The New York Herald Newspaper, March 3, 1867, Page 5

PRESIDENTIAL VETOES. Beturn of the Reconstruction Bill to Congress. ma Wasmsatos, March 2, 1867. ‘The following is the message of President Jobnson returning to the House of Representatives ‘the Recon- struction bill:— ‘To aun Hoven or Rereserraritisi— I have examined the bill “to provide fer the mote effl- ‘cient government of the rebel States’ with the eare and ‘anxiety which its transcendant importano? is Calculated to awaken. Iam unable to give it my assent {7 ressons 80 grave that I hope a statement of them may havd fome influence on the minds of the patriotic and enlightated men with whom the decision must ultimately rest. The bill places all the people of the ten States therein named under the domination of military rulers, Allegal is to say that law itself sions which these governments have made for the pre- servation of order, the suppression of crime and the re- + dress of private injuries are, iu substance and principle, * the same as those which prevail in the Northern States and in other civilized countries, They certainly have mot gucceeded in preventing the commission of all -erime, nor has this been accomplished anywhere in the world. There as well as elsewhere offenders sometimes Perhaps, by the inefficiency of courts or the Prejudice of jurors, It is undoubtedly true that these evils have been much increased and aggra- vated North and South by the demoralizing influences of civil war and by the rancorous ‘pasdions which the contest has engendered; but that ‘these people are maintaining local governments for themselves which babitually defeat the object of all government and render their own lives and property in- secure is in itself utterly improbable, and the averment of the bill te that effect is not supperted py any evidence ‘which has come to my knowledge. lll the information T have on the subject convinces me that the masses of the Southern people and those who control their public acts, while they entertain diverse opinions on questions -of federal policy, are completely united in the effort to reorganize their society on the basis of peace and to estore their mutual prosperity as rapidly and as com- Pletely as their circumstances will permit. The Dill, however, would seem to show upon its face that the establishment of peace and good order is not its real object. f The fifth section declares that the preceding sections shall cease to operate in any State when certain events shall have happened, These events are, first, the selec- tion of delegates to a State convention, by an election at which negroes shall be allowed to vote; second, the formation of a State constitution by the convention £0 chosen ; third, the insertion into. the State constitution of a provision which will secure the right of voting at all elections to negroes, and to such white men as may not be disfranchised for rebellion or felony; fourth, the submission of the con- stitution for ratification to negroeg and white men mot disfranchised and its actual ratification by their vote; fifth, the submission of the State constitution to Congrers for igation and the actual approval of it by that body; sixth, the adoption of a certain amendment to the federal constitution by a vote of the legisiature elected ‘under the new constitation ; seventh, the adoption of said amendment by a sufficient number of other States to -of any of these States can be relieved from the bondage ‘of military domination; but when they are fulfilled then immediately the pains and penalties of the bill are to cease, no matter whether there be peace and order or “Mot, and without to the security of life aod , bill in she ilitary rale shes is Sete ecaicent mil pot for Larisa seated -erim 1 people into the towhich it is known they have an corcise their own judgment. sure. ‘The ten States named in the bill are divided into five districts. Lo eg tren re nega Sites beiow the rank of brigadier general is to be appointed to rule over the .people, ‘and he is to be supported ‘with an efficient military force to enabie him to perform his-duties and enforce his authority. Those duties and that authority, as detined by the third sec- tion of the bill, are to protect all persons in their rights of ‘and property, to su) insurrection, disor- der and violence, and to punish or cause to be punished all disturbers of the public peace or crimipals, The power thus given to the commanding officer over all the ple of each district is that of an ubsolute monarch— is mere will is to take the plac® of all iaw. The law of the States is now the only ruie applicabl the subjects ‘placed under his coutrol, and that is completely displaced by the ciause which declares all in- of the State uthority to be null He alone ‘s permitted to determine ‘what aro the rights of person or property, and he them in such way as in his discretion It places at his free disposal all the Peing, heand by. Bo Ripe. jaw sot Sete eink me Garr regulate t! subject, ma) e acrimipal code Of his cee, bua Bacaa oake it 20 Ui in history, or he can reserve the privilege of acting upon the impulse of bis pris in each case that re \deed, no provision quired to take evidence at all. which he Shooers & call 80, smandi avail for that purpose. ‘The fourth section provides, first, that trials shall not be unnecessarily delayed; but I think I bave shown that nish witbout trial, and if so this ino] dj cruel or and not pertaining in the least degree to their profession ? Af not, th auch ‘oftoer may define cruelty eae, ‘to bis 01 , and if not usual be will make 11 maual. pumshment, the the ball and chain, and the other almost insu ble forms of tor. ture invented for mili punishment, will be withia the range of choice. Third, the sentence of a commis. Bion 1s