USA > Illinois > The era of the Civil War, 1848-1870 > Part 38
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13 Chicago Tribune, March 14, 1865; Rockford Democrat, March 16, 1865; Rockford Register, March 18, 1865.
14 Chicago Times, March 15, 1865.
15 Chicago Tribune, April 18, 1865; Aurora Beacon, April 20, 1865; Rock- ford Register, April 22, 1865.
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The democrats, however, reminded themselves that John- son's political training had been in the democratic school; they hoped that, as a straightforward states rights democrat right up to the time of secession, he would administer the govern- ment in accordance with those principles. "He must rise above party and factions and act only for the people," they urged. "He must not be a hangman but a statesman." Then swift came the confirmation of their hopes; when Johnson took an early occasion to put his foot upon the state suicide doctrine, the democrats rejoiced that a point had been scored in their favor, and when in an amnesty and a reconstruction proclama- tion, both under date of May 29, he adopted and extended Lincoln's reconstruction policy, democrats exultingly pro- claimed that he was taking " true democratic ground." 16 " May it not have been in God's providence," asked the Cairo Demo- crat in an editorial entitled "Radicalism Rampant," "that An- drew Johnson was raised from the level of the people to the high eminence which alone could check the before resistless flood ? "17
The republicans were taken decidedly aback. For a time they held off open criticism, putting their energies into ridicule of the new born democratic faith in and Quixotic defense of Andrew Johnson. By July, however, they were ready to prophesy shame and disaster as the logical fruits of the presi- dent's policy. "We do not believe that he has 'Tylerized' -gone over to the enemy that only three months ago would have gladly hung him," was the dubious assurance of the Chi- cago Tribune.18 By September certain republicans were pre- paring to read Johnson out of the party, although Dr. C. H. Ray of the Chicago Tribune protested against this lack of patience.19 Democrats were also divided as to how much reli- ance they could place on Johnson; many opened their arms to welcome him to their ranks-a democratic meeting at Springfield called by prominent members of the party enthusi-
16 Chicago Times, April 21, 25, 1865; Joliet Signal, April 25, 1865; Cairo Democrat, May 3, 1865; Chicago Tribune, May 2, 1865; Carthage Republican, May 11, 1865.
17 Cairo Democrat, June 15, 1865; Joliet Signal, June 6, 27, 1865.
18 Chicago Tribune, July 10, 1865; Aurora Beacon, July 27, 1865.
19 C. H. Ray to Trumbull, September 29, 1865, Trumull manuscripts.
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astically indorsed Johnson's policies; others, however, held aloof, agreeing with the Cairo Democrat that "President Johnson is like the Irishman's flea, when you put your finger on him he is not there. One day he is held up as a model democrat, opposed to negro suffrage and all that, and the next day he is reported as an advocate of negro suffrage." 20
Developments continued along these lines until the end of the year. The Chicago Tribune, seeking advantage from the situation, tried to disarm the democrats by proclaiming an era of good feeling: "The Copperheads vie with the Republicans of the North in fealty to a Republican and abolition adminis- tration, and denounce even friendly criticism as insidious trea- son." 21 The Cairo Democrat in alarm became more cautious and issued a warning that "the Democracy should be careful to not praise him [Johnson] beyond his merits." 22 Yet John- son's first annual message, which has since been discovered to have been the work of George Bancroft, the historian, proved such a temperate and conciliatory document that it met with the formal approval of democratic as well as republican jour- nals. The republicans, satisfied with the ferment at work among their opponents, again turned to consider the growing distrust of President Johnson in their own ranks. The problem of concealing it was becoming increasingly difficult; within a few weeks came the opening breach between Andrew Johnson and the radical republican majority in congress, and there- after the democrats began to rally more and more to his support.23
Republican leaders continued to wrestle with the problem of their relations to Andrew Johnson. A band of radicals, including many German republicans, were in favor of throw- ing him overboard on the ground that he had "Tylerized" the government and gone over to the enemy. There were
20 Cairo Democrat clipped in Illinois State Journal, September 15, 1865; Cairo Democrat, September 16, 1865; Chicago Tribune, September 12, 1865. 21 Ibid., October 26, 1865; Rockford Register, October 28, 1865. 22 Cairo Democrat, October 30, 1865.
23 Illinois State Journal, December 6, 1865; Chicago Tribune, December 6, 1865; Rockford Register, December 9, 1865; Belleville Democrat, December 9, 30, 1865; Carthage Republican, December 14, 1865; Central Illinois Gazette, December 15, 1865; Canton Weekly Register, December 18, 1865.
