The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1896-06-25
THE PEOPLES FRIEND.
Brief Sketch Of Senator Mitch
ellis Public Life at Wash
ington.

| SOn May 16, 1876, Sen. Mitchell
addressed the senate on the ques.
ton of restriction of Chinese i'm
migration, this being the first Of
several speeches he made on this
subject. In powerful language lie
pointed out the dangers which this
immigration threatened and the
necessity for some prompt and de
cisive action Following hard upon
this came the impeachment pro
ceedings against Secretary of Wa1
Belknap. 1t will be remembered
that Belknap resigned his office to
escape impeachment, and the ques
tion for the senate to decide was
whether, not being in office, i'm
peachment proceedings agains,
him were concluded. In a brieI
but mastery argument, Mr.. Mitch
ell laid down the proposition that
he could not thereby escape, and
we cannot forbear making the fol
lowing excerpt from it:
"'The fact that the constitution
empowered the senate to disquali-
| fly as we'll as remove from office,
would, it seems to me. be Il per
feet answer to the assumption that
the sole purpose of impeachment
is the removal from office. 70
prevent, therefore, in the discretion
of the senate, return to office Of
one who had proved unworthy
while in Office, to the extent OF
committing an impeachable often Sc
was evidently regarded as means
of protection to public liberty, so
necessary to the guardianship ol
the high interests of the state, as
to secure for it place in explicit
terms in our fundamental law. To
place upon the constitution, there
fore, such construction as would
make it possible for great public
offender, by the simple voluntary
act Of resignation, to evade his
part of the penalty, and thus
trample, unchecked and defiantly,
upon one OF the great constitu-
tional projections with which the
rights and liberties of the whole
people are surrounded. seems to
me to cast libel upon the wis
dom, the intelligence, the legal
learning of tile men who made the
constitution.
"'Wh le to the president was
given the power to grant reprieves
and pardons for ofenses against
the United States, an exception
was made in cases Of impeach-
ment. This is the 'unpardonable
sim of the constitution, So dan
gerous was the commission of an
impeachable offense regarded by
the trainers Of thu constitution to
the vitality and the purity of the
life of our body polite, that the
offender is placed forever beyond
the reach of restoration through
executive clemency; and yet will
it be said that the criminal himself.
after polluting the official robe and
taintlng the public virtue by his
own official crime, can evade the
penalties of the constitution and
batter down the Safeguards of the
nation by quietly surrendering his
Office? Can he thus pardon his
offense before conviction? l can
not accept construction SO fatal
in its results to the very existence
of the power of impeachm ant in
corporated in the constitution
"The celebrated case of the
electoral vote OF Oregon, in 1876,
excited the attention of the whole
country. AS one of the ranking
members of the committee Oh
privileges and elections, the same
committee by the way, of which
he is now chairman, he had charge
of the matter for the republican
side. He rested his case on the
ground that the governor Was
plainly directed by the law to is
sue the certificate of election to
the person or persons receiving the
highest number of votes; that he
had no right to exercise judicial
functions as he did in the case of
Watts; that, being purely minis
terial officer, he had no Jurisdic
ton to enter into the question of
eligibility, to entertain it, to adjn-
dlcate it. He had usurped the
prerogatives Of another tribunal
and violated the law he had sworn
to enforce. On the day that he
addressed the senate on the sub
ject, he had prepared no set speech,
for he delivered it unexpectedly.
The gallerly was thronged. every
body was wrought up to the high
est tention. Clearly and emphat-