The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1869-07-14
,..ar,. : ~ .he nnalifcation cor Office, and

assistance to me, and on which / have prn-
cinally depended since being here. since
The nntninatiof, of General Gordon his ell
uIbiljfy under the reconstruction laws mas
beer impeached ON the ground that until |
the State ia admitted TO representation aii
government Is only provisional; ana Una. III
one can be elected or appointed 10 9n!ce .h ui,-
der any provisional government ui''es' 'h''
can take the test-oath. oaAir
one onposcd politically to General Gordon;
~ viii he seen by reference TO the enclosea
extract from paper published mere. II
tb;s Doint is fairly raised, my OPINION OF
Aprif 4th, and subsequent order, are Do.n
wrong: but am not disposed to acaulesce
In it's correctness, and for the iolio"ihs
reasons: ;. o.rof,1
per,,sol of the several Reconstruction assLs'
that the officers elected Under the consult
lions framed in accordance with these acts
were not considered, or intended TO pe ZOE, Co!l-
sidcrcd, ms provisional governments Wlt!i'n
the meaning of this term us used III scc,ioh
8 of the act of March 9, 1867 nor arc tnes
to be considered Gas elected under any 50,
called State authority" as as referred 70 III
section 8, act of July 10, 1867.
They nre elected to office under the au-
thority of the reconstruction acts them
selves. and are not entitled to hold once
until NIL the steps required by said acts are
fully complied with and the only qua!ln-
cation for holding Office is the qualification
required by the fourteenth article OF con-
stitutional amendment. This has been my
opii,ion since first taking command ana SO
| fully impressed was | with 1t, that pflor 10
| the Alabama election urged the postpone
ment of the election OF state ana count!
officers until after the adoption OF the con-
| stitution by Congress, ON the ground that
| until the State was restored to its proper
relations these Offices had no existence,
and did not require to be filled by election;
| IT is true. those elected could be appointed
by me as officers of provisional govern
ment. or, as in the case of Alabama, where
the constitution failed Of rati1lcatlon, they
could be legislated into office, as It Is now
proposed to do by bill in Congress; ana inns
| bill is, in my Judgment, vindlcation OF the
position ! herein assume, that the govern
ments elected under the constitutions sub
mtted to Congress-said constitutions are
adopted, and said governments go into ope-
ration-are not provisional, nor do they chi
anate from any So-called State authority, Pc
cause this bill, in legislating into office the
persons elected, when the constitution faiied
of ratification, distinctly declares that they
are to be considered provisional govern
ment, and that the reconstruction laws are
taken.
| Now, if all governments are provi-
| sional till the States are represented, there
was no occasion for reiterating this proyl-
sion; the reItcration confirms me i'll the
opinion that it was made because Congress
designed the governments created by their
acts to be considered permanent; and here
being an eXception-rlZ., a government
created by Congress, but not i'll accordance
with the reconstruction acts, Congress does
what it did not do bctore-makes it pro-
visional government and subject to the au-
thority OF the district commander. Hence
| conclude that the officers to be elected III
Georgia under the new constitution, II they
are not put into office before the adoption
of the constitution by Congress and the
| adoption by the State of the fourteenth
article, are not officers elected under any
| So-called State authority, and are not there
| fore required to take the oath prescribed in
section nine, act July 10, 1867.
Now, as the members OF the Legislature
will he called together either by myself or
by the provisional governor in order to
adopt the fourteenth article, this prelimi-
nary step may be considered as under pro-
viSional government, and the power of the
members be considered as derived from my
authority, and therefore, BY section ., July
| 10, 1867, these members may be required.
step to the admission of the State, to take
| the oath prescribed in said section for ap-
pointees of the district commander. In
view of this contingency, and i'll order to
set myself right OH the record, l issued
Order No. 81 copy Of which is herewith
tr;nsmittcd). Having thus given my reasons
for the opinion as set forth, | desire to add,
secondly, that this opinion has already been
submitted TO you, and my views confirmed.
,Io, tknt t,o> ~F1if nf
the convention in Florida prescribed that
the election for State and county
officers should be held on the same day as
the constitution was submitted othe people:
and this constitution enfranchiSed every
citizen. This being before the recent ACT OF
Congress authorizing these elections to be
held in advance of the adoption of the con-
stitution, | was in doubt as to the proper
action to be pursued. If the position main-
tanned by the writer in the Nc1r Era is cor
rect, that the government elected under the
new constitution and i'll pursuance Of the
reconstruction acts is a provisional govern
mcnt, then none but registered voters could
vote for the offices. Hence ] tclegraphcd
you as follows OH February 20, 1868:
"General q. S. Grant, Washington, D. c.:
"Is this election of officers under
the constituion-and only to take Office on The
adoption of the coEstitufon-to he considered a.
yernment referred to In section 6 of act of March
I'd 1867 and are non-registeresvoters excluded by
this section ut first election held under the new
constitution? '
To which received your reply under
date of March 2, 1868:
''Thc election proposed by the Convention for
officers under the new constitution do not cor
slider as an election for officers under tho proyi
sional government referred to in section of act of
March ., 1867.
[signcdl 'U. S. GRANT, General
Subsequently Congress sustained us in
our opinion by framing Il bill authorizing
elections in advance of adoption OF the con-
Stitution. And as previous laws have defined
the qualifications for voters, Congress, to
prohibit the exclusion of registered voters,
preScribes that at these elections registered
voters may vote-COngress again doing All
act inconsistent with the theory of the
writer in the Near Era, because if the per-
sons elected at these elections We're Ivy pro-
vious acts members of provisional govern
ments, why reiterate (what previous laws
reqmredl that only registered voters should
vote?
You viii thus perceive that the opinions
given in the cases of Judge Irwin and Gen
eral Gordon were predicatcd on the convic-
ton that the fourteenth article contained
the only qualifications prescribed by the re-
construction acts, and the correspondence
of the 18th February by telegram had set
tied me in the opinion that these govern
ments to be elected were not provisional or
to be considered rs deriving their authority
from any So-caled State authority, and that
this question, fortunately for me, had been
raised in advance Of its application to any
individual or political consideration.
l have now given you fun statement of
the manner in which | became involved in
giving construction to the laws, and also"the
construction given, to which, unless over
ruled, | shall adhere. 1t is true Congress
can, ut any moment, pass an amendatory or