Evening star., 1925-04-26


defending him before the calm, digni-
fed Supreme Court of the United
States. The rights of the Senate, on
the other hand, are upheld in the
same place by a member of that dis
tinguished body. President Andrew
Johnson had vastly different expert
ence in the same sort of a contro-
versy, brought 10 a crisis by his cryp-
tic note to his War Minister, Ed
win NJ. Stanton:
Sir: Public considerations of a high
character constrain me TO say that
your resignation as Secretary of War
will be accepted.
ANDREW JOHNSON,
President of the United States"
Stanton was equally crypt He re-
piled on the same day as follows:
''Sir: Your note this day has been
received, stating that public consider
ations of a high character constrain
you to say that my resignation as
Secretary of War will be accepted.
I'm reply, l have the honor to say
that public considerations of a high
character. which alone have induced
me TO continue at the head of this
department. constrain me not to re-
sign the Office of Secretary of War
before the next meeting of Congress.
EDWIN 81. STANTON,
Secretary of War"
BY the time this exchange occurred
august 5, 1852 Congress and Presi-
dent Johnson had thrown all pretense
to the winds and were fighting with
bare knuckles. Spades were spades.
He came into the presidency
through the door of assassination" :"
declared Congressman James NJ
AShl vi ha
into the minds of men as to his COM
plicity in the assassination plot
In strid>St voice Ashley called
upon the people of America "to de-
clare that no man hereafter elected
President or Vice President shall
present himself at his inauguration
drunk "a story about Johnson later
disproved); that no President shall be
permitted to turn the White House
into a den of thieves and pardon
brokers; nor shall he be permitted to
a drunken, bowling mob from the
steps of the Executive Mansion"
Ashley further asserted that the
nation cried out to Congress to de-
liver them from the shame and dis
grace the acting President has
brought upon them; that the loathing
incubus which has blotted our coun-
try's history with the foulest blot
shall be removed"
And johnson fought back He took
the stump in the congressional cam
paign, to try to prevent the re-elec-
ton of the men who were combat
ing him. With his pugnacious I'M
der-lip stuck out farther than ever,
his square, vigorous form tense, his
eye flashing fire and his fists clenched
he declared:
"I would ask you, with all the
pains this Congress has taken to
poison the minds of their constitu-
ents against me, what has this Con-
gress done? Have they done any
thing to restore the Union? No,
On the contrary, they have done
everything to prevent 1T.
IF my predecessor had lived" he
said in another speech, "the walls
of wrath from a mendacious press
and subsidized gang of hirelings
would have been poured out upon
him, as upon me-
Referring, on another occasion, to
the leadership in Congress, he said:
II have been fighting traitors South
They have been whipped and crushed
and acknowledge their defeat. Now
l am fighting traitors North. Some
talk about traitors in the South
when they had not the courage to
go away from their homes and fight
but remained cowardly at home spec
ulating and committing frauds on
the Government"
X X
JOINING with the Congressional
leaders was "Parson" Brewnlow
of Johnson's own state of Tennessee,
one of the Presidents worst haters,
telegraphing joyously the news of
Tennessee's ratification of the four
teenth amendment:
Hon. J. w. Ferney,
Secretary United States Senate,
Washington.
I'VE have fought the battle and
won it. We have ratified the consti-
tutional amendment in the House
43 voting for it, II against 1t and
two of Andrew Johnson's tools not
voting. Give my respects to the dead
dog in the White House.
''W. G.. BROWNLOW."
Despite protest by the little hand
full of Johnson's friends, this mes
sage was read aloud and entered in
the record.
! Being one OF the most courageous