Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1870-08-11
ion Of tba nitizAna d thn unitad

States as coequal measures OF a con-
federacy OF Individuals; the States
and the United States, in all the forms
of administering government, are,
things Qfthe past. The tOrlns of State
and Federal government T still pre-
served; but these, though essential to
the very existence OF the several bod
les of electors, in the old system, are
in no degree essential 70 the new po-
litical State into which those bodies
now are merged, and cannot long sur
viye the dissolution of the sovereign.
ties in which they were founded. The.
changepif any whatever is effected, is
radical and complete. 1t is neither
more nor less thananabsOlute transfer
of the essential sovereignty Of each
body of electors, an alienation of the.
tnetse'sdbB right of self goUern1geac M
heTeat IN the people Of each State, to the.
new political formerly the eiviD cohI-
munity or State composed of citizens.
OF the United States and this accom-
plishes the total destruction Of the.
States a. separate and independent.
political communities, and rear upon
their ruins-'Me enlpire.' Upon any
construction of the new amendment,
which results in the right of citizens
of the United States to VOTE or gives
such right to any of them, there Is no.
possible escape from the conclusion
reached. For, If the right is given to
any by virtue of the amendment, il is
given to all; and if any limitation, not
amounting to an absolute denial of.
the right, is or may be established,
such Limitation cannot amount to
q total exclusion, and the
{ citizens of the United States
not excluded, viii constitute the new
political State. And thus, if any.
effect be given to the new amendment,
by way of establishing a right to vote
which did not previously exist, it
must be admitted that it creates a.
wholly new political community or
State into which the former States are
merged; just as the Fourteenth had,
to the extent not only of four millions
OF population, but of the whole pOpu-
lation, created a new civil community,
or community OF citizens as such.
This, | believe, has been overlooked.
Behold them Tin the work and the
triumph of a political partly the de-
struetion and reconstruction of the
States! the establishment of the en-
pire! and the blindness of 'the people
to the ruin thus wrought
1.-THE conclusion reached can only
be avoided by assuming the negative
ground; that the new amendment
does not confer the right to vote upon.
any who did not previously possess it
by some State Constitution; but sim
ply prohibit the denial or abridge-
ment of such right as was previously
vested, on account of race, color, or
previous condition of serVitude.'
Thus, in States which had previously
conferred the right, without regard to
race, color, or previous condition of
s~ervitude, the prohibition prevents
any future distinction on account of
race, color, ETC., while in States which
had previously limited the right con-
ferred by them to a particular race,
color or condition, the prohibition
only applies to future restrictions
on these accounts, and works
no change in their Constitutions
Otherwise, qualifications IS to age,
sex, etc., would have been required
by the amendment; for the right, if
limited at all, must be limited by or
in pursuance of the grant, and not by
a prior, different and extraneous act,
which had and has no relation there
to. This construction, we may add, is
strictly in accordance with that of
other prohibitions contained in our
Constitutions; such, for instance, as
that the right of the people to keep
and bear arms shall not be iufringed.'
(Const. U. s. Amend, Art. p Here,
and in all the like cases, no one has
ever supposed that the right was origi-
nally created or extended, or newly
conferred or vested; all have agreed
that the right was recognised as a
right established by the law of each
| State, and as nj to be guarded
against future infractio1s.
Had the amendment been de-
signed to newly invest the citi zens of
the United States with a right to
vOte,' such as they had not previous
ly and could not derive from the
State Constitutions, the language
would probably have cOmpOrted with
the purpose in view; as it was Origi-
naily designed to invest the citizens
of each State with the character of
citizens of the United States, it was
provided that the 'citizens of each
State shall be entitled to all privileges
and immunities of citizens in the sew
eral States;' Const. U. s. art. Tvs 2,
art. COnfed. iv.), SO here the language
would probably have been that "citi-
Zens of the United States shall be en-
tilted to the rights and privileges of
voters (or eIectors) in the several
States;' and if any Limitation or quail
ificatiOn had been intended, that
would also have been expressed and
the prohibition, as to i~nfractions Of
the right, would then have followed.
This would have opened the eyes of
the people to what was designed.
"There are, in fine, two, and only
two Ources from which the right ito
vote can be derived-State and Fed
eral. If derived from the State, it is
the right which was previously vested
by the State Constitution, and is ex-
ercised solely in virtue of State author
ity, as heretofore; if derived through
any construction, operation or effect
of the new amendment, il is q wholly
new right, a right to be exercised
solely in virtue of Federal authority,
and all the consequences formerly sta
ted must be accepted.
"The amendment concludes in these
words: Congress shall have power
to enforce this article by appropriate
legislation If, therefore, any new
right is vested it is the right of equal
and universal suffrage, the right of a
political community, in the language
of the amendment, the right of eiti-
zenS of the United States to Vote,'
and the entire control of this right,
involving, as we have seen, the para
mount interest and inalienable s0ver-
eighty of the people, forever coded,
alienated and abandoned by them,
and vested in their now sovereign
rulers, the Federal Congress. The.
fundamental principle of our political
constitutions, All power is inherent
in the peple, must hence be under
stood to mean, All power is vested
in Congress- sff
COIITu or lis