Year: 1863

the kentucky Leg islatnFe on Dis


franshIsinE Traitors


Loyalty, or fidelity to q Government
h as in all countries been considered as
ne eli arscteristic trais OF = good citizen,
while treason has, as generally, been
considered incompatible with She exer-
else of the rights of citizenship. This
doctrine was affirmed by q statute of
she Kentucky Legislature in 1862, in
very emphatic terms. This statute is
republished by the Louisville Journal in
answer to the following query of a
correspondent:


Are those persons who have left Ken
lucky, gone South, joined the rebel army,
taken an oath 20 support the Southern
Oonfederacy, but got tired of the bargain
and returned voluntarily or as prisoners,
and taken the oath of allegiance 10 the
United States, are such persons entitled
10 all the privileges of the elective fran
chise? Will the mere taking an oath to
be true TO the United States and Ken
tucky, purge them of treason, and re-
store them to their former condition
A mild remedy for such a formidable
disease?


The journal answers


To the question of our correspondent,
we answer: No The law governing the
case is a follows:


Sec. l. Be- 10 enacted By the General Is.
senJly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky
That any citizen of this State who shall
enter into the service of the 80 called
Confederate States, in either civil or
military capacity, or into the service OF
the so-called Provisional Government of
Kentucky, in either civil or military
capacity, or having heretofore entered
such service of either of the Confederats
States or Provisional Government, shall
continue in such service after this act
takes effect, or shall take up or continue
in arms against the military forces of
of the United States or Stats of Ken
tucky, or shall give voluntary aid and
assistance 10 those in arms against said
forces ShaN be deemed to hare eIpatriated
h mSelf, and shall no longer be a citizen of
Kentucky nor shall he again be a c tisen,
ezcept by permisS,on of the Legislature, by
generator special statute.


Sec. 2. That whenever person at
tempts, or is called on TO exercise any of
the constitutional or legal rights, and
privileges belonging only TO citizens of
Kentucky, he may be required to mega
tive ON oath the expairiation provided
in the first section of this act; and dupon
his failure or refusal to do so, shall not
be permitted to exercise any such right
or privilege.


Sec. 3. This act to be of force in
thirty days from and after its passage


The act was passed on the llth OF
March in 1862. Our correspondent will
observe, that, according 70 this law, the
persons he describes, if they enter the
rebel service or continued in it after the
law went into effect, can be absolved by
nothing short of an act of the Legis-
lature. An oath Of allegiance does not touch
The case.


The doctrine OF disfranchisomsnt is
thus put forth in the well known Decla-
ration Of the Union Club of this city:


ave are for depriving disloysl citi-
zens and seditious ofIlce-seekers of the
Northern States of all temptation to bid
for Southern votes, by establishing the
policy, once for all, that no one in arms
against the Government, or in any way
in the interest Of the rebellion, and
especially no disloyal stakeholder, shall
ever share in ruling the destinies of the
nation at the ballot-box, until at least as
much time has elapsed as is required of
unbiased and unprejudiced foreigners,
before exercising the same franchise on
UNTIL IT SHALL HAVE BECOME EVIDENT,
THAT IN THEIR FAMILY AND SOCIAL CIRCLES
FEELINGS OF PATRIOTISM HAVE sUPPLANT-
KD THOSE or TREASON"


The reader will see by comparing the
act Of the Kentucky Legislature Of 1862
with the Declaration of the Nashville
Union Club of 1858, that the former is
much more stringent and "radical"
than the latter.


But the main idea which underlies
both the Kentucky law and the Tennes-
see Declaration is unquestionably correct
sound and statesmsnlike; l. g, that a
traitor is not entitled to the right of cit
iEenship, especially the most sacred Of
all, he night Of suffrage.