Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1862-01-15
For the Standard


1t is evident to every rejecting mind, that when
the whole heart and soul Of people are absorbed
in tthe accomplishment Of single object-when
their entire attention is directed to one subject to
the exclusion of all others-it presents the most
favorable opportunity TO their enemies to despoh
them BY gradual, insidious and almost imperceptl,
Die degrees of their most cherished rights ana
privileges.
:. The real people Of North Carolina have engaged
in the present war with their whole heart and soul.
They are bending all their; energies to the defeat
and expulsion from our soil of the mercenary In
vader This is eminently right and proper, and is
Just What might have been expected of the people
of North Carolina. The Yankees must be whipt-
driven from our borders-and the political indepen-
dencs Of the Confederate States surely established
"A successful issue to the war, as desirable as it
undoubtedly is, is far from being the sum total OF
everything that is of value to the people OF North
Carolina We have State Constitution, the char
ter of our liberties and privileges and of all that
we most value as freemen. The preservation intact
of the rights conferred upon, and immunites Sc
cured to the citizens by that instrument are Of par
amount importance to our people. While would
have our citizens continue their exertons and relax
no effort in behalf of the common cause OF Southern
independence, would have them to watch with a
Jealous eye any, even the slightest beginning, of the
encroachncnts of despotism. l know that they
have the ability to exert themselves to the uttermost
in the prosecution OF the war; and at the same time
to protect their liberties against any and all attacks
from the friends of despotisln. Selfpreservation
imperatively demands this at the hands of the good
people of North. Carolina.
desire to warn them, that the Yankee is not tho
only enemy that is ndustriou>ly at work forging
the manaces which they vainy expect to rlyet upon
our people. We have an enemy in our midst, who,
unless dealt with in time will prove far more dan
gerous to our liberties, than the invaders. This
war will have been fought in vain-this revolution
accomplished to no purpose-if the people of North
Carolina continue to sit still and allow the enemies
of "self- government to rob them piece by piece
of those same liberties and privileges for the preser.
walton of which they have separated from the
Yankee States and are now fighting the Yankee
nation.
The enemy to which refer is that miserable fac
ton of old party hacks-that contemplate minor
ity of once decent party-those "destructves
and "mnrkers" who have the control and posses
sion Of the State government. aided by portion
a small portion, thank God--of the military COM
mandcrs in the State.
The object of this communication is to make
public-to call the attention of the people-to one
of those nsidious attacks upon their rights and
liberties, of which these "would-be despots" have
recently been guilty. The 1lth section of our De-
claraton of Rights provides, that warrants for the
larly described and supported by evidence "are
dangerous to liberty aud ought not to be granted"
The 18th section provides that mo free man ought
to be taken, imprisoned Or deprived of his liberty
or property, but by the law of the land" Again,
the 18th section provides that "every freeman re-
strained of his liberty is entitled to remedy to in
Quire into the lawfulnesS thereof, and that such
remedy ought not to be denied or delayed" The
18th section says "that the military should be kept
how 10
civil power" These provisions form most impor-
tant part Of the Constitution of the State. They
are the guarantees of freedom to our citizens
The Governor of North Carolina is sworn to sup
port the foregoing sections of the Declaration Of
Rights, in common with the rest of the Consttu-
ton of the State. Hoo has he performed this SOL
emn obligution' answer. by imprisoning in COM
mon aits free citizen Of this heretofore free State
from the 28iA Of November to the 2oM Of Deem.
Der, 1851. Of his ovn tciU md accord WITHOUT any
marrant haping Issued for his arrest, rithout
hnci"y erer informed the prisoner Of The offence
riM sehieh he aeas charged, and mithout he himcelr
(hs Gorernor) being in possession Of ANY epidence
to support ANY criminal charye against him; and
by encouraging, abetting connicing at and endors-
ing the unmarrunted acts eta military commander,
in superseaiag the ciril by the military pouer.
This Is serious charge, and it gives the writer
pleasure to be compelled by sense of duty to his
grant outrage pcrpetrated and encouraged by the
chief executive officer of the State in utter con-
tempt of the Constitution the laws of the State,
and of his official obligations; and were not the
writer impressed with the belief that this outrage
is but the beginning of series of hagitious abuses
of power, tending to the complete overthrow of all
personal liberty, he would cover this offence with
the mantle of charity, and be silent.
Now to the facts. On the morning of the I'd
e l..
ingunder the orders of that distinguished and en-
.nent GeorgM lamyer, Col. Robt McMillan-the
presiding genius over the military post of Washing
ton, after riding through drenching rain-storn,,
for sixty miles on the previous night arrived at the
humble dwelling Of Henry Ambrose in Washing
ton county, and in pursuance of orders from their
Wustrious departmental commander arrested said
Ambrose, and carried MIN on that day TO the town
of Plymouth, and lodged him in Jail. The next day
they carried him to the town Of Washington, and
delivered him to their chioolric superior in person,
and by that dignitary was carried to the common
Jail OF Beaufort county and imprisoned with the
highly honorable declaration to the jailor that he
This Majesty intended trying the prisoner for trea.
son, and did not intend that any lawyer or lawyers
should have any thing to do with the case. There
Ambrose remained incarcerated as elon until the
2Sth OF November, entirely ignorant Of the Of
his arrest and of the charges against him, except
what he could infer from the jailor's reporting te
him the declaration aforesaid of this modern Ly
curgus. Mr.. Ambrose is a poor man and an igno
rant one, but he is natioe of the heretofore free
State Of North Carolina, and the air of freedom
which he had breathed from his BIRTH had far en-
=; lghtened his understanding, to induce the belle
that though poor and Ignorant he was entitled te
those rights Of freeman, trial by his peers and
! the benefit of learned counsel, and he was suspi
cious that laws which had protected him from hi
birth, slightly differed from those apparently en-
tertaned by his captor; hctherefore through
the medium of his friends, procured the services o
a North Carolina lawyer to try and ascertain thu
charges preferred against him, and to effect his lib
! Grafton. His counsel having made two neffectua
attempts to obtain for him writ of habeas corpus
on the evening of the 9th of November, prepare'
! another petition for the writ, to be presented t.
Judge Heath, who was expected in that town OIL
the next day. The ehiralric Colonel aforesaid sus
pecting some such movement goes to the jailor AM