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many, however, who still retained "faith in the enlightened patriotism of 'Andy Johnson'" and hoped that moderate counsels might prevail and save the party and the president ;from becoming involved in unnecessary and fatal antagonisms ; this group included such notables as Senator Trumbull, Dr. C. H. Ray, and Newton Bateman, as well as General Allen C. Fuller, speaker of the house in the session of 1865, and D. L. Phillips, part proprietor of the State Journal and United States marshal for the southern district of Illinois.24 Feeling that a break with the president would involve the overthrow of the party and leave Andrew Johnson cock-of-the-walk, they were for accepting the principles of his annual message and for avoiding the "consummate Folly" of "splitting hairs on the proposition, whether the rebel states are in or out of the Union." 25
All republicans who took this view, however, were stout supporters of two bills that Senator Trumbull introduced on January 5, 1866, a freedman's bureau bill and a civil rights bill. These measures sought to secure to the freedmen pro- vision for food, clothing, and shelter on the one hand and on the other the civil rights that were regarded as the corollary of the trumpet call of freedom. It was generally expected that the president would approve of the freedman's bureau bill and it was promptly pushed to passage; when on February 19 it was returned with the executive veto, Andrew Johnson lost the support of practically every wing of the republican party in Illinois; his veto of the civil rights bill on March 27 widened the breach and unified the republican opposition.
While the republicans in congress rallied to enact these measures over the president's veto, Illinois leaders marshaled their forces to defeat Johnson in the coming elections. In the contests of 1865, involving merely the local and county offices, republican politicians had been scandalized at the general tend-
24 H. Schröder to Trumbull, December 23, 1865, Trumbull manuscripts; see letters from these and others to Trumbull in December, 1865, and January, 1866. "There is a strong disposition to make an issue with the President on the part of some, but for one I do not sympathise with it." Trumbull to Phillips, Decem- ber 21, 1865, Phillips manuscripts.
25 C. H. Ray to Trumbull, February 7, 1866, Jason Marsh to Trumbull, January 8, 1866, Trumbull manuscripts.
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ency of the returned soldiers to criticize the union nominations as drawing too heavily upon civilians. In many counties rival "soldiers tickets" or republican "bolters" had been placed in the field and had received assistance from the democrats who often either made no nominations or fused with the sol- diers. At the polls the independent tickets had usually been defeated; the republican leaders, after reading a sermon to the bolters rebuking them for attempting minority rule and for giving comfort to the common enemy in a way that would undermine the unity, harmony, and organization of the re- publican party, had promised to bestow a proper attention upon the soldiers in the future. 26
The republicans redeemed these pledges in the elections of 1866, when the veterans of the Civil War came into their own. General John A. Logan, who had now taken up his residence in Chicago, was nominated by acclamation by the republican or "union" state convention for congressman-at- large. Logan was the idol of the soldiers, although many republican leaders were unwilling to believe that with his entrance into the republican ranks he had recovered complete respectability.27 General G. W. Smith was nominated for state treasurer, to make the race as a teammate of Newton Bateman, candidate for state superintendent of public instruc- tion. General Charles E. Lippincott and General Green B. Raum were named to lead the forlorn republican hope in Egyp- tian districts; but in general the old political leaders held to their berths in congress; on the other hand, in the contests for seats in the state legislature, the soldiers were given a generous share of the nominations.
The strength of the soldier wing was doubtless increased by the organization of the Grand Army of the Republic. This association like the Union League originated in the state of
26 Chicago Tribune, November 9, 1865; Joliet Signal, November 14, 1865; Central Illinois Gazette, November 17, 24, 1865. In the spring of 1866 the Illinois Soldiers' College and Military Academy was incorporated and organized at Fulton, Whiteside county, to educate as many as possible of the 5,000 disabled soldiers in the state to earn a living by intellectual rather than physical labor. Rockford Register, December 15, 1866, July 6, 1867; D. S. Covet to Trumbull, May 7, 1866, Trumbull manuscripts.
