The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1900-08-27

W
Gratis OF I the senate who are constitu-
ftionalllawyers. They all concur in my
opinion that. Il, adopted, the effect Will
be To. lose us our representation in con-
5gress, aId I'm the electoral vote Of the
state l5s !!
Senator Don caftcry concurred with
him In this view and ielcgraphed as
follows 70 the conventions: Il
SECTION Of the amended suffrage
amendment is Unconstitutional In my
opinion because II establishes q prlvi-
legged class OF voters for three gen
erations without qualifications, whilc
1T imposes qualifications on all other
voters and because. Intact. It dIscriml-
mates against the colored people OF
Louisiana. 4 y 3 & 81 4 q
Senator Nc Emery did not stop with
this denunclatlon OF the grandfather
clause, but continued Vigorous cam
palsn against 1t. Writing gentleman
who, represented his parish in the con.
vention Senator McEnery said:
4 hope you may be able to defeat the
hereditary. part OF the suffrage article
recently submitted to the convention as
n compromise. With you wish to see
the negro, as far as he can be, deprived
Of the right to vote; but It Is useless
to frame an article that cannot stand
the constitutionallty. submitted the
article TO number Of able lawyers on
the Democratic side of the senate
Without hesitation they said II was
grossly In! violation OF the Fifteenth
amendment, and they also. concurred
withAmer that the effect OF the article
might be the loss OF our representation
in Congress and our electoral vote.
Senator Turpie,- who Is one " the
most loyal of Democrats. told me that
at one time the senate committee had
serious doubts MS to the understand
ing clause OF the Mississippi constitu-
,tion. That clause Is now, before the
house committee on elections in the
Catchings contested elections case. The
lawyers whom consulted are Turpie,
OF Indiana; Lindsay, OF Kentucky;
Vest, of Missouri: Berry. of Arkansas;
Walthall, II of Mississippi: Turley, Of
Tennessee; Pettus, of Alabama, and
.McLaurin, of South Carolina, and in the
house that able Fjurist. Judge Culbcrt-
son, OF Texas. In fact, have canvass
ed. aud the universal sentiment is that
the article cannot stand judicial In
qulry:. Eis
The.frst proposition was published in
the Washington Post here. ! regret to
say Il. but 1t Is a fact--lt1 was talked
OF as Joke. No one; thought 1t would
receive serious consideration.
Three-fourths, of the Democratic pa
pers of Louisiana supported Senator
McEnery in the stand he took. but the
party leaders. the negro-hating poll
ticians, practically told the two sem
ators that by opposing their scheme
they hadhrcooked their goose" pollti-
caly. According to- 4 New Orleans
correspondent OF the New York Sur
Senator McEnery was asked angrily
what he would do In case the conven-
ton passed the suffrage measure be-
fore 1t and gave this answer:
In answer TO kilograms from delegates
port any plan adopted when attacked.
My duty to the people OF Louisiana
would demand this
This was telegraphed on March 10,
1898, when ito all appearances the SUI
frage article had been abandoned and
the grandfather clause was dead be-
yond all ,resurrection-killed by Sena-
tor McEnery's vigorous opposition.
Four days afterward. on March q, the
convention revived the apparently dead
article. grandfather, clause and all, and
passed 1t. TO the surprise OF all.
Its action left Senator McEnery in a
rather remarkable; position. He had
vigorously opposed the Louisiana suf-
frage plan, had shown Its apparent un-
cOnstitutionality. and had. he thought,
killed It. but afterihe had given
pledge tocsupport. any, suffrage plan
adopted. thetvery plan he had objected
to and. as he thought, defeated. had
been passed! Thus he Is called on to
defendtwhat he has pronounced clearly
unconstitutional
Senator McEnery has been reelected
to the United States senate on the
pledge he had given to support in the
senate the suffrage CLAUSE he had de-
clared unconstitutional. and which he
himself so believes in. This Is n pretty
prcdicament for a United States SEN
ator ts. be placed In. but according to
his pledge which reelected him he Will
be compelled to stultify, Il not perjur1
himself. in keeping that pledge. These
Democrats are great in guarding the
sanctity OF the CONSTITUTIONS far as
1t suits their purposes.
A dIspatch from Cumberland IN n