The Yazoo Democrat. (Yazoo City, Miss.) 1844-18??, 1851-01-01

fe0s LII should lE Dc 4hat the AnuN4 &Su1N
Of some sympathy for the oppressed people q
Cuba, calls for The infection of some punish
menl, it seems TO me that tho ofonded laws
Of the co untry would be amply indicated
by the e. entual punishment Of The offender,
without deeming ii necessary to invade the
Government Of "a State, fOrclbly seize upon
her chief magistrate, remOve him from the
performance Of his duties and actually Gus
pend him Tor time from the performance
of bis duties and suspend for time'ths Ex
ecutive powers ofa sovereign State.
am, very respectfully, your obe't sery't,
]. A. QUITMAN, Gov, OF Miss.
Hon. II. J. Harris, U. S. Dist Atty, DC
Vicksburg Mississippi.
JvoxsoN, Nov. 18th 1850.
SIR-On my return to this place, last
evening, I had the honor to receive your let
tsr Of the 9th instant.
In rsply to certain passages which &C.
cur in your communication, deem it due
to myself and others to submit few re.
marks.
Whether the prosecution which has been
commenced against you in the Circuit Court
of the United States for the Eastern Dis
trict of Louisiana, observes TO be regarded
as irivolous'' is point which do not pro-
pose 10 discuss. It appears from the record,
that the Grand Jurors Of the United States
for that District have preferred an indict-
ment against you for the violation of an act
of Congress; and it is the manifest duty OF
the Attorney for the District of Louisiana
and myself to take that indictment as we
find it, and, as far as we have any official
connection with the matter 10 carry out the
law without inquiring whether the prosecu-
ton is frivolous or otherwise, and with no
regard to what may be its termination.
That duty have been honestly aiming to
discharge, and | scarcely need say. that
while l would regret as much as any one,
that any i'll consequences should flow from
my action, I cannot allow results to inAu-
ence me to any extent.
Nor do | consider it necessary, nor would
It be proper to enter upon vindcation of
the Government from the charge that it
hopes to indict punishment upon you for the
indulgence of 'some sympathy for the op
pressed people Of Cuba" 1t may not, how
ever, be out of the way for me to assure
you that so far as know or have heard, no
directions have ever been given, by the pres
ent or preceding Administration as to the
course TO be pursued by the Federal officers
against yourself and certainly no hope has
been expressed or Tutimated by them that
you should be subjected to punishment, or
molested in any way under the pend
ing indictment, or that the State of Missis-
sissippi should be exposed by your arrest
and removal, 10 the calamitles depicted in
your letter, or to any other
And perhaps, it may not be inappropriate
for me to remark, also, that it is evident
from the face of the indictment itself
that no attempt is made to hold Won
responsible ''for the indulgence of some
sympathy for the oppressed people of Cuba,
that not being at present, and net con-
stitutionally possible to be, at any time. an
offence against the United States. SYM
pathy for the oppressed is telling of the
American heart, which springs up sponta-
neously ard pervades the entire mass of our
population; and the federal government.
so far from seeking to suppress it by Grim.
inal prosecution has never hesitated to
avow, when a proper occasion presented
itself, that, in this respect, it responded fully
to the prevailing public sentiment. The
charge preferred against you is of an alto
gether different character. It is altered
IN the indictment, not that you svmpathised
with the oppressed people of Cuba, but that
you participated III the late invasion of that
Island, by military force. The two thinos
are far from being similar or the same.
The passage of your letter. however to
I
III which you say:
"And am called on under threat of ar
rest and forcible removal from tho State, to
say, whether | will voluntarily make nv
appearance in New Orleans, and give bail
according to law in any reasonable time.
&c.
nave not at present before me copy
OF my letter to you oflthe28th of Septem- |
Der last; but having distinct recollection
of its contents, feel Justified in saving that
no threat of the kind above mentioned WAS
made, as know that tone of anv kind was
In proceeding of so grave a |
cast as the present, it must have been evi.
dent that a resort to tlreots could he nro.
ductive of no possible good; and deem It
but just to say, that MY own self-respect
and sense of propriety would have forbid. |
den my taking such a course towards YOU.
Or towards any one. To prevent all mis-
conception upon this point, / take this &C.
casion to assure you for myself, and I belive
may safely do so for others officially |
connected with the matter, that so far from
there being any disposition to force YOU in.
TO terms, by threats or Otherwise, there al.
ways has been and is now sincere desire
Ielt to extend yoa every courtesy consist I
snt with the due execution of the law
Ihe proposition lradeto you in nv letter
ot the 28th of September, under instructions
rom the District Attorney of Louisiana
was designed and besI b,,,,,1 ,...--l1 =