New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1868-01-27

elected by less than One-thlrd of the white voters
N the States at that time; that the conventions were
elected by small minority even of the white voters
and that those Constitutions thus formed by a very
SINAI minority have never been submitted to the
people of those States for ratification. They are no
more the Constitutions of those States to-day than the
Constitutions formed by the conventions now IN ses-
sion wonld be if we were TO proclaim them to be the
| constitutions OF those States without lnsI haNlhg
submitted them to the people for ratiiicatlon How
can il be pretended for a moment, even admitting
that the President had the power 10 start forward Ill
the work of reconstruction, that those state Govern
ments are legal formed by q small minority, never
ratified by the people, the people never having had
rary Constitutions, established not by the people OF
the several States but simply by force o. executive
power. And, Sir, If we shall admit those states
| 20 representation on this floor and III the
other House under those Constitutions when the
thing shall have got beyond our keeping and they
are fully restored TO their political rights they Will
then rise up and declare that those constitutions
not bindng'upon them, that they never made them
and thew will throw them Off and with them will go
| those provisions which were incorporated therein,
declaring that Slavery should never be restored and
that their war debt was repudiated Those provisions
| were put into those constitutions, but they have
never been sanctioned by the people of those States
and they will cast them ont as not beng their act
and deed as they shall have been restored to
political power in this Government therefore say
that even If he comedies that the President had the
| power which lie had not, 30 start forward IN the
execution OF this guarantee there can stlli 10 no pre-
tense that those governments legal and author
| lied and that are bound TO recognize them. lhe
President of the United States, III his PROCLAMATION,
! declared tllat tnOSc governments we're 10 ne
only by the loyal people Of those States and beg
leave to call the attention Of the Senate 10 hat clause
| in his proclamation Of reconstruction. lie says;
And with authority exercise wnth limits o. aid S'e al TIE
Iovers Geeea AMI ToIe eaae s1h loyal People Of ic state o.
Again. speaking Of the army: ,.,..--.-.,
ing di'eousgas he oya people from the eraioa Of State
Now. Sir, so far from those State governments hav
| ing been organized by The loyal people they were
organized by the disloya every office passed into
Tho. han az fi hnf
/ lot in those governments and 50 far from Answering
| the purpose for which governments are INTENDED,
they failed to cNtend pGteGo4 TO t ncr 1UyT cd
with impunity, and viii thank any senator upon ms
floor 10 point tOa single case IN any ol inc eDe STATES
where n Rebel has been tried and brought 10 punish
ucut bv the civil authority for the murder OF nion
man. Not orc case. am told, can DC found Those
Governments utterly failed IN answering the purpose
OF civil governments and not only that but they re-
turned the COiored people 10 COndillOn oi 43gst
slavery; they made them the slaves OF society," IN
stead Of being IS they were before the slaves OF III
diyiduaIs. uder various lYinS ol, fggiaht Ia"55
they deprived them of the rights ol tTecmen ana
placed them under the power ana control OF tHcf
Rebel masters. who were HllCd with hatred ana ie-
vcupe. BIT. Mr. President, time passed ON. Con
cress assembled IN December 1870. Tor "a time 81
paused. il did not at once annul those governments
1t hesated. st last. in 1866. the CONSTITUTIONAL
Amendment, the nth Article, was brought forward
rs q basis Of settlement and reconstruction; and
there was tacit understanding. though n was mot
embraced IN any Law or resolution ih'i u inc
Southern people should ratlty and agree 10 that
amendment, then their state governments would be
accepted But that amendment was rejected,
contemptuouslv rejected. The Southern people
PIE counsclCd and inspired by the Democracy OF me
North rejected that amendment. They were told
that they were not bound to submit To- any conditions
whatever; that they had forfeited 10 rights 10y Icbc
lion. Why, sir, what did we propose by tins amend
mcntl BY the first section We declared that ail men
born upon our soil citizens oil the United states
a thing that had long been recognized by every de
partmen of this Government until the Drcd scott de-
cision made IN 1871. The second section pro-
Vded that where class or race OF men were cN-
cudcd from tie ripht of suffrage they should not bc
counted in the base Of fCprcscntation-an obvious
Justice that no reasonable man for q moment could
deny; that il 100000 people down South were 10
have 10 suffrage the men living IN their midst aud
surrounding them, and dcpIiNing them of all political
rights should not have members OF Congress on Their
account. say the justice ol the second clause mas
never been successfully impuencd by any argument
! care not how ingenious u may ne Nhat Was INC
thiru clause II that the leaders OF the south,
those men who had once taken an official oath
TO support the Constitution ol the mted States
and had attcrward committed perjury by 20
ing into the rebellion, should be made lnelgi,
bic TO any Office under the Government Oi the ucd
States OF of a State. IL was very small dis
franchscmcnt Ii was intended To withhold power
from those leaders by whose ustrumcntality We had
lost nearly half million lives and untold treasure
The Justice Of that disiranclisement could not bc
disprOyed. And what was the fourth clause of tho
amendment That this Government should never
assume and pay any part OF the Rebel debt; that II
should never pay the Rebels for their slaves. lbs
was bitterly opposed IN the North rs well rs IN The
South How could any man oppose that amendment
unless he was in favor OF this Government assuming
n portion or all of the Rebel debt and in favor of
paying the Rebels for their saycst When the
Democratic patty North and South opposed that
most important and perhaps hereafter 10 be regarded
rs vital amendlnnnt, they were committing them
selves in principle, as they had been before by
declaration, TO the doctrine that this Government
was bound TO pay for the slaves, and that II was
just and right that VIC should assume and pay The
Rebel debt This amendment, as have before SAID,
was rejected, and when Congress assembled IN De
cembcr 1906 they were confronted by the fact that
every proposition Of compromise had been rejected
b halfway measure llau DCCu tUiIucO Nv the
rebels themselves, aud they had nothing left 10 do
but TO begin the work Ol rccOnstuciOD themselves;
and in February 1861, Congress for the first time en-
tered upon the execution Of the guarantee provided
for in the Constitution by the passage Of the first re
construction law. supplementary bill was found
necessary March, another one III July, and believe
another j. found necessary at TINS tlnc D me pow
or is with Congress Whatever il shall deem ncccs-
sary. whether 1t be in tie way Oi cOiOlcd suffrage,
whether il be in the way Of military power-what
ever Congress shall deem necessary ~ the execution
Of this guarantee is conclusive upon the courts, upon
every State and upon the people OF this nation Sir
when Congress entered upon this work 10 had become
apparent to all men that loyal republican state gov
cIIments could not be erected and maintained upon
the basis Of the white population. We had tired
them. Congress had attempted the work Of recon
structon through the titutional amendment by
leaving the suffrage with the white men. and by
leaving with the white people of the South the queS
ton rs to when the cOOrcd people should eAerGlse
the right Of suffrage i ever b.! yneg Na2 lppnG
that those white men were as rebelli6us az eyer,
that they hated this Government more bitterly than
ever; when it was found that they prosecuted the
loyal men, both white and black, in their midst;
when II was found that northern men who had gone
down there were driven out by social tyranny, by
thousand amoyances, by the insecurity OF life and
property then became apparent 10 all men Of inteli-
gence that redistribution could not take place mon
the basis of the white population, and something
dol Either we must hold these people continually
by military power, or must use such machinery
upon such peY basis as would enable loyal !eglp: