The evening Argus. [volume] (Rock Island, Ill.) 1861-1871, 1865-05-17
adopted, became an integral part of our fun
damental law-as follows:

damental law-as follows:
AR. v. No person shall be held to answer for |
capital or otherwise infamous crime, unless a
Presenfmenf or Indictment Of grand jury, except |
IN cases arising an the i0nd and or an
the militia Uhen in actual serrfce in time of war
public danger; shall any person be subject |
for the offense to DO twics put in jeopardy Of
life or limb; nor shall he be compelled in any
criminal case TO be witness against himself, nor
be deprived of life, liberty or property, Without
due process Of iar nor shall private property be
taken for public use without just compensation.
Arr. VI. In all criminal prosecutions, the ac-
cused shall enjoy right to speedy and public
trial. by an impartial jury of the state and district
wherein the CRIME shall have been committed,
which district shall have been previously ascer-
tained by law; 70 be confronted with the witnesses
against him; to have compulsory process tor OBJ
tanning witnesses in his favor, and to have the as
sistance Of counsel for his defence.
ART. VII. In suits ut common law, wherein the
value In controversy shall exceed twenty dollars,
the right of trial by jury shall be preserved; and
no fact tried by ajury shall be otherwise reexam-
ined IN any other court ofthe United States than
according to the rules of common law.
Arr VIII. Excessive bail shall not be required,
nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and anusu-
al punishment inflicted.
We have made our citations full. not
merely in Difference to the apparent inacces-
sibility of the document at Washington, but
because we wished every reader to see that
the passages we have placed in italics are
not garbled nor picked, but that they are of
the essence aud vitality of the constitution
itself. Being SO, how can We justify, or ex
| cuse, or even keep silence with regard to the
military trials just initiated at Washington
A miscreant, acting in concert with other as
sassins, has attempted the life of the secreta-
~ OF state, and, though his purpose was de,
| feated, he nevertheless severely wounded
Gov. Seward. his oldest son, and two or three
| kha-o kn ~ l.
this william and his confederates should be
sternly dealt with but why not according to
the law? What reason, what excuse, can
be urged to justify the sending of this case
before court martial and having it tried in
secret7 How can euch q trial be reconciled
with the plain provisions of the constitution
above quoted
As to the military trial of those who con
spired with Booth to assassinate the prssi-
dent, and aided to achieve that fell purpose.
the outrage is not quite so fragrant but
such trial is at, least blunder, while en-
shroudipg it In secrecy is utterly indefensible
To try doctor for his life because he set a
strangers broken bone, and gave. or sold, OF
lent him a pair of crutches, may just doe
but TO try him in secre:, allowing NO repor,
ofthe testimony but such as the prosecution
sees fit to make, is nothing less than sbomin
able. Two months ago il would have beer
endured for the country's sake now there j,
no reason that it should be. We warn al
who take any voluntary part In these strang,
proceedings that the rebellion is suspended
the war at an end, and the right 10 uspeuc
the privilege of habeas corpus and make the
will of secretary of war the supreme law o
the land, has expired. If our present secre
, tary cannot be made to realize these gray,
truths, it is high time he had successor
and if our attorney general believes the as
ssilant of Secretary Seward now illegally
triable before q military commission" b.
badly needs his own time for the completion
of his legal studies, while the government
needs a new law officer. There may be DO
liter ways of setting forth these convictions
but none of these would do them justice.
Gentlemen Of the cabineti the war, east
ward Of the Mississippi, is ended the rebel
lion Ia suppressed; the Union is re establish
ed, and peace virtually restored wherefOr
the people demand of you a speedy and thor
ough return to the safe and orderly ways o
law and liberty. Do not compel them I
speak in tones that you cannot refuse t
, hear!
From the New York Times Republican paper
May IL.
1t is very possible the publication of tn
! evidence taken on the trial of the conspira
tors at Washington might prevent the arres
of some persons implicated in the crime c
assassination who are now ut large but thei
. arrest must be of very great Importance in
! deed. if the fear of their escaping is sufh
cient TO justify the profound secrecy wit
: which it has been determined TO surroun
the proceedings The chief of Booths &C
r completes, it is fair to conclude, are those 70
: whose apprehension a reward has been Of
fered-Davis, Tucker, Sanders 4 Co.-an
1t is not pretended that anything which ma
: transpire at the trial at Washington, will
: in the least degree. affect the chance of thei
. escape They and their friends have Gel
| tainly been as much put on their guard b
: the presidents proclamation as they ar
: likely to be by anything else that can occur
h 1t is not unfair to conclude therefore, ths
e Athe parties who may escape, should publicly
given to the proceedings" are "parties" of an il
s ferior degree of guilt; and now within the limit
g | of the United States, and if SO, we cannot hel
saying that it is, for various weighty reasons to
regretted that their capture should be deeme
: either so important difficult to be made th
pretext or occasion of introducing into our erin
g inal procedure sorextraordinary anomaly as
trial BY military commission for a capital o.
Tense, with closed doors, and with an oath of 81
D crecy imposed on all persons taking part in tn
proceedings. We think it would have been inf
nitely better to have postponed the trial till a
+ publicity could do no harm, even If that perio
were likely to be six months distant, than intro
duce in this country novel a tribunal, and ON
so repugnant to the spirit of our institutions,
that which is now sitting at Washington. 1t
3 one for which no precedent is to be found in th
history of any free country, and one TO which tn
worst European despotisms have rarely ventured
even in Poland or Hungary, to resort Even tn
unhappy victims of the Irish rebellion were pre-
pared for the gallows in open court, and in tn
light OF day.
Moreover, there are strong doubts entertaine