Year: 1872

Administration, in regard to all sui


stantial matters, is q grand success
Therefore the people of the country d.
not want change. You want things
my friends. to 60 ON substantially a


they are going. You do not propos'
to take new man.


The Republican National Convention


has presented to you again the mana
of Gen. Grant as o candidate for tn,
Presidency. He has passed through
the ordeal Of calumny and slander q
no other man has done since the dsyl


of General Washington, yet he come
out without the smell Of fire on his gar


ments. There are now three principa
objections to Gen. Grant and to his ad


ministration; and they are personal il


their character. They do not 60 to th,


merits of the Government at all; the,


are personal, and when you come to ex


anime them you will say too that the,
are contemplate.


What is the first? And there is more
said about this than about everything
else put together-why did Gen. Grant
appoint come of his relations to office


Well, he had to appoint his relations OF
somebody else's relations. That seems
inevitable. The complaint of the seven
or eight relatives of his that have been
appointed is not that they are not quail.
itied and faithful, for there is no honest
pretense that they have come short in
the performance of their duties, but
simply that they are his relations. He
has more than fifty thousand appoint
ments under his control; and l suppose
that out of those seven or eight have
been appointed who are more or less
connected with him, chiefly by mar.
riage, and some of them very distantly.
Now, if Gen. Grant had been q cold and
selfish man, intent alone upon personal
popularity, and if he had refused to
appoint relative to office, other things
being equal, because somebody might
find fault with him, | de not think that
anyone who has heart in his bosom
would think any better of him for it.
While there has been much clamor on
this subject, the politicians who have
made the clamor have entirely mis-
taken the hearts and the wishes of the
people. What the people are interested
IN is good government--having the du-
ties Of the Government well discharged /;
and thsvtare not very anxious as to the
persons by whom the duties are per-
formed so that they are well done.
And this is the chief objection now to
this Administration, upon which it is
proposed to turn out that man who has
done more than any other man living
to prevent this country from being di-
vided aud destroyed.


Now, there is another objection.
They say he has a military ring around
him. Gems. Porter and Babcock are his
private secretaries, and what do they
do? They are officers Of the army, and
have been detailed to act with him in
the capacity of private secretaries. They
were with him during the war. They
then served on his staff. They are men
of capacity, are gentlemen, and are
competent and well fitted for what they
are required to do. They are his prl-
vate secretaries-his mere clerks. They
write the ordinary business letters, make
copies of letters, open his correspond
ence, carry his messages to the House
of Representative and to the Senate ;
but they have no more to do with the
contents of those messages than the
letter carriers who bring your letters to
you from morning to morning have to
do with the contents of your letters.
They are his private secretaries, per-
forming in great part mere clerical
labor, having no control or influence at
all upon the Administration. Yet this
is made great objection, and is con-
stantly presented t. the people as one
of the dement's of this Administration.
Now, these young gentlemen are not
required in the army; it has been great
ly reduced, and there are many more
officers now than are necessary to COM
mand the small number of private sol
diers that we have; consequently they
are not needed in the army. They get
no increase of salary; they simply draw
their pay as officers. If he had civilians
employed they would have to be paid
independently out of the treasury.
Now, think you will agree with me
that the charge against Gen. Grant
about the military ring is simply con
temptible.


Then there Is another-and believe
that concludes the list of these persona
charges against him-they say he re
celved presents. Well, he did receive
some presents before he was elected
President. do not know that he ha


received any since that time, of any
considerable value; he may have had .
cane presented to him, or possibly ,


pipe, or someb. .dy may have sent him .
box of fine cigars, as he is known to bt
very fond OF them. But he has r. ceivet


no present of value likely to affect hi


integrity as President Of the Unitet


States. Now there are some people wht


never get any presents; they never d.
any thing for which nybody is grateful


Such people are exceedingly virtuou
on this subject. But whenever you i'm,
one of these exceedingly virtuous peopl
making u great complaint against Gen


Grant because grateful people, afte
the war was over, out Of their abund
ance made him some presents, whicl
they were able to do without missin
the amount, it viii be safe to watcl


them closely. Yet there is much clamo


upon this subject. Why, Gen. McCle
lan-an unfortunate General-in poin
of fact received large presents befor
of war was over. l believe at the yer
time the Democratic party nominate
him for President, in 1864, he was liz
| ing in fine house that had been give


to him. Now thought no worse {
Gen. Mcclellan for that. l did thin


the friends who made him the present


were little mistaken. 1t seems thel
| is no objection TO an unfortunate Gel