Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1878-08-07
THE KNA VISH TAUNT.


Fools and knaves have afflicted
every age and community ever since
the creation. A Federal revenue Off.
-sf- ~; nnt fiisj'. g ~ ts~s-,,- rscli.
Carolina few weeks ngc, and thc
State authorities have arrested the Of
ficer for baving committed murder.
The Federal authorities have attempt
cd rescue, but the State authorities
keep the man charged with murder
under lock and key. Tho New York
Tribune taunts the South Carolinians
for not "blustcrng and threatening a
conflict OF forces,' and the Chicago
Inter Ocean remarks: Will they
fight ?" What pity it is that these
two Radical organs cannot get up a
war, so that they can again fight by
substitute as on former occasion. The
Baltimore Gazette in alluding to this
question, states the case as follows
"The Republican papers that are
trying to manufacture campaign thun-
dor out of tho judicial conflict between
the State and Federal courts Ct South
Carolina have undertaken a useless Ia.
Dor. 1t is such conflict as has fre-
quently occurred before in other States
and one that has been always settled
by judicial decision. There are points
upon which the relative jurisdictions
of State and Federal courts have never
been finally laid down and upon such
questions as are still open there may
be controversies which only the Su-
preme Court can settle. That tribu.
nal will ultimately decide the question
of jurisdiction raised by the causeless
killing OF Amos Ladd. There would
have been no excitement about ii but
for the fact that during the Chamber
lain regime the United States courts
were the sanctuaries TO which carpet
bag rascals naturally fled when they
got found out and which frequently
rescued them by babeas corpus from
the punishment due to their crimes.
That state Of affairs has not yet been
forgotten.
"lf q revenue officer in this city
should shoot down an alleged illicit
distiller who was trying to escape ar
rest there would be little doubt that
the State courts Of Maryland would
take the matter up. If it should turn
out that the man who was killed had
never even been accused Of illicit dis
tilling, and that there was no warrant
for his arrest, the court might say
that this was murder and not a justi.
fable killing in discharge Of public
duty. The fact that q man is a revenue
officer does not give him the right to
shoot down anybody that he dislikes
and justify it by saying that he sus
poets him of breaking the internal rev.
enue laws. A man charged with muir
der or burglary, who resists arrest,
may be shot by the officer of the law,
but not man charged with mere
unless it be in selfde-
fense. In the case OF Amos Ladd there
was no resistance TO arrest. He was
simply escaping by the back door Of
his house from revenue officers who
were at the front door. Ono of the
officers, however, had gone behind the
house and shot him dead as be came
to the back door. To make the matter
more unjustifable, the officers had no
warrant for the arrest Of Ladd their
warrant was for the arrest of another
man named Redmond. If these events
had taken place in Massachusetts, or
New York there would have been no
doubt that the State law would have
dealt with the offenders. But the Re.
publican papers seem to think that
United States revenue officers have
right to shoot Carolinians, and that
for the State courts 10 call that right
in question, is notification There
will, however, be no forcible resistance
even should the Federal courts release
the prisoners. This case will simply
go up to the Supreme Court"