, which declares dlSIran-
chiseuent a. to the right of suffrage by force OF
| the act itself The fourth and fifth sections
| NAV be considered together. The party apply
| inc for registration must swear that. : have
@.iever been member of any state leglsiat ure,
-Eaor held any executive or judicial once IN any
| State and afterwards engaged in in4lrrection
| or rebellion against the United Statessor given
aid or comfort to the enemies thereof; that L
| have never taken an oath as member of Con-
| gress of the United States, or as an ofhcer OF
| the United States, or as a member OF any state
legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer
| of any State to support the Cor stitutlon OF the
| United States, and afterwards engaged IN IN
| surrectiOn or rebellion against the United
States or given aid or comfort TO enemies there
off, These clauses of oath in effect extend dis
| reimbursement beyond the provisions of the
| original act, and, the prior clauses OF the
| oath itself in the important particular that
| neither conviction nor judgment OF court, nor
| an express legislative enactment is required 10
| establish the tact of disfranchiSement III
| legal parlance. Dsfranchisements under
| the clauses of the oath, results from matters in
| DOiS. In one respect these clauses limit the
generality of the original act as to disfranchi Sc
ment; the original act c0ntemplates dlsiran-
| belIion. whereas disfranchisement under these
| clauses do not arise from participation in re-
| bellion alone, but other elements must concur;
! that is to say, holding certain offices or taking
official oath by certain officers, and afterwards
| participating in rebellion against the United
| States. Consideration of the two clauses leads
! to two distinct subjects matter of inquiry:
| First what offices or officers are pretended
| Second what acts amount to engaging iii inSur
| rection or rebellion against the United SSateS
| or giving aid or comfort to the enemies thereof
| / will first consider what offices OF officers are
| comprehended. AS to some OF the officers there
| is no room for dOubt-members Of State Legis-
| latures aud members of Congress are clearly
| enough designated. Question might, however
| arise whether convention held in state for
| framing amending its constitution would
| answer to the description of State Legislature
| within the meaning of the act. Such cOnven-
| ton, although clothed with legislative power,
| cannot properly be denomrnated a State Leg
! islature, and in the acts now under considera-
| ton a convention and Legislature are express
| Nv distinguished from each other, for they re-
| quire the constitution to be framed by a con-
| vention; they require the Legislature of the
| same State to adopt the constitutional amend
| ment. When then, in the same acts they again
| use the phrase Legislature of the State, they
! must be understood to use it in The same sense,
| and as distinguished from IA constitutional con-
| Vention, but to those legislative bodies
| which passed what are called ordinances of
| secession. or by whatever name they NAV have
| been callet, am OF OPINION lhat tne nitiIIpTrs
atS mo clause, for oan ir1a;,,o 20
| official legislative position in which the duty
| of allegiance was more distinctly violated.
| Next and more difficult inquiry Is who is to
| be considered officer of the United States. or
| executive or Judicial officer of any State within
! meaning of these clauses. Various classes of
| officers are here intended-State officers and
| Federal officers, and executive and judicial
| Officers-no legislative officer is mentioned eX-
cept member ofthe State Legislature or mcm-
! Der Congress-. The descriptions used as TO
| other offices are to State Ottcers-that Judi
| cial are not eXprt ssed. He is described simply
| as an officer of the United States. 1t has been
| shown that FcGcral officers and State officers
| are classified separately in clauses of the act
! under consideration. | deem it profitable and
conducive to clear order to follow this elias
slficatlon. L shall accordingly first consider
| what State officers are included in the terms
executive judicial. This phrase is twice
used in these clauses, with the superadded
| description in any State i'll the first clause and
of any State in second clause | think the
controlling term of description, if there is any
| ambiguity i'll the terms, must be taken to be
! the last, for that is used in the most eompre-
! hensive clause as to the very officers named in
in the first clause, and to others besides. 1t is
the same term of description used in the act
of Congress of 1879, declaring that State officers
are required to take oath to support the Con-
| stitution of the United States, and in the third
| section of the constitutional amenument: both
| use the same terms of descriptlon-eXecutive
and judicial officers of q State. The terms are
| so general and indefinite that they fail to eX-
| press with Suftlclent certainty the description
| of persons which are intended to be reached.
| 1t is to be regretted, in matter of so much
| importance, that the rule of designation adopt
| ed as to members of Congress and State legis-
| latures had not been followed up; or, if that
were found impracticable, some more deiin-
| lite general rules had not been declared. The
uncertainty becomes manifest in application Of
| law, and this uncertainty necesstates cor
structions. The necessity for constructions
which arises from the generality of the law
could not be better stated than in the language
| of Plowden Though the words be general
they are to be reduced to PARTICULARLY by eX-
| position made according to the intent of the
| act. Those statutes which comprehend all
things in the letter, the usages of law have ex-
pounded to extend but to some things; those
! which generally prohibit all people from doing
| such an act they have interpreted to permit
| some persons to do it, and those which include
| every person in the letter, they have adjud@ed
! to reach some persons only; all being founded
| on the intent. collected by considering the
| cause and necessity of the act, and comparing
| one part with another, sometimes by foreign
/ circumstances deem it proper place to fix
| some clear ideas of the general intent of these
| acts. and by what rule of conclusion-strict or
| liberal-that intent may best be arrived at.
| The intent, as expressed, is to enable the peO-
pie of each of the States to frame constitution
| for the State, by the exercise of the right OF
| suffrage. There are clauses of the act giving
the right by general terms of description TO the
! people generally, and especially to those who
! have never pujOVpd the ripht bnf,ro Tbara