USA > Delaware > History of the state of Delaware, Volume I > Part 20
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Eli Saulsbury was born in Mispillion Hundred, Kent County, December 29, 1817. He was two years younger than his brother Gove, and Chancellor Willard Saulsbury was three years his junior. After obtaining an education by attendance at the public schools of the neighborhood, he spent nearly two years at Dickinson College. He was always a great reader, and absorbed much knowledge in this way. He was correct in mathematics, and in his early days taught school, and also followed the occupation of a surveyor. He was in his fortieth year when he was admitted to the Bar at Georgetown. This
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was in 1857, and the three years preceding had been spent in reading law in the office of his brother Willard. Immediately upon his admission to the Bar he opened an office at Dover, and ever afterwards resided there.
In 1852 he was elected a member of the State House of Representatives from Mispillion Hundred. In 1864 he was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention that nomi- nated George B. Mcclellan for President. These were the only positions with which he had been honored by his party until he was elected a member of the United States Senate in January, 1871, in competition with his two brothers, Gove and Willard. He served in the Senate for three full terms, retiring therefrom March 4, 1889.
As a member of the Senate he commanded respect, was dig- nified and industrious, and a man of the strictest integrity. During the few years that the Democratic party controlled the Senate, he was chairman of the committee on privileges and elections. He was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church for over fifty years, and took a lively interest for many years in the Wilmington Conference Academy, of which institution he was President of the Board of Trustees for many years. After his retirement from the Senate in 1889 he lived quietly at Dover. His death occurred at his residence in Dover, on March 22, 1893, in his seventy-sixth year. He was the last survivor of the five Saulsbury brothers.
In the campaign of 1872 James R. Lofland was the Re- publican candidate for Congress and Custis W. Wright, the Democratic candidate. The electoral vote of the state was given to General Grant for President and Mr. Loffand was elected as Representative in Congress by a majority of 362. This result was largely due to the apathy felt by the Demo- cratic party towards the nomination of Horace Greeley. The Legislature elected that year consisted of 8 Democrats and 1 Republican in the Senate and 14 Democrats and 7 Republi- cans in the House.
At the session of the Legislature in 1873 an Act was passed
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regulating the assessment and collection of taxes which proved particularly obnoxious to the Republican party. The Republicans had elected a member of Congress at the election in the fall preceding, and had also carried the state for the Republican electors. It was the first time that the ad- dition of the colored voters had proven of advantage to the Republicans. It was possible for the assessors, under the new law, to arbitrarily refuse to put the names of poll-tax payers on the list, and the law made it difficult for any one who had been omitted, either designedly or inadvertently, by the asses- sor, to get on the list, as under its provisions he must appear in person before the Levy Court of the county and be vouched for by a free-holder. The Act was clearly designed to make it difficult to get colored men qualified as voters, and those who framed it builded even better than they knew, as by it the Democratic party was enabled to continue in almost uninter- rupted control in the State for twenty-five years after its pas- sage. The Republicans attacked it on the stump and in their platform from year to year but it continued as a law of the state until the adoption of the new constitution in 1897.
The success of the Republicans in electing Mr. Lofland en- couraged them to believe that such an organization could be effected as would enable them to carry the State at the next election in 1874. The campaign of the latter year was very exciting. Dr. Isaac Jump of Dover was nominated for Gov- ernor by the Republicans, and James R. Lofland was re- nominated for Representative in Congress. The Democratic party nominated John P. Cochran for Governor and James Williams for Congress. The election held on November 3rd resulted in a Democratic victory, the Democratic nominees being successful in all three of the counties. Cochran for Governor received a majority of 1239 and Williams for Congress a majority of 1666.
Governor Cochran was inaugurated January 20, 1875. A week later Thomas F. Bayard was re-elected to the United States Senate for six years from the ensuing fourth of March.
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The General Assembly at its session this year passed a bill providing for a State Board of Education, consisting of the President of Delaware College, the Secretary of State, and State Auditor. The Act also provided for a State Superin- tendent of Free Schools at a salary of $1800 a year. The Board organized in April following, and was composed of William H. Purnell, President of Delaware College, Ignatius C. Grubb, Secretary of State, and Dr. Nathan Pratt, State Auditor. The Governor, about the same time, appointed as the first Superin- tendent of Free Schools, James H. Groves, of Smyrna.
