uifc.r*"T 'i.i'fXA.-*>.i f'S'-W; iV-"TVTX’Ay V'i lil.l ' I
UOAVJB'I lABDBMOB A CO.
H. '<s‘ SaWn, 1 J, M. Cooper,
Wu. A. MOIITOK, ALVBKD fiANDBnSOIt
TERMS—Two Dollars por annum, payablo
nil oases In advanoe,
OFFlCE—Southwest cobweb or Obhtbe
S4DAIIE.
W All letters. on business should bo ad'
dressed to CooPEB, Sanderson & Co.
SlMfowu*.
Suggestions for July.
From the New Xorlt Obimicr.
" 'Tlb Bummor i and tlio rimming grain,
Field alter Held, all o’er tbo plain,
By lively, freah'ulng lire boh rollo 1,
Looksliko a »ea of waving gold.
The mlmlo hlllowH sink and swell
Llko ocean woven boro' o the gale j
Onward they roll. «o oloar and bright,
The brain grows giddy at the sight;
And fancy almost hears the roar
Of breakers on the distant shore."
Wo are again sweltering amid tho
fervid heat of July, which Is often tho
hottest and dryeHt month of the sum
mer. But hot weather Is essential to
good crops of fruit, vegetables, gross and
grain. Vegetation pushes forward with
amazing rapidity. The labors of the
garden, os well as the farm, are exceed
ingly urgent during all tills month.
Hay must be made ; corn and potatoes
mUBt be dressed out for the last time;
wheat, In some localities where the Ob
server pays its weekly visits, will be fit
to harvest this month ; and when the
weather is lowery, or ; there is but little
to do, every farmer and gardener, min
ister and lawyer, can find work in ex
terminating noxious weeds.
Begin to cut grass early, whether you
have little or much, as early-cut grass
alwayß makes more nutritious liny than
if It Is allowed to become fully ripe be
fore it is mowed.
Wet pieces of ground, that ure always
Inundated with water in the spring or
full, should he drained during this and
the next month.
Plow up, or spade up finely, every un
occupied corner, and putln turnip seed.
In many parts of the country, If all
hands would spend only a part of some
lowery day in removing hush and old
logs from some piece of new ground,
more than a hundred bushels of the
choicest turnips can he raised, where
otherwise nothing but noxious weeds
would occupy the ground.
Plum and cnerry trees should be bud
ded this month, In those localities where
the bark will peel well. Select tho
sprouts that have come up this yeur, or
insort the buds In the wood that bus
grown tho present suuson.
800 that tomuto plants are well sup
ported with trellises, before tho vines
full down.
Tic a rod string around the first ears
of I ndian swoot corn, for seed, us the
curliest will produce Corn next your
several days sooner than tho ears that
sot and ripen lutu In the season.
Muke It a point to stop and kill every
caterpillar, and other noxious Insects,
as a war of extermination Is tho only
true way to save the fruit.
Hue that manure and earth are not
heuped against buildings, to the Injury
of the siding or timber.
Home farmers allow the manure to
uccumuluto In the stables, till It is
sometimes half a foot deep, which will
Injure the door, In hot weather, far
more than If it were in constant use.
July is the best mouth in the year to
commence improvements in neat cattle.
If you have a poor cow, now is the
period to get a better one.
Roses should he budded during this
month, if It has not already been done.
Do not fail to thin out the fruit on
young pear trees. The growth of young
trees is of more value than the fruit. It
Is ruinous to all young trees to allow
them to produce a largo crop of fruit.
Only a few specimens should be allowed
to grow.
In many localities celery may be
transplanted thiß month. It should be
hoed often; and the soil around it
should be sprinkled at evening, In dry
weather, with liquid manure.
Put in turnip seed, or late peas, where
early potatoes are dug.
Lawns that are clipped often should
have a dressing of bone dust or some
other good fertilizer. If the soil is light
and gravelly, a dressing of street dirt,
such as is collected in the most busy
streets of our populous cities, will be
found excellent.
If the ground is not rich where egg
plants are growing dig a shallow trench
all around each plant, two inches deep
aud six inches from the stem, and pour
in strong liquid manure, or fill the
channel with fine compost, which may
be obtained beneath the floors of some
stables.
See that every animal has access to
pure water. Cows can not yield a full
flow of milk unless they have some
times ten gallons each per day.
Let fowls also have all the water they
will drink.
The People of Mexico.
Mexico, it is estimated, has now about
the same numberof people which she
lmd twenty years ago—eight millions.
Of these, ouly one million are pure
whites, and mixed breeds, who are
whites by education and* sympathy.
The remaining seven millions are In
dians and the various grades of mixtures
of whites, Indians and negroes, who ure
properly regarded as Indians from their
habits uud stylesof living. The Indians
of Mexico appear to be of two races—
the ono (Aztec) light color, with
decided Jewish nose aud cast of features:
the other dark copper color, broad
face, prominent cheek bones like the
North Ammicau tribes. llul they
are a lotally different race from
their Northern brethren, being capable
of a high civilization, and being en
dowed with different natural impulses,
which render them agriculturists and
artisans rather than warriors aud hun
ters. In some tribes the love of liberty
is so strong that the white man has
never been able to subdue them; and
the Spaniards were only too willing to
live with them upon terms of equality
aud friendship. The French sent sev
eral expeditions against the Indians of
the Sierras; but all returned worsted.
The Austrians were but little more suc
cessful, and, finally, were obliged to
conclude a treaty with those wild sons
of the mountains.
In many parts of the country the
wealthy Indians, descendants of the
Aztec nobility, are among the best edu
cated and most prominent people of the
country. The ablest lawyers of Mexico
are Indians ; Alvarez, Juarez, Mendez,
Mejia, and several other of the first men
of the nation are Indians. Miss Castro,
a young lady of great poetical genius,
and probably the greatest living im
provisatrice, is an Indian of obscure
origin; and Senor Altamirano, of tbe
State of Guerrero, the most eloquent
man in Mexico, and leader of the Lib
eral party in the last Mexican Congress,
is a full-blooded Indian. But these are
emphatically of the “first families,”
who have been educated, showing what
Indian .nature may become by cultiva
tion. The large majority, nine-tenths
at least, are sunken in ignorance and
vice, enduring life—not living—with a
stolid indifference, and whose sole am
bltion-is a drunken frolic on feast days,
a fine hat and exemption from labor.
They are merely “ born, vegetate and
rot.”
Praise lour Wife.
Praise your wife, man, for pity sake
give her a little encouragement, it won’t*
hurt her. She has made your home
comfortable, your hearth bright and
shining, your food agreeable; for pity
sake tell her you thank her, if nothing
more. She don't expeot it; it will
make, her eyes, open wider, than.they
hay 6, this ten years, but it will do her
.good tor all ana jyoii tod.
3£ancaster SntcUujmca:
.VOLUME 67.
An Encounter with the Devil-Fish,
In Victor Hugo's last romance there
Is a graphic description of a combat be
tween the hero of the novel and devil*
fish. The hero Is crab-hunting among
the Channel Islands:
“ Above the water level, and within
reach of his hand, he observed the hori
zontal fissure In the granite. Probably
the crab wus there. He thrust In his
fist as far as possible, and begun to group
lu the dark hole. Suddenly ne felt him
self seized by the arm. The sensation
was one of Indescribable horror. Some
thing thin, tough, flat. Ice cold, glutin
ous uud living, had twined Itself around
Ills arm In the dark. It was mounting
to his breust, pressing like a ligature
and boring like a gimlet. In less than
a second,'the strange 001 l had mastered
his wrist and elbow, and touched his
shoulder; the end was burrowing under
his arm-pit.
“Gllllutt threw himself backward, but
could hardly move; he seemed to be
nailed fast. He took the knife from be
tween his teeth in his left hand, and
with the leverage of this arm against
the roelt, made u desperate effort to re
lease the other arm. He only moved
the ligature a little, and It grew tighter.
