The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1867-04-03

doctrine then was not 4" satanlc.f TIC VINO
questions it now will he q blasphcmer, whom
God will bring to Judgment, II we, refuse
to this down-trodden and oppressed race the
rights which Heaven dccreed them, and the
remuneration which they have earned
through long years of hopeless oppression,
how can we hope to escape still further pun
ishment if God is just and omnipotcnt 1t
may come in the shape OF plaques, or OF IN.
tcstne wars, race aginst race, the oppressed
against the opprcssor. But once 1T Will
Seek not to divert our attention from justice
By puerile cry about fattcd calves! HE
fifth section provides that $500, 100000 shall
be raised out of the conscated property tor
two purposes; the increase of the pensions
of Cur soldiers, and the payment to loyal
despoiled citizens. Is there any iushccln
this? We have seen that by the law OF ma
tons they were liable to pay all the expenses
and damages of the war. Those expenses
cannot be less than 50, 900. 000,0 900, including
our debt and what was paid with taxes-the
damages were probably 00,O00,000 more.
To exact but one-tenth part is mercy unex-
ampled in national magnanimity. In the
great, nlutiny in India in which so many mil
lions of the original owners of the soil were
engaged, and who held proprietary rights
under well defined titles, the Government
declared that their engagements had been
Cancelled by the Rebellion, and that the pro-
prietary right in the soil was confiscated to
the Government, which would dispose OF
that right as TO it might seem fitting" No
one ever complained that this exceeded the
power of the victors Why SO tender when
a small punishment is to be inflicted on our
enemy Three hundred million dollars put
at interest at six per cent would just about
double present pensions. Eight dollars a
month to men unable to work is wholly in
adequate to their necessities. That rate was
fixed when the pay of soldiers was but IS
per month--it is now SIG. The increased
price of all the necessaries of life renders
that necessary. The pensions should be in
creased iii the same proportion. Their pres
cnt allowance is a mere mockery; 1T must be
doubled out of some fund. Shall it be at
the cost Of loyal men, or of those who man
gled and slew our noble soldiers You talk
of pity. Pity for whom Your tears flow
for pompous traitors ours for manned. halt
ing, crippled patriots. / know there is cry
for the perfect impunity Of the enemy. 1t
is a dangerous and unwholesome doctrine.
Inlict salutary punishment to prevent future
civil wars and to punish the criminals;
6 their brothers blood cries to us from the
earth, which has opened its mouth to receive
their brothers blood from their hands y all
this blood cannot sink into the ground una
vcngcd; the ghosts of these murdered mar
tyrs will not down, but will haunt their muir
derers to the bar of eternal Judgment Is
there anything in the practice of nations to
condemn this confiscation Nothing; but
everythingtojustify it. When city or peo-
pie in alliance with Rome conspired to levy
war against her, on being conquered she was
not untrequently deprived of half her popu-
lation, and their lands taken and given to
Roman colonists. Where all is justly for
feitcd, including their lives, to leave them
part is great mercy. need not cite the ex-
amplcs Of Greece and Macedonia They were
severer than Rome. Now, l would not exact
mucl, personal punishment. l have never
believed in bloody penalties. | have long
since adopted tile milder views of Boo
caria and Montesquieu. But when l say
that, 1t DOES not mean IMMUNITY to GRIM
inals. Heavy pecuniary punisEments
should take the place of personal in.
tiictions. Rome at one time decrced that no
blood should be shed except in hostile con-.
iict. But Tor making war on the Republic,
and lesser crimes, she interdictcd to the
naietactor fire and water" which was the
form Of her sentence of Punishment Such
Punishment involved the forfeiture of all
their estates, real rs well rs personal. While
they allowed the malefactor +" depart with
life, they reduced him to poverty Such was
the fate of Cicero when he went into exile.
1t was from the study of this Roman law. no
doubt, that our learned President took the
idea contained in his speech, {" traitors must
be impoverished" He will, I hope, pardon
US for not being l.artl-hearted enough fully
to carry out his wishes. Certain gentlemen
seem hardly to learn either from the writings
ofleaIned publicists, or from the passing and
visible events of tho present age The Ger
man Empire had many features similar to
our own. 1t was composed of SO States,
each independents its own municipal gov
ernmcnt and laws, but each subject to the
general government of the Empire in what
ever came within its Jurisdiction. By its
Constitution all the States were pledged 10
perpetual union. This pledge had come
| down TO them through ages 1t had Con-
| gress of members from each of the States,
which was sitting permanently, whose acts
were to blind each member of the confcder-
acy. War broke out between two of the
| principal powers. The minor States ranged
themselves under the banner of the one or
! the other Prussia triumphed. Did the
constituent parts say We lay down our
arms peace cnsucs and we claim our old
rights as they were under the Constitution of
the German Empirc2 We could not 90 out
! of that Empire, for our Constitution declar-
ed that it should be perpetual" No. None
of the yanquished powers were so idiotic as
to set up such pretcnces No one was fool
ish enough to suggest it to the conqueror.-
Prussia took up these submissive States and
dealt with them according to the universal
4 ly acknowledged laws of war. She first i'm
posed the expenses of the war upon the CON
| qucrcd bcliGercnt according to what she
deemed equitable Austria bore 45, OOO,0 600,
Saxony 100000, Bavaria 5000, GOO. and
so ON. She refused to let the States partici-
pate in the Government, but incorporated
several of them into tiekingdom of Prussia
Why do not these injured parties invoke the
indignation OF the civilized world BE
cause they knew the verdict would be against
them. They knew that the war destroyed
the Constitution of the German Empire and
| annullefl the treaties of,1S15; that all must
be subject to the will of the conqueror.-
4 Where is our craftsmanship, that We suffer
| the enemy to escape from the payment Of tbs
costs and damages of the war2 Where is
our patience that we suffer them to clamor
about rights under the Constitution Il Where
is our courage that VIC suffer the President
to head this new rebcllion7 The remaining
part of the sum levied, to-wit, 100000 900,