New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-11-29
THE EMP1RE-.-IT Is" A HUMBUe.

Herald used to call Cesarism, and that
President Grant would represent the Inn.
perator in that shameful series which
Suetonius has chronicled so we'll. It il
our opinion if the few subjects Of the i'm.
perial MacMahon, or of the Queen
who has recently been raised to the
imperial crown of England and her In.
dian provinces, and who have SO impu-
IDENTIFY interfered in the domestic politics
of the United States, were to 60 back to
their respective countries there would not
be an American simpleton base enough to
acknowledge that he was too base to keep
the glorious heritage which his fore
father-if he had any-had won from the
tyranny of Church and King. We have
no hesitation in saying that the admins
tration of President Davis as shown by
the Confederate States government, press
and speeches, displayed such imperial
powers and tendencies as by no means to
endear even to the Southern people gov
eminent at the discretion of one man.
Upon this point the testimony Of the Con-
federate Governors Of Arkansas, Georgia
and Loui siana is of record.
We will, therefore, in direct contempt
and contradiction Of this Democratic pre-
tense, affirm a doctrine absolutely and
Numerically opposite. The American
people were never so tired of the patron
age and emoluments of the executive;
| they were never so far from relapse into
the hereditary and discretionary govern
| roent Of one man since the signature Of
the declaration Of independence. Our
first and most conclusive reason is that
given by the fellow who, when the MINIS
ter officiating demanded that if any knew
cause why the couple he was then uniting
in wedlock should not be SO joined they
should make it known, responded that he
had cause of objection: HE wanted her
himself" Does any one suppose that
with the hundreds Of thousands in the
Union who deem themselves fit to admin
lister the Presidency, any one man could
secure it in monopoly for himself and
descendants? If so, that credulous per-
son would not be surprised if every hold
er of a twenty-five cent ticket in the next
drawing of Mr.. Towards lottery should
generously cede his or her anticipations
Of wealth AID grandeur in favor Of any
one aspirant, who should proclaim him.
self the holder of the capital prize and
assign all the next fattest windfalls to his
own and his wife's relatives. There are
far higher reasons than this. The Amer
lean people are neither represented by
party rings or other refugees nor party
provisional governments. They are the
farmers Of the great West, living at home
with none upon this earth to make them
afraid. They are the mechanics, who
prefer the nurture and protection of their
own representatives to the imperial
monopolies granted to obsequious and
arrogant courtiers or imperial orders,
which may confscate or prohibit the
products of industry at the will of
king, minister, or even of his mistress.
There has been added to the American
people five millions of citizens by emanci-
patton from servitude. It is not likely
they would be willing to exchange the
constitutional guarantee Of the American
people for the discretionary indulgence
Of an imperial master.
Some one will be very apt to tell them
that when the slaves of San Domingo had
been set free by the republic Of France,
"the First Consul for life," the imperial
Napoleon, sent an expeditionary feet and
army to reduce them anew to bondage.
The American people have been dis
turbed by too much executive influence.
We should rather expect them to restrict
than to enlarge the powers of the Presi-
dent. We are impressed with the con-
yiction that rather than submit to an
imperial dictator they would suppress the
executive altogether, and administer the
republic as their ancestors founded it
without any executive whatever. Such
would be the reasoning of the descend
ants of the king killers were such choice
imperative. It is not imperative. The
American people can deprive the execu-
tive department of its capacity for dis
turbance without imparing its use or its
utility.
It would be affectation not to see that
all this Democratic calumny on the Amer
lean people was not based upon the exer
else of duties conferred by law by Pres
ident Grant. These powers are as ample
as the eyigencies OF the late war required.
AS this enlargement. Of power was indis-
pensable to subdue the resistance Of the
Last Ditch Democrats, and as they Gre
ated under the Confederacy the extra
ordinary powers of their President, may
it not be reasonable to attribute directly
to this arrogant and lawless element the
enlar ged powers which have been ac-
corded to the executive to execute the
laws and preserve the Union? For the
powers complained of by the Last
Ditchers are precisely those exercised by
President Lincoln to the hour of his as
sassination. The Democratic party held
the House of Representatives during the
last session of seven or eight months.
They made no effort to repeal these
powers, or to show their imperial tenden-