The Republican journal., 1870-06-30


had made an attempt to get admittance to his
room, but was scared by the sounds he heard,
and contrlyed to escape to France. The Ia
dy who acted the sister, and who visited the
Admiralty partly to put the authorities off
their guard, and probably also to interchange
the key to the cipher, was a Partisan celebri-
ty who both before and afterward was re-
noWned for her daring in political intrigue.
CONCLUSION OF THE
SPEECH OF HON. S. s. COX,
OF NEW YORK.
On the Bill to Enforce the Fifteenth Amend
ment.
Mr.. Speaker, in the time allotted me | have not
the opportunity to go through this bill and diSsect
it, section by section, as | could wish. can only
marvel At the indifference with which gentlemen
regard this attempt to tramp down with elephantne
foot all the private rights and legal codes. You
canllot thus interfere by penalties with the ballot
without destroying the virtue of the latter, by at
tempting rudely to uproot its abuses. You would
grasp at political power by those undue statutory
means; but would grasp shadow. You follow,
like Macbeth. the dangerous vision and unhallowed
hopes OF beWitched ambition! You will fail.
You would enforce a Capitalization with bayonet
and posse, with quo 7rdrr0ntO and affidavit, but
you will fail. Centralized power like that seized
and welded by the present Napoleon, was won by
bolder means and is being to-day gradually resign
ed, with wisdom infinite compared with yours.
What is your congomerate incongrulty which
you call law: Let me enumerate some of its
beauties:
and Intellectual.
.. 1t is so full of spite as to be promotive of
litgations and prosecutions.
= 1t is so general in its terms that no informa-
ton or Indictment could be drawn upon its prOyiS-
ions, and therefore it is fraud upon the public and
the accused.
4. 1t DESTROYS jury trial
,. 1t Is so partisan that il diScriminateS in favor
of the black against the white.
&. 1t is so unmindful of the Constitution, that il
compelS State officers to enforce Federal laws.
!. 1t is so yengeful that it would fill iails and
cumulae fines beyond the capacity of masonry to
mmure the prisoners or the people to pay the
sums.
$. 1t creates a class Of paid government counsel,
furnishes fees for them from the pockets of our
stltents, and thus Increases taxes, while it fills the
nation with horde of detcstable spies and in
formers.
.. 1t begets conflict between State and Federal
authorities, and by throwing the sword into the
Federal balance, seeks by military power to over
awe and control the elections of the States and
while aggrandizing power in the Federal govern
ment destroys the form. structure and genius Of
the Federal government.
1t will be impossible to elaborate all these points
| will endeavor to elucidate a few of them:
|. The penal eases. There are twelve sections
OF fines and penalties out of the tWenty-three in
this bill. Need / rehearse them: Imprisonment>
and fines, fines and mprisonments, relieved only
by civil suits and counsel fees. This law is so Gu
mulative with punitive clauses as to be a monstros-
lty. Most of these sections punish with imprison-
ment and fine for otfenSes already amply provided
for IN State laws as to election frauds, although
those State laws do not attach to them such heavy
pehalties. L could go over the sections OF the
sertGtne, to show the uncalled for weight of these
penalties; and then | might in this presence be
permitted to read Jeremy Bentham on the old harsh
English penal codes. to show that all excessive
penal clauses overleap themselves. They fail of
their aim Will the scholarly gentleman Mr..
Bingham who reported this bill turn to the fourth
chapter of Bouring's edition of Jeremy Bentham
Volume nine, page 22.) penal law? The
philosopher considers what dividends may made
from the stock of human felicity by the penal
codes. We know that he was no advocate of such
Draconian codes. In the spirit of our "Anglo-
American representative democracy or in the
spirit of Its Constitution against "eXceSSiye' pun
craft and hypocrisy. He finds such codes confed-
crate with fraud, and subServient to tyranny. He
finds their synonym in the word ''visitation-penal
visitation TO this same source of civil disorder
and turbulence do trace this iniqutOuS bill.
In what eases shall such severe puniShnentS be
applied? In what shape; what proportion? Rather.
Bentham asks, in what shape or proportion shall
it not be applied: He answers, as | answer for all
the twelve sections OF these twenty-five sections of
this punatve enactment these penalties are ground
less, needless, inetcacious and Improbable. In
such cases punishment. in the language of the
quaint philosopher, is inapt and the unmeet.
Take the Of this bill, from the futile attempt
to rise civil issues to the attempt to punish the
landlord for collecting rent of the voting tenant
under fine not less than $500; from the indefinite
conspiracy of the highway in disguise, with the
limit of 900 fine and Imprisonment not exceeding
ten years, to the still more uncertain misdemeanor
of holding office illegally against the fourteenth
amendment, under the penalty of ST 600 fine and
years Imprisonment, or both, and you will
what Bentham means when, by an q priori scorn,
he derides such unphilosophic and contemplate
schemes as this bill is replete Wthal.
Ranthom evidently fnrnSaV where tha evils
appurtenant to punishment We're greater than the
evils to be punished. The misdeed, in other words,
is not so atrOciouS the law.
'1Of the sort of operation by which fol the eX-
cluson of greater evil is purposely produced the
operation called puniton Is but one mode. For.
taken by itself, government is, i'll itself, one vast
evil"
What foresight had this philosopher. He
looked into the heart of this latter day. Where
ever. by the evils of government, great evil is eX-
cluded, the balance takes the nature and name of
good. In other cases which he examines, the pun
ishment is inc tticacious and Improbable, because
to the undmnshed evil of the otfense is added the
evil of punishment. The evil excluded is not so
great as that introduced. Thus reasoning, this
Congress might perceive why wise judgement
would denounce such atrociouS remedies as this
bill provides for wrongs not so great as its eNecu
tion would induce.
| pass from this abstract phraseology. speak
plainly when denOunce the intermnable. general
excessive and incomprehensible penalties against
the alleged registration and voting frauds, North or
South, us an noerable statutory nuisance. There
is compensation for its existence by any possible
good. 1t will become Il dead, putrescent letter on
the statute, Courts, jurors and witnesses will
laugh the law down. Public opinion will despiSe
it. The penalties may now and then go to the spy
informer but the bread they buy will choke those
who eat it.
.. pass lightly over the point as to tigations
and prosecutions. This bill begins where it is the
interest of all there should be end. to wit with
litigation. The bill is provision for fees, counsel,
spies, informers suits, etc., to the end of this gen
Grafton. Hence am opposed to it because it is
bill of spite. 1t has no spirit of amnesty 1t is |
reprehensble because it does nothing to heal
wounds. 1t pours into them no balm. 1t is a
fruitful source of litigation. At the end of civil
war there ought to be tranquility You are five
years after its end beginning system of proscrip-
ton which will have retaliation, and again retalia
ton. There is end of this incessant system of |
provocaton but civil war again.
3. If any lawyer will examine the clauses of the J