Smyrna times., 1865-03-16
Tptemperance in High Places.

IutemperanCe i'll High Places
m late number Of the Philadelphia Led
'e,, in the letter Of that most reliable of all
he Washington correspondents, "A, !" We find
he following paragraph:
Senator Foster still presides in the Senate,
wing to Vice President johnson disposition
10 still further continue his plebcian lnauners
Of Inauguration day At present he has been
taken by some of his friends out of the city,
and there is no desire on the part Of the Sen
so TO resign his Office. The Vice President,
does not appear, however, to be the only
one addicted to drunkenness. Two Senators
have been omitted from the Standing Com
mittees of that body for. the coming year, be- |
cause for months past they have preferred the |
bottle to their duties as legislators.
The question naturally arises upon reading
the above is the newly-elected Vice President
of the United States drunkard? If he is,
then tens of thousands of honest and moral
men who voted for him are deceived in casting
their votes for man for the second position III
the gift Of the nation who, had they known his
weakness, lin view of his official position
amounting to criminality) never could have
received their suffrage We hope, for the hon
or of the nation, that his present affection is
not fixed habit, but only an unfortunate cx-
ccpton to his code Of morals. lfnot, and per-
sisted ill., the Senate, in justice to itself, must
insist ON his expulsion from his seat as prcsi-
ding officer over that body. To have elect
ed him is afliiction enough, which would be
! heightened into direful calamity if the ter
rible event Of Mr. Iincol'S death should Oc-
cur. and whi>key -demented man should sue
ceed to the control of the affairs of the nation
in the terrible struggle through which We are
passing Never has there been such a sur
prise. No enc dreamed Of such a thing. In
the late canvass, when political and personal
faults We're threaded like many beads and
hung up for public gaze, We 90 not recolect to
have seen this vice charged against him in one
instance. fla new habit, he was certainly
most unfortunate in making public exhibit
ton Of it-just at the moment when the eyes
Of the whole nation were centertd upon Wash
.ingtuu-wlrcn friends and enemies were screu-
tinizimg every incident Of the inau"uration-iu
the miist nt the great men OF the nation he
arose and made mamllin. incohcrent speech
that shocked the participants in the great oc
ca,ion aud degraded the high Office the people
had assembled TO honor. For this offence hi
friends INSIST that he must humbly apologize
or suffer expulsion.
; Bu; how i. it with the Democrats? Thci
papers contain paragraph upon paragraph de
:, pictiny the scene-which the Union papers d
not pretend 10 cover up or paiate-while the
!, say not a word of that other even event, as un
=. paralltlled in our history as this, the leavin
off Of two Democratic Senators from the stand
ing committees, because of their un6tncss fo
committee duties from habitual drunkenness
i, These two Senators are salisbury, from Del;
! ware and McDougal. from California. Eve
- the DeI1,rareaa has the temerity to publish
:. comun in reference to Vice President Johnso
! while it says not a word Of its own pr0teg
: Willard .Saulsbury, who is personally in deep,
. disgrace, because a long-indulged habit
years. In fact he has frequently interrupte
the proceedings of the Senate by his drunkc
=, ebultions. Neither of the Senator's ab0y
- named have ever been publicly rebuked by al
: journal of his party, while ON the contra
=, caWSDuFy mas just b@cn reelected, Wltn u
;. whole strength Of the Democratic party in OF
State, with fun knowledge of his disorder
-. habits, for full term of six years; by so ddir
- endorsing and commencing in him his dru
:: ken orgies. The Dela,odreGn and other Del
ocratic journals ought to cover their mout
- with shame.
Mr.. johnson has, until the past three
four years, been prominent Democrat, al
may have inaugurated the bad habit VIII,
within their folds; but, whether so Or not Il
ay Union party insists. for the honor of the natio
"a that he should radically reform or vacate t
n chair, and the Democrats should do the sal
m thing with reference to Salisbury and McDo
ICY gal or it will be the 'pot calling the ket
VS. black