Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1863-05-26


sfa be duty OF SAID Judge at to discharge suc
person upon bail recognzance for trial aforesad
for apy ressop refuse or o,n 10 far;sh fho satd Ne
o person8 held as prisoners dJoresdid at tho time o.
ITO Pdssdgo Of Gts act, aoitn t,oonty days thereafter
son ssS ~ dGys AVS from % t1s,Ts s limo % Of e arrest SUI
citizen may, after grand jury shall have terminated IL
session without finding indictment presentment, a
provided In the secocd section Of this act, by petition
alleging the facts aforesaid touching any Of the persons
30 as Aforesaid Imprisoned supported by the oath Of suct
petitioner or any other credible person, obtain and h
entitled to have the said judges order discharge such
prisoner the terms and conditions prescribed Ia
the second section Of this act: Pr00ided ho,oeBer
That the said judge shall be satisfied such allegations
are true.
! The reader can easily educe from these pro-
visions the law OF the question raised by the
arrest OF General BurnBide. They will perceive
} that proceedings under the writ Of hdbeas corpus
are to be suspended by the courts whenever and
wherever the privilege of this writ has been sus.
pended by the President, witch is not the case
In the State OF Ohio. Judge Leavitt, in re-
fusine to grant the writ sued out In behalf of
Mr.. Vallandigham, stated that hs had not seen
this law, which WAS cited in court by Mr. Pugh,
the attorney of Mr.. Vallandighsm We infer
from this fact that Judge Loayitt does not
deem il necessary to have kno@ledge of The
laws which 1t is hia sworn duty to administer,
or that his means OF procuring information un-
der ibis head arc more limited than lhose poo
seased by laymen who read the journals which
are authorized TO pnblish the laws OF tho Uoitsd
States officially, or who possess sufficient Ia.
terest in such matters to purchase the volume
printed by the eminent publishers, Messrs.
Little g. Rr1wn, Of Boston, under the authority
Of Congress- His ignoraice of tho lava may
bo his best excuse for not doing his duty under
them.
Il And when jndge OF tho United States ia
ignorans oi the legislation Of Congress on this
head, surely General Burnside may be excused
for not knowing that Congress, by the act of
July IL, 1862, had expressly provided for the
trial by the courts of the offense he alleges
against Mr.. Vsllandigham. Nor is il any az
sweF to say, 81 General Burnside urges in his
statement made to the judge, that eve are in a
atate of civil war, and an emergency Is upon US
which requires the operations Of some power
that moves moro quickly than tho CIVIL" Tor
1t vas precisely in view OF such an "emereen-
CIV" that Congress passed the oct Of last July
II, already cited, and IL was TO exclude the
possibility Of the arbitrary detention Of persons
held "As prisoners of the United States by or
der or authority of the President of The United
States, az State or political prisoners, or other
wise than as prisoners Of war;" that Congress
passed the act approved on the 81 of March
last, and the sections of which, so far as they
relate to this case, we have recited above The
Intervention of couri.martial, Illegally
charged with the trial Of a ctizsn, does not al
ter the nature of the imprisonment of Mr.. Val
landigham, who, while deprived OF HE liberty,
must be regarded in lai0 as one "impr.on ned by
tue order or authority of the President, acting
through the Department Of War"
II IL be true, as is said, that Mr.. Vallandig-
ham has been imprisoned in Fort Warren BY
order Of General Burnside, confirming the SEN
tence of the court-msrtial illegally charged
with the trial Of a citizen for AL offense made
cogniZlble by the courts, 1t follows that Mr..
vallandighsm is now held rs estate or polit
ical prisoner," within the terms of the act of
March 80, 1863, and it will therefore ba the
duty, as we doubt not it will be the pleasure of
Mr.. Secretary StInton to report the name of
| Mr.. Valisndigbam to the Judge Of the United
States Circuit or District Count which haa local
| aud legal Jurisdiction of the offense for which
Mr.. Vailandgham ia now irregularly detained.
| that he may be put on trial according 10 the
statutes made and provided for prectely such
offenses AZ he 10 alleged to have committed II
His conviction, under such circumstances,
| would carry with it the sanction of ta,o aud as
such would receive the assent of law-sbiding
citizens and be terror TO evil-1oers.
4 We have said that we believe Ii will give MI.
pioanuTo W puIbu6 u l6RAl COurd0 In
procuring regular trial for Mr.. Valandiehsm
under the Constitution and laws of the land,
that he may receive justice or suffer punish hmept
according to his deserts; for MIR. Stanton sig.
nalized hls accession TO office by an "order" in
Which he designated the circumstances that
eeemed to justify, only for time, o departure
| from "the normal course of the admihstra.
| Ii0n," at the outbreak OF the rebellion, when
the Government was called suddenly TO meet an
"emergency which Congtess had not Anticipated
and Tor which IL had not provided" To this
effect he declared as follows, under his order of
February IA, 1862 .u.
The breaking out Of formidable nsurrection, based
on conflict OF political ideas, being event without
precedent in the United States, necessarily attend
ed by great confusion and perpexity OF the public
mind. Disloyalty, before spected, suddenly be
bold and treason astoniShed the world by bringing
at once into the field military forces superior in
eer to the standing army Of the United States. !.
| Even in thsporlions OF the country which wera oo.,
loyal political combinations and secret societias were
formed, furtheIng the work of disunion while from
motives OF dsloyalty or cupidy, from excited pAa
sons or perverted sympalhes, individuals found
furnishing men, money and materials OF war and sun
plies to the insuI9enb' military and naval forces Ar
mics, ships, forthcations navy yards arsenas militia
y POSTS and sarrsons one after another, betray.
cd or abandoned to the Insurgents.
Congress hdG not anticipated and so had NOT 7rO
oIded Jor tho emergency The municipal author ties
were pOWerleEs ana inactVe The judicial machinery
seemed AS II II had been designed to sustain the
Government, but to embarrass aud betrayit
In this emergency the President felt II his doty 10 em
ploy with energy the extraordinary powers which the
Constitution conades to him In Of nsurrecton
He called into the field such military aud naval forces
unauthorized BY the existing laws seemed
He directed measures to prevent the OF the post
Office for reasonable correspondence. lie subj pas
sengeIs to and from foreign countries TO new
regulations and he instituted blockade suspended the
writ Of hdbed8 CORPUS In various places and caused
persons who represented to him being about
engage in dsoyai reasonable practices to be
by special civil as well military agencies and detained
in military custody, when necessary, to prevent them
and deter others from such practices Examinations
such instituted and some OF the peraOns 40
arrested have been discharged from time TO time under
circumstances or upon conditions cOmpatibe, as was
thought, with the public safety.
Meantime favorable change OF public opinion has oc
Cured. The line between loyalty aud disloyalty is
plainly defined; the whole structure of the Government
is firm and sablei apprehension OF public danger aud
facilities for reasonable practices have diminished with
the passions which prompted needless persons to adopt
them. The insurrecon 10 believed 10 have Gu minated
and to be declining. s'
The President in view Of these facts and anxious to
favor return to the FORMAL of the admpislra
ion as far a. regard for the public welfare will allow
directs that all political prisoners now held In military
custody be released their subscribing to parole en-
gagng them 10 render aid or comfort to the enemies
in hostility TO the United State.
Extraordinary arrests will hereafter be made under
the direction OF the military authorities alone.
Congress has by its recent legislation .antic- |
nakpnSI nrnniaaiv anah a caaa aa that ,a,aad t,l