Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1871-03-28

SOME Republican papers speak of
Buffers Ku Klux bill as Compare
lively moderate" But the more in
dependent and fearless New York
EUeniHg Post speaks Of it as the
browning abOminatiOn and an outrage
Of Outrages on the constitution which
it required the brain Of Butler the
Beast to concoct. 1t says in reference
to it:
A long list Of Ofenses against the
| United States is created by the bill,
/ classed as misdemeanOr5, high misde-
meanOrs, felOnies, and capital felO-
mics; thus to be found on the public
highway, or near a house, even =" un-
armed" and "alOne,n OF with
/ others, " " with intent to terrify " any
persons, SO as to hinder them from
the peaceful enjoyment Of their legal
rights" is a high misdemeanOr in the
daytime and a felony at night, and
the fact Of a disguise or of g." concert
with others F." for whatever purpose is
made priHlG GGcie evidence Of " the
guilty intent" A peddler found on
AAA lHNALLla eve ANEHHEA Aa MISS hNANA=
gle on the road, is thus made liable to
a fine Of not less than 5000 and inn
prisOnmentfOr not less than five years.
Why not re-enact the old Norman
curfeW law at once?
If any person shall be one of a crowd
at night, however large, and "what-
ever part may have been taken by
each" which shall contain n person
who shall " threaten 10 assault any
person, each and every member Of the
crowd shall be guilty Of felony, and
punishable in the same way. But if
any member Of the crowd shall COM
nit any act by which a mar is killed
or q dWeliing-bOuse burned, then each
and every member Of il shall be guilty
Of a capital felony and "shall be
hanged by the neck until he is dead"
The laws Of DracO, il will be seen,
never approached this in atrOcity; for
ever DracO never proposed 10 kill any
person not guilty of any ~Offense, or to
make constructive guilt OutOf circum- l
stances which might easily = consis. 4
tent with innocence. MANY of the
crimes set down in this bill would be !
NE NATAL consequence Of a peacea-
DIe Huzen's effort TO keep the peace, |
Az to protect himself or his n%eighbOrs /
1rOm trouble. The attempt to enforce |
such a law as this would make a Mex 1
leo Of our country at once.
But the fundamental objection to
the bill is independent Of the cruelty
Of its penalties, Of its loose and indiS- |
criminate definitions Of crime. and
Of the bOundless and irresistible /
power for persecution it puts into the
hands Of a few hundreds of men. and
IS more decisive against it even than
these. The bill would repeal the Con
stitutiOn of the United States, and
revOlutiOnize our whole system Of
government.
In the first place, it is a piece Of
special legislation, subjecdng eleven
States TO a system Of criminal juFis-
dictiOn entirely different from any
that exists or would be tolerated 10
the other States. It makes that a
crime in South Carolina which is no
crime In New York. 1t makes GER
tain Ohenses punishable by a different
tribunal, and with incOmparably /
greater severity In Louisiana than in
Massachusetts. Congress has no more
power to do this than il has TO make
different sets of customs or tax laws
for different States.
But again, the whole subject is one
over which Congress has no iurisdic-
ton. There is not a line in the Con-
stitutiOn to authorize the general
government to maintain civil order
ia the Senate. The State authorities
may, indeed, call on the President to
aid them in suppressing Instruction.
But when he gives this aid, he acts
as an auxiliary TO the munich
Dal executive, and in support of the
municipal laws. The Supreme Court
of the United States has maintained
this limit Of national authority from
the beginning. It says; "AH these
powers which relate to merely NUM-
ciDal legislation, or which may pro
perly be called Internal police, are not
surrendered (by the States) or re-
strained, and consequently in relation
to these the authority Of a State Is
complete, unqualified, and exclusive"
Oh Peters Reports, l02)
III such an act were passed, tending
10 interfere with civil order, 70 dis