The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1875-03-31
HON. ANDREW JOHNSON.
His speech ia 1Fe 4. -. Senate on
tsae Presidents Course in
Ihe Louisiana Case.

time IA" Senate was called TO order no
even = ming room was to be obtained in
the gai lies, doorways, or the passage.
leading hereto. Upon the floor were
large numbers OF members Of the House
Of Representatives and others entitled t.
the privilege Of the floor.
The consideration Of the resolution ap
proving OF the action Of the President IL
regard TO Louisiana was resumed, and
Senator johnson Tern. being entitled
to the floor, began to speak at ten min
utes past twelve o'clock
Senator Johnson said: This resolu-
ton proposes to cover acts and measures
which | think are clearly in violation OF
the organic law of the land, and without
authority. That being so, [ cannot give
| my consent to the resolution, and will be
| compelled to vote against it, and think
1t proper that | should give some reasons
why ! cannot give it my vote In the
first place, Mr.. President, it seems to me
that the consideration Of the resolution
embracing questions Of such grave i'm
| portance is not legitimate before this body;
in other words, it is not legitimate to
consider it efore Senate convened, as
| this has been convened, to act solely
upon business pertaining TO the execu-
/ tive department; it Is not legitimate to
act upon the measure now under corsid-
Grafton by this body. 1t is legitimate to
consider every act and every question on
which the administration has acted since
its advent into power 1t does not seem
| 10 me to be travelling much further out
! of the record for the executive to come
4 TO- Of
| the legislature, than for the legislature
to come forward and approve the acts of
| the President. Ordinary measures are
prese:.t for the consideration of Congress,
and when they are acted on it is the
! duty Of the President to consider them
and to approve or reject them. Senator
johnson argued at length that the Senate
had no authority to act on the resolution,
especially in the absence of the other
House. He contended that the resolu-
tions of Senators Morton and Freling-
huysen were in substance the same with
a mere modification in the matter of YER
biage to suit the party views of some in
| dlYiduais. He next referred to the trou-
bic in the Tennessee legislature in 1866,
and the action of the Federal govern
ment i'll instTucting General George III.
| Thomas, in command Of the Federal
forces there, to strictly abstain from any
Interference. His instructions, he said,
were as follows:
WASHINGTON, July Il, 1866.
General Grant will instruct General
Thomas that the facts stated in his tele-
gram do not warrant the interference of
the military. The administration of the
laws and the preservation of peace IN
Nashville belong properly to the State
authorities, and the duty of the United
| States authorities is not to interfere in
any controversy between the public au
thorities of the State, and General
Thomas will strictly abstain from any in
| reference between them.
Here is a precise case, and that was
the stctfoff- the government. It was
believed that it was IL civil strife, CON
test between two divisions of the civil
government, and was so stated in the
| telegram sent back to General Thomas,
similar to the one in Louisiana. That
dispatch was signed by the Secretary Of
War, and was written in the presence of
the President and sent to General Grant
to send to General Thomas He was
| told that this was not a case calling for
the interference of the military, and he
/ General Thomas) should abstain from
interference under any circumstances
whatever 1t would seem that this
marks the line between civil and military
authority. There is 4 precedent of the
government in that case, and the cases are
almost parallel, and that was what the
government did then. What are we
/ told now? We see, then, that the pres
ent President of the United States was
familiar with and understood what was
/ the action of the government in cases OF
this kind and of the duty of the military
and civil authorities.
| We see, then, that the question was
not unknown to him, and be has not
acted without proper and sufficient in
| formation upon the subject of which he
| has been informed of, and having acted
and carried out the order or telegram
that | have read he must have understood
and have known that it was the true
doctrine and principle upon which cases
of this kind should be managed by the
military. He then referred to the re-
moval of General p. III. Sheridan from
the command of the fifth military dis
trict, August Goth, 1867, and said that
it was in consequence of the vail which
came up from the people of that section.
President pro tenn. Terry Mich The
chair will interfere with the gentleman
from Tennessee to inform the galleries
that it is in violation of the rules of the
Senate to express approval or disapprov
al of the proceedings of the Senate. The
sergeant-at-arms will put sufficient force
in the galleries to preserve order.
Senator johnson, resuming, argued at
length in opposition to third term, and
spoke of the United States officials re-
ceivlng presents; and in this connection
said that this question of gifttaking
would be just as legitimate subject to
consider here to-day as the subject we
have now under consideration. We
could consider just as we'll resolution
expressing an opinion with reference to
officers of the United States receiving
gifts from citizens of the United States.
Why not consider a subject like this
Let the popular heart understand it, and
let it respond. 1t is time We turned our
attention to things like this. | merely
allude to it for the purpose of making a
general application to anybody who is
guilty of like conduct Senator johnson
next spoke of the action of the Presi-
dent in Louisiana affairs, and said: We
find that the United States shall guaran-
tee TO every State in this Union repub-
lican form of government. Has the
President of the United States such
power? do not understand him to be
the United States. Does that provision
authorize the executive, upon his own
volition, 10 go and take charge in person,
or by his agent-some man selected