Lewistown gazette. [volume] (Lewistown, Pa.) 1843-1944, 1866-07-11
The Supreme Court Of PENNSYLVANIA.

The Supreme Court Of Pennsylvania.
This tribunal has on several occasions
made some extraordinary decisions since
Judge Woodward has been on the bench;
tive OF which it appears to US are at war
with common sense and many years re-
cognized practice. The first of these was
that DISTINGUISHING soldiers in the field
from voting because they Were not IN
their election districts, a decision which,
if carried out, would render every vote
cast in Derry, Granville, Oliver and
Wayne in this county illegal, for none of
these voten their districts, and the other is
that declaring a dcscrter must be tried
and convicted before he can be disfran-
ch;scd, or in other words, desertcr is no
descrtCr so long as he can avoid arrest and
trial. Common sense, it appears 10 Us,
would have induced Woodward, Thomp-
son and Strong, who made this decision,
TO examine what constituted IL desertcr IN
military practice, and what was consid
cred proof against him until he cxculpa-
ted himself. The company rolls in such
case are evidence of desertion, and the
uniform practice of the L. :. government
has been to regard these rolls as conclu-
siye whether hOnorably discharged, on
turIough, missing or deserted And this
is quite reasonable. Soldiers are seldom
alone, and if one is found absent from
camp or even a picket, it is not difficult
10 determine whether lie has deserted or
n hat ..f
III such cases they arc never marked as
dcsCrtcrS unless positive evidence is OBJ
tanned that they did desert. The follv OF
this decision can be best illustrated by the
fact that We're these three Judges in the
supreme Court of the United States. a de-
se"ter or draft skedadlcr would have no
difficulty in recovering both pay and
bounty for the full term, because. say
the"c astute law politicians, they must
first be H'jcd and cOnrjcted. and rs other
judges have already decided that. the war
being over, they can no tongcr be tricd for
those O3cnceS, it follows that in the opjn-
ion Of Woodward, Thompson and Strong.
draft skcdadlers, bounty jumpers, and
descrters were good soldiers, entitled to
pay, bounty and honor for their services!
Woodward at times acts so strangely, that
he must be perfect political bigot, or
very defective in memory. Witness the
following, which occurred on the trial of
the Franklin county case:
NJ: Mcclure said 1t seems TO me need
less to discuss the constitutional power of
the Government to raise armies by con-
ScrptIOn, when this court had already af-
hrmei heconstiUutionalityO
ton law Of March 3, 1868, in the case of
hngedlcT vs. Lane.
Woodward, {. j. The constitutionali-
ty Of the cOnscription law was never af-
tirmed by this court
Mr. Mcclure. | have before me what
puTports to be the opinion of this court.
III hneedier vs.. Lane, 9th Wright. 295,
by which final Judgment was rendered,
ana 1T atlirms the constitutionalitv of the
conscrlption law in the clearest terms.
Read, }. This court did certainly as
Sert the constitutionality OF the conscrip-
tiOn law.
Woodward, c. J. On the contrary. it
has decided it unconstitutional in regular
form.
Strong, J. This court has certainly de-
cidcd That the conscription law is consti-
tutIonal, Mr.. Mcclure, and you can pro-
ceed with your argument.
in, l.