The Greene County Republican. [volume] (Waynesburg, Pa.) 185?-1867, 1867-06-12

ly celebration has been given over at
Brownsville. The citizens Of Fayette
county will observe the day in the laying
OF the corner stone of the Soldiers Mon.
umept, at Uniontown.
THE OPINION OF THE ATTORNEY GEN.
ERAL.
The opinion of the Attorney, General
upon the clauses in the Reconstruction
Acts respecting the rights to vote and to
hold Office, has in itself evidence of its
necessity. for the questions which have
arisen need to be decided by the highest
executive authority. Else, says the N.
Y, Tribune. five military commanders
might make five different interpretations
Of law which needs to be uniformly
enforced IN the States in which it is ops
erative, Whether Mr.. Stansbery cor.
rectly defines the limits OF the law is an
other and important question, not fully
to be examined at present.
The Attorney General recitAs the pro.
visions Of tho law which affect the right
to vote and hold Office, and attempts to
define those classes who are entitled to
registration; the qualifications of resi-
dence and age are comparatively unim-
portant. OF chief interest is the extent
to which taking part in the rebellion ia a
disqualifS Sation from voting Mr.. Stans-
berry elaborately examines tho meaning
OF the act which excludes officers who
have taken part in the rebsllion. and de-
cides that officers Of the militia are not
included that the act does not apply to
municipal officers, and that with all those
who are not strictly State, Judicial or
Executive officers, the uncertain defini>
tion. which he contends exists in the law
must be construed in favor Of the voter
A vast body of officers, he asserts, are
not positively excluded by the law. The
disqualification based on the breaking of
the oath of office is the next subject of
the opinion which is given to this effect
that the disqualification is intended to
comprehend military as well as civil
officers, and to be more general in ap.
plicalion to United States officers than
to those of a State. Of more practical
Importance is the next qnestlon--whal
acts constitute the guilt Of engaging in
rebellion, or of giving comfort or aid to
the enemies OF The United States! Az
these acts are defined the number of
voters is to be restricted or enlarged -
Mr.. Stansbery advances the extraordi.
nary opinion, that the phrase 'enemies of
the United States should be confined
to what he asserts to be its legal mean.
ing VIZ foreign nations, and that only
such of those who gave aid and comfort
to Great Britain in 1912, and to Mexico
in l847, should be dlstranchised under
the clause. Yet he is mot quite prepar.
ed to say that Congress may no, have
used it as applicable tu the rebellion 1t
is we'll that he was not quite prepared to
make such decision, for it there is any.
thing clear and unnlstakable in the law.
it is that Congress meant absolutely the
enemies OF the United States who fought
at Gettysburg aud Atlanta, and not by
any means those who were defeated forty
years ago on the Lakes, or at Monterey
and Buena Vista. This meaning cannot
be escaped, and the Attorney General,
therefore, gives it weight. He would
not include In the disfranchised classes
those who were compelled to aid in Re.
bellion, consoripts, salves, and officers
who, in obedience to deJacto govern
ment, were concerned with the admins
tration of law. Purely owl and neces.
sary officers he cannot bring himself to
believe we're meant by Congress, and
upon this point the argument is very
full. We cannot say that the Attorney
General has stated his opinion very EN-.
phatically, or tersely, though for this he
may plead the alleged uncertainty and
vagueness Of the acts themselves But
tho drift Of his argument may be sum-
med up to he in his own words
The intent (ot the acts) as expressed, is
to enable the people of each of these
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 de.
scription TO the people generally, and
especially to those who have never en-.
joyed the right before.
There are other clauses of the act
which, by general terms, take away this
right of suffrage from those who always
enjoyed it. The rule of construction a.
to the clauses which give the right must
be liberal, and to them the general terms
are not to be restricted. but to those
clauses which derogate from the existing
right the rule of construction must be
strict. that none should be excluded who
are not clearly within the letter and in-
tent With this general construction
we are satisfied, but not with the special
opinion based upon 1t.
THE Republicans OF Lawrence county