The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-02-27
SUFFRAGE SUPPRESSION.
THE REPORTS OF THE MINORITY
ON THE COMMITTEE.

TIE States Not Denied the Right to
Disfranch Sc Any OF Their Male Citi-
zens-An the Constitution Does Is to
Provide for Curtailment of Represen-
tation as a Penalty for Such Action.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 28--The minority
members of the committee on the judiciary
haveprepared two vigorous reports in oppo-
sition to the Houk resolution, which was
ordered favorably reported to the House,
directing the Judiciary committee to inquire
into and report to the House whether or
not any state has, By any constitutional or
statutory provision, violated the second sec
tion Of the fourteenth amendment to the
constitution, so that proper apportioumsnt
OF representation may be made by congress.
NO CONSTITUTIONAL PROHIBITION.
One minority report, prepared by Mr..
Oates, is signed by Messrs. Oates, Culbert-
son OF Texas, Henderson Of North Carolina,
and Wilson of West Virginia, aud by MIR.
Stewart of Vermont, with qualification.
This report says that the states are not
constitutionally prohibited from disfran-
chising any of their male citizens; it only
prescribed as penalty for such
Acknowledgement for any other cause than
crime, that the representation in congress
from such state shall be reduced in the pro-
portion which the persons disfranchised
bear TO the whole number of adult male
citizens in such state. The question is asked
If the resolution reported DO adopted
how can the committee make the
inquiry directed in the absence of
viding means OF securing evidence
to enable the committee to procure the nec-
essary proofs to warrant congress in reduc-
ing the representation Of any state. The
committee assume that some citizens in
Mississippi and Massachusetts, are denied
the right TO vote by the slate constitution
for some other reason than crime.
NOT IN FORCE IN MISSISSIPPI
This may be true, but the minority can
not shut their eyes to the fact that the con-
stitution of Mississippi has not yet gone
plicable to that state, Massachusetts,, or any
other state by which the committee
can legally and certainly ascertain
the number of voters disfranchised, :,
for co gress has never provided means by
which this may be done. Presumptions are
worthless in suoh q grave matter. Legal
proofs must be had to a reasonable GER
tainty, and until such legislation is enacted
1t ia utterly futile to ADOPT such a resolu-
tion, for it cannot be complied with. Until
congress enacts q law providing for an
enumeration of the number of persons dis
franchised for crime, and the number dis
franchised for other causes, it is impossible
to comply with the resolution.
A LITERAL CONSTRUCTIONS EFFECTS.
If the resolution were literally construed,
the report says the requiring of twelve
months residence In state and registration
as prerequisite to voting would be good
cause for reducing It's representa-
cludes, "a cardinal principle in our
system Of government is that the states shall
each prescribe the qualifications of its
electors. When they ratified this article of
the constitution, it cannot be assumed, with
any show of reason, that they intended to sur
render this right or TO restrict their powers
TO The extent that such a construction would
maintain"
ROGERS SARCASTIC.
Representative Rogers, in his individual
minority report, begins by saying "pre-
ctsely what the learned and experienced
author of the resolution desired the commit
tee to inquire into was evidently, at the
time 1t was drafted, in a state of impene-
trable nebulosity in his own mind, and
the resolution itself has inherent
and unmistakable evidence Of being the
premature offspring of chronic attack of
political strabismus, doubtless greatly
aggravated by humiliating disappointments
In the results of last Novemher's elections,
and haunting gadfy memories of election
cases in the present congress-"
HIS USUAL CAUsTIC STYLE.
Representative Rogers then proceeds to
review the question in the same caustic
fashion that has characterized his political
speeches In the House during the present
congress. He argues that under the con-
str0ction put upon the fourteenth amend
ment to the constitution by the majority of
the committee, the states OF Massachusetts,,
Mississippi, Connecticut, Vermont and
Idaho have clearly violated that amend
meat by their laws and the state constltu-
uons