The Anderson intelligencer. (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, March 18, 1869, Image 1
An Independent Family Journal?Devoted to Politics, Literature and General Intelligence.
HOTT & CO., Proprietors.
ANDERSON, S. C, THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 1869.
VOLUME 4.---N?. 38.
?gag ?
s ^ ADDRESS
ANDREW JOHNSON
. TO THE
PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES.
-Q "
f !Rh tic; People of the. United States ;
?15'Thc robe of office, by constitutional
4lt?itatton^tKrs day falls from my should?
ers,'W^JO'immediately assumed by my
successor. For him the forbearance and
co-opcrn&asne<3?*iie'American people, in
all his ct^i^sj-tq ad tu in ister the Govern?
ment within the pale of,the Federal Con
?titutiobyare^ncer^lVinv Without
ambition to gratify,' f>arty ends to sub
?ox?e, or personal quarrels to avenge at
? the sacrifice of the peace and welfare of
the country, my earnest desire is to see
tho Constitution, as defined and limited
byj-he fathers of tho Republic, again re?
cognized and obeyed as ;he supremo law
ot the land, and the whole people?North,
?South,''East atid West?prosperous and
happy under its wise provisions.
In surrendering the high office t? which
I was called four years asroj at a memo?
rable and terrible crisis, it is my privilege.
1 trust, to say to the people of the United
States a few parting words, in vindication
of an official course so ceaselessly assail?
ed and aspersed by ~polhical 4caders, to
\vhose..plans and wishes my policy to re?
store toe Union has been obnoxious. In
a period of difficulty and turmoil almost
without'precedent in tho history of any
people, consequent upon trio ciosingscer.es
of a great rebellion and tho assassination
of the then President, it was, perhaps,
too much, on my part, to expect of devo?
ted partisans, who iode on the waves of
excitement which at that timo swept all
before them, that degree of toleration and
magnanimity which I sought to recom?
mend and enforce, and which I believe in
good time would have advanced us infin?
itely further on tho road to permanent
poaoo and prosperity than we have thus
far attained. Doubtless had I at the
commencement of my term of office un?
hesitatingly lent its powers or perverted
.them*to purposes and plans "outside of
tho Constitution," and become an instru?
ment to schemes of confiscation and of
general and oppressive disqualifications,
I would have been hailed as all that was
truQi.loyal and discerning : as the reliable
head^f a party,/whatever I might have
been as the Executive of tho nation.
Unwilling, however, to accede to propo?
sitions of extremists, and bound to ad?
here, at every personal hazard, to my
oath co defend the Constitution, I need
not, perhaps,-be surprised at having met
tho fate of others whoso only rewards
for .upholding constitutional right and
law have been the consciousness of hav?
ing attempted to do their duty, and the
calm and unprejudiced judgment of his?
tory.
At tho time a mysterious Providence
assigned to mo tho office of President. I
was",'by the terms of the Constitution,
tho Commander-in-chief of nearly a mil?
lion of men under arms. One of my first
acts was to disband and restore to the
vocations of civil life this immense host,
and to divest myself, so far as I could, of
the unparalleled powers thon incident to
the office and the times. Whctheror not,
in this step, I was right, and how far de?
serving the approbation of the people, all
can now on reflection*judge, when remin?
ded of tho. rniiious condition of public
affairs that m?sb havo resulted , from the
contiitaftnfc? in. the military service of
such a vast number or- men.
Tb.?:close of our domestic conflict found
the arriiy eager to distinguish itself in a
now field! by an effort to punish Europe
an intervention'in.'Mexico; By many it
was bjejieycaand'urged that, aside from
the assujtfled joibtice of the proceeding, a
foreign war. in which both sides would
cheerfully unite to vindicate the honor of
the natirjnai ffagi and further illustrate
the national proves;;, would bo the surest
and. speediest way of awakening national
enthusiasm, reviving devotion to tb?
TjnTori, and occupying a forcfe concerning
which grave doubts existed as to its will?
ingness, after four years ot active cam?
paigning, at enee to return to the pursuits
of peace. Whether these speculations
were: true or false, it. will be conceded
that they existed, and that the predilec?
tions of the army were, for the time be?
ing, in the direction indicated. Taking
advantage of this feeling, it would have
been easy, as the Coramander-in-chiaf of
the army and navy, and with all the pow?
er and patronage of the Presidential
office at my disposal, to turn the concen?
trated'military strength of tho nation
against Freuch interference in Mexico,
and to inaugurate a movement which
would have been received with favor by
{he military and a large portion of tho
people.
