The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1868-12-09
The Presidents Message.

The Presidents message.
ELsRwHHaE we print in fall this afternoon q
document which Andrew Johnson styles the
'tmeesage of the President of the United
States, to the two houses of Congress, at the
commencement Of the second regular session
OF the Fortieth Congress-" This sentence,
which is q transcript of the title page of the
document, as printed at the Treasury Depart
ment, Is q faithful index to the whole.
Andrew Johnson has not learned anything
during the few months which have elapsed
since Congress was actively engaged in the
labors entrusted to it by the people The
war for the Union has not Impressed his
stubborn will with any Of its teachings; the
election OF General Grant to be his successor
Is ignored by him as an event OF no practical
sign foance. By styling the present session
Of Congress the ''second regular session."
he attempts, in his feeble way, to cast slur
upon IL, to question the Legality Of its exist
enoe, and to intimate that the whole Amsri-
Oan people are of the same mind as himself.
As soon as we get beyond the formal intro
duotory words, this spirit crops out in full
force. The President declares, as he has done
thousand and one times before, that all our
domestic tribulations are directly traceable TO
violations Of the organic law and to
excessive legislation by Congress-. Again does
he charge full tilt upon the reconstruction
policy of Congress. Referring to the Recon
stru0tion acts Of the past three years, he says:-
"ARer a Jatr trial. they have Substantially Jaf,ed
and proved peiniciuus Ia tnelr Results. and
there seems To be no good reason wny they
should longer remain upon the statute oooE."
After thus again asserting his determina-
ton to adhere to "my policy" until the last
breath of his political life has left his body, he
pronounoes his customary eulogy upon the
Constitution-that ".Magna Charta OF Ameri-
can rights he deems, as he has SO
frequently assured us in the past, entirely
adequate to every national emergency. Then
comes q mild protest against the interference
by Congress with his constitutional functions
as Commander in. chief OF the army, aud finally
grand flourish of his trumpet against all thai
has been Objectionable to him in the legislation
OF Congress since the assassination of Mr.. Lin
Lincoln. Confounding himself with the Anne
rican people, as he has SO frequently done
heretofore, and Interpreting the result of the
recent Presidential contest as an endorsem ,nt
of Seymour and Blair and of all the iniq uities
of the platform dictated by Wade Ham pton at
TammaDy Hall, Mr.. Johnson thus proceeds to
state his belief
"It is believed that the repeal of all such
laws would be accepted b. the American peo oie
as at least partial retu n TO the lundam entail
principles OF the Government, and an ludi.a
lion that hereafter the Constitution is to be
made the nations safe and unerring guide"
The next subject which engages the Presi-
Dental pen is that OF the finances. This por-
ton OF the message bears internal evidence OF
having been prepared, as far as the figures
are concerned, by the famous "Arithmetic
Man" of the New York World. Not satisfied
with grand outburst Of indignation agains.
the reckless extravaganza of Congress- Mr..
Johnson takes up the yearly expenditures OF
the Government when 1t constituted a petty
Republic of three millions or 80 of inhabi-
tants, and arrives at the following startling
percentages Increase in population since the
beginning, 86S per cent; increase in the an
nual expenditures daring the same period,
taking the estimates for 1869 as basis, S6lS
per oent.-whioh looks very much as
II his Exoellency had multiplied the
the former percentage by ten and made a
slight mistake in his units. Carefully leaving
the terrific civil war out of the calculation,
and ignoring the necessary increase in our
national expenditures which 1t has entailed
upon us, Mr.. Johnson likewise draws start
ling comparison between the years 1860 and
1869, arriving at the following satisfactory
result:-Increase in population in nine years,
q per cent. increase in expenditures during
the same period, 4s9 per cent.-which is easily
accomplished by squaring 2l and adding a
SCORE or two of units to cover up the arith.
metioal device. As part and parcel of this
same intricate fgure-work, Mr.. Johnson sue
Ceeds in making up the following table, setting
forth the comparative burdens Of supporting
the Federal Government at the three epochs
in it's existence which have such miraculous
charm for his arithmetieal mind
In M la9l 90 per capita.
IL
Al loeS"''''..''...'.. 97o "
1t is matter OF surprise that the increase
per capita Of 100 per cent, from 1871 to 1860,
escaped the attention of our Presidential
mathematician, but such is the fact.
Having thus paved the way for an assault
upon the national debt, Mr.. Johnson, deter