The Daily clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1866-1888, 1867-03-08

vision is practically imperative Cd Cruel
, or unusual punishments are not 10 be In
fiicted, but who Is to decide what Is cruel
. aud unusual3 The words have acquired a
legal meaning by long use in the Courts.
Can 10 be expected that military officers will
understand and follow a rule In Language 80
purely technical and not pertaining III the
least degree to their professlon2 II not, then
such officer may define cruelty according to
his own temper, and II not usual, he will
make Ii usual. Corporal punishment the
gag, tho chain and ball, and other almost
. insnpporLable forms Of torture invented for
military punishment will be within the range
Of choice, Sd The sentence Of commits
sion Is not to be executed without approval
by the commander, II II affects life or liber-
IT,, and sentence Of death must be approx
ed by the President. This applies TO cases
In which there has been trial and sentence.
/ take IL to DO clear, under the bill, that the
military commander may condemn to death
without even the form of trial by military
commission, so that the life of the condemn
, cd may depend on the will Of two men in
stead Of one. 1t is plain that the authority
here given TO the military officer amounts
more uncomfortable the bill provides that 1t
may be delegated to as many subordinates
as he chooses to appoint for IL declares "he
shall punish or cause TO he punished" Such
power has not been welded by any mon
arch in England for more than 500 years.
In all that time no people who speak the
English language have borne such servitude
1t reduces the whole population of the ten
cnmd;Hon and avery -strorS ,er Within thoir
lite 30 tha ynost ahiact ana dagroJ;na,
aia,,o,,, ~ NJ. ,,,asta. 49, LoJ an,strai ~
absolute over his slaves as this bill gives to
military officers oyer both white and colOred
pp,,;aara 80 M or,,s, ~ ~ ,as,na,s;,,ns
irst and humane to onnrssa and tram,,ie
uno, ! snIinaated ,,aonle AZ NOT da,ht
tbat army ofIicers are "a well entitled 10 this
conf;denca 90 any other class az men Rnt
tba history Of the world has been written
| in vain. II n does NOT teach ustbat nnre.
strained authority can never be safely trust.
| ed in human hands. IL has always been
more or less abused, under any circumstance
and it has always resulted in gross tyranny
where rulers who are strangers to their sinh
iects, come among them as the representa-
| tive of n distant mower and mora esnao;aiIv
when the mower that sends them Ia ,Infriend
| ~ Govarpmanta cloaaIv rasamhi;nn tbat
bare nronoaed have hean fnllv tr;eJ IL HIM
garv and Poland. ana the snifsring anJnrad
| 3v those neonIe aronsed tha sym55atbias nf
the entire world II was tried n TralanS
and thongh nj first temnerad hv tba nr;nci'
w.
ties SO atrocious TINT thew are never recount.
| ed without lust indignation The French
| Convention armed its IDENTITIES with this
| mower and sent them to the Sontbern do.
nartments of the repnblic The massocrea
murders and other atrocities which thew
committed show what the passons Of tbe
ablest men in the most civilized society viii
ATTEMPT to do when wholly uprestrained by
law. The men of orr race in every ooe
4 a Al.
governments and keep them within the law.
because the experience of all mankind taught
them that rulers could not be relied on to
concede those rights which they were NOT
legally bound TO respect. The head Of
great empire has sometimes governed with
mild sway and kindness, but an irresponsi
Bile subordinate never Yields what the law
does not extort. Between such a minister
and the peonle subiugated to his domination
there cal, be nothing INF enn,itv Ha nm,
isbes them If tbev resist bis anfboritv and
II thew snbmit To n ba bates tbem fny tta;r
serviIity.
come now to a question which ifnos.i. |
BILE, is far more important. Have we tbs
power to establish and carry into execution
a measure like this 2 / answer certainly |
not If we derive our authority from the
Constitution and if we are bound by the /
limitations which it proposes. this proposi.
ton is perfectly clear, that no branch OF the
Federal Government Executive, Legislative
or Judicial can have any lust mowers excent
those which it derives through and exerci-
ses under the organic law Of the Union.
Outside of the Constitution we have no legal
authority more than private citizens, and
within it we have only SO much as that in
strument gives us. This broad principle
limits all our functions and applies to all
subjects. 1t protects not only the citizens
nf bn Gfato yhn l,
Union, but shields every human being who
comes or is brought under our jurisdiction.
We have no right to do in one place more
than in another that which the Constitution
says we shall not do at all.
If, therefore, the Southern States were in
truth ont of the Union, we could not treat
their people in manner which the fnnda-
mental law forbids. Some people assume
that the success of our arms, in crushing the
opposition which was made in some States
to the execution of Federal laws, reduced
those States and all their people, the inno-
cent as well as the guilty, to the condition ,
Of vassalage and gave us power over them ,
which the Constitution does not bestow, or
iefine, or limit. No fallacy can be more !
than this Our victories sub !
ected the insurgents to legal obedience not !
% the yoke ofan arbitrary despotism. When I
IN absolute sovereign reduce his rebellious !
ubjects he may deal with them according !
o his pleasure, because he had that power
,efore. But where limited monarch puts =
Iown rebellion, he must govern according =
o law. If any instruction should take e
lace in one of our States against the auth =
rity of the State government, and end in r
be overthrow of those who planned it, :
you'd that take away the rights of all the y
cople of the counties where It was covered a
v part or majority of the population a
iould they for such reason be wholly out a
.wed and deprived of their representation =
! the Legislature 2 / have always conten- =,
ed that the Government of the United =,
tates was sovereign within its constitution =
phere, that it executed its laws like the 3
tates themselves, by EMPLOYING its coerciye :
overs directly to individuals. and that II =,
Ould put down instruction with the same /,
feet as O State, and no other. The oppo- n
tie doctrine is the worst heresy of those n,
Tho advocate secession, and cannot be q
greed to without admitting that heresy to =,
Q right Invasion, insurrection, rebellion h,
nd domestic violence, were anticipated h
hen the Government was framed, and the az
eans ofrepelling and suppressing them were in
isely provided for in the Constitution. But I'll
was not thought necessary to declare that tl
Ia States N whiah thew mi chit 0pCur ab0uld Al