It wus pliable as leather, firm as steel,
cold us night.
"A second tongue-llke thong, nar
row uud pointed, emerged from the
crevice of the rock. It liked his naked
chest, and suddenly stretching out In
definitely, stuck to his skin andentirely
surrounded his whole body. At the
same time all his muscles were con
tracted with pain like nothing else In
the world, as if innumerable lips, glued
to his llesh, were trying to drink his
blood.
“A third feeler fixes on his ribs; a
fourth on Ills stomach ; afifth embruees
his neck. Then the ussailant’s body
uppeurs.
"Suddenly came up from the bottom
of the hole a broad, round fiat, viscid
muss, the hub of which the five feelers
were the spokes ; on the other side of it
might ho seen the beginning of three
more feelers, concealed by the rook. In
the midst of tills glutinous were two
eyes looking at Gllliut, and he knew It
wuh the devil-fish.”
After which the reader Is kept in sus
pense u whole chapter by u descrlptlonof
this “livecupping glass,” which drinks
men’s blood with Its four hundred suck
ers.
Such was the being In whoso power
Gllllutt found himself. He had put his
arm Into Its hole, and the devil-fish had
caught him and was holding him us a
spider holds a fly.. Ho stood In water
up to his waist, his feet clinging to the
round slippery pebbles, his light arm
slightly imprisoned In the coils of the
devil-fish, and his body ulmost hidden
by the crossfolds of this horrid envelop.
With five arms It stuck to him, with
three to the rock. * * * *
" You cannot pull yourself loose from
the dovll-ilsh’! Gllllutt had but ono re
source, his ktillb! There is no cutting
the feelers; their material cannot be
separated by steel; besides It sticks so
close that a gash In the feeler would
pierce your own skin. It Is only vener
able lu the head.
“Gilllatt held his knife firmly. The
pressure of the two hundred and fifty
suckers increased. He and the monster
looked at each other. Suddenly the
creature loosened its sixth feeler from
the rock, aud darting It at Gilllatt, tried
to seize his left arm. At the same time
it advanced Its head.
“But Gilllatt avoided the feeler, and
just as the devil-fish was on the point
of biting his breust, his armed hand
came down upon It. There was a con
vulsive struggle like the meeting of two
thunder clouds. Gilllatt plunged the
point of his knife into the fiat, tough
mass, and making a circle around the
two eyes with a whirling movement,
like the curl of a whip, wrenched off
the head as a dentist wrenches out a
tooth.
The combat was over. The four
hundred suckers let go their hold of man
aud roelt together. Their whole creature
collapsed and fell like a bundle of old
linen.”
Eastern Origin of Modern Utilities.
The .following extract from Draper’s
last work, “ Civil Policy in America,”
shows the Eastern origin of much that
is useful and admirable :
In the times of which history has
failed to preserve any account, that con
tinent (Asia) must have been the scene
of prodigious activity. In it were first
developed those fundamental inven
tions and discoveries which really lieat
the basis of the progress of the human
race—the subjugation of domestic ani
mals, the management of fire, the ex
pression of thought by writing. We are
apt to overlook how much man must
have done ; how much he must have
added to his power iu prehistoric times.
We forget how many contributions to
our comforts are of Oriental origin.
Their commonness hides them from our
view.
If the European wishes to know how
much he owes to Lhe Asiatic, he has
only to cast a glance at one hour of his
daily life. The clock which summons
him from bed in the morning, was the
invention of the East, as were also
clepBy-dras and sun-diuls. The prayer
for his daily bread, that he has said from
infancy, first rose from the side of the
Syriuu mountain. The linens and cot
tons with which he clothes himself,
though they may be very fine, are in
ferior to those that have been made,
from time immemorial, in the looms of
India. The silk was stolen by- some
missionaries, for his benefit, from China.
He could buy better steel than that
with which he shaves himseif, iu the
city of Damascus, where it was first in
vented.
The coffee he expects for breakfust
was first grown by tbe Arabians, and
the natives of Upper India prepared the
sugar with which he sweetens it. A
schoolboy can tell tbe meaning of the
tiauacrit words, “ sacchara cancia.” If
his t»*ics are light and he prefers tea,
the virtues of that excellent leaf were
first pointed out by the industrious
Chinese. They also taught him how to
make and use the cup and saucer in
which to serve it. His breakfast tray
was lacquered in Japan.
There is a tradition that leavened
bread was first made of the waters of
the Ganges. The egg he is breaking
was laid by a fowl whoseancestors were
first domesticated by the Malaccans,
unless she may have been—though that
will not alter the case—amodern Shang
hai. If there are preserves and fruits
in bis board, let him remember with
thankfulness that Persia gave him the
cherry, the peach, and the plum. If in
any of these pleasant preparations he
detects the flavor of alcohol, let it re
mind him that that substance was first
distilled by the Arabians, who have set
him the praiseworthy example, which
it will be his benefit to follow, of abstain
ing from its use. When he talks about
coffee and alcohol, he is using Arabic
words. A thousand years before it had
occurred to him to enact lawß of restric
tipn in the use of intoxicating drinks,
thtss Prophet of Mecca did the same
thing, and, what is more to the purpose,
has compelled to this day all Asia ana
Africa to obey them.
The German Conscription.
There are now in Germany, actually
uuder arms, more than ten hundred
thousand soldiers, and forced levies are
being made every day in the Prussian
States and the States Prussia lately seized
upon. Luckless Holstein, as a reward
for her German proclivities, which pre
vented her from remaining quiet under
Denmark, is condemned to furnish in
three weeks' time a contingent of forty
thousand men. Saxony, only invaded
the other day, will be forced, should
Austria not by that time have gained
some signal victory in the North, to
contribute half as many more within a
specified time, which is too sjiort to en
able the military contractors of King
William's army to clothe the new regi
ments. Orders have been given to press
into the service of Prussia the young
men of. Hanover and the two Hesses.-
What things Increase the more you
contract them Debts,
Life at Saratoga.
The Saratoga correspondent of the
Boston Journal says;
" Besides the regular races that are
to come off this season, a new club has
been formed that brings to the Springs
the sporting men of the land. Those
already here race their steeds every
day. About twenty-five race-horses
from the South, West and North have
arrived, and more are to oome. James
Clay, the son of Hon. Henry Clay. Is
In town. Col, Buford, of Kentucky,
has two racers of great speed, called the
Delaware and Onward. Captain Moore,
of the same State, has four blood horses.
Mr. Watson, of New York, has five
blood horses. Some of these horses
could not be bought for $25,000. They
are not allowed to be harnesßed. Indeed,
the real race horse Is unbroken to the
collar. The famed Lexington is here,
and will compete for the prize of $2,000.
But men in the Becret say that he will
be beaten this year by some steeds
which in the practice have made un
usual time.
Each morning between three and four
o’clock, the owners of the fast horses,
with their grooms, leave the stable for
the track. A walk Is first had of a few
miles. Then the steeds trot, and after
this exercise for about half an hour,
they are put to the full speed In the race.
These blood horses seem to know quite
a» much as their riderß. They smell the
battle ufar off, like Job’s war horse, and
round and round the course they go.
neck and neck, each competing steed
doing his utmost. From thirty to fifty
of the leading horsemen, horse breeders
and horse owners of this country can be
seen on the course at that early hour,
taking part In the excitement of the
race, if not riding their favorite steeds.
This class of horses and horsemen are
multiplying In (-Saratoga. Sporting will
be the great business of the Springs by
and by.”
“Burleigh,” of the Boston Journal,
thinks that John Morrissey is likely to
lose his control over the gambling fra
ternity and fast men of Saratoga. He
says : He has found a rival. A woman
from New York has taken a house on
the same street where his club house is
located. It Is elegantly fitted up. It
hus a bur of choice wines and liquors.