Governor Cochran in his first message recommended in- creased representation in the General Assembly for New Castle County, and a bill looking to that end, also a bill pro- posing to divide New Castle County were introduced ; but both propositions were defeated. This legislature very largely re- moved the disability from married women by giving them control over their own property, whether in possession at time of marriage or acquired afterwards. It also gave permission to a married woman to make a last will and testament without the husband's consent.
The Presidential election of 1876 was a lively one in Dela- ware. The Republicans in this State were largely in favor of the nomination of James G. Blaine as the presidential nominee, and a delegation pledged to him was sent by Delaware to the national convention. The Republicans nominated Levi C. Bird as their candidate for Congress and his opponent was James Williams, who was re-nominated by the Democratic party. At the election in November the Democratic electors received a large majority, and Mr. Williams was re-elected to Congress. In this year a Prohibition ticket was run, Charles Moore of Wilmington being the nominee of that party for Congress. The Democrats also elected their legislative ticket in all three of the counties, making the General Assembly unanimously Democratic in both branches.
The campaign of 1878 was less vigorous. The Republicans, having been defeated two years before by over 2500 majority,
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were disheartened, and failed to put a ticket in the field in 1878. The Democrats nominated John W. Hall for Governor and Edward L. Martin for Congress; these gentlemen were opposed by Kensey J. Stewart for Governor and John G. Jackson for member of Congress, they being the nominees of the Greenback-Labor Party, which, for the first time, placed candidates in the field in Delaware. The latter party only polled about 2800 votes and the election resulted in favor of the Democrats by a majority of over 7500.
Governor Hall was inaugurated in the January following and served the full term. On October 3, 1879, Governor Hall appointed George Gray Attorney General of the State. This was the first office held by George Gray and marked his en- trance into public life. The Legislature was again unan- imously Democratic. The most important act of the Legisla- ture, which met in January, 1879, was the enactment of a law providing for the establishment of an Insurance Department for the State and the appointment of an Insurance Commis- sioner by the Governor. John R. McFee of Smyrna was the first Insurance Commissioner appointed, having received his commission from Governor Hall in 1879.
In 1880 the Democratic party renominated Edward L. Mar- tin for Congress ; his Republican opponent was John W. Hous- ton who at the time was the associate judge for Kent County. The campaign was a spirited one, the Republicans having plucked up new courage; and while the Democratic electors for President received a majority of 1039 in the State, Martin for Congress was elected by a majority of only 692 over Houston. The Republicans succeeded in electing their full legislative ticket in New Castle County but the Democrats won in the two lower counties, thereby controlling the Legis- lature.
At the session of the Legislature in the winter of 1881 the School law was amended so as to provide for an assistant Superintendent of Free Schools, and the Superintendent of Free Schools was substituted as a member of the State Board
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of Education in place of the State Auditor. This Legislature re-elected Thomas F. Bayard United States Senator by a vote of 22 to 8, the 8 Republican votes being cast for Anthony Higgins.
The Republicans entered into the campaign of 1882 with much zest and earnestness. Their Convention, which met in July, nominated Albert Currey of Sussex for Governor, and Washington Hastings of Wilmington for Congress. Their platform declared emphatically in favor of a Constitutional Convention and that was made the battle-cry of the campaign. The Republican campaign was managed by Richard Harring- ton, Chairman of the State Committee, who infused much en- thusiasm into it. The State was thoroughly canvassed by the Republicans, meetings were held in every locality, and the Republicans looked forward confidently to victory until towards the close of the campaign when it became evident that there were disaffected elements in the party, which could not be reconciled, and the outcome of the election was the triumph, by nearly 2,000 majority, of the Democratic ticket headed by Charles C. Stockley for Governor and Charles B. Lore for Congress. The Democrats also elected every member of the Legislature, and in the January following, re-elected Eli Saulsbury United States Senator for a full term. This de- feat took all of the life out of the Republican party for the time being, and two years afterward in 1884, Charles B. Lore having been renominated by the Democratic party was re- elected by a majority of 4076, over Anthony Higgins, his Republican opponent. The electoral vote this year also went to the Democratic candidate and the entire Democratic legis- lative ticket was elected.