^t is proper, in this connection, that I
should refer to the almost unlimited ad?
ditional powers tendered to the Execu?
tive by tho moasMres relating to civil
rights and the Freodmen's Bureau. Con?
trary to most precedents in the experien?
ces of public men, the powers thus placed
within my grasp were declined, as in
violation of the Constitution, dangerous
to tho liberties of the people, and tending
to aggravate, rather than lesson, tho dis?
cord/naturally resulting from our civil
war. With a large arm}- and augmented
authority, it would have been no difficult
task to direct ab pleasure tho destinies of
the Republic, and to make secure my
Continuance in the highest offico known
to our laws.
Let the people whom I am addressing
from the Presidential chair during the
closing hours of a laborious term consider
how different would have been their pre-,
sent.condition had I yielded to the daz?
zling temptation of foreign conquest, of
personal aggrandizement, and the desire
to, wield additional power. Let them
with justice consider that, if I have not
unduly "magnified mine office," the pub?
lic burdens have not been- increased by
my acts, and other and perhaps thousands
of lives sacrificed to visions of false glory.
It cannot, therefore, be charged that
my ambition has been of that ordinary
or criminal kind which, to tho detriment
of the people's rights and liberties, ever
seeks to grasp more and unwarranted
powers, aticl, to accomplish its purposes,
panders too often to popular prejudices
and party aims.
What, then, have been the aspirations
which guided mo in my official acts ?
Those acts need not, at this time, an elab?
orate explanation. They have been else?
where comprehensively stated and fully
discussed, und become a part of the na?
tion's history. By them I am willing to
be judged, knowing that, however imper?
fect, they at least show to the impartial
mind that my sole ambition has been to
restore the Union of the States, faithfully
to execute the office of President, and, to
the best of my abilit}', to preserve, pro?
tect and defend the Constitution. I can?
not be censured if my efforts have been
impeded in the interests of party faction;
and if a policy which was intended to re?
assure and conciliate the peoplo of both
sections of tho country was made the
occasion of inflaming and dividing still
farther thoso who, only recently in arms
against each other, )'ct, as individuals and
citizens, wcro sincerely desirous, as I
shail ever believe, of burying all hostile
feelings in the grave of the past. The
bitter war was waged on the pact of the
Government to vindicate the Constitution
and saVo the Union ; and if I have erred
in trying to bring about a more spoedy
and lasting peace, to extinguish heart?
burnings and enmities, and to prevent
troubles in tho South which, retarding
material prosperity in that region, injuri?
ously affected the whole country, 1 am
quite content to rest my case with tho
more deliberate judgment of tho people,
and, as I have already intimated, with
the distant future.
The war, all must remember, was a
stupendous and deplorable mistake. Nei?
ther side understood the other; and had
this simple fact and its conclusions been
kept in vieiv, all that was needed was
accomplished b}* tho acknowledgment of
the terrible wrong, and the expressed
better feeling and earnest endeavor at
atonement shown arid felt in the prompt
ratification of constitutional amendments
by the Southern States at the close of the
war. Not accepting the war as a con?
fessed false step on the part of those who
inaugurated it, was an error which now
only time'ean cure, and which eveu at
thih late date we should endeavor to pal?
liate. Experiencing, moreover, as all
have done, the frightful cost of the arbi?
trament of the sword, let us in the future
cling closer than ever to the Constitution
as our only safeguard. It is to bo hoped
that not until the burdens now pressing
upon us with such fearful weight are re?
moved Will our people forget tho lessons
of tho war; and that, remembering them
from whatever cause, peace between sec?
tions and States may be perpetual.
