The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1869-12-29
JUDGE THURMAN ON THE POWER
OF CONGRESS TO FORCE GEORGIA
TO ACCEPT NEGRO SUFFRAGE

OF CONGRESS TO FORCE GEORGIA
TO ACCEPT NEGRO SUFFRAGE
In the telegraphic synopsis of the debate
in the q. s. Senate, the speech of Hon.
A. G. Thurman, of Ohio, on the amend
ment Of Senator Morton, Of Indiana, to
the Georgia bill, was omitted in the dis
patches. The amendment Of Senator
Morton was:
"That the Legislature [of Georgia shall
be proYisional only and until it has ratified
the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amend
ments to the Constitution of the United
States, and Senators and Representatives
to Congress from the State of Georgia have
been admitted to their seats"
On this amendment Judge Thurman
said:
lEr. President do not propose now,
il ever, TO take up the time Of the Senate
with any general discussion Of this bill.
What shall say will be strictly confined
to the amendment offered by the Senator
from Indiana, and VIII be very brief upon
that.
The difference between the Senator from
Wisconsin and the Senator from Indiana
seems to be simply this: that the SanatOr
Senator from Wisconsin Will not say on
the record what he means.
Mr. President, / am opposed to either
the one course or the other. What beg
to call the attention Of the Senate to is
this that this is not a question simply
which concerns the State of Georgia; this
is not, as the Senator from Missouri and
the Senator from Indiana seem to suppose
a question of the merits or of the dement's
of the people Of Georgia; this Is not 8
question - to what conditions might prop
erly be imposed upon Georgia, if Georgia
stood affected alone by those conditions
but this is a question whether you shall
impose an amendment to the Constitution
upon the entire people of the United States
by coercing Georgia into the adoption of
that amendment. The question is wheth-
er you shall force that amendment on the
people Of Ohio, notwithstanding their fifty
thousand majority against it, by coercing
Georgia against her VIII to adopt it. There
is not q member Of the Senate who does
not know that if Mississippi and Texas
and Virginia and Georgia were left to
their free, unbiased judgment on this
amendment, not one Of those States would
adopt it. not one Of them would think of
adopting it; and every Senator well knows
States the amendment cannot become
part Of the Constitution.
What, then, is the effect Of coercing
Georgia TO adopt it7 When you strangle
her, when you deprive her citizens Of the
free election which the Constitution gives
them to say what shall be part Of the
Constitution Of the Union, when you force
her TO vote into the urn TO be counted in
favor Of the amendment, you force that
amendment on the people Of Ohio, on the
people Of Indiana, on the people Of Ilh-
nois, on the whole people, however much
they may be opposed to its adoption. Ny
State has voted upon the amendment; her
Legislature has voted upon it and rejected
it; and when you compel Georgia against
the will Of her people to adopt this amend
ment you nullify the vote of the State of
Ohio on this great question of amending
the Constitution Therefore, Mr.. Presi-
dent. not simply in the name of the peo-
pie of Georgia, but in the name Of all the
people, protest against this mode Of
coercing the people Of the United States to
adopt an amendment to their Censtitu-
ton. 4.
The sole power that is given by the
Constitution to Congress is to propose
amendments. 1t is then for every State
Of its own free will, without coercion.
without eompulsion, to say whether 1t Will
accept your proposition or not and it Is
simply idle and frivolous to say that
State freely and voluntarily accepts your
proposition of amendment to the Constitu-
ton when you say in the same breath to
the State. "If you do not accept it you
shall have no rights in this Union; you
shall be taxed without representation; you
shall be governed by military instead Of
civil law: the civil courts shall be tram
pied down and drum-head eourtmartials
shall take their place every right that Is
sacred 10 an American, every right that Is
sacred to freeman shall be at the mercy
of military tribunals and drum-head court
martiAlH unless you, of your own free viii,
forsOOth, Of your free choice. agree to alter
the fundamental law Of the landP'
Call that free choice Call that q free
election, accepting or rejecting an amend
nent to the Constit0tiOni Why, sir, I
should be insulting the understanding and
intelligence of the Senate If were to dis
euss propositon like that. No, sir; you
give no free choice to Georgia; you give
no free choice to any one of these States
when you attach these conditions; when
you say to them, with your hand on their
throats. Accept this amendment or else
continue to be deprived Of the most sacred
rights Of the American people.
But, as | said before, It is not simply a
question as to Georgia; it Is a question as
to Ohio as well as to Georgia; and
your decision on this proposition affects
my State Just as much as it affects the
State of Georgia every bit as much. If
this is to become part of the COnstitu-
ton it Will be a part of the Constitution
in Ohio as well as in Georgia. If the vote
of Ohio rejecting it is to be outwelghed
and annulled by the vote Of Georgia, aud
the vote of Georgia to be obtained by CO
ercion, by duress, then you have forced
this amendment to the Constitution on
the people of Ohio Just as much as you
have forced it upon the people of Georgia,
and Just precisely by the same means.
Sir, for one l marvel at what l see Is
called progress. / may be too old to un-
derstand these new lights; it may be that
there are too many gray hairs IN my head
and that have listened too much to the
teachings of the fathers to understand
these new doctrines; but to me 1t does
seem as If it were cutting loose from eve
rything like constitutional law and the
first principles of fairness in the admins
tration Of the Government / oppose tins
proposition, sir; and though l know that
my opposition VIII be wholly useless, l
know that my duty requires me not sim
ply to vote against 1t, but to utter my
protest, however feeble and Intellectual It
may be- -r..- sr.--.z- .t.-. b..
EDITORIAL BRENITIEs- .--