USA > New York > History of the state of New York, political and governmental, Vol. III 1865-1896 > Part 6
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1New York Tribune, October 15, 1867, and November 17, 1867.
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The national convention assembled at Chicago on May 20, and nominated Grant by a unanimous vote. But the anti-Fenton men, led by Charles J. Folger and Richard Crowley, who had been overwhelmed at Syracuse by the tactics of Caldwell, Van Wyck, and Ben Field, made their voice heard at Chicago among the delegates from other States, though their influence was largely discounted by Fenton's circular showing that most of them had supported Hoffman for Governor. The northern States were divided, other candidates for Vice-President being ex-Governor Andrew G. Curtin of Pennsylvania, ex-Vice-President Hannibal Hamlin of Maine, Senator Benjamin F. Wade of Ohio, Senator Henry Wilson of Massachusetts, and Speaker Schuyler Colfax of Indiana. It took six ballots to nominate. Fenton, whose name was presented by Lyman Tremain, started second on the first ballot with 126 votes against 147 for Wade, gaining up to 144, and ending on the sixth ballot second with 69 votes against 541 which nominated Colfax, and 38 which still stood by Wade. Fenton had the solid vote of New York under a unit rule instruction, and almost two-thirds of his remaining strength came from southern States.
The Democratic State convention, at Albany on March 11, was entirely non-committal as to candidates and principles. Seymour spoke for a complete oppor- tunists' policy and Tilden denounced the Republicans for impoverishing the country, centralizing power, par- alyzing industry, multiplying taxation, and elevating negroes while degrading the whites. Horatio Seymour, Samuel J. Tilden, Sanford E. Church, and Henry C.
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Murphy were chosen delegates-at-large to the national convention, which met in the new Tammany Hall, New York City, on July 4. The chief candidates were Salmon P. Chase, Chief-Justice of the United States, who had been Lincoln's Secretary of the Treasury and had sought to supplant him in 1864; George H. Pendle- ton of Ohio, who had run for Vice-President on the McClellan ticket in 1864 and who now appeared as champion of the "Ohio idea" of paying off government bonds in greenbacks; and Senator Thomas A. Hen- dricks of Indiana, who also adopted the "Ohio idea" against the advice of some of his cleverest political friends,2 who argued that if that policy won Pendleton would be its beneficiary while Hendricks would suffer equally if it failed. General Winfield Scott Hancock was also a candidate, as likewise was President Johnson. Seymour had repeatedly declined to enter the race, and Admiral Farragut had refused to become a rival to Grant. General Francis P. Blair, Jr., of Missouri, might have been seriously considered if he had not put himself on record in a letter declaring that the reconstruction work of Congress was unconstitutional, and that if the Democrats elected a President he should declare the acts of Congress void and "compel the army to undo its usurpation in the south, disperse the carpetbag State governments, and allow the white people to reorganize their own governments and elect Senators and Repre- sentatives.""
2The Rochesterian: Selected Writings of Joseph O'Connor, I, p. 20.
3Letter to James O. Broadhead, New York World, July 3, 1868.
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Although New York had the chairmanship of the committee on resolutions in the person of Henry C. Murphy, an honest man who opposed any compromise with repudiation, Pendleton's friends had their way and forced a platform saying that all obligations of the government, not payable in coin, ought to be "paid in the lawful money." The New Yorkers, under Tilden's lead, accepted the platform, but were determined not to be led to defeat by Pendleton, loaded down as he was with financial heresies and an anti-war record. So Tilden threw the vote of the State for the first seven ballots to Sanford E. Church. Then he suddenly dropped Church for Hendricks, though Hendricks was open to the same objections as Pendleton. This served the purpose of drawing votes from the Ohio candidate and Tilden persisted in it, though Vallandigham, who opposed Hendricks, urged him to support Chase. The eighteenth ballot, taken just before adjournment on the fourth day, gave Hancock 1441/2 votes, Hendricks 87, Pendleton 561/2, with 29 votes scattered.
That night Tilden had a secret meeting with Allen G. Thurman and other Ohio leaders.4 The next morn- ing at a meeting of the New York delegation, Seymour advocated a shift from Hendricks to Chase, and this was finally agreed upon. When the convention opened, Pendleton's name was withdrawn, and if New York had then voted for Chase he would probably have been nominated, but Tilden made no move. The growth of Hendricks's vote on the withdrawal of Pendleton gave an excuse for standing by him. After the twenty-first
4D. S. Alexander, A Political History of the State of New York, III, p. 203.
