Vermont daily transcript. [volume] (St. Albans, Vt.) 1868-1870, 1868-08-03
Vermont Daily Transcript
ST. ALBANS, VT:
MONDAY AUGUST 3, 1865.
Peace TWpouDh Jict0PU.

Under military rule, and during the
reconstruction movements which have
brought seven of the States of the South
so far along that they have adoptednew
State Constitutions, and elected state
Officers and United States Senators and
Representatives, negroes equally with
white men have exercised the privilege
ofthe suffrage. Those States are now
governed by civil instead OF military
rulers. and by civil instead of military
laws. The laws which govern them in
clude of course the Constitution OF the
United States, with the fourteenth
amendment. The fourteenth amend
ment provides that Representatives
shall be appointed among the several
States according to their respective
numbers, counting the whole number
of persons in each state, excluding IN
dams not taxed but when the right TO
vote at any election for the choice OF
electors of President and Nice-Prcsidcnt
of the United States, Representatives III
Congress- etc, sis denied TO any OF the
male inhabitants of such state, (being
q wears of age and citizens of The Uni
ted States,") etc, "the basis ofrepresen-
tation therein shall be reduced in the
proportion which the number OF such
male citizens shall bear to the
whole number of male citizens p years
of age in the said State" We believe
that the Constitutions of the several
States recently relieved from military
rule admit the negro to the exercise OF
the elective franchise, but those consti-
tutions may, of course, be amended so as
to exclude him, if the States choose to
accept the decreased representation in
Congress which will be consequent
thereto. OF course no such political
revolution can be brought about with
out great excitement, and perhaps open
resistance on the part of the negroes,
who prize their privileges and their
liberty, in spite of the degrading intlu
ence ofcolor.n But will not such recon
structed citizens as Wade Hampton and
his kind prefer decreased representa-
ton rather than the political equality of
the races? We think this quite proba-
BILE, and that all they wish for is the
control once more of the State govern
ments and the encouragement of the
general government to reduce the negro
again to a serfdom in which he may in
deed own his body, but without any of
the accessories which make such owner
ship practically valuable. He who
dreams that the spirit which created re-
belliOn is dead is indeed a dreamer. Let
him read the speeches made by some of
the reconstructed orators, which are no
more in support of the Democratic can
didates than in hope of the resurrection
of the "lost cause,n buried once with
such awful cost under the sods of the
South. Let the Democratic leaders
once triumph, and whether Intention
al with them or not, the stricken spirit
of secession will again soar, conquering
its conquerors, and the terms of peace
will be dictated by the once suodued
foe. Where, except from the Democrat
ic party, do such men as Wade Hamp-
ton and Pollard gain encouragement to
declare renewal of the conflict they
have once waged in vain The letter
of Blair, which cOunsels revolution and
executive resistance, and which secured
him the Democratic nomination, has
reinspired the South to resistance.
The success ofthe party under such a
leader, so endorsed, will wipe out for
years the last remnant ofequality in the
Southern States; and with suffrage lost,
and all but a qualified protection de-
pending upon the once master race lost,
four millions of blacks and hundreds of
thousands of whites who were loyal to
the United States will be abandoned to
injustice until they rightfully dcspse
the government they aided in its peril.
Nothing can save us from such hui
initiation and disgrace but the continu-
ed protection which the Government
has extended to all its citizens alike,
backed by all its force when necessary.
Our readers know well enough under
what political rule such protection has
been extended and under what political
rule it would be withheld There
is no peace, except in the triumph
this year of the party which conducted
the country successfully through the
war. With the present standard bearer
of that party we say: "Let US have
peace !"
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