The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1871-08-31

r5h - conditions Of amnesty and

/ : I 4
have no doubtit would Siayc been REALIZED.
and we should have had Reconstruction IN
der the constitution, and not military re-
construction outside Of IT,
Officially, as President, he had proclaimed
! it. Unoficially, in a speech-the last of
his hfe-he pleaded for it; his whole soA
was in it. lie was never stronger IN his
own party than at that moment.
But Just then he was stricken down by
an assassin.
/ The responsibility fell upon Mr.. John
son who had less power TO control that
/ party.
From that moment the spirits of evil
were unloosed. The passions Of the North
were iniamed: Its radical leaders infuriat-
/ ed strengthened and cmboIdeued. Reck-
I less of oaths, pledges and constitutional OBJ
legations themselves, they denounced, in
/ both houses of Congress, Democrats and
all others who stood for the constitution,
as little better than rebels. go
| With fatal blindness or deliberate pur-
pose, under the lead of Thadeus Steyens,
! they forced upon the country plan Of re-
| construction outside the constitution in
volying reconstruction Of the constitution
! itself by the sword; and to accomplish that,
they abolished all civil law and civil govern
meut even, in eleven states, and subjected
| ten million people to martial law, and their
lives, liberty and property to trial by courts
martial.
1t was clear violation Of the constitu-
ton; q gross usurpAtion Of power MIR.
Stevens, their great leader, knew it, and
| avowed it.
| When the McArdle case from Mississip-
pi, which involved that question, was pend
ing in the Supreme Court and after IL had
been argued, a law was rushed through
Congress, in hot haste, to take away their
jurisdiction, because they believed the
court would decide the act Of reconstruc-
ton unconstitutional; and, with unspeak-
able sorrow, we saw that court suspend its
decision for Congress to pass that act. i
fatal surrender
Mr.. Stevens waged an implacablc. war
upon President johnson, who stroye IN
vain to save the policy Of his predecessor.
The struggle was long, earnest and in
tense. But that policy was overborne; and
reconstruction, under the constitution. rave
way to military reconstruction outside of
1t, and even to a reconstruction of the
Constitution itself, eliminating in the
NV tn and XVIII amendments.
General Grant, who, at the beginning
was opposed to it, yielded himself to the
radical policy and was elected President in
1868.
a partial reconstruction of the Supreme
Court soon followed; and then everylepart-
ment Of the government was brought in
unison with it.
That reconstruction has been carried in
to effect. It has become part of the
history of the country. However much we
have opposed it, we cannot ignore the fact,
that whether fairly adopted or not, whether
by force or by fraud IN the elections, the
fourteenth and fifteenth amendments have
been proclaimed and adopted under all the
forms Of law, as part Of the constitution OF
: the United States; and they are formally
accepted and acted upon, as such, by every
) department Of the government.
The views and purposes Of the Democrat
ie party and Of all who opposed the adop-
ton of those amendments, have been fire.
quertly called in question, and that, quite
recently, by Senator Morton and Speaker
Blaine, whom [ regard as the leaders of
the administration party.
They say in substance because the Dem
: ocratic party opposed military reconstruc-
. ton, and voted against those amendments
i'll Congress and the State Legislatures. il
intends, when il comes into power, and
; come it will, to disregard those amend,
ments and set them aside.
In saying this, they assert what tney
know canHo5 be true, and they assert wliat
we know cannot be true Long before
Nj. Nallandigllam said anything upon til,
subject, the address Of the Democratic
: members Of Congress declared the CONTRARY
in the following words:
I've earnestly entrcat our fellow citizens
in all parts Of the Union 20 spare 10 cffor
to maintain peace and order; to carefully
: protect the rights of every citizen; to pre-
g serve kindly relations among all men, anC
to discountenance and discourage any VIC
lation Of the rights OF any portion of til,
: people secured under the constitution b.
any amendments" AS to AIr. Vallan
dishanl it might have been new dcpar
l ture, but TO democratic members of Con
gress, the leaders Of the party, it was N
new departure"
How could the Democratic party diSre
s gard or set aside those amendments if the7
would
But three ways can be conceived or hay,
ever been suggested.
First. By obtaining a decision of tn,
Il Supreme Court, declaring them void. TIL,
present constitution Of that court make.
: the thing impossible, and 10 Democrat
, would propose to reconstruct the Supreme
Court to reverse its decision. They honor
the Judiciary too much to do that Besides
It Is almost certain that upon all such pc
lIticai questions depending upon the re-
suits of elections the judiciary would feel
bound to accept and to follow the dcclara
tons OF the political powcr-Coagrcss a nd
= hA AT,oA a.
! could neither take judicial notice Of oyen.s
l depending upon elections except as thew
are declared, nor from an issue TO try the
question Of fact, whether a constitutional
: amendment has or has not been ratified bv
the Legislatures Of tl.rcc-fourtlIs of all the
States, after the same has been proclaimed
duly ratified BY the proper officer under the
forms Of law.
Second. BY proposing a new amend
ment to set them aside directly. This
would be legitimate mode; but is wholly
lmrracucabIe. Beyond question, more
than one-fourth of the States would vote
against 1t, and three-fourths are rcfulired
to carry IT. The attempt to do SO would
renew the agitation Of tie negro question
IN another form, but could bring no practi-
cal result. Besides, al parties, North and
South, are unwilling to reopen that ques-
ton.
The negro is free, and none would en-
slave Inn; and negro suffrage has become
a fixed fact,-a thing accomplished, and
! TAird. The only other possible mode
Is the military one, of using the army to
control elections, and to change the CON
stitution.
Radicals, like Senator Morton, might
consistently adopt this mode: for they 10
not hesitate to put the army above the
constitution and the civil law, in order to
control or to set aside elections. But no
man who still oherishes the doctrines Of
the old Democratic Republican school of
jefferson and OF Jackson would dare to use
the standing army for any such purpose.
besldes' the attempt to take away negro
suffrage by force, would lead 70 a bIoSIx,