The post. [volume] (Middleburg, Snyder County, Pa.) 1864-1883, 1871-05-11
PROCLAMATION or THE
PRESIDENT,

WAsuiSGToN, May 4..--Thc presi-
dent has Used the following proclama-
ton for the enforcement VI the four
tecutb amendments
BY tho President of tho United
States Of America;
A PROCLAMATION
The act of Congress- entitled Az
act to enforce the provisions of the
fourteenth amendment to the Cons,i-
tuition OF the United States, and tor
other purposes approved April 20,
1871, being law of extraordinary
public Importance, | consider it my
duty to issue this my proclamation
calling the attention Of the people OF
the United States thereto, cnjoining
upen all go)d citizens, and especially
upon all public officers, to be zeolous
in the enforcement thereof, and warn
iog all persons to abstain from COM
hitting any Of the acts thereby pro.
hibitcd. This law of Congress applies
to all parts Of the United States. and
will be enforced everywhere to the
extent Of the powers vested to the
Executive
But iyosmuch rs the necessity there
for is well known to have tccn caus.
ed chiefly by persistent violations Of
the rights of citizens Of the United
States, by combinations Of lawlcss and
disailcctcd persons il certain localities
lately the theatre of insurrcctlon and
military conflict, do particularly ey-
hort the people of those parts Of the
country to suppress all such combina
tions by their own voluntary efforts,
through the agency Of local laws, and
to maintain the rights Of all citizens
Of the United States, and TO secure all
such citizens the equal protection Of
the laws.
Fully sensible of the responsibility
imposed upon .he Executive by the
act of Congress, to which public at
tention is now called, and reluctant
20 call into exercise any of the extra
ordinary powers thereby conferred up
on me, except in cases of imperative
necessity, | do nevertheless, deem it
my duty to to make known that | will
not hesitate to exhaust the powers
thus vested in the Executive whcncv-
or and wherever it shall become me-
cessary to DO so for the purpose OF
securing to all citizen, OF the United
States the peaceful enjoyment of the
rights guaranteed to them by the Con.
stitulion and laws. 1t is my earnest
wish that peace and cheerful obcd.
ence to the law may prevail through
out the land, and that all traces of our
late unhappy civil strife may be
speedily removed. These ends can
be easily reached 10y acquicsccncc in
results or the conflict now written in
our Constitution, aud by the due and
proper enforcement Of equal, just, and
impartial laws in every part of our
country. The failure Of local govern
ncnts to furnish such means for the
attainment Of results so earnestly de-
sired imposes upon the National Gov.
crnmcnt the duty Of putting forth its
energies for the protection Of all its
citizens OF every race and color, and
for the restoration OF peace and order
throughout the entire country.
In testimony whereof | havc here
unto set my hand, and caused the
seal OF the United States to be ar-
fixed.
Done a. the city of Washington.
this third day of May, in the year OF
our Lord one thousand cigh, hundred
aud seventy-one, and of the indcpeu-
dencc Of the United States the ninety
fifth. L s. GRANT.
BY the President,
HAMILTON Fish, Secretary ofState.