The Plymouth weekly Democrat. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1860-1869, 1866-05-03
'EIse Judiciary o1as.lisscc.

i:on would chaw him ~. MAtk.
'Eiie Judiciary committee
The Secretary g he ireasury has a p
pointed fifty i've Officers, me,tiy collectors
assessors and assistant assessors Of Internal
revenue. in the southern States Saws The
House Judiciary Committee, III reporting
upon the request Of the President and Cab
met Tor modification * the les, oaih
= Each one 81 these of ,ers j. acting in
violation Of law Their commissions rep
resent titty five violations oi . national
statute" Tie regard expressed by tbc
Committee ior the observance Of law. ana
Is severe rebUkc cF the President and the
Secretary for violating national statnte
sound STRANGELY i'll Congress which i'Jr
five years has held in contempt the su~
prcme law of The land, and TO whose main
tenance every member is sciemnly sworn.
The act which the repor: charges the
President and the Secretary O: the Treas
ury with violating IS in detiancc cf the
Constitution. The Supreme Court Of the
United States will so decide at is next
regular tern l. would have SO decided
At It's last term hal not A majority Of the
jud3e5-unwiscly. and with hardly prop
- regard for duty. We thini-consented
t. reserye the decision at the earnest G.
treaties Of Ch;ef Justice Chase. NOW how
stands the facts?
The lest oath is unco- siitution4l;
>. Is enforcement in the appointment
-, IL
the opinion oi the Secretary fthe Treasury,
lead to greater evils than the suspension
o.. the collection Of revenue there, fer
months, if not for Years to come;
3. VI the time these appointments were
made. the south was subject to military
government, to which civil law was su5or-
G!natc
I. The Presilen. AM Cabinet have
asked that tie oath may be modified tina.
the difficulties AMI embirrassmca.s rev
resulting from Il .,av lee removed
According to ra,ilcai theories aud radi>
cal reasoning. the l,.e5s here stated make
for the President ana the Secretary OF tie
Treasury :. complete justification. in di>fe-
gar,ilng What the Committee choose, TO
call the iaw We DO not believe they do
Il WAS noi the province Of Mr. johnson
nor Mr NcCulloch = decide aw uncon-
stitulioaal. 1t vas en- the statute booa,
ana ii was their duty to cbscrrc il until
released irom the du;y by competent au>
thority. they had no bu-incs to assume.
whether rightly or wrongly, that there was
= necessity" for disobeyin- il.
Tie House Judiciary Committee is
quici, to &C, upon democratic doctriEe
when It's application will grant an oppcr-
tuniy to assail the President or the See
rciary ci the Treasury. What men and
Wha; party have taught that the President
may in his discretion place his heel upon
The Constitution an! the laws? What men
and what party lau!cd as ingenious, just
and statesmanike the apology FOR usur!a>
ton and perjury contained in the dcclara~
ton that acts otherwise unconstitutiona!
may become lawful by being necessary to
the preservation of the Constitution.
through the preservation Of the Union ?
Where Wa the House Judiciary Com
mit,cc when President Lincoln see the
manifesto Of Wade and Davis-maau ap>
poin.ments in deinancc OF national stat
utes? |, had no rcbuke for him it did
not rebukc Secretaries Seward and Sag
ton when they violated thc supreme law
Of the land. although those violations mum
bcrel Thousands. instead of ii,ilos, and
were OF a character which struck dow the
most sacred privileges Of American citi>
zen. and denied to all the people tho pro
lection of our courts and safeguards
erected by the Constitution and recognized
IS indispensable to the administration of
justice in all civilized countries. The
House Judiciary Committee was not moved
TO indignation by such inexcusable despot-
ism and contempt and defiance of law. The
House Judiciary Committee advocated, #
not as a scperate organization, yet through
its members. the employment OF lynch
law. 1t sought to throw the sanction Of
congressional legislation about what the
Supreme Court decided "to be lynch law
k reioieed over the punishment inflicted
and murders committed by lynch law
The House Judiciary Committee is now
Mortified because the President and the
Secretary of the Treasury, in order to pro-
toct the public interests. and just regard
to the privileges aud feelings Of political
opponents, aud to extinguish sectional
haired and promote love and respect for
the Union in citizens who were lately en-
gaged in desperate war against it, and
are brothers in blood of those with whom
they contested the authority Of the Union.
have made appointments Of men who could