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ballot, which gave Hendricks 132 to Hancock's 1351/2, the Ohio delegation withdrew for consultation. When it returned it proposed Seymour. The New Yorker, who was presiding over the convention, sought to stem the tide, holding that duty and honor were at stake and declaring, "Gentlemen, I thank you for your kindness, but your candidate I cannot be." State after State, however, threw its vote to Seymour, and finally Tilden arose, apparently yielding to the storm. He said: "Last evening I did not believe this event possible. There was one obstacle-Horatio Seymour's earnest, sincere, deep-felt repugnance to accept this nomination. I did not believe any circumstance would make it possible, except that Ohio, with whom we have unfortunately been dividing our votes, should herself demand it." In view of the conference of the night before, his confi- dence that Ohio would force his hand was not unnatural. Tilden publicly disavowed any part in turning the nom- ination to Seymour, but it is difficult to accept this disclaimer except on the theory that he was really working for himself. This was charged by Blair. Gideon Welles records: "Blair tells me that Samuel Tilden wanted to be the candidate of the Democrats for President. It is hardly credible, and yet in that way better than any other can his conduct and that of the New York Democratic politicians be accounted for."5 Alexander Long, on the other hand, said that Tilden was a candidate for the United States Senate and thought that with Seymour the Democrats would carry
5New York Times, September 4, 1868.
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the Legislature.6 A less selfish reason in explanation of Tilden's conduct may be found in Tilden's determina- tion at all hazards to prevent the nomination of Pen- dleton and his unwillingness to accept Chase, though he had let New York commit itself to him.
While the Democrats in national convention in New York were completing their work by nominating Horatio Seymour for President and Francis P. Blair, Jr., of Missouri, for Vice-President, the Republicans were meeting in Syracuse on July 8 to nominate the State ticket. Henry Smith of Albany was temporary, and General John Cochrane of New York permanent chairman. Though the conservatives did not send dele- gates from New York City, the old controversy broke out afresh when a committee was proposed to take up the New York situation. Charles S. Spencer, the radical leader, protested against the appointment of Matthew Hale to the committee, declaring that he had done all in his power to thwart Fenton's administration. Hale denied this and refused to serve. The matter was finally closed by the appointment of a committee of two from each judicial district outside of New York to report on the subject at the next convention, and by the adoption of a plan for representation in the State convention more in proportion to the Republican votes. Although Lyman Tremain, Charles H. Van Wyck, Marshall O. Roberts, and Frederick A. Conkling, a brother of the Senator, had all been talked of as candidates for Gov- ernor, only three names were presented to the conven-
"New York Times, September 4, 1868.
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tion. These were Horace Greeley, Lieutenant- Governor Stewart L. Woodford, and John A. Griswold of Troy, a member of Congress and a business man of large executive ability and great personal popularity. Greeley was the popular favorite. He apparently had the support of Fenton, and Chauncey M. Depew's speech placing him in nomination aroused the greatest enthusiasm, even bringing the friends of the other can- didates into the demonstration. On the roll-call, how- ever, Griswold received 247 votes, while Greeley had only 95 and Woodford 36.
The difference between the applause and the vote has been variously explained. Some thought it a betrayal of Greeley and an attempt to humiliate him. Perhaps it may be more justly attributed to the fact that the delegates themselves, while they honored Greeley, distrusted his capacity for political leadership and feared that his signing of Jefferson Davis's bail bond and the enemies acquired in a long career of bitter editorial controversy would make him an impossibly weak candidate. The Democratic Albany Argus laid Griswold's nomination at the door of Fenton,7 while on the other hand the Rochester Democrat, controlled by D. D. S. Brown, a friend of Fenton, alone among Republican State papers criticised the nomination of Griswold, believing that Greeley would have been a better choice, but consented to support the candidate.8 For Lieutenant-Governor the convention nominated Alonzo B. Cornell of Tompkins, by 219 votes to 88
7 Albany Argus, July 13, 1868.
8Rochester Daily Democrat, July 9, 1868.
THOMAS G. ALVORD
Thomas G. Alvord, lieutenant governor; born, Onondaga Hollow, N. Y., December 20, 1810; graduated, Yale college, 1828; admitted to the bar at Albany, 1832; practiced law in the village of Salina and the city of Syracuse, 1883-86 and then entered the lumber and salt manufacturing business on an ex- tensive scale until 1863. He served for 15 terms in the state assembly, 1844, 1858, 1862, 1864, 1870-72, 1874-1875 and 1877- 1882; was speaker of the assembly in 1858 and 1864 and first speaker in the new capitol in 1879; lieutenant governor, 1865- 66 and delegate to the state constitutional conventions of 1867 and 1895; died at Syracuse, N. Y., October 26, 1897.
