The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1876-05-02
Tho K;lbourn Case.

The KnpouaN case is not yet one which
.ha masses understand well enough to have
..any decided opinions concerning 1t. And
. II we had included the legal profession
amongst those who have no clear idea as To
whether Judge CARTIER or the House Of
Representatives is In the right, we should
not have been far wrong, wesuppose. XII
BouaN had been indicted under on act
of Congress for the very offeuce for
which the House OF Representatives
had ordered him to be imprisoned in the
common Jail; and therefore the order OIL
Judge GARTER for his release appears to
have been well-timed and proper. On the
other hand, his release looks like defiance
OF the House and such acontenptuous dis.
regard OF its orders rs might bring that
body into ridcule. a witness positively
refuses to tell All investigating committee
who belonged to q real-estatc pool or ring
with the business OF which he is thoroughly
acquainted. and yet when he is i'm.
prisoned for contempt by the House, he
is enlarged by court and told that
all he has to do is to stand . trial
by a jury OF his countrymen. We all
know what such trial would be for XII
BouRN in Washington, where there are
thousands and tens of thousands Of clerks
and other ofIice-holders, and where conse-
quently there is prejudice in the minds OF
nine-tenths OF the people i'll favor OF the
Administration side Of every question.
GRANT is supposed to be one OF the
parties to the real-estate pool concerning
whose business KILB0uRN refuses to testify.
4 iury-trial, therefore, in such place rs
Washington does not promise to be at all
effective rs q means Of compelling witness
to give such information as the House COM
mittee is anxious to obtain from h1LBoURN.
Either the Jury will acquit him, or it Will be
a hung Jury, or it will indicate by It's YER
diet that it wishes him to be discharged.
We earnestly desire to sec the rights OF
every citizen protected to the utmost eX-
tent OF the powers Of the courts; but at the
same time it does seem TO us that there
ought to be some way Of compelling recu-
SAINT witnesses to testify in such cases rs the
one under consideration, and also OF COM
pelling them to produce whatever books and
documents they may have in their posses
sion containing entries and writings whose
production is calculated to further the ends
OF Justice.
The House committee can OF course have
KILBoURS summoned before it again, and
can again ask the questions which he has
refused 70 answer, and again demand the
production OF the books and papers which
he has declined to produce; aid if he again
refuses to answer the questions and to pro-
(uce the documents, the House Of Repre-
sentatiyes can again order him to be i'm
prisoncd, and it will be necessary for him to
be again indicted in the criminal court before
his status will be the same as it was when
Judge CARTIER last week ordered him to be
released on bail. Thus he may he impris-
oned again and again, and be very much
He could hardly hide himself
from the process Of the House whilst await
ing trial, even il he desired to do so. The
sergeant-at-arms would find him wherever
he might secrete himself; or If he fled the
country his bail-bond would be forfeited.
We await with interest the next step in
this important case-important as promising
to settle definitely as to the rights Of 4 citi-
zen and the powers Of Congress some ques-
tons which ought to have been settled long