Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1872-09-28
orr SPOIL,

III 1AAA1
the human capacity for sycophancy,
apostacy and brutality. Men who can
sneerand Jest, and make merTiment over
the hanging Of an innocent woman by
an illegal and unconstitutional tribunal
would not hesitate to applaud wife
whippers, or to chuckle at the imprison-
ment of defenseless women. Were
Havnau living he would no doubt es-
pouse the cause of Andrew johnson,
and sheer at any allusion to the hang
ing Of Mrs. Surratt. But, thank God,
the people of Tennessee are not all Hay
naus. They recoiI with horror from the
men who participated in a deed which
has been pronounced by the civilized
world as an atrocious crime. As evil
dence of this, we have only to announce
that the son Of Mrs. Surratt, when tried
bv the civil courts, instead of Andrew
JohnsOn's Military Commission, organ
lied to convict, was tr~iumphantly &C.
quilted. There were no perjured wit
nesses on the stand 10 swear his life
away. The prosecution broke down;
there was not a scintilla of proof against
him; he was triumphsntly acquitted. II.
the wicked son was innocent, how much
more innocent was the Christian
mother? She was foully murdered, and
now the murderers and their hired tools
seek to escape by holding up to ridioule
every allusion to this mOnstrous outrage
upon justice and constitutional law.
This subterfuge is too thin. Dane
ing and the clangOr Of arms saved
a sleeping babe from the devouring
Saturn; but dancing over the grave of
Mrs. Surratt, and holding her sainted
name up in derision, will not shield her
mUrderers from the scorn of the world.
In Tennessee, men may laugh at the
hanging Of an innocent Catholic lady as
a rich joke; they may scott at the Teve-
lations Of the priest who pToclsims her
bIameless, sinless and spotless, but when
q AUST people contemplate this shocking
crime they feel more like weeping than
laughing. Indeed, tears enough have
been shed to drown the creatures who
would extricatet the hangmen by deriding
and grinning at the poor victim. While
the cruel and heartless are laughing at
the hanging victim, the daughter
as still weeping; the family of Baker,
the detective, are still weeping. Con-
over, the perjured witness, was smitten
with remorse, and wept tears Of blood.
Conscience smOte Preston King, and he I
filled his pockets with lead, walked j
down into the deep water, and his fami- I
" are still weeping. S~elf-reproach l
burned like a coal Of fire in the bosom of
Jim Lane, and he, too, committed sui
eide, and his guilty soul went to the
devil, and he caused relations to
weep. Joe Holt walks through life q
an outcast and a pariah Of society, {
while hangman Hartrant Will be de- b
feated for Governor in Pennsylvania, l
and afterward tried for the p~enitentiary |
for his many acts Of robbery. johnson 8
is n Of the few monuments left of this |
foul murder. He cannot escape the pub
lie odium by melting his penny-a- =
liners to ridicule those who would ex- =
pose his connection with the infamous p
crime. Andrew Johnson's hands are s
stained with the blood of Mrs. Surratt. =
She has been pronounced innocent by q
the verdict Of the civilized world. An
ex-member Of the cabinet said in q
Boston ''that the testimony was sub a
orned, and there was no evidence of her II
(See Globe 1856, Resolution of
inquiry General Butler, who would
not readily have slandeTed Mr.. john
accomplices, Stanton and others, T
bis Radical compeers, said in a contest to
with Bingham: ''There is no evidence
hat she knew Of the assassination, and u
ought not, in my opinion, to have been v.
Convicted "These, Mr.. Speaker, are II
briefly the reasons why l am SO glad the al
Of this woman isnOt OF my head. " to
The point which / make is that all the q
estimony possible to throw light on that
.ase was not before that tribunal" (See ~
iEObc, 1865. This was a contest
two Radicals. 1t was a ,r
Ieep and damning disgrace-a foul us
lot on the nation. And while -,
AnuIe" Is traVerslng the STATE fol
ourishing the constitution over his head
t him show what clause Of that
lstrument gives him power to
sue the following bloody order sus-
the sacred writ Of ha6eas corpus Pa
/ the case Of Mrs. Surratt:
EXECUTIVE OFFICE, July 7. 1855.
M-eior-General Hancock, commanding, j
l., Andrew Johnson, President of the United frol
-ates, do hereby declare that the writ OF M bril-
as corpus has been heretofore suspended in VIII
zen caseS as ms; and l DO hereby specially Aui
spend this writ, and direct that vou p-oeosd fr1I
execute the order heretofore given upon oral
le judgment OF a military commission and sacl
"a viii give this order IN return to this writ par
JOHNSON. Is n
But it is said by Johnson's spologists tate
lat he was afraid 10 do otherwise in
hen be proposes to escape crime on the cen
ca Of ~cowardice. With this view Of sigf
e case Johnson's conduct was gov Ia
ned by interest and irredeemable self int
mess. He chose TO hang an innocent T1Ess
oman rather than put his own life in y
He committed a great crime, iron
~ TIC pANiuA lACo lAdb oul1 III DelO
at way could he escape the Infatuated hI6Soi-l
Do. The fear Of physical death eoul
no Excuse for iinching from earthly II
ties, and the fear of hell win never mo,
an act Of meanness, murder and bon,
wardice. johnson, in contemplating It co
hanging Of Mrs. Surratt, may ex- bm a25
i'm, "Out, damned spot, OUT" but deer
viii not out. There it is indelibly lien.
blistering the eyes and eating to ne
vitals Of the murderers. Neither mort
sers nor jibes nor derision can vine IN
/ or burn out the foul crime. distq
ur perjured witnesses are in Prots
= penitentisry expiating their va not !;
US crimes; Stanton is thought to @mnel
We committed suicide on account Out c
his connection with this murder; Reav
King and Jim Lane sought re- ION,
T in the suicides death. But An beinI
w johnson, the chief conspirator in II is I
s fragrant violation of constitutional alone
hts, seeks to escape guilt by getting any !
friends to Singer at and to melt sons
h filth the hOrrid form Of Mrs. Surratt heeet
on the gallows. speed
hund
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a cable dispatch We learn that on great
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