day may not be very distant when California,
instead of belonging to the Indo-European race, may belong to the
Mongolians, may belong to the Chinese." Mr. Trumbull inquired if the
children of Chinese born in this country were not citizens? Mr. Cowan
thought they were not.

Mr. Reverdy Johnson of Maryland pointed out a difficulty not
anticipated by Mr. Trumbull. By using the word _inhabitant_ in the
bill he made it impossible for any State in the Union to "draw any
distinction between citizens who have been there from birth, or have
been residents for a long time, and him who comes into the State for
the first time as a foreigner. He becomes at once an inhabitant.
If he comes from England or from any of the countries of the world he
becomes that moment an inhabitant; and if this bill is to pass in the
shape it stands he can buy, he can sell, he can hold, he can inherit
and be inherited from and possess all the rights of a native-born
citizen," without being naturalized. Mr. Johnson pointed out another
difficulty which perhaps the senator from Illinois did not foresee.
Many of the States in the North as well as in the South forbade the
marriage of a black man with a white woman or a white man with a black
woman. This law would destroy all State power over the subject; and
the man who offended in the matter of marriage between the races, so
far from being punished himself, could bring the judge who attempted
to enforce the law against him into punishment. The bill, after much
elaboration of debate and many amendments offered and defeated, came
to a vote on the 2d of February and was passed by 33 _yeas_ to 12
_nays_. Mr. Dixon of Connecticut, one of the Administration
Republicans, voted for the bill; Mr. Cowan and Mr. Norton against it;
Mr. Doolittle did not vote.

The bill immediately went to the House, and on the 1st of March that
body proceeded to consider it without its reference to the Judiciary
Committee. Mr. Wilson of Iowa, chairman of that committee, said they
had considered it informally, and in order to save time it was brought
up for action at once. The first amendment offered was to strike out
"inhabitants" and insert "citizens of the United States," and thus
avoid the embarrassments that might result from giving it so broad an
extension. The amendment was promptly agreed to. Mr. Wilson, by
another amendment, removed the difficulties suggested in the Senate by
Reverdy Johnson, touching the questio