Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1872-02-14
NEW SERIES--V0L I3, NO. 7.

at least the crime Of manslaughter-
l. Let Grant and his lictors remember
. the fate Of Governor Hall. Let them
trcmblc for the great day which will
certainly come, when they will be put
before the bar Of outraged justice, to
be tried for the crimes they have com.
: mitted. Bingham and his military com.
missioners had no more right to try
Mrs. .Surratt, Harold, Payne, Atzeroth,
Mudd, Arnold, Mclaughlin, Spangler
and others, than duly constituted
committee Of boot blacks would have
had. IfMrs. Surratt, Harold, Payne
and Alzeroth had been hanged by
half dozen policemen, without trial,
their execution wOnld not have been
a more hagrant violation of law.
Every man concerned in this so cal.
led trial and execution of these parties
may and, to vindieate outraged law.
should be put on trial for manslaugh-
ter, for it is the law in this case ILLEGAL
punishment, ifthe party DO thousand
times guilty, is as great an ofiense
against law as the original violation
OF the law, and if justice again assumes
her place in this country, and guaran.
tees 10 the citizens the protection of
liberty, none of these official misdeeds
must be allowed to stand as precedcnts
They should be vigorously punished
The trial and condemnation OF every
one Of these usurpers of power, of
these violaters oflaw, should stand as
precedent for all time. What a preced
ent for justice in England, was the trial
and execution Of Gov. Hall What n
proud and shining monument to Eng |
lish law is that case. We should rear
thousand such monuments of Amcri. |
can law and American justice, or for
ever abandon the boast that we are q |
free and law abiding people. No
criminal is so much to be despised as
the man who, N the name of law, VIC
lates the law None deserves to be
more inexorably punished
We write this article, not so much
for the purpose of giving our readers
the law Of this question, nor do we
cite examples for tho purpose of in.
sisting on the only proper and legal
remedy, but to show them that out.
rage after outrage, and violations of
law have been committed by our rul
ers, until the calm aud patient sub
mission OF the people have taught the
servants TO imagine themselves the
the doings and designs of the Admin.
istration, cannot fail to see that they
are toying with the people for no other
purpose than TO forge the chains of
despotism about them, and establish,
in the place of liberty, an unconstilu-
tional governmental military des-
potism-with Grant as the head and
only source of power. The lesson the
student of American history is study
ing to-day, is precisely the same tho
history of every free government that
was ever established on earth pro
duced. Little by little the people be,
came careless, their rulers corrupt,
virtue gave place to vice, courage to
indifference or absolute cowardice,
laws seemingly for the government of
the people and suited to special local
tiles were made general, and finally,
ended in enslaving the masses, des.
troying liberty and placing the State
into the hands Of the despot. As we
read history, we must not deceive our
selves by imagining that these things
belong TO other nations, and that our
own will be exempt from them. This
is foolish dclusion. Absolute power
power emancipated from and lifted
above the restraints of aw-has al.
ways been mighty cngendcrer of
every vice. The ostcrucl and brutal
Of the Roman omperors, such as Cali.
gua, Nero, Tiberus, were men of vir.
tue and humanity before they were
elevated to royalty, but no sooner
were they set free from the social
pressure Of society and elevated to a
post where their will became the only
law, than they began to exhibit the
most disgusting rs well as the most
cruel attributes Of human nature
Our own country ut this moment is
an appalling illustration Of the same
tendency of unrostraincd power to
poIutc the whole moral fabric of soci.
ETY.. Since the first election Of Lin.
coin, what he called "thegoycrnment"
has been allowed to exercise powers
absolute us any that wero ever held
by Tiborius or Nero. Tho people
have permitted the Presidents will,
and even his numerous spurred and
strapped subalterns, to stand above the
law. And we blush TO say il, 10 every |
department of this degrading power.
the honor of men and the virtue OF
women have been treated as markcta.
bic commodities. Washington, which
once was the seat of social refinement
and of respect for at least the public .
and common docencies of life, has al
len into Sodom and Gomorroh, with 1
scarcely n trace Of its former dceehcy I
and respectability left us remem
braucer OF departed manners, Its
broihel. Even Senators do not hesi.
tate to quarter their female iayortes