Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1868-01-15
THE RECONSTRUCTION QUESTION
prpORr THE SUPREME COURT.

short time Mr. Stanberry's speech at
the New Orleans banquet exeites a good
deal Of comment, and anti-reeonstrue-
tionists derive much aid and comfort
from that portion Of his remarks bearing
on this point Congress, too, has be.
come a little anxious on the subject, and
on Friday, the 10th inst, the House Jus
dietary Committee instructed their Chair
man, Mr. Wilson, to report bill pro-
viding that two~thirds of the Judges of
the supreme bench shall concur in an
opinion before any law can be declared
unconstitutional As the law at present
stands, It requires only bare majority
to do 50. This bill will undoubtedly give
rise to a great de.1 Of discussion, and
efforts will be made t. defeat IT, so that
the legislation may not affect the cases
already before the court, Of which there
are three, involving directly or indirectly,
the authority Of Congress over the States
lately in rebellion The first has only an
indirect bearing upon reconstruction, but
still it involves the question of the au-
thority Of Congress to pass laws affecting
the rights Of the States and Of the citi-
zens thereof It's a cotton case, in which
the owner of cotton captured and sold
,,Jor T,;+ol Gtof.e Iovr brtpoa a,.f d..
rectly against the officer making the cap
ture and ordering the sale The officer
pleads the law in justification. The
second, known as the Virginia case, in
wolves the jurisdiction Of West Virginia
over the counties Of Berkeley and Jefrer-
son. By contract between West Virginia
and Virginia, these counties were coded
to the former, subject of course, to rati-
fcation by Congress. Previous to the
action of Congress, Virginia withdrew
her assent to the contract, but Congress,
without paying any attention to this
action, proceeded to ratify the cession,
and West Virginia has assumed full con-
troll Of these counties. Virginia fled
bill denying the authority of West Vir>
GINA at the last term. To this the latter
has made answer The third is the case
of Col. VIM McCardle, editor of the
vicksburg AIiss.) Times, who was ar,
rested and imprisoned by order of Gen.
Ord, which comes up On appeal from the
United States District Court Of Missis-
siBpi, the Judge thereof having refused
to grant habeas corpus upon the applica-
ton ofCol McCardle The Radical Wash
ington correspondent of the Cincinnati
Gazette, in his letter of the 10th inst,
gives expression TO the Radical hopes and
fears in regard to the action Of the Su-
preme Court upon these cases as follows
There are so many wild and sensational
stories afoat about the Supreme Court and
the reconstruction acts, that it seems ad
yisable to make a careful statement more
in detail than any which has yet appeared
There are, as was stated last night, but
three cases on the docket, in which the con-
stitutionality of these acts is even Indirect
ly involved. The cotton case already
mentioned was argued to-day, and win
probably be decided sometime next month.
The discussion may perhaps touch one or
two points Of the Congressional policy, but
whatever it be it can not effect the general
scope of the reconstruction law.
The West Virginia case cannot be
reached for two or three months, and it is
not vet possible to tell exactly what issues
it will present.
The other case Of the three is docketed /
as en- pdrte in the matter of VIM. McCardle.
1t comes up from Mississippi in refusal
of the District Judge to grant writ of /
habeas corpus, for the reason that the recon.
structiop act prevented it. Its present po-
sition on the docket is such that it can't be
reached under two years. Judge Black
filed a motion two weeks ago TO bring it
forward and set an early day for its hear
ing. and to-day was fixed for taking up
this motion. AT the appointed time, Judge
Black called TO il the attention ofthe court,
when the Attorney General asked that the
question be postponed till the arrival of GER
tain interested parties from Mississippi, and /
il was, accordingly put over. These persons
are expected in the course of ten days, and /
when they arrive, Judge Black says1he /
will again ask the court to bear him in /
support of his motion TO bring it forward. /
He expresses confidence that the court will /
grant his proposition, and name some day /
next month for hearing the case. Emi-
nent lawyers in Congress believe that his
motion will be refused. II il is refused, /
that ends the matter so far as this term is
concerned. If it is granted, and day next i
month fixed for hearing the argument, the
decision even then may not be made till /
March. The case squarely involves the
constitutionality of the reconstruction law
The first question is, however, will the
court bring it forward so that it can be
heard at this term. As already stated,
leading Senators do not believe this will
be done. Gen. Grant, as the head of the
army, Is interested in the case, because
McCardle was arrested by the military,
and it is presumed that he will be sup
ported by counsel, and possibly by some
one beside the Attorney General.
The court has never yet rendered its full
decision in the Sharkey and jenkins inc
junction cases. An application for an in
iunctiOn, n VIII De Itlu6tHutEtug WAS dt~ /
MED. on the ground that the court hsd no
and Chief Justice Chase was
TO prepare an opinion at his
leisure. 1t has been known to his friends
that he drew up this document net long |
AGO. 1t is currently reported, and some
how generally believed among members of
The bar. that IL doing so he went beyond
The technical points involved and affirmed |
The copstitutiouality Of the reconstruction
laws is broad and unequivoeal terms. II
il also reported that five of the eight Judges
declined to give their assent to this opinion.
The enemies Of the reconstruction policy
claim that they did so because all believe
the acts on thequestion are unconstitutional,
but monument Republicans say that two Of
the five did so because they thought the
court should stand by the position II took
in the spring, and not 90 beyond the techs
nieal record However this may be, no.
thing can come from any decision IN the
Injunction case; that matter being closed
and the attention Of all the enemies OF
Congress is now turned 10 the motion for
bringing forward the McCardle case. IL
l. l.. i N this I