Year: 1865

stand" and it is now plain that the repub-
Ecap party is divided. Yesterday we
published some extracts from a speech re-
Gently made by senator Sherman, Of Ohio,
in which, following the lead of Sumner,
Boutwell, Phillips, the New York indie
pendent, etc, he assailed the reconstruc-
tion policy of the president, and demanded
that the southern states be subjected to
military government until they were viii
ling to accept '.colored suffrage The
The New York Tribune, while earnestly
supporting the principle, is not certain
that it would be polite to come to rup-
ture with the president on it. 1t needs
but to continue its present course to pre-
pare the minds of its readers for the rup-
ture, whether it wishes or not to precip-
tate collision with the president. As
usual, the radicals in that party are driv-
ing the conservatives. Chief Justice
Chase has left the Supreme court to
transact business without his assistance,
and has entered the field in behalf of the
negroes, and his pariisans are eagerly
following his example. The poor old
morning abolition newspaper concern of
this city has long restrained its wrath
against the president, but yesterday morn-
ing it bec1me too violent for repression.
1t assails his whole system Of reconstruc-
ton, and points out with much perspi-
cacity and persplcuity the damage which
it will inhict on TIE '.interests of God and
humanity" and the members of "a party
founded on a great moral idea engaged
in these interests. We append its fore
bodings:


'.The bars being thus let down to the
rebels and put up against the abolitionistS
in those states, the rebels will pour in and
take possession of the state government.
When this operation has been gone thro'
in all the southern states and their sena-
tors and representatives are sitting in
congress, the north will wake up to the
fact that not only is slavery not abolished
in fact, and the cause Of past and future
war not removed, but that the Union con
tans sixteen bitterly copperhead states,
opposed to its abolition, and eager to re-
pudiate the national debt And "union-
lists of the Holden and Sharkey class will,
vote the copperhead ticket every time"


The evils which will result from the
continuance of the present method of re-
construction being thus clearly shown, the
duty of the president in the premises is
indicated in the subioined extract


While we sincerely deprccaic a differ
ence of opinion between president Johnson
and the majority of his party on this
question. we cannot shut our eyes to the
fact that such difference already exists
President johnson if he is the man we
take him to be, will meet his party in con-
gress with manly liberation and a hearty
respect to the opinions Of all


1t is precisely because president Johns
son is the man it takes him to be" tlat
the poor old morning abolition concern of
tn city docs not believe that he will be
bullied or driven by congress into an
abandonment of his present position. lie
will meet congress with all the respect to
which it is entitled, and will do ali he hon
orably can to avoid rupture with it. He
fully appreciates the embarrassment to
himself and injury to the nation which
might result from the refusal of congress
to perform the proper Legislation to carry
on the government. But if he is met per-
emptorily by that body with demand that
he shall adopt and enforce Whitingism;
that he shall treat the southern states as
having forfeited all rights by secession, or,
rather, as having lawfully changed their
status in the union by an attempt at Sc
cession,-h will treat the demand with a
irmness consistent with his character and
with his whole public life, in whatever
situation he has been placed He did not
defy secession in Tennessee, when a sena-
tor and without power to meet it, to sub
NIT in Washington to insolent dictation
from any body of men when he, as presi-
dent, can WELD the resources of the ma
ton. 1t may be found that the enlarged
view of presidential authority which has
been industriously inculeated the past four
years may be made applicable to those
who have appeared as its advocates in a
manner which will raise doubts in their
minds as to its correctness If President
johnson is the bad man whom we predict
the poor old morning abolition newspaper
concern of this city Will describe him to be
before many months have passed, we should
have no doubt that he would exercise
+ such powers as would be necessary 10 pun.
ish his opponents without regard to consti-
tutlonal restrictions, and find in the doc,
trines of the party which elected him an
ample justification. His respect for con
stitutional obligations, for which they now
assal him, will prove their safeguard
against such insult, lawlessness and oppres
sion as the democratic party have been
subjected to during the war. 1t Is evi


dent that the leaders of the republican
party have determined upon pressing con
gress to fight with President Johnson
on his reconstruction policy. We trust
there is enough Of conservatism left in thai
body to avoid the mischief to which it is
being melted, but if We are mistaken in
this, it is reasonably safe to assume that il
will come out of the contest very much
as Butler did with the mason at Lowell
Considering that presidential election
is somewhat remote, the political questions
of the day are of unusual interest, and
promise to become daily more interesting.