MILITARY COMMISSIONS. 



and in condition to exercise its functions that your- 

 self, or either of the associate justices of the Supreme 

 Court, will hold a term of the Circuit Court there 

 during the autumn or early winter, for the trial of 

 causes ? Very respectfully, 



ANDREW JOHNSON. 

 Hon. S. P. CHASE, Chief-Justice Supreme Court. 



"WASHINGTON, Thursday Evening, October 12, 1865. 

 DEAR SIR : Your letter of the 2d, directed to Cleve- 

 land, and forwarded to Sandusky, reached me there 

 night before last. I left for Washington yesterday 

 morning, and am just arrived. 



To your inquiry, whether a term of the Circuit Court 

 of the United States for the District of Virginia will 

 be held by myself or one of the associate justices of 

 the Supreme Court during the autumn or early win- 

 ter, I respectfully reply in the negative. 



Under ordinary circumstances, the regular term 

 authorized by Congress would be held on the fourth 

 Monday of November, which, this year, will be the 

 twenty-seventh. Only a week will intervene between 

 that day and the commencement of the annual term 

 of the Supreme Court, when all the judges are re- 

 quired to be in attendance at Washington. The time 

 is too short for the transaction of any very important 

 business. Were this otherwise, I so much doubt the 

 propriety of holding circuit courts of the United 

 States in States which have been declared by the 

 executive and legislative departments of the Na- 

 tional Government to be in rebellion, and therefore 

 subjected to martial law, before the complete resto- 

 ration of their broken relations with the nation, and 

 the supersedure of the military by the civil adminis- 

 tration, that I am unwilling to hold such courts in 

 any such States within my circuit, which includes 

 Virginia, until Congress shall have had an opportu- 

 nity to consider and act on the whole subject. 



A civil court in a district under martial law can 

 only act by the sanction and under the supervision 

 of the military power ; and I cannot think it becomes 

 the justices of the Supreme Court to exercise juris- 

 diction under such conditions. 



In this view, it is proper to say that Mr. Justice 

 Wayne, whose whole circuit is in the rebel States, 

 concurs with me. I have had no opportunity of con- 

 sulting the other justices, but the Supreme Court has 

 hitherto declined to consider cases brought before it 

 by appeal orAvrit of error from circuit or district 

 courts in the rebel portion of the country. No very 

 reliable inference, it is true, can be drawn from this 

 action, for circumstances have greatly changed since 

 the court adjourned ; but, so far as it goes, it favors 

 the conclusion of myself and Mr. Justice Wayne. 

 With great respect, yours very truly, 



S. P. CHASE. 



On the 8th of May the United States Circuit 

 Oourt for Virginia commenced its session be- 

 fore Judge Underwood. A grand jury was 

 sworn, which presented the following indict- 

 ment: 



The United States of America, District of Virginia, to 

 wit : In, the Circuit Court of the United States of 

 America in and for the District of Virginia, at 

 Norfolk, May Term, 1866. 



The grand jurors of the United States of America 

 in and for the district of Virginia, upon their oaths 

 and affirmations respectively, do present that Jeffer- 

 son Davis, late of the city of Richmond, in the county 

 of Henrico, in the district of Virginia, aforesaid, 

 yeoman, being an inhabitant of, and residing within, 

 the United States of America, and owing allegiance 

 and fidelity to the said United. States of America, not 

 having the fear of God before his eyes, nor weighing 

 the duty of his said allegiance, but being moved and 

 seduced by the instigation of the devil, and wickedly 

 devising, intending the peace and tranquillity of the 

 said United States of America to disturb and the Gov- 



ernment of the said United States of America, to 

 subvert, and to stir, move, and incite insurrection, 

 rebellion and war against the said United States of 

 America on the fifteenth day of June, in the year of 

 pur Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty_-four, 

 in the city of Richmond, in the county of Henrico, in 

 the district of Virginia aforesaid', and within the juris- 

 diction of the Circuit Court of the United States for 

 the fourth circuit in and for the district of Virginia 

 aforesaid, with force and arms, unlawfully, falsely, 

 maliciously, and traitorously did compass, imagine, 

 and intend to raise, levy, and carry on war, insur- 

 rection, and rebellion against the said United States 

 of America, and in order to fulfil and bring to effect 

 the said traitorous compassings, imaginations and 

 intentions of him, the said Jefferson Davis, afterward, 

 to wit, on the said fifteenth day of June, in the year 

 of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty- 

 four, in the said city of Richmond, in the county of 

 Henrico. and district of Virginia aforesaid, and within 

 the jurisdiction of the Circuit Court of the United 

 States for the fourth circuit in and for the said dis- 

 trict of Virginia, with a great multitude of persons 

 whose names to the jurors aforesaid are at present 

 unknown, to the number of five hundred persons and 

 upward, armed and arrayed in a warlike manner, 

 that is to say, with cannon, muskets, pistols, swords, 

 dirks and other warlike weapons, as well offensive as 

 defensive, being then and there unlawfully, mali- 

 ciously, and traitorously assembled and gathered to- 

 gether, did falsely and traitorously assemble and 

 loin themselves together against the said United 

 States of America, and then and there with force and 

 arms did falsely and traitorously, and in a warlike 

 and hostile manner, array and dispose themselves 

 against the said United States of America, and then 

 and there, that is to say, on the said fifteenth day of 

 June, in Ihe year of our Lord one thousand eight 

 hundred and sixtv-four, in the said citv of Richmond, 

 in the county of Henrico, and district of Virginia 

 aforesaid, and within the jurisdiction of the said Cir- 

 cuit Court of the United States for the fourth circuit 

 in and for the said district of Virginia, in pursuance 

 of such their traitorous intentions and purposes 

 aforesaid, he, the said Jefferson Davis, with the said 

 persons so as aforesaid, traitorously assembled and 

 armed and arrayed in the manner aforesaid, most 

 wickedly, maliciously, and traitorously, did ordain, 

 prepare, levy, and carry on war against the said 

 United States of America, contrary to the duty, al- 

 legiance and fidelity of the said Jefferson Davis, 

 against the Constitution, Government, peace and 

 dignity of the said United States of America, and 

 against the form of the statute of the said United 

 States of America in such case made and provided. 



This indictment, founded on testimony of James 

 F. Milligan, George P. Scarbury, John Good, Jr., J. 

 Hardy Hendren, and Patrick O'Brien, sworn in open 

 court and sent for by the grand jury. 



L. H. CHANDLER, 



United States Attorney for the District of Virginia. 



On the 5th of June the counsel of Mr. Davis, 

 Messrs. James T. Brady, William B. Eeed, and 

 others were present at the opening of the court 

 in Eichmond. After the usual preliminaries, 

 "William B. Eeed, Esq., of Philadelphia, then 

 addressed the court as follows : 



May it please your honor, I beg to present myself 

 in conjunction with my colleagues as the counsel of 

 Jefferson Davis, now a prisoner of state at Fortress 

 Monroe, and under indictment in your honor's court 

 for high treason. We find in the records of your 

 honor's court an indictment charging Mr. Davis with 

 this high offence, and it seemed to us due to the 

 cause of jnstice, due to this tribunal, due to the feel- 

 ing of one sort or another, which may be described 

 as crystallizing around the unfortunate man, that we 

 should come at the earliest day tc this tribunal and 