not to be executed without being the commander if it affects life or liberty, a sentence of death must be ed by the President, This ap- ies to cases in which there have been a trial and sen- I take it to be clear under the bill that tho miley. petenter: Sey, mone to death without ven the form of @ & mi 3 bat the life of the condemned may of two men instead of one, hero given to the military ! E 3 ; g E é z j | 3 £ Ee i i 5 A 55 aa § Es e& Hi ie th 4 : il E H 3 i i | f E R » l | ga E : i 4 i Y ‘3 i is 2 g & | BEES Hy} is Ab i E i 4 | i i i i: z ef B 5 i gE Fe cH i En u ( within the Union, but it shields ev comes or is brought under our juried Sighs te do in. cop place more. diek ts: snetinr’ Met HH of the ws reduced those States an their People, ‘the innocent ag well as the guilty,"’ to the con- dition of we, and gave us a power over them sala; which the ‘constitution does not bmg We) ‘a ap this. ir subjected to legal obedience, pot to the yoke of an arbitrary despot- ism, When an absolute sovereign reduces his rebellious subjects he may deal with them aceording to his plea- sure, use he had that power before; but when a limited monarch puts down an ion he must still govern according to law. If an insurrection should take place in one of our States against the authority of the “tate government, and end in the overthrow of those who planned it, would that take away the rights of all ple of the counties where it was favored by a part or a majority of the population? Could they for such # reason be wholly outlawed and deprived of their representation in the Legislature? I have ai contended that the government of the United States was sovereign within its constitutional spl that it exeouted its laws like the States themselves, by applying its coercive powers directly to individuals, and that it could put down insurrection with the same effect as a State, and no other. The opposite doctrine is the worst heresy of those who advocated secession, and cannot be agreed to without admitting that heresy to be night. Invasion, insurrection, rebellion and domestic violence were anticipated when the government was framed, and the means of repelling and suppressing them were wisely provided for in the constitution; but it was not thought necessary that the States in which they might occur should be expelied from the Union. Rebellions, which were invariably suppressed, occurred prior to that out of whith theso questions grew; but the States continued to exist, and the Union rem: unbroken. In Massachusetts, in Peunsyivavia, in Rhode Island and in New York, at different periods in our history, violent and armed opposition to the United States was how fers on; but the relations ge fae with the government were not su to be interrupted or changed thereby alter the rebellious portions of their population were defeated and put down. It 16 true that in these earlier cases there was no formal expression of 9 determination to withdraw from the Union; but it is ‘also true that in the Southern States the ordinances of secession were treated by all the friends of the Union as mere nullities, and are now acknowledged to be so by the States themselves. If we admit that they had any force or validity, or that they did in fact take the States in which they Were passed out of the Union, we sweep from under our feet ail the grounds upon wh:ch we stand in justifyimg the use of federal force to maintain the in- tegrity of the goveroment. ‘his is a bill passed by Congress in time of peace. There is not ia any one of the States brought under its operation either war or insurrection; the Jaws of the State and of the federal government are in undisturbed and harmonious operation; the courts, State and fedcral, are open and in (Se full exercise of ir proper author- ity State prised in the five Feage A com, districts: libert; ane reper nee seoares, x eam ort awe, the national pantie boyd everywhere in force and every’ ‘What, then, is the ground on which this bilt ? The title of the bill for the announces that it is intended more efficient government these ten States. It is recited, by way of preamble, that no loyal State governments nor adequate protection for life or property exist in those States, and that peace and good order should thus be enforced. The first thing ‘tbat arrests attention upon these recitals which re the way for martial law is this—that the only founds- tion upon which martial law can exist under our ‘form of government is not stated or so much as pretended. Actual war, foreign invasion, domestic insurreciion— none of these appear, and none of these, in fact, exist. It is not even recited that any sort of war or insurrec- Let us ba.) this question of constitutl law and the power of Con, a recent decision of the Supreme Court of the United States ia ex parte Milligan. I will first quote from the opinion of the majority of the Court:—“ for martial law cannot arise from @ threatened invasion. The necessity must be actual and present, the invasion real, such as eifectually closes the courts and deposes the civil admin- istration.” We see that martul law comes in only when actual war closes the couris and deposes the civil au- thority. But this bill, in time of peace, makes martial law operate as though we were in actual war, and be- | © comes the cause instead of the consequence of the abro- gation of civil authority. One more question:—“It fol- lows, from what has been said on this subject, that there are occasions when martial law can be properly applied. If im foreign invasion or civil war the courts are acwually closed, and it is impossible to administer criminal justice according to law, then on the theatre of active military operations, where wer really prevails, there wa neces- sity tofurnish a substutute for the civil authority thus overthrown to presorve the safety of the army and s0- ciety, and, as no power is left but the military, it is allowed to govern by martial rule until the Jaws can have thefr free course.” I now quote trom the boned of the minority of the court, delivered by Chief Justice ; can e6- Chase ‘We by no means assert that tablish and apply the laws of war where no war bas been deciared or exists; where peace exists the laws of peace must prevail.’ This is sufficiently explicit—that ace exists in all the territory to which this bill applies, |t aswerts a power in Congress in time of peace to set aside the laws of peace and to substitute the laws of war. The minority, concurri a the majority, de-+ clares that Congress does not that power, Again, and if possible more emphatically, the Chief Justice, with remarkable clearness and condensation, sums up the whole matter as follows: — ‘There are, under the constitution, three kinds of military jurisdiction—one to be exercised both in peace and In war; ‘Another to be exercised in time of foreign war, without the boundaries of the United states, or in time of rebeilion and civil war within States or districts occupied by’ treated, ag belligerents; anda third to be exercised in time of in- ‘vasion, or insi within the limits of the United States, or during rebellion within the limits of the States maintain- ing adhesion to the Congress presori war, OF otherwise. providing for ‘the ernment of the national’ forces. The second maj distingulsbed as military govern ing as far ae may be deemed expedient the local law, and exercised by Miltary commander under, the direction of the Prost: a dent, with the express or n ingress: whild the third may be denominated martial law proper, and ie into: by or temporarily, when of cannot be invited, and in the case of stifying or peril, by the President, in times of insurrection of invasion, of civil oF foreign, war, within dis. public safety or private rights. It will be observed that of the three kinds of military Jarisdiction which can be exercised or created under our constitution there is but one that can prevail in time of ‘and that is the code of laws enacted vores the government of the national forces. That body of military law has no lication to the citizon, nor even to the citizen soldier enrolled in the militia in time of peace. But this dill is not a part of that sort of mili Jaw; for that applies only to the soldier, ant not to the citizen, while, contrariwise, the military law ded by this biil applies only to the citizen, and not the soldier, I need not say to the Representatives of the American people oo their coomiaanee, forbids ti “poy of jn er in any way but one—that is 19 oF dained and established courts, It is equal; well that in all criminal cases a trial by jury penanble by the words of ‘iat instrument. I Will not enlarge on the inestimable value of the right thus secured bg a freeman, speak tn all parts of ‘ne coontey which must to public liberty ° it anywhere decison of hi " ‘indicated’ the from a NEW YORK HERALD, SUNDAY, MARCH 3, 1567. cause; this bill orizes an arrest without warrant at BE i i i f 2 i 4 i rf ag Hy . g FF ‘ Pale Hf Bo s 8 s. i i i fu bit eq hl H H fh he i 8 & ui dette Fg) Pa dogrades & cnhion of willing to adopt if left to themselves, ‘The negroes have not asked for the privilege of voting; the vast majority of them have no idea what it means This bill not only thrusts it into their bands, but com- pels them as well as the whites to use it in a particular way. If do not form a constitution with prescribed articles, in it, and afterwards elect a legislature which will act uy certain measures in @ prescribed way, neither blacks nor whites can be relieved from the slavery which the bill imposes upon them. Without pausing here to consider the policy or impolicy of Africanizing the Southern part of our territory, | would versally wledged stitutional law which declares that the federal gov ment has no jurisdiction, auth or power to . te such subjects for any State. To force the right suf- out of the hands of the white poople and into the hands of the negroes is an arbitrary violation of this principle This bill imposes martial law at once, and its operations will begin so soon asthe General and his ‘troops can be put in place. The dread alternative be- tween its barsh rule and compliance with the terms of this measure is not su: led, nor are the people afforded any time for free deliberation. The bill says to them, take martial law first, then deliberate, and when they have done all that this measure requires them to do, other conditions and contingencies over which they have no control yet remain to be fulfilled before they can be relieved from martial law. Another Conxress must first approve the constitutions made in conformity with the will of this Congress, and must declare these states entitled to representation in both houses. The whole question thus remains open and upsecttled, aud must again occupy the attention of Congress; and im the meantime the agitation which now prevails will con- tinue to disturb all portions of the people. The bill also denies the legality of the governments of ten of the States which participated in the ratification of the amendment to the federal constitution abolishiog slavery forever within the jurisdiction of the United States, and practically excludes them tue Union. If this assumption of the bill be correct their concur- Tence cannot be considered as having been legally given, and the important faci is made to appear that the con- sent of three-fourths of the States—the requisite num ber—bas not been constitutionatly obtained to the ratifi- cation of that amendment, thus jeaving the question of lav where it stood before the ut was a ly deciared