Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1864-07-06
The Second Congress of the Confederate States
The Writ Of Habeas C0rpns.


The second Congress of the Confederate States is
decided improvement on the FIRST 1t has Just
closed it's first session, and indicated its indepen-
dence and wisdom in three remarkable measures of
pOlicy-1. 1t has refused to continue the act sus>
pending the writ of hdbeas corpus. 2. 1t has re-
fused to increase the Presidents salary, to give
MIN two thousand dollars of it in gold: and 3. It
has compelled the resignation of Cabinet Minis
ter, by the exercise of its legitimate powers. We
propose to make few observations upon each of
these measures of policy.
And first, of the suspension of the writ of ha6eas
corpus The President sent a response to Congress,
insisting on the necessity of continuing the suspen
sion. The question has been discussed in the Leg
islstures of several States in Congress- and before
the Judiciary in Richmond, and in other parts of
the Coatederacy. The result is that Congress re-
fuses to continue the act suspendins the writ of
Aa6eas copus and the act itself expires thirty days
after the adjournment of Congress.
We look upon this result as signal triumph Of
liberty over despotism-of the popular free will
over tie arbitrary tendencies of the Confederate
Government. II the act had limited the suspension
of the writ of hGbeas corpus to the cases conempa
ted by the Constitution, no would have objected;
but the occasion was used to make the Executive
omaipotent and irresponsible for any arrest. 1t is
sad reality, that here, when our Confederacy Is
but three years old, we are compelled to wrest from
our new Government tho very liberties we broke
up the United States Government to vindicate and
establish. Instead of faithful observance of the
Constitution, there has been steady and continual
effort the part Of the Administration to set aside
snd destroy it The personal liberty of the citizen
has been outraged by requiring of him passports
from one part of State to another, not within the
military lines of our armies, and whole batch of
officers has been created to enforce this military sur
veilance-called Provost Marshals-without any
-. -
tyranny, the writ of hobsds corpus was suspended,
By which any citizen might be seized and cast into
prison by the Executive, without any cause shown
whatever, and be kept there by him as long as he
pleased, without release trial. This last stride
to despotic power called forth the indignant protests
of the great States of Georgia, Mississippi Alabama
and North Carolina. If the Constitution authorized
1.-THE Constitution was farce for to talk of free
government by its own terms of organization, pro-
viding for its absorption into despotsm is hid
eous absurdity. But the most extraordinary feat.
ure of the whole rsurpaton, was that the Executive
was the chief actor in producing it. As it clothed
him with arbitrary power over the person Of the
citizen, and made him despot one might have sup
posed that he would have appeared little pos
sible in such transacton-that he would have left
it exclusively to the Congress, in which by the
Constitution the whole legislative power Of the Con-
federacy is vested, to pass law so greatly adding
to his powers, ana 30 FasupsncreeSng ais RESPONSE
biities. And when, too several States of the Con-
federacy had denounced the measure Is uneonstitu-
tomato pause to forbear, to grasp questionable
powers, would be the impulse expected. But our
President did not look upon matters in this light.
He sought the power. He brought the whole force
of the Executive to bear on the legislative depart
ment Bymessages to Congress, and all those other
appliances which are so we'll understood in Wash
ington he tried to hold on to the power conferred
upon him by the suspension of the writ Of habeas
corpus, Hefailed The people and the Constitu-
ton triumphed, and in twenty days time, We have
again the guarantees for tho personal liberty Of the
the Congress for the vindioation Of rightfl indepen
denoe, and its fidelity to the Constitution. Char
lstson Mercury.