The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1879-04-24

be asked the juror OH his voir dire whicl
in any way goes to criminate him, ant
still more which tends to his discredit o
disgrace. 1t was scarcely necessary t.
argue to the court the question whethe
participation in rebellion against tn
United States was to the party's discredi
or not. Such a participation might no
be considered disgrace socially, but ]
was certainly in the eye and in the term
of the law crime and disgrace. A
fur back as Bacon it has been held tina
upon matters of challenge for cause "th'
jurors may be asked such questions as d'
not tend to criminate them" In sup
port of this position Mr.. McCrady citet
authority from Salkeld, Archibold'
Criminal Pleadings, and the case agains
Baldwin in the First Constitutional Re
ports, Treadway. The jurors, undel
these authorities, he claimed, could no
be asked any question an answer tt
which might be, in the eyes of the law
or dishonorable to them
The Jurors had been brought by the
United States government against theii
will, and when they came the represen
tatiye of the United States government
had no right to prove their disqualified
tion by any such inquisi orial proceed
ing, but was compelled to prove the fac
by witnesses.
District Attorney Northrop said: II
the case of Reynolds against the United
States, the Chief Justice lays down ex-
actly what questions may or may not
be put to the juror on his voir dire. The
Chief Justice, in delivering the opinion
of the court upon the question of the dis
qualification of juror for cause, says
"To make out the existence of the fact,
the juror who is challenged may be ex-
amined on uoir dire, and asked questions
that do not tend to his infamy and dis
grace" 1 do not consider that those
who engaged in the late civil war have
incurred any such infamy or disgrace at
all which would estop the government
from putting this question.
Judge Bond-My judgment is that this
question does not come within the rule
IS you state it. The application of this
rule does not cause the juror to prove his
infamy or disgrace. The law says that
you cannot ask witness q question the
answer to which would criminate him,
and yet no one would hold for an instant
that witness could not be asked whether
Or not he belonged to the Confederate
army.
Judge Bryant differ very materially
with Judge Bond on this question. 1
hold that the application of that oath in
itself virtually disfranchises free citi-
zen, and takes from him the highest
right of self-government, viz: the sitting
On jury. 1t is total disfranchisement
Of the citizen, and is the deepest disgrace
10 him.
Judge Bond-There is no disgrace
about it. There is no such crime as re-
oellion.
The test oath was then administered 10
the Jurors and the panel completed.
The United States Circuit Court was
at 10 o'clock Tuesday morning,
Judges Bond and Bryan presiding. An
crowd thronged the court room,
ind considerable excitement was mani
tested concerning the expected verdict in
The case of the United States VS.. VIM.
Kerrigan, who was tried on Monday.
The jury were promptly in their seats at
10 o'clock, and after being called rem
dared verdict of guilty.
The grand jury were then called and
we're handed several revenue cases by
.he district attorney. Before retiring to
their rooms, Judge Bond charged the
grand jury as follows:
Gentlemen of the Grand Jury-You
have been brought here from different
parts of the State to consider such mat
ters touching the violation of the laws of
the United States as have been commit
ted in this district since the last term OF
this Court. Your jurisdiction is limit
ed one. You do not sit rs the grand
Jury of the State Court does, having ju-
rlsdiction over all cases touching viola
tions of the law, but your jurisdiction is
limited to such cases as are violations of
the United States Statutes, chiefly Of
fences against the revenue laws of the
United States and the laws enacted for
the protection of the elective franchise
each of those classes of laws
there are alleged to be many violations
in this district, and Il great deal of public
excitement exists respecting the enforce.
ment of the laws of the United States re-
lating to the elective franchise. l want,
to caution you that whatever
feelings may exist outside of the Court
House, nothing of that kind should be
allowed to approach the court room
You have taken solemn oath that you
will present no one from envy, hatred OIL
malice, nor to screen any one for fear
favor, reward, or hope of reward. NJ
political bias or an effort to vindicatt
your political principles should influence
you. But while you should be careful tt
be free from all prejudice and bias, yet i
is equally true that you should do YOU
duty fearlessly and enforce the laws O.
the United States without respect tt
what anybody may think. You have
been picked out from your fellow citizens
because of your well known good char
acter and good sense, and 1 desire tina
you should vindicate the judgment O
the Court in that respect by performing
your duty fearlessly and impartially. 1
would be perfectly useless for me to say
to you that without the purity of th'
ballot-box in Republican country there
could be no good government. No mat
ter which set of men may pollute th'
ballot. box, nor what end they may seel
to accomplish-whether good, bad or in
different, nothing will justify the tam
pering with the ballot-box. This is on
instance in which the end never justife
the means. One party may tampcr will
the ballot-box to-day and may tomorrow
be defrauded of their rights by anothe
party. Once allow the sacred characte
of the ballot-box to he lost and the vii
of the people can never be expressed
1t is useless for me to urge this poin
upon you, however, for the man wh'
don't understand that the ballot-box j
the Arc of the Covenant of the Rcpubli
and that no impure hands must touch il
can best be taught that lesson not by Ice
lures from the bench, but by fine and i'm
prisonment. The Court charges you
calmly consider the alleged offences tha