to have become a part of the constitu- ton. ‘That the measures proposed by this bill violate the constitution in the particulars mentioned, and in many ways which I forbear to enumerate, is too clear to admit of the least doubt. It only remains to consider whether the injunctions of the instrument ought to be obeyed or not. I think they ought to be obeved, for reasons which I will proceed to give as briefly as possible, In the first place, it is ihe only system of free government which we can hope to-have as a nation; when it ceases to be the rule of our conduct we may, perbaps, take our chowe bo- tween complete anarchy, a consolidated despo- usm and a total dissolution of the Union; but Bational liberty, regulated vy law, will have passed be- yond our re: It is the best frame of goverument the world ever saw. ‘No other is or can be so well to the genius, babits or wants of the American pie, combining strength of the great empire with the un«peakabie blessings of local governments, having a central power to defend the a interests and re- cognizing the authority of the as the guardians of industrial rights, It is the sheet-amchor of our safety abroad and our at home. It was ordained to ‘form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquilliiy, promote the general welfare, provide tor the common defence and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity.” These great ends bave been attained here- tofore and will be again by faithful obedience to it; bat they are certain to be lost if we treat with disregard its sacred obligations. It wasto punish the gross crime of foe pe constitution and to vindicate its supremo ity that we carried on a bloody war of four years’ duratio.. Shail we now acknowledge that we sacriliced @ million of lives and expended billions of treasure to enforce a constitution which is pot worthy et respect and preservation? Those who advocated the right of secession alleged in their own justification that we had no regard for law, and that their rights of property, life and liberiy would not be safe under the constitution as administered by us. If we now verify their assertion we prove that they were in truth and ia fact fightine for ir liberty, and, instead of branding their leaders with the dishonoring name of traitors against a righteous and | legal government, we elevate them in history to the rank seif-eacrilicing patriots, consecrate them to the ad- miration of the world, and piace them by the side of Washington, Hampden and Sydney. No; let us leave them ‘o the infamy they deserve—punish them aa they should be punished according to law, and take upon our. selves no stare of the odium which they should bear | alcne. Itisapart of our history which can never be forgotten that both houses of Congress ia July, 1561, ae- clared, in the form of a solemn resolution, that the war was and sbould be carried on for no purpose of subjugation, bat solely to enforce the constitution and laws, and that ‘when this was yielded by the parties in rebellion the contest should cease, with the constitutional zights of the Btates and of individuals unimpaired. ‘This tion was adopted and sent forth to the world uv mously by the Senate, and with only two dissenting voices in the House. It was accepted by the friends of the Union in the South as well as in the North as ex- prossing honestly and truly the object of the war, On the faith of it many thousands of persons in both sec- tions gave their lives and their fortunes to thd cause. To ate it now by refusing to the States and to the individuals within them the rights which the constitu- ton and laws of the Union would secure to them isa breach of our plighted honor for which I can imagine ‘no excuse, and to which I canvot voluatarily become a party. ‘The evils which spring from this unsettled state of our government will be ac! ledged by all. Commercial ‘intercourse is impeded, capical is in constant peril, pub- le fluctuate in value, peace itself is not se- cure, and the sense of moral and political duty is im- paired. Toavert these calamities from the country it is formated required that we shouid immediately de- cide upon some course of administration which can be steadfastly adhered vinced that to. am thoroughly con- it or compromise ‘or pian of action which is inconsistent with the principles of the tution will not only be unavailing, but mischievous; that it will it multiply the evils of removing them. The constitu- vigor, throughout the is the best of mises, leave one cueits between that ft contains the that if the co-ordinate would unite upon its ‘isions h and Logs part of all to sustain the constitution and carry its," — into yee operation. ‘morrow either branch of would declare that upon the presentation of thas credentials members constitutionally elected and loyal to the general govern- ment would be admitted to seats in Congress, while all others would be excluded and their places remain vacant until the selection by the people of loyal and qualified persons, and if at the same time assurance were eee earn Pond woud be camtinned sate ot the it woul a thrill of joy throughout the entire “land as the inauguration of @ system which must speedily Dring ooo iblic mind. While we are legislating ae —_ are of great importance to the which must affect all parts of the ‘Wasumoton, March 2, 1967. a Return of the Tenure of Office Bill with the President's Objections. To Tax Sexare or Tar Usirep Starss:— Thave carefully examined the bill to regulate the tenure of certain civil officers, The material portion of the bill 1s contaimed in the first section, and is of the effect following, namely—that dvery perso ‘ony civil office $0 which he bas been appointed by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and every person ‘Who