The Portland daily press., 1877-03-06
Our New York Letter.
Gen. Grants Military and Civic Career
Reviewed-A Fare we'll Tribute.

peopie an event fraught with more interest
Just now, than the close of Gen. Grants civic
career. Not so with me. The future has its
uncertainties; the past is secure. The fifteen
years during which Gen. Grsnt has been the
centrai and most conspicuous figure in a PAN
Drama OF real life as imposing as the world
ever saw, constitute an epoch infinitely more
eventful than any other in American history.
From the day of the capture of FoIt Donelson
on the 10th of February 1862 to the surrender
of Lee April 9th 1866. his name was synonym
OF prowess, and talisman of victory. Obscure
and comparatively unknown before, his first
success placed him in the foremost rank of
Union Generals and made him the cynosure of
all eyes and the hope of every loyal heart in
the land. The gallant armies of the Republic,
superbly manned and thoroughly equipped
lanPuisbed for want of leader When the
news of the Donelson achievement was her
aided, the people instnctively turned to the
hero of that siege as the coming man. HIS
plan of operations, his disposition of his forces
and his mode of dealing with the enemy ir-
dicated capacity for conducting war far
greater than any officer, regular or volunteer,
had hitherto shown.
La all that happened afterwards he fully
Justified the popular expectations. A success
sion of triumphs in the Southwest wrought by
patience, perseverance and a military judg-
ment that seemed prescent, led to the univer-
sal demand that he should be placed at the head
of the national armies. The rebels were quick to
take the alarm at this new movement. They
concentrated the elite of their soldiery under
their ablest General, in front of their capital
They had no longer any thought of aggressive
warfare. They stood upon the defen-
sive. That great campaign is familiar to
every American citizen. Its felicitious ending
brought peace to distracted country, and
glory tC the flag of the Union. 1t gave endur-
ing fame to the three foremost generals who
co-operated in bringing it to an auspicious con-
clusion, Grant, Sherman, Sheridan, and estab-
lished their claim to the grateful homage of
their contemporaries and posterity
The assassination of Lincoln five days alter
peace had been conquered imposed new duties
upon Gen. Grant. As he had prescribed the
terms of Lees capitulaton, he felt naturally
solcitous that they should be scrupulously ad-
hered to on our side. Andrew johnson signal
lied his accession to the Presidency by the
display of extreme bitterness towards such
confederate officers as visited the capital under
the conditions of their parole. If one of them
was ushered into his presence he~treated him
with personal discouItssy and without asking
him to be seated, opened upon him at once
with an harangue on his favorite text 'trea
son must be made odious" which he empha-
g;z6d NTH yiolapt
force than elegance of language. He would
have ordered the arrest of Gen. Lee if Grant
had not insisted with his customary firmness
that such proceeding would be gross breach
of the obligation of the treaty of peace.
"What!' exclaimed the irate Johnson sis not
the head traitor to be punished?" "Not while
he adheres to the terms on which granted him
immunity" was the generals quiet answer.
1t settled that question.
WiGhin year afterwards Johnson's treat
ment of the rebels was changed from barshuess
to sycophancy. Forgetting his promise to be
a Moses to the Southern black, he assumed the
role of Pharaoh. Gen. Grant sympathized
with neither of these phases Of the new Presi-
dents character. A break between the Execu-
tive and the party which elected him became
inevitable. The elections of 1866 demonstrated
that the Republicans were strong enough to
meet the issue forced upon them. johnson was
thrown overheard, coquetted with the Democ-
racy, found them ready to take all he woul d
give them, and discovered in due time that
they had no rewards to bestow in return for
his apostacy, and no support to render him
except to save him from impeachment. So he
went like his scrptural prototype "to his own
place."
The masses are mercurial In the fall of
1867, the Republicans met with some reverses,
that admonished them of the necessity
of looking about for strong candidate for the
ensuing Presidential campaign. Both parties
wanted to nominate Gen. Grant. But by this
time his Washington experiences had so COM
petely republicanized him, that the blandish-
ments of the Democracy were wholly wasted
upon him. Nevertheless he did not want to
run for the presidency. He held better office
already. with equal relative emolumeuts and a
life tenure. But the opportunities that were
addressed to him, and his earnest desire to en-
sure a Republican succession, overcame his re-
luctance and he consented to enter the lists.
Even with the prestige of his name the con-
test Of 1868 was spirited and close one 1t is
very doubtful whether any other standard bearer
could have carried the party to victory. 1t was o
critical period of political history. If the DEM
ocrats had triumphed then the constitutional
amendments would have been nullified and
the fruits of the war lost The success of that
campaign was scarcely less essential to the
public welfare than the military conquests
which had been achieved under the same in
vincible leader.
So Gen. Grant came into Office on tn 4th of
March 1869 with very strong claim to the
gratitude of the people generally and Repub-
licans especially. His administration of affairs
was SO generally acceptable during his first
term that the public appreciation of him deep.
ened every day. He settled our difficulties
with England in such way as to exalt rather
than depress the national pride; he reduced the
debt; diminished taxation eurtailed the public
expenditures and enforced the laws.
He elevated the standard of official fidelity to
such degree that the relative losses by mall
feasance were very much smaller during his
first four years than they were under the rule
of any of his predecessors, and were still fur
ther reduced in the succeeding term. A system
of accountability was carried out which COM
PEELED every man in the service of the govern.
ment to do the work assigned him and give a
full equivalent for the wages he received At
no previous period in the annals of the Repub-
lie has there been so little wropg:doing of any
kind as during the eight years last past. While
quacks and imposters have been braylng about
the necessity of reform the administration
has been all the while effecting it in quiet,
unobti usive way, until every department of the
government is to day in purer and healthier
condition than it ever was before. Even Con.
gress which generally originates all the meas.
ures that have Corruption or jobbery in them
has been go far improved by the example of up
rightness the President has set, that it has been
far less prolific of schemes of sinister import
than it used to be in former days. Under his
auspices the whiskey tax, which had heretofore
been llrgely evaded became valuable source
of revenue through the assiduity with which it
was collected. He made no show, INDUCED in
no pretensions. but quietly directed the helm of
state so skillfully and so we'll that all went
smoothly and the country prospered.
The people liked him so much that they soon
began to manifest their respect for him by the
Al--AN