New-York tribune., 1867-09-17
AlINRSTY IND PARDON.

tbc higher classes of Rebels to their rights, rs
we'll as what may be the legal effect OF TINS
oction. The right of the President to do what
he has done depends upon the questions flrst'
whether his Proclamation is an act of Amnesty
and Pardon in pursuance of legislative
authority. or whether it is par
don simply as an Executive act; and
secondly, whether under the well known rules
of law, he can pardon, even III the form III
which he has chosen to attempt to do. II his
Proclamation is an act of amnesty, then IL
would seem to be clear that, as the Executive,
he has no power to issue it. The Constitution
empowers him only to grant reprieyes ana
"paIdons for 0ficnses against the United States
not amnesty Now, what is a pardonl Chief
Justice Marshall delivering the opinion of the
Supreme Court in the case Of the United States
agt. Wilson q Peters,, defines pardon as
"An act OF grace proceeding from the power atrisSa m
with the execution OF the laws, which eXempts the nu
ydua whom it is bestowed from the phhIsh@e @ @ Inc
law nnlcts for crime he has committed IL Is the PR
yatc though official act OF the Executive Magistrate de
Iyercd TO the individual for whose benefit 1t Is Intended
aud not communicated officially to the Court.
il essential and delivery not complete without accept
ance II may De rejected by the person to whom IL
is tendcred and II be rejected we have discovered no
power II a court to force 1t on hlln''
II will be seen, therefore, that the Presl-
dents proclamation has none of the elements
of a pardon as distinguished from an am
nesty. 1t is not q deed to the individual ex-
empting him from punishment. 1t Is not
private though official act OF the Executive
" Magistrate delivered to the individual for
whose benefit it is intended" but public
Proclamation, as in terms it exempts whole
classes in the community, and, if of any avail,
obliterates their offcnses. 1t does not leave to
the individual the option to accept or reject
its benefits as he would have a right to do if
it were pardon Indeed, it processes on its
face TO be an extension of the acts OF amnesty
and pardon issued by President Lincoln and
johnson, on December s. 1868, March 20, 1854,
and May 80, 1865, in these words:
"L Andrew johnson, President Of the United States,
do hereby proclaim and declare that the fu pardon de-
scribcd the said proclamation OF the 2gth day Of May
tended to all persons who directly ind recty pariic
pacd in the late Rebellion, with the restoration OF an 81
privileges immuucs, and rights Of property except as
IN property with regard 10 slaves and except IN case,
legal proceedings under the laws OF the United states
1t is, in fact, proclamation of grace and
amnesty. What then, is an amnesty Bou-
vier, in his "Law Dictionary defines amnesty
10 BE "An act of oblivion of past offenses,
granted by the Government to those who
"have been guilty of any neglect or crime,
usually upon condition that they return to
" their duty within a certain period" Amnesty
"and pardon are very different
Amnesty is the abolition and forgetfulness of
90 --------, . .'------ 4 ,,a~J"r
"is given TO one who il certainly guilty,
"has been convicted; amnesty to those who
"may have been s0" Pardon is
"always given to individuals, and properly
"0nly after judgment or conviction; amnesty
may be granted either before judgment or
"aftcrward, and it is in general given to whole
"classes of criminals or supposed criminals,
"for the purpose of restoring tranquility in
"the State. Bat sometimes amnesties are linn
"itcd, and certain classes are excluded from
"thcir operation"
1t will be observed that amnesty proceeds
from the Sovereign power and not from the
Executive power only, save. perhaps, in time of
war; when, for the purpose of .suppressing n
rebellion or civil commotion, Sovereign power
for this purpose is vested in the Executive.
Amnesty is IN act of Government which in
fact rcpeals the law which defines the crime.
Pardon is the act of the Executive which RENTS
the punishment Pardon operates on the indi-
yidual by deed; amnesty upon the community
by law. All previous proclamations of pardon
and amnesty by President Lincoln or Johnson
were authorized by and in pursuance of an act
of Congress. which act has been repealed at
the late session for the very purpose of pro-
hibiting johnson from doing this very thing.
Chief-Justice Marshall again says: "As this
power of pardon had been exercised from
"time immemorial by the executive of that
nation whose language is our language, and
TO whose judicial institutions ours bear a
CLOSE resemblance, we adopt their principles
respecting the operation and effect of a
pardon
Now, acts of amnesty have been as immemo-
rial in England as grants of pardon, and it
will be found that, save when proclamations Of
amnesty and pardon in time of civil commo-
ton have been issued by the King for the
purpose of inducing rebels to return to their
allegiance, as an exercise of the war-making
power, all the English rebelliOns have been
healed by acts Of grace and oblivion coming
from Parliament, sometimes, though erro-
neously, called "pardons by act of Parliament"
Of these, being parts of the public law, Courts
must take the judicial notice. Marshall gives
the reason for this as follows "The reason
why Court must, eX-oilicio, take notice of a
pardon by act of Parliament is that it is con
sldcred as q public law, having the same
elect on the case rs if the general law punish
ing the Oilense had been repealed or an
"nulled."
In earlier times, the Kings of England. bor-
rowing the practice from the Pope, undertook
to issue dispensations, both to individuals and
TO communities, for the commission of crimes
and suspension of the execution of the laws
but the last of such dispensations was issued
by James H., and cost him his throne and in