The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1885-09-19
Did Grant Believe that Tilden was
Elected?
From the Washington, d. c., Sentinel.

From the Washington, d. c., Sentinel
General Grant was staying with me during the
canvass ofthe election between Iilden and Hayes.
and on the momentous day he accompanied me to
my Office. In few moments an eminent Republic
can Senator and one or two other leading Republic
cans walked in, and they went over the returns.
These leaders said Hayes is elected" an opinion in
which the Others coinciSed General Grant listened
but said nothing After they had settled the matter
in their own minds he said Gentlemen, it looks TO
me as if Mr. Iilden was elected" He afterward
sent for me in Washington and said: This matter
is very complicated, and the people will not be sat
ised until something is done in regard to it which
viii look ike justice Now. he continued II
leaders of the party are opposed to 1t, which am
sorry to see. They say that if an Electoral Commits
sion is appointed you might as well count in Mr.
Tilden. l would sooner have Tilden than that the
Republicans should have President who could be
stigmatized as a fraud. If were Mr.. Hayes would
not have it unless it was settled in way outside
of the Senate. This matter opposed by the leading
Republicans in the House and Senate and through
out the country"
President Grant invited the leading Senators to
dine with him that day to get their sentiment. He
said to me: "You see the feeling here. find them
almost universally opposed TO anything like an
Electoral Commission" named leading Demo-
prominent men in the country man of great lntiu-
ence and of great integrity of character, whom 1t
would be well for General Grantto see IN the matter
and the suggestion was acted on sent Tor TINS
gentleman and put the dilemma to him in President
Grants name as follows. 1T is very hard for the
President and very embarrassing as to men on his
side that this matter does not seem to hnd favor
with them as well as to have Democratic opposition
Republicans think you might as well count Tilden
in but as the feeling throughout the country de-
mands as honest count of the thing possible, this
Electoral Commission ought to be appointed" The
answer at once was that the Democrats would favor
it. and it was through that gentleman and General
Grant that the matter was carried through. Grant
was the originator of the plan. He sent for Mr.
Conkling, and said with deep earnestness: This
matter is a serious one and the people feel it very
be appointed" Conkling answered, MI. President
Senator Morton (who was then the acknowledged
leader of the Senate) is opposed to it, and opposed to
your efforts; but if you wish the commission carried
can do it." He said 81 wish it DONE"
Mr. Conkling took hold of the matter and put it
through The leading Democrat have spoken of
took the Initiative in the House and Mr. Conkling in
the Senate General Patterson, of Philadelphia who
was an intimate friend of Gen eral Jackson, and
life long Democrat, also sent for He had large
estates in the South and a great deal of influence
with the Democrats, and particularly with Southern
Democrats. General Patterson was upward of eighty,
but he came down there and remained one or two
weeks working hard to accomplish the purpose in
view. After the bill had passed and was waiting
for signature General Grant went to state fair IN
Maryland the day it should have been signed, and
there was much perturbation about it.
General Grant acted in good faith throughout the
whole business. 1t has been said that the changing
complexion of the court threw the matter into
Hayes's hands and if the court had remained as it
was Tilden would have been declared President.
General Grant the soul of honor in this matter
and no one ever accused him even limited that
he was untruthful in any way l. for one, don't be-
lieye that he could tell lie act deeeitful. From
an article By Mr.. C7is in the RelO York Tid5anel
There is no truth in the above statement.
The friends of Grant cannot pervert history.
The New York Tribune, and all the other
leading Republican papers except the New
York Times, conceded editorially the morning
after the election the success of the Demo
cratic ticket. Had not Grant the same after
noon declared that he did not think that Til
den was elected there would have been no
attempt on the part of the conspirators to
disgrace the country by seating, what even
the Republicans now concede to have been
fraud, Rutherford B. Hayes That declara-
ton was the nucleus of the conspiracy. Orders
were Immediately sent to Louisiana, Florida
and South Carolina to the military command
ers to let the troops be ready to take posses
sion of the State capitols and overawe the
people so as to make them submit to the ras-
cality contemplated. But for Grant soldiers
Louisiana would not have been robbed of her
5000 Democratic majority, nor would Florida
and South Carolina have succumbed. Had
Arthur been President in 1876 Tilden would
have been inaugurated. Had Grant been
President last year Blaine would now be the
occupant of the White House. That small
plurality for Cleveland in New York could
have been overcome more easily chan the
large majority of Tilden in Louisiana.