shall hereafter be appointed to any such office and shall become duly qualified {6 act therein is, and sball bé, gntitled to hold such office until » sucosssor aball have bed appointed by the Prosident with the advice and consent of the Senate and daly qualified, and that the Secretaries of State, of the Treasury, of War, of the Navy and of the Interior, the Postmaster General, and the AMorney General; ghal) hold their of- fices, respectively, for and during jhe term of the Presidewt by whom they may have been appointed, and for one month thereafter, subject to removal by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. These pro- visi OS are qualified by a reservation in the fourth sec- tion, “thst nothing contained in the bill shall be con- strued to extend the term of @by office, the duration of which is livaited by law.” In effect the bill provides that the President sbali not remove from the%r places any of the civil officers whose terms of service are not limited by law without the advice and consent of the Senate of the United States, | The bill in this respect conflicts, in my judgment, with the constitution of the United States. The question, as Congress is well aware, is by mo means a new one, ‘That the power of removal is constitutionally vested in the President of the United States isa principle which bas been not more distinctly declared by judicial authority and judicial commentators,jthan it has been uniformly practiced upon by the leg:slative and exe- cutive departments of the government, The question arose in the House of Representatives so early as the 16th of June, 1789, on the bill for establishing am exe- cutive department denominated “the Department of Foreign Affairs.’ The first clause. of the bill, after re- Gapitulating the functions of the officer and defining his abilities, had these words:—*‘To be removable from of- fice by the President of the United States’ It was moved to strike out these words, and the motion was sostained with great ability and vigor. It was insisted that the President could not constitutionally exercise the power of removal exclusively of the Senate; that the Federalist so interpreted the constitution when ar- guing for its aduption by the several States that the constitution bad nowhere given ti President power of removal either expressly or strong implication, bat, on the contrery, had distinctly provided for removai from office by impeach- ment only. A construction which denied the power of removal by the President was further maiutaimed by arguments drawn trom the danger of the abuse of the power, from the supposed tendency of an exposure of public’ oflicers to capricious removal to impair the effl- cieney of the civil sei vice, from the alleged injustice and hardsbip of displacing incumbents dependent upon their official stations without sufficient consideration, from a supposent want of responsibility on the part of the Prasident, and from an imagined defect of guaranties against which # Provident might incline to abuse the power, Onthe other hand,an exclusive power of re- moval by the President defended as a true exposition of the test of the Constitution. It wae maintained that there are certain causes for which persons ought to be removed from office without being guilty of treason, bribery or malfeasance, and that the nature of things demands that it should be so. Sup- pose (it was said) a man becomes insane by the visitation of God and is likely to ruin our affairs, are the bands of the government to be confined from warding off the evil? Suppose a person 1 offic? not possessing the tal- ents bak? ‘Tadged to have at the 4jme of the appoint. ment, is the error not to be corrected? Seppeee be acquires victous habits and incurable indolence or total megiect of the duties of bis oflice which shall work mischief to the public welfare, is there no way (0 arrest the threatened danger? Bephoe he become odious and unpopular Teason of the measures he pursues—and this he may do without com- mitting any positive offence against the law—must he presery his office despite of the popular will? Suppose im gr&ping for his own aggrandisement and the eieva- tion o: his connections by every means short of the trea- son defined by the constitution, hurrying your aflairs to the precipice of destruction, endangering your domestic tranquility, plundering you of the means of detence, alienating the affections of your allies aud promoting the spirit of discord—must the tardy, tedious, desuitory road by way cf impeachment be travelled to overtake the man who, basely contin ng himseli within the letter of tho law, is employed in drawing off the vital principle of the government? The nature of things, the great ob- jects of society, the express objects of the constitution itsélf, require that this thing should be otherwise. To unite the Seoate with the President in the exercise of tha power, it was said, would involve us in the most serious difficulty. Suppose a. discovery of any of those events shonid take place when the Senat? is not in session, how is the remedy to be applied? Ihe evil could be avoided in no other way tha by the Senate sitting always, In regard to the danger of the power being abused if, exercised by one man, it was said that the danger is a® great with respect to the Senate, who are assembied from various paris of the continent, with dif- ferent impressions and opinions, that such a body is more likely to misuse the power of removal than the man whom the united voice of America calls to the Presidential chair, «As the pature of the govern- ment requires the power of removal, it was maintained that. it should be exercised m this way. by the hand capable of exerting itself with efiect, and the power must be ‘conferred on the President by the