132 



uniformly. Whenever Congress has the power 

 under the Constitution to enforce the limita- 

 tions of that instrument, even upon States, the 

 exercise of the power will be as uniform as the 

 exercise of any affirmative power can possibly 

 be. It must be so ; it cannot be otherwise." 



Mr. Boutwell : " Mr. Speaker, I do not see 

 that the argument made by the gentleman 

 from Ohio (Mr. Bingham) changes the con- 

 dition of the question at all. If it be true, 

 as he argues, that under this amendment 

 the States would have the right to impose 

 a religious test, it is equally true that they 

 can do so now. What he has said only 

 adds force to the suggestion I made, that 

 the amendment proposed by the gentleman 

 from Ohio, if referred to the State ^ Legisla- 

 tures, will be met by all these difficulties ; and, 

 although I should be willing to strike down 

 all educational or property tests, and all pos- 

 sibility of their being established anywhere, 

 the probability is that the amendment which 

 we are discussing, if submitted substantially 

 as it came from the committee, will be stronger 

 before the people, and that if we should at- 

 tempt to grasp at too much we shall lose the 

 whole. I believe that, if we adhere to the 

 proposition to protect the people of this coun- 

 try against distinction on account of race, color, 

 or previous condition of slavery, we undertake 

 all that it is probably safe for us to undertake 

 now." 



The question was then put on Mr. Bout- 

 well's amendment ; and there were yeas 45, 

 nays 95. 



So the amendment was disagreed to. 



Mr. Bingham, of Ohio, now moved an 

 amendment, in lieu of the first section, to 

 which Mr. Shellabarger offered an amend- 

 ment, as follows : 



Strike out in the amendment of Mr. Bingham the 

 provision proposed to be inserted in lieu of section 

 one of the proposed new article of the Constitution, 

 and insert in lieu thereof the following : 



No State shall make or enforce any law which shall 

 deny or abridge to any male citizen of the United 

 States of the age of twenty-one years or over, and 

 who is of sound mind, an equal vote at all elections 

 in the State in which he shall have such actual resi- 

 dence as shall be prescribed by law, except to such 

 as have engaged or may hereafter engage in insurrec- 

 tion or rebellion against the United States, and to 

 such as shall be duly convicted of treason, felony, or 

 other infamous crime. 



The question was taken ; and it was decided 

 in the negative yeas 61, nays 126, not voting 

 35; as follows: 



j f 'faf***"* 'y**< J-IAC*J vMutm A jtJiiivti 



Gravely, Hamilton, Hawkins, Hooper, C 

 Hubbard, Judd, Julian, Kelley, Kelsey, George V] 

 Lawrence. William Lawrence, Loan, Logan, May- 

 Tiara. Mullins, Newsham, Norris, Orth, Paine, Plants, 

 Polsley, Price, Prince, Sawyer, Schenck, Scofield 

 Shanks, Shellabarger, Starkweather, Stokes, Sypher. 

 Twichell, Robert T. Van Horn, Ward. Cadwalader G! 

 Washburn, Henry D. Washburn, William B. Wash- 



CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



burn, Welker, Whittemore, and William Williams 



NATS Messrs. Allison, Archer, Arnell, James M. 

