American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1867-01-26


tician, but a business man to a busi
ness position, and my experience wifi
his administration of the revenue ser
vice at that time has served tn con
firm my Judgment in that particular
/ do not agree with the Secretary O.
the Navy in his views of recOnstruc,
ton, or with the Secretary of the
Treasury, or with any of the Cabinet
but, setting that aside, / may say
all these officers discharge their du
ties with high integrity and instead
of their being censured by the House
of Representatives, they ought to be
commended.
MIR. STEVENS REPLY.
Mr.. Stevens (Rep. PENN said in
reply that when doctrines were ad
vanced in the House they became
public property, and to be dealt with
by each member according to his
sense of their sOundness or unSound
ness; and so, in commenting on the
gentlemanS-Mr. Spalding's-views,
he had done it with no purpose Of of
fense. lie had given it as his opin-
ion that the gentleman'S declarations
were wrong and miSclicvouS, and he
held the same doctrine to-day. Il
was the entering wedge for the sane
tiOn Of an idea. And when the con
Stitutlonal amendment was sent forth
1t was given out that its adoption by
the States now in rebellion should be
entitled to admission to representa-
ton. He knew that the doctrine had
been assumed in some of the States,
and was the Republican platform in
some of them. He knew that it had
been argued not only in the gentle
mars (Nlr. Spalding'S) district, but
in other districts Of Ohio, that the
was the final action of
Congress in the admission of tn, Sc
States, but in his judgment a more
pernicious heresy was never promul-
gated.
Mr.. Spalding-Will the gentleman
have the goodness to state whether,
in his Judgment, the adoption Of the
has any bearing whate-
yer on the reconstruction of those
States.
Mr.. Stevcns-Not the least, except
that when We find them fit to be adj
they shall not overwhelm us
by IL representation from those States
representing negroes who are not vO-
tcrS. That, i'll my Judgment, is the
whole force and effect of it. There
are other wholesome provisions in it !;
but the great virtue of it is, that it
cuts down their representation and
takes away theirpower to ovcrrule us
when they shall form constitutions tit
to be represented. But the idea that
there is anything in that conStitu-
tional Amendment looking to its be
ing included in the constitution of the
other States, is idle. 1t need not go
there. If We once adopt it, why ask
them to ratify it! They come in as
any other State would come in. undcr
the constitution as amended. Ask
ing them to vote upon it is Stultity-
ing ourselves, as the editor of the
Chronicle has properly said, for it is
calling them States and asking them
to take State action. How can we
after that say to the Executive: "Sir,
yOu'Ie wrong, these are not States" :"
That astute gentleman would say ::
g Not States! YOu have sent them
an invitation to indorse the amend
ment to the Constitution, and here it
comes back indorsed or rejected"
lie would say: "lf not States, what
are they Who are they! Are they
disOrganized communities, lying
about, as you pretend Why, you
have solemnly asked them to unite
with every loyal State in action
which none but a loyal State can
take" Will the gentleman tell us
whether that is not stultitying our
selves I
Mr.. Spalding-I ask the gentleman
whether his own bill does not con-
recognizing them as States !
Mr.. Stevens-lt does by the act of
Congress.
Mr.. Spalding-Exactly; and that
IS my idea, too.
Mr., StevenS-My bill does not call
upon the present organization to act,
We propose to repudiate them our
selves, aud we propose to say to
hem: You have no government
We repudiate all your governments.
10 on and form such governments as
his Congress has ordered you to.
When we have recognized them for
purposes, they are States.
nut the gentleman does it in advance,
md would have them act now as
states, under their bastard recon
tructiOn, and TO vote upon that in
Thich none but States can vote. J
lust beg leave to say, as have sail
etore, first, that the proposition v3s
he most pernicious that could po>>r-
ly be made i'll this body; anG. Sc
Ond, that the proposition stult.Ied
ne House, and hence the editor was
Ight, as | said he was.
Mr.. Spalding-I ask the Gentleman
he concur ed in the majority report .
the Committee on Reconstruction,
nd also whether he voted for the adj
liSSion of Tennessee, after that State
ad adopted the amendment
MIR. StevenS-leS, sir, | voted for
ne admission of Tennessee without
ny regard to the amendment which
e had sent forth, and which was no
then. Tennessee had
'aned constitution and submitted
to her people, and it was ratified
y the people. She was the only rebel
tate that had done it. On a fun