The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1868-03-05
Giles ofimpeachment for the maintenance Of

persons pN'N Va
imnrisonment while the House OF representa-
tiyes exhibit to the Senate articles of impeach-
| ment against Andrew johnson, President of
| the United States. Jr "a
| Mr. Bingham then rose and read the articles
of impeachment, the Managers also standing
| with the exception of Mr.. Stevens.
At aquarter before two the reading of the
articles was concluded, and the Managers, and
| other members of the House retired.
Mr.. Anthony offered an order that during
| the pending trial, no person be admitted TO the
| galleries except on tickets issued daily by the
| Seargent alarms, and providing for tickets
to DE issued by Senators, members and Others
Lai on the table.
Pending the bill taken up Mr.. Mcpherson
| Mr. Henderson said the CONTROVERSY was
! wholly about the payment OF 5-Ns, which,
| with the other floating Indebtedness, would
amount to $1.7000OO,0O0. Inc saving to the
| public debt or class of the funded debt should
| be maid in currency; with gold at 40 would it
| be rs 100000 in paper, and it was therefore a
question of great practical Importance Itwas
| plain that currency to pay the funded debt .of
| two thousand millions could now be purchased
| for 81 ,425 81 ,42S in gold To realize the i'm
| partance of this matter, it wonld be sure that
If the government was now able to pay that,
and should hereafter execute new bonds for
the balance due at the end Of 40 years, Ave
hundred and seventy-one million five hundred
thousand dollars, with per cent semi-annual
interest compounded, the government won d
owe debt nearly equal to one-fourth of the
aggregate wealth of the nation to-day. The
Senator from Ohio (Sherman) had claimed
that i the creditors should reduce their rate of
interest from six to five per cent, it would be
fair to both part es. He conteDded that yield
ing up S20,000,000 per annum for ten years, at
) per cent interest, payable one-half yearly,
the government gave them in this manner
SOL, 428,572, receiving in return S155, $50, 1872
To make the exchange equivalent the interest
should be reduced to 3.67 per cent. leaving the
bonds to bear only 2.35 per cent, payable semi
annually. He instituted a comparison of the
debt of the United States with that of other
countries, the interest paid, &c. The rate of
the latter, he claimed, necessitated high tariffs
and burdensome taxes, resulting in hr.wing
the balance of trade against us, and conse-
quent sending of bonds abroad, which, howev-
er, only aggravated the sale, and to send gold
would drain the country in five years, and re
sumption would become q myth. He was
satisfied that reasonable inceease of volume
of the currency, would, in aiding the material
interests OF the country, appreciate the surety
ment that the debt contracted in gold should
be paid in gold, he held that if the govern
ment could make paper legal tender it was SO
much currency as was gold. He replied 20
and combatted the claim of Mr.. Sherman that
the government is in honor bound to keep the
legal tender circulation below four handred
millions. fno more greenbaeks could be is
sued by it, and treasury notes could be issued
uu ttUuuUt, Tue promise was worthless. A
greater volume of currency was needed since
the seceeded States again shared with US the
use of our currency Abundance of money
makes interest lower. A crisis occurs every |
ten or fifteen years, caused by paying too |
much interest, not by overtrading. New
loans to take up the six per cent debt which |
was gnawing into the vitals of the country, |
should never be negotiated. He wished to |
pay every farthing of the national debts, and |
would even waive the terms of the contract |
no narlfi in ero1d IN ha oil
provided the creditors would reduce their in
terest so as to compensate for approaching
their bonds. The proposition to fund at per
cent assumes that the debt is worth 2 56-1O0-
1t was not worth so much, nor did the credi-
tors pay so much for it, He said if the credit
ors refused to fund on fair terms he would not
fund at all, but adopt such policy as will en-
able US to take up abe securities as they ma
ture, at which time all can proceed by taxa.
