Cooper's Clarksburg register. [volume] (Clarksburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1851-1861, 1852-07-14

I1ChAONOs anu shiS pctltlOu lluS SASuSu
after setting forth the facts Of The case,
says:
oYour petitioners frankly admit that there can
be but little doubt that Jackson came TO his death
by reason of the blow inflicted by the boy, but
they submit that that consequence was neither
expected nor desired by him. All Of the facts Of
the case tend to establish that the blow struck
under circumstance tending greatly to aggravate
the boy-without premeditation and with no de-
sign to kill. There is nOmalignant wilfnl or de-
liberate purpose developed by the proofs to COM
init murder. Under these circumstances, while
your petitioners do not complain of the conviction
as being contrary to the strict letter of the law
they are hnmbly Of opinion that this Is precisely
would induce the exercise Of some degree of exec
utive clemeney. The youthfulness OF the party
tainly in mitigation of his offence.
Your petitioners therefore pray a cnmmuta-
tion of his punishment"
The Governor examined the record of
the case, weighed the testimony, exami-
ned the petition and the viea0s of tie case
there presented, and being unacquainted
with the gentlemen whose signatures were
attached to it, he sent for friend who ad-
vised him of the social and official position
of these sixty distinguished citizens and
public functionaries of the city of Rich
mond. Their UieaO Of the case correspond
ing acih and confirming his, he in the con-
scious discharge of a constitutional duty,
acted in accordance with the prayer of
this petition and commuted the punish
ment to transportation for life. And this
was the offence committed by the Govern
or of your State, and such were the cir
cumstances under which he acted and
for this offence, lawless rabble and vi
tiated city press have denounced him as an
| 1b0IitS iof ~ md .iela
blinded by party and sectional prejudices,
who in their Jacobin zeal to reach their
victim, broke down the sacred barriers
placed by the Bill of Rights and the Con-
stituLion between the Legislative and Ex-
ecutive departments of the government,
solemnly declared that this " act of the
Executive, with the reasons assigned for
it in the former message, had tendency
to produce spirit of inssbordination dan
gerOus to the community" This Legis-
lative charge is one of no ordinary cha
racter. If it were believed by those who
made and sanctioned it, in the discharge
of sworn duty, they were morally, con-
stitutionally and legally bound to impeach
him. They were more than once invited
to do so-they refused. This charge was
either not understood or not believed by
those who made it. They can find no
excuse for failing to discharge their sworn
duty in the second message: for that
communication did not retract or modify
a thought or sentence, or cross I" To or
dot an app contained in the first 1t,
(the' second message, was a bold and
manly expose of views not alluded to in
his first, views which he had long enter
TANNED and acted upon, and views which
for forty years, with an eloquence unsur-
passed, and patriotic in the cause of the
South knowing no bound, you have heard
him from this forum, and with pride have
seen him as your representative uphold in
the councils of our State and Federal Go
vernment. Political and sectional capital,
not impeachment, was the object and the
more surely to effect their purpose, re-
solution was adopted intended specially
to reach this case, limiting debate to ten
minutes: and thus, while they preferred
the gravest charges against the Governor,
they placed it out of the power of his
friends to vindicate his action and expose
the wrong about to be done him.
Now, let us examine the act complain
ed of by these gentlemen, and,
First. Did the Governor in this case
transcend his legal and constitutional
powers
What provision of the Constitution,
what statute of the State did he violate
None whatever. No one has ever yet
contended that he violated either the
law or Constitution. On the contrary,
those who censure his conduct, are forced
to acknowledge, that he acted in accord
anee with the statute and constitutional
law of the State. And accordingly the
minority report of the committee of Courts
of Justice-a report drawn up by Mr..
Conway Robinson and signed by every
Wing member of that committee-a re-
port doing manifest injustice to the facts
presented by the record of the case, and
misrepresenting the views of the Govern
nor as expressed in his first message-this
report thus drawn up, thus signed and
subsequently adopted by the House of
Delegates, says
" That in the case in question, the governor
had clearly the power to order cOmmutation of
| the punishment for the 9TH section of the 5th
article of the constitution provides, that the GO
vernon shall have power, except where the prose
cution has been carried on by the house of dele
gates, or the law shall otherwise particularly di-
rect to grant rePTieves and pardons after conNle.
tion, and to commute capital punishment ana
so far from the law directing otherwise, 1t has
expressly declared that - in the case Of slave
under sentence of death, the governor may order
communication Of the punishment, by directing
that such slave be sold to be transported beyond
the limits Of the United States"
/ Second. Has the purity of his motives
ever been questioned
That he acted constitutionally has been
acknowledged by all who have condemn
ed the act. This same committee report
ed, and the House of Delegates sanction
ed it, that he exercised "bhGt Po'0er he
pOaOsr Of eOnsnsutatiOn) eOnseientiO"sty. -