Year: 1869

The Inaugural.


General GRANT was yesterday In
augurated President of the United
States. His address upon the occasion
will be found elsewhere. Like all his
speeches, it is decidedly brief and un-
ostent atiOus. AS a sort of foreshadow-
ing of the policy of GRANTS admins
tration, it will be read with great in
terest.


In view of the much talked OF rupture
between its au thor and the Republicans,
some of the points will excite much
comment. The declaration that "be
commences his duties untrammeled," !"
the somewhat emphatic reference to the
veto power, the acknowledgment of
responsibility to the whole people, and
the failure to confess any allegiance to
the Republican IL party, or even to allude
to that party, will doubtless be dwelt
upon as matters of the gravest portent


We are not of those who have been
able to see any signs of dissolution be
tween General GRANT and the party
which elected him. A careful perusa
of this address has not led US to change
our views upon that point. There l:
nothing in the inaugural that cannot
be reconciled with even the most ad
vanced ideas of Radicalism. DOubtles:
GRANT wants to fight shy of the Radical
politicians. to be master of his OWL
household, but that he contemplate:
any abandonment of Radical principles
we cannot believe, and those who in
dulge such belief will find that they
b ave hugged a delusioa. The Presi-
dents expressed desire for a ratification
of the negro suffrage amendment ought,
it strikes us, to place his partisan status
beyond question.


The paragraph in relation TO that
amendment reads as follows:


The question of suffrage is one which
is likely to agitate the public so long
as portion of the citizens OF the nation
are excluded from its privileges in any
State. 1t seems 10 me very desirable
that this question shonld be settled now.
entertaiL the hope aud express the de.
sire that it may he by the RAJ 'iiicatiOn Of
the Fifteenth Article of Amendments to
the Constitution.


Il will be seen that while General
GRANT affects To desire a settlement OF
the question of suffrage by the ratiiica-
tion of the Fifteenth Article, he, in fact,
desires it's settlement only so far as the
negroes are concerned. That article
leaves many thousands of white citizens
DISTINGUISHED, and no settlement OF
their case can he made by the adoption
of the pending proposition in relation
TO suffrage. The fact that the inaugu-
al virtually ignores the subject OF
white edisfranchisGmen and deals chiefly
with th, suffrage question in its ebony
aspect, is the best possible indication OF
its authors predictions in favor of the
negro, and of his prejudice against such
of bis own race as, on account OF their
indispositien to vote the Radical ticket,
have been excluded from the ballot in
several of the States.


Not only does the President favor the
project of giving the ballot to the me-
gro, but he is serenely disposed toward
the enfranchisement of Mr.. Lo, the
representative Indian, and talks of the
ultimate citizenship" of this gentle
man of the uutHtOred mind" as qsit'
matter of course. Why he has over
looked the claims If JOHN CHINAMAN
in this connection, is altogether mex
plicable.


Upon the bond question, the inaugu
raj has a tone of such eminent piety
that the devOut persons of Wall stree
will scarcely be able to repress thei
amens. The proposition to pay tht
debt in gold may be very fine in theory
but the man who makes it is simpl,
aying higher than he can roost, tn





"strong box" 10 the contrary notwith
standing.


The ideas Of fretrenchment and reform
are good and will be approved through
ont the whole country. In carryin
them into effect, however, Genera
GRANT will have the bitter opposition
of many of the party which elected him
the "rings," the corruptisnistS, the rev
enue thieves, the people in short VIII
having been giving Radicslism its chic
strength for long time, will fight thi
portion of GRANTS platform to the bite
end, and may yet compel him to aban
don, or at least to modify, the severity o
his official yirtue