480 



HABEAS CORPUS. 



ficiently developed the purpose and spirit of your 

 speech ? 



Mr. Vallandigham : I have called but one witness, 

 and I understand the Court has several more to cor- 

 roborate what their first witness has testified. 



Judge Advocate : The Court will not be influenced 

 by the number of witnesses. The number had nothing 

 to do with the case. 



Mr. Vallandigham : I did not counsel any resistance 

 in my speech^ and there were three witnesses on the 

 stand, one of whom was the presiding officer, and one 

 a reporter, who is accustomed to reporting speeches, 

 though he did not report on that occasion, whom I 

 have telegraphed for, and expect here at fo,ur p. M. 



The Judge Advocate suggested that Mr. Pendleton, 

 who was now present, was at the meeting at Mount 

 Vernon, and that he might be called to the stand. 



Mr. Vallandigham : Mr. Pendleton has been engaged 

 in this case, and I would prefer not to call him, as I 

 have other witnesses. I also desire to show that the 

 criticisms in my speech were not in reference to Gen- 

 eral Order, No. 33. 



Judge Advocate : The witness has just said so. 



Mr. Vallandigham: If the Court will admit that, 

 then I will not call other witnesses. 



Judge Advocate : I will admit that the language 

 might not have been used especially toward General 

 Order, No. 38 ; but it has been proved that such lan- 

 guage was used in the Mount Vernon speeches in ref- 

 erence to military orders. 



Mr. Vallandigham : I want to prove that it was not 

 used in relation to General Order, No. 38. 



Judge Advocate : I will admit that the language was 

 not used in regard to General Order, No. 38, but gen- 

 erally to military orders. 



Mr. Vallandigham said he desired time to prepare a 

 defence covering this testimony, and would, according 

 to the rules governing courts-martial, submit it in 

 writing. 



The Judge Advocate said he might cover one hun- 

 dred or two hundred pages of foolscap in reviewing the 

 case, and this would take time. He (the Judge Advo- 

 cate) did not propose to say anything on the evidence, 

 but would leave it with the Court. Mr. Vallandigham 

 might say what he desired in defence verbally, and it 

 could be reported in short hand, and thus save time. 



Mr. Vallandigham preferred to have the record cor- 

 rect, as it would have to go before another tribunal. 



The Court then took a recess to half post four 

 o'clock. 



The Court reconvened at five p. M. 



The Judge Advocate stated that the witnesses for 

 the accused, who were expected, namely : Lickey Har- 

 per, J. F. Irwin, and Frank H. Hurd, had not arrived, 

 and that he had agreed with the accused to admit, as 

 it would avoid a continuance, that if they were present 

 and under oath, they would testify substantially the 

 same as Mr. Cox had done. 



Thereupon Mr. Vallandigham said he had no more 

 testimony to offer, and the case closed. 



The Judge Advocate now announced that the testi- 

 mony was all in. 



At the request of Mr. Vallandigham, the testimony 

 of Mr. Cox was read over. 



Mr. Vallandigham : Gentlemen of the Court, very 

 briefly and respectfully I offer the following protest : 



MR. VALLANDIGHAM'S PROTEST. 



Arrested without due " process of law," without 

 warrant from any judicial offiper, and now in a mili- 

 tary prison, I have been served with a " charge and 

 specification," as in a court-martial or military com- 

 mission. 



I am not in either " the land or naval forces of the 

 United States, nor in the militia in the actual service ' 

 of the United States," and therefore am not triable for 

 any cause by anv such court, but am subject, by the 

 express terms of the Constitution, to arrest only by 

 due process of law, judicial warrant, regularly issued 

 upon affidavit and by some officer or court or compe- 

 tent jurisdiction for the trial of citizens, and am now 



entitled to be tried on an indictment or presentment 

 of a grand jury of such court, to speedy and public 

 trial by an impartial jury of the State of Ohio, to be 

 confronted with witnesses against me, to have compul- 

 sory process for witnesses in my behalf, the assistance 

 of counsel for my defence, and evidence and argument 

 according to the common laws and the ways of Judicial 

 courts. And all these I here demand as my right as a 

 citizen of the United States, and under the Constitu- 

 tion of the United States. 



But the alleged "offence " itself is not known to the 

 Constitution of the United States, nor to any law there- 

 of. It is words spoken to the people of Ohio in an 

 open and public political meeting, lawfully and peace- 

 fully assembled under the Constitution and upon full 

 notice. It is words of criticism of the public policy 

 of the public servants of the people, by which policy 

 it was alleged that the welfare of the country was not 

 promoted. It was an appeal to the people to change 

 that policy, not by force, but by free elections and the 

 ballot box. It is not pretended that I counselled diso- 

 bedience to the Constitution or resistance to laws and 

 lawful authority. I never have. Beyond this protest, 

 I have nothing further to submit. 



C. L. VALLANDIGHAM. 



CINCINNATI, OHIO, May "ith, 1863. 



Judge Advocate : I find nothing in the defence of 

 the accused to call for remark, except that in regard 

 to counsel and summoning of witnesses. He was per- 

 mitted to have, and did have, counsel to consult with, 

 and an opportunity was offered him to send for wit- 

 nesses. 



The Court was then-cleared for deliberation, and af- 

 ter a session of three hours, their decision was made 

 and submitted to General Burnside for approval. 



SENTENCK. 



The Commission, after mature deliberation on the 

 evidence adduced, and the statement of the accused, 

 find the accused, Clement L. Vallandigham, a citizen 

 of the State of Ohio, as follows : 



Of the specification (except the words " That prop- 

 ositions by which the Northern States could be won 



of the United States, and those under him in authority, 

 and the words "asserting that h firmly believed, as 

 he asserted six months ago, that the men in power are 

 attempting to establish a despotism in this country, 

 more cruel and more oppressive than ever existed be- 

 fore,") " Guilty." 



And as to those words, " Not Guilty." 



Of the charge, " Guilty." 



And the Commission dp therefore sentence him, the 

 said Clement L. Vallandigham, a citizen of the State 

 of Ohio, to be placed in close confinement in some for- 

 tress of the United States, to be designated by the 

 commanding officer of this department, there to be 

 kept during the continuance of the war. 



II. The proceedings, finding and sentence in the fore- 

 going case are approved and confirmed, and it is di- 

 rected that the place of confinement of the prisoner, 

 Clement L. Vallandigham, in accordance with said sen- 

 tence, be Fort Warren, Boston harbor. By command of 

 Major-General BURNSIDE. 



LEWIS RICHMOND, Assist. Adj. -Gen. 



This sentence was not approved by the Pres- 

 ident, who changed it to one, sending Mr. YJ " 

 landigham beyond our military lines. 



Previous to the finding of the Commission 

 being made public, Mr. Vallandigham, through 

 his counsel, George E. Pugh, applied to Judge 

 Leavitt, of the United States Circuit Court, for 

 a writ of habeas corpus. The hearing was post- 

 poned to the llth of May, and the clerk di- 

 rected to give notice of the same to Gen. Burn- 

 side. On that day the matter was argued at 



