The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1868-01-10
THE. CONVENTION.
SECOND DAY.


The following resolution, offered by
Mr.. j. NJ. Jackson, of Wood, was unani-
mously adopted:
+ q Resolred, That it is the sense of this
Convention, that it is the binding duty
of the Government of the United States
to extend protection to all of its citi-
zens, whether native or naturaliZed, In
whatever land they may be found, and
that ii should at once take effective
measures in behalf of those citizens
now languishing in English dungeons,
either to obtain their release or to guar
antee to them fair and impartial trial.
Gen. j. J. Jackson, of Wood, offered
the following, which was adopted unan-
imOasly:'
Resolred, That this Convention desire
to express to Andrew johnson, Presi-
dent of the United States, their cordial
sympathy With him in his efforts to
maintain Constitutional Government,
and in resisting the unconstitutional
encroachments of the Congress of the
United States. The Convention ex-
press their approval of each and all of
his veto messages, and of his policy of
reconstruction of the Sothern States, as
disclosed in his various messages to
Congress-, and they respectfully urge
him to-uphoh the Constitution in the
future as in the past.
Resolred That these resolutions be
signed by the President and Secretary
aud transmitted to the President of the
United States.
} Gen. Jackson, from committee on
: Memorial, stated that lie had been in
4 conference with Mr.. Lamb, and other
members of the committee, and that
they had agreed upon the following
memorial to the Legislature:
To the Legislature Of UeSt Virginia:
The Convention assembled at Wheel
ing and representing the Democratic
and Conservative voters of the State
respectfully petition your Honorable
Body to repeal the Registration Act,
believing that the time has arrived
when the policy that has hitherto gov
erned the legislation of the State in
that particular may properly be abaH-
doned and harmony and concord re-
stored to our people.
If it should not be your pleasure to
repeal the Act referred to, we then re-
spectfully petition for the following
notifications of it:
That, instead of the present mode Of
appointing registration officers, the vo-
ters of each township shall elect one
registrar.
That it shall be the duty Of every reg
istrar to register every person residing
in his township and possessing the quail.
fcations required by the Constitution,
who shall present himself for the pur-
pose, at any time before sunset on the
day preceding any election, and will
take, if required, the oath of loyalty
prescribed by the present registration
act; and that every person so registered
be entitled to vote, but if in taking
such oath he have forsworn himself, he
shall answer for the crime under the
ordinary process Of this law.
That no registration officer shall, du-
ring the period for which he was elected
or appointed, be eligible to any other
office.
We deem each of these provisions to
be important, and desire to be under
stood as petitiOning for each of them
separately, should it not be your pleas
ure to enact them all.
We also respectfully petition for the
/
| tOrney'S test oath.
All these measures were designed for
times ofrevolution and ought now to be
| lieve it to be the intention of your Hon
orable Body that the prescription should
be perpetual.
| WHEELING, January 9, 1868.
Col. Benz. Wilson, of Harrison, said
he thought the paper should be adopted
and signed as the expression of the
Convention (not by delegates as indi-
viduals,) and that it should be adopted
and signed as an official paper of the
Convention, the President and Secre-
tary alone signing it.
Mr.. II. S. Walker, of Wheeling, moved
reconsideration of the vote of yester-
day by which it was agreed that every
member of the Convention should sign
the memorial. As a member of the
Convention, he was willing to petition
the Legislature, but as private citi-
zen he would ask no favor from the next
Legislature. The petition should 60 be-
fore the Legislature as an officialpaper,
signed by the President and Secretary
of this Convention. If we wanted a
petition from the people, let us circulate
one, and give all an opportunity to sign
| il; if it is spurned, the Legislature
spurns their mdSters-the PEOPLE.
General Jackson said he thought the
paper should be signed by every mem
Der of the Convention. He would rs
soon present the petition as member Of
the Convention as an individual; he
would not regard it as in any way de-
rogatory to petition the Legislature for
simple justice; he hoped his plan would
be adopted, as he thought the paper
would have more weight if signed by
every member of this Convention.
Colonel Benjamin Wilson claimed that
the Convention had not agreed to any
resolution that the paper should be
signed by members of the Convention.
Mr.. Walker then withdrew his motion
and Mr.. Wilson moved that the paper
be adopted by resolution as an official
paper Of the Convention and as such
presented to the Legislature. This mo-
motion was agreed to.
The question recurring upon the re-
tport, Mr. Walker said that the first
clause of the paper made tacit admis-
sion that time had existed when such
Infamous lawlessneSs was required. He
would never consent to any such admis-
sion, and therefore moved the indefinite
postponement of the resolutions.
Judge J. w. Kennedy, of Jefferson,
said he hoped the motion would not
prevail. If the paper was Objectionable
in some particulars, let it be amended,
i but do not let it be rejected. Let us do
our duty to ourselves and our constitu-
ents. Let us petition the Legislature
for q removal of the grievances with
which our people are burdened.
Mr.. VIM. Somerville, of Brooke, said
the Constitution of the State had been
uulawfully amended in relation to dis
frsnchisement and whenwe speak Of the
Constitution we should not recognize an
amendment which had been adopted by
fraud and chicanery. What we want
and demand is that every man in the
State shall be accorded his night as a
citizen and freeman.
Mr.. W. E. Arnold, of Lewis, said that
if the present Registration law remain
=.