A hop Is held each night, at which men
arc admitted on the payment of five
dollars. Young women, quite pretty
and well dressed, parade the streets and
call at the hotels, und with handsomely
printed circulars call men Into this new
place of dissipation. The circular holds
out the price of the hops, the muslo.
the wlues and refreshments, asdoes a bill
of fare In a restaurant. The lady of the
mansion keeps a hand-ln-hand team.
The outfit is Hplendld. The horses are
stately and aristocratic. A driver holds
the reins, dressed lu livery. Two lackeys
sit behind lu chairs of Immense breadth
and buttons big as half dollars, and
otherwise dresseain the mostarlstocratlo
style. Alone, In the open carriage, the
owner sits In all her glory, uud Is driven
up and down, luandoutof the town, and
of course Is the center of general obser
vation. The thing has made und will
make a profound excitement here.
Men have been waylaid by girls pre
tending to have lost their way. Men
have been into the house under various
pretenses, and the bold, defiant, open,
buelness-llke way in which the house Ib
managed strikes all with astonishment.
The M ill of Dr. Benjamin Franklin.
Among the bequests made by Dr.
Benjamin Franklin was one of one
thousand pounds to be loaned to young
married artificers. In making the be
quest, Dr Franklin says ; “I have con
sidered that among urtisans good ap
prentices are most likely to make good
citizens, and having myself been bred
to a manual art, printing, in my native
town, and afterwards assisted to set up
my business In Philadelphia, by kind
loans of money from two friends
which was the foundation of my fortune
and all the utility in life that may be
ascribed to me, I wish to be useful, even
after my death, if possible, in forming
and advancing other young men that
may be serviceable to their country.
To this end I devote one thousand
pounds to the inhabitants of Philadel
phia, in trust, for the uses, intents and
purposes hereinafter mentioned aud de
clared. The said sum to be let out, the
same upon interest, at five percent, per
annum, to such young married artificers,
uuder the age years, as
have served an apprenticeship in said
city, and faithfully fulfilled the duties
required In their indentures so as to ob
tain a good moral character from at least
two respectable citizens who are willing
to become their sureties In a bond, with
the applicants, for the repayment of the
money so lent, with interest. And as these
loans are intended to assist young mar
ried artificers in setting up their busi
ness, they are to be proportioned so as
not to exceed sixty pounds sterling to
one person, nor to be less than fifteen
pounds. And if the numberof appliers
so entitled should be so large as that the
sum will not suffice to afford to each as
much as might otherwise not be im
propier, the proportion to each shall be
diminished so as to afford to every one
some assistance. These aids may there
fore be small at first, but as the capital
increases by the accumulated interest,
they will be more ample. And in order
to serve as many as possible In their
turn, as well as to make the repayment
of the principal borrowed more easy,
each borrower shall be obliged to pay,
with the yearly interest, one-tenth part
of the principal, which sums of princi
pals and interest so paid in shall be
again let out to fresh borrowers.”
Tills fund is managed by Mr. Oat,
Superintendent of Trusts, under the di
rection of Councils, and who has be
tween thirty and forty thousand dollars
invested, until the proper applications
are made for loans. There have been a
number of applicants within the past
two years, but no loans have been
granted, as the applicants did not fur
nish the required security. The amount
to be given out to each person at present
isSfifio. Two sureties are to be given,
one of whom must be a freeholder.
The Equipment and Appearance of the
Austrian Soldiers.
We should take a hint from the
Austrians as to the manner they dimin
ish the weight of the cartouche-box
with sixty rounds of ammunition. This
is a very great improvement, with little
or no expense, by a small round belt
which passes through rings. This belt
is attached to the pouch, and also to
about the middle or the pouch belt, so
that when the men run the cartouche
box remains steady, prevents the de
struction of the cartridges in striking
against the soldiers’ hips, and prevents
the painful abrasion of the skin of the
hip on a long days’ march in hot
weather. A British soldier, in action,
if running, is obliged to use one hand
to hold the pouch steady if he do not
wear a waist-belt, a capital contrivance
either to rupture him or to deprive him
of breath.
The Austrian soldiers are in general
strong, heaithy fellows, and look as if
they would stand “a lot of killing.”
Their white uniform, which always
looks clean, (I suppose by hot pipe
clay,) has a very good effect, with their
neat little light blue “kepi,” always
worn except on fete days, when they
have the old British cap at top, with a
little stripe of common lace of yellow
color, This cap is made of common
pasteboard, and costs the soldiers, when
all ready, about one shilling and three
pence. They are well shod, and in wet
weather wear black cloth gaiters, turned
in at the ankles, buttoned over the
Kentish gray trousers. —London News.
. I say, old fellow, what are your
politics ? said one friend quizzing an
other. “Conservative—my father was
a Conservative,” Be replied. “And
what Ib your religion ?” said the Yither.
“ Protestant—my father was a Protest
ant,” was the answer. “ And why are
you a bachelor ?” said the other. "Be
cause my father was a—oh, confound it,
don’t bother me with your Btunid aues
tloris.”
The Mississippi River is a tide in the
affairs Of men . which, taken at Its flood,
leads bit to niisfdrtune.
LANCASTER, PA., WEDNESDAY MORNING, JULY 18, 1866.
The Deserter Case*
Opinion and Judgment of the Nupremo
Court on the Diafipanehleement Aet.
Huber va. Belly. Error to the Court of
Common Plena of Franklin county.
Strong, Justice.
The not of Congress under which the de«
fondant below justices his refusal to receive
tho vote of the plaintiff Is the one approved
ou tho 3d day of March, 1803. Tho twenty
first section Is the only ono applicable to
this case, and it 1b as follows: *' And be it
further enacted , That In addition to the
other lawful penalties of the crime of de*
surtlon from the milltarj' or naval service,
all persons who have desorted the military
or naval sorvloe of the United Stales, who
shall uot return to said service, of report
themselves to a provost marshal within
sixty days after the proclamation hereafter
mentioned, shall be deemed and taken to
huve voluntarily relinquished and forfeited
their rights of citizenship and their rights
to become citizens; und such deserters shall
be forever incapable ot holding any office
of trust or profit under the United States, or
of exercising any rights of citizens thereof;
and all persons wbb shall hereafter desert
the military or nara service, and all per
sons who. being.duroenrolled, shall depart
the jurisdiction of tu&dlstrlct in which he
is enrolled, or go beyood the limits of the
United States, with Intent to avoid any draft
into the military or naval service, duly or
dered, shall be liable to the penalties or this
section.” This is followed by a clause au
thorizing and requiring the President to
issue his proclamation setting forth the pro*
visions of the section, and wtfknow Judic
iously that this was done on the 11th of
Murch, 1805.
The act of Congress is highly penal. It
imposes forfeiture of citizenship uud depri
vation of the rights of citizenship us penal
ties for the commission of a crime. Its
avowed purpose is to add to the penalties
which the law bad previously affixed to the
offense of desertion from the military or
naval service of the United States, And it
denominates the additional sanctions pro
vided as penalties. Such being its character,
it is, unaor the well known rule uf law, to
receive a strict construction in favor of the
citizen.
Tho constitutionality of the uct has been
assailed on three grounds. The first of
these is that it is un ex post facto luw, im
posing un additional punishment for an of
fense committed before its passage, uud
ultorinir the rules of evidence so us t« re
quire different und less proof of guilt thau
wus required at tbo time of tbo perpetration
of tbocrlmo. Tho second objection Is that
the act is an attempt by Congress to regu
late the right of suffrage in tho Slates or to
impair it; and the third objection is that
the act proposes to Itifilcl puiua aud penal
ties upon offenders before aud without a
trial aud conviction by due process of law,
und it is therefore prohibited by the Rill of
Rights.
Jn the view which wo take of this case,
and giving to the enactment the construc
tion which we think properly belougs to it,
it is unuecussury to consider ut length either
of those objections to its constitutionality.