The history of late events in our coun
trj'j as well as of the greatest Govern?
ments of ancient and modern times,
teaches that we have everything to fear
from a departure from the lotter arrd upirit
of the Constitution, and the undue aucen
dency of men allowed to assume power
in what atu Considered desperate emer?
gencies. Sylla, on becoming master of
Home, at once adopted measures to crush
his enemies, and to consolidate the power
of his party i He established military
colonies throughout Italy ; deprived: of
the full Roman franchise the inhabitants
of the Italian towns who had opposed his
usurpations; confiscated their lands, and
gave them to his soldiers; and conferred
citizenship upon a great number of slaves
belonging to those who had proscribed
him, thus creating at Home.a kind of
bodyguard for his protection. Aftor
having given Rome over to slaughter,
and tyrannized beyond all oxamplo over
those Opposed" to him and the legions, his
terrible instruments of wrong. S}Mla could
yet foel safe in laying down tho ensigns
of power no dreadfully abused, and in
mingling freely with the families and
friends of his myriad victims. Tho fear
which he had inspired continued after his
voluntary abd'eation, and even in retire?
ment his will vas Uw to a people who
had permitted themselves to be enslaved,
What but a subtle knowledge and con?
viction that the Roman people had bo
come changed, discouraged, and utterly
broken in spirit could have induced this
daring assumption ? What but public in?
difference to consequences eo tdrrjblo as
to leave Rome open to every calamity
which subsequently befell her,could have
justified the conclusions of the dictator
and tyrant in his startling experiment ?
Wo find that in the lime which has since
elapsed, human nature and exigencies in
government have not greatly changed.
Who, a few years past, in contemplating
our future, could have supposed that in a
brief period of bitter experience every?
thing demanded in tho name of military'
emergency, or dictated by caprice, would
como to be considered as mere matters of
course; that conscription, confiscation
loss of personal liberty, tho subjection of
States to military rule, and disfranchise
nient, with the extension of tho right of
suffrage merely to accomplish party ends,
would receive tho passive submission, if
not acquiescence, of the peoplo of tho
Republic ?
It has been clearly demonstrated^ by
recont occurrences, that encroachments
upon the Constitution cannot be present?
ed by the President alone, however devo?
ted or determined he may bo, and that
unless the people interpose there is no
powor under the Constitution to eheck a
dominant majority ot two-thirds in the
Congress of the United States. An ap?
peal to the nution, however, is attended
with too much delay to meet an emer?
gency. While, if lett free to act, the
people would correct, in lime, luch evils
as might follow legislative usurpation,
there is danger that the same power
which disregards the Constitution will
deprive them of the right to change their
rulers, except by revolution. Wo have
already seen the jurisdiction of the judi?
ciary circumscribed when it was appre?
hended that the courts would decide
against laws having for their sole object
the supremacy of party, while the veto
power, lodged in the Executive by the
Constitution for the interest and protec?
tion of the people, and exorcised by
Washington and his successors, has been
rendered nugatory by a partisan majority
of two-thirds in each branch of - the Na?
tional Legislature. The Constitution
evidently contemplates that when a bill
is returned with the President's objections
it will be calmly reconsidered by Congress.
Such, however, has not been the practice
tice under present party rule It has"
becomo evident that men who pass a bill
under partisan influences are not likely,
through patriotic motives, to admit their
error, and thereby weaken their own or?
ganizations by solemnly confessing it
under an official oath. Pride of opinion,
if nothing else, has Intervened, and pre?
vented a calm and dispassionate reconsid?
eration of a bill disapproved by the Ex?
ecutive.
Much as I venerate the Constitution,
it must be admitted that this condition of
affairs has developed a defect which, un?
der the aggressive tendency of the legis?
lative department of the Government,
may readily work its oveixhrow. It
ma}', however, be remedies, without dis?
turbing the harmony of the instrument.
The veto power is generally exercised
upon constitutional grounds, and when?
ever it is so applied, and the bill returned
with the Executive's reasons for with?
holding his signature, it ought to be im?
mediately certified to the Supreme Court
of the United States for its decision. If
its constitutionality shall be declared by
that tribunal,- it should then become a
law; but if tiic decision is otherwise, it
should fail, without power in Congress to
re-enact and make it valid.
In cases in which the veto rests upon
hasty and inconsiderate legislation, and
in vvhi' h no constitutional question is in?
volved, I would not change the funda?
mental law; for in such cases no perma?
nent evil can be incorporated into the
Federal system.
It is obvious that without such an
amendment, the Government, as it existed
under the Constitution prior to the re?
bellion, may be wholly subverted and
overthrown b}'a-two thirds majority in
Congress. It is not, therefore, difficult
to see how easily and how rapidly the
people ma}' lose?shall I not say, have
lost??their liberties by an unchecked
and uncontrollable majority in the law
making power; and, when one? deprived
of their rights, how powerless they are
to regain them.
