The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-09-29
General Cameron on the Presidential sac
cessiOn-Grant is the Man.

cessiOn-Grant is the Elan.
General Cameron, the other day, at Harris
burg, made telling speech on the political
situation. He commended that General Grant
has justified in his administration the conf
dence of his supporters; that we have peace
all over the country; that the government is
we'll managed and everybody is prosperous;
that there never was in the world people
80 prosperous as are now the people of the
United States; that there is some grumbling
down South, but that even there the condi-
ton of things has wonderfully improved under
General Grant; that we have great cause
for rejoicing that General Grant has turned
his attention to the finances, and that in his
hands our great mouatain Of debt will vanish
into almost nothing; that we have every
reason to hope that within his first four years
the debt will be cut down to less than two
thousand millions; and, says General Came
ron, 'if he should be elected again, as have
no doubt he will be, when he leaves his Office
we shall not have more than ten or twelve
hundred millions Of debit" and eff he sue
ceeds in doing this he will leave reputation
behind him hardly eclipsed by that of Wash
ington."
Now for the application. General Cameron
further contended that all this glory is and will
be due to the republican party; that to carry
out this grand programme the republican party
must be maintained in power, and that whether
it is or is not to be maintained in power will
depend very much on the approaching Penn
sylvania cleo ton. In fact, as it appears from
the close logic of Cameron, the reelection of
General Grant as President of the United States
in 1872 turns upon the recollection this fall of
General Geary as Governor Of Pennsylvania.
His reelection, we are told, is due to him as
an act Of justice, and is necessary to
the country for the safety Of the repub-
lcan party. eff we should lose Penn
sylvania we shall lose General Grant at the
next election, and so on.
Now, we entirely concur with General Cam
eron that under the present condition of our
political affairs, and from all the signs of the
times, General Grant is the man for the Presi-
Dental succession, and there is no man who
hands; he has been doing very well so far and
has not been weakened, but strengthened, in
the public confidence since he took the reins
from Andy Johnson. The great body Of the
people rely upon his strong practical common
sense to carry the country through its troubles,
and his name to the republican party is tower
Of strength. But it does not follow that to
secure his recollection in 1872 it is necessary
to re-elect Governor Geary in 1862 Nor is
it positively ascertained that he will be re-
elected. He may be defeated, but what will
that signify? 1t will signify that Packer is
more acceptable than Geary to Pennsylvania
as candidate for Governor, and such result
may be used to the prejudice of General
Grant; but all this will signify nothing in the
national campaign of 1872. In Presidential
1869 going by default one way or
the other, will amount to anything Hence
on this point we disagree with General Came
ron; for we do not think the reelection of
General Geary in 1869 necessary to secure the
reelection Of General Grant in 1872. We
think, too, that every tub ought to stand on
its own bottom, and that Geary ought to stand
or fall upon his own merits. But if the demo-
Gratis have chosen to make this little election a
test of the strength Of Grants administration
Geary has no reason to complain, and Came
ron may be excused in putting the Governor
on the strong shoulders Of the President. Still
the result Of the Pennsylvania election of 1869,
one way or the other, will not amount to much
in the Presidential election three years hence.
Within the interval the whole political world
in both hemisphcres may DO turned upside
down but short of some such sweeping recon-
struction Of politics and parties General Grant
will be the man for the next Presidency.
The HERALD AvoNDALE RELIEF Fund