Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1863-06-24

for such cases.
Prior to my installati on here it had been
incuicated that any State had lawful right
TO secede from the national Union, and that
it would be expedient TO exercise the right
whenever the devotees of the doctrine should
fail TO elect President to their liking.
l was elected contrary to their liking and,
accordingly, SO far as it was legally possible,
they had taken ,even States out of the Union,
had seized many of the United States forts
and had fred upon the United States fag all
before inaugurated, and, of conrse; be-
] fore 1 had done any official act whatever.
| The rebellion thus begun soon ran into the
present civil war; and, in certain respects. 1t
| began very unequal terms between the par
! ties. The insurgents had been preparing for
| it mor- than thirty years, while the govern
| ment lad taken no steps to resist them. The
former had carefully considered all the means
which could be turned to their account. 1t
undoubtedly was we'll A-pondered reliance
with them that IN their own unrestricted efforts
| to destroy Union, Constitution, and law, all
! together, the government would, in great de-
| gree, be restrained by the same Constitution
and law from arresting their progress. Their
| sympathizers pervaded all departments of the
government and nearly all the people. From
this material, under cover of ssIiberty of
Speech and s'habeas corpus" they hoped to
keep on foot amongst us a most efficient corps
Of spies. informers, suppliers, and aiders and
abettors of their cause in thousand ways.
They knew that in times such as they were in
NV he fha
'shabeas corpus might pc suspended: but
they also knew they had friends who would
make question as to tcho was to suspend it
meanwhile their spies and others might re-
main at large to help on their cause. Or
il, as has happened, the Executive should
| suspend the writ, without ruinous waste of
time. instances OF arresting innocent persons
might occur, as are always likely to occur in
such cases and then a clamor could be raised
in regard to this, which might be, at least, of
some service to the insurgent cause. 1t need
ed no very keen perception to discover this
part OF the enemy's programme, as
by open hostilities their machinery was fairly |
put in motion. Yet, thoroughly imbued with |
reverence for the garanteed rights of individ- |
uas, was slow TO adopt the strong measures |
which by degrees have been forced TO regard |
as being within the exceptations of the Con |
stitution, and as Indispensable to the public |
safety. Nothing is better known to history |
than that courts ofjustice are utterly incom-
petent to such cases. Civil courts are organi- |
zed chiefly for trials ofindividuals, ,or, at most,
few individuals,n in concert and this in quiet |
times, and charges of crimes well defined in
the law. Even in times of peace bands of
horsethieves and robbers frequently grow too /
numerous and powerful for the ordinary courts
of Justice But what compar ison. in numbers
have such bands ever borne to the nsurgept
sympathizers even in many ofthe loyal Statesi
Again, jury too frequently has at least
one member more ready to hang the panel
than to hang the traitor. And yet, again, he
who dissuades one man from volunteering, or
ind uces one soldier to desert, weakeus the
Union cause as much as he who kills Union
soldier in battle. Yet this discussion or in
ducement may be so conducted as to be no
defined crime of which any civil court would
take cognizance.
Ours is a case of rebellion-so called by the
resolutions before me-in fact, clear, fla
grant, and gigantic case of rebellion and the
provision of the Constitution that s'the privi-
lege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be
suspended. unless when, in cases of rebellion
or invasion the public safety may require it,''
is the provision which specially applies TO our
present case. This provision plainly attests
the understanding of those who made the
Constitution that ordinary courts of justice
are inadequate to "cases of rebellion, at
tests their purpose that,i such cases, men may
be held in custody whom the courts acting on
ordinary rules, would discharge. Habeas cor
pus does not discharge men who are proved to
be guilty of defined crime; and its suspension
is allowed by the Constitution on purpose that
men may be arrested and held who cannot be
proved to be guilty OF defined crime, sswben,
in cases of rebellion or invasion. the public
safety may require it, This is precisely our
present case-a case of rebellion, wherein the
public safety does require the suspension. In
deed, arrests by process of courts, and arrests
in cases of rebellion do not proceed altogether
upon the same basis The former is directed
tinuous preparation OF crime, while the latter
is directed at sudden and extensive uprisings
against the government, which, at most. will
succeed or fail in no great length of time. In
the latter case, arrests are made, not SO much r
for what has been done, as for what probably
would be done. The latter is more for the
preventive and less for the vindictive than the
former. In such cases the purposes of men
are much more easily understood than in ca