The Portland daily press., 1872-06-12
The Contrast.

Ulysses S. Grant and Horace Greeley are
now before the American people as candi-
dates for the highest official position that can
be conferred by man. If, after careful inves-
tigation and mature reflection, any Republi-
can comes to the conclusion that Mr.. Greeley
will make better ruler than the present oc-
cupant of the White House, he ought by all
means to vote for him. He has been for
many years an honored member of the Re
publican party, and has often been of the great
est possible service in defeating its enemies
He has, as we believe, until a recent period
when the Presidency seemed to be within
his reach, and when the fatal lust for office
took complete possession of him, an honest
man. But we nevertheless believe that any
fair contrast between him and Gen. Grant
will place the latter in light so much more
favorable than that in which his competitor
appears, that no sincere and loyal soul can for
moment doubt as to whom his suffrages are
due. Consider the case for one moment:
In all the tremendous emergencies of the
last ten years, Gen. Grant has uniformly en-
tertained correct opinions and done the right
formity conceived wrong notions and, had he
been a ruler instead of an influential private
citizen, would have acted upon them and
done the wrong thing.
Gen. Grant is slow to form opinions, but
when he has once made up his mind as to the
right course he adheres to it with great firm
ness, but stops at that nice, almost invisible
line that divides frmness from obstinacy.
Horace Greeley, ON the other hand, is noto-
riously blown about by every new wind of
doctrine. When you suppose that he is
planted in certain principles as firmly as the
eternal hills, he suddenly changes sides and
pours a-volley into the ranks of those who
but now were his friends. Tickle, completely
unnamed in times of difficulty and danger,
ferocious and blatant when the enemy is ap-
preaching, but taking to his heels the moment
the first gun is fired, easily influenced by fiat
tererS and firm only in non-essentials. Mr.
Greeley presents striking contrast with his
cool, level-headed, brave, honest and consist
ent opponent
Gen. Grant adheres to principle. Mr..
Greeley doesn't. The manner in which the
former has fulfilled his implied pledges to the
Republican party is greatly to his credit. In
evil and in good report, when it was for his
personal advantage and when it was not, he
has at all times done his best to carry on the
good work of establishing equal rights and
justice. When he was first elected there
were those who feared that when he was firm
in his seat he would ignore the PRINCIPLES that
triumphed in his elevation. But he has been
true to the Republican party, true to the
freedmen, true to himself More than once
he has put in peril his reelection by this old
fashioned fidelity. But Mr.. Greeley has no
idea OF endangering his chances in that way.
So he coolly valves protection, as if it were
some matter of mere etiquette or a disputed
historical fact, because a Presidential candi-
date can't carry such luggage as extreme opin-
ions on the tariff question. And whereas he
has hitherto greatly extolled the Ku-Klux
law, demanding that it be made stronger"
ne now turns his back on it all, and adopts
tne cant about military government" Gin
terlerence with the reserved rights of the
States and all the stereotyped Democratic
phraseology. Because no advocate of.tba
Ku-klux law will be tolerated at Baltimore
where, on the 9th of july Mr.. Groelev ov
poets to have his apostacy formally recoon;1od
and rewarded.