upon a division, ayes 25, noes not counted, it
was agreed to.
Section two was then read as follows:
"No person who has at any time been in
armed rebellion against the government of the
United States or the lawful authorities there-
of, or who has been in any way or manner in
the service of the so-called ''Confederate States
of America," shall ever thereafter be entitled
to vote at any election to be held in this
State, or to bold any office of honor, profit
or trust under the laws thereof, unless such
person has been pardoned by the President of
the United States, and has fully complied
with the requisitions of said pardon."
Mr. STIRLING submitted the following as a
substitute for the second section :
"Sec. 2. No person who has at any time
been in armed hostility to the United States
or the lawful authorities thereof, or who has
been in any manner in the service of the so-
called "Confederate States of America;" and
no person who since the — has voluntarily
left this State and gone within the military
lines of the so-called Confederate States or ar-
mies, unless he shall have gone by the author-
ity of the United States; and no person who
has given any aid, comfort, countenance or
support to those engaged in armed hostility
to the United States, or in any manner adher-
ed to the enemies of the United States, either
by contributing to the enemies of the United
States, or unlawfully sending within the lines
of such enemies money or goods, or letters, or
information, or who has disloyally held com-
munication with the enemies of the United
States, or who has advised any person to en-
ter the service of the said enemies, or aided
any person so to enter, or who has by any
open deed or word declared his adhesion to
the cause of the enemies of the United States,
or his desire for the triumph of said enemies
over the arms of the United States, shall ever
be entitled to vote at any erection to be held
in this State, or to hold any office of honor,
profit or trust under the laws of this State,
unless since such unlawful acts he shall have
voluntarily entered into military service of
the United States, and been honorably dis-
charged therefrom, or be on the day of elec-
tion actually and voluntarily in such service,
or unless he shall be restored to his full rights
of citizenship by an act of the general assem-
bly passed by a vote of two-thirds of all the
members elected to each house; and it shall
be the duty of all officers of registration and
judges of election carefully to exclude from
voting or being registered all persons so as
above disqualified; and the judges of election
at the first election held under this constitu-
tion shall and at any subsequent election may
administer to any person offering to vote the
following oath or affirmation: I do swear or
affirm that I am a citizen of the United States,
that I have never given any aid, countenance
or support to those in armed hostility to the |
United States, that I have never expressed a
desire for the triumph of said enemies over
the arms of the United States, and that I will
bear true faith and allegiance to the United
States and support the constitution and laws
thereof as the supreme law of the land, any
law or ordinance of any State to the contrary
notwithstanding, and will in all respects de-
mean myself as a loyal citizen of the United
States; and I swear this without any reserva-
tion or' evasion; and any person declining to
take such oath shall not be allowed to vote,
but the taking of such oath shall not. be deem-
ed conclusive evidence of the right of such
person to vote; any person swearing or
affirming falsely shall be liable to penalties of
perjury; and it shall be the duty of the proper
officers of registration to allow no person to
be registered until he shall have taken the
oath or affirmation above set out, and it shall
be the duty of the judges of election in all re-
turns of the" first election held under this con-
stitution to state in their returns that every
person who has voted has taken such oath or
affirmation."
The PRESIDENT. The question will first be
taken upon filling up the blank.
Mr. FARROW moved to fill the blank with
the words "fifteenth day of April, in the year
1861."
Mr. STIRLING. Communication between the
two sections was not broken off until after
that time, and a man might properly, after
that time, have gone into the southern States.
Now I do not want to exclude any one who
went, even from doubtful motives, but only
those who went there with the desire and in-
tention of adhering to the enemy.
Mr. STOCKBRIDGE. The gentleman from Wor -
cester (Mr. Farrow) has indicated correctly
the date of the proclamation of the President
of the United States, calling out seventy-five
thousand men.
Mr. STIRLING. That proclamation did not de-
clare non-intercourse.
Mr. THOMAS. I was down south myself af-
ter the 19th of April, 1861, and so were a
great many other good Union men.
Mr. STIRLING. I move to fill the blank with
the words "first day of June, 1861." The
war was actually in progress long before
that, I think. The State of Virginia did not
secede until May 24, 1861, and there was not
a United States soldier on her soil until the
25th of May, 1861.
Mr, PUGH. I would suggest filling the blank
with the words "seventeenth of April, 1861."
That was the day on which the ordinance of
secession was passed by the convention of Vir-
ginia, I had some business in Virginia about
that time, and decided it was not safe at all
for those who were not in sympathy with the
rebellion to visit Richmond at that time. 1
have here a statement of the vote upon the Vir-
ginia ordinance of secession. It was decided |
