The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1867-12-04

These wrongs being expressly for
hidden, cannot be eonstltutlonally IN
f1icted upon any portion of our peo
pie. no matter how they may have
come within our jurisdiction, and no
matter whether they live ~ States,
Territories or Districts. i. have no
desire to save from the proper and
Just consequences of their great
crimes those who engaged in rebel
lion against, the Government, but as
a mode ofjpunishment, the measures
under consideration are the most un-
reasonable that could be invented.
Many of those people are perfectly in
nocent; many kept their fidelity to
the Union untainted to the last; many
are incapable Of any legal offense. A
large portion of persons able to bear
arms were forced into the rebellion
against their will and of those who
are guilty with their own consent,
the degrees of guilt are as various as
the shades of their character and
temper But these acts of Congress
confound them all together. One
common, indiscriminate vengeance
upon classes, sects and parties, or
upon whole communities, for
offenses committed by por-
/ ton of them against governments to
which they owed obedience, was com
mon in barbarous ages ofthe world. but
Christianity and civilization have
made such progress that recourse to
/ punishment so cruel and unjust would
meet with the condemnation of all
unprejudiced and right-minded men.
The punitive justice of this age, es-
pacially of this country. does not con-
sist in stripping whole States Of their
lii critics and reducing all their people
without distinction to the condition of
| slavery. 1t deals separately with each
| individual, confines itself to forms of
law, and vindicates its own purity by
an impartial examination of every
case before competent judicial tribu-
| nal If this does not satisfy all our
| desires with regard to the Southern
| rebels, let US console ourselves by re-
fccting that a free Constitution tri-
umpnant in war and unbroken in
peace is worth far more to US and our
| children than the qualification of any
present feeling. -r.frl ttecr4ffrrr4
L am aware it is assumed that this
system of governmeptfor the Southern
States is not to be perpetual 1t is true
| that this military government is to be
only Professionally, but it is through
this temp orary evil that a greater evil
is to be made perpetual IF the guar
antees of the Constitution can be
broken Professionally. to serve a tenn
,porary purpose, and in part of the
acountry, we can destroy them every
where and for all time. Arbitrary,
measures often change. but they gen
orally, change for the worse. 1t is the
curse OF despotism that it has no
hating place intermitted for. the ex-
ercise gifts power brings no sense of
security to its subjects, for they can
snever know what more they will be
called to sendure when its red right
hand is armed to plague them again.
Nor is it possible tozconjecture how,
or why power unrestrained by law,
may seek Its next Victims. States,
/ that are still free. may be enslaved at
any moment, for if the Constitution
does not protect all it protects.
none. 1t is manifestly and avow-
eddy the object Of these laws to.
confer upon the negro the privilege
of voting, and tondisfranchise suehaai
number Of white citizens as will give
the former clear. majority, at all
! elections In the Southern States.
This, to the minds Of some persons is
so important that a. violation of the
\ Constitution is justified as a means of
bringing it about, That morality is
I always. false which excuses a wrong
because 1t proposes to accomplish a
| desirable end. We are not permitted
Ito do evil that good may come. But
in this case the end itself is evil as
we'll as the -means.-TIa he subjugation-
of States tosnegro domination would
be worse than the military despotism
under which they are now suffering.
! 1t was believed beforehand that the
| people would endure any amount of
/ military Oppression, for any length of
time, rather than degrade themselves
by subsection to the negro race.
The efore they have been left with
out choice. Negro suffrage, was es-
tabiished By act of Congress, and
the military officers were com
handed to superintend the process
Of clothing the n gro race with the
political privilege to govern white
men. The blacks in the South are
entitled to be well and humanely gov
erned, and to have the protection of
just laws for all their rights to person
and property. IF it were practicable
at this time to give them govern
ment exclusively their own, under
which they might manage their own
affairs In their own way, it would be-
come grave question whether we
/ ought to do so, or whether common
humanity would not require US to
save them from themselves. But I'M