The daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1873-1877, 1875-01-12
MILITARY DIVISION OF MISSOURI.

Hon. W. W. BELKsAP, Secretary OF War, vase
''Tthink the terrorism now existing in Louisiana,
Mississippi and Arkansas could be entirely removed,
and confidence and fair ealing established by the
and trial Of the ringleaders OF the armed
White Leagues. III congress will pass bill declar-
Ing them bandith they could be tried by military
commission. These bandi IL, who murdered men
here on the 14th OF last September, also more re-
Gently at Vcksburg Miss should, in justice to law
and rider and the peace and prosperity OF TINS
southern part Of the country, be punshed. 1t Is
poss Bile that II the President would issue procla-
nation declaring them banditti no further action
need be taken except that which would deyoiye up
Lieutenant General United States Army
And the secretary of war replied:
"WAR DEPARTMENT., WASHINGTON, Jan. 6.
Gen; P; H. Sheridan, Me,c Orleans.
1.-The President and all ofus haze full confidence
in and Thoroughly approve your course
Secretary of War;"
The first thing to be remarked upon
Gen. Sheridan's letter is that the Lieuten-
ant-General of the army assumes the func-
ton of the President of the United States
to recommend officially to congress what
laws they shall pass.
But Sheridan is mil, tses tb m"1 ,b;nr ra'
the wno san be accomplished without legis-
aSsItion if the President will only issue a
proclamation. The thing to be done is the
destruction Of the political opponents of
Gen. Grant in Louisiana, and the exact
proposition of Gen. Sheridan is that Presi-
dent Grant shall issue proclamation de
claring them bauditti. Ii congress would
pass a bill declaring them banditti that
would answer the same purpose, because
then they could be tried-tried indeed |!
by military commission, and after the
formality Of the trial they could be led out
to be shot or hanged! The proclamation,
however, would accomplish the same thing
because, whom the President declares ban
ditti, shall they not be assasinated with
out so much as the mockery of a pretended
trial?
Men of America What is this new
tongue in which your rights and liberties
are summarily disposed Of? What have
you ever read in American constitutions
and American law books about banditti
And yet on the strength of that word ban
ditti unknown in American law, and on
the strength of that one word in procla-
nation, the Lieutenant-Ge General of your
army, by the aid of the soldiers in your
pay, proposes deliberately, in cold blood,
to shoot down, to hang, to murder hun
dreds and thousands of your fellow citi
zens in Louisiana because they belong to
political organization opposed to the ad-
ministration at Washington!
In place of the staid, substantial, safe
government under which we have so long
lived, the semi barbarous condition of the
Central and South American States is to
be INSTITUTED, and our fair country is TO
be deluged with the blood of its sons for the
purpose of maintaining in authority the
men now in office at Washington.
And the answer to this atrocious de-
spatch from a blood thirsty commander,
the answer returned by authority of
President Grant and signed by his Secre.
tary OF War, is this:
The President and alt of us haze full
confidence an, and thoroughly approve,
your course"
If this correspondence does not stir the
blood of the American people, they have
no blood 10 their veins. The citizens of
Louisiana are to be pronounced banditti,
and shot down in their tracks to-day: but
who will be pronounced banditti and shot
down tomorrow How soon will come
our turn at the North9
The military arm is outstretched to-day
to sieze the power of the republic and to
cut bloody pathway to new form of per-
sonal government
Remember TINT many of those uho hare
knoa0n Grant best, haze predicted from, the
beginning that he pou1d die President or
die Dictator or .King!--M Y San.