Let us turn for a moment to the history
of the majority in Congress, which has
acted in such utter disregard of the Con?
stitution. While public attention has been
carefully and constantly turned to the
past and expiated sins ot the South, the
servants of the people, in high places,
have bold!j? betrayed their trust, broken
their oaths of obedience to the Constitu?
tion, and undermined the very foundations
of liberty, juetice, and good government.
When the rebellion was being suppressed
by the volunteered services o* patriot sol?
diers amid the dangers of the battle-field
these men crept, without question, into
place and power in the national councils.
After all dangers had passed, when no
armed foe remained, when a punished and
repentant people bowed their heads to
the flag and renewed their allegiance to
the Government of the United States,
then it was that pretended patriots ap?
peared before the nation?and began to
prate about the thousands of lives and
millions of treasure sacrificed in the sup?
pression of tho rebellion.. They have
since persistently sought to inflame the
prejudices engendered between the see
and harmony, and by every meane to
keep open and exposed to the poisonous
broath of party passion the terrible
wounds of a fonr-years' war. They have
prevented the return of peace and the
restoration o:t the Union, in every way
rendered delusive the purposes, promises,
and pledges by which the army was mar?
shalled treason rebuked, and rebellion
crushed, and mado the liberties ot the
people and tho rights and powers of the
Presidentobjcctsofconstantattack. They
have wrested from the President his con?
stitutional power of supreme command of
the army and navy. They have destroy?
ed the strength and efficiency of the Exe?
cutive Department by making subordi?
nate officers independent of and able to
defy their chief. They have attempted
to place the President undor the power
of a bold, defiant, and treacherous Cabinet
officer. They have robbed the Executive
of the prerogative of pardon, rendered
null and void acts of clemency granted to
thousands of persons undor the provisions
of the Constitution, and committed grosB
usurpation b}' legislative attempts to ex?
ercise this power in favor of party adho
ronts. They have conspired to change
the system of our Government by prefer?
ring charges against the President in tho
form of articles of impeachment, and con
templattng, before hearing or trial, that
he should be placed in arrest, held in du?
rance, and, when it became their pleasure
to pronounce his sentence, driven from
place and power in disgrace. They have
in time of peace increased the national
debt by reckless expenditure of the public
moneys, and thus added to ihe burdens
which already weigh upon the people.
They have permitted the nation to suffer
the evils of a deranged currency, to the
enhancement in price of all the necessa?
ries of lift. They have maintained a largo
standing army for the enforcement of their
measures of oppression. They have en?
gaged in class legislation, and built upand
encouraged mooopolies,thatthefew might
be enriched at the expense of the many.
They have failed to act upon important
treaties, thereby endangering our present
peaceful relations with foreign powers.
Their course of usurpation bat not been
limited to inroads upon the Executive De*
partmeut.
By unconstitutional and oppressive
enactments, the people of ten States of
the Union have beeu reduced to a condi?
tion more intolerable than that from
which the patriots of the Revolution re?
belled. Millions of American citizens can
now say of their oppressors, with more
truth than our fathers did of British ty?
rants, that thoy have "forbidden the gov?
ernors to pass laws of immediate and
pressing importance, unless suspended un?
til their assent should be obtained that
they have "refused to pass other laws for
the accomodation of large districts of peo?
ple unless those people would relinquish
the right of representation in the Legis
latare?e, right inestimable to them, and
formidable to tyrants only;"' that they
have "made judges dependent upon their
will alone fur their offices, and the amount
and payment of their salaries;'! that they
have '-erected a multitude of new offices,
and sent hither swarms of officers to
harass our people and eat out their sub?
stance;" that they have "alfected to ren?
der the military independent of and su?
perior to the civil power," "combined with
others to subject us to a jurisdiction
foreign to our Constitution, and unac?
knowledged by our laws,'' "quartered large
bodies of armed troops among us," "pro?
tected them by a mock trial lrom punish?
ment for any murders which they should
commit on the inhabitants of theso
States," imposed "tuxes upon us without
our consent," "deprived us in many cases
of tho benefit of trial by jury," "taken
away our charters, excited domestic in?
surrection amongst us, abolished our most
valuable laws, altered fundamentally the
forms of our Government, suspended our
own Legislatures, and declared them?
selves invested with power to legislate for
us ?in all cases whatsoever."
