Vidal Gore — Eighteen Seventy [3039]

Meanwhile Grant has called out the troops (to defend the Capitol?), and soldiers are constantly, pointedly on display. Recently an overwrought local journalist wrote that if Hayes were to go in safety from White House to Capitol for his inauguration, then the people of this country are indeed fit for slavery. This morning the journalist was arrested. The government has indicted him for sedition. — Vidal Gore, Eighteen Seventy, 3039

Note

The description of soldiers being ‘constantly, pointedly on display’ conveys an atmosphere of intimidation and control, effectively illustrating the government’s response to dissent and unrest.