Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1871-04-07

Now, Of this kind of Opposition" Gen.
Grant has had rather more than his full
share. as everybody will admit. Some
people he provoked by refusing to place
them in lucrative offices. They have ever
since been at work upon his character, lay
ing on coat of black paint here and daub-
ing It with pitch there, until the portrait
has become hidoous caricature. 1t seems
but the other day that the whole nation was
trying to devise methods Of testiiying 10
Gen. Grant its sense of the high services he
had rendered. No new light has been
thrown on those services since. They are
as deserving of praise and gratitude now
as ever they were. 1t is largely owing to
Gen. Grant that we are to-day great peo-
pie, and not as the Democrats wished TO
make us, a co Election of small governments
and Independent states. Posterity Will
rank Gen. Grant among the greatest COM
manders of his age-the most indomitable
in adversely, the most magnanimous in
victory. Yet 1t is this man, and within
five years of the close of the war, that Sem
ator Sumner can dare to call incapable even
as n soldier, utterly unworthy of respect or
confidence. II Senator Sumner had said
that in May, 1865, what would have been
the general verdict on his behavior? Yet
that portion of Gen. Grants career to which
Mr.. Summers criticism was addressed
stands the same now as it did then; it goes
down to history as it stood when Il @ sur
render Of Lee, after struggle of unparal-
leled intensity-for there has been nothing
in the war between Germany and France
at all comparable with it-brought peace
once more to the country.
People are blessed with very short mem-
ories in these days-but is it creditable to
us that Gen. Grants character should thus
be exposed to every reckless calumny, and
scarcely protest raised against the out
rage? Let it be remembered that he has
done nothing whatever to deserve the oblo-
guy now heaped upon his head by Repub-
lican papers like the Evening Post. When
you slt the complaints about him they
amount to this-ho has not appointed some
men to office, who were thought by their
friends to be deserving of pre'erment and
he has appointed others who were thought
to be undeserving. Was there ever Pres
! luent Oh WnOm tne same tnlng cOulu not be
said? Look on the other side of the ac-
count. The debt has been largely reduced
so has taxation; public credit stands high
the country is prosperous. When you
reckon up Gen Grants faults, why not
place these great results of his administra-
ton to his credit? Simply because it is al
most impossible nowadays to obtain JUS
tice for public man during his lifetime.
There must always be an opposition; and
in newspaper age, opposition can speak
with ten thousand voices, where sixty years
ago it could find but one.
We have mentioned Gen. Grants name,
but what we have said about him necessa-
rily applies also to the Republican party,
for the two are linked pretty closely togeth-
er, and must necessarily be so until March,
1873, to say the least. 1t is astounding to
find Republicans persevering in a course
which any man possessing grain of sense
must see is calculated TO force the country
into the abyss of Democracy.