Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1872-03-23
MistcIlunrons.
The Administration of Gen. Grant

Wilson, of Massachusetts. lie entered
public life poor, and remains poor to-day.
having no income but the salary he receives
as Senator, while others who entered poor
have grown immensely rich. When Andy
Johnson commenced canvassing the United
States Senate for the purpose of ascertain
ing whom he could corrupt to vote against
impeachment, some one suggested the name
of Senator Wilson as one, because he was
poor but it was Immediately met with
this prompt reply by some one who knew
him: "He is poor, but no one would dare
to approach him with such proposition. "
He is truly Il representative of the labor of
the country. He commenced life by learn
ing the trade Of shoemaker, and worked
at his business in Natck, Mass. and bv
perseverance has risen to be an ornament
in the Senate of the United States. lie
has never deserted the cause of lnbor. and
has always advocated measures calculated
to advance its interests. lie was approach
ed also by some of the leaders of the pro-
tessed Labor RefUrmers to unite with them
as workingman but he promptly told
them that he sympathzcd with the work
ing classes, and he was always ready to
advance their interests but he could only
benefit their cause by adhering to the Re-
publican party, because it really favored
IL
greater extent than any other party ever
did before and to withdraw from it now,
and divide and distract it for the purpose
ofbulding up a new party, must result in
placing IN power, not only the Democracy,
but the Free Trade party. which was the
greatest enemy of labor in this country,
under the guise Of protesting to be friendly
to the cause Of labor.
We have made these preliminary re-
marks to introduce the following extract
from n speech delivered by Senator Wilson
to the people of Great Falls. New IIamp-
shire, where the great mass are working
men:
There has been collected, under Gen.
Grants Administration, in three wears,
nearly $1,000, 100, OO0--ncarly S400, 900. 900
year; there has been paid out nearly ST.
OO.OOO,OOO, making about So, 100, 900, 900.
We have lost, out of this immense sum, in
all the Departments of the Government,
], ,2jO, ,OQO-lcss than fifteenth part of one
per cent! Look at the Post Office Depart
ment. With $4,000 postmastcrs, clerks
and mail.carriers, the loss has been less
than one-tentb of one per cent. in these
three years. In no part Of the world has
such Integrity been shown, under like cir
cumstanccs. We have paid out during
these three years, 800, 900, 900 in pensions.
and we have had five defalcatiOns, all of
them soldiers, and four Of them shed their
blood for the country. But the Govern
ment has not lost a dollar, for the agents
made good their accounts, or their bonds
men did it for them.
This Administration came into power
with the pledge to maintain the faith and
honor of the country then wickedly asslil-
ed. During these last thirty-five months
there has been paid S2S7, 900, 600, saving
nearly 5lS,OOO,U 600 II year in interest. This
money has been mostly saved on the one
hand by an honest collection OF the revc-
nues-for we collected the first fifteen
months of General Grants administration
-S9I 900, 600 more than was collected under
the same laws in the last fifteen months of
JohnsOn's administration and on the
other hand. by the reduction of the eXpen-
scs OF the Government. Frcm these two
sources we have paid this S2S7, 600, 900.
Throughout the financial world it is mat
, ter of wonder and amaZcluent that the H.
nancial policy of the United States should
be so successful. We elected Gen. Grant,
pledged TO maintain the faith of the nation,
to make our debt sacred, and what is the
result? Why the seven hundred millions
Of currency is worth to-day Il hundred and
forty millions of currency is worth to-day
hundred and forty millions of dollars,
twenty per cent. more than it was three
years ago. The laboring man who has
earned two dollars to-day, has received
! forty cents i'll real gold value more than he
would have received three years ago this
day. There has been added twenty per
cent to every dollar the laboring men of
this country have earned, and it has been
added because Of the signal fidelity and
ability with which that pledge has been
kept, to maintain the faith Of the nation,
honestly collect the revenues, reduce eX-
penses and cXtngush the national debt us
fast rs he could.
To hear these men talk you would sup
pose General Grant was vastly inferior to
such great magnificent statesmen, as Polk,
Pierce and Buchanan. Who is General
Grant-this man 50 denounced ? When
the war opened he was earning a few hun
drcd dollars year tanning leather out in
Galcna. lie offered his services 10 the ma
ton, and they were not accepted. He then
went down to Springfield and served there
some weeks, helping Ia engage and organize
! the regiments they were raising in Illinois
| Finally they gave him regiment. lie had
not money enough to buy sword with
which 10 fight the battles Of his country
nor Il horse 10 ride. You did not know
4
He had served in the Mexican war, when
young man, fresh from West Point, and
won two brevets for gallant conduct, but
nobody knew anything of this humble man.
lie took his regiment and marched away.
He never asked anything of the Govern
ment; he never disobeyed an order; he
never made complaint. He went straight
forward and did his duty, quiet, silent,
modest man. About the first thing we
heard Of him was that he took about TWEEN.
ty-hve thousand men up the Tennessee
River, moved on the cnemy's works, at
tackled an army of twenty thousand rebles
and captured fifteen thousand of them.
You next heard of him coming on the field
of Shiloh, when it was nearly lost, and
when they asked if he had prepared for a
retreat, he said that one boat would take
all that rctreated. He defeated the rebel
army that had been nearly victorious. Then
he went down the Mississippi river, passed
Vicksburg, made a movement into the
country, attacked the rebel armies, captur-
ed Vicksburg, and then you find him at
Chattanooga, to save lost battle, and you
have heard of the magnificent victory he
won at Mission Ridge and at Lookout