Baton Rouge tri-weekly gazette & comet. [volume] (Baton Rouge, La.) 1865-18??, 1867-09-19
THE A ESTY.
from the New Orleans Bulletis !

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1t takes the contest from the politi-
clans and throws it among the peo-
pie. 1t will now be for the whole
country to decide whether order
shall be restored on the basis of law
alone, or whether the condition of
affairs still requires a suspended
Constitution and the military occu-
patton of one-third of the national
territory. OF the legality Of the am
nesty it is useless to do more than
express the opinion that it is within
the scope Of Executive authority,
bestowed by the Constitution and
confirmed by law. This question
will, however, be practically decided
by the courts and by Congress. Of
its policy there can be less doubt.
The character of the National Re-
public requires that its acts should
be marked with justice. If the ad-
ministration of free principles re-
quires that one-third Of the people of
the nation should be kept in the
guard house, of what value are our
institutions No monarchy does
this. We have very little reliance
in historical examples, but we might
even cite the conduct Of two kings
which occurs to us at the moment.
Charles Ell was anxious to recover
his crown and afraid to reduce his
enemies to despair, and SO made a
declaration before his restoration, as
surfing amnesty to all persons who
should not be excepted by Parlia-
ment then opposed to him. After
his restoration he granted a general
indemnity, excluding those who had
an immediate hand in the death of
Charles I, with some others specially
named. and all who had held judi
cial positions under the Republic or
Protectorate. These were all the
seventies which, at the time, followed
the terrible commissions which
marked what the royal historian has
called 1.-THE Great Rebellion"
Louis Napoleon having conquered
his enemies in Africa, liberated
Abd-el Kader without bail and in
corporated the conquered people with
the other subjects Of France. Aus
tria, taught mercy by humiliation,
has strengthened herself by restoring
Hungary as an integral part of her
empire, and England boasts that she
has suppressed rebellion in Ireland
without drop of blood shed judi
cially. These are examples Of a
wise clemency, a just moderation.
The United States have much more
at stake than any dynasty. 1t is
founding policy for millions and, it
may be, for ages to come. The
whole nation is more interested to
know whether the Government will
keep the faith of its promises than
the South can be. What terrors
have confscation for the South2 1t
has been robbed Of almost everything
portable. Is it proposed to take
away the lands and bestow them
upon freedmen? They can have as
much land as they will cultivate now
for much less than it would cost
them to build on and fence it. But
the principle that when a portion Of
the people shall be declared in re-
bellion, that the rights of all who
live within the same State lines with
them are forfeited, affects every man
in Connecticut or California, and de-
serves their earnest attention more
than it does that of people already
a prey to exactions and disfranchise-
ment. Certainly if this great act of
the President shall be sustained; if
the courts shall be opened and the
soldiers Withdrawn, it will be of in
fninite advantage to the South. We
need the capital and cooperation of
the other sections. We need peace
from the factions of place-hunters at
home. The act of emancipation
makes little difference, except to
those who bad invested their all in a
property supposed to be guaranteed.
But that capital is not sunk; it is
transferred to the former slave and
present freedmen. His labor has not
been annihilated; if he produces two
hundred millions Of exportable values
now, it is the same thing to society
as when he produced the same values
for another. We must adopt different
exchange to make it available here.
Therefore, the South can stand eman-
cipation and recover from it; but it
cannot exist in bondage that sub
jects all its personal and property
rights to the will of distant and ire
sponsible masters.