The Buchanan County guardian. (Independence, Buchanan County, Iowa) 1858-1864, 1861-07-16


injurious III effect.
Recurring to the action of the Govern
ment, ii may be stated that at first Il cal
was made Tor $1,000 militia, and rapidly
following this proclamation was issued
for closing he ports of the insurrection,
ary districts by proceedings in the ma
lure OF a blockade. So Tar all was be.
ieyed to be strictly lcsal.
At this point the insurreclionists an
nounced their purpose to enter upon the
practice OF prlvateerlng.
! Other calls We're made for volunteers
to serve three years, unless sooner dis
charged, and also for large additions to
the regular Army and Navy. These
measures, whether strictly legal or not,
were vcntured upon under what appear
ed TO be a popular demand and public
necessity, trusting then, as now, that
Congress would readily ratiiy them.
1t is believed that nothing has been
done beyond the constitutional compe-
tency Of Congress. Soon after the first
call for MALTA, it was considered a duty
to aut thorize the Commanding General,
in proper cases. according TO bis discre
ton, to suspend the privilege Of the writ
OF habeas corpus, or, IN other words, 10
arrest and de,ain, without resort to the
ordinary processes and forms Of law, such
individuals rs he might deem dangerous
70 the public safety. This authority mas
purposely been exercised but very spar
1 Il l. n,,l
propriety of what has been done under
il are questioned, and the attention Of
the country has been called to the propo-
Silion that one who has sworn to take
care that the laws be faithfully executed
should not himself violate them. o.
course some consideration was given 10
the question OF power and proprlety be-
fore this matter was acted upon. The
whole of the laws which were required
to be faithfully executed were being re-
sisted and failing Of execution in nearly
one-t third Of the States. Must they be
allowed TO finally fail Of execution, even
ii il had been perfectly clear that by the
use OF the means necessary - their eX
ecution, some single law made in such
extreme tenderness OF the citizens liber-
~, that, practically, it relieves more Of
the guilty thau the innocent should to a
very limited extent be violated =? To
state the question more directly, are all
tie laws but one to @ uneXecuted and
the Government itself TO 20 to pieces,
lest that one be violated?
Even in such case, would not the
oGicial oath be broken it the Government
should be oycrthrown when it was be-
lievei that disrpgardipg the single law
would tend 70 preserve It. But it was
not believed that this question was pre-
senled. IL was net believed that any law
was violated. The provisions Of The con
sliluiion that the privilege OF the writ OF
habeas corpus shall not be suspended.
unless when in case Of rebellion or inva.
sion, the public safety may require il. is
equivalent to provision ihat such priv
ilege may be suspended when IN cases Of
rebellion or invasion, the public safety
does require It.
Ii WAS decided that we have case Of,
rebellion, and dat the public safety does
require the qualified suspension Of tie
privilege OF the writ, which WAS author
ized to be made Now il is insisted that
Congress, and not Executive is vested
with this power But tie Constitution
itself is silert as 10 which OF who IS to
exercise the power, and as the provision
was plainly made for dangerous emer.
gency. il cannot be believed that tie fra