This catalogue of crimes, long as it is,
is not yet complete. The constitution
vests tho judicial power of the United
States "In one Supremo Court/' whose ju?
risdiction "shall extend to all cases aris?
ing under this Constitution" and '-the
law6 of tho United State?." Encouraged
by this promise of a refuge from tyranny,
a citizen of the United States who, by
the order of a military communder given,
under the sanction of a cruel and deliber?
ate edict of Congress, hud bcon denied
the constitutional rights of libertj' of con?
science, freedom of the press and of speech,
personal freedom from military arrest, of
being held to answer for crime only upon
presentment and indictment, of trial by
jury, of the writ of habeas corpus, and
the protection of civil and Constitution:'.!
government?aciticeu,thusdeeply wrong
j ed, appeals to the Supreme Court for the
I protection guaranteed to him by the or?
ganic law of the land. At once a fierce
and excited majority, by the ruthless
I band of legislative power, stripped the
I ermine from the judges, transferred the
[sword ot justice to the General, and re
! nianded the oppressed eitir.en to a degra?
dation and bondage worse than death.
It will also be recorded as one of the
marvels of the times, that a party claim
i ing for itself a monopoly of consistency
and patriotism, and boasting, too, of its
unlimited sway, endeavored, by a costly
and deliberate trial, to impeach one who
defended the Constitution and the Union
not only throughout the war of t'iie re?
bellion, but during his whole term of
office as Chief Magistrate; but at the same
time could find no warrant or means at
their command to bring to trial even the
chief of the rebellion. Indeed, the re?
markable failures in his case were so of?
ten repeated that for propriety's sake, it
lor no other reason, it became at last nec?
essary to extend to him an unconditional
pardon. What more plainly than this il?
lustrates the extremity of party manage?
ment and inconsistency on the one hand,
and of faction, vindictiveness and intoler?
ance ou the other? Patriotism will hardly
be.encouraged when, in such a record, it
sees that its instant reward may be the
most virulent party abuse and obloquy, if
not attempted disgrace. Instead of seek
ing "to make treason odious," it would in
truth seem to have been their purpose
rather to make the defence of the Consti?
tution and the Union a crime, and to
punish fidelity to an oath of office, if coun?
ter to part}* dictation, by all the means at
their command.
Happily for the peace of the country/
tho war has determined against the as?
sumed power of tho States to withdraw
at pleasure from the Union. The institu?
tion of slavery also found its destruction
in a rebellion commenced in its interest.
It should be borne in mind,however, that
tho war neither impaired nor destroyed
the Constitution, but, on the contrary,
preserved its existence, and made appar?
ent its real power and enduring strength.
All the rights granted to the States, or
reserved to the people thereof, remain
therefore intact. Among those rights is
that of the people of each Stato to de?
clare tho qualifications of their own Stato
electors. It is now assumed that Con?
gress can control this vital right, which
can never be taken away from the States
without impairing tho fundamental prin?
ciples of the Government itself, ft is nec?
essity to the existence of the Slates, as
well as to the protection of the liberties
Of the people; for the right to select the
elector in whom the political power of a
State shall be lodged involves the right
of the State to govern itself. When
deprived of this perogative, the States
will have no power worth retaining; all
will be gone, and they will be subjected
to the arbitrary will of Congress. Tho
Government will then be.centralized, if
not by the passage of laws, then by tho
adoption, through partisan influence, of
an amendment directly in conflict with
the original design oi the Constitution.
This proves how .necessary it is that the
people should require the adiuiniiitr,ation
of the three great department* of the
Government strictly within the limita?
tions of the Constitution. Their bounda?
ries have been accurately defined, and
neither should be allowed to trespass up?
on the other, nor above ail, to oaroni-h
upon the reserved rights of the people
and the States. Tho troubles of the past
four yeans will prove to tho nation bless?
ings if they produce so desirable a result.
Upon those who became young men
amid the iiound of cannon and din of arms,
and quietly returned to tho farms, the
factories, and the schools of the land, wUl
principally devolve the solemn duty of
perpetuating the Unton of the States, in
defence of which hundreds of thousands
of their comrades expired, and hundreds
of millions of. national obligations were
incurred. A manly peoplo will not neg?
lect the training necessary to resist ag?
gression, 'but they should be jealous lest
the civil be made subordinate to military
element. We need to encourage, in ev?
ery legitimate way, a study of the Con?
stitution for which the war was waged, a
knowledge of and reverence for whose
wise checks by those so soon to occupy
the places, filled by their seniors will be
tho only hope of preserving tho Republic'.
