The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1868-09-09
The Fourteenth Amendment.

Never was an amendment 30 corruptly
forced upon the Constitution as the 14th
has been. The Journal Of Commerce
says:
Only one answer, Yes" was audible at
the capitol. Texas, Georgia, North Caro-
lima, South Carolina, Virginia and Ken
lucky all voted "No" in 1866 or 81, but
Congress would not take "No" for an an
swer. Ohio and New Jersey having rati-
fed the amendment in 1866, rescinded
their action next year; but Congress
would not admit that any State had the
power to say anything but ayes" on the
question, and refused to let those States
change their vote, although at the time
application was made for that privilege,
three-fourths of the States had not voted
upon the amendment, and the matter was
still an open one, and the reversal of the
vote of any State was perfectly proper
The States of Georgia, North Carolina and
South Carolina, which had shouted mo"
very loudly were made to utter "Yes" in
the meekest of whispers by means of lit
tie judicious pressure on the thorax, I'D
ministered by martial thumb and fingers.
Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana and Alabama
did not make the mistake of going counter
to the imperial will, but when the time
came for putting the question murmured
ayes" a. promptly as bride ct q the al-
ter.
The amendment may be repealed or it
may be annulied by decision of the Su-
preme Court or it may be rendered mop.
peratiue, it 10 said, in the most obnoxious
direction-to some extent at least--by no
quiring all voters to pay poll tax. The
Journal remarks:
We say "until repealed J" for, now TINT
the American people have been taught the
fatal art Of making and unmaking laws and
constitutions, a. if they were willow bas-
kets, we may be sure that this fourteenth
article will be no longer respected than it
shall prove satisfactory to the pride and
progress Of the nation. In other words
all this labor of grating new article upon
the Constitution has produced no fixed
result. It has only instituted ON expert
Instead Of letting each State decide tor it.
self whether it would have negro suffrage
or not, in 30 mano words, it gets round the
question by apportioning the represents
tives Of the State IN Congress according to
the whole number of persons in the State
Except Indians not taxed) and then, if ne
groes are not allowed to vote, reduces the
basis representation in the proportion to
the number which those negroes bear to
the whole number of male citizens in tie
State.
Here is a bride to vote for negro suffrage
and penalty for voting against It'll In
the North the negro population 10 30 small
as to render the alternative Of no real i'm
p0rtance. It would make no difference
with the Congressional representation Of
most Of the Northern States whether they
ratified the amendment or not. Some oil
those which were the earliest to ntify have
not amended their own Constitutions so as
to give negroes the right to vote, and pro-
badly will not do so. They are perfectly
willing to see the experiment made in the
South, but have no fancy for trying it on
in their own territory. But, while it was a
question of philosophy at the North, it
was dire matter of fact at the South
Let q Southern State like Georgia or
South Carolina refuse the ballot to the ne
gro, and she at once loses about of the
Congressional delegation to which she
would otherwise be entitled. The bride
was glittering, but, as we have already
shown, several Of the Southern States re-
jected it until Congress found the means oil
|persuading them into its acceptance.