Council Bluffs bugle. [volume] (Council Bluffs, Iowa) 1860-1868, 1865-05-04
EDWARD BATES.
TO THE PEOPLE OF MISSOURI.
ERYz.n No. 9.


Is that martial iaw Is not tha s0yereign |
rule ever this State. II does not exist
here and whatever may have been done,
| andev thai pFetense, aad contrary 10 ihe
laas Of the laad, is personal wr1ng and
punishable usurpation. That u my
proposition; and | shall eu3CaYar 10
| 10 aintain it, even at the he2ard of dtIfeF.
| ing widely from she epiRion a6a, wish os
the. Convention, now sitting in sts Louis,
| The Convention assumes that the State
| Is under martial law, ani expresses q
str9ng desire that IL SO remain; but it,
has not, in any proceeding that haye
seen. infoFmed abe people (shom Il as-
sames TO govegn u lib sbsolate sway }ehas
lfmar4iai isss is-; frog WHO made, nor when4
| nor Rhafe il was made; RoF haw It's pn&%
-i5sa TO repeal or annulsit The CaAsen-
ton Is pfadebt in abstsining from any
attempted ex plHnation, upon any grounds
consistent with law or reason. The mem
bers may pretead ignorance, if they viii,
/ ia order 10 save for themselves hereafter,
Shen the DAY Of their shame shaa come,
The hackneyed plea Of convicted Offend
egs-tsIt was the error Of thwhead and
RoG OF the heart" Bui thsre ara some
10 uaefs Of tia; body Hho ought to know,
and to know, that martial law las contra
distinguished from The Law Of the landl is
simply no Law at all; that it is neither
.aore nor less than the suppression Of the
zsElbiishsd gogeTument, and the subssi-
ttuEinB Of the wid, huweyer eaprici3us, Of
Ethp military COMMANDER, in The vacated
place Of the laws.
| That is martial Iatc, pare and simple
land none baE the most ignorant are in any
danger Of eonfoundibg 1t wiyh military
l1g, Which is not only another and dii-
fereut thing, hut the exact opposite Of the
t,iaspotism # martial Law. Military law
consists of those parts Of tae G,9pss;s.II!sasigR
It's control and maaags IN Ht. In Ike
manner xe have groups Of other laws,
(which for c0nycnieHes, are elassih@1s and
ifnmiiiarlly called by the names of their
resp etigu subjects; for instance, sc have
naval Law. revenue Law, land Jay, iudieI-
larry law, Yet every one of these is sa-
wiuistered in the form of the C0nstiiu.
sioa. and BIZ constitutional functionarief;
ana in regard to every ere Of them,
Including military iay, every msn may
bloak into the statute book and there read
the measure Of his obligations and bis
: rights. Bot where can you read any
: iieoaI description of mortal Iata, any de
: -lrfyatian af its powers, or ary limitation
ineou their exercike2 No where: and foT
Ithg simple reason that it has no legal ar
/. ttsteace! aud the Eely term martial tdE
: Is cs.y a nickname for arbitrary poWer,
assumed, against Law, b tnsa in arms!
? This kind Of despotism differs, in it
. foundation and essenes, from the tyranny
= tsnnlstlGnes usurred By assemblies 0! mci
: ealing themselves dclIbeTative bodies, -
n The first is a .SstrCng man armed woe
! conscious OF bis pewsr % aHlpyca ebedi
= enee, preeiaisns MS orders, and II som
q Ipge<ump paaous victim ask for bis Sarran
e |af authority, be answers oHly By hraadlsh
q iur bis sword! The second (deilberatir
q Ibeai,sl conscious Of is own intrtnsi
.e weakness. and they are nothing. withou
q the prestige Of Law, alwaysLn tie began
x ming pretend to have some lawful author
!. it's for the exercise Of their assumed pew
Esrs. Aad often thy seem to prosper To
, = season. As long ss they keep N clos
>e iailiancs With the armrd power, and ca
a. fusiuce it 70 hc their minister, 10 carry o1
10 ttheir tcerees, under martial lows The
seer, 10 prosnsr. and cheat themaelvs
fg into the belief that they arc -poweTtu
10 But this state of things cannot iohg cor
sr itinuc. Armed men, like The unarmet
az Twill learn the lessons that are daily taugt
re- then. And when these civil bodies, mi!
rs led Ivy their own gTotesqae cgotisHi, In
ap agine themselves supreme sGd abore "a
e, established laws aud principles, and b;
] :lbitually "frame iniquity into Law" II
a; IHstropr man armed" soon iearus Il
ID lessons thus taught him by self feonceiIt
vc ambition. Out of their own mouths
ke couyicts them, and says to them "fe
e. gentlemen, you are right. there Is rot
hit ing obligatory in government but pore
no and as the power happens to be in n
en- hands, and not gearss get you gone o
an of my wav." Thus Cromwell answer
,slIthc long Parliament Of England, al
m. IBonaparte answered the Directory al
Lyet Councils Of france.
In No pFinsipls ia better settled IN {
ful Constitution and policy of the Unit
ala States than fhe military is snbo,'G
lat lnaie 10 The eiUtl poscer, and can ace Oh
ms the minister and servant OF the law.
If For we bare no railing sovereign but 1
Ct Law; and therein consists our oaiy eiai
1 n Of superiority in government over
la peorls uf Europe, u ho, for the most pa
rita are governed By visible, human soFereig
his in the shape Of emperors and kings,
thafths great nations, and all the way dol
A the seals Of rover to the petty prins
rid ard dukes, who reign over the intab
-. ants of fsw thousand acres OF land.
ar Tais, say, Is the only claim we hare
b.a super,oFity over them 10 tue matter
III. government, and so long as that claim
q, tsustntacd By realty and truth, il is I
aak Of goodness audrlary. But If shat ella
haf be faisihed--M tho laws OF the land |
der no longer b rule nnd protect us--h
gut are indeed under The despotism OF 4
epd martial Iese, SO dear to t6e C0nsenti'
a.. then alEran that our 6overDment 10
ne worse than theirs, and oar conaitioa
u more to be pifiad. For the sosereigns
80 E.uroue tnnoss OF then1 derive their pai
Z, : and power through long lsne .of desc
Iav4 gross their aacestors, sad all OF ths
.a Nh. from the Queen Of Great Britain down
for the Duke al Hesse Darmsdadt, hops
a. transmit them sotheig posterisy, La :
- ease every conclusion OF reason. and
!, eFyfimpulsa Cd the hsaman heart eona
rh,s the desire for stability and order. AZ
sed ereign Ia thai condition muss be pot .
a., rant onIy. but fool, who would prs
rhas 10 leave Ia his saccessor q degraded Nc
III. Ian enausy treasasy and . asdisi0us pes
ssa rather than leasa him an hoacrshie nj
s,ani in history. . revepns egual 70 the VI
lehuI Iof the State, enc psopis pfospes4
eontsoted ard layaI.
1 tsa