Year: 1870

|
The action Of Congress in regard to the pro


posed Fifteenth Amendment is attracting con
siderable attention throughout the whole coun
| try. The extreme Radicals in both Houses, OF


at least majority of them, unhesitatingly as


sert that the action of the New York Legisla


ture in resembling the resolution adopted las,
year accepting and ratifying the proposed


amendment, is invalid and In fact nullity
that after the Legislature of State has once


acted upon the measure it passed out Of their
control, and any subsequent action by them
upon the same subject is waste of time and


cannot be considered in any manner whatever


Such is the argument used when State recon.


siders its action in manner unsatisfactory to


the party in power; but when State has once,
by its Legislature, rejected the proposed


amendment, they hold that subsequent Leg.


islature of the same State can reconsider the


matter and give in their adherence to the same


measure which was rejected by their prede.


cessors. AS instanclng this duplicity on the
part of the dominant party, we have only to
call attention to the action taken in two or
three States.


A Radical Legislature in Oregon ratified the


Fourteenth Amendment; the next Legislature
was of different political complexion and


passed resolution withdrawing the consent
Of that State, and upon the resolution being


a1 in koJ


tempt as being an insult to that body.


The Legislature of New York, at the session
year ago, passed 4 joint resolution ratifying
the proposed Fifteenth Amendment, but made
no provision for the transmission of the Joint
resolution of ratification to the Secretary of
State of the United States, and consequently
the action of that State was defective. The
present Legislature of New York, which is
now in session, has adopted resolution re-
scinding the resolution adopted last winter,
and yet it is met with jeers by the Radical
leaders in Congress. But it seems to make
considerable difference whose OK is gored
Ohio, last spring, rejected this same proposed
amendment, and now when they think they
have majority of one or two in each House,
the Radicals propose to review the action of
the last Legislature and ratify the amendment,
and resolution to that effect has already
passed the Senate by one majority. And
again, the State of Georgia, which was repre-
sented in Congress during the FOrteth session,
{h., &c
from that State being admitted to their seats
who participated in legislation during that
session and the State being recognized as a
State in the Union, yet the Legislature of
Georgia having rejected this pet measure of
the Radical party, the State is Immediately
kicked out of the Union, her Senators refused
their seats, the State reduced to the condition
of conquered province, and the promise held
out to her that if she ratifes the Fifteenth
Amendment then Congress will magnanimously
admit her to representation in that body, and
until she does obey the behests of that con-
clave of usurpers the State will be governed
by military authority. A ratification by the
the State of Georgia under such circumstances
would not be worth the paper on which it
was written. An act done under duress is
binding neither at law nor in conscience, and
! deed executed either fraudulenty or extorted
by force or threats is nullity.


The action of the Radicals in the Indiana.
Legislature is another instance of the fraud
and rascality to which that party has resorted
in order to accomplish their ends, right or
wrong Tn violation of their own State Con.
stitution which they had sworn to support,
they enact the farce of going through the rati-
ficatiop of the proposed amendment without
having a quorum present.


Virginia was promised that upon compli-
ance with the Reconstruction Acts Of Congress
and upon ratifying the proposed amendment
she would be readmitted or entitled to repre-
sentation, and yet after complying with these
demands she is refused admission and the in
,enuity Of Radical Senators is being taxed to
invent some new and further demands upon
,he people of that great State in the nature of
Radical guarantees before they will agree to
accord to her those rights which she has never
orfeited, and which are guaranteed to every
State by the Constitution of our common coun-
ry. It is sickening to contemplate the whole
ale frauds practiced upon the people by the
Tacobins in Congress and the utter disregard