History of the city of Columbus, capital of Ohio, Volume II, Part 10

Author: Lee, Alfred Emory, 1838-; W. W. Munsell & Co
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: New York and Chicago : Munsell & Co.
Number of Pages: 1196

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When I discovered the deficit, Mr. Gibson was absent from Columbus. It was eleven o'clock at night when he returned. I had an interview with him imme- diately. I demanded that he should resign. He didn't want to resign. I insisted again and he reiterated his disinclination for reasons that cannot be considered culpable. But the keys of the Treasury were put in my hands and they did not leave my possession until he did resign. I then appointed an officer in whose integrity I have entire confidence and who demands and receives the surest possible security from every depository in the State.

On June 28, Judge James L. Bates, of the Franklin County Common Pleas, called the attention of the Grand Jury to the Breslin defalcation, as a matter de- manding its attention and report. Accordingly, on July 18, 1857, the jury brought in bills of indictment against John G. Breslin and William H. Gibson, late Treas- urers of State, for embezzlement. Mr. Gibson's attorneys moved that he be ad- mitted to bail, claiming that he was not guilty and that the charge of embezzle- ment, so far as it applied to him, was merely technical. Thereupon the Court fixed the amount of bail on the indictment for embezzlement of bonds at $10,000, and on the other indietment at $100,000, the amount alleged to have been embez-

HISTORY OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS.

zled. Mr. Gibson gave as his sureties Robert G. Pennington, Abel Rawson and John D. Loomis, each of whom swore that he was worth at least forty thousand dollars. These sureties acknowledged themselves as bail for Mr. Gibson's appear- ance on the first day of the next term of court, to be held in the ensuing October. In March, 1858, Judge Bates, after argument, reduced the amount of bail required from 8110,000 to $20,000, and accepted Robert G. Pennington, of Tiffin, and Rich- ard Nevins, of Columbus, as sureties. At a subsequent term of the court both Bres- lin and Gibson were found guilty, but Gibson's attorneys moved for a new trial which was granted. The case was never brought to a final hearing. Mr. Gibson served his country bravely in the Civil War which soon followed, and whatever wrong he may have committed in the Breslin matter seems now to have been fully condoned by the people of Ohio.

In August, 1857, a report upon the defalcation was made by a commission appointed by Governor Chase for its investigation. The commissioners were Thomas Sparrow, of Columbus, and Francis M. Wright, Auditor of State. The report was written by Mr. Sparrow, a member of the Democratic party, and was regarded as a courageons and able document. The amount of defalcation found by the commissioners was $574,112.96. The default, the report stated, had occurred during Breslin's term and had extended over a course of years. Breslin took charge of the Treasury in 1852. Gibson declared that he received from his prede- cessor but 8303,865.34. He was one of Breslin's sureties, and to have exposed him would have been his financial ruin. The report concludes : " It is our opinion that John G. Breslin abstracted the money from the Treasury, and that William H. Gibson, by concealing the defalcation and denying its existence, has disregarded truth and his sworn official duty. Whatever may be their respective legal liabili- ties, we are not able to discover any difference in the moral character of their ac- tions."

Still, there was a difference, and time has made it plainer than it was or could have been during the excitement and passion which followed the discovery of the fraud. Blame as well as praise should be awarded in due proportion, and History should neither censure nor exculpate indiscriminately.

Further investigation of the defalcation was made and further proceedings in regard to it were had, but these belong rather to the history of the State than to that of the Capital.

NOTES.

1. Ohio State Journal, May 17, 1849.

2. Columbus, Ohio: Its History, Resources and Progress ; by Jacob H. Studer. 1873.

3. Ohio State Journal.

4. Ibid.

5. Ohio Statesman.

€. Ohio State Journal.

7. The jurymen were George W. Maris, Harrison Clausin, John Jones, Ebenezer Mc- Dowell, Luther Hillery and Augustus Platt.

8. The trial took place before Justice William Field.

CURRENT EVENTS IN THE FORTIES AND FIFTIES.

