The Van Buren press., 1870-02-01
Virginia's Admission.

the Senate amendment, not, however. be
cause if its provisions were presented
originally he would have supported them
Some of them, he thought, were very
buuglingly drawn up, and they would do
more harm than good but he made the
motion because he thought TO throw the
question open again to the sea Of DISCUS
sion, and to keep Virginia longer out OF
representation would be a greater evil
than to adopt the Senate bill.
Mr.. Cox, of New York, asked whether
the passage of the Senate bill would not
be yielding up the position of the House
without even the chance of committee
Of conference.
Mr. Bingham replied it was not quite
so obnoxious rs the bill voted down by
the House. He hoped the House would
concur in the Senate amendment His
chief purpose was to state to the gentle
men on his own side of the house
Mr. Butler, Mass.-Which side Of the
House is that? (Laughter,)
Bingham, indgnantly-The gentleman
is very wise, wise beyond his years. He
cannot read me out of the party with
which am associated with, nor can he
blot out my record. Nulgarity isnot wit
Assumption is not power.
Batter took an interest in the discus
sion. 1t seemed to be on increase. lie
said he would begin where the gentleman
from Ohio left of, rot with misquotation,
but simply to say that he had never
threatenep TO read the gentleman out of
the Republican party.
Nobody could do that but himself
Whether he had done that in passing the
Virginia bill through the House by snap
Judgment and with the aid of his Demo
cratic allies, the country judge.
Whether the gentleman was to have an
ovation when he went to Virginia, he did
not know but had seen some hint of the
kind in the papers. He should try to be
present in spirit where he could look
(not embodied) and see Virginia toast
ing the man whom all their papers said is
the murderer of Mrs. Surratt Excite
ment
What sight the lion-no, not the lion,
but another animal. (Laughter.) He
referred to the eulogy passed by the gen
tleman from Ohio on the Virginia Con
stitution, and said it was not the work OF
Virginia statesmen, but of carpet baggers
and scalawags and negroes from the field.
He regarded the condition in the bill
as notice to Virginia and all the country,
that if she did not maintain, in spirit and
in TRUTH the spirit of reconstruction as
Congress held and claimed, Congress,
with the help Of God and of. the loyal
people of the country, would exercise
power to place her back again where she
had been,
He did not know what new light the
gentleman from Ohio had got which in
duced him to support a bill from the SEN
-atc, which was substantially the bill re-
ported by the Reconstruction Committee.
Mr.. Farnsworth said he understood
very well the illusions made by Mr.. But
Ter to acting as chairman of the Recon
struction Committee, and he had word
to say on that subject, and he would not
allow himself to be instructed in republi-
canism by the gentleman fiom Massa,
| chusetts.
lie had %6 been aIS RGgahtltaqaa Gt from 1N assa a
chusetts Was chasing fugitive slaves all
over the State, Laughter and clapping
on the Democratic side } lie had done
all he could at Chicago Convention for
the nomination Of Republican President,
when the gentleman from Massachusetts
was at the Charleston Convention voting
for Jefferson Davis, (Laughter) He
had voted for the Republican party in
1860, when the gentleman from Massa-
chusetts was voting for Breckenridge of
Kentucky, lie knew that the gentleman,
with his facility for getting on the other
side when his allies deserted him, went
over, and he knew his conviction and
conversation was 50 sudden that it sham
ed that of st. Paul (Laughtcr) The
lightning that blazed around him, that
focal blaze that Illuminated his under
standing, shamed into darkness the light
that shope around St Paul. But he knew
that gent was somewhat like Peter when
he deserted his master. His desertion
was So recent that he was obliged to curse
and swear to make people believe his de-
sertion was genuine.
So the gentleman from Massachusetts
was obliged to be Radical in order to
make people believe his conversion was
genuine. (Laughtcr.) He understood
that the gentleman attacked was a gentle
man from Ohio, Bingham, J but he would
probably have named him (Famsworth) J
too, only he knew that Farnsworth had Il
chance to reply.
Mr.. Farnsworth, Of Illinois, continu-
ing his remarks, reminded the House that
Mr.. Butler had opposed him every time
he tried to introduce a bill for the admis-
sion of Virginia, and had statee the last
time, two days before recess, that the
Committee wanted to take testimony.
Mr.. Butler remarked that the evidence
he then wanted was as to the ratification
of the Fifteenth amendment
Mr.. Farnsworth said that was most re-
markablc, because three days before the
Secretary of State had notified Congress
that Virginia has ratified the Fifteenth
amendment, (Laughter.) 1t was the
gentleman from Massachusetts, who had
barred the door against Virginia, and
would bar it to day but that he knew it to
be inevitable that the bill would pass. In
conclusion he said if he thought the
House would nonconcur and refer the
matter to the Committee of Conference,
he would vote TO nonconcur, But as he
was satisfied the House would not, he
would vote to concur.
Mr.. Farusworth's motion was agreed