In the constitutional convention of 1847-48 the subject of the foreign franchise occupied a large share of the time of the delegates. The delegates from the western counties came with a deliberate determination to limit the franchise to citizens of the United States. The admission of foreigners to suffrage placed the West in a permanent minority, as the lake-board and middle sections of the territory had the bulk of the immigrant population.
The original proposition as brought in by the committee restored the residence requirement to six months, retained the intention of citizenship clause, and omitted the special oath. The examples of New York, Ohio, and Illinois were cited. One member urged that the one-year requirement was necessary in New York to ascertain the permanent character of the residence, while all who came to Wisconsin came for permanent homes and six months was long enough to prove residence. The effect of the shorter period would be to encourage foreigners to file their intentions sooner. It was admitted that the six-months provision was carried in committee by a very narrow majority.
The attack on the article on alien suffrage was begun by an amendment to limit suffrage to citizens. It was alleged that the article as reported by the committee was unconstitutional and would cause Congress to reject the constitution. In reply the similar provisions in the constitutions of Ohio and Illinois were cited. The new constitution of Illinois was cited by both parties to the controversy; one claiming the change had occurred because of dissatisfaction with the more liberal provision; the other that Illinois’ new constitution had not yet been acted upon. Charges were freely made of demagoguery—that the Democrats were toadying to the foreign vote. In reply, the Democrats appealed to the liberality and progressiveness of their party policies, and declared that the aliens, being taxed, were entitled to vote. The citizen amendment was defeated by a vote of 53 to 16; and the suffrage article as originally reported by the committee was incorporated into the constitution. With the amendments required by the amendments to the Constitution of the United States, the provision was part of the organic law of Wisconsin until 1912.
Louise P. Kellogg.
[132] So given by Mrs. John Kinzie in Wau Bun, The Early Day in the Northwest, (Caxton Club ed. Chicago, 1901) 252. Isaac T. Smith in Wisconsin Historical Collections, VI, 424, explains that the Winnebago name “Koshkonong” meant “the place where we shave.” He adds, however, that the Potawatomi name for the lake meant “the lake we live on.” This interpretation is also given by Rev. Alfred Brunson in Wis. Hist. Colls., I, 118.
[133] This résumé was prepared in response to a recent request received by the Historical Library for information on the subject.
EDITORIAL
INCREASE A. LAPHAM AND THE GERMAN AIR RAIDS
The reader may well be excused if at first sight he is puzzled over our title. What possible connection can there be between the simple Wisconsin scholar, whose life of busy service for the betterment of humanity terminated almost half a century ago, and the baby-killing air raids upon London and other English cities with which the soldiers of Emperor William are accustomed to divert themselves?