History of the Indiana democracy, 1816-1916, Part 8

Author: Stoll, John B., 1843-1926
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Indianapolis : Indiana Democratic Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1104

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Conditions in the country at large, so lucidly and intelligently described in the foregoing review, were supplemented and aggravated by the then existing conditions in Indiana. The influx of population rep- resented a class of people who sought to better themselves by utilizing the bound- less opportunities here presented, espe- cially in agricultural pursuits. Fertile land in abundance was to be had for a mere pittance, as compared with prices in the more extensively settled regions of the East and South. Many of those who came from the South were hostile to slavery. Scant means did not admit of acquiring plantations in States like Virginia. Their pride did not permit them to work among slaves. As well stated by Logan Esarey in his "Internal Improvements in Indi- ana": "One can scarcely realize the con- dition of Indiana in 1825. There was no railroad, no canal, no pike. All her rivers except the Ohio were obstructed by fallen trees, ripples and bars. Two stage lines led to Indianapolis, one from Madison, the other from Centerville. The service was bad, roads frequently impassable, and stages usually late."

Transportation was the great problem calling for solution. In the parlance of the day, it was the paramount issue-the momentous question affecting every in- habitant of the State. Wheat and corn in abundance could be produced, but by rea- son of inadequate transportation facili- ties there was no profit in raising grain that cost three times as much to haul to Cincinnati as the farmer realized there- from in disposing of it to the local dealer.

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Need any one wonder that the tillers of the soil chafed under these conditions and that they lent a listening ear to every scheme that gave any sort of promise of relief ?

Human nature in those days was not much different from what it is today. The life of a pioneer settler in Indiana was far from an easy one. Hardship was in evi- dence wherever one's eye might be turned. Relief could come from one source only-transportation facilities. Immature thought was the great stumbling block to a realization of this blessing. Had the power of organized effort been invoked; had patience been cultivated and im- petuosity curbed; had feasibility been made paramount to plausibility ; had wis- dom and practicability been insisted upon before plunging heedlessly into this or that scheme-in short, had good, strong, common sense been injected into the move- ment for the inauguration of internal im- provements from the very start and rigid- ly adhered to as the work progressed, a mountain-high debt would not have been piled up and bankruptcy would not have discredited and dishonored the State.

It would be well if every thoughtful citizen of the State could be induced to procure a copy of Logan Esarey's history of "Internal Improvements of Indiana" and give the same studious perusal. It is not a tiresome presentation of the subject elaborated and discussed, but a very read- able and highly instructive contribution to the historic literature of Indiana. The facts therein set forth ought to be brought to the knowledge of every man and woman who cares to be enlightened with refer- ence to the trials and tribulations that were encountered by Indiana's pioneers during the formative period, 1826 to 1840.

The lesson which the internal improve- ment mania teaches is that a too ready re- sponse to and compliance with popular clamor more often entails injury than it confers benefits. That famous, courage-

ous and fearless journalist, Horace Gree- ley, once upon a time declared that it was his purpose to give to the readers of his New York Tribune "not so much what they would like to read as what they ought to know." Had there been a combination of influential, practical men resolved upon first ascertaining what the State needed and ought to have been supplied with in the line of transportation facilities, it is not improbable that a carefully worked- out plan might have been adopted by the

State and put into practical use and opera- tion. Of course, the fact must not be lost sight of that local jealousies were certain to be encountered. That bane of society is not easily repressed. Every locality thinks its claims should be first considered and its wants first supplied. If politi- cians, legislators, statesmen and public journals could be brought to the under- standing that the common welfare should have first consideration, the spirit of jealousy and envy might more easily be held in subjection. A striking illustra- tion of this truism was furnished in the adjoining State of Illinois where that superb statesman, Stephen A. Douglas, exerted a most beneficent influence by de- vising sundry safeguards in granting franchises to railroads and other corpora- tions. He foresaw probabilities that came to a realization during his life-time and that in course of time brought millions upon millions of dollars into the State treasury, thus conferring a direct benefit upon the taxpayers of Illinois without im- posing any real hardships upon the cor- porations as they developed, grew and prospered as a result of the steady in- crease of population engendered by the creation and operation of transportation lines for the convenience, comfort and ad- vancement of a thrifty people.

