The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1871-05-05

INV Az a A|NNfVVe2 N"Ss
reiteration of the protestations Of
Democrats from fair Republican
stand point. We do not endorse the
assumption that "Gen. Grant is too
faithful and too pure to desire the
possession,of the power this infamous
measure would clothe him with. -
We believe the danger is too immi-
nent in that direction to DO disrc
garded, but outside Of this, the SOL
emn words of warning contained in
this article should attract attention :
"This Capitalization of the au-
thority which has hitherto belonged
to the municipal governments is &C
companied with Capitalization in
the national executive of powers
which have hitherto had no exist
ence at all. The President is charg-
ed with the execution of local laws
for the preservation of civil order
and authorized, whenever, in his
| judgment, these laws are not admin
istered by the States, to use the mill
tary power of the United States to
enforce them. He may at any time,
and without any evidence of an
emergency requiring such action ex-
cept his own opinion, depose State
government, declaring it rebellion
against the United States, and dis
perse or imprison its members, sus-
pending, at the same time, civil
remedies which persons wronged by
his action might have under the
writ of habeas corpus.
The war-making power, which the
Constitution expressly reserves to
Congress, is thus given to the Presi-
dent alone and the power to sus-
pend the habeaS corpus, which the
Constitution forbids to any and all
branches of the government, except
in public peril from invasion or re-
bellion, is given to the President
upon any occasion when, in his judg-
ment, the conviction of certain class
es of offenders shall III any district
become impracticable.
1t cannot be disguised that the
passage of this bill makes a crisis in
the political history of the nation; a
crisis which calls for the wisdom of
a great people to meet it properly
In any other country than our own
it would inevitably lead either to a
centralized Imperialism or to civil
war. 1t is only among a people
long habituated to freedom and to
respect for law, that rulers could be
found to hold such powers, even for
week, without danger to liberty
In other nations, with such a grant
of power as this, strong executive
would strike for absolute sovereign
ty, and a weak one would quickly
be led by ambitious advisers to do
the same. Here we are safe against
such danger, The present Presi-
dent, whatever mistakes in states
manship he may have made, is an
honest patriot and that usurpation
which General Grant is too faithful
and too pure to desire, even reck-
less and corrupt man in his place
would be too prudent to attempt
The habit of freedom has destroyed
among our people the material of
which slaves are made, and no sud-
den seizure of absolute power is to
be feared here.
The danger, however, is no less
real, and scarcely less serious, than
if we had an imitator Of Napoleon at
the head of the nation and the army.
If this act be enforced, and if it sue
coed in the work proposed by it,
every barrier which the Constitution
holds up against the encroachment
of the central upon the local govern
ments is broken. Reverence for
the fundamental law will disappear,
and all the checks and forms of po-
litical controversy. No man can
foresee what the next step towards
Capitalization may be, but every
one may confidently predict that
constitutional limitation or prohibi-
ton may be permitted by any polit-
ical party in control of the national
government to defeat its ends,
or SO protect municipal privileges
against it. The local rights of per-
sons and of property, the local con-
flicts Interpretations, the whole system
of local laws, with the controversies
they involve and the passions they
excite, will become elements of ma
tional politics and the very organi-
cation of society throughout the
land will become the stake of nation,
al party struggles. The absolute
Capitalization of our government,
and the destruction Of the federal
system, must soon follow, with civil
war and disunion as the only alter
native.
The false step must be retraced.
The act must be disowned by the
nation. But it is with regret and
remonstrance that patriotic citizens
will hear the exhortations already
uttered in some quarters to meet it
by violence and disorder. The
Constitution, which has been out
ragged by passing this bill, provides