9. In the investigation before Justice Field, M. M. Corderey, a witness for the State, said : " I thought him [Foster] imprudent in running toward the procession and throwing stones." Kitchley, another witness, testified that be saw Foster throw two stones; was near him. Bernhard Steinlein testified that Foster threw one stone at him. George Fisher stated that Foster stood at the corner of the Deshler Building; that he threw a stone and knocked a man down, and that he had another stone in his hand when he fell. Daniel Wendell declared that he saw Foster throw stones at the Turners ; that he was throwing them just before he fell. Henry Rossnagel saw the man who was shot throwing stones ; saw him throw three or four ; said he had a big stone in his hand when he was shot. Francis Birch said the fight lasted five minutes; saw Foster throw stones; about four minutes before Fester fell, saw the shooting out of the United States Hotel windows. Charles Miller received a stone in the forehead, and was disabled fourteen days. John M. Walcutt saw " lots of stones" thrown at the Turners. Mr. Simonton, landlord of the United States Hotel, thought no shots were fired from his building; did not see any ; saw several boys throwing stones at the Turners ; stopped one of them, named Crawford. Jacob Wellner saw smoke from the hotel windows. Doctor Raskill examined the wound on Farnuth's forehead; it was made by a small bullet or a big shot.

10. Ohio State Journal.

11. Ibid.

12. Mr. Prentiss was a secret agent of the United States.

CHAPTER VII.

CITIZEN MILITARY BEFORE 1860.

As we have now approached the outbreak of the great war for the Union, the time is appropriate for a retrospect of the military associations which had prior to that event been identified with the history of the capital. The first two of these associations of which we have any record were the Franklinton Riflemen and Franklin Dragoons, which were volunteer militia companies developed by the war of 1812 and were maintained many years after that episode had passed. Mr. Joseph Sullivant says of them :

These companies were the wonder, the pride and glory of my early boyhood. I had the most unbounded faith in their prowess, which I had frequently seen tested in sham battles; and I knew that on parade days they consumed prodigious quantities of tobacco and whisky, exploits only then possible to hardy men. When the Grand Duke of Saxe Weimar visited this country he passed through Columbus, staying all night. Clinton Work, John Overdier, Israel Crosby, myself and other boys were very anxions that this representative of the crowned heads of Europe should be duly impressed with the power and greatness of our country, and especially with the martial bearing of our people; in fact, we rather wished to intimidate him and prove that it would be exceedingly dangerous for any European nation to meddle with us. For this purpose we concluded the very best thing was to give him a sight of the Franklinton Riflemen, whose uniform was quite showy; white breeches and a yellow cotton-cloth huntingshirt with white fringe; a leather belt around the waist, carrying a huntingknife in a black scabbard in front, and in many instances a tomahawk behind. The plume in the hat was tall but rather stiff, being composed of white chicken-feathers tied on around a stick. Each man carried an old fashioned rifle with shot pouch and powderhorn. We tried very hard to get a parade, even offering to help pay for an extra drum and fife and furnish free whisky, but the time was too short, and greatly to our regret the Grand Duke left without witnessing the martial display intended to impress him. Our patriotic wish will be better appreciated when it is remembered the Duke was almost fresh from the great battlefields of Europe, where he himself had been a grand commander in the vast army which the allied sovereigns had put in motion to crush the First Napoleon. However, even now I have little doubt if the Duke had been fortunate enough to have got a sight of the Franklin Riflemen, he would have been astonished.

The services of the Franklin Dragoons in the War of 1812, and on special occasions of later date, including the visit of President Monroe, have already been referred to. The company was originally organized under Captain Joseph Vance, who assisted director Wright in surveying the first plat of Columbus, and

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CITIZEN MILITARY BEFORE 1860.

maintained its primary organization until some time in the early thirties. Its successive commanders were Joseph Vance, Abram I. McDowell, Robert Brother- ton, P. H. Olmsted, Joseph McElvain and David Taylor. "Captain Vance," says Martim, " was a fine military officer and was in the service, in different grades of office, during the greater part of the war. He was amongst the early settlers of the county, married in Franklinton in 1805, and remained a resident of the county the balance of his life. . . . He died in 1824."

Captain McDowell, says the same historian, was a man of " portly and com- manding appearance." He subsequetly acquired the rank and title of colonel, as did also his successors, Brotherton, MeElvain and Olmsted. All these men were early settlers and prominent citizens. Jabob Reab was First Lieutenant of the Dragoons in 1814, as we learn from his official order printed in the Freeman's Chronicle summoning the company to appear for parade on the public square in Franklinton, " armed and equipped as the law directs." When the company left Franklinton for the northern frontier in 1813, it was led by Lieutenant Grate. In August of that year we hear of it in the field as an escort to General Harrison. A company called the Franklin Dragoons, organized in pursuance of the militia law of 1821, has been commonly regarded as a lineal successor of its Franklinton namesake. P. H. Olmsted is mentioned in connection with it as its " Lieutenant Commanding." S. Shannon was its Orderly Sergeant. In April, 1826, a notice was published summoning the Franklin Dragoons to parade in front of C. Heyl's Tavern, in Columbus, and probably an order issued by Captain David Taylor, August 27, 1830, calling the " First Company, First Squadron, Second Brigade, Seventh Division, Ohio Militia," to parade, refers to the horsemen of the same organization.

