Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1866-06-21
& E4ast Appeal for Justice 10 jeff.
FEsyfs.

+
presses the sentiments Of tie loyal 'o2le of the
country. 1t is worse than useless to try the arc-
traitor by jury composed or men in some de-
gree as guilty himself. The inmates of two
hundred and fifty thousand loyal graves are calling
for the bolt of vengeance to fall upon the guilty
head of the leader of the rebellion, AMI who will
dare to interpose sentimentility to avert Tie fate
Of one whose mad ambition has brought so muclI
woe and misery upon the landl The Tribune
slysi
The House Of Representatives, BY vote Of l05
to I9 have passed a resolution that Jefferson DA-
Wis ought to be held in custody prisoner and
subjected 10 trial according to the laws Of the land.
The question is then simply, how is this military
prisoner be to tried for the crime OF leading the
6elionl Wcslv. let him be tried before a mill
itary tribunal. From those who think otherwise,
we would be glad To receive explicit Affirmative
or negative answers to the following questions
]. l. thcr any magical or supernatural quality
attaching to jury oftwelve men, which renders
them the only, or, under all circumstances, the
best mode of obtaining Justice?
,. Would not twelve prominent officers of the
Uaited States army combine more integrity, loyal
ty, Intelligence, virtue and humanity, and more of
every rienia AMI moral quality requisite in tho
fair trial of any criminal and especially of Davis,
than twelve residents OF Virginia selected by lot
from among all the qualified jurors Of that State.
3. Is there an inherent distinction between
mere treason, which is overt attempt to over
throw the power of Government while and where
that Government IL still rcgnant, and rebellion and
civil war, which are the effect of having over
thrown the authority of the Government over
particular district. and therein established new
de tIcto Government which, wi'hin that rebeliious
district secures To itself while it lasts the allegiance
md he e - r-,f.1
i. Was not rebellion, rather than treason, tie
crime OF Jefferson DLyisl
). While rebellion includes treason. as the
greater includes the less they not treated differ
entity by the Constitution Does not the Consti
tuition expressly provide for and define the crime
OF treason, thereby making it crime under the
Constitution and. thus bring it within that section
OF TIE Constitution which declares that ''the trial
o. all crimes except in cases of impeachment, shalt
be by jury" Every trial for treason. therefore,
must be before jury, because treason is crime
created and defined by she Constitution. Il is a
statutory crime, and must be tried according to
the statute in such made and provided"
But rebellion is not crime created or deiiSed By,
or punishable under, the Constitution. 1t srecOG
nized indeed as as a crime. because Congress is
clothed v it'll the power ''to provide for calling
forth to suppress insurrecten and repel nvason'."
Canada tries invaders who are without belligerent
rights by court mutial. We would do the same.
The power to punish invaders is incident 10 the
power to repel them. - the power 10 punish reb
els IS incident to the power 70 suppress the rebel
lion England whose laws relative 10 jury trials
for treason are :he same As ours, never tries the
leader OF a rebellion before a jury. She did not
in India or Ireland. She tresis rebellion as diff
ferent crime So our Constitution and statutes bv
appointing the military power to suppress rebel
lion, recognized it as n purely military crime.
which needed neither to be defined by statute nor
tried according to statute. They expected the
same power which suppressed rebellion to punish
its leaders. Whea the Constitution delares that
all crimes shall be tried before jury, it means all
C constitutional and statutory iimcs. Ii does not
mean that spies, guerllas violators OF The laws OF
war, rebels, or any other class OF military crimi-
mails shall be 50 tried. This is plainly shown by
the act o. 1893, framed to carry into effect the
provision oi the Constitution authorizing Congress
ID suppress Instructions. That &C: provided in
substance, that "whenever in any State, the exc
cution OF the Federal laws should be resisted by
combinations of men too power ful to be ov ercome
by the ordinary process of the courts and by the
United States Marshals. the President might call
out the militia" &c. Here it is implied that re-
belliOn is a military crime, which supersedes the
functions of courts of justice. and renders nugatorY
all Judges and Mtrsh.ls. If it be so in its COM
INITIAL, it must be so in its punishment. Under
whatever law crime is committed It must be tried
We ask, therefore, if the Constitution and laws do
hot define as statutory crime. to b. tried
before jury, AMI leave rebellion. incidentlv re-
cOgnized but not defSed. % be trie as military
crime, III the same manner as all other crimes
which are incident to, and can only be committed
during a state Of war.
g. Is it not essential to Jury that it shall be Sc
lected according to the rules of the common law
viz. OF men drawn by lot from the whole number
of qualified jurors in the district of trial. and that
they shall be subject TO the usual challenges, shall
not be accessories 10 the prisoners crime, and
shall have formed no opinion upon his casef-
ould not jury drawn by lot be in fact nearly all
accessories to jeff Davis crime, and sure to acquit
the prisoner? l. there any intelligent man in the
United States who has formed no opinion OF the
guilt or innocence ofJefr Davsl Does the nature
OF the case admit OF any new proof not knovH 20
US ALL Is it not simply impraetcable, therefore,
to try him before juryl And il 80, must we per-
form an impossbility in order to obtain justice?-
Ii it be impossible to try him before jury, is u
not, and has in not always been impossible in the
nature OF things to try every other rebel chietan
in great rebellion before a jury2 And II so, IS
it not probable that the foreknoweldge OF such
a contingency caused the fr'mers OF the Consutu-
ton to design to leave rebellion TO be suppressed
and punished by military force only7
T. Juries are for the trial ofquestions ot iact.-
1t is question of fact whether Jeff Davis lev
led against the United States. Tie Will not de-
ny it, History is 50 full OF it that the courts have
taken judicial notice Of it, without proof by declar-
ing the entire Confederate States of which he was
the head to be alien enemies. Where there is no
question of fact TO be ri d. what need can there be
of jury?
6. Statutory Courts are appointed for the trial
of questions of law. There is no question Of law
in jeff Davis case. For to admit that it is an
open question whether the State Of Virginia had n
right to secede is TO admit that JEFF. Davis CON-
miited no crime. No court can hear an argument
on supposed question which it is MT at liberty to
decide in either of two ways. Ii its discretion on
the question is reduced to the liberty to decide
it only one wav, then the question is already de-
cded, and is no question. Such is the position OF
the question of the right of a State to secede,
which is the only one jeff Davis would seek TO
raise. HeLce there is no question of law in the
case for court TO try, and why, therefore, shouo
be be tried before a court of law!
9. Jeff Davis in rebelling appealed 10 the law
of force he was met and suodued by force. he is
now held bv force, AMI any punishment that may
be visited upon him. must be the simple express
sion of the will Of the loyal twenty millions of the
American people, administered through their mill
tary arm by force. By such a mode OF trial would
not Justice be attained7 BY any other do we not
conclude the rebelions great and sacred tradegy
by most ridiculous farce2
On the subject of calves the editor Of the
Richmond "Humming Bird" is musical, as fol-
lows:
Domestic animals generally seem to be doing
Al. - r L. \