Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1863-11-26

Z
authorities? and why was complaint no
lodged with :hem upon affidavit, as the Law
f requires? How came !, a private, peace
able citizen, subject to the military author
lity OF General Stuart and why was mol
f to be allowed, ii thought proper, TO aP
peal TO his superior iu cOmmnnd-General
Lee-agatnst this flagrHut usurpatiOn O
power and most inexcusable instance Oi
false imprisonment
II | mistake not, Congress, by an eX-
press vote, refused to grant these high pre-
negatives of dietatorial power TO Mr.. Da
Wis, How is it, then, that General Stuart
undertakes, first, TO establish martial law
for himself, aud then virtually 70 suspend
the writ OF hAbeAs corpus by a denial OF
my right to appeal 10 his superior in com
mand2
II such power can be exercised by den
eral Stuart with impunity, with whom aud
where does the power stOpl To how low
grade Of military authority does Il de.
scend2 Aud may further ask, why, of
all the gentlemen in and around the court
house VINO entertained federal officers, was
alone to be selected for the exercise Of
this military power, for this indignity and
outrage! These are all questions Of grave
interest to the liberty Of every citizen that
canuos, and shal! not be sluEred over il
there Is any justice in the military depart
meut of this government or independence
to be found in the Judiciary of this State.
Hitherto l have been silent rs to the
wrongs, injuries and indigniIies which
have been heaped upon me. But am not
spaniel to lie down aud crouch at the
| bidding of any master, nor to lick the hand
that smites me, nor am chFistinn enough
when one cheek is slapped to turn the
other; and IL am thus TO be selected as
ahiaHf fOF and
can find no protection from the law, then
will protect myself; this cannot do
against the government or against the
army but can aud will do it when the
law, military and civil, both fail me.
against any one man that this cOafederaey
can boast.
When l purchased my present home, it
was to seek retirement and ObscuFiIy, to
get out of the way of the world and to fol-
low for the balaHee Of my lite the peaceful
pursuits of agriculture. There was then
no army here, uOr did | suppose there
would be one. disturbed nobody, went
nowhere, except among kind and friendly
neighbora, with whom II has been my good
fortune TO secure Hs large share OF res
pect and esteem rs any one who has ever
lived in the country, and in this condition
of things it was that, in imitation Of the
the Confederate government, ''all asked
was to be let Alone
But what is the liberty Of any citizen
worth ii u military commander can, in the
exercise OF depOtic power, or weak aud
imbecile discretion, or in tit of spleen
towards one who has offended, by report
ing him for official misconduct, in which
eight other gentlemen united, drag that
citizen from the bosom of his family, heap
upon him the indigniIy and wrong of haV.
ing him arrested and conducted through
the streets of crowded village, under
guard keep hin in this condition long
enough for all sorts Of idle aud malicious
rumOrs to DO circulated Rpd seat over the
teleRraphiG wires respecting him, ana or
der his discharge upOH the grOund that
thsrs was RoLhIng % be alleged against
Ehfm2
And now Mr.. Editor, in conclusion, let
me say that the press may continue to mis- |
represent and abuse me; may be arrest
ed and thrown into a dungeon; my fenc- |
ing may be torn down and destroyed; INV
crops NAV be laid waste and carried of;
my stock may be stolen or shot down un-
der myown eye; my house may be burned
for ali over my own head, as has been
threatened; but cannot thus be induced
to swcrve a hairs breath from the line of
conduct that my own judgement and con-
cience may dictate, which is " take no
lot, part or share in the responsibility
that rests upon these who have brought
this whirlpool Of desOlatiOn aud ruin upon
my unfortunate country. Nor shall j de-
part from the position have taken Of
doing nothing that eau justly subject me to
Outrage, animadyersiOn or rebuke But
if to adhere firmly and consistently to the
opinions aud principles that have main
tSined for thirty years, and II to prefer
living as did before the war to living as
have done since the war makes me a
traitor, then q traitors life let me liye, or
a traitors death let me die. lam, respect
fully, yours,
P. S.-Since the above was written
COPY of the Examiner has reached me con
tanning the following announcement
"The battle took pace on the farm OF
John Minor Bolts. Wemay here |
remark that the property on the farm Of
this extraordinary individual, OF whom the
Confederate States stand in such fear, had |
been reiigiousIy respected blythe Yankees
whereas the country around was little bet. |
ter than a wilderness, his fences and crops |
were untouched, but that night made "a
change in its condition. Three thousand
Confederate cavalry biVOuacked there after |
the hattie, and fed their horses in his eOrn-
field. The next morning there were very
few fence rails and very little corn LETT.
The men could be heard to say while |
building high their fires, pile on, boys
they are nothing but damned old Union
rails.'"
/ am glad to avail myself OF the testimo-
ny OF this 'leaky vessel, who fully con-
firms what have said above; bat although |
he does not state what is true in regard TO |
the general destruction of property in the |
neighborhood, for It gives me great pleas
ure to say that guard WAS furnished 70 |
every family that asked for it, all of whose
property was amply protected, as every |
one in the neighb0rhood will testify. Yet
hn nnrkninln atnfaa ,nhnt II trna In rennrl