The Centre reporter. (Centre Hall, Pa.) 1871-1940, May 05, 1927, Image 2

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    REPORTER, CENTRE HALL. PA.
THE CENTRE
INSTALL
By ELMO SCOTT WATSON
PRIL 27 of this year marks the
one hundred fifth anniversary of
the birth of a remarkable Amer-
ican. He Is remarkable in the
sense that his life story Is the
paradox of a failure who suc:
ceeded. not onee, but many times,
WwW. E. Woodward, author of
“George Washington: The Image
and the Man," recently an-
nounced that he Is at work on
the “reconstruction of another
great American historical figure,
Gen. Ulysses 8S. Grant.” From other statements of
his it is evident that he is approaching his subject
from the “successful failure” angle.
“Grant's career was one of the
in our history,” says. “At the
eight he was an obscure and beaten man
silently around the stove In a country store. His
opportunities were all apparently behind him. He
had left the army under the charge of drunken-
and had found himself ungble to make a
living in business. Whe would have dreamed, al
the heginning of the Civil war, that this seedy,
discagraged failure was to become the great leader
of the Union armies and to be President for two
terms?”
It is because Grant's career was a dramatic one
and his life story has In it so many
dramatic clements that be Is such an interesting
figure. There is the “farm boy who became Presi
dent” element and, the fallures In his
career, it has, in its general outlines, all the ele-
ments of the of which Americans
seem fo be particularly fond. As a military genius
it is doubtful If he was the equal of half a dozen
Confederate
dramatle
of thirty-
sitting
most
he age
Ness
hecause
despite
“success story”
other generals In the Union and
But Grant, the soldier, was a picturesque
character and it Is easy to understand how the
picture of this stocky, dark, taciturn man, chew-
ing upon the inevitable cigar, would appeal to the
fmagination of a people so soon to become wedded
to a gospel of efficiency and a tradition—intensi-
fiedl. albeit, by the of a silent
man” as an ideal,
armies,
movies “strong.
Then there is the matter of epigrammatic utter-
We Americans are fond of laconic speech,
“grent savings by great men” catch-words,
and the like. So why should we not
remember the man who said “Let us have peace!”
brief “unconditional surrender” mes.
sage to the general of an opposing army could
by an identity of Initials make it easy to read
“I. 8. Grant” as Simpson Grant” or
“tineonditional Surrender Grant” or “United
States Geant.” One other element is the fact that
the manner of his becoming President followed
hist tradition so closely, The tradition was
ost the made the
vietorions Washington its President
The tradition was perpetuated after the war of
1%12 in the gift of the Presidency to Andrew
Jackson. hero of the Battle of New Orleans, and
a little later to Willlam Henry Harrison, the “Old
Tippecanoe” hero of another battle in that con
flict. Zachary Taylor, the “Old Rough and Ready”
of Mexican war’ fame, was similarly rewarded
by his country. So why should not the victorious
general of war between the states be ele.
vated to the Presidency as soon as the opportunity
offered? That question was answered In 1868
when General Grant beeame President Grant.
Grant, the President, Is rather a dim, vague
figure in our minds. It is Grant, the soldier, who
is remembered, and for 300 years those two words
have heen synonymous, Ulysses Simpsgon Grant,
ng eighth in descent from Matthew Grant,
who came to Massachusetts in 1630 and was sur-
veyor of Connecticut for more than forty years
Although there is no direct evidence of the fact,
it is not unlikely that Matthew Grant had a part
in the Indian wars In New England and thus
established the line of military Grants. At any
rate the soldier strain cropped out early for Noah
Grant, Ulysses’ great-grandfather, and Solomon
Grant, his great-granduncle, held British commis-
sions during the Seven Years or French and
Indian war (1756-1763) and both were killed In
the same campaign. Noah Grant, his grandfather,
joined a Connecticut company in the Continental
army and served throughout the Revolution from
Bunker hill to Yorktown.
