Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1868-02-27


ceipt, or retention, be presented
passed, allowed, approved, certified, OF
/ paid by any officer Of the United
States, or by any person exercising the
functions or performing the duties OF any
ofice or place Of trust under the United
States, for or in respect to such office, OF
the exercising or performing the func-
ions or duties thereof; and persons who
shall violate any of the provisions oil
this section shall be deemed guilty Of q
high misdemeanor, and, upon trial and
conviction thereof, shall be punished
therefor by fine not exceeding $40 1000,
or by imprisonment, not exceeding ten
years, or both.
Now, il we are to suppose this bill en-
tirely constitutional, and il we admit the
right Of Congress to step between the
President, who is responsible as the head
Of the executive department Of the gov
eminent for duly observing his sworn
duty to support the Constitution, and the
agents through whom alone he can dis
charge that duty (which may we'll be de-
MED on legal as we'll as on moral grounds),
what provision Of the foregoing enact
mont has Mr.. Johnson violatedf Ifany,
it must be contained in the first section.
1t comprises two sentences only, the first
Of which declares that persons holding
any civil Office, by and with the consent
Of the Senate, shall be entitled 10 hold it
"until successor shall have been in
ike manner appointed and qualified"
Aud as Mr.. Stanton does so hold, and no
successor has been thus appointed and
qualified, it might be commended that the
removal of Stanton was violation, if
the first sentence completed the section.
But that was general as to all offices,
and the design was to provide for the
cases of Cabinet officers, who are espe.
cially mentioned in the statute and thus
excluded from the general clause. Their
case is definitely stated and specifically
provided for. They are to hold their Off
ces during the term of the President by
whom they have been appointed, and for
one month thereafter. Their Offices ex.
pired one month after the death of Mr..
Lincoln, except, as they have remained
in Office by the suferance Of the Presi-
dent, and if there has been any violation
of law by Mr.. Johnson, we fail to dis.
cover it. And, indeed, it seems from the
tenure of the news we are now receiving
that the Senate is in like dilemma. The
mere resolution of the House is nothing.
The march of the jupiter tonans of the
representative mob with his rab.
BILE squad to the door of the
Senate, and the attempted high
sounding solemnity of his declaration of
before the bar of the Sen.
ate and the nation, was all brutum JuI-
men, a mockery Of dignity, and solemn
farce. Articles and charges must be
made out, which will at least have some
plausible appearance of importance and
or Congress will make itself
the laugh, as it is already the scorn, Of
the whole people. They cannot make
out such articles and charges as are suf-
fciently specific and necessary to convict
the President of any offense whatsoever.
He has committed none. His enemies
have watched him keenly for two years,
have hunted with dark lanterns for fol.
bles, have kept spy in his family to report
on him, and have resorted to all the
means which cunning, malice and greed
of unrestrained power could invent to
crush him, with weapons fair and foul and
yet they have found nothing. When
they make out their specifications, which
they are now agonizing over with great
drops of sweat on their brows, the best
they can do viii be to produce set of
inane generalities and pretentious and
spread-eagle phrases, which will fall
harmless at the feet of the President.
They cannot make out list Of charges
which plain men can understand,
with them any color of
truth whatever. And if they do
less than that their contemplate
will fail of course. Mr..
johnson is not impeached until articles
are preferred against him. And if the
House had waited to make them out in
stead of rushing with hot haste to the
Senate, we doubt much whether the
proceeding would have gone further.
The truth after all is it is rather the
Congress than the President which is
now on trial before the country.