The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1868-09-03
General Grant from . Southern Psint Of
View.

View.
Among the many Southern leaders who have
formed opinions Of General Grants capacity
and expressed them there Is perhaps none whose
views may be accredited with more sagacity
and keener observation than those of Alexan-
der II. Stephens, the late Vice President Of
the extinct confederacy. In o conversation
recently with correspondent of the HERALD
he expressed himself freely as to the character
of General Grant. There was none of the
narrow mindedness or paltry sentiments which
pervade the TRADES of Northern party organs
when speaking of the radicals candidate in
the pronounced opinions Of the Southern
statesman. In his view Grant is a man of
remarkable military genius, not a s'butcher"
nor a ''bogus soldier man Of indomitable
energy and determined will-just the man for
a coup GStat such as Napoleon performed in
1852; the very man to bring about the result
which Mr.. Stephens anticipates from the sue
cess of the radical party-the transition Of our
republic into an empire, with dictator at its
head, and that dictator Grant. Now, Mr..
Stephens is correct in his estimation Of the
characteristics of General Grant. He does
possess in a great measure the qualities OF
Caesar or Cromwell or Napoleon, but to
assume that he can use them with similar
results in our day and in this country is very
different thing. The circumstances are all
changed. We have inaugurated new phase
in history just as decidedly as we have
I'LL abnJ nj IF DIV
and neither the ancient Imperialism of Cesar
nor the modern political despotism Of Napo-
leon is possible with us.
That the objects and ambitions of the radical
faction, corrupt and dangerous as they are,
seem to tend in that direction is quite true.
The radical Congress led us to the very verge
of those events which marked the transition of
the Roman republic into the empire of the
Caesars, to that condition of things which pre-
coded the French revolution of 1889, and to
an almost analogous state of affairs as that
which led to the conflict between the Parlia-
ment and the King of England; but Grant is
not the man to fill up the measure of these
dangers, and here is where Mr.. Stephens and
Frank P. Blair, who insinuated something OF
the same sort, are mistaken.
The points in General Grants character
which Mr.. Stephens has so correctly defined
will, in all probability, be used for the benefit
rather than to the evil of the country if he
should be placed at the head of the govern
ment. He will have the wild ambitions, the
monstrous corruptions, the rapacity, the fana-
ticism of the radical party to control, and it is
just here that his 'indomitable energy" ode
termined will, and mayhap his great military
genius" too, may be brought into practical
service. Alexander H. Stephens, however, is
quite right in his estimate Of General Grants
character. But even if General Grant had the
desire, of which there is no evidence whatever
to play the role of Caesar, Cromwell or a
Napoleon, we cannot forget that he has the
great American people behind him to keep him
in check-a people endowed with an intelli-
gence and an appreciation of freedom and its
advantages, with the machinery of newspa-
pers, railroads and telegraphs at their COM
mand, that will set at naught all such proba-
bilities as Mr. Stephens intimates for our
future.