New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-07-18
Lieutenant Grant.

A few days since the New Orleans Tine
| said:
When it was discovered after the massa
ere on the Little Horn that Lieutenant FREQ
Grant, an officer of the Seventh Cavalry
nght was not among the survivors, the
| country was paraIy zed with dread.
The object of this paragraph was to con
vey the idea, without actually talsifying
that Lieutenant Grant is an officer of ths
Seventh Cavalry, and that he should have
been with Custer on the Sioux expedition
The Tins of Sunday, after it had been told
better. returns to the attack with
The President has not recognized the gal
lantry of General Custer by an official or
der. But he has appointed his son, Fred
erlck Dent Grant, 70 vacancy made by
the death OF brave officer on the field
when Custer tell.
This is more wicked than the first para
graph, because it asserts what is positively
untrue. The promotion was in the regular
order of army promotions, and the vacancy
was caused by the retiring of officers OF
higher rank IN the Department of Texas,
and not By "the death of brave officer on
the field when Custer fell" The Times is
only asked to credit the War Department
records, and yet it said yesterday morning:
The REPUBLICAN would have the world
believe all the papers in the country were
wrong, and it alone was right.
The Times is braced up to put US against
"all the papers in the country" by finding
congenial Misrepresentation in two other
papers. 1t quotes the New York Post as
saying:
Fortunately, Colonel Fred Grant was not
with his re glment in the Little Horn slaugh-
ter pen. There are some shocks that might
prove even too much for the American peo-
pie.
1t quotes the Chicago Times ae saying:
The Graphic bitterly complains that some
one attacks Fred Grant because, although
an officer in Clusters regiment, he was in
Washington when the massacre took place.
and that some of the wicked opposition
have even abused the President about the
matter. 1t certainly is unreasonable to at
tack the honest lieutenant or his father
upon any such ground. For if Fred had
gone with his regiment, how could he have
survived to be promoted on account of ser.
vices rendered as the sitting bull or calf of
the White House9
The Post is managed by very nice old
gentleman, who has been a poet, and q
candidate of long standing for a foreign
mission. Every President has overlooked
the claims of Mr.. Bryant, and President
Grant thoughtlessly aggravated the sore
head Of the octogenarian bard by appoint
ing the Philadelphia poet, Boxer, to the St.
Petersburg mission. The Post is not good
authority On army matters, nor reliable
when discussing affairs connected with the
Presidents family.
The Chicago Times is called an inde-
pendent paper; like Southern papers claim.
ing such distinction, it is Independent of
fairness and truth. 1t is an especial favor
ite with the New Orleans Times, which
paper has another extract from the same
source, saying
Pinchback, known to the facetious world
sfslGIad qGs o1HatteeEas RipiAvy yXith Garya4 rya4y y
most pleasant of all possible errands, to re-
ceive $50 900 back pay voted him by the
Senate the other day as contested election
expenses. 1t was almost as good as being
admitted to the Senate. He could not 60
in and sit with his Republican brethren,
but such large lump of money cOnsOled
him in measure for the loss of that privi-
lege.
The Senate did agree that Mr.. Pinch
back was entitled to pay as Senator while
cOntesting his seat, no other person hav-
ing been paid the salary of Senator in
the seat he claimed; but he has not yet re-
ceived his money, and is likely to wait
some time for it. 1t is left for the Chicago
Times to originate, and the New Orleans
Times to repeat, that Mr.. Pinchback visited
the Senate to receive his back pay, and
that he was consoled by such large lump
So much "for all the papers in the country,
particularly those lying about Lieutenant
Grant.
1t is not claimed by his friends tina,
Lieutenant +. D. Grant is brilliant sol
der. His expedition on the Yellowstone as
staff officer was not calculated to developt
his talents to command. He is simply &
clever young man who graduated from thu
Military Academy in 1871, and was assigned
DIS b scCUuu llCutCudut W tAC IOuAth S0s
airy. He took his chances with the othel
cadets; and to indicate that he was no
favored, it might be mentioned that
Lieutenant, Mckinney, also lately pro
noted, was of the same class will
young Grant, was assigned to thu
same regiment, and was placed file abov'
Grant on the roster of the Fourth Cavalry
Five years, during which Mckinne,
aud Grant have remained secont
lieutenants, have brought about change
enough in the officers of the FOurtl
Cavalry to make the two graduates of lS7
| first lieutenants of the same regiment. l
was the duty Of the President to issue tn
commission with those for other officer
promoted. Officers of the line are promoted
| in their regiments, as vacancies occur, ant
not according to corps, or the arm OF sci
vic. In one regiment cadets might get pro
motion within two years. in another the.
would wait five or six. President Gran
| did not make the law governing promotion
| according to regiments. Now as for beinI
| with Custer, serving in the Seventh Cavalry
| every intelligent and fair-minded ma
knows that he had no right to be there
| If Lieutenant Grant intends to remain i
the army he should take his first lier
| tenants commission and 60 to his reg
ment, but that would take him to the d,
partment Of Texas, and not to Montana.
| If the Times chooses to accept our STATE
ment of facts which should be known to
as well as to us, it Can verify them by th
official army register, and by the roster an
stations of troops published in the Arn'
l koho 10