Year: 1868

- SAP'S'o anu we'll guarded provisions.


l think, therefore, Sir, that yery great
caution Is to be used, and the ground well
considered, before we admit that the Presi-
dent derives any distinct and specific power
from those general words which vest the exc
cutive authority in him. The Constitution
itself does not rest satisfied with these general
words. 1t immediately goes into particulars,
ana carefully enumerates the several authori-
ties which the President shall possess. The
very first of the enumerated powers is the
Army and Navy. This, most certainly. is
an executive power. And why is it partier
larly set down and expressed, if any power
was intended to be granted under the general
words? This would pass, if anything would
pass, under these words. But enumeration.
specification, particularization, was evident.
ly the design of the trainers of the Constitu-
ton, In this as in other parts of it. / do not
therefore, regard the declaration that the
executive power shall be vested in President
as being any grant at all ; any more than
the declaration that the legislative power
snail be vested IN Congress constitutes. In
the one case as In the other, | think the
| OBJECT was to describe and denominate the
department which should hold, respectively,
the legislative and executive authority yery
much as we see, in some of the State Consti
tutlons, that the several articles are headed
with the titles Legislative power" "exe
cutive power" Judicial power - and this
emitting of the articles with the name of the
power has never been supposed, of itself, to
confer any authority whatever. 1t amounts
to no more than naming the departments.


II, then, the power of removal be admitted
to be an executive power, still it must be
sought for and found among the enumerated
executive powers, or fairly imr lied from some
one or more of them. 1t cannot be implied
from the general words. The power of ap-
pointment was not left to be so implied !;
why, then, should the power of removal
have been so left? They are both closely
connected; one is Indispensable to the other;
why. then, was one carefully expressed, de-
| fined, and limited, and not one word said
about the other?


Sir, think the whole matter is sufficiently
plain. Nothing is said in the Constitution
about the power of removal, because it is not
separate and distinct power. 1t is part of
the power OF appointment, naturally going
with 1t or necessarily resulting from it. The
Constitution or the laws may separate these
! powers, it is true, in particular case. as is
done in respect to the Judges, who, though
appointed by the President and Senate, can.





both. Soa statute, in prescribing the tenure
OF any other office, may place the officer be-
yond the reach of the appointing power
But where no other tenure is prescribed, and
officers hold their places at will, that will is
necessarily the will of the appointing power
because the exercise of the power of appoint
ment at once displaces such officers. The
power :f placing one man in office necessar.
ly impl.c' the power of turning another out.
lfone man be Secretary of State, and another
be appointed, the first goes out bv the mere
force OF the appointment of the other with
out any previous act of removal whatever.-
And this is the practice of the Government.
and has been from the first. In all the
removals which have been made, thev have
generally been effected simply by making
other appointments. / cannot find case to
the contrary. There is no distinct official
act of removal. | have looked into the prac.
tice, and caused inquiries to be made in the
departments, and | do not learn that any
such proceeding is known as an entry or
record of the removal of an officer from
Office; and the President could only act, in
such cases, by causing some proper record or
entry to be made as proof of the fact of re-
moral. l am aware that there have been
some cases in which notice has been sent to
Z,
will be, after a given day, dispensed with
These are usually cases in which the object
is, not to inform the incumbent that he is
remored. but to tell him that successor
either is. or by day named will be appoint
ed. Ifthere be any instances in which such
notice is given without express reference to
the appointment OF successor, they are few;
and even in these, such reference must be
lmplied; because in no case is there any dis
tlnct official act of removal, that can find,
unconnected with the act of appointment
At any rale, it is the usual practice, and has
been from the first, to consider the appoint
ment as producing the removal of the pre-.
vious incumbent. When the President de
sires to remove person from office. he sends
a message to the Senate nominating some
other person. The message usually runs in
this form g nominate A B. to be Colec-
tor OF the Customs, etc., in the place of q.
d., removed" If the Senate advise and
| consent to this nomination, G. d. is effec-
tually out of office, and A. B. is in, in his
place. The same effect would be produced
if the message should say nothing of any
removal. Suppose A. B. to be Secretary of
State, and the President to send us message,
saying merely, :" 1 nominate c. D. to be
Secretary of State" If we confirm this
nomination, C. d. becomes Secretary of
State. and A. B. is necessarily removed


have gone into these details and particu
lars. Sir, for the purpose of showing, that.
not only in the nature of things. but also
according to the practice of the Government,
the power of removal is incident to the power
of appointment. 1t belongs to it, is attach
ed to it, forms part of it, or results from it.


If this be true, the inference is manifest.
If the power Of removal, when not otherwise
regulated by Constitution or law, be part and
parcel of the power of appointment, or
necessary incident to it, then whoever holds
the power of appointment holds also the
power of removal. But it is the President
and the Senate, and not the President alone.
who holds the power of appointment; and
therefore, according to the true construction
of the Constitution, it should be the Pres'-
dent and Senate, and not the President
alone, who hold the power of removal.


A MOVEMENT is being made in Paris to re-
1