The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1871-02-22
THE NEn SENATOR FROM MISSOURI
ON RECONSTR UCTION.
4 Bold Arraignment OF the Tyrn,n1cnl
and Aggressive Legislation OF the RAD
ical Purty-A Remarkable Speech.

In the United States Senate, on Wednesday
lust, the subject under consideration being the
Joint resolution Of tile Legislature OF Indiana with
drawing its assent to the ratification OF the If
tecnth amendment to the constitution, Mr.. Blair
said:
+ Mr.. President. Tie senator from Indiana, (Mr
Morton,) with his usual ability, which marks him
ss the leader Of the administration party on this
fuor-there being many OF the OLD leaders OF tile
Republicans who CRluUt be claimed TO-. the au-
minis; ratloI--has opene'l tile discussion OF qucS-
lions which regard az OF paramount Importance
TO the country. These are the questions involved
In the reconstruction acts OF Congres S. Tile Re-
publican party, after carrying Presidential cleo.
ton upon the declaration Ul the Chicago plutlorn
mat negro suffrage was entirely d matter within
ille control OF the States had At the ulng SeS-
sion or Congress forced the principle upon the
country in the fifteenth amendment a PROPOSE
tIon o.SuOmiC the question TO tile Stale LeglSll-
lures thereafter to be elected was voted down.
The senators and representatives from tile
States OF Missouri, Kansas, Michigan, New York
and Ohio, voted for that inenufneut, although tile
people 0f those States had, W immense maj0rt-
Ties ranging from 30 600 To 5O,000 rejected negro
suffrage at tile lection just preceding. The
Legislatures throughout the country, elected prior
to the submission Of the amendment, ratified IL
without regard 10 tile protests ol their cOnSlitu
ents. If amendments could be adopted as The
fifteenth had been, against the wish OF the great
mass Of the people, We might soon nave one to
make the government m0uarchical aud the preSi.
dent Of the Senate in officer for life. This might
easily Ue accomplished through the iustrumcn.
tally Of the Carpet.bag States. Upon The argu-
ment now made use oil, we would have uO risht :
to protest against such proceeding, nor TO at.
tempt to expose the perndy by which the people
had been betrayed, for we would be called revo.
lutionists if we did. Tile argumeat Of the Sena-
tor from Wisconsin mr. Carpenter,) the other day,
upon the unconstitutolality OF the test oath, was
q yinaication Of the Democratic position on that
question
Mr. Morton asked whether the Democratic
party, In the last Presidential election, did not
take issue squarely that the reconstruction acts
were null and void and ought TO be dlscegarded,
and If they were not beaten on that.
Mr. Blair thought they did, anu he also thought
the only reason they were beaten was because
some OF them wanted TO uoIgc. Inose acts were
void because Congress undertook to !nllct pun
ishlnent outside Of the constitution. After the
thirteenth amendment had been secured 0y the
woes of the carpet-bag States, Congress had gone
TO work to disqualify, without a trlai or convic-
Such punishment, being In The nature OF bill
or attainder, was prohibited by the constitution.
Now, il the crime committed ny the Southern
men IN going into The rebellion deserved punish
mcnt, they shuuld have been punished according
To the constitution. That was the only way In
which We could punish their crime without com.
hitting Gil oar part as great crlne-the crime
OF destroying our own government ana over
throwing our own constitution. Sir, In over
throwing our constitution, IN Violating its sacred
guarantees, we committed the same CRIME with
which We had charged the rebels OF the South,
aud Of which they undoubtedly naa oeen guilty.
Thai was my view OF the case, anu believing
that these acts OF Congress were unconsttution-
al, null and void, believe that the President of
the United States, who was sworn 10 maintain he
constitution, ought not 10 allow it to be trampled
under foot: thai your conscience, sir, and the
conscience OF the majority In these two houses
saould not dictate to the President Wha5 lie should
do in q case Of this kind. lie had his own con-
science TO keep clear and spotless, he had sworn
an oath himself and remember right well that 1t
was not the Democratic convention which sat in