Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1867-09-10

and liberties to the arbitrary will of a Con-
gressional majority who advocate as 10y
atty roa0 what they denounced as treason
through. the war; st ro
A striking illustration of this moral OBJ
liquity recently came within my observa-
tion in West Virginia, where the dominant
party has passed a registration law which
places the control of the elective franchise
entirely in the hands of Boards of Regis
tration appointed by the Governor in each
county, who can on the pretext of disloy-
atty reject any voter they please.
The test made practically is not what the
elector has been during the War, but will
he support our party ticket. Under this
test at the registration last spring in Har-
Iper's Ferry, jefferson county, s. v. Yantis,
E>q., consistent Union man from the
start through the War, an active supporter
of the formation of the State of West Vir-
ginia, a former member of her Legislature,
the confidential adviser of the military
during the occupancy of the town, and a
business agent OF Judge N. Fl. Swayne. of
the Supreme Court of the United States,
was excluded from registering as voter,
because he would not go with the Govern
or Boreman faction and was opposed to
negro suffrage; while one Reinhard, a
Major in the rebel service, was permitted to
vote, because, as one OF the Radical leaders
expressed it, "he is now right on our tick
et." This, too, in State where the regis
tration oath enacted by the Legislature in
February, 1866, provides that the voter
shall swear not only to support the Gov
ernment of West Virginia, but the reor-
ganized Government of the State of Vir-
ginia, on the legal recognition of which the
very existence of the new State depends,
as only by the consent of the Government
of Virginia, could the State have been di-
vided, and that is ackno wledged in the act
of admission. Yet this same faction which
enacted the registration oath, now Joined
with Congress in denying that there was
any legal Government in the State of Vir-
ginia, in violation of their own test oath.
Oh, loyalty, how many crimes and perju-
ries are committed in thy nsmel
Another illustration of loyal consis-
tency is afforded in the denunciation
of President johnson for adhering to
the Lincoln policy of reconstruction
and refusing change of base at the
dictation ofleaders. The reorganized Gov
ernment of Louisiana was gotten up
through the agency of General Banks
Wells was elected Lieutenant Governor and
afterwards became Governor. Hehad been
a Union planter in Rapides parish, zeal
Gus emancipationist refugee, who had lost
his property for. his adhesion to the Union,
ecen Negro Suffrageite, and yet he is dis
loyal now for Radical purposes. and General
Sheridan supersedes him by Flanders, one
of Chase's shoddy treasury agents, noto-
rious chiefly for doubtful cotton operations
during the war, and his defeat as the anti
Lincoln-Chase candidate for Governor du-
ring the military occupation OF New Or
leans. The fact is that the fight inaugura-
ted is revival of the old feud between the
contending factions of the Unionists, one
OF whom is using Sheridan to enable it to
control the disbursement of $4OOOOOO-a
levee fund. Sheridan's mixing himself in
saeh a quarrel, which has nothing to do,
even with military reconstruction, is prima
facie proofof mere will to exersise arbi-
trary power, because he could, as was once
evidenced by his hanging up a negro bar
Der all day in tree near his headquarters
at Winchester, because he did not immedi-
ately drop the shaving of volunteer officers
with whom he was occupied to accommo-
date his ''little highness" by coming forth
with to his quarters.
The registration now going on az the
South develops further the settled purpose
of the Jacobin faction to hold office at all
hazards, else how is it to be explained that
louisiana with population by the census
of 1860 of 350,000 negroes, 1000 whites,
registers $1,000 black to $4,000 white
voters, unless on the same honest principle
by which Washington City, with popula-
tioa OF 10000 negroes, and 100000 whites,
registers nearly an equal number of white
and black voters. A more stupendous sys-
tenn of fraudulently depriving the people
of the aohole country of the 1uture political
control of their own government was never
devised. The attack is made on the very
foundation of our political system by turn
ing over the ballot-box to be manipulated
and made to return aolateuer military satraps
backed by corrupt politicians may desire.
Do the people look to the establishment of
negro supremacy in half dozen States by
the bayonet, and the practical exclusion of
white immigration therefrom as the chief
result of the war tor the Union Are New
Orleans, Richmond, Charleston, and the
chief marts of commerce of the great sta
pies of the country to cease to be controlled
by the energetic and intelligent white race,
to be plundered by needy adventures play
ing on the ignorance of the former slaves?
Great political capital was made on the cry
that 100000 shareholders held the balance
of power in the Government How will it
be helped by establishing an oligarchy- of
a few self styled white loyalists to enter
the political market with 100000 negro
votes? Of course this power will be sold
out to the shoddy and bondholding aristoc-
racy, who expect to fatten the next CEN
tury by the perpetuation of system of un-
equal taxation and class bounties.
Fortunately the increase of the whites
ultimately, and the inevitable disappear
ance of the negro before the advancement
of a superior civilization, will finally up
turn this well laid scheme for holding
present political power.
The pretended zeal for human rights and
the love of universal suffrage has nothing
to do with this Radical project, for in the
State of Rhode Island, controlled by Sen
ator Sprague, the son-in-law of the Radical
Magnus Apollo, no effort is made to en-
franchise the 5000 foreign voters who are
cut off by the qualification requiring real
estate freehold amounting to one hundred
and thirty-four dollars When the Irish