The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1873-08-02
Shall We Have C;esarlsm or Repub-
licanism?

In our history General Grant has OBJ
tanned the position which Jefferson
Jackson and Lincoln attained. He is
master of the political situation. SUI
preme in II party which is supreme in
the nation, commanding our politics
and our legislation, he is irresistible.
Our constitution, unlike that Of France
and Spain, makes the Presidential
office as impregnable as the Gar. I'M
parchment is practically no punish
ment, and no President can be reached
except by revolution. 1t is, more
over, Il painful and extraordinary fact
that, while every politician in America
is thinking over the problem whether
General Grant will or will not be II
candidate for reelection, no leading
Republican has dared to say that it
would be an avowol of the fail
ure of Republican institutions. We
see the unfortunate condition of our
society--corruption in Congress, on the
bench in social life luxury, voluptu-
business, craving for riches; the alb
sence of truth and simplicity in our
lives.
Tammany Hall, Erie transactions,
and Credit MObilier, CiesariSm is n
danger that can only be overcome by
such a revolution as was needed to de-
stroy the Tammany Ring. Men like
Mr.. Conkling, whose eloquence thun-
dered like the roar Of niagara against
poor Mr.. Greeley and his fancies, are
Silent now. They may say that they
do not speak because they will not be
rude or unjust to the President. They
will not speak because they dare not.
When any Senator supprcsses the
truth within him because Caesar may
frown, then he is Il partisan of Caesar.
When any Senator has another moni-
tor for his political conscience than the
peoples will he is ready for surren-
der.
Nor does it answer Our arguments
that the character of General Grant
forbids an apprehension that he will
be candidate for reelection, or that,
if reelected, the liberties of the nation
will be safe in his hands.
To this we always answer that when
liberty depends upon the fdrbearance
of any man, it has no true life; for
while we have Grant to-day, who may
be trusted, whom shall we have to-
morrow? Rome had other Caesars
than Julius-nay, she had Brutus be-
fore Caesar. The evil is in our system,
i'm our constitution, in the subseryience
of our public men. C@sarism docs not
necessarily mean that Caesar shall be a
vicious man. On the contrary, the men
who have mounted to supreme author
ity have generally been men OF rare
transcendent gifts. What men were
Caesar, Cromwell, Napoleon! How rich
in faculty and experience! how brave
and renowned! how faithful to their
country and its glory! Cesarism
always makes u nation glorious, but
never free and it is because we would
rather have our country free than
famous, because we see the highest
glory i'm the truest freedom, that we
press this discussion.
Nor does the character of General
Grant entirely release him from allX-
iety. He is a soldier; he knows the
felicity of authority. His ideas of the
Presidency have always been that il is
in many senses personal office. true
and faithful as he has been, there are
many things he has done that show
tendency to C,esarism, to the belief
that, in some way, the President has
supremacy of will that knows no re-
sponsibility but to his own conscience.
From his first selection of Cabinet
down to his extraordinary assignment
of his son to command for which the
army records showed neither excuse
nor precedent, every now and then we
see the Cesar spirit-the belief that
there is n supreme responsibility which
in the royal legends is called "by the
grace of God.n General Grant is no
greater, no more patriotic, no more
suited to his country, than Caesar, or
Cromwell, or Napoleon.
Each of these men fought for his
country and would have died for it. In
like manner did General Grant. But
what these men did for Romeand Eng
land and France did not prevent their
assuming power when it was bestowed,
Therefore we contend that all senti-
mental issues in our politics should be
postponed until we have decided the
fundamental question. We have seen