27 D. L. Phillips to Trumbull, December 26, 1865, George T. Brown to Trumbull, August 16, 1866, Trumbull manuscripts.
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Illinois ; after its beginnings in April, 1866, at Decatur, it rap- idly spread over all the northern states. Its founder, Dr. B. F. Stephenson, surgeon in the Fourteenth Illinois infantry, served as provisional Illinois department commander for a few months until General John M. Palmer won out over General Logan for the post of regular head of the organization in the state. Illinois contributed in General Stephen A. Hurlbut, the first G. A. R. commander-in-chief. This association, though organized for fraternal, charitable, and patriotic purposes, ex- ercised a formidable political influence.28
While the soldiers and republican politicians were busy- ing themselves with campaign preparations, the democrats were arranging to take advantage of Johnson's apostasy. John- son clubs were organized in Illinois communities from Chicago to Cairo;29 in certain cities, moreover, the corporal's guard of republicans still clinging to Johnson were recruited into republican Johnson clubs which busily pointed out that the president's reconstruction policy was the same as that inaugu- rated by Abraham Lincoln-the only policy that could give peace and permanence to the divided and distracted country. The Johnson supporters, as " conservatives," appealed to all true union men to rally with them to oppose the machinations of the "radicals." A few prominent republicans led the exodus into the "conservative " camp. Congressman A. J. Kuyken- dall of the Cairo district, the only republican member of the Illinois delegation who sympathized with Johnson, who had voted against the freedman's bureau bill and whose absence alone had prevented a negative vote on the civil rights bill, yielded his claims to political preferment at the hands of the republicans.30 Thomas J. Turner, chairman of the republican state central committee, supported "the president's plan of restoration" as against the congressional plan of reconstruc- tion and on that account submitted his resignation, while the appointment of Orville H. Browning as secretary of the inte-
28 D. L. Phillips to Trumbull, June 10, 17, 24, 1866, G. T. Allen to Trumbull, June 14, 28, 1866, George T. Brown to Trumbull, August 16, 1866, Trumbull manuscripts.
29 Chicago Tribune, March 31, May 24, 1866; Cairo Democrat, April 13, 1866; Jacksonville Journal, July 2, 17, 28, 1866.
30 John Olney to Trumbull, April 19, 1866, Trumbull manuscripts; Chicago Tribune, May 8, 1866; Cairo Democrat, January 9, November 22, 1867.
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rior, as a reward for his support of Johnson was a distinct blow to the "radical " cause.31
Democratic preparations for the campaign were completed August 28 at Springfield at a state convention presided over by General John A. McClernand. This gathering of "con- servatives," attended by Johnson republicans like T. J. Turner, selected a ticket of war democrats: for congressman-at-large Colonel T. Lyle Dickey, an old-time whig of Ottawa, 32 Colonel Jesse J. Phillips of Montgomery county for state treasurer, and, as a distinct "debt of gratitude " to the soldiers, Colonel John M. Crebs of White county for superintendent of public instruction. The convention approved the policy of President Johnson and rebuked the radical majority of congress for its ruthless disregard of the constitution; in order to secure the advantage of the republican rejection of an eight-hour reso- lution, it supported the claims of labor for a reduced working schedule; it urged the taxation of plutocratic bondholders and declared the greenbacks a safer and better currency than national bank notes; and, finally, proclaimed a sympathy for the people of Ireland and for the oppressed of every nation- ality. This platform anticipated many of the issues that were appearing on the political horizon.
One feature of the campaign was the visit of President Johnson, who, in the company of such notables as Secretary of State Seward, Secretary of Navy Welles, Admiral Farragut, and General Grant, came to assist in dedicating the Douglas monument at Chicago, and who, after an excursion of the presi- dential cortege to Bloomington, paid a visit to the grave of Lincoln at Springfield. This pilgrimage to the homes of the two foremost Illinoisians Johnson converted into an election- eering tour characterized by few formal addresses and numer- ous unmannerly stump speeches. Although this visit served to arouse the enthusiasm of the democrats and attached them more closely to their new standard bearer, yet Johnson's fre- quent passionate denunciation of his opponents and breaches of
81 T. T. Turner to James R. Root, May 22, 1866 (ms. copy), Trumbull manu- scripts ; Illinois State Register, August 7, 1866; Chicago Tribune, July 2, 1866. 32 Illinois State Register, August 29, 1866; Ottawa Weekly Republican, August 30, 1866; Chicago Tribune, August 31, 1866; Cairo Democrat, Septem- ber 2, 1866; Joliet Signal, October 23, 1866.
