Ashtabula weekly telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1880-1886, 1880-12-24

After casting their votes for Presi-
dent and President the Ohio Elect
ors paid visit to General Garfield, at
Mentor, and extended the usual felicita-
tions. The President-elect made the
following happy response;
am deeply grateful to you for this call and
these personal aud public congratulations. If
were to look upon the late campaign and its
result merely in the light of personal strug-
gle and personal success, 1t would prob
ably be as gratifying as anything could
he I'm the history of politics. If my own
conduct during the campaign has in any
way been help and u strength TO our
cause. | am glad. IL is not always an easy
thing to behave we'll IL, under trying Cir
cumstnnces, my behavior us Il caud date for
the Presidency has met your approval, am
greatly gruttded. But the larger subject, your
congratulations TO the country on the triumph
of the Republican party, opens theme too
vast for me to enter upon now. / venture,
however, to mention reflection which has
occurred to me in reference to the election Of
yesterday. l suppose tnut no political
event has happened in all the course Of
the contest since the carly spring which
caused so little excitement, and, indeed,
81 little public observation, as the Pres-
dCntal election which was held yesterday at
midday. The American people paid but little at
tentiOn to tho details of the real Presidential
election, and for Il very significant reason.
Although you and all the members of the
Electoral College had an absolute cOnstitu-
tiOnal and technical light TO vote for anybody
you chose, and though no written law directed
or suggested your choice, yet every American
knew that the august sovereign of this Re
public, the nine millions of voters, on an
early day in November had pronounced the
omnipOtent fiat of choice, and that sovereign,
assuming MS done that which he had order
ed to be done, entertained no doubt that
he would be implicitly obeyed by all the col
legcs in all the States. That Is the reason why
the people were so serenely quiet on ycsteU-
day. They had never yet found an American
who had failed to keephi5 trust as a fresiden-
tinl EleCtOr. From this thought | draw this
lesson: That when that omnlpOtent sovereign
ty, the American people, speaks to one man
and orders him to do II duty, that man Is
under tue most solemn obligations of duty,
except those that the God of the universe
might impose upon him. Yesterday, through
your votes and the votes Of OF hers of the va
riuus States OF the Union, II is prOOable tho re-
turns viii show that our great political SOW
erCign hus laid his commands upon me. If he
spratiun and purpose MS ! could be bound by
any consideration that this earth can I'M
pose upon any human being. In that pres
ence, therefore, stand, and am awed by the
majesty and authority of such command.
In so far rs l can interpret the best pira-
tiOns and purposes OF Our august sovereign,
shall seek to realize them, You and l and
those who have acted with us in the years past
believe that our sovereign loves liberty and
desires for all inhabitants of the Republic
peace and prosperity, under the sway Of just
and euuul laws.
Gentlemen, thank you for this visit, for
this welcome for the suggestions that your
presence and your words bring, and the hope
that you have expressed that in the nrduOus
and great work before us we may maintain
the standard of nationality, and promote all
that 5good and worthy in this country; and
that during tho coming four years we may raise
just MS large Il crop of peace, prosperity, JUS
tiCe. liberty and culture as 1t Is possible fol
torty-nne millions of people TO raise.