Weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1858-1865, 1865-01-11
For the Standard.

aho power, In Oil lis prloe, s less than justice
Twixt kings and tyrants, there's this difference
known,
Kings seek their sugsc.s good, tyranta thsir !
oson"
I call attention to the following, from the late
message Of Gov. Smith, of Virginia:
AT this time the pressure of the servce inspires
) very common desire to escape from it; and the
remedy by habeas corpus designed for extraordins.
~ acts of official tyranny individual acts Of op.
pression is daily resorted to- to extricate the citizen
from the holy duty Of defending bis country. Law
yers Of every degree HE to the feast thus spread
before them, and judges in chambers and in court
feel constrained to apply the writ to those but little
better than moral deserters from the standard of
their country, and at time too when she is strug-
Cling in death grapple with her gigantic foe But
do the judges agree among themselves in uniform
application of the same principle? In North. Caro-
lima exemption assumes the broadest form, while in
ALABAMA much narrower rule is adopted-and
even in Virginia some differences exist But all,
believe, concur that the judges have the right to
pronounce who are exempted from military duty by
reason of their Office, Notwithstanding the Legisla
ture and the Executive may entertain different
opinion 1t does not matter what the Legislature
may declare by law-it does not matter who the Ex-
ecutive may deem necessary to enable him to see
the laws faithfully exeeuted-the court understands
better than their co-equal and co ordinate depart
ments what is necessary to preserve the State gov
ernmentsl Against this enter my firm yet re-
spectful protest"
When first read the above, found crowding
upon me, words of the strongest denunciation; but
a proper sefrespect will induce me to use terms
more respectful than the author has any right to I
claim. J
He begins by saying, that there is q "very com.
mon desire to escape service"
Who are the subjects Of this virulent attack?-
The few base deserters in this. as ir every war p
Not at all-that is not what he means. For he says
the desire is not . one Is deserters are rare,
but q common one-"a Gerry common desire to es-
cape" Does not every man know that this is un.
true2 If desire to escape service is common
among our people, then want of patriotism is
common! To say which, of our self sacrificing and
brave people, is gross injustice But suppose the
fact were so, what right had he to be telling the
enemy of iti Did he not know that he was in
| drum. beat of the enemy. and that what he said
would be read by them before the ink was dry p
That Grant would have it read at dress parade, with
an exhortation to cheer up for that the rebels were
all tired Of the service, and were trying with the
aid of lawyers and judges, to avoid it? How i'm
prudent therefore to disclose il, If true; how nfa
NOUS to allege.it, if false!
But where is it. that this strong desire to escape
from service exhibits itself Is it everywhere,
confined to some sections, Or is it worse in one
place than anotherp The Governor answers as
follows "In North. Carolina exemptions assume
the broadest FORM" &c.
Oh! of course. In North Carolina every thing
that is meanest is "native there" North.Caroli-
niansl ye sons Of god-like menl-what are ye
nowf Sunk so low that even Extra Billy assumes
| to stick pins in oul~What avails it now that
Gen. Lee said, "Virginia has done we'll, but North
Carolina has done better ?" What avails it that
President Davis, in his late passage through the
State, said at Greensboro, "your State has been
maligned," and. at Salisbury, ISLANDER has been
busy against herr" What avails it that she never
shirked duty, deserted friend, or feared p
What though she were perfect! how can she sur
vive the charge of baseness, made by one who
knows 50 well what bsseness means, that he can
tell it instinctivelyf saw serpent strike at
lamb. and it died! How can North Carolina be
more spotless than lamb, or any serpents fang
more poisonous than Billy'si Only to have bad
her name in his mouth, though he spat it out i'm.
lnediately, would, slime her over forever Poor
North Carolina must die But dying she may ex.
claim, ct tu Brute! My sons have defended and
and are now defending your capital, and by their
valor you are saved let tu Brute! ct tu BruteI
The means by which so many are said to be en-.
deayorine to escape service is the writ of habea'
c,rpus And must call attention to this statesmans
idea Of that writ. He says, the writ was "design
ed for extraordinary acts of official tyranny" Fol
| official tyranny merely, there is no redress ant
ought not to be anyl The ordinary official tyran
nv of Selling the persons of free citizens, withou
r | age
, law. and cOn6ning them in dungeons, or forcing
, them into the army, when they are not liable b!
any law are triAes mere tres, for which this groa
writ was never intended to afford any redress!-
The tyranny must be ertraordinay" before tn
citizen can be heard to complain against the COG
duct of officials! True, this was not always tn
case, True there was time when, for free ma
f to saw 81 am = Roman citizen" made any oftici'
q trem6ie that 80 much as had hs hands upon hin
True, our liberty loving, noblesprited ancestor
8 thought that the official tyranny of unjustly d
n manding twenty shilling tax; or, still later,
o demanding triAing tax on tea, demanded redres
and even resistance to DEATH True, We were Dor
of such men. But oh how degenerate. Nov
official tyranny is allowed, justifiedl And to Wis
e avoid holy duty!" Tyranny, 50 odious in .n
Il FORM and in any degree must not be spoken again
If by citizen, lawyer, or judge, until it becomes
n sextr.ordinary" as to fill the measure of this i
e satiable gornand, Extra Billy! When would ev
3 he think official tyranny extraordinaryf" WI,
10 would ever he cry, hold, snougha When did
g ever? A little more !-somethng extrat has be-
o his gluttonous screech- from childhoodl And no
| he would cry, lay onl-strike harderl-be
D. down tear i-crush l-mangle! And would
/. to the feast of human torture, until he would
ID down aud belch up blood like Cyclops! A.
1t even then, doubt whether tyranny would rea
,e bis standard Of " extraordinary"
h But such is not, and shall not be, the spirit
,e this country Liberty, Personal Liberty, is nal
T. SO hallowed, 30 embalmed by precious memos'
that, while time lasts, it shall last Pyramids N
4, crunble and drift in the waste of sands-mennta
- may wear away by the winds Of time-aad III
~ itself grow weak with age-but man, the spint
= man, fresh from God will be free. Free, il It .
n be, in civilization, prosperity and peaees but,
\ must be, in Wild woods, in the wilderness in mol
III tains, in caves, anywhere, somewhere -
IT,. 1nr lima
By NATURES Law designed,
d, Why was an independent wish
g Fer planted in my mind?
It's If not Why am I subject to
in His cruelty and scornt
e. Or why has man the will and power