On the accession of Grover Cleveland to the Presidency on March 4, 1885, Thomas F. Bayard who, at that time, was one of the United States Senators from this state, was chosen by President Cleveland, as Secretary of State. He resigned his office as United States Senator, and it fell to the Legislature of 1885 to fill the vacancy. The candidates before that body
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were George Gray and Charles B. Lore. From the beginning the fight was a close one, with the probabilities in favor of the election of Mr. Lore, but the Gray forces were able by a ma- jority of one to nominate their favorite in the caucus and on January 18, 1885, George Gray was elected for the unexpired term of Thomas F. Bayard in the United States Senate.
In the campaign of 1886 the Democrats nominated Benja- min T. Biggs for Governor and John B. Penington for Con- gress. Again the Republican party being disheartened by its repeated defeats, declined to put any candidates in the field, and the only opponent of the Democratic party was the Tem- perance Reform Ticket, composed of James R. Hoffecker for Governor and Richard M. Cooper for Congress. The latter ticket did not prove formidable and the Democratic nominees were elected by a majority of over 10,000. The Legislature following provided for taking a vote of the people for and against a Constitutional Convention ; an election for that purpose was held on November 1st, 1887 and the vote in favor of a Convention was 1000 short of the number required by the existing constitution.
The contest in 1888 proved to be unusually interesting ; the real fight was on the legislative ticket, the point at issue being the election of a United States Senator ; the term of Eli Sauls- bury who had served for eighteen years as United States Sen- ator, expiring March 4, 1889. Senator Saulsbury desired to succeed himself. A strong opposition developed in the Dem- ocratic party against him. In Kent a serious wrangle oc- curred in the Democratic county convention and the bitterness resulting from that, extended to the other counties of the state, particularly to Sussex.
John B. Penington was renominated by the Democrats for Congress and his Republican opponent was Charles H. Treat of Georgetown. The latter proved to be a very shrewd political manager, and by his active campaigning he enthused the Republicans of the two lower counties in a way that re- sulted in the election of the Republican legislative tickets in
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both Kent and Sussex, although he failed of election to Con- gress ; his opponent, John B. Penington, having a majority of 3333.
New Castle County went Democratic, but on joint ballot the Republicans had a majority of one in the General Assembly, and this was the first time in the history of Delaware when the Republicans controlled the Legislature even - on joint ballot. This rather unexpected result gave the Republicans the opportunity to elect a United States Senator to succeed Eli Saulsbury.
The three Republicans mentioned for the Senatorship were Nathaniel B. Smithers, George V. Massey and Anthony Higgins. The Republican caucus which met on the evening of the day preceding the day when the balloting was to begin, was an exciting affair. It was something new for the Repub- licans to elect a Senator. Representative Republicans from all parts of the state crowded the State House and waited anxiously the result of the caucus balloting. It looked for awhile as though Massey would be nominated, but in the end the Higgins and Smithers forces united, and the outcome was the nomination on the forty-third ballot of Anthony Higgins by a caucus vote of nine for Higgins, and six for Massey. The next day Anthony Higgins was elected United States Senator for the full term beginning March 4, 1889. No legislation of importance was enacted by the Legislature of 1889 owing to the fact that each of the political parties controlled but one House of the General Assembly. At this session a commission was appointed to re-establish the circular boundary between Pennsylvania and Delaware. This commission was composed of Thomas F. Bayard, Beniah L. Lewis and John H. Hof- fecker.
Flushed with the measure of success which had attended the campaign of 1888, the Republicans entered into the contest of 1890 with renewed vigor and activity. Harry A. Rich- ardson of Dover was unanimously nominated for Governor, by the Republicans, and Henry P. Cannon, the oldest son of
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Governor William Cannon, was nominated for Congress. The Democratic nominees were Robert J. Reynolds for Governor and John W. Causey for Congress. No more stirring campaign has ever taken place in Delaware than that of 1890, but the Republicans were doomed to disappointment, as the election resulted in a majority for the Democratic ticket of about six hundred. The Democrats also elected their legislative tickets in the three counties. In 1892 John W. Causey was re-elected to Congress over Jonathan S. Willis, his Republican opponent, by a majority of 583 and the Democrats carried all three of the counties for their legislative tickets, by average majorities of less than two hundred. At the session of the General As- sembly in January, 1893, George Gray was re-elected, unan- imously to succeed himself for a full term as United States Senator from March 4th, ensuing.
