Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1874-09-25

posed alterations went into effec
L have, however, deemed this revie
essential, in order that we may see,
n glance, the changes made in our O
ganic law, by men to whom the inte
ests of the State were dear, from III
until 1868, including those propose
by the Convention of 1865. No ma
who has not studied this question
can form any just conception of til
revolution i'll the fundamental Law {
the State made in 1868, or can full
realize the imperative necessity {
remedying the evils which the mil
tary and irresponsible Convention c
that year attempted to fasten immovi
bly, upon us.
1 now beg to submit the followin
propositions, which I propose to dis
clss as briefly as the nature of tn
subject will permit:
First. The Convention of 1868, ,whic
framed the present Constitution of til
State, was not q free Convention @
the people of North Carolina, and it
work was adopted under coercion.
Second. The said Convention wa
called under and through influence
iminical to the best interests of th
State.
Third. The Constitution of 1868 i
not adapted to the wants of the peo
pie, is burdensome and oppressive il
its operation, and should be amended
III the most efficient and specdies
practicable mode.
1t would, indeed, seem to be scarce
ly necessary to discuss the foregoing
propositions. Intelligent and homes
men throughout the State will admit
their truth. They will be denied only
by the brood of adventurers, tht
spawn of the war, fastened upon us by
the result of that struggle, and the
native renegades who joined them il
the hope of turning the misfortunes
OF their country to their own emolu.
ment.
Although North Carolina, by the
acts OF the Convention of 1865 aD-
proved blythe people, had declared tile
ordinance of secession null and void,
had repEdiatel the Confederate debt,
and had forever forbidden slavery in
the State, the doors of Congress were
closed on her members elect and they
refused admittance to that body.-
Then was inaugurated species of leg
lSiatiOn known as the Reconstruction
Acts s"-rcvolutiOnary in their charac-
ters and despotic in ali their details.
The Southern Statls were divided into
districts and assigned mill
tary commanders, with no other check
than the Will of the General in Chief.
10 Gen. Sickles was assigned the Sc
cond military district. comprising
North and South Carolina. Cpon his
resignation Gen. Candy succeeded,
vested, as had Eeen his predecessor,
with powers over our citizens little less
than those Of the Autocrat of Russia
over his subjects. 1t is true he had
no Siberia wherein 80 punish his vic
bastiles, witnesses of scarcely less bar
barlty and cruelty, were close enough
a. hand to serve his purpose. In con
junction with the Freeman's Bureau
he exercised authority, which. in its
fleets upon the peoples mind, can be
described only by the term "terror~
sm."
In this condition of affairs, at thu
of this military dictator, q
Convention was called. Blythe terms of
he order nearly every prominent man
n whom the people had confidence,
was Ineligible thereto. Many white
citizens were disfrauchised,w while every
male negro twenty-one years old, who
lnd resided one year in the State, was
to vote and eligible as dele
gate. It was evident then, and has
3een demonstrated since, that the
whole purpose of the Reconstruction
.cts' was to rehabjhtate the South on
lie basis of absolute negro supremacy.
The list of delegates which assem-
olCd at Raleigh, under the auspices of
zen. Candy, cannot be contemplated
wen now without emotion. Not the
lame of single man is to be found
here who had the confidence of the
people, and but one prominent North
jarolinian had Il seat Ill the body.
flio negro, the carpet bagger and the
'enegade, but generally obscure, na-
i've, filled the places which had been
by men distinguished by
heir wisdom, and reverenced for their
Iirtues.
This Convention seemed to be abso-
utely under the control of such men
Is Heaton, Tourgec, Abbott and Latin.
Not from their numbers. nor vet from
heir ability, but by the negroes in
he Convention they were regarded as
oracles, and by the mass of the white
members were supposed to be the
oromulGatOrs of Canby's orders, and
we're, therefore, followed implicitly.
Those men were born and reared in
he Northern States; they came here
among a horde of adventurers after
;he war-thcy knew nothing of the
condition and wants Of our people, and
however well disposed they might
nave been, were wholly incapable Of
raining q fundamental law for North
Carolina. But ''fools rush in where
angels fear to treal," and the men [
nave named, although Of limited
knowledge and capacity, destroyed,
With n ruthless hand, that edifice
which had been constructed by the
patriots of 177G, modified and
By our wiscst men in
1880, not stone of which was mis-
placed by Ruffin, Badger, Edwards
md their compeers in 1861, and which
the admiration aud rever-
9nce of Moore, Manly, Eaton, Boyden
md their associates at n still later day.
Those icoGoelasts, with one fell
sweep, annulled the property qualiti
,ation for Office which had been re-
lnircd for nearly a hundred years.
They overturned our whole Judi
ciary system, under which, for nearly
L century, our laws had been admins
tered purely, without "saie, denial or
delay"
They rendered obligatory tie enact
ment OF a Code, which is not under
stood by its compilers, and is unintel-
Iigible alike to the Judges who ex-
pound and the lawyers who practice
under it.
They changed the government of
our University which, under its pre-
rious management, had become the
pride Of the State.
They multiplied useless offices, and
thereby subjected us toheavy expendi-
i"res.
They cndeayored, by anticipation,
to fasten irremovably upon Us a heavy
which was even then
fraudllently contemplated.
But why continue the list No i'm
partial man can contemplate their
work without feeling that their pur-
pose was to break down, pecuniarily
and politically, the white men of the
Statn cnI tn 1pou;Io n for fLa ohoo1uto