, 1865-02-20
nUR CINCINNATI LETTER.
The Greut Chicago Conspiracy
C0ec.


CISCNNAT1, Fe0. II, 1o'N
The Military Commission engaged il the
trial Of the Chicago conspiraters assembled
in The 1osunda Of the Court House, pu.suant
tn adjournment. All the merocrs OF tue
Court were present, also the J.ose Aovoca;e.
\ Ina assistant counsel for the Government, the
sccueed, and their counsel.
| The record Of yesterdays session was rcaas
| and. on motion, approved. ---.-,
| The Judge Advocate said he would present
as evidence the do:ytnent be had alluded 70
as having been fop3d N the saElse Of Co1onsl 4ma
de,nsitjon o. Gaptasn Mahon. would rest the
rste Of ths prosecution. The deposition Of
Eantain Mfnon IL as follows:
MCLEAN BARRACKS, Feb. Is.
bttfby certify, on honor, that the paper up,
pen1 to this vas found in The yalise OF Co,onei
Re11amin b. Ander1on, prisoner under my care,
- taken by INC from his vallse on or aoonl tac
st day Of January, 1861. ard forwarded oy M
mending the department. Cincinnati, Ohio.
cspik,a s6ti Iowa Infantry, Commanding Mclean
The document alluded to appeared to be
memorandum Of expenses-chiehy travelling
exptnsee incurred II southern Illinois. One
| exceptional item Is "whisky for gurrlllas
3d."
| Judge T. ". Key, on behalf Of the prisoner
r. T. scmmes Of your city. wished q tae ae
!
case Of his client to the Judgment Of the th
court, without argument or witnesses. or
elee. il the Judge Advocate objected to that
| course Of action, he should make molion ~
oyerruie the evidence, and ask that tue
charges and specifications against Mr..
Semmes be Get aside.
The Judge Advocate suggested that the
counsel determine which course hd Will pnr-
sue, 50 that The court can hye some-
,5.a,G;, definite 10 act upon. Lei a direct pro-
would be if considctteGattb tG The commisspn' when 1t
vince6t Marmaduie, would o. sae Iaaffme pslsHner
ny or argument On behalf Of bis cuent Int
asked the Court to proceed 70 the andinr
| against Ma1madukc al once. It Was anrac.
tiee-uone better recognized In civil cour.s~
that Wien number Of prisoners were Jointly
| charged, say with riot, or trespass, or col.
| spifacy. at the conclusion Of the case Of the
prosecution, any one Of the accused might
ask lmmf d!ate uial, and the jury would be
instructed to consider his case separately. be.
fole the commencement Of the defense Of his
co-deiendants: He, the speaker. presumed
that military tribunals are In sense govern.
ed hy the precedence of civil courts, and,
therefore, would make similar motion to
\ the ne lie had cited.
I Judge Key said that as tue Judge Advocate
OBJECTED to The two.fold aspect Of his appllca:
ton, be would withdraw the inter part and
cause his request to be the safne as that ot
bis colleagne-1he counsel for Mir. Marina
duke.
The Judge Advocate understood the couu.
Eel to ask 1or immediate trial.. without sub
mtt1ing any proof or argument. He should
not object to the propositions because he did
Government. He would suggest, however,
10 The counsel that they would not probably
gain anything by such action, inasmuch AZ
tie finding Of the Court would not be known
to the accused or to the public, until it is pro.
mllgated in general OF de:s from headquarters
AMI, in all probability would not be Issued
betore the findings Of the Commission In
the cother eases+
Judge Brodhead explained that thev did
| not Eish to know the findings Of the Court
but simply that decisive action should be taken
IN IL! cases, so that they would be spared the
trouble Of suEm1ning witnesses or further
MatchjDg the case, when they did not con.
sufficient to warrant them in making any de,
fense.
The Court then retired for dcliberation and
was abient for two hours and five minutes,
On returning, the Judge Advocate announced
that the Commission had come to decision,
which would be duly promulgated from head.