Whether or not a Grant of this line served In
the War of 1812 is not recorded, but Ulysses 8,
Grant, who served In the Mexican war and the
Civil war, his son, Gen, Frederick Dent Grant, who
gorved In the Indian campaigns, in the Spanish-
American war, and In the Philippines, and his
grandson, Capt. Ulysses Grant II, who served
in the World war, were true to thelr soldier her-
ance
of our
slogans
and whose
“Ulysses
arie
when new Republic
EEL] 10
first
(;oorge
the
CAD 1S. GRANT IZ
tage and «
fee by successive generations of Grants
After the Revolution Noah Grant emigrated to
Pennsylvania and in 1799 he continued westward
to Ohio. General Grant has recorded In his
memoirs that “Noah Grant was not thrifty in the
way of laying up stores on earth” and financial
reverses as well as the death of his wife In 1805
broke up the family. Jesse Grant. the father of
the future President, was given a home by Judge
Tod of Ohio and he remained with Tod until he
was old enough to learn a trade and strike out
for himself
At Ohio, Jesse Grant established a
tannery and later moved to Point Pleasant, Cler
mont county, Ohio. on April 22, 18%. a
son was and the name of Hiram
Ulysses, was appointed to West Point in
1839 and it was at that time that “Hiram Ulysses”
became In the course of mak
ing the appointment, Congressman Hamer of Ohlo
was obliged to give the full name of his protege.
Knowing that the boy's name was Ulysses and
his mother's maiden name was Simpson, at a
venture he wrote it down “Ulysses Simpson
Grant.” And so it remained through the remainder
of Grant's life. While his career at the military
academy cannot be called a fallure, at least it
was far from a success. The fact that his class
mates distorted “Ulysses” into “Useless” has some
significance. Except for his superior horseman:
ship, and proficiency In mathematics, he was never
squarely at either end of the class, front nor rear
Mediocrity Is perhaps the most fitting characteriza-
tion of Grant, the West Poluter. His class stand:
Ing was so low that he served his fourth year as
a private and at the age of twenty-one he was
graduated with a ranking of 21 in & class of 30.
His Interest In horses, both as a boy in Ohlo
and as a cadet at West Point, had crystallized into
fn desire to obtain a commission In the cavalry
upon graduatien. Instead he was appointed a
second lieutenant in the Fourth infantry. If this
was not Grant's first “failure,” it was at least his
first frustration, which 18 so nearly the same
thing. He was ordered to Jefferson barracks in
Missouri and while there his dissatisfaction with
army life became so pronounced that he deter
mined to resign and seek a professorship In
mathematics In some college. He applied for an
appointment as assistant professor of mathe
matics at West Point, but again he was frustrated.
There was no such position open then, Before one
occurred, the Mexican war broke out and Grant
was a soldier on active Instead of academic
service. And this young Heutenant, “fed up” on
garrison life and seeking an escape, was the man
who a few years later was to become commander
of the greatest army ever assembled on Amer
fean soll and the first American officer to be
given the rank of general after that grade was
created by act of congress!
During the Mexican war Grant was promoted
to first lieutenant for gallantry at the battle of
Molino del Rey and brevetted eaptain for his con-
duct at Chapultepec, In 1853 he was commis.
sioned a eaptain, but by thik time he was con-
vinced that he could not support his family on a
captain's pay. -
So in 1804, much to the consternation of his
family and his friends, he resigned from the army.
In the words of one blographer:
The next seven years of Cirant's life were any-
thing but rosy and satisfactory. Having a wife
and child to support, It was necessary to get to
work as quickly as possible after quitting the
army. His father-in-law helped him out by put.
ting him on a small farm he owned in Missouri
Here Grant plowed and harrowed, fod and curried his
horses; built, with his own hands, a log house for
his family: cut down trees, and converted them
into eordwood, and then hauled it to the nearest
village where he tramped around the town hunt.
ing up customers, who usually purchased on
oredit-which proved eternal. Upon these wood
Ravenna,
There,
born ziven
Grant
“Ulysses Simpson.”
QF GEN. GRANT”
hauling trips, the man whe
Ereatest military figure of
dent of the United States
shabby old felt hat,
pants shoved In the
seen much wear. Not
inter became the
the world, and Presi
was dressed In a very
a patched bLivuse cont, and
tops of the Boots that had
being make a living
at farming and wood cutling, next tried hi
hand in an endeavor to sell estate and i
lect rents in St. Louls. This
successful than the previous
he moved to Galena, 111,
in a and hardware
father
Thus a fallure as a farmer and a8 business man
wns added to his record
able to
Grant
real
venture
one
where he
leather store
The opening guns of the Civil war brought him
gE
out of his obscurity, but again he seemed destined
to failure. He offered
ment, but, despite his West Point training and his
Mexican war record no one In
much attention to him, Finally Governor Yat
Iiinols offered him the colonelcy of the Twenty:
first regiment of Ilinols infantry, and
15, 1861. he assumed command of that regiment
From then on his rise was rapid until the
came at Appomattox, and, as the successful gen
eral In one of the greatest conflicts the world has
ever known, he reached one of his greatest
triumphs,
If Grant, the soldier, was a great
Grant, the politician, was equally a great failure
His two terms as President proved that. Although
there was much that was commendable in his
record as the Chief Executive, in the memory of
most Americans this is overshadowed by the
scandals, resulting from misplaced confidence In
his services to the govern
authority paid
ex of
on June
end
sHcocess,
But through it all Grant, the man,
emerged with reputation unsullied. From this
fallure he went to the second great trinmph of
his life—his trip around the world during which
he was honored by other nations as few
before or since have been honored,
White Hause
men
He returned to this country in 1880 to find his
name proposed as a candidate for the Republican
nomination for President and he was not an
unwilling candidate. During the exciting days of
the Republican convention the greatness of Grant,
dead
Sherman nor
There was a
Blaine,
ticlan. flashed forth again,
tock with neither Grant,
nomination. Then the Sherman supporters pro-
posed to throw their strength to Grant
would agree to make Sherman a member of his
cabinet. This was Grant's reply, “It was my
John Sherman secretary of the treasury. Now you
may be certain that 1 shall not. Not to be
President ‘of the United States would 1 consent
HOW IT WORKED
A druggist who wanted to sell elee-
waflle rons was advised to em-
an attractive young woman to
waffles In the store, He wns as
that the would boost
sloy
00k
sured scheme
salen,
“How
dviser.