constitution assthe executive wermment, Mr. Madison, whose adverse jeralie; had been relied upon by those elusive power now participated in the debate, He deciared that he had reviewed bis former opiatons, and he summed up the whole case as fol- lows :— ‘The constitution affirms that the executive power ie vested in the President. Are there exceptions to this proposition, Yes, there are. ' The constitution says that in appoioting to office the Senate shall be associated with the P: it, ‘teers, when the law shall we (that is Congress) a right to extend this exception believs not. If the coustitution has anvested all ye es in the President, I venture to assert that the Legislature has no rightto diminish or modify itive authority, The question now itwelf into this:—1s the power of displacing an Executive power? What ever is in the Executive, it1s in the power of appointing, over- seeing and controlling those who execuie the laws. If the constitution had not qualified the power of the President in ‘appointing to office by associating the Senate with him in that business, would it not be clear that he would have the right by virtue of his executive power, to make such appointment Should “we be authorized In defence of that clause in “The Lng fe shall vested in the Pf let to unite the with the Presi- dent in the appointments to office? I conceive not, if it is admit that we should not be sutherized to do this I think it may be disputed whether have ‘& right to associate them in office, the one power belt out of the gem Hees ethene words: The executive power shall be in the President.” ‘The question thus ably and exhaustively argucd was desided by the House of Representatives ty'a vote of “ ‘to 20 in favor of the are that the op yo of removal is vested by the constitution in the Execu- tive, and in the Senate by the casting vote of the Vico President. The question often beon raised in subse- quent times of hi exciiement, and We practice of the government has nevertheless conformed in all cases to the decision thus early made, The question was revived the administration of President Jack- gon, is well recoliected, a very large number of removals, which were made an occa- sion of a close and rigorous scrutiny and remonstrance, removing persons from as much of an executive nature tertained in the early history the This related, however, to the of the nt to remove officers the concurrence of the , No one denied the power of the Borate setaly 00 seen een code es the office jt yy the constitution, which was ‘was not fixed by ‘me wt cm ‘tho Treasury, made of the appaistmont of a head of the department, w . * vacancy in the office of Secretary by removal or other- wit. It is not bere said “by removal of the President,’ aa it 18 done with respect to of secretaries, and The change of phrase- its having become the ‘oe construction of the consti, sions to tech coos, although the a tment a a ypolotment sae om, °F 38 by the President and seaaia (13th commentators bw od .Bbon the constitution concur im the con- struction thus ¢, ‘TY given by thus sane: ought to be taken sti g responsible officer for the execution of the law, power of removal was incidental to that duty, and mig! often be requisite to fulfil it.’’ Thus has the im it question presented by this bill been settled. In the language of the late Daniel Web- ster, who, while dissenting from it, admitted that it was settled by construction, settled by the practice of the goverment, and settled by statute. The events of the last war furnished a practical confirmation of the wisdom of the constitution as it has hitberto been maintained in many of its parts, including that which is now the subject of consideration. When the war broke out rebel enemies, traitors, abettors and sympatbizers were found in every department of the ent, as well in the civil service as inland an val military service, They were found in among the keopers of the capitol, in foreign missionsejn each and all of the executive de- partments, in the Judicial service, in the Post Office and among the agents of conducting Indian affairs; and upon probable suspicion they were promptly displaced by my predecessor, so far as they held their offices under ex- ecutive authority, and their duties confided to new and loyal successors. No complaints against that power or doubts of its wisdom were entertained io any quarter. I sincerely trust and believe that no such civil war is likely to occur again. I cannot doubt, how- ever, that in whatever form and on whatever occasion sedition can raise an e‘fort to hinder or defeat the legiti- mate action of this government, whether by preventing the collection of revenue, or disturbing the public peace, or separating the States, or betraying the country to a forvign enemy, the power of removal from office by the Executive, as it has heretofore existed and been prac- tived, will be found iodispensabie under these circum- stances asa depository of the Executive authority of the nation. I do not feel at liberty to unite with Con- gress in reversing it by giving my approval to the bill. At the early day when this question was settled, and, in- deed, at the several periods when it has subsequently been’ agitated, the success of the constitution of the United States as a new and peculiar system of free rep- resentative government was heid doubtful in other countries, and was even a subject of patriotic appre- hension among the American people — them- selves, A trial of nearly eighty years, through the vicissitudes of foreign conflicts ‘and of civil war, is confidently regarded as having extinguished all such doubts and apprehensions for the future. During that eighty years the people of the United States have enjoyed a measure of security, peace, prosperity and happiness