It may bo insisted with strong reason that
the ponulty of foriulturu of citizenship im
posed upon those who had desorted the
military or naval service, prior to the pas
sage of tho uct, is not u ponulty for the orig
inal desortion. but for porsislouce in tho
crime, for failure (lu the language of the
statute) to return to suid service, or to re
port to u provost marshal within sixty days
after the issue of the President’s proclama
tion. If this is so, the act of Congress is in
no sense cx post facto, and it is not for that
reusou in conillct with the Constitution. Its
operationlsentirely prospective, Ifadraft
eu man owes service to tnu Federal Govern
ment, every new reiusul to render tho
service may be regardod as a violation of
public duty, u public offence for which
Congress may impose a penalty. And as it
is the duty of every court to construe a
statute, if possible, so il ut res magis valcat,
quam percat," that construction of this act
must be adopted which is in harmony with
the acknowledged powers of Congress, and
which applies the forfoitureof citizenship to
tho new offence described as failure to return
to service, or to report to the provost mar
shal.
The second objection also assumes more
than can be con eded. It is uot to be doubted
that the power to regulate suffrage iu a
State, and to determine who shall not be a
voter belongs exclusively to the State itself.
Tho Constitution of tbo United States con
fers noftutborityupon Congress to prescribe
the qualifications of electors within tho
several Slates that compose the Federal
Union. Congress is Indeed empowered to
make regulations for the time, place und
manner of holding elections lor Senators
and Representatives, or to alter those made
by the Legislature of a State, except those
in relation to the places ofchoosingSenators,
but bore its power stops. The right ofsuf
i'rage at a State election is a State
right, a franchise conferrable only by
the State, which Congress can nolther
jjivo nor take away. If, there
tore, tho uct now uuder cousideratiou
is in truth an attempt to regulate the right
of suffrage in the States, or to prescribe the
conditions upon which that right may be
exercised, it must be held unwarranted by
the Constitution. In the exercise of its ad
mitted powers, Congress may doubtless
deprive au individual of the opportunity to
enjoy a right that belougs to him as a citi
zen of a State, even the right of suffrage.
But this is a different thing from taking
away, or impairing, the right itself. Under
the laws of the Federal Government, a
voter may be sent abroad iu the military
service of the country, and thus deprived
of the privilege of exercising his right; or
a voter may be imprisoned for a crime
against tho United States, but it is a per
version of language to call this impairing
his right of suffrage. Congress may pro
vide laws for tho naturalization of aliens,
or it may refuse to provide such laws. Its
action or non-action may thus determine
whether Individuals shall or shall not be
come citizens of the United States. And I
cannot doubt that as a penalty for crime
against the General Government Congress
may impose upou the criminal forfeiture
of his citizeusblp of the United States. Dis
franchisement of u citizen as a punishment
for crime is no unusual punishment—
Barker vs. the People 20 ; Johns 458. If by
the organic law of a State oltizeus of the
United States ouly are ullowod to vote, the
action or non-action of Congress muy thus
indirectly affect the number of those en
titled to the right of suffrage. Yet, ufter
all. tho right is one which its possessor
holds as a citizen of a State, secured to him
by the State Constitution, and to beheld on
the terms prescribed by that Constitution
alone. It is an integral part of the State
Government.
But it is not a correct view of the act of
Congress now before us to regard it as an
attempt to override State Constitutions, or
to prescribe the qualifications of voters.
The act makes no change in the organic
law of the State. It leaves that us before,
to confer the right of suffrage as it pleases.
The enactment operates upon an individual
offender, punishes him for violation of the
Federal law, by deprivation of his citizen
ship of the United States, but it leaves each
State to determine for itself whether such
an individual may be a voter. It does no
more than increase the penalties of the law
upon the commission or crime. Each State
defines for itself what shall be the conse
quences of the infliction of such penalties.
And with us it is still our own Constitution
which restricts the right of suffrage and
confers it npon those only who are inhabi
tants of the State and citizens of the United
States.
The third objection against the validity
of the act of Congress would be a very
grave one, if the act does in reality im
pose pains and penalties before and with
out a conviotlon by due prooess of law.
The fifth article ot the amendments to
the Constitution ordains “ that no person
shall be held to answer for a capital or
other infamous crime, unless on a pre
sentment, or indictment of a grand jury,
except in cases arising in the land or
naval forces, or in the militia, when in
actual service, in time of war or public
danger; nor shall any person be subject
for the same offence to be twice put in
jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be
compelled in any criminal case to be a
witness against himself; nor be deprived
of life, liberty or property without due
process of law.” The sixth article se
cures to the accused in all criminal prose
cutions certain rights, among which are
a speedy and public trial, by a jury of
the vicinage, information of the nature
and cause of the accusation, face to face in
presence with the witnesses < agaiDst him,
compulsory process for his own wit
nesses, and the assistance of counsel.
The spirit of these constitutional provisions
is briefly that no person can be made to
suffer for a criminal offence unless the
penalty be inflicted by due process of law.
What that is has been often defined, but
never better than it was both historically
and critically by Judge Curtis of the
Supreme Court or the United States in Den
vs. Murray et al, 18 Howard 272. It ordi
narily implies and includes a complainant,
a defendant and a judge, regular allegations,
opportunity to answer, and a trial accord
ing to some settled course of judicial pro
ceeding. It must be admitted there are a
few exceptional cases.- Prominent among
these are summary proceedings to recover
debts due to the Government, especially
taxes and sums due by defaulting public
offices- But I can call to mind no instanoe
in .which has been held, that the ascertain
ment of guilt of a public offence, and the
imposition of legal penalties, can be in any
other mode than by trial according to
law of the land, or due process of law,
that Is the law of the particular case,
administered by a Judicial tribunal
authorized to adjudicate upon it.
And I cannot porsuudo myself that a
Judge of elections or a board of election of
ficers, constituted under State laws, is suob
a tribunal. Icannotthinkthoyhavepower
to try crlmlnut offenders, still less to ad
judge tho guilt or innocence of an alleged
viouitor of the laws of the Unitod States. A
trial before such officers Is uot due process
of luw for tho punishment of offences, ac
cording to the meunlng of that phrase In
the Constitution. Tbore are, It Is true, many
things which they may determine, such us
tho age and residence of a person offering
to vote, whether he has paid taxes, and
whether, if born an alien, he hus a oertifi
cute of naturulizatien. These things per
tain to the ascertainment of a political
right. But whether he has been guilty of a
criminal offence, und hus, as a consequence,
forieited his right, is an Inquiry of a differ
ent character. Neither our Constitution
nor our law has conferred upon the judges
of elections any Buch judicial functions.
Theyarenotßwornto try issues iu criminal
cases. They have no power to compel the
attendance of witnesses, and their j uagment
if rendered would be binding upon no other
tribunal. Even if they were to assume
jurisdiction of the offence described in the
act of Congress, and proceed to try whether
tbo appliaint for a vote had been duly en
rolled and drafted, whether he hud received
notice of the draft, whether he had desert •
ed, and failed to return to service, or fulled
to report to a provost marshal, and whether
he had Justifying reasons for such failure,
and if after such trial they were to decide
that ho had not forfeited his citizenship, all
this would not umouul to an acquittal. It
would not protect him against u subsequent
similar accusation aud trial, it would not
protect him against trial and punishment
by court martial. Surely, that is no trial by
due process of law, the Judgment In which
is not final, decides nothing, but leaves the
accused exposed to another trHkl in a differ
ent tribunal, aud to the imposition by that
other tribunal of tbo full punishment pre
scribed by law.