ton, and new loans at 1-2 and per cent to
take their places He denied that q depaeca-
ted paper was the greatest of curses A six
per cent loan equal in bulk to one-eichth of |
the nations wealth was worse. He said that |
the amount of gold in the country was not |
over $225,OOO,OO0, which with the bank circl!a-
ton limited to three hundred million dollars |
was wholly insufficient a circulation
Mr.. Henderson closed by expressing hope |
that if his bill was defeated no other funding |
bili would be offered during the session. The |
bill was postponed. Esa.4
Mr.. Howard, from the select committee of |
seven, offered the following resolution:
Resolced, That at / O'clock tomorrow after
noon the Senate proceed to consider the i'm
peachment of Andrew johnson, President of |
the United States, at which time the oath or |
affirmation required by the rules of the Sem |
ate for sitting for the trial of impeachment |
shall be administered by the Chief Justice of |
the United Suites, the officer of the Senate |
sitting as aforesaid, to each member of the |
Senate, and the Sen ate will at the time afore-
said receive the managers appointed by the |
House of Representatives. |
Ordered, That the Secretary of the Senate |
sentatves.
Ordered, That copy of the rules of proceed |
ure and practice on the trial of impeachment |
be communicated by the Secretary to the |
House OF Representatives, and copy thereof |
be delivered by him to each member of the |
House of Representatives.
ordered, That the articles of impeachment |
against Andrew johnson, President of the |
United States, be here entered.
Mr.. Grimes moved that they be considered. |
Adopted |
The resolution and orders weIe adopted.
Mr.. Pomeroy, from the same committee pre-
scented an order providing for notice to the |
Chief Justice, requesting his attendance as
presiding officer, and for the appointment of q |
committee to conduct him to the chair
The Chair appointed as such committee |
Messrs. Pomeroy, Wilson and Buckalew.
The Senate at halt past adjourned. |
HOUSE. |
Mr.. Jencks proceeded to address the House |
in advocacy Of the new article of impeach- |
ment.
Mr.. Highly next addressed the House, re-
marking that the House should not in this i'm
portant matter follow lead of one or two men,
bers. He confessed, in reading the articles re-
ported by the committee, he found nothing
charged in them except attempt to violate the
tenure of Office law. He did not think that in
the charge; there was breadth enough to
satisfy the people, but the articles presented |
by gentlemen from Rhode Island went be-
yond that, and showed the criminal intent of |
the President. That criminal attempt was not |
only to remove Stanton, but to get possession |
of the war power of the nation, throu gh which |
he would have tried to carry out his usurping |
powers, He therefore deemed it necessary to |
lay out strong groundwork on which to erect |
the edifice ofimpeachment.
The House then proceeded to the Senate to |
present articles of impeachment. At two |
o'clock the House returned, having been in |
formed by the presiding officer of the Senate |
that the Senate should take action thereon.
Mr.. Dawes. from the Committee on Elec- |
tions, called up the joint resolution reported |
from that committee relative to r. r. Butler, |
Representative elect from the First Congress- |
ional District of Tennessee. The joint resou- |
ito provides that Mr. Butler be admitted to a |
seat as Representative on his taking the usual |
oath to support the Constitution and test oath, |
with the exception of the following words: |
THAT have neither sought nor accepted, nor |
attempted to exercise the functions of any Of |
flee whatever, under any authority or preten-
ded authority in hostility to the United |
States" Mr., Dawes explained the facts in the |
case, showing that Mr.. Butler had teen firm, |
uncompromising Union man till Tennessee Sc
ceeded; that, carried away by popular senti-
ment, he had accepted the nomination to, and
took his seat in tile legislature, and took an
oath to support the Confederacy; that, al
though he had in some cases voted for mea
sures calculated to aid the Confederacy, and
sometimes against them, he had done what he
could to adv nce the Union cause, and to shell
ter and relieve those who were imprisoned for
its sake,
Mr.. Kerr, member of the Committee on
Elections, proposed to amend the Joint resolu
ton by relieving Mr.. Butler from TIE nocessi-
ty of taking those other portions of the test
oath that consist in declaring that he had new
er voluntarily given aid, comfort, countenance
and encouragement to the rebellion, and that
he had never voluntarily rendered obedience
to a government in hostility to the United