The Sun.
London, England, 1868-04-08 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON,
,WEDNESDAY EVENING, APRIL 8, 1868

nets so brilliant and courtly a spectacle, but in
these graver and soberer days there have been few
occasions of so deep an interest, few which are
likely to exercise so sensible an influence over their
country and their generation.
The leading features of the trial are of course
familiar to every one, and it needs no skilful jurist
or elaborate reasoner to detect the flaws in the case
against President JOHNSON. His accusers urge
that he has failed to recognise the authority of
Congress, but the reply is ready. Con-
gress, as at present constituted, does not
accurately represent the people. Mr. JOHNSON,
indeed, does not avail himself of this plea, which is
a very strong one in his favour, and he cannot
justly be accused of disregarding the wishes of the
sovereign people unless those wishes are fully and
constitutionally expressed. The Constitution di-
vides the representation among so many States,
but a considerable portion of those States
are altogether unrepresented. We should cer-
tainly not regard any act of Parliament as
binding which was passed, while ten or twelve
counties were altogether omitted from the repre-
sentation. Senator DAVIS, a Democrat from Ken-
tucky, raised this objection during the trial. When
the Chief Justice took his seat on March 23, on the
resumption of the trial, Mr. DAVIS submitted a
motion that the Southern States being unrepresented
the Senate was incompetent to try the impeachment.
We may easily imagine that this objection was very
quickly overruled, the two members for Ken-
tucky being the only Senators who voted for the
motion. Mr. DAVIS, however, had the satisfaction
of entering a just and constitutional protest, and
we are glad that, even as at present constituted,
the Senate can supply some men with honesty 11
and fearlessness enough to do so. Mr. JOHNSON, as
we have said, does not make this protest, which
is a matter of some surprise, since he has frequently
pointed out the inconsistency and unconstitution-
ality of the partial character of Congress. Most
probably, however, he is anxious to set himself right
with the public, to give a full answer to the charges
brought against him, and to meet his enemies
on their own ground. He could not have
done this if he had refused to recognise
the legality of the tribunal which arraigned him.
As it is, he has answered the impeachment clause
by clause with a full and circumstantial statement,
making the reply, in fact, a vindication of his career
and character while in office. On one point, in-
deed, he takes high ground, standing on his consti-
tutional prerogative. The ninth article of the
impeachment charges him with attempting to se-
cure insubordination among army officers. The
PRESIDENT, in answering this, reminds his
accusers that he is Commander-in-Chief of the
Army by the Constitution. He could hardly,
therefore, encourage insubordination against him-
self. He defends himself from the charge of re-
moving STANTON unjustly on two grounds. He
holds that his oath of office made it his duty to re-
move him, as he believed his retention of the Secre-
taryship was incompatible with the public welfare;
and further, he declares the Tenure-of-
office Bill to be unconstitutional. His accusers
contend that the PRESIDENT was bound to uphold
the Act as long as it was on the Statute-Book un-
condemned by the Supreme Court. To this the
PRESIDENT replies that he disregarded it on pur-
pose to bring the question of its legality before the
Supreme Court. Mr. JOHNSON asserts that he has
always recognised the authority of Congress and
enforced its laws, though he has held it right to
veto some of its acts on constitutional grounds. He
has always protested agailast the exclusion of
the eleven States, whose exclusion renders Congress
only a partial representation of the Union ; but
notwithstanding this protest, he affirms that he has
recognised the existing Congress by approving some
of its enactments, and by sending to it his messages
and objections. 'With regard to his Western speeches,
Mr. JOHNSON states that they were incorrectly re-
ported, but he claims the right to criticise the pro-
ceedings of Congress, not as PRESIDENT, but as a free
American citizen, entitled to free speech and free
thought. In this the PRESIDENT has reason on his
side ; for though what he might say as PRESIDENT
is, of course, more influential than w hat he might
say as a private individual, there are no just
grounds on which to deny him a right which every
American strenuously claims. The prosecution
were very soon ready with their replication
to the PRESIDENT'S reply, and showed such eager-
ness to press on the case as to excite some sensation
in the Court itself. The House of Representatives
attends every day to support the Managers of th e
Impeachment, who seem very well able to dispense
with such external encouragement. General BUT-
LER iS to reopen the case, a task no doubt most ,
congenial to him.

Meanwhile, whenever the public feeling is tested,
it declares itself against the Radicals. Connecti-
cut is the latest victory of the Democrats, who
have just carried the elections by an increased
majority. We learn this by a telegram dated yes-
terday, but from the fuller correspondence brought
by the mail we find that owing to the balance
of the parties there has been great popu-
lar excitement respecting it, and that
each party was confident of success. The
Connecticut election was the second of the
spring elections, and affords another indication of
the growing aversion to Radicalism. In the
Southern States, too, there are signs of vitality.
Arkansas, like Alabama, refuses to accept the new
Constitution, so that the Radicals are beginning
to find that their long lease of ill-em-
ployed power is drawing to a close. Few
can regret it. Neither at home nor abroad
have they maintained the public interests or the
national honour. They have used place and power
for selfish ends, regardless of consequences. They
have impoverished the Treasury and exasperated
the people, and they may rest assured that what-
ever temporary triumph they may gain will soon
be reversed by the unmistakeable verdict of the
community at large.