Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1862-04-30

people required Of hun | had previously
disobeyed General Fremont, by resisting
an order of his which considered wa;
unauthorized by law, and concerning
which gave my testimony Before the
congressional committee. General Ere
mont had never before been in my office,
nor has he been there sirce. lie had no
business to transact with me that MORN
ing"
The declarations of General Fremont ,as
deposed to by Colonel Andrews, were OF
/ so astounding q character that We fo!t II
to be our duty 10 inquire il they had been
made TO others, with a view cf ascertain
/ ing how far the auuuciation Of such revo-
/ lutionary sentiments might have superinS
duced the Generalization of the service
which our investigations have satisfied us
so extensively prevailed in this departs
ment. We therefore examined Major
Chauucey c, P Johnson, paymaster in
the regular army, and find his statements
of sufficient importance to justify us in
giving them, unabridged like those OF
Colonel Andrews, place 10 our report.
Chauncey 6. z. johnson, called by j. r.,
Shepley, associate counsellor, testified as
follows:
II am paymaster in the United States
army (; | was appointed last June, and sta
toned in the department of the west.
Question Did the late commanding
general in this department ever in your
presence countenance any disregard of
law, or the regulations governing the ar
my?
"Answer. General Fremont oounten.
anced it frequently in my presence, and
to me, bv saying that he did no! intend IN the
Administration ofhiS Department. 10 JegorcrncE
by tie rules and regulations that ,gtr6 laid dorm,
and that he would be guided by the cir
lcumstances which surrounded him entire
IIv. The reason that this conversation oc.
CURED so frequently was that was thronw
much in his company, in my capacity as
paymaster, and privately. When he first
came here | went to see him, having
known him before, and Was invited by
him - come and see him frequently as
was well acquainted in the west and had
! been connected with th> organization o!
| the home guards, in this city, from the
, beginning. In regard to the official busi-
mess which had to transact with him,
! several instances occurred in which orders
| for payments had been issued 10 Colonel
An lrews, paymastcr general, and these
orders transferred to me, and not being
considered by me legal, called on him
in regard to them, and he told me that
lie inicndGa 10 DO ciat he c0nsiacred best for tie
scrgicc wNLom reference 10 LrO or regulations !;
tia! he intended to cut ret tape and arrive a! the
end yHioM reference 10 ordcr or system, and di
rcctrl me 70 Pug these orders"
The statements of these witncsses-otti-
ccrs Of unimpeachatle integrity and in
telligence-wll, we are sure, be heard by
the government with equal astonishment
and sorrow. General Fremont prOcllims,
ON assu ming his command, that there
we're no longer any civil rights; that there
,,ss no government except that outside
of the Constitution, which had been sus-
pended that it was his determination to
administer hi, department without refer
cnce to law or regulations; that tho pcO'
ple Of the United States were III the field,
and that he was at their head, and that
he meant to carry out such measures as
they, the people, expected him to carry
out, without regard to The red tape of
the Washington people'-lhat is the Pres
ident and Congress. 1t is singular how
perfectly these sentiments harmonic with
| those held by the usurpers, who in this
and other ages of the world have sought
and established absolute power upon the
ruins of public liberty. Some Of these
usurpers, taking yet higher ground than
that assumed in the interview with Colo
mel Andrews, have claimed for themselves
mission TO carry out" the will Of God,
but none of them have sunk their preten
sions below a special mission TO "carry
ont" the will Of the people, Caesar, when
| he stood upon the banks of the Ruhicon
and waved to his veterans TO advance, did
not take bolder declaration against his
country than this. The words.so earnest.
| " and so often spoken, announced revs
olution conceived but which, happily,
most happily for the country, the parent
had not the strength to bring forth. No
man has lived in the tide of times wise
and pure enough to be intrusted with
such power as is here claimed. Military
chieftsins who cut red tape always do it
with their swords, and history proves that
tho throat of their country suffers quite
as much as does the tape in the opera
| ton. As free institutions have their toun-
dations in law,and in the obedience of the
people and their presentatives, civil and
military, TO il, this expression Of pur
pose to cast aside all political and constr
tutional restraints, made in the halls of
legislation even, would alarm, but when
made in the field by chieftain, at the
head of great army, it ohills and awes
the patriots heart 10y its parricidal spirit.
1t reveals an unscrupulous ambition,
which awaits but the prestige and power
of victory to sweep the government itself,
as a cobweb, from its path.
This sad page in the history o! the late
comm ander Of this department gathers a
deep shadow from the circumstances un-
der which th ese declarations were made.
General Fremong had, few weeks before,
taken and subscribed the following mil-
tary oath 81. John c. Fremont, do SOL
emnly swear that will bear t7le faith and
GL!egiGnes TO tbs United States, and that uiH
servs them honestly aud faithfully against The
enemies or opposers whomsoever and
that ioiA Observe and obey the orders Of the
President TIE Untted States. ard tie orders of
the offers 0va me, according 10 h<ruLss and
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