Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1866-05-12


Mr. SUMNER amended the proposition, sgas q
make = Tead that il shall be the duty Or the SecTe
tarV 0 war and the Secretary OF the Navy dsS the
direction of the Pre'iieDt of the United States Il
adopt and enforce a asystem Of quarantine, &c.
on TINS suhJec and the PostOfice Appi Opriaton bill
was taken up.
The pending question being on Mr.. Trumbull's
amendment IN regard to the appointing power,
Mr., HOWARD said that this discussion had
taken a very wide range, SO much so that
part in, it,. had become entirely obivious of
the subject mNtter before the Senate. He
trusted he would not fall under the of the
Senate for following the example Of many Others.
1t has been declared during this discussion and on
numerous other occasions both in the Senate and
2nt Of the Senate, that the so-cslled policy of the
President Of the United States, who holds his office
by virtue Of the Constitution, and BY reason oflthe
death Of President Lincoln, is but the same policy
initiated, and endeavOred to be carried out by the
Iamen'ed Lincoln and We have been told by the
| Honorable Senator from Wisconsin (Mr. DOOttle)
and the Honorable Senator from Pennsylvania Mr.
ELG;wan In very energetic and emphatic terms, that
TINS policy IS the identical policy of Mr.. Lincoln in
regard TO the reconstr1tion of the re,'el States.
take issue with these Honorable Senators
the policy Of President johnson is iden-
ti2ally the, policy of President Lincoln upon that
or endeavor to show, that the two kinds Of policies
that OF Mr. Lincoln and that Of Mr.. johnson are in
point of p,inciOle as wide apart as the poles That
while on the one side, sir there is the assertion on
the part Of President Johnson Of the absolute power
OF the Executive of the nation to interfere in the
manner he has nerfored for the so-callpd restUra-
ton of the rebel States: while, the other hand it
IL asserted in his behalf that he has the Omni potent
apower, and that it does not belong to Congress. Mr.
Lincoln alWavs in his most solemn nrOclamAtOns and
IN his most solemn acts repudiated that idea, and
was eyer careful tp protest that he OF the Executive
branch of the Government possessed no real power
on the subject OF the readnssiOn Of the rebel States
into Congress.
Now sir, let us recall little of the history Of the
past on this sub ect, and see endeavnr to the
abstract position occupied by Mr.. Lincoln, touching
the power Of Congress over tho question Of the re-
admission Of Senators and Representatves from
| rebel States into CONGRESS. But before come b.
that, sr, let us, If possible, ascertain what this pol
icy OF Mr. Lincoln actually is: let entertain clear
ideas upon this subJect-ascertsn if it be possible,
what IS the real essence of the gis Of the contrO
| yersy now existing between the President and the
Congress Of the United States. The best announcer
ment of the policy of Mr.. johnson upon the subject
OF reconstruction is Of course, to be found in the
| most solemn paper which he ever signed. and that
is his message at the opening of the present sess on
OF Congress. have read that message sir with the
utmost care. have read it and studied it ca efuHy
and iepeaedly, and if there be any document in ex.
iStence that Is well understood both in Congress and
| out of il, it is that document.
Now, sir, the io owing ls brief synopsis Of the
views 0i the President on this suhcc, contained IN
that paper. Ii assumes and assers the power in the
President to appoint Provisional Governors Of the
rebel Stacs and to give them authority 10 call con-
| ventions and re-estabsh Civil Governments in
them. And this, sir it claims, rs an Executive pow
er, claims that it is derived from the Constitution;
the power which he proceeded to exercise an early
lists in no part Of the COnstItu ion of this ed
| States. In this document sir, he caims the right
To recognze such governments as State Govern
mentS, with a the powers, rights and privileges of
| States in the Union In short he claims the power
q the Executive Of the United States to make peace
| vita the States once in inSurrection Sir under
what clause of the Constitution does the Presdento of
the United States have power to proclaim
aad establish peace after state of war has
| with State or district declared by Congress
to be in insurrectioh? He has not the
power under the ConStitut on to make war, and for
the same reason he has no power under he Consti-
tuition to make peace and Congr .ss has never, in
Gny statute which it has passed given the Pesi-
dent ot the United States any authority whatever to
declare peace even in egar1 tp the rebel States
Gentlemen will look in vain for aay such 'hority
in the act Of 1861. The President was ithorized 10
declare certain states or parts of States according
to his etiOn or in other words acOrding as the
fact might appear to him, to be in instruction. But
SIR; Congress never gave to him any power woatsver
| TO declare the insuTre3tiOn to be at end, much
less 10 declare the inSurrectonay districts or States
restored to the State which they occupied before tho
war much less to declare that peace, as such, had
| intervenpd.
