The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1868-09-16
4, LOUISIANA, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 1e, 1868.

States In place, Of the civil courts ,wlic
We're established to, do justice, they impo.
ed upon them military commissions. ]
was feared that the President of the TN
ted States was not favorable to the stril
gent execution of these laws, and therefor
3 they deprived him of his constitutions
:. powers, and gave them into the Hands q
J the General of the army 1t was sapp6se
that the Supreme Court j of ths lutte
J States might decide thatsomo of these act
j were unconstitutional, aHd,thereupon the
:. deprived that conrt of Jurisdiction. an,
forbade it to take cognizance Of, cases IN
der these acts. 1t was supposed that til
patronage Of the President might; possibf,
be nss0 to prevent their speedy execution
Il and thereupon tic President was deprived
/ of the, power Of selecting his own Cabinet
and to-day. my fellow-citizens, on The CIV,
ola Presidential election, after four year
of war, after three years of peace, afte
eighteen months of military despotism i,
the South, we find ourselves confronted
with this fact that to the last week of til,
last session Of Congress seven States Of til,
South have been admitted to their right O
voting for, President and Vice Prcsiden,
under constitutions which they hate, un
der institutions which they abllor, and i'm
1de1 officers who are imposed upon, thatpco
fple, whom they hate, and who are aliens
to their soil Cloud cleers) These con.
stitntions and those officers which were
Originally imposed, are now maintained
| by force of the Federal arms. They arc
built on one, idea alone, They are built
upon, one purpose alone, and that idea and
that purpose is to take away from. the ma
tive resident wbitepopulation of the, South
all political power, and confer it upon the
lenfranchised slaves, and that meancst of
all things that ever crept upon the foot.
stool of God-that thing which had in the
ancient world no representative to send
into the ark, that thing was left for the
slime of this revolution to produce-I mean
the carpet-bagger of the South. cloud APP
plause and laughter.) The declaration Of
principles Of the Republican party has kept
pace, though at a great distance often,
with these acts which have, described to
you. IN 1856 it was founded on the exclu-
sion of slavery from the territories. In
1860 it declared that the maintenance of
the rights Of the States was essential to the
Federal Government In 1864 it limited
it's declarations to the adoption of the con-
stltutional amendment abolislling slavery.
and to, the demand that the negrocs should
be treated as prisoners of war. But in
1868 it asks for the suffiages of the Ameri
can people upon the declaration that Con-
gress has tho Power to regulate suffrage in
ten States of tho Union, which it has not
the power t., regulate in other States Of
the Union. Why, gentlemen need rot
say to an audience'like this that the equal
:ity of the States is the fundamental idea of
our system Ofgovernment.,l need not say
to those who know the history of Govern
ment so well, that without equality there
could have been no Union, and that with
out that equality there can be to-day no
Union and no liberty. loud eheers.) If
the Congress of the United States has the
power to regulate the question of suffrage
in South Carolina, SO has it the power to
do the same thing in Connecticut (Cheers.)
If it has not the same power in, Con-
necticut that it has in South Carolina,
then the States are not equal, and do not
fulfill the conditions Of the Consultation
If the Congress of the United States has
the power to regulate this question of snf-
frage in South Carolina where did il get
the power? Read'the Constitution of the
United States from the first. word of the
first clause of the preamble to the last
word of the last amendment and you vii!
fiud no such power there. Where does it
get the power If there be a Republican
in the house who does me the honor to
hear me who desires to answer that ques-
tion,e i willpause that he may do 60. A.
pause ofisomo moments, followed by loud
applause. / asked that question at a
meeting in Indiana the other day and o
gentleman 10 the crowd rose and said that
we acquired that power not from the Con
stitutioh, but fronra higher law from the
right ofrevolution. Laughter and cheers.
If Congress has thelpower at all, it gets it
from that source and no. other. In that
word he describes the Republican party,
and accounts exactly for its opinions and
acts. It is revolutionary party
(Cheers.] In Che spirit of revolution it
was born, and in tie spirit ofrevolution it
has to dragsits daily life. 1t follows the
inevitable and inexorable law. Progress
is the condition of revolution. Incessant
activity is its only life., 1t never stops.-T
Its devotees cannot give it direction, If
they falter, others, and more active men
are put in their places, The spirit of re-
yolution is Unsuitable. 1t cries out, give"
give" and forever sgiSe." { Every con
quest which it makes whets its appetite
for another. Every acquisition of power
makes the power more necessary. Every
step that it takes requires one still further.
Every plunge that it makes requires a.
plunge still deeper. If it uccomplishes its
purpose to-day, tomorrow it has new pur-
poses, and will demand, new powers So
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