The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1866-10-02

Wo uIo again assured from w aSnIngtOn tn8t
the President on the question of Southern
restoration, evil adhere most strenuously" to
the policy he has adopted in opposition to the
policy of Congress. Whyf What is there in
this constitutional amendment which prevents
bis cooperation with Congrcsss Nothing
which he has not himself recommended at one
time or another He has himself imposed the
main conditions of this amendment upon the
excluded States as essential conditions of
restoration, and he has proposed the Others
What, then, is the difficulty? He contends, as
it appears, that all the States that claim and
are willing to be represented in Congress
have the right to voice in this matter Of con-
stitutional amendments. He therefore pro-
poses, first, that the excluded States shall be
represented, and then he has constitutional
amendment to offer regulating representation
on the basis Of suffrage that is or may be
ing taxation upon the value of property in
each State.
This is his plan. His great objection against
the amendment Of Congress is that it was
passed in the absence of certain States
asking and entitled to be represented. But
how and when did those States secure the
right to admission into Congress? They were
disorganized and broken up by the rebellion.
They had to be reconstructed. The President,
in the absence of Congress and in the exercise
Of the discretionary war powers conferred by
Congress, proceeded to reconstruct them. All
things considered, he did his work very well !;
but in the very outset he admitted and pro-
claimed the fact that this work would be SUBJ
ject to the approval Of Congress. What
has followed? Congress has refused to
admit the States concerned as reconstructed
by the President. But adopting substantially
his conditions the two houses have put them
into the form of constitutional amendment,
with the offer to the excluded States that with
the ratification of this amendment they will be
admitted. If the President, if The absence of
of those States the ratification of the amend
ment abOlishing slavery, had not Congress on
reassembling in the Capitol the power and the
right to demand the ratification of these other
conditions of restoration, all that the President
had done being subject TO the approval of
Congress? Are not all the powers Of admis-
SION Or supervision or regulation Of the
States possessed by the general government?
Are they not all invested in Congresss They
are, from the beginning to the end. IL not the
President required by the constitution to exc
cute the laws Of Congress! He is, from first to
last.
Here we might contend that az this amend
ment was passed by q two-thirds vote Of each
house, it should, in the spirit of the constitu-
ton, be accepted by the President as mea-
sure which has gone beyond his power Of OPP
position. We are satisfied, however, in au-
swering this objection OF his as to the exclu-
sion Of certain States by his own testimony.
What Congress ought to have done with those
States is not now the question. 1t is enough
that in refusing to admit them on the Presi-
dents plan Congress has simply exercised its
authority over this subject; it is enough that
said States are not reconstructed and are still
subject to this ultimatum of Congress.
The case, then, is clear. There is in reality
no disagreement in principle between Congress
and the President IN this matter. His vetoes Of
certain bills passed at the late session were
justified by solid facts and arguments. But
they do not reach the great question of this
The conditions here proposed by
Congress are the conditions imposed or sug-
yested by the Executive He has admitted the
authority Of Congress over his own
acts. He turned them over to Congress in his
annual message Of December last Bad men
and bad counsels have stepped in between him
and Congress. There il the trouble. The only
issue in this conflict is an issue of foolish
pride, bad temper and bad taste on
both sides 1t was fomented in Congress
by such radical marplots and fanatics
~ Stevens, Sumner, Chandler and Ingersoll,
abuse Ct the Executive and their savage
threats against him. This rupture, however,
with few implacable radicals was unwisely
enlarged by the President himself into rupture
with Congress- There was no necessity for this,
rs The results have shown for the radical
schemes Of universal negro suffrage, universal
conflscation and universal Acknowledgement
have utterly failed, and the plan adopted
Tor Southern restoration by Congress il sub
stantially the Presidents plan in every con.
iition. What he now proposes in regard to
taxation on the basis Of property is already in
Iorce in our Internal Revenue laws, declared
valid by The courts, 50 that there is no need Of
my amendment Of the constitution on this
subject.
In one word, II asked what there ID in this
theory Of the Presidents opposition to this
constitutional amendment Of Congress - now
presented, we must say II amounts 10 nothing.
There IL nothing in It and IL will como to
nothing. We have no time or space 70 waste
npon the psltry quibblinss Of the party journals
81 the dav. nor upon their pitiful and debssiug