Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1876-04-07
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which required cOnsGructlOn VI INC
Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitu-
ton, have given very general satisfac
ton to the conservative, constitution
loving element of the entire country.
The result of these decisions will be to
arrest any further attempts to enforce
the unconst itutional acts of Congress
which had for their object the perpet-
uation and ACKNOWLEDGEMENT of the Re-
publican party, under the pretense
of guaranteeing to the emancipated
slave the rights of citizenship. The
Supreme Court, in tbese two opinions,
have made two very important moves
upon the political che ssboard, and has
enabled those who believe that there's
suc!l a thing left as reserved rights
Of the States, to cry out 'check-
mate" 70 those who believed that
Congress was supreme. The near-
ing OF these two decisions of the
highest judicial tribunal in the
land, is nnmstakabie, and til ir it flu
euce upon the peace and welfare Of
the country is scarcely calculable.
The Republican ma orities in Con
gress have all along been legislating
with the obtensible purpose of securing
the results of the war; but they lost
sight of the real and avowed object
with which the government Of the
United States entered that struggle.
The struggle was contest between
the right of secession upon the o1e
hand and the inviolability of the Union
upon the other. The emancipation
and Acknowledgement of the blacks
we're merely incidental results, not
the primary cause and ultimate aim
of the war waged oy the Union against
the Confederacy.
But when the war had ended the
Republican leaders Immediately as
sumed that the principal end attained
was the triumph of their own peculiar
policy. This unwarrantable assnmp-
ton became an insolent presumption
when they went further and practically
held that the result of the war most
necessary to be secured was the per-
petuation of Republican rule. The
whole policy of reconstruction was
shaped under the guidance of that
cardinal error. In their anxiety to
profit by the vote of the newt y enfran-
chised negro they overreached them
all the rights of citizenship upon the
"nation's wards" they were unwilling
to leave the protection of their
rights to the proper authorities in the
several States, but, overstepplng
the constitutional limits of the Con
gressional prerogative, attempted to in
terpose the Federal arm where only
States were empowered to act. Con-
gress had a right TO enforce the pro-
visions of the Constitution and its
amendments by appropriate leglsla-
ton, but it could not under that right
usurp the functions reserved to the
States. The amended constitution
provides that no man shall be deprived
Of any right of citizenship because of
race. color, previous condition. &c,
SC, but it cOul3 not undertake to
lend its aid in the maintenance of
lights whose preservation is left
soely to the States. Whenever
it is alleged and proven tAat
men have been deb Irred from
voting, peacabIy assembling, or excr
cisin2 other rights of citizenship be-
cause they are BLACK or lave been
slaves, there the enforcement act is
applicable, but when that fact is not
established the set is entirely irrele-
want. That was tie decision of Justice
Bradley Ill the Grant parish case, and
II is just realtirmcd by the Supreme
Court,
Under this ruling what becomes of
The malicious prosecution against
General Cox and the RObe.,on County
Commissioners We again say CHECK
mate but are lea y sorry lnat the
& ..Blo VII be 80 suddenly outtbd III he
instance 9th httje by pay, Tor We de-
sired mat q. ia and impartial tx ANNA
ton OF the testimony i'll this case should
be lad before competent tribunal, in
ord@r that these politically prosecuted
J. fendaLts might have the opportu~
nity affDtdrd them Of exposing 10 the
public gaz4 the miserable CON-
spIr4cy against their personal liberty.
But the decision in the kentucky
case goes even farther than that i'll the
Grant parish case. The Boston Post
thus SUNNI arjzes. the points Of this
decision:
ITO begin with, the Supreme Court de-
clares IT, at of aud by itself the Fifteenth
Amendment does not confer the right
OF suffrage upon any one. All that it
does is to prevent the State from CIV
ing preference in the mater of suffrage
to one citizen Of thes UniteI States
over an another on account of race,
color or previous condition of servi.
tude. 1t could be done before the
adoption of tue amendment, now it
cannot. There is now a constitutional
guarantee against this discrimination.
80 that the citizens of the United |
States have become invested with new
constitutional right which comes with |
in the protectivepower of Congress. And |
this new constitutional right Congress
may enforce by appropriate legislation.
But, IL the act now passed upon, the
conrt finds nothing to betray an intent
to confine its provisions to the terms
of the Fifteenth Amendment. It's
language does not limit its operation
to its unlawful discr mination Oh &c
count of race, co'or or previous condi-
ton, but Is broad enough to provide
for the punishment of those VINO un-
lawfully interfere to prevent the exer-
else of the elective franchise, without