Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1875-12-18
THE PRESIDENTS MESSAGE.


We do not publish the Presidents
Message because our space is limited |
Just row, and because. judging from our
own reading of it, no man will be the
wiser for wading through the stereo-
typeded ition Of Radical cant. The only |
marked differences between the seventh !
and the first ANNUAL message are in the
dates and in the bran new historical
sketch of the government from Its
colonial origin up TO its present culmi-
nation in glory and greatness, under
the wise and benefcent rule of Ulysses
Solomon Grant. This being the eve
of the Centennial, offered an opportu
nifty. too good to be lost, for airing his
profound historicsllore. and giving the
spice of variety to an oft-told tale.
The President does not think the
time has come for recognizing the bel
lieerency ofihe Cuban Insurgents. In
this we partly agree with him, but do
not think the time will ever come for
cur interference with foreign affairs,
until we have better learned to take
care of our own So Cuba is not like
ly to play conspicuous part in the
third term movement.
lie demands constitutional amend
ment which will make education COM
pulsory, through the federal Congress,
but this blow at the rights of the
States viii glance harmlessly from the
shield of Democratic House. The
importance of education is becoming
generally appreciated and will be more
so as intelligent men reflect that Grant
would never have left the lanyard, at
the call of an educated people, nor
Radicalism have been permitted to
trample the constitution under foot.
He wants sectarian appropriations
of school money to be forbidden.
None of the States, as far as we are
advised. are making such sectarian ap-
preparations, nor do we know that such
have been made in relation to the
schools Immediately under the control
of federal powers. Then why such a
suggestion? 1t is simply to instigate
sectarian strife with view to third
term. 1t is dirty device and worthy
only of the party that conceived it.
Above all things, he demands
speedy return to specie payment. The
people are not being impoverished fast
enough to satisfy the greed of the
monied aristocracy-they want 1t all,
and right at once, hence the hurry for
resumption which will be the death
blow to the value OF all property not
within the protection of monopolies.
With no money to purchase, nothing
will sell and trade will dwindle down
to a system of bartering one commod-
ity for another. The jingle of gold
may be heard in the land, but the sub
jrgated peasants will hear it only from
afaT.
The message, like a woman's letter,
reserves the cream for the postscript.
Here it is: +" As this will be the last
annual message which I shall have the
honor of transmitting to Congress be-
fore my successor is chosen" &C., &c.
Now an honest patriot would have put
full stop after Congress, but, true to
his jesuitical instincts, he intends the
first division Of the sentence TO be used
in certain quarters as a disclaimer of
third term aspirations, whilst the poor
~ concealed mental reservation will
convince his third term partizans that
he intends to be his own successor and
the transmitter of other annual mes
.sages to Congress. But, pretermitting
other characteristic utterances, We
leave the document to its fate.