, 1868-05-15
NUMBER ee.
Latest EASTERN NEws.
Dates 70 MaT6
IMPEACHMENT PRocKEprHas
IoOHLED EHoN rHr HraALD,l

washington, Nay 4.-In the Senate altar
the reading Of the Journal, Bingham COM
menced the 6nnl argument for the pros.c1:.
ton, protesting thai be took part in the bro.
ceedings from no Partizan feelings but with
the veighty sense Of their solemity and true
meaning DE proceeded q. .sketch The event.
attendant on the Assassination Of Pra.ident
Lincoln, aud the accession Of Andrew john
500 to the Presidency, referring TO his oath
to execute the laws. BE spoke Of their
majesty and supremacy in our form of gov
ernment, and claimed that the President
was equally subject to this authority with
the humblest frontier settler. He dWelt an
the high trust committed TO the Senate, and
asserted that the issues of life and death to
the Republic hung on their decision. He
said the responsibility of deciding this issue
rests upon the Senate. 1t cannot be divided
with any human being outside of the Senate.
The Senate have the whole power to try the
impeachment aud must of necessity be cloth.
ed with every power to decide all questions
Of law and fact. 1t has been implied bv
counsel on the other side to show that this
is not so. They would like, it may be SUP.
posed, to have Andrew johnson decide this
question, as they say he has the right to do
all others. His colleague, Butler, in open.
ing the case had called this body Senate iu>
stead OF Court, and counsel tried 10 make a
point out Of this. 1t was easy to see that
this was done with the view Of drawing the
attention Of the Senate from the real issue.
but be would not waste his time and strength
on trihes like these which we're light as air.
de would not follow counsel on either side,
especially the gentleman from New York
(EVarts) in his intellectual pyrotechnics.
Laughter. He would deal in such srRu,
ments as would bring conviction to the
mind of every man. Referring to the length
OF Evart.s speech, Bingham said be suppos,
ed 1t was the impression of some members
that to make speech immortal it was neces.
sary to make it eternal. Laughter. It
had been stated by counsel on the other side
that all questions arising under the ConstiN
tuition OF the United States must be decided
BY the Supreme Court That was a very
broad proposition. There were many cues.
tlons which could not in the nature of things
come before the Supreme Court though they
arise under the Constitution, for instance.
the Senator from Illinois or any other State,
If his right to seat here was disputed, did
not go with bis case to the Supreme Court.
That must be decided by this body to which
he was elected He read from the decisions
of hief Justice Marshall to show that it
was the duty of the heads of departments to
obey the laws, not to take commands of the
President. Instead of this, the decision
shows that neither the President nor his
heads OF departments are above the laws.
Bingham cited the case of the Fugitive Slave
bill, which, though it was repugnaut to
every sense of Justice bill which made
chattels Of men-s bill for which even God
seemed to stand silent-a bill which forbade
us to give shelter TO the homeless bill
which made US violate the command Of our
divine master, when be says Give a cup
Of cold water to him who is ready TO perish
"a bill which Daniel Webster said be bet
ieved to be outside of the Constitutions
bill which caused Margaret Farress, in the
streets Of Cincinnati, flying from the officers
If the Law, to forget be: motherly instincts
and to send to its account before its time
The babe of her bosom, rather than allow It
70 be flung back to the hells of slaVery-a
Dill which, nevertheless, the people obeysd,
when they stood BY and saw Anthony Burns
rattle 10 chains under the shade of Bunker
Hill, where rest the first martyrs of Ameri-
AN liberty-a bill which, under all these
the American people obeyed
1ntil it was repealed.
The Senate took recess of fifteen mins
1tes. After recess Bingham resumed his
He referred to that provision of
The Constitution which says every bill
which shall have passed Congress shall, be-
fore itbecomes law, be sent to the Presia
dent. The language Of the Constitution is,
itshall become law afterit has gone through
the process prescribed by the Constitution.
The argument Of the gentlemen on the other
side is, it shall not be law. To prove this,
they brought forward their small arms, as
we'll as their heavy artillery, and say it must
he in accordance with the Constitution. So
it must. But who is to decide that question:
Not the President, certainly, for he is not
judicial but an executive officer. If the
President may dispense with one act of
Congress, why may be not dispense with
all At four O'Clock the Court adjourned,
leaving Bingham's speech unfinished.
WASHINGTON NEWS.
New York, May 5.-The HerGlGs Wash"
iugtou dispatch states that Senator FessenS
den has prepared an opinion that there are
no grounds shown in the evidence or in the
argument iustifying the conviction Of the
President; and that Morrill, offered an ad-
verse opinion, but failed to convince Fes-
sepdsu. Several other Republican Senators
are reported to have followed Fessenden's