Nashville union and dispatch. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1866-1868, 1868-05-02
THE PURPOSES AND THOUBLES OF
IMPEACHMENT

Mr. Murat Halstead, the senior editor
Of the Cincinnati CommerciaL is Radi-
cal lie is in Washington, and that pry-
ing quality which is almost inherent in
a newspaper editor, has enabled him to
get into the secrets OF his party in
regard to the Impeachment Of the Presi>
dent With great candor he tells what
the purposes of the leaders are. In his
letter to the Commercial written on the
9th ult, he says
an letter written two days ago | ven
mred to observe that the issue pending
among the powers that be in Washington
uhe people Of the United States not being
particularly consulted 10 the natter was,
practically, whether there should be s
change in the form Of our Government.
The demand for this change arises from
the unprecedented ascendency of party in
Congress. More than two~thirds Of both
branches Of Congress are Of the Republi-
can political organization. The Repubi-
can caucus ia, therefore, thesupreme power.
As to the impeachment that is to determine
whether this supreme power shall be exer-
ted to remove the first magistrate for a
want of party loyalty, the caucus has, it
appears, decided it. Thaddeus Stevens
has shaken his bony fingers and dared the
Senate to 90 back on the House. 1t is 10
be seen whether the Senate will execute
the will of the caucus.
"The position of the Senate is peculiar.
The technical proposition is to punish the
i E, I !,
Congress as to the construction Of law.
The debate in the Senate shows that the
tenure of Office act was not understood by
Senators TO apply to Stanton. The act was
not originally intended to have any force
while the Senate was in session, but to pro-
tect otice-holders, in the absence of the
Senate, from the caprice or luminosity Of
the President. 1t was understood that he
should have the control of his Cabinet. So
the clause was put in the very tenure-of-
Office act now so often quoted, that Cabinet
officers should hold on for the term during
which they were appointed and for one
month longer. That was intended to give
each President his own Cabinet. Stanton
had filled the term for which he was sp-
pointed-that was the first term of Mr..
| Lincoln, aud his commission specified that
he held his office at the pleasure of the
| President, who was Andrew johnson, The
| President removed him and made an dd
| interim appointment Technically that Is
his crime. The finding Of articles of inn
| parchment by the House WAS really a coup
| dtiat of Edwin NJ. Stanton. He has
| dragged Congress and the country iuto his
| personal quarrel with the President, and
| proposes TO empty the Presidential office
| for an alleged, not proven aud extremely
| doubtful violation Of law hat he himself
advised the President was unconstitutional.
There are but ten
| months left of Johnson's term. How he
| spends this fragment Of time-whether in
or ont Of ofice-is Of little consequence to
him but 1t ia of conquence to the people
| whether one department of Government II
10 absorb the power of the three depart
| ments'
He frankly confessss that the i'm.
parchment is a blunder which would be
best repaired by the Senate returning q
verdict according to the law and the ties
timony, which he says, would be d
verdict Of acquittal This statement OF
a Radical editor shows the straits and the
desperate resolves to which the Radica
leaders are driven in their efforts Il
clutch the last vestige Of power in tn,
government which they have not already
absorbed They demand that the Senat,
shall depose the President because he j.
not a Badical-for that is his real crime
and put one Of their own faith in hi
place. But this hazardous experiment i.
not without its dangers to the Repubi-
can party, which are noted by Mr. Hal
stead as follows
Now the tenure Of Office act, and th
augmentation Of the Office Of the Senate j
already embarrassing the Republicans 40,
raising up in their party antagonisRs tha
are dangerous TO IT. A single ststemen
will suffice to show this. The Ben Nades'
are in favor Of holding on 10 the tenure O
office law. They wish TO use it 10 kesT
the appointees Of Wade in office through
| Grants term. This / am aware IL count
ing the chickens before they are Matched
but that is done here hahituslly. The as
sumption is that Wade will be President
within fortnight, and Grant after the 4tt
| of March next and the friends Of Wade
desire that the tenure Of Office &C. should
be recognized as q fixed fact while the
/ Grant men would have IL out Of the way