Worcester daily spy., 1871-02-16


country's enemies, but upon the enemies Of the
administration.
Mr.. Morton desired to ask the senator whether
he regarded the fifteenth amendment as having
been ratified and now a fundamental part of
the law of the land.
Mr.. Blair thought the senator ought to have
got his opinion OF the fifteenth nmenemCnt by
this time. lLaughter.l He thought the ratif-
cation of his own state wasin legal form, though
accomplished by most infamous peTidy
Mr.. Morton substantially repeated his qucs-
tion, when MIR. Blair said he would eudcayor to
be sufficiently explicit. He did regard the
amendment as complete and as part of the law
OF the land He had never held any other doc
trine in regard to it. He did not now and
never had regarded the reconstruction acts As
any part of the law of the land, and if he had
been in place of power, and called to act upon
these Socalled laws, he should have acted out
his conviction, let the consequences be what
they might He never did believe them cOnSti-
tutional.
Mr.. Schurz was awarded the floor, and there
appeared to be a general disposition in the
chamber particularly among the republican
senators, TO continue the debate; but Mr.. Cole
objected, in order to proceed with the appropria-
ton bills. Under the rule, one objection being
sufficient to prevent fnrther discussion, the sub
ject went over.
The legislative appropriation bill was taken
up, the question being on the amendment n-
creasing the judicial salaries.
Mr.. Wilson also moved to amend bv fixing
the salaries as follows: Chief justice, $500; as
sociate justices, $4,000; circuit judges, $1,000;
justices of the court OF claims and of the District
Of Columbia, $4,000; Agreed to-29 to 2S.
Recess.
EVENING SESSION.
The committee of conference on the District OF
Columbia territorial bill made report, which
was cOncurrcd in.
The LEGISLATIVE annrnurin flor, hill vvoc tLnr
taken up.
Mr.. Conkling opposed any increase of the
salaries of the district Judges
Adjourned at $3.50, no quorum being present.
HOUSE.
The bill of Mr. Churchill, to pertet the law
passed at the last session. TO guard the purity of
elections came up, and provoked considerable
discussion.
Mr.. Woodward, in the course of an argument
against the cOnsttutiOnality of tie bill, inquired
what, in the name of heaven, was the need for
this long, complicated and misChievOus enact
ment, professedly for the purpose of carrying
out the 18th amendment2 Who was resisting
the fifteenth amendment? Who made this eX.
traordinary legislation necessary? No gentle
man could answer. His friend from Wisconsin,
Mr.. Eldridge, had not characterized the bill 100
strongly, when he said it was fraud, and that
it was not for the purpose of enforcing the
fifteenth amendment, but for the purpose of
taking away from the state that exclusive and
absolute control over the question of suffrage
which the constitution had vested in them, and
which the people had hitherto enjoyed peace
fully and executed wisely.
Mr.. Churchill, author of the bill, explained
and defended its provisions saying it was in
tended to do nothing more than to perfect the
bill of last session and remove the doubts which
had arisen, whether the elections held in differ
ent parts of the country truly represented the
will of the people. In reply to Mr.. Wood, Mr..
Churchill said the election in New York last fal
was more honest than had been held for years
before; but, in order to show occasion for legis-
lation on this subject he sent to the clerks desk
and had read an extract from the report of the
committee of the New York legislature on elec-
tion, showing that frauds were perpetratcd by
lawless gangs of repeaters in the 10th ward OF
New York city in 1869
Mr.. Potter asked why, if the bill of last ses-
sion was operating well, this bill should now be
passed.
Mr.. Churchill replied that the object of the
bill was to perfect the law of last summer
While it would exclude no honest man from the
polls, it would prevent a repetition of such acts
as had been described in the report just read
The whole principle of the bill had been fully
discussed in both houses last session, and ac.
cepted by congress, and, as he believed, by the
sentiment of great majority of the American
people.
