East Saginaw courier., 1866-05-23
Tho Trial OF Davis.

treason is determined upon, and VIII
take place ut Richmond. Attorney
General Speed will be assisted by
W.m. NJ. Evarts of New York, and
Judge Clifford Of Massachusetts,, in
conducting the prosecution. Charles
UConnor and Ransom Ii. Gillett, OF
this State, will defend the prisoner
Mr.. Gillett, formerly OF St Lawrence,
in this State, was Solicitor Of the
Treasury under the administration OF
Pierce, and has resided much at
Washington, where ho is recognized
as among the foremost practitioners in
the Federal Courts. He has sum-
mer residence at New Lebanon, CO.
llmbia county, in this State.
Treason against the United States"
according to the Constitution, "shall
consist only III levying war against
them, or in adhering to their enemies,
giving them aid and comfort J" and if
tho Constitution had spoken no fur
iher, the guilt of the great Coniede-
rate chieitain and his conviction
might be clear enough. Charges,
convictions and executions for treason
had been the crime Of English His
tory for centuries. The wars of rhe
Roses and the religious wars had
numbered tens of thousands of VIC
Tins. If Henry VIII wanted to sac
rifce a wife, ho made her crime
: treason, and any pretense of proof
sufficed. Elizabeth, and James and
Charles, followed the evil example,
The Puritan Cromwell was not be-
hind his predecessors and the eflemi-
nate reign of tho warning Stuarts was
rife with plots and red with blood OF
victims. Whatever the monarch or
the party in power chose to regard as
treason, was treason; and all the rules
of evidence were disregarded in secu-
ring convictions. The punishments
inflicted showed the vindictive charac-
ter of the English law and men live
to-day who have seen the heads OF the
Scottish lairds who fought for the pre-
tender, grinning in ghastly decay on
tho gates Of the London Temple
The cruelty of the law is still pre-
served in its letter, and survives its
spirit. 1t is but few years ago that
an Irish rebel was sentenced by an
English Judge to be hung, and his
body quartered, with all the revolving
incidents of u barbarous age. These
atrocities were not carried INTO effect
but they showed that the cruel charac-
teristics of the law still inhered to the
the statute after the age had grown
civilized and softened.
Against all this cruelty, against the
fell spirit that treated the State as in
fallible, and all who doubted it as con
demned, and above all against the
looseness of evidence upon which con
victions were secured, the liberal mel
of England and indeed of all Europe
protested They fought a great bat
tie against the Crown and Court AM
won it. In England the Bill o
Rights protected the subject agains
the tyranny of power. BY long fight
ing the battles Of the oppressed the
almost became enamored OF rebels
Under that name, Hampden and Sid
ney had died and a noble host
martyrs to civil and religious hbert
had persisted. q -.
"Rebellion," said one Of the leaC
ing spirits in the British Parliamen
rebellion, sir, is part of the commo
law of England" And Jefferson,
one of his letters, expresses the hol
that no century would pass without
II rebellion, to keep alive the spirit
liberty in the people.
Every man who fought in the Re
olution was q conscious rebel Jol
Hancock made his bold signature
the spirit of defiance; aDd Charl
Carroll, of Carrollton, gave that fl
designation, so that the good eau
failing, the law when it came to sci
its victims should not mistake the ma
- When these rebels came to make
Constitution, their first care was
guard it against too hasty convictio
of treason There. was to be-.
constructive" treason. 1t was
consist only in waging war, &C.
reported confessions were to be
oepted as evidence but only "cont
sion in open court" There must
covert acts" and for every overt
two witnesses. The trial was to
had within the State where the Offer
was committed and TO this,
amendment to the Constitution ado
the requirement of an impartial j.
in the State and District where
crime shall have been committed
The device of an attainder OF bl'
was abolished; and other safegua
were placed about the accused whl
intended to render tyranny tmpossll
have made the course of justice d
cult. There was one thing that
men of 1898 were determined ur
viz.- that if any one were ever
dicted Tor treason, he should ha,
fair chance to escape. If there
loop-holes in the law, they were III
Intentionally by those Old rebels,
the benefit of their successors III
time to come. hu -
II is matter Of regret that
great State trial which is soon t
placed upon the records of our
tional history, and form part OF
great traditions of civil conflicts,
become one of the great preceden
law, should have such an unwo
commencement. Judge Underw
one of that spurious judiciary ere
in the course Of illegitinate fac
made a stump speech to the u
Jury, which was disgraceful eve
specimen of the oratory OF
stump; and upon this instigation
we knowlnot what other base
tho Indictment was procured.