The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1868-04-02

to take possession Of the ONCE and that Tor all legal
70 whole Of the
States to take possession; because II the General OF
thought that s g, order was ne
States to carry It out Therefore say that the Presi
dent was notified that Mr.. Stanton had only Yielded
Stanton had yieldea wisely and periodically,
because II he had not Yielded collision
mgas nave tSs been S on Which
Thomas belongs to thein), raised Q 'civil war;
Now, then, the President knew that Mr.. Stanton at
MI Stanton, after yielding the ONCE to the General
or the Army the latter had In obedience to the high
stanton had been reinsaed in it in obedience to the
high behests Of the Senate Thus he felt that he was
stin more fortified than at first. II he would not
superior force do You believe Senators, any man is
80 besotted to believe that the President did not
everything but t forces He ' had seen Mr. Stanton
sustained by the vote OF the Senate; he
mad seen, seen that an attempt 10 remove him
purpose OF bringing this to issue the President Of the
United States Issued his order to General Thomas,
another officer Of the army-"You will Immediately
enter upon the discharge OF the duties pertaining to
that offlce." What them He had come to the con-
olusion TO violate law and to take OF the
Thomas had agreed with HIM to take possession OF
the office by some means. Thus we have the agree.
that believe is the definition OF conspiracy all over
the world. Let me repeat it-You have the agreement
between the President on his part to do what had
been declared an unlawful act, and you have Thomas
consenng to do it, and therefore you have an agree
ment OF two minds to do an unlawful act and that,
say makes conspiracy so far a. understand the
law, SO that on that conspiracy we shall rest
this evidence, under article seventh, which alleges
witch LORENZO hoas
seize take and possess the property Of the United
States in the Department OF War" Then there Is
and that Is on the ground OF principal and agent.
Let me examine that ground, II you please. He
Of THIS ives By his
upon hts breath only, are his servants only, and
responsible to him alone, not to the Senate or to
responsible to him, he appoints them to such ONCE
as he chooses, and ne claims this right ilinitably;
March, 1865, that il any one Of his Secretaries had
said to him that he could not agree with him on the
constitutionaty OF the act Of March 1861 he would
have turned him out at once; all that had passed,
Thomas ksew that as well as anybody else. Now,
then, what Is the Secretary's commission, whether
al interim permanentP It Is that he shall per-
form and execute such duties as from time to time
shall be enOned upon him or entrusted to him by the
President of the United States agreeaby to the
constitution, relative to land and naval forces
or to such other matters respecting the mill
tary or naval forces as the President OF
and that 'he said principal officer shall conduct the
business OF such department as the President from
time to time shall order and direct" Therefore, his
commission Is to do precisely as the President de-
sires him to do, anything which pertains to the Of
Ace, and he stands then, as the agent of his princi
to do by the Presidents 1t was to obtain the War
Office Was he authorized to do anything else that
70 OF e was 40 WE
take It.; having shown that he agreed with the Pres
dent to take it; having put in testimony that the
common object--the President wanting Thomas
to get in and Thomas wanting to get in, and both
ton Is by every rule Of law ser we have shown the
acts. the declarations, however naked they may be-
OF either Of these two parties about the common OBJ
aoIyf IA
clarations OF Thomas about the common object.
Now the case does not, indeed, stop here, because
shall o show tss he was then TALKING about The
friend OF Mr.. Thomas. He said yes" III
they were intimatei" eyes" ! have already told
you that Burlegh friend OF the President; that
he needed somebody to aid I'm this enterprise.
There was to be some moral support to
@ ne Or
members OF the House OF Representatives to support
him in this enterprise, and was laying out plan,
hm in the enterprise, and be there Gliding aud abet.
ting That is the testimony propose to show, and
Is & o
Now the proposition is, having shown the common
ence; but, as we contend, an unlawful object having
shown that the act Of the two parties was one thing
having shown the agreement one with the other
TO do the act, can we not put In the declaration OF
not the act Of one become the act Of the other
was said to Mr.. Stantonf The President was not
there Thomas was rot upon oath (; why did we put
IN the act &c Of %nG there "a
Mr.. STANBERY--lt was within the authority.
Mr.. BUTLER--Oh that was within the authority
authority because the President had commanded him
TO take possession. Now, then, we want 10 know the
was that TO be done, and what was it to be
done withf They say-and only for the gravity OF
the occasion l could not help thinking 1t tremen-
dous joke--they say you should call the other con-
sprator on the threat Of one conspirator to show
the conspiracy. Was that ever done in any courtS
One conspirator to turn kings witness or States
witness against the other-was that ever dones
Never, sir Mr.. Butler here quoted from Roscoe's
Criminal Evidence, p. $40, In order, he said, to
evidence az once, and that, from the acts and de-
clarations Of the criminals themselves, they could
ns O. any 40 the case Of 'G shaver
fitted out at Baltimore for the West Indies,
when the declaration OF one OF the prin-
object OF the voyage. It was agreed that the object
in this case was TO get the War Department At all
consprators had been notified that stanton would
deliver IL except by force. They then set ont to
provide ways and means: II would be shown that
had not been arrested he would have used force.
We're they then TO be told that the President could
do this and that and that they could not put In what
the agent said while he pursuing this matter
suppose Thomas had gone to General Emory and
saId he wanted him TO take this department by
the hand OF the law laid upon him. They expected
to show by these declarations, and to leave
doubt In the mind OF any Senator, what
this purpose was. He tButlcr) thought there was
doubt in the mind OF any man what that purpose
was. The learned counsel for the respondent had
said they had now got to question OF law lit TO he
argued by lawyers to lawyers, implying that all other
questions argued before this high court have not
been fit to be argued either by lawyers or to lawyers
10 was for them to defend themselves against that
sort Of mputation. He had supposed the great ques
tons Trey had been arguing were not only ut TO be
argued by lawyers TO lawyers, but by states
men to statesmen. He insisted that this was
not question TO be narrowed down to the
attorneys office, but one TO be viewed In the
light OF law, in the light Of Jurisprudence by the
senate OF the United States This was not q case
where the court might 20 one way and the jury
another. They were both court and jury, and he
held that they should receive testimony In regard to
all the acts and declarations oil this Secretary al
interim. In this view the Managers were fortunate
being sustained by the precedents.
Mr. CURTIS, OF counsel asked for the reading OF the
question.
The Secretary read as follows:-
You said yesterday in my question that ron had
conversation with General Lorenzo Thomas the evening Of
the 2lst Of February State he said anything which
he by nh