The Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1863-1886, 1863-07-02


support me IN every constitutional and
lawful measure tol suppress the rebel \
lion; and ! have not knowingly employ
ed any other. But the meeting, by their
resolutions, asSertand argue that GER
tain military arrests, and proceedings
following them, for which | am, ulti-.
mately responsible, are unconstitution-
aE / think they arenot. The resolutions
quote from the Constitution the defni-,
ton Of treason, and the limiting safe
guards and guarantees therein provid-
ed for the citizen on trial for, treason,
and on his being held to answer for cap
ital or otherwise infamous crimes, and,
in criminal prosecutions, his right to
speedy and public trial by aninipartial
fury. They proceed TO resolve H'that
these safeguards of the right, Of the ci-
tizen against the pretcnsions of arbi-
trary power were intended moro epe-
6idGy for his protection,in times Of civil
connection p And, apparently to de-,
m0nstrate the proposition, the reSolu-
tions proceed: ll'5PheS were secured
substantially to the English people
utter years of protraeted civil war, and.
were adopted into our Constitution at
| tile Close of the revolution" Would not
the demonstration have been better, if
| il could have been truly said that these
safeguards had been adopted and APP.
tplied d'irM5 the civil wars and during
our revolution, instead ofdher' the one
and at the c16$e Of Tie other? /, too, am
devotedly for them after civil war, and
10ttoref 9civil" war, and at All times,
"eHccpt whch; I'm case Of rebellion
of'in3asioh the public safety may re.
lquif6'' their 'suspeiision.7 Fhc resolu-,
tions proceed to tell us that these
safeguards t'ha|e stood the test Of ase
ventyesiX years Of trial under our re-
publican system, under circumstances
which show that While they constitute
the foundation 0f'all free governments
they are the elements Of the enduring
stability of the republic No one de-
nies that they have so stood the testtup
to the beginning of the present rebel
FfonI five except "a certain occurrence
at New 0rleahs!Hnor does any one
question that they win stand the same
test much long6r after the rebellion
closes. But these provisionsof the Con
stitution haveinoapplication to tho case
we have in hand, because the ARRESTS
complained of wefcnot made for trca-
soa--thar is, notiior the treason defined
in the Constitution,aand upon the con
twietion OF which the Punishment is
doath--nor yet were they made to hold
personsto answer for any capital or
otherwise infamous crimes; nor were
the proceedings following in any con-
stitutional or legal sense, "criminal
prosecutions The arrests wcr2 made on
totally different grounds, and the pro.
cccdings following accorded With the
| grounds arrests. Let us consi-
der the real case with which we are
dealing. and apply to it the parts of the
Constitution plainly made for such
cases. .'Iu 'nt
o Prior to my installation here it had
been inculcated that any State had a
lawful right to scccde from the Nation
jail Union, and that it would be expo
dicnt TO exercise tho right Whenever
Ithe, devotees of the doctrine should fail
to elect a President to their own liking
WAS elected contrary to their liking ;
land, accordingly so far us. it was legal,
ly possible, they had taken seven. States
out Of theUn on.had seizcdmany Of the
United States forts, and had fired upon
/ the United States flag, all before ! was
jnauguratcd, and, OF course, before I
had done anyroflicial act whatever
The rebellion thus began soon ran into
the present cival waria and, in certain
respects, it began on very unequal
terms between the parties. The inSur-
gents hadrbcen preparing for it more
than thirty years while the Govern
mcnt had talkonno steps torosist them
The former had carefully considered all
Che means which, could be turned to
their account, 1t undoubtedly was a
weIl-pondeFcd reliance with them that,
in their own unrestricted efforts to de-
fstroy Union, Constitution and law, all
! together, the Government would, in
great degree, be restrained by the same
Constitution and law from arresting
their progress. Their sympathzcrs
porvaded all departments of the Gov
ernmcnt, and nearly all communities Of
the people. From this material, under
cover Of "liberty m speech "liberty Of
the press and "hcbeaS corpus, they
hoped to keep ON foot amongst us a
most efficient corps of spies inforlhers,
suppliers, and aiders and abetters of
their cause in q Thousand ways. They
knew that in times such as they were
inaugurating, by tho Constitution it.
self, the "haheas corpus might be sus-
/ pended but they also knew they had
friends who would make a question as
to ,oho was to suspend it, meanwhile
their spies and others might remain at
largo to help on their cause. Orif 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 bo raised in regard to
this, which might be at least, of some
service to the insurgent cause. 1t need
cd no very keen perception to discover
this part of the enemy's programme,
so soon as by open hostilities their ma
chinery was fairly put in motion. Yet,