Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1871-09-14
SENATOR THURMAN'S SPEECH
The Constitutional AmcndmentS---
His Exact Words.
[From the Report in Ohio Statesman, Aug. 81


From the Report in Ohio Statesman, Aug. 81
Now, my friends, it has been com.
mon for the Republican party Of this
country to say that the Democrats have
taken new departure, and that new
departure, they allege, consists in say
ing that we have been wrong and the
Republicans have been right. | say
there never has beenauy such confession
as that. We are as much opposed to
what has been done as when we gave
our votes against it. Why, if should
see man strike another in an unlaw.
full and brutal manner in the street,
throttle him and knock him down and
trespass upon his rights, and should
see his wounds aud bruises, and see
him bleeding, should be compelled to
say that he was down and bleeding, but
who would call that confession that
the villain who outraged him had done
what was proper? Laughter So
when these men throttled the Constitu-
ton and ruined the peace of the coun-
try, when they made the South almost
as ruinous as in the midst of war, we
demonstrated and opposed them. And
now, because we cannot deny that they
have done it |; because we cannot deny
that the thing has been accomplished ;
because we are compelled to admit the
fact that the reconstruction laws have
been executed and the amendments to
the Constitution fastened upon us, we
are told, lorsooth, that we admit that
the Radicals were right and we were
wrong That's logic for you. The
Fourteenth Amendment to the Consti-
tuition was passed. We opposed it,
Why did we oppose it !? Because il
provided that all people 10 the United
States should be equal before the law ?
There is not one Democrat from the
Ohio river to Canada not one 10 the
United States opposed it upon any such
ground. That has always been the
law in Ohio that has always been
the law in the Northern States. When
was there time when a negro was not
equal before the law to Il white man in
Ohio ? What is meant by equal right
before the law, is having equal legal
rights; not voting, that is a political
right. But the reason we opposed the
amendment was, first, because of its
DISTINGUISHING clause. 1t DISTINGUISHED
the mea whose aid was most necessary
to restore peace at the South-lhe men
of influence the men of intellect the
men of education F; the meu whose
good will ought TO have been cultivated
and they made co workers with the rest
to aid in restoring harmony through
out the land. 1t said these men be-
cause they had differed from US, were
perjured men, as if we had never DIFF
tered about the Interpretation of the
Constitution as if Wings and Demo-
Gratis had not differed about the inter-
probation Of that instrument as if the
different parties had not differed about
it until the present day. Again, we
said the language was ambiguous, and
such as would enable an ambitious
President and Congress. to usurp the
power that belongs to the individual
States, and to overthrow every one OF
the reserved rights of the people of the
States. And were we not right For
it is under the ambiguous and loose
language of that amendment that the
infamous Ku-Klux bill was passed
under pretence of authority derived
from that loose and ambiguous Ian
guage. IF this Interpretation were
correct the President would have pow
er in the State of Ohio TO displace the
Governor, dethrone the Legislature,
turn out of office our judges, and es-
tablish martial law from one end of the
State to the other, whenever he thinks,