The Portland daily press., 1867-01-10

Representatives last week, on the bill offere,
by Mr.. Stevens Of Pennsylvania, for restorin.
the States lately in insurrection to their full
political rights, Mr.. Pike of Maine said tn
time had now arrived for action, and for ON
he was ready to act. After criticising tn,
Presidents plan and the plan of simple exclu
sion till the unrepresented States shall see fl
10 ratify the constitutional amendment AMI
provide for negro suffrage, Mr.. Pike proceeded
as follows:
The present governments seem to have
been the offspring Of the military authority o
the Executive. l see by the newspapers thai
Judge Ruffin, of North Carolina, pronounce.
the present government of the State illegal be
cause the Presidents authority over the
States has ceased by the advent OF peace, and
also because the conventions were called b,
Nun Tor special purposes, and when these
things he required were done they were fttnc-
tus oUiciO. Neither rebels or loyal men Oh
even the democratic party indorse the Presi.
dents action.
1t is clear that the President has no author
lty to create State. II, as he says, he found
the rebel States destitute OF all civil govern
ment," he should have appealed to the law
making power to carry into effect that great
clause OF the Constitution guarantying gov
ernments to the States.
And the governments so established have
failed. Complaints are made to us from loyal
men in all those States, aud we are urged to
mterpose and protect the property and per-
sons OF citizens of the United States not now
safe, or rather entirely at the mercy of the
prevailing lawlessness. The memorial of the
loyal men OF those States exhibits state OF
things which should call for the Intervention
OF Congress ii the statements are true,
Ihe reports OF officers In charge of the de-
partMents In which those States are situated
confirm the statements. General Sheridan
in his report to General Grant last month,
says: -
But justice is not done. To give YOU an in
stance OF this, two soldiers were shot at Bren.
nam, Iexas, about two months ago; they were
unarmea and offered no provocation. The
grand jury could find no bill against their
would-be assassins, but found q bill against
Brevet Major Smith, seventeenth infantry, be
cause he broke into the house of some citizen
In his attempt to arrest these men. NJ
MY own opinion is that the trial of a white
man for the murder of a freedman in Texas.
would be a farce, and in making this state,
ment make it because truth compels me, and
for no other reason.
During the last six months Indian depreda-
tons have taken place on the remote frontier
AAcAk CAsCht 10 Aot ucnueu dS YET, DuC -leV are
not very alarming, and I think that the Gov
ernor has to some extent been influenced by
exaggerated reports gotten up in some instan-
ces by frontier people to get market for their
produce, and in other instances by army con-
tractors to make money, T1
have ordered two regiments of cavalry tn
the frontier and placed a regiment of infantry
at Austin, to be moved if necessary =
1t is strange that over a white man killed
py Indians on an extensive frontier the great
est excitement will take place, but over the
kIn1ng OF many freedmen in the settlements
nothing is done. l cannot help but see this
and cannot help but tell it to my superiors
no matter how unpleasant it may be to the
authorities Of Texas y -
His statement OF the murder of soldiers Is
paralleled by that in South Carolina. where the
murderers Of three soldiers on the Savannah
river in 1865 go at large and no attemot Is
made to punish them. The curt has decided
that iitary commissions have no authority
and the civil authorities are indisposed.
General Sickles gives a better account of
South Carolina, but he says of some parts of
it:
In some parts of Barnwell, Edgefeld. New
berry, Chester, Laurens, and Rfchland dis
tricts, (countiesD in South Carolina, q freed
man has little security tor life, limb, or prop
erty apart from the presence and protection Of
agarrlson OF United States troops. There are
other districts in the western part of South
Carolina where the same insecurity exists
The truth is, that in certain localities OF these
States personal encounters, assaults and diff
hculties between citizens, often resulting in Sc
rious wounds and death, have for years occurr-
ed without the serious notice or action of the
civil authorities; and in those neighborboods
where 1t has heretofore seemed to the popula-
uon ohcious to arrest and punish citizens for
assault upon each other they can hardly he ex
pected to yield with any grace to arrests for
assaults and outrages upon negroes. 1t is pre-
cisely in these localities that the most inna
tience is displayed at the presence of rarri-
son, because people who have long violated
civil law with impunity dislike martial law or
any other law that is enforced.
I am informed at the Freedmen's Bureau
that in Georgia during the last year there have
been about one hundred and fifty murders of
freedmen and not single punishment The
WATSON case In Virginia indicates the state
OF public opinion there.
1t is useless to go into details. The state
ments could be duplicated almost everywhere
in the rebel States.
Besides this insecurity of life and property.
these present governments have ostracised q
large fraction of the loyal citizens of those
States In two States, and perhaps more. a
majority Of the whole population Is SO ostra-
elsed. Black men are in the same condition
politically, now that they are citizens, as they
used to be when they were slaves.
Certainly, if ever the United States. IN the
language OF the Constitution, were called m
on to intervene, it would be for the relief of
American citizens so situated. That clause
In the Constitution is but dead letter II II
will not apply now.
And l should hardly be willing to wait for
decision of the Supreme Court affirming the
authority of Congress before we act. [ no.
tice that decision is threatened against sucb
action. don't know that it is improbable.
But the court should recollect that it has had
bad luck with its political decisions. The peo-
pie OF this country have thus far preferred
to govern themselves, and let the court at
tend to its law business. Both its great NO
litical opinions have been reversed on appeal
TO the ballot box, and the general opinion of
the bar of the country follows the popular
verdict rather than the judicial decisions. |
Inc Constitution, by furnishing Congress
with mode OF getting rid OF both President |
and court, evidently intended to make If
master OF the situation" OF course lis nj.
innate powers are not to be exercised upon
slight occasions. But the questions with
which we have now to deal, embrace in their |
scope the well being of large portion of the |
;ountry, anu one fourth the entire population. |
a. as an industrial and political question we
ng this Congress. Having determined tbe |
proper thing to be done, it IS the manifest dn-
" OF congress 10 take all the CONSTITUTIONAL
Methods within its power to compass II.
And know nothing that promises so good
result as 10 re-organize one or more of the
nsurrectionary States. Perhaps it wonld he |
wise now to make the attempt in such states |
IS oifer the best opportunities for success. a |
general Dill, embracing the whole present diE |
lcutles In Its execution, which would bid fair
20 shipwreck the attempt. Better allow a
part 10 await future de- elopments getting
along meantime as best they may.
Nor do see the wit OF establishing terri
rial governments, as is proposed. Why create
a territorial Organization in State OF mil
lion inhabitants? Appoint governor from
Washington, and provide that delegate NAV |
be sent here to speak, but not 10 yofeo i,
looks like a farce IT will serve mo GOOD ~
pose whatever. Certainly for domestic f,ov-
it is not needed, nor TO prenara sho
to become State. Smell an ,u. or'
yanization would be laughing-stock To tn,
people IN the State and out of It.
out Iet congress provide at once Tor a CON-
y en.or ". W frame constitution, to be submit
81 81 " congress TOR its approval. The princi- |
-. 4sIeuoa IN such a case, upon which there |
sonu \ 1e uivision OF opinion, would be as to
aVor such organization would of course insist
1pon ignoring color as basis for suffrage but
should there be any other restriction?
Both education and property have been at
lines insisted upon but have hoped that,
'nce the prompt action on suffrage in the
District OF Columbia, we had come to the sem
'ible conclusion that "man was superior
% his accidents" and go at once TO result
which will be arrived at finally, delay 1t as
.lI1x u%1x-