The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1869-02-03
4ithu>ond 1ispatth,
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. 3, 1869.
Ohiections Considered.

intend to raise and equip an army and wage
war upon the United States Government
rather than peacefully submit to have ne
gro suffrage imposed upon them, we do not
know the fact, but we confess that we should
greatly admire their courage whatever we
might think Of their Judgment. For such
we have no arguments. They are better
men than we, and we take off our hats as
they pass. We do not pretend to say that
they would be able to avert the evil even
by a resort to this dread alternative. Per-
haps there are some who are sanguine
enough to contemplate such q movement.
But we do say that in no other way can
negro suffrage be kept out of Virginia. II
is too late now to prevent that which ID
already upon us. Every man who Under
stands the temper of Congress and OF the
northern people knows that they have de-
.ermined that the negro shall vote in every
southern State. There is no division Of sem
timent amongst the Radicals upon this
point. They profess to feel it incumbent
upon them as duty to give the negro the
power to protect himself. They will listen
to no argument against it. They are fully
bent upon the measure. This Is The least
that they even so much as think OF requiring
Of us.
Now, does anybody suppose that Congress
means that we may enfranchise the negro
to-day and disfranchise him tomorrow If
not, the objection raised against the pro-
posal of the Virginia committee to agree
that he shall never be disfranchised is q
very illogical one. This objection is made
with such an sir of injured innocence, and
in such language, as to imply that the OBJ
jector would have said nothing if "the
nine" had simply proposed to allow the
negro to vote now, and promised nothing as
to whether he would be allowed to vote five
years hence. Does not every rejecting
man see that the two propositions are sub
stantially identical Congress would either
have understood the latter to imply what
the former says, or else that body would
have made no terms with us. To submit q
proposition that was intended to deceive
Congress is what no true Virginian-and of
course we include the opponents Of the new
movement in the declaration-would ever
have consented to do and to submit q pro-
position for the purpose of having it re-
jected is what no statesman could consent
to do. The objection, then, 80 far as this
phase of it is concerned, amounts to no
thing. 1t is simply charging the Virginia
committee with having agreed to submit TO
what Congress is fully determined shall be
put upon US, or, in other words, with having
promised that Virginia will not go to war to
escape the evils of negro suffrage. Those
who have made up their minds that they
will never allow negroes to vote should be
hunting up their guns and furnishing up
their swords and sabres.
1t is said further, however, that the pro-
position in question surrenders one Of the
rights sacred to every State, and declared
TO be 80 in the Virginia bill of rights-to
wit, the right to alter or amend the State
constitution whenever the people choose to
change it. This argument, or rather asser-
ton, we meet with denial. If agreed to,
the proposition in question would only pre-
vent our constitution from being altered go
as to deprive negroes of the right of suf-
frage. Its acceptance by our people would
not prevent them from altering or amend
ing their State constitution at any time
they might wish to do so. They would
merely have agreed to leave one of it's fea-
lures untouched. Now, this is exactly the
condition in which the State has been from
the time of the ratification of the Federal
constitution to the present moment. There
has neuer been time ,chen she could so alter
her constitution as to make ii conflict 10Th
the Federal Constitution. Our fathers agreed
that the Virginia constitution should never
be 80 altered as to claim for the State the
right to enter into any treaty, alliance, or
confederation or the right to grant letters
of marque and reprisal; or the right to
coin money; or the right to emit bills of
credit or the right to make anything but
gold and silver coin tender in payment of
debts or the right to pass any bill of at
tainder, &c post tacto law, or law impair
ing the obligation of contracts; or the right
to grant any title of nobility; or the
right to lay imposts or duties on i'm
ports or exports except what might be
absolutely necessary for executing our
inspection laws, without the consent
Of Congress and in regard to this last they
actually agreed that sail such laos shall be
subject to the revision and control of the
=" Congress-" We say our fathers agreed
to leave all these powers to the Federal
Government They ratified constitution
which in plain terms denies all of them to
the several States. There has, therefore,
We repeat, never been time from the
year 1888 to the present when Virginia
had power to alter her constitution 80 as to
provide for the exercise of any one of the
powers denied to her by the Federal con-
stitution. The Virginia committee now at
Washington have simply proposed that there
shall be one other subject which shall not
be touched in altering or amending the
State constitution. They hare not proposed
to surrender the right to revise, alter, and
amend our constitution in any other of its
features at any time or in any manner that
we may think necessary or desirable.
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The NORTHERN DEMoCRATs.-How much