The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1867-02-27
REooNsTRUcTIoNl
PLAN PROPOSED BY THE CONGRESS
OF THE UNITED sTATES!!
The Bill asst finally passed Congress.

The following is correct copy of the act
"to provide for the more efficient govern
ment of the rebel States" as it passed:
WHEREAS, no legal State governments or ade-
| quate protection tor life or property now exists
in the rebel States of Virginia, North. Carolina,
| South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana
Florida, Texas, Mississippi and Arkansas and
whereas,itis necessary that peace and good order
should be enforced in said States until loyal and
republican State governments can be legally es>
tablished; therefore,
Be it enacted By tie Senate and House of Repre-
sentatiyes Of the United States Of America in Con-
gress assembled, That said rebel States shall
| be divided into military districts, and made SUBJ
ject to the military authority ofthe United States
| as hereinafter prescribed, and for that purpose
Virginia shall constitute the first district; North
| Carolina and SouthCarolina the second district;
| Georgia, Alabama and Florida the third district
! Mississippi and Arkansas the fourth district and
Louisiana and Texas the fifth district.
SEC. q indie it further enacted That it shall
be the duty of the President TO assign to the COM
| mand OF each Of said districts an officer of the
| army not below the rank of brigadier general,
and to detail sufficient military force to enable
| such officer to perform his duties and enforce
his authority within the district TO which he is
| assigned.
shall be the duty of each officer assigned as afore
said to protect all persons in their rights of per-
son and property, to suppress insurrection, dis
| ORDER and violence, and to punish or cause to be
punished all dsturbers of the public peace and
criminals and to this end he may allow local
civil tribunals to take jurisdiction of and try
| offenders, or when in hi~ judgment it may be
necessary for the trial of Offenders he shall have
power to organize military commissions or tri-
bunals for that purpose and all interference
under color of State authority with the eXer-
else of military authority under this act shall be
null and void.
SEC 4. And be it further enacted, That all
| persons put under military arrest by virtue OF
this act shall be tried without unnecessary delay,
and no cruel or unsual punishment shall be III
flicted and no sentence of any military COM
mission or tribunal hereby authorized, affecting
the life or liberty of any person, shall be execu.
ted until it is approved by the officer in command
of the district; and the laws and regulations for
the government of the army shall not be affected
by this act, except in so far as they may conflict
with its provisions Provided That no sentence
of death under the provisions of this act shall be
carried into effect without the approval OF the
President
SEC. 5. and be it. further enacted, That when
the people of any one of the aforesaid rebel States
shall have formed a constitution of government
in conformity with the Constitution of the
United States in all respects, framed by a
convention of delegates elected by the male
citizens of said State twenty-One years old and
| upward, of whatever race, color, or previous
condition, who have been resident in said State
for year previous to the day OF such election,
except such as may be DISTINGUISHED for partici-
patton in the rebellion or for felony at common
| law; and when such constitution shall provide
that the elective franchise shall be enjoyed by all
such persons as have the qualifications herein
stated for election of delegates and when such
constitution shall be ratified by majority of the
persons voting on the question Of ratification who
are qualified as electors for delegates, and when
such constitution shall have been submitted to
| Congress for examination and approval, and
Congress shall have approved the same; and
when said State by vote ofits Legislature elect
ed under said constitution shall have adopted the
amendment to the Constitution OF the United
States proposed by the Thirty Ninth Congress,
and known as article IA, and when said article
shall have become a part of the Constitution OF
the United States said State shall be declared en-
titled to representation in Congress, and Senators
and Representatives shall be admitted therefrom
on their taking the oath prescribed by law, and
then and thereafter the preceding sections OF
tits act shall be imperative in said State: POvi
! dea, That no person excluded from the privilege
!, of holding office by said proposed amendment to
the Constitution of the United States shall be
eligible to election as member OF the convention
to frame constitution for any of said rebel
,, States, nor shall any such person vote for men-
bcrs of said convention.
SEC g. And be it further enacted, That until
the people of said rebel States shall be, by law, adj
| mittcd to representation in the Congress OF the
= | United States any civil governments which may
=
and in all respects subj ect to the paramount au-
thority of the United States at any time to abol-
ish modifvFcontrol or supersede the same and
in all elections to any office under such proyls-
ional governments all persons shall be entitled to
p | vote and none other, who are entitled to vote
under the provisions of the fifth section of this
act and no person shall be eligible to any office
!. ! under any such provisional governments who
I would be disqualified from holding office under
the provisions of the third article OF said consti-
| tutiOnal amendment.
The following editorial comments, taken
from the N. Y. Tribune of the 21st inst, ex-
:. planatory of the above bill, is hereto ap-
1 pended:
"Tbc immediate responsibility now rests with
!, the President, and after him with the Southern
States. He may veto the bill, and they may re-
!, fuse its offers. But should II become law, inc
d effects will be these:
I. The Rebel States will retain their present
:. | governments, but merely as provisional govern.
+ | ments, under which no person who, as the third
! section of the Constitutional Amendment enacts,
"haying taken an oath as member OF Congress,
or as an officer of the United States, or as mem
; Der of any State Legislature, or as an executive
, or iudicial officer of any State, to support the
6 Constitution of the United States" shall have
aided the Rebellion, is eligible to office. And
| also under such governments no dlscrmlnatlor
in regard to color shall be made in the elective
Franchise.
tn. While these provisional governments exist
the Rebel States are to be divided into military
Districts governed by officers of the army, witt
power to organize military courts superior to
State authority.
iii. The people of the Rebel States, whenever
they are tired of this government, may, by a vote
of an their citizens without respect to color, ex
cent those disqualified from holding office by the
Il Constitutional Amendment, elect delegates to {
n | Convention to form State Constitutions. When
these Constitutions are established upon the basi;
of impartial suffrage, and are ratified by the PEG
| nile. and when the States thus organized have
adopted the Constitutional Amendment, they
shall be admitted to representation in Congress
Il when military rule will cease, and South Carolln'
:. and Texas will hold the same places in thu
- Union as New York and Massachusetts, Nor il
there want of cause to hope that this result ma.
II soon be reached for those provisions of the bill
2 | which at once establish Impartial Suffrage max
! the Freedmen equal participants in the work"
r. The Sd section of the Howard Amend
It ment referred to above, is as follows:
c Sec. g. No person shall be Senator or Rep
It resentative in Congress, or eector OF Presiden
4 and Vice President, or hold any Office civil o.
! military, under the United States, or under an.
'. State, who, having previously taken an oath as
member of Congress, or as an 0ffcer OF TN
&c United States, or rs member of any State legis
Al lature or as an executive orjudicia officer oil an
Il | State to support the constitution OF the Unlte
y States, shalt have engaged in insurrection or re
L belion against the same, or given aid or comfor
S, to the enemies thereof. But Congress may by
u vote of two-thirds OF each House, remove sue
d disability.
Poor Crawford!