Moreover, it is not iu the power of Con
gress to confer upon such u tribunal, which
is exclusively of Stuto creation, jurisdiction
to try offences against the United States,
Notwithstanding tho decision lu Buck waiter
vs. Tho United .Stulea, 11, S. and R,. 103.
which was ail action for penalties, declared
to be recoverable as other debts, the doctrine
seems a plain one that Congress eauuot vest
any of the Judicial power of the United
.Stales In the courts of any other govern
ment or sovereignty. Martin vs. limiter's
lessee, 1 Wheaton. 304, 330; Ely vs. l’eck, 7
Conn., 242, and Soovllle vs. Canfield, U
.Johns, 335. And clearly, If this Is mo, (.'on
grass uunuot make a board of State elec
tion officers competent to try whether a per
son Ims been guilty of an offence against
the United States, and if they fiud him
guilty to enforce a part of tho proscribed
pouufty.
If therefore the act of March 3,1805, really
contemplates the infliction of its proscribed
penalty or any part of it without duo pro
cess oiluw, or if it ultompts to confer upon
the election officers of a State tho power to
delonnlno whethor there bus boon a viola
tion of the uct Incurring tho penalty, and to
enforce tho penally or any purl of It, it may
well bo doubted whether It is not Inins
gresslve of the authority vested in Congress
by Lhe Constitution.
But such is not the falrconstruclion of the
urmctmtMit. It is not to bo presumed that
Congress Intended to Lmngruas its powers,
and especially is this true when tho uot*
admits of another construction entirely cou-
Houant with all tho provisions of tho Consti
tution.
What then Is Its true meaning? As al
ready observed, forfolturo of citizenship is
prescribed as a penalty for desertion, an
additional penalty ; uot for an offence com
mitted before the passage of the act, but for
continued desertion and failure to return or
report. It is not a new consequence of a
penalty, but it is an integral part of tbo
thiug itself. Nor is it tbo whole. It is added
to what the law lmd previously enacted to
be tbo penalty of desertion, as imprison
ment is sometimes added to punishment by
flue. It must have beeu intended therefore
tlmt it should bu Incurred in the same way,
and imposed by the same trlbunul that was
authorized to impose tho other penalties for
tho offence. It would be very absurd to
suppose that two trials and two condemna
tions for ono crime were intended, or that it
wus desiguod thut a criminal might be
sentenced in one court to undergo part of
the punlshmout denounced by tho law, and
be punished in another court oy the impo
sition of the remainder. Tho law as it stood
when the act of 1805 was passod had provi
ded u tribunal in which alone the crime of
desertion could bo tried, aud by which alouo
the penalties for desortion could be iufilcted.
The consequences of conviction may be no
ticed in other courts, but tho tribunal ap
pointed by tho law for that purpose is the
only one that can determine whether the
crime has been committed, nnd adjudge
tho punishment.
The act of March 3d, 1865, is not to be con
sidered apart from the other legislation re
specting the crime of desertion. It is one
of a series of nets pertaining to the same
subject matter. It must therefore be in
terpreted with them all in view. This is an
admitted rule of statutory construction. So
long ago as Rex vs. Laxdule, I Burrows,
147, Lord Mansfield said, when speaking of
acts of Parliament, “that all which relate
to the same subject, notwithstanding some
of them may be expired or not, notice must
bu taken to be one system and construed
consistently.” So Chancellor Kent, in the
first volumeof his commentaries, page 463 4,
said: “It is to be inferred thatacodeof stat
utes relating to one subject, was governed
by one spirit and policy, and was intended
to be consistent and harmonious in its sev
eral parts and provisions." Iu looking
through the numerous uots of Congress re
lating to Lhe desertion from the military or
naval service, it is plainly to be seen that
they all conteuiplute a regular trial and con
viction prior to the infliction of any ponulty,
ami courts martial are constituted and
regulated for such trials. The 20th article
of war, enacted on the 10th of April, 1806,
(Brightly’s Dig. 75) is in these woius: “All
officers and soldiers who huve received pay,
or have boon duly enlisted in the service of
the United States, und shall be convicted of
having deserted the same, shall suffer death
or such other punishment us by sentence of
court martial , shall be inflicted.” Other en
actments have been made at different times
respecting the punishment to be Inflicted
for the offence. The punishment of death
in time of peace was abolished in 1830.
Corporeal puuishment by stripes was abol
ished by tho act of Muy 16, 1812, and by the
act of Murch 2d, 1833, that section of the re
pealing act was itself repealed, “ so far as it
applies to any enlisted soldier who
shall be convicted by a general court
martial of tho crime of desertion.”
Bv the act of .January It. 1812, an
additional ponulty was proscribed for de
sertion, uud it was declared thut ” such sol
dier shall and may be tried by a court
martial and punished.” Brightly’s Di. 89.
The 13th section of the act of March 3, 1863,
which declared that any person failing to
report after due service of notice that he
had been drafted, shall be deemed a deserter,
enacted that such a person “shall be ar
rested by the provost marshal and sent to
the nearest military post for trial by court
martial, unless upon proper showing that
he is not liable to military duty, the board
of enrollment shall relieve him from the
draft.” All these acts of Congress mani
festly contemplate trial for desertion in
courts martial, and the infliction of no
punishment or forfeiture except upon con
viction and sentence in such courts. The
act of 1806 provided for general courts mar
tial, and made minute and careful regula
tions for their organization, lor the conduot
of their proceedings, and for the approval
or disapproval of their sentences. Subse
quent acts made some changes but they have
not restrained the jurisdiction or dimin
ished the powers of such courts. It is to
such a code of laws, forming a system de
vised for the punishment of desertion, that
the 21st section of the act of March 3d, 1865,
was added. It refers plainly to pre existing
laws. It has the single object of Increasing
the penalties, but it does not undertake to
change or dispense with the machinery pro
vided for punishing the crime. The com
mon rules of construction demand that it
be read as if it had l>een incorporated into
former acts. And if it had been, if the act
of 1806 and its supplements had prescribed
that the penalty for desertion or failure to
report within a designated time after notice
of draft, (which the act of 1863 declares de
sertion) should be punished on conviction
of the same, with forfeiture of citizenship
and death,or in lieu of the latter, such other
punishment as by the sentence of a
court martial may be inflicted, would
any one contend that any portion
of this punishment could be inflicted
without conviction and sentence? Assured
ly uot, And if not, so must the act of 1865
be construed now. It means that the for
feiture which it prescribes, like all other
penalties |pr desertion, must be adjudged to
the convicted person after trial by a court
martial and sentence approved. For the
conviction and sentence of such a court there
can be no substitute. They alone establish
the guilt of the accused and fasten upon
him the legal consequences. Such, we
think, is the true meaning of the act, a con
struction that oahhot be denied to it with
out losing sight of all tho previous iegisla-
Ition respecting the same subject matter, no
part of whlcih aoea this act profess to alter.
It may be added that this construction
is not only required by the universally
admitted rules of statutory interpretation,
but it Is lu harmony with tho personal
rights secured by tbe Constitution, and
whloh Congrosa must be presumed to have
kept In view. It gives to the n ceil sod trlul
betoro sworn judges, aright to challenge,
an opportunity of defence, tho prlvllogo of
hearing tbe witnesses ngalnst him, aud of
cnlllng witnesses In his behalf. It preserves
to him tbo common law presumption of 111-
noconoe umll lie hus been adjudged guilty,
aocordlng to the formsof law, It glvestlnal
lty to u single trial. If tried by a court
murtial uud acquitted, Ills Innocence call
Dover again bo called in question, und he
can be made to sutler no part of the penal
ties prescribed for guilt. Ontlieotlior hand,
If a record of convictlou by a lawful court
be not a pro requisite to suffering the pen
alty of tbo law, the aet of Congress may
work Intolerable hardships. The accused
will then be obliged to prove Ills innocence
whenever tho registry of the provost mar
shal is adduced against him. No decision
ot a board of electiou officers will protect
him ugainst the necessity of renewing his
defence ut every subsequent election, and
each time with Increased difficulty arising
from the possible death or absence of wit
nesses. In many cases this may prove a
gross wrong. Tt cannot bo doubtod that In
some instances there were causes that
prevented a return to Bervlce, or u report
by persons registered ns deserters by
provost marshals, that would have been
held justifying reasons by a court murtial,
or at least would have prevented an ap
proval of the court’s sentence. It is well
know, also, that some wiio were registered
desorters were, at tho time, actually in the
military service as volunteers, and honora
bly discharging their dutlos to tho liovern
tnent. To hold that the act of Congress
imposes upon such lhe necessity of proving
their innocence, without any conviction of
guilt, would bo an unreasonable construc
tion of tlio act, and would bu attributing to
tho Nullonul legislature au intention not
warranted by the language anil connection
of the enuctinent.
