Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1863-05-21


And p0oded also, That tn Judge before whom
such pers"n may be brought. bsfre dschsrsing him
her from impriso ment sha Layo power examination
OF lle case and, IL The p1ic safety shall require IT, shall
De required to him her 10 enter into recognza0ce
with or without surety Ia sum to be fixed by said Judge
OF court TO Keep the peace and be Of good behavior to-
warts the United States and its citizens and from time
" tme and at such times such Judge court may
direct appear before sad judge court to be further
Dealt win according to law, as the circumstances may
reqaire And it shall be the duty Of the district attorney
OF the United States to attend such examination before
the judge
"sec. And be further enacted. That in case any OF
such prisoners shall be under Indictment presentment
for any offence against the laws of the United States and
by existing laws bail rec02nxance may be taken for
the appearance for trial Of such shall BIS the duty
recognzance for trial Aforesaid And in case The said
Secretaries Of State and War shall for any reuss
OF omit 10 furnish the said list of persons held prisoners
as or %s. at s Tine Se passage q his aet oAia
oe arrested 1aain osny days from the time The
any citizen may after grand jury shall have terminated
It's session without finding an Indictment or
provided in the second section of this act by petition
alleging the facts aforesaid touching any Of the persons
as Aforesaid Imprisoned supported the oath If such pc
or any other cred bic person obtain and be entitled
70 have the said udges order discharge such prisoner
the same terms and conditions prescribed in the second
section of his act: Porded however That the said judge
small Dc satisfied such allegations are true"
The reader can easily eduoe from these provisions
the law of the question raised by the arrest of Gen.
Burnside. They will perceive that proceedings un-
der the writ of habeas corpus are to DO suspended
by the courts whenever and wherever the pr-
vilege of this writ has been suspended by the Pres
dent, which is not the case in the State of Ohio.
Judge Leavitt, in refusing to grant the writ sued
out in behalf Of Mr.. Vallandigham, stated that lie
had not seen this law, which was cited in court by
Mr. Pugh, the attorney Of Mr.. Vallandigham. We
infer from this fact that Judge Leavitt does not
deem it necessary to have knowledge of the laws
which it is his sworn duty to administer, or that
his means of procuring information under this head
are more limited than those possessed by laymen who
read the journals which are authorized to publish
the laws Of the United States officially, or who pos
sess sufficient interest in such matters to purchase
the volume printed by the eminent publishers,
Messrs. Little & Brown, of Boston, under the au-
thority of Congress. His ignorance of the laws
may be his best excuse for not doing his duty un-
der them.
And when judge of the United States is found
ignorant of the Legislation of Congress on this head
surely Gen. Burnside may be excused for not
knowing that Congress, by the act Of July 18th,
1862, had expressly provided for the trial by the
courts of the offence he alleges against Mr.. Val
landigham. Nor is it any answer to say, as Gen.
b. urges in his statement made to the Judge,
that "we are in state of civil war, and an
emergency is upon which requires the operations
of some power that moves moro quickly than the
civil" for it was precisely in view of such an
5" emergency" that Congress passed the act of last
July 18th already cited, and it was to exclude the
of the arbitrary detention Of persons
held "as prisoners of the United States by order
authority of the President of the United States,
as State or political prisoners otherwise than
prisoners of war;" that Congress passed the act
approved on the Sd of March last and the sections
of which, SO far as they relate to this case, We
have recited above. The Intervention of acourt.
martial, illegally charged with the trial of cit-
zen, does not alter the nature of the imprisonment
of Mr. Vallandgbsm, who, while deprived Of his
liberty, must be regarded in lap as one "im-
prisoned by the order or authority of the Presi-
don't, acting through the Department of War"
If it be true, as is said, that Mr.. Vallandigham
has been imprisoned in Fort Warren by order of Gen.
Burnside, confirming the sentence of the court.mar
tal illegally charged with the trial Of citizen for an
offence made cognizable by the courts, it follows
that Mr.. Vallandigham is now held as a" State
or political prisoner" within the terms of the act
of March Sd, 1868, and it will therefore be tho
duty, as we doubt not it will be tho pleasure, of
Mr.. Secretary Stanton to report the name of Mr..
Vallsndigham to the Judge of the United States
Circuit or District Court which has local and legal
jurisdiction of the offence for which Mr. Vallan-
digham is now irregularly detained, that he may
be put on trial according to the statutes made and
provided for precisely such offences he is alleged
to have committed. His conviction, under suck
circumstances, would carry with it the sanction Of
lao, and such would receive the assent of law
abiding citizens, and be terror to evil-doers.
We have said that we believe it will give
Mr.. Stantoa pleasure to pursue legal course in
procuring q regular trial for Mr.. Vallandighsm
under the Constitution and laws Of the laud, that
he may receive justice or suffer punishment &C
cording to his deserts; for Mr.. Stanton signalzed
his accession to Office by an "order" in which he
designated the circumstances that seemed to justify
only for time, departure from the normal course
of administration" at the outbreak Of the rebel.
lion when the Government was called suddenly to
meet an " emergency which Congress had not an
d, al and for ubiob Il boI not nroUiJaJ IT..