Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1867-07-20

all the departments Of the Federal Gov
eminent, acting in concert or separately,
have net dared to exercise, is here at
tempted to be conferred on subordinate
military officer. To him, as n military
officer of the Federal Government,
IS given the power, supported BY sufi-
cient military force, to remove every
civil officer Of the United States. What
next D. The district commander who has
thus displaced the civil officers Is author
lied to fill the vacancy by the detail of
an officer or soldier of the army. By
the appointment Of some other person
this, military officer, whether an officer
or soldier, is to perform duties OF such
officer or person so suspended or re-
moved. In other words, an officer or
soldier of the army is transferred into a
civil officer He may be made Gov
ernor, a Legislator or Judge. However
unfit he may deem himself for such civil
duties, he must obey the order, The
officer, if detailed, must 60 on the
Supreme Bench Of the State with
the same prompt obedience as If de-
tailed to act in court martial The
soldier, il detailed to act as justice Of
the peace, mist obey as quickly as If
detailed for picket duty. What is the
character Of such military civil officers Z
This bill declares that he shall perform
the duties of the civil Office to which he
is detailed. It's clear, however, that he
does not lose his position in the military
service he is still an officer or soldier;
he is still subject to the rules and regu
lations which govern the army-must
yield due respect and obedience towards
his superiors. The clear intent Of this
section is that the officer or soldier
detailed to ell a civil Office must
execute its duties according to the laws
of the State. If he is appointed Gov
ernor of State, he is to execute his du-
ties as provided by the laws Of that State,
and for the time being his military char
acter is to be suspended in his new civil
capacity. If he is appointed State
Treasurer he must at once assume Gus
tody and disbursements of funds Of the
State, and perform those duties precisely
"
according to the laws Of the State, for he
is intrusted with no other official duty or
other official power when holding the
Office of Treasurer and intrusted with
funds. 1t happens that be is required
by the State laws to enter into
bond with security and take
an oath of office. From the beginning
of the bill to the end there is no provi-
sion of any bond or oath of office, or for
any single qualification required under
State laws, such as residence, citizenship,
or anything else, The only oath is that
provided for in the ninth section, by the
terms Of which every one detailed or
appointed to any civil Office in a State is
required to take an oath prescribed by
law for officers Of the United States.
Thus an officer Of the army of the United
States, ordered to Gil civil Office in one
of these States, gives no official bond and
takes no official oath for the performance
Of bis rev duties; but as civil officer of
the State, he easily takes the same oath
which he had already taken as
military officer of the United States.
He is at least a military officer per
forming civil duties, and the authority
under which he acts is Federal authority
only, aud the inevitable result is that the
Federal, by the agency of its own Off
GERS, in effect, assumes the civil govern
ment of the State. A singular contra
diction is apparent here. Congress de-
clares these local State governments to
be illegal governments, and then provides
that these illegal governments shall be
carried on by Federal officers, who are to
performthe veryduties imposed on its own
officers by this illegal State authority.
II certainly would be novel spectacle
if Congress should attempt to carry on
legal State government by the agency
of its own officers. tits yet more strange
that Congress attempts to sustain and
carry on an illegal State government by
the same Federal agency. In this con-
nection must call attention to the tenth
and eleventh sections Of this bill,
which provide that some of the officers
or appointees Of these military com
manders shall be bound in his action by
an opinion Of civil officer of the
United States, aHd that all the provisions
Of the act shall be construed literally to
the end that all interest thereof may be
fully and perfectly carried out. 1t seems
that Congress supposed this bill might
require construction, and they therefore
applied this rule but where is the con-
struction to come from2 Certainly no
one can be more in want Of instruction
than a soldier or an officer detailed for a
civil service, perhaps the most important
in State, with the duties of which he is
altogether unfamiliar. This bill says
he shall not be bound in his action
by the opinion of any civil officer Of the
United States. The duties Of the Office
are altogether unfamiliar, but when he
asks for instructiops he can only ask the