Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1879-07-11
The Last Veto.

men. .-Hdrper'S Weekly.
The Last Veto.
THE President sends parting shot
after the Confederate Brigadiers, as
they vainly struggle to fly from the
Capitol, and it must be admitted that
his final statement is as affective as it
is brief. He wastes no words in argu-
ment, having found that reason has
little to do with the actions of the ma
iority, but the curt recital Of the facts,
with men of ordinary reason and pat
riotisn, will have more weight than
many convincing arguments. The
President does not stoop to repeat his
reasons for refusing his signature to a
bill designed to nullify the election
law. Congress sent the bill to him
having full knowledge that it would
certainly be vetoed, for the Presidents
convictions of duty on that subject had
been plainly stated in more than one
formal message. That he has sworn
to " take care that the laws be faithful
lv executed" and therefore cannot,
without violation of his oath, sign bill
intended to nullify law and prevent
its enforcement, Congress knew when
its last bill was framed and passed.
Hence it must be understood that Con-
gress expected its bill to be vetoed, and
included therein only such appropri-
ations as it desired to defeat, and to
take all the responsibility of defeating.
The President therefore points out the
nature of those appropriations, and the
functions of the Government which
Congress thus attempts to arrest. The
entire responsibility for the stoppage
of these functions, for the offer of i'm
munity to those who commit the many
crimes enumerated, for the withdrawal
of 81 the only police force of the United
States" the President places upon the
majority in Congress where it belongs.
The moonshiners" will be delight
ed. They have been engaged for years
in a conspiracy to trample upon the
laws, have assassinated officials in the
discharge of their duty, and are crimi-
s>ls f,~.,l>-ss, r s~esioVfO OttinOu u'iuiu
have sympathy and yet the Demo-
cratic majority in Congress has made
it the especial aim and the richest and
ripest fruit of its extra session to shield
these criminals from interference. But
LneTo hTc QUIET luWDIbuh6ISs bllC
President shows, who have especial Oc-
casion to thank the party of lawbreak-
ing and revolution. Forgers and coun-
terfeiters may rejoice, for Democratic
Congress has provided that the money
of the people, contributed for the pre-
| vention of such crimes and punishment
of such criminals, shall be kept back
from the officials to whom by law it be-
longs. Letter thieves, dishonest clerks
and carriers, ,peculating postmasters and
all other criminals who violate.the pos
tai laws, may rejoice that Democratic
Congress has refused to appropriate
money for their arrest and punishment.
| Knaves of the Indian ring, plunderers
of the high seas, timber thieves, snug
| glers, all may offer thanks to the first
| Congress since the Government was or
ganized that has seen fit to cripple the
arm of the law lifted up against them.
| True, the majority of Congress did not
primarily seek to give immunity to all
these crimes its main object was to
assert the right of freedom in fraudu-
lent naturalization and ballot-boX stuff
ing, and to shield from interference the
moonshiners. But the effect of this
latest attempt to coerce the President
an effect which every member who vo-
ted for the bill must have fully antici-
pated and weighed-is to offer immu-
nifty to all manner OF criminals against
whom United States laws can be en-
forced only by the agency of Marshals.
To these Marshals Congress refuses the
money to which the laws entitle them
for their support.
The claim that the President ought
to have permitted the election laws to be
defied and nullified in order to prevent
notification of other laws of the United
States, will be submitted to the people
for their Judgment. He states the case
plainly in the closing sentence of his
message. A great effort has been made
to cover with ridicule the declaration
that the passage of bills intended t.
i coerce the President into surrender
of his veto power is unconstitutiona
and revolutionary. Nevertheless the
Democrats know that the charge is per
fectly true and just, and they have
WINGED under it, week after week; re
coiled before it from one point to an
other; and backed down so often tina
there is left scarcely the pretence o.
respect for the position of the party
even among its supporters. They know
that the plain people of this country
appreciate the justness of the ~Presi
dents statement that such Legislation
would "make radical, dangerous anC
unconstitutional change in the charac
ter of our institutions" If both House
may thus arrest the operations of tn
Government unless the President sur
renders his constitutional trust, eithe
J House may in like manner coerce thu
other House and the President also
The attempt to do this thing is strictl
, revolutionary; no more, and no less
Fifty, it is made by men who canno
yet forget that for years they wore tn
/ uniform of rebels. Rightly the peOpl
will remember what these men were
|. when it sees what they are doing now
, They tried to destroy the Governmen
! and failed. Now thoy are trying T.
. revolutionize, disorder and disorganiz
5 it; to strip it of power, to leave it help
) less before criminals, and to emascu
= late and cripple it. The country wi
. Judge the men and their acts.-M ]
= Tribune.
: A MAN in Utica, N. Y, who wante
5 to 90 10 Watertown arrived at static
| l.t4l, ta., lata fn,. fha train flhink IN