Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1880-07-15

execute them, and you would
virtually annul the laws, except
in reference to the very few cas-
es eognizable in the federal
courts. Let us for moment
the whole local civil
code annuled, and that I am left,
as commander Of the Fifth Mil
itary District, the sole fountain
of law and justice. This is the
position III which you would
place me. / am now to pro-
tect all rights and redress all
wrongs. How is it possible for
me to do it? Innumerable ques-
tons arise, of which ! am not
only ignorant, but to the solu-
ton of which a military court
is entirely untitled. One would
establish will, another a deed ;
or the question is one of success
sion, or partnership, or descent,
or trust; a suit Of ejectment or
claim to chattcls: or the appli-
cation may relate to robbery,
theft, arson, or murder. How
am l to take the first step in
any such matter9 If l turn to
the acts of Congress / find moth
ing OH the subject. | dare not
open the authors on the local
code, for it has ceased to exist.
And you tell ME that in this
perplexing condition | am TO
furnish by dint of my own has
ty and crude Judgment, the leg
islation demanded by the vast
and manifold interests of the peo-
pie. l repeat, sir, that you, and
not the Congress, are response
bic for the monstrous sugges-
ton that there are no local laws
or institutions here to be res
pectcd by me, outside of the
acts Of Congress. | say unhes-
itatingly, if it were possible that
Congress thould pass an act a
bolishing the local codes tor
Louisiana and Texas-which /
do not believe-and it should
fall to my lot to supply their
places with something of my
own, I do not see how / could
10 better than follow the laws
in force here prior to the rebell-
ion, excepting whatever there
in shall relate TO slavery.
Power may destroy the forms,
but not the principle of justice,
these will live in spite even of
the sword. History tells lis
that the Roman pandects were
Iost for Il long period among the
rubbish that war and revolution
lad heaped upon them, but at
dug out of the ruins
again to be regarded us a prec-.
Ious treasure. U1G. At.s
~ You are pleased to state that,
''since the publications Of Gny)
general orders No. 40, there has
been perceptible increase Of
crime and manifestations Of hos
Tile feeling toward the Govern
nent and its supporters" and
add that it is an "unpleasant
duty to give such recital of the
condition of the country" 5-'.
You will permit me to say
that l deem it. impossible the
first of these statements can be
true, and that | do very greatly
doubt the correctness of the
second. General orders, No.
10 was issued at New Orleans,
Nov. %, 1867; and your letter
was dated Jan. II, 1868. All
lowing time for order No. 40 to
reach Texas and become gener-
ally known some additional
time must have elapsed before its
effect would be manifested, and
yet q further time must transpire
before you would be able to
collect the evidence Of what you
term "the condition of the coun-
try;" and yet after all this, you
would have to make the neces-
sary investiga; ions to ascertain
if order No. 40 or something
else was the cause. The time,
therefore, remaining to enable
you, before the 18th of January;
1868, to reach a satisfactory.
conclusion on SO delicate and
nice ii question must have been
very short. How you proceeded, ,
whether you investigated your
self or thorugh third persons, and
If SO, who they were, what their
competency and fairness, OIL
what evidence you rested your
conclusions, or whether you as
certained any facts at all, are
points upon which your letter
so directly omits all mention,
that 1 may well be excused for
relying implicitly upon it; nor
is my difficulty diminished by
the fact that in another part OF
your letter you state that ever
since the close of the war u very
large portion of the people have
had no affection for the Govern
msnt, but bitterness of feelin9
l. II.