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that, the President would have no power, as I understood it, to suspend any officer during the session of the Senate. The only thing he could do would be to send up the name of some man in his place, removing Mr. Blodgett. It occurred to me that this violation of the law by Mr. Blodgett might be merely a technical violation of the law. If it was a technical violation of the law-I am telling now what my reasoning was on the subject-if it was true that he was forced into the rebel service and got out of it as soon as he could, and this violation of the oath of office law in taking that oath was merely a technical violation for which he was indicted, I did not want him turned out; and for that reason I took the responsibility of doing this thing, of making this suspension and putting a special agent in temporary charge of the office until we could ascertain more fully what the facts were in the case, and what action ought to be taken. Those are the circumstances under which this thing was done.

By Mr. Manager BUTLER:

Q. Why did you not report it to the President for his action?

A. I told the President what I had done.

Q. When?

A. Afterward; as I stated before.

Q. Why did you not report it before you undertook to take the responsibility? Did you not suppose he would turn him out?

A. Because the only thing he could do, if he did anything, was to send to the Senate some other nomination, turning this man out.

Q. That is to say, if I understand you, following the law, the only thing he could do was to send to the Senate the name of somebody in place of this man, removed; and you thought, breaking the law, you could do something better?

A. I do not put it in any such shape as that. I stated it just exactly as it occurred. I did not want the man turned out if this was a mere technical violation of the law on which he was indicted, and if he was an honest man. That was the reason I was disposed to ascertain the facts. It may have been a technical violation of the law; but I assumed the doing of it for the purpose of not having an act of injustice done to him if he was an honest man.

Q. Was the Senate in session on the 3d of January last?

A. I cannot tell you whether it was in session on that day or not.

Q. Was there not a recess?

A. There may have been; I do not remember now.

Q. Then the reason that the Senate was in session did not apply to this case? A. I considered the Senate in session. I do not look upon a recess for two or three or five days as a recess of the Senate, in the sense of the Constitution. I do not remember whether the Senate was actually in session on that particular day.

Q. You deemed it to be in session, and you treated it as if in session?
A. I considered the session as continuing.

Mr. Manager BUTLER. That is all.

Mr. CONNESS. I should like to ask a question of the witness. I will reduce it to writing.

The WITNESS. One suggestion I forgot to make which I wish to mention. The reason why something was not further done in the case is that I was trying to get information on this subject, and then this trouble began, and this case has lain long without any intention to delay it, and no further action has been had. Mr. Manager BUTLER. By trouble you mean the impeachment, I suppose? The WITNESS. Yes, sir; I had no time to have copies made, but I have brought here the original papers which were filed at the time he was appointed. I did not know whether you would want them.

Mr. Manager BUTLER. No, sir; I do not want to see them.

The CHIEF JUSTICE. The question proposed by the senator from California has been submitted in writing, and will be read by the Secretary.

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The question propounded by Mr. Conness was read, as follows:

Have you ever taken any step since your act suspending Foster Blodgett in further investigation of his case?

A. Yes, sir; in trying to secure information. There is considerable information among the papers here on the subject.

Mr. Manager BUTLER. That is what we offered to put in.
The WITNESS. Beyond what you offered to put in.

Mr. Manager BUTLER. I only offered one thing at a time. questions to ask the witness.

Mr. CURTIS. Nor we.

We have no more

Mr. Manager BUTLER. I now offer, Mr. President, an official copy of the order creating the military department of the Atlantic, and putting General Sherman into charge of it.

Mr. EVARTS. What does that rebut? I am not aware that we have given any evidence on that subject.

Mr. Manager BUTLER. Do you object?

Mr. EVARTS. We do, unless it is relevant and rebutting. I do not recall any evidence that we have given concerning the department of the Atlantic.

Mr. Manager BUTLER. It is put in to show part of the action of the President at the same time, on the same day that he restored General Thomas. That date was not fixed until after General Thomas came on to the stand. The object is to show what was done militarily on that same day. That is the reason why it is put in.

Mr. EVARTS. I do not see any connection with General Thomas's testimony. The only connection the honorable manager states is that he learned from General Thomas when he was restored, as if he did not know that before. It was all public when he was restored. It does not connect itself at all with any evidence we have produced. If it is put on the ground that it was forgotten or overlooked, that is another matter; but to bring it in as rebutting is a considertion which we cannot consider well suggested.

Mr. Manager BUTLER. Mr. President, when I speak of learning a thing in the trial of a cause I mean learning it in the course of the evidence during the trial, not what I know in the country from the newspapers, because they are not always the best sources of knowledge. I say that General Thomas testifies that on the 13th of February the President made an order that he should be restored to his position as Adjutant General. That was fixed by his testimony; it was not fixed before. That was an order given on the 13th to General Grant, which was not published, a private letter or order. Now, I want to show that on that same day, or the day before, this new military division was made here, and General Sherman ordered to the command of it, showing the acts of the President at or about the same time. The presiding officer has so well told us heretofore the competency of the acts of a party about the same time as being a part of the res gesta, and the Senate has so often allowed testimony to come in to that effect, that I cannot conceive why this cannot be competent. It is part of the things done by the President on the same day, or the day before Thomas was restored. I do not mean to say a word on the question whether it is rebutting; I do not understand that that rule belongs here.

The CHIEF JUSTICE. On the part of the honorable managers, it is proposed to give in evidence an order establishing the department of the Atlantic. The Chief Justice will submit the question to the Senate.

Mr. ANTHONY. I ask for the yeas and nays.

The yeas and nays were ordered.

Mr. BUCKALEW. Mr. President, I ask for the reading of a question submitted to General Sherman by the counsel for the defence in reference to this very matter. If our clerk will turn to the record he will find that a question was put to General Sherman as to the establishment of the department of the Atlantic, which was ruled out.

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The CHIEF JUSTICE. The Secretary will read the question referred to.

Mr. Manager BUTLER. We shall not trouble the Senate. This being a matter of public document, I suppose we can refer to it in the argument. We withdraw the offer.

The CHIEF JUSTICE. The offer to prove made by the honorable managers is withdrawn.

Mr. Manager BUTLER. I have now, Mr. President and Senators, a list prepared as carefully as we were able to prepare it in the time given us, from the laws, of the various officers in the United States who would be affected by the President's claim here of a right to remove at pleasure. That is to say, to say, if he can remove at pleasure and appoint ad interim, this is a list of officers taken from the laws, with their salaries, being a correlative list to that put in by the counsel, showing the number of officers and the amount of salaries which would be affected by the President. In order to bring it before the Senate I will read the recapitulation only thus:

In the Navy, War, State, Interior, Post Office, Attorney General, Agriculture, Education, and Treasury, the officers are 41,558; the grand total of their emoluments is $21,180,736 87 a year.

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I propose that the same course shall be taken with this as with the like schedule, this being a compilation from the laws, that it be printed as part of the proceedings.

The CHIEF JUSTICE. Is there any objection?

Mr. EVARTS. If it shows what it is there is no objection.
The document is as follows:

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Navy Department, as per Navy Register for 1868-Continued.

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Tabular statement of officers of the army appointed by the President.

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