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for Augustus Frank of Wyoming and 6 for General Franz Sigel of New York.ยบ The platform indorsed Grant and Colfax, praised the administration of Fenton, and rejoiced in "the intrepidity, sagacity, and foresight" of Congress in the work of reconstruction, which had been "betrayed by a recreant President."
The Democrats met in Albany on September 2, with H. O. Chesebro as temporary chairman and Robert Earl, afterward Chief-Judge of the Court of Appeals, as permanent chairman. Before the convention a strong anti-Tammany combination had been made for the nomination of Henry C. Murphy ; but the Vermont State election on September 1, which showed a strong drift to the Republicans, convinced Murphy that a nomination would be an empty compliment and he withdrew, allowing Tweed to nominate John T. Hoff- man by acclamation. Hoffman was a man of marked ability and at this moment of great promise. He was distinguished in manner, had the "grand air," yet was genial and popular. He had made a reputation for firmness and loyalty in the draft riots. He had every prospect of a long and brilliant career, but in the Gov- ernor's office he was too late in emancipating himself from Tweed. With Tweed's fall his political avail- ability ended, and he lived neglected in Europe till his death in 1888. A sharp contest developed over the candidacy for Lieutenant-Governor. Tweed had promised the nomination to Albert P. Laning of Buf-
9The ticket was: Governor, John A. Griswold, Rensselaer; Lieutenant- Governor, Alonzo B. Cornell, Tompkins; Canal Commissioner, Alexander Barkley, Washington; Prison Inspector, Henry A. Barnum, Onondaga; Clerk of the Court of Appeals, Campbell H. Young, Livingston.
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falo, but District Attorney Samuel D. Morris of Brooklyn, while professing no personal opposition to Laning, denounced Tammany as a corrupt organiza- tion which purposed through Hoffman to control the patronage of the State, and through Seymour to dominate the whole country. "Let them once secure that," he said, anticipating the disclosures of 1871, "and the unfinished court house, and like jobs of theirs, will sink into insignificance when compared with what they will undertake in the same line."10 On the ballot the nomination went to Allen C. Beach of Jefferson, who received 77 votes to Laning's 47.11 The platform called for the immediate restoration of all the States to rights "of which some of them are deprived by the unconsti- tutional and revolutionary measures of a Congress which is perpetuating disunion, and, by its usurpations of power,. threatens the establishment of a centralized government in place of a Federal Union of equal States." It adopted the "Ohio idea," declaring for the payment of public obligations in strict accordance with their terms, "in gold only when gold is nominated in the bond, and in lawful currency of the country when coin is not specified." It called for the taxation of gov- ernment bonds and the discontinuance of inquisitorial modes of assessing and collecting internal revenues, and adopted the slogan, "One currency for the government and the people, the laborer and the office-holder, the
10New York Tribune, September 3, 1868.
11The ticket was: Governor, John T. Hoffman, New York; Lieutenant- Governor, Allen C. Beach, Jefferson; Canal Commissioner, Oliver Bascom, Washington; Prison Inspector, David B. McNeil, Cayuga; Clerk of the Court of Appeals, Edward O. Perrin, Queens.
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pensioner and the soldier, the producer and the bond- holder," leaving the public to interpret it at will as a bid for cheap money or a policy for putting greenbacks on a par with gold.
The New York campaign turned largely on national issues, although the same dissatisfaction with the Republican State administration, particularly the exer- cise of legislative control over New York City that had been so pronounced the year before, aided the Demo- crats. Griswold was attacked for his vote in Congress to reimburse his own firm for losses in the construction of the "Monitor," while Hoffman was denounced as a creature of Tammany Hall. The Democrats were full of confidence. In midsummer Tilden wrote that not since the days of Andrew Jackson had "the omen of victory to any party or any cause been so clear."12 But after the October elections, which foretold a Repub- lican victory, the New York World13 in its "Change of Base" editorial called on Seymour to assume leadership and suggested that Blair could aid in a "more chivalrous way." Yet in the same issue it quoted Seymour as saying that any change in the ticket must include him- self. Blair had already offered to retire.14 The next day the World told him that reflection would convince him that the ticket would be strengthened if he did. This was clearly an indirect move for an entirely new ticket. But change was impossible. Blair retired into the background, while Seymour sought to conciliate the
12Bigelow's Life of Samuel J. Tilden, I, p. 217.
