Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1862-04-29
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TIE r N o
From the St. Louis Republican.
Senator Henderaon,s snaech

| nal
| senator Henderson,s speech.
| we trust that no reader of this paper, whr
wishes 70 DO enlightened on the great Issues in
vowed In our present struggle, will be deferred
by the length of Senator Henderson's a speeoh oI
the confscation bill, from giving Il carefn
reading IL 10 no idle compliment to say that h
10 marked by an ability and eloquenoe whict
entitle its auther to very high rank amonf
Senatorial debaters. This praise is alike due d
IT. whether We consider the arguments lt address
ee 70 the knowledge, judgment and reason O
MS AUDITORS; or its appeals to the humanit,
ana PRIDE OF civilized and christian people; OF
its tefse and lucid sentences, in which go much
OF meaning is condensed In few clear and
welghty words.
The conhscation bill, which Mr. Henderson
opposes, assumes the truth of doctrines and tho
existence In our government Of q power, which
would eetablish among US tyranny as Irrespon.
sl6le and dreadful as any ever known on earth
That bill Wrests the iUaT grants of the Constitu.
tion Into cover for acts which that instrument
expressly forbids. Guarantees provided by the
Constitution for the security of life and proper.
ty, looking to state Of war as well as of peace
are ignored by this bill. Mr.. Henderson olearly
shows that however We may regard the rebels
whether as alieI enemies or as revolted fellow.
citizens, this bill 10 either violation of the
CONSTITUTION or OF International law. Let us
glance briefly at what 10 suggested, by the
method OF treatment by Mr.. Henderson, of the
question under tho Constitution:
The Constitution empowers Congress to pasS
acts to suppress insurreclion; but these acts
can be only such as are necessary and pYoper Ia
erect that object Raising armies and nayiss,
aupplying them with arms and subsistence, etc
are clearly among these necessary and proper
acts but not 30 with confscation. Confisoa.
tion can take place, on any general scale, ouIy
Wnen insurfeotion is suppressed. In such a
case, connscatlon Is not means to an end-apd
that END the suppression of revolt for the re.
volt 10 on the supposition already subdued-bu,
tits mere punishment-an act of vengeance. In
which the Constitution lends no sort of counte.
nance In its grant of incidental powers Its only
provision, looking to punishment in the case Of
rebels, is that which defines treason, and this
10 an express provision, to carry out which the
machinery OF the laws now ln force ia probably
adequate; hence, no new acts are necessary.-.
But whether or not such acts are necessary
this oonfscation bill does not propose TO carry
out the express provision referred to. That bill
reliea wholly upon tho war powers of the Con
stitution.
Trials for treason were, as we view it, the
only method OF reaching rebels, which the
trainers of the Constitution had In view. And
we all know how carefully limited are the pen.
alties attached to treason. "Bills of attainder,,
are expressly prohibited. These bills are held
to be auoh as Affect the life of an individual or
conhscate his property. Bills OF a,tainder set
aside judicial proceedings. This con6scation
Dill does not profess to be an enforcement of the
treason clause of the Constitution; but it really
10 bill OF attainder against class of men
IL therefore refuses TO follow the Constitu.
tion, and what ls worse, sets itself In opposition
to IL.
The bill is wholly legislative and executive.
This is strange, indeed, when we consider tina,
1t proposes to divest multltudes of their proper
~ There is scarcely q semblance Of judicial
power, and what is more, of protection in IL
1t makes an implied power Of the Constitution
overshadOW an express prohibitioR,tef that In.
strument. The Constitution exprsrf Sdecihr ca;
"Nor shall any person be deprived of life, lib
erty or property, without due process of Law -
What 10 meant by due process of laW'' every
well taught child in America knows. It GER
talnly does not mean an executive decree OF an
cot Of Congress. But this conhsoatiou bill EN-.
powers set of Commissioners to sit and oonfs.
cate, not only when, but where they choose, and
with the least possible reference to the
of judicial process. The man must be ingenious
who can show the power Of Congress to pass a
law that thus overrides not only this, but other
equally explicit provisions Of the Consultation.
That In Rstate of war there are certain rights
Of capture, which do not pertain to peace, is IN
doubted. Property used for hostile purposes by
an enemy are the lawful spoils Of war. But no
enlightened jurst will pretend that, in this age Of
the world, IL Is lawful for an army in an enemy's
country, to rob right and left, as has sometimes
been done in the present deplorable war, by nm.
disciplined soldiers and THAR less excusabie Of
hcers. Property of nom -combatants is, by the
laws of war, respected; nor Is INQUIRY made
as to whether those non-combatants are or not
in sympathy with the enemy in the field. We,
OF course, are speaking nov Of personal or
movable property. Proceedings by the military
against real property and the rights to 1t, have
never received any recognition from the laws Of
war A non combatant cannot by military force
be lawfully deprived without compensatIon
either immediate or prospective of the most
triAng personal chattel, still less can he of hls
real estate; and what applies to the real estate
OF non-combatant, holds good as to the real
estate OF q combstant. There is no Law of
war, as We understand Il, which can STRIP a
man--an enemy even--of his lands aud estates.
There ie no such authority expressed or impiied
q,
authority Is all but expressly denied by various
provisions Of that charter. We can see no
ground, therefore, on which this conHsoation
bill can be placed to the satisfaction of any
man who regards either the public law or the
Constitution Of the United States. There is
no military or other necessity which calls for Il.
lt is without defense upon any principles Of
Law, and 10 an attempt, without law and against
law, to punish whole people, BY such sWeeping
penalties and rowing commissions as have been
the resorts Of tyrannioal governments with NO
law but their will. Wequestiou whether what
has been 80 often asserted Is not perfectly true,
that most Of these conAsctaion schemes are dis
gracefulto the civilization Of the age. -ff
In the foregoing remarks we have expressed
come Of the views which have been sugeested
BY reading Senator Henderson's speech. We
do not pretend to outline his argument, Tina,
may be studied in all its force and compaesness
by reference to the speech itself. It is worth '
OF a study by all who desire clear understand
Ing Of vital questions whose importance cannot
be exaggerated. s.hf f4a ~ 0f
f0i. eD oes ig Lf.i a tr H-