The Portland daily press., 1865-04-03
Shall Treason be Punished 2

one mlgut suppose, Wnlle reading Inc Gun
rent rumors in regard to terms Of peace, that
treason was only q military offence; That no
such crime was known to the ciUit law. Foil
ticians in high places talk OF an adjustment
that Ignores all treason, and assumes tnat the
two parties are on equal terms for negotiation,
as bellioerents Thus there is danger that
our government will be deirauded Of all
proper vindication for the great crimes that
have been committed against it. There can
properly be no terms of peace but uncondi-
tionaI Submission, leaving all questions of
amnesty or pardon for consideration hereaf-
ter.
Il may be well to remember that neither
General Grant, nor even the President him
sell, has any authority to concede to the reb-
els any terms Of peace. While carrying on
the Odr, they may treat the rebels as bellig-
erents. But having carried it on, as they
must, until the rebels submit, the ,car power
then ceases and the ci0i power again assumes
Its sway. BY this the rebels are no longer bel
ligerents, but traitors. The law makes them
SO; aud no military or civil officer can change
the law. The people, and they alone, have the
right to change or suspend it. The President
has no more right or power to abrogate the law
than any other person. He may, indeed, promise
in advance to pGrd on all the rebels if the peo-
pie undertake to have them punished; but as
he never has been guilty of any such folly, we
hope we have no reason to fear it in the flu
ture. sos iefE
The necessity Of indicating all good laws
by Furnishing those who violate them, is well
understoods If there is riot, it is not enough
merely to suppress 1t. Its suppression only
prepares the way for the trial and punishment
of those engaged in it. So, il there is a com
bination to resist the enrolment, or the draft,
breaking up such conspiracy is OF little con-
sequence, unless the law is indicated by the
trial and punishment Of the conspiritors, as
warning to others. k
The same principle applies to the rebellion.
1t is huge crime. 1t is treason on a scale
such as the world has never seen. 1t is
no part of the design of the soar to pun
ish it. The ,cGr does nothing to vindicate the
broken law. Its only object is to restore the
law, and give the civil government power to
enforce it. But of what use can this be I'M
less it does enforce the law, and vindicate its
own authority, by Furnishing those who have
traitorously attempted to destroy it? If Lee,
Davis, and other leading rebels shall ever be
taken, to allow them to go UNPUBLISHED will be
saying to the world that treason is as good az
toyGLty; and that rebellion against the best
OF governments, by a war that has filed the
whole land with mourning and tears. is no
crime. Let this be done, and whenever here
after any ambitious, disconnected politicians
become desperate, they may get up another
rebellion withoat any fear of punishment.
No one expects that all the rebels will be
punished as traitors. The great body of the IN
have been drawn into it by force of circum-
stances. Though guilty, it is better that no
extreme penalty should be enforced against
them. How many of them should suffer con-
flscaton-of property, and loss of the right to
vote, and hold office, but shall be punished in
no other way, is matter for Congress to de-
termine hereafter. But in regard to the lead
ers, no such question can arise. Should they
fall into our hands, it would be an eternal dis
grace to our government, for which all ns-
lions would despise US, if, after all the cost in
blood and treasure of restoring its authority,
it should be so weak and paerie as to allow
them to go unpublished. There is no preee-
dent for it in all history. Let the people with
one voice protest against any such course.
Providence has given us Chief Justice of
the Supreme Court whose name is a tower OF
strength. Within his Circuit most of the lead
ing rebels have committed their gigantic
crimes. Their public arraignment and trial
before him for such crimes, will be one of the
great events of time. upon which the whole
world will gaze. Its result will make the NOR
al lesson Of the rebellion one Of warning,
which all the ages will read and approve and
as the curtain falls upon the great drama, the
universal voice of humanity will say-So let
all such enemies of mankind alaOdys perish.