424 



FREEDOM OF THE PRESS. 



permanent writ could be heard that day in 

 open court. A file of soldiers, nevertheless, 

 took possession of the establishment, and after 

 remaining for some time left, but before leav- 

 ing they again warned the owners against issu- 

 ing their paper. 



At the opening of the court on the morning 

 of the 3d of June, the counsel of the publish- 

 ers made a motion to defer proceedings on the 

 application for an injunction until notice of the 

 application could be given to the military com- 

 mandant at Camp Douglas. Judge Drummond, 

 in granting the motion, said : 



I may be pardoned for saying that, personally and 

 officially, I desire to give every aid ana assistance in 

 my power to the Government and to the Administra- 

 tion in restoring the Union, but I have always wished 

 to treat the Government as a Government of law and 

 a Government of the Constitution, and not a Govern- 

 ment of mere physical force. I personally have con- 

 tended, and shall always contend, for the right of free 

 discussion, and the right of commenting, under the 

 law and under the Constitution, upon the acts of the 

 officers of the Government. 



In the meantime, news of the proceedings of 

 the military authorities had reached Springfield, 

 the capital of Illinois, where the State Legisla- 

 ture had convened in special session on the 2d 

 of June, pursuant to an order adopted at the 

 close of its last -regular session. On the 3d, the 

 following preamble and resolutions were intro- 

 duced in the House of Eepresentatives, and, 

 after an exciting debate, were passed yeas 47, 

 nays 13 : 



Whereas information has reached this body that an 

 order has been issued by Gen. Burnside for the sup- 

 pression of the Chicago " Times ; " and whereas such 

 order is in direct violation of the Constitution of the 

 United States and of this State, and destructive to 

 those God-given principles whose existence and recog- 

 nition for centuries before a written Constitution was 

 made, have made them as much a part of our rights 

 as the life which sustains us^ 



Be it resolved by the House of Eepresentatives (the 

 Senate concurring therein), That we denounce the or- 

 der which threatens an act so revolutionary and des- 

 potic as contrary to liberty, destructive of good gov- 

 ernment, and subversive of constitutional and natural 

 rights, and that, if carried into effect, we consider it 

 equivalent to the overthrow of our form of govern- 

 ment, and the establishment of a military despotism 

 in its stead. 



JKetolved, That, in view of the monstrous conse- 

 quences which must inevitably flow from such action, 

 if Justified by the General Government, we respect- 

 fully, yet firmly, request the withdrawal of the order 

 in question, aud the disavowal thereof by those in 

 power, as the only course which can be pursued to re- 

 assure our people that constitutional freedom, so dear 

 to their hearts, has not ceased to be. The attention of 

 the governor is called to this infringement of popular 

 rights, and tho invasion of the sovereignty of the 

 State of Illinois. 



The office of tho " Times," at Chicago, was 

 the centre of attraction during the whole of 

 the 3d, and at night a large concourse of peo- 

 ple gathered there, in accordance with a call 

 which had been issued in the forenoon of that 

 day. This meeting, however, soon adjourned 

 to Court House Square, where the people were 

 addressed by gentlemen of both parties. The 



speeches counselled the observance of the laws, 

 but denounced the above order of Gen. Burn- 

 side as arbitrary and despotic. The following 

 resolutions were reported and adopted : 



Twenty thousand loyal citizens of Illinois, assem- 

 bled this evening to consult upon their interests, do 

 resolve, 



1. That law is the bulwark of liberty; the abroga- 

 tion of law is the death of liberty ; the constitution guar- 

 antees the freedom of speech and of the press and the 

 right of the people peaceably to assemble and to peti- 

 tion the Government for the redress of grievances. An 

 infringement of these rights is a blow at the Constitu- 

 ition ; an abrogation of these rights is the overthrow 

 of the Constitution. He who seeks to abridge or de- 

 stroy these rights is a traitor to law and liberty. The 

 people of Illinois will forever demand and insist upon 

 these rights. They will obey the laws themselves 

 and insist upon alike obedience by all men. They 

 will seek redress for grievances through the forms of 

 law and the tribunals of justice. They will demand 

 and insist upon the trial by jury, of men not in the 

 military or naval service, who are charged with crime ; 

 thev will demand and insist upon the right to speak 

 and print their opinions of men in power, and the meas- 

 ures of those men ; they will demand and insist upon 

 the judgment of the civil tribunals upon men or news- 

 papers charged with the expression of " disloyal and 

 incendiary sentiments." 



2. The military power is and must remain subordi- 

 nate to the civil power. Military, like civil function- 

 aries, derive all their powers from the law. So far as 

 they act under the law they must be obeyed. When 

 they exceed the law their orders and decrees are void. 



3. General Order No. 84, promulgated by General 

 Burnside, by which the publication of the Chicago 

 ''Times" is declared to be suppressed, is without 

 warrant of law, and should, as we have an abiding 

 belief that it will forthwith be rescinded by the Presi- 

 dent. If the " Times " or any other public journal 

 has exceeded the limits of lawful discussion or criti- 

 cism, the civil tribunals, and they alone, are the com- 

 petent and lawful judges of its crime. To the courts 

 of law it appeals ; let the courts, and the courts alone, 

 decide its Fate. 



4. The people of Illinois are devoted, with their lives 

 and their fortunes to the glorious Union of the States 

 under the Constitution made by our fathers ; they will 

 sacrifice life and fortune and all but liberty to preserve 

 that Union ; they will cordially sustain the authorities 

 in all honest and lawful efforts to preserve that Union ; 

 but they will not sacrifice their liberties, though life 

 and fortune go together. Peaceably, soberly, loyally, 

 they will maintain their liberties, so long as they can 

 thus be maintained, but they will have them at ev 

 hazard by some means. 



During the afternoon the militia were order- 

 ed under arms, but nothing occurred requir- 

 ing their interposition. 



On the evening of the next day (the 4th) 

 the following despatch from General Burnside 

 was received by the editor : 



LEXINGTON. Ky., June 4iA, 18C8. 

 To the Editor of the Chicago Times : 



By direction of the President of the United States, 

 my order suppressing the circulation of your pape_r is 

 revoked. You are at liberty to resume its publication. 

 A. E. BURNSIDE, Maj.-Gen. 



The office had been in possession of a mili- 

 tary force from early Wednesday morning till 

 Thursday evening. No paper was issued on 

 Thursday morning. 



On the same day the following despatch was 

 also sent by General Burnside. 



