Beginning of Essay
Early in Grant's first term, two gold speculators Jay Gould and James Fisk hoped to buy gold at $130 per ounce and sell it at $160 per ounce. They tried o corner the gold market. They went to Grant, who had no understanding of monetary issues, and convinced him t ....

Middle of Essay
.... transaction, the investors gave Credit Mobilier stock to members of Congress. A congressional investigation in 1872 revealed many congressmen, high ranking republicans, and vice-president Schuyler Colfax took stock in the company. The scandal marred Grant's first term. Schuyler was replaced for the election in 1872. This began the uncovering of several scandals. The Whiskey Ring 187 A national tax evasion scheme where indictments were brought against 86 government officials, including the chief clerk of the Treasury Department as well as President Ulysses S. Grant's private secretary. A group of distillers was falsifying reports and cheated the gove ....