It follows that the Judgment of tbe court
below, upon the case stated, was right The
plaintiff no! having been convicted of
desertion and failure to return to the
service, or to report to a provust marshal,
and not having been sentenced to tho pen
alties and forfeitures of tlio law, was entitled
to vote. The Judgment Is affirmed.
WoODWAIID, (J. J.
I concur Pylho conclusion staled iu the
above opinion, and iu most of (lie reasonings
by which tlmt conclusion is reached.
But I do uot concur in treating tbo aet of
Congress iih a valid unactrnent, lor I beliovo
It to lie au ex prist facto law, lu reaped to
all soldiers, except such us commit the crime
of desertion after the dale of tho law. This
is not a case of desertion subsequent to tho
enactment, hut prior to It, end tho penalties
of the offence are such as were by
law, when tho otieuco was committed, und
It Is not competent for the Legislature lo
Increase them, except for future cases.
Interesting Conversation Between Two
Kepubllcnns In front of tho Court-
House.
How ure you, B.’.’ You liavojust
beeu to the Treasurer's office. Beeu
paying your tux I supposo.
Mr. B.—Yes, I have been paying an
amount of tuxes which might be uon-
Hldered a good rout on myllttlo place.
Lust year I w6rked hard, uud as the re
sult of my labor my wheat turned out a
fullure. und what corn and pork I had,
fell so In price that it hardly paid me
for the labor bestowed upon it; uud
then I hud to pay the Government a
per cent, per bushel for the privilege of
raising the corn, and a per cent, per
head for the privilege ofkllllng my hogs.
And now, after paying my taxes, I will
not realize anything for my year’s lubor.
Y r ou are a very wealthy man Mr. A. ; I
have heard your wealth estimated at
$lOO,OOO. Your taxes must be enormous.
You must have difficulty in scarcity of
money to raise funds to pay them.
Mr. A.—Oh !no; My taxes nre light.
They only amount to about fifteen dol
lars per year.
Mr. B.—How is that? I am not
worth one-tenth tbe amount that you
are, and yet my taxes are over $lOO per
year.
Mr. A.—You see I bad foresight. I
knew that tbe enormous cost of the war
would eutail grievous burdens of taxa
tion upou the people, and us hoou as
the Government put Its bonds upon the
market promising to exemptthem from
State, eounty;and township, as well as
National luxutlou. and to pay au inter
est in gold equal to what my income
was In greenbacks, I Immediately sold
my two farms, my town lots, collected
in what was owing to me, und even
sold my family residence, uud invested
every dollar of it in Government se
curities. 1 am worth about $120,00(1,
upon which I receive an interest which
is equivalent of eight per cent, in cur
rency, and I don’t pay a cent of tax for
any purpose, except about $l5 ou the
furniture in my house.
Mr. B.—But don’t you semi your
children to the common schools? Don't
you ride on the public highways?
Haven’t you the benefit of protection
from our State laws?
Mr. A.—Yes, but the whole thiug is
complimentary to me on the part of my
neighbors. I never pay school or road
tax, or for the support of tile State Gov
ernment.
Mr. B.—But bow is the Government
to be supported if this large amount of
money is exempted from taxation ?
Mr. A. —Very easily. My friends and
neighbors who own farms or town lots,
or who have merchandise, manufactur
ing establishments, farm products, or
any kind of chattels, aud ull men of
small or moderate means, who cannot
afford to live ou tbe Interest of their
little pittance, but must keep it moving
to secure food uud raiment for them
selves und families, have the amount of
tax which I am exempt from paying
added to their own taxes, and they are
eoinpetled to pay tluc whole amount.
Persona who pay taxes are requ ired to
pay their o ten, and mine also.
Mr. 11.—I see the matter now in Us
proper light, and cun easily comprehend
why my taxes have boen doubled with
in a few years. I have been paying my
own taxes and part of yours also. lam
opposed to this unjust discrimination,
aud shall help the Democratic party to
bring Government bonds, like other
property, ou the tax duplicate. ChiUi
eothc Advertiser,
Ventilating a Car.
Prof. Hamilton, the horse tamer, of
Hagerstown, Ind., is an original genius,
and as fond of a joke as he is of fresh air.
The other day on the train going home
from Cincinnati, he tried to raise a win
dow in the car where he was sitting,
but could not move it. He called the
conductor to assist him, with no better
result. Instantly he knocked the pane
of glass out with his cane saying, “ Now
we will have a little fresh air.” “ Sir,”
said the conductor, “ you must pay for
that.” “How much?” asked the Pro
fessor. “One dollar,” answered the
conductor. Professor Hamilton passed
him a two dollar bill. The conductor
was about to hand back a dollar in
change, when the cool tamer of wild
animals quietly Bald: “Never mind,
I’ll take another pane,” and with an
other stroke of his cane let God’s fresh
atmosphere in through a second win
dow. “ Well,” exclaimed the con
ductor, “you can’t have any more at
that price. It’s not first cost.”
A Zoological Cariosity,
The Jardin d' Aeelimitation in Paris
has recently been enriched by a species
of guinea-hen from Australia called the
Weelat by the natives. It bears a strong
resemblance to the vulture, and procures
the hatching of its egg by what may be
called artificial heat in a curiouß way.
In the beginning of spring it collects
all the vegetable refuse it canjget'into a
heap, for the site of which it generally
selects the shady side of a hill. Round
this heap it lays its eggs, each five or
six inches from its neighbor, with the
big end turned upwards; it then buries
them under the refuse three feet deep
and lets the heat generated by the pu
trefaction of the vegetable matter hatch
them. It has never been ascertained how
the little ones get out of their prison, but
when they do they are ready fledged and
able to fly.
NUMBER 28.
More Proof of We Inlfemr of tbe Radicals,
Singular Discoveries In Washington-**-
The Assassination of PresldentLlncoln
-••Subpenainff WltneuM to Prove the
Complicity of Jefltorion Davis null
others.
IProm Washington Correspondent of tho Now
York Uorald.i
Tho investigations of tho Judiciary Com*
mlttoo of the Houso of Roprosontatlves lu
relation to tho alleged complicity of Jeff.
Davis. Clay aud other* In tuo murder of
Presldont Lincoln have dovnlopod ouo of
tho moßt villainous conspiracies ovor con*
cooted In tho civilized world. Strango to
toll. It is not the conspiracy for tho assassi
nation of President Lincoln aud his Cabinet,
but an equally bloody and far more cowardly
and cruel one, to murder, through the forms
of law, ex-Presidont Davis and others of tho
defunct confederacy.
This revelation will no doubt astound tho
public, and well It may; but to none who
Lave observed the malignant and fiondlsb
spirit of the radicals in Congress and other
high places will it seem incredible. The
Judiciary Committee, anxious as most of
its members are to suppress the evidence it
has educed and screen the conspirators from
the opprobrium theyjustly merit, will not
venture to deny my averments.
\Vhence or from whom I derived the In
formation I am Imparting need not, aud
with propriety could not, be specifically
disclosed ; but I may observo, for tbe gen
eral interest of your readers, that at this
capital there is no time equal to a holiday,
and during a session of Congress uo holiday
equal to the Fourth of July for eliciting
State secrets. On that day severul honor
able gontlemon were seen in the streets and
other public placos entre efut'x vinn, and one
at least was overheard blnbbiug to a patrou
more than one a rcanwn imperii widen may
uuon create another sensation.
