Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1870-04-21
Pen P.clure of the President, by Grace
Greenwood.

A Pen z ct ure of the Presiuent, Dy trace
Greenwood.
Though SO uuiet and undemonstra
tive, President Grants manner is not
cold. Though somewhat set and quite
Ieticent in EXPRESSION, his face is neither
hard nor forbIdding. Though his ewes
of grayish; ;hlue zee tainly do not radiate
geniality and good fellowship, L nave
always seen in them SIT! and steady
frie ldliness--impaItial, Almost undis.
crimina,ing, but singularly.unforgetful.
Il IS; look iuio your eyes Oh brst meet-
ing is clear, direct, but not piercing. L e
makes no deep scrutiny" into yo ar
character, but you feel that he reads you
well, as far as he goes, and you may be
suIe he Will know you the next time.
His words a.e few, as he has OCCASION
ally remarked, and his address simple
Nv itself Some one once called it
courageous simplicity" Idon't think
the term suited to him; it implies too
much consciousness. FraukIn's ip-
pearamce to the Court of Versailles was
courageous simplicity JeffeIson's 5
riding Oh horseback from the White
House to the Capitol was dramatic sim
,Iljcty. But Grant gives no thought to
effect-makes no parade of net mpking a
parade. In walking, he carries his
nSau-lDdb COHl
modelled head-slightiy forward; and
he has 10 public places an absent ye.
acuuiescent air, as of one being taken
somewhere rather than going OF his on II
volition-which is usually the case, as
be is the most obliging. informal and
unmagisteral of Chief magistrates. To
me there is something strange in the
ordinary passivity of such will as his.
He seems not only a modest, out diff
fiient man. Great heroes before him
bave been so. This diilideuce may
O.. .en be taken for indifference and iD
sensibility. I think l. have seen the
sure marks of it in his intei course win
ch'Idren, for whom he really has the
.iondness characteristic of Mr.. Lincoln.
He has no small-talk for small inter-
viewers. but he is not above listening to
them, and | have noticed that they
uever account him hard or cold. They
rave Perhaps the instinct to understand
and the grace to interpret that riddle
for statesmen. reporters and fine ladies
= he fIce of President Grant.
A few evenings ago, asa little party
of us assembled to witness some private
theatricals of the simplest and most
juvenile sort at the house of Que OF the
Cabinet Miui, ters, the family from the
White House called quite unexpectedly.
On being told what Was or the tapis,
the President expressed a desire TO see
the performance, ''ifthe children would
not object" OF course they did not,
though ouaking in their buskins, but
did their poor best before their august
audience, and were rewarded by Presi-
dental laughter and applause. Watch
ing our President as he sat smiling
kindly at that little comedy, that quaint
bit of childish mimic-life, it seemed al
most impossible to realize that he was
indeed that great Captain of Captains,
who q few short years ago was the CEN
tlal figure in aanigh,y drama OF battle,
whose stage was a continent, and whose
audience was the world. / think we
ought to strive to realize this more; it
seems to me there is too much petty
cavil at this mans non observance of
some of the small conventionalities
which we call 1.-The etiquette of the
position;" too many newspaper plati-
tudes that he enjoys his cigar; that he
loves horses (bless him for thatD: that
he does not make speeches on all trivial
occasionc (bless him for that, too y: in
short, that he does not ''do the dcport-
ment' of his place, according to aristo-
cratic democratic theories, that he is
not the PreSluent OF precedent.
I'VE had eyes and chose him."
Let US remember that God gives to
one soul genius to think and to aSpi e;
to auother to do aud to be. There is the
inspired prophet brain, which says, ~
see-I believe" and there is the i'm
perial, compulsive brain, which says,
II AMI will" Who shall say which
is the greater? Each by divine law,
ancient as time, gravitates to its fit
period and place. Because the night of
our tribulation is past. do not let us
cease TO thank God for the strong hand
which upheld and guided lis through its
heaviest darkness; above all, let us not
quarrel with that hand. if it takes not
kindly to Paris kids, or if the grip ii
learned upon the syordhilt sometimes
makes slippery, self-seeking, political
fingers tingle.