The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1867-09-03
"For the Fourth Circuit, Salmon p. Chase, Chief

Justice"
: The first section ot the set Of Congress Of l5l
JnlF 1871, passed when rebellion in full head
way. thoreby showing that the interruption of tn
| sessions bf rebel VIOLENCE was the only chang
winch Congress WAS willing to Recognizes in the III
1 uieial hiisiErs'. provides
Hereafter thu DISTRICTS of Mar, ,ialh Dc!awar,
rn'sinin and North Carolina -hali constitute tn
| fnutth Ctruit." ~ Stat. 57G.)
II ~ thus made apparent, not only bv eurliur
| put DS cOntcnlpJranCou5 legislation, of tho sam,
session, by the same individual members, and nj
constitution OF tho United States, cithsr Of M
thoritr or jurisdiction, attaches 10 tho district
ana CIRCUITS rs they stand in tho statute book wal
intended to be- and must be dccincd and held 1,
DO, OF full fOrco and virtue as heretofore. Blu
ne have seen that u tract Of country, composed o
Slatea or parts of States, once brought under til,
operation tho judicial power, cannot without
revolutionary violence, be deprived or or oronerat
cd from IT.. Violence is tho only recognized excep
Nee; IL recognized only white tho violence lasts.
anG then M an unlawful der gstion from the jntli
! cinl lDwer
lit BE- admitted that tho judicial power i, in.
tact in the district of North Carolina though tho
| subject matters of its authority are limited to n
eateSory, u IS certain that npon thoso subject
| iIattors the courts Of tho United States for that
district are tho supreme authority of the United
| States.
The high provocative OF the independent judici-
AIRY inay be we'll illustrated in closing n sketch of
! the department Of Justice. by n word respcctin.,
| tho conclusive and binding character of n iud1
| inent at law. II may he rendered. even by an in
| icrior court; but, if the court is conpntent the
Judgment may be defined To he tho very law OF
tue lsn5 1sa for the paren!nr matter adudgcd a
nrr Gr S, "1 D0ncl % ,t BY law is therefore suspend
srhrre is no nri' .eipc OF law sb5Sf letter sc,,,,
that every act of court OF competent Jurisdiction
Sim sl,nll be presumed to have been rightly; done till
the contrary appears. SO long as n
Judgment remains in force. il is III itself evi,lcnca
OF tho right of tho plaintiff to tho thing urlJudgcd
and gives linn right tn process 10 execute the
Judgment The orrors Of thc court, however ar-
| parent, can be examined only by an appellate
l72i7a) ''
tnre OF the Union has attempted to vest in par.
tlcnar executive or military officers s.appeate
power over Judgments, howevcr erroneous"
which have been pronounced in court of tho
United StHtes. Let the inquiry rather be whether
tho right OF executing process which has issued
upon such Judgment is anythins else but one of
the very rights OF person and property which, il
the paiutif seeks to execute It within one OF the
reconstruction districts, the commanding officer is
Ieronstrucion laws tAct OF I'd March 1857, see.
81 1t mus; be beyond dispute, it the authorities
and the statutes which have been introduced are
accepted that tho right of litigating in the Federal
courts. and the right OF being tried in them for
violations Of tho criminal code OF the United
States, and, OF course the due conservation of
rights 10 be protected and the duties to be per-
formed by the respective commanders Of tho re-
construction districts. In this vicw the error ..
General Srkles reaches the fall stature nf a per-
ycraion OF authority, which, if persisted n must
immediately acquire the character of the crime of
lcvying war against the United Status. an under
taking which would not for II moment he imputed
10 the deliberate Intention Of au officer honurny
dstine emishsd for his Hallantry in defence OF The
Constitution.
but, it might be said. mas there not have been
doubt as tojurstliction Certainly in this. as
IN anv other matter there may have been doubt.
