The Van Buren press. [volume] (Van Buren, Ark.) 1859-1914, 1869-02-23
Another Amendment.


or abridged by the United States, or an,
State BY reason Of race, color or previous
condition q aarevy OF any citizen Of
class of citizens of the United States"
' Sac. J Congress shall have power tC
enforce" etc.
While we respectfully submit that tn,
INCLINATION TO amend the Constitution o.
the United States is becoming too com
D mon and is apt to lead to evil results, still
Ms 1t is to be done, the people should free
" discuss any amendment proposed and
not act hastily or blindly. No one car
have failed TO discover that Congress is
pretenledly adopting course of concil
iation, while they are careful not to make
any material inroads upon their strength
by conceding any point of importance OF
value TO those who have been bowed "a
earth by disfrancA sements and disabil
tiles There has existed for long tim,
faction of the Radical party. who's.
pole star has ever been universal amnes
ty, and universal suffrage This faction
has gradually increased in strength and
Importance, until il has finally command
ed attention and respect. To concilate
them, no doubt. this amendment has been
offered But under the guise of conclia-
ton ii has the opposite effect and is az
gressive Carefully worded by those
adroit swindlers Of the people, it appear,
TO be concession to the demands of an
honorable and high-minded minority of
the party What will be the actual result
of its adoption? 1t confers the right of
suffrage, and of holding office, sitting on
juries, etc, upon all negroes, Indians,
Chinese, etc, in the Northern as we'll as
the Southern States. This increases the
strength of the Radical party in the
North. No doubt, many will jump at the
conclusion, that it enfranehises the South
ern men who have been disfranchised
and this will offset the enfranchising of
the Negroes, Indians and Chinese, who
may be citizens of the Northern States
1t does no such thing. Much has been
said and written about the oaths required
for voting in the Southern States that
the voter swears never to attempt to de.
prive and person, etc, on account Of race,
color or "prerioas condition" II was
maintained by the Democracy, and with
truth, that Radical who took this oath
and then voted for the disfranehsement
of Southern men for having preriously
been rebels, violated his oath This was
deprivmg of " rights, privileges and i'm,
m,mities on account of previous condi-
bon" This position became universal
and was impregnable. Some method of
doing away with it must be adopted Be
hold this fftcentls amendment! 1t com
plctely takes the wind out Of the DEM
cratic sails. 1t is no longer by reason
of color, race or previous condition, but
"previous condition Of slareyy." This
amendment being made a part Of the
Federal Constitution, the Congress Of the
United States and Legislatures of States
may still continue TO disfranchse those
who aided the rebellion, but cannot dis
franchise any by reason of "preyious
condition Of slare,y"-the negroes. The
result, then, is that the strength of the
Radical party is increased in the Northern
States, and not effected, In the least, in
the South Now, we ask, where is the
necessity for this amendments It's but
another step in the march over the PROS
TRATE RIGHTS Of the States. The people
Of many Northern States have expressed
their unwiilngness to engraft the negro
upon their body polite Why play the
tyrant with them and thus noiselessly
force upon them negro suffrage? Are
the rights of life, liberty and property of
Negroes unsafe in those States ?--and is
this absolutely essential to their preserva-
ton? Is it good policy to encourage
tinkering with the fundamental law by
amending. merely to meet the views of
theorists ? The abstraction that all
men are equal is false in fact and useless
in practice, and yet to carry out this dog
ma the Constitution must again be
"amended" Congress must again
assert its supreme power over the intern
al affairs of the States. We have often
said and now repeat again, "Give Con
gress the right to regulate suffrage in the
States, and as long as office are elective,
as long as the ballot-box is continued as
part of our political machine, Congress
cam control the affairs Of States absolute
~" They can disfranchise all who do
not swear to, vote as they dictate. But
some say the people won't endure this !!
What can "thc people do? Revolt
Exactly; but this is not preserving the
Constitution and the Union Of the States
Revolution is an inherent right ofall peo-
pies. The aim Of all wise Legislators and
good sovereigns is to prevent revolutions
To 20 govern as to make people happy
and con,ented; and TO say "the people