Richmond daily times. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1853, 1851-10-03

District Attorney Ashmead to send bills to the Grand
Jury against the persons bound for treason for
their alleged participation IN the late deporabe out
break at Chrisana Judge Kane deemed it proner that
he should lay down the law of treason to them before
! they acted on the bill. The opInion is given below
and will be read with interest and profit by the reoDe
of the United States generally. 1t is ably written. and
presents the law OF treason in clear and lucid man
| ner:-
CHARGE.
| GENTLEMEN OF THE GRAND JuRY-It has been re-
presented to me, that since met last, crcumstan-
ces have occurred one OF the neighborinr counties
| of our district, which should call for your PROMPT
S.ru,ny, and perhaps Tor the energetic action of the
! Court.
is said that citizen of the State of Maryland who
had come into Pennsylvania to reclaim fugitive rom
labor, was orclby obstructed in the attempt by BODY
OF aimed men, assaulted beaten and murdered: that
some members OF his family, who had accompanied
him in The pursuit, were at the time, and by the
same PARTY, malreated and grieyousIy wounded; and
that officer OF justice, constituted under the authority
OF this court vino sought arrest the fugitive was i'm
| peded aud iepe led by rnenaces and violence while
proc laiming his character and exhibiting his warrant
1t said, TOO that the time and manner of these D,
RACES their asserted object the denuncatons by which
they were preceded, and the simultaneous action of
most OF the guilty partes eynced combined purDose
forcbly 10 resist and make nugatory constitutional
provision, and the statutes enacted in pursuance of ia
and IL added IN confirm alton of this that for some
months back gatherings OF people, strangers as we'll as
tZens, have been held from Time to time in the vi
entity OF the place OF the recent outbreak at which ex
hortations were made and pledges Interchanged to
hold the law for the recovery OF fugitive slaves az Of no
| vaIdlty, and to defy its execution
Such are some OF the representations that have been
made IN my hearing and In regard 10 which il has be-
come your duy, as the Grand Inquest of the district
to make legal inquiry. Personality know nothing al
the facts or the evidence relating them. AS mem
Der OF the court before which the accused persons may
hereafter be arralgned and tried have sought TO keen
my mind altogether free from any impressions of their
guilt or innocence, and from an extra judicial
| knowledge OF the circumstances which must determine
the legal character OF the o3nce that has been perne-
rated Ii due to the great interests public Justice
no less than 10 the parties implicated in criminal
charge that their cause shall be WISE and in no
degree, preJudged And in referring, therefore, TO the
representations which have been made to me have no
other object than to point you to the reasons Tor INV
ADDRESSING you at this advanced period OF sessions
and to enable you to apply, with more facility and GER
ainty, The principles and rules oil law which | shall
proceed to lay before you.
Ii the circumstances to which have adverted have
IN 1act taken place, they involve The highest crime
known to cur laws. Treason against the United
States Is defined by the constitution 3, sec g. cl
to CONSIST in eyyng war against them or in adlerine
to their enemies, giving them aid aud conf ,rt" This
definition is borrowed from the ancient law of England
STAT 25 Edw. 8, stat 5, chap. q and its terms mus,
be understood OF course III The which they bore
In that law and which obtained here when the con-
slltutlon was adopted The expression "ievying war;
so regarded, embraces not merely the act OF tornado
declared war, but any combination forcbly prevent
or Oppose the execution enforcement of proys--
ion OF the constitution ola public stat ute acconpa
MED or followed by act OF torcibe opposition in
pursuance of such combination. This in substance has
been the Interpretation given TO these woldsb by the En-
glsh Judges and has been uniformly and fully recog-
nsed aud adopted in the of the United States
(See Foster, Hale, and Hawkins and the opinions OF
lredell, Patterson, Chase Marshall and washington
J: j., OF the Supreme Court and OF Peters, ID J in the
United States We Vigol, United States vs.. Mitchell,
United States vs. Fries. United States Bolman and
Swartwout and United States Burr
The definition, you will observe, includes two
particulars both OF them indispensable clements of
the offence There must have been combination or
consplrlng together to oppose the law by force and
some actual force must have been exerted or the
crime OF treason is not consummated.
The highest or at least the direct proof ofthe combi-
ming may be found in the declared purposes of the
individual party before the outbreak it may be de
r'vsd from the proceedings OF meetings in which
he took pant openly, which he either prompted or
| made effective by his countenance sanctlon-com-
mendlng, counselllag and nstgating forclbe rcsls-
lance to The law. speak, of course, of consprine
to resist law, the more limited purpose to violate
1t, or to prevent It's application and enforcement in
Pafucuar case, or against particular individual
| self ~
But such direct proof of this element of the offence is
not legally necessary to establish its existence The
concert OF purpose may be deduced from the concerted
ACTON Itself, or 1t may be inferred from facts &C.
curing at the tlme afterwards, as we'll as before
Besides this, there must be some act of violence as
the result or consequence of the combining. But here
again. IL Is not necessary toprove that the individual
accused was direct, personal acto. in the violence
1t ne Was present directing, aiding abetting coun-
| 1t, is, W,
me iorcibe act Nor Is even his personal presence
Indispensable. Though he is absent at the time OF
Its actual Preparation, yet ii he directed the act de-
vlsed or knowingly furnished the means for CARVING
1t into effect or instlgated others perform it. he
shares their guilt In treason there are no accesso-
rles,
There has been, fear, an erroneous impression on
this subject among portion of our people. If has
been thought safe counsel and insgate others to
acts OF fofclble oppugnatlon to the provisions of
statute; intlame the minds of the ignorant by appeals
10 passion, and QenuncldtCnS OF the
unjust, revolving to the conscience and binding on
the actions OF men-o represent the constitution of
the land as compact OF lnqulty, which 1t were me
rtoriou5 TO violate or subvert- mistake has been
grlevous one; and they who have fallen into NAV
rejoice, If peradvenure their appeals and their coun-
sels nave been hitherto without effect. The Suprem
acy OF the constitution IN all Its provisions Is at the
very basis OF our existence a nation. He whose
conscience whose theories of political or ndivjd. |
ua right forbid him to support and maintain it in Its
fullest integrity, may relieve himself from the duties
OF citizenship by dvestlng himself Of its rights But |
while he remains within our borders he is to remem
Der, that successfully to lnsgate treason is to COM
NIT 1t.
shall not be supposed to imply in these remarks |
that have doubts of the law abdng character of our
people, No one know them well, without the |
most entire reliance on their fidelity to the constu
ton. Some of them may differ from the mass as to
The rlghtuiness or the wisdom of this or the other
provision, that is found In the federal compact-they
may be divided IN sentiment as TO the policy of par
ticuar statute, or OF some provision statutes but
IT is their honest purpose stand by the engagements
all the engagements, which bind them to Their breth
rem OF the other States They have but one country
they recognise no law of higher social obligation
than its constitution and the laws made in pursuance
of it-hey recognise no higher appeal than TO the tri.
bunals has appointed-they cherish no patriotism
that looks beyond the Union of the States.
That there are men here, as elsewhere, whom
misguided zeal impels to violations of lawIhat there
are others who are controlled by false sympathies
and some who yield too readily and fully to sympa-
thlcs not always false or if false yet pardonabe and
become criminal by yieldns-that we have, not only
IN our a and Inns houses, but congregated here and
there IN detached portions OF the State gaorant men,
many of Them without political rights, degraded in so.
clal position, and instructive eff revotall this is true.
and by the ineffective labors of those good men
among US, who seek 10 detach want from temptation
from NInleuce |