Leadership, properly, wisely and un- selfishly applied, rarely fails to produce results that prove beneficial and advan- tageous to the community, the State or

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the nation at large. However vehemently leadership may be decried by demagogues who delight in tickling the vanity of what they assume to constitute "the people," it is.an incontrovertible truth that sound, safe, wise and sagacious leadership has ever proved a benefit and a blessing to communities that had the good sense to accept and utilize the same. Under a rep- resentative system of government leader- ship is as essential as is the direction of forces in the construction of buildings, bridges, highways, etc. To lead, guide and direct is but another form of expres- sion for bringing order out of chaos. Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Jackson, Lincoln, Douglas, Tilden, Thurman and Hendricks were, in their day and genera- tion, leaders of men, and the people profited by heeding their counsel and giv- ing emphasis to their views by causing them to be enacted into law.

In his history of the Ohio Democracy, General Thomas E. Powell expresses the opinion that

"It is doubtful if in any American cam- paign any political party has used so much buncombe and so little brains as did the Whigs in the presiden- tial campaign of 1840. Yet they won. On the Whigs' side it was a popular rush to a circus where the admission was free and all who attended could take part in the festive performance. Enormous po- litical meetings were held and these were attended not by men alone but by entire families; fathers, mothers, sons and daughters all turned out. There were Revolutionary soldiers marching in pro- cession; there were bands of music and there were barrels of cider; there was speech making and festivity, and for a sideshow there was a log cabin with the latchstring hanging out and a live coon inside. The log cabin and the coon traveled by wagon from place to place and the bar- rels of cider were supplied by the com- munities. The voice of the spellbinder was heard in the land; there was so much enthusiasm that there was no time for thought. It was the proletariat running loose in a bloodless raid.

"Many causes have been assigned for the political revolution of 1839-40 which swept Democrats out of power in the State and nation and placed the young Whig party in the ascendency. Van Buren's espousal of an independent treaty would, at the first glance, seem to be the rock upon which he foundered. This would imply that in 1840 the majority of the people of the United States preferred the national bank to the sub-treasury system. In preparing its platform the Whig party was very careful to avoid a declaration on that point; nevertheless it undid the work done by Van Buren toward the establish- ment of an independent treasury system. During the campaign Van Buren was as- sailed for his sub-treasury plan and no doubt many imagined they could trace the troubles of 1837 to the destruction of the United States Bank, and consequently en- tertained the belief that a return to the old order of things would be wise. Yet the Whigs as well as the Democrats con- demned the 'pet bank' system. It is there- fore improbable that his advocacy of the sub-treasury system was the cause of Van Buren's defeat. The fact is he was held responsible for both the real and imaginary errors of President Jackson. Also he had been President during a great commercial crisis and the people, not only of that day but of this, have a strange habit of laying all their commercial troubles at the door of the White House.

"Times had been bad during most of Van Buren's regime and the general cry was for a change. Things might be bet- ter, they could not well be worse, or so the people apparently thought. That the com- mercial troubles which occurred during Van Buren's administration and the con- sequent desire for a change led to the de- feat of himself and his party is made absolutely clear by the speeches of Daniel Webster during that campaign. Like all politicians the great Webster was afflicted with a political bias. He must have known that Van Buren's attitude during the re- cent troublous times had been grand; and if he had possessed to any degree the fore- sight with which statesmen are usually credited or the intellect for which he was renowned, he must have seen that the sub-treasury system would prove vastly superior to the national bank. Indeed, it is to be presumed that he did see and un-

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derstand these things, for in his speeches he studiously avoided logic and regaled his audiences with dogmas and eloquence. Everywhere he went he cried out to his hearers :

" 'Every breeze says change; the cry,

the universal cry is for change.' Change was the keynote of his oratory and change became the watchword of his party throughout that memorable election. It was the only argument they had, but it won.”

