Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1868-05-25
Don Pintt PronOunces the RePub-
Ifcan Party Dead, and Dis
courses Thereon.

IMPEACHMENT.
wish to make few observations. of
philosophical sort, touching the late Repablt-
can party.
/ assisted, some twelve or thirteen years
since. at the birth of the party just de-
missed. having Travelled from the Mac-a-
Cheek Valley to Buffalo, carrying plank
for the platform, on which the newly born
was to be cradled, and my affections have
grown with its growth to such an extent
that its sudden death threw me into state
of profound grief, disturbed by 1ndigna-
ton. Ipassed from lamentation to an IN
dignation meeting-and from an lndlgna-
ton meeting to deep grief. But with re-
Election came consolation. l came to
the consoling thought that l was not the
only sufferer, and handing out my surplus
affiiction to my beloved country at large,
/ found my share could be carried, without
much inconvenience.
The Immediate cause of its death was dys-
pepsia, aggravated by whisky.
But the seeds of weakness and disease
were planted in its birth. We began a
party of reform. OF agitation, OF aggres-
sion, and we took into our embraces the old
Wing party, that was party of conserva-
tism, aggravated by great dignity and tim
idity. The result has been internal dissen-
sions. The ultra reform party could not
digest the conservative lump, and we have
been afflicted with collie, SO to speak, that
we'll nigh destroyed our usefulness. Our
actions in consequence have been contra
dictory. While at one time we create a
John Brown, and glory in John Brown as
our greatest, and best beloved; organized
huge armies; fought out big wars, and liber-
ated race; on the other hand we have been
busy smoothing our wars wrinkled front
with the decayed plasters of past wrong
doing. 1t is called compromise-which
means to give the devil your soul in dig
nified neacefill manner.
The last internal convulsion exhibited
with great clearness the different elements.
On the one side we had Butler, Stevens,
Bingham, Logan, Sumner and Drake; on
and Trumbull; while between foated
another element, born of the revolutionary
times, that had its marketable value, and
fluctuated as either party bid.
Now, am prepared to admit that Messrs.
Fessenden and Trumbull were actuated by
the highest and the most honorable mo-
tiyes 1 do not believe they could be bought
felt that they were jurors, under oath, an
swerable to their God for the verdict they
rendered. Nor do l blame them for re-
spending as they did to the solemn ques-
tfon asked them by the Chief Justice. l
believe this as believe that the thirty five
voting ssguilty" were honorable honest
men. But, in political life, blunder is
worse than crime. and Messrs. Fessenden
and Trumbull blundered in belonging to
the Republican organization at all. They
should have gone over to the party of STAN
berry and Groesbeck, where the old Whig
dignity is preserved intact, and where Con-
servatism is so intense that an ancient
wrong is preferred to new right, and
where official position is so glorified that
halo is thrown around an inebriated mule,
that an all-wise Providence, through some
inscrutible reason, has set on end and made
our President.
When impeachment was first broached
the evidence was as well known as it was
at the end of the trial. AT the beginning
Messrs. Fessenden and Trumbull should
have made their fight. Failing to defeat it,
they should have resigned their positions,
as honorable men. and washed their digni-
fled hands of the responsibility. But they
chose to reserve themselves for conflict
when their triumph ,could be our death, and
are somewhat astonished at the popular
howl of wrath and indignation that comes
up over their digniied, honest, honorable
stupidity.
We could have survived blunder great
as this is had it come alone, but it is the
concluding act of a long series. Through
the unsettled condition of coutry suffer-
ing from civil wars, zoe haze developed more
rascdlity than any organization eUer called into
existence. We haze filled the offices aoitt
thieves and their pockets aoith stealings. We
haze organized rings that in turR create Office
holders and control the Government. Men go
in poor and come cut netLllondtreS. For one
dollar paid to the Government from hard earned
I. tdres, hundreds stick to the dirty fingers OF
official scOundreLs. We have whisky rings,
Indian Bureau rings, manufacturers rings,
National Bank rings, railroad rings, land
jobbing rings, and. internal improvement
rings. From the loaoest official up to SenG-
tors and Cabinet officers, the tdtnt of corrup-
tion runs. until the people dazed and confused
confound the right and listen ecith Indifference
to the threats of exposure.
When charged with all this, they have
responded ''Andy johnson is corrupt,
and appointed scoundrels to Office" Well,
Messrs. Fessenden and Trnmbull have, un-
der oath, pronounced him not guilty, and
let him go acquit.
At the end of a fearful war the people
had right to expect that the expenses of
the government should be brought back,
at once, to peace footing. They demand
ed a reduction of the army to what it
was in 1860; that the useless monitors
should be sold for old iron; that the hum
dred thousand thieves, called office holders,
should be dismissed, and the appropria-
tions cut down to reasonable eXpendi-
ture.
We have replied that Andrew johnson,
who came in through assassination, has or
army of at least fifty thousand men is neces
sary to-keep the peace. Messrs. Fessenden
and Trumbull have voted not guilty, and
let Andrew 60 acquit.
The people have expected that in our
hands reconstruction at the South would
progress with reasonable speed, and that
unhappy region restored to state of quiet
and prosperity. The expectation might
not be reasonable, for the blind bigotry
that hurried us into bloody war has de-
veloped in hate that, with stupid fury, casts
aside all social and legal restraint. But we
answer that our wise acts of oflegislation have
been rendered null and void by an Execu-
tive that plants itself squarely in opposi-
tion to the law-making power. Now,
Messrs. Fessenden and Trumbull vote g not
guilty." and the accused goes acquit.
We awaken to the unpleasant fact. that
not Andrew johnson, but the Republican
party has been on trial. and the sentence is a
sentence of death, rendered by our own Sem
ators, who have grown tat, rich and great
through our organization. To have such
a trial, with such result, (and Messrs.
Fessenden and Trumbull knew it as well
at the beginning as they did at the end,) is
a great blunder-a blunder worse than a
crime. 1t may be that the disgust felt by
the country at large Tor the Democratic
peace party may call into existence new
organization; but the Republican party is
dead, and we may as well gracefully admit
the fact and accept the situation.
notice that certain journals, such as the
Euentng Post, Nation and Chicago Tribune,
are disgusted with the manner in which
the press and people treat the seven Sena-
tors. " "Were they not under oath; were
they not jurors !? :" cry the virtuous Journal
ist. sit is shameful" We'll, yes, they
, were under oath, and in some sort of way
they were jurors; but they were under
several oaths, and bound by some two or
three of them when they decided the con-
stitutionality of the Tenure-of- Office law,
and that Stanton could not be dismissed by
johnson. have no wish to argue the mer-
its of the case, but cannot help laughing at