The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1868-06-16
0heGtrteltiafrGGer
SPEECH OF SENATOR WILEY,
The Two Plans--Johnson's Plan
and the Congressional Plan.
of the Latter--The
Question of Suffrage.
SPEECH OF SENATOR WILEY,
An Eloquent Plea for the Negro.

An Eloquent Plea for the Negro.
The Senate having under consldera-
ton the bill Oh. r. No. 105s) to admit
the States of North Carolina, South
Carolina, Louisiana, Georgia, and Ala
bama to representation in Congress-
Mr.. Wiley said:
Mr.. PREsIDENT:-It was not without
some reluctance that rose yesterday
evening to claim the courtesy of the
Senate to make some remarks upon the
amendment Immediately pending as
we'll as the bin generally. am aware
of the impatience of the Senate, and
equally aware of the fact that shall
not be able to throw any new light on
trou bic the Senate very often 1 thought
perhapsI might be allowed to occupy
ita attention for few moments, ii to
accomplish no other purpose, IL least
to let my constituents know once in n
while that l am here In my place.
In regard to the immediate PROPOSE
ton before the Senate, the amendment
ofthe Senator from Massachusetts MIR.
wilson, proposing to include Alabama
in the bill, 1 have TO say that in voting
for 1t l am not at all embarrassed by my
previous opinions on the provisions on
the reconstruction bill requiring a ma
Ijortty OF the registered votes TO be cast
ut the election. When that bill was un-
der consideration took occasion to
say, among other things:
|, 1.-THE amendment Of the House, IL seems
| to me. settles the question of reconstruction
under this bill; that Is 10 say, IL settles the
question by leaving the States as they are.
From what know OF Southern sentiment,
and what know of the condition of affairs
in the South, l believe most sincerely that
the bill in the form i'll which 1t comes from
tho House will result In nothing. do not
believe that you can get n majority of the
registered voters in the Soutn upon the
adoption OF the constitution which will be
presented to them TO vote upon 1t either ON
the one side or the other
4 And concluded my remarks on that
subject as follows;
1.-THE bill, II passed as It Is, settles the
question, not OF reconstruction, but or nom
reconstruction. You will have no practical
relations restored 10 the government OF the
Southern States, under the operations of this
bill, in my opinion"
lido not pretend to be prophet. nor
the son of "A prophet; but the result has
verified my opinion exactly. The only
State which undertook TO restore its
practical relations and to entitle itself
10 representation in Congress under the
operation of that bill as it passed failed
in the effort, and Congress, under the
teachings of experience, found 1t neces-
sary to repeal that restrictive law and
to allow the rebel States TO come back
to representation in Congress under
the operation of the ordinary principles
prevailing in elections. am not,
therefore, embarrassed in voting for
the pending amendment by the neces.
sity of any change of opinion, although
that would not embarrnss me if
thought circumstances required a
change.
Now, Mr.. President, what was the
design of having nn election in Ala
bama upon the Constitution What
fact was it proposed to ascertain by
submitting the Constitution to the vote
of the people? 1t was to ascei tain
whether the Constitution was agree
able 10 Il majority of the people of that
State. might confine the proposition
within more limited application if i
were to consult my own sense of pro-
priety as TO how that Constitution
ought to have been submitted. think
ali we are required to ascertain, in or
der to justify ourselves in the action
4 now proposed, Is whether majority OF
the loyal people in the State of Ala
bama have given evidence that the Con-
stitution which was presented TO them
is agreeable to them and meets their
appreciation.
Let us look at the facts surrounding
this case with view of ascertaining
the main fact to which 1 allude; that
is, does the Constitution, as il was pre-
scented, II few months ago to the people
OF Alabama, meet the wishes OF the ma
lOTlLS OIL lnU5t DSOplGA hOL
weary the Senate by entering into the
figures and details, and reCounting
what has been often recapitulated here;
but there is one material fact admitted
on all hands, that this election was
held under most un1avorable circum-
stances in respect to the weather at that
time. y severe storm had passed over
the State; the waters were highs and it
was with great difficulty that people
could get TO The voting places. That Is
one fact that must be taken into con-
sideration. There is another fact: that
in two counties, think, no vote at all
was taken. There is another fact: in
two more counties in which the vote
was taken the vote was set aside and
not counted.
But there still remains the great fact
which 1 predicted would prevent any
election under the act requiring ma
iorIty OF registered votes to be cast at
the time of its passage, and that is, the
hostility of n large proportion OF the
people of Alabama and the Southern
States to any constitution, to any re-
construction, to any planI or TO any
principle that will bring them back
| into submission to the Constitution OF
the United States and into loyal practi-
cal relations to the General Government;
and the result verified my prediction
exactly. l knew very we'll, when 1t
was required that a majority of the
registered votes in Alabama should be
cast in order to the ratification of the
constitution which should be submitted
to them, that the disloyal portion of the
people of Alabama, who compose to a
large extent the intelligent portion oil
them, who embrace the controlling
social influence of Alabama to very
great extent, would stay away from the
polls, and that it would. be understood
that they should stay away from the
polls, and it being thereby known that
every man who deposited his ballot
/ wasadepositing ii in favor OF reconstruc-
Il ton the men who did SO would feel
| that they were marked by the intellec-
tual and moral influences alluded to
| the other day by the Senator from Wis
consin, CMr. Doolittle,l and this moral
and intellectual influence being brought
to bear upon them, thousands upon
thousands OF honest, loyal, patriotic
| white men would be deferred from cast
ing their votes. Is not such the fact,
sir? Were not thousands who were
willing, and who else had been able to
cast their votes in favor of the constitu-
ton, deferred from doing SO by fear,
by menace, by this social intluence3
There can be no question about
that. And yet, sir, under all these adj
verse influences, under the hindrances
of the bad weather and the high
streams. Notwithstanding the fact that
several counties did not cast vote at
} all and the vote of others were not
counted, and Notwithstanding the