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[CHAPTER VI.] THE UNIQUE CAMPAIGN OF 1840 LOG CABIN, COON SKINS, HARD CIDER, TIPPECANOE AND TYLER TOO

HE "Tippecanoe and Tyler T too" campaign was both unique and grotesque. It stands without a parallel in the annals of American politics. In Ohio and Indiana the enthusiasm for William Henry Harrison was doubtless intensified by the fact that he was "one of them"- beth Ohioan and Indianian. Log cabins were built and exultantly carried in spec- tacular processions. Coon skins were dis- played on poles, and barrels of hard cider were dispensed to thirsty ones at the big rallies, political gatherings, picnics, etc. It was a great time for the exuberant and the emotional. From the very beginning of the campaign it had become apparent that victory was in store for the Whigs. Mar- tin Van Buren, the elegant and accom- plished New York gentleman, was at a discount with the sturdy Westerners, who recognized in William Henry Harrison one after their own heart. At the November election Van Buren carried but two North- ern States-Illinois and New Hampshire -and only five States in the South. The result in Illinois was chiefly due to the tremendous effort put forth by the idol- ized "Little Giant," Stephen A. Douglas. As a matter of fact it was more of a tri- umph for Douglas than a victory for Van Buren. In the Electoral College Harrison had 234 votes, Van Buren 60, but the popular vote shows no such disparity in strength as might be inferred from these figures. On the popular vote Harrison had 1,275,017; Van Buren, 1,128,702. Not- withstanding the fact that Van Buren suffered a crushing defeat in 1840, his vote in that losing contest was 350,000

greater than he polled four years before when he was triumphantly elected as the successor of "Old Hickory."

General Powell is quite correct in say- ing that "the Whig Party gained little, if anything, by the victory of 1840. Presi- dent Harrison died April 4, 1841, after being President but one month. By his death the Whigs lost the substantial fruits of their victory. The utterly incongruous elements that had been held together dur- ing the campaign of 1840 by discontent and wild, unthinking enthusiasm began speedily to fall apart. Tyler had never concealed his Democratic views of govern- ment, and, as President, he made no pre- tense of carrying out Whig doctrines. When Congress passed a bill to establish a National Bank he promptly vetoed it and in no way exerted himself to promote Whig legislation. Indeed, he allied him- self with the Democrats so openly that he did not hesitate to express a desire for the Democratic nomination for President in 1844."

INDIANA'S PART IN THE CAMPAIGN OF 1840.

Activity in this exciting campaign be- gan early. On the historic eighth of Jan- uary the Democrats held a largely at- tended, enthusiastic convention. The in- tensely partisan semi-weekly Indiana Journal called it the "Office-holders' Con- vention." Sneeringly the charge was set forth that it was composed of 209 office- holders, bank directors, lawyers, etc., and 102 of other occupations, being two-thirds officeholders and one-third farmers and mechanics. Unctious emphasis was given by that paper to the statement that the

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Harrison convention, held on the 16th of January, was composed of 413 farmers and mechanics, and 208 officeholders, bank directors, lawyers, etc., making it two- thirds farmers and mechanics and one- third officeholders-just the reverse of the Van Buren convention. The nature of this criticism serves as an illustration of the campaign fodder which in those days was made to do service for the purpose of warping the intellect of the yeomanry.

The general management of the Demo- cratic campaign had been largely intrusted to such stanch party men as N. B. Palmer, Treasurer of State; W. J. Brown, Secre- tary of State, and J. L. Ketcham, lawyer. As speakers the Democrats had on the stump such men as General Tilghman A. Howard, U. S. Senator Edward Hanne- gan, James Whitcomb, Marinus Willett, Finley Bigger, Amos Lane, Thomas Smith, Robert Dale Owen, John Law, Joseph A. Wright, John G. Davis, Paris C. Dunning, Delaney Eckels, Alvin P. Hovey, Andrew Kennedy, John Spencer, Elisha Long, Na- thaniel West, General Drake, John Carr, William W. Wick, James Brown Ray, Joseph Holman and Ross Smiley.

The principal speakers on the Whig side were Joseph G. Marshall, O. H. Smith, George Dunn, Albert S. White, William Herod, Caleb Smith, Richard W. Thomp- son, Henry S. Lane, Newton Claypool, Samuel C. Sample, John Liston, Thomas J. Evans, Schuyler Colfax, John Vawter, Milton Stapp, John Dumont, Jeremiah Sullivan, Joseph C. Eggleston, William G. Ewing, James H. Cravens, Jonathan Mc- Carty, John Ewing, George H. Dunn, Samuel Judah, Randall Crawford, Thomas H. Blake, Elisha Huntington, Judge De Bruler, Charles Dewey and Conrad Baker.

In both these lists will be found the names of a number of gentlemen who later on became quite conspicuous in the coun- cils of the State and nation. Cabinet offi- cers, U. S. Senators, Governors, Con- gressmen and other distinguished officials

will be found liberally represented among those who made the welkin ring during that memorable campaign.

