CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



211 



Hut they will all come in to the -upport of this 



or -oiiio ii I ill tremble, turn 



i little, hut. his oonnlngly-uttin* 



uated piinishnieu' in the <|iiv-tion IK- put, ' l>o 



you believe in hellf' will bring every mother's 



ill.'-.-, pos-ibly the L'vntlcman 



York. 



I was a more abominable doc- 



:'.it:i! to this ( mvernnicnt, 

 :!i:it wh'r.'h asserts its ri^ht. nnd power to 

 hold tlu> late iiisiirireut States as conquered ter- 

 1 the people an conquered subjects. 

 : virtual denial of the power of self-prcs- 

 011, mid a pregnant admission that the 

 -iimed, and t!ie rights asserted, are 

 . be found in the Constitution. It is a 

 iiase and wicked subterfuge, by which to 

 usurp and exercise ungranted and despotic 

 ps. It is a doctrine no less fatal to the 

 I'nion than the States. If persisted in by those 

 in possession of the Government, and acqui- 

 : in by the people, it must end in the over- 

 throw of the Republic, and the establishment 

 of an empire upon its ruins. It is at war with 

 principle of the Constitution, and a com- 

 plete swallowing up of the liberties of the peo- 

 ple it was intended to secure. Hereafter our 

 charters will be written grants of privileges 

 from the Government to the people, instead of 

 written grants of power by the people to the 

 Government. This bill can be looked upon 

 only as a bill granting privileges from the hand 

 of arbitrary power to a pretended, wicked, and 

 undeserving people, who have forfeited all their 

 rights under the Constitution. 



" Sir, the doctrine that this Government can 

 make conquest of any of the States of this 

 Union is opposed to, is at war with the funda- 

 mental idea of the Government itself. It 

 would destroy the harmony of the system of 

 - and Union, by allowing of antagonist 

 interests. It would offer to the General Gov- 

 ernment the allurement of power and agirran- 

 dixement, not in the interest and growth of tho 

 States and Union, but in its own separate in- 

 . It would nullify all the provisions of 

 the Constitution reserving powers to the States 

 and tho people. It would be equivalent to a 

 bribe to the Government to destroy the States 

 and the liberties of the people by the exerci.se 

 of despotic powers. Bat it is absurdly impos- 

 sible that the United States Government, ex- 

 cept by usurpation, should make 'conquest' of 

 one of the States of which it is composed. It 

 has certain prescribed limited powers and juris- 

 diction, with the means and capabilities of 

 using and exercising them, but no use for, no 

 capacity to hold, or means of exercising any 

 others. It had before tho war, by authority of 

 the organic act of its creation, the power and 

 jurisdiction, certain, defined, and limited, to 

 control, govern, and preserve tho States as 

 I in tho Union. Its jurisdiction is tho 

 same now the war is over ; no greater, no less." 

 Mr. Spalding, of Ohio, said : " Mr. Speaker, 

 I desire to say that 1 am now, as I have been 



ne months pa-' Jiion that if th 



lutional amenilment -hoiild not be ac- 

 coptcd by the disloyal States, it would 1,, 

 the duty of ( loagreM I o inten .-lie. and -.o legi- 

 late as to rccoii-true: ninu- 



nitics, upon the votes of their lo^.-d . 

 with" to class or color. Hut. 



the amendment of the irciitleman from Pennsyl- 

 vania (Mr. Steven-) to this hill should he adopt- 

 ed and become a law, it will, it seems to me. be 

 found defective in this important particular: 

 that it does not afford any protection to that 

 loyal class of the inhabitants of tho-;/ communi- 

 lio are to perform these high functions. 

 Why, sir, these colored men who ; re now rec- 

 ognized by the Government as po->e ing the 

 rights of freemen, and who are called upon to 

 assert tho elective franchise, are to be in jeop- 

 ardy of being shot down like so many dogs, 

 when they attempt to visit the polls. Now, I 

 propose to have that class of citizens armed 

 with power for their protection ; and to that 

 end I desire to offer an amendment, which I 

 hope my friend from Pennsylvania will accept. 

 It is to add a new section, as follows :" 



And be it further enacted, That from and after the 

 passage of this act, and until said States in rebellion 

 shall be admitted to representation in Congress as 

 aforesaid, the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus 

 shall be suspended in Virginia, North Carolina, South 

 Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Texas, Alabama, Louisi- 

 ana, Mississippi, and Arkansas ; and said districts of 

 country are hereby placed under martial law for and 

 during the whole term aforesaid. 



Mr. Stevens : " I think that is all right. I 

 accept it as a modification of my amendment." 



Mr. Higby, of California, said : " Mr. Speak- 

 er, the Committee on Keconstruction, appointed 

 early in the last session of Congress, reported 

 an amendment to tho Constitution of the United 

 States, which they recommended should be sub- 

 mitted for ratification to the several States of 

 the Union; and accompanying that amend- 

 ment, they also reported a bill to provide for 

 restoring the States, lately in rebellion, to their 

 full political rights. 



" I understand, Mr. Speaker, that that bill is 

 now before the Ilouse, that it has received no 

 action, and that the amendments which have 

 been proposed by the member from Pennsylva- 

 nia (Mr. Stevens) are in the nature of a sub- 

 stitute. I can readily account for the position 

 which was occupied by the distinguished mem- 

 ber from Ohio (Mr. Bingham), also a member 

 of the committee, and understand why he ad 

 bored with tenacity to the ground taken by that 

 committtee oi.e year ago. I think I can see a 

 reason why the committee also should oppose 

 t!i- amendment presented by the member from 

 Pennsylvania. The bill and amendment being 

 reported by the committee, no doubt received 

 the sanction of this committee, and having re- 

 ceived that sanction, we have no reason for sup- 

 posing that as yet there is any change of > 

 mcnt upon this question of reconstruction in 

 the committee of lifteen. 



" But, sir, how do we stand to-day ? AVhat 



