ARKANSAS. 



29 



judges, for some unexplained reason, resigned, 

 and their places were supplied by appointment 

 of the Governor. The writ of quo warranto 

 was granted, requiring Mr. Johnson to show 

 by what authority he held the office of Lieu- 

 tenant-Governor. He shortly made answer, de- 

 claring that he was notified of his election on 

 the 1 st of May, 1868, and not on the 1st of April, 

 as had been alleged, and that he " within fifteen 

 days from and after the time said notice of his 

 election aforesaid was officially served upon 

 him, to wit, on the 5th day of May, A. D. 1868, 

 at the city of Little Rock aforesaid, and before 

 he entered on the discharge of the duties of said 

 office of Lieutenant-Governor of said State of 

 Arkansas, took the oath of office prescribed in 

 section 17 of article 15 of said constitution, 

 and which oath of office was then and there 

 administered to him, the said respondent, by 

 the Hon. T. D. W. Yonley, chancellor of the 

 separate Chancery Court of the county of Pu- 

 laski, in said State, and thereupon afterward, 

 and on the same day and year last aforesaid, at 

 said city of Little Rock, he, this respondent, 

 entered upon the discharge of the duties of 

 said office of Lieutenant-Governor, and has ever 

 since then continued to, and now does, have, 

 hold, use, exercise, and enjoy the same, and all 

 and singular the rights, franchises, privileges, 

 and immunities thereof, as he may and of right 

 lawfully do." 



At about the same time a bill was introduced 

 in the Senate by Mr. Mallory, who was the 

 Governor's personal choice as his own suc- 

 cessor, to the following effect: 



SECTION 1. That the office of all officers elected at 

 the election held on the 13th of March, A. D. 1868, 

 and succeeding days, provided for by the schedule to 

 the constitution of this State, and all offices filled by 

 appointment of the Governor, where the officers fill- 

 ing such offices have not qualified and entered upon 

 the discharge of the duties of their offices within 

 fifteen days after they have been duly notified of 

 their election or appointment, shall be deemed, and 

 they are hereby declared vacant ; and no such officer, 

 who shall have failed to qualify and enter upon the 

 discharge of his duties, as prescribed by this act, 

 shall hereafter exercise the functions or discharge 

 the duties of such office. 



SEC. 2. Be it further enacted, That the provisions 

 of this act shall extend to all officers hereafter to 

 be elected or appointed in this State. 



SEC. 3. Be it further enacted, That this act shall 

 take effect and be in force from and after its passage, 

 and all acts or parts of acts in conflict with this act 

 are hereby repealed. 



This act was never passed, owing, perhaps, 

 to the turn which events afterward took; 

 but it serves to show in some measure the 

 animus of the proceedings against the Lieuten- 

 ant-Governor and the concert of action be- 

 tween the Governor and his friends in the 

 Legislature. 



While the case of Lieutenant-Governor John- 

 son was still pending before the Supreme 

 Court, a movement was set on foot in the 

 House of Representatives for the impeachment 

 of both Governor Clayton and Chief- Justice 

 McClure. The opponents of the Governor had 



increased to a majority in that body, and on 

 the 16th of February the following was pro- 

 posed by Mr. Padgett, as he said, for the pur- 

 poses of justifying charges which had been 

 made by himself and others : 



Whereas, Powell Clayton, Governor of the State of 

 Arkansas, has been guilty of malfeasance in office, 

 and high crimes and misdemeanors, in this : 



1. That he has conspired with the members of the 

 Supreme Court of the State of Arkansas to maliciously 

 and unlawfully deprive Lieutenant-Governor James 

 M. Johnson of his said office of Lieutenant-Governor, 

 to which he was duly and lawfully elected by the 

 people of the State of Arkansas, and for which he 

 qualified according to the constitution and laws of 

 said State. 



2. That he has unlawfully removed an officer of the 

 county of Clark, in said State of Arkansas, to wit : 

 N. H. Lock, County and Probate Judge of said coun- 

 ty, from his said office, to which said office he, the 

 said Lock, was duly and constitutionally elected by 

 the people of said county. 



3. That he directed, encouraged, and aided in 

 frauds in the elections of senator and three repre- 

 sentatives to the General Assembly from the thir- 

 teenth district of the State of Arkansas, composed of 

 the counties of Hot Spring, Montgomery, Polk, and 

 Scott, in said State of Arkansas. 



4. That he has accepted pecuniary considerations 

 for issuing bonds or obligations of the State of Ar- 

 kansas to and in favor of the Memphis & Little Eock 

 Railroad Company, in utter violation of law and dis- 

 regard of his official duty as Governor of the State of 

 Arkansas ; also, that he has accepted pecuniary con- 

 siderations for issuing bonds or obligations of the 

 State of Arkansas^to and in favor of the Little Eock 

 & Fort Smith Eailroad Company, in utter violation 

 of law and disregard of his official duty as Governor 

 of the State of Arkansas. 



5. That, as Governor of the State of Arkansas, he 

 has issued bonds or obligations of said State to the 

 Mississippi, Ouachita & Eed Eiver Eailroad Com- 

 pany, when said company was notoriously not enti- 

 tled to the same, under the act of the General Assem- 

 bly of the State of Arkansas, approved July 21, 1868. 



6. That he has been guilty of other misconduct 

 and malfeasance in office, and other high crimes and 

 misdemeanors. 



Therefore, I move : 



1. That the said Powell Claj-ton, Governor of the 

 State of Arkansas, be and he is hereby impeached 

 of misconduct and malfeasance in office, and high 

 crimes and misdemeanors, and that the said Powell 

 Clayton be and is hereby suspended from exercising 

 the functions of Governor of the State of Arkansas, 

 in conformity to and with the constitution thereof. 



2. That D. J. Smith, of Columbia County ; F. M. 

 Thompson, of Columbia County ; B. B. Battle, of 

 Hempstead County ; A. Mason, of Calhoun County ; 

 E. A. Fulton, of Drew County ; W. B. Padgett, of 

 Independence County ; and E. A. Howard, of Pulaski 

 County, members of the House, be and they are 



;rs on the part of the House 



of Eepresentatives of the State of Arkansas, to pre- 

 pare articles of impeachment asrainst the said Powell 



Clayton, as Governor of the State of Arkansas, with 

 full power to examine witnesses and otherwise con- 

 duct the trial of impeachment in the name and on 

 behalf of all the people of the State of Arkansas. 



3. That said managers be instructed to go imme- 

 diately to the Senate, and at the bar thereof, in the 

 name of the House of Eepresentatives, and of all the 

 people of the State of Arkansas, to announce the im- 

 peachment of Powell Clayton, Governor of the State 

 of Arkansas, for misconduct and maladministration 

 of his office as such Governor, and acquaint the Sen- 

 ate that the House^f Eepresentatives will, in due 

 time, exhibit particular articles of impeachment 

 against him, and make good the same, and that the 





