It was once said, “In times of war law is silent.” (A Latin Phrase: inter arma silent leges). It was early January 1861, when the political state of the Union became extremely grave. Six states from the deep South, lead by South Carolina, had seceded from the Union. It was not until after the Confederates bombarded Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, President Abraham Lincoln called for 75,000 volunteers to save the Union. The states of Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina and Tennessee followed suit to secede. The situation of the federal Capital was quite precarious. On its south, Alexandria, the northern part of Virginia, was packed with rebels. Surrounding the capital, north, east and west was Maryland, a slave state full of Confederates.
The majority of the Maryland legislature fortunately refused to consider a secession ordinance, and thus, saved the Capital. In order to take a preventive strike against any probable plots by the Confederates, Lincoln ordered the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus, covering the departments in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and Washington.
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