Indiana American. [volume] (Brookville, Ind.) 1865-1872, 1867-03-22


its courts open. IL needed no bayonets
to protect il, and required no military aid
to execute its judgments"
When Millgan, Bowles aud Horsey were
arrested and held for trial, as having "con
spired against the government. afforded
aid and comfort to rebels, and incited the
people to insurrection," Grant was press.
ing Lee within his fortifcstions at Rich.
mond, and Sherman was driving back the
rebel hordes preparatory to his grand march
to the sea. Every soldier that could be
spared was sent TO the front. The hospi-
tails were depopulated, and guns furnished
the invalids, TO swell the numbers of the
grand forward movement on which hung
the hopes of the people and the life of the
Republic. Thus stripped cf 81 military
force, there was scarcely "corporal's
guard" from the Pennsylvania line to the
borders Of Arkansas, to protect our homes
from murderers and guerriiios. At Indian
apolis, Chicago. Columbus, and Johnson s
Island there were about thirty thousand
rebel prisoners, ''fat and sleek" from the
full army ration dealt out in mercy by the
loyal hands Of a too lenient but merciful
people. "Tbe Knights of tho Golden
Circle and "Sons Of Liberty" were organ
lied all over Indiana. and said to be armed
and equipped for offensive movements. Ii
was daily occurrence to seize arms and
ammunition iR ronsifu from the East to
their various posts in Indiana and at
Indianapolis large lots of small. arms were
captured, marked "hymn. books and Sab
bath-school tracts" for distribution among
the initiated. The military arrest of
prominent members OF these reasonable
orders disclosed their designs, and that
arms were to be placed in the hands of the
rebel prisoners, and on give1 day turned
loose on the defenceless inhabitants Of
Indiana, Illinois, and Ohio. What would
have been the result, in this Dur defence.
less condition, if we had relied on the
civH process alone to have arrested and
tried these conspirators Our fathers,
brothers, and sons, apprised of the fact
that thirty thousand armed rebels we're to
be turned loose to devastate, lay waste.
and destroy their homes aud families, no
power on earth could have held them. and
of that strength Of numbers which secured
their fnal victories.
Ii was full knowledge Of all these facts,
and that the "Sons of Liberty" were arm
ing and drilling for the uprising, that our
grand aud greatest Roman Of them all, the
Secretary Of War. Edwin
NJ. Stanton, at his headquarters in yondcr
city, assumed the responsibility, ordered
their arrest by the military, and trial by
court martial just in time to prevent the
uprising, and thereby saved our deienceless
people from the horrors pf 'ci<il-war, and
the Union from inevitable destruction.
All honor and glory to tho man who risked
everything for our common safety. With
all these facts before them, and the smoke
of battle removed, the court insists that II
had judicial knowledge that the Federal
authority was always unopposed and its
courts open; and il needed no bayonets
to protect il and required no military aid
to execute its judgments in Indiana"
To my certain knowledge the civil pro
cess in Indiana had to be enforced by the
military arm. They whipped the devil
around the stump" by procuring military
arrests, aud then turned the parties over
to the civil authorities for trial. If the
courts were open in Indiana, il was be-
cause Indiana was military district un-
der nsartial la,c, and the courts protected
by national bayonets in the strong arms
There was no declaration odwar by the
Congress of the United State against a
foreign power, State Of tht Union, or
people thereof but, in the bsence Of
power in the civil arm of Government to
enforce its laws, the military were employ
ed to suppress instruction aud crush out
rebellion. The Congress authorized the
President to suspend the writ OF hdLeds
corpus, not in Virginia and South Carolina
alone, but in Indiana and every other State
of the Union. The writ was suspended
accordingly, and the paramount necessity
OF saving the threatened life Of the nation
dictated and justified arrests in both toyat
and disioyai States. The great mistake is
in recognizing the obsolete and fatal theory
OF State sovereignty, to the exclusion of
our nationality. 1t was not a rebellion
Of States against each other, but Of the
people who were citizens Of certain States
against the sovereign power and authority
Of the National Government, to which
they owed superior allegiance. No matter
whore they resided aud what profession
they made, II they were "conspiring against
the Government, giving aid and comfort
to rebels" or exciting the people to in
surrection," they thereby become part
Of that insurrection and amenable to the
military authorities employed to suppress
aud destroy it, and subject to the same
modes Of punishment as ii captured, with
arms in their hands, in the ranks of the
rebel army. No township, county, OF
State lines could determine the jurisdic.
ton OF the military authority to deal with
the rebellion I; its jurisdiction was cock
tensive with aud encompassed the whole
Union. As we'll might il be urged that o
military court could not take jurisdiction
Of cases in the State Of Tennessee because
the loyal citizens thereof, east Of u given
line, maintained open court, while rebel.
lion ruled with bloody hand in every 9th.
er part. Milligan and his co-conspirators
were charged with official connection and
operation with secret mliury organ
zation which was armed, cqq pped, ant
drilled to cooperate with bel army
then ia the field. to release and Iurn loose
in the midst Of unarmed lo people
thirty thousand rebel prisoners, lay vast,
our fair fields, and deyastate r homes
Thay wara actuallv in rehellion aoains