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the traditions of presidential dignity only confirmed the rad- icals in their opposition and made reluctant moderate repub- licans decide to repudiate the president whose administration they had sincerely desired to support. The city council of Springfield, while extending a formal invitation to General Grant and Admiral Farragut, went as far as to reject a pro- posal to give the president a public reception.33
If the democrats gained advantage from the presidential visit, the republicans had their turn when in October a group of southern union men from a convention at Philadelphia journeyed to Illinois to visit the grave of the martyred Lin- coln; they followed the same route as that taken by President Johnson, whose "swing around the circle" they were intended to offset. Elaborate arrangements were made for their recep- tion, in which the Grand Army of the Republic was marshaled in full strength. After a welcoming ovation in Chicago, Octo- ber I, they scattered over the state for a few days to contribute to the republican campaign. On the tenth, after visits to Kan- kakee, Peoria, Du Quoin, Mattoon, Cairo, Canton, Pana, and Alton, they came together for a grand celebration at Spring- field, where they thrilled Illinois republicans with their testi- monials of devotion to the simon-pure union cause.34
The visitors served to distract some attention from the interesting race between General Logan and Colonel Dickey for the privilege of representing the state in congress. Dickey's supporters made a feeble appeal to the soldier vote, which was reminded of his heroic deeds at Vicksburg. Logan, on the other hand, was the favorite of thousands of Illinois veterans who with him had bared their bosoms to the storm of war from Belmont to the victory of 1865. So strong was his polit- ical position that many had looked upon him as the logical successor to Trumbull's seat in the United States senate; indeed, Logan's nomination to congress was in part a device to eliminate him from the senatorial field, although he still continued to worry the friends of Trumbull. 35
33 Jacksonville Journal, September 6, 1866; Cairo Democrat, September 12, 1866; Joliet Signal, September 18, 1866.
34 Chicago Tribune, October 1, 12, 1866; Du Quoin Recorder, October 5, 1866; Canton Weekly Register, October 8, 1866.
35 George T. Brown to Trumbull, November 7, 1865, Trumbull manuscripts.
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The democrats soon decided that the skeleton of Logan's past was one which they might well cause to stalk forth among his admirers. Although they found it impossible advanta- geously to play up the charges of cowardice made by Colonel Reynolds and others, they insisted that "Black Jack," the " renegade from the Democracy," had been selected to do "the dirty work for the radical party, as he used to do it for the democratic party."36 When the " warrior orator" in a whirl- wind campaign began drawing out by thousands the voters in every part of Illinois, his erstwhile associates brought out their heavy artillery in an attempt to shatter the bulwarks of his strength. Logan "would like to make treason odious," they said, "Well, so do we, and would suggest that Logan himself is a fit subject to commence on." 37 They charged him as a secessionist in 1861, having denounced the war as "a d-d abolition crusade " and with having drummed up an "Egyptian corps" of recruits to the southern army. Said the Chicago Times: "Almost every prominent journal in the state (the Chicago Tribune among the number) de- nounced him as a traitor and a rebel." 38
Then " chapters from Logan's record" were published in the democratic press. He was charged with having made numerous speeches in the spring of 1861, denouncing the doc- trine of coercion and declaring that he could never give aid, comfort, or countenance to an attempt at conquering the rebel- lion by force; he was pointed out as the sponsor for the reso- lutions adopted by a meeting in Marion, Williamson county on April 15, 1861, which demanded in the event of continued coercive policy, a division of the state to detach southern Illi- nois; he was charged with having denounced William J. Allen, his law partner, as a "dirt-eater" for having taken a leading part in movements to counteract the Marion resolutions ; it was declared that, in June, 1861, on account of a general belief that he would be arrested for disloyalty, William J. Allen and
36 The Chicago Tribune had before 1860 bestowed upon him the title of " Dirty-work Logan." Illinois State Register, August 14, 15, 1866; Chicago Evening Journal, November 4, 1865; Joliet Signal, October 24, November 7, 1865. 37 Mt. Vernon Free Press clipped in Jonesboro Gazette, July 28, 1866; Illinois State Register, August 11, 1866.
38 Chicago Times clipped in ibid., August 14, 1866.
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others advised him to wait upon General Prentiss with assur- ance that thereafter his conduct would be unobjectionable; that in purchasing a revolver from Thomas Wilson, who was mayor of Cairo in 1866, he had explained: "I am going to attend the extra session of Congress and make a speech, telling what I think about this d-d Abolition war, and I intend to blow out the brains of the first d-d scoundrel who questions my right to do so;" that it was generally believed in Egypt that Logan was raising his regiment to fight in behalf of the confederacy; that in June, 1861, after the arrest of Colonel James D. Pulley, Logan raised an armed force to drive off union soldiers who might come to assail the rights of the people of Marion; and that Logan bitterly denounced Douglas for his historic war speech before the Illinois legislature as no better than an abolitionist.39
The nine counts of this indictment were represented in every issue of the Cairo Democrat for October, 1866, and taken up by other democratic papers. Logan entered the war, they declared, for the same reason that he entered politics - to get office. "His love was for the ultra fanatics of seces- sion, whose tool he had so long been - whose ' dirty work' he had so willingly performed.