A stringent militia law passed January 29, 1821, seems to have infused the waning military spirit of the State with fresh activity. The whole body of the militia, then numbering about eightyfive thousand men, was reorganized by this law and required to hold frequent " musters." On March 6, 1821, the officers of the " Second Brigade, Seventh Division" met in Franklinton at the house of Brigaier General Joseph Foos, commanding the brigade, to choose field officers for the " Second Regiment." The choice of the meeting fell upon John McElvain for Colonel,? Abram I. McDowell for Lieutenant-Colonel and Griffith Thomas for Major. The ninth company of this regiment, led by Captain John Warner, is pro- bably identical with one known at the time as the Columbus Light Infantry. On February 25, 1822, Colonel McElvain issued from Franklinton the following order :

The commissioned officers of the Second Reginent, Second Brigade, Seventh Division, Ohio Militia, will meet at the tavern of Jeremiah Armstrong in Colum- bus on the second Saturday of March next, by ten o'clock A. M., for the purpose of altering company bounds, create new companies if necessary, and such other business as may come before them.

In the Gazette of May 24, 1821, appeared the following notice signed by Cap- tain Eli C. King :

The Columbus Artillery are ordered to parade in front of the Statehouse in Columbus, on Saturday, the twentysixth instant, precisely at one o'clock P. M., in

HISTORY OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS.

complete uniform. Every member failing to attend will be fined to the extent of the law. Fair warning.

This seems to have been one of the earlier and more important of the Colum- bus companies organized under the law of 1821. We hear of it again in 1826, 1827 and 1828. Its leader during the latter year was Captain N. E. Harrington. Its usnal place of rendezvous for parade was the open street " in front of the Statehouse."

The militia musters sometimes took place on the Mound, but most frequently they were held on the common or sheeppasture, as it was called, comprising the space between Main and Rich streets, a short distance east of High. The Dra- goons paraded on the open ground of the Prison Hill, extending from the present State Arsenal west. Sometimes the local organizations assembled for drill at Worthington. An annual muster of the militia by companies took place on the first Friday in April. Some of the men carried hooppoles, some canes, and some cornstalks. A Worthington physcian, habitually added to the drollery of the oeca- sion by carrying a curved scimiter. Between and after the arduous labors of the drill, the Sons of Mars refreshed themselves on gingerbread and spruce beer, with occasional alcoholic variations.

The following militia story of the War of 1812 was narrated in a communiea- tion to Colonel P. H. Olmsted, Secretary of the Franklin County Pioneer Associa- tion : 3

A military company organized at Norton, Delaware County, by Captain Drake, encamped at Norton, and when expecting to march on the following day for the northern frontier, Captain Drake, to try the quality of his men, passed out- side the setinels, discharged his musket and shouted " Indians ! " The men sprang to their feet and ran in all directions, and some say "left the Captain alone in his glory." The panic was rapidly disseminated and grew in its flight. When the tidings reached Worthington, with all its repetition and exaggeration, it was hard- ly supposed there was a white man, woman or child left living between Norton and Worthington, or a cabin that was not already smouldering. The women and children were hurriedly collected into the Griswold HIouse. The men and large boys not gone to the army were armed with pitchforks and clubs, and awaited the onset of the " Indians."

The incidents connected with this alarm must have been witnessed to be appre- ciated. In the house some were praying, some arguing, some fainting in moment- ary expectation of savage onslaught. Soon after this a similar but less tragic alarm came from Scioto, when the college building was barricaded as a place of refuge in extreme need, but was never brought into use for the purposes con- templated.

One of the uotable pleasantries incidental to the early militia arose from the appointment of an ambitious young member of the Columbus bar as Quartermaster- General on the Governor's staff. This event happened in 1821, and was celebrated by the young warrior, says the writer's informant, "by having a heavy pair of brass stirrups cast by Hiram Platt and fitted to his saddle." In the exuberance of the moment the possessor of the stirrups and of the distinction of being quar- termaster to the militia, borrowed a gray charger belonging to another high offieer of state,4 and took a ride on High Street in all the bravery of his stirrups and reg- imentals. Halting in front of the residence of James B. Gardiner, he summoned

CITIZEN MILITARY BEFORE 1860.

forth that noted village satirist, and challenged him to write some verses com- memorative of the occasion. Gardiner was only too happy to comply with the request, and wrote instanter :

When late I mounted Brown's old gray, I thought it was a muster day, I heard so many voices bray - "What stirrups ! "

Sensations lofty filled my heart, I thought I was a Bonaparte ; But what composed my shining part ? My stirrups !