The young men of the nation, notyct un?
der the control of party, most resist the
tendency to centralization?an outgrowth
of tho great rebellion?and bo familiar
with the fact that the country consists of
united States, and that when the States
surrendered certain great rights for the
sake of a more perfect union, they retain-;
ed rights as valuable and important as
those which they relinquished for the com?
mon weal.
This sound old doctrine, far different
from the teachings that led to the attempt
to secede, and a kindred theory that
States were token out of the Union by the
rash acts of conspirators that happened to
dwell within their borders,'must be re?
ceived and advocated with the enthusiasm
of early manhood, or the people will be
ruled by corrupt combinations of the
commercial centres, who, plethoric from
wealth, annually migrate to the capital of
the nation to purchase special legislation.
Until the representatives of the people in
Congress more fully exhibit tho diverse 1
views and interests of the whole nation,
and laws cease to be made without full
discussion at the behest of some party
leader, there will never be a proper re?
spect shown by the law-making power
either to the judioial or executive branch
of the Government. The generation just
beginning to uso the ballot box, it is be-'j
licved only need that their attention
should be called to these considerations to ,
indicate, by their voles, that they wish
their representatives to observe all the
restraints which the people, in adopting
tho Constitution, intended to impose up?
on party excess.
CaAply reviewing my administration of
tho Government, I feel that, with a sense
of accountability to God, having consci?
entiously endeavored to discharge my
whole duty, I have nothing to regret.
Events have proved the correctness of the
policy set forth in my first and subsequent
messages; the woes which hare followed
the rejection of forbearance, magnanimity,
and constitutional rule are known and de?
plored by the nation.
It is a matter of pride and gratification,
in retiring from tho most exalted position
in the gift of a freo people, to feel and
know that in a long, ardnoutj, and event?
ful public life; my action has never been
influenced by desire for gain, and that I
can in all my sincerity inquire, '- Whom
have I defrauded ? whom have I oppress?
ed? or off whose hand have I received any
bribe to blind my eyes-therewith?" No
responsibility for wars that have been
waged or blood that has been shed rests
upon mo. My thoughts have been those
of peace, and my effort has ever beon to
allay contentions among my countrymen.
Forgetting the past, let us return to
the first principles of tho Government,
and, unfurling the banner of our sown try,
inscribe upon it, in ineffaceable charac?
ters, "Tho Constitution and the Union,
one and inseparable"
Andrew JonxsoN.
Washington, D. C, March 4, 1869.
__ At a dinner party, the waiter dropped
the dish of turkey, as he was bringing it
into the room. A gentleman present ex?
claimed : "What a catastrophe! The
down fall of Turkey, the destruction of
China, and the overthrow of Greece!"
? An exchange is opposed to the edu?
cation of women as surgeons. It says
that, suppose one were put under tlie.in?
fluence of chloroform by such a doctor,
"what is to prevent the woman from kiss?
ing you ?"
? The town clerk of Hartford reports
one death from "ignorance" last year. The
subject knows niore than anybody he left!
behind him by this time.
? A dressmaker advertises that she
makes dresses lower thati ever.
Radical Maligxity.?Jefferson Davis,
in spite of his modest, retiring deportment
at Lome and his present absence of three
thousand miles away, appears ever U
trouble the thoughts and haunt tho dreams
of the Radical editors of the North. Thar
say he -should court "obscurityand he
does wl at he can co be retired from the
public i iew, but they are evor dragging
him forth from his privacy for tho purpose
of offering him an insult or attempt at oV
rision. The truth is they are afraid of him
as the guilty parties are of Braaquo's
ghost iu the play, and hence he is fere?ei*
starting np before them. One of those
journals that has pretensions to tho high?
est dignity and respectability, the Mew*
York Post, thus alludes to the CoBfed^d^
ex-President in a recent numhertreji;
."It is pretty certain that if hi were to
show himself in the streets of Now York, he
would stand a good chanee to bo knocked
down by some indignant disc harged sol?
dier. Poor creature, he is a melancholy ex?
