Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1877-04-09
Tao Confisct OF Authority.

\. vas briefly stated 10 Ha'ufuay r
#. noo, V, Clifford, the sure:i1tsnssOt CT
;,,i:es, appointed By the City Couoc''' ard Mr.
:, dillon, the o7erseer Of the chain gang ap'
,,otel by him, were again arrested 'S oruer
- he Als7or. At sis O'Clock IN the evening
,ao- C7rs carried before the Mayor. vito, alter
Insulation With Mr.. Edmund Bd'i;e' ms Legal
,1r;sar committed them 70 Jail Tor further
pasr;or on the 10th inst. Prior to his Femo7ai
,r,zthe Mayors Office Hlr. Clifford propHnndea
.,no questions to MIR. Barte, The mayor 5
,onointee, who vas present. relative to Ills
,..;o, 10 allowing his name 70 90 bore 'Ho
it7 Council and afterwards eoaer"tn'ah0s
an iGliford) upon his eloctioa it;@ ted 10
,to vordy c,ui;ct between Tie t"o senl's-
apa, which was ended by Mr. CLIFFORD leaving
lie Office.
Charles +. &tuati, al the rorpcFAA1n At
.,racy was at ouca notified OF the Incarceration
81 Mcssrs. Clifford and Diilou. and made appi'-
Tan tc Judge Lowe, OF the Corrorailoa Court
;,ra writ Of habeas corpus, which was granted,
.,l rsade reurnab!c at the court room st hall
AS: 2ght CLOCK.
II that hour large uumber OF persons
...ra proscut. Massrs. Clifford ADD Diilon were
,..,arht 10 by Deputy Serscaa: Armstrong ana
he offence charged b1iny not state offence'
n, Conmonwoalh's Attorney, J. NJ John
m, esq, Was present. .; vas also mayor
I,losou, attended by MIR. Burke.
The DAINTY Sergeant ior return to tho writ
.,rnson,al the original commitment by the
U.y,r which thargcS George W, Clifford,
prrick Dillon and Alfred Plnkoey, With riot.
-. ,onduc. in interfering with the duties OF
,nn n:;;.a Of S;upcrintcndcrt Of Police.
sj- Stuart having some difficulty in reading
no warrant, remarked to Mr.. Burke, who had
rrrparsd it, that it would have been better Ii he
lad written it more !cglby. 49,.
Nr, Burke responded that tic difficulty more
probably lay with the defective eye sight OF tue
;rorpora.ioa Attorney than with the ohirog
apply. Ill.,
Nr. Stuart ,han made statement OF the
facts u the case relative to Mr.. Clitiorua cleo.
,,,p b. Counc, &C., but the Judge stepped
i'm. saYing that he did not Thick tbs question
.; tltlr 70 the uihca could cOmo up 20 this
,;anc,
Nir, Stuart slseostcF that the warrant charg-
a riot 10 interfering with the Superintendent
# Poics, aud that If hlr. Clifford held that
ace, Us be c!aucd then he could not inter
70 With himself.
Iudgc Love though. the question was only
-. 10 whether any legal offence was alleged 10
..a commitman{, and whether that paper itself
"a; correctly Grawa.
NJr. 4. Nj. Jahusor-rcgd the law III regard
- riot he did not think there was any legal
a;Fence constituting riot. charged 10 the mt.
mus
Mr, Edmund Burke said that he had been
f,aucstcG ~ the Mayor to assist the Common
7oath's Attorney, bet !tat officer declined his
.saistalca.
Commonwealth attorney johnson said nc
IA not want any assistance, and considered
himself perfectly comp2;eut 10 discharge his
!uty Eithon. any.
Mr.. Burke sad the cnploymcu! Of assistant
counsel vas courtesy that had been allowed
,,a &c the foundation Of the government.
Mr.. Stuart then read from hlayos Gu!do
he term for the mlttlmue.
Mr. j. NJ. johnson said that it maS !ues.
t.0a for consideration with him as to whether
lie Superintendent Of Police was an officer who
,5uld be mpcdcd in the eye OF the law.
Judge Lowe then said he would like to hear
rom Mr.. Burke, and asked him if he wrote
he mttimus, and it so, under what law ii wGs
t!amed.
Mr. Rathe ral;i ha did write II, aud read
.he statute ou the subject, and The form from
|iayos Guide.
Mr. Stuart SAID thai liz would ike to have
rNr original warrant rro3u.ed % which these
,,artlcs we're arrested.
iir Burke wanted TO slate his position, he
Lad been called on by The Mayor for advice
The judge, iatcrruptng, said he did cot
are Tor that, lie wautcd TO hear the Law.
ilr. Bu,ke continued readiup.
After he had finished, the Judge called al
tention 10 the fact that the miltlmus Vas inr
three persons, while only Two had sued oct he
writ Of habeas corpus.
hlr. Burke said that the other (Pinkneyl had
not yet been arrested.
Judge Lowe said it WAS very Singular 10 com
init man before he vas arrested, and suggest
ed that the third name was put in to constitute
the charge OF riot.
AIRY to have three.
Mr.. Stuart combatted this argument. lie
also argued that to constitute riot there must
be breach Of the public peace, and there hav.
Hg been none 10 this case, there was 40 riot.
Besides warrant, which took away mans
liberty and committed him to jail must be tech
o!callv correct, and this was not. lie comment
ID up0u the fact that the name OF third party
hid been put 10 the mitlinus, drawn by law
ser, and a Commonwealth Attorney at that,
tSlr, Burke holding that position in the county,
Tor tho purpose OF making ont the charge oil
lot.
Mr. Burke denied the charge.
Mr. Stuart said that Piukucy had never been
crested or tried, pnd yet bis name figured ~
he mlinlus. lie argued further to show the
technical objections to, and the ials:ty Of the
mttlmus. file also again asked for the original
warrant, which was produced by the Mayor.
The Judge decided that although the mltu
AUS was defective, it was not fatally SO, but
that in any event the offence charged was bail
able one, and the parties should not have been
1onmltcd without bail. lie ordered that they
hc released on bail 10 $50 each, for their ap-
pcarancc before the Mayer on the 10th inst.
This security was at once given by Me<srs.
ileury Strauss aud T. Y. Rkheiil, and the
Datties we're discharged,
On yesterday morning Erauk Iiukooy. the
3clorcd man who worked for Mr.. Clifford, aud
II. 81, ,rtIS