National Republican., 1881-09-12
Grant and the cx-ConCctleratcs.

In addressing the Union soldiers at
Bloomington, ILL.,, on the Sth, General
Grant said
VETERANS If we were within the walls OF an
ordinary hall would take pleasure in telling you
how glad am to meet my comrades in the late
war but It IS impossible for me to make this vast
out-of. doors audience hear the sound ofmy voice
1wish simply to say that II affords me great pleas
lre to meet and greet the veterans Of the late
fict. hope these annual meetings will continue
to take place. Isec no indications Of anmosty at
these meetings toward those who fought ON the
other side. We would rather invite them to Join
with us in honorng the flag of our common
country II can be said of the veteran that he
would not ask anything of his Government that he
would deny to any citizen except his pension, and
he expects that TO be given to Union soldiers only
The Washington Post appears to be ter
ribly exercised ut this, and mildly char
acteri2es ii us "an exhibition of eXecrable
taste and gratuitously malignant spirit
1t comes to the rescue of the abused ex-
confederates, and says: Sin making this
remark General Grant means-if he
means anything-to imply that the eX-
confederates are asking TO be pensioned."
We will not accuse the writer in the
Post Of saying what he knows to
be untrue, for we are bound TO
believe that he does not know any bet
ter. The language before hun was plain,
and bears on its face and between the
lines kindness, and that only. General
Grant evidently desired to have the men
he had faced in the field understand that
the gatherings cf Union soldiers were not
10 hn ,,n1nr-tApl hntn,, hall t,
petuate any angry memories of the war
On the contrary, he sought to implant in
the breasts of his hearers the feeling
that fidelity to the Union cause and
TO the honorcd dead involved no con-
tinuance of any animosities. lie
eXhorted Union veterans to make
the eX-confederate soldiers understand
that the survivors of both armies we're
now common brotherhood, and enti-
tied to equal rights and privileges, ex-
cept, of course, in the one matter of pen
sions for services in the field. There
was nothing unfriendly or ungracious in
adding those words TO give greater force
to those which preceded them. We see
no room for an inference that General
Grant supposed he was antagoni2ing any
ex-confederate in what he said.
The Post winds up with the following
ludicrous display Of gush, modelled after
the style of the Reverend Chadband:
Why, at this time of all times-why, when the
hearts of all the people are touched with q com.
mon sympathy, when the people ofthe North and
the South are clOspng hands in pledge ofunity-
why at such an hour does General Grant raise this
harshly discordant note-likc the blare of brNzen
trumpets breaking in on concert of prayer?
The boot is all on the other leg. The
fraternal exhortation by General Grant
that Union soldiers should claim no
privileges, except pensions which they
would not concede TO their countrymen
Of the South, lately enemies i'll war, but
now friends at peace-this was the "con-
cert of prayer" and the Posts jaundiced
misconstruction Of perfectly clear Ian
guage was the" harshly discordant note u
of brazen trumpet. The eX-confed-
crates are generally friendly to General
Grant while Northern Democrats, rs q
rule, hate him solely for his efficiency
against the rebellion, the failure Of which
was to them like gall and wormwood.
--o------
CHARLES s, WOLFE leapsuninVited into