The national Republican., 1869-01-23
our Washington Correspondence.

tieb uponVO per centum OF the WhlIeoitlzens OF
Virginia, In addition to those OF the reconstruc-
tion laws and the fourteenth amendment to
the Constitution, closed the controversy be.
fore the committees OF Congress. The Senate
Judiciary Committee, l think, will refuse to
hear further argument upon 1t, but the House
Reconstruetion Committee to-day heard Col
John ". Baldwin, in a powerful argument In
reply to Governor Wells, and may possibly
listen to some one In reply to Baldwin. The
vast Importance OF tho points Involved, to the
future Of the whole country, forms the reason
why the Reconstruction Committee are 80 very
patient In hearing Its merits thoroughly dis.
oussed.
THE IMPORTANCE OF THR ISSUE TO TIE re-
PUBLICAN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES.
The chief, indeed the only, point Of import
ance essayed to be made by Governor Wells
against action by Congress striking out the
supplemental disabilities clause referred to
above, was that II struck out the government
OF the State thereby might be taken out OF the
hands OF the Republican party, to the great
injury Of the States future. Never was q
more palpable mistake made than by Governor
Wells 10 that matter. All Virginia elections
show that her Republican party is composed,
up to this time, Of but the negro vote and az.
teen thousand white votesj there being one
hundred and twenty thousand white votes In
the State, 1t not twenty or thirty thousand
| more when all come to register. II the original
\ anti-DemocFatlo party white voters not yet
| thoroughly affliated with the Republican
party, vote for the proposed new constitution,
forty thousand white voters will be added to
Its strength and subtracted from that Of the
| opposition-the Democratic party of Virginia.
The current effort to induce Congress to strike
out the obnoxious clauses Of the new constitu.
tion, is essayed phoiiy to insure that this DIFF
ference of an aggregate vote OF eighty thou
sand In the relative strength Of the supporters
and opponents OF the new constitution shall
be secured.
MossTRous FOLLY AND INJUSTICE.
fnd no member 1.-THE Rishmond Grant and
Colfax club, now here opposing the proposed
Congressional action, who disputes the justice
OF striking out the obnoxious clauses. They,
! however, insist upon leaving that to be done
| BY State legislative action at some future
| time, none claiming that II can be accomplished
under two years. They contend for the right
| OF political party Of State to establish
| disabilities within Its limits, not known to
the reconstruction laws or the fourteenth
amendment to the Constitution, which will
actually bar ninety In every hundred OF the
whites of the State from dlscharging the func-
tions OF county constable, or serving on a
petit jury until they may be relieved from
such disability by the passage, In the State
Legislature, OF q separate and distinct bill In
| the case OF each man. Such Is the provision
ofthe new constitution proposed to be stricken
\ out, over which the contest before Congress
| eliminates.
| THE DANGG an OF OVERRIDING THE DISABILITIES
BUSINESS.
l need hardly point out to your readers
that 1t is wholly foreign to the policy OF
the Republican party OF Congress- that 1t is
| required by nothing Congress has done In the
matter Of reconstruction. Neither Congress
| nor the nation in amending the Constitution
has authorized State Legislatures to assess or
to remove disabilities for participation in the
rebellion. The power, to say the least Of 1t,
Is a dangerous one to be so lodged; as so
| lodged, Its exercise cannot possibly fail to be
guided and governed, to a greater or less ex-
tent, by local rivalries, personal Jealousies
and Individual antsgonism, rather than by
the large national considerations involved
In the disabilities policy Of the reconstruction q
| laws and the fourteenth amend ment. Ihave nc
idea that the Republican party can maintain
power for more than a twelvemonth in any
State wherein 1t embraces, as at this time In
| Virginia, only the colored vote and one tenth
ofthe white votes the latter embracing not
| one employer OF labor or one real estate owner
In one hundred Of the population; embracing,
In fact, hardly any other whites than those
holding office, who rely for continuing to hold
| 1t, not as they should, upon the superior
merits OF RePublicanism, but wholly upon
keeping control of the colored vote on the
one hand and keeping ninety per cent. of the
white vote ineligible to a constableshIp or
service on Jury.
THE CONDITION OF APPAIRs IN VIRGINIA,
| Your readers will remember that there have
been no organized outrages upon black or
white Unlonists In Virginia since the war
none whatever; that the people OF that State
have manifested entire willingness to obey
the laws and to respect the rights OF Unionists.
\ rh'. 'mpeSt~at fsst sntities tho whites Of
Virginia to very different treatment by Con.
gress in the matter Of protection against ex.
traneous or supplemental disabilities than that
that may have been necessary 10 the case OF
Tennessee, where Ku.Kluxism and Its con.
| comitants have relgned rampant.
| REPUBLICAN WAR on REPUBLICAN ASCEND
EECY.
The Richmond Grant and Colfax Club and
| Governor Wells, in seeking to keep out OF the
| Republican party OF the State some forty
thousand snti-Democratic party voters, by
denying them the sheerest justice i'm sginable,
are striking a terrible blow at the party's
| future. They are actually throwing away an
assurance that the State, and, indeed, the
whole South, shall be Republican for the next
twenty years by overwhelming majorlties,
by the votes OF all the blacks, and all the
whites who before the war opposed the Demo.
cratic psrtyi and also OF considerable per.
| centage OF white former Democrats who have
been educated by the wars events to favor the
| Republican pArtyis DroRresAiye ideas
| RAILROAD SUBSIDIES.
| There is general impression that the rail.
road (Pacifc) subsidy bill now before the
House will be recommitted some Of its friends
will vote for Its recommitment with Its oppo
nents, in the hope OF getting 1t reported back
with an amendment substituting a Gov.
ernment guarantee OF the eventual payment
OF Its bonds, In place Of the proposed direct
Issue OF Government bonds in aid OF Its con-
| stTuction.
| ANEW DODGE.
| This Will be even more dangerous and
more reprehensible plan than the otherj as, Il
becoming a general practice In such matters,
twill eventually cost the national Treasury
much more than open and avowed approprIa
tions OF original Government bonds. Such
Government Endorsement would be a certain
Government obligation to pay the bonds in
| time to come.
THE LAST MARES NEST.
lam assured, on what deem excellent au
thority, that there 10 no truth whatever in the
story OF some Washington correspondent OF
| the New York Times, alleging that the Govern.
ment here ordered Banks to supercede Grant
In command Of the army before Yicksburg, &c
Its pronulgation created much excitement