Year: 1870




the judiciary Committee, reported a substitute
for the various bills "to enforce the fifteenth
amendment to the constitution Of the United
States" providing that all citizens of any State,
Territory, district, county, township, school
district, municipality, or other territorial sub
division, shall be entitled to vote at all elections
without distinction Of color, race or previous
condition OF servitude, any law, custom or usage
70 the contrary notwithstanding. Also, that il
the laws Of any State or Territory shall require
shall be the duty of the officers of the law
in said State or Territory to give equal
opportunity to all to perform such prerequisite,
and any such official failing so to do shall forfeit
and pay the sum of five hundred dollars to tn I,
person aggrieved thereby, to be recovered by an
action in the case, and in case of conviction
shall be fined in the above amount and be i'm
prtsoned not less OF more than one year. The
offer of any citisen, for whom such prerequisite
is required, shall be deemed performance in
law of such act, IL such act fail to be carried
into execution by reason Of the wrongful act or
omission on the part Of the person charged
with the duty Of receiving or permitting
such performance of offer. ANY person
who shall hinder, delay, prevent or orbstruct or
such prerequisite rhail be subject to the above
mentioned penalties. If any person shall be
deprived of any office, except that of member
OF Congress or members of State Legislature,
by reason OF the provisions of this act, shall be
entitled to recover possession of such Office by a
writ of mandamus or other appropriate
proceedings in the Circuit and District
Courts OF the United States, which shall
The District courts shall have iurisdc-
ton Of all crimes or Oienses committed agains;
the provisions of this act, exclusively of the
State courts. 1t further provides that all the
District Attorneys, Marshals. and Deputy Mar
shals of the United States shall have the power
to institute and enforce proceedings against all
v,olators of the provisions of this act, in pen
atty of one thousand dollars to the use of the
person deprived of the benefits conferred by this
act The President is authorized to employ the
land or naval forces of the United States, or of
the militia, to prevent the violation and enforce
the due execution of the provisions of this act


THE ABSENT MENBERs-A LIVELY SCENE
Immediately after the call of the House TO-DAY
for bills, resolutions, &c, under the rule, the
Speaker directed the Sergeant-at-Armsto to bring
to the bar of the House the thirty-five members
who were absent on Friday night when a
call OF the House was made, warrants
having been served upon them for being
absent at that time without permission
The galleries were well filled in expecta-
ton of the usual fan on such Occasions
his Tariff bill to waste time, offered resolution
imposing fine of $40 upon the absentees. ex
cept such as desired to offer excuses and that
all further proceedings be suspended under the
call, except to hear excuses of members. This
resolution was adopted, and of course the alb
sentees began to put in the familiar pleas of in
health, &c. Some sly fun was poked at Mr.
Dawes, chairman of the Committee on Appro-
priations, who was absent on Thursday night
when the Naval Appropriation bill was
under consideration.


Mr.. Morgan, of Ohio, declared that he had
always been attentive, but on Friday even
ing was sick in his bed. He did not ask
to be excused, but desired to say that those
making the greatest clamor about this mat
r were the very ones who had been most
frequently out Of their seats. Mr.. Clarke O
Kansas, thought this call spasmodic effort
OF certain few to make it appear
that the most attentive members of the
House were the most frequently alb
sent. MIR. Lynch wanted to know if Mr
Schenck could be excused for his absence On
Thursday, when be went to Mount Vernon with
the Ohio Legislature. Mr.. l.. proceeded to ad-
dress the House in relation to his absence on
Friday evening, Len he was interrupted by
hr. Schenck, who Informed Mr. Lynch that If
he (Mr. S. had been fined he would have paid
Z, and not whined about it. MIR. Lynch and
others justified tbeir absence by the fact that
Messrs. Schenck and Dawes were both absent
on Thursday, which frequently brought those
gentlemen to their feet when the laugh was
turned upon them.


INDIANS ON THE WAR PATH.-Dispatches
received here confirm the adyices hereto
fore at hand, which indicate that the In
dians in Dacotah are on the war path in good
earnest. telegram saws that they have ap-
peared near some OF the forts in that Territory
with fresh paint on and dancing the war dance.
At one point they were estimated at two or three
thousand, and were bent on hostilities. In view
of threatened general Indian war, Gen Sher-
man has ordered all the available military for
ces 10 the frontier to protect the white settlers
Orders were sent Saturday to all the troops in
Kentucky to move to the western front without
delay, and regiments will be sent from other
places from which they can be spared. The