New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-07-26


rights in the pursuit of lie, liberty and
property to such IN extent that their free
dom was Of little value, while slsy had lost
the protection which they had received
from their former owners from motives
both of interest and humanity =
They were in some States forbidden to
appear in the towns in any other character
than mental servants. They were required
to reside on and cultivate the sol! with
out the right to purchase or own it. They
were excluded from many occupations OF
gain and were not permitted to give testi-
mOny in the courts in any case where a
white man was party. 1t was said that
their lives were at the mercy OF bad men,
either because the laws for their protection
were insufficient or were not enforced.
'These circumstances, whatever Of false
hood or misc0nception may have been
mingled with their presentation, forced
upon the statesmen who had conducted the
federal government in safety through
the crisis of the rebellion. and who sup
posed that by the thirteenth article of
amendment they had secured the resul: OF
their la5ors, the conviction that something
more was necessary in the way of consti-
tutional protection to the unfortunate race
who had suffered 60 much. They &C.
cordingly passed through Congress the
proposition of the fourteenth amendment,
and they declined to treat as restored to
their full participation in the government
Of the United States which had been in in.
surrection until they ratified that article by
formal vote of their legislative bodies"
Mr. MOrtOn-That shows that the very
history and purpose that called the four
teeDth amendment into existence was to
protect the colored race from all unjust dis
elimination in the law, of Whatsoever kind.
The Senator from Ohio said yesterday
that these rights the right to the school and
other rights, belonged to the cOiOred people
as citizens of the State, and were not fran
chises belonging to them as citizens of the
United States. 1t 80 happens that the Su-
preme Court has passed upon that very
point, and has decided that all the rights
guaranteed and secured by the fourteenth
amendment belong to the people not as
citizens of o State. but as citizens of the
United States. That covers, l believe, the
last point intended to refer to. now ask
the Secretary 20 read, commencing with the
last paragraph on page seventy nine of the
same volume, down to where have marked
with pencil on page eighty.
The chief clerk read as follows:
"Another privilege of citizen of the
United States is to demand the care and
protection of the federal government over
his life, liberty and property when on the
high seas or within the jurisdiction of a
foreign government. Of this there can be
no doubt, nor that the right depends upon
his character as citizen Of the United
States. The right to peaceably assemble
and petition for redress of grievances, the
privilege of the right Of habeas corpus are
rights of the citizen guaranteed by the fed
eral constitution. The right to use the
navigable waters of the United States,
however they may penetrate the territory
Of the several States. all rights secured to
our citizens by treaties with foreign nations
are dependent upon citizenship of the
United States, and not citizenship of a
State. One of these privileges is conferred
by the very article under consideration. 1t
is that citizen OF the United States can Of
his own vOlitiOn become a citizen of any
State of the Union by bona tide residence
therein, with the same rights as other citi-
zens of that State. To these may be added
the rights secured by the thirteenth and
fifteenth articles OF amendment, and by the
other clause of the fourteenth next to be
considered"
Mr.. Morton-I simply refer to that to
show that the Supreme Court here express
~ declares that the rights secured by the
thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth amend
ments belong to citizens of the United
States as such, and not simply to them as
citizens Of State; and inasmuch az they
belong to them as citizens of the United
States, and not merely as citizens of State
they are, from the other part of the decision,
placed expressly under the protection of
Congress.
Mr.. Merrimon-May say words
Mr.. MortOn-Yes. sir.
Mr.. Merrimom-What l understand the
court to say is this: That if l should 90 to
the State of Indiana should have exactly
the same rights and the same measure Of
those rights that any citizen Of Indiana
today has; and therefore if the laws of In
diana should provide that the colored chill
dren in that State shall be educated in one
class of schools and the white children ia
another class of schools, 1 would have no
right, being white citizen, to send my chill
dren to colored school; could only send
my children to white school. Therefore,
if the State Of Indiana should provide that
no public theatre should be kept open there,
should have no right to 90 there and es-
tablish one: l should have to abide by the
rights established by the laws of the State
of Indiana under the constitution of the
United States. That is what mean, and
that ls what say.
Mr.. Morton-I suggest to my friend that
this is not the precise point. Ny point was
that whatever rights were secured by the
thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth amend.
ments had been by the court declared to be
X duCuioCS Va CiLAACuS Va LILO CAiueu OC0UCo
as such, without regard to the States, and
they expressly say 30. After enumerating
the franchises of citizens of the United
States, they then say:
ITO these may be added the rights secured
by the thirteenth and fifteenth articles of
amendment and the other clause of the
fourteenth next to be considered"
And the one next to be considered is the
very one have been considering.
Mr.. Merrimon-What are they?
Mr.. Morton-I think l have gone over
that whole question. will make just one
remark in conclusion, that in my judg.
ment the very highest franchise that
belongs to any citizen of the United
States as such is the right to 60
into any State and there to have the
equal enjoyment Ofevery pu bic institution,
whether it be the court, whether 1t be the
school, or whether it be the public convey
ance, or whether it be any other public in
stitution for pleasure, business, or enjoy
ment, created or regulated by law.
Mr.. Merrimon-Does my. friend deny the
right of the States to make police regula-
toni
Mr.. Morton-No, sir. The States have
the same right they always had to make
police regulations, with this single differ
ence, that whatever regulations they may
make must operate equally upon men of all
colOrs coming within the same conditions.
That is the answer.
laws OF THE STATE OF LOUISIANA