Year: 1876

EVENTS OF TWO TERMS REVIEWED.
CONDITION OF THE COUNTRY AT THE OPEN


ING OF TUE FIRST TERM-THE PART OF


TIE EXECUTIVE IN RECONSTRUCTION


PUBLIC AFFAIRS DURING THE PAST


YEAR-NATURALIZAT FRAUDS AS


AFFECTING FOREIGN RELATIoNs-CoLo-


RADo-sYsTEM OF CHOOSING THE VOTE.
To the Senate and House Of Representatives.


In submitting my eighth and last an
nual Message to Congress, it seems proper
that | should refer to, and in some degree
recapitulate, the events and official acts of
the past eight years. 1t was my fortune,
or misfortune, to be called to the office of
Chief Executive without any previous poll
tical training From the age of seventeen
| had never even witnessed the excitement
attending Presidential campaign but twice
antecedent to my own candidacy and at
but one of them was l eligible as voter.
Under such circumstances it is but reason
able to suppose that errors of judgment
must have occurred Even had they not,
difference of opinion between the Execu-
tive-bound by an oath to the strictest per-
formance of his duties-and writer's and
dcbaters must have arisen. 1t is not ne
cessarily evidence of blunder on the part of
the Executive because there are these DIFF
fercnces of views. Mistakes have been
made, as all can see and [ admit, but it
seems to me oftener in the selections made
of the assistants appointed to aid in carry
ing out the various duties of administering
the Government i'll nearly every case selec-
ted without personal acquaintance with
the appointee, but upon recommendations
of the Representative chosen directly by
the people. 1t is impossible, where SO
many trusts are be allotted, that the right
parties should be chosen in every instance
History shows that no Administration,
from the time of Washington to the pre-
sent, has been free from these mistakes, but
| leave comparisons to history, claiming
only that have acted in every instance from
a conscientious desire to do what was right,
constitutional, within the law, and for the
very best interests of the whole people
Failures have been errors of judgment, not
Of intent


DIFFICULTIES ENCOUNTERED AT THE


OUTSET.


Ny civil career commenced, too, at
most critical and difficult time. Less than
four years before the country had emerged
from a conflict such as no other nation had
ever survived. Nearly one half of the States
had revolted against the Government, and
of those remaining faithful to the Union
large percentage of the population sympa-
thized with the rebellion, and made an
"enemy in the rear almost as dangerous
as the more honorable enemy in front The
latter committed errors Of judgment, but
they maintained them openly and courage
ously the former received the protection
of the Government they would see destroy
ed, and reaped all the pccuniary advantage
to be gained out Of the then existing state
of affairs, many of them by obtaining con-
tracts and by swindling the Government in
the delivery of their goods. Immediately
on the cessation of hostillities, the then no.
bic President, who had carried the country
so far through its perils, fell martyr to
his patriotism at the hands Of an assassin.
The Intervening time to my first Inaugural
tion was filed up with wranglings between
Congress and the new Executive as to the
best mode of reconstruction" or, to speak
plainly, as to whether the control of the
Government should be thrown Immediately
into the hands Of those who had so recently
and persistently tried to destroy i, or whe-
ther the victors should continue to have an
equal voice with them in this control. Re
construction, as finally agreed upon, means
this, and only this, except that the late slave
was enfranchised, giving an increase, as was
supposed, to the Union-loving and Union
supporting votes. If free in the full sense
of the word, they would not disappoint this
expectation. Hence, at the beginning of
my first Administration, the work of re-
construction, much embarrassed by the long
delay, virtually commenced. 1t was the
work of the legislative branch Of the Gov
ernment My province was wholly in ap-
proving their acts, which | did most hearth
ly, urging the Legislatures of States which
had not yet done so to ratify the fifteenth
amendment to the Constitution The coun-
try was laboring under an enormous debt,
contracted in the suppression of rebellion,
aud taxation was so oppressive as to dis
AuOlHcI dISO
threatened us-a foreign war. The last
difficulty had to be adjusted, and was ad-
justed without war, and in manner high
ly honorable to all parties concerned.


FINANCIAL RESULTS.


Taxes have been reduced within the last
seven years nearly three hundred millions
of dollars, and the national debt has been
reduced in the same time over four hundred
and thirty five millions of dollars, by refund
ing the six per cent bonded debt for bonds
bearing five and four and half per cent.
interest, respectively. The annual interest
has been reduced from over one hundred and
thirty millions of dollars in 1869, to butt little
over one hundred millions of dollars in lS76.
The balance of trade has been changed from
over one hundred and thirty millions
.. o