The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1867-06-26


WAsh1NoToN, June II. M.
The opinion Of the Attorney General in
regard to the powers Of the Military Com
Sanders is too elaborate for telegraph, and
the reasoning too close for synopsis. The
following eerbatin extracts cover the con-
illusions:
z 81 find it impossible, under the provisions
of this act to comprehend such an official as
Governor of one Of these States, appointed
to Office by one of these Military Camman-
ders,- certainly he is not the Governor re-
cognized by the laws of the State, elected
by the laws of the State, and clothed as such
with the Chief Executive power, nor is he
appointed as Military Governor for State
which has no lawful Governor, under the
pressure of an existing necessity to exercise
powers at large. The intention no doubt
was to appoint him to fill vacancy occa-
stoned by Military error, and to put him
in the place of the removed Governor to exc
cute the functions of the Office as provided
by law.
The law takes no cognizance Of such an
official, and he is clothed with no color of
authority.
What is true as to the Governor is equally
true as to all the other Executive, Legisla-
tive and Judicial officers Of the State
Ia If the Military Commanders can Dust one
from his office, he can Dust them all, if he
can fill one vacancy, he can fill all vacancies,
and thus usurp all civil Jurisdiction into his
own hands, or the hands of those who hold
their appointments from him, and subject to
his power of removal, and thus Illustrate the
very right secured to the people by this act
Certainly this act is rigorous enough in
the power which it gives. With all its
seventies, the night of clecting their own
officers is still left with the people, and it
must be preserved. must not be under
stood as fixing limits to the power of the
Military Commanders in case of an actual
insurrection or riot. It may happen that an
instruction in one of these States may be
so general and formidable as to require the
temporary suspension of all civil government
and the establishment of martial law in its
place. And the same thing may be true as
to local disorder or riot in reference to the
civil government of the city or place where
it breaks out. Whatever power is necessary
to meet such emergencies, the Military Com
mander may properly exercise. confine
myself to the proper authority of the Mill
I1Iy OOiiluouuChe VnCiO pCoOO ou0 OAuOh PiC-
Z vail When peace and order do prevail, it
is not allowable to displace the civil officers
and appoint Others in their places, under
any idea that the Military Commander can
better perform his duties and carry out the
general purposes of the act by the agency of
civil officers of his own choice. rather than
by the lawful incumbents The act gives
him no right to resort to such agency, but
does give him the right to have sufficient
military force to enable him to perform his
duties and enforce his authority within the
district to which he is assigned.
In the suppression of instruction and
riot the Military Commander is wholly in
dependent of the civil authority. So, too,
in the trial and punishment of criminals and
offe nders, he may supersede the civil juris-
diction. HIS power is to be exercised in
these special emergencies, and the means are
put into his hands by which it is to be ex-
ercised. That is to say, sufficient Military
force to enable such officer to perform his
duties and enforce his authority, sud HMiiita-
ry tribunals Of his own appointment to try
and punish offenders. These are strictly
military powers to be executed by military
authority, and not by the civil authority, OF
civil officers appointed by him to perform
ordinary civil duties. 80 aa
If these emergencies do not happen; il
civil order is preserved and criminals are
duly prosecuted by the regular criminal
Courts. the military power, though present
must remain passive. Its proper function is
to preserve the peace, to act promptly when
the peace is broken, and restore order
When that is done and the civil authority
may again safely resume its functions, the
military power becomes again passive, but
on guard and watchfnl
This, in my judgment, is the whole scope
of the Military power conferred by this act
And in arriving at this construction of the
act have not found it necessary to resort
to the strict construction which is allowable.