Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1872-01-08
! lNANTE.BELIta GRANT
An Old NeIghbOr Writes Him Up.
A Chance 10 Speculate I'm Unpaid
Z Gr0gsBfiln--lA ~ ome Drunk
I'm ~ Pumpkin Cart. fl

A Chance TO Speculate In Uupaiu
Gr0g.Bfl ln--Hnuleda III ome Drank
I'm "a Pumpkin Cart. a.
Correspondence PomerOy's Democrat o
ST.. LOUIS, Mo-, December. 1871.
- In the Missouri Democrat q noticed a
statement copied from the New York
Times, headed " President Grant. the
ISLANDERS and Lies told Of Him" said lies
and sIanders pnrporting to come from
the Brooklyn Eagle, New " ork Sun, and
other papers bitterly opposed to the Pres
ident, said to have charged the said Pres-
ident with Twenty-Five appointments Of
his wife's relatives.
Now, sir, let me give you few IDEAS
and thinln that i am sufficiently well
posted to give you facts. U. s. Grant
with his father-in-law Dent, were for years
close neighbors of mine on the Gravois
road, in st. Louis county. in the same
neighborhood where our President now
holds his large farm. 70
1t may be said thatit does not become
me, or any private citizen OF the ma
ton, to speak lightly Of our PRESIDENT;
but, sir, dislike very much to hear the
New York Times, or any other paper,
make statements to the public which
/ know to be false. That Grant was a
worthless loafer before the war no man
in this neighborhood dare deny If he
does, l have only to refer him to the up
per end of Market street, near the
Wedge House, whore every saloon-lSeep-
or has the name of 70. .OS4 Grant, az a.
household word, and where | can pur-
chase many Of, his grog bills, still left
unpaid, for a very small consideration.
/ can name many of his old associates
in gambling operatiouRi where he sat
till he lost the very la st cent of theval ue
of his cord Of wood, which he repeatedly
brought on an exlcart to the st. Louis
market. The Times states that man
.of purer private life that General Grant
never occnpied the presidential chair.
If this be so, what must have t,een
the character Of the Father of our
Country, General George Wash
ington, and manys sothers who have occu.
pied that chair since the days Of
the ,Reyolution? Is it not gross
insult to the CAmeriean people for the
Times, or any other paper TO naake such
a declaration My blood bcils at the
unblushing impudence of such state
ments from any quarter. b at you OF
your readers may see fit to h old me to
account, or ask Ane what / know deroEa-
tory to the character of U. S. Grant. /
do not ask the nation to belle ve what /
say on statement alone, but to go to his
former haunts in and around st. Louis,
and they will soon find out what he was
up to the year. 1860. Let me here relate
one circumstance Not long bef ore our
national troubles a neighbor of his,
named Sappington, brought into the
market load of pumpkins and squash.
Finding no sale for the same he n ,turned
to his home, intending to feed hem to
his pigs. On the Gravois road about
FIVE miles from St. Louis, he noticed by
the moonlight something lying before
him. Pulling up his horses, he called
out, who's there?"
an No reply, He finally got ont, of his
wagon and shook what seemed to be a
human being, at same time asking:
Who are your What are you doing
here2" 3
The drunken object, raising; hin iself
up and brushing aside his hair, trie d to
say that he was Captain Grant. ! Sap,
pington, finding his ,neighbor in sue h g
helpless condition, pulled out the all
board of his wagon, lifted up and sho ved
our present President to kee p comps my
with load of ripe squash and pun 1p-
kins, until the aforesaid wagon drove up
in front Of his fatherin-lav5s Dent 81
house. Sappington called out, stating,
that he had found Captain Grant on the
roadside, and brought him home in his
wagon
Soon Grants,wife and all hands were
at work trying to pick him out from
among the squash and pumpkins. l
will leave you TO judge what his appear
ance must have been. Certainly, if he
had not coat of tar and feathers on
him, he was well besmeared with the
pulp and seeds of squash and pumpkin. 1
l, sir, simply give you this as enc
in the life of man said to
be the "purest private character that
ever occupied the Presidential chair"
If this is not sufficient to shut the ig- |
norant or lying mouth of the New York
Times, or any other journal so politi- |
cally controlled aud debased as to try to |
deceive the public, write to me, and |
will give you much more, and for all of
which statements Il can give you sub |
stantial proof. Or, if you prefer, dele !
gate some one to fad out facts in our !
am, sir, yours,
G. II JoUNsON +