The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-03-05
CHI y r L E S Z 9 :: l..
FRIDAY MORNING, MARCH 5, 1869.
Tho inaugural Address.

The inaugural address Of President Grant
is now before the c.untry, and We confess
that we do not SEQ that it should cause
either great pleasure or great dissatisfac-
tion to The people Of the South.
We are doubtless inclined 10 lay too much
stress upon our own affairs. Three years
of Congressional squabblipg and wrong-do
ing have given US some excuse for regard
ing the South as The keystone of the arch of
the Uuion. We feel that the Southern sta
plea are the foundation Of the whole fnan-
cial system cf the United States. 1t is then
somewhat m,rlifyiug 10 find that we re-
ceiYe l.ss attention than is given to the
poor Indian" aad that President Grant
ca7alierly dismisses US, with an incidental
expression of the hope that the ten South-a
e.a States will soon emerge from their
poverty -strichea condition.
If, however, President Grant is chary Of
giving word of encouragement and good
cheer to the South, he marches directly to
the point VIXEN he speaks Of the national
aebt This is the feature of the address
There is no room for doubt or misappreScn-
sion, and the new President rejoices the
hearts of the bondholdeis by declaring
''that every dollar of government indcbt-
''ciness should be paid in geld, unless other
'.wise expressly stipulated in the contract"
General Grant did not visit New York for
nothing, and his declarations in regard to
the payment of the bonds admit of none of
t6at double Interpretation which was
put upon the financial plank of the plat
form adopted by the Chicago Convention.
And President Grant is equally explicit
in regard to the Fifteenth constitutional
amendment. We had hoped that the Pres
ident would have been silent about this
deviltry, which seeks to fasten negro suf
frage upon the whole country for all time
to come. Happily, something more is need
ed for its ratification than the recommer-
dations and good wishes of President Grant.
The spurred heel and clattering sabre
peep out in what the President says touch
ing foreign affairs. General Grant is
soldier by habit and in feeling. A strong
government, soldierly government, will,
according to his idea, 60 far to restore
kindly feeling and heal the wounds Of the
late civil war. The South requires peace,
the whole country requires peace; but in
this, ss in all else, it is presumed that we
must bow to the decision of Grant and the
New England States.
President Grant declares that he is un-
trammelled and that oil laws shall be faith
fully executed; and we believe that he is
man enough to do what he believes to be
right, without regard to either expediency
or popularity. We have some confidence
in the new President, because we believe
him to be an honest and upright man. We
have no prejudice against him, nor have the
Southern people; and in all his efforts to
restore the government to its ancient
purity, and to carry out policy of econo-
my, honesty and retrenchment, President
Grant will receive the hearty support of
the people of the South. We do not judge
him by his inaugural address any more
than we judge him by the oraoular utter
ances of few months ago. As President
of tho United States General Grant now
stands before the people, and by his deeds
will he be judged. Never had man greater
opportunities or more commanding inhu-
ence. We pray that he may use them
Alright for the well-being, prosperity and
progress of the whole of our common
country.