Br. Lawrence, in an argument sustaining the
bill, sad there was nothing new in the theory OF
federal interference, When the fugitive slave
law passed, there had been no outcry from the
democratic party against federal interference.
MIR. Eldridge asked him whether he defended
this bill on the authority Of the fugitive slave
law
Mr. Lawrenee-"No sirl The fugitive slave
law is dead, aud slavery is dead, and the party
that supported slavery and the fugitive slave
law is dead, and for it there Is no resurrection.
,,n,&n f,, .,;es
zens of African descent to dig its grave, lower
its coffin shovel in the dirt and bury it forever"
(Laughter.)
Mr.. Eldridge-"The gentleman himself did
not succeed very well in burying it at the last
election"
Mr.. Lawreuce-G never was defeated when |
was a candidate. / am preceded here by II
democrat, and will be succeeded by one; but, |
do not discuss things that are dead. prefer,
rather, to discuss living issues, and the issue
here is, whether by national law, citizens of the
United States shall be protected in the enjoy
ment OF their rights OF franchise, without inter-
ruption by force or fraud.
Mr.. Kerr opposed the BILL as unconstitutional
and ineXpedent, and argued at length to show
that the record of the democratic party contra.
dicted all the assertions that the party was al
ways resisting efforts to maintain the purity of
the ballot box, and that, wherever republican
policy had prevailed, wherever the reConstruc-
ing elections had not only been below those en-
acted by the states generally but in details
purposes and policy, simply infamous and out
ra@eous violations OF common honesty and COM
mon decency,
Mr.. VOORHEES, argued against the BILL aud re-
ferred to the absence of attention to debate on
the part OF republican members as one Of the
deplorable facts in the present condition ofpub-
lie affairs. He predicted that one hundred MEM
bers would vote for this bill who had never
read it, and who have not hear1 a word of the
debate. He would say nothing disrespectful of
the president of the United States, but he would
remind the members that it was these grim,
saturnine, silent men who were the men to be
watched when high in power. The present en-
peror of the French had attained bis gddy
height because Of characteristics in civil life
similar TO those possessed by the present chief
magistrate of the United States.
Mr.. Logan objected to the 18th section of the
bill as one by which it was doubtful whether
soldier committing an act under it would be
amendable to the civil or military jurisdiction,
and said, with that section retained he would
vote against the bill.
Mr.. Finkelnburg moved to strike out of the
18th section all that required the military au-
thoritics to obey call made by United States
marshal or his deputy.
Mr.. Logln remarked that that would remove
his objection to the BILL
Mr.. Bingham closed the debate with an argu-
ulcut Ill ldfOI VI tue Ulll, REVIEWING hUu Sull-
ming up the propositions previously advanced
by the republican members in favor of the bill,
and declaring that as the gentlemen on the dem
ocratic side chose to carry the appeal from this
forum to the people, he would accept the
appeal, and would go to the people with the
question whether they desired to have their cleo
tions hereafter guarded and shielded by national
law or not.
The Finkelnburg amendment was agreed to,
and the bill passed by nearly party vote-144
to 81.
1t provides for the appointment, by United
States circuit Judges, of two supervisors of cleo
tons of different politics in cities and towns
having over twenty thousand inhabitants it
provides for the appointment Of marshals, to as
sist supervisors Of elections, and prescribes til r
powers and duties, and authorizes them to call
to their aid bystanders; authority to call on the
military authorities is struck out; it also pro-
vides for the appointment, in each judicial
district, of a chief supervisor of elections
and preScribes his powers and duties
it extends the jurisdiction of the circuit court
TO all cases in law or equity arising under the
act; it also provides that hereafter all elections
for representatives in congress, to which election
the whole bill is confined, shall be by ballot,
written or printed, anything in the laws of any
state to the contrary notwithstanding.
The conference committee on the bill to create
a territorial government for the District of Co
lumbia made report, which is to be voted on