“A smart gink married the girl the
frst week”
did it turn out? asked his
THEN HE WENT
Yorn,
He (at
this
She
midnight)
ever
feel all wound
up ng.
(wearlly)—Your main
be
spring
must broken, or you'd surely go.
The Young Lawyer
"And If,
My shoes you
Remember
By wo
ny son” the lawyer sald,
wish to 8,
hat 1 got my start
king with = will”
Just to Do Something
tists Wife Wwe ust
Fitting
She 1 onder why marriage Is
ealled “an Institution?
He Becnu :
from, 1 suppose —New 3)
Lines Magazine
# 80 hard to escape
ory Centr
Realism in the Movies
“Your
in that soene
“Had to.’
“Heh *"
“We
star shivered most naturally
1 hor on lea™
Why Worry?
Niblick losing
iver
all
Too bad about
his money
He made
par
vie He should worry!
urs n two under vest ers
Rather Big-Hearted
Jorrs Is there only one
soap?
Jelihop— Sure!
Jerry--Tell the night clerk I'll take
another room, | must wash my face
GREATEST GOLD FIELDS
“What are the world's greatest gold
fields.”
“The big cities—you’ll
diggers In every street”
Landing a Passenger
Ruth rode In my new cycle CAF
In the seat in back of me;
I took & bump at fifty-five,
And rode on ruthlessly.
find gold
How Boy Friend Knew
Daughter—You know, dad, he al
Garfield became the nominee and
He was destined to know one more failure and
fafled and he was left almost penniless
couniry came to his rescue and congress, by a
~g position he had resigned to become President.
Urged thereto by enterprising editors, he set
about the task of writing his merioirs, the sale
of which he hoped would take care of his family.
With the shadow of death hovering over him he
persisted In his work and finished It a few days
before the end came. He died July 23, 1886. The
magnificent tomb In Riverside park, New York
city, is more than the last resting place of Ulysses
Simpson Grant, general and President, It is a
national shrine, symbolical of American genius
for succeeding through Wilure.
:
i
Daughter—Oh, 1 told him I was.
His Favorite Brand
the one you gave me yesterday?
Rod-Yeah,
Dave—Fine.
brother of the habit of smoking.
Reciprocate or Retaliate
sald Mr. G. “You know, Cousin Ellie
gave us that big blue vage last year,
we ought to reciprocate.”
“Reciprocate?” answered Mr. G.
“For that vase! You mean retaliate.”
~The Outlook.
Meow!
Willle-~I’a, how old are kittens
when they get their eyes open?
His Father—~Um sure 1 4n't know,
my son. when they do get married,
CHAMPIONS
NOW
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enjoy maximum en-
gine performance dur-
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months you should
install a complete new
set of spark plugs now,
Champion is the better
. plug because of its
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ite cove~ita two-piece
constrsction and its spe-
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Champion X-
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607
Champion—
Cars other
than Fords
»&/
CHAMPION
Spark Plugs
TOLEDO. OMiIG
“Little Jack Horner
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EatingaChristmaspie,”
but we'll have delicious
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MONAR
Quality jor 70 Years
Monarch Is the only matiorally advertised brand of
Quatity Fobo Products sold exclosively the
wen who owp and opersis thelr ows stores,
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Enablished 1853
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| ark, N, J. Clean morally and physically.
Rates $1 to $31.66; every improvement;
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Yellow Bermuda Onion Plants 50 1.000
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NO. 18. 927