13New York World, October 19, 1868.
14Speech at St. Louis, October 16, 1868.
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northern States with adroit speeches of peace and good will.
Manton Marble was absent from New York when the World made its attack, and was not responsible for it, but it continued to dog his footsteps. Eight years later it probably prevented his nomination for Governor. True to the ethics of his profession, when friends of Seymour said they would vote for him if his assurance that he did not write the articles should be supplemented by the name of their author, he declared that he had always made it a rule never to reveal the names of con- tributors, and he would not even to secure the Gover- norship. The New York Tribune15 believed that the inspiration for the World attack came from Washington McLean of Cincinnati in the interest of Chase, but close associates of Marble have believed that the article was written by Tilden.16 If so, the fact would throw a sinister light upon the tangled web that he wove in the convention at Tammany Hall.
The election resulted in the overwhelming defeat of Seymour, who carried eight States with 80 Electoral votes, while Grant carried twenty-six States with 214 Electoral votes. Seymour made a better showing with the popular vote, 2,709,633 being recorded for him, against Grant's 3,015,068. The Democrats were suc- cessful, however, in carrying New York, giving Sey- mour 429,833 to Grant's 419,833, an even 10,000 majority. Nevertheless, the Republicans elected 18 of
15New York Tribune, October 20, 1868.
16Statement to the author by Dr. Talcott Williams, who in 1876 acted as Marble's agent in conference with Seymour's friends.
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the 31 Congressmen and obtained a majority on joint ballot in the Legislature. The hold-over Senate stood 17 Republicans to 15 Democrats, and the Assembly 76 Republicans to 52 Democrats. The returns gave Hoff- man 439,301 to Griswold's 411,355, a majority of 27,946. Truman G. Younglove of Saratoga was chosen Speaker of the Assembly.
The Republicans had before election predicted frauds, and sought through the United States court to prevent them. Immediately afterward, the Union Leage Club demanded an investigation of the whole- sale fraudulent naturalization, registration, and ballot- ing, which were apparent on the slightest examination. Shortly before election, a "strictly confidential" circular was sent out from the Democratic State committee under the name of Samuel J. Tilden, chairman, instructing trusted agents in the up-State towns and cities "to telegraph to William M. Tweed, Tammany Hall," at the minute of the closing of the polls-not waiting for a count-the agent's estimate of the vote. The professed object was to learn the drift of the vote before the telegraph wires were choked with the actual results. Tilden denied knowledge of the circular, but, while refusing to believe it had any improper intent, failed to throw any light on its origin. The Republicans charged the purpose was to learn how many fraudulent votes must be counted in New York City to overcome the Republican majority in the country. There can be little doubt that it served that purpose. In twenty election districts investigated by the Tribune, the vote counted for Hoffman largely exceeded the total regis-
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tration, which was itself greatly swollen from former years.
The House of Representatives, in response to the demand of the Union League Club, appointed an investigating committee, which after great difficulty in obtaining documents and witnesses, some of whom were brought in under arrest, submitted a majority report on February 23, 1869. The majority reported that thou- sands of aliens had been fraudulently provided with naturalization papers, that thousands of certificates had been counted in the names of fictitious persons, that large numbers of persons had voted from two to forty times, that extensive frauds were committed in can- vassing the ballots, that these frauds showed a criminal purpose in some of the courts and gross neglect of duty and disregard of law by the officials. Official influence had shielded the perpetrators of the frauds in most cases from detection and prevented the punishment of others, and through these methods Hoffman and the Democratic Electors had been fraudulently chosen.
An impressive array of facts was presented to justify these conclusions.17 In the five preceding Presidential elections, the ratio of votes to population had been 1 to 8, while in 1868 it was 1 to 4.65. Between 1856 and 1867, the Superior Court and the Court of Common Pleas, which alone attended to this business, had naturalized an average of 9,000 persons a year. The Supreme Court for the first time began to issue naturali- zation papers on October 6, 1868, yet it issued before the
17Reports of Committees of the House of Representatives, 3d Session, Fortieth Congress.
