Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1876-12-13
THE PRESIDENTS
ANNUAL MESSAGE.



ANNUAL MESSAGE
To,hs Senate aud House ef R,prcsntsties.
In submitting my eighth and la
annual message TO Congress, ii seen
proper that ] should refer to and,
some degree, recapitulate the event
and official acts of the past eight year
RETRospEcrIoN.
| 1t was my fortune or misfortune
be called to the Office of Chief Execl
tive without any previous politics
training. From tho age of seventeen
| had never even witnessed the excit,
ment attending a Presidential campaig
but twice anteocdent to my own cand
dacy, and at but one of them was
eligible as voter. Under such circun
stances, il is but reasonable TO suppos
that errors OF Judgment must have OF
Cured even had there not, difference
ofoplnioh between the Executive, ,boun
by an oath to the strict performanc
Of his duties and writers and debater
must have arisen. tits not necessaril,
an evidence Of u blunder on the part q
the Executive, because there are thes
differences OF view, Mistakes hav
been made, as all can see, and admit
but 1t seems TO me oitener in the selec
tons made Of the assistants appointe,
TO aid in carrying out the various du
ties of administering the Government
in nearly every case selected withou
a personal acquaintance with the ap
pointee, but upon recommendation o
Representatives chosen directly by th,
people. ltisimpossible, where so many
trusts are TO be allotted, that the righr
parties should be chosen in every in
stance. History shows that no Admin
istration, from the time of Washington
to the present, has been free from thes,
mistakes but ! leave comparisons tC
history, claiming only that have acted
in every instance from conscientiou.
desire to do what was right, constitn
tional within the law and the very bes,
interests of the whole peoplc. Failures
have been errors Of judgment, not ol
intent.
THE "FIRE IN THE REAR"
My civil career commenced, too, at
a most critical and difficult time. LESS
than four years before, the country had
emerged from conflict such as no other
nation had ever survived. Nearly one.
half of the States had revolted against
the Government, and OF those remain.
ing faithful to the Union a large per.
centage of the population sympathized
with the rebellion and made an enemy
in tho rear almost as dangerous as the
more honorable enemy in the front.
The latter committed errors of iudg-
ment, but they maintained them openly
and courageously. The former receiv.
cd the protection of tie Government
they would see destroyed, and rcaped
all thepecuniary advantage to be gained
ont of the then existing state of affairs.
mnny of them by obtaining contracts
and by swindling the Government in
the delivery of their goods. Immcdi.
ately on the cessation of hostilities, the
then noble President, who had carried
the country SC far through its perils,
fell martyr to his patriotism at the
hands OF an assassin. The intervening
time TO my first Inauguration was filled
up with wranglings between Congress
and the new Executive as to the best
mode OF reconstruction, or, TO speak
more plainly, as to whether the control
of the Government should be thrown
Immediately into the hands Of these
who had so recently and pcrsistently
tried to destroy it, or whether the vic
tors should continue TO have an equal
voice with them in this control. Re-
as finally agreed upon,
means this and only this, except that
the late slave was enfranchised, giving
an increase, as was supposed, to the
union-loving and Unlon- supporting
vote. If free in the full sense of .he
word, they would not disappoint this
expectation hence, at the beginning
of my first administration, the work OF
reconstruction, much embarrassed by
the long delay, virtually commenced.
~ was the work Of the legislative
branch OF The Government; my prov
lhce was wholly IN approving their
acts, winch did most heartily, urging
tne legislatures oil the states that had