never surpassed by any nation, It cannot be doubted that the triumphant success of the constitution is due to the wonderful wisdom with which the functions of the government were distributed between the athree principal departments—th lexislative, the executive and the judicial—and to the fllelity with which euch has confined itself or been confined by the general voice of the nation within its peculiar and proper sphere. While a jast, proper and watchful jealousy of executive power constantly prevails, as it ought ever to prevail, et it is equally true that an efficient executive, ca 4 in the ianguage of the oath prescribed to the lent, of executing the laws, and, within the sphefe of. execu- tive action, of preserviug, ing and deletiding the Constitution of the United is an indispensable se- secarity for tranquillity at bome, and peace, and safety abroad. Governments ve erected in many countries 4 our model. If one or many of them have thus far tailed in fully securing to their people the benefits which we have derived our system, it may be confleently asserted that their misfortune has resulted from thelr unfortunate failures to maintain the integrity of each of the three great depart- ments while preserving harmony among them all. Having at an early period accepted the constitution in regard to the Executive office in the sense in which it was inter- Preted with the concurrence of its founders, I have found no sufficient grounds in the arguments now op- posed to that construction or in any assumed necessity of the times for changing those opinions, I return the bill to the Senate, in which house it originated, for the further consideration of Congress which the constitution prescribes. In so much as the several parts of the bill which I have not considered are matters chiefly of detail, and are bused altogether upon the theory of the constitution from which I am obiiged to dissent, I have not thought it necessary to examine them with a view to make them an occasion of distinct and special objections. Experi- ence, I think, has shown that it is the easiest, as it is also the most attractive, of studies to frame constitu- tions for the self-government of free States and nations. But I think experience bas equally shown that it is the most difficult of all political labors to preserve and maintain such free constitutions of self-covernment when once bappily established. I know no other way in which they can be preserved and main- tained except by a constant adherence to them through the various vicissitudes of national existence with such adaptation as may become ni always to be ef- fected, however, though the agencies, and in the forms prescribed in the original constitutions themselves. When- ever an administration fails or seems to fail in secunng any of the great ends for which republican, government is established, the proper course seems to be to reaew the original spirit and forms of the constitution itself, ANDREW JOHNSON. Wasurxctos, March 2, 1867. BROOKLYN CITY COURT. Interesting Divorce (: Before Judge Reynolds. George Poole vt. Sarah Poole.—This suit is brought by plaintiff on the ground of adultery committed by de- tendant with a man named George Ramond. The case came up yesterday morning on an application of defend- ant's counsel for alimony and costs pending the decision of the referee, and in support of this motion counsel sub- mitted an affidavit made by the said Ramond, in which he affirmed that he had never had criminal intimacy with \Ire. Poole, and that he had given such testimony before the referee. An affidavit made Mrs. Poole herself was also submitted by after her was only his mistress, it further stated that faiatil this woman money to get Ber out the way, and offered one of his sons $1,000 if ry, he succeeded in obtaining @ divorce for him; that Lula vas now in Hi health, ad bronght this wut, merely cut her (deponent) off from the property. J nolds took the papers and reserved his decis' WESTCHESTER INTELLIGENCE, Ax Lyraxt Fouxp Drav.—On last Friday evening, while a young man named Isaac Francis was passing by Rae’s cedar wood, in the neighborhood of West Morrisania he discovered a large bundle lying at the foot of a tree, which, on examination, proved to be the dead body of a fine male infant, about three months old. Coroner Thos. M. Oliver having been at once notitied of the body was removed to his office. An inquest was held yesterday morning and a verdict returned death had Tesulted from exposure, Narrow Escarn.—A fow days since « boy named John Fung, employed in Messrs. Doubleday’s manufactory, Mamaroneck, narrowly escaped instant death through baving been caught by the machinery. It appears that while adjusting the belt on the main wheel, which had got slightly out of place, bis clothing became entangled ith the mach! , and he ‘th ny eg et a sibility for some time gave rise to ‘that death hed ‘but on further imation the dis. Covery wag made that he was almost uninjured, QUEENS COUNTY INTELLIGENCE, A Max Fouxn Drowway,—Coroner Bigbie, ‘of Astoria, ‘was yesterday called to hold an inquest on the body of ‘& Tuan found drowned at Berrian's Island, The deceased was about five feet eight inches in height; had on Unete coee, apparently mee ne and blue pock: latter garment a letter = on which wan, te L. iivet uogoned Wo be the meme of Whe party, € n a Peter S, Wynkoop, the cashier, is 4 defauiter to a large amount, The directors of the bank are investigating the matter, and will report the amount of deficiency as s00a An investigation into the affaira of the bank shows am embezzlement of about $50,000. A further examiaa- {ion will doubtless increase the amount. Hasbrouck, the defaulting cashier, was taken into custody thie evening at the instance of the president of the