The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1866-03-01
The Presidents Veto Message.

without his signature. A lso, In another
column copy of the bill, as passed and pre-
scented to the President We publish both
that our readers may read and judge for
themselves of the bill and the message We
toing it. To say that we do not regret that
the President conceived'it to be his duty to
veto the bill. would be to stultify ourself,
and give the lie to almost every editorial
We have written for the past year. 1t will
be remembered by our readers that we have
been from the first, warm and constant in
our support of President johnson. When
the copperheads of the north claimed that
he was at heart with them, and that they
might claim him as their own, on the first
occasion, we secuted tie idea as the veriest
nonsense, the vaporings of defeated and dis
appointed demagogues. With only the
most cordial admiration for the character
displayed by Andrew Johnson from the be-
ginning of the rebellion-when in his place
in the Senate he denounced the rebel Sena-
tors, declaring that if he was President, he
would have them indicted and tried for high
treason and if found guilty, hung, so help
him, God-and throughout the, terrible war
experiences of the four year,j that followed,
we were ready to give him an almost I'M
questionable support when he was SO sud
denly called to fill the executive chair, and
up to the exciting events of the past week
we have seeD no sufficient reason for chang
ing our views of the President, or our course
towards his administration.
And even now, our course is to be deter
mined by future events. If the President
looks upon the Freedman's bureau bill in a
different light from that in which we see it,
it is not strange. If he believes that the
best interests of the country demands its
veto, it is his d@ty to exercise that preroga-
tive, even though majority of his party
firmly believe it should receive his sanction
and become a law.
We know that the associations of Presi-
dent johnson have been different from ours
and from those of majority of the great
Union party that elected him. From his
youth up, his associations have been with
shareholders, and his education has been as
STAKEHOLDER. 1t is not strange then that
en- the minor points of RepubIcanism, or
even on, SOME points Of graver import, he
should differ from u.s. But we do not con
ceive that such difference need ALLEVIATE him
from US.
We can differ with the President on those
minor points and still work together for the
success of the great fundamental principles
Of Republican government, and the final
restoration of tue Union upon those endur-
ing principles. We may differ with the
President in regard to the Bill he has vetoed,
but will we better the difference by vitu-
peratiou aud abuse? Is the President likely
to be convinced that our way of thinking
is the best and true way, by such course ?
We do not believe the best interests of
the whole country can best be subserved in
that way True, the copperhead democracy
north and south, make feint to hoist the
President on their shoulders and appropri-
ate him soul and body, twill he mill he, .
but is not the impatience and distrustful-
ness of his own party friends their greatest
warrant for such appropriation Is it a
thing so unheard of, for an executive to
veto bill passed by his own political
friends that we must be so swift in our
condemnation We think not. On the
contrary it has been done several times, and
that without breaking up parties
I 1t seems to us that even more than ever
before in the history of the great rebellion
I'VE need now calm reflection, earnest, can
did unimpassioned discussion. During the
actual passage of arms, all loyal men could
see, and did see the necessity of waver of
all personal views and feelings, that there
might be no distraction of the loyal mind
from the great work on hand Now the
immediate danger is over and men have
time to build theories, and cherish them,
until they think no other way will answer
but their own. Hence when these several
cherished individual plans or hobbies come
to be compared, they are found at variance
and then, if we do not bring to discussion
candor, fairness and unprecedented minds
there is discord and perhaps disruption of
party ties. Hence we say, let us reason
together, now in this crisis, and see whether
there is any necessity for an entire dsrup-
ton Of parties, or whether such disruption
would aid in securing the object we have
at beart-the final reconstruction of the
Union on the basis of Freedom and equality
before the law, of all men, without regard
to color or race. We can afford to ''wait a
little longer" to see whether all is lost, as
lost it will be, if the President actually cuts
loose from the Party of the Union that cleo
ted him, and goes over to northern copper
head democrats and unrepentant southern
rebels, giving to them the power and posi-
ton now held by such reliable republicans
as Seward, Stanton, Dennison, Welles and
Harlan, before we precipitate that calamity
by any unwise and impatient action of our
own.
Again We believe we can afford to trust
! yet longer to the patriotism of the President,
when he is sustained in his course by the
I Hon W. II. Seward, aomen clarunque uen-
| srabiis, openly and pablicly. No dispas-
sionate and reasonable Republican will
doubt the Craftsmanship, the honesty or the
patriotism of Mr. Seward The experiences
he hiss gone through, are such as to give him
peculiar claim upon the confidence of the
Union Republican party'of the country. AT
bis venerable age, and with all the prestige