The Van Buren press., 1867-09-13
Trouble in the Cabinet-Grant, &c,

lhecohhtry appears considerably trou-
bled about the discord said to exist in
the Cabinet of President johnson. Why
this should be we cannot see. True, the
the condition Of this country is such. Just
at this time, as to make us fear much evil
from insignificant causes. The whole
fabric is unsettled by the mad waves of
fanadcism. We all feel as if we we're
treading the brink of some yawning gulf,
IN murky darkness, and tremble lest every
step may be our last. The country felt
the same IN lesser degree, at the time
South Carolina nullified the laws Of Con.
gress. The government seemed 10 trem-
ble to its very foundations, but an ener-
getic Chief Magistrate soon quelled the
rising storm and all things went on
smoothly, SO in. this case nothing more
Is needed than quick dscernment and
prompt action on the part of Mr.. John
son. The discord in the Cabinet is most
likely, greatly exaggerated, and no doubt,
nothing will come of it. Many of these
sensation rumors are put forth by gold
speculations and too much Importance
should not be attached to them. A.rreat
deal is said about Grants letter. We can.
not ior, ,ahe dite' of.Hs' see, how this puerile
composition can effect any great harm.
we have always esteemed Grant as q man
of limited capacity. We could never see
lhe sclntillahoPs of genius, that many
proiessed to1discoycr. As a, General he
did nothing butr hang on" with thou
sands and thousands Of men at bis beck
ana call to oppose an exhausted Con
federacr-hnuinos ~. .----Iuiers. Had
Grant cominaHded-when Mcclellan did,
he would have been snugly stored away
with Pohe, "' fighting Joe Hooker, and
the other victims of Lees geueralship.
we confess an utter inability to see the
greatness Of Ulysses S. Grant as Gen.
eral. AS statesman, he has studiously
avoided any expressions that could lead
the world toa knowledge of his capacity.
believe he once .sagely remarked, LA.
dies and gentlemen; Pm glad to sec you
here tonight" and has been represented
at horse races and has been represented,
and represented nth houses, lots, horses,
etc.-not one refusal recorded. All the
boot-licking, and aattcry s.Uf his crack.
Drained adorcrs could not induce him to
utter connected sentence of two dozen
words-and in this alone can We recog-
nize his sffewdhess, II would havc been
better for him IL this wontcd shrewdness
had not been overcome by his fear Of the
"dashing Phik" 1" Silence" was his
forte" and he ought not to have deserted
it. Mr., Johnson's simple request for a
verbal statement brought, forth what two
years Of speculation and fulsome eulogy
could not-a political letter. The charm
OF reticence is broken and the great en-
bryo statesman stands before the world
us one almost entirely unacqpaintcd with
the fundamcnralidtas Of our government.
And this confession is the cause of all
this uproar. If Grant does not suit the
views Of the Executive it is but an easy
matter for Mr.. Johnson to invite him to
cease his ad interim functions. His func
tons as civil officer are as vulnerable
Us Mr.. Stanton's, and if he impedes the
progress Of justice and the compliance
with the Executives oath Of office, he
can be easily set aside. We confess not
to be able to fathom the wisdom of Mr..
Johnson's choice. He might just as east.
ly have. taken a man who had political
status, and one who had already given
evidence of ripe craftsmanship. We foar
the Executive was too anxious to make
little Juneombe on this occasion; and in
doing this has ulyittingly, placed dan
gerous man in his council. Dangerous,
only because his intellectual strength was
unknown. Mystery always adds to the
magnitude Of things, and now that the
people see, that instead Of a giant they
have been rsyerencing a pigmy, he will
cease to be dangerous. And these con-
,sideration seems to be overlooked in this
nihtter. The war has given us all too
great q taste for the" man" in govern.
ment The subaltcrn, for wise reason
renders nnQuest!oning obedience to his