The Vermont transcript. [volume] (St. Albans, Vt.) 1864-1870, 1866-04-20
THE TRANSCRIPT,
ST. ALBANS.
Friday. April go. 1890.
A Bad Record.

nent position las falsified his promises
and abandoned the well defined prin.
ciples OF the party which gave him
place and power, that man is Andrew
johnson. Out of his own mouth is
he condemned. When we recall the
sufferings lie endured for the Union
cause-when we recall the bold utter
ances he made against treason and
traitors--we may well be surprised at
his present policy and wonder what
has produced the great change. Ger
tainly no man ever entered upon the
discharge Of the high duties of his
office backed by larger or more intel
ligent party than he. AS much as the
people loved and confded in Abraham
Lincoln when death removed him,
they felt that Andrew johnson was
his fit successor And hcW easy it
was for him, to retain the good will
and affection of the people. To do this
he had only to perform the pledges
he voluntarily made; but he has not;
he has willfully and with malice afore-
thought" we must believe, broken
nearly every one of them.
The President has "professed' to
be n friend of the negro. In n speech
made to ten thousand colored men at
Nashville in October 1864, he said: 81
will, indeed, be your Moses, and lead
you through the Red Sea of war and
bondage to future of liberty and
peace In letter TO Governor Shar-
key, of Mississippi, written no longer
ago than August 18th, 1865, he said:
"If you could extend the elective
franchise to all persons of color who
acn read the Constitution of the Unit
ed States in English, and write their
names, and to all persons of color who
own real estate valued at not less than
$3.50, and pay taxes thereon, you
would completely disarm the adver-
sary, aud set an example the Other
States will follow. This you can dc
with perfect safety, and you thus
place the Southern States in reference
to free persons of color upon the same
basis with the free States
But how has this modern "NIoses'
made good his word Every meas
ure having tendency to better til,
condition, ,,f fho ,,1o.o1 l. L.
discountenanced, and notwithstanding
the above utterances he is to-day op
posed to the colored man exercisn.
any political power whatsoever TIL
Civil Rights Bill, one of the justes
measures ever enacted by Congress an
which, after it had passed the Senat
and was under consideration in til
House, was taken to him for revisio
when he made no intimation but tha
1T was perfectly acceptable to him, h
vetoed regardless of the large majorit
by which it was passed. In spite {
him, however, the bill is now q la
unu nc illuSt execute IL.
Up to certain time President Johr
son in his speeches laid particuli
emphasis on the manner in which ira
tors should be punished for their gre
crimes. At one time he said, "treasC
is the highest crime known in Il
catalogue of crimes, and for him til
is guilty Of it-for him who is williI
to lift his impious hand against Il
authority Of the naton-I would S,
that death is too easy O 3,,miStmel
My notion is that treason must be ma
odious and traitors must be punish,
and impoverished, their social pow
broken, and they made to feel Il
penalty OF their crime. Hence, l s.
this: The halter TO Intelligent, intluent
traitors" Snch language as this
something very similar to it, HEATHER
so often that many feared he won
deal too severely with the rebe
How has he treated them? We
kindly, very leniently. Some of t
most intelligent" and influential"
them have been set at liberty with Il
the slightest prospect of ever bel
called on to answer for the "high,
crime known in the catalogue
crimes and to-day there is not
rebel at the South or the North b
that approves of "my policy; VIII
not only Congress but the entire r
publican party to which he is indel
ed for his present position, oppose
and will stand firm in their oppositio
lis not the record Of Andrew Johns,
bad one
CosUcrED.-The Jury returned