Lewistown gazette. [volume] (Lewistown, Pa.) 1843-1944, 1867-08-14


#piate their guilt upon the g2lsoHss &Ht
totbers doomed 70 suffer imprisonment
for life on the Dry Tortggas- Yea
haze been told. gentlemeu, IN the &r-
guneur q Etgss czse, that those w80
zers tried before the military CON
mission. and hung upon its findings
we're themselves the victims Of z base
aud d.sgr4c-tul conspiracy 70 murder
BrsTe. gallant. and honest soldiers o.
their country have been held Up before
you "a H1a1llaH butchers q innocent
men
/. has been said IN support of this
6enuucI-tion that the Supreme Court
u the United States have, iu the case
Of Hflligaa. declared that the military
court which sried Hare. and o;Eer-
for the murder Uf Abraham Lincoln
was an Illegal tribunal organized lth
out law, without right ard wE;aoEt
warrant "a the Constitution mere
eouvocation OF military men. haTlng
10 right 70 trv the cause committed
70 them by President johnson And
i has been said that Il was cCnF0ked
no. 70 try but to condemn In my
humble Judgment. the S8pr' me Court
has made no such decision II -, whE
have not the prisoners nOT ron fined on
the Dry TDrlBgas Tor cgmp.icIEy 10 the
greatest crime Of the age been re.eas-
ed from their confinement? They have
svlnpatbizing friends enough 10 have
applied anv such decision ia the dIrec
ton Of their discharge, and they would
not have remained there 8 week after
the decision had been made 10 the ei
feet that they were Crl.a a'Ftuily re
strained Of their liberty.
II | understand the deci son in Nj
iigan's case Alright, il went upon the
ground that the commission which
tried Aiiigan was no, organized in
obedience TO the act Of Congress pro-
viding for the punishment Df such
crimes a. he was charged with com
niitting, and the opinion OF the major
isy OF the court vas based BppB the
ground that no hostile foot had ever
pressed the soil Of Indiana a. the time
when he was arraigned before milf
tary tribunal there, AMI that therefore
the tribunal which condemned him for
acts OF treason committed in that
State had no authority 10 try him.
fwitbstanding tle whole nation vas
involved in the most terrible struggle
tyr its life. The majority opinion be
ing thus predicated upon L possession
# historic truth, we could not per.
haEs, have looked for = more rigbtfgi
decision.
UDprepared, however. Is al loyal
the American people would be even
yet more astGundcd TO have il deciar-
ed In any court in this country tina.
the Commander in Chief Of the army
and navy, tho President of the United
States, has MT the power, in time of
war, ~ institute q military commission
for the purpose Of trying . gang OF
spies and traitors who have found
their way within the entrcrched en-
campmcnts u the nations capital %
take the life Of the chief II the army
and navy; 70 assas-inate all the heads
Of the executive departments in the
interest of tic pretended government
with which the Federal Government
was engaged In war.
> They who maintain such diction
profess to defend 1t upon the ground
that no such power is delegated by the
Constitution as they did who could
find no warrant there 10 coerce sece-
ding States into submissi0n 70 the Fed.
erai authority. But the day has pass
ed by when honest statesmen will long
cr, II they ever did, regard the sOyer-
cignty Of the Federal Union a. posses
sing no other powers save tho-e
expressly enumerated in It's COustitu
tion.
The Governn ent Of the United
states was doubtless created by the
adoption of the Constitution But
when it had orce been spoken into be
ing, it stood upon the same level with
other nations. and WAS clothed with
all the powers incident 10 an indepeud
ent sovereignty under the LAYS Of ma
ture and Of nations. and among them
vas the power, in the time Of war or
Of great public emergency, 10 arrest
and inlict upon spies and traitors the
most summary punishment, whenever
and wherever the strong hand Of mill
tary justice can he laid upon them.
IL is Il power incident TO the right
and duty Of self preservation, and
ought to be exercised, just az the indi
vidual owes it 10 himself TO strike
down the assassin who is feeling for
his heartstring, without waiting 10
lose his own life, in order that the
courts Of justice may at their leisure
proceed to try the felon according to
the formulas Of the law and the Con
stitution The right of selfdeicncc
need not be inscribed upon parch-
mcnts, either for individuals or for SOW.
crcign States. The Almighty i'm
printed right and duty upon the hearts
and minds Of men, long before he wrote
the decalogue upon the tables Of stone
TO say that this Government has
not the power in time Of war TO exer
else this great duty of self prcscrva.
tion for want Of warrant in the Con.
stitution, is TO condemn the action Of
the Government in acquiring from
France and Spain, and Mexico and
Russia, territory lying far beyond the
iIur1ta lf Tho T,.f,,t,..i 4 4 =