As stated by Historian Smith, "For near six weeks these men went up and down the State. Joint debates were the order of the day. Barbecues, torchlight parades and rallies varied the program. It is estimated that forty thousand people gathered at one time on the Tippecanoe battleground. The campaign closed with a monster parade in Indianapolis the night before the election. Mr. Whitcomb was to speak on the North Side and Sena- tor O. H. Smith on the South Side. After waiting till midnight for the noise to sub- side, the two speakers left the stands."

Throughout the campaign much viru- lence was injected into the discussions. Even a gentleman so amiable and courte- ous as Senator William Hendricks did not escape ill-natured attack. Because of his conciliatory course during the heated United States Bank controversy he was spoken of as "being on all sides and never long."

At the August election for choosing a Governor and Lieutenant-Governor, the only State officers elected by the people under the old constitution, Samuel Bigger received 62,678 votes and Tilghman A. Howard, 54,083. The vote for Lieuten- ant-Governor stood: Samuel Hall, Whig, 62,612 ; S. S. Tuley, Democrat, 53,388.

At the presidential election in Novem- ber the vote of Indiana stood: William Henry Harrison, Whig, 65,302; Martin Van Buren, Democrat, 51,695; Harrison's majority, 13,607.

It will be observed that the total vote for Governor was 116,761, while the total vote for President reached 116,997. . Yet Harrison's majority exceeded that of Big- ger, 5,012. So, after all, the result in In- diana could hardly be properly called a landslide.

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The Harrison electors for Indiana were:

Jonathan McCarty,

James H. Cravens,

Joseph G. Marshall,

Caleb B. Smith,

John W. Payne,

William Herod,

Joseph L. White,

Samuel C. Sample.

Richard W. Thompson,

The unsuccessful candidates for Van Buren electors were:

William Hendricks,

John L. Robinson,

Geo. W. Ewing,

Andrew Kennedy,

Robert Dale Owen,

W. J. Peaslee,

Geo. Bowen,

J. M. Lemon.

Thomas J. Henley,

David Turpie, a student of tender years at that time, attended the Tippecanoe barbecue. He says it was an immense af- fair. It lasted three days. He places the number of persons participating at 20,000, just half of Smith's estimate. However, a difference in estimates of crowds is not usually taken seriously from either a mathematical or ethical point of view.

Judge Turpie speaks thus of the great meeting: "Several stands were erected for speaking, printed bills gave the names of the speakers and announced the hour of meeting, and many bands of music played during the intervals. Eminent statesmen of the Whig party from differ- ent parts of the country spoke on this occasion, but the star speaker and guest was Mr. James Brooks of the city of New York. Mr. Brooks was the editor of the New York Evening Express, at that time the leading Whig newspaper in the East. He had been long a friend and admirer of Mr. Clay and had earnestly supported his candidacy for the Presidency; his presence at this great assemblage was un- derstood to signify that the distinguished Kentuckian would give his aid to the cause of General Harrison."

It may be stated in this connection that both Henry Clay and Daniel Webster considered themselves more entitled to the Presidential nomination in 1840 than William Henry Harrison. Both felt that 1840 was the psychological moment to

vitalize a Whig nomination into a Presi- dential reality. Fate had decreed other- wise, as in many other cases. In po- litical life there are indeed many disap- pointments.

EX-PRESIDENT VAN BUREN VISITS INDIANA.

In a neatly gotten up booklet entitled "The Rooster," issued by John F. Mitchell of the Hancock Democrat, is given a some- what amusing account of a visit made to Indiana by former President Martin Van Buren. As related by Mr. Mitchell, the ex-President made a tour of the West, in 1843, following the route of the National or Cumberland road, which is the main thoroughfare in Greenfield. His visit to Greenfield was a great occasion and the Democrats made extensive preparations for his entertainment. The journey from the East was made by stage, and almost all of the stage drivers were Whigs.

During President Van Buren's ad- ministration he had vetoed a bill for an appropriation for the improvement of the National road. The West was great- ly displeased at this action, for the road in many places was almost impassable. The stage drivers had planned to give the ex-President an opportunity to count the mud holes along the road. Near Green- field there was a steep hill and, at a signal, the driver pulled his horses to the side and the famous traveler was thrown into the mud. When Mr. Van Buren arrived in Greenfield he was in a deplorable con- dition and new clothes had to be pro- vided.

