464 



KENTUCKY. 



that a man has no right to utter treason, not believ- 

 ing it, nor to utter treason, believing it. In one case 

 he is simply a liar, and in the other he is a traitor. 

 In either case those in power owe it to the loyal peo- 

 ple of this State that his mouth shall be closed. 



The freedom of elections will be maintained in this 

 State. I am for the right of free suffrage to every 

 man who has the right to exercise it. But there are 

 some men who have forfeited that right. I under- 

 stand that a gentleman from down the river, whose 

 first name is that of the man who sat at the rich 

 roan's table, says that he has got the law so passed 

 that shoulder-straps cannot interfere in the elections. 

 Well, the shoulder-straps that would interfere illegal- 

 ly, ought to be taken off. It is true that once in a 

 while the public safety is the law, and it may be 

 necessary to lay the military hands gently upon 

 traitors, that they may not get the advantage of the 

 Union men ; but that is an exception, just as the ex- 

 ercise of the right of self-defence is an exception in 

 the case of individuals. The rule is, that the freedom 

 of elections must be maintained and the laws of elec- 

 tions must be enforced. By the laws of your State 

 certain classes of men are not entitled to vote. They 

 are bound to keep the peace ; and I am in favor of 

 their continuing in bonds. I would propose that 

 these bonds shall operate in the nature of natural- 

 ization laws. 



The following order was also issued by the 

 same commanding officer : 



HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT or KENTUCKY, ) 

 LOUISVILLE, KY., July 26, 1865. ( 



GENERAL ORDERS No 51. The near approach of an 

 important election, to be held in all the counties of 

 the State and Military Department of Kentuckv, ren- 

 ders it proper in the judgment of the General com- 

 manding to require all officers commanding troops to 

 give to the officers of the State, charged by law with 

 the duty of conducting elections, and to the legal 

 voters of the State, the most complete protection. 



Martial law prevails in the Department of Ken- 

 tucky, and certain classes of persons are especially 

 under military surveillance and control. These are : 



1. All rebel soldiers, whether paroled or not, and 

 without regard to the fact that they have or have not 

 taken any of the oaths prescribed by law, or execu- 

 tive or military orders, or have registered under 

 orders from the headquarters of the Department of 

 of Kentucky. 



2. All guerrillas and others who, without belonging 

 to regular rebel military organizations, have taken 

 up arms against the Government, or have in any way 

 operated against the Government or people of Ken- 

 tucky, or any other State or Territory. 



_3. All persons who, by act or word, directly or in- 

 directly, gave aid, comfort, or encouragement to 

 persons in rebellion. This applies to all persons 

 who have voluntarily acted as scouts or spies for 

 rebel or guerrilla forces ; who have voluntarily fur- 

 nished any rebel force or person with information, 

 food, clothing, horses, arms, or money, or have har- 

 bored, concealed, or othenvise aided or encouraged 

 them. 



4. All deserters from the military or naval service 

 of the United States who did not return to said ser- 

 vice or report themselves to some provost marshal 

 within the sixty days limited in the proclamation of 

 the President of the United States, dated the llth 

 day of March, 1865; and all persons who deserted 

 from the military or naval service of the United 

 States after the 3d day of March, 1865, and all per- 

 sons duly enrolled who departed the jurisdiction of 

 the district in which thev were enrolled, or went be- 

 yond the limits of the United States to avoid any 

 draft. All persons who were, or have been, directly 

 or indirectly engaged in the civil service of the late 

 so-called Confederate Government, or of the so-called 

 Provisional Government of Kentucky, or who have 

 in any way voluntarily submitted to either of said 



pretended governments all agents or contractor- 

 with or for either of the said pretended governments 

 all such persons are disqualified from voting by the 

 laws of the State of Kentucky and the act of Con- 

 gress of March 3, 1865. All persons of the classes 

 aforesaid are required to abstain from all interference 

 with elections, and will, if they shall in any manner 

 interfere therein, by voting or attempting to vote, or 

 by persuading any other person to vote, or by ap- 

 pearing at the polls, be at once arrested and held for 

 military trial. 



It will be given to the civil authorities to enforce 

 the laws and to preserve the peace. Any person 

 who shall counsel, advise, or encourage any judge 

 of any election, or any other person, to disregard oj 

 disobey the law, as declared m the proclamation ot 

 the Governor of the State, will be at once arrested. 

 The peace of the country can be secured only by 

 obedience to the law. 



By command of Maj.-Gen. JOHN M. PALMER. 



E. B. HARLAN, Capt. and A. A. G. 



Official : BEN. W. SULLIVAN, Lt. and Act. A. A. G. 



Gov. Bramlette also issued the following 

 proclamation : 



COMMONWEALTH OF KENTUCKY, EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT, ) 

 FRANKFOBT, KY., July J9th, 1S65. f 

 To the Officert of Elections ; 



The purity of the elective franchise can only be 

 preserved by a faithful enforcement of the laws gov- 

 erning the same. For their enforcement the officer 

 will be held responsible. Every free white male citi- 

 zen, twenty-one years of age, who has resided in 

 Kentucky two years, and whose residence has been 

 in the district where he offers to vote for sixty days 

 preceding the election ; and each male white citizen 

 who, nothaving two years' residence in the State, but 

 has resided one year in the county and sixty days in 

 the precinct where he offers to vote, next preceding 

 the election, is entitled to vote; provided he has not 

 expatriated himself aud lost the elective franchise 

 by coming within the provisions of the following act : 

 CHAP. 509. An Act to amend Chapter 15 of the Re- 

 vised Statutes, entitled " Citizens, Expatriation, 

 and Aliens." 



SECTION I. e it enacted by the General Assembly of 

 the Commonwealth of Kentucky, That any citizen of this 

 State who shall enter into the service of the so-called Con- 

 federate States, in either a civil or military capacity, or into 

 the service of the so-called Provisional Government of Ken- 

 tucky, in either a civil or military capacity, or having here- 

 tofore entered such service of either the Confederate States 

 or Provisional Government, shall continue in such service 

 after this act takes effect, or shall take up or coutinue in 

 arms against the military forces of the United States or the 

 State of Kentucky, or shall give voluntary aid and assistance 

 to those in arms against said forces, shall be deemed to have 

 expatriated himself, and shall no longer be a citizen of Ken- 

 tucky; nor shall he again be a citizen, except by permission 

 of the Legislature, by a general or special statute. 



SEC. 2. That whenever a person attempts, or is called on, 

 to exercise any of the constitutional or legal rights and privi- 

 leges belonging only to citizens of Kentucky, he may be re- 

 quired to negative, on oath, the expatriation provided in the 

 first section of this act ; and upon his failure or refusal to do 

 so, shall not be permitted to exercise any such right or priv- 

 ilege. 



SEC. 8. This act to be of force in thirty days from and 

 after its passage. 



All persons challenged as coming within the pro- 

 visions of this law should be required to take the fol- 

 lowing oath, prescribed by my predecessor, and which 

 is in conformity with the law : 



OATH. Ton do solemnly swear that you have not, since 

 the 10th day of April, 1862, been in the service of the so-called 

 "Confederate States," or in the "Provisional Government 

 of Kentucky," in either a civil or military capacity, and that 

 you have not given, directly or indirectly, voluntary Ud 

 and assistance to those in arms against the Government 

 of the United States, or the State of Kentucky, or those who 

 were intending to join the armed forces of the so-called 

 " Confederate States," and that you will bear true and faith- 

 ful allegiance to said Governments of the United States and 

 State of Kentucky ; so help you God. 



