The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1865-07-19
STANTON AND EORD.


The recent act Of Sec. Stanton in clo- :
ing Fords Theatre Is u gross violation ,f
public rights. Ii such exercise of pow er
was admissible AT all in wartime it G, er-
tainly is no; now IN time Of peace, esq &C.
tally when it is the dNty and tor the in
tercst OF the administration he soothe the
public mind and make the people ,ally
enjoy our ncw-iound rest; q,ut the : core
tary carries as back to those dark d rvs of
martial law and reign of'thst ''littl 4 bell''
in the State Department, whose linking
echoed in Fort Lafayette. The acts are
these. MIR. Ford ewncd she tt ,eatre in
witch the President was asss * mated
lie attempted To open some ii me after
warls. but was forbidden he then tried
tn scll 1t for church, but the parties
failed to raise the purchase noncy. On
the l0th Mr.. Ford attempted. to open the
theatre, but it was lsererpt. ,rily shut by
An order from the War Department, and
it is STINT now. WHO gave the Secretary
the right to issue that or fer? If Il dis
tnrbance was anerellerled as the Herald
correspondent seys, it was the business of
the Mayor or Chief CT Police to attend TO
that, and they should rather have protect
Ell him in the Use of his property, than
have forbidden it's use at all. But the
secretary thinks it is bad taste to open
the theatre but who made our Son of
Mars censor to regulate public taste, and
prescribe rules of propriety' But we
question his scn>tiveness Mr.. Ford
opened because he was compelled TO OPEN
ilr is under obligations to his creditors
and his family; interest and rent are eat
ny him up; lie has taxes to pay and
company TO maintain. The theatre is his
only source of revenue and he has been
deprived Of this for over three months
BESIDES Mr. Lincoln's reputation does not
rest on this theatre, that it must be conse-
Grated TO him, but if the government
wants the property let them take it and
pay for IT, or If they insist on closing il,
let them pay the owner far sum
for being deprived of bis own. The
fact i our valiant Secretary is little
TOO smart. We did not complain of his
little vagarleS in war time. We submit.
ted TO the suspension Of ITabeas- Corpus
because II seemed to MS wisdom, a neces
sl'y, and the highest patriotism. Blu
those times have all passed, rebels arc dis
perscd, our armies are disbandng, there
are no longer spies, simply because there
is nothing TO spy for or against. AS the
government is now utterly out of danger,
except from the dangerous element in the
administration itself, so the necessity for
these vexadous interfcrences have passed.
Still, the Secretary can't shake of his
meddlesome mania his fingers grasped
too firmly the baton of power to readily
gelax. But lie should be made to relax.
II tie Secretary Of War could destroy the
photographic plates which Quincy d Son
made of the Presidents obsequies, if he
can close theatre, without the authority
OF even shadow Of line in statute.
book, or tingle precedent, except those
made by himself, he may enter the house
OF any perstn, at his own good pleasure,
and deliberately carry OFT silver spoons OF
anythins else that pleases his vivacious
fancy If we retain our prqaerty at his
suifrrance, let US know it, and We will
thank him Gr his forbearance in the past,
II we do ROT, VIC respectfully ask him to
nind his own business to do otherwise is
inperlipcnce, in a Secretary of War, it is
worse, a blunder and crime.