Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1871-04-24

force, intimidation, or threat, to prevent, him
der or delay the execution of any law OF
the United States, or by force to seize, take
| or possess any property of the United States,
| contrary to the authority thereof, or by force,
| intimidation or threat to prevent any per
son from accepting or holding any. ONCE
| of trust or place of confidence under the
United States, or from discharging the duties
| thereof, or by force, intimidation or threat to
| induce any officer of the United States to leave
| any State, district or place where his duties
| as such officer might lawfully be performed,
| or to injure him in his person or property on
account of his lawful discharge of the duties
| of his office, or to injure his person while en-
gagged in the lawful discharge of the duties of
| his office, or to injure his property so as to
modest, hinder, interfere with or impede him
in the discharge of his official duty, or by
force, intimidating or threat to deter any party
or witness in any court of the United States
from attending such court, or from testifying
in any matter pending in such court, fully,
and truthfully, or to injure any such party or
witness in his person or property on account
of his having SO attended or testified, or by
force, intimidation, or threat to influence the
verdict, presentment, or indictment, of any
juror or grand juror in any court of the United
States, or to injure such juror in his person or
property on account of any verdict, present
ment, indictment lawfully assented to by him,
or on account of his being or having been such
juror, or shall conspire together, or go in dis
guise upon the public highway, or the prem
ises of another tor the purpose, either direct.
ly or indirectly, of depriving any person or
any class of persons OF the equal protection
of the laws, or of equal privileges or immu-
mites under the laws, or for the purpose of
preventing or hindering the constituted au-
thorities of any State from giving secur-
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equal protection of the laws, or shall conspire
together for the purpose of in any manner
impeding, hindering, obstructing or defeating
the due course of justice in any State or
Territory, with intent to deny to any citizen
of the United States the due and equal pro-
lection of the laws, or to injure any person in
his person or property for lawfully enforcing
the right of any person or class of persons to
the equal protection of the laws, or by force,
intimidation or threat, to prevent any citizen
of the United States lawfully entitled to vote
from giving his support or advocacy in law
full manner toward or in favor Of the election
of any lawfully qualified person as an elector
of President or Vice President of the United
States, or as a member of the Congress of the
United States, or 10 I'M ure any such citizen in
his person or property on account OF such
support or advocacy, each and every person
so offending shall be deemed guilty of high
crime, and, upon conviction thereof in any
district or circuit court OF the United States
or district or supreme court of any Territory
of the United States having jurisdiction of
similar offences, shall be punished by fine
| not less than five hundred or more than five
| thousand dollars, or by imprisonment with
| or without hard labor, as the court may de-
| termne, for period of not less than six
months nor more than six years, as the court
may determine, or by both such fine and i'm
| prisonment, as the court shall determine.
And if any one or more persons engaged in
any such conspiracy shall do, or cause to be
done, any act in furtherance of the object of
such conspiracy, whereby any person shall be
injured in his person or property, or deprived
of such rights and privileges the per-
son SO injured or deprived of such rights
and privileges may have and maintain
an action for the recovery of damages
occasioned by such injury or deprivation
of rights and privileges against any one or
| more of the persons engaged in such conspir-
acy, such action to be prosecuted in the prop
er District or Circuit Court of the United
| States, with and subject to the same rights
| of appeal, review upon error, and other rem
| edies provided in like cases in such Courts
| under the provisions of the act Of April 8,
1866 entitled "An act to protect all persons
in the United States in their civil rights, and
to furnish the means of their vindication."
Section 3. That in all cases where insur-
rection, domestic violence, unlawful eombina-
tons, or conspiracies, in any State, shall so
obstruct or hinder the execution of the laws
thereof and of the United States as to deprive
any portion or class of the people of such
State of any of the rights, privileges, or i'm
munites. or protection, named in the Consti-
tuition, and secured by that act, and the con-
stituted authorities of such State shall either
h1 Ia IN shal
fall in or refuse protection Of the people in
such rights, such facts shall be deemed
denial by such State of the equal protection
of the laws to which they are entitled under
the Constitution of the United States, and in
all such cases or whenever any such insurrec-
ton, violence, unlawful combination or con-
spiracy shall oppose or obstruct the laws of
the United State, or the due execution thereof,
or impede or obstruct the due course of JUS
tice under the same, it shall be lawful for the
President and it shall be his duty to take such
measures, by the employment of the militia
or the land and naval forces of the United
| States, or of either or by other means, as he
may deem necessary for the suppression of
such instruction, domestic violence, or COM
| bnations; and any person who shall be ar
rested under the provisions of this and the
| preceding section shall be delivered to the
marshal of the proper district, to be dealt with
according to law.
Section 4. That whenever in any State or
part of a State the unlawful combinations
named in the preceding section of this act
shall be organized and armed and so numer-
Gus and powerful as to be able, by violence,
to either overthrow or set at defiance the con-
stituted authorities of such State, and of the
United States within such States, or when the
constituted authorities are in completely with,
or shall connive at the unlawful purposes of,
such powerful and armed combinations; and
whenever by reason of either or all of the
causes aforesaid, the conviction Of such Of
Tenders and the preservation of the public
safety shall become in such district impract
bic. in every such case such combinations shall
be deemed a rebellion against the Government
ofthe United States and during the continuance
of such rebellion and within the limits of the
district which shall be so under the sway
thereof, such limits to be prescribed by proc
lamaton, it shall be lawful for the President
of the United States, when in his judgment
the public safety shall require it, to suspend
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