Urbana union. [volume] (Urbana, Ohio) 1862-1872, 1865-03-29
Ths Vice Presidents Critics.
rFrom tha PhilndelphI. A. !

From the Philadelphia Age.l
THE Rev Henry Ward Beecher and other
clerical gentlemen of his pattern affect to be
highly scandalized at the exhibition of drunk
euness by Andrew johnson, on the fourth Of
March. Mr. Beecher, it seems, was present,
and witnessed the wonderful spectacle with
his own eyes. He saw the Bible whirled by
the incoming v P about his head, Ike q
cap when a man gives three cheers. and
heard the maudlin appeal to Messrs. Chase,
Stanton, and Welles, to be informed If they
"didnf get their pOlger from the psopls-and
'0srenf all pls6sians" Mr.. Squeers was in
the habit of calling his seminary for youth "a
shop for morals" and the Office of the New
York Independent is q wareroom Of that dis
cription, in which the most devout senti-
ments and pious suggestions are alwaysto be
had at very low figure. Mr.. Baecher is
chief salesman, and the Johnsonian orgies Of
March the 4th afforded him a chance ofrun-
ming off vast amount fold stock which had
been slumbering on the shelves for many
years. The spectacle Of an inebristed Vice
President hic-eoughing ouf his oath of Office
furnished such text for discourse on tenn
perance as hardly turns up once in an age
The staff of the Independent rolled mp the
whites of their eyes and the sleeves of their
coats, and entered vigorously upon the work
of demolishing the crumbling ruins OF Mr..
JOhnson's reputation. They were piously re-
solved that not a speck of moral mortar or q
single virtuous brick should indicate the spot
where the unfortunate gentleman's character
once stood. They demanded "an apology or
a resig1aation-a most cruel alternative, for an
apology would be confession Of shame,
which would degrade the offender without
conciliating the public, and a resignation
would cast him back among that very lowest
class of plebeians from which he boasted,
with such untimely and indecorous glee, he
had risen. Mr.. J. has neither put on his pen
itential sackcloth, nor laid aside his official
robes, nor will he DO either. The Independ-
ent and Mr.. Beecher have clamored reasons
which we are going to tell.
We believe that we felt as keenly as any
body the disgrace which Andrew Johnson's
indecent display brought upon this country.
But we utterly deny that any AboEtionist
has right to complain of his behavior on iu-
auguration day--to be surprised at it, or to
make moan over it. On the contrary, sorry
as was the spectacle which he presented as
he tottered on his feet, in the Senate house
over which he was to preside, AMI stammer-
ed out his official oath, this was a highly re-
putable and extremely decent performance /
with a thousand transactions Of
which he was guilty before he was put in
nomination for the Vice Presidency, and
which Brother Beecher & Co. not only re-
corded without blush, but urged as argu-
ments, for placing him on the ticket His
reign in Tennessee never saw day as credit
able to him as that memorable fourth of
March on which the snufling partisans of
Abolition declare "he fell" It is a bad thing
10 get drunk, we admit, and an extremely
1nluczy thing to do so publicly and on
yreat occasion. But it is thousand times
worse to oppress the weak, to overturn law.
;uhvert Justice, disfranchise the honest citi-
,ens of a great Commonwealth, and set alien
upon their necks. As Military
Governor of Tennessee, Mr.. johnson did all
hese things long before the Baltimore Con-
-ention adopted him as its own. More than
his, he declared publicly and repeatedly, al
-o1 hear a man talking about his constitutions
1 rights, spot him, he is traitor" Did the ;
elegates who placed this man in nomination, |
nd the editorial host which applauded their c
york, fancy that he could take solemn oath a
D support that Constitution, Of which he !.
poke habitually with such contempt, with y
ut steadying his nerves for the work with e
oirits, and washing the abhorred pledge II
own with strong drink2 Did not Mr.. Gar d
son, that Abolition Gamaliel at whose feet =
le scandalized Beecher and his brethren are :
ontent to sit, teach for q quarter of century "a
le doctrine that the Constitution Of the \
nited States is a covenant with death and t.
l agreement with hell, and can gentleman 4 4
hen he comes to seal bargain with death h
I'd hell under the solemni.y Of an oath, Be v
AIMED for seeking in the bottle the courige o.
hich he cannot find in his heart? We trow e
ot It'll behooves the people who have -
ught the sin Of perjury against the Gonsti- si
Ition, to insist on the virtue Of temperance d
those Of their brethren who must needs "
wear to support it. False oaths are hard to q
yallow and lie heavy when they are down. Il
be wretch who takes them needs some hi
ronger stimulus before the feast and some c.
ore potent digestive after it than plain cold :,
ater a,
While we have GO viah % excuse OF pa rs