banks ‘and lodged in jail, ‘The above bank has a paid in capital of $200,000, and power to increase to half a million Its notes aro deemed at the Ninth National of Now York city. Ogee ee Firet National Bank of Newton, Mase. » Bosto, March 2, 1867. Thére is great trouble in financial circles here. B. Porter Dyer, Jr., the cashier of the First National Bank of Newton, Mass., is short $110,000 The President of the we notice that the cashier came to Bostom at eleven o'clock and has not since bem ‘The paid in capital of the bank is only $150,000, but it bas authority to inorease its stock to $300,000. it redeems in New York at the National Park Bank. bi Pe Relative tothe embezzlement of some $15,000 com- mitted by A. V. H. Elder, general bookkeeper of the Dollar Savings Bank at Pittsburg, the Post of that city has the foliowing :— The occasion of the discovery of the fraud was follows:—A gentieman, whose name we forbear mak: public, received a small patrimony, amounting to some $700, which he deposited in the Dollar Savings Bank for safe bins The sum was correctly enter upon the depositor’s bankbook, but upon the credit book in the bank it was setdown $200, the bookkeeper pocketing the other $500. In a short time the depositor wished te check for $200, whereupon the teller asked him if he would not have his account balanced. He replied Stating that he stil had some posit, when be was requested to leave his book for settlement. This was done. The discrepanoy was discovered and suspicion aroused. The directors were informed, other pass books were sent for and ac- counts settled, in which similar errors were found to exists, A thorough investigation took place, and deficits to the above amount were found. State Bank of Massachusetts—Over Halfa Million Dollars Involved. Boston, March 2, 1867. There was considerable excitement in State street this morning occasioned by the development of the irre- gularities in transactions of the cashier of the State Bank in regard to certification of checks as “good” bearing the name of Mellen, Ward & Co., brokers, who suspended payment yesterday. These checks were pre- sented at the Clearing House at the morning sottlemeat by the various banke holding the same and were thrown out by the State Bank, on which certifications were made, The directors of the institation declare that they never entered into, or agreed to any arrangement made with the city banks for the certification of onecka, \ther- ized by them. ‘The is npwards of balf a million dollars. Other parties be- rate those mentioned are also implicated in these diffl- culties, “THE MAINE LEGISLATURE, ‘Avausta, March 2, 1867. The Maine Legislature adjourned last night after @ session of fifty-nine days. 1867.—Spring Fashions. SEF J. W. BRADLEY'S NEW EMPRESS INVISIBLE TRAIL, IN THE CELEBRATED DUPLEX ELLIPTIC DOUB! eee rage gt BALE by the Hcclusive Manufacturers; sad’ edts Ownceed WESTS, BRADLEY & OAR’ aso, TEMRDRCRE Sa sooeNS, FR Er Le ON orien, twon street, Second avenue and Twenty-ninth WORK POR ‘LD. turers of description ot LRO! ING PURPOSES, Iron Bul Fronts, Girders, Columns, Beams. Shutters, Vault Lights, Railings, Stable patent Opera House Chairs, fc, Pardcular attention to the manufacture of fine Castin, req Estimates furnished wheo me nt. “ascold* of ehills whether shaking or burning, we offer the means ale, certain, permanent cure. Drop quinine, discard arsenicated preparations, Botake yourselves without to HOSTETTER'S STOMACH BITTERS. No in can withstand their hygeian influence. Beware of ac tinctures and adulterated stimulants. Use this most wholesome and most agreeable of all tonics. It never failed. As an inv! to fewequal. All liver com erties. ‘Taken as a fence miasina, Where the blood is Impure it will be found an mirable depurative, and in nervous affections it 1s the one thing needful. Cail at any drug store and get a bottle, whick will convince you of this truth, New York office 3 Dey street, at, tis _Acoua Oe ine Pores ah errare, Dart an accident in future by using a PATENT BL. 10 STRA! AND BUCKLES, Lt is a neat littie invention just out. 2; ih ld can be lied in a moment to any garment ( person ge'spieadia ft of the seme and nitnwing port ‘treet he body under all cireumstances. Por sale by. eale! cents, The re . Price a je Company, 690 Broadway. Samples sen! on receipt of 25 conte ™ A.—Lndtes wAbANRUCUEe CANMARIAL BALM AND BER iruggists. Send for treatiog, VATOR, 363 Canal street and di Address. Pollak & Son, Manafactn Bear street, og ys Mock of WEESCHAUM goods inthe country, at moderate prices. Boiling $1. moe rs es Clothing for Genta, ei Be: 14 Youth 4 learn the recent pri-es. ene OUBROKAW BROTHERS, 0. fayette place, tard.—' Baker Sew! citar T he, Be eee Beer nn ad the pie that white theft establishment, 490 Broadway. ts being re; paired and refitted, their business will be continued as usual at the adjoining premises, No. 497. —Mott’s Chemical Pomade Restores G idediy the best Halr Dressing ‘Sold Arte aA ha in Legal Lotteries.—Circas ‘J. CLUTE, Broker, 176 Broadway. Social Eyil. Ageln the $° cinysn Tetaren to-day on “The Sootal Evil, Evil Bill, and Police Commissioners’, ‘Argus Hall, 60 Broadway, at half.past three o’ ences large. Go early. Batchelor’s al Dye.Phe Bi in the wortd; the only partect Dye harmless, feunife, instantane ous, Factory 8 Barolay street. otc The SENS epee ls ee Florence Reversibl idea: 3 All Prizes Cash: larsand drawings sen! j Grover & Bak wSiesst & Bots Prepared Flour of Bran, the Trae Remedy for Diabetis, J. W. SHEDDEN, Chemist, 968 Bowery, oor, 4th ot Ranges, { ita iotiog apportion « on hand, new wut ek 8 Oiue at, gue tte RE tte me Pak i fare nd giver. an ae Dae a COL, Batters, 18 Wall steooh Bs cinewinunnamurmana™ hs ote Eris nd byeisee Mt hans ane 28S athe ca o* rene