New-York tribune., 1869-03-03
THE EMILE or JoHNSONISM

This is the last day Of the Presidency OF
Andrew johnson Elected Vice-President by
the great party that carried the Republic sue
cessfully through the trials and struggles Incl
dent to the most formidable Rebellion known,
and speedily elevated to the Presidency by the
pistol of a Rebel assassin, he dishonored his
Inauguration as Vice President and disgraced
his country by uttering drunken, incoherent
farrago of nonsense before the official repre-
sentatives of all civilized nations, while the
gaze of mankind was fixed upon him, and sig
nalized his accession to the Presidency
by most intemperate denunciations Of
vengeful inflictions on the now prostrate
Rebels-infictions often imposed on the van
quished, but never gloated over in advance,
nor boasted of, by victors who respect them
selves or the opinions of mankind. His sub
sequent transition from breathing out threat
"enings and slaughter" against the Rebel chiefs
and insisting on his right to hang some of them
in defiance of Gen. Grants parole, to complete
Identification with their views and interests
and the most sweeping condOnation of their
offenses, is characteristic of his selfish passion
ate, capricous, headlong career. Through
out his Presidential service it is quite
within the truth to say that he has
done his best to earn the detestatiOn
of those who elected and the contemptuous
plaudits of those who would much sooner
have voted to hang him-who eagerly profted
by the treason, but despised the traitor. Mr..
johnson will leave behind him in Washington
the good will of every man who exulted over
the Rebel triumph at Bull Run and ardently
longed for the triumphal entry Of Lees army
into the capital he will return to Tennessee
escorted and cheered from city to city by those
who wished success to the Rebellion and
summed by nineteen-twentieths of all who
wished that Rebellion Overthrown. If he be-
comes a candidate for Governor of Tennessee,
he will receive the votes of nearly all who
would have killed him in 1862 if they could, and
will be badly beaten by the votes Of nearly all
those who rejoiced over him as the one Ten
nessee Democrat whose soul was untainted by
treason.
Mr.. Johnson was closely followed in his apos"
tasy by three U. s. Senators and little way
by several others, whom wholesome dread Of
their constituents soon returned to the path
of Loyalty and Duty. We propose to speak
here only of the fated three.
Mr.sJames Dixon was twice lin AS and 47)
chosen (from the Hartford District) a Rep
resentative of Connecticut in Congress, and has
since been twice lin '56 and '62) elected by the
Republicans to serve full term of six years
in the Senate. An amiable and courteous
rather than en- earnest or strong man, Mr.
Dixon owes much to his personal assiduity and
tact in pushing his own fortunes; yet even he
cannot doubt that few men ever received so
much from great and intellectual party who
gave so little in return for it. A Wing by
education and conviction, he became Re-
publican through the force of circumstances,
and had hardly secured his second term
in the Senate when he was seen to falter by
the way In the Presidential canvass of 1854,
though Connecticut was one of the most doubt
full of the many hard-fought States, persistent
efforts to induce him to raise his voice for Mr..
Lincolns reelection were baffled; heart rt-disease
was (very properly pleaded as his excuse for
silence; he could not even be induced to affix
bis signature to the avOwal-"I desire the re-
election of Abraham Lincoln to the Presi-
dency." Of course, he sank naturally into
the slough OF Johnsonsm, and has for two
years past been in full affiliation with the Sham
Democracy, who gave him their votes last
Summer for third term in the Senate and
are now running him in his old district for the
House. And this is as it should be. Let him