The Camden journal. [volume] (Camden, S.C.) 1866-1891, 1867-02-28
II HE .yOURN AL.
Thursday, FeSrmar, 2s, 1857.
The Radical Ul.irnatum.

oui eACIltllSoo Sifo 10 oiio ASooA' We
the long and labored discussions of
Congress upon the question of the fu-
ture position of the South. The "Rebel
States" are divided into districts, 10 be
under officers of the army selected by
the President. The commanding Off
Ger is required to protect persons and
to suppress insurrection and
disorder, and to punish all disturbers OF
the peace and criminals. He may al
low local tribunals to exercise jurisdic-
ton in these matters, or may organize
military tribunals for that purpose, and
no interference with them by color OF
State authority shall be permitted. In,
other words, the officer in command
shall have the supreme authority over
the district under his charge, without
appeal except in the single case Of capi-
tai conviction, when the approval of the
President before execution is necessary.
In all other matters. civil and criminal,
the jurisdiction ofthe tribunals which he
entrusts with the administration ofjus-
tice is supreme. The preamble of the
act recites that no legal State govern
ment exists in the rebel States. If that
be the true statues of South Carolina, it
would be difficult to say what law the
people of this military district are under.
All the laws enacted since December
90, 1860, would be null and void, be-
cause not enacted by legal authority.
The laws of force would be those of the
State previous to secession, or none,
What 'slocal or civil tribunals exist
here, to which the officer commanding
may entrust the punishment Of offenders
under this act, = there be no legal State
governments? There can be no afence,
if there be no law, and there can be nc
law in a State or District once State
of this confederacy, if there be no legal
State government.
But though not legal State govern
ment, it seems that, our present ma
chinery oflaw, with its Legislative, Ex,
ecutive and Judicial departments, are
invested by the act with sort ofpseude
authority, and are to be deemed ''pro'
visional only and subject in all res
poets to the paramount authority of the
United States, to abolish, modify, con
troll anil supersode the same" In al
elections, to any Office under such gov
ernment, the qualifications of votcr
are such as are established by the fifth
section of this act: That is to say, al
males resident in tho StaLo one yea
previous to such election, are entitled
to vote, except such as may be- disfran
chised for participation in the rebellion
or for participation in the rebellion, O
for felony at common law Who is II
declare the disability provided for il
this exception, doth not appear. Bu
! the feature Of the act which seems to b.
regarded as most conservative, ant
tending most to Reconstruction will
its attendant blessings, is hat which
prescribes the conditions upon which
restoration may become possible. The.
4 are very numerous and carefully guard
ed, but may be summed up thus
That where any of said military dis
tricts shall have performed every &C
which can degrade the people Thereof
such district may be admitted as {
State, if Congress shall, in mercy, SCI
fit to grant her petition for that pnr
pose.
AS Congress has now that power, o
has assumd it, and as we are decided.
averse to any unnecessary d"grada
ton, we are for good long trial of the
condition of military tyranny, and lille
gal and subordinate provisional State
governments, before we, by any act o
ours, accept the degrading alternative
of this act. The most melancholy cir
cumstanco connected with the passag
of this bill in the Senate, is the fac
that the venerable, able and patriotic
Senator from Maryland, Mr.. ReverdJ
johnson, by an anti-clemax to the teno'
OF his whole political career, voted fo
it. Mr.. JOHNSON never realized the
shame of the act until his hand wa