Morning journal and courier., 1884-12-02
THE MESSAGE.

The Presidents message has not the merit of breYity, and it begins to look as if the people of this country would never be cheered by message having that merit. But it is, nevertheless, well worth reading. The Pres ident begins by congratulating the people on their safe and peaeeable passage through another presidential election, and calls at tention to the necessity of providing more precise and definite regulations for counting the electoral vote. He then takes up the subject of foreign relations. Perhaps the most notable thing in this part of the mes sage is the declaration against dynamiters. Says the President: see no reason why overt preparations in this country for the commission of criminal acts, such as are here under consideration, should not be alike punished here. Such acts are intended to be committed in own country, or in a foreign country with which we are at peace. The prompt and thorough treatment of this question is one which intimately concerns the national honor.
 The financial condition of the government is next touched upon. The President con CUTS with the Secretary of the Treasury in recommending the immediate suspension of the coinage of silver dollars and of the issu- ance of silver certificates. It is to be hoped that the national legislature will pay some at tention to this recommendation.
 In his annual message of 1882 the Presi- dent advised the abolition of all excise taxes except those relating to distilled spirits, and now renews the advice. If these taxes are abolished the revenues that will still remain will, he thinks, be sufficient to meet the req sonable expenditures of the government, and afford a surplus large enough to permit such tariff reduction as may seem advisable.
 The important matter of sea coast defenses receives attention. On this point the Presi- dent is very outspoken, saying: The time has now come when such defenses can be pre- pared with confidence that they will not prove abortive, and when the pos sible result of the delay in mak- ing such preparation is seriously considered, delay seems inexcusable. For the most inl- portant cities, those whose destruction or capture would be a national humiliation, adequate defenses, inclusive of guns, may be made by the gradual expenditure of $60, ,O00- GOO, sum much less than victorious ene- J priation of about one-tenth of that amount is | asked to begin the work, and I concur with the secretary of war in urging that it be granted.
 The policy of strengthening the navy is ap- proved, the recommendation in the last an- nual message that the single rate of postage l upon drop letters be reduced to one cent | wherever the payment of two cents is now required by law is repeated, the extension of the free delivery system is recommended, and radical measures against Mornonism ad- vised. The extension of our foreign trade receives attention, and the Presidents state
 mept of the main conditions of the problem
 is clear and forcible. A good word is spoken for Civil Service reform, and for 8 national | bankrupt law. recommendation which
 will receive general approval is that General Grant be suitably pensioned.