Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1868-03-11
FROM WASHINGTON.

FROM WASHINGTON.
Application of Alabama-Rep0rt of
the COMMITTEES.
WASHINGTON, March 10.-The commit
tee on Reconstruction, to whom was re-
ferred the application of Alabama, asking
admission into the Union as sovereign
State, reported this morning as follows
That it is the intention TO pursue the
spirit. if not the letter, of the act of March
%, 1857, entitled an act supplementary to
an act entitled an act to provide tor the
more efficient government of the rebel
States, passed March 3, 1867, and to facili-
tate restoration, they especially intend to
enforce the spirit of that law. where there
seems to be any conflict in the evidence
between the spirit and the letter. Such is
the true principle laid down by moral iu-
risdiction for the government of judges by
the act.
Two things were evidently intended, one
was to admit Alabama as State, if, after
full registration, with time for delibera-
ton, majority of persons should favor
admission. The other was to prevent hasty
and precipitate legislation, before the peo-
pie should have fully examined the sub.
ject. Hence the law provided that not only
Alabama, but al the conquered territories
should have all her legal voters thus regis
tered. Should they cast their votes in ia
vor of Constitution, a Convention should
be ordered for the purpose of framing
one; but if a majority of all the registered
votes by either their own volition or cas-
ualty should not be cast against COnsti-
tuition, they should still be counted in the
negative-a most unusual provision in our
own or any other Government, but in Or
binary times it would have but little effect.
in so far as removals and deaths take place
hotxu fha mi nj ha
time of voting.
On the day of the Alabama election a
most extraordinary and unexpected state
of things existed in very large portion of
the State, especially in the Republican
portion. A very severe storm ragged from
morning till night. The streams were
swollen to such an impossible degree that
it is testified by Governor Smith, then
elected Governor of the State, and other
respectable gentlemen, that it kept from
the polls number of voters who would
otherwise have attended. In attempting
to reach the places of election, one
or more persons were drowned, which
deferred many from proceeding further.
Thus all who chose to stay away were
counted as voting against the Constitution,
though if they had all gone and voted
against it it would not have changed the
result from positive majority in its favor
to majority against it. This feature alone
of this unfortunate election is sufficient in
opinion of the committee to authorize; a
majority of the legal voters then in the
State are known to have cast their ballots
for it; besides a very large proportion of
the registered voters were deferred by the
most Infamous threats from coming to the
polls or casting their votes for the Consti-
tuition. e .r
Very few white men did and very few
black men dared thus to cast their votes,
loo ha lon of
which they are suffering. All this is
proven by the sworn testimony ofthe most
respectable portion of Alabama. Indeed,
nearly two hundred laborers have volun-
tarily come forward, singly, and testified
to their violent discharge since the election
by their cruel employers, for having exer-
cised the elective franchise according to
their own will and pleasure.
A careful analysis has been made, as
we'll as could be, of the number of votes
that were destroyed, boxes seized and
threw out of the windows, and other modes
of violence used to destroy them, and it is
believed from all this that the number of
votes thus destroyed and detained from the
polls by violence, outrage and fraud, had
they been cast, would have overbalanced
all chose counted against the Constitution,
whether cast or enumerated as cast, by
reason of sickness, absence or DEATH
Sometime before the Alabama election
the Convention saw the injustice of the
law and requested Congress to restore the
| majority principle in the vote upon the
| adoption of the Constitution. The House
| did not hesitate to perceive its JUS
| tice, and passed the act and sent it to
| the Senate. The Senate, by some unac-
countable delay, from motives which it is
hard to fathom, suffered that act to sleep
upon their files for two months, till after
| the fate of the Alabama election was an
| nounced. They then took it up and passed
| it, and it has now passed both Houses of
Congress.
The principle, therefore, that majority of
the votes cast should govern, has been re-
stored. Your committee can see no reason
| why it should not govern in the present
case. The circumstances of the almost un-
heard of storm on the day OF the election,
the violence of human passion but little
less malignant and raging, and the
phrensy OF former masters at the polls, to-
gether with the evident injustice of the
principles in question, upon which no one
has yet acted, seem to your committee to
demand that Alabama should be admitted
into the Union as one of the States thereof:
but while this free people are rebuilding a
mighty nation, in which there must be no
taint of despotism or injustice, they have
examined carefully all the provisions OF
| the Constitution and, as precedent which
they hope will never be departed from, but
while it became necessary. by the injustice
of the sister States, they have determined
| no State shall ever be admitted into the
Union where the right to universal suff-
rage shall not be made permanent. and i'm
possible of violation, fearing, also, that
cunning schemes might be devised by
which peonage, such as is already estab-
lished in some of the South American
States, might be created, and we recon-
mend the passage of the act for admission
of Alabama as State in the Union.