The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1896-08-05

for he informed the mayor that he
could nc more be arrested than the
"king (sovereign) of England, or
words to that effect, forgetting at the
moment of this ridiculous assumption
OF "kindly prerogative," that the
doctrine Of the king Gao do wrong"
has no place among republican sim
plicity F.; that in monarch the sover
eighty resides in the person of the
king, but in arepublic this sovereign
ty abides in the people
The constitution which creates his
Office gives him no comfort in this re-
markable assumption. Article 2,
section II, article 3, section IA, and
article l3. section 2. exempt at GER
tain times electors on the day of
election, members Of both houses
and volunteer militia forces, from ar
rest, but is particular in each case to
expressly provide that those exemp-
tions shall not apply to "treason,
felony or breach Of the peace"
Article Is, section 3, provides that
"the governor and all other execu-
tive and judicial officers shall be liza
BILE to impeachment but Judgment
in such cases shall not extend further
that removal from Office. The per-
sons convicted shall. nevertheless. be
liable to Indictment, trial and punish.
ment according to law 1t is OBJ
vious that this section does not fix
the time in which an Indictment may
lie to after conviction on impeach
ment. but only intends to prevent a
conviction on impeachment being
plead in bar to an "indictment and
trial aid punishment according to
law IF this contention were true,
then the governor could not alone
claim this immunity, but every other
executive and judicial officer"
could claim like exemption Besides
if the house saw fit to refuse to pre-
fer charges Of impeachment for any
offense, or the cfense was one for
which impeachment would not lie,
then his excel'ency, the governor.
would of necessity escape all pun
ishment. because the alleged pre-
requisite of conviction or inpeach-
ment could not be shown. Thus is
shown the utter absurdity
of such contention But it may be
urged that if the governor could be
arrested and put in jail there would
be no one to exercise the functions
of his Office and the people would be
without an executive head Article
4, section 9. of the Constitution pro-
vides "In case of the temporary
disability of the governor, the lieu
tenant governor shall perform the
duties of the governor E" Tins it
will be seen that in case his excel
lency should become temporarily dis
abled by preferring to go to jail
rather than pay small fine Of few
dollars, the peoples government
would not go to ruin for want Of an
executive head.
It is no doubt true that the gov
ernor. in exercising the political
functions of his Office, is beyond the
reach of the courts. but ain his per-
son he is subject to judicial control,
as other citizens--Eighth American
and English Encyclopaedia Of Law
FIRST edition), 1906.
The warrant in this case was not
against the governor, but against the
person of ] Gary Evans.
IF the contention Of the governor
were doubtful, l still maintain that
he should have been arrested, as the
only way to settle a disputed point
of law Of this kind is by resort to
the courts, and the courts could not
settle it without obtaining jurisdic
ton of his person by arrest fsuch
could by any possibility be the law,
then it should be judicial'y deter
mined, and give the people chance
of changing it to conform to republi-
can institutions.
Surrounded by his myrmidons,
gathered about his person as rumors
of his arrest reached them, John
Gary Evans has outraged the laws he
has sworn to see enforced he has
brought the government Of this city
into contempt in the eyes of all
brave and free people who have not
learned to bend the supple hinges
of the knee" and until it is wiped
out blot rests upon her fair name
forever 1t has always been the
boast of our people that call men are
equal before the law y that there are
none too high to escape It's punish
ment, and none too low to ferfeit its
protection. If this precedent is al
lowed to stand, hereafter any humble
citizen, arrested without apology