The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1868-11-13
THE PRESIDENT ELECT.

THE PROPOSED GRANT DEMONSTRATION AND
WHAT CAME OF IT-A SPEECH BY GENERAL
GRANT-THE MEETING AND ADJOURNMENT OF
CONGRESS.
A Washington letter of Tuesday, to the Bal
timore Gazette, says:
Although tho Congress OF the Uulted States
was in session to. day for fifteen minutes at the
capitol yet the feature of the day has beer
the rich scene enacted at the headquart r.
OF General Grant. In spite Ct all General
Gl ants efforts to the contrary, coterle OF
small politicians thrust themselves into his
presence, with o view to securing the
Generals assent to public demonstra-
tion by the Radicals OF this city. The
5000 capes and an equal number # torches,
which had been purchased, must be used, and
this party of bakers dozen venturod to i'm
perfume the President elect for the privilege Of
o grand torchlight procession, IN which, OF
course, they could make themselves prominent
persOnages.
After waiting for some time in small ante
room. word was received by the party to walk
I'D to the Generals Office. Here he received
them with as much case and indifference as II
they had been so many orderlles, when Mayor
Bowen spoke as follows:
General: In behalf of the citizens and the
Republican organizations Of this city, wo have
called to tender our hearty congratulations on
the result Of the recent election and to max;
known to you their wishes that they be per-
mitted to attest their feeling Of happiness and
ioy by proper public denomination welcom-
ing you as the Presidcut elect to the capital OF
of the nation. AS they were deprived OF that
'sfank movement" by which you stole march
upon our peonic, we indulge the hope that you
will now accede to their request, and name the
time and place for such demonstration that
will be most agreeable to You.
The General, after moments pause, re-
pliei:
receive your CONGRATULATIONS, but hope you
will spare me any public demonstration.
TAnother long pause, the General standing
with his hands in his pockets]. like to avoid
demonstrations everywhere, anu, with my
consent. there will be none here or elsewhere.
am always re ldy to mot such gentlemen
as call at my Office without public display or
demonstration. This will BE- much more agrcc-
able to me, aid, hope, will be agreeable to
YOU. Mayor Bowen Certainly, General. We
will study your pleasure in the matterl Con-
eral G-ant-I am not unm!nlful OF the feeling
intended 10 bo displayed by such demonstla-
tions, but you must take that for Granted.
Laughter. The General evidently intended no
pun.]
The above is an exlct verbatim report Of
General Grants remarks; and as he Is not
given to much speaking, care has been taken
by your correspondent to place this speech be-
fore the country precisely as it was delivered.
Mayor Bowen, seemingly much disappointed
and dissatisfied, took tho General little to
one side, and, IN an under tone, addressed
something to the General, to watch he declined
to reply except by shrug of tho shoulders.
The party then left like the young man who
was told to sell all he had and give it tn the
poor-they went away sorrowful-
out like funeral procession.
Gon. Grant spent the most OF his time to-
day at his hea lquarters. Having arisen early
in the mornlng, one o. his first acts WAS to
orde: the destruction Of several bushels Of
letters which have been sent to him here, in
relation to Offices, &C.. which had been oponcd
and read by his staff. No record Of them
was kept, aud this timoly warning will proba-
! " save the vast amount OF opportunity IN ad-
vance, and indicates determination not to
allow the cares Of state to weigh him down
prematurelv.
GENERAL GRANT AS PRESIDENT"
The Army and Navy Journal, which has,
through the campaign, spoken in relation to
Graut in nm authoritative tone, discusses his
probable course now that he is elected to tho
Presidency. l. refers to his candid AMI dis
passionate view regarding the South set forth
in his official report on the situation soon aftHr
peace was declared, and to the terms Of sur
render which hc dctltel to Lees army. It
then adds:
General Grant, we repeat, is by nature
wcll-balanced. calm, moderate. con.crvlsirt
man. Such will he appear as Pfceiit,E, aud
those who contemplate his 5ain; either u tool
\or L tJrant reckon w,tlJl. til II host. Next
1--WE may count ON Gcacra! GrlnC's aIminlstra-
tio1 being Of IN exceedingly practical cAarac-
Fer. This is the essential charac er OF his own
mind. = General Grant, without making
great nosc alb ut it, will aim to make his al
mlniStration generally useful by economy, by
honesty, by sound Judgment and Common
ScIse.
HIS Cabinet will be selected with view to
rcnder him assistance in this practical way
The measures he will recommend to Congress
will be entirely Of this sor... The finances and
the civil service will be among the foremost OF
general political subjects to eceive attention,
and we may safely predict that the great word
Of tho hour, the great feature to strike all OBJ
servers, as soon as General Grant has been q
month IN power, will b, the confidence inspir-
ol in people OF all parties and all political
creeds.
Grant, as q soldier, understands we'll the
bounds Of coordinate and subordinate authori-
ty. Congress will not be suffered to encroach
upon his prerogatives as the Executive, nor he
attempt to encroach upon Congress as the leg
islative department Of the government. A so.-
dier is used both 10 command and obey-an adj
mirable training, say what civilians will, for
any administrative office, from pound-keeper
up to President.
We shall mako bod to predict that he will
realize more than any man who has sat in tho
Chief Magistrates chair since Andrew Jackson
the Executive idea which should be the central
idea connected with the Presidency.
GENERAL GRANTS VIEWS OF TIE REPUBLICAN
PLATFORM.
Washington telegram to the New York
Herald says:
A statement made last evening by gentle
man in whom my be placed implicit re.iance,
aud who enjoys excellent opportunities to cna.
BILE him to sptak lnt,llgenily on the subject,
may give some Indication Of General Grants
position in relation to the Republican
party. He states that after the General
was nominated he sat for quite long
time carefully reading and ponlcring
upon the platform adopted by the Conven-
ton; that he finally expressed to his confden-
tlal friends that he did not like 1t, and was
in great doubt whether he woulI accept the
nomination on that platform. This coming to
the ears OF certain leaders OF the party they
hastened to call upon the General, who stated
to them his objections to the platform. This
intelligence was received with no little conster-
nation by his visitors, who feared that Grant
enter tanned the ipIentlon of declining the