The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1860-03-15

n
closing herewith: He declines granting Your de-
mand and has COMMUNICATED bis reasons for such
s owsn yet IN Asha
''''''' WY respectfully N. Johnson.
STATE OF ONO. EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT.
CO lumbus. March s, 1859.
To his Excellenc. JOHN LETcnER.
siR: have carefully examined the requ,sit,ons
ments for the extradition Of Owen brown and
Francis Merram, CHARGED as being fugltives
W,Sn G% the sad of a s,, m ss
cient cause is presented to authorize me to issue
either of the warrants asked for. The reasons for
this are fully set forth the copy Of the
opinion of the Attorney General Of this State, to
whom submitted the papers IN the ease, which
With sentiments Of high respect.
Your 0O'd'e9. Wt peEEyNSSNtisoN ieEySSti
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GExKRAL.
CoLUNBUs, Quo, March 7th 1850
SRI have thoroughly considered the reQuisl-
tions of the Governor of Virginia. made uron you
e al and Bow yau 81
sub bmitted for my opinion.
These cases are essentially ,alike-the charges
against ea ch of the parties substantially similar,
the annexed documents of the same general i'm
port and the reinisltion II to each, IN precisely
the same form, so that the disposition Of the one
is. in effect. disposition of the other. To avoid
the needless multiplication nt words, | shall here
in consider only the re2uistion for Francis Mer
This requistion be sins with preamble rectlng
TINT, whereas. it appears by the anne Sed docu-
ments, which re herehv ceretifed to he auihen-
tIc. that rancis Merriam is a fugitive from JUS
sprin; with slaves to rebel and make insurrection;
and for conspiring with certain persons to Induce
slaves to rebel and make insurrection." and then
Executive authority OF the State OF Ohio. the SAID
Francis Merriam as a fusitive from iust,ce. to he
agent to receive him on tho part OF this Common
tho foc ctso of tIo uaifi
tera now to be noticed The only documents
annexed" are. lst transcript of certa ia proceed
ment had been duly presented against Merriam.
ed with the offences mentioned in the requls,tion
Sd. en- a,testaticn by RGbe., j. Brown. Clerk of
true transcript from its records and 18th, the GER
tiicate of John kenney. "Jud;e OF the twelfth .Iu
of the Circuit Court Of Jefferson county, - that
Robert J. Brown is Clerk of that Court. "aAd that
his said attestation is IN due FORM"
Upon this state of the case, question Is made
concerning your power to issue warrant for the
surrender Of Merriam to the authorities of Vlr-
No enactment Of this State has clothed the Gov
ernor with authority to surrender to another State
lugi,lves from its Justice seeking, refuge here -
Whatever power he may have in this behalf. mnst
he derived from the Constitution of the United
@ tives from JUS. CO.. approved l2th Febtuary i75s,
since these are the only enactments assuming ID
confer this authority whlch have aui hOrlty in Chic
These are so well kno as to need no recital here
The act of Congress il is to be noticed. does not
seek TO enlarge the power OF extradtlon beyond
,he limits imposed on II by the Constitution, and
any attempt at such enlargement wou Id be utterly
void Reco .nlzing these limitations, it simply de-
fines the mode IN which the power, as established
by the Constitution, shall he executed.
THIS power, both as to the condition Of its exist
special and limited nature, BY their very terms
no person can be removed from one Stats to ano-
~ provisions, except on the simultaneous occur
renee Of three distinct conditions:
hy Indictment or affidavit. ith the conmiss on
| there Of - treason. felony or other crins.'
ID He must have hed from that State to escape
| 3D. DeEaand for his surrender, accompanied by
an authentic copy of the indictment affidavit on
which the demand is predicated, must have been
made OF the Executive authority OF the State from
When these do concurrently happen, the power
to remove exists, and must he executed. Each.
however. is in the nature of precedent condition,
so that the absence oi one of them is not less
fatal than the absence OF all
These and not less than these. are the llnita-
tons with which the right of extrafliton has been
carefully hedsed about ny the Constitution and
the act Of Congress-. In the very spirit indicated
by these jealous safeguards, the sh ous ht always
to be exerted. For this power which deee eates the
citizen tO another Jul sdiction. and deprives hiul
of that protection which. as general rule. the
State owes to every sojourner within its mts. is
of so high nature as to exact the utmost IN
is apple caton to the prescribed cases Every
one charged with its execution should see tn il
that all the securities by which 1t has been SO
anx xionsly surrounded, are observed with rigorous
Examnipg, in the light, Of these rules. the requl-
case is made for the exercise of this power.
The is allegatC still less is there any evl-
dence, that Merriam ever fled from the State ol
sns s., 9bs to the
that Merriam is fugitive from justice from Viz
snla' but thlstec,tai does not accord with the
Tss as s
consist eG!y Of the COPY Of an rdc.nsn, found
attesta.iOn and certificate deemed requi-
site to establish It's authentic nature In all these
documents" from the beginning to the end. there
is word, no letter. from which human ingenuity
can draw the vagTest hint that Merriam had fled
show that he was ever within the State, save the
allegation In the Indictment that the offence OF
which he is accused was there committed :
| his presence, for this formal aveTment Of renu.
would equally have been made. because essential
| to every indictment, whether the part borne by
Merriam in the alleged conspiracy and offence had
been acted altogether within. or altogether with
avsImen mt is entirely consisten. with the hypoihe-
| sis that be mas never been within the boundaries
the declaration IMPORT: the actual presencs eoi Of
Merriam at the place where the commission of the
offence Is iald; t. sti remains true that there is
from, or otherwise lsft the State. If within it,
S have bded here W to ssS the vsJ
moment when the requis,tion was made, or even
mex ed documents" as that nowhere AYERS a 7ight
by Merriam. IL merely refers to these ''dOcu-
ments giving evidence of such fig ht. and does
nothins moro. These, AZ has been seen, do not
furnish any evidence whatever upon that subject,
90 that the case stands without even an allegation
of the existence Of this vital condition.
Bat, If it should be admitted that the recital IN
the requistion is tantamOunt to direct rtiOn
that Merriam was, in tho language OF that recital,
m,sslon woaid avail nothing. That assertion is by
no means equivalent to an averment that be fled
from that State to elude ts Justice. II may lead 10
On inference Of aetuoI fight, or it may mean .
cOustructive one Onlv Whether it means the ono
or tho other, it 10 sufficient to say that this extra
ordinary power 10 not to be exercised surmiso,
or an Inference. Beyond this. however. NO mere
formal unswoYn allegation Of fisht. % il ever 20
clear and unequivocal. can be deemed .affieient.-
In this a. in all other proceedings which affect ths
right OF psrsonal liberty; every tact on which the
cesr and satisfsctory evidepcs: The necessity Of
ed by any ono 7siliar viii, the fact that in some
Of the States practice has grown UP cf demanding
the surrender a. a'.fuSitvss. from Justice from
thsse States" OF persons Who have nev.r been
WITHIN their limits, on the LEGAL 6ctiOn Of
cOnatructivc prosence. and Ac0nseypcttso hls ht:
II n mot known that this pfactlce hae ObeAlned
in Virginia. nor is IL material 10 Inquire - Al r..
anisitions, ffom vhateyer 6tate. Hnlt y sovsrncd
by On nnilorm law. Morsoyer. While tnls custom q
Micisnty vndIoatss the psopr!ety OF tne rue. ~
rule itae rests on lafGer iouudatsAs Itk.oMs arS
ths eit,aen ffom arrf.t AID exile ws.Id ss:na a.. on
vsriAe1 6sslssssiss u svsn Ne hiShsss mssusssss