The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1866-03-02
The W0ss Meeting at Washington
TIE PRESIDENTS SPEECH.

This meeting was got up and managed
by copperhcads and poorly reconstructed
rebels, and it is Il significant fact that not
Union man, either radical or conserva-
tive, had anything to do with it. 1t was
managed by the Saulsburys, the Coxes,
the McDougalls, etc, and out-and-out
rebels cheered on the crowd and gave their
peculiar eclat to the proceedings
Yet the meeting in the theatre was of no
consequence in itself, but i'll what followed
every lover Of the country feels disgraced.
We say every lover Of the country, for the
Presidents speech is alike regretted and
condemned by both radicals and conserva-
tive=. There is but one party that APP
proves it. and that Is those men who OPP
posed the war for the Union, and who
did all in their power to make the South
successful in its attempts to overthrow the
government: this party is loud in praise
of the speech.
After the speaking had run out at the
theatre, the meeting adjourned to, the
White House. when President johnson
came out upon the portico and made a
1. Ill
dea,or to give copious extracts from the
same, but will first give the impressions it
made upon some OF those who heard it,
Mr. Saml Bowles of the Springfield Re
publican. a paper that has persistently de-
Tended Mr.. johnson from the first of his
administration, heard the speech, and tel
egraphed his paper:
"PreSilent .Johnson's speech, this after
noon was very undignitied. ill-tcmpcred
and unjust to the North. in parts. If
printed as delivered, it will tend to make
reconciliation impossible"
The special OF the \. J. Tribune, who
is supposed TO be a radical, says Of the
speech:
Most of the reports of the Presidents
speech sent abroad were carefully dressed
Iii, 50 as not TO be too offensive to the sem
I >Jilit'e> 81 decent people. The most ac-
c,rate account Is published by The Wash
in"ton Chronicle. but even this does not
come up to the truth 1t does not con-
tain the many Interruptions by men among
the crowd. such rs Give it To them.
ANDY" ''IIit them again, Mr., President"
tive iheili teii, Andy" and similar ex-
CARNATIONS. The Presidents manner was
very violent: lie CRASHED his teeth, and
spoke in Il loud Voice, ard III u boi>terous
manner: the whole meeting hal the char
actcr of Tammanv Hall performance on
night before election
The impressions it gave Mayor Poor Of
consulting his report which We gave "a. the
first page.
We copy below Il portion of the Prcsi-
dcnts at,ack upon Congress.
I'VE lind that powers aye assumed and
attempted 10 be exercised OF a most extra
ordinary character. il seem, that Gov
ernmentS may be rcvoiutionized Gov
ernmcnt> at least may be changed without
going through the strife of battle. be-
lieve it is a fact atteStcd III history. that
sometimes revolutions most disastrous to a
people axe affected without the shedding
OF blood. The substance. Of your govern
ment may be taken away, while ti:e form
and the shadow remain to YOU. What is
now being proposed? We find that in
po,nt OF fact nearly all the powers of the
government are assumed by an irresponS-
be controlling directory. which does not
even consult the Legislative or the Exccu-
tive departments Of the government, by
resolutions reported from IL committee in
whom ii seems that practically the leg,rla-
tive power of the government is now vest
ed thai great principles Of the Constitu-
lloI which authorizes and empowers each
branch o; ti,e legislative department. the
Scnat. and the hotts1 OF Yep. esentatlvcS, TO
Judge for itself of the election rettslns snG
qualifications of its own members, has
been virtually taken away from the two
branches OF the Legislative department of
the government, and conferred upon a
committee, who must report before either
house can act under the Constitution as to
accepting the members who are 10 take
their seats as component parts of the TT,
Spective bodies. BY this rule it is assrlnl-
ed that there must be laws passed recog-
nizing a State as in the Union. or its
practical relations to the Union, AS re-
stored before the respective houses under
the Constitution can .Iud ge of the election
reirrns and the qualifications of their own
members. What position is that? You
struggled for four yeats 70 put down re-
bellion. You denied in the beginning of
the struggle that any State could 60 out of
the Union You said that it had neither
the right nor the power to do so. The
issue was made. and it has been settled
that the States had nel,h.f the right nor
tiie power to 90 out of the Union. With
what consistency. after it has been settled
by the military arm OF the government,
and by the public judgment. that the
states had no right to 90 out of the Union,
can any one now turn round and assume
thai they are out-that they shall not
come in? aaa fiee to say to you, as your
Executive, that | am not prspared to take