The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1878-06-13
Col. Aiken on Revenue 0utrages.

instant, in support of a motion to
strike out of the revised statutes, Sec.
3276, the power conferred on reve,
nue. agents to enter suspected premi,
ses and make searches without war
rant of law, Col. D. Wyatt Aiken,
fro'u this. District, said
II wish to call the attention of the
House 10 one or two points that
think will induce a majority to ap-
prove the amendment of the gentle
man from North Carolina, rMr.
Scales.
=. The amendment is necessary, Mr..
Speaker, if it serves only the. purpose
oi checking and curbing revenue Of
ficers in the exercise of the authority
now conferred upon them by law.
There is no section Of the Union in
which the undue exercise of little
power has created greater confusion
in communities and brought more
opprobrium upon the whole people
than in my own district. All the vic
lations OF the revenue laws that have
been charged upon my constituents
are based simply upon the fact that
the representatives of the Govern
ment there have never tor one mo-
ment questioned their own authority
to trespass upon the rights and
premesis of any aud everybody, be
they innocent or guilty. They never
consider the constitutional require
ment of having things done Accord
ing to law; that they must have a
warrant or writ, or some other off
claleparer, authorizing their entering
upon private premises to arrest, il
need be, to handcuf, shackle, or
strike down the citizen whom they
charge as guilty of violating the re-
venue laws Of the land. But shor.
time ago, sir, if the local pl css is OF
be credited, one of my constituents,
lying i'll Of disease, was taken by
force and arms from his sick bed aud
carried TO cold, cheerless jail, and
there incarcerated without even the
comforts OF bed, because he was
charged by one Of these representa-
t,es OF the Internal Revenue depart
ment with violating the revenue laws.
There was no warrant issued or other
"hcial paper shown authorizing such
conduct on the Eart Of this agent Of
the Government.
Sir, the local newspapers received
but yesterday tell me that all outlaw
from an adjoining Commonwealth,
who has been charged with frequent
violation ot1he revenue laws, and
even with the crime of murder in INV
own district, is confined in one of the
jails there and put on exhibition, as
Barnum would exhibit the hairy man,
by one of these revenue officers as a
curiosity because they accuse him of
having violated the revenue laws
time and again. l do not pretend TO
defend any such creature, and while
| believe the full measure of legal
punishment should be meted out to
him, / can but feel that he should be
held as innocent until proven guilty,
and no agent OF the Government
should be allowed to violate the law
by thus inaicting an illegal and un-
just punishment.
An incident that came under my
personal observation, and is not
related from hearsay, will illustrate
the arbitrary conduct of these reve-
nue. agents in executing the law. Two
summers ago two strangers came to
the county seat of my c1nnty, where
there are over twenty stores, and 60
ing into every store asked for sam
Piles of tobacco. The merchants sup.
piled them, and after testing the
quality of each handed back the
samples, "hich were thrown by the
merchants toward the boxes from
Wi,iph thnV xuora koEan Gnn,o .,,o.,z