The Bedford gazette. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1805-current, 1867-03-15

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as any recorded in history; or he can
reserve the privilege of acting on the
impulse of his private passions in each
case that arises. he is bound by no
rules of evidence. There is indeed no
provision by which he is authorized or
required to take evidence at all. Ev-
erything is a crime which he chooses
to call so, and all persons are condemn
ed whom he pronounces guilty. He is
not bound to make any report or keep
any record of his proceedings. He may
arrest his victim wherever he may find
him without a warrant Of accusation
or proof of the probable cause. If he
gives them trial before he inf1icts the
punishment, he gives of his own grace
and mercy, not because he is comman-
ded so to do. To a casual reader of the
bill it might seem that some Find of a
trial was secured to persons accused of
crime; but such is not the case. The
officer may ask local or civil tribunals
to try offenders; but of course this does
not require that he shall do so if any
State or Federal tribunal presumes to
exercise its legal jurisdiction by trial of
a malefactor; without his special per-
mission he can break it up and punish
the judges and jurors as being them
selves malefactOrs, he can save his
friends from Justice and despoil his en-
emies contrary to justice. Itis also pro-
vided that he shall have power to or
ganize military commission or tribu
nails; but this power is not commanded
it is merely permissive, and is to
be used only when in his Judgment it
may be necessary for trial of offenders,
even if the sentence of commission
were made prerequisite to the pun
ishment of a party, it would be scarcely
the slightest ckeck upon the officer who
has authority to organize it as he pleas
es, and prescribe its mode of proceed
ings and the appointments of its MEM
bers from his own SubOrdinates and re-
wise all its decisions instead of mitiga-
ting the harshnesS of his single rule.
Such tribunal would be used much
more probably to divide the response
bility of making it more cruel or I'M
just. Several provisions dictated by
the humanity Of Congress, have been
inserted in the bill, apparently to re-
strain the power of the commanding
officer; but it seems to me that they are
of no avail for that purpose. The fourth
section provides, first, Chat the trials
shall not be unnecessarily delayed; but
| think | have shown that the power is
given to punish without trial, and if so,
this provision is practically inopera-
tive. Cruel or unusual punishment is
not to be inflicted, but who is to decide
what is cruel or usual or unusual. The
words have acquired legal meaning
by long use in the courts. Can it be
expected that military officers will I'M
derstand it and follow rule in lam
guage so purely technical, and not per-
tanning in the least degree to their pro-
fessiOn. If not, then such officers may
define cruelty according to his own
temper, and if not usual he will make
it usual. Corporeal punishment, the
gag, the ball and chain, and other
almost insupportable forms of torture
invented for military punishment will
be within range of his choice. Third,
that the sentence of commission is
not to be executed without approval by
the commander if it affects life or liber-
ty, and a sentence of death must be ap-
proved by the President. This applies
to cases in which there has been trial
and sentence. | take it to be clear un-
der the bill that military commanders
may condemn to death without even
form of trial by military commission,
so that the life Of the condemned may
depend on the will of two men instead
of one. 1t is plain that the authority
here given to military officers amounts
to absolute despotism, but to make it
-fin HI
vides that it may be delegated to as
many subordinateS as he chooses to ap-
point, for it declares that she shall pun
ish or cause to be punished" Such
power has not been welded by a mon
arch in England for more than five
hundred years. In all that time no
people who speak the English language
have borne such servitude; it reduces
the whole population of the ten States
all persons of every color, sex or con-
ditiOn and every stranger within their
limits-to the most abject and degra
ding slavery. No master ever had
control so absolute over his slaves, as
this bill gives to military officers over
both white and colored persons. 1t
may be answered to this, that officers
of the army are too magnanimOus, just
and humane, to OppreSs and trample
upon a subjugated people. | do not
doubt that army officers are as we'll en-
titled to this confidence as any other
class ofmen; but the history Of the world
has been written in vain if it does not
teach us that unrestrained authority
can never be safel Y trusted in human
is almost sure to be more or
less abused under any circumstance,
and it has always resulted in gross tyr
amy where rulers-WhO are strangers
to their subjects, and come amongthem
as representatives of a distant power,
and more especially when the power
that sends them is unfriendly. Gov
closely resembling that here
have been fully tried in Hun
gary and Poland, and the suffering en-
dured by those people aroused the SYM
pathieS of the entire world. 1t was
tried in Ireland, and though first tenn
pered by principles of the English law,
it gave birth to cruelties so atrocious
that they are never recounted without
Just Indignation. The French cOnven-
ton armed its deputies with this pow
er, and sent them to Southern depart
ments of the republic. The masSacres,
murders and other atrocities which
they committed show what the pas
sions of the ablest men in most civili-
zed society will attempt to do when
wholly unrestrained by law. The men
of our race in every age have struggled
to tie up the hands of heirgovernments
and keep them within law, because
their own 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 a great empire has some