Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1868-05-18
The Eleventh Article and senator
Eesseudeu,a View of Ii.

Il
The following is the 11th article in the
Impeachment charges against President
JOHNSON, on which the vote was taken on
Saturday, resulting in the acquittal of the
President:
That said Andrew johnson, President OF
the United States, unmindful of the high
duties of his office and of his oath of office,
and in disregard of the Constitution and
laws of the United States, did heretofore,
to-Wlt: on the 18th day of August, 1866, at
the city of Washington, and the District OF
Columbia, by public speech, declare and
affirm iii substance, that the Thirty ninth
Congress OF the United States was not a
Congress of the United States authorized
by the Constitution to exercise Legislative
power under the same; but, on the contra
ry, was Congress of only part of the
States, thereby denying and intending to
deny that the legislation of said Congress
was valid or obligatory upon him, the
said Andrew johnson, except in so far as
he saw hit to approve the same, and also
thereby denying and intending to deny the
power of the said Thirty ninth Congress to
propose amendments to the Constitution
of the United States; and in pursuance
of said declaration, the said Andrew john
son, President of the United States, after
ward, to wit: on the 2lst day OF February,
1868, at the city of Washington, in the Dis
trict of Columbia, did unlawtully aud i'll
disregard of the requirements of the Con-
stitution, that he should take care that the
laws be faithfully executed, attempt to pre-
vent the execution OF an act entitled I" An
act regulating the tenure of certain civil
Offices" passed March 2, 1867, by unlaw-
fully aevising and contrlving and attempt
| ing to devise and contrive means by which
he should prevent Edwin M. Stanton from
forthwith resuming the functions of the
l<.ft Nln
| War, Notwithstanding the refusal OF the
Senate to concur in the suspension there
tOiore made by said Andrew johnson, of
said Edwin Nj. Stanton from said office of
Secretary for the Department of War, and
also by further unlawfully devising and
contriving, and attempting to devise and
contrive, means then and there to prevent
the execution of an act entitled IAN act
making appropriations for the support OF
the army tor the fiscal year ending June
30 1868, and for other purposes" approved
March 2, 1867, and also to prevent the exc
cution of an act entitled IAN act to pro-
vide for the more efficient government of
the rebel States," passed March 2, 1867
whereby the said Andrew johnson, Presi-
dent of the United States, did then, to wit:
on the 2lst day of February, 1868, at the
city of Washington, commit and was guilty
OF high misdemeanOr in office.
This is the view that Senator FEssENDEN
took of this article in his speech delivered
in Secret Session of the Court of Impeach-
ment on the 11th instant:
If rightly understand the accusation
contained in the eleventh article, it is sub
stantially this: That on the 18th day of
August, 1866, the President by public
speech declared in substance that the
Thirty-Ninth Congress was not Congress
of the United States authorized to exercise
legislative power; thereby intending to
deny that the legislation of said Congress
was valid, or obligatory to him, except SO
far as he saw fit to approve of the same, and
thereby denying and intending to deny the
power of said Thirty-Ninth Congress to
propose amendments to the Constitution,
and in pursuance of said declaration, the
President, on the 2lst day of February, 1868,
attempted to prevent the execution of the
act OF March 2, 1867. First-By unlawfuly
attempting to devise means to prevent MIR. |
Stanton from resuming the functions OF
Secretary of War, after the Senate had re-
fused to concur in his suspension. Second
BY unlawfully attempting to devise
means to permit the execution of the ap-
preparation act for the support OF
the army for the fiscal year ending
June 80, 1868, and that further, in
pursuance of said declaration he unlaw-
fully attempted to prevent the execution of
the so-called Reconstruction act of March |
2, 1868, whereby he was guilty of high
in Office on the 2lst day of
February, 1865" Ihave already stated, in |
commenting on the 10th article, that do |
not consider the Presidents declarations on |
the 18th of August, 1865, as fairly liable to |
the construction there put upon it and re-
ported in this article. There were no such |
words said, nor can they be fairly implied. |
The words were that it was not Congress
of the United States, but only of a part of
the States. Taken literally these words |
were true; but Congress of part of the |
States may be constitutional Congress,
capable of passing valid laws, and as such |
the President has uniformly recognized the
Thirty-ninth Congress. The declaration
being perfectly susceptible of an innocent
and all of his official acts being
consistent with that meaning, it would be
unjust to suppose different one which he |
did not express. In this view the founda-
tion of the article fails. But whether in
pursuance of that article or not, did he un-
lawfully devise the means to prevent the
execution of the law of March 2 1867, in
the manner charged? The first specifica-
ton rests, if upon anything, upon the let
ter to Gen. Grant, dated Feb. 10, 1868. This
letter must be taken as a whole, and not
considered by detached parts. From that
letter am satisfied that the President ex-
pected Gen. Grant, in case the Senate
should nOG COuCuT III Iue suspension OF MI.
to resign the Office to him, so that
he might have an opportunity to fill the
office before Mr.. Stanton resumed the per-
formance of its duties, with view of COM
pelling Mr.. Stanton to seek his remedy in
the Court. If the President had such de-
sign, it could only be carried out legally by
Mr.. Stanton before he should
have time to resume the functions of Sec
retary of War, if the President had right
to remove him. 1t has been seen by my
remarks upon the first article. that think
the President had such a right. The de-
sign, then, if the President entertained it,
was not unlawful. AS to the second speci-
fication, it has not that l can see, any proof
to sustain it; and if it had, it is not quite
how an attempt to prevent the
execution of the act for the support of the
army can be considered as proof of an in
tention to violate the Civil Tenure act,
which seems to be the gravamen of this ar
ticle. No evidence whatever was adduced
to show that the President had devised
means or in any way attempted to prevent
the execution of the act to provide for the
more efficient government OF the rebel
States.
The German Singing Festival.
The Central Committee of the North
American Sengerbund issue the follow
ing appeal to the public:
: "FELLow CITIZENS: The Sengerfest of
the North American S8gerbund, which
will take place in this city from June 18th
to the 2lst, is near at hand. 1t is hardly