The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1868-11-25

and fnsncier. It ia widely suspected that he
has been influenced more by the stock and
gold gamblers of Wall street than the general
interests of the country. That great body of
men which Abraham Lincoln defined as 'Our
plain, honest, thinking people, find it espe-
oially difficult to understand how it is that
under an efficient aud honest Secretary such
things as frauds upon the Treasury , tue ak
tent OF a hun 1red millions a year could pos
sibly be perpetrated, ant upon the single
item of contraband whisky.
Upon this matter, too, the responsibility
falls back upon ths President. What can he
say in explanation of the continuance of these
whisky frauds from month to month and from
year to year, or of the smotherng OF all the
investigators attempted? He may plead the
Tenure-of Office law; but even under this
obnoxious law he has still had the power OF
suspending dishonest aud suspected officials,
great and small Why has he not availed
himself of this power, aud made score or two
Of whole ONE examples OF the officers under
whose general supervision and OF those IN
whose especial districts or departments these
enormous whisky frauds have been perpe-
tTated ? We ask for light upon this dark aud
mysterious business, aud the President ought
to be able by the reassemblng of Congress to
throw flood of light upon it In truth, too,
he must do something towards clearing up
these whisky mysteries, or he may himself,
III 'hV Pu w" JuOSluVh'j lail shOlb vi 'i Aui-
perative duty.
On the subject of Southern reconstruction
we anticipate a TigmarOle of chop logic of
little or no consequences in a practical view;
but still point Will be gained if We have in
the Presidents message recognition of the
constitutional amendment, article fourteen,
proclaimed by the secretary of State part and
parcel of the Constitution ''to all iutents aud
purposes" The Southern Democratic leaders
are holding back upon this amendment. A
word from Mr. Johnson will set them right,
and will az once put them iu the way of
carrying, with the negro balance OF power,
every Southern State against the radicals in
their next elections for Congress. Had the
Democracy III their Tammsny Convention Of
last July recos sniz7d thus aneudmen in the
simple nomination of Chase, they might have
carried the country 0n the excessive taXations
and cOriuptous OF the party in power.
The Secretary OF state generally works up
that branch ot the Presidents message relat-
ing to our foreign affairs, aud 50 we sha pro-
bably have nothing very clear or definite in
the forthcoming NE sssge touching Mr.. Reverdy
Johnson 5 negotiations on the alabama claims,
nor in reference TO Cuba, Mexico the Paraguay
imbroglio or anything else. Nevertheless We
expect from Mr. Johnson a better message this
time than any b. has yes given us, iua5much
as it win be the last ol his regular course. He
may, Ike General Jackson, follow the exam
pie OF Washington in giving US on retiring
from Office the benefit OF y farewell address;
but il he int nds, Ou returning to Tennessee
to take a fresh start ia running TOR Governor,
a farewell address may, perhaps, be Jude
fnitely post poued.