The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-02-23

mitted score or more OF important bills TO
become laws by the lapse Of the ten days
within which he must return a bill with his
objections to insure their effect; besides killing
of quite as many more by Withholding his
assent until after the adjournment OF the two
houses after the pocket-veto fashion,
We have before us a copper token, the size
of an old-fashoned cent, which was struck oil
in the days of Andrew Jackson, but which Is
far more pertinent, in its devices aud notices,
to the times of the second Andrew. One side
| of the token represents the redoubtable hero
Of New Orleans emerging from an iron safe
with drawn sword in one hand and money
bag in the other, surrounded by the motto, "I
take the responsibility" On the reverse
side is the image of donkey,
with the words 'Veto' below
and "ROman frmness" above, and surround
ing the whole, another maxim of Andrew |
-"The Constitution as l understand it,"
The only change in the decorations OF a similar
token to commemorate the achievements of
Andrew II that would be needed would be a
substitution of the Capitol in ruins for the
iron safe, quill for the sword, and bundle
Vi VeLOes lOr the money bag.
Andrew Johnson developed his admiration
for the veto power as long ago as 1S47, when,
being at that time member of the House of
Representatives, he delivered long harangue
in advocacy of the constitutional right of the
President to exercise this power. His bogra-
pher states that she presented an historical
outline of the exercise of the veto power,
running back to the Roman republic" Doubt
less, he expatated at length upon the beau
ties Of the system in vogue some centuries
ago in the great Polish Diet, composed of
several thousand noblemen, each of whom
enjoyed the rare privilege of an unqualified
veto upen the action of all the others, the
only manner in which such veto could be
overriden being by the assassination of the
refractory legislator. Ia the same speech
Andrew Johnson traced the history
of the veto power and its exercise
in the United States, enumersting twenty
five instances previous to lS47. Washington
vetoed two bills during his administration of
eight years; Madison exercised the right six
times in his eight years Of Office; Monroe once
only in the same length OF time; Jackson, the
illustrious founder of the modern school of
"Roman frmness," objected to the passage of
nine bills during his term of eight years;
Tyler, the first Of the latter day Apostates, was
satisfied with four vetoes in four years; and
Polk took advantage OF his constitu-
tional right to head off Congress three
times. During the administrations which
intervened between Polk and Johnson, the
veto power was resorted to very seldom, and
generally only in the case of appropriation
bills in which nothing more than sectional
favoritism was involved. From the above
facts it will be seen that during the first half
century of our history, the Presidents of the
United States exercised the veto power
eighteen times, in contrast with which Andrew
Johnson has already done the same thing
seventeen times in less than four years.
Under these circumstances, the propriety of
striking off medal commemorative of his
"Roman frmness" will ba questioned by no
one.