Delusive spell, cried I, alas ! If all I boast be made of brass, I'm surely worse than Balaam's ass, With stirrups !

A company calling itself the Columbus Guards, of which Joseph Sullivant was orderly sergeant, flourished in 1827, and in 1830 we hear of the Franklin Rifle Company, Captain S. Deardurff. Among the frequent militia announcements which appear in the newspapers of the early thirties is found that of the election of George H. Griswold, of the Second Regiment, as Brigadier-General of the Third Brigade, Sixteenth Division. This event took place in July, 1831. On De- cember 17, 1832, a convention of officers of the Ohio Militia met at Columbus and organized by electing Samuel Mason, of Clark, as president, and William J. Reese, of Fairfield, and Dwight Jarvis, of Stark, as secretaries. An address was delivered by Major William Allen and a committee was appointed to suggest amendments to the militia laws. The principal improvements proposed by this committee were the following: 1. More effectual training of officers, the officer muster to continue three days, and tents therefor to be provided by the State. 2. Increase of fines and simplification in their collection, all delinquent commis- sioned officers to be fined by a brigade court. 3. Encouragement of independent companies. 4. Improvement in martial music. 5. Repeal of the exemption of all ablebodied males over thirtyfive years of age, and enrollment of all between the ages of eighteen and fortyfive who were eligible for military service.

On July 20, 1833, "a respectable number of officers " who served in the War of 1812 convened at Columbus and appointed David Gwynne chairman and Wil- liam Doherty secretary. This meeting memorialized Congress for a grant of land to the officers who had taken part in the war, " in consideration of their services and sacrifices."

During 1834, 1835 and 1836 popular interest in militia organization gradually subsided until it became almost extinct, and musters ceased to be held. Such was the state of military feeling when the following brigade order, signed by G. H. Griswold, commanding the Second Brigade, Seventh Division, Ohio Militia, was issued August 12, 1837, at Worthington :

Lyne Starling, Junior, Edmund Shaw, John M. Kerr and C. W. Kasson are hereby ordered and required to raise by voluntary enrollment a company of Cavalry

HISTORY OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS.

from the Brigade under my command. They will proceed without delay to the performance of that service and make report as soon as completed.

Another order of even date authorized the same men to organize a company of light infantry and announced: "Persons wishing to join either of the above companies can call upon either of the gentlemen named in the orders. A meeting will be held at the Council Chamber on Friday evening next, at the ringing of the bell." On September 4, 1837, appeared this additional notice, signed by Uriah La- throp, " Acting Orderly Sergeant :"

The Light Infantry Company of the Second Brigade will meet Tomorrow Evening . . . at the room over J. B. Crist's Store, Exchange Buildings.

Such was the beginning of the Columbus Guards, one of the finest and most widely known military companies ever organized in Columbus.5 The Cincinnati Grays and the Cleveland Grays, two companies of much the same quality, had their origin about the same time. The uniforms of the Guards were bought in Philadelphia by Lieutenant Kerr, who claims that they were " handsomer than any now worn." They cost one hundred dollars per man. The plumes cost three, the knapsacks eight and the caps eight dollars apiece. The first officers of the company were : Captain, Joseph Sullivant ; First Lieutenant, John M. Kerr; Second Lieutenant, Elijah Backus; Orderly Sergeant, M. C. Lilley. Charles Webb, a noted actor at the Old Columbus Theatre, was an honorary member. Mr. Kerr recites from memory the following roll of the company exclusive of the officers above mentioned :

E. Shaw, H. Z. Mills, H. Broderick, William Broderick, Matthias Martin, William Martin, John Harvey, Burton Bodine, James Johns, William Johns, William Adams, J. Townley, H. W. Boalt, A. M. Cutshaw, W. David, E. David, E. Hill, Theodore L. Shields, Vance McElvain, Samuel MeElvain, George Walcutt, Cyrus Sells, D. Brooks, J. Neereamer, L. Donaldson, William Sandford, S. Justice, R. E. Neil, H. Armstrong, J. Heavy, G. W. Cushman, A. Mitchell, H. Mitchell, Thomas Mitchell, O. Backus, Lafayette Backus, E. De Lashmutt, P. Cool, F. McCormick, Uriah Lathrop, Charles Hodgkins, P. Ackerman, William Fairland, L Bullet, James Jones, E. Olmsted, A. Olmsted, Charles Olmsted, William Boswell, Charles Webb, James W. McCoy, James Markland, and E. Hall.

