Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1864-01-18

tber operations for is Suppression; and, as such,
bis powers are strictly military, and are not diff
ferestor greater than would be those of|>he SEN
Tor general in the service. II the Constitution had
designated him TO be the Commander in Chief;
<he~poser~to device poIc3 o. measures fosits
suppression, is legislative. to which the President
is incompetents whether as the,frst execudveofi-
Ger OF thu, Gevefrment, oryommander IA Chief
Of the Army and Navy.
: ~. That the law Of military necessity Is not
estabiishcd, ban =oniy tolerafed, =BBited :
States II does not, nor cannot. in peace or war,
abrogate or suspend the Constitution IN whole or
in part II cannot authorize arbitrary arrests or
Imprisonment, on in ans way interfere with the
person Of The citizen, but only with hs property
IL does appertaiu TO the President or TO the
Commandcr IN Chief, unless he be in the actual
command Of military force, and then only
under particular circumstances. IL results from
apresent aud urgent need OF an army or military
corps which Is so pressing that Il cannot await
other modes, but must be supplied my where ii
its reach by its own power and action II Is not
on expedieucy but necessity OF Q military body,
aud creates a law AID confers power. for the
occasion only, on its commander, Of whatever
grade he may be, TO supply that ypecessily,by
taking property with summary military force.
without depriying the owner of. his right 20 be
compensated iorlt By the United States, Each
case Of military necessity makes It's own law,
adapted to It's own pecoiar circumstances. { and
expiring with that particular necessity, THERE'S
not, and cannot be. any uniform. permanent or
even continuing law Of military necessity. The
idea that law always accidental. evanesreut,
and 10 truth 50 hconsderabIe, should have The
magic force TO enable Abraham Lincoln to bound
over the Constitution and all iss Limitations aud
restrictions, and clutch the vast powers which he
claims under il. is gigantic absurdity. 800,
IL. That nj the beginning. under the panic of
the defeat OF Bull Run the party In power pro.
fesscd to carry IL on for the constitutional end to
put down the rebellion and yndicatc the laws and
authority OF the United States lninsurgent States
and when that was effected II was 20 cease. But.
more than year ago. another and paramount
and unconstitutional end, the total subversion of
slavery, was inaugurated by them; and atlength,
20 corr, on the war IN this perverted and aug
mented form, the annual expenditure on the part
| Of the United States has swollen to one hundred
thousand lives, and mnch larger amount of
personal disability, and u thousand millions Of
money, and yet the wisest cannot see the end Of
the war. Verify, tho people North and the PEG
pie South ought TO revolt against their war lead
ers, and take this great matter into their own
hands, and elect members TO national conven
ton OF all the States, TO terminate n war that Is
enriching hundreds Of thousands of officers,
plunderers and spoiIsmen IN the loyal States, and
threatens the masses In both sections with ire
trieyable bankruptcy and indefinite slaug hter and
|
upon the great principles Of liberty and com
promise devised by Washington and his asso
ciates. ln 80 80
| ID That the present executive government of
the United States has subverted, for the time. In
large portions of the lotal States. the freedom OF
speech, the freedom of the press. mud free suf-
frage, the constitutions and laws of the States
and the United States. the civil courts and trial
| by jury. lt has ordered. ad hbnnm, arbitrary
arrests by military officers. not only without
warrant but without any charge or imputation Of
crime or ofieuse. and Inns hurried the persons so
arrested from. home and vicnagc to distant pris-
ons. and kept them ncarcerated there for an in
definite time. some of whom IL discharged without
trial and In utter ignorance Of the cause Of their
arrest anu Imprisonment. and others IL caused TO
be brought before courts created by itself and
TO be tried and punished without law; in viola.
ton of the constitutional guarantee the citizen
Of his right 10 keep and bear arms, and Of his
rights OF property, il has iorcibly deprived, NJ
we'll the loyal ms the disloyal OF both; IL has
usurped the power 20 suspend the writ of habeas
corpus and TO proclaim martial law and has es.
tahlished military tribunals in States aud parts Of
States where there obstruction the due
administration Of the laws OF the United States
and the States by the civil courts and authorities:
aud ordered many citizens. who were not connect
ed with the Army or Navy, 10 be dragged before
It's drum. hend courts. aud TO be tried by them for
new and strange ofenses declared by itself and
by an uedefned and inde6nable law being hut the
arbitrary viii of the court: ordained nj pleasure
military despotism in the loval States by means
OF courts martial. provost marshals. and military
forces, governed neither by law, principles nor
rules. from whose tyranny and expressions no
man can claim immunity: all Of which must be
repudia,ed aud swept away by the sovereign peo-
pie.
Is That free press. free speech and free
elections are the great and peaceful forces by
| which the maladmnstration Of our Government
whether in the legislative or executive depart
meut, is prevented, reformed reversed, and it's
authors brought TO public condemnation and pun
| ishment: and those bulwarks OF constitutional
| governments and popular liberty nre formidable
10 malvelsators, usurperF and tyrints only, aud
they must be upheld by the people nc all hszards.
l6. Thatas the Constitution and laws afford
no means to exclude from he Office of President
a mau appointed 10 IL by military power, or who
is declared To be chosen 20 it by reason OF the
suppression of the freedom of election. by the
exclusion Of legal voters from the polls, or by
any other means, the people Of the United States
would be incompetent to defend aud unworthy to
have received the rich heritnge Of freedom be-
queathed To them by their fathers II they permit
that great Office so to be filed. or la any other
mode than b. their own free suIfrages.
H. That the scheme of the President to bring
insuperable objections The par Ion AMI amnesty
offered by him is upon the condition that those
who accept il shall renounce their right 10 their
slave property, aud swear to support his uncon-
stiiutional proclamation and unconstitutional acts
Of Congress, which attempted TO take II from
them. He must have intended to put this condi.
ton in form so obnoxious rs TO secure its rejec.
ton by most of those TO whom IL was offered
He affects the position that ten of the insurgent
States have forfeited diSsolv ell their State gov
ernn enis. aud requires thai they be reconstructed
on condition prescribed by himself. and this
against the true principle, which he aud the leg
islative department OF the government hid previ-
ously recognizel-that all the acts of the insur-
gent States aud people tending to their secession,
separation and independence were void; and when
the inundation with which their insurrection GOV.
cred over the authority Of the Constitution and
laws OF the United States IN them passed away,
u would leave the constitutions. lava, property,
and institutions of those States in every respect
the same that they were previously. excepting
only the changes that were produced by the mer 9
shock of arms. the principle status anfe belium
being applicable. He ignores the constitu-
tons Of Tennessee. Arkansas. aud others that
have Not been altared in any particular, but
are the same that they were before their revolt;
and he requires those States to repudiaic their
constitutions that governed them many years
PEACEFUL, In the Union. and to form new ones
He has no right TO take cognizance in any way OF
the governments and constitutions Of thoseStates,
or any other States to the extent that such a
power IL vested in the Government Of the United
States, IL ia congressional, not presidential He
has no authority Whatever 10 impose any condi-
tons on the insurgents, and they are subject 10
none but what are prescribed by the Constitution
and laws Of the United States. 20 he determined