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INDEX OF CONTENTS. 



recent electiou, 127. The number of blacks in tbia 

 District is very large, and promises to become larger, 

 127 ; this privilege of voting may be exercised by 

 them to the detriment of the rest of the public, 127 ; 

 the colored people have rights, 127 ; bill passed in 

 Senate, 127; do. in the House, 127; resolution to ask 

 of the President whether the bill had gone to the Sec- 

 retary of State, 128; reply of the President, 128; 

 moved to refer it to Judiciary Committee, 128 ; error 

 of the President's views, 128 ; what the Constitution 

 requires, 128 ; further debate, 129 ; message referred, 

 129. 



In the House, a resolution to impeach President 

 Johnson considered, 129 ; threats of the Speaker to 

 the galleries, 130 ; meaning of high crimes and mis- 

 demeanors, 130 ; the President has in his hands the 

 immense patronage of the Government, 130 ; all facts 

 point to one conclusion, that the President is guilty 

 of using the great powers of the nation for the pur- 

 pose of reconstructing the Government in the inter- 

 ests of the rebellion, 130 ; influence of Cabinet offi- 

 cers, 130 ; his proclamation of 1865, 131 ; not under- 

 stood, 131 ; his motive concealed, 131 ; testimony of 

 Matthews, of Ohio, 131 ; declared the country could 

 not be saved except by the Democratic party, 131 ; 

 that expression discloses his mysterious course to 

 this day, 132 ; acts which disclose his guilt, 132 ; mes- 

 sage of December, 132 ; speech of February, 1866, 132 ; 

 his vetoes, 132 ; interference to prevent the ratifica- 

 tion of the constitutional amendment, 132 ; suspends 

 the test-oath, 132; surrender of abandoned lands, 

 132 ; turned over millions of captured railway prop- 

 erty to its former owners, 132 ; holds Tennessee 

 bonds, 133; appointment of provisional governors, 

 133; these are impeachable offences, 133; proposi- 

 tions laid down in his last message, 133 ; what is 

 our condition to-day ? 133 ; involved in financial diffi- 

 culties, 134 ; substantially impossible to collect the 

 taxes while the Tenure-of-Office Act is in force, 134 ; 

 there is no remedy for grievances while Mr. Johnson 

 is in office, 134 ; all rests here, 134 ; this House has the 

 Bole power of impeachment, 134 ; this body must be 

 guided by the law, and not by that indefinite some- 

 thing called conscience, which may be one thing to- 

 day, and quite a different thing to-morrow, 134 ; the 

 facts advanced examined, 135, 136; it is feared the 

 failure to impeach and remove the President will de- 

 feat the congressional plan of reconstruction, 136 ; 

 we may not impeach for this, 136 ; the resolution re- 

 jected, 137. 



In the House, a resolution to impeach President 

 Johnson again offered, 137; referred without debate 

 to the Committee on Reconstruction, 137 ; report of 

 the committee, 137 ; resolution to impeach the Presi- 

 dent reported, 138 ; the fact of removing a man from 

 office without the consent of the Senate, while it is in 

 session, is of itself, and always has been, considered 

 a high crime and misdemeanor, 138 ; why is this at- 

 tempted ? 138 ; the sacrifice of two or three branches 

 of Government deemed indispensably necessary to 

 keep the Republican party in power, 138 ; the Presi- 

 dent has thrown himself violently in contact with an 

 act of Congress, 138 ; this is a vast question, 138 ; it 

 is the construction of vital provisions of the Consti- 

 tution of our country, 139 ; these proceedings of re- 

 moval are necessary only for a usurper, whom the 

 people have repulsed and thwarted time and again, 

 139 ; it is known that men ascend to power over 

 bloody steps, and that they may do it in this country, 

 and yet be tolerated, 139. 



Call this question what we may, it is apparent the 

 leaders of this Congress are prepared to take the 

 final plunge into the sea of revolution, 139. 



What has been the act of the President, is the 

 question, 139 ; look at the evidence, and then read 

 the law, 140 ; what are the relations of the President 

 to the members of his Cabinet ? 140 ; can the country 

 hold him responsible, and yet render him powerless, 

 by filling the high offices of his department with per- 

 sons hostile to the success of his administration? 

 140 ; the whole is a question of construction, 141. 



The safety of the country, the cause of good gov- 

 ernment, the preservation of constitutional right and 

 of public liberty, depend upon the prompt impeach- 

 ment of the President, 141 ; nearly every department 

 of the Government has become demoralized and cor- 

 rupt to an extent which can find no parallel in the 

 history of any country, in any age, 141 ; confronted as 

 we are by this state of things, so threatening to our 

 national existence, can there be any patriotic man 

 who does .not call upon Congress sternly to do its 

 whole duty, and purge this capitol of the crimes 

 which defile the nation ? 142. 



Your right to impeach is denied, 142; this House 

 is not composed as the Constitution requires, 142 ; 

 neither is the Senate composed of two Senators from 

 each State, 142; you have no right to do it, 142; who 

 believes this is a movement of the lovers of the Con- 

 stitution? 142; why is Stanton so anxious to hold 

 his office ? 142 ; can the Government exist with war- 

 ring departments ? 143. 



A grave subject, 143 ; the charges few and distinct, 

 143 ; what are the official misdemeanors of Andrew 

 Johnson disclosed by the evidence ? 143 ; his oath of 

 office, 143 ; the animus with which this law was vio- 

 lated, 143 ; issuing the commission to Thomas, if it 

 stood alone, would be an undeniable misdemeanor, 

 144 ; shall prove he was guilty of misprision of brib- 

 ery, 144 ; the final disposition of the Southern States 

 belonged to Congress, 144 ; resolution adopted, 145 ; 

 a committee appointed to draft articles, 145; im- 

 peachment laid before the Senate, 145 ; message re- 

 ferred, 146 ; resolution of instructions to cpmmittee 

 on rules, 146 ; resolutions on the constitutional re- 

 sponsibility of Senators for their votes, 146. (See 

 Impeachment.) 



In the Senate, a bill introduced to amend the " act 

 to provide for the more efficient government of the 

 rebel States," 147 ; to change the provision that re- 

 quires a majority of all the registered votes, 147; 

 amendment offered, 147 ; requiring certain qualifica- 

 tions of those who were not voters before the war, 

 147 ; the greatest issue ever before the people of the 

 United States is now looming up that is, whether 

 this shall be a white man's Government, or a negro 

 Government, 147, 148 ; it is said that a great sin has 

 been committed by conferring the franchise upon the 

 negro, 148 ; the charge repudiated that Congress has 

 attempted to set up a negro Government, 148 ; sub- 

 ject referred, 149. 



In the House, a motion to refer the President's 

 message, and accompanying documents relative to 

 reconstruction, to a committee of nine, 149 ; passed, 

 149 ; the committee, 149 ; resolutions relative to re- 

 construction, 149 ; a bill to facilitate, etc., offered, 

 149 ; the bill explained, 150 ; first section restores the 

 majority principle, 150 ; the second aids the existing 

 law, 150 ; the third leaves the apportionment of rep- 

 resentatives as it was in I860, 150; third section 

 withdrawn, 151; constitutions will not be ratified 



