Saint Mary's beacon., 1878-01-25

k~~ - -
<rsys. Eaffsrs - observe that a.
spp,i<stfon has been made - sdmil >
Ihezrrl las veF to practice in the Conft of
a fHeais = ~ State. The anplic4lisn
- rEiec{kd, fnasmnch Is the Code
ccnknes the priyfIege ofpracfie1ng ~ an
Atssfn<y il his State 10 IT, white
male cifixens thereOf. AIaw striking
odf the word white" in my humble
iudxment. wilfnos confer the privilege
upon negro without al the same time
striking out the word "citizen' ard sub
shutting therefor The word iakabifaas,
so that Il will read male fnhabifaRf Of
.EfsryEand. 1t i impossible to read the
Code article {" "fsee Hegroeg' y kioh, 50
far ss am informed. Is in 40 particular
repealed. and conclude that ! Tree me-
gro s citizen Of Maryland. Those
provisions are snade for subject race
and not for those entitled 10 the distinc-l
Zion nofrffizens ~ G-~Yt &9Sk
Ii also observe that a'iease has been
asked In he Legislature to provide for
an amendment 70 or CONSTITUTION by
whiehsbe word white shall be stricken
thereIsona 50 that it shah not come In
conflict eitll ire exercise of The Ballot
BY the negroes of our State. Yhes same
II NOS : greater difEicnlty arises ii this
case flIan 7fi the other, for the Consti-
tati0n of 1851 in 5ts first article confines
the right 70 the ballot x = h.ie -
eifisensopffle United Slales. and The
Constitution Of 1861, adopted BY tbe
Republican party OF Maryland, who
claim to be the particular friends Of the
negro race, also confines the right Of the
ballot to The white race. Then III the
people or Maryland wish the negro TO
hare the privilege of9he ballot in fhis
State. they must DOT only strike out The
word sswhite, :" but also fie words "cis-
izens oi the United States' and substi-
tute: as suggest IN the above case, the
word fshH6flhnf. Without these changes.
4 honestly apprshend the rights spoken
ofTanaot be legally conferred las
= These propositions open before as the
real stafslst Of the de gro race, not only
in this State, but4n tins country, and
with your permission ! win offer 4 few
observations upon IT. De- h,ii.''ss.oa =,
8 There is no doubt La my mind that
the State itself can gFye the right Of the
ballot tothenegroby making The changes
I suggest in the Constitution, but even
II Il should be conceded that such a
privilege made him q citizen of the
State, still he would not be citizen Of
the United States, and could moi be ex-
ceptb BY an amendment of the Constitu-
ton Of the United States. properly sub
nnitted and adopted. The 15th amend
Inent gives the np gro no right 10 vote in
Maryland or any where else, because II
says, ssThe right of eifi<ens cf fhe Uni-
ted Sfafes 10 vote shall not be denied or
abridged BY The United States or by any
State on account If race, color or pre-
yious condition Of servitude." II, as
contend, a negro Is not a citizen Of the
United States, of course the i5tht4hend-
nient does not apply 10 him..
From the earliest history or our gov
efnfnefit, both in the States, yea; IN az
| the States as well as By the. authorities
Of the United States. they have invari-
ably been looked upon as subject race
and never standing on the elevated plat
form Of the crtizen. Applications for
passports TO foreign countries always
granted to the citizens of the United
States were uniformly refused to them.
for the reason that they were not such
citizens, and so IL continued until 1886,
when the question came before the Su-
preme Court Of the United States in the
| Dfed Scott case, and it was decided by
a large majority of that Court there be-
ing only tw0dissenting) attended BY the
most lucid opinion from the Chief J us-
tice, that ga negro was not citizen oi
| The United States. tf Even one of the
dissenting lodges. Judge Mclean. in
titnates that the negro is not acitizen Of
the United States when he says IN Sis
opinion "If Congress should deem free
! eokoTed persons injurious to the p0pula-
lion 'ofa free Territory, as, conducting to
lessen the value Of the public lands or
on,any. other ground CONNECTED with the
public interest, they have the power %
prohibit them from becoming settlers IN
it"o I had always thought that when
territory was open for settlement at all
it was open to all citizens OF the United
States, and Congress had not the power
to exclude any. Judge MCLEAN in
claiming for Congress the power to ex-
ciuGe the free negro. must do 50 upon
the ground that he is not Citizen.
President Lincoln, who is regarded as
the Washington of the negro race; took
the same view of this question. 10 his
annual message sent TO Congress Dec.
| 1, 1862, two years nearly after the. COM
| snencement Of the war while Urging
upon Congress the policy Of compensa--
ted emancipation, he meets the argu-
ments OF his Northern brethren who OPP
posed his scheme by saying. "But II is
dreaded that the free people viii swarm
| forth and cover the whole land: are they
not already ia the landi VIII liberia
| fion make them more numerous find
in anR event, cannot tie .NortA decide
for Itself srhsfher to feeeire them :" ]
will not stop to animadvert upon these
| friendly expressions from this Washing
ton of the negro race, nor upon the arr
guments he used IN order to reconcile
60 his scheme those who are now claim
| ing to be the especial friends Of theme
eroes, but will only. say, that If Lincoln
Considered them citizens Of the United
States be ought TO have known that the
North could not decide for itself whether
to receive them. Their rights TO 90
where they pleased, il they were citi-
Gems Of the United States, could not be
questioned. -.
The Question then arises isithere any
valid constitutional pfosisioa which
makes them such citizens This ques-
G6n ;lis atiemnted 10 swer .by bring