The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1913-09-04
IMPEACHMENT PROCEEDINGS.
There Have Been Seven Previous
Cases In This Country.

The impeachment proceedings
against Governor William Sulzer, of
New York, have caused many to ask
if there has ever been a governor in
the United States impeached. There
has. but not in many years, to be
exact, not since 1876 Impeachment
proceedings have been brought against
seven governors in this country.
Of that number, two were removed,
one was acquitted, one resigned and
the proceedings against three were
dropped.
Charles Robinson, of Kansas, was
the first chief executive of state to
face impeachment proceedings. In
1862, his state needed money and
consequently a bond issue of $780,
600 was made. Money was scarce at
that time; the civil war having just
started, and the only purchaser that
could be found'was the United States
government. The United States had
money in trust at the time for sever
al Indian tribes which the Federal
government was authorized to prop
erly invest. Arrangements were made
to sell the bonds to a claim agent,
but it seems that the signature of
one of the Kansas senators which
was necessary to complete the deal,
could not be secured. The governors S
agent it is claimed, paid $1,000
and secured the signature by fraud.
Impeachment proceedings were in
stituted against the governor and 9TH
er state officials, but the governor
was acquitted.
The next governor to face pro-
ceedings of this kind was Harrison
Reed, Of Florida, in 1868. He was
accused of falsehood and lying in
official matters, incompetency, un-
lawfully declaring legislative seats
vacant, embezzlement from the state
treasury and corruption and bribery
in appointments. So vacant had the
state legislature become that when
the charges were presented to the
senate, only eight senators were on
hand to hear the impeachment pro-
cedings. The impeachment automat-
ically suspended Reed from Office and
Lieutnant Governor Gleason was
put in his place. Following the dis
position of the governor, the assem-
bly, adjourned for two months. The
senate refused to adjourn, and act
ing Governor Gleason adjourned it
himself. Governor Reed, however,
declined to leave the office and took
the matter to court. The court re-
moved Gleason as governor and rein
stated Reed. The supreme court of
the United States reversed the lower
court and Gleason went back to gov
ernor protein. Two months later the
new legislature, filled, dropped the
matter and Reed resumed the Office.
The next governor to face charges
was William w. Holden, of North
Carolina, in 1870, and he was remov-
er from office. His case was par
ticularly interesting inasmuch as it
involved the doings of the famous
ku Klux Klan, which had been COM
mitting numerous crimes in two
counties of the state. County author
tiles seemed unable to cope with the
situation, or reluctant to try it, and
the governor was APPEALED to. He
proclaimed martial law and sent the
militia into them. The colonel in
charge of the soldiers made many ar
rests and disregarded writs of habeas
corpus served upon him in which he
was backed by the governor. The fight
which the governor made against
the Klan led to his impeachment
by the legislature and his disqualifi-
cation from holding office again in
North Carolina.
Powell Clayton, of Arkansas, in
1871, was the next. He was impeach-
ed by the legislature, charged with,
among other things, conspiring to de-
prive the lieutenant governor of his
Office, illegally removing judges from
office and illegally filling their places,
taking part in election frauds and
with unlawfully having issued state
bonds for the benefit of certain rail-
roads. In order that the governor
might not get away, he was locked in
the executive chamber and the door
nailed He escaped, however, and
campaigned so effectively for him