—"or is for any other reason not a legal
voter in the manner and form provided," &c.
Now I will go back to the article in the
present constitution and see whether it does
not exactly follow and tally with the provis-
ions of the convention bill which have been
quoted, to night. It is in the second section
of the article on the elective franchise :
"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 has voluntarily left this State
and gone within the military lines of the so-
called Confederate States or armies with the
purpose of adhering to said States or ar-
mies"—
Is not that giving them aid and comfort of
a very material sort?
—"and no person who has given any aid,
comfort, countenance or support to those
engaged in armed hostility to the United
States."
That is the very language of the act that
called us together,
—"or in any manner adhered to the ene-
mies of the United States, either by contrib-
uting to the enemies of the United States, or
unlawfully sending within the lines of such
enemies money or goods, or letters, or infor-
mation, or who has disloyally held communi-
cation with the enemies of the United States,
or who has advised any person to enter the
service of the said enemies, or aided any per-
son 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 election to be held in this State."
Now I put it to gentlemen in common honor
and honesty, and common sense too, whether
the language of this act does not cover every
provision of that section of the article on the
elective franchise? No gentleman can seriously
give a negative answer to this proposition.—
As to the usual qualifications of voting, age,
State and county residence, we know that these
qualifications for voting were made for times
of peace and not of civil war. Upon the the-
ory of the gentleman from Anne Arundel,
(Mr. Miller) see what might be the state of
facts, I trust not the probable state of facts.
Suppose that upon the day of election the
State of Maryland were invaded by a confed-
erate army. Large numbers of people from
all these counties have gone into the confed-
erate army, Suppose upon that Mary-
land was invaded by a confederate army. I
say that upon the theory of the gentleman
from Anne Arundel, every man among them
who was formerly a citizen of Maryland,
might go unchallenged to the polls and de-
posit his ballot, though he had winged the
leaden messenger of death to some Union sol- |
dier's heart but the moment before. It would
be a beautiful state of facts. It would be not
even keeping up the law of Mi. Wigfall, who
appealed from ballots to bullets; but it would
be going back and using the very means from
which he had appealed, and taking both bal-
lot and bullet.
Now I can assure gentlemen that the loyal
people of Maryland have made tip their minds,
that while they will in all things, while deal-
ing with prisoners of war or others, follow
the example of their government, he who
wings the leaden bullet, or he who gives him
aid and comfort, shall not deposit the ballot.
The perils of the times are too imminent to
allow of any half-way policy on this point.
While I would go as far towards securing to
every loyal man who has never given aid and
comfort to the enemies of the government the
right of voting, and would with him shoul-
der to shoulder battle for his rights, I will
battle so long as God gives me life, by word
and deed, against seeing the ballot box of
Maryland polluted by the ballots of traitors.
As to the soldiers voting, that is not in this
section, and I did not intend to say anything
about it. I was not present here at the time
of the discussions in the legislature upon that
subject; but there are gentlemen here who
were here then, and who took part in those dis-
cussions, and they will set the matter right.
My friend overlooked the fact that the argu-
ment was that in its legislative capacity the
legislature could not do this thing. My friend
from Frederick, in the senate, voted against '
the soldiers voting, although he earnestly de-
sired that they might vote; and what was the
reason be assigned, and the reason that other
gentlemen assigned? That they were here in
a legislative capacity, and could not do it.—
We are not here in any such capacity. We
are here representing the sovereign people of
Maryland, sent here to form their popular
will into an organic law; and we mean to do
it and abide the consequences.
Now in actual fact, as to the soldiers voting,
who has a better right to vote than the soldier?
1 claim that be has as good a right to vote
as any gentleman upon this floor. If he has
not a right to vote as a soldier, I have not.
In the bare letter of the law I have, but in its
spirit I have not. He has taken his life in his
hand and gone out to the battle-field to do or
die if need be in the service of his country.
He is a better man than I am; and I am proud
to say so. If I can help him to vote, wherever
he may be, on the weary march, in the camp,
or on the field, God helping me, I will help
him to do it; for be has abetter right to vote
than I have,
This is not so much a question whether the
soldier shall have the right to vote or not, as
how he shall vote. There is the pinch. A
camp is a good school for political education.
Your political meetings, your conventions,
&c., where men make great harrangues, and |
