Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1867-12-04
The impeachment Question--Reports
of the Majority and Minority.
W,suIncToN November o.

|
Boutwell,, second member Of the Judiciary
Committee, rose to report the testimony ia
ken by the Committee on impeachment, and
presented tie majority report; the Chairman,
MIR. Wilson, dissenting. The report was pre-,
pared By Mr.. Williams, of Pennsy ylvania.
The summary of the majority report IS as
follows:
sin accordance with the testimony sub.
mitted and the view of the law herewith pre-
sented, the Committee is Of the opinion that
Andre johnson, President of the Uaited
States, is guilty of high crimes and misde.
ineanors, in that" &c.
1t closes with the following resolution:
Resolued, That Andrew johnson be i'm
peeched for high crimes and misdeneauors.
The report was followed by mingled ex-
pressions of applause and disapprobation, the
Speaker meantime using his gavel.
Mr. Wilson, Chairman Of the Committee,
for himself and Mr.. Woodbridge, presen.
ted the minority report, which concludes as
| follows:
We therefore declare that the case before
us, presented by the testimony, and measured
by the law, does not disclose such high crimes
and misdemeanors within the meaning of the
Constitution as requires the constitutional in-
,erposition If TIE power Of the House, and re-
commend the adoption Of tie following reso-
luton:
Resolced, Tha. the Judiciary Committee
be discharged from the further consideration
of the proposed impeachment Of the President
of the United States, and that tho subject be
laid on the table.
Mr.. Marshall on behalf of himself and Mr..
Eldridgc, stated that they fully concurred in
the resolution offered by Ithe Chairman, Mr..
Wilson, and also concurred entirely with his
argument regarding the law of the case, and
the application of the evidence thereto, but
there were differences on some points which
induced him and Ir. Eldridge to submit'a
third repors, which. reports were oil laid on
the table. Ordered to be printed and made
the special order for Wednesday of next
week. :.
General Grants evidence covers three col
umns, but the following tells his story:
By Mr.. Woodbridge Question: under
stand your position to be this: That you did
not assume to originate or inaugurate any
policy, but that when any question came up,
| and your opinion was asked as to what the
President was going to do, OF had done, you
gave no opinion?
Auswer--That is it exactly, and presum-
ed the whole Committee so understood me.
l have always been attentive to my own du-
ties, and triei not tc interfere with other peo-
ples. / was always ready to originate mat
ters pertaining to the army, bat never was
| willing to originate matters pertaining to the
civil government Of the United States. When
was asked my opinion about what had been
done was willing to give it. | originated
no plan and suggested no plan for civil gov.
ernment. l only gave my views on measures
after they had ueen originated. simply ex-
pressed an anxiety that something should be
| done to.giye sume sort of control down there.
There we're no governments there when the
war was over, and | wanted to see some gov
ernments established, and l wanted to see it
done quickly, and did not pretend to say
| how it should be done, or in what firm.
The majority of the Impeachment Com.
| uittee in their report laid great stress on the
alleged usurpations by the. President of the
pnrdoning aud veto p3wers, and also as to his
authority to make removals and appoint
monts, and particularly refer to what they
term fragrant violations cf the constitutional
powers of the Executive in organizing Gov.
ernmenis in the Southern States at the end
of the war, without asking the advice of Con-
gress, as they assert, for personal purposes.
They refer 10 The pardoning Of an hundred
aud uinety-lhree persons in West Virginia,
desersers from the army during the war, which
they state was in behalf of private and inter:
csted parties, and in order that they might
vote in accordance with the Presidents opin.'
ions.
The tenor Of the Executive offences, through
out tho entire report consists in alleged
usurpations OF the powers above mentioned.
Ike majority assert also that, by various
official and other declarations. the President
has sough. 10 obs:ruct the laws of Cong esS
for the pac!icatio.i of the States with partic-
ular reference ~ the constitutional amend
ments approved by Congress.
This report is very lengthy, ard is signed
By Messrs. Boutwell,, Williams, Churchhill,
Thomas aud Lawrence.
A report WAS also submitted by MessrS.
Wilson and Woodbridge, dissenting from the
views of the majority, and asserting that there
was no evidence presented which demands
impeachment, but that they condemned the
Presidents political views and were willing
to censure him.
The minority report by Messrs. Marshall
and E;,lridge, strongly defends the President
from the abuse of his political enemies, and
asserts that his only fault consists in not hold
ing to the. political views OF the party Which
elected Linn to assist in sutJugating the peo-
plo Of the South. THIS report is extremely
caustic, sntl harshly abuses some of the wit
nesses who testified before the Committee.
In it Gen. Baker, the Chief Of Detectives, il
accused of perjury, and the report concludes
"the President will be held in respect be his
countrgmen when his calumniators> are pill
lored in the undying' scorn and indignation
of The American people"
The points made in the summing up of the
majority report against the President are not
buinc cut by the testimony. First, as to the
President having usurpcd the powers Of Con-
gress in organizing governments IN the South
crn States.
Il will be fnund in General Grants testi-
mony that the programme which ives follow
ed out by the President had been Jain down
by .Lr. Lincoln. 1t also appears in General
Grants testimony that he WAS present, by in
yitation, at the Cabinet Councils, in which
the restoration of the Southern States was
considered, and that while he assented to the
.plan followed by the Al .nipistration, he did
not offer any suggestion OF his own, but was
q silent listener. The only active part he
took was in restraining the Presidents aedor
I'd have prominent Confederatea, like Lee,
brought to condgn punishment.
AS to tho pardon of prominent Contede-
rates it appears that many of the most promi-
nent of them were pardoned on the recon-
mepdation of Gen. Grant, Attorney-General
Speed, Secretary Stanton, &c.
AS to the trial of the West Virginlans,