The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-03-30


tried and punished in the Federal
courts. How is the criminal to be
tried? If the offense is provided for
and punished by Federal law, that law,
and not the State law, is to govern. II
is only when the offense does not hap
pen to be within the purview of Federal
law that the Federal courts are TO try
and punish him under any other law.
Then resort is to be had to "the COM
mon law" as modified and changed
"by State legislation" SO far as the
sanle is not inconsistent with the Con-
stitution and laws of the United States,
so that over this vast domain of crimi-
nal Jurisprudence, provided by each
State for the protection of its own citl-
zens, and for the punishment of all
persons who violate its criminal laws,
Federal law, wherever it can be made
to apply, displaces State law. The
question here naturally arises, from
what source Congress derives the power
to transfer to Federal tribunals certain
classes of cases embraced In this sec
ton? The Constitution expressly de-
clares that "the judicial power of the
United States shall extend to all cases
Constitution, the laws of the United
States, and treaties made, or which
shall be made, under their authority;
to all cases affecting ambassadors, or
other public ministers and cOnsuls; TO
all cases of admiralty and maratime
jurisdictions; to controversies to which
The United States shall be party; to
controversies between two or more
States; between State and citizens of
another State; between citizens of diff
ferent States; between citizens of the
same State claiming land under grants
of different States; and between state
or the citizens thereof and foreign
States, citizens or subjects. Here
the judicial power of the United
States is expressly set forth and de-
fined, and the act of September 24th,
1889, establishing the judicial courts of
the United States, in comforting upon
the Federal Courts jurisdiction over
cases originating in State tribunals, IS
careful to confine them to the classes
in the above recited clause
of the constitution. This section of the
bill undoubtedly comPrehends cases,
and authorizes the exercise of powers,
the Jurisdiction of the courts OF the
United States. To transfer them to
those courts would be an exercise of
authority well calculated to excite dis
trust and alarm on the part of all the
States, for The bill applies alike to all
of them-as well to those that have, ns
to those that have not, been engaged in
this authority is incident to the power
granted to Congress by the reconstruction.
as recently amended, to enforce by aP-
proprinte legislation the article declar-
ing "that neither slavery nor involln-
tary servitude, except as punishment
for crime, whereof the party shall have
been duly convicted, shall exist within
the United States, or any place subject
to their jurisdiction" 1t cannot, how
ever, be Justly claimed that, with II
view to the enforcement of this article
of the constitution, there is at present
any necessity for the exercise of all the
powers which this bill confers. Slavery
has been abolished, and at present no.
where exists within the jurisdiction of
the United States, nor has there been,
nor is it likely there will be, any at
tempt torevive it, by the people or the
States. II, however, any such attempt
shall be made, it will then become the
duty of the General Government to eX-
erciSe any and all incidental powers
necessary and proper TO maintain in
violate this great constitutional law of
freedom.
The fourth section of the bill provides
that officers and agents of the Freed
mems Bureau shall be empowered to
mike arrests, and also that other Off
GERS may be specially commissioned for
that purpose by the President of the
United States. 1T also authorizes Cir
cult Courts of the United States, and
the Superior Courts of the Territories,
to appoint, without Limitation, Commits
sioners, who are to be charged with the
of quasi judicial duties.
The 18th section empowers the Com
SO TO be selected by the
courts to appoint, in writing undertheir
one or more suitable persons
from time to time to execute warrants
and other processes described by the
bill. These numerous official agents
ARE made to constitute a sort of police,
in addition to the military, and are au-
to summon posse cO1nltdtuS,
and even to call to their aid such por-
ton of the land and naval forces of the
United States, or of the militia, "as
may be necessary to the performance of
the duty with which they are charged"
This extraordinary power is to be con-
ferred upon agents irresponsible to the
and to the people, to whose
the discretion of the CommtS-
sioners is the only limit, and in whose
hands such authority might be made a
terrible engine of wrong, oppression
and fraud. The general status regula-
ting the land and naval forces of the
United States, the militia, and the exc
cution of the laws, are believed to be
adequate for every emergency which
cun OCCuE III Lllu6 vi IcllSGs II ~ ShOuAA
prove otherwise, Congress can at any
time amend those laws in such manner
as, while subscribing the public welfare,
not TO leopard the rights, interests and
liberties of the people. z 2
The seventh section provides that
fee of ten dollars shall be paid to each
Commissioner in every case brought
before him, and fee OF i've dollars to
his deputy or deputies, for each person
he or they may arrest and take before
any such Commissioner, with such 9th
er fees as may be deemed reasonableb by
such Commissioner in general for per-
forming such other duties as may be
required in the premises. All these
fees are to be paid out of the Treasury
of the United States, whether there Is a
or not, but in case OF con-
viction, they are to be recoverable from
the defendant. 1t seems to me that un-
der the influence of such temptations
bad men might convert any law, how
ever beneficient, into an instrument OF
and fraud.
BY the eighth section of the bill the
United States Courts, which sit only In
one place for white citizens, must mi
CRATE with the Marshal and District At
torney, and necessarily with the Clerk,
he is not mentioned, to any
part of the district, upon the order of
the President, and there hold a court,
for the purpose of the more speedy ar
rest and trial of persons charged with a
violation of this act; and there the
Judge and the officers ofthe court must
remain upon the order of the President
for the time therein designated.
The ninth section authorizes the Pres
ident, or such person as he may em-
power for that purpose, to employ such
part of the land or naval forces of the
United States, or of the militia, as shall
be necessary to prevent the violation
and enforce the due execution of this
act. This language seems to imply a
military force, that is to be
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