Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1864-01-22
MORNING, JANUAR7
the Constitution to get at the absolute title

to the estates of the rebels. ,..,,,f- -
y know it may be said by the gentleman
from Iowa that the bill which he has pre-
sented does not involve the constitutional
question. He tells us that he simply desires
b submit the question to the courts, and let
them determine whether or not the forfeit
ure shall be in fee or for life. But. sir, the
gentleman from Pennsylvania Mr.. Stevens]
and Others have indicated desire to move
amendments here, repeating the, joint resO-
luton of the last Congress, which, on the
suggestion of the President, embodied the
language of the Constitution. The effect of
such repeal will be to leavethe original law
! In full force. Its execution will then be
attempted without regard to the Constitu-
ton, and the officers Of the Government will
at once seize upon and sell the property in
fee. They vender will hold it absolutely, and
the burden of contesting its validity will
be thrown upon children and heirs whose
rights the Constitution intended should be
guarded. Therefore the question comes up
properly on this bill, whether we shall al
low any such unconstitutional measure to
pass, tor even by the bill of the genteman
from Iowa, without any Of the amendments
proposed, we would be holding out to the
judges and to the instruments of this Ad-
ministration lure to lead them on to fol-
low up this cOnfiscation system for some bad
purpose or other. / honor the judiciary,
sir, as much as any member; but am grow
ing distrustful of all powers, wherever de-
posted. r
Now, we know that the Judge of the
United States court for the eastern district
of Virginia, Judge Underwood, has lately
been passing upon this question. ] do not
know anything about his character, judicial
or otherwise, but he has decided, as | lln-
of the gentleman from Indiana, Mr.. 0rth.]
Indeed, the argument of the gentleman is
drawn from this precious reservoir of learn
ing. After quoting the constitutional
clause, that
Congress shall have power to declare the punish
ment of treasoni but no attainder Of treason shall
work corruptionof of blood forfeiture eecept during
tie Of the person dttatnted;
He has held that
If we use the word Except" in the above sense in
the constitutional provision make it read Unless
during the life of the person atanted," We shall at
once come to the true intent and meaning Of the
provision, to wit, that the forfeiture was to be per-
fected during, and not afer the lifetime Of the par
ty attained. .A I-N
Wonderful jurist! Profound logician!
Sage philologist! He actually holds that the
word "ercept" in the Constitution actually
means something else than its own common
and technical meaning; that it means 'un-
less" BY all the processes of his court, as
l am informed, he is striving to give effect
to his absurd decision by conveying the alb
solute title to these estates which have been
confiscated before him. a
Well, sir, if this judge, under the confis-
cation law and the Joint resolution inter-
preting it, had right to do anything of
that kind, what is the need Of this legisla-
ton? Why is this additional legislation
proposed? The very fact that the gentle
man from Iowa has brought in this bill is
evidence to my mind that this Judge is a
corrupt man and deserves impeachment for
breaking down the existing law which the
gentleman from Iowa is now trying to
amend so as to make such proceedings valid
hereafter. The introduction of this bill is
stigma upon his name, which will grow
blacker with time. / would need no other
evidence of the corruption, the bad heart,
and the perverse judgment of that judge
than the simple argument which can be
drawn from the words of the Constitution
against his mode of confiscating property.
The gentleman from Indiana, Mr.. ORTIZ,
whose speech had the pleasure of reading
few minutes since, for / could not alto
gether hear it while he was delivering it,
concluded his argument with an invocation
to the House to be virtuous, to stand firm to
their duty in this time when the nation is
reeling and staggering under the sturdy
blows of organized treason. He appeals to
us in this time to gather around the Adj
ministratiOn and to put down traitors and
punish the guilty. Very well. 1 lam with
the gentleman in all that, but should have
liked his appeal better had he called on us
to stand by the Constitution as all-sllficient
for these purposes. In almost the same
breath the gentleman says he would oppose
the enactment of laws which inflict cruel,
harsh, or unjust punishment upon Offend
ers. Indeed! The question here is othow,
by penal statutes, to reach the guilty. The
guilty are already reached by the present
law. This bill reaches beyond the guilty
traitor, and involves, by pOsthumous pun
ishment the innocent and good-aye, even
| the unborn innocents. 1t inflicts on the
children of the guilty the punishment due
to the parents; and the gentleman from In
diana, who seems from his speech and
countenance to be benevolent, shows that
in fact he partakes of the ferocioris human
ity Of the hour by arguing in favor of a bill
to punish the inOffensive offspring of the
traitor. How kind his logic Is may be seen
from this extract: 'H '-t' 'N.ati
You cannot take from one that which he hath not.
You cannot who Is not possessed of anything.
take from the traitor his property before
his DEATH and before it can descend TO and vest in
his heirs. The child has no natural right to the
property of his father. Even in society the child
cannot demand social right the possession of his
fathers estate The father, during his lifetime can
ALLEVIATE his property by deed of conveyance or BY
will to take effect at his death and he can by either
process totally dsinherit his children and grant his
estate TO strangers. II is only in acertain contn-
gency that the child possession of the fathers
property where he dies ntestate and this right Of
Inheritance is purely social right, depending upon
express legislation or immemoria usage ripened into
the validity and sanctity of express law.
The child has no natural right to the
property Of the father! What an unnatural
proposition. 1t is only ''by express legisla-
ton or immemorial usage" that gives to
the child, in the absence of an unnatural
lwill, the estate of the father!, Truly, sir,
we have fallen on evil times, when to boil
ster up bills of penalty like this, upon the
children of the guilty, the beautiful and
sacred relations Of the family are to be dis
rupted. o "a fgv fs eSNSs sl C. 81
. I am shocked that in this age and In this
country and I'm this House am required tC
stand up before the American people, and
as matter of pure philanthropy and com
mon decency, protest against the cruel and
|remorseless character Of bills of this kind
and to defend the rights of those who have
committed no crime, bat upon whom it i
proposed to visit after the death Of the pa
trent, the crimes of the ancestor. '.ah hfas
ITO be continued to-morrow.l .ii n
49, 7---77 An