First of the numerous ceremonious occasions in which the Guards participated was the celebration of the Fourth of July at Lancaster in 1838. The trip from Columbus was made on the canalboat Post Boy chartered for the occasion. The Lancaster Eagle gave the following testimony as to the handsome manner in which the visitors were received and deported themselves :

This fine company [Columbus Guards] under Captain [Joseph] Sullivant, visited our town on the fourth instant, and joined in the festivities of the day. They were received at the Reservoir by the Lancaster Blues, Captain Creed, and the Guards, Captain Myers, and escorted to their quarters at the Phoenix Hotel. They were here addressed by Captain Creed in a neat and pertinent speech, to which Captain Sullivant replied in an appropriate manner. They made a very fine appearance, and their military bearing, excellent discipline and fine soldierly deportment attracted the attention and won the admiration of our citizens. They were accompanied by an excellent band of music, which added much to their

CITIZEN MILITARY BEFORE 1860.

appearance. In the evening the Guards with a number of citizens, were hospit- ably entertained at the residence of Major Reese.

The Laneaster companies made a return visit to Columbus, as the guests of the Guards on the next ensuing Fourth of July, in 1839. In October, 1838, the Guards, under Captain Sullivant visited Springfield, and elicited high encomiums from the press of that budding city. The Pioneer said : " We cannot say that we ever witnessed a parade the order and beauty of which afforded us so much real enjoyment and satisfaction." In February, 1839, we find Captain W. F. Sander- son in command of the company in lieu of Captain Sullivant, who had retired. The Ohio Statesman, of December 22, 1840, spoke in high praise of the appearance, training and discipline of the Guards and added : " There is but one thing to which anyone could take exception : The company is too small." To encourage the company, which was in need of pecuniary help, the managers of the Columbus Theatre generously gave it a benefit, which took place on February 24, 1841. Messrs. Wallack and Duff, actors, volunteered for the occasion and drew a crowded house. The Dayton Herald of February 27, 1841 - Colonel King, Editor -- con- tained the following : " The Guards and two splendid artillery companies compose the military of Columbus. The artillery corps are composed entirely of Germans, and present a magnificent and soldierlike appearance." The Guards, continued the Herald, " are but a short remove from the very perfection of military diseip- line."

In the early days of July, 1841, a general encampment of the independent volunteer companies of the West was held on grounds bearing the name of Oak- land, in the immediate vicinity of Louisville, Kentucky. Under Captain W. F. Sanderson, the Columbus Guards set out for this encampment on June 26.6 Their arrival at Cincinnati, where, by invitation, they were the guests of Colonel John Noble, at the Dennison House, was thus announced by the Enquirer: " The Columbus Guards, Captain Sanderson, reached Cincinnati this morning [ Monday, June 28, 1841], on their way to the encampment at Louisville, on the steamer Tremont. .. . Their appearance was magnificent." Journeying by water - steamer Ohio Valley - from Cincinnati to Louisville, the Guards were received by the Louisville Legion and by them entertained, until the encampment was ready, at the Louisville Hotel. The famous editor, George D. Prentice, observed their marchpast from his balcony and eulogized their appearance in nearly a column of his paper. The Guards bore away the first honors of the encampment, and upon their return to Cincinnati, joined, by invitation, in the escort of the remains of President Harrison, then recently deceased, to North Bend. One of their first acts, after returning to Columbus, was the adoption of resolutions expressing their acknowledgments of the generous hospitalities they had received.

This excursion seems to have been the climax in the career of the Guards. In September, 1841, their commander, Captain Winslow F. Sanderson, was elected Brigadier-General of the Second Brigade, Seventh Division, of the Ohio militia, vice General James C. Reynolds, resigned. After this event, the company seems to have gone into a decline. On January 14, 1842, a few of its members met, in its behalf, at the Engine House and resolved to disband. At this meeting Captain

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History of the city of Columbus, capital of Ohio, Volume II, Part 10

Author: Lee, Alfred Emory, 1838-; W. W. Munsell & Co Publication date: 1892 Publisher: New York and Chicago : Munsell & Co. Number of Pages: 1196

Author: Lee, Alfred Emory, 1838-; W. W. Munsell & Co
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: New York and Chicago : Munsell & Co.
Number of Pages: 1196