Daily Los Angeles herald., 1880-07-10

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records they descended to the peo-
pie of these States. am satisfied,
from representations of persons |
competent to judge, they are as
perfect system of laws as may be
found elsewhere, and better suited
than any other to the condition of
this people, for by them they have
long been governed. Why should
it be supposed Congress has abol-
ished these laws? Why should any
one wish to abolish them? They
have committed no treason, nor
are hostile to the United States,
nor countenaDce crime, nor favor
injustice. On them, as on a
foundation of rock. reposes almost
the entire superstructure Of social
order In these two States. Annul
this code OF local laws, and there
would be no longer any rights, ell
Their of person or property, here.
Abolish the local civil tribunals
made to execute them, and you
would virtually annul the laws,
except in reference to the very few
cases equitable in the Federal
Courts. Let us for moment sup
pose the whole local Civil Code an
nulled, and that am left, Us Com
mander of the Fifth Military Dis
trict, the sole fountain Of law and
justice. This is the position in
which you would place me.
l am now to protect all rights
and redress all wrongs. How is 1t
possible for me to do ii? Innumer-
able questions arise, OF which am
not only ignorant, but to the solu-
ton Of which q Military Court is
entirely untitled. One would es-
tablish a will; another deed; or
the question is one of succession, or
partnership, or descent, or trust; a
suit of ejectment or claim to chat
tells; or the application may relate
to robbery, theft, arson or murder.
How am to take the first step in
any such matter? If I turn to the
A cts of Congress 1 find nothing on
the subject. l dare not open the
authors on the legal code, for it has
ceased to exist.
And you tell ME in this perplex-
ing condition l am to furnish, by
dint of my own hasty and crude
judgment, the legislation demand
ed by, the vast and manifold inter:
ests of the people! I repeat,- sir,
that you, and not Congress. are re.
sponsibie for the monstrOus sug-
gestion that there are no local laws
or institutions here to be respected
by me, outside of the Acts Of Con.
gress. l say, unhesitatingly, if it
were possible that Congress should
pass an act abolishing the local
codes for Louisiana and Texas
which L do not believe-and 1t
should fall to my lot to supply their
places with som ething of my own,
I do not see how 1 could do better
than follow the law in force here
prior to the Rebellion, excepting
whatever therein may relate to
slavery. Power may destroy the
forms, but not the principles Ofjus-
tice; these will live in spite even
of the sword. History tells US that
the Roman pandects were lost for a
long period among the rubbish that
war and revolution had heaped up-
on them, but at length were dug
out of the ruins-again to be re-
garded as precious treasure.
You are pleased to say that
"since the publication of my
General Orders No. 40, there has
been perceptible increase of crime
and manifestations of hostile feel
ing toward the government and its
supporters" and add that it is Tan
unpleasant duty to give such re-
cital of the condition Of the cOun-
try"
You will permit me to say that /
deem it impossible the first of these
statements can be true, and that l
do very greatly doubt the correct
ness of the second. General Orders
No. 40 was issued at New Orleans,
November 20, 1857, and your letter
was dated January II, 1868. AL
lowing time for Order No. 40 to
reach Texas and become generally
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 evil
dence of what you term "the con.
dition of the country" and yet
after all this, you have to make
the necessary Investigations to as
certain If Orders No. 40 or some
, thing else was the cause. The
time, therefore, to enable you
before the 18th day OF
January, 1868, to reach sat
isfactory conclusion on SO delicate
and nice question, must have
, been very short. How you pro
ceeded, whether you Investigated
: yourself or through third persons,
and, If so, who they were, VIVA
: their competency and fairness, or
F; what evidence you rested your con
t clusion, or whether you ascertaine(
: any facts at all, are points upoI
, which your letter SO discreetly
: omits all mention, that 1 may wei
. be excused for not relying implic
t lily upon it.; nor is my difficulty
. diminished by the fact that in an
t other part of your letter you stat
} that ever since the close of the wa
: a very large portion of the peopl,
, have had no affection for the GOV
r eminent, but bitterness of feeling
only. Had the duty of publishing
and circulating through the coun
/ try long before it reached me, you
, statement that the action of tn,
, District Commander was increas
ing crime and hostile feeling
against the government, been less
painful to your sensibilities, IL
might possibly have occurred Ia
you to furnish something OH the
subject in addition to your bare as.
sertion.
But what was Orders No. 40, and
how could it have the effect you at
tribute to it? 1t sets forth that
"the great principles of American
liberty are still the inheritance OF
this people and ever should be,
that the right of trial by jury, the
hdbeas corpus, the liberty of the