New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1907-07-28
REPLIES to- TILLMAN.
FOR4KER on FRANCHISE.
Says Fifteenth Amcndment. Com
plctcd Great Work.
~ - 10 - TrLtlnc. ]

Ohio in an address to the Chautauqua Assembly
at this place. In part Senator Foraker said;
Before taking up anything else, want to speak
briefly in to some utteranceS Oh 9vll'''' -
Ttnau He has been making a speech IN ono. l a.
vas on the race problem. rms IS ,-.S - ~, ?
to.ic. is his best when ne tdiE.S-'l '-'''
I subject bur his best IS also his worst
/ lie is one Of the frarkcst and one Of the apleSN
/ men the South has ever produced. ENeTS o"r en-
l,ud of him as q man, but his views On .S 49, &c
icct are So extreme that but few OF hts Democrat
! coIleacucs H. the Senate, If any of them Iu"y
agree with him Ill this Iatest speech he is quoted
- saving. .Ir after the war he North had not IN
! its ra-eon and sectional hatred gone far beyond
! the bounds of reason. decency and righteousness
/ there would to-day he no race problem we reSell-
tt,tT oTI I7ffternth amendments y You
! have done wrong. The North has done wrong IL
remedy the feeling by repeating me tilte e
Amendment and letting the states conlFoI tile iran
chise"
All The way through, his discussion is in the
nature of protest against social equality. Nothing
! could be more wide of the mark. Everybody IN
derstood then as now, that social equality cannot
be forced upon anybody.
/ Fifteenth Amendment to provide pohtical
equality. to put all citizens Of the United states.
/ whether rich poor white or black, upon tne
same plane, far as the poltica! rights OF cru
zenshtp were concerned.
What want to answer is his charge that IN hatred
AID passion the Fourteenth and Fifteenth amend
merits TO the Constitution forced upon the
South ana t6at in this way the North needlessly
precipitaJed upon the South the evils 1t suffered
during the reconstruction period. These amend
ments. II not fully demanded by the war iseH.
were made necessary by the situation created by
/ the seeding states Immediately after the war
RETURN OF SOUTHERNERs.
Slavery had been abolished. The doctrine OF Sc
cesson was dead. our contention was. Therefore
established that state had right to secede ana
that the efforts the states had made In the name
of secession we're failures The vndlcaion OF ms
claim brought with It, however, some troublesome
questions. II, the states had not been out OF the
/ Union it was not necessary to do anything 10 re-
store them 10 the Union. Acting upon this idea
Andrew johnson misled the seCeding states, TO their
great injury and prejudice. Under his direction
provisional legislatures We're called and organized
The members of these legislatures were naturally
the leading men IN each state, and all these, as a
rule, had been In the Confederate army; and
whether they had been In the army or not lhey
had all sympathized with the Confederate cause
They proceeded upon the theory that they were
in the Union, and. being in the Union had right
TO send Senator'S and members Of Congress 10 rep
resent them at Washington. Accordingly. within
few months after the close OF actual hOStthtlcS.
Alexander II. Stephens, the late N!ce-President OF
the Southern confederaCy, appeared at Washing
ton commissioned by the provisional legislature OF
Georgia 10 represent that state in the Senate "f
the United States II he should be seated. pre'e-
dent would thereby be established under which
members ~ the House and Senators from all the
seeding states would resume tHeT places IN inc
Congress ~ the United states. with power to Legs
late for the whole country, and with power, IN
combination with those who had sympathz"d with
them from the North. to prevent any legislation
that would give any guarantee against a resump-
ton Of hostl!ties, II that should be possible,
against such proceedings would enable them
1" nuluty by the ballot all We had gained hy the
Il was serious situation. There were many
troublesome questions 20 deal with. one was as -
tho i1r!oahIiry of tEc-d-bt contracted 20 pre-
serve tho Union. Another was To the repUdia-
ton Of the debt contracted by the Southern Con
fedcracv 20 destroy the Culcu. Another was a. 90
tho s7credness Of pensions FOR Union soldiers An
other was as 70 u definition of citizenship OF tho
United states. Another W1s 10 the basis "
representation IN the Congress and electoral col
lcgc Another was ass 10 the proper protection o.;
be- " Ta,l q
on account of their emancipation.
THE SETTLEMENT PROPOSED.
Tines" were questions OF vital character. \ num-
bcr OF them could rot De dealt with 10y more
was absolutely essential After much corsidrrl-
ton the Fourteenth Amendment Was proposed. |
''ol"a me 1'tUsi"e"i "t al! these questions y"
complaint of uUfairue.s mas ever been made as to /
The settlement II made OF any of these questions |
except that as 10 suffrage. and there was no just
ground for ans complaint 20 that Under all the |
circumstances, fl was most generous.
This provision was having direct reference TIRE
peculiar conditions I'm Juc South that each st..s. |
should settle for itself VINO should exercise ,Le !
right OF suffrage It a. state did rar wish q, cl,.
lis negro population right 20 Vote 10 was NOT re-
quiryd a. DO So. Tho only disadvantage u whj.a /
such state sIhjortoJ. 81 il denied negroes TOO
right To vote. that IL SHOULD suffer a CORE |
spending reduction In th" basis OF representation |
ia Congress and IN tho electoral college. tuder the
Constitution, prior 10 the Thirteenth Amendment |
IN determining the basis az representation Nve !
slaves were counted as three. This was called ID" |
tArec-Gfths rule.
When slavery was abolished and all were free
each man counted one. The result Of the Thir- |
teonta Amendment was. Therefore. to increase the !
representation Of the seeding states that these
states nat had been in rebellion 10y reason |
of the abolition Of slavery, had greater polilica.
power when restored 10 their place IN the Union
after their attempt 10 overthrow the government
than they had prior thereto.
This We I'D not object 10 provided they allowed
the co!ored men. who composed large part
OF that basis of icprcsc NATION. tie right suf-
irdgc, but We ld object TO 10 II that right Of sf-
rag" should not be allowed to tie. CoOrcd man, for
1t did not seem right then, and looking back nov,
through forty years OF peace that troublesome
period. II does not seem right now that Tia, white
men Of a." seeding states should have fan rep |
ieSentatiou for themselves and additional rep
resrHtdtlou equally as largo for their coIorcd pop
ui'uoa' ana that they alone should do all the vOt-
ing Especially dtd TINS not seem right to men |
who had just gone through the struggles of a !
great war when it was remembered thar this |
double power of voting was To bc given 10 IN. |
mon who had waged that war ana b, Wholly de-
med 20 The black men. who although in a large |
sense unpiepartd for an intelligent exercise Of the
isnt OF s"iiI4E' were yet. nevertheless known TO
be absolutely loyal TO the Union and the great pur-
poses OF the men who had saved It.
REFUSED BY THE SOUTH
ms Fourteenth Amendment was, therefore. not
only necessary, hut it was just and generous. Tho
southern states should have gladly and gratefully
accepted II. but instead of accepting il every one
Of them promptly. and in what appeared to he an |
offensive spirit and manner, rejected it, Under the
leadership and inspiration OF President Johnson
Sney puipoSed to force their way back into their
places in the government without any terms or
conditions whatever. except such President
Johnson ana they themselves might impose
10 THIS programme The loyal men who had savc1
the Union would not consent. They had no riebr
10 consent They We're anxious To do everythinl,
ne Union and make them feel at home and haopy
mere, but they were willing to ieopardize All |
nat had been gained through mere sentimentalisIn
l hereiore II was. that the policies OF Andrew
Johnson were rejected and reconstruction 1erjsio-