Ma. Asay said that as the case for the
Government hau now concluded. he should
nsk the Commission to adjourn for some days
IN order to enable the defense to arrange
their campaign. They had been somewhat
weary With tho long sessions Of the Court
during tie case OF the prosecution, which
fact, combined with the promise voluntarily
| given BY The Judge Advocate at the com.
mencemept of the trials, that they should
have all the lime they required to prepare
their defense, had caused them 10 make no
p1epa1ations, 50 that the work is ali before
them. Indeed from the very nature Of the
4 Inv Hn
arrange their plan Of action until the Govern
ment had rested, for not knowing the Wit
nesses Who were to appear on the testimony
produced againtt them, until Its reception By
The Court, they did not until the conclusion
of the evidence know what Witnesses to sum
til Monday. February 9Th. which consid-
ering the Intervening Sabbaths and the time
they would be occupied in travelling, would
only give them eight working days. The
Judge Advocate in the preparation Of his case
affair had been thoroughly sitted By the au-
thortlfcs In Chicago, and he thought that his
| application was certainly q reasonable one
They had been brought far ont OF the city and
State where the crime Is alleged to hare been
committed, and from where they must pro-
| cure the mass of their testimony, though two
or three witnesses would be required from the
interior Of Missouri Another reason why he
asked for the adjoulnmfnt was the absence Of
his colleague. Judge Wilson, who had been
called 10 the bedside Of his sick and very
aged mether, and vas at present In the inte-
| 1lor Of the State Of New York, twenty miles
By take two or three days to bring him to
| Chicago. ~.
Judge BARLEY, on behalf of his clients asked
| for an adjournment Of two weeks, and thought
that such m adjournment would facilitate the
case In the end, IS they would be willing to
1n%, 4
| week, after they had once commenced. He
considered a shorter adjournment would be
| prejudlcial to the defense, and by asking for
two weeks, he vas only acting on the sug-
Eestion of the Judge Advocate at the com.
mencement of the trial In conclusion, Mr..
"Wednesday, February 29.h.
The Judge AdVocate desired that the &c
cused should have reasonable and just time
| in which to prepare their defense, but wished
| at the same time 10 draw the distinction be-
lib *y to af p'4sSnst 4Ss s snd n1s
| ready occupied a long time, and the press oil
the country, all the press, and especially that
! devoted to the opposition of the ndministra-
| tion uIe ever ringing the changes on the
long, tedious lngths dragged along by
military tribunals. Still he did not wish to
| hurry or Inconvenience the defense, and was
| willing to give them all necessary time. The
| Law says that ''after the conclusion Of the
case Of the p1 p1osccution, the accused shall be
allowed day or two In which to prepare
their defense" and he thought that q week,
certainly no longer than week, was ample
They could bring any witnesses they required
from any part OF the country in far less than
that time, Already he has issued eight or
ten spbpands for the counsel on the other
side. It had been said TINT he had occupied
long time In the preparation of the case for
the Government; but the statement was in-
correct. He had spent q couple Of days in
Chicago in hearing large number Of wit
nesses and In examining documentary eyt-
dence which had accumulated for months
All further delay Was occasiOned not at his
request, but by The direction Of the War De-
partment, who wished to prepare for
one or two contingencies, which might
When be returned to Cincinnati from
Chicago, he vas ready Tor trial. So to say
that the Government has had undue adyan-
tage is erroneous. He Ind gone into the laby-
rinths Of the investigation almost blindly ::
be knew none Of the accused, and none Of the
peared before him In previous trlals. On the
other hand, the accnsed know all the facts
they wish to substantiate, and also the Wit
ncsses they require to adduce those facts SO
that with readihess each prisoner can COM
1nunicate all necessary information to his
the Court to adjourn for one week. They
must remember in their deliberations that
Intersections we're jealousy noticed by their
superiors, and must not allow 1iber4lity to
exceed justice to themselves and the Govern
ment.
Colonel Dehart understood the gentleman
u Judge-Adyocate to say that the action of
the Commission was enacted by the authori-
ties. As member Of the Court he was only
responsible to bis God and to his COINCIDENCE,
and not to any other power or authority on
earth. Hehad sworn to do hisduty, and should
the gentleman to imply that any power had
the power to dictate to his conscience, rs to