in the loyal States, very different action was required. The abolition of the slave system, as it stood in the Constitutions of so many States, was beyond the reach of the military power of the President, or of Congress. It called for the ultimate, sovereign legislative action of 'we, the people of the United States,' in the form of an amendment to the Constitution; and this, when adopted, precluded all question as to attempted past emancipation or abolition by proclamation."

No man knew better than Mr. Lincoln that his Proclamation did not secure freedom to the slaves. On this point President Welling says: "With a candor which did him honor he made no pretense of concealing its manifold infirmities either from his own eyes, or from the eyes of the people, so soon as Congress proposed, in a way of undoubted constitutionality and of undoubted efficacy, to put an end to slavery. every-where in the Union by an amendment to the Constitution. Remarking on that amendment at the time of its proposal, he said, [President Welling here quotes Raymond's "Life and State Papers of Abraham Lincoln:"] 'A question might be raised as to whether the Proclamation was legally valid. It might be added that it aided only those who came into our lines, and that it was inoperative as to those who did not give themselves up; or that it would have no effect upon the children of those born hereafter; in fact,

it could be urged that it did not meet the evil. But this amendment is a king's cure for all evils; it winds the whole thing up."

The negro's title to freedom does not rest in Mr. Lincoln's Proclamation, but in the Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. No doubt the "logic of events," the triumph of the Union armies, and the complete and final overthrow of the Confederate Government, gave tremendous potency to Mr. Lincoln's Proclamation; but the negro's right to his freedom is found in the amendments to the Constitution of the United States, which were first adopted by Congress, and made complete by the ratification of the several States.

This is the language of the "amendment" which gives legality to the negro's freedom, and guarantees it to him and to his children forever:

"ARTICLE XIII.-Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for trime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

"Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.”

Whether the human instruments, used by God's providence to effect the emancipation of the negroes, were wise or just in their methods, I do not discuss. Best or worst, it was done in this way, and it is done forever. That Mr. Lincoln was truly opposed to

slavery I do not doubt; that his Proclamation received the approval of the majority of the Christian world, I do not doubt; that the fact of emancipation -if not the mode-now receives the approval of those whom it made poor for a time, I do not doubt. Whatever may have been the secret thoughts and struggles of Mr. Lincoln's mind; however his Proclamation may have been precipitated by the exigencies of a colossal war and by the urgency of the most vigorous section of the party that put him in power; however emancipation might have been delayed had the great question in dispute of battle been compromised while the war was still in progress; however pleasing Mr. Lincoln's course may have been to the majority of the Northern people; and however displeasing it may have been to the Southern people, this much at least is clear, the slaves are all free, and their freedom is recognized by all men every-where. And to me it is unthinkable that the providence of God, overruling all thingsthe good and the evil, the wise and the unwise methods and purposes of men on both sides of the contest-did not give freedom to the slaves, for their own good, for the good of the white race, for the good of two continents, and for the glory of his Son, Jesus Christ, the Saviour of men.

THE

CHAPTER VIII.

THE FREEDMAN MADE A CITIZEN.

HE emancipated negroes are citizens. They were made citizens by amendments to the Constitution of the United States. The amendments were ordained by the conjoined action of Congress and of a sufficient number of States to meet the constitutional requirement in such a case.

The vital points in these amendments, so far as the negro's citizenship is concerned, are found in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments. The Fourteenth reads:

"Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

The Fifteenth Amendment reads:

"Section 1. The right of citizens of the United

States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

"Section 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation."

The negroes are not only citizens in that they are entitled to complete protection under the laws in all their rights of person and property, but also citizens in that all males, twenty-one years old, not disqualified by crime or other conditions that would disqualify a white man, are entitled to vote. Every negro man of lawful age, if otherwise qualified, has the same legal right to vote that the President of the United States has.

It is now practically too late, in this country, to argue the advantages or disadvantages of universal suffrage. Much has been said for and against the doctrine of universal suffrage--"manhood suffrage," as the phrase is. But the time is past for such arguments; facts and not theories must be considered now. The people, acting through their representatives, some because they thought it wise, some as a means of political power, and others because they were obliged to do it, have adopted universal suffrage as a fundamental principle and have incorporated it into our entire political system. We must now make the best of it. After all, it may be best as it is; such matters are only determined by experiment; we are now making the test. Such