Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1862-03-10

FOR the preservation Of the Constitution and the
Union. and ! am for standing by that declaration
We have been told and believe that many OF
these men now serving in the rebel army are
there by force. Are they 70 be hung on the
same scaffold a. the willing uaitorl This bill
makes no difference The victim OF force in the
I beginning would end by beng the victim of
wrong and Injustice Again. thousands OF these
+ people have been duped into rebellion 10y being
told that We were all Ab0li'ioni-ts Snail there
+ be no provision for these men who have thus be
F leved this because il was asserted By Southern
demagogues. This biz distinguishes hot the
house Of the planter from the negro hove of the
slave. and makes no difference between the broad
acres of the one and the little garden Of the
other.
TITLES TO ooNFIscATED EsrkrEs.
But even IL your bill is carried into operation.
who will buy your confscate1 estatesf What
F kind Of neighb0rhOod will exist between the
+ former owners and your purchasers The tyadi-
ton of wrong viii! sit az the hearthstone of that
! family for ages, ike hideous specter, ever ex-
citing 10 revenge and rebellion. You might As
we'll try to attract purchasers by promising them
good title 10 an Irish feud, or COrsican ven
delta. Such titles have never been good You
might a we'll expect capital 70 seek the margin
OF volcano, where the lava had not ceased to
flow. That which is taken by war must be held
/ by war
PROMISE NOT To NEEDLE WITH SLAVERY IN The
sTATIs.
We have said we had 10 right. and claimed
none, to NEEDLE with slavery in the slave States.
protest against the second section of this bill,
a. being a total and entire departure from the
principles Of the Constitution, and most mis-
chIeyOus ut this time, because 1t uselessly dis
tracts the people OF this country. Ii would make
u DO what would CRAFTY our enemies everywhere,
and be worth more than 800, 900 votes to the
traitors Of the North To aid them in getting pos
session of the Government.
THE LAWS or WAR.
| know it is claimed that We are now engaged
in a war, by virtue of which we can pass any law
to suppress the rebellion. and under which we can
pass such law as this | think this Will he found
10 be deluson and snare Our power to day
Is no greater than it was AZ the commencement
OF the Constitutions aud any law which would be
unconstitutional then would be unconstitutional
now. No preiefrds for instance. that JEFF
Davis had been traitor last wear and escaped
the jurisdiction of the courts could have
tainted him n a traitor and have freed his slaves
Nor can the case be altered il one thousand per
sons were traitors with him. Mr.. Cowan then
commended that cOnfscatiOn OF private property
was against the law of nations and quoted from
Wheaton, vol vi, page 4l9. He said that ne
groes could not he employed in the army under
the laws of nations. Ii they were educated 80 as
To he controlled 10y the laws of war. then they
might he admitted. If, ON the other hand, they
are savage and ignorant, they ought not to be en-
plOyed in our ranks. and il would bring down on
Us the odum OF ChrstendOm and the condemna
to:, of all good men
But the question is tor the President and his
military advisers. and am willing to confde it
to them. But it is said that. under the Constitu
ton, Congress has the right to make laws con
corning captures on land and water But this
bill does not apply to the RICH, of capture at all
This bill provides forfeiture of property of rebels
without any capture AT all. 1t is attempted to
put the prOpriety Of this bill upon the case of
Brown against the United States, where it was
decided that the property not confScated by
the declaration of war, and an act of Congress
was necessary. But in that case the property
taken within the domain of law The prop
erty which tins bill undertakes to confiscate is
within the territory OF belligerents The Legs
lature. therefore has nothing to do with it until
the President captures it. This kind of vicious
reasoning in a circle pervades the whole charac-
ter of this bill. IL gives the power claimed to the
President, because these people are without the
pale OF the Constitution, and it claims to confs
cate their property because they are within the
Constitution. We might, under this rule forfeit
their property belhgerents and afterwards hang
them as traitors