Later in the day a public reception was held in the front room of the Chapman tavern. Mr. Joseph Chapman took great pleasure in introducing his young son, Martin Van Buren Chapman, to the ex- President. This same Martin Van Buren Chapman later became a teacher in the Greenfield Academy and is responsible for a large portion of the early training

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of Indiana's favorite poet, Mr. James Whitcomb Riley, who was his pupil.

In the same booklet is given an ex- tended account of the origin of the famous shibboleth, "Crow, Chapman, crow!" There lived in those days in Hancock county an ardent Democrat named Joseph Chapman. Political discussions, then quite frequent and spirited, were freely participated in by this champion of De- mocracy. He served as a member of the Legislature and was highly respected. During the campaign of 1840 quite a number of Democrats declared themselves for Harrison. Reports of this disaffec- tion reached the city of Indianapolis and prompted the Democratic postmaster of that town to write a letter of encourage- ment to Mr. Chapman. In this letter its recipient was laconically urged to "Crow, Chapman, crow!"-that is to say, in the vernacular of the day, to keep a stiff upper lip, or to present a bold front. This letter, it seems, was stolen and published by some unscrupulous Whig. By reason of the reference to numerous alleged ac- cessions to the camp of the Harrisonites, much ado was made over the affair-much more than its importance seems to have merited. The commonly accepted ver- sion was that Mr. Chapman had acquired quite a reputation as an imitator of a rooster crowing. This was afterward denied as wholly unfounded. However, out of the story grew the propensity for identifying the rooster with Democratic exultation. For a long time "Crow, Chap- man, crow!" served excellently in the columns of Democratic publications to herald something of a cheering character politically. At any rate, in due time the rooster became the Democratic emblem in Indiana, and is still so.

In the days of Jackson the Democratic emblem was a hickory pole and broom. In after years a live or stuffed rooster was considered quite the thing in Democratic processions. Both emblems answered a

purpose and afforded much delight to those who are fond of injecting something spectacular into a political campaign.

POLITICAL REACTION SOON SET IN. DEMOCRATIC SENATOR IN 1842; DEMOCRATIC GOVERNOR IN 1843.

It did not take long for a political re- action to set in after the landslide of 1840, and after the death of President Harri- son and the not wholly unexpected defec- tion of the Virginian who advanced from the second to the first place in the new ad- ministration. The nomination by the Whigs of John Tyler to the Vice-Presi- dency and his subsequent election in No- vember was an expediency procedure, prompted by a desire to bring to the Whig standard the various elements of opposi- tion to the Van Buren administration. Tyler was something of a free lance in politics, though for years closely allied with Henry Clay. Political shifts were easily made in those days, and Tyler did not regard himself inseparably tied to the party that had elevated him to the second highest office in the gift of the Na- tion. He considered himself privileged to follow his personal views and convictions rather than being obliged to adjust him- self to the program mapped out by the party leaders who had deemed it "good politics" to place him on their ticket and to clothe him with the habiliments of high office. When his determination to pursue this course became generally known the usual cry of "traitor" was raised in chagrined and distressed Whig circles throughout the land. Maledictions were hurled at him right and left. Crimina- tion and recrimination followed in pro- fusion. The more vehement the accusa- tions the wider the breach. Reconcilia- tion had been rendered impossible. Estrangement had become so complete as to have been rendered irreparable. Toward the last year of the Tyler ad- ministration flirtation with Democratic

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leaders had been so marked as to justify the conclusion that it amounted to an in- vitation to tender John Tyler the Demo- cratic nomination for the Presidency in 1844. Needless to add that the hint was not taken. When the convention met at Baltimore to nominate a Presidential ticket a large number of Federal office- holders were on hand to urge his nomina- tion. Receiving no encouragement, they held a sort of rump convention of their own and formally nominated Tyler for the Presidency without naming a running mate. The performance was too gro- tesque to be seriously regarded, so some weeks after this nominee issued a ran- corous letter formally taking himself out of the running.

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History of the Indiana democracy, 1816-1916, Part 8

Author: Stoll, John B., 1843-1926 Publication date: 1917 Publisher: Indianapolis : Indiana Democratic Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1104

Author: Stoll, John B., 1843-1926
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Indianapolis : Indiana Democratic Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1104