MISSISSIPPI. 



455 



"We desire to have Congress take up the rejected 

 constitution of 1868, and so amend it as to make it 

 conform in all its parts to the requirements of the 

 "14th article" and the reconstruction acts ? and in 

 that form submit it to the people for ratification, and, 

 my life upon it ? the people will accept it with unpar- 

 alleled unanimity. 



Again, I am asked, if this is done, will we accept 

 willingly the officers rejected with the constitution, 

 but who still are claiming to have been elected under 

 it. I answer, no ; distinctly no. These men stood 

 as the exponents and representatives of that consti- 

 tution. They stood pledged to carry out all its vin- 

 dictive, odious, and proscriptive features : and when 

 the people rejected the one they rejected the other. 

 If they were the choice of the people once, they will 

 be so again. All we ask of them is, to try it. 



Several bills were introduced into the House, 

 for the completion of reconstruction in the 

 State, before the accession of General Grant to 

 the presidential chair, but none of them proved 

 satisfactory to a majority of the members. 

 That which occupied the largest share of at- 

 tention was agreed upon and reported by the 

 Keconstruction Committee, and provided for 

 the reassembling of the Constitutional Conven- 

 tion, to which it delegated the power to appoint 

 a provisional Governor. The Governor thus 

 appointed was vested with authority to appoint 

 and remove all the other State officials, and 

 the convention was to provide for a new elec- 

 tion, at which the body of the constitution and 

 the passages to which greatest objection had 

 been made were to be voted upon separately. 

 After considerable debate, this measure was 

 postponed until the next session of Congress. 



Soon after the inauguration of General Grant, 

 General Gillem was removed from the command 

 of the Fourth Military District, and General 

 Adelbert Ames, the Provisional Governor of 

 the State, was assigned to that position. Some 

 weeks before this time the following joint reso- 

 lution had passed both Houses of Congress : 



Resolved ~by the Senate and House of Representatives 

 of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, 

 That the persons now holding civil offices in the pro- 

 visional governments of Virginia and Texas, who 

 cannot take and subscribe the oath prescribed by the 

 act entitled "An act to prescribe an oath of office, 

 and for other purposes," approved July 2, 1862, shall, 

 on the passage of this resolution, be removed there- 

 from ; and it shall be the duty of the district com- 

 manders to fill the vacancies so created, by the 

 appointment of persons who can take said oath: 

 Provided, That the provisions of this resolution shall 

 not apply to persons who, by reason of the removal 

 of their disabilities, as provided in the 14th amend- 

 ment to the Constitution, shall have qualified for any 

 pfficeinpursuan.ee of an act entitled "An act prescrib- 

 ing an oath of office by persons from whom legal 

 disabilities have been removed," approved July 11. 

 1868, and, Provided further, That this resolution shall 

 not take effect until thirty (30) days from and after 

 its passage : and it is further provided, That this 

 resolution shall be and is hereby extended to and 

 made applicable to the State of Mississippi. 



On the 23d of March a military order issued 

 from the headquarters at Vicksburg, to carry 

 into effect the provisions of this resolution. After 

 reciting the resolution itself, and the two oaths 

 alluded to, the order proceeds : 



IV. All civil offices in this district which have 



been held by persons whose legal disabilities have 

 not been removed, and who cannot take the oath 

 prescribed by act of Congress of July 2, 1862, are 

 vacant. 



V. Present incumbents of civil offices who can take 

 the oath prescribed by the act of Congress of July 

 2, 1862, or whose disabilities have been removed, and 

 who have not qualified under appointment from these 

 headquarters, will at once take and subscribe the 

 oath prescribed, forward the same to these headquar- 

 ters, and continue in the performance of the duties of 

 their offices. 



VI. Late incumbents of offices rendered vacant by 

 this resolution of Congress will retain custody of the 

 books, papers, and property of their offices, and trans- 

 fer them to their successors when they shall have 

 qualified. 



By command of Brevet Major-General AMES. 

 JOHN TYLEB, 1st Lieut. 43d Inf., 



Brevet-Major U. S. A., A. A. A. G. 



On the Yth of April, President Grant sub- 

 mitted a special message to Congress, in which 

 he recommended that provision be made for 

 holding elections in Virginia, Texas, and Mis- 

 sissippi, at which the adoption of their respec- 

 tive constitutions should be submitted to a 

 vote of the citizens, a separate vote being taken 

 "upon such parts as may be thought expe- 

 dient." 



A bill was immediately introduced with this 

 object in view, and on the 10th of April re- 

 ceived the approval of the President. It pro- 

 vides that the President may, " at such time as 

 he may deem best for the public interests," 

 submit the constitutions of these three States 

 for ratification by the people, " and may also 

 submit to a separate vote such provisions of 

 said constitution as he may deem best." It 

 provides, furthermore, for choosing members 

 of the Legislature, State officers, and members 

 of Congress, at the same election. The last 

 three sections of the act are as follows : 



SECTION 5. That if either of the said constitutions 

 shall be ratified at such election, the Legislature of 

 the State so ratifying, elected as provided for in" this 

 act, shall assemble at the capitol of said State, on the 

 fourth Tuesday after the official promulgation of such 

 ratification of the military commander in said State. 



SEC. 6. That before the States of Virginia, Missis- 

 sippi, and Texas, shall be admitted to representation 

 in Congress, their several Legislatures, which may 

 be hereafter lawfully organized, shall ratify the 15th 

 article, which has been proposed by Congress to the 

 several States, as an amendment to the Constitution 

 of the United States. 



SEC. 7. That the proceedings in any of said States 

 shall not be deemed final, or operate as a complete 

 restoration thereof, until their action respectively 

 shall be approved by Congress. 



After the passage of this act the State re- 

 mained under military rule, though few cases 

 occurred in which it was found necessary to 

 exercise the authority of the commander in the 

 administration of civil affairs. On the 27th of 

 April, the following order was issued, making 

 colored persons competent to serve on juries : 



General Orders, No. 32. 

 HEADQTTABTEBS FOTJBTH MILITABT DISTBICT ) 

 (DEPABTMENT OF MISSISSIPPI), > 



JACKSON, Miss., April 27, 1869. ) 

 It is hereby ordered that all persons, without respect 

 to race, color, or previous condition of servitude, who 