Mr.. COWAN inquired whether there was neces-
sty Tor any declaration of the kind-whcthVr it was
necessary to declare the return Of peace by procla
| nation ?
Mr.. HOWARD-That is by no means the question.
1t is not questi n whether there is any necessity
for granting such power to the President other
person; hut the question Is, whether it has been
granted assert sir, that Congress has never grant
ed such power the President As 10 declare that
peace. in all its FORMS in all its relations has been
restored to the in.uTectiNnary districts Congress
has taken good care to reserve for themselves the au
thOrity, ami need only refer to the fact that the
statute to which refer vas drawn by the hand of one
| Of t1e most cautious and crcumspect and profound
constitutions! LAWYERS Of the country refer to the
| Hon. MIR. COlamer, of Vermont, who is understood
TO have been the author of that act. He by 10 mean,
inserted any clause in that statute authorizing the
Preslent OF the nlted States to declare that peace
| has returned. = q /
Mr.. SU NNER-He was the author of that act.
| Mr.. WARD-But the Presidents message as
= fha tNfrf ,v.a1.r
| cy of the President Of the United States to make
| pcae with the insurrecOnary States, and it as
sumes az this without tho slightest recognition on
any o. It's pages or In any OF its paragraphs of the
pewer duty of Congress to legi'ate on these mo-
mentous aud important subjects. Nothing, sir
| The messages ignore completely Congress aud its
| authority, and treats the Executive as the only
| source Of power over the rebel States Ii does not
propose to consult Congress at all on the subject OF
reconstructOn and takes little pa MS to refer this
subject to any other branch Of it, or to Congress as
if there was no Congress- and with sngn ar GOODNESS
asks the two Houses to Judge each for itself of the
election returns and qualifications Of its own mem
Mr.. HOWARD, after quoting from the message
and from some Ot the prOclamatiOns Of the President
| said that he president JOhnsOn) had presumed To
appoint, without law, Provisional Governors for the
| Southern States, and to imparG the power to call
conventions for the pu pose of allowing those States
to remodel their Constitutions and to enact laws to
cover he whole Fl Id of State egisla ion. He had
SAID, after having done this very cooly amt very
descendingy, tu Congress, 1T remains for you
to judge what Of the tuess Of States for readmis-
| sion into the Union" No. sir: but simply aud
| sDley to judge he elections, quail and re-
turns Of the Senators and kop eentative' who ght
happen to be elected to the southern Sta
! reconstructed under executive decree. There was
total abnegation on the part of the Executive
of any authority whatever for Congress to terfere
| or intermedde to regulate in any manner whatever
| the status of the re ,el States Mr. Howard said he
would not assert that Proylsiona Governors ought
not TO have been appointed, but the question was
what power had the President over the subject 4? Ii
was for Congress, and not for the President to have
| authorized Appointments. AZ
cised by the President in this manner was one of the
most enormous uSurpatOnS of the power of Congress
| ever attempted. If the Congress of the United
States should at this moment wink at this assump-
ton OF power, if thov should not stand up here to
assert their constitutional power over this most i'm
| porant branch of their du les, then he (llowarD
looked forward TO the time when the will of the Ey-
ecutiVe of this nation shall bee )me the law of the
| land.