The southerner., 1867-03-07

may seem proper. It places at his free
disposal :al The lands and goods in his
district, and he may distribute 'hem
without let or hindrance TO whom he
pleases. Being b und by no State law,
and there being no other law to regulate
the subject be may make criminal code
Of bis own ana he can make it as bloody
as any recorded in history, or he can res
serve The privilege of acting upon the i'm
pulse of his private passions in each case
that arises He is bohnd by no rules of
evidence there ,s indeed no provision by
which be is authorized or repaired to take
any evidence al all. Every thing is Grim
which he chooses to call so, and all per>
sons are condem ed VIII m he pronounces
to b. guilty. He is not bound to keep
any record, Or make any report of his
proceedings He may arrest his victims
wherever he finds them without warrant,
accusation or proof of probable cause. IF
he gives them trial before he inAictsthe
punishment, ne gives it of his grace and
mercy, not because he IS commanded so
| to do.
To casual reader Of the bill, it might
seem that some kind of trial was secured
by it to persons accused Of crime but
such is not the case The officer "may
allow local or civil tribunals to try often
ders," but Of course this dos not require
that he shall do so. II any State or Fede-
raj court presumes to exercise its legal
jurisdiction by the trial of malfActor
without bis special permission, he can
break 1t up, and punish the judges and
Ijururs as being themselves malefactors.-
He can save his friends from Justice, and
despoil his enemies contrary to justice.
1t is ais provided that ''he shall have
power to organize military commissions
or tribuna;s;' but this power he Is not
commanded to exercise. 1t is merely
permissive, and is to be used only 4" when
In his Judgment it may be necessary Tor
the trial of off nders." Even if the SEN
tence Of commission were made a pre-
requisite to the punishment of party, it
would be scarcely the slightest check ups
on the officer, who has authority TO orr
ganize 1t as he pleaseS, prescribeit its mode
of proceeding, appoint its members from
aiming his own subordinaieS and revise all
is decisions Instead of mitigating the
harseness of his single rule, such ,ribu
nal would be used much more probably
to divide the re. pon>iolliry of making it
more cruel and unjust
Several provisions, dictated by the hu
manity of Congress, have been inserted
in the bill, apparently 10 restrain The pow
er of The commanding officer !; but II seems
to me t0at they are of no avail for that
purpose. The fourth se,tiOn provides
First. That trials shall not be unneces-
sarlIy delayed; bat 7 think have shown
that the power is given to punish without
trial, and if so, this provision is practically
imperative. Second. Cruel or unusual
punishment is not 10 be inf cled but
who is to decide what is crurl aud what
is unusual? The words have acquired a
legal meaning by long use III the courts.
Can it be expected that military officers
will understand or fJlIow rule expressed
IN language So purely technical, and not
pertai ing IN the least d, gree to their pro
iession? If not, then each otfrer may
defue cruelty according 10 his own tenn
per, and if 1T is not usual, he Will make
it usual. Corporeal punishment, imprs,
onnent, the gag, the ball and cham. anC
he almost Insuppor forms of tor;ur,
9 invented for mali AIRY punishment, lie with
in the range OF choice THIRD The sen
ence of comm issIon is no, To be execu
ted wi hout being approved BY the c.rn
mander, if it affecss life or liberty; and ;
sentence Of death must be approved b
the President: This applies 10 cases il
which there has beeu trial and Sc tence
: take il 10 be Gle ar, under this bill, III .
= the military commander may condemn t(
= death without even the form IF a trial b
! a military commission, so that the lie 0
= the C ndem"ed may depend upon the wi,
, of two men Instead OF One.
. 1t Is plain thag the au hority here givea
- to the m lisary officer amounts to abso
. !ute despotism. But 10 III Ike it Sill mor
: uneudurab!e, the bill provides tn it ma
be delegated to as many subo dnates a
, h" chooses to appoint for it declares ,ha
he Shall punish or caused to be punish
: ed" Sucn power has not been wieldet
y by any monarch in England for more thai
= five huuded years. la all that time 1T
p people who speak the E,glish lauguag
have borne such seivitude. 1t reduce!
+ the whole population Of the ten States
+, all persons, of every color, sex, and con
' dition aud every stranger within tueil
iimits-to the most abj4ct and d-gr ,dins
n SldNciy. AND udSlcE ever Ifdu d COllffOl 81
, absolu over his slaves as this bill give
to the military officers over both whit,
. and color d persons
= 1t may be answered to this that the of
4 ticers OF the army are too magnammous
+ JUS, and humane to Cypress and tral pl
r upon sub bjugated people. do not doub
2 that army officers are as we'll entitled t.
: this kind of confidence as a'y other class
D of men. But the his ory of the wuriC
has been written in vain. if it do no
y teach Us that unrestraned authoi i,y ca
, never be safely trusted in human hands
; 1t is almost sure 10 be more or less abusee
under any circumstances, aud it has al
: ways resulted In gross tyranny where the
rulers who exercise it are strangers t,
their subjects, and come among them a!
, the representatives Of a distant power, ant
more especially when the p: wer that seud
them is unfrIendly. Governments closel,
c resembling that there proposed have beer
, fairly tried in Hungary and Poland, ant
2 the suffering endured by those peopi
Y reused the sympathies f the entire orld
f 1t was tried in ireland, and, though tenn
. psred at first by principles of Eng ish law
it gave birth to cruelties so atrocinus tha
they are never recounted without just in
!. dignation. The French Convention arm
e e1 it's deputies with this power, and sen
. thf m to tue Southern departments of tn
g Republic. The masacres, murders, an
v other atrocities which they committe
kn4 ho ha Oh