 Ashley, Axtell, Bailey, Baker, Banks, Barnum, Beck, 

 Benjamin, Bingham, Blame, Blair, Boutwell, Boy den, 

 Boyer, Bromwell, Brooks, Burr, Benjamin F. Butler, 

 Callis, Cary, Chanler, Churchill, Sidney Clarke, Cook, 

 Corley, Covode, Deweese. Dockery, Dodge, Donnel- 

 ly, Driggs, Edwards, Eldridge, Thomas D. Eliot, 

 Ferriss, Ferry, Fields, Fox, Garfield, Getz, Golladay, 

 Goss, Gove, Griswold, Grover, Haight ; Halsey, Hard- 

 ing, Haughey, Heaton, Higby, Hopkins, Hotchkiss, 

 Hulburd, Humphrey, Hunter, Jenckes, Johnson, 

 Alexander H. Jones, Thomas L. Jones, Kerr, Ketch- 



Perham, Peters, Phelps, Pierce, Pike, Pile, Poland, 

 Pruyn, Randall, Raum, Robertson, Robinson, Roots, 

 Ross, Sitgreaves, Smith, Spalding, Stewart. Stone, 

 Stover, Taber, Taffe, Taylor, Thomas, Tift, John 

 Trimble, Trowbridge, Upson, Van Aernam, Van 

 Auken, Burt Van Horn, Van Trump, Van Wyck, 

 John T. Wilson, Stephen F. Wilson, Windom, Wood- 

 bridge, Woodward, and Young 126. 



NOT VOTING Messrs. Adams, Ames, Anderson, 

 Barnes, Blackburn, Buckley, Roderick R. Butler, 

 Reader W. Clarke, Cornell, Dickey, Dixon, Farns- 

 worth, Glossbrenner, Hill, Holman, Asahel W. Hub- 

 bard, Richard D. Hubbard, Ingersoll, Kellogg, Kitch- 

 en, Lynch, Mallory, McCarthy, Moorhead, Morrissey, 

 Pettis, Pomeroy, Selye, Stevens, Lawrence S. Trim- 

 ble, Vidal.Elihu B. Washburne, Thomas Williams, 

 James F. Wilson, and Wood 35. 



So Mr. Shellabarger's amendment to the 

 amendment of Mr. Bingham was not agreed to. 



The question then recurred on Mr. Bing- 

 ham's amendment, as follows : 



Strike out all of article one and insert as follows : 



Section 1. No State shall make or enforce any law 

 which shall deny or abridge to any male citizen of the 

 United States ot sound mind and twenty-one years 

 of age or upward the equal exercise of the elective 

 franchise at all elections in the State wherein he shall 

 have actually resided for a period of one year next 



E receding such election, subject to such registration 

 vws and laws prescribing local residence as the State 

 may enact, except such of said citizens as shall en- 

 gage in rebellion or insurrection, or who may have 

 been, or shall be, duly convicted of treason or other 

 infamous crime. 



The question was taken ; and it was decided 

 in the negative yeas 24, nays 160, not voting 

 38 ; as follows : 



YEAS Messrs. Axtell, Baker, Bingham, Brooks, 

 Deweese, Dockery. Eldridge, Garfield, Haight, Hea- 

 ton, Hotchkiss, Alexander H. Jones, McCullough, 

 Phelps, Plants. Robinson, Ross, Spalding, Stewart, 

 Stone, Tift, John T. Wilson, Woodward, and Young 

 24. 



NATS Messrs. Allison, Arnell, Delos R. Ashley, 

 James M. Ashley, Bailey, Banks, Beaman, Beatty, 

 Beck, Benjamin, Benton, Blaine, Blair, Boles, Bout- 

 well, Bowen, Boyden, Boyer, Bromwell, Broomall, 

 Buckland, Buckley, Burr, Beni'amin F. Butler, Cake, 

 Callis, Gary, Chanler, Churchill, Sidney Clarke, Clift, 

 Cobb, Coburn, Cook.Cprley, Covode, Cullom, Dawes, 

 Delano, Donnelly, Driggs, Eckley, Eggleston, Ela, 

 Thomas D. Eliot, James T. Elliott, Ferriss, Ferry, 

 Fields, Fox, French, Getz, Golladay, Goss, Gove, 

 Gravely, Griswold, Grover, Halsey, Hamilton, Har- 

 ding, Hawkins, Higby, Hooper, Hopkins, Chester D. 

 Hubbard, Hulburd, Humpnrey, Hunter, Jenckes, 

 Johnson, Thomas L. Jones, Judd, Julian, Kelley, 

 Kellogg, Kelsey, Kerr, Ketcha^, Koontz, Laflin, 

 Lash, George V. Lawrence, William Lawrence, Lin- 