But to return to the conspiracy. Tho
Judiciary Committee, us soon us authorized
to investigate tho charges against Messrs.
Dnvls, Clay und others, entered zealously
upon their duties, and sent for such persons
aud papers as they hud boon led to believe
would furnish criminating evidence. Tho
principal persons sent for had alreudy been
examineu cxparte in tho Bureau or Mili
tary Justice, and tho papers sent for con
sisted mulnly of the depositions of thoso
porsons und some letters of doubtful import
written by supposed rebels before the as
sassination, all of which woro under tho
euro of tho Judge Advoento Goneral. To
recite from memory tho papers verbatim
would be Impossible, aud it would be no
less so to give in cxtcnno the oxamluatiou
of tho persons before tho committee; but
enough will be given to show the most
devilish und damuableconsplracy, tho most
disgusting aud dastardly perlluy undiho
coolest and cheapest porjury you woro over
culled upon to chronicle.
Immediately after the execution of Mrs.
Surratt and her follow culprits tho Judge
Advocate General Hot to work In dead
earnest to procure ovidonco for tho convic
tion of Davis, Clay and others as co-con
spirutors. Hovoraldetectives woroemployod
to hunt up and hunt down every person
supposed to huvo hud any correspondence
or communication with the suspected pur
tlos. or any knowledge tending directly or
Indirectly to connect thorn with the con
spiracy.
But, after woeks of Industrious labor ami
research, tho detoctives failed to discover
anything of tho slightest consequence bear
ing upon the subject. This result was com
municated to tho Kudlcals In the Cabinet,
and by them confided to tho leading radi
cals—then about to ussumblo—in Congress,
and probably to many, certuinly to a few,
culebretles of tholr faction not In any office.
These parties, as will bo readily surmis
ed, were disappointed nnd sorely grieved.
They had already arrived at tho conclusion
tliut It would be futile and impolite to try
Davis and other rebel leaders for treason,
and their thirst for blood and vengeance,
and desire to increase tho humility und ig
nominy of tho Southern people by hanging
like n dog their late chief, was aggravated
by the unexpected report that nothing had
been found to Implicate him in tho assassi
nation. But tho bloodthirsty are neitbor
easily discouraged nor over scrupulous as
to what means they omploy for obtaining
their ends. Another agent of groat experi
ence and shrewdness whs engaged to per
form the work which the others had failed
to accomplish. He was charged to find the
necessary witnesses at all hazards; to pro
ceed a la Forney, or in any way ho deemed
host calculated to inshro success, but on no
account to fall. With a zeal worthy of a
better cause bo entered upon his duties,
and in a few weeks produced nearly a dozen
witnesses who disposed undor oath, In tho
the Bureau of Military Justice, to matters
und facts enough to hung both Davis uud
Clay higher than Human.
One of these witnesses, calling himself
William Campbell, deposod that he was a
natlvo of New Orleans, and had been a Con
federate soldier; that in tho latter part of
March or first of April, 1865, he was called
on at Richmond by John H. Surratt, who
bore a letter of introduction from William
C. Cleary, then in Canada; that said letter
requested him to introduce Surratt to J udab
P. Benjamin, Secretary of State, with whom
he (deponent) was intimately acquainted,
und assured him that Surratt would unfold
a grand scheme in which he (deponent) was
earnestly solicited to participate; that Sur
ratt did on tho same day disclose to him the
plot to assassinnte the President and Cabi
net ; further that, in compliance with
Cleary’s request, he introduced Surratt to
Benjamin, when, after an interchange of
civilities, Surratt delivered to the Secretary
a package of letters, which were immedi
ately opened and perused; that Benjamin
then turned to address Surratt on the sub
ject of the letters, when deponent arose to
withdraw, but, owing to a suggestion by
Surratt that ho (deponent) was one of the
parties to engage In tho murdorous work,
was requested by Benjamin to remain ; that
the letters so delivered to Benjamin, after
referring to Surratt’s business, requested
him to present the bearer to the President,
and help him through with his mission;
that his mission was to obtain express au
thority from the government to execute tho
plot tor the destruction of Lincoln; that
Benjamin said thore was no doubt but the
President would give the authority desired,
and proposed to go to him at once, which
was aono, doponont by Invitation accom
panying him.
That after they had been presented to the
President, his Excellency and Benjamin
retired to another room and remained for
half an hour or more in close conversation ;
that on returning to the room Davis re
quested Surrutt to explain precisely what
was desired, as the despatches from Canada
stated that he would do so more minutely
thun they did ; that Surratt then explained
at length that several determined Confed
erates and others in tho North had resolved
to make way with “Old Abe” and his
Cabinet if tho project would be authorized
by the government and the adventurers
Eromisea protection in the event of their
eing captured; that Davis replied that
there had “ been so many schemes set on
foot for this purpose, all of which had
proved miserable failures, that he had
ceased to hope for any good results from
any such project, but that at any rate no
special authority more than the agents in
Canada could confer was necessary to war
rant tho proposed proceedings; tnat Lin
coln being the Commander-in-Chief of the
armies of the United States, Confederate
soldiers had the same right, and that it was
as much their duty to destroy him, if they
could, as to kill any private soldier in his
armies, and that if they should bo captured
while engaged in such an undertaking they
must be treated as prisoners of war. Sup
pose that two or three Yankees should steal
into my house, and, without warning, at
tack and kill me, can there bo any doubt
that their government would applaud, pro
tect and reward them and declare their ac
tion legitimate warfare? Not at all.
That Surratt replied that all his Excellency
had observed was undoubtedly true, but
that some of the parties anxious to embark
in tbe enterprise were not wholly satisfied
that tbe government would recognize their
action, and with the assurance of protection
given by the agents in Canada, inasmuch as
tbe protection promised by the agents in
other cases—for instance, in the case of Beali,
Kennedy, Burleigh and the St. Albans
raiders—had not been extended, and that
the present project could not be executed
without express authority and assurance of
protection from the government; that after
some further conversation between Davis
and Benjamin, which it is not necessary to
give here, the President dhected Surratt to
call the next day at noon on the Secretary,
when he would receive all the authority,
Ac., he required.
That on the following day (Surratt and
deponent), accompaniedby a man named
Snevel, called on Benjamin as directed, but
the papers had not been sent to him; that
as Surratt was anxious to return to the
North immediately, Benjamin at once
started with them to Davis’ office; that
Davis plead indisposition for not having the
papers ready by the time indicated, but
said they had Just been finished. (Snevel
was now presented to his Excellency as one
of the braves ready to enter upon the bloody
work.) That after a little conversation,
during which Davis inquired of Surratt
what route he intended to take and when
he expected to pass the federal lines. His
Excellency placed a letter in Surratt’B hand,
saying, “This is for Colonel Thompson; it
confers all the power he reauires, to author
ize the proceeding proposed, and to promise
for the government the necessary protec
tion to au who engage in it.” That he then
shook hands with each of them, and said
that he “trusted they would behave bravely
MATES OF ADTERTIAUrOt
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Patuct Midiciwx» And other adver’A by the
oolamni
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Half ooltaa, 1 ntr M oo
Third oolumn, 1 year 40
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one year, 10
Business Cards, five lines or less, one
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LXOAL AMD OTHXB NOTICKS—
Executors’ notioes 9.00
Administrators’ notioes, 9.00
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Other “Notioes,” ten lines, or less,
three times ,50
and that their efforts would bo crowned
with success.” That Hnovol tbon observed
that thoy “must uot bravely and succeed';
for If caught in the act tnoy would all bo
made to danco on nothing,” That Benia
min ropliod. “No, if any of you are cap
turod and tho Yankees thrsutln to hang
you, wo will glvo tho Yuukoo government
nottco that for ovory ono thoy hung a dozen
will bo oxocutud in retaliation”' That
Davis rospondod, “Yes, you shall bo fully
protocted. Tho undertaking proposod is,
undor tho circumstances! perfectly Just,
and lu perfect harmony with tho laws of
war,” Ami again ho Illustrated with tho
query. “Supposo two or throe Yankoos
should stoal Into my houso and without
warning kill mo, cun there bo any doubt
that their government would applaud and
protect thorn, und declare tholr exploit In
accordance with honorable warfare?” That
Benjamin again chimed in, that “it was
just llko falling upon and surprisingu camp
and putting tho foo to tho sword without
giving him time to seize his arms and got
in line for dofenco.” That Surratt, Snovol
and deponent thon bade tho Presldont nnd
Secretary farowoll aud departed.
