Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1863-05-06

to the Enquirer our profound Acknowledgements LOT
its frank development. Enough for the present
The Confederate States constitute Confederacy.
Its government is merely an agency OF tne ot.s:e
confederated. Each of the States composing ~ 70
q sovereignty, to which all the citizens 'nnac's
it owe allegiance Treason is the violation Q, ane.
gasce Hence every State ofth Confederate oGases
has laws in existence for Furnishing treason: IL ID
impossible, therefore, for any citizen OF the Oonleo
crate States to commit treason without being amen
able to punishment by the laws and tribunals OF
State. + The States still exist; ana tnelr
citizens owe allegiance to their sovereignty: we
have not got consolidated despotism at Richmond
and the States arc adequate to punish traitors 70
their authority. The suspension OF the haoees oe.
pus act by the Congress of the Confederate ota'cs
is not necessary to punish treason. Indeed we
doubt whether it is in keeping with the theory OF
the, Confederacy, that Congress should nave .ne
power to authorize the President to suspend the
habeas corpus act at ALL The Executive OF the Con-
federacy should. have TO power in State oeyoEo
the lines of the army. As the lead of the military
of all the States in State he should have the con-
troll of all military command But beyond tn's' .ne
sovereignty of State over its citizens ought not 20
be interferedwith. Its independence is essential 70
the theory of Confederacy. The flaming zeal OF
the Enquirer against the enemies of the Confedera
cy can be kept hot by the action Of the States 1t
has case in point, in the course the Governor OF
Virginia has pursued, to protect or avenge Con-
federate prisoner, still inhumshly imnnred IN the
damp dungeons Of the United States. Ten prison.
crs, we believe, taken by the army Of Virginia. have
been placed in close prison. to correspond with, ana
await the fate Of that prisoner. If Louisiana nad
a separate force in the field, and held prisoners,
would she not avenge the death of Mumford And
if our troops in Missouri had been under the con-
troll of that State, would that hideous slaughter in
cold blood of ten helpless prisoners, on a. mere
groundless suspicion have been so long unrequited!
To make no csu upon the Executive for energy and
action, upon such fragrant cases as these, and then
nsgate ais incarceration of citizens of the Con-
federacy by the suspension of the habeas corpus act
in our Judgment practically proposes surrender
Of the liberties of the people, and the establishment
of a despotism in the Confederacy."
"There is but one security for liberty. Despotism
in no form can be tolerated. Whether it affects
onnpotence over our property in the shape Of legs-
lative usurpations or over our persons by the sus
pension Of the ha6sss act it must not be per-
United to enter as aa9aement into our government.
mo man shall be 1sseized,of his life, liberty or
property. but oy the judgment Of his peers and the
law Of the land" This was the declaration of our
English ancestors in Mugna Charta centuries ago;
and we Of the Confederate States must sacredly
maintain it. if free institutions to continue on
this continent Liberty IS gone IN the Northern
States-and, We believe, gone forever. The people
of those States have shown themselves to be ncapa
bic of preserving it. They first submitted to the
violation of the habeas corpus act by the President
of the United States without the selnblance of law
The venerable Chief Justice of the United States
endeavored in vain to interpose the authority Of law
in vindcation of this act His interposition vas
condemned and de6ed. A subservient Congress of
the United States has not only passed law exempt
ing the President from penalties for arbitrarily set
ting aside this act, but they have given him power
to suspend it whenever he pleases, and thus place
the persons Of all the citizens of the United States
under his arbitrary arrest and Imprisonment This
constitutes despotism over the United States
despotism over the persons of their people Shall
the Congress Of the Confederate States initiate the
Congress of the United States, and establish sim.
liar despotism over the people of the Confederate
States5 The Enquirer answers-yes! We an
swer-no; and will oppose it. as long as we can
utter speech or WELD pen. The Enquirer would
60 further. 1t would clothe the President not only
with the power to imprison, but to hang or shoot
whom he pleases. 1t would 60 beyond the Yankee
despotism, and put over the Confederate States
ruler possessed Of power to play the part Of Ca
ligula or a Robespierre
The Enquirer, we trust, will now understand
what we meant when we asserted that the PROPOSE.
ton in the Confederate Congress to authorize the
President to suspend the habsds corpus act involves
all that we opposed in the United States or are now
fighting for"