Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-07-17
The Union aDestruction Bill'' n
. - HRnasad CnnRreaa.

The Union sDestraction Bill" as
II = 1T Passed Congress.
The following is full synopsis of the
bill agreed to by the body calling itself
Congress of the United States, introduced
and passed to prevent the States of the
South from having their just rights within
the Union.
1t has been sent to the President, and
Congress is but waiting to receive his veto
in order to pass it over his head, and, as
far as an unconstitutional act can be, to
make it the law of the land:
fgaa .ysi'a WASHINGTON, July 13, 1867.
Mr.. Stevens presented the report of the
Conference Committee on the reconstruc-
ton bill, which was agreed to. IT
| The following is the bill rs passed:
| SEC. /. That it is hereby declared to-
have been the true intent and meaning of
the act of March ID, 1867, that the Govern
ments then existing in the rebel States of
Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina,
Georgia; Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana,
Florida and Arkansas, were not legal State
Governments and that thereafter said Gov
ernments, if continued, were to be contiu-1
ued subject in all respects to the military
commanders ofthe respective districts. and
| SEC. 2. That the commanders of any dis
trict named in the said act shall have pow
er, subject to the approval of the General
of the armies of the United States, and
have effect till disapproved, whenever, in
the opinion of the commanders, the proper
administration of said act shall require it,
to suspend or remove from office, or from
the performance of official duties and the.
exercise of official powers, any officer or
person holding or exercising, or protesting
to hold or exercise, any civil or military
Office or duty in such district, under any
| power. election, appointment or authority
derived from or granted by, or claimed un--
der, any so-called State or the government
thereof, and, upon suspension or removal,
such commander, subject to the disapprov-
al of the General aforesaid, shall have the
power to provide from time to time for the
performance of said duties of such officer
or person so suspended or removed, by the
detail of some competent officer OF soldier
of the army, or by the appointment of some
other person to perform the same, and to
fill vacancies occasioned by death, resigna-
tion or otherwise.
| SEC. 3. The General of the army of the
United States shall be entrusted with all
the powers of suspension, removal or ap-
pointment granted in the preceding sec
| ton to the district commanders.
| SEC. 4. That the acts of the officers of
the army already done in removing in said
districts persons exercising the functions
of civil officers, and appointing others in
their stead, are hereby confirmed, provided
that any person heretofore or hereafter
appointed by any district commander to
exercise the functions of any civil office
may be removed, either by the military
officer i'll command of the district or by the
General of the army, and it shall be the
duty of such commander to remove from
office as aforesaid, all persons who are dis
loyal to the Government of the United
States, or who use their official influence in
| any manner to hinder, delay, prevent, or
obstruct the due and proper ADMINISTRATION
OF this act, and the acts to which it is sup
Elementary.
SEC. 5. That the boards of registration
provided for in the act entitled san act
supplementary to an act entitled an act to
provide for the more efficient Government
of the rebel States" passed March I'd. 1865,
and to facilitate registration, passed March
23d. 1867, shall have the power, and it shall
be their duty, before allowing the registra-
tion of any person, to ascertain, upon such
facts or information as they can obtain,
whe b such person is entitled to be regis
tered under said act, and the oath required
by said act shall not be conclusive on
such question, aud no person shall be reg
| istered unless such board shall decide that
he is entitled thereto, and such board shall
also have the power to examine, under
oath, to be administered by any member of
such board, and one touching the qualifi-
cation of any person claiming registration,
but, in every case of refusal by the board
to register an applicant, and in every case
| of striking his name from the list as here
| matter prescribed, the board shall make a
note or memorandum, which shall be re-
turned with the registration list to the
commanding general, for the ground of
such refusal or such striking from the list:
provided that no person shall be disguaifff-
ed as member of any Board of Registra-
ton, by reason OF race or color.
SEC. 6. That the true intent and meaning
of the oath prescribed In said supplement-
ary act is, among other things, that no per-
son who has been a member of the Legis-
lature of any State, or has held any eXecu-
tive or judicial office in any State, whether
he has taken an oath to support the Consti-
tuition of the United States, or not, and
whether he was holding such Office at the
commencement of the rebellion, or had
held it before, and who has afterwards en-
gagged in rebellion against the United
States, OF given aid and comfort to the en-
emies thereof, is entitled to be registered
or vote, and the words executive or ju
dicial Office in any State" in said oath
mentioned, shall be construed to include
all civil offices created by law for the ad-
ministration of any general law OF the State
or for the administration of justice.
| SEC. T. And be it further enacted, that
the time for completing the original regis
tration provided for in said act, may, in the
discretion of the commander of any dis
trict, be extended to the first day of OctO-
Der, 1867, aud the Boards of Registration
shall have power, and it shall be their
duty, commencing fourteen days prior to
any election under said act, and upon rea-
sonable public notice of the time and place
| thereof, TO revise, for period of five days,
the registration lists, and upon being salts
fed that any person not entitled thereto
has been registered, to strike the name of
such person from the list, and such person
shall not be allowed to vote, and such
Board shall also during the same period
add to such registry the names of all per-
sons who, at that time, possess the qualifi-
cations required by said act, who have not
been already registered, and no person
shall, at any time, be entitled to be regis
tered, or to vote, by reason of any EXecu-
tive pardon or amnesty for any act or thing
which, without such pardon or amnesty,
would disqualify him from registration or
voting.
Sec 8. That all members of said boards
of registration, and all persons hereafter
elected or appointed to office in said mill
tary district, under any so-called State OF
municipal authority, or by the detail or
appointment of the district commanders
shall be required to take and subscribe to
the oath OF office prescribed by law for the
officers of the United States.
Sec. y. That no district commander OF
member of the board of registration, or any
officer or appointee under them, shall be
:. bound in his action by any opinion of any
civil officer of the United States.
Sec. 10. That section four of said las
named act shall be constructed to authorize
the commanding General named therein
whenever he shall deem it needful, to re-
move any member of the board of registra
ton, and appoint another in his stead, anC
fill any vacanty in such board.
Sec. IL. That all provisions of this act ant
of the acts to which this is supplementary
2 shall be construed literally, to the end tina
all the intents thereof may be fully ant