The Union and journal. [volume] (Biddeford, Me.) 1858-1882, 1867-12-13
CORRESPONDENCE.
From our Ws,Aingios Csrtspondtni.
WASHINGTON, ID. G., Dec. z, ls6I.
IMPEACHMENT.

| NAsHiNGrON, IL. ", DeC' ', ioo''
IMPEACHMENT. ..
The Report Of the Judiciary Committee,
recommending the impeachment Of Presi
ident Johnson, which wns presented to tho
House, will soon come up for consideration.
Meanwhile this subject excitcs greater inte'
rest iu political circles. and is more exclu'
siycly the topic Of conversation in tho city
than any other matter which Is likely to bc
considered in Congress during the present
session. Portions Of tho Report have al
ready been given to the public through the
Press, and It will be issued complete from
the Government Printing Office In n day or
two. A number Of the points made by the
committee would present ample grounds
for the impeachment Of Andrew Johnson ;
while one or two Of them would render
him liable to indictment and prosecution in
the criminal courts. ! do not think, how.
ever, that tho requisite number Of votes can
be obtained In the House to order impeaclI.
mcnt for, however fragrant tho crime, how
ever ample the evidence of naladminis.
tration, and with whatever favor every
Republican IN Congress mny look upon
Impeachment rs measure of Justice to
the outraged loyalty of the country, it is be-
licycd that the House will fail to order il
chiefly OH tho ground Of imprncticability.
And then, the enormous patronage at the
disposal of tho culpri, may he welded in
such n manner as to influence, (uncon.
sciously Of course, the opinions Of
few of the Grand Jurors For example,
should there be n vacant District Judgeship,
or other important Federal Office in lndi.
ana or Iowa certain member from said
State who may have been prominent nd.
vocnte Of impeachment might suddenly
conceive horror of establishing a prece-
dent fraught with such dreadful conse.
quences to succeeding generations and,
straightway present his "vicws" to Con-
gress, in speech which would be printed
and transmitted, at Government expense,
to his constituents, who would, perhaps, be
convinced at once of tho wisdom Of their
Representative, and Of the folly Of those
"Rcvolutionary" men in Congress who To-
vor impeachment. A somewhat notorious
example of this kind of conservatism oc.
CURED during the last session Of the xxx.
lXth Congress. Two members from a
western State, one of whom had rendered
himself specially obnoxious to the rebels,
by the conspicuous ardor and ability with
which he had conducted the prosecution Of
the conspirators, and both Of whom had
become prominent by means OF jealous
advocacy, both in Congress and OF the
stump, of the EXTREMIST Radical principles,
suddenly, and without any apparent cause,
transferred their influence from the Rcpub.
lican to the Democratic side OF tho House (;
and during tho remainder Of tho session,
they invariably spoke and voted against i'm.
peachment. OF course the whole country
was nsonished, and none so greatly as their
friends IN Congress, nt this unaccountable
change of tactics; and il was not for some
months subsequent ilIar mn explanation Of
the mystery was furnished, when il was MS.
certaned that the judge of the District
Court for their State had died.
THE $50 bonds.