The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1872-07-30


ternal Revenue, went to Washington imbued
with the idea that hewas henceforth to run
the government. He began by assuming in
dependence of the Secretary of the Treasury
and continued by taking into his own hands
general supervision of all the affairs of the
departments. His oficiousness amounted to
monomania. He was demonstrated with by
several of his most intimate friends, but all
in vain. He became so dizzy with his eleva-
ton, and SO wrapped up in self-conceit, that
he was the - III ~
.-,--.. ENFANT TERRIBLE n o.
of the administration. The President, with
his natural Kindness of heart, and in good
feeling towards a brother soldier, sought by
gentle means to check this disposition to med
die with and mar matters with which he
could have no proper concern. Finding him
incurable, request was sent to him to ten
der his resignation. This he fatty refused,
and dared the President to remove him, threat
ening to test the question under the "tenure-
of-ofice" act. This spirit of contumacy set
tied the business. He was dismissed. A
feeble effort was made by Senator Fenton to
raise an issue about it in the Senate, but it
met with no sympathy, and poor Pleasanton
passed into forgetfulness, a victim to his own
vanity and indiscretion. ar-,...-ee -tt
As was to be expected, he was at once con-
verted from an obsequious friend to an i'm
placable enemy of Gen. Grant He joined
in the great ssReform'' movement, and found
in the Greeley camp an appropriate place to
air his disappointment. Now, naturally
enough he comes to the surface in support OF
2 1oF sCHURz' ALLEGATION
that the latter could have had the patronage
he coveted, if he would support the Presi-
dents measures. have not the least doubt
that Pleasanton did wait upon Schurz and
invoke his aid for the administration, address
ing to him such arguments as he thought
likely to prove effective. But 1 am just as
certain that he did it on his own motion and
without the shadow of authority. Nobody
who knows Gen. Grant will believe for mo-
ment that he ever countenanced such nego-
tiations, and nobody who knows Pleasanton
could possibly imagine that he OF all men in
the world would be selected as the medium
Of such overtures The story Pleasanton
tells islweak enough. He was ''under the
impression such was his understanding, %
&C., &C., but it points a moral as indicating
heldesperate means which are to be resorted
to to defeat Grant. DH'O
There is one deduction to be made from the
new s'Roorback, y which intelligent voters
will not be apt to lose sight Of It reveals
Pleasanton's ideas of the cause of and rene
dy for Schurz' detection. Men who are above
suspicion of base motives, are never in seri-
GUS danger of being approached with brides.
p" '-' FORGERY AS WELL AS LYING
is being employed as weapon Of offense by
the "any -thing-to-beat- Grant" coalition. A
correspondence has been going the rounds for
months between Gen. Butterfield and Gen.
Grant, in which the former RENTS and the
latter acknowledges the receipt of the $685.
600 subscribed by grateful citizens of wealth,
in recognition of the inestimable services of
the great warrior in suppressing the rebellion.
The correspondence is genuine but, the dates
are changed from 1866 to 1869. This is to con-
vey the impression that these monies were re-
ceived after Grants election to the Presidency.
believe the Cincinnati Enquirer first is
sued this infamous forgery. As matter of
course, it was promptly copied into the New
York Sun, embellished with slashing editorial
comments about the great "gift-taker," who
accepted $105,000 on the 18th Feb, 1869
only fifteen days before his inauguration. 1t
has done duty on the stump, and is still on
its travels. These .s.inel IT, 5-flH
-.t s.a wRETcHED coNsPIRAToRs shG11
against the good name of one whose great
deeds have sufficed to enshrine him in all
loyal hearts, never stop to consider whether
there is any grain of truth in the scandal to
which they give constant circulation. There
is in this case such an obvious error in dates,
that there is no excuse for the endorsement
of so palpable falsehood, and the man who
gives it currency must necessarily subject
himself to the charge of being accessory to
the crime of forgery. .-,
So much pains has been taken to enlighten
the public mind on this monstrous bugbear
ABOUT "gift taking" that whoever asserts that
Gen. Grant has accepted any presents since
he became Presidential candidate, must be
set down as wilful and malignant calumni-
ator. The exact word that describes him
contains only four letters, and was always in
constant use in the Tribune newspaper when
Mr.. Greeley's name appeared as its response
BILE editor. - E8F - q
A Herald "interyiewer,, has succeeded in
procuring from Mr.. A. T. Stewart a state
ment that he was invited to subscribe to a
fund for the purchase Of a
COTTAGE AT BONG LRANCH
for Gen. Grant. This is very likely. Such
projects were conceived by friends OF the
President in spirit of indiscreet kindness.
But they were never carried out, and were
not known to or approved of by Gen. Grant.
The Long Branch property owners were
very anxious to enrol him among their num-
Der, and would have cheerfully given him the
title deeds to house there if he would have
accepted them. But he had no thought of
accepting any such gratuity but quietly bought
and paid for the summer residence which he
now occupies, and no human being but him
self contributed one cent towards it. if.-5R
1t is disgraceful to the American name,
that Presidential campaign should be re-
duced to the utterance and refutation of such
i,-@ --f9ana PITIFUL TATTIE III 10 ,~-i'it,
as is now filling the newspapers, Yet, it be-
CoucS d ucCcsSiby tldt TIE myrldu Oh peuGy
caltmnies, with which the political atmosphere
is poisoned should be refuted. 1t is to be
hoped in the interests of manhood and de-
cency, that these shameless inventions will
react upon their inventors, and cover them
with obloquy. moo pl.ta -at.I~..s aiY9s
There never has been purer, truer or bet
ter man in public life than Gen. Grant. The
bitterest of his present assailants has been,
before his nature was sOured by personal dis
appointments, the warmest of his eulogists.
When the n. Y. World had no motive for
concealing or Withholding the truth, it de-
voted column after column to panegyric upon
his excellence as man, and his greatness as
a soldier. The columns of the Tribune bore
witness for nearly three years of his admin
istration to his singleness of purpose, his sim
cerity of heart, and his capacity for admins
tering civil affairs. Then it meant what it
said Now it is evidently reckless of state
ment, and ready to say or do anything which
may conduce to the accomplishment of its
one object in life, the success of Greeley.
Let me cite one instance of the unfairness
OF that paper Yesterday it devoted nearly
four columns to list of defaulters under
Grant. Nearly all of them were officers
COMMISSIONED BY ANDREW JOHNSON.
Some of them were removed before Grants
accession, and the residue shortly after. The
list is in fact an enumeration of defaulters
under johnson, removed, exposed and pun
ished under Grant. In one case they cite the