The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1867-03-06

colored persons.
It may bo answered to this that the officers .
the army are too magnanimous, just, and human
20 opprcss and trample Upon n subjugated people
40 not doubt that army officers are as we'll on
~ Titled to this kind Of confidence as any other cas
OF men. But tho history Of the world has beel
written IN vain, II it does not teach us that unre
stralhed authority can mover be safely trusted il
human hands. 1t is almost sure to be moro or les
abused under any circumstances, and it has always
resulted in gross tyranny where the rulers who OK
ercso it arc strangers to their subjects, and come
power, and more especially when the power tha
SENDS thcm is unGiendly. Governments closely
tesemDhng a that here proposed have been fairly
5r,ed @ N hungary and Poland, and the suffering en-
the entire world. # was tried in Ireland, ,1s and
eaee semP9ted Rrt "a at first By principles Of English
are never recounted without just indignation. The
french Convention armed its deputies with this
Of the republic. The massacres, murders, and
| other atrocities which they committed show what
the passions Of the ablest men in the most civiz.
ed society win tempt them to do when wholly un-
restrained bv law. i1 = II -
tho M men % Of our in every age have struggled
them within the law; because their own experenee Der @
OF oil mankind taught them that rulers could not
DC r eened a , on M to concede those rights which they
%rast ro net legally bound to respect The head Of
irresponsible deputy never yields what the law does
the people subjected to his domination there can
be nothing but ennity; he punishes them if they
fesis: h his authority and L they submit to it. he
still moro important. Have We the power to es,s
tabllsh ard carry into execution measure like
this I answer, certainly not, if we derive our
bound by tho limitations which it imposes.
ra,nb ah,5 r ts Is perfectly clearthat no
slat1ve, or Judicial, can have any just powers, ex
cept those which it derives through and exercises
under u the organic law of the Union. Outside Of
than private citizens and within it We have only so
much as that instrument gives us. This broad
principle limits al our functions, and applies to all
States which are within tho Union, but it shields
every human being who comes or is brought under
our jurisdiction. We have no right to do in one
st.tuton says We shall not do at all. If therefore,
the Southern States were in truth out Of the Union
We could not OF treat Their people in way which the
Some persons assume that the success Of our
arms IN crushing the opposition which was made
laws b the na al Hf the
poop!ee.-the innocent as well as the guilty-to the
condition OF vassalage and give us p 1wer over
define, or limit No fallacy can be more trans
parent than this. Our Victories subjected the in
surgents to legal obedience, not to tie yoke Of an
arbitrary despotlsm. When an absolute sovereign
reduces his robellious subjects, he may deal with
them ;, according to- his pleasure, because he
monarch pats down IN insurrection, he must
still govorn according to law. If an insurrec-
and end in the overthrow Of those No planned
it, would that take away the rights of the people
Of the counties where it was favored by patt or
snd h fof hs spsR
representation in the Legislature have always
contended that the Government Of the United
sphere; that it executed it's laws, like the States
themselves, BY applying its cocrcive power direct
" to individuals and thatit could put down insur
| rection with the same effect q State, and no
other The opposite doctrine is the worst heresy
OF those who advocated secession, and cannot be
Fight. rdns0 "''A0o' aonl''ns 'na' hefess 70 0e
Invasion, ihsurrection, rebellion, and domestic
violence, were anticipated when the government
e and see Of rePs and
Constitution; but it was not thought necessary to
declare that the States Ia which they might occur
should be expelled from tho Union. Rebelions,
which were invariably suppressed, occurred prior
/ to that out Of which these questions grow; but
the States continued to exist. and the Union
sylyania, IN Rhode Island and in New York,
and armed opposition to the United States
States with the Federal Government were
not supposed to be interrupted or changed there
BY after the re- eious portions Of their population
were defeated and put down. It is true that in
these earlier cases there was formal expression
Of q determination to withdraw from the Union
DuC IL Is also Crue CnaC IN Lilo southern States the
ordinances Of secession were treated BY all the
friends of the Union mere utilities, and are now
acknowledged to be 80 by the States themselves,
that they did in fact take tho States in which they
We're passed out of the Union, we sweep from under
our our, feet all the grounds upon which we stand in
integrity Of the government.
This is o bill passed by Congress in time Of
peace, There is not, in any one of the States
rection The laws Of the States and Of tie Federal ]
Government are all ~ undisturbed and harmonious
operation; y: The m courts, State and Federal, are
thority. Over every State comprised in these five
cured hy State laws and T Federal ala: laws > and nd
force and everywhere obeyed, What, then, is
the ground on which this bill proceeds2 The
title Of the Ill announces that it is intended
for the more efficient government of these ten
States It is recited, by way Of preamble, that no
lega! State governments, snor adequate protection
peace and good order should be thus ,enforcei
The first thing which arrests attention upon these
recitals which prepare the way for martial law, is
this-that the only Foundation upon which martial
law exist under our form Of government is not
stated or SO much as pretended. Actual war, for
eign INVASION domestic insurrection-none of
these appear; apd mono Of these in fact exist. It
is not rected that any sort Of war or insurrec
tion is Threatened. Let us pause here to consider,
upon this question Of constitutional law and the
preme Court Of the United States in er paTte Nil
Zig IN. ,~~, : = a - S"'>,. 1-.N
r will first quote from the opinion Of the majority
Of the court stMartial law cannot arise from q
threatened invasion. The necessity must be ac-
tua and present, the invasion real such as efectu-
ally closes the courts and deposes the civil admin
istration." We see that martial law comes in only
when actual war closes the courts snd deposes the
civil authority ; but this bill, in time Of peace,
5eakssa 5eakssa 1aaEtal laM tAee the
consequence, Of the abrogation of civil authority
One more quotation sfIt follows from what has
! been said This subject that there are occasions
| when martial law can be properly applied. II il
foreign invasion or civil the courts are actually
closed, and it is impossible to administer criminal
4 active military operations, where war really pro
walls, there is necessity to furnish substitute
for the civil authority, thus overthrown, to pre-.
serve the safety Of the army and society and as nc
power is left but the military, it is allowed tf
! govern by martial rule until the laws can have
| their free course"
! now quote from the opinion Of the minority q
the court, delivered by Chief Justice Chase: isWt
by no means assert that Congress can establisf
and apply the Laws Of war where no war hss beer
declared or exists, Where peace exists, the law
OF peace must prevail" This is sufficiently ex
plcit. Peace exists in all the territory to whicl
this bill applies. It asserts power in Congress
in time OF peace, to set aside the laws of peac,
4 and to substitute tie laws Of war The minority
concurring with the majority declares that Con
gress does not possess that power. Again, and, i
i possible, more emphatically the Chief justice,
with remark able clearnesa and condensation. sum
up the whole matter as follows: 3 E
ssThere are under the Constitution three kind
of military jurisdiction-one to be exercised boil
in peace and another to be exercised II, tim