Knoxville Whig and chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1875-1882, 1875-08-11
SALISBURY.
How They Managed Him ON the linz
parchment Trial.

How rhey Managed Him ON the Inn
penchnent Trial.
There were other dark ways and
vain tricks connected with both sides
of the Impeachment struggle, which
would take n volume, instead of an ar
ticle TO relate. can not, however, re-
frain from telling one of them. Mr..
Willard salisbury was Democratic
Senator from Delaware, with good in
tentions, but very decided weakness
for toddy. He would stay sober for
months sometimes, but the mere smell
of liquor would start him on spree
that might last for weeks. He had
been quite steady for a long time, and
had promised to abstain entirely from
liquor while the Impeachment trial
lasted. One evening young man
called at his room and desired an in
terview, which was granted. He rep
resented himself as the agent of wine
and liquor importing house in New
York, who had come to Washington
to have the tariff amended with re-
spect to these articles, and he would
like TO interest the Senator in his
cause. He concluded his remarks by
saying that he had brought some
samples of wine and brandy with him.
and asking the Senator's permission to
send a few bottles to his room. SauIs-
bury Immediately saw in this PROPOSE
ton plot to get him drunk, so that
he might be either absent from the
Senate when the vote on Impeach-
ment was taken, or that, going to the
Senate in state of intoxication, he
might be expelled, as had often been
threatened in his case. Indeed, res
olution for his expulsion had once been
offered and was then on the calendar
of the Senate. It looked then, on
close calculation, as if one vote sub
tracted from the Democratic side
would secure Johpson's conviction.
Salisbury ordered the bogus wine
merchant out of his room in short Or
der, and Immediately acquainted sew
eral OF his friends with the details of
the plot. 1t reached Johnsons ears
very soon.
"They can'tbeat me any other way"
said the President, "and they are try
ing to get the jury drunk" 1t was
Immediately resolved by Johnson's
friends to keep a close watch on Sauls-
bury, and this precaution was soon
rendered necessary. Salisbury, wheth-
er as the result of conspiracy, or in
obedience to his own sweet will got
furiously drunk on the day rendered
memorable in the history of the trial
by the anti-lmpeachment speeches of
Fessenden, Trumbull, and other Re-
pubilcanS. 1t was "a secret session of
the Senate, but it soon got noised
abroad that Salisbury was trying to
get the floor to make drunken speech.
Half an hour later he would probably
have been expelled. But he was per-
suaded to leave the Senate, and he
was accompanied to his room, where
he was put to bed. The vote was ex-
pected the next day, and as it was i'm
portant to have Salisbury present, a
consultation was held as to the best
and quickest means of SOLDERING him
of. Somebody suggested a big fright
as good thing for him under the cir
cumstances. There was Babcock
fire extinguisher in the hall, which
was Immediately transferred to the
bedside of the tipsy Senator. Sauls-
bury rose on his launches to know
what the internal thing was for, and
the agonizing manner in which he
begged for mercy when told that it
was stomach pump, and that it
would be applied to him if he were not
duly sober by 3 in the morning, will
N.Y. SOOh NC lolsoLleu ny the lew VINO
witnessed it. From that day forward
until the vote was taken Salisbury
was sent to the Senate every day in a
hack, and his movements were care~
fully watched so that he was present
to vote against Impeachment when
the final vote was taken. There was
a sequel to this. The anti-Impeachers
insisted on the Mosaic law of retalia-
tion-drunk for drunk-and there was
q bad case of detiriuno tren,enS on the
other side of the Senate Chamber be-
fore long, which can even now be
traced in the official record of the
High Court of impeachment
Mack" in st. Louis GLOBE.