ample of the ruin and disgrace wrought
by criminal ambition/'
This is very creditable to Northerp
prowess and chivalry, as well as to tlxS
law-abiding character of that people? A
feeble old man to be assaulted aud knocked
down by a Federal bully?rsery brave Hi
deed ! But there are always two tides to
a fight, even though oue of the parties be
without strength, and if the Port desires
to know what would become of its "indig?
nant discharged soldierj" after performing
the gallant exploit indicated, it has only to
find one, on Mr. Davis' next visit to New
York, to try the experiment. If the dis?
charge! soldiers of another army should hot
be at hand to avenge the outrage upon their
beloved chief, no number of intervening
miles would prevent them from a speedy
performance of their duty. ??
"Pool- creature.'"?"Alelancholy exam?
ple!'' We can well imagine how tho
knees of the craven who penned* this lan?
guage would smite together and his whole
frame quail, could he be brought to stand
one moment under the eagle's eye, and in
the majestic presence of the great man up?
on whom he pours the slime of his malig?
nity.
But wo dislike to think, much less write
about, such things. The war has closed
aud its memories should be buried in the
desire for peace and a restored brother:
hood. Why will the men of the North
continue to irritate and keep open, the
wounds of the South by stich ungenerous
and unmanly treatment of our leaders ??
Savannah Republican.
-*-? ?,~
Wnr is the Presides? Inaugurated
ox the FouRTn of March ??We remem?
ber many years ago, when a child,'(says
the Vicksburg Herald) to have heard this
interrogatory answered in the declaration
that in consequence of the change occa?
sioned by the addition of one day every
bese.xtile or leap year*, the 4th of -March
occurred less often on Sunday than., any
other day of the week, and fur this reason
was selected. Curiosity has prompted us
to make the examination, aud we find that
in thirty Presidential terms, from 17.89 tic*
1905, inclusive, the fourth of March has^
and will have fallen offener on Sunday
than any day other of the week except
Tuesday. Thus, we havu the fourth of
March in those years coming four times,
each, on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday^
Friday and Saturday, and five times each
on Sunday and Tuesday.- The Federal
Constitution was adopted on the 1st ef
March, 1789, but the first President,
George Washington, was not inaugurated
untill April 30, 1789. Washington's sec?
ond term, commencing on the 4th-' et
March,. 1793, fell on Sunday, as did also
the term of James r.tonroe, 1821, and Zach
ary Taylor, 1S49, all of whom, vrebejievp,
were inaugurated on the 5th of March,-the.
following day. The 4th of March wil| al?
so be on Sunday in the years 1877 and
05, completing the thirty Presidential]
terms enumerated.
This Almighty Dollar.?The New
York Democrat chronicles as follows the
latest instance of Yankee cruelty and greed
of gain:
Five months since a Dr. Ridley, of Bos?
ton, amputated the leg of a five* year old
soil of his, who had betn injured by'being
run over by an omnibus. For this damage
to his son he collected $6,000. It now
turns out that the boy's great and next to
great toe were alone injured, and this not
sufficient to require more than t wo splints,
bandages and a little care. But, to recov?
er damages, the Christian father gave his
child chloroform, amputated the leg below,
the knee, and recovered pay for the dam?
ages he alone had caused. It is not long
since the inhuman monster was making
speeches against the Southern people'for
whipping negro servants. What, a regu?
lar loyal Yankee will not do for the al-'
mighty dollar God only knows.
t? An American writer pay's: "A wo?
man will cling to the chosen object ofher
heart like a possum to a ?mri tree, and
you can't separate her without snapping
strings no ait can mend, and leaving a
portion of her soul on the upper leather of
your affections. Sh? will sometimes see
Something to love, while others see noth?
ing to admire; and when fondness is once
fastened on a fellow, it sticks like glue and
treacle in a bushy head of hair."
? Never pay a bill on first presentation
?it would look as if you were ostenta?
tious of honesty. At the second time ot
presenting you may consider about it, and
say call again. Third or fourth time yon
may be at home or out of money, and
should the creditor call a fifth, you may
have a fair reason tobe offended, at his
pertinacity, and not pay the bill at all.
? If I had to be a bird I wouldn't be a
lark; they have to rise so early, and no to
bed at dark. I wouldn't be tin eagle *'
kintr of birds ,fsc ea...- .vc?ld? t bt tu?