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end of the year 10,070 naturalization papers, while for the whole year the Common Pleas issued 3,145, and the Superior Court 27,897. On taking up this business, the Supreme Court ordered 105,000 blank applications and 69,000 certificates, though 10,000 certificates a year had long been the total normal issue. Many of these certificates could not be accounted for, and Justice Bar -. nard refused access to the records. Justice John R. Brady of the Supreme Court and Judge Charles P. Daly of the Common Pleas thought from three to five minutes necessary to examine an applicant, while Judge McCunn of the Superior Court, who ground one of the naturalization mills, stated that he could examine an applicant in thirty seconds. He did not even let the applicants enter his court room, but only the witnesses, who swore to the identity of the waiting applicants. Justices George G. Barnard and Albert Cardozo turned out 1,800 to 2,100 citizens a day. They were brought in before Barnard in batches of 150 to 200, and as many sworn at one time as could touch a Bible held up among them. In October the Nation reported that one of the Judges invited a friend to sit with him and for diversion abandoned the prepared list of applicants and began to call imaginary names. For every name a man answered. "Finally, seeing a person scratching his head, the Judge called out, 'George Scratchem!' 'Here,' responded a voice. "Take that man outside to scratch," said his Honor to an usher, and resumed the more regular manufacture of voters."18
18New York Nation, October 29, 1868.
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Notwithstanding such evidence, the minority of the Congressional committee could see in the testimony "only stale slanders" and proof of minor irregularities, and not more than 2,000 fraudulent votes, half of which were Republican. The minority took special pains to give a clean bill to the Supreme and Superior courts, and it accounted for the great increase in naturalization by the requirements of the Republican Registry law of 1865, which called for the production of certificates by naturalized citizens.
Immediately after his election as Governor, Hoffman resigned the Mayoralty, and a successor was elected on December 2 to fill the vacancy for one year. The Demo- crats nominated A. Oakey Hall, then District Attorney. The Republicans put up Colonel Frederick A. Conk- ling, who was indorsed by the anti-Tammany Demo- cratic factions. Hall was elected by 54,274 votes, receiving 75,109 to Conkling's 20,835.
CHAPTER VII FENTON WINS THE SENATORSHIP
1869
T HOUGH Tweed had elected his Governor, he had not yet been able to invade the legislative stronghold of the Republicans, whose majority of twenty-six on joint ballot assured the continuance of a Republican in the seat of Senator Morgan. Tweed at one time had an idea of helping the Republicans to choose their Senator, and offered to throw Democratic votes to Charles J. Folger, who would be less trouble- some in Washington, since there must be a Republican Senator, than in Albany, where Tweed had to find Republicans who could be dealt with in order to raid the city treasury. Rumors were current that Folger and the conservatives were prepared to go into such a com- bination if necessary to beat Fenton.1 Nothing came of the plan, however, and the minority again nominated Henry C. Murphy.
Senator Morgan was a candidate for reelection and had the support of those elements in the party that
1Alexander, A Political History of the State of New York, III, p. 223. Also an unpublished letter of Congressman W. H. Kelsey of Geneseo to D. D. S. Brown, dated Washington, December 17, 1868, saying: "Have just heard a story that may or may not be true. But I fear there is something in it. It is this: That Folger and other Senators have been to New York and agreed to defeat Fenton by combining with the Copperheads, if they can do it in no other way."
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Conkling was welding together for the overthrow of Fenton. In the earlier stages of reconstruction, Morgan supported Johnson, in close alliance with Thurlow Weed. He had receded from this position and indeed voted with the radicals on the impeachment of John- son. Secretary Welles wrote that he had "become sadly debased," that he "knew what was right," yet "wickedly voted" on the Civil Rights bill, on impeachment, and on the admission of evidence at the trial.2 Nevertheless, the Johnson administration preferred him to Fenton. He continued to receive Federal patronage in New York and found it necessary to get indorsements of his loyalty to radicalism from Wade and Sumner, who backed his candidacy, as well as testimony from Stanton that General Wadsworth had specifically acquitted him of treachery in the election of 1862.3 In the earlier stages of the campaign Morgan's friends were supremely con- fident, but Fenton, though out of office, was not out of power. He had made an acceptable Governor and had especially commended himself to favor by his vetoes. While corrupt canal contractors had flourished in his administration, the Governor could not fairly be held responsible, for he had little or no power over the elective officials who administered the canals. He had an effective organization in every part of the State. Waldo Hutchins marshaled the New York City radi- cals to his support; in western New York D. D. S. Brown carried on a vigorous campaign in the Rochester Democrat for him; and Truman G. Younglove of Sara-
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