Clarksville chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 186?-1872, 1869-06-12

(. Is no more binding than II passed b.
simple majority. Under pretex
of making law, Congress basis la,
/ and assumes that IL Is constitutional
: In this way they make encroacll
' ments upon the people. They hav
r almost gone far enough to make
j law abolishing the executive an,
: judicial departments Of the gov
: ment, thereby leaving Congress
gress standing alone, with solitar,
and absolute power in the govern
, ment. When Congress assumes thi
, attitude, let me tell you here, to-day
, as one who knows and feels what 4
, being done and intended to be done
that the object Is to absorb all tn,
, power of the government In the Con
, gress of the nation. The judicial ant
, executive branches set aside, Congress
becomes the government, and 1t be
comes q more absolute power thar
that of the Gear of Russia. DOM
we know that body of men thur
organized when they commence the
passage of bad laws, by association
and protection lose direct responsible.
; ity and pass laws that sane men
would shrink and shudder at? BAD
men, by being associated, become more
despOtic and Injurious in the execu-
ton of tyrannical measures. 1t was
my lot on entering upon the duties OF
with the legislative department Of
the government, and in doing SO the
fundamental principles Of the gov
eminent have been involed. Iswore
to preserve, protect and defend the
constitution, and when Congress vio-
lated that instrument, l vetoed the
measures, and would do IL again in
spite of threats, and in the face of the
axe of official decapitation. Great
applause.)
What has Congress done? Let us
follow 1t up a few steps and see what
it has done. Let me tell you that
when this people lose their liberty
and present form of Government, IL
will be done by the legislative depart
ment. The time has come when its
course should be averted. When a
measure involving the constitution
of the land is involved 1t should be
submitted to the Supreme Court
[Voice-That's so.
This Congress, that Is usurping all
power of the government you are
called upon to trust and respect; this
Congress, that has taken away the
trial by jury; that has denied the
privilege of the writ of hdbeds corpus;
that has subordinated the civil chief
executive to the head of the army
The dominant majority in that body
have wrested from the President his
constitutional power of supreme COM
mand of the army and navy. They
have destroyed the strength and
efficiency of the executive department
by making subordinate officers indie
pendent of and able to defy their
chief. They have attempted to place
the President under the power of a
bold, defiant, and treacherous cabinet
officer. They have robbed the execu-
tive of the prerogative of pardon,
rendered null and void acts OF
clemency granted to thousands of
persons under the provisions of the
constitution, and committed gross
usurpation by legislative attempts to
exercise this power In favor of party
adherents. They have conspired to
change the system of our government
by preferring charges against the
President in the form of articles of
impeachment, and contemplating,
before hearing or trial, that he should
be placed in arrest, held in durance,
and, when it became their pleasure to
pronounce his sentence, driven from
place and power in disgrace. They
have in time of peace increased the
national debt by a reckless expendi-
ture of the public moneys and thus
added to the burdens which already
wheigh upon the people. They have
permitted the nation to suffer the
evils of q deranged currency, to the
enhancement fprice Of all the neces-
saries oflife. They have maintained
large standing army for the enforce
ment of their measures of oppression.
They have engaged In class legisla-
ton, and built up and encouraged
monopolies, that the few might be
many. They have failed to act upon
important treaties, thereby endanger-
ing our present peaceful relations with
foreign powers.
Their course of usurpation has not
been limited To inroads upon the exc
cutive department.
BY unconstitutial and oppressive
enactments, the people of ten States
of the Union have been reduced to q
condition more intolerable than that
from which the patriots of the RevO-
luton rebelled. Millions Of American
citizens can now say of their oppress-
Ois, with more truth than our fathers
did Of British tyrants, that they
have forbidden the governors to
pass laws of immediate and pressing
Importance, unless suspended until
their assent should be obtained" that
they have refused to pass other laws
of accommodation to large districts Of
people, unless those people would re
linquish the right Of representation In
the Legislature-a right inestimable
to them, and formidable 10 tyrante
only" that they have "made judges
dependent upon their will alone for
the tenure of their offices, and the
amount and payment of their sal
aries" that they have "erected a
multitude of new offices, and sent
hither swarms of officers to harrass
our people and eat out their sub
stance,h that they have "affected to
render the military independent Of
and superior TO the civil power"
''combined with others to subject us
10 Jurisdiction foreign to our consti-
tuition aud unacknowledged by our
laws" "quartered large bodies of
armed troops among us" "protected
them by mock trial from the pun
ishment for any murders which they
should commit on the inhabitants
Of the States" imposed "taxes upon
us without our CONSENT" deprived
us In many cases of the benefit Of trial
by jury "taken away our char
tiers, excited domestic insurrection
amongst us, abolished our most valu-