The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1873-03-09
.ea.-E 8 80

1
In the Ssnnte. Mr.. Wilson presented
the following protest. to he entered. on
the journal:
We, the undersignsd Senators. in ac.
cordance with previous notius, enter our
hprotest against the passageg0fs the bill
entitled "a bill TO make atI Abpfoptia.
tion to pay olaiuas arising nndsf the nfoy
olamation OF the GoyarnCrl6f: this State;
dated July 2ssh. 1871 onsthst lowing
grounds: $3.50
1. Because the proo,amas ion 81 the
Governor ia SO broad and 7indefnita in
it's terms as to bes:yoid for generality.
No County is mentioneds and no aet Of
violence or murder specified, so as to
enable parties claiming the reward, to
establish their right to it. The power
OF the Governor to offer rewards, in our
Judgment, does not authorize him to
bankrupt the State by proclamation 80
broad as to cover every section and every
crime committed in the State. A pro-
clamation must specify the particular
| crime. the place where committed, aud
the time whom, as nearly AZ possible;
and In no other way can any one iden.
tify particular arrest with the arrest
for which the reward may be offord. In
tho present Case, everything IL left to iu-
| ference
e. becausA granting the proclama-
ton to be valid. it was not tho duty Of
the Governor, nor is it the duty OF the
State. nor has the Governor the power
! to offer any reward for the violation of
tho laws of the United States; and we
submit that very few, il any, persons.
under the alleged proclamation, baye
been arrested by State; auth ority, and as
yet convicted or held amenabie to the
State laws. either for murder or other
act OF violence; and hence that, there
being no one entitled 60 reward under
the proclamation as yet, no appropria-
ton can be justly made.
8. That the contingent fund of the
Governor is designed to cover rewards
offered by him; and if both the foro-
going reasons bo overthrown, then those
rewards shonld hage been paid from that
fund; and the Governor hnd no power to
create any debt beyond its amount with.
out authority Of the General Assembly. .
&. because, IN no sensi', can any legal
or moral obligation rest upon tho State
to pay for any arrest made under the
alleged purpose of this proclamation.
NO arrest was made under or by virtue
OF IT, On the contrary, after oil Efforts
OF the State authorities, with and with
ont reward. had failed to break up the
hu Kiu1 organizations. the General Go.
vernment, through its Chief Magistrate,
interfered to, protect tho people of tho
State. issued its proclamation, suspend
ed thef:writ Of hn6eas corpus aud sent lis
officers, supported by tho military arm
of the Government, to take possession
OF the disahected sections, and arres.
offenders and hold them for trial before
Its tribunal. That the arrests were made
under and by virtue of the express au.
thority of the General Government and
without reference to the proclamation of
the Governor of South Carolina, which
was thereby superseded; that the officers
making these arrests were in the pay of
the United States, and executed its
orders, and were not as much entitled
to reward for the discharge Of their
duty as the soldiers on the frontier pro.
tecting citizens OF the frontier States
from the depredations Of the Indians.
B. Because there being no legal or
moral obligation growing ont OF the
proclamation in fnvor of any known per-
son. and the State being already heavily
oppressed with debt, however bcne iical
to her interests tho acts of the General
Government, through its pail officers,
may appear, in suppressing tho great
conspiracy known as the ][u Kln1, no
more than gratuity, Us compliment
to Colonel Merrill, could be expected,
and even this. under our present embar-
rassed condition, should, if for nothing
else, be postponed.
6. II the appropriation Can bo sus-
tanned as claim, growing out of O legal
obligation of tho State. then, from stute-
ments made on the floor of the Senate,
S35, 900 do not. and cannot, satisfy tho
case. and we doubt if $500, 600 would
cover the alleged obligation. Who, for
moment, can admit that the Governor
of q State, upon his own motion, can in
volve State to such an extent by a pro.
olamation. IT the legal obligation ex-
ists, then We cannot stop at the amount
named with any show Of justice.
Z. We, in submitting this protest, de-
sire to express our adherence OF the Ku
Klnx and their deeds of violence, and
our gratitude to the General Govern
ment for its prompt action in suppress
ing them. JOHN WILSON,
W. @. KEITH,
T. O. DONALDSON.
THOS. @. DUNN,
W. Il. HOLCOMBE,
G. w. DUVALL.