The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1867-02-18

SECRET MEETINGS IN WASHINGTON.

The exciting topic at Washington at
at present is the reported attempt to eff
feet compromise between the President and
the Republican majority in Congress npon the
reconstruction question. The correspondents
take widely different views of the aspect of Of
fairs, as will'be seen by extracts from the
special Washington dispatches in Fridays
New York papers.
The Tribune's correspondent says:
Several leading Republicans, members of
Congress and others, among whom were Ray
mond, Bingham, Hubbell, auckland and De-
lanO, held q protracted caucus last night in
this city, for the purpose of ascertaining wheth-
er compromise might nOtbe effected between
the President and Congress. The conference
lasted until midnight, but no conclusion was
reached, and another meeting is being held to-
night, with an additional number of invited
guests. There seems to be little doubt that
the President would agree upon plan for the
purpose OF acccomOdating't the views of major
lty of Congress, provided they would meet him
half way, but it appears there is no body that
can speak for the majority. Hence the diff
Guilty in bringing about the proposed arrange
ment." ~+i iHt : Ell ib
The correspondent of the Herald sends the
following: ~ iiI ~ gsi aEF
An intimate friend of the President reports
that in a conversation held with him Mr. john
SUI SohUlhucS VI uuc OplHlUH JIldU the pOllcY
OF the present Congress will receive the con-
demnation OF the people, and that time will JUS
THY his course IN vetOing the measures that
have met with his disapproval. He asserts
that many OF the Republican members now
feel indisposed to support the legislation af-
there were one or two members of Congress
bold enough to take a decided stand in oppo-
sition to the majority, there would be such a
conversion to his views as would modify the
lot
ed by what he terms "the thinking portion of
the public" The President affects not to be-
lieve that the people Of the North can be in
duced to support any policy which will con-
tlnue to deprive the unrecOnstructed States of
representation. On the other hand, prominent
Republican members have been in frequent
communication with the President for some
time past, and the mysterious limitations
dropped by Messrs. Raymond and Banks re-
Gently in a debate ON the Reconstruction bill of
Mr.. Stevens, there is authority for saying, h ad
their origin in consultations held at the White
House. Already an exciting rumor prevails
among the Democrats here that the President
is going over to the Radicals. 1t is certain
that such change is thought probable BY
some of his late friends, no are trying to pre-
vent its accomplishment by predicting his GER
| tain political ruin from such a return to the
camp eff his allies. t
| The Worlds correspondent savs.-
A dispatch from the North Carolina Legisla-
ture shows that the new plan of reconstruction
| proposed by the Southern Governors cannot
pass that body. Another effort is, therefore,
being made here to see if some plan cannot be
drawn up to which the President will give
his assent meeting was held last night and
| tonight, by several conservative Republicans
who are on good terms with the Executive, to
| ascertain it by some slight mutual concessions
| not amounting to any sacrifice of principle, a
measure of reconstruction could not be agreed
| upon that would meet the views of both the
| Legislative and Executive branches of the
| Government. The comparison of views ex-
| pressed served to cause the belief that the in
terview may lead to practical results hereafter
| though no definite steps were taken. One OF
the Congressman who participated in this
movement intimated to-day that the President
| ton, which is the pending constitutional
amendment and universal suffrage, if nothing
more satisfactory could be agreed on, but bet
| ter authority doubts the statement in toto. y ~
The Boston Advertisers correspondent in
| his dispatch of Friday evening says:
The johnson compromise scheme has been
busily caucuSed today among the Presidents
| old and new friends Two secret messengers
| from the President spent the whole day on the
floor and in the cloak-room. The military bill
with notifications of the Bingham amend.
ment, was shown to those deemed trustworthy
In the second meeting held last night the fol
lowing participated: Messrs. Hubbell, Delano
/ Duohiduu anu DluS HAIL VI OulO, Ld1llu, h6Jcn-
UNI, Dodge and Raymond of New York, and
Blow and Blaine. On Mr.. Johnson's part were
Philadelphia and Cleveland Convention men
again. The members named above for the most
| part slipped quietly out OF the House last night
and went secretly TO the place Of meeting. The
| plan of the President, as represented today in
this circle, is the military bill with the Blaine
amendment: universal suffrage, to include all
rebels, and pledge to admit to Congress as
soon as the amendment is adopted. These
terms are looked upon with great suspicion as
trick to break up the two-thirds majority,
and defeat the pending measures. The secret
character of the midnight meeting, and the
political character of the Presidents messen-
gers, and the great activity of the weakest men
named above, are the causes of this suspicion.
The President is severely denounced for using
such means to reach Congress. The strength Of
the movement will be developed by tomorrow,
as the matter became known today The
greatest efforts have been made to keep all ref
erence to the matter from the papers, itu
Midnight.-Nearly the same party is in ses-
sion to night, at the private residence of Mr.
Dodge of New York. The change is caused
by the desire to keep the meeting secret The
tear of impeachment and the unexpected repu-
diatiOn by the South are understood to be the
reasons for the Presidents strange course