Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1867-12-12

ana destroy the form. us we'll as the substance
OF republican government in the ten States TO
which they apply. Ii binds them hand and
foot in .absolute slaver,, snd subjects therl 10
a strange and hostile power, more unlimited
and more likely to be abused than any other
now known among civilized m, Il lramplss
Il wa all those rights in which the essence of
| lib rty consists, and which a free governmen,
Is always most careful TO protect. Ii denies the
habeas corpus and the trial by jury, Personal
freedom, property, and fe, if assaulted by b.
passion, The prejudice or the rapacity of the
er, have no security whatever. II has the
effect OF bill ofattander. OF bll of pains and
| penalties. hot upon Il few Individuals but upoi,
whole masses, including The millions who
iiiAabn the subject States. al d even their IN
born children These wrongs. being EXPRESSLY
! forbidden, cannot be constitutionally inflicted
upon any portion Of onr people. no matter
! how they may have come VIII hin our iurIsdic-
ton. and no matter " h~ h4r they live il States
| Territories or Districts
have no desire to save from the proper and
just consequences Of their great crime those
I who engaged in rebellion against the govern
meni but mode Of punishment. the
measure, under consideration are the mos.
unreasonable that could be invented MANY OF
those people are perfectly nnocen many
kept their fidelity to the Union untaint ed o the
i last many were incapable OF any legal offence
q large proportion tv-n TO the persons able
to hear arms were forced INTO rebellion against
their Will and OF those who are gully with
their own consent, the degrees OF guilt are as
various as the shades OF their character An 4
temper. Bat these acts Of Congress coufound
! Them all together in one common dootu.-
Ind scriniiiaie vengeance upon classes, sects,
! ana parties. or UPON whole communities Of-
fences committed by pOr. ion OF them against
! The governments 10 Whlct they owed coed encp
VAS common III the barbalous ages Of the
world. But Christianity aud civilization have
made such progress hat recourse to punish.
ment so cruel and unjust would meet with the
condemnation Of all unpYejudiced and right
minded men. The punitive Justice of this age.
and especially of this country. does moi consist
III stripping whole States of their liberties
AMI reducing all their people, withouI distinc-
itn. 10 the condition Of slavery. 1t deals sepa-
rately with each individual, confines itself to
! HE forms Of law, and vindicates its own purity
! by an impartial examination of every case
before competent judicial tribunal. If this
does not satisfy all our desires with regard to
Southern rebels. let us console ourselves bv
refecting that a free Constitution, triumphant
i'll war and unhroken in peace. is worth far
| more to us and our children b III lhe graifca
ton OF any pr eSent feeling.
! L am aware it is assumed that this system of
| government for the Southern States is not to
be perpetual. L is true til military govern
ment is to be only provisional, but it is through
his temporary evil hat greater evil is to be
m ;de perpetual. If the guarantees Of the
Constitution can be bro ken professionally to
I serve temporary purpose. and IN a part only
Of the country, we can destroy them every
wnere and tor all time. Arbitrary measures
often change, but they generally change for
the worse Ii is the curSp OF dt s0oisn that il
has no hating place. The intermitted exesci<e
OF It's p0we tnnsr no stl!se OF security to its
subjects Tor thy can never know what more
ihey will be called to endure when list red
right hand is armed TO plague them again
Nor is it possible to conjecture how or where
power, unresralned by law, may seek It's next
victims. TIE States that are sill free may be
enslaved al any monent for he Constitution
does not protect all, ii protects none.
1t Is manltestly and avowedly the object OF
these laws to confer upon LIS groes the privilege
Of voting, and to disffauchse such number
/ Of white citizens as Will give the former IL
clear majority at all elections in the Southern
States. This, TO the minds Of some persons, is
so important, that violation Of he Cons,itu
ton IS Justified as a means OF bringing it about.
The morality is always false VIII oh excuses a
wrong because it proposes to accomplish 2
desirable end We are not permitted to do evil
that good may come. Bat in this case the end
Itself is evil, as we'll as the means. The sub
.jugallon OF the States to negro domination
would be worse than the military despotism
under which they are now suffering. il was
believed beforehand that the people would en-
DUE any amount OF military oppression for
oco -, "A.
themselves by subjection to the negro race -
Therefore they have been left without IA choice.
/ Negro suffrage was established by act of Con-
gress. and he military officers were command
ed to superintend the process of clothing tho
negro race with the political privileges torn
| from white men.
The blacks in the )uh are entitled to be
Well IN humaneiy governed, and to have the
| protection OF just laws for all their rights of
| persoa and property. If it were practicable
at this time o give them government exclu-
| eively their own, under which they MI III, man
az h If own affairs in their own way it
would become a grave question whether we
ought 10 do SO, or whether common humanlty
| would not require Us to save them from them
| selves. But under the circumstances this is
only speculative point. Ii is not proposed
merely that they shall govern themselves but
tliat tucy SH"ii tui1 tuS WHHc ItCb, make anu
administer State laws, elect Presidents and
members Of Congress, and shap~ to a greater
or less extent the future destiny of the whole
country. Would such trust and power be
| safe in such hands
The peculiar qualities which should charac-
terize any people who are ft to decide upon
the management Of public affairs for great
S,ate have seldom been combined. Ii is the
glory Of white mel to know that they have
had these qualities in sufficient measure tS
build upon h $ contlnt lat a great political fab
ric, aud preserve its stability fsr more ahln
ninety years, while III every other part ofthe
world all sim lar experiments have failed But
If anything can be proved by known acs-if
all reasoning upon evidence is not abandoned
1t must be acknt wledged. that in the prog
ress OF nations negroes have shown less capac-
ity for government than any other race OF PEG
pie. No independent government of any form
h ever been successful in their hands On
he contrary, VII rever they lave been left to
their own devices they have shown constant
tendency to relapse into barbarism. In the
Southern States, however, Congress has I'm
der AIKEN to confer upon them the privilege of
the ballot. just released from slavery il may
be doubted whether as class, they knew
more tn N their ancestors how TO organize and
regulate civil society. Indeed, it is admitted
that the blacks Of the South are not only re-
gardless of the rights Of property, but SO ut