Such, almoqfc word for word, is tho depo
sition made by Campbell for tho Bureau of
Militury Justice, and his statement of what
was said and done by Davis and Benjamin
alter the ollegod presentation of Snovel to
tho robol chief, was fully corroborated by
Snovel in another deposition made aLtho
same time, lor the samo Bureau and for tjio
sumo end.
And here we eomoto tho most astounding
part of my disclosure. This man “ Willlum
Campboll.” und his l'riond “Snovel,”
whoso first namo. or rather alias, 1 do not
remomber, on being brought beforo tbo Ju
diciary Committee for examination ac
knowledged that tho above names did uot
belong to them, but woro fictitious; that
they had never boon in tho rubol sorvico
nor iu Richmond; that thoy had novor
seen Davis, or Bonjnmln, or Surratt in tholr
lives; that thoy had novor beard of any plot
to destroy Lincoln until alter his death;
that there was not a word of truth in tho
depositions thoy mado for tho Bureau of
Military Justice, but thut they mado such
depositions for a pecuniary reward, bolng
first furnished with tho Htatoinont thoy
were desired to swear to and committing ft
to memory for the purpose; aud ilintof tho
other parties, sonio seven or eight iu num
bor, who made depositions for the buroau
referred to, ovory ono of them deposed un
der false names to false statements tor pe
cuniary considerations.
Tho depositions of tho other “ witnesses,”
under tho assumed names of Wright, Wil
liams, Fatten, Douglass, Morodlth, Knapp,
Ac., licensed Davis of complicity In tho as
sassination just as positively, and wero as
Ingeniously concocted us those of Campboll
and Snovel. Ilavingaccomnllshed ho much
iu tho way of procuring ovidonco, tho radi
cal conspirators urged President Johnson
with all tbelr force to appolnta commission
for tho trial of u distinguished culprit.
Campboll and oilier “witnesses” wero
tukon before his Excellency umllho Cabinet,
iu order that their frank demeanor anti
honorable appearance could lie observed,
and woro asked a few questions by tho
President and examined at considerable
longht by Mr. Howard, to tho apparent
satisfaction of all that thoy wero lolling tho
truth und nothing but tho t/uth. Tho
President, us is known, did not til once ap
point the commission, hut lie was prevailed
on to call for tho opinion of tho Attorney
Uonorul as to tho legality ami propriety of
trying by military court parties implicated
In the assassination, and tho Attorney Uon
erui soon after gave tbe opinion und tho
argument upon which lie based it, that it
would not only bo legal and proper to try
partios so uccusecl by a military court, but
that it would be clearly illegal anu im
proper to arraign them before a civil tri
bunal, Tho radical conspirators now ro
f;arded Davis us good os disposed of, and
icked their Jaws with gleo.
But, unfortunately for thorn, tho Presi
dent would imt bo hurried into ordoriug a
military trial. His penetrating oyo had
probably discovered something about
Campbell and others paraded before him
suificiont to convince him that thoy woro
falsifying. He know Davis well enough to
know that if ho would descend to conspire
at murder at nil, it would bo only with men
of honor—that kind of honor to bo found
among thieves und bold desperadoes—who
would sooner dio than compromise them
selves or their chief, and not with mon of
ignorance und low standing, and compara
tively unknown to bun. like tho witnesses
purauod, who wero willing to swear to tholr
own shamo and betray tholr master for
thirty pieces of silver.
Finding it impossible to induce tho Presi
dent to convuko a military court for tho
immolation of tho robol chief, tho radicals
woro bitterly disappointed, und some of
them were furious, Thoy determined, how
ever, not to be beaten altogether; not to
throw aside as worthless, “evidenco” which
had been procured at so much trouble und
exponso, but if possible to turn it to some
account. With Muchiuvolian adroitness
they conceived a scheme wheroby, if they
could nothang Mr. Davis thoy could nt least
load him with infamy, and at tho same time
wreak exquisite vengeance on President
Johnson for declining to aid their murder
ous designs.
The process relied on for tho consumma
tion of this double-headed project was re
markable for its simplicity. Tho deposi
tions of the spurious witnesses wero to be
preserved in tho Bureau of Military Justice,
and at a proper time rendered accessible to
the press and tho historian. None of tho
alleged criminal proceedings of Davis set
forth in the numerous depositions, with tho
exception of those pretended to have oc
curred in tho presence of Benjamin (who
being accused as particips criminis would
not be believed), were susceptible of refuta
tion, all his criminal conversations and
transactions bolng, us alleged, in either tbo
presencoof prominent rebels, slncodeccased,
and the witnesses, or In tbo presonce of tbe
witnesses alone. Davis could and would,
therefore, bo published to tho world as a
monster and a murdoror deserving to bo
curaed like Cain and driven irom Christen
dom ; and no matter how much ho might
say to vindicate himself, or how eloquently
his friends might expiate on his Christian
character ana high sense of honor, three
fourths of his countrymen, and posterity
generally, would bolieve him guilty.
This tho radical conspirators thought
would effectuality dispose of DavJs. and bo
as great a punishment us ho could bear.
But how wero they to reuch Mr, Johnson?
He had already been denounced for his le
niency toward the rebel leaders, and with
endeavoring for political purposes to Ingra
tiate himself with tbo South, and they
would now go beforo the cuntry with tho
argument that his failure to put Davis on
his trial for tbe murder of Lincoln,’ in face
of the overwhelming evidence that could
have been brought against, as appeared
from the depositions in the Bureau of Mili
tary Justice, was the result of his desire and
scheme to obtain tho friendship and favor of
tho South, and of his gratitude to Mr. Davis
for removing his predecessor and thus ele
vating him to the Chief Magistracy of the
nation.
It willbereadilyseenthatamost powerful
weapon thut could have been maao of all
this against Mr. Johnson in the North.
What a pity that so beautiful a scheme
should be spoiled. But it is another verifi
cation of the old adage that “murder will
out.”
Costome at Panama.
A newspaper correspondent at
Panama says: “The chariest maid of
Panama is prodigal enough only when
she unmasks her beauty, not merely to
the moon, but to the blazing sun and
entire populace. The whiteness of her
drapery is In sharp contrast with her
tawny skin. Some boys of 12 years,
and,under, wear shirts, but most are en
tirely naked, while girls appear ‘in ele
gant costume of the Greek Slave. 1 They
form striking couples for promenade—
young arrayed only in straw hats, and
juvenile gentlemen in the same attire
with hats omitted. If there be any
Calvinism in dress, they are hopeless
examples of total depravity.”
The editor of the Kokoma Herald
lately published an article that brought
down upon him the vengeful ire of some
enraged female. He apologizes to her
thusly:
“Butreally we hope she will over
look thiß little mistake in us, and al
ways in the future have some fellow
feeling in her bosom.”
The New Albany Ledger man says
this is adding insult to injury. Does
the Kokoma man suppose any woman
would be willing to expose the various
products of the cotton field, saw mill
and gristmill, which she carries, by
allowing some fellow to be feeling in
her bosom?”
“I never shot a bird in my life,” said j
a friend to an Irishman, who replied,
“I never shot any thing in theahape or
a bird, but a Bquirrel, which ! killed
with a stone, when it fell Into the river
and was drowned,” ■. M