The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1870-04-06
COK1UNlTBT BTlA.. s. 1 !.
Wednesda ~ 7aaoiping april 8, 1870.

"AeSu - 'N'>SA ifAsus p tSAt1ASk " ..1osVs
Tho Adoption OF the. gIfteenth Am and.
mcnt-Its Tvvo-iold Significance.
President GIait has officially an
nounced the ratification Of the fifteenth
amendment. T1s& provisions Of this
amendment have Been for some time in
operation in the 'xeconstructedn States.
The effect of the recent announcement
makes negro suffrage apply also to the
so-called ''loyal', States. 1t gives suf-
frage to about $4,000 new voters in the
twenty-one Northern, middles Eastern
and Western States, and tit confirms suf-
frage to abou. 400. 900 negro voters in
the whole United States. Thus the yot-
ing population OF the whole country
stands, in ronna numbers. over e,00O.
Oo0whits voters; and about 500, 900 CO.
lJf9a !voters, Tbe following ia the text
ofsHs anand ment declared RATIFIED: !
1ts ftoH1., Tha tights of
oitsSahA fbs tha ghftad Stateb % Vote
sbhsshSE isH or abfii, BIZ the
UhSstd Hay pn nSEohnt Of
rs3Saa o e ahconai nof Sefyi-
tQgsss s.s.:ti II
sssss S ssSIs 1$t Bg .ppss: asss
priate legishtious olFI:.,faGNp %
Whethas agHanp legally or ille-
gally, constitptiioonallJye or not,. this is the
law Of the lapd IIfya,igM does not make
,ibht, it certainly does one thing very
surely-it gives us accomplished facts.
This universal lfrage is An accomplished
fact-as tie French express It, an .ffais
accompH. We. have suggested that this
matter of the adoption Lof the fifteenth
amendment has tw6-fold significance.
First, it establishes The hrooad and une-
quivocal proposition; that, suArsgei is uni
persal in this country. With this we are
disposed to be, content. We are inclined
to think that the suffrage of the colored
man is the logical sequence of his free
dom. Furthermore, we are disposed to
look upon the extension Of the privilege
of universal suffrage as the wisest solu-
tion Of q vexed question the world over.
If the people demand universal suffrage,
well, let them have it, They are sove-
reign. Let them have it, and Let us go
about our business. IF the principle
shall not work well, the remedy, we sup
pose, will como from those who expe-
rience the ill effects of its operation.
This is one respect Of the question
But:there isg another. It is this. The
radical party,5in its role of ''reconstruc-
tion"-id its making and unmaking of
States-has utterly ignored the doctrine
of State. sovereignty and State rights.
In the fifteenth amendment, and also in
the thirteenth and fourteenth amend
ments, the radical or Republican party
has gone upon the principle of regard
ing Congress as the sovereign power
''as representing the national authority
of the United States This is clear.
Congress has virtually said and acted out
IT AN TIE STATE" Louis XIV did not
more thoroughly represent the sove-
reignty of France than does Congress
claim the sovereignty of power in these
United States. The present ruling party
have, since the war, in spirit and in sub
stance, changed the character of this
Government. At first the sword struck
down the Southern States. Now it is
turned upon the Northern and Western
States. II the Democracy of those
States fail to rally the Northern people
against the legislation of Congress, then
we shall give the matter up. State rights
will be laid low, with or without resur-
rection. The REPUBL1o of Washington
and Adams will have become the NATION
of Lincoln and Grant. It remains for
the Northern people to yield to or to mr.
rest this REsULT-so full of significance.
Let them sustain the present national
reginae-let them fail to revive, in it's
power, the national Democracy-th the last
hope of q Government of free and CO.
equal States and all will be over. We
do not say .foreue'', but all will be over
for the present. STATES will have be-
come Provinces, and the power OF the
Government will have passed into the