134 



the Constitution, whether proposed by the Congress 

 or a convention called by Congress on the application 

 of the Legislatures of two-thirds of the several btates, 

 instead of being submitted to the Legislatures or to 

 conventions of the several States, shall be submitted 

 to the vote of the people of each State ; and, if a ma- 

 jority of the people entitled to vote on the proposed 

 amendment ui three-fourths of the several States 

 shall vote in favor of the proposed amendment, it 

 shall, to all intents and purposes, be a part ot the Con- 

 stitution. 



" Mr. President, the party in power professes 

 to be very democratic. I believe it makes 

 loader pretensions to democracy than the Dem- 

 ocratic party ever did or now do. But what 

 is its practice ? The honorable Senator from 

 Nevada, who has charge of this measure, wants 

 to Submit his proposed constitutional amend- 

 ment to Legislatures already elected. He 

 wants to attach the amendment to the Consti- 

 tution by the first heat. How do he and his 

 friends carry out their professions of democ- 

 racy ? The Legislatures already chosen are to 

 act upon this amendment, although they were 

 elected by the people in advance of it and with- 

 out regard to it. Now, my proposition is, that 

 neither the Legislatures already chosen, nor 

 those which may hereafter be chosen, nor any 

 convention chosen in the several States, shall 

 be called upon to act on the ratification of this 

 proposed amendment to the Constitution, but 

 that that question shall be submitted directly 

 to the people of the various States. 



" Now, sir, what necessity is there for hav- 

 ing a proposition to amend the Constitution 

 submitted either to a Legislature or a conven- 

 tion, in a State, called for the purpose of acting 

 0:1 the proposition ? They cannot add to the 

 proposition; they cannot subtract from it; 

 they cannot modify it. The proposition is to 

 be voted for or against as a totality, as an en- 

 tirety, as a matter beyond the control of the 

 body to which it is submitted either for accept- 

 ance or rejection." 



Mr. Wilson, of Massachusetts, said : "Mr. 

 President, the Senator from Kentucky tells us 

 that in proposing this amendment we are seek- 

 ing to perpetuate our power. A word to the 

 Senator on that point. He knows and I know 

 that this whole struggle in this country to give 

 equal rights and equal privileges to all citizens 

 of the United States has been an unpopular 

 one; that we have been forced to struggle 

 against passions and prejudices engendered by 

 generations of wrong and oppression ; that we 

 have been compelled to struggle against great 

 interests and powerful political organizations. 

 I say to the Senator that the struggle of the 

 last eight years to give freedom to four and a 

 half millions of men who were held in slavery, 

 to make them citizens of the United States, to 

 clothe them with the right of suffrage, to give 

 them the privilege to be voted for, to make 

 them in all respects equal to the white citizens 

 of the United States, has cost the party with 

 which I act a quarter of a million of votes. 

 There is not to-day a square mile in the United 



CONGRESS, UNITED STATES. 



States where the advocacy of the equal rights 

 and privileges of those colored men has not 

 been in the past and is not now unpopular. 

 Yes, sir, the cause of the poor, wronged, op- 

 pressed negroes has been, now is, and for some 

 years will continue to be, an unpopular cause. 

 The public man or the political party that hon- 

 estly and zealously espouses their cause will 

 continue to be misunderstood, misrepresented, 

 and maligned. In the past the true and tried 

 friend of the black man has been made to feel 

 the hatred and power of the enemies of the 

 black race. It is too much so now, and I fear 

 it will be so in some portions of the country 

 for years to come." 



Mr. Hendricks, of Indiana, said : " The ques- 

 tion which I wish to discuss just now is that 

 of the proper submission of this amendment 

 to the people or to the States. I am not able 

 to concur in all of the proposition of the Sen- 

 ator from Kentucky. One of the features of 

 his proposition is, that the amendment may be 

 submitted to the people of the States to be 

 voted upon in the popular way by the people. 

 I am not aware of any provision of the Con- 

 stitution of the United States authorizing the 

 ratification of an amendment in that mode. 

 So far as the future is concerned, I have no 

 doubt that we may so amend the Constitution. 

 The question which I wish to speak of now is, 

 how shall this amendment be considered by 

 the people ? It is radical and important, and 

 it should be decided in the country according 

 to the will and the pleasure of the people. 

 How can that be done ? In the absence of a 

 constitutional provision authorizing it, I can- 

 not see how it can be submitted to a popular 

 vote in the States. 



" There are only two modes of ratification : 

 one is by the Legislatures of the States, and 

 the other by conventions called in the States; 

 and it seems to be competent for Congress to 

 decide upon the mode of ratification as be- 

 tween these two modes. The Senator from 

 Connecticut (Mr. Dixon) has proposed a sub- 

 mission to conventions in the States, as I un- 

 derstand it. That is the nearest possible ap- 

 proach that we can now make to the people 

 with this amendment. I wish we could pro- 

 vide, but I am not clear that it is practicable, 

 that this amendment shall not be considered 

 by any Legislature already selected. If it 

 could be submitted to Legislatures, the mem- 

 bers of which are hereafter to be elected, that 

 would answer every purpose, as I think, de- 

 sired by the Senator from Connecticut ; but I 

 suppose it is not practicable or possible for 

 Congress to say to the States what particular 

 Legislature shall consider the amendment, 

 am not sure upon that question. I wish I 

 could feel sure that we might say that the 

 Legislatures now elected shall not consider it. 

 I want, in some mode or other, the people to 

 pass upon this measure. If they decide that 

 suffrage in this country shall be without limit, 

 then, of course, it becomes their voice; it be- 



