Year: 1876

|
nary to any return to the same and tha
in the meantime he retain the custod,
OF kilbourne's body and not produce
without further order of the House. 81
declared himself satisfied with the le
gality of the question asked of Kill
bourne by the Committee and of the &C
tion taken by the House on the subiec
and he was satisfied that any Court whicl
respected law and precedent would re
mand the custody Of Kilbourne to tn,
House, and he was we'll satisfied .ha
American and English precedcnts sus
tained that position. That If any judg,
should decide otherwise he would brins
himself very nearly within the alterna
tive OF either knowing nothing abou
law or of corruptly defying 1t


Mr.. Garfield suggested that in the
Irwin habeas corpus case last session
where the some course was resorted to
as the gentleman from Virginia now sug
gested, melton to quash the writ.


The Judge would not hear the motion
unless the body of the prisoner was pro
duced.


Mr.. Tucker-"If he refuses to hear the
motion, it will show that the corruption
has spread from the real estate pool SC
far as even to tsint the ermine of the
Judiciary Of the d strict. TApplause
on the Democratic side of the House.


Mr.. Garfeld-There would be just as
good right to say that the statement
which the gentleman has made would
only have been made in case of corrup
tion having reached clear to the Heuse,


Counter applause on the Republican
side. and caused it to strike at the Judi
ciary. l would not say that.


Mr.. Tucker-I did not hear the gentle
mans remark, but suppose there was
nothing in it personal to myself.


Mr.. Gan f1eld-Oh! no.


Mr.. Tucker-The Judge should be
made to heed the House by his conscience,
if he has one, and by power superior to
it, if he has not.


Mr.. Blaine (who was occupying a
chair in the area of the Democratic side)
inquired how Jadge could be made to
do anything by the House of Represen-
tatives.


Mr.. Tucker-The gentleman is no
lawyer, as he has often shown in this
House Laughter on the Democratic side
and the gentleman is, perhaps. unaware
that when Judge does not execute his
duty he can be made to do 50.


Mr.. Blaine-By order of the House?


Mr.. Tucker-No, sir; not the order of
the House. That shows again that the
gentleman is not lawyer. But by a
mandamus from higher court, which
will compel him 10 exercise the jurisdlc-
tiop which he is reluctant to do. l never
knew man TO disturb nest but there
was a great ruffling about it. If my
amendment is adopted it will present the
question to the court in such manner
that the Judge cannot avoid deciding The
question on the facts appearing in the pc.
tition.


Mr.. Blaine said that he did not see
why the gentleman from Virginia should
have manifested SO much asperity in his
remarks addressed to him. He, Blaine,
thanked God he was not lawyer train
ed in the school that gent e.
man was and he thanked God that he
was not lawyer who as Attorrey-Geny
eral OF Virginia had given an opinion
th.t the local authorittes-Of that State
might invade the postoffice and compel
the postmaster TO give up the contents of
the mail. He thanked God that he was
not that kind Of lawyer. Applause and
encouragement on the Republican side.
Mr. Blaine, who was still occupying II
position on the Democratic side, pro
ceeded, in the midst of the excitement
The gentleman represents and with grea.
ability, that which is known as the great
States rights school, which received its
chief inspiration from Jefferson and other
great leaders of Virginia, and yet he
stands here to plead that this
House possesses power of which
there is no review anywhere
except in itself. Jefferson said expressly
in b letter that this government Was con-
s.ructed SO that absolute power resided
nowhere, aud he defed anybody to show
that there was absolute power IN any de-
partment of the government. The ul-
innate JUDI gment Of the Supreme Court
of the United States may seem absolute,
but if the power Of that Court is abused
the power of impeachment resides in the
House to punish it: But
It the gentleman from Virginia,
protesting to represent the spirit OF JEFF
ferson, says that this house may take any
body ON any pretext and imprison him
at pleasure and there docs not exist in
the laws to-day the slightest power OF
relief, thank God again that l have
not read law in that school. Renewed
applause on the Republican side.


MIR. Tucker-l have no hesitation In
saying in reply to the gentleman from
Maine that what he took as fling at
him in reply to conversational and un-
dertone interruptions was not intended
to be in any degree offensive. l thous ht
the gentleman from Maine had clearly,
TO his own consciousness some weeks ago
in a discussion between himself and the
distinguished gentleman from Mis-
sissippi LAMAR, shown that what
ever else he may Be fitted to be, whatever
other position be may be fitted to fill by
the suffrages Of bis countrymeu, there
was one thing he had never been trained
to, and that was to be n lawyer. l merely
meant to say that / thought the gentle
had demonstrated again today as he did
on that occasion. very signally that he
was not lawyer; but there is one thing
he is if not lawyer, and that is, he is a
Pharlsee. [Applsuse on the Democratic
side.]


Mr.. Blaine-Thank God that am not
like other men.


Mr.. Tucker-The gentleman says he
thanks God that he is not as am. l
thank my Heavenly Father that there IS
no resemblance between US. Plaudits
on the Democratic side l say amen to
that with all my heart. he thanks God
that be is not as other men are, even rs
this poor Publican. Laughter and ap-
plsuse.


Mr.. Blaine (adding TO the quotation -
The late Attorney General of Virgins.


Mr.. Tucker-Accepting the addition,
",he late attorney general of Virgins,
l am proud to have represented the old
common wealth in that position. l am


- 80 ..o,oSe, the old common wealth h