Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1875-03-03
SPEECH OF HON. EPPA HUTTON,
OF VIRGINIA.

OF VIRGINIA.
10 the House of Representatives, on wed
pesday, February 4, 90 the bill to protect all
citizens 10 their civil and legal rights, Mr.
Hunton, of Virginia said:
MIR. Speaker, 80 much has been said Oh the
civiI-rightS bill that but little can be uttered
now either new or interesting. Aud yet do
DOT teel ut liberty to suffer vote to be taken
without at least protest against 1t. Ibis Dill
is designed as one OF the series OF laws passed
by the domluaot party TO reconstruct the oouth
err States after the war. Ii Will be Instructive
to trace this Legislation and 10 ascertain whether
it has not beeu au absolute failure, and II So,
whether Congress should not hesitate before
passing this the most damaging and Insulting
of he series. When the war ended what was
the condition OF the people of the ten Southern
States which attempted 10 withdraw from the
Union They were stripped Of all their per-
| souaI property; they had nothing LETT but their
lands and their debts: 10 many Instances these
| lauds had been devastated by the conteudlng
armies.
Scarcely can be found Oh record an instance
where people SO honestly accepted the stu
alton" after great war, aud so earnestly went
10 work to repair their broken fortunes and
provide for the necessities of their families
10 illustrating the effects Of the policy of re-
construction shall mainly speak OF Virginia,
my own State, the one least affected by this
policy. s..
When the war ended the people of Virginia
found that our grand old State had been dis
men, bered and oue.third of her territory torn
from her by revolutionary means: her own State
government driven out at the point OF the bay
one, and what was known as the Pierpoint gov
eruuent took possession Of the State. This
government 10 both branches OF its Legislature
consisted, | believe, of thirteen persous elected
by few citizens in few Of the counties along
the border of the State under the control OF the
Federal Army. The Vrginiaus submitted
quietly, peacefully to this government. obeyed
its laws, held elections under it, and seut full
Legislature to Richmoud at the close of the
year 1865. But this government was too mild
in the opinion Of the party controlling the Fed
cral Government for subjugated people: the
laws were enforced too tamely. Pierpoiut was
removed and H. H. Wells, a stranger to the
State, was appointed in his stead without even
the pretense OF law.
| The thirteeuth amendment to the Constitu-
ton was adopted This Was ratified by Virgin
ia, as o1e of the sovereign States, and abolish
cd slavery 10 the State Ii was not enough to
| OCpllfS oo VI PioPSi" IL oui 'o'So "NASN w
all accepted as the legitimate result of the war,
but we had by the adoption this amendment to
present the appearance OF indorslng and agree
ing to the wrong. We hoped this would suffice
and that We would be left III peace to rehablll-
tate our State government and repair our vast
ed fortunes. Bot no; republican veDgeGce was
not near stated. % the 10th day of June, 1866,
| the Congress Of the United States adopted a
joint resolution proposing anOtber-the four
| teenth amendment to the Constitutlon-the
sole object of which was the oppression and
prostration IF he Southern States and to take
! the State governments from the hands of their
own people and place them 10 the hands Of
carpet. baggers and the lately emancipated
slaves, too recently emancipated to be capable
of exercising the functions of electors or law
makers
The third aud most Objectionable section of
| this amendment is 10 these words:
| No person shall be Senator or Representa-
tive in Congress, or elector of President and
Vice. President, or hold any Office civil or mill
| tary, under the United States, or under any
State, who having previously taken an oath, as
| q mem Der Of Congress, or us an officer OF the
| United States, or rs member of any State Leg
islature, or as an executive or Judicial officer OF
any State, to support the Constitution Of the
United States shall have engaged in insurrec-
/ =
| or comfort to the enemies thereof But Congress
| may, by vote of two thirds of each House, re-
move such disability.
By it many, nay, most, of our best and most
experienced people we're prescribed, and the
offices thrown iuto the hands of inexperienced
young men, who had engaged 10 the "rebel-
! lion" to the same extent as the others but we're
too young to hold offices requiring the oath BE-
| fore the war. ,.. "@
This resolution was never submitted to Pres.
| ident johnson for his approval or veto, but was
transmitted directly to the States. 1t required
for the ratification of it twenty-eight States be-
| fore it became part of the Constitution
TWENTY-FIVE ratified, two did not act, and thir-
teen, consisting of Kentucky, Delaware, Mary
| land, and the ten States lately the Confederate
States, refused to ra,fyit. 1t was then main
tanned, I believe for the first time, that these
| ten States were not States 10 the Union, and
| the ratification by the twenty-five States was
complete, and they were not to be couoted 10
obtaining the three-fourths for ratification.
Those who had therefore contended that the
war was wagcd to preserve the Union, and to
prevent these States from leaving the UDioD,
suddenly shifted their ground and maintained
that they we're no longer States of the Federal
Union. But well-fouoded appreheDsons exist
ed that this doctrine would be held erroneous
when passions subsidized and that this article
would be decided to have 10 place 10 the Con.
stitutlon. Besides this, the people in these
Southern States we're getting along too we'll and
and too peacefully; there were no disorders, no
bloodshed: all had comparatively good State
governments. The angry passions engeRdered
by the war we're rapidly passing away. Slavery,
the one idea Oh which the republican party had
been founded, had been abolished and settled
forever. There was great danger that the re-
pub lean party, having accomplished its mission
would die, and its party leaders sought pre-
text for continuing the excitement and keeping
up the bitterness between the sections. They in
augurated the reconstruction measures Pan
dora S box of evils 10 the South chiefly but car
ryiug in their train widespread evil and injury
to the whole couutry. The first of the series
was approved March 2, 1867, aud by the first
section of it the ten Southern State were swept
out Of existence and divided into FIVE military