The Wyandot pioneer. (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1853-1868, 1868-02-13
Continued from First Page J

but to resort to colored suffrage and
suffrage to all men except those who
were disqualified by the commission
of high crimes and misdemeanors.
Mr.. President, we hear much
said, in the course of this debate,
and through the press, about the
violation of the Constitution. It is
said that in the reconstruction
measures of Congress we have gone
outside of the Constitution, and the
remark of some distinguished states
man of the Republican party is quo
ted to that effect. Sir, if any lead
ing Republican has ever said SO, he
spoke only for himself, not for an.
other. l deny the statement IN TO-
to. 1 insist that these 1econstruc-
ton measures are as fully within the
powers of the Constitution as any
legislation that can be had, not only
by reason, but by authority. And
who are the men that are talking SO
much about the violation of the
Constitution, and who pretend to be
the especial friends of that instru-
ment? The great mass of them
only three years ago were in arms to
overturn the Constitution and es-
tablish that of Montgomery in its
place, or were their Northern friends
who were aiding and sympathizing
in that undertaking.
l had occasion the other day to
speak of what was described as a
constitutional Union mana man
living inside of the Union lines du-
ring the war, sympathizing with the
rebellion, and who endeavored to
aid the rebellion by insisting that
every war measure for the purpose
of fsuppressing it was violation OF
the Constitution of the United
States. Now, these men who claim
to be the especial friends of the Con
stitution are the men who have
sought to destroy it by force OF
arms, and those throughout the
country who have given them aid
and comfort. Sir, you will remem
Der that once celebrated French
woman was being dragged to the
scaffold, and as she passed the stat
ute of liberty she exclaimed: "How
many crimes have been committed
in thy name; - and / can say to the
Constitution, how many crimes
against liberty, humanity, and pro-
grsss are being committed in thy
name by these men, who, while they
loved not the Constitution, and
sought its destruction, now, for
party purposes, claim to be its es-
pecial friends.
My friend from Wisconsin yester-
day compared what he called the
Radical party of the North to the
Radicals Of the South, and when he
was asked the question by some Sen
ator, "who are the Radicals Of the
South p he said, "they are the Sc
cessionists." Sir, the Secessionists
of the South are Democrats to-day,
acting in harmony and concert with
the Democratic party. They were
Democrats during the war who
prayed for the success of Mcclellan
and PendIeton, and VINO would have
been glad to vote for them. They
were Democrats during the war,
men who sympathized with the re-
belhon, who aided in bringing it on.
These are the Radicals Of the South,
and my friend from Wisconsin,
after all, is acting with that Radi-
cal party.
The burden Of his speech yester-
day was that the Reconstruction
of Congress are intended
to establish negro supremacy. Sir,
this proposition is without any
foundation whatever. I believe it
was stated, yesterday, by the Sena-
tor from Illinois Mr.. Trumbull
that in every State but two the
white voters registered eutnumber-
ed the colored voters and the fact
that in two States the colored vo-
ters outnumber the white voters is
owing to the simple accident that
there are more colored men in those
States than there are white men.
Congress has not sought to estab-
lish negro supremacy, nor has it
sought to establish the supremacy
of any class or party of men. If it
had sought to establish negro SUI
premacy it would have been an easy
matter by excluding from the right
of suffrage all men who had been
concerned in the rebellion, in accor-
dance with the proposition Of the
distinguished Senator from Massa-
chusetts Mr.. Sumner in his speech
at Worcester in 1865. He proposed
to exclude all men who had been
concerned in the rebellion, and con-
fer suffrage only on those who were
left. That would have established
negro supremacy by giving the ne
groes an overwhelming majority in
every State; and if that had been
the object of Congress, it could
have been readily done. But, sir,
Congress has only sought to di-
vide the political power between the
loyal and the disloyal. 1t has dis
franchised some fifty thousand lead
ers, leaving all the rest Of the peo-
pie to vote. They have been en-
franchised on both sides, that nei-
ther should be placed in the power
of the other. The rebels have the
right to vote so that they shall not
be under the control and power of
the Union men only; and the Union
men have been allowed to vote so
that they shall not be under the con-
troll and power Of the rebels.
This is the policy, to divide the
political power among those men
for the protection of each. Sir, the
charge that we intend to create a
negro supremacy Or colored State
Governments is without the slight
est foundation, for it would have
been in the power of Congress to