CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



& it enacUd by the Stnate and Houte of Rtprumta- 



l Slates of America in Congrtu at- 



ttmbled. That ih duly in rebellion, 



i'>i in valid State governments 



in the following manner : 



'Ar enacted, That the State 



governiiu-n :iug de facto, though illegally 



'I in il; midst of martial law, ami in many 



>r constitutions were adopted under du- 



md not submitted to the ratification of the 



e, and therefore are not to be treated ;i 



ivj.uhlies, vet tliey are hereby acknowledged as valid 



municipal purposes until the same 



shall I),, duly altered, and their legislative and cx- 



ve officers shall be recognized as such. 

 SKC. 8. And be it further enacted, That each of the 

 .vhichwere lately in rebellion, and have 

 not been admitted to representation in Congress, 

 shall hold elections on the first Tuesday of May, 

 1867, to choose delegates to a convention to form a 

 State government. The convention shall consist of 

 the same number of members as the most numerous 

 branch of the Legislature of said State before the 

 rebellion. It shall meet at the former capital of said 

 State on the first Monday of June of said year, at 

 twelve o'clock noon, with power to adjourn from 

 time to time, and shall proceed to form a State con- 

 stitution, which shall bo submitted to the people at 

 such time as the convention shall direct, and if nit i- 

 fied by a majority of legal votes shall be declared the 

 constitution of the State. The Supreme Court of 

 the District of Columbia shall appoint a commission 

 for each of said States, to consist of three persons, 

 who shall select, or direct the mode of selecting, the 

 election officers for the several election districts, 

 which districts shall be the same as before the rebel- 

 lion, unless altered by said commission. The officers 

 shall consist of one judge and two inspectors of elec- 

 tions, and two clerks : the said officers, together with 

 all the expenses of the election, shall be paid by the 

 United States, and said expenses shall be repaid by 

 said State or Territory. Each of said officers shall 

 receive five dollars per day for the time actually em- 

 ploved. Each of the members of said commission 

 shall receive $3,000 per annum, and their clerk $2,000. 

 The commission shall procure all the necessary 

 books, stationery, and boxes, and make all regula- 

 tions to effect the objects of this act. The President 

 of the United States and the military commander of 

 the district shall furnish so much military aid as the 

 said commissioners shall deem necessary to protect 

 the polls and keep the peace at each of said election 

 districts. If by any means no election should be held 

 in any of said late States on the day herein fixed, 

 then the election shall be held on the third Monday 

 of May, 1807, in the manner herein prescribed. Re- 

 turns of all such elections shall be made to the said 

 commissioners, whose certificates of election shall 

 beprima facie evidence of the fact. 



SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That the persons 

 who shall be entitled to vote at both of said elections 

 shall be as follows : all male citizens above the age 

 of twenty-one years who have resided one yea,r in 

 said State, and ten days within the election district. 



SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That the word 

 citizen, as used in this act, shall be construed to mean 

 nil persons (except Indians not taxed) born in the 

 United States, or duly naturalized. Any male citi- 

 zen above the age of twenty-one years shall be com- 

 petent to be elected to act as delegate to said con- 

 vention. 



SEC. C. And be it further enacted. That all persons 

 who, on the 4th day of March, 1861, were of mil age, 

 who held office, either civil or military, under the 

 government called the " Confederate States of Amer- 

 ica," or who swore allegiance to said government, 

 are hereby declared to have forfeited their citizen- 

 ship and to have renounced allegiance to the United 

 St-ite*, and shall not be entitled to exercise the elec- 

 tive franchise or hold office until five years after they 



shall have filed their intention or desire to be rein* 

 vested \viili tin- right of citizenship, and shall swear 

 allegiance to the I'MI. ! -(.. ::.': >.uunce allegi- 

 ance to all other governments m- iir. -tended govern- 

 ments ; the said application t he filed and oath 

 taken in the same courts that by law are authorized 

 to naturalize foreigners : I'rovvled, "however, that on 

 taking the following oath, the party being otherwise 

 qualified, shall he allowed to vote and hold office: 



I, A. B., do solemnly swear, on the Holy Evange- 

 lists of Almighty God, that on the 4th day of Man h, 

 1864, and at all times thereafter, I would willingly 

 have complied with the requirements of the procla- 

 mation of the President of the United States, issued 

 on the 8th day of December, 1863, had a safe oppor- 

 tunity of so doing been allowed me ; that on the 

 said 4th of March, 1864, and at all times thereafter, 

 I was opposed to the continuance of the rebellion, 

 and to the establishment of the so-call >d confederate 

 government, and voluntarily gave no aid or encour- 

 agement thereto, but earnestly desired the success 

 of the Union, and the suppression of all armed 

 resistance to the Government of the United States ; 

 and that I will henceforth faithfully support the Con- 

 stitution of the United States, and the Union of the 

 States thereunder. 



SEC. 7. And be it further enacted, That no consti- 

 tution shall be presented to or acted on by Congress 

 which denies to any citizen any right, privileges, or 

 immunities which are granted to any other citizen 

 in the State. All laws shall be impartial without 

 regard to language, race, or former condition. If 

 the provisions of this section should ever be altered, 

 repealed, expunged, or in any way abrogated, this 

 act shall become void, and said State lose its right 

 to be represented in Congress. 



SEC. 8. And be it further enacted, That whenever 

 the foregoing conditions shall be complied with, the 

 citizens of said State may present said constitution 

 to Congress, and if the same shall be approved by 

 Congress, said State shall be declared entitled to 

 the rights, privileges, and immunities, and be sub- 

 ject to all the obligations and liabilities of a State 

 within the Union. No Senator or Representative 

 shall be admitted into either House of Congress 

 until Congress shall have declared the State entitled 

 thereto. 



The question was upon agreeing to the sub- 

 stitute. 



Mr. Stevens, of Pennsylvania, said : " What 

 are the great questions which now divide the 

 nation ? In the midst of the political Babel 

 which has been produced by the intermingling 

 of secessionists, rebels, pardoned traitors, hiss- 

 ing Copperheads, and apostate Republicans, 

 such a Confusion of tongues is heard that it is 

 difficult to understand either the questions that 

 are asked or the answers that are given. Ask, 

 what is the ' President's policy? ' and it is dif- 

 ficult to define it. Ask, what is the 'policy of 

 Congress?' and the answer is not always at 

 hand. 



" A few moments may bo profitably spent in 

 seeking the meaning of each of these terms. 

 Nearly six years ago a bloody war arose be- 

 tween different sections of the United States. 

 Eleven States, possessing a very large extent 

 of territory, and ten or twelve million people, 

 aimed to sever their connection with the 

 Union, and to form nn independent empire, 

 founded on the avowed principle of human 

 slavery, and excluding every free State from 

 this confederacy. 



" The Federal arms triumphed. The confed- 



