its day of adjournment, and all plans for
reconstructing the three unrepresented States had been postponed
until next December. At this junction General Grant, on the 7th of
April last, sent to Congress a special message recommending that
before its adjournment it take the necessary steps for the
restoration of the State of Virginia to its proper relations to the
Union. As the ground of his recommendation he said: "I am led to
make this recommendation from the confident hope and belief that
the people of that State are now ready to co-operate with the
National government in bringing it again into such relations to the
Union as it ought as soon as possible to establish and maintain,
and to give to all its people those equal rights under the law
which were asserted in the declaration of independence, in the
words of one of the most illustrious of its sons."

The message of the president was referred, in the House of
Representatives, to the Committee on Reconstruction. That committee
the next day reported a bill for the reconstruction of Virginia,
and also of Mississippi and Texas. The character of the bill
sufficiently appears by the first two sections relating to
Virginia:

"_Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled_, That the President
of the United States, at such time as he may deem best for the
public interest, may submit the constitution which was framed by
the convention which met in Richmond, Virginia, on Tuesday, the 3d
day of December, 1867, to the registered voters of said State, for
ratification or rejection; and may also submit to a separate vote
such provisions of said constitution as he may deem best.

"SEC. 2. _And be it further enacted_, That at the same election the
voters of said State may vote for and elect members of the General
Assembly of said State and all the officers of said State provided
for by the said constitution, and for members of Congress; and the
officer commanding the district of Virginia shall cause the lists
of registered voters of said State to be revised and corrected
prior to such election, and for that purpose may appoint such
registrars as he may deem necessary. And said election shall be
held and returns thereof made in the manner