Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1875-08-12

Nashville was besieged, and r
posed to abandon the placa.
, with characteristics firmnesn, ~
military man, bat any one N
surrendering I win skoot
! of @blood and iron" Gucceedo
March, 1864, T6unessee re-i1n1 i
Union - . free State, viii. =
elected civil governmenk
Desiring to recognise 7
oervices and At tie aam4 tin1S d
tte vss Dsmocun1o ~ - y
Conve6SE66, <lIic7l rslE0ssin; a - !
dent Lincoln in June, 1854, :aamedA IN.
drew johnson as its candidate for Wee
President. He had received 200 vtes
on the first ballot, which were increaSed
to 492 on the second, being 2ll mSre
than were needed. Both candidaes
were popular and carried all except thRe
Of the States which voted, at the eA-
suing election.
Vice. President johnson took tie oath
of Office on the 4th of March, 1854,
making on the occasion an incolereut
and bombastic speech which was deemed
in very bad taste. President Liicoln,
however, in his good-natured way, said
that Andrew johnson was too muSh of
a man to be repudiated for . single
fault. On the 14th Of April, the Ia
mented Lincoln was assassinated, md
Andrew johnson became President of
the United States. He at once aid
q 10 Ia - Isl - l. L. IL
Furnishing secessionists, and would make
treason odious.. In May, he appointed
a commission to try the persons engaged
in the conspiracy to assassinate Prei-
dent Lincoln. Offering at the same tine
reward of 500, 900 for the arrest of
x.President Davis as an abettor in he
crime. He appeared to be in accord
with the angry spirit OF the time, AID
was regarded by the victors as well Is
the vanquished as a man of ruthless
severity. Turning his attention, how.
ever, to the graver task Of reconstrue-
ting the Union. he acted on the assump
ton that he was empowered to estab-
liah provisional governments with th
view Of enabling the Southern States
to resume promptly their former position
in the Union. Holding as a cardinal
principle that these State could not Sc
cede, he was intent on allowing then
all the independence they had formerly
enjoyed. Accordingly, when Congress
assembled in December, 1865, he sent :
message announcing that eight of the
Southern States had been thoroughly
Irecnnstructed. Dissatis6eds;xith this.
course, which threatened to fsstore The
old order of things in the South and
place the secessionist leaders in power,
the Republican majority repudiated the
Presidents acts and proceeded to reor-
ganize the South after its own fashion.
Then began that conflict which was
waged with relentless bitterness dur.
ing the remainder Of his term. Con-
gress passed bill after bill designed to
cripple his power and assert its author
ity in the subjugated States. The
President answered by vetoing each
hostile measure, making his message
the occasion of an elaborate defence of
his policy. Before the close of his term
he had vetoed no less than l9 bills
Among the more important of these
measures the Civil Rights bill, March
%, 1866; the Freedman's Bureau bill,
June IL, 1868; the Military Reconstruc-
tion bill, March 8, 1867; the Supple
mentary Reconstruction bill. July 90,
1867, and the admission of Southern
Representatives, June 26, 1868.
Seeking for popular support in this
warfare, President Johnson encouraged
the holding of a convention at Philadel-
delphia in August, 1864, at which many
Republicans and Democrats of unques-
toned loyalty were present. This Con-
vention approved of his policy and sent
a deputation to assure him of its con-
fidence. Replying to the delegates,
Mr.. johnson spoke Of Congress as "a
body hanging upon the verge of the
Government" and declared that it was
"a Congress- of only part of the States" I"
while it assumed to represent the whole.
Confding still further in the people
whom he blindly supposed were with
him, Mr.. johnson made tour through
the Middle and Western States with
the view Of affecting the result of the
approaching elections. This Swinging
round the circle" as he termed il, how.
ever, had no sensible effect on the pop
ular mind, and at the State elections
Congress was sustained, and his sup
porters were placed in hopeless minor
ity. Encouraged by the tone of pop
ular sentiment the Hon. James NJ. Ash
ley of Ohio, at the instance Of leading
Republicans moved resolution in the
House of Representatives on the 7th
of January, 1867, directing the Judi
ciary Committee to inquire If there was
not cause for the Impeachment of the
President, which resolution was adop-
ted by a vote of 1O7 to 50. The mat
ter remained in abeyance until Nov. 25,
1867, when the House, by n vote Of lOS
to 81, refused to adopt resolution i'm
peaching him. The defiant removal Of
Secretary Stanton in January, 1863 how
ever. was more than the Republicans
could endure, and on the 24th of Feb
ruary the House, bya vote of l2S to a.,
resolved to impeach Andrew johnson
of high crimes and misdemeanors.
In accordance with this resolution
Thaddeus Stevens and John A. Bing-
ham appeared (Feb. $50 BY order Of
the House at the bar Of the Senate and
formally impcachedt the President. The
charges comprised the removal of Sec
retary Stanton, the public expressions
of the Presidents contempt Of Con-
gress, and his declaration that it was
not q constitutional assembhge. The
Senate organized as High Court OF
Impeachment March 81, with Chief.
Justice Chase as iss presiding officer