The Republicans entered into the campaign of 1894 with renewed effort; their nominee for Governor was Joshua H. Marvel of Laurel and Jonathan S. Willis of Milford was again nominated by the Republicans for Congress. The Democrats nominated a particularly strong ticket headed by Ebe W. Tunnell of Lewes for Governor and Samuel Bancroft, Jr., of New Castle county for Congress. The campaign was a spirited one, the state being thoroughly canvassed. The contest re- sulted in the election of the Republican state ticket by a ma- jority of over 1200. Tlie Republicans also elected their legis- lative candidates in New Castle and Sussex counties, and one representative in Kent so that the legislature of 1895 stood Republicans 19, Democrats 11.
A fierce contest ensued for United States Senator. Anthony Higgins who had been in the Senate for six years succeeded in getting a majority of the Republican members of the As- sembly in his favor, but he failed in securing the number necessary to elect. No caucus of the Republicans was held, so that the contest was fought out on the floor of the joint meet- ings of the two houses. At the beginning of the balloting, the Republican vote was divided as follows :- Anthony Higgins
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10 votes, John Edward Addicks & votes, George V. Massey 3 votes. The Democratic members voted for James L. Wolcott. The voting for several weeks continued without substantial change; ballots were taken every day from January 15 to May 9th, and as high as forty-eight ballots were taken on one day.
During the last three days of the session the old lines were broken and numerous candidates were voted for. The Higgins strength went to Henry A. DuPont, and on the day prior to adjournment (May 8th,) John Edward Addicks was not voted for on thirty-seven ballots taken on that day. With those exceptions Mr. Addicks received six votes on all ballots up to the day of adjournment. A determined effort was made on the day of adjournment to break the Addicks vote, but it only succeeded in getting two votes from his adherents, the remaining four votes continuing with him, the final ballot on the day of adjournment standing, Henry A. DuPont 15, Edward Ridgely 10, John Edward Addicks 4, Ebe W. Tunnell 1. Total vote 30-necessary to a choice, 16-and the Assembly adjourned.
On the last day of the session William T. Watson, who had become the acting Governor of the State by reason of the death of Governor Marvel on the eighth day of April previous, claimed that he had the right to vote as a State Senator, and accordingly took his seat in the joint meeting of the two houses on the closing day of the session, and cast his vote in the Senatorial contest ; without him in the joint meeting, fif- teen (15) votes would have been a majority of those present, and that number could have elected a Senator, but counting him as a member it was necessary that the candidate for Senator should receive sixteen (16) votes. Speaker McMullen of the House of Representatives declared that Henry A. Du- Pont having received fifteen votes, a constitutional majority of the membership of the General Assembly, had been duly elected United States Senator, and a certificate to this effect was afterwards issued. On the ground that Acting Governor
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Watson had no right to sit as a member of the General As- sembly, Mr. DuPont claimed his seat in the United States Senate, and proceeded to make a contest therefor before that body. A full hearing was accorded him extending over sev- eral months, but in the end, on May 15, 1896, the United States Senate by a vote of 31 to 30 refused to allow him the seat, and the contest ended with a Senatorial vacancy.
The failure to elect a Senator proved demoralizing to the Republican party of the State. Mr. Addicks was fiercely de- nounced as responsible for the result. The party divided into two camps, with extreme bitterness existing between them. The death of Governor Marvel made it necessary to hold an election for Governor in the autumn of 1896. At the Repub- lican State Convention held on May 12th, 1896, for the pur- pose of choosing delegates to the National Republican Con- vention to be held in St. Louis to select candidates for President and Vice-President, the Addicks adherents showed a clear majority, and when they proceeded to name delegates, and dictate the policy of the body, a minority of the body, consisting of thirty-eight members, out of the total member- ship of one hundred and fifty-eight, voluntarily left the con- vention and held a meeting of their own. Delegations were sent by both of these bodies to the St. Louis Convention. The delegates chosen by the retiring body were seated in the St. Louis Convention.
