The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1878-09-05
THE K1NIPTON EXTRADITION CASE.

The arguments for and against the sur,
render of Kimpton, upon the requisltion
of Governor Hampton, involve principles
and facts of so much importance that We
take from the stenographic report of the
Boston Adrertiser such passages as show
the position of Attorney General You,
mans, the leading counsel for the State
of South Carolina.
In opening Attorney General Youmans
said that he could make his argument as
brief, as compact, as conclusive as Dean
Swift's famous charity sermon: "He that
giveth to the poor lendeth to the Lord.
If you like the security, down with the
dust" His text would be the fourth
Second section) and sixth articles of the
constitution of the United States, and the
argument on that text would simply be
that there is no more to be said. Inde-
pendent of evidence, independent of
rhetoric, independent of statements of
fugitiYes, he stood there on the constitu-
ton.
"The constitution is the supreme law
of the land; it is the egis under which,
from one end of this country to the other,
rights, liberties, property and everything
that men hold dear or sacred rest. 1t
does not belong to Massachusetts, or to
South Carolina, but it extends from the
ice-bound regions of the North to the
glittering waters of the South, and from
the northern SHOWS where the trapper
hunts for his game to where the Mexican
Gulf rolls, and from ocean to ocean, from
the ocean that roars to the ocean that
sleeps, outlines drawn by the finger of
God for the residence of giant people.
Strange, passing strange, pitiful, Won
drous pitiiul, and yet it is true that am
required by the line of argument which
has been adopted, required i'll the home
of the Adamses, of Sumner, of Webster,
to make plea for the supremacy of the
constitution of the United States of
America over the laws of any State.
Well, can any doubt as to its true con-
struction? Nice distinctions may be in
troduced as to when the word may
means shall, and the word shall means
may; but in Cooley, in Sedgwick, in all
the text books, it will be found that the
words of the constitution are mandatory
end Imperative 1t does not leave it in
the discretion of the Governor, it does
not leave it in the discretion of a council.
The constitution, the supreme organic
law of the land, on which our rights and
liberties rest, speaks with the voice of
authority, and says, as it has a right to
say, 'shall.'"
Mr.. Youmans, in support of his posi-
ton, quoted Taney, Story and Kent as
the highest priori authority as to the
proper construction of the constitution,
and "every time, in every court anywhere,
without exception, the courts have sus-
tained the construction put in advance
by Story and by Kent upon this clause of
the constitution" Continuing, he said j:
"I do not come here for the purpose Of
getting Mr. Kinlpton as acitness. | come
here, bearing this requisition, to carry
Mr.. Kimpton back to South Carolina for
his trial for q crime. come here in
obedience to the mandate of the Execu-
tive of South Carolina, dated August l3,
in which he says:
"My Dear Sir: As I deem it of i'm
portance that you should represent the
State in the matter of the requisition for
H. H. Kimpton before the courts in Mas
sachusetts, request you will go on at
your earliest convenience. / hope that
you will press for an early decision, and
that you will urge upon the authorities
of Massachusetts, prompt compliance
with this requisition.
every respectfully yours,
"WADE HAMPTON, Governor.
"Hon L. F. Youmans, Attorney Gen."
"That is why I came on, and that is
what came for, and the statement that
this is an abuse of civil process, that this
is to carry out an agreement, that this IS
degradation of process, that this is for
any other purpose than in fair, open,
frank, good faith-those statements are
all false. There is not one particle of
evidence to support them. l intend to
take up that mass which has been brought
before you and briefly to dissect it, and l
will show before I conclude to your sat-
isfaction and to the satisfaction of his
Excellency the Governor, and to the sat-
isfaction Of every reasonable mind, that
not only has there been no bargain, not
only has there been no attempt to abuse
process, but that the conduct of Governor
Hampton throughout this whole matter
has been fair open, square, noble, kind,
generous to the fugitive who begged the
interposition of the President of the
United States in his behalf, and say the
evidence demonstrates it, and that the
statements to the contrary are false
What matters it whether he testifes in
the bond cases or not? BY their own
statement we could have got his testimo-
ny in New York. Why was it we did
not arrest him, we were asked, in New
York; 1t was, as my friend Judge Abb
bott said, that the State of South Caro-
lins under her present regime, and with
her present authority, regards its plighted
word as strong as human obligation can
make it. 1t was because the faith of the
State had been pledged to him for fifteen
days that he was not arrested. The
pledge was carried out in good faith.
My friend quotes from Lord Mansfield,
and 1 will quote from him, too. Justice
is all we waut-.fat .jatstitia ruat cetum.
Now, q good deal has been said about
these bond suits, and an attempt has
been made to obfuscate your minds by
the loose and reckless assertions of coun-
sci. When these gentlemen talk about
questions of constitutional law we have
seen that they are entirely at sea. When
they talk about principles Of municipal
law their doctrines need only to be stated
to competent legal authority to be refu-
ted. But when the gentlemen talk about
South Carolina politics and the South
Carolina government and the South Car
olina bond suits, they talk about some.
thing not only of which they know moth.
ing, but of which they can be expected
to know nothing. Now, sir, good deal
has been said about the bad faith oi
South Carolina. From the time of re,
construction until that momentous elec.
ton in 1876, which resulted in the defeat
of the distinguished gentleman who sal
here yesterday and then left, Mr.. Cham.
berlain, and who comes back to Massa
chusetts to traduce and SANDER his polit