The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1869-03-10

Georgia 10 their seats and the electoral
vote of that state was thrown out by the
Joint resolution of congress- But consisten.
| CT is no level with the party that makes and
| unmakes maioritiss In that body, 10 answer
| its own changing needs. When the measure
was first before the senate, IL was proposed
| BY Senator Dixon that the Amendment, if ii
passed congress, should be submitted to a
vote of the people Of the states, specially
called for that purpose in their local con
ventious; but the contempt with which the
proposal was put down by the majority
showed too plainly how small was the re-
gard in which they held the popular will |
Then Senator Buckalew proposed that il
should be submitted to legislatures to be |
hereafter chosen by the people, so as to give |
the latter some kind Of chance to express
themselves on the measure. This too,
was voted down in hardly less summary
manner. From the first, it has been per.
tectly clear that this IL Il party measure,
driven through congress on the rutIianly
plea Of "uow or never and 10 be forced
through the requisite number Of legislatures
with the whip and spur Of party command,
Under the proposed amendment no citi
zen of the United States may be denied q
vote by any State con account of race, color
or previous condition Of servitude" This
let's in Indians, Chinese aud negroes, all
together, and without qualification STILL it
is to be remarked that it does not necessari.
ly forbid any State from insisting on educa.
tional qualifications, as we have imposed
them in Massachusetts. Should the amend.
ment 90 through the requisite number of
State legislatures, it is to be hoped that this
| opening may be promptly and universally
svailed OF. 1t never was thought until now
that intelligence and q certain degree of ed.
ucstion were not essential qualifications for
worthy citizenship. The one thing about
which the trainers of our State Governments
we're particularly careful was, that they
should not fall into the control Of the igH0r.
ant and incompetent. Ii is maintained wa
observed, that the right to vote carries with
it by implication the right to hold office in
which case, it must be doubIy clear that the
ballot should be pat into the hands of none
but those who are possessed Of sufficient in
telligence to use il properly.
But It Is an assumption almost of the
character Of an outrage, 10 say that this
. measure has been called for by tho people
. On the contrary, not only were the people
totally ignorant Of the purpose 70 spring II
upon them, but they have so far remained
: perfectly passive under the proposition. Not
5 so much as public meeting has assembled
D to indOrse it, And we greatly mistake their
conception of their own rights within the
States, IT, in case it were fairly presented 10
3 them, they did not condemn it with over.
5 whelming majorties 1t is a radical change
in our republican system to propose. 1t is
muddying the fountain which it was the
original purpose to keep pure. We know
this thing to u certainty, that 1t was because
of rigid discipline in the truths Of intelli
gent selfgovernment that the Fathers we're
able to successfully lay the foundations oi
republicauism and it cannot he less true
that it is only by pursuing their own approx
ed course Of education that our republican
/ system is TO be perpetnated.-Boston Post