Edwards Pierrepont - Supported President Grant

Supported President Grant

On September 25, 1872 reformer Pierrepont gave a speech at the Cooper Union Institute in New York that supported President Ulysses S. Grant's reelection. Pierrepont stated that Grant's opponent Horace Greeley had pointed out that Grant had made a better President then expected and that his second term would be better than his first. Pierrepont stated that President Grant had been unjustly slandered by the press, and that he believed "security, confidence, development and unexampled prosperity" would take place during President Grant's second term in office. Pierrepont, who had toured the South in February, spoke on President Grant's Reconstruction policy. Pierrepont had observed that southern whites in poverty supported Greeley, while African Americans were loyal to President Grant. Although acknowledging Reconstruction state governments needed reform, Pierrepont blamed southern poverty on the Southern peoples "swollen pride and obstinate will." Pierrepont believed that Grant's southern policy was good for the Southern people; that African Americans needed to be protected in their rights; and that government needed to govern justly and generously. Pierrepont believed that electing Greeley would turn over the state governments to a rebellious people and reminded his audience of Union prisoner deaths that had taken place at Andersonville and harsh conditions at Libby Prison. As a reformer, Pierrepont stated he would do his best to ensure that honest men were placed around President Grant.