Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-04-03

of the South Carolina Tax-Payers
and the Presidenf-Their Needs Over
shadowed by his Personal Feeling.
From the New York Tribune.
WASHINGTON, March 2S.-The in
terview between the President and the
representatives of the South Carolina
taxpayers yesterday morning was in
| some respects a remarkable incident.
None of thereporters or correspondents
who usually haunt the White House on
such occasions were present, and the
accounts of what took place, as pub
hshed this morning, are made up en-
tirely. from hearsay, and are very far
from giving a correct idea of what was
really said, either by the South Caro-
linians or by President Grant.
The truth is that the President was
IN something like passion. 1t came
about in this way. Among the dele
gates chosen to the recent Tax payers
Convention was a harum-scarum ex-
Confederate officer named Gary, who
prides himself on his undying Opposi-
ton to the new order of things in the
South, and who, while enjoying a GER
tain personal popularity in his own
county, has long been the enfant ter
ribls of those Carolinians who really
want to see things set to rights In their
State on a basis In harmony with the
Congressional reconstruction. Gary,
In spite of the remonstrances of friends
who vainly urged that the Taxpayers
Convention was a strictly non-partisan
and non-political concern, insisted on
making a speech in that body, In which,
with bad taste and worse rhetoric but
with undeniable vigor, he pitched
into Grant, Congress, and
the Republican party generally.
The Convention, In rebuke to
the sentiments of the speech, at once
and by an overwhelming vote, recon-
mitted the report which had been made
the pretext for its delivery, and the
snubbed orator subsided. The local
Ring organs In South Carolina, how
ever, eagerly caught at Gary's ebulli-
ton as proof that the complaints Of
the taxpayers were only rebel mutter-
ings In disguise, and, though the speech
was violent and foolish enough in all
conscience, they altered and garbled
some OF It's worst sentences in a way to
make it ten times worse, and, In that
form, kept them standing for several
weeks IN large type at the head of their
editorial columns.
When the delegation sent by the
convention with the memorial to Con-
gress appeared In Washington several
! days ago, there Is good reason to be-
heve that the President felt kindly
enough toward them. He told Secre-
tary Fish that, although he was going
to Philadelphia on Friday, he would
make it point to give them an audi
ence before he went; and the Secretary
| (who, as PIesident-General of the Gin
cinnati, cordially sympathized with a
delegation which included several men,
bers of that famous old order, among
them Gen. James SimOns, the Vice
President-GeneraD, was probably as
much surprised as anybody at the re-
ceptiOn which the South Carolinians
finally met. It seems that sly Senator
Patterson, who, for reasons of his
own, did not relish the welcome which
seemed awaiting the delegation, got ac-
cess to the President few minutes be-
fore the promised interview and called
his attention to the garbled extracts
from Gary's speech. He timed his visit
so well that he came out Of the Execu-
tive Mansion Just as the delegation en-
tered 1t, and they were ushered into the
presence Of Gen. Grant while he was
probably still smarting from the vexa-
ton cased by the bitter and abusive
words Just read to him. His manner
during the ceremony of presentation
plainly showed the struggle between Ill
suppressed anger and a desire to be
dignifed and courteous.
The Hon. W. d. Porter. the spokes-
man of the delegation, and one OF the
most polished advocates Of the Charles
ton bar, made a calm and brief but
striking and very pathetic presentation
of the shocking condition of his State
The President listened with marked at
tention and replied slowly but with Wig
or and without any Of that hesitation
which he is said usually to exhibit when
making a speech. His words, which
have not so far been fully reported in
any of the papers, were these.
Gentlemen: After listening to what
has been said, l do not see that there
is anything that can be done, either by
the executive or legislative branch of
the National Government, to better
the condition of things which you
have described. South Carolina has
now a complete existence as a sover-
eign State, and must make her OWL
laws. If those laws are oppressive tC
her people, it is very much to be de.
7 plored. But what IS the cause of the
: evils In your State may be a question
worth considering. Whether a part
Of that cause is not due to yourselves
whether it is not due to the extreme
views which you have held, whether
your own action has not consolidated
the non-tax-paying portion of YOU
community against you, ar'
questions which l leave fOl
, your own consideration. l fee
great sympathy with any people
J who are badly governed and overtaxed
, as is the case in Louisiana, and as alsC
seems to be the condition of SOutl
Carolina. But viii say to you can
,, didly here the Presidents mannel
, hardened visibly] that while / hav,
watched the proceedings of your Tax
payers Convention with no little inter
est, aportiOn of my sympathy has beer
abstracted by the perusal of a certain
speech delivered during its dehbera
tiOns, viler and more slanderous thai
anything l have ever experienced be
fore, even among my worst enemies IL
the North-a speech more bitter in it
personality and falsehoOd than any
have ever seen, even in the NeiC Yorl
Sun.
Here the President paused. Hi;
visitors were completely taken abacl
, by his words, and still more by the
: unpleasant vehemence with which they
were uttered. Several of the delegates
hastened to explain the circumstances
connected with the speech, which ]
have already briefly noted, but theii
explanations seemed to fall unheeded
The President met everything that was
said with some fresh reference to their.
ritating subject. quote his words in
rejoiner to the expostulations of one
, delegate:
Il have never seen a speech equal to
it in malignity, vileness, falsity, and