But II G0ud Insult the intelligence Of The COM
SECOND RsCOOSl at r,,t IA,
inquire whether ar rot ho supposed himself au-
thori2ed by sam 10 Forbid the Supreme Court OF
persons inhabing the StataI of North and South
Carolina, without his consent, Naturally no per-
son coul,l hesitate whether he had such a power |
without considering whether it was nnt his duty |
to cocreo the C0uri by arms il il should resist |
him We must take ii to be certain that il could |
u! not lave been IN the contemplation Of General
Sickes. when sSuing his Order No TO- to dis |
pute with his sword the authority oil the SUPP enc
Bench Yet. IL is equally CERTAIN that il he had !
an adjudication BY competent court y decision |
might n.S ~ fnred with the greatest fIcili.
the Judgment was then adverse to the powcr oi
General Sicklc+ il must have been easy 10 pro-
that officer had doubt this snbject then, hr
must have known the only lawful course for itn
solution. Mhcrc difference arises hetwrau
military agent and II court as Ia the jurisdiction
Of the latter and the former presnnic. Ia decide
it for himself in his own favor, the ~, csu hear
III n her name than usNrpatIon. l;nt il may bs
t:;ht ,,r dill only III tn the inferior court and
not a, TO- tho Supreme Court. Now. though he
may not have suspected the fact moments re-
tlcctiun must show that the interference Which s
under r,lnacratinL was an interference 10y uen-
clsl Srkles with the Judiciary, irclu,liug the Su-
pran,u Court of the United States, M II whole, and |
the force which, through his subordinate Colonel
Frank, was threatened against tho process nf tho |
Ciicnit Court, cannot, think. be distinguished
ed, to the Judges Of the Supreme Court ut Wash
ington. The process, " !Iich VAS in Marshal
Goodioc's hands might, and, indeed, Tor
aught that appears here, may have been pr,eess
issued III pursuance OF mandate from the Supieme
Court, rcmandlnG cause with directions Tor
further proceedings in conformity to tho decision
Of that court 4 control over such process, as he
fore remarked OF any final process, would be con-
lrol oyer tue whole proceedings and the court 1t
soIf, te august judges Of their judicial will Moro
order in question: 80 may mcsnc process. or any
step in litigation for the order expressly COM
nanls that certain suits be stayed, and that liko
The interference OF process which is HOW in hand |
could be jnsifed so could ciiectual interference,
Tho Caroinr districts, be- made by General SicEles
10 prevent all appeal to the Supreme Court. This.
s ousting tlla jurIsdlctinn Of tho Su
preno Court itself, astonishing the Federal courts |
IL such IN tho locality separating his district in |
)ne vital particular from tho national body polite,
and depriylng Congress. the Executive, and the |
10 the United states, except by f0rco OF Tho
virtues Of no man may be permitted to authorize |
him to aspire to no dangerous all independence OF
his fellow citizens.
&c. il IL are had been doubt whether tho pow
ers Of tho Cnitod States Courts wero affected by
tho reconstruction laws, the proper way to aolyo IL
was the very thing which would bo totally occud- |
ed ivy the violent action which has been taken in
tho promises. But is thore much o doubt ?
THE RECONSTRUCTION STATUTES.
Three meta Of Congress pass under the dosigna-
ton OF the reconstruction laws, viz: those OF the
cd March, tho esd March, md the 1aih July, 1867.
The pi Gamble VI the nrst declares slate OF pUliti
cal and social dissolution to be impending or |
actually existing In several States Of tho Union, |
and that, in consequence of their condition, and |
for the purpose OF cffccting their restoration the
proposed legislation has become necessary. Sup
posing tho conditions to bo as declared in the |
preamble Of the first net, these statutes |
arc to be treated us ernnently remedial and |
conservative. The States being PROSTATE, in /
the oplni6n Of Congress, the object to restore
them. But the legislative and executive depart
mcnts OF tho Government partock in no degree !
OF the prostration, as would be conceded; and how
much did tho judicial department partake Of it2
Ifthe object was to reconstruct what had fallen !
into ruin, SO that II should be restored % good
turntnHf Obviously, what was left OF order was to
be conserved and what was IN dissrler was to |
a..