

MISSISSIPPI. 



661 



cf T. W. Oardozo, Superintendent of Public 

 K'lni-ation, also colored, was adopted on the 

 16th of February, and proceedings were IH^UII 

 :it line.-. Twelve article* of impeachment were 

 adopted, charging him with retaining money 

 belonging to tho State, and received by him us 

 Clerk of the Circuit Court of Warren County, 

 in 1873, for lands forfeited for taxes and re- 

 deemed through him ; with converting to his 

 own use funds of the Tongaloo Normal School, 

 while treasurer of the institution; with ob- 

 taining money from the State for unnecessary 

 books for the public schools, a portion of which 

 was for his own benefit ; and with proposing 

 with another to divide and convert to their 

 own use a portion of the school-teachers' fund 

 of Warren County. On the 21st of March, and 

 while the impeachment was still pending, Mr. 

 Cardozo asked permission to resign his office, 

 and have the proceedings dismissed. This was 

 granted, and on the 22d Mr. Cardozo resigned, 

 and resolutions were adopted by the House of 

 Representatives, by a vote of 64 to 12, discon- 

 tinuing the proceedings before the Court of 

 Impeachment. 



As early as January 6th, and almost imme- 

 diately after the organization of the Legisla- 

 ture, a committee had been appointed to investi- 

 gate the official conduct of Governor Ames. On 

 the 22d of February its report was submitted, 

 recommending the impeachment of the Gov- 

 ernor for official misconduct on eleven separate 

 and distinct charges. The substance of these 

 was that he had in several specified instances 

 refused to remove certain officials as required 

 by law, and had in other cases made removals 

 without cause ; that he had caused a conflict 

 between races, attended by bloodshed, at Vicks- 

 burg, in December, 1874, by directing Peter 

 Crosby's return, in violation of law, and sus- 

 taining him in taking possession of the sheriff's 

 office of Warren County ; and that he had at- 

 t'in!)ted to incite a war of races in Hinds 

 County, in October, 1875, by causing <a com- 

 pany of colored militia, which had taken part 

 in the Clinton riot, to parade the streets of 

 that town " armed and defiant." The report 

 and the resolution of impeachment were 

 adopted by the House February 25th, by a vote 

 of 86 to 14, all the Republicans present and 

 two Democrats voting in the negative. Twenty- 

 three articles of impeachment were prepared 

 and adopted. On the 13th of March all the 

 preliminary proceedings of the court were 

 taken, and the trial was to begin on the 29th 

 of March, when the following letter addressed 

 by the Governor to his counsel was submitted 

 to the House : 



EXECUTIVE MANSION, JACKSON, March 28, 1876. 



I 



hostile Legislature, and emonrrassed and baffled in 

 niy endeavors to carry out my plans for the welfare 

 of the State and of mv party. I had resolved, there- 

 fore, to resign my office as Governor of the State of 

 Mi-sissippi. But, meanwhile, proceedings of iui- 

 voi.. xv:. 36 A 



peachment were instituted against me, and, of 

 course, I could not and would not retire from my 

 position under the imputation of any charge affect- 

 ing my honor or integrity. For the reasons indi- 

 cuti-d, I htill desiru to escape burdcnn which are 

 compensated by no possibility of public UMefulrx-ii* ; 

 and if the articled olim|>< urlunc-nt presented agairiftt 

 me were not pending, and the proceedings were dis- 

 missed, I should fuel at liberty to carry out mv <lr- 

 sirc and purpose of resignation. 

 1 am very truly yours, 



ADELBERT AMES. 

 To Messrs. DUKANT & PBYOB, Jackson, Miss. 



The following resolution was then adopted, 

 by a vote of 78 to 10 : 



Whereat, Assurance lias been received by the 

 House of Representatives of the State of Mississippi 

 that Adelbert Ames, Governor of said Stale, but 

 for the pending against him of articles of impench- 

 meiit exhibited by the House of Representatives, 

 would have resigned his office of Governor, and will 

 now do so, as the managers are informed by a letter 

 addressed by said Governor Ames to his counsel 

 Messrs. Durant and I'ryor and read to said House 

 on a resolution adopted, directing its managers to 

 dismiss said proceedings : now. therefore, be it 



Resolved by the House of Rtpresentatives of the 

 State of Mississippi^ That the managers on the part 

 of this House, in the matter of the impeachment of 

 Adelbert Ames, Governor of said State, be, and they 

 are hereby, directed to dismiss the said articles 

 against the said Adelbert Ames, Governor as afore- 

 said, which were heretofore exhibited by them 

 against him at the bar of the Senate. 



The proceedings were accordingly dismissed 

 in the Senate by a vote of 24 to 7. Governor 

 Ames immediately resigned, and Colonel J. M. 

 Stone, President pro tern, of the Senate, was at 

 once installed in the office of Governor in joint 

 convention of the two Houses. 



Two amendments to the constitution of the 

 State were adopted. One of these abolished 

 the office of Lieutenant-Governor, and pro- 

 vided that the President of the Senate should 

 assume the Executive office in case of vacancy 

 from any cause. If he were dead, incapable, 

 or absent, the Speaker of the House should 

 become Governor, and, in case neither of these 

 officials could assume the office, the Secretary 

 of State should convene the Senate to choose 

 a President, in order that he might act as 

 Governor. 



The other amendment provides for biennial 

 sessions of the Legislature, beginning on the 

 Tuesday after the first Monday in January, 

 1878. 



The new registration law makes the Gov- 

 ernor, the presiding officer of the Senate, and 

 the Secretary of State, a State Board of Regis- 

 tration. They are required to appoint a board 

 of three officers of registration in each county, 

 all of whom shall not belong to the same po- 

 litical party. These county boards are r< 

 quired to designate the election districts and 

 appoint a period of not less than two or more 

 than five days in each district for the regietra 

 tion of qualified voters. A separate book is 

 to be provided for each district, and a member 

 of the Board of Registration designated in 

 each county to register the names of all quali- 



