The weekly mountain Democrat. [volume] (Placerville, El Dorado County, Calif.) 1861-1862, 1861-12-28


whom have gone in and out for 30 many
years, deeply sympathise with me in the
wrongs and Outrnges to which / have
been subjected. In the second place It Is
n manifestation as strong as "Eoly Writ,
that you believe am wholly innocent OF
any charges OF dislOynlty or any impu-
tations upon my fair fame as constitu-
tion-lOving citizen. Charges! did say !
Why my friends, would you believe II?
.tlOm the hour lint I teGS taken from my
hOme, through the long and tcdtiOM days
IF my imprisonment, up to this jONfuI
moment when ItOOk out, once more ds a
freeman, Orer Me@ numerOus kindly gfHd-
som .fIces, nOW Upturned to greet and
eheer me, Ihnce not been able TO LeGrn
~hnt MOse charges are! l hare an CdiR
I drmdnded Of tie GOrerhmeht the nature
Of the charges, and claimed the e0nsfitU'
tiOnat privilege IF being informed Of the
ndtnre and cnUsc IF the dccUSGtiOn, and
u be confronted mith tile ritneSs dgdinst
me. But up to this hour the grave could
not have been more silent. Great Heaven!
is it possible that such things can be un-
der u Constitution whose boast It has
been that it was for the protection OF the
inalienable rights Of men against oil Op'
preston. IF this boast has been in vain
then it has "but n name TO live-an outer
seeming to beguile and deceive-a Sodom
apple, hectic flush, painting the cheek
upon which it prcys." The liberty l
claim under that Constitution, is not the
liberty Of Liccntiousness-iti is the liberty
united with law, liberty sustained by law,
liberty regulated by law; and that kind Of
liberty is guaranteed to every man, high
or low, proud or humble, rich or poor, un'
der all exigencics, whether in peace or
war, and whether that war il foreign, or
the State be in the fearful throes Of civil
strife If the obligations we enter into to
part with portion Of our absolute rights
when We assume the bonds Of civil soci-
ETY., be not complied with, the State must
enforce her remedies against the citizen
only by law. In this Republic no citizen
can be deprived Of his life, his liberty or
his property, "without due process Of
law" lie may be made to part with all
three by the power Of the State, but that
power must see to it, that in its exercise
it does not ovcrStep the limits in which It
is appointed to move. IL it docs it be-
comes dcspotic, and then, among men who
know their rights, resistance follows as
naturally as light succeeds to darkness
II by single mandate Of any Cabinet Of
ficer, in State loyal to the Union as this
has been, and when the courts Of law are
open, you or may be torn frOIN our
homes, without cause shown, and cOnsign-
cd to the gloomy walls of Government
fortress, the same mandate, only altered
in its phraseolOgy, may cOnsign US iInnIe'
diatcly to the hands of the executiOner, tO
deprive US Of our properties confiscating
them to the State. The right TO have our
lives secure against interference without
"due process Of law" is equally gunran'
teed in the same clause that protects our
liberty and our property.
Do you know, my friends, how old
these privileges arep They can trace
their linS7ge back to the days Of the mail
ed.clad Barons; and these feet have stood
rcverently upon the lawns Of Runnymede
where those privileges were born more
than six hundred years ago. They were
extOrted by the rebellious Barons, then
and there, from the tyrant John, and ut
tered in glowing language that has como
down to US through the long vista OI
ages, and is still sounding in our ears as
the sweetest note that ever came from the
clarion Of freedom. Listen to its music
strong and sweet as it sounded in the
solemn midnight, centuries ago. Va
freeman shdU he Sei<cd or imprisOncd, OF
deSeizcd or OUtLd,cctf, or in any to0y deS
trOyed, nor oiN We 90 upon him or send
upon him, except by tic judgment Of hi,
peers or By the Mtcs Of the Mnd." Our
fathers caught the inspiring strain, and il
was prolonged in those sOnOrOus tones,
sounding firth from our glorious Consti.
tuition: No pcrsom shaU be drprire,l o,
life, Liberty or property, cithout due pro
cess Of IG,O." Cherish, my friends, these
great rights thus guaranteed to you in
your Constitution never surrender them !;
! never allow them to be compromised or
gainsAid, for they constitute the keystone
to the arch OF freedom. Once destroyed
and the sun Of liberty is cxtinguiShed in
your sky, aud the dark and hOrrid night
Of despOliSm will wrap you in its gloomy
embrace forever. We call that govern
ment free, which not only shelters its sub
jects from the injustice Of the many, but
the tyrany Of the one or the few. Wees
people, are free, because from an an
cient time there came laws written as
with the finger OF the Highest-Ircc, be-
cause to US, in this day, it was thought
conscience aud opinion were free. ltiS q
great thought that the laws Of the land
recognize there is n part about every mans
affairs so sacred, that it must not be cross.
cd by inQuisition or inquiry. The per.
sOnal freedom of the citizen from all lille.
gal arrests; the freedom Of his hearth
stone from arbitrary invasion, and the
freedom Of his conscience from all man-
ncr of restraint, these constitute the Urim
and the Thumm, the breast.plate Of light
and truth round the heart of the Ameri.
can citizen in the time Of trial and dan.
ger; and when he demands rights that
have not been conceded to him, they will
impart rich eloquence to his tongue, and
the mighty pathoS Of justice to his lips.
!, for my part, come veal or come woe,
will demand at the hands Of the legal tri.
bunals Of my country. full redress for all
the wrongs and OutrageS that have been
made to suffer. There are dastardly
wretchcs in your midst, who, under
stand, have been instrumental in this ar
rest, and for whom have no regard and
utterly despise. They will be sheltered
by their own insigniticance; but there art
others who shall be made to answer be
fore the tribunals the law has erected foI
the redress Of injuries. l know that ther,
are many pseudo patriots in your mids
whose selfish regard for their persona
safety has kept them closely at home 4
spit their spite and venom upon Othel
men, and with whom, as AristOphanei
describes the Athenians,
"NO matter what the Otfense,
BE great OF small,
The cry is treason and conspiracy"
These unprincipled politicians are wait
ing for chances when they can fasten lik
vampires on the TANKS Of the government