Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1868-05-20
THE RADICAL WAR UPON THE
REPUBLECANS,


tive war upon those Republican Senators
who, after hearing the testimony, felt i
their duty, under the oath they had taken,
10 vote against the conviction Of the Presi
dent Senator Fowler, of this State, comes
in for very large share Of this malignant
abuse. The Washington correspondent
Of the Cincinnati Gazette furnishes ex-
tracts from the minutes OF the "UniOn
Congressional Committee" to show that
as far back as the 10th Of January last
Mr.. Fowler had come out unequiyoeally
in favor Of impeachment in order to get
rid Of the President And the Hon.
w. ID. Kelley, General r. c Schenck and
seven others certify that Mr.. Fowler, at
the meeting Of the committee at the time
stated, expressed himself as follows
THAT no relief could be given the Union
men Of the South until he should be mn
peached and removed. Il was very well TO
send speakers and organizers among them,
aud 20 enlighten them on the questions of
the day by distributing our publications
among them, but that our labors would be
Intellectual while Mr.. johnson continued to
administer the laws; that he would, as
President, be able TO overthrow such good
as might be established and that 80 long
az we should fail to do our duty, and inn
peach and remove him from office, we would
be responsible for the suferings and blood
Of the Union men Of Tennessee and the
unreconstructed States"
Senator Fowler may have expressed
himself precisely as here represented
lie may then have felt that the Presi
dent should be got rid of in the manner
suggested, and he may even have
felt a willingness to assist in getting this
Presidential obstacle out of the way Of
Radical usurpation. 1t is one thing to
talk to parcels = intolerant Radicals,
and coincide with them "a to how neecs-
sary to the success of their schemes it is
to get an opposing President out of the
way but it is a very different thing, in
Judicial capacity and acting under an
OATH to try that sell-same President upon
charges Of high crimes and misdemean-
ors, based upon no better foundation
than that he opposed the policy of
political party that happened to be in the
ascendant in Congress Mr.. Fowler may
not be peculiar in this respect Each of
the other Republican Senators who voted
against conviction may have as sincerely
desired the removal of the President as
any Of those who voted for conviction,
but they had a duty TO perform higher
than their allegiance to party Aud it is
because they have discharged this
imperative duty as became men, that the
species Of billingsgate is turned loose
upon them. Never in the history of this
country has so disgraceful scene been
presented to the world as that which has
attended the attempt to degrade and re-
move the President The most corrupt
influences have been brought 10 bear
upon Senators who were suspected Of
regarding the obligations of an oath, to
force them to vote in accordance with
the demands of party, and now that they
have asserted their right to make up |
verdict for themselves according to the
law and the evidence, and have acted
upon that claim, they are charged by |
their Republican associates with having
been bribed, and the proposition is
gravely made by partisans of their own
party in the House of Representatives to
investigate the insinuation or charge
The impeachers seem to regard it as
utterly inconsistent with the history of /
the Radical party that its members could
act from honest motives as against the /
will Of the party. 1t is the men who
hold substantially this doctrine, who are
making bitter war upon Senator Fow-
Ter and his associates who dared to do |
right