The weekly clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1863-1882, 1881-02-17
president Grant e. the Eaplle
Treasury washington JenefSon
and Monroe.


and Monroe.
i EprToRs CLARION: Your articles on
the bill now before Congress to confer upon
Gen. Grant yearly life salary of seventeen
thousand five hundred dollars, meets the
universal approval of MississiPpians, and
doubtless express the sentiments OF
large majority of the American people.
I The march of Capitalization has been rapid,
/ but we are not yet prepared for an Innovation
/ of this character The movement is un-
called for, as Grant is Independent. The
precedent would be dangerous as shown by
the Meridian Mercury, and other papers
that have discussed the subject.
Before our legislators determine to pass
such a law they should re-examine the
nature and character of our government.
And that they may make no mistake as to
its character and the duties they owe to
the people it would be well to remember
our early political history and how the
fathers acted in reference to the former
ex-Presidents.
When Mr.. Jefferson left the Presidency
it is we'll known that he was poor. He
had, while President, Is years. received only
half the amount paid General Grant for the
same time When the library of Congress
was burned by the invasion of the British
in the war of 1912, Mr.. Jefferson offered his
library to the Government to be valued by
its agents. 1t was magnificent collection
of books. 1t had been secured after ten
years of labor both in Europe and the
United States, and by his keeping standing
orders for the books desired at London,
Paris, Berlin, Vienna and Rome. The IL
brary contained many thousand volumes
and could not then be bought in the Old or
New World. Congress gave Mr.. Jefferson,
then greatly embarrassed, the value of his
books but he would have scorned pension
like that proposed for Grant SO after fifty
years of public service he retired to his
home at Monticello There the author of
the Declaration of Independence, the found
er of the Democratic party, the President
who saw the necessity and promptly secured
the territory of Louisiana, lived and died,
poor to the last, but with no demands on
his State or his country.
Next we nave sLdDltS A1OuEO6, WHO going
out of the Presidency in 1925 was so en-
barrassed that he asked Congress to reim-
burse him the money he had expended
while in diplomatic duty in Europe in 1901.
He was very popular, having been elected
to his last term with only one electoral vote
against him, but he was not paid until 1928
and then the law provided that the accounts |
ing officers of the Treasury should examine
every item.
Mr.. Monroe had served his country like
Mr.. Jefferson for fifty years-in the army +
of the Revolution, in the Legislature of the T
State, in the continental Congress, in the
Senate of the United States, as Minister to I
London, to Paris, and to Spain, as Secretary
of State under Madison, as President eight |
years, as President of the Convention to .
revise the Constitution of Virginia in 1929.
1t was James Monroe in the continental
Congress who prevented Spain from getting
control of the Mississippi River, it was
James Monroe with Livingston who nego-
tiated with Napoleon for the purchase of
Louisiana, and during his administration
Florida was acquired and the Monroe doc
trine declared.
Unlike Gen. Grant he despised nepotism
and during his administration nothing could
induce him to appoint one of his relatives
to office But he was not pensioned, and
died in Strengthened circumstances.
When i'll 1899 Washington died and the
whole country was in mourning for its great
loss, bill was introduced to erect a monu-
ment to him. The estimate was only seventy
dollars, but Nat. Macon, of North
Carolina, and others opposed the appropria-
ton because they could not find in the
Constitution any power to vote the money
of the people for such purposes.
Suppose we now start the plan of retiring
civil officers, where will it end and who can
tell the result of such a policy? If the
pension is to be granted for services in the
civil war would it not be better to see that
every poor and disabled soldier was first in
comfortable circumstances. The writer of
this has one of these old soldiers of the
Union on his place. He is unable to walk
because of disease incurred in the service.
He has been provided for by Confederates
lie IS colored man-universaliy respected
and his pension cannot be secured because
It is impossible to comply with the red-tape
regulations at Washington. But what care
Grant Logan or Conkling for the poor !
soldier, except to lift them into public
,ffice? NORTH Mississippi.