The Columbia daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1865, 1865-06-26
TERMS-M -ADVdNCE.

WASHINGTON, June 4.-The loyal
people of the North will be glad to
learn that at last we have come to the
end Of the reign Of Stanton and the
exercise of arbitrary power, and are
back once more in the good old ways
Of peace and obedience to law. The
flimsey excuse of military necessity
which the War Department would
still have urged for its aagrant out.
RACES On personal rights and liberties,
even after all armed opposition to the
Government had been officially de-
clsred to be a: N end, is no longer
potent.
President johnson has unequivo-
,-cally and inexorabN determined that
the forms Of civil law shall hereafter
be observed to the very letter, and that
the guarantees Of the Constitution. for
the protection of individual citizens
shall be speedily and completely in
vested. with the same sacredness and
binding force that belonged to them
in the old days of security before the
war, when Stanton was pnheard Of,
except as the friend Of jeff. DAVIS.
We are to have no more illegal
and arbitrary arre,ts. President
yohnson is determined that trials by
military commissions shall come to
an end, and, except in extreme eases
at The South, chat there shall be no
suore arrests or arrangements Of citi-
xens except by the old and established
processes of civil law, aud in accord
ance with constitutional forms. The
injustice which has been done to thou.
sands Of people throughout the coun.
try by the action Of the military
authorities, or rather Of the War De.
partment, is to be atoned for, as far as
possible, by the prompt release of the
parties held, and, in fragrant cases, By
the punishment of those who have
transgressed the law. StVnton's occu-
patton is gone. and so is that Of all his
associates and tools in arbitrary power
througbou: the country, the Old Capi-
tol and Fort Lafayette are nearly
empty l am not certain but that
Fort Lafayette is entirely SO. The
army of state prisoners with whose
slow torture in loathsome cells Stan
ton was wont to gIut his love OF ty-
sanny, no longer acknowledge his
authority. We are to have no more
suppressions Of newspapers, no more
military interferepces with elections,
no more Of the performances Of satraps
Of arbitrary power set to watch over
the people and eat out their substance.
All this CHASTITY machinery of despo-
tism is to be swept away as rapidly as
possible. This is the most glorious
and benefcent-ths most renowned
Of all the victories Of peace
Stanton overresched himself when
he undertook to make the trial of the
conspirators secret. Here be had COM
menced the exercise Of all his most
approved methods Of producing in-
quisitorlal terror. Crowds Of people
were arrested merely as witnesses,
handouts Of peculiar structure were
placed upon the hands of the prison.
ers, and bags pulled over their heads;
military commission was evoked to
sit in secret; it was even proposed that
all the officers cf the court should be
held as prisoners in the building until
the trial was over, so that not WORD
Of the nature of the evidence should
escape. Stantons organ proclaimed
that there were grave and important
reasons that could not be Givu!ged,
why the trial must be utterly secret.
But of a sudden all this nonsense was
a. ALo ,.,Ia Al,o trial