The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1894-01-30

through the failure of the pros,
obtain a two-thirds vote against
the senate on any one Of the eight
Giles Of impeachment. Ho resumed
seat on the bench and held it as long s
he lived.
About n quarter OF q century later,
James Ii. Peck, a federal district Judge
in Missouri, was impoached for oppress-
i've treatment Of an attorney. The case
was of no Importance. The Judge was
acquitted.
Thirty years afterward, at the begin
ming of the war of the rebellion, Judge
West FL. Humphreys of the federal dis
trict court Of Tennessee joined the Con.
federacy and accepted judicial office I'M
der it, without taking the trouble to
send his resignation to Washington. He
was impeached mainly in order to vacate
the office and convicted on June 20, 1862.
One Of tho witnesses summoned to an
pear against Judge Humphreys was An
drew johnson, then cove Tor Of Tennes-
see, destined himself to be the next sub
Ject OF impeachment proceedings be-
tore the senate. One Of the four sena-
tors who voted not guilty on the article
charging Judge Humphreys with high
treason was William Pitt Fessenden,
whose vote five years later saved An
drew johnson.
Andrew Johnson was impeached on
March 4, lSCG, the II articles charging
the president IN various forms with VIC
lation of the tenure of office act, with
violation of tho constitution, with con-
spiracy to prevent the execution of the
tenure OF Office act, with conduct and ut
teranccs tending 'to bring tho high Of
flee OF president into contempt, ridicule
and disgrace" and with the public de-
claration in his speeches while swinging
around the ctrclo that tho Thirty-ninth
congress WAS 40 constitutional legisla-
ture. 1t is not Necessary to recite tho
history OF tAo memorable trial, which
lasted for nearly three months and In
which tho hottest Of political passions
were enlisted. Thirty-six votes were
needed to convict. No vote was ever
taken except on the three strongest ar
ticles-the second, third and eleventh.
and on each of these the senate stood 50
for conviction to 10 for acquittal, i'm
parchment failing by Il single vote. One
of the counsel who defended President
johnson was the Hon. William NJ. Evarts
Of New York.
The seventh and last federal impeach-
ment was that OF William w. Belknap,
Grant'ssccretary of war. He was charged
IN 1876 with corruption in office, and the
house voted unanimously to impeach
him. He resigned hastily a few hours
before the passage of the impeachment
resolution, and his resignation was
promptly accepted by Grant. The trial
proceeded nevertheless. Belknap's de-
Tense was a denial of jurisdiction, based
on the circumstance that when tho i'm
parchment resolution passed the house
he had ceased to be a civil officer of the
United States. The impeachment pro-
ceedings failed by the lack of q two
thirds majority i'll tho senate for convic-
ton.
1t will be observed that in only two
cases have impeachment proceedings
against q civil officer Of the United
States been prosecuted successfully be
fore the senate by tho house of repre-
sentatives. One of these was for the re-
moval OF a drunken and profane judge,
whose presence upon tho bench was q
public scandal. The other was a purely
formal proceeding to vacato the office Of
n judge actually engaged in open rebel
lion against tho government, but tech
nically still an incumbent of his Office
under the government. OF the five un
successful impeachment proceedings on
record, two failed for want Of j1ris-
diction. or the whole seven cases, four
concerned judicial officers. Only onco
has there been an attempt to punish by
Impeachment n cabinet officer. Only
'nce has there been an attempt to pun
sh and remove by impeachment a presi-
dent Of tho United States.-New York
San.