The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1875-03-04
PASSAGE of the Civil RIGHTS Bill.


The United States Senate, on Saturday last,
passed the civil rights bill in the exact form it
was sent from the House of Representatives
month ago. Every effort to amend the bill
was defeated, and the vote was strictly parti-
san, except Senators Ferry, Carpenter, Hamil-
ton, Sprague, Schurz and Upton, who voted
against it. The final vote was thirty-eight to
twenty-six, showing that ten Senators were
absent when the vote was taken. The univer-
sal and confident opinion among the opponents
of the measure is that the United States Su-
preme Court will declare the act unconstitu-
tonal. The full text of the bill, emitting the
preamble, is as follows:
l. That all persons within the jurisdiction of
the United States shall be entitled to the full
and equal enjoyment of the accommodations,
advantages, facilities, and privileges of inns,
public conveyances on land or water, theatres,
only to the conditions and limitations estab-
lished by law, and applicable alike to citizens
Of every race and color, regardless of any pre-
vious condition of servitude.
2. That any person who shall violate the
foregoing section by denying to any citizen,
except for reasons by law applicable to citizens
of every race and color, and regardless of any
previous condition of servitude, the full enjoy
ment of any of the accommodations, advanta-
ges, facilities, or privileges in the said section
enumerated, or by aiding or melting such de-
NAL, shall, for every such offence, forfeit and
pay the sum of five hundred dollars to the per-
son aggrieved thereby, to be recovered in an
action of debt with full costs; and shall also,
for every such offence, be deemed guilty of q
misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof
shall be fined not less than five hundred dol
lars nor more than one thousand dollars, or
shall be imprisoned not less than thirty days
nor more than one year; provided that all
persons may elect to sue for the penalty afore-
said or to proceed under their rights at COM
mon law and by State statutes, and having so
elected, to proceed in the one mode or the
other, their right to proceed in other Jurlsdlc-
ton shall be barred; but this proyiso shall not
apply to criminal proceedings either under this
! act or the criminal law of any State and pro-
vided further, that judgment for the penalty
| in favor of the party aggrieved, or Judgment
upon an Indictment, shall be bar to either
prosecution respectively.
3. That the district and circuit courts of the
United States shall have exclusively of the
| courts of the several States cognizance of all
crimes and offences against, and violations of
! the provisions of this act, and actions for the
penalty given by the preceding section may be
prosecuted in the territorial district or circuit
courts of the United States, wherever the de-
ferdant may be found, without regard to the
other party and the district attorney and mar
shals and deputy marshals of the United States,
and commissioners appointed by the circuit and
territorial courts of the United States, with
| powers of arresting and imprisoning or bailing
offenders against the laws of the United States,
are hereby specially authorized and required to
institute proceedings against every person who
shall violate the provisions of this act and cause
him to be arrested, and imprisoned or bailed,
as the case may be, for trial before such court
| of the United States or territorial court as by
| law has cognizance of the offence, except in re-
spect of the right of action accruing to the per-
son aggrieved, and such district attorneys shall
cause such proceedings to be prosecuted to their
| termination as in other cases; provided, that
nothing contained in this section shall be cor
strued to deny or defeat any right of civil action
accruing to any person, whether by reason OF
this act or otherwise; and any district attorney
who shall wilfully fail to institute and prose-
cute the proceedings herein required, shall for
every such offence forfeit and pay the sum of
| uF6 QuUQIeu uOlldIS w tuC pClSOu oSSi1CFeo
thereby, to be recovered by an action Of debt
with full COSTS and shall, on conviction thereof,
be deemed guilty of misdemeanor, and be
fined not less than 81, 600 nor more than S., 900
and provided, further, that q judgment for the
penalty in favor of the party aggrieved, against
any such district attorney, or a judgment upon
an indictment against any such district attor-
ney, shall be bar to either prosecution.
4. That no citizen possessing all other quail
fcations, which are, or may be, prescribed by
law, shall be disqualified for service as grand or
petit juror in any court of the United States, or
of any State, on account of race, color or pre-
vious condition of servitude; and any officer or
person charged with any duty in the selection
and summoning of jurors, who shall exclude
or fail to summon any citizen for the cause
aforesaid, shall, on conviction thereof be
deemed guilty of misdeanor, and be fined not
more than FIVE thousand dollars.
5. That all cases arising under the provis.
ions of this act in the courts of the United
States shall be receivable by the Supreme
Courts of the United States without regard to
the sum in controversy, under the same ,povis-
! ions and regulations as are now provided by
law for the review of other causes in said court.