New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1870-03-04


continue in this Office, and it may be that
misdemeanors that are not indictable
under the statutes of the State render him
unworthy longer to hold his office. we
assert, as managers on the part OF the
House of Representatives, that 1t Is our
duty, not as court of civil or criminal Ju-
risdiction, but as court of political Juris-
diction, representing the people OF theState
of Louisiana, to determine whether this
prisoner, arraigned at your bar, is guilty OF
such crimes and misdemeanors and lrregu-
larities in Office as to longer prohibit HIM,
in the interest of the people, from serving
them as their Auditor Of Public Accounts.
We believe that, under the laws OF this
State, and under the constitution OF this
State, you are here as a court OF last ana
highest resort, so far as the prisoner
arraigned at your bar is cOncerned; but
the very constitution that creates you q
Court of Impeachment limits your judg-
ment as Senate of the State to depriya-
ton Of Office, and to disqualification
from ever holding office in this State. 1t
does not confer on you power to punish
a man who is merely guilty of the
violation of the laws of the
State, but expressly declares that
the courts of criminal jurisdiction and
other tribunals in this State shall have,
after you have passed your Judgment on
parties who may be arraigned before you,
that other tribunals possessing criminal
jurisdiction can take these matters up, and
if the party is indictable before those
courts, they can try and pass other and
final judgments upon him, for mere viola
ton OF the statute laws of the State. The
same constitution which declares you to
be court Of impeachment, declares that
judicial powers shall be vested in certain
courts, created under the Constitution of
this State; it does not say that you shall
possess judicial power; 1t does not say you,
as Senate of the State, shall have the
power to sit here exercising, solely
and exclusively, Judicial functions These
are delegated TO the courts of the State, to
the Supreme, District and Parish Courts.
created under the constitution Of your
State. And if you are not here possessing
Judicial power and functions, you must be
here as a court possessed Of some other
power; possessing other functions, and
convoked for other purposes. In the
Judgment of the managers of the House OF
Representatives, you are here as political
court; here for the purposes of determin-
ing whether Or not this prisoner arraigned
at your bar by the representatives of the
people, is worthy or unworthy longer of
filling high trust in the name OF the
people of the State. This, in the judg-
ment of the managers, is your sole and e1-
elusive duty, and it is upon these grounds
that the House of Representatives
have arraigned the Auditor of Public Ac-
counts at your bar, and ask you to pass
judgment upon. him as to whether he is
longer fitted, taking into consideration his
past acts, to hold the office with which the
people intrusted him.
| am not here to-day, Mr.. Chief Justice
and Senators, as person learned in
law to discuss legal technicalities with the
very able and learned counsel for the de-
criminal or civil Jurisdiction alone, l
should feel called upon to retire from man
agement of this case, because [ am not
possessed of the qualification which
should bepossessed by any one who ap-
pears before a court possessed alone of
jurisdiction in civil or criminal matters;
but am here, in my character as a Repre-
sentative of the people. as member OF
the House of Representatives, charged by
the House of Representatives with pre-
senting to the Senate the offenses which,
in our Judgment, the Auditor OF Public
Accounts has committed, ana of bringing
them to your notice, and asking you as
Senators of the State of Louisiana to pass
in judgment upon the fitness of this officer
longer to represent the people in that high
trust. This believe to be the real power
which you possess, this believe to be the
ground upon which we present this charge
against the Auditor, and believe that in
weighing and determining this question
YOU can admit all evidence which, accord
ing to the rules that govern Courts of
impeachment, is admissible, and that such
evidence can take wider latitude and
range, than is the custom in mere
courts of criminal jurisdiction.
Mr.. Gray: Mr.. Chief Justice and Sena-
tors | ask the consent of the Senate to
make few remarks. shall be very brief.
I do not rise for the purpose of leng then
ing this decision, but lit possible, to shorten
sembled here, question was raised-by
Senator from the city of New Orleans,
whether these Senators sat here as jurors
or judges. The Chief Justice decided that
we were sitting here as court, and each
Senator in his own spherei was judge.
Now | care not sixpence whether
this be political court or not.
I never heard of a political
court-but such thing may exist in the
reconstruction of the time in which we
live. But the main thing we desire, and
all we ask of the Chief Justice, and of the
body Of the Senate, is this: that we should
be governed no matter what name the
gentlemen choose to give this Court-by
the proper rales of justice and evidence,
established long before this Court was
convened. Such privilege you decided we
were entitled to under the laws of the
land, and care not what name you may
choose to give this Court, political. or
otherwise, so that it is governed by those
principles of justice established i'll courts
of justice, as the inherent rights of men,
long before this Court was con-
vened. Am l right? These two
principles established in the trial
of the case, you ought to be governed by
the ordinary principles which prevails in
the jurisprudence of civilized nations.
That understood to be decided, and yet
the honorable manager rises to-day and
presents batch of accounts of three hun
bred persons, names not designated, dates
not designated. When the Chief Justice
decided that that vague and indefinite
charge was unjust, and unfair to the re
spondent, and that we ought not to be held
bound to answer upon it, they come here
and say it is a true charge. and offer this
evidence without name or date. They say
if it were particular voucher we would