Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1830-04-19

JiHesS or uuR,Htsc.
On the l0th of April. is2c, the Senate by RI
solution, instructed the Secretary Of the Navy
among other things To communicate 10 them IN
Executive session, IN what situation aud 70,
| ichaf redsoHS acting appointments of Office are
made IN the Navy Department II will not be-
pretended that the mere fact that the call was
not directly on the Chief Magistrate, imnairs
the force of The precedent as . demand of the
causes OF Executive action Cases IN which
the Senate has inquired into the causes OF an.
p9intmenis have often occurred. On the 4lh
OF Jan 1870. the Senate, by resolution. called
for any Information teiuling 10 shoe The urp
pr!eig of sending Ministers 10 Panama : and II
does not appear by the Journal that the major
n.y. SO much reproduced lpr their defence oil
Tue then administration, made any objection 10
the resolution, but II does appear that the reso-
luton was onithat day offered by Mr.. Macon
anh was immediately adopted. Ia the case of
WIN. b. IRISH, who was nominated bylMr. Mon
roe as Marshal of the Western District Of Penn.
svlvana. The Senate called, bv resolution, on
| he President Of the u. s 10 cause 10 be laid
| before them all such letters and petitions, or
other papers As were presented 10 hun relative
to the appointment as ,neH those lchich opposed
ms appointment, as those which requested il,
All the President complied with the call, with.
/ out compainin. against the Senate Tor having
exercised power unconsiinlionay or impro-
perry. The PirsIde Of the L. S. who was
also the President OF the Convention that made
The Constitution, CONSIDERED the Senate as en-
titled to the utmost latitude OF inonirv. When
they rejected his nomination OF Il njamin Fish.
bourne, for the place of Naval Ofhcer OF the
Port Of Savannah, Washington, in his message
Nominating Lachian Mcintosh for the place
] saws nm q m IL. ID
ration, whether un occasions where The prupri
ely oil nominations may appear questionable 10
Won, n would not be cxpedient TO communicate
! mat circumstance 10 me, and thereby avail
! YOU selves OF the Information which led ne II
max" them, aud pblcA / tCoHtd ruth pleasure
| tag DtjOfe you committee was then Rp-
! pointed 10 wait on the President and confer
with him on the mode OF communication pro
| per TO be observed between him and the Senate.
| III the formation of treaties ami making ap-
| pointments 10 Offices. TINS committee, by their
chairman, Mr. lizard on he 2lst OF August
after, report d the very rule oil the Senaie now
| 10 be found 10 our manual as No 80, which
with tue very vie" to give time for these in.
| quiries, provides that when nominations shall
be made a future dav shall be assigned unless
| the Senate unanimously direct otherwise, for
| akng them into consideration presCribes the
meet the Senate 10 give or receive information
and even directs their own attendance al any
other place where he may convene them for
such purposes With this history of that rule
| winch has been carefully preserved by all our
predecessors, but appears now 10 be forgotten
who can doubt thai in their opinion, the utmost
| latitude OF inquiry was to be allowed TO the Sc
nate on all Presidential nominations We
have high authority in favor of our cons'itu-
tional right to inquire in the report Of the com
Iniftee on Executive patronage made IN tins
body ON the 9TH of May, lS26--a committee
which then thought, as they Informed the
world. tha' they we're acting IN he sDirH Of
The Constitution in abOiIng 10 multiply the
guards aud Strengthen the barriers, against the
possible abuse OF power. The second section
OF the second bill reporitdby that committee
provides. That, in all nominations made b
| the President TO the Senate to all vacancies oc
casoned by an exercise Of the Presidents pow
ers o remove from office. the fact oil tho reno
val shall he stated to the Senate AT the SAM lime
the nomination is made, ,0Hh n statement of Tie
reasons for cLich such officer may have been re.
mored No, sir, would that committee have
reported an unconstiluIonal provision Tor the
adoption of the Senate The proposition in II
was to exercise the rigid of inquiry in euery
case and thus by one sweeping clause TO su
! persedc the necessity of any future resolutions
for that purpose ia particular cases.-Why n0W
consider the doctrine unconstitutional which
was thus supported 7 So highly were the prn
! cIples OF this report then approved, thai bOBO
copies were ordered 10 be printed, and the ar
guments contained IN II were then declared to
be unansWerablet Those inquiries were all
right then, and the thought that it was wrong
to establish a court of inquiry did not occur
! TO the Committee. So, too, the House of Rep
! rcsentalives, III the exercise oil lis legislative
mower has scrltInized the motives oil the Heads
! OF the Executive Departments That House
! demanded. by resolution on the Sih OF May
| 1872 from the Secretary ofthe Treasury par
lculdr and minute account Of each transfer oil
the public money from one bank to another,
which had been made after the lst oil Jan. ISL,
aud the REASONS and rn0tiUts for making Tie
same, aud in March, 1922, they obtained the
| Information demanded, in a report. By US the
right to look into the Causes OF executive action
is not claimed as an incident of the mere legis-
lalive power Of the Senate, but OF its executive
authority, and therefore stands on much strong
er grounds.
| In 1921 the Senate thinking chRrre daft
| fares not roper representative OF this go
vernment at Rio Janelrn, nteffered to recon
mend The appointment OF Minister. Their
opinionon that subject had not been requested
| when, by their resolution Of the Sd Of tldrch OF
that year, they advised the President to appoint
such minister. The act was voluntary and
graluiious. 1hev d not thin regard II as an
objection that their advice was unasked nor
! consider themselves confined TO the fitness
| or the unftness of the charge dahaires
| They did not feel bound TO remain silent, ike
the slaves around the throne OF a despot, and
answer only when spoken to. And 1t appears
! 10 me that on subjects connected with either
treaties or appointments, before the election oil
the present Chief Magistrate, they have con-
side7ed themselves, in the spirit OF the Cons ;
| tuition, and under the solemn obligation 10 ad
wise the President which it imposed upon them
equally bound to warn him Of approaching
danger to the country, and to consult with hun
the meaos of averting il &; equal, bound to
give him information which could tend to m
crease the welfare aud prosperity OF our cohn
try. aud to discuss with him tue means OF Sc
curing and promoting it. whether he had OF hat
| 4 III cd hnIr ad