New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1856-01-19
ALABAMA IN THE FIELD.

sment, OF which, Tor the information dad edlhca-
ton Of our readers and the world at large. we pre-
sent the following exact copy;
"A BILL 10 be entitled dci enforce ne R0in Of n4bdma
"SECTIOS |. b. ii enacted by the Senate and House
OF Representatives Of the State Of Alabama in Gen
eral Assen bly, convened, That any one crminally in
diCed in this State for am cause whatever may plead
in bar to such Indictment that the person he had IN
! iurcd by the act Tor which he was indicted, was
citizen Of the State OF Massachusetts that he was
an agent Or attorney who, in this state, had since
the passage of this bill aided, or wa aiding. IN pros
ecutiIg sueing IN some Court. some person in some
cause in favor Of CiGzen of Massachusetts or the
defendant may plead in bar, that the cause he il in
dincted for, directly prcudical 10 some one, who,
in ills State, had aided aiding in the exrGdi
ton OF offender against the law OF the State Of
| Massachusetts.
"Sfc. 9. And be it further enacted, that any one
hereafter sued in civil case in law equity, may
suggest the facts provided for bar To indictments
in The frst lection Of this BILL and upon proof thereof
the Court shall continue said cause from term to term
until the said State Of Massachusetts shall wholly r.
the complained of in the preamble TO this
bill ard if the plaintiff shall fail at each term to pay
all costs due, the shall stand dismissed al the
next Tenn of the Court.
"STc g. And be il further enacted that when Massa-
chuscts hall wholly remove The Oicnse complained of
heron the Governor of this State shall issue his proca-
nation, stating the fact and then this bill, as to that
State, 81 oil be void
"SFc. 4. And be it further enacted that when any
other State shall pass law against the constitutional
right Of the Southern States to rctake in their borders
persons bound TO service, the Governor of this state
shall issue Bis proclamation announcing the fact, aud
then this bill shall to all tcnts aud purposes be in full
force against said State and its citizens"
Over the top Of the copy received by us is writ
ten, Mr.. Cochran's Bill, with respects of the
author" 1t is, therefore We suppose, TO the cour-
tesy Of Mr. Cochran, that we are indebted for one
of 1873 copies of this BILL ordered to be printed BY
the Alabama Legislature, and we are doubtless
consulting his wishes no less than our own judg
ment in giving TO it the additional publicity OF
columns.
The first section Of this proposed bill is little
muddy especially the concluding part; but We take
its int to be this that any person indicted for muir
der highway robbery, arson, rape burglary, pocket
picking or any other crime may plead in Justhea-
ton that the person upon whom the crime was
committed was citizen of Massachusetts, or that
as agent or atterney lie had instituted in some
Court Of Alabama some suit or prosecution in favor
of some citizen of Massachusetts,, or that he had
aided and abetted in the extraditOn of some Of
fender against the laws of the State of Massa
chusetts
The second section provides that all civil suits
in law and equity, upon II suggestion to the Court
that tie plaintiff belongs TO either of the above
named three classes, shall, upon payment BY the
plaintiff of all costs accruedAupOn failure of which
the action is to be dsmssed-be continued, from
Term to Term, "until the said State of Massachu-
sets shall wholly remove the cause complained
{" of in the preamble of this BILL" Here arises
slight difficulty. The bill has no preamble; and
the cause complained Of which Massachusetts il 10
remove before the suit can 90 on, nowhere appears
This, however, would, We apprehend, prove by no
means fatal defect with the Alabama Courts
They would construe the act in the same spirit in
which they interpret the Constitution OF the United
States ind would easily supply by construction
any thing not distinctly expressed. Suppose " the
" cause complained Of" is nowhere in the bill set
out in terms. If not expressed it r. understood.
Everyb, dy knows il must be the Massachusetts,
Personal Liberty Act What else can it be-
The same observations will apply to the third
section, BY which the whole act is to become void,
when the Governor of Alabama announces by proc
lamation that Massachusetts, has wholly removed
the ofiense complained of by the bill, which no.
where does complain of any particular oaense.
What effect this bill of Mr.. COchran's may have
upon the weak nerves and still weaker minds of
Governor Gardners Know-Nothing Legislature,
we are not entirely prepared to say. Very posi-
bly, it may aid that Ant-Slayery Governor, placed
i'll flee by the old Liberty party, in frightening his
dark lantern brethren into the repeal of the Per-
sonal Liberty law. But whatever may be its effect
IN the KnOw-Nothing Legislature, We apprehend
it is not of character TO inspire much dread into
those citizens of Massachusetts who are in the hab
it of visiting Alabama, who at al acquainted
with the existing state of society there.
In the first place, no Massachusetts, mau or
woman ever thinks of visiting Alabama for
pleasure, for instruction for anything in the
world except for money; and let US tell Mr.. Coch-
ran, if he does not know it already, that Mas
achusetts man in pursuit of money is not TO
be frightened or stopped short BY the Old
Harry himself much less by him and his bill. No
Massachusetts, man who has resided in Alabama
long enough 10 know how things wag there, is sim
pie enough 10 rely on the law of Alabama 10 pro-
tect his person or his life. In what State are
homicides more frequent Yet who ever hears of
convictions for murder either there or in any other
Slave State Even in Kentucky, so much nearer
10 the borders Of civilization, the most cold
blooded murderers are habituay let of under the
plea of selfdefense The safeguard which