The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1876-04-13
nsfional Afsirs.
THE ENFORCEMENT ACT.
State Sovereignty vs. Csesarism.
U. S. Supreme Court Decisions.


Court for Louisiana that they were
divided upon question at the hear
ing. 1t presents an Indictment
sixteen counts, divided
into two series of eight counts each,
based upon section of the enforce
ment act of May 81. 1870 That
section is as follows:
That if two or more persons shall
band OF conspire together, or 90 in
disguise upon the public highway,
or upon the premises Of another,
with intent to violate any provision
of this act, or to iniare, Cypress.
threaten, intimidate any citizen with
intent to prevent or hinder his full
exercise and enjoymentof any right
or privilege granted or secured by
the Constitution or laws of the uni
ted States, or because of his having
exercised the same, such person
shall be guilty of felony, and, on
conviction thereof, shall be fined or
imprisOL ed, or both, at the discre-
ton Of the court, the fine not to eX-
coed $4,000, and the imprisonment
not to exceed ten years, and shall
moreover thereafter be ineligible to
and disabled from holding any of
fee or place of honor, profit or
trust created by the Constitution or
laws of the United States. (l6
Stat, AL
The question certified arose upon
a motion in arrest of Judgment af-
ter a verdict of guilty generally up
on the whole sixteen counts, and is
stated to be whether the said six
teen counts are severally good and
sufficient in law, and contain charg
es of criminal matter indictable un-
der the laws of the United States.
The general charge n the first eight
counts is that of Branding" and N
the second eight that of ''conspir-
ing" together to injure and intimi-
date Levi Nelson and Alexander
Tillman, persons of color, with the
intent to hinder them in in the full
exercise and enjoyment of rights
and privileges granted to them in
common with all other good citi
zens of the United States by the
Constitution and laws. The of
lenses provided for by the statute
in question, do not consist in the
mere banding or 'conspiring'' Of
two or more persons together, but
in their banding or conspiring with
the intent or for any of the purposes
specified. To bring this case undel
the operation of this statute, there
fore, it must appear that the right
the enjoyment of which the con
spirators intended to hinder or pre-
vent, was one granted or secured by
the Constitution or laws. If it does
not so appear, the criminal matter
charged has not been made indicta
BILE by any act of Congress. w,
have in our political system a Gov
eminent of each of the States
Each one of these governments il
distinct from the others, and eacl
has citizens of it, own who owe il
allegiance, and whose rights within
it's jurisdiction it must protect
The same person may be at the
same time citizen of the United
States and a citizen of State, bu
his rights of citizenship under one
Of these governments viii be differ
ent from those he has under the
other (Slaughter-house cases, II
Wall, "a. Citizens are the mem
bers of the political community tC
which they belong. They are the
people who compose the commu
nifty, and have es tablished or sub
mitted themselves to a government
for the promotion Of their genera
welfare and the protection of theil
individual as we'll as their collective
rights. In the formation of a gov,
eminent the people may confer upor
it such powers as they choose. The
government when so formed may
and when called upon should, exer
else all its powers for the protection
of the rights of it8 citizens and the
people within its jurisdiction, but i
can exercise no other. The duty
of government to afford protection
is limited always by the power il
possesses for that purpose. Expe
rience made the fact known 10 tht
people of the United States, thai
they required a national govern
ment for national purposes. The
separate governments of the sepa
rate States, bound together by tbs
articles Of confederation alone, were
not sufficient for the promotion OF
the general welfare of the people il
respect to foreign nations, or tol
the complete protection as citizens
Of the confedegated States for this
reason: The people of the United
States, sin order to form a more
perfect union, establish justice, Sc
cure domestic tranquility, provi le
for the common defense, promote
the general welfare and secure the
blessings of liberty" to themselves
and their posterity CONSTITUTION
preamble !, ordained and established
the Government of the United
States, and defined its powers by a
Constitution which they adopted as
its fundamental law and made its
rule of action. The government
thus established and defined is &c
some extent a government OF the
States in their political capacity.
1t is also for certain Purposes a
government of the people. It's pow
ers are limited in number and not