The Cadiz Democratic sentinel. [volume] (Cadiz, Ohio) 1854-1864, 1860-03-21

jurisdiction, ana dePnVes him OF mat protec- ,
lion which. rs general rule. the State owes TO
every sojourner within its limits--is Of so high Z
nature as to exact the utmost care in its appli
cation even TO prescribed cxses. Every ons ;
charged with It's execution should see to It that
all the Securities by which 1t has been so anx-
inusly surrounded are obssT7ed with rigorous
iiislity.
Examining, in the light ofthese rules the re-
QUESTION for Merriam, it viii at once be seen
that no case is made 'or the exerci'e OF this
power, T.
There is no allegation. sill less is there any
Evidence, that Mcrrisn euer fed from the ; ate
OF Virginia True, the preamble TO the requi.
siton recitcS "that i appears by the annexed
documents that Merriam is q fugitive from jas
tice from Virginia." bu: this recital does not ae-
cord with the fact. No fight whatever il shown
by The 'documsnts annexed These, as previ-
nusly stated, consist only OF the copy Of an in
dictment found against Merriam in Virginia
Court. with such sttesta;ion and certificate as /
wasdeemed necessary TO establish its authen' !
tic nature. In all these documents" from me
beginning to the end, there is no word, no letter,
RON which human ingenuity can draw the
vact,sst hint that Merriam had fled from Fir |
yinia Nay, more, there IS nothing to show
that he was ever within the State, save the al |
legation in the Indictment that the ohense OF
which he was accused was there committed
Certainly this is not conclusive as to the iaet oil
his presence. For this formal averment OF
v.nE. would equally have been made-because
essential 10 every indicmcnt-w whether the
part borne by Merriam in the alleged consp.r-
scy aud offence had been acted aitogetheE, with
in or Altogether without the limits ot the State.
In its legal effect this averment is entirely con-
sistent with the hypothesis that he has never
heeti within the boundaries Of Virginia Grant
ing however, that this dcclaratiea Imports the
actual presence OF Merriam at the place Where
The commission Of the oiiense is laid, 1t still re-
mains true that there IS absolutely nothrs IN
the papers accompanying the requ:s!tioE, 20 in
dicate that ne has since iied from, or otnerwlse
LEFT the State. n within it then, he may, for
auehi that appears in those papers, have con-
tinusly bided there up to the very moment
when the rcanistion was made, or even until
now. Nor is there anything in the requsition
itself which can supply this defect in its IAN
nexed "documen;s" as giving evidence of such
flight and does nothing more. These, as has
been seen, do not furnish any evidence whateV-
or on that subject so that the case stands with
out even an allegation Of ;he existence OF this
vital condition
But If it should b. admitted that the recital
in The requisition is tantanount to direct as
sertion that Merriam was, in the language Of
that recital "a fugitive from justice from VIZ
ginia," the admission would avail nothing
That assertion is by no means equivalent to an
avsrtncnt that he He'd from the State to elude
it's Justice. It may lead to an inference OF dc
tual flight. or it may mean constructive one
nnlv Whether it mean the one or the other
It is sufficient to say that this extraordinary
mower is not to bo exercised on surmiSe or IN
ference. Beyond this, however, no mere Tor
mali unsgorn allegation offight, he 1t never s'
clear and uneouivocal. can be deemed sufficient
In this as in all other proceedings whch aIiec
tho right OF personal liberty, every fact on wheel
ina mower Of removal depends must be eStab
ished BY due and satisfactory evidence. IN
necessity Of insisting on rigid proof OF hgh
will not be doubted by any one hmlilar VIII
tho fact that in some Of the States practc
has grown up OF demanding the surrender,
"iugitives from justice from those states
persons who have never been within their lin
It's on the legal fiction Of constructive pres
sncs and a ccnstrsctirc flight. 1t is not know
that this practice has obtained in Virginia, no
ia Il material to inquire as all acquisitions, IRON
I@ rhatever State must be governed by uniorr
law, Moreover while this custom sufficient
yindicates the propriety Of the rule, inc rul
;tselrrests on larger foundations. 1t grows gu
Of the very nature Of the power Inc 'mmu
n,v of the citizen from arrest and exile woul
stand on the frailest ground, if held subject I
the mere unverrfcd declaration OF even u
- highest fiinctonary in the land. II IS no. 'o
much to say that power SO arbitrary can nav
no lawful existence in free government.
These considerations, it seems to me, are er
t;re1p decis;ve. For the reason that the requ
sit;on with its 'annexed documents" furnIsh
as ma. evidence of the flight OF Merriam iror
Virginia, i, altogether fails, in my judgment
to make out a case which will warrant his eH
tradition. Whether this defect can be cured i
a question which addresses itself solely to IN
authorities of that State. Finding one barrie
to the exercise Of the authority invoked by IN
reouisition, it has not seemed proper to .nqnil
as to the existence Of any other. FOR all pre-
snt purposes, it is enough for us to know tn
ss the case now stlnds, the opJecton IS iatt
Very respectfully,
Your obedent servant
G. P. WOLCOTT.
To the Governor.
That these prisoners were not to be CIV
up was the FIRST question settled. They h
been guilty Of crimes against tho law but
against the socalled Republican patty-its pr
ciples or its men, JOHN Brown, who head
the insurrection in which his son Owen Bro
and Francis Merriam, who are still, living b.
a part, was the trusted man OF the NOR! Ian
ic of the Black Republican school-tho ree'
ent OF their money and the depository OF til
secrets, and was the man chosen to carry
their schemes Dead, the same John Bro
was mourned--called blessed martyr, and
execution, for the crimes Of Murder, Treas
and melting slaves to insurrectjon, in emu
tion Of the death Of the Saviour, was calle
C-ucflxion. 10 surrender his adherents-
give up his son, to be tried might open the
OF another son, who refused to testify before
Senate Investigating Committee and socr'
involving others, higher in the Republic
ranks than the Attorney General or Cover
of Ohio might suffer from the truth being g
en- in evidence against them. The leaders
the party dare not allow Owen Brown aud M
siam to be given up, ard the next thing was
hunt up an excuse for not obeyins the clear
auirsmeRts OF the Constitution. The plan
cyaad ,lnop ;s disclosed in the letter oil Att