The outcome of this rupture was the formation of two Re- publican parties in the State, both of whom gave loyal adherence to William Mckinley as the Presidential nominee, who received the electoral vote of the State at the November election in 1896, the majority, for the Republican electors, being 3837. The followers of Mr. Addicks held a State Con- vention in August, 1896, and nominated John H. Hoffecker for Governor, and renominated Jonathan S. Willis for Con- gress. They adopted the name of the Union Republican Party. The other wing or faction, known as Regular Repub- licans, held a separate convention and nominated John C.
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Higgins for Governor and Robert G. Houston for Congress. The Democrats named Ebe W. Tunnell as their candidate for Governor and Levin Irving Handy for Congress. The cam- paign was a fierce one, and resulted in the election of Tunnell and Handy, the Democratic nominees, by the following vote :
For Governor.
For Congress.
Ebe W. Tunnell
16,604
L. Irving Handy 16,512
John H. Hoffecker
12,669
Jona. S. Willis 12,828
John C. Higgins
6,997
Robert G. Houston 7,189
Tunnell's plurality
3,935
Handy's plurality 3,684
The Democrats also elected their full legislative tickets in New Castle and Sussex counties, with the exception of one Representative, J. Frank Eliason, who, by reason of being a candidate on both Republican tickets in New Castle County, was elected, and he was the only Republican in the legislature at its next session. In Kent County the returns as made by the election officers showed the election of the full Republican legislative ticket by majorities ranging from 100 to 200, but when the County Election Board met at Dover, the Demo- cratic majority of the board threw out the returns from both districts of East Dover Hundred, both districts of North Murderkill, and both districts of Milford, in all of which dis- tricts the Republicans had a substantial majority ; and by counting the votes that remained, returned the Democratic legislative ticket in Kent County, as elected.
The Republicans took the matter into the courts, but through the dilatory tactics that were resorted to, the contest was not de- cided until after the lapse of two years. In the meantime the Democrats having control of the General Assembly seated the Democratic legislative delegation from Kent County and they constituted part of the Legislature at its session in 1897. The court finally decided that the Election Board of Kent county acted unlawfully in arbitrarily throwing out the election dis- tricts as they did, but this decision came too late to rectify the wrong that had been done. At the session of the Legislature
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in 1897, Richard R. Kenney, Democrat, was elected United States Senator for the unexpired terin ending March 4, 1901, the place having been vacant because the Legislature of 1895 had failed to elect.
At the general election held in November, 1896, delegates were voted for throughout the state as members of the Consti- tutional Convention to be held on the first day of December following. In New Castle County the following delegates were elected : Martin B. Burris, William C. Spruance, Elias N. Moore, Edward G. Bradford, Andrew L. Johnson, John P. Donohoe, John Biggs, Robert G. Harman, Charles B. Evans and J. Wilkins Cooch, the first four being Republicans in politics, and the latter six Democrats. In Sussex County the following were elected : Edward D. Hearne, Woodburn Martin, Joshua A. Ellegood, Andrew J. Horsey, Robert W. Dasey, Charles F. Richards, James B. Gilchrist, William P. Orr, William A. Cannon and Isaac K. Wright, the delegation being equally divided politically, the first five being Democrats and the latter five Republicans. In Kent county the Republican dele- gation consisting of John B. Cooper, Abner K. Cole, David S. Clark, James P. Aron, William T. Smithers, Beniah Watson, George H. Murray, Paris T. Carlisle, Jr., William H. Franklin and John W. Hering, was on the face of the returns, elected by an average majority of two hundred, but the members of the Committee on Credentials, appointed at the assembling of the convention, reported that they had before them two papers purporting to be certificates of the election of delegates from Kent county, one of which certified that the persons above mentioned had been duly chosen, the other certifying that ten other persons therein named had been chosen. The committee recommended that the following named persons be seated as delegates from Kent county, and the report of the committee was adopted by the convention : Wilson T. Cavender, William Saulsbury, Ezekiel W. Cooper, Louder L. Sapp, Nathan Pratt, David S. Clark, William T. Smithers, George H. Murray, Paris T. Carlisle, Jr., and John W. Hering,-the first five being Democrats and the five last named being Republicans.
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