Year: 1868

the ballot to them all Give an individual
an immediate participation in the ad-
administration of government, and that in :
dividual is at once interested in its support.
The denial of the right of franchise to any
class of the citizens was deemed by Mr.. Doug
lass as one Of the perls which could be RENE
died however by making it what the Declara-
tion of Independence in substance asserted it
to be--a government of Democratic Republi-
canism. Hs-considered the eligibility of the
Presidentiol incumbent to a second term Of
oihce, as another of the perils which stood
ready to strike at the perpetuity and prosper
ity of our existing constitution. Our plan
should be so arranged as to give to no man
the temptation of intriguing for second term
Of office. If his term of Office was fixed and
definite, the grand ambition of President
would be to make himself name in history
growing ont of great and noble deeds; to
mark his era by the permanent advancement
of the land. As it was now, all his policy was
carefully studied with view to reelection
which in itself crushed out all the grand and
noble aspirations which would otherwise be
the ruling motives of our Chief Executives
But more than all this he contended, was the
monstrous power entrusted to his hands. A
man who evidently ought to be simply the ex-
ecutive of the legislative power of the nation
possessed a power which could render that
legislation almost nugstory. He possessed
the right to nominate class of officials ia the
government. who were numbered by the
thousands, and 1t was not in human nature to
allow the use of so much power to go uncor-
rupted. He also was commander in chief of
the army and navy. What need Andrew
Johnson-what need any President fear from
an impeachment, so long as he possessed un-
limited control over the military power of the
United States? A Congress dares not impeach
President, because that President can defy
aught that may be done, by the use of this
terrible arm. In the Judgment of the speaker,
the President should always be responsible to
the people, and dismissed whenever the people
lost their confidence in him. AS it was, man
who had vote in reference to this matter,
was free until his ballot was deposited, but no
longer, because after he had voted, the mat
ter was beyond his control, until at least four
years had rolled away. The orator also ad-
vanced, as one of the leading dangers of the
republic, the veto power of the President
the genius of free institutions. 1t was a Gus
tom engrafted upon US by the old monarchies
of Europe, aud asserted in the very fact of its
existence that one man knew more about what
was good for the nation than did the majority
of the peoples representatives The doctrine
of our country was that the majorities must
rule the one man, and the doctrine of the veto
power was that the one man must rule the ma
jority. Great Britain had this veto principle
engrafted upon her constitution, but for one
hundred and fifty years no sovereign had been
found sufficiently bold to use it. The Senate
of the United States were a superior body Of
men compared with those who compose the
British Parliament, and while the Executive
OF the latter nation did not dare to use that
power once in couple of centuries, with u:
the President could issue US a veto every
morning, and in most instances nullify tht
clearest intentions of the peoples representa-


ives. This power he held should be abolished
and the will of the majority be the law of tn,
land. He considered the office of Vice pres
ident to be another fruitful source of peril. HI
did not intimate that any of that class of mer
had been guilty of crime in obtaining theil
elevation to the presidency, but still they were
often indirectly the cause of the murder of
their chiefs. The slavcocracy had shown
their willingness in later days to use both the
bullet and the poison to accomplish their ends
and there was no special reason to doubt that
they had done it before. 1t was an easy mat
ter to ascertain how a Vice president would
act in case he were elevated to the presidency
and then let Diraae Providence remove the
President or not as might seem to them to be
the best. Gen. Harrison was known in his
private sentiments to be opposed to slavery
and John Tyler was not so opposed. General
Harrison died at once, and John Tyler tool
his place. Gen. Taylor was slave holder
but still desired the admission of California as
free state, and Mllard Fillmore did not SC
desire it. Gen. Taylor died in month or tw
and Fillmore took his place in the interests o.
the South. Jas. Buchanen was timid, un.
reliable sort of man, from the north, end Johr
c. Breckenridge was bold unsrcupulous slave
holder from the south. Buchanen was pois
oned, and although he recovered, yet he neve
opposed the South again. Abraham Lincolr
was incorruptible on the point of southern su'
premaoy, and Andrew Johnson was in sympa
thy with that supremacy, and so Abraham
Lincoln died, and Andrew johnson is in the
Presidents chair. 1t is not needed that tn
Vice president kill his chief, it is only needed
that his sentiments are known to be in sympa
thy with bad men, and there are plenty of bat
men to. do the killing, without his concurrence


This office, the lecturer thought, ought to b
abolished, both as useless il itself, and as lead
ing to crime.


Mr.. Douglass spoke for two hours and
| hal f, and closed with an eloquent appeal fo
the enfranchsement of his race, founded no


only upon their inherent manhood, but tnei
love for the republic, as evinced during tn


war. He ridiculed the idea of there bein


any peril in the experiment, as the Africa'
race were only, all told, one ninth of the en-


tire people, and were besides weighed dow


with two and q half centuries of slavery


together with long ages of barbarism beyond


and it was unworthy of the three-story brain


of the white race to fear the Authorization Q


the government. His lecture was well receive


by the large audience present, and it was un


derstood that at some not very distant day h


would lecture again in our city


NUMBERING THE DOC RS.


| This subject has heretofore been &C ventila'
| ed - in the columns of the Pioneer and tn