The record-union., 1893-09-25
THE PRESIDENT AND THE LAW.

The situation at Washington is very
unpleasant. The contest between the
peoples representatives over the free sill
yer issue appears to be no nearer an end
than at the opening of the extra session.
The Administration is embarrassed be-
tween division in it's own party upon
financial questions and the frmness of
the President in pressing upon Congress
his views concerning a monetary policy,
which is antagonized with a bitterness
not paralleled since the days of Andrew
Jackson and the United States Bank.
Mr.. Cleveland is hard pressed on one
hand by the Atlantic population to cast
the strength of the Administration with
those demanding extension of the Chinese
Registration Act and on the other by the
people of the Pacific States to enforce the
law, regardless of all things but its man
dates.
We can appreciate the situation of the
President; it is one by nomeans to be en-
We'd. The Registration Act calls for the
exercise of both judicial and executive
functions to give it effect. It's a political
Act. one that is not dependent upon
Judicial officers alone for its enforcement.
1t follows that the executive judgment
relative to the means and time Of deporta-
ton enters into the theory and practice 0
the Act. For the carrying out of the law
Congress must, therefore, supply the
Executive with the means necessary; if
what is appropriated is insufficient, then
it Is the duty of the Executive to call the
attention of Congress to that fact.
1t is at this point that the critics of the
President have the strongest footing. But,
on the other hand, since registration and
not deportation was the purpose of the
Act, that the prior policy of Chinese ex-
clusion might be better carried out, it is
by no means an offense for the President
to consider whether the Chinese were
misled by their masters in the refusal TO
register, and whether it is not the part Of
wisdom to give them opportunity to re-
pair their error.
There does not appear to US. there
fore. any sufficient reason for the hasty
demand for perferment of articles of i'm
parchment. for clearly the non-action of
the President complained of was and is
within the province of his Office in the
treatment of law which by its own
declarations makes its effectiveness de-
pend upon the judicial and the executive
jointly.
The RECORD position regard
ing Chinese exclusion and the admission
of the undesirable and non -assimilative
classes, is we'll known. AS pioneer in
resisting the invasion of Chinese labor to
the ousting of the labor of Americans, it
has right to Judge of the motives of all
concerned in the enforcement ofexclusion
laws, and it has the courage to say that it
does not see reason for the outburst in
certain quarters against the Administra-
ton because of the registration law, the
seating of which Administration in au-
thority the REooRD-UNIoN opposed.
1t is very evident that those who are
demanding the impeachment of Presi-
dent Cleveland have not a full under
standing of what that means, for what it
may be invoked, or of the character and
aim of the law which it is charged the
President does not promptly enforce.
Mr.. Cleveland's political friends are
equal to the offering of apologies for any
errors he may make. but the President OF
the United States is to us the executive of
the Nation, and as such his acts must be
judged with perfect GOODNESS and free
from all political prejudice. We have
carefully weighed the complaint made
against the President and examined into
the position he occupies as an executive
toward the registration law, and for the
life of US we cannot discover any reason
in the demand sounded by some of the
press for the impeachment of the Presi-
dent.
THE OUTRAGE IN SAN FRAN