Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-12-18
EXECUTIVE UsURPATIoNs.

President, as a special act of courage.
The fact is, the tendency of late years
appears to have been to develop narrow
mindedness among politicians. The
great questions that before, and during,
the war broadened political thought, and
wiped out the little, petty animosities
that always arise when politics descend
TO mere scramble for the spoils of of
fee, had been settled by the results of
war and the wise policy of reconstruc-
lion. In the last Presidential canvass
there were no great issues involved that
brought out the giant minds of the age.
The ''outs," and "sore-heads, made a
determined and malignant assault upon
the Gins, simply that they might change
the current of official patronage, and
brought into prominence great number
of very small men, who were surprised,
full as much as their neighbors were, to
find that they could set with the leaders
Of party, and find fault with what they
did not understand.
A few days ago the Senate of the
United States reelected Hon. Matthew
II. Carpenter of Wisconsin as its presi-
dent pro tenn. This was an indication
that that body had not been deceived by
the scandals of Ramsdell or the clamor
of an opposition press, so far sunk in
the scale of deeency as to continue their
libelous attacks after full Yindication
of tile Wisconsin Senator; but these
pigmy politicians refuse to regard this re-
election as an endorsement of Carpenter,
aaA very knowingly assert that the
cowardly Senate did this disreputable
thing because President Grant demand
ed it, and it dare not refuse to comply
with executive wishes. So, too, Mr..
Dawes is applauded as a bold man for
daring to advocate cutting down the
Presidents perquisites, and Mr.. Kasson
is extolled as heroic, for saying that the
increase of the Presidents salary was a
mistake, and that all executive encroach-
ments upon the province of Congress
should be promptly resented; and this
rubbish finds men who treasure it as fine
gold, and really seem to delight that a
man can be found in Congress of sufii-
cient character and boldness to oppose
any view of the modern Ceser.
Notwithstanding these diminutiYe as
saults upon the President, Members Of
Congress and men in public life, the
great body of the American people feel
about the same they did one year ago
last month, when they reelected Gener-
al Grant to the presidential chair, by an
overwhelming majority. The average
Congressman is not inferior to his con-
stituents in independence of character
or courage the mass of them are not
50 abiect, nor the few so extremely he
roic as to require such sublime courage
to oppose the Presidents wishes. Gen
eral Grant commenced his official life
in the civil service with the declaration,
that he had no policy to enforce against
the will of the people, and most strictly
has he carried out that declaration. lie
was not experienced in State craft nor
diplomacy, but did possess a native COM
mon sense, a cultured mind and execu-
tive ability, that has carried him through
his difficult duties with credit. Some
of his ideas have not been approved by
the nation. Several of his appointments
have been rejected his Santo Domingo
project met with deserved defeat his
recommendations in regard to civil SER
vice reform have been disregarded and
still when any of his cherished schemes
are not not approved, after stating his
reasons for them, he bows submissively
to the will of the people. He acknowl-
edges that he is their servant, and while
lie faithfully executes their will, he con-
fines his own policy to the legitimate
channel in which the people have cir
cumscribed it in the constitution and
laws.
The newspaper press of the country
have not been very servile to the Presi-
dents wishes. While the organs of the
disconnected "outs" have been vigilant,
both in and out of season to oppose and
to malign, the journals that favored the
reelection of the President, have at
times criticised sharply some of his acts
and doings, and they have discussed his
official course and candidly approved or
condemned it. So have members of
Congress and it has never occurred,
probably, to either that they were exer-
cising any extraordinary amount OF
courage in so doing. The President
probably never said one word as to his
choice of Senator to be president OF
the Senate, or who should be chairman
any of its committees. 1t was none of
his business, and if he had sought to in
terfere there is not leading member in
that body that would have been influ-
enced by it, or hesitatcd to have told
him that no one man had more than
capacity enough to run the executive
department of this great nation. We
do not believe 1t is true that Congress
men are habitually false to their con-
stituents, neither do we believe that the
small-minded people, who judge all 9th,
ers by themselves, will do any great
hurt with the intelligent citizens that dc
not look for an unworthy motive fol
every act of public men. The public
men of the nation are probably about as
good as they ever were but great deal
meaner and more narrow-minded men
have assumed the role of critics than
were wont to flourish. That is all.
LEAD US NOT INTO TEMPTATION
A shout time 400 tbare coma IN reside