The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1867-06-20
THE ATTORNEY GENERALS OPINION

We publish this morning the opinion of The
Attorney General. 1t is very able opinion,
md from his point of view, clear md conc lusivc
We must suppose that its publication means
TINT tho President intends TO bnso somo action
upon it. Otherwise that publication is not
only useless but mischevous. If this opinion
is tho proper construction of tho ReconBtruc-
tion Act, then all the orders which havo been
issued from the Head Qunrters Of this Military
District arc al once cancelled, and what is moro,
the officer issuing them il responsible to any
individual in damages for any loss that those
orders have caused.
Whether this Interpretation of the Act is cor
rect. is o legal question which we will not
undertake to decide. But IL does not require
legal education 10 perceive that this whole
question of construction depends rather upon
tho intention Of the Act, than its words. The
roal issue is not what this or that clauso CON be
Interpreted to mean, but whnt really was the
power, with which Congress intended 10 invest
tho military commanders Of the District. In
other words this Act is something more than
law of which any individual nny claim tho
technical consruction-t is tho solution of a
|
wider than any nero Legal enactment affecting
only private rights.
In examining this opinion therefore, tho in
quiry MS to its policy, rs we'll as its technical
merits, forces itself upon our consideration
And in discussing this question il is impossible
to disregard tho public history of it's passage
In 1860, amer the surrender or Gen. LER, il
Immediately became question, whether the
! seeded States were TO bc restored TO tho
| Union. If 80, on whit terms, and by whom
these terms wero to be prescribed. The Prcsi-
dent claimed tho right TO effect this restoration
by schome of his own dcvising. Coneress
refused 10 admit bis right, and for two years
this question, as to where tho right of road
mission restcd, exercised the national legisa-
ture. 1t WAS settled by the passage of the Re-
| construction Act Of 1867. That Act decided
the right TO be in Congress, tho law-making
power of the Government. and prescribed tho
terms and mode Of its accomplishment.
When this Act was passed, although over his
veto, the President resolved 10 execute il, and
| did 80 by the appointment of tho ivo Command
ing dcncrals required by lis provisions. They
were appointed and sent 10 their commands
,rifhout initruefioai, and were thus compelled
to depend upon their own construction Of the
Act. X is difficult to understand why this
was SO. The samo able officer who has now
construed tho Act, was then Us he il now,
the chief Low officer of the Government
tho same vicws which he holds now, il
is to bo presumed he hold thon-nnd surely if
ever thcre was proper time when tho Com
manding Geuerais should havo received full
and precise instructions as to their powers
md duties, il was then when thoy were
entering upon tho exercise of their
novel authority, and before their action
could be complicated by the conflict of civil and
military powor. If, as tho Attorney q eneral
says, "Lheir education and training have moi,
boen Of the kind to ft them for the delicate and
difficult task Of giving construction 10 suoh
statute as that now under consideration, why
for four months have they not only been allow
ed, but compelled to construe it? Not only 40.
a month Ind not elapsed after their appoint
ment before, BY their acts and their orders,
they gave unmistakable evidence of what their
construction was-n construction which, we now
learn from the Attorney General, was ununr-
ranted and illegal, md by which the lives and
tho property of free citizens for oil this time
were unjustly imperilled. Why did not the
President interfercf Why, during these months
Of illegal oppression, was the military COM
mnnder Of this District, for example, allowed
to "Put himself upon IN equality with the law
making power of tho Union," OF "to place him
self on higher ground than the President" and
"to declare, in effeot, am the slatef"
If, during all this time, the authority of the
military commander depended upon the Presi-
dents construction Of the Act, why did ho not
do his duty and construe it! Why did he hnnd
over tho people Of those States to the mercy
and discretion Of a more military usurpationf
IT. on the contrary, this power Of construo-
lion was only to DO exercised in conformity
with some political necessity, Whist has occurred
to change tho condition Of things existing at
the passage Of the not Whence did the mill
tary commanders derive the construction which
they have enforced, and why was not that con-
struction authoritatively correctedf But not
only have the Commanding oficors the right to
complain that they have been betrayed by the
Government, but whit is our position-the peo-
pie Of these statesi We watched with painful
anxiety the debates on this bill-it was passed.
Tho commanding officers were appointed. What
was our dutyf To obey or to disobey them :
Where did we look for informationf To the
President. We saw him execute the Act; we
saw him appoint the commanders; We read
order after order, dealing with our most i'm
portant interests reversing our oldest establish.
ed laws, revolutionizing the whole frame work
OF our State Government, but we heard no word
Of disapproyal, no reversal Of these orders, no
Interference In our behalf Take, for example.
Order No. 10. which has, perhaps, interfered
more generally and more directly with the law
OF the State than any other. II we had the
right to suppose for o moment that the Le-
'ginlalure Of the State would be allowed 70
meet and to toxic charge Of the interests
Of the State, does any ono doubtthat Il
would have been assembled and called upon
to do It's duiyf But this order was issued
without the slightest manifestation Of disap-
proYal on the part Of tho Government, and ge
naturally concluded that IL was In the exeroiss
Of q recognized authority. and undor this I'm
preston we hove adapted our ncLion to what
VIC conceived 10 be tho Inv Of tho land, and
have proceeded in good failh towards the work
of reconstruction in tho mode which we had