Cleveland daily leader. [volume] ([Cleveland, Ohio]) 1865-1873, 1866-03-06
THE aNEW PARTY PLOT.
Its Various StePs-TAe Present Plan
of Operations.
Especial Correspondence of the Cincinnati Gszette.l
MAsHINGToN. February %.

of corporations.
special Correspondence of the Cincinnati Gszette.l
WASHINGTON, February %.
The plot to establish a party which
gather its strength from all parties,
and numbering among its leaders the
ablest opponents Of the war, has often
been referred to in these columns. 1t is
well, however, to keep the successive steps
of the movement in mind.
1t was early talked ever at the White
House 1t was not preached publicly until
it had been fully discussed there, and all
through their plotting the movers have
been sure of Presidential support. The
was discussed in all its bearings
when pardons were first issued, and
Washington was full of those who needed
them.
Meetings were held all over the country
to indorse Andrew Johnson-and the
country saw no meaning in it, AID could
not understand how Democrats could
praise a man who, with great display, de-
clarad that mis- mission should be to make
treason odious. These Democratic in
dorsements were only the mastering Of
the forces. A few men had sold them
selves out hera as workers in this cause,
as Mr.. Doolittle and Mr.. Raymond, and
others like them did.
The next step was to prejudice the peO-
pie against Congress by representing 1t as
a crazy crowd Of radicals, blindly follow
ing the lead Of Sumner and Stevens, in
stead Of saying truthfully that it is n Of
the ablest bodies which has ever gathered
here, and at the same time most deliberate
in all that it does. True, it called the pre-
vious question often, but this was not to
force legislation that could not stand the
factious minority from blocking the
wheels of legislation altogether. If de-
bate could do it, TO measure which i'm
posed any restrictions upon the Southern
States could pass the House-the Demo-
Gratis would debate the first one till the
session ended. But though a few leading
papers which lent themselves to the work,
and the smaller journals which copied
them, n wide spread feeling of dissatisfac-
ton with Congress was stirred up in the
country.
An occasion was now needed to make
the people believe that this great political
revolution had been brought about by
their will-that it was but the response to
q universal desire to be delivered from
the Radicals. So, te create this occasion,
the Democrats and their fellow plotters,
who call themselves Conservatives,
watched the course of the measures OF re-
construction before the House, and seiz-
inc upon the Suffrage question as the
one that could be made TO appear
IL -.-A -ls--..--.11n ., tho pa,nla
they concluded that they would break the
Union party on that, by voting TO cut off
all conditions and forcing q vote on the
question Of unrestricted, universal suf-
frage. This scheme and its unexpected
failure has been before exposed. Thesame
| thing was again attempted, when the sub
iect of the basis Of representation came up
with a fair prospect Of success, because of
the fact that the interests of the various
/ sections in the North conficted in this
matter. But the Union men in both cases
gave up their objections rather than peril
the country by a break in their party.
But one other plan of working remain
ed: Congress, controlled bythat firm ma
iority, was unmOveable. The only chance
OF success was in the President. At the
same time, no effort was to be spared to
! create dissatisfaction in the public mind
with Congress, 50 that when the President
should at length set himself against Con-
gress the people would rally % his support.
| The stake which the President was play
ing for was a second term. He weighed
the matter carefully, and looking to the
future said These States must come IN
! shortly. If l bring them in, will they
not support me2' So soon rs the question
began TO turn upon the support Of traitors
then traitors began to throng the White
House, and shape Presidential action.
So it came to pass that the Presl-
dent sought for an occasion to
break with Congress upon the
whole plan of reconstruction which it had
adopted. This being known, in order 10
take away all occasion for Il break from
Mr.. johnson, the Reconstruction Com
mittee prepared an act for the admission
of the Tennessee members. This the
President knew, and the very day VIE
the Committee proposed to make tn ir
report, the veto message was sent IN to
f~Orestall it. This explains why the veto
was not confined to the Freedmens Bu-
reau bill alone, but covered the whole
ground of reconstruction. If the House,
by its vote, mad admitted Tennessee, the
President could have found no excuse for
making a break with Congress. Il may
have seemed a small thing to the Presl-
dent that he had led those having the bill
in charge to believe most firmly that he
would sign it and not only this, but that
he was pleased with its provisions. That
he did convey this impression in the most
emphatic manner is certai. that he made
no objection, except in a few minor mat
tiers, to the bill, when it was submitted for
his objections previous to its presentation
in Congress, is also true.
From the moment that message was
| read he was completely in the hands of
the West Copperheads in this land. He
intended his message as a declaration Of
! open war upon Congress; and the step
from that message TO the harrangue over
| which the nation has blushed was q very
short one.
The action of Governor Cox is repudi-
ated here by all who stood firm in Con-
| gress. 1t i considered a weaker thing
than his famous letter which so nearly de-
prived the Union party Of strength in the
campaign which elected him. Being ad-
dressed to the Chairman of the Union Ex-
ecutive Committee, its only effect could
be, if presented by him officially to those
under him-as it was intended that it
should be-to divide the Union party in
the State. And this was the only design
Of those who hoodwinked Gov. Cox, and
made him their tool. The leading papers
in New York, were to insure that city,
and thus the State. The letter which
Gov. Cox and Mr.. Johnson c~oncocted
was to insure Ohio for the President, and
thus two of the most influential States be
gained from the Radicals In this
whole matter Mr.. Dennison is greatly i'll
fault, and the course Of each has been il
direct opposition to the wishes of the Ohio
delegation here. 1t is pleasant to think
that neither of these gentlemen hold Ohio
in their hands as a gift which they can at
any moment presentto Mr.. johnson. No
telegram from Washington, though it be
a scholarly version of Mr.. Johnson's
h~arangua, will shut the mouths of the
Union party in Ohio, or control their ac-
ton.
a correspondent of the New York
TIL +br-- c--,,,cr4- ,o-bo-- 30, 60