The weekly mountain Democrat. [volume] (Placerville, El Dorado County, Calif.) 1861-1862, 1862-02-22
DORADO CALIFORNIA FEBRUARY a. 1852
Prom he K.r Ysrk TrIssse.

4 Prom The Nsw YoFk Tribune. Fl,
Hon. @. H. PendleiOn, Of Ohio, in
the House OF RepresentativesS ON
Tuesday the 10th ult'
Mr.. Pendleton Democrat, Ohio, moved
that the memorial of Mesers Howard,
Gatchell and Davis be referred back to
the Committee on Judiciary, with inStruc-
lions declaring that Congress alone has
the power, under the Constitution, to sus-
pend the privilege of the writ Of ha6eaS
corpus. He said: Mr.. Speaker-These
memOrialists are members Of the Board oi
Police of the City of Baltimore. On the
first day of July last, at the dead hour Of
night, they were arrested and conveyed to
Fort McHenry by detachment of United
States soldiers under the command Of
General Banks They were in the per-
formance of the duty assigned to them by
the laws of their State. The peace of the
city was then unbroken. The Federal
Courts were in full operation within her
J limits. Judges, Marshal and the District
/ ANrUrney were IN me exercise OF Inelr
accustomed functions. The process Of
the courts, if am correctly informed, had
not been interfered with, except in one
memorable instance, and then by the au-
thOrity Of the President of the United
States himself. These were arrested with
out warrant. They have been detained
without an Indictment. They are de-
prived Of their liberty without process. OI
law. They have not been confronted
with their accuscrs. They are not in
formed OF the nature of the accusation
against them. They have been denied
the right to a speedy and public trial by
an impartial jury. -.....
The President Of the United States, in
his Message to this House, in response to
u resolution of it, has declined to furnish
the grounds for their arrest. On the
same day when he did So while their pc
titiOn for redress Of great grievance was
pending before the House, the President
had them conveyed out of the district and
State in which they had been arrested,
and where, M at al, they N@& N9RvHitsed
the crime, first to Fort Lafayette and then
to Fort Warren. They are arbitrarily
held Oy military power. They are entire.
ly helpless. They have presented their
memorial to Congress. asking that Con-
grcSs may examine their case, or that il
may be remittcd to the judicial tribunal
to be legally heard and determined, and
my colleague on the Judiciary Committee
can find no more fitting response to rea.
SOnable request like this than that this
respectful petition shall lie unanswered
on the table. The writ Of hdbedS corpus
was invented for the purpose Of meeting
the exigencies of just such a case as this.
1t commands that the body Of prisoner
Shal! be produced, that the cause of his
commitment may be inquired into, and
that he may be discharged if he is illegal
~ held, or remandcd if he is held by com.
petent authority on a charge Of crime
These gentlemen would have been glad
to avail themselves Of this writ which the
President commanded his General to sus
pend, and to hold them at his own sole
will and pleasure.
The President, in his message at the
extra session Of Congress, gave us his
reason for his action in the matter. He
says: q" have authorized that the writ
Of hdbeds corpus be suspended; am be.
fore he did so. he talked considerably oI
his right and the propriety of doing so.
The privilege conierrei by the hGbeGi
corpus is to institute aud command an in.
quiry as to whether person is held by
competent authority under a charge O
crime. If person is so held he Is re
manded; aud if he is not, he is discharged
That provision Of the habeds corpus acl
has never been invaded by the Executiv,
power till now. Sir, the object Of this
suspension, and the effect also Of it, is t,
prevent inquiries into the legitinateneSs
of the Imprisonment under military pow
er. The object of this evasion of the
great charter of liberty is to enable mill
tarv officers or others who have ike pow
er to arrest and impri>on men though
they have committed no crime against thu
laws Of the apd, and to punish them, moi
as the law prescribeS, but in whatever
way those who have the power may or
dain. IL rightly construe the message
of the President he claims authority tC
seize, to hold and detan all persons net
engaged in the land Or naval forces, moi
men engaged in enterprises against the
Government, but all persons whom he
may suspect, and to imprison them with
out regard to the provisions or pl ocess O
law.
The President further claims the au
thority Of the Constitution, Of which it i.
a complete violation, to arrest whoever If
his Judgment he may think proper. Th'
President says his authority is derived
by implication, and because, | suppose
he deems it inconveDient to have thu
right to suspend the writ of habeGs cOrpt
vested in Congress alone. Now, the only
clause which refers to the subject is ont
which provides that the writ of habed
cOrpas shall never be suspended excep
in cases of rebellion or invasion, OF unde
circumstances when the public safety de
mandS it. This is, undoubtedly, the only
Implication that can be derived authori
zing the suspension Of the writ of ha6ea
corpus. Who shall suspend ity That u
the question. 1t is not vested in the Elk
ccutive exclusively, nor in Congress ex
clusively, but in all the departments o
the Government. grant that under thu
arbitrary rule of Elizabeth. of England
and during the early part Of the reign o
| (hoI iSo hhO hStf IL woo OASiAASSN "
} these monarchs, but Charles was com
PEELED at the price Of his throne, to asSen
to the Bill Of Rights, by which he boun'
himself never to impriSon man withou
due process of law. Charles did MT stand
by his Interpretation of the ancient Con
StitutiOn, and after ten years of struggl
with his people, he lost his throne and hi
life as the penalty Of his infraction Of il
His successor tried all means and ever,
kind Of scheme to retain this abitrar,
power, which was at last swept away for
ever by the great charter. We are tol,
= by the eminent historian, Macauly, tina
Charles ii sought to repeal the hG6eG
corpus act, for that he hated it as Onl
tyrants can hate whatever stands betwee
them and their own despotic wills. An
this hdbeGs corpus act was the most strin
gent curb ever imposed by legislator
on tyranny. -'---