Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1866-12-14
sTNGUHAR POSITION ASSUMED ny
FHAm- GTENERE


cincinnati Eaquies telegraphs that pa
YER under date Of the llth inst, aslol-
ows
"The position assumed by Mr.. Stevens in
he House to-day has produced a sensation,
and Is the subject Of discussion generally.
This evening, in a brief debate on a propo-
sition Of Mr.. Lawrence. Of Ohio, TO repeal
the statute Of limitation in trials for trea-
son, and provide that any man guilty Of
that ofiense may be tried anywhere and at
any time, Mr.. Lawrence gave as a reason for
the passage Of this bill, that unless it should |
be enacted, we cannot hang Jefferson Davis. |
Several members took legal exceptions |
10 NJ. Lawrenee's proposition, but Dir. |
Stevens went still further He said he |
would rather see every traitor in the coun-
try escape than 10 see one Of them hung by
a law passed after bis Oflense and for the
purpose Of hanging him. Mr.. Stevens de-
nounced such legislation as entirely unjusti-
fable and discreditable. He did not be-
Heve Mr.. Davis could be tried for treason
nor that he had been guilty of treason. His
offense was that Of a belligerent, not Of a
traitor He Mr. Stevens) had not opposed
the efforts TO bring Mr. Davis 70 trial, but
he had not favored them He was utterly
opposed to any legislation Of the kind pro
posed. which would make the mode, time
or place Of trial different from what they
were when the oiiense was committed.
In the regular telegraphic synspsis of
the proceedings Of the House Of Repre-
sentatiyes Mr. Stevens is reported sub
stantially as by the Eaqpirers cores
pendent, as follows
Mr. Stevens, Of Pennsylvania, obtained
the floor and said Mr.. Speaker, | APP
proach with great distrIst all bills of this
kind, which are evidently brought forward
for the purpose Of ascertaining how we can
convict men whom we cannot convict un-
der the laws existing when the crimes were
| committed. / do not believe that il be-
comes this nation. | do not believe that il
is safe for us to undertake to pass laws by
which we can or NAV be able tOpunish men,
however guilty, that could not be punished
under the laws existing when the crimes
were committed. Could we now change
our constitution 80 rs TO change the place
Of trial Of traitoH--to say that the venue
might be changed, and that they should be
tried by Jurors summoned from another
| bailiwick? The constitution and our laws
provide very carefully that, especially in
the case Of treason, the party charged with
crime must be tried where the overt act
was committed, in district previously as
certained by law. A law which proposes
TO change that in any respect looks to me
so much like an attempt to commit Judicial
hot / harrr I Of. 4 10
attempt il. | am afraid that the traitors in
| the South, il tried under our existing con-
stitution and laws, will not one of them be
convicted. | would never attempt to try
them for treason. would try them as
belligerents, under the law Of nations and
the laws Of war
This is rather singular position for
the leader of the Radicals ia the House
Of Represe natives to assume. His party
has persistently demanded The trial of
JEFF Davis for treason, bat for some rea-
son, sufficient to himself no doubt they
could never bring their Chief Justice up
to the sticking point Now, after all
the clamor that has been made for the
trial Of the lone prisoner Of Fortress
Monroe the great head centre Of the
Radicals in the House Of Representatives
declares that he would not attempt 10 try
Mr. Davis for treason, because lac could
not be convicted under the constitution
and laws This il, indeed, a remarkable
confession to come from the source it
does, for it is a confession that there is
no sincerity in his party, or that they are
too ignorant of the laws Of their country
to be trusted with power under these
laws The charge of treason against Mr.
Davis is to be abandoned, and the Radi-
Gals are 10 demand that he shall be tried
as a belligerent, under the law Of nations
and the laws of war. This is substanS
TALLY the outgiving of a man who has
more to do with the shaping of the poll
cy" of the Radicals than any.other man
save Wendell Phillips This is virtually
an Abandonment of all charges against
MIR Davis, for as belligerent he has yio-
lated no law of nations nor any Of the
articles of war To this complexion hal
it to come When Thad Stevens declared
at the commencement Of the first session
Of the present Congress that the House
of Representatives know no such State as
the State of Tennessee, and that the
Southern States were extinct States, en-
titled to no rights or privileges except
such as n generous conqueror might
grant-in which he was sustained by the
House Of Representatives. assumed a
position which necessitated an abandon
ment Of the charge of treason against Mr.
Davis and those who acted with him.
That position, to be maintained with any
show of decency necessitated the ac-
cording of belligerent rights to the Confed,
crates, and although this was distasteful
to the party that had denied it to them
during the whole of the war, it has now
to be done in order to carry out the pro-
gramme of the Radicals. They want
some semblance Of reason, however faint
it may be, forthe blo.ting out orexistence
ten sovereign States and handing them
over to the control of the late negro
slaves in those States The Republican
party went into the war, declaring that
not one star should be blotted from the
Aag Now It suits the whm Of the Radi-
Gals to blot out ten in the hope that there
by their rule may be perpetuated
After the confession of Thad Stevens,
the country should hear no more about
the indisposition Of President Johnson
to bring JET Davis to trial All that has
been said against the President on this
score by the Radicals, is now shown by
Thad Stevens to have been the merest
bosh 1t is a disgrace to the government
that a citizen should be held for
nearly two years ostensibly 10 be
tried upon the grave charge Of having
committed treason against that govern
ment and now the leader Of the party in
power, before that citizen has been ar
raigned before judicial tribunal, aban-
dons the charge and flies to one which he
knows amounts simply to a farce. Aud
he will doubtless, as he has in everything
else, carry the Legislative department with
him In the name of Justice, what JUS
tfcation can Sle made to the civilized