The Tiffin weekly tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1859-1868, 1868-01-16

to become the final aud iufallible
judge Of what the public interests re.
quire, Congress and its laws are moth. q.
ing, aud hover wanton and wicked
he may be, il becomes official miscou-
duct to differ with him in opinion, and
make known to him this difference"
The committee then Gsks2 "Is Mr..
johnson serious in this most arbitra-
ry assumption Can he no longer
brook 10 be told that his course is
wrong2 Does he regard mere differ.
onoo of opinion ms to the propriety Of
carrying out the legislation Of Con
gress as official misconduct II would
seem so from the position he has
taken, bat we caunot countonance a
doctrine SO absolute and despotic. II
is not merely step toward tyranny,
but is itself the essence of tyranny.
The report enlarges upon these
points, and then pays a warm trib.
ute to Mr.. Stanton, as follows:
owe recognize 10 his refusal no
misconduct, no fault, but, on the con.
trary, we are of the opinion that IN so
doing lac consulted his duty and the
best interests Of the country. During
the bloodg civil war, his eminent tai
ents, his patriotism, his vigilance, his
untiring devotion to the cause, aud
his unainching determination to put
down the rebellion, had justly eutitled
him to the gratitude aud admiration
Of the country. In the worst of
times he was true aud faithful.
When many others seemed to despair,
his fortitude was unshlkeu. When
defeat and discouragement darkencd
the land, he was not appalled,, but his
genius pierced the gloom aud saw the
light Of approaching triumph. We
cannot sympathize with that spirit
which, without fixing upon him so
much as plausible charge of miscou
duct, would cast him down and ruin
his well earned reputation" :"
The Committee here quotes Mr.
Stanton's letter in reply to the note
from the President informing him of
his suspension, and then takes up the
charge by the President that Stanton
concuIred in the veto of the Tenure Of
Office bill. 1t is admitted that Mr..
Stanton thought the bill unconstitu.
tional, and was opposed TO its becom
ing law. Such, the Committee say,
was sincerely his views, and some of
the attest statesmen in the country
have entertained the same opinion,
and others equally able have held the
contrary opinion, aud among them
Mr.. Webster. Tho controversy is
almost as old as the Government, but
the Committee contend that it does
not follow, because a public officer
has entertained such an opinion of
proposed measure, he is to carry his
notions so far as to treat it as void
when formally enacted into laws by a
two thirds vote Of each House.
The next point of the Presidents
message, noticed by the Committee,
is his charge that Mr.. Stanton was at
one time in accord with his (John.
son's) policy, aud endeavors to make
him partly responsible for it. This is
denied on the strength of Mr.. Stan.
tons testimony on the subject, given
before the Impeachment Committee of
the House. Iu regard to Mr.. John.
sons claim that he is responsible for
the conduct of the Executive Depart.
ment, the report asks whether he
admits his responsibility for dispatch.
sent by the Secretary Of State to the
Provisional Governors, aud maintains
that he must admit and be bound by
them, aud yet in his message to Con-
gress, in 1866, he suppressed such
intimations, aud astonished the coun.
try by announcing that he had fully
reorganized and reconstructed the
rebelious States, and that nothing re-
mained for Congress to do but to pass
upon the naked question of the rogu-
larity of the elections, and the quail
6cations of Senators aud Representa-.
tives elected. Who then, the commit.
tee asks, has he committed the oifense,
if it be one, Of changing front on
this great question of the power of
Congress. Who has been the early
and original opponent of granting to
the colored man the ballot for his
protection and for the security of the
country against another rebellion.
Not Mr.. Stanton, surely. His opinion
on these subjects have ever been the
same, aud Mr.. johnson knew them
full we'll from April, 1865, down to
the time Of the suspension.
Another especial ground of com.
plant alleged against Mr.. Stanton in
the Presidents message, is that he
omitted to communicate to the Presi-
dent the telegraphic dispatches of
General Baird, dated July %, 1866,
relative to the State Convention of
Louisiana, then about to meet in New
Orleans, and that Stanton did not
send the general instructions as re-
quired.
After quoting Johnson's message
on this subject very fully, the report
declares that these passages from the
message show plainly enough that the
purpose of its authoris to prove that
he had no opportunity to prevent the
riot and slaughter of that bloody day
and is therefore free from the respon
sibility Of which he speaks; and his
failure to prevent them, is clearly
chargeable to the Seeretary's delin.
quency in not sending General Baird
instructions, and in Withholding the
dispatch from the President. The
Committee gives much space to dis
cussion Of this point, aud accuses the
President of being aware of the ex.
istence Of Mayor Monroe's letter to
General Baird Of the 25th of July,
aud also of the intention Of the rob
els to disperse the Conveutiou.
Knowing these facts, thoy ask why
the President did not make arrange
mentg for nreventino the riot As