Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1869-09-11
THE CONsKQUENCEs OF ILLEGAL
LEGISLATION,

The Knoxville Press and Herald,
in noticing a recent article in this
paper exposing the illegality OF
certain men claiming to be Repre-
sentatives from a number of coun.
ties in East and Middle Tennessee,
takes occasion to say:
at would seem that a general wiping
out of everything done by the last two
General Assemblies, or rather q total
disregard of their acts, if not advocated,
is at least favorably brought to the at
tention Of the people. If such really be
the meaning Of the UNION AND ANERIs
CAN, we beg leave most respectfully, but
earnestly, to interpose our decided oppo-
sitiOn to such doctrine or line Of policy
not because we have any more respect
for the memory or the works Of those
two so called Legislatures than our ce>
temporary has, but for the reason that
such a short cut to relief, would involve
US in greater complications and difficult
ties than those from which we hope to
escape"
Our contemporary misapprehends
US. We neither suggested nor
thought of ga general wiping OUT
of the acts of the two Radical Lee
gislatures. We called attention to
the fact that these bogus members
had occupied seats in the House OF
Representatives when they alone
constituted a quorum of that body,
and asked whether laws passed by
their votes at such times could be
hold as binding upon the people.
There is not the slightest proba-
bility that the courts would so hold.
These men were not legal members
Of the Legislature, and had no right
TO sit in the House of Representa-
tives and vote as such. This out
rage upon the people was not done
ignOrantly, but was part of the
usurpation by which the Radical
party carried every thing before
them. We exposed the fraud in the
canvass preceding the election of
1867, but the party benefited by it
succeeded in that election, and of
course it was not rectiied. We
have proposed no general wiping
OUT or "a short cut TO relief" as
our Knoxville contemporary sup
poses, but simply called attention
to the illegality Of laws passed
when there was only quorum in
the House Of Representatives by
including these bogus members,
that the incoming Legislature may
not fall into the errors and be gull
ty Of the usurpatiOns Of its prede
cessOrs under the Radical regime.
Even the Press and Times, of this
city, cOnfesses that if these "super-
numerary" members shall be de-
clared bogus, it will render null
ard void much of the legislation of
the last four years. We quote from
that paper of yesterday as follows:
1--WE do not propose in the present
article to inquire into the domestic legis~
lation which would fall to the ground by
the adoption Of the proposition of the
UNION AND AMERICAN. 1t is enough to
say, now, that it would undermine the
laws of the past four years, and thor
oughly confuse, unsettle and Rullify the
decisions of the Supreme and inferior
courts throughout the State, and jeopar~
die a multitude OF local and individual
interests. We shall present what we
conceive to be the chief object which the
Democratic organ seeks TO attain by its
extraordinary and revolutionary proposl-
ton. That object is the withdrawal, or
rather nullifici ,tiOn Of Tennessee's rati-
iicatiOn Of the fourteenth constitutional
y virtue of which her dele
cation was Omitted into Congress in
1866.
"lhe Leg lslature convened July 4,
1866 Some twenty-eight of the mem,
bers refused to attend, and several of
those who after ded determined to defeat
the ratifca ion by any means whatever.
Several weeks, consequently, elapsed be
fore quorum could be had, the reirac-
tory Represents tives purposely absenting
q the 18th of July the
House ,JourDa makes the following
record: lt W Ill be seen that tiity-six
3, a bare quorum, were
present The names of the members
whose seats it it proposed to abolish are
talicised.
an II