The Cadiz sentinel. [volume] (Cadiz, Ohio) 1864-1911, 1867-12-04
REPORT.
SYNOPSIS OF MAJORITY AND
MINORITY REPORTS.
Majority go For impeachment,
Minority Against 1t.
The Democrat Mem b er 3
Charge that ii is n Political
Move and Give their Reasons
for Ihe Charge.
SYNOPSIS OF THE MAJORITY REpoRr.


especially directed, are the usurpation of
power fnd violation Of laws in the corrupt
abuse Of appointing pardoning ard the veto
power; in the corrupt interference in cleo
tions, and generally in the commission Of
acts amounting ~ high crimes and mis1e-
meanors under the Constitution, and upon
the recital it was charged with the most
general duty of inquiry into the official con-
duct of the President of the United States,
and of reporting whether he had been guilty
nf any acts which we're designed or calcu.
lated to overthrow, subvert or corrupt the
Government of the United Sta es, or which,
in contemplation of the Constitution, would
constitute high crime or misdemeanor re
quiring the interpositiOn of the constitu.
tional power of the House. 1t will be obs
served that the great salient point of aeon
sation out in the foreground aud challenging
the attention of the country is the usurpa-
ton of power which involves, of course,
violation of the law; and here it may be re-
marked that elhaps every great abuse,
every hagrant departure from the well-set-
tied prime pies of the Government, which
has been brought home to its present ad
ministration, whether discovering itself in
the special inractioo of the statutes or in
the proAgate use of the high powers con.
ferred by the Constitution on the President,
or revealing itself more manifcstly in the
systematic attep'pl to seize upon its sover-
eighty, and disparage and sppercede the
great council to which that sovereignty has
been entrusted, in reference to the one great
purpose Of reconstruction of the shattered
governments of the rebel States, in accord>
ance with his own wishes, in the interest of
th ts, NubO yntn
the rebellion, and in such way as to de-
prive the people of loyal States of all
chances of indemnity for the past and se-
officers, and restoring their lands, and bring
ant, and their hands yet red with the blood
Of our people. Into a condition where
they could once more embarrass and defy,
which they had vainly endeavored to dc>
stroy. 1t is around this point, and as aux
iiary to that central idea, that all the spec
ial acts of mal.administration we have wit
messed will be found to grayitate ard re-
volve, and it is to this point, therefore, as
the great masterkey which rnlocks and in
terprets all of them, that the attention of
the House will first be directed,
The report then goes into recital of
events since the Inauguration of President
johnson and concludes as follows:
In accordance with the testimony here.
with submitted and the view Of the law
herein presented, the committee are of
opinion that Andrew johnson, President Of
the United States, ia guilty of high crimes
and mlsdemeanors, requiring the intcrpusir
ton Of the constitutional powers of this
House, in that upon the final surrender Of
the rebel armies and the overthrow ot the
rebel government, the said Andrew John
son, President Of the United States, neg.
lected to convene the Congress Of the Unit
ed States, that by its all and authority le-
gal and constitutional measures might have
been adopted for the organization Of loyal
and constitutional governments in the
States recently in rebellion, and that in his
proclamation to the people of North Caro-
lima, of the 29th day of May, 1865, he as
sured them that he had the authority to
decide whether the government of North
Carolina, and Whether any other governs
mont that might be set up therein, was Re
publican in form.
INSTRUMENTATION REPORT.
Representatives Wilson and Woodbridge
handed in their report, dissenting from the
conclusions Of the majority Of the commits
tee. They say on the third day Of June,
1867, it was declared by a solemn vote in
the committee that ire.n the testimony be-
fore them it did not appear that the PRESS
dent Of the United States was guilty Of
such high crimes and misdemeay ors as call,
ed for the exercise of the impeaching powe
er Of this House. The vote stood yeas 5,
nays 4.
| On the 2lst inst. this action OF the Com
mlttee was reversed, and by vote of five
to tcur declared in favor of reconsidering to
the Houoa an impeachment of the Presi-
dent. Forty eight hours have not yet
elapsed SINCE they informed OF the charac-
| ter Of the report which represents this
changed attitude Of the Committee. The
recentness of this event compels a general
treatment of some features of the case, as
it is presented by the majority, which 9TH
erwise would have been treated more in de.
tail
The report OF the majority resolves all
presumptions against the President, closes
tie door against ali doubts, afIirms facts as
established by testimony, in support Of
before us which would be received by any
|
and from the temper and spirit of the re-
port; the cool and unbiased judgment Of
the future, when the excitement in the
midst of which we live shall have passed
away, will not fail to discover that the DO.
litical bitterness of the present time, is by
no considerable degree given to the docu>
ment which we decline to approve, dissent
| ing as we do from the report of the com.
mittee, both as to the law Of the case and
the conclusion drawn from the facts devel-
oped by the testimony. A due regard for
| the body which imposed on us the high
and transcendantly important duty involved
in an investigation Of the charges preferred
against the President, impresses' MS to pre-
sent at length the subject which has been
committed to US by the most solemn vote
of the House of Representatives. In ap.
preaching this duty we feel that the spirit
of the partisans should be laid aside, and
that the interests Of the Republic as they
are measured by its Constitution and laws
alone shall guide us.
Messrs. Wilson and Woodbridge then
proceeded to discuss the constitutional
question with regard to impeachment,
showing by reference to legal authority
that an impeachment cannot be supported
by any act which falls short Of an indicta-
bic crime Or misdemeanor. English prece-
dents are referred to at length, and copi-
Gus extracts made from the testimony of
the committee in order to refuto the reas-
oning and conclusions of the majoiity.-
They conclude as follows: A great deal of
the matter contained in the volume CT tes
timony reported to the House is of no value
whatever. Much of it is mere hcarsay
opinions of witnesses, and no little amount
Of it utterly irreyolen: to the case. Com
paratively small amount of it could be
used on trial of this case before the Sen
ate Ali nf the testimony relating to the