. It was not till he found that the patriotic Democracy of Southern Illinois would not follow him into the ranks of the rebel army that he dis- covered that he was on the weather side. Thereupon, true to his office-seeking instinct, he turned a complete somersault, and entered the Union Army;" 40 now "in the desperate hope of seducing 'Egypt' into supporting the hellish schemes of the disunion Congress the Radicals placed the apostate Logan at the head of their ticket." 41
The devoted wife of General Logan rose nobly to his de- fense. She journeyed to Marion and secured a statement signed by political opponents of Logan, some of whom had served in the southern army, which pronounced all the charges against Logan untrue. At the same time also his brother-in-law, Hibert B. Cunningham, wrote from Mississippi absolving Logan from
39 Cairo Democrat, September 28, October 2, 1866.
40 Chicago Times clipped in Illinois State Register, August 14, 1866; Belle- ville Democrat, September 1, 1866.
41 Chester Picket Guard, September 5, 1866.
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any responsibility for his going south to fight as a member of Captain Thorndike Brooks' company. Logan's opponents replied with a formal affidavit from one William M. Davis, who claimed that he had gone with Brooks' company "by and under the advice and influence of John A. Logan and his brother-in-law, H. B. Cunningham, who told me that Logan would join us in two or three months." Next a statement ap- peared over the signatures of six of the eight "signers " of Mrs. Logan's certificate, which declared that their names had been used " without our consent, for we are satisfied the charges are substantially true, as published in the Cairo Democrat, Chicago Times, and other journals. Any amount of additional testimony in reference to Gen. Logan's anti-war action and speeches here in 1861, can be had from the best citizens of all parties." 42
These charges were taken up by various democratic stump speakers, while Dickey, Logan's opponent, conducted a clean campaign, concentrating mainly on the reconstruction issue. The two rivals met in joint debate at Carbondale and Decatur. General Logan displayed a good deal of fire and at times venom. "He abused the Democracy in most insulting lan- guage; blustered, talked loud, slapped his hands frantically, and shook his finger provokingly at the Colonel [he] bellowed invectives, and earned the reputation of being Brownlow's rival in the use of 'low-down' language." 43 According to an account of the Carbondale debate, when Dickey touched upon Logan's secessionist record, Logan de- clared that whoever made these charges were liars; thereupon his own sister, Mrs. Blanchard, rose and declared that he had furnished his brother-in-law with financial aid to assist the rebellion. 44
It was in reply to the Carbondale denial by Logan that the editors of the Cairo Democrat drew up the nine specifications which they held themselves ready to prove. Whatever Colonel Dickey lacked in venom was more than counterbalanced by some of his supporters. The Chester Picket Guard hoped to
42 Cairo Democrat, October 21, 27, 1866.
43 Ibid., September 30, 1866; Chicago Tribune, October 1, 2, 17, 1866; Du Quoin Recorder, October 5, 1866.
44 Salem Advocate clipped in Belleville Democrat, October 6, 1866.
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deliver the state already disgraced by "such a dishonest, rad- ical, lecherous, blasphemous and drunken, dirty, beastly thing as Dick Oglesby" from "that low vulgar, dirty and hypo- critical Logan. Maggots would sicken on him." 45
The democrats capitalized to the full the desertion of Johnson republicans who joined the "conservative" forces. Besides T. J. Turner of Freeport and ex-Senator Browning, who was said to control the executive patronage in Illinois, a long list of converts was claimed, including Judge J. O. Norton, Judge G. D. A. Parks of Joliet, State Senator Green of Centralia, and T. L. Breckinridge, who in the union state convention had nominated Logan for congressman-at-large. The party sought to cement the attachment of the Irish to the democratic ranks by extending their approval to the Fenian brotherhood, which was now taking by storm the Celtic popu- lation of the state. The republicans at the same time made a strong bid for the Irish vote with a huge Fenian picnic near Chicago in August; although they made some converts, they were handicapped by the prevailing traditional allegiance of the Irish.46
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