Year: 1868

victon shall not extend further than removal
honor trust or profit under the United States Here,
then there Is to be the trial Of crime, trial by
tribunal designated by the constitution In the place
guilt Is proved Judgment on that conviction and
Punshment indicted by the judgment OF the court,
ton say then that it Is impossible to come TO the
conclusion that the constitution Of the United States
has not designated impeachment offences offences
trial OF these offences; it has established .
tribunal Tor the purpose of trying them; 1t has d.
rected the tribunal, in case OF conviction to pro-
nounce Judgment and to innlct punishment; and
yet the honorable Manager tells that this is not


court and rhat It Is bound by no law But the argu


ions OF the constitution or the direct subject Of i'm


peachment, II IS, at any rate vastly strengthened


no bill OF atalnder or er post J1cto law. According
to that prohibition OF the constitution II every mem
II every member Of the other House also sitting in
legislative capacity, should unite In passing an act


Woad be be- Of no account Y wSa u s
here by the honorable Managers on behalf Of the
House Of Representatives. 1t Is claimed that as
Congress can make law to punish those acts II no
members Of the Senate may, sitting here as judges,
not only after the fact but when the case Is brought
to trial. create, each individual for himself law upon
the subject. The claim on the part OF the honorable
Managers would clohe each one OF you with imperial
powers. 1t would enable you to say, Sic volO, SIC
jttbes; stat pro rdtiosse Uolttds make alaw unto
myself by which law propose to govern othersl





minister justice impartiay In this case according to
the constitution and the laws. But according to the
view OF the honorable Manager tnat oatn wo4a
Senator might himself make for his own govern.
ment. / respectfully submit that this view cannot
consistently and properly be taken OF the nature OF
this trial. or OF the duties and powers incumbent on
this body. Look for moment, II you please, at the
shall not pa bill Of attainder What is bill Of at
tainderf It is law made by parliament to apply to
to use the phrase OF the honorable Manager, "a law
III unto %, himself" AND n he is to act according


would be the prohibition In the constitution against


the passage OF bills Of attainders II it is only


majority to vote articles OF impeachment and for


twOthirds Of the Senate to sustain those articles


and depends on identicaly the same principles as a


bill Of attainder In the English Parliament II Is the


Individual Wills Of the legislators instead OF the con-


scientious discharge OF the duty OF the Judge.


submit, then Senators, that this view Of the duties


and powers Of the body cannot be entertained.


ayers to obtain conviction on this tenth


article Is attended with so much popularity


en a II Y the % @ Se q t1s g for s prs


framed upon the allegation that the President broke
law. Isuppose the honorable Managers did not
intend to carry this 80 far as to say that unless you
find that the President did Intentionally break law
those articles sustained. Therefore there must
broke a law. You must fnd that a law existed:
You must construe 1t and apply 1t to the case.
You must find criminal intention on his part to
break law before he can be found guilty On these
articles But when we come to this tenth article we


find 1t stands on no law at ALL but Is attended
plant plain s' Is that the President ~ made % speeches
against Congress. The true statements would
ss Sch in ose the the
the word Congress" Undoubtedly be did not mean
the entire constitutional body organized under the
constitution OF the United States he meant the d0mt
nant majority. Everybody understood 1t; but the
complaint is that ne made speeches against this
the Grand Jurors In this case one OF the parties;
the complainants. And who are the triersf the
other c0mRlalnnans Ina NOW think there Is some IN
direction. The honorable House Of Representatives
That the House OF Representatives has erected itself


into school OF manners and selecting from Its ranks
precept and example to teach decorum Of speech, It
desires the Judgment Of this body as to whether the
indecorum-whether he has spoken improperly-for
that is the phrase Of the honorable Managers. Now,


there used to be oldfashi0ned notion that though


there ought to be difference Of opinion about


speeches, that very important test in reference to


them was whether they were true or false-whether
that In this case that is no test at oil. The
honorable Manager Mr. Butler), in opening the
n Hsse :omo nodns SUPPOSE tnat was


has done 1t in these terms -: rue wvius sTo
cause il Is not within the power Of any man. however
high his official position, In effect TO sander the Con-
gress OF the United States in the ordinary sense Of
that word so as to call upon Congress to answer as
to the truth Of the accusation" Considering the
nature OF our government considering the expert
that Is q pretty lofty claim II we go back to the
time Of the Plantagenets and seek Tor precedents
made beg leave to read from two statutes
one from Edward l., chapter "a, aud the other
IT. from Richard H. chapter r,s The statute
enacts "That from henceforth one be 80 hardy to
sell or publish any false news or tales whereby dis
cord or occasion OF diSc0rd or sander may grow be-
the realm and that he that doth so shall be taken and
kept In prison na ne % shall have been brought into


dealers In false news and In horrible and false lies
against dukes, princes earls, and other mobiles and
treasurer, clerk OF the privy seals, the judges and
other great officers OF the realm" so that the Sena


tors win see that even In those distant times high
horrible and false lies;" and II Will be
remembered that In the course OF our own ex-
administration Of Mr.. Adams, an attempt was made
to check not freedom Of speech, but freedom Of writ
OF posterity withthe name Of 1.-THE Sedition Iaw.n
senators will find that although Il applied only to
the truth OF the libel might be given in evidence.
That was law, as senators know, making IL penal,
by written publications, to excite hatred or contempt
second section. IL enacts "that II any person shall
WRITE print utter publish shall procure
and willingly assist or aid in writing printing utter
ing publishing any false scandalous and malicious
or either house Of ts Congress- Of the United States
or the President OF the United states with intent TO
defame the said government or either house Of said
Congress, the said President, to bring them or
either Of them into contempt or disrcspcct, or TO
excite against them or either of them the hatred Of
the good people Of the United States OF to start up
sedition within the United States, or to excite ur-
lawful combinations therein" &c. The third section
enacts that II any person shall be prosecuted under
this act for the printing or publishing Of any libel 10
shall be lawful lor the defendant the trial OF the
case TO give Ia evidence In his defence Of the truth OF
the matter contained In the published charge, and
that the jury who shall try the shall have the
right TO determine the law and the facts,
under the direction Of the court, as In other
cases. desire now to read from the
fourth volume OF Madison's works, pages 5f2 and
547, a short passage which In my judgment is as
mastery as anything Mr. Madison ever wrote on the
subject OF the relations Of the Congress OF the United
States In contrast with the relations OF the govern
ment OF Great Britain and the people OF that island
The essential difference between the British govern
ment and American constitution viii place this sub


ect In the cleares light. In the British government