The last administration of Grant as Presi-
dent had been so disgraceful and full of foul
corruption and swindling that even the Re-
publican party did not dare to renominate
him, though he was in the field. During the
campaign Grant evidently soured, kept quiet,
but when the election was over, he at once
saw his opportunity. He had previously
found out in Louisina how well troops could
be employed to REGULATE" State Legislatures.
He knew also that the Northern people would
submit to anything against the Southern peo-
pie, whether constitutional or not Upon
that knowledge he acted.
Having, through his bayonets, deprived the
people of the three Southern States of the
of participating in the Electoral
College, the next step was to prevent the
House of Representatives from
making any unpleasant demonstration. For
that purpose he brought to Washington
large number of troops and quartered them
almost beneath the shadow of the Capitol.
The Senate being Republican and the
House Democratic, Grant and his friends
calculated upon split, the one declaring for
HAYES and the other for Tilden. In that event
he was to hold over after the 4th of March,
and new election was to take place 10
prepare the public mind for that, Caleb Cush-
ing, Grant minister to Spain, published an
''opinion,' from which we extract the fol-
lowing:
Although the Constitution does not expressly pro-
vide that in q case of non-electon the existing
President shall hold over until new election shal
have been duly effected, yet would NOT pc rash 10
argue that such is the implied meaning OF the Con-
would continue to exercise the functions Of the
President.
The National Republican, then the ad
organ, contained, November %,
1876, two column article in favor of Grant,
in which it prepared the minds of the people
for the ''holding oyer' of Grant. From an
extract from that article it will be seen that
at that time already the Republicans were
disguised with the pusilanimoqs Hayes;
The Republican party, after an unprecedented
effort involving labor and expense, that taxed their
resources to the utmost have bravely secured vic
tory, and in rejecting on the difficulties they had
contend with, they cannot fail to see the causes
and should not fail to profit by them hereafter
With General Grant for their candidate they would
have swept the country.
There is probably no man In the nation other than
General Grant who could have led the Republican
cohorts more CALAMITY and successfully, But not
only did we feel the loss Of General Grants match
less name and power with the masses but in order
to get him out of the way of the avortes of the fac
tons he had been struck from within ms own Poilt
zeal household by his professed friends. While
be showed no resentment himself, bnl corulally
sustained his old comrade in arms thousands OF his
old friends felt sore. They could not understand
its meaning when they heard whisperings of re
pudaton of Grantism" i'll the republican camp;
Another element OF weakness WIS Ille seSeiesS
pbarisaical cry of reformation" of the Republican
party within the party ITSELF
Here was an admission by some one aspiring to
that there was corruption in the Repub-
ican party In order to establish claims tosnperor
sanctty victims had to be found, regardless OF |
where the blow might fall although it smiTch the
fair name of the President himself Such selfish i'll
consistency and boated conceit could not fail to
bear their pernicious fruits. No party can sustain
itself that procaims its own shortcomings, and 1
yaunts of honest purposes to reform itself These
remarks apply to only portion of the Republican
party-to the factions that have proven It's bane.
They should learn wisdom from the experience of
he past Those who aspire to the popular conf
dence and TO public honors by claiming to move in
4 higher plane of honesty, purity and patriotism
than the party to which theF profess to belong
should be reminded at once that the CAMP of the
enemy is the place for them
Thus it will be noticed that Grant seemed
already to have a sure thing of it before the
meeting of Congress. His IDEAS then were
that the two Houses would disagree and that
there would be new election, he holding |
over. He would tell the Republican leaders
4 II I no