Year: 1877

| mere IccIcutiOn OF lOI Nuibdf pcAooh"A Va


hibiton, we should none the less have


printed reports of them as part of the news


of the day, but if we had deemed them
| worthy Of comment it would have been
rather in tone Of censure than OF appro-
baton. But. even in that case, we should
have hesitated to accuse the President OF
neglecting his official duties. During the
latter part of summer very little besides,
routine is transacted in Washington, except
when the country is at war, as it was
through all of President Lincoln's summers,
or when there are grave complications in
the foreign intercourse Of the government.
Most of our early Presidents spent the hot
months Mt their country seats in their own
States, and although we had then neither
railroads nor telegraphs Me public business
never suffered by their absence from the
| capital at that season of the year. General
Grant passed more time out of Washington
! during the unhealthy season than any other
Of our recent Presidents ; but he was quite
as useful at Long Branch as he could have
been in the White House. He was in easy
| communication with the Executive depart
ments by telegraph and his faculties were
clearer in the invgorating ocean air than
| they would have been in the miasmatic
| atmosphere of Washington during the dog
| days. 1t is ridiculous to complain Of
! President for preserving and recruiting his
| health for the severe duties Of his station
make excursions for intercourse with the
people, the summer is the fitting time if
| he does not wish to make excursions, he is
entitled to go to his farm, if he has one or
to some other healthful resort, if he prefers
it, where, by aid of the telegraph, he can
administer the government more efficiently
than he could do in the unhealthy capital.
| A President who should make extensive
tours merely to exhibit himself, court per-
sonal compliments, would expose himself to
criticism by his vanity; but if he takes that
method Of instructing and influencing the
public mind it is praiseworthy use of his
| position. What is called free government
is government by public opinion. The
highest function of the Chief Magistrate is
not recommending measures to Congress-
signing or vetoing bills and appointing men
to Office, but the guidance Of public
opinion. The difference between Presi-
dent like Jefferson and O President like
Polk lay in the superior ability Of the former
to mould the public sentiment of his time.
To be sure, Jefferson made no Presidential
tours. He had no gifts as popular orator
and he affected to undervalue things in
which he did not excel. Instead Of making
speech at the opening of each session Of
Congress, as his two predecessors had done,
he pretended to think it an aping Of roy
atty and set the example of sending writ
ten message. Had he been an orator, like
Adams, he woz:ld not have changed the
usage. 1t vas tor the same reason that no
poured contempt on Presidential tours.
Being no orator, he could not have utilized
them for moulding and vivifying public senti-
ment. But no President ever so we'll un-
derstood as Jefferson the importance of
guiding public opinion. Impotent as an
orator. but powerful with his pen, he pre-
ferred to use the instrument Of which he
was so great a master His public doc
uments were the aptest for influencing the
public mind of any that have ever appeared,
and his masterly pen was always busy in
correspondence with men who possessed the
gifts which he lacked. He controlled pub
lie opinion by privately impressing his
views on its natural leaders, whereas had he
been an orator he would have preferred to
make direct appeals to the people them
selves and to have impressed upon them his
own thoughts in his own incompatible way
Of presenting them. But he had keen
appreciation of the necessity of captivating
the popular mind, and employed the tools


in the use of which he was most dexterous.
Mr.. Hayes equally understands that the
success of President depends on his ability
to carry the public mind with him, and he
wisely employs for this purpose such gifts
as he possesses Mr. Hayes is not o great
orator. but he speaks fairly WELL and he is
doing grand work indeed in the popular
speeches which he delivers on his journeys.


In his New England trip Mr. Hayes
speeches had very little merit beyond their
cordial sincerity His humor when he
attempts to be humorous. is clumsy and
sometimes grotesque, and, except an evil
dence of his good nature and kindly feel
ing, it is better calculated to provoke ridi-
cule than to inspire respect. Bnt when he
speaks seriously and earnestly, as he has so
often done in the South, the unaffected
generosity of his sentiments is fitted
to make deep impression. Nothing
could be better of its kind than his
speech at Atlanta, which we printed yester-
day. 1t was pitched in the same key us all
his New England speeches and all his other
Southern speeches. but it was not marred
by any expression inconsistent with the dig
nitv of his great Office. Besides the lesser
merits of perfect good taste and exquisite
tact it was marked throughout by justness