Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1876-01-31
AMNESTY AND JEFF. DAVIS.
sPEEcH or NOV. JAMES G. BLAINE.

MdgHdlii " Or tAS hsPHo1caH EGTty
My Mr.. Blaine ,couid Errspt DG-
RS fro1s AmSsay-His Dtysct Re
sPoHs'5iEty for -4HdsrsoRriHe.
In debate on the amnesty question.
Mr. Blaine. having secured the floor BY
skillful parliamentary tactics. spoke at
considerable length.
Mr.. Blaine said-If can induce the
House to consider the vote whereby the
bill was rejected it is my intention to
offer my amendment Every time that
the question Of amnesty has been brought
before the House by gentleman Of the
other side. for the last two Congresses,
it has been done with a certain flourish
Of magnanimity which is an imputatiOn
on this side Of the House, as though the
Republican party. which has been in
charge Of the Government for the last
twelve or fourteen years, had been big
Oted, narrow. illiberal. and as though
certain few, worthy and deserving gen
tlemen in the Southern States were
ground down under great tyranny and
oppression. which the hard-heartedness
Of this side Of the House could not pos
sibly be prevailed upon to remove l
desire now to place on record just what
the Republican party has done in this
matter. wish 70 place it there as an
imperishable record Of liberality and
large-mindedness aud magnanimity. and
many such have not been shown in the
worlds history BY eOnquerOrs to con-
quered. The gentleman from Pennsyl-
vania (Mr. RandalD-and myself entered
this Congress in the midst Of the hot
flames Of war, when the Union was rock
ing to its foundation. and no man knew
whether we were to have country or
not He would be surprised, when he
and were officers in the Thirty-eighth
Congress, if be could then have forseen
that before our mutual service ended be
should have seen sixty-one gentlemen.
then in arms against the United States
Government. admitted to equal privi-
leges with ourselves in this House. al
By the grace and magnaninity Of the
Republican party. When the war end
ed, according to the universal law Of
war, the party in possession Of the Gov
eminent or the Government itself
which was controlled BY the party. hat
Alright to determine what should be th,
status Of these people Did We inaugu
rate any measure Of persecution? Die
We set of on . career Of blOodshed anC
vengeance? Did we take property
Did We prOhibit any man his civil rights
Did We take from him the right vhicl
be enjoys to-day to vote E? Not 1t all
But instead Of a general and sEeepin
condemnation. the Republican part
placed in the Fourteenth Amendmer
Ouly this exclusion. After considerin
the whole subject it ended in comm
down to this f: THAT no person sha
be Senator or Representative in Cor
gress, or Elector. or President, or Viet
President, or hold any Office, evil
military, under the United States
under any State, who, having previou
ly taken oath as a member Of Congress
or as member Of any State Legislator
or as an executive or judicial officer
any State, to support the CONSTITUTE,
Of the United States, shall have engag
in instruction or rebellion against &
same or given aid or comfort to the e
emies thereof But Congress may, By
vote Of twO-thirds Of each house, reno
such disabilities"
Now | have never been able to det
mine from any statistical examinatit
exactly how many men in the SoJ
that exception affected. 1t has been
riously estimated that at the time Of
original insertion in the Constitution
included somewhere from Fifty to eigl
thousand persons but as near as l ,
gather from the facts in the case it
eluded only $1,000 men in the Sou
and let 60 free every man Of the hu
reds Of thousands, or Of the millions
you please, who had been engaged in
attempt to destroy the Government.
only held those under disability who
addition TO the general revolt had
lated a special aud peculiar aud per.
al oath TO support the Constitution
the United States. That disability
hardly fixed on the South until we
gan in his hall and in the Senate Oh
Der. when We had more than two-th
Republican in both branches) to rem
il, and the very first bill took the q
bility Of .526 citizens Of the soutl
The next billfOOk il OF :. s2s eensler
BY wholesale Many Of the gentle
on this floor have come from the 2
and amnesty in these two bills. A
these bills. specifying individuals,
passed through. snail bills, which
not further refer to. were passed.
In 1872 the Congress. Of the Ur
States BY the vote Of tso-thirds Of
branches, Cstill being twO-thirds Re
hean. passed this general law: -
all political disabilities. imposed