Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1866-09-26
Gen, Grant and the Politicians

As the Copperhead and Conservative John
son journals and speakers are pei sstent and IN
scrupulous 10 their use of Gen Grants name,
to give some respectabIhty to their attempt
TO surrer der the GOvernment 10 the traitors
Grant defeated in the field il becomes impot-
tant to know just where Grant stands and
the following carefully prepared statement,
which We fnd in the Chicago Repubhean, tel
egraphed TO that paper by Its zpeciai reporter
with the late president tiai eleciIoneering ex-
cursion, sheds much light upon the matter.
The tact is that Gcn. Grant knoas, as has
been patent 10 every one during the whole OF
this irip, that continued Efforts have been
made To eDbltter, II possible, his relations
with the President by exciting the jealousy
the latter, or by making lnvidlous dlstin actions
between them, and he Is determined that DO
act OF his sha. lend any encouragement 90
any such contemplate proceeding on the one
hand or those that have been made with like
pereistency to identity MIN with the political
views of the President, on the other. Gen.
Grant feels that, next to the President, he Is
the head OF the army OF the United States,
not the leader of political party. de does
not consider the army place tor politician,
and therefore will not permit himself to be
mitted to the support OF either OF the
present political parties, nor that the army
shall be made party machine.
In about q minute afterwards Gen. Grant,
who had been into the Presidents car to pre-
sent himself to the people assembled at Vest
j notion, re entered the car, and, having
seated himself, beckoncd 70 Inc TO come anu
speak with him. 1 did 80, and, on seating
myself by his side, he went on 70 say that he
thought that If published the account al
ready submitted to him, he would like 1t to
be understood that he had refused to receive
the proposed demonstration entirely, because
he ielt 1t his dutJ to refuse any reception or
demonstration tendered seI aratcly to himself
while travelling with the President, or 10 do
any thing which might be construed as favor
ing any political party. tie then went on TO
reiterate his determination not 10 be used by
those who sought to commit him either fer
against the Presidents policy, or TO attach
any political significance TO his presence on
the President g excursoa. He had also been
much ANNOYED at the use which had been
made of his name by John Hogan, who had
presumed to state e. at Gen. Grant was p0ht-
ically with the President, and on similar
occasion by MIR. Seward he ieit that 1t wa,
above ali things, desirable for otficers OF the
army to avoid participation IN ordinary point
zeal cODnictS, except That III WAS lneif uuIy ds
citis. Ms to support only men who could show
record OF consistent loyalty. Whether u
mans sentiments were JohDsonian OF Repub-
lican, he said he felt that il WAS al insult to
any loyal man to ask him to vote for any
candidate who was not loyal man In 1861.
In this connection, he said that, withou,
expressing any views of his own for or against
the johnson policy, ne yet felt it to be mis-
| fortune for Mr.. johnson that the advocates of
his policy in the States through which We
had Just passed, Missouri, Illinois and Indiana,
had IN some instances put upon their ticket
| men who in 1861 and 1862 had been guilty Of
known dis loyalty to the Government; became
| (and this was said in very emphatic man
ner) he felt that to ask men whOse sons had
shed their blood ior the Union to vote Tor
men who had been disloya! to it, was the
| greatest insult that could DC offered. South
| ern men he could make allowances tor, am he
could ride through the South and get out on a
| platform and shake hands III friendship 18th
such men as Lee, johnson, or Forresr, because
though they had been almost educated into
secession, they come now truly honest and
| 10 yal III their adherence to the Union. and
were seeking to strengthen it. But he did not
! feel in that way toward Northern men whr
| had once been disloyaI, and neither desired Il
associate with them nor have them ior In
| friends. No such man should have his sup
port, nor ought they TO be supported by MIR
Johnson's friends throughout The Northern