The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1868-01-17
CHI A r L ES TON. +.
FRIDAY MORNING, JANUARY II, 1868.
DIR. Maekoy's Address,

The address of DR.. A. G.. MAcKEY, on
taking his seat as President of the Conven-
ton, opens with the remark that that
body differed from all previous State Con-
ventions in South Carolina-Jfrst, because
in the election of its members the ballot
box was made accessible to every man not
disqualified by legal or political crime; and
secondly, because the fundamental law, as
framed by previous conventions, at once
became fnality; whereas the action OF
the present convention is to be reviewed
and ratified by the people.
1t is little singular that DR.. MAoKEY, in
selecting points of contrast, should have
chosen but two, and those rather imagi-
nary than real. What are the facts of the
case? We shall not now dispute the con-
stitutionality of the Reconstruction acts,
for upon that point there can be no contro-
yersy between us and DR.. MAcKEY. He
says the convention was convened by COM
petent legal authority, else he would not
have been there. We will concede this for
the sake of argument, though we fail to
see the cogency with which he seems to
think the conclusion follows the premias.
When the first Reconstruction act was
passed. calculations were made TO ascertain
how many persons would probably be dis
franohised under its provisions The esti-
mate varied from twenty thousand to thirty
thousand in all, in the ten uareconstructed
States. Under the ruling of the Attorney
General, the number would perhaps not
have been as large. But with every sup
Elementary act the purpose Of Congress be-
came more and more evident, viz: to
enfranchise tho negro and tisfranchise the
Southern white. Every conceivable difficulty
was thrown into the way of tie white man be-
fore he could register, and every possible
facility afforded the negco. The lettes
could not only register with ease, but he
had every encouragement to register as
often as he liked; the chances of his detec-
ton being very few. So again at the time
of the election. The white population saw
from the beginning that negro supremacy,
and not reconstruction, was the object Of
the legislation of Congress, and they kept
away from the polls. Had DR.. MAcKEY,
therefore, said that in tho election to this
convention the ballot was made accessible
to every negro and Inaccessible to almost
every white man. his sta@pent would have
been much more correct.
DR.. MAoKEY says, secondly, that the
action of the previous conventions in the
State were not submitted TO the people for
ratification, whereas in ehe present case
the people will have this privilege. In an
swer to this we might say, Dr. MAcKEY
to the contrary Notwithstanding, that here
tofore the members of convention were,
in every proper sense of che word, the re-
representatives. of the people, and enjoyed
the full confidence of IT, cir constituents !;
therefore, to all intents and purposes, they
represented the sovereignty of the State;
and it mattered little whether or not their
action was again brought before the people
for ratification. The present convention
does not, in any sense, represent the peo-
pie Of South Carolina, and it is eminently
proper, therefore, that their action should
be subjected to close scrutiny and re-
vision, before it is made Ehe organic law Of
the State.
But will the constitution framed by this
convention be submitted to the people for
ratification We think it more than doubt
full. DR.. MAcKEY bases his assertion upon
the authority of the first Reconstruction act
of Congress. Already We have four of these
acts. and Mr.. THADDEUs STEVENS voted
against the fourth because "it does not 60
far enough" His views on this subject,
and those of his wing o: the Radical party,
have been explicitly stated, and directly
contradict the assertion of DR.. MAckEv. A
fifth Reconstruction act may soon provide