The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-07-31

VI week. and he said positively that he dfd not want the pair to extend be- x0nd Monday If he was here he svo1ld vote aye, but think l am dis charred from the pair. and that Is the reason I voted, but l dtsired to make thai explanation in the hearing of the Convention.
 ment to Section {.
 Amend Section 4, first subdi- vision, after the word "States." i in line ten, strike out the uerni-colon, insert therefor a comma, and add the works ''and did not desert from such service"
 MT. Robinson-I desire to offer an amendment.
 The President pending aues- tion will be upon the amendment. of fered by the gentleman from Montgom- cry. and upon that he Is entitled to tho floor.
 Mir. Oates-Mr. President. I do not intend to consume much time in SUD- port of my amendment. but desire to state a few facts to which ask the att tention of the delegates. No man hon. ors more highly than myself the sol dier who performed his duty, and es- pecially when he performed it. as ma. nv of our soldiers dtG in the war be- twen the States. most heroically; but we should not lose sight of the fact. that Notwithstanding the great gal Iantry oi many of our soldiers. that shere are others who wore the uniform and were enlisted as Confederate sol diers who did not make for them- selves such a record. but upon the con trary deserted from the service. It IS said in the report. the provision 10 which this amendment iS offered. ..tbose who honorably or faithfully served" and the conclusion. It claimed. is deducible therefrom. that any man who may have deserted ms colors at any time could not nave tnus served. The language employed is not that he should have served hon. orably and well. during the whole peri od of his enlistment. and 1t is con sistent with the language used .hat A man may have served well Tor time and then have deserted and gone over to the enemy. I have personal knowledge of the facts in some cases and have heard of them in many more. I will not undertake to detain the Convention to listen to the detals or many of these assertions. know CT many more than I will undertake to describe. but I will mention few ny way of illustration. Two young men from the county of Dale, who were in my company, and both of whom served remarkably we'll until in 1885 when one of them deserted, and the next seen or known of him was that he was Tn the ranks of the enemy wearing that uniform and fighting on the other sioe. His brother continued in the ranks ana was as good soldier as any Of the Fifteenth Alabama, and was present and .surrendered at Appomattox. When he returned home. l happened to De in Newton when those brothers met, hav- ing not seen each other in couple or years, one in the old dingy Conted- crate auniform and the other in the IInion uniform and when they met, instead of embracing each other, as brothers, they went to fighting, aud that enlisted the old Confederates pres ent on the one side, and those "a plue on the other, until consiaefacie pat tle ensued, and the latter took to the woods. Now do you suppose that sam Woodham. the man who served through and surrendered at Appomattox, would esteem it any honor to him to glve that brother equal rights and benetac- tions in this matter. the same as nini- self?
 MT. Reese-I desire to ask the gen. tleman a question for information.
 The President-Does the gentleman from Montgomery yield!
 Mir. Oates-Yea.
 Mir. Reese--In 1861 there was d large number of officers that left the United States army and navy and entered the Confederate service, and they were marked as deserters on the muster roll of the United States army and navy Now, how would your amendment af- feet that class of officers? Applause. J
 Mir. Oates Ithink that my friend the delegate from Dallas, is mistaken They were not marked as deserters and he cannot find any such record ir the War Department, not one. Every officer. of course. as officers. took the oath to support the Constitution of the United States
 MT. Reese-I think if the gentle man
 MT. Oates-I yielded to the gentleman for a questions-but not for an argu' ment. SS "
 MT. Reese-I' wanted to ask another one.
 MT. Cates-Theg took an oath tt support the Constitution of the United states as officers. Every man wht takes that oath, takes it impliedly st long as he continues an officer. Nov the penalty which Congress affixed t. those who had taken that oath. anC were in the army. was the same as wal applied to every man who had been member of Congress from the Stat of Alabama, or any other State. an, entered into the War of Rebellion, s called, but it, was never deemed viola tion of that oath.
 MT. Burnett-I desire to ask unde yout amendment. in the case of thes two brothers from Dale. where one de serted and joined the Federal army, 1 Ender the constitutional provision, a framed by the committee. this brothe who joined the Federal army would no be entitled to vote because he was ol the Union side? How would you amendment rea&n him? That is what desire to ask.
 MT. Oates-That shows the defect iveness of this provision. I admit if h. had served well in the Union army though deserter from the Confederat army, he would have the right to vote but at the same time l want to se that amendment put in there sfor thi reason. l do not wish, however, t pass by and beyond the question jus asked me by the delegate from Dallas for had not finished it.
 These offlcers were never regarded a having sworn falsely to the extent o being deserters. and were never s mustered. They were, under the four teenth amendment, prohibited iron