The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1862-11-11
HAAILreN. Ill.,, Nov. 8, 1863.

10 what transpires in political way, IN
your little sister city, propose to give
| them an account of democratic Meet
ing" held here on the eve of the 3D., the
| night before our election, at which meet
| ing your contemporary, Judge Clagett,
figured as the "chief toad in the puddle"
At the appointed hour the meeting was
called to order, and the venerable Judge
was introduced by the only notorious Sc
cessonst of our place-Capt. Lloyd.
The Judge took the stand and com
menced by saying, "There is no disloy-
atty here This denial / thought timely,
as without it the proceedings Of the meet
ing, from beginning to end, had most
palpably disloyal complexion. This point
of loyalty being settled, the speaker i'm
mediately launched into what was intend
ed as profound constitutional argument,
to prove that neither the President or an
abolition Congress had power to con-
tiscate the slave property of rebels. Uni
teddy, the President and Congress might
"call all the women and children into
the field, to aid in putting down rebellion,
aud might for like purpose command
the last dollar OF the loyal peoples mon
ey," but slave property of rebels in arms
could only rightfully be taken "by due
process Of civil law"
The confscation bill, and all other laws
passed by Congress, to punish, or aid In
suppressing rebellion. according to the
Judges logic, are all Unconstitutional"
The Presidents Emancipation Proclama-
ton, was. according to this learned e1
FOUNDER Of law, ''an edict of tyranny" of
such industrious enormity and folly, "that
all patriots and conservative men" at once
should withdraw their support of such
tyrant,"
Clagett seemed to make quite merry
over what he called the 'folly of the Pres
idents effort to emancipate the slaves of
South Carolina when, as the patriotic
speaker rather triumphantly, it was
thought, assured his hearers. "our army
cannot get within thousand miles of
them.
Next, special Plea in equity was put
in, in favor OF the larger part of rebel
founded upon the assump-
ton that they are not, of their own pur-
pose, rebels, ''having been misled by
their leaders" Here, plea for the
whole of rebeldom is put in. claiming free
dom from coniscation, even if civil law
could be made operative, "because (says
the Judge) other nations. and even our
government have acknowledged them as
belligerents, aud as such, they are free
from con6scation."
Now bitter denunciation of the writ
of aha beas Corpus" "This act of des-
potism," according to the Judge, "proves
the President tyrant and the Admins
tration despotism that freemen ough:
not to submit to asks ''who will stand
by Lincoln in his Invasion of the sacred
right of free speech, in his effort to tram
pie down the Constitution and the laws, "
-absolves the democracy FROM obedience
to '.such tyrant,' and SUBSIDIES.
Next comes to the stand one Daniel +
Miller, of your city. He is IAN old Clay
1 Wing says he sloved Clay"-attempt'
a feeling eulogy Of the Missouri Compro
mise-says "the Missouri Compromis
, saved the nation, tells long stor
about having been in Congress. an
clearing Clay swear" Query: If Cla
could hear Miller and his confederate
r special pleas for treason, would not b
/ swear again, The Hon. Daniel here in
t dulges in most bitter TRADE against tn
9 Republican party, because, as he alleges
:. "W endell Phillips eat dinner with Han
! lin - denounces the radical part
+ (which he says he left a year since) as
, set Of fanatics "who are blindly supper
ing despotism,' and "whose Hie
4 Priest, Greeley. is continually melting
II murderous raids, 'sOn to Richmond"
y Here drunken loafer, who has bee
} in the secesh army, shouts out, Lincoln
:. ID Abolitionists are too big cowart
? to fight" This eloquent outburst is gree
m "a ,riih the nrinninal annlausa of the CIV