Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1868-09-05

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ceive them as States, but treated them as
conquered territories, subjected them to
military government, prescribed nearly all
the Intelligent men of the states by, a
sweeping bill of attainder, and ''raised up,
In the language of Senator Morton, a new
set of 10y al voters plantation slaves who
could not tell their names, or read their
tickets, but could vote each Republican
ticket when given them-when Congress |
did these things, they violated that solemn
pledge which brought atleast half a mil
lion Union volunteers into the field. 1t was
a deliberate breach of faith, prompted
by interest, not by necessity. I do
not think the party profited by it; men
that is untaught men--love faith and de-
test talsehood. Beside this, it has involved
the party In complications from which they
never can be extricated until they are |
mercifully relieved from the cares of gov
eminent. For myself, I confess to lack of
progress; stand as one of Senator Nor
toms mile-posts on q deserted road, having
learned by the war no moral code releas-
Ing men, as individuals or, legislative
bodies, from the obligations of constitution,
or law, or personal truth and honor.
Mr.. Morton shows very clearly that the
guarantee of republican forms of govern
ment to these ten States was all pretense.
You will remember that President Johnson,
at the close of the war, issued q prOclama- -
tfon debating provisions to be adopted in
the constitutions OF the ten States which
would adapt them to the changed condition
OF things. and that they modified their
constitution according to the terms of the
proclamation. Mr.. Morton in speaking of
the proclamation, and 1t was the same SUBJ
stantially as If he had been speaking of
each Of the several constitutions, says:
81 did show that the policy of that proclamatiop
radical than of Mr. LinsoIn
Winter Davis bill of the summer of 1884, But, sir.
It was all upon the distinct pndesstsnding that.
action was to be submitted to Congress for its CON
sideration and decision; and; as before remarked
Thatis-the proclamation was right, even
to excess; the constitutions modified in
pursuance of it were right, and would have
been accepted if submitted to Congress; !;
but this etiquette was neglected. and ten
States were kept out of the Union. under
military government, and eight millions of
American citizens denied the protection of
Constitution and law in order to avenge
the insulted dignity of the two Houses of
Congress. But this, also, was pretense; ;
the real object kept steadily in view was,
and is, to control the votes of the ten States,
so as to strengthen, to the uttermost, the
hands of the Republican party. and to en-.
able them to maintain their supreme power
over the government. f4-,er-rq-g
The statement of Mr.. Morton that he and
his party were educated to new doctrines
by the war, and that they learned rapidly,
is true, in point of fact, and it can vouch
very respectable precedent. 1t is like in
! spirit, but more modest in language, than
the boast of Mr.. DIsraeli, in Parliament,
last summer, that he had educated his
party into the acceptance of doctrines re-
pugnant to their most cherished convic-
ton. But this process of education. un-
3 luckily for the precedent, threw the Prem
ier and his party at once into hopeless
minority. Such may, possibly, be the case
here. "O'- sh III 'L li-'i 7-ti
When the impeachment failed, the COM
J mittee of the House appointed to conduct
it was not discharged, but continued to sit,
- under the guidance of General Butler, who
had been from the first its actual, though
not its nominal head. The continuance of
the Investigation was founded on nothing,
Z and tended to nothing. except party spite
and party calumny. One point in his re-
port deserves notice-not because it. was his
report, but because it was adopted by the
committee, and published by order of the
House. % li'i'' i,i.t
The fourth amendatory article of the
Constitution provides that 'the right of the
people to be secure in their persons, houses,
papers and effects against unreasonable
searches and seizures shall not be violated,
and no warrants shall issue but on proba-
Bile cause, supported by oath or affirmation,
and particularly describing the place to be
searched and the persons or things to be
SEIZED" Now note the construction of
this clause of the Constitution by General
Butler, speaking in the name of a commit
tee of Congress, if indeed it occurred to
him or them that we had a, Constitution
The impeachment has ended in a failure.
There was no question pending before the
House, on which that body had right to
call and examine witnesses under coInpul-
sorry process, but General Butler ''suppos-
ed" that the Senators who voted
for acquittal, were bribed, and on this
foundation, and none other, he in
the name of the committee and with
the concurrence of the House, proceeded
to investigate the matter of his supposi-
ton. He says in his report, which was
agreed TO by the, committee ard published
by the House (p. u: Learning that many
telegraphic messages relating to impeach-
ment had been sent and received by the
! parties supposed to be implicated in fraud
. Went practices, your committee issued a
subpoena duces tecuns in the usual form to
the managers of the several telegraphic
companies in this city and Baltimore to
produce telegraphic dispatches during a
certain period; and then directed the wit
nesses, officers of the telegraph companies,
to collect such kilograms as were sup
posed would throw light on the investiga-
ton. .'.
:, This exercise of an ordinary power con-
fided to every Justice of the peace of the
country who has a cause pending before
6 him, was the only seizure of kilograms
made by your committee, which has been
the subject of much severity and useless
vituperatiOn." assE ygszqD =ssfslssa.
Mr.. Butler and his committee assume
that If somebody is supposed to be impli-
Gated In fraudulent practices, the papers of
everybody may be seized and searched.
To give that power to the House of Repre-
d to
him or them, is necessary; no affidavit, no
probable cause against anybody. or any,
{ thing; it is enough that somebody is
: sssupposed'' to be implicated in some
fraudulent practice, and the power
of a committee of the House is
complete, to seize and search the papers OF
every bOdy-aye, and to seize and imprison
in the vaults of the Capitol any person
who refuses to explain his own private
business transactions to the committee
The appeal to the Constitution, which for
bids unreasonable searches and seizures,
and provides that ''no warrants shall is
sue but upon probable cause. supported
by oath or affirmation." is characterized as
"senseless and useless clamor." A private
person, Colonel Woolley, whose dispatches
had been seized by the committee, was
summoned before them. and denied, under
oath, that they related to the matter about
which the committee had assumed to in
uure, but refused to testify as to his own
private business, whereupon they impris-
oned him-firstin a wholesome room, then,
by order of the house, trasferred him to a
dungeon in the vaults of the Capitol.
There seems to have been no motive on
the part of the House for this act OF arbi-
trary individual oppression but to show
their power over the Constitution and their
contempt of its guarantees. Or, perhaps
their object was merely to sustain General
Butler, whom they had adopted as their
leader, and to indorse his acts. As to him,
he was so morally constituted that he could
not even transmit the truth when he had
it before him on paper. 1t changed its very
nature under his eye while he read, or un,
n hioh h,x,I l,;1a ho fron ~