Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1862-05-22

limited powers would allow 10 this branch Of
the subject, Lat first thought il was tolerably
plausible, that, TO some extent, such a power
might be :sei-but the more reflect upon il
the more perceive that the whole OF that doc
tnne about the relative rights aud privileges OF
belligeren;s to each other is utterly inapp licabe
TO the present condition OF things between us
aud the seeded states aud their people, I'm.
doubleday 81 far as regards the conducting OF
the war, II should be conducted according TO the
laws OF nations, and, il you please, according to
the usages OF nations in these times OF cvliza
ton but when we come 10 the rights OF bcl-
gercnts can we apply them' When we con-
quer country with which We are at war, we
own the public property there. Now, we have
conquered Tennessee, IL you please. DO we
own the capital at Nashville to day Do we
own any of the universities and colleges aud
public property OF the State Of Tennessee TO-
day II they are treated as belligerents, then
when you conquer the country, the property IN
the land remains in the individuals who owned
It before, aud the nation acquires no title TO II
by conquest. Here is an attempt 10 get posses
sion of all that property Of individuals who
have been concerned in this rebellion And
how As a belligerent. According to the laws
of nations, a belligerent does not get it. know
that the Constitution provides that Congress
may issue letters of marque and reprisa and
make regulations in relation 10 captures or
| seizures by land and sea. That looks to state
| of war undoubtedly. What l5a seizure or cap
ture What is the meaning OF the term =
! Something that you taxi, make prize OF, carry
away Can YOU carry away the farms o. an en-
envy Are they subject of capture Not at
| all.
| But Mr.. President when, after war with
another nation, you make peace with 1t, all mat
tiers are ended, depending on the form OF your
articles OF peace. 1t may be the status ante bel
!um, it may be ut possidets, depending on the
terms of your treaty-but all matters are then
ended. Now, when we have conquered these
| reople--taken military possession OF the coun
| try can we not punish the men who have been
| in rebellion-can we not render 1t legitimate TO
hang them Certainly. Could you do SO with
! enemie, with whom you have made war aud
peace No; but in such cases when peace was
declared the past would be wiped out.
Again, to treat with them and treat about
them as beng belligerent, is TO acknowledge
them, so far as this war is concerned, as co
equal power. We have complained that any
foreign nation acknowledged and recognized
them as in Il state of belgerency. We thought
it was pretty hard Usage to us do not see 1t
10 that light exactly but at any rate, especial
ly after what has been said TO the other nations
of the world by our iunctionary and correspon'
, dent of the State Department 1t Ill becomes us
to take measures founded on the ground that
they are coeauals and belligerents, and that we
may make laws accordingly. This legslatine
for that people as bound by the laws that we
here make, and at the same time legislating fol
> them as enemies and belligerents, not bound ny
the laws we make is to my Ioind utterly incon
D sistent-utterly ACKNOWLEDGMENT | shall not
. therefore, make any further remarks in relation
t to what might by possibility be done BY US a
q belligerents.
I Mr.. President, | am fully aware that in
4 time of war, or in time of rebellion as this is
a it was clearly contemplated or implied In tn
Constitution that pretty large amount OF ex
ecutive power would have to be put in exer
else have always considered that that provi
= sion Of the Constitution which declares tina
y "the privilege of the writ of habess corpus shall
not be suspended unless when, in cases of rebel
a lion or invasion, the public safety may requlr
it it," implies that, in state OF rebellion or nva
o sion, even that sacred writ may be suspended
!. would have to be suspended and the momen
"a it is suspended, large latitude of execu'iv
power may necessarily be put in exercise II
, was contemplated that it would be-
10 do not stop here now to consider wheths
n that suspension of the habeas corpus should b
u by legislative or by executive act. All hav
~ to say upon that is, that If we were to pass
ifl law authorizing the Executive to suspend To
if habeas corpus, he would have to exercise pr
IS. cisely the power which he has exercised, !,
~ When, how, for what class of cases it should
'1e suspended, would, of course, in our statute
Vi LETT to the Executive - we never could antle
ou pate all conditions OF things that might arise,
y, The form of statute that could have any pra
w teal effect, would bring you to precisely u
" condition of things that now exists.
n So, too in the prosecution of the war, q
at aware that when the President calls out the n
- litia to suppress instruction, and uses the
,s Nv according to law for that purpose, 1t impli
y, forcs-it implies th at everything shall be do
~ which is necessary to secure the end as d mi
70 tary necessity ; but insist that the Execu:v
= his generals, the military power, are the so
TO judges of what is military necessity 1t is n
l possible that we can by legislation provide #
n the prosecution of the war in all respects, ar
by enact the laws by which it shall in all cases
Sc governed. War, even in its most modi6,
I'D form is in great measure the law of retal
ton. You do what is necessary to meet d
lv enemys acts you retaliate on him, and som
II. times go to great extremity-laying waste b
ON country, and spre ding over it utter desolatlo
- IL may be a military necessity to do that, b
NJ to undertake to sit here and make laws diret
he ing the Executive and the generals as to VIII
ey they may, and what they may not, consider
as military necessities, rs utterly lille, becau
an they are constantly changing with the changi
to circumstances and as | have before said
he another occasion, when you undertake to ma
ect the laws to regulate what they may do, you 1
cessarily imply that they must not do anythi
60. but what you have regulated. ~
we 1t was said by the honorable Senator trc
es, Ohio, yesterday, that the Executive through
tu- officers may take ships and burn them. Do
We. make any law for that .? No. Do we compls
dc of it being done wrongfully No. If we
IN anything that takes away from the Execut
WIS and his generals the deciding upon what is m
by itary necessity, we usurp their rights-we usu
ose their powers. :.
Ike Mr.. President, the legislation which is call
we for at the hands of the legislative bodies
on, ponds in great measure upon the exigencies
Ltle circu instances, and ought to be addressed
rn. be addressed to them-ftted to them. The
hat law the mischief and the remedy, the lawy