The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-01-09
The Situation in Virginia.
From she ". Y. World.

FfOf0tne Az Is HOTCus
1t seems there has been conference in
Richmond of certain leading Virginians, who
propose to acquiesce in reconstruction and
''accept universal suffrage coupled with uni
versal amnesty From the former political
affiliations of the gentlemen making up this
conference, il would appear TO bs rather
gathering Of old Whig leaders than an assem-
blage of representative men Of all parties-a
matter that is to be regretted, as depriving the
deliberations and conclusions OF the conference
of that comprehensiveness and weight less
partisan composition would possess. AS to
the nature of the universal amnesty desired,
there is some cloudiness; for, il 1t be what Is
ordinarily understood by that term, there
hardly seems much point in the gathering,
seeing that on last Christmas day Mr.. John-
son extended, "uncOndaiondHy ana wNhCw
reservation, TO all and 70 ;ecery, Ps'StL wno .o
directly or indirectly participated in the late
insurreetiou or rebellion, full pardon and
amnesty for the offense OF treason against the
United States, or of adhering to their enemies
during the late civil war, with restoration of
all rights, privileges, and immunities under
the Constitution and the laws which have
been made in pursuance thereof" IT, how
ever, instead OF this, it be the meaning of
these old leaders that, if the disabilities now
debarring them from Office be removed, they
will acquiesce in negro suffrage, then it
would seem that this is rather a proffered
bargain of their own, for their own personal
purposes and not one that they have been
specially called on to present by the people
of the State. Still, the information tina; we
have on the subject of this conference ia
rather meagre, and with further light it may
appear that it is less personal in its objects
and more fully representative in its nature.
The fact that there has been any conference
brings the matter of reconstruction in Vir-
ginia into interest, especially as the subject is
one that has yet to be finally acted upon. After
an election beginning on the 22d of October,
1867, and lasting three days, the reconstruct
ing delegates met in convention in Rich
mOnd on the Sd of December following the
election, and remained uninterruptedly in
session to the 18th of April of last year,
period of four and a half months. In this
time the assemblage-which We find reported
as composed of thirty eight Virginians, forty
two carpet-bag men, and twenty-five negroes,
one of the blackest of these representing the
former home of Clay-framed constitution
which Congress has not as yet ventured to
put to the vote. The franchise article of this
instrument debars from suffrage all whom the
third section of what is called the Fourteenth
amendment precludes from Office, the effect
of which, if the reconstructed consttu-
ton were put in operation, would be
to disfranchise every white man in Vir-
ginia who has ever held any Office, from that
of governor to constable, alderman, coroner,
or "inspeotor of tobacco, flour, etc." this
etc. appearing in the instrument as very
convenient preteXt to drive from the polls
any person who might not be otherwise
banned. 1t is also the case under this in
strument that, as part of the oath of office,
one must swear 'that l accept the civil and
political equality OF all men before the laws"
and, in addition thereto, the higher officers of
state must take the test oath, or, as it is some
times called the iron-clad. The effect of all
this, it can be seen, would be to make the
voting population of Virginia very largely
nogro, and to debar from a constableship in
the State any one who had so much as sym
pathized with those engaged in hostility to the
United States during the late war. There are
certain lesser provisions of this instrument
marked with the like stupid malignity-
a malignity that will not appear surprising
when it is stated that that psltry fellow I'm
derwood was president of the body framing it
and, taken as a whole, it is as bad as the
worst of these documents, that OF Louisiana OF
of Arkansas. 1t is almost impossible that IL
should 60 into operation without leading tc
very serious disorders in Virginia.