AMERICA.

Grey River Argus, Issue 59, 29 May 1866, Page 3

AMERICA.

Meetings were held throughout the United States, on -February 22, Wash^ ington's birthday, to support President Johnson's policy. The meeting held at Washington passed resolutions commending Mr Johnson's course. ' The meeting then adjourned to- White House, where the President addressed an immense concourse of people. He reiterated the announcement that he would pursue the policy declared in his veto message. The Union, he was resolved upon, should be preserved. He stood where he did at the commencement of the rebellion, to vindicate the Union and the constitution against disunionists from the North or South. On assuming office lie' fotrad: 2,000,000 people who were, in fact, condemned under the law — the penalty being . death ; but he would say, let the leaders, conscious and intelligent traitors, suffer the penalty of the law; but for the masses leniency, ti-ust, and confidence. The South struggled to destroy the Government, but before the war is hardly over the country finds itself in the midst of another rebellion. War was made to prevent a separation of the States ; now there is an attempt to concentrate the power of Government in the hands of a few, thereby bringing about a consolidation equally dangerous and objectionable, with separation. He denounced the appointment of a Congressional Committee to decide the claims of the Southern States to representation : — "The executive military, (he said) power and public judgment have decided that no State has power or the right to go out of the Union, and you turn round and assume that they are out and shall not come in. lam not prepared to take any such position. I have found treason at the South, and now, wlien I turn to the other end of the line I find men still opposing the l'estoration of the Union," President Johnson, replying to the call for their names, said — " I regard them as President, pr citizen, as being equally opposed to the fundamental principles of this Government, and believe they are as much laboring to prevent or destroy them as were those who fought against us. Thaddeus Stevens, Charles Sumner, Wendell Phillips, and others of the same stripe, are amongst them. They may vituperate, traduce, slander me ; that does not , affect me. Ido not intend to be overawed by friends, nor bullied by enemies. It has been -said, in high places, if such usurpation had been exercised two centuries ago it would have cost a certain 'individual his head. The usurpation I have been guilty of has been standing between the people and the encroachments of power. In connection with this subject, the same gentleman explained we wei*e .standing in the midst of earthquakes ; he trembled and could not yield. Yes, there is an earthquake coming ; there is a ground swell of popular judgment and indignation. When lam beheaded I want the people to witness it. Ido not want it done by inuendos and indirect remarks in high places to be suggested to men having assassination breeding in their bosoms. Others'explain this Presidential obstacle must be gotten out of the way. What is that, if I make use of a strong term, but. inciting assassination? Are those who want to destroy our institutions and change the character of our Governmentnot satisfied with the, blood already shed 1 They have not the honor or the courage to obtain their ends otherwise than by assassins' hands. I know they are willing to wound, but they fear to strike. If my blood is to be shed because I vindicate the Union and the presei'vation of the Government in its purity, let it be shed ; let the opponents of the Government remember that the blood of the martyrs was the seed of the church. The Union will grow and coi|tinu(B to increase in strength and power, though it may be cemented and cleansed with blood."