The Lincoln County herald., 1873-03-12

~ Sioch VII. NlVuuoy uIpur, VI
ftst term Of President Grants admins
! tsation ended. We can now look bsc
! over the events Of that period and, frot
what We there discover, may forecast th
probabilities" o. prosperity " misfor
sune in che future.
Tho American ustios, witb it's pyria
resources, its wonderful energy, it, colos
sal fields Of labor, and its marvellous en-
terprise is too elastic and self.sustaininI
10 be held back materially from its joy
Gus progress toward q eraGdes devclopc
ment, by any weakness or inibecilty il
the pilots Who guide the ship of state
Hence il is that the nation during The
last four years has easily paid off larg,
fractions of its war debt, under Bout
wells management despite the folly and
shortsightedness Of his entire financial
policy. There can he no doubt that tha,
policy was permanent incubus on the
trade Of the nation from the time it was
inaugurated. Instead of removing the
burdens of taxation to allow commer q
period Of recuperation after the civil
war, those burdens long remained very
onerous, and even now are maintained at
such high figures as seriously to retard
our progress toward real financial ease,
particularly in the South. Fortunately
for trade. Mr.. Boutwell, will probably
succeed Mr.. Wilson in the United States
Senate, and relieve the Treasury Depart.
ment of his superfuous genius, and the
country Of his wild, intermeddling policy
of emotional inanciering. President
Grants administration has been fnan.
cially as great failure as mismanage.
ment could make it.
ln its foreign policy, the administra.
tion has gained one substantial victory,
IN the settlement Of the Alabama ques.
ton; but on every other subject it has
shown the most colossal incapacity. The
San Domingo scheme was, from its inane
inception, an outrage on public opinion
in these states, and its ignomiuious de-
feat is recorded as one Of the deepest
humliations of the administration. Dur.
ing the last four years, moreover, the
opportunity Of acquiring the valuable
island Of Cuba has several times pre-
scnted Itself, bu, our silent Solon has
failed to improve the oppor,une occasion,
and the Qnecn Of the Antilles is more
shy and distant to Us now than ever
ihe administration deserves some credit,
however, for the perfection of sundry
postal treaties with European potentates
but it is more than counter balanced BY
its cavalier treatment of the Grand Duke
Alexis, of Russia, while in Washington,
and, in many respects, the guest of the
nation.
The domestic policy Of the adminstra
ton has been worse than failure. 1t be
gan with the illegal appointment of Stew.
art as Secretary of the Treasury it
ended with the Credit Mobiier infamy,
which was the outgrowth of the Pacific
Railroad scheme, pet enterprise Of the
party in power. Its chief legislative re
suit was the so called Ksklux bill, Civ.
ing the President power to suspend the
writ Of haJeos corpus, when lie should
deem and proclaim it expedient.
During these four years we have en-
joyed period of profound peace, and
yet we have seen United States soldiers
watching about the ballot boxes in New
York City and Philadelphia, as we'll as
in the South. We have soldiers EN-
ployed, in Louisiana, to uphold one of
the contendins factions, and to disperse
peaceful assent lagos of citizens. We
have seen martial law, and military
murder in one Of the greatest cities of
our land, at time of great public ca
lamity, when military usurpation seemed
most plausible and seductive; and we
have, in many ways and on many occa.
sions, experienced wha. blessing it is
to have President Of military turn Of
mind.
During this administration the work of
reconstruction was perfected, and the
bitter bread cast by it on the waters of
our national hopes has already begun to
drift back again. RECONSTRUCTED Mis-.
sissippi has repudiated her obligations.
South Carolian, Aakansas and Virginia
are trembling on the verge of the same
terrible gulf. Louisiana is chaos, ,llu
mined by no ray of hope. Georgia was
long the prey of political vultures, but
fell at last, by lucky chance, under
he control Of her own PEOPLE and
was saved. Throughout the greater
part of the South political adventurers
and negroes now guide the vaccilating
course of public events and scramble
for the spoils of Office. Despair, deep
and dark, has settled like a pail
over that section; and the Admnistra
'iou has redeemed scarcely q single one
of the fair promises 1t made four years
ago, that the South should be tempted
and coaxed back to the paths of peace,
happiness and prosperity.
Bat we cannot now, and do not dolre to
pursue this subject further. The old
panorama of these events is no pleasant
subject Of contemplation, and we would
gladly avoid it for more cheerful topics /;
but, today, when the political pilots
make their new pledges for the future,
We have deemed it well to show our
paticnt peoDle the exact value IF tbosa