The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1900-07-18
VIRGINIA BAR
AT OLD POINT
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! should not be counted as persons. nor
| should property be taken into the account.
| SO as to give east the dominion but that
| the basis OF representation should be the
| free white population only.
| Many people of the west were anti
| sla very. and were justly believed to be in
favor of the construction, at the public
| cost. of a great system Of Internal inn
! proycments. The East owned nine-tenths
of the negro slaves, and a majority in
value of all other species OF taxable prop
erty, and was 10 pear tne greater part
of the expense.
They saw that the white population was
about stationary in the East, while in the
West. it was increasing with rapid strides,
so that in a compare lively few years the
white population of the West would out
number that Of the East. The East con-
tended for a mixed basis, apportioned both
according to numbers and to taxable val
| ,,es. or else for the Federal mixed basis,
| of all the whites and three-fifths of the
| negroes From parts OF the East, as wei,
| as from the West, there came a demand
| for the abolition Of the freehold Qualiti-
| cation for suffrage, and the demands Of the
| West for an exclusive, equal and uniform
| white basis of representation also found
some of it's strongest and ablest support
| ers among the delegates from counties east
| Of the Blue Ridge. The battle was joined.
| and for three months, day in and day
| out, the great debate proceeded. The inter-
est in the work of the convention never
| tagged. Compromise propositions as to the
| superintendent of representation and also
| as to the qualification for suffrage. were
/ finally agreed to by a majority of the dele
| gates. and after full discussion and some
| important notifications of the old consti-
| tuition in those particulars, new consti-
| tuition was adopted by the convention, on
the 14th of January, 1886. The East gained
| by the so-callei compromise upon the basis
representation far more than it yielded to
| the west The section prescribing suffrage
greatly enlarged the electorate, admitting
TO the right of suffrage, not only freehold
| ers, whose estates were worth S25, but
! remainIermen ard all housekeepers and
| heads Of families who were tax payers.
| Except in the matter Of freehold suffrage.
| the men of the East got about all they
| asked.
This was by no means satisfactory to
| the west particularly the trans-Aleghany
| West; and the counties in that region gen.
| orally voted to reject the Substitution. Be
! fore many years the agitation re-
| ing vgor until a third Virginia Consttu-
| ticnal Convention was convened
THE "RETORAt'' CONSTITUTION.
| The Reform Convention convened in
Richmond on the 18th of October, 1850. The
| battles which had been mainly won by
| the East in 1890. were fought over again
| and again in committee and in the conven-
| ton Upon the suffrage article the friends
| of the abolition of all property require
ments prevailed. and white manhood suf-
| frage was adopted
Upon the clauses requiring the Cover
nor to be chosen by popular vote, nnd
! abolshng the Executive Council. the re
| formers" also prevailed, md the judges
! and magistrates, were also made elective
! by popular vote. As to the basis of repre-
! sentation. there was again a sort of
compromise. by which the east got all
| it wanted. The second defeat of the west
| upon this paramount issue ranked in the
| breasts of many of the people of that re-
| gion and contributed largely to their re-
| voutionary separation from the Mother
| State twelve years later.
| THE CONVENTION OF 1861.
| Though a sovereign constitutional con-
| vention of the Suite the convention of 1861
| made few changes in the organic law.
| BY its action the relations of Virginia to
! the Federal Government We're changed.
| l need not notice the Alexandra Constitu-
E! ton of 1864, adopted by a pretended ana
| spurious convention. But for the serious
| results which flowed from the game they
were suffered to play. it would have been
| a ridiculous farce Nor need fatigue your
| attention by any extended comments upon
| the Constitution of 1S6S-that under which
/ we live and with which all are familiar.
| while, by some strange accident or
| chance. it contains a number of provisions
| which are wise md conservative, and
| some of its Objectionable features have
| been cured by amendments grated upon
! it from time to time, it is not tit con-
| stitutfon for this free-born Commonwealth,
| and the sooner We replace 1t with one
| more in accordance with the institutions,
needs and genius of our people. the better
| it will be for the State.
PROPOSED NEW CONSTITUTION.
A sovereign convention WILL before an
| other year has passed be convened to
| frame a new Constitution for the govern
| ment OF Virginia Its assemblage will
| be an event frausht with consequences OF
| as grave import as any that has oc-
| Cured since the settlement OF James
| town.
Its success means the emancipation of
| Virginia from the actunl or threatened
| thra ldom of evils, which, SO long as they
are possible. are an incubus upon growth,
! development and prosperity, nnd menace
| to liberty; for corruption and lawlessness,
| either or both are the necessary enemies
of freedom.
| Its failure will mean to hand over the
| people Of Virginn TO conditions which in
| large regions must result in deterioration
and decay and be blight upon the pro-
gress. the prosperity and the glory of the
| whole Commonwealth.
Partly the offspring of fanaticism
and philanthropy (Which, however sincere
! they may have been, were unreaSonlng
and misinformed), partly at the behest
of blind and bitter sectional hate, and
| partly as a supposed means of partisan
party and political advantage. the recon
struction acts and the fifteenth amend
ment to the Federal Constitution forced
upon the people of the late slave States
universal negro manhood suffrage.
A MORAL CRIME.
Under these circumsta
| under any conceivable circumstances-the
vesting of the millions of negroes Of the
south. just emerging from slavery, with
out education, without experience or
training in. or preparation for the duties
| Of citizenship, without fitness. or capacity
for self-government, still less for the gov
eminent Of the white people OF these
States, was an atrocious blunder and a
moral crime.
1t was the degradation of American