Santa Fe gazette. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1859-1864, 1864-05-07
Military Arrests
TINE OF WAR.
BY
WILLIAM WHITING.

" AHHA4A'A W AAA ANN'
The people ofAmorica, educated to make
their own laws, and to respect and abide
by them, having made great sacrifices in
olden times to acquire and maintain civil
liberty under the law, and holding the
rights Of every citizen, however humble, as
sacred as the rights of a sovereign, accus'
toned to an almost uninterrupted tranquil
ity, aud to the full enjoyment Of the rights
guaranteed by cur Constitution and laws
10 citizens in time of peace, have been sud
denly thrown into new and startling posi-
tion. The same Constitution which has
guarded their rights in peace is now sud
denly wheeled round for their protection
against their former associates, who have
become public enemies. A safeguard to
its friends, it is an engine Of destruction to
It's foes. Can it be wondered at that the
sudden transition from their accustomed
personal liberty to the stern restrictions
imperatiyCly required by the necessities Of
public safety, in time Of civil war, should
have found many intelligent and patriotic
men, unprepared for this great change,
alarmed by its consequences, and fearful
that civil liberty itselfmight go down by
military usurpatioR?
ARRESTS IN LOYAL STATES REGARDED vi I'll ALARM
The arrest by military authority of enc
mics who arc still left in the loyal States
and who are actually committing, or VIII,
entertain the will and intention to commit
hostile acts tending to obstruct, impede, o
destroy the military operations Of the arm,
or navy, and the detention of suca persons
for the purpose Of preventing hostilities
has been looked upon with alarm.
RIGHT OF FREEDOM FROM ARREST CLAIMED n
PUBLIC ENEMIES.
And it has happened that loyal an
peaceful citizens have in some instance
made the mistake of setting up unjust
fable claims in behalf Of public enemo
n and of asserting for them tho privilege
freedom from military arrest or discharg
from Imprisonment Citizens, meaning
be loyal, have thus aided the public eneu
by striving to prevent the military pow,
r of the government from temporarily re
training persons who were acting in OPT
hostility to the country in time Of war.
CIVIL WAR CHANGES OUR LIBERTIES.
In time of civil war every citizen mt
needs be curtailed Of some Of his accr
toned privileges.
The soldier and sailor give up most
their personal liberty to the will and ord
of their commanding officers.
po' The person capable of bearing arms Ia
Oh he enrolled in the forces of tue Unit
States, and is liable to be made soldi
Our property is liable to be diminish
by unusual taxes, or wholly appropriat
to public use, Or to be destroyed on
. approach of an enemy.
Trade intercourse, the uses to which
= is usually lawful to put property of
kinds, are changed by war.
- No civil, municipal, constitutional
intcrnationalright is unchanged by the
terventon of war.
Shall the person who is disloyal or h
tile to the government and country c,
plain that his privileges are also modii
in order to protect the country from
". own misconduct
GENERAL WAR POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
Some remarks on the general war pow
of the President being essential to on
: planation Of the subject of military ARE
- il has been found most convenient TO
print from former treatise the follow
extracts on that subject;
ut is not intended (in this chap
Chapter III "War Powers of the Presid
&c.,h pages SO, SO, seventh edition, to
plain the general war powers Of the P
dent. They arc principally contained
mess the Constitution, Art II, Sect, |, Ol. l
IN, /; Sect. Q, Cl, |; Sect. 8, Oh. l;and III )
|, Ol. |, and by necessary implication
Art |, Sect, Q, Cl. q By Art II, Sec
the President is made commander-in-C c
of the army and navy Of the United ST
and of the militia Of the several s.
when called into the service Of the Ur
States This clause gives ample pOwe
war to the President when the army
navy ore lawfully in ''actual service"
military authority is supreme, under
r.. Constitution, while governing and reg
" inc tho land and naval forces, and tret