The weekly standard., 1869-10-27


A PROCLAMATION,
BY His Excellency, the GevernoE q
North Carelina. afII
Esssstivs psPartnsst Il Hseth caFsll.a.
RAEMez, oet 2oth, 1soa.
Notwithstanding tho existence Of peace
and good order in other portions Of ths
State. regard It - my duty 70 snnouncs
that in four Counties. tolwit: Leuoir
Jones, Orange, and Chatham, thsrs il and
has been for some msnths past, . feeling Of
insubordination and insurrecticn, insonnch
that many good citizens are put In terror
for their lives and property, and it is difR-
cult, if not impossible, to secure q full and
fair enforcement OF the law. Inforna-
tion has reached, and continues TO reach the
Executive, that in the above Counties a state,
of feeling exists which is totally incompati-
BILE with the free exercise, by the friends Of
the Government, of that independent ex,
preston of opinion, and that freedom of &C.
tion, which is the birth right OF every
American. In Lenoir and Jones various
thefts and murders have been committed,
jails have been forcibly opened and the
prisoners taken thence have been murdered;
an officer Of the law has been waylaid and
slain on the public highway, and another
officer Of the law has been slain IN the open
day while engaged IN his ordinary ayoca-
tons. Private dwellings have been entered
and the occupants terrified, and some
of them whipped or murdered |;
Others have been shot or hanged
or cruelty beaten; and the result Is that
thus far the civil law, though firmly asserted
and maintained, has not been adequate to
bring the insuboEdinate and the wicked to
condign punishment. In Chatham the Jail
has been forcibly opened ands prisoner, con,
fined under sentence of Court Of the Uni,
ted States, has been liberated and is now al
large. In Orange the jail has been forcibly
opened and two prisoners (colored men)
taken out and shot, one Of whom has died
of his wounds Thres. other. colored mop
have been hanged until they were dead, one
has been cruelty mutilated, and Others hsse
been whipped. White citizens have been
injured, insul,ed and terrified. The Univer-
sity of the State, sacred to the cause OF
learning, has been repeatedly invaded by
bands Of armed men in. disguise on horse
back, and acts of violence have been thete
perpetrated on unofending citizens and OH,
GERS of the law. Many of the cclored peo.
pie in these Counties, and no inconsidersble
portion of the white people, though obe-
dient to the law aud good citizens, are liv,
ing under constant apprehensions thst they
may fall victims at any moment to the
malice Of their enemies. 81.
pa It is made my duty under the Constitu-
tion q to call out the militia to execute the
law, suppress riots or insurrection aud to
repel invasion" l deeply regret that it seems
necessary to resort to the military power to
enforce the law and to protect the citizena
But the law must be maintained. I have
waited in vain, hoping that q returning
sense Of reason and justice would arrest
these violations of the law. But these evils,
instead of diminishing have increased, aud
no course is left to me but to issue this pro-
clamation of admonition and warning to all
the people ofthe Counties mentioned, ,whsth,.
er engaged In thessfagrant violations Of law.
| or whether Indifferent or insensible to what
is occurring in their midst, ! now call up,
ON every citizen in the Counties aforesaid to
| aid the civil power in fearless enforcement
of the laws. No set of men can take the law
into their own hands. Every citizen, how
ever humble, or whatever his color, hos
right to be at peace in his own house, AM
cannot be taken thence except by due prc
cess, and cannot be punished save by ID
law. If there be those who counsel resi-
tance to established authority, such person
are traitors. and should be punished scoord
ingly: ifthere be those who, disguised o
masked, enter the dwellings Of Others b.
I-force and commit acts of violence, such per
sons are guilty of felony and should be pun
ished by hard labor in the penitentiary; L
there be those who, without precept or Or
der, hang, or shoot,or otherwise deprive any
one of life, such persons are murderen, and
should be punished accordingly. = .'l'
Ipow give notice in the most solemn man,
ner, that these violations of law and these
outrages in the aforesaid Counties, mus
cease; otherwise, Twill proclaim those Coun-
ties in state of insurrection, and will ex-
ert the whole power of the State to enforce
the law, to protect those who are assailed OF
injured, and to bring criminals to Justice
In matter like this there should be no par
ty feeling. 1t is my fixed purpose to pro
tect every citizen without regard to his an
tecedents, his color or his political opinions
but to do this the law must be sacred, musl
be spread over all alike, and must be infex
Ibly maintained. b1EEai gaiapoi Ta4ih
| Don't, at our City of Raleigh, this the
| Goth day Of October, in the year of oul
Lord, one thousand eight hundred
jfa and sixty-nine and in the ninety
y fourth year of our Independence, 2
| W. w. HOLDEN, Gosernor.
Bv the Governor: