USA > Wisconsin > Milwaukee County > Milwaukee > Pioneer history of Milwaukee > Part 5
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When we consider the strenuous efforts that were made to collect a crowd, and contemplate the crowd that was collected, we congratulate the friends of the Constitution that all is safe.
A four-horse sleigh with lights and a band of music traversed almost every street in the city ; and, the weather being mild and pleasant, there was nothing to prevent boys and idlers from congregating at the scene of operations.
It was the effort of the campaign. The Hon. M. M. Strong and Hon. H. N. Wells are strong men,-strong in eloquence and argument, -but both appeared like the strong men of old, shorn of their strength. Weak indeed must that cause be to which eloquence like theirs could not give at least an apparent strength. They have said all that can be said against the Constitution, and paid the highest compliment to that instrument by denouncing the feebleness of individual op- position and individual abilities when opposed to the mighty torrent of popular will and the steady light of popular intelligence and popular patriotism.
CONSTITUTIONAL SUFFRAGE.
Many lies are going about on this subject. The Sentinel and Gazette started the lie a few days since, which we contradicted and explained on the same day. The fact is, that the provisions of the Constitution are too broad on this subject to suit the federal Whigs, Six months residence, and a declaration of intention, entitles every inhabitant of the territory to vote on the Constitution, and for every officer elected under it. Look at the Ninth Section of Article Nineteen. " All persons having such qualifications, at the time last aforesaid, (the first Tuesday in April next), shall be entitled to vote for or against this Constitution, and for all officers to be elected under it." Friends of the Constitution, here is your guar- anty under the new Constitution, Read and explain it ; and put an end to the falsehoods of Whigs and their associate opposers and helpers.
Red hot !
As the time for the April election drew nigh, however, party spirit became rampant, and bad blood was engendered between the differ- ent political parties. The discussion of the merits and demerits of the new Constitution, during the past winter aiding in increasing it not a little. And, in order to give the reader an illustration of how the fires of political discord raged, I will insert the following, taken from the Courier of March 10, written in reply to an article in the Sentinel and Gazette, (in answer to a charge previously made by the Courier), accusing some of the Democrats of being " renegades and Turks." The Sentinel's article made Mr. Wm. H. Sullivan, who was then editor of the Courier, just a little bit mad, and he went for Gen.
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MILWAUKEE UNDER THE CHARTER.
King. It is proper to say that Mr. Sullivan's reply was like all the arguments usually resorted to in cases of this kind when all other means of defense are played out. It is the last shot fired ; and only then when the one who fires it has backed into his hole and is about to drag the hole in after him. This delectable epistle reads thusly :
When men for whom the country has been at great expense to make something of (meaning General King, who was a West Point graduate) descend to petty abuse, personal invective and " grog-shop ribaldry, they show too clearly that the dog has returned to his vomit, and the sow to her wallowing in the mire." The editor of the Sentinel and Gazette, has sunk altogether beneath the notice of the Courier, and we leave him to the full enjoyment of the position he has taken. The framers of the Constitution will give him a carte blanche to abuse them, to his heart's content, but as for ourself, we are determined by all honorable means to advance the interests of the State, by working for the constitution, and leave the editor of the Sentinel to his dirty work.
This " dirty work," it would appear, was their defense of Richard Murphy and Richard Hackett, both prominent Democrats, who had joined the " Native American " Party,* from the vile abuse heaped upon them by that delectable sheet, the Courier ; for that, as well as their opposition to the new Constitution, and their opinions concern- ing the naturalization of foreigners. The article published in the Courier read as follows :
Some of the most pestiferous of the "Native American " Party, are those who were born in foreign lands, and who have never been infused with the spirit of our institutions. In our own city, two men, who have aspired, and sometimes assumed to be Irish leaders, are known to be of this stripe. And even within the last few days, one of them (meaning Richard Murphy) who keeps a store on East Water street, has declared as his objection to the new Constitution, that it allows foreigners to vote before they have been naturalized.
-
The Courier, having made the charge, was called upon for the proof, which brought Mr. Sullivan to the front again on the 17th with the following:
The Sentinel has called for the proof of the charges made in yesterday's Courier, which they call a base and dastardly attack. We will give them. The bluster-
* It is a fact beyond all dispute, that a Democrat who bolts the ticket is forever after looked upon by the leaders as a " renegade," and unworthy of any confi- dence. To be a good Democrat, is like being a good Catholic. The right of private judgment must not be exercised. VOTE THE TICKET and ask no ques- tions, is what the leaders want.
6
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MILWAUKEE UNDER THE CHARTER.
ing of the little " Bantam General " about stabbing in the dark, and daring us to name the individuals is really ludicrous. We are not in the habit of publishing statements which we cannot sustain, and never, like the General, publish a slander and afterwards make an apology to avert the consequences. But here are the documents :
TERRITORY OF WISCONSIN, &SS. MILWAUKEE COUNTY,
JOSEPH R. TREAT, being duly sworn, deposeth and saith : that on the 8th or 9th of
March, 1747, he heard Richard Murphy, of Milwaukee, declare that Irishmen had no right to vote in less than five years, as they were a lot of ignorant " dogans," and did not know what they wanted themselves.
JOSEPH R. TREAT.
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 13th day of March, 1847.
H. G. ABBEY, Notary Public.
TERRITORY OF WISCONSIN, { MILWAUKEE COUNTY, }'s.
EDWARD CONNOR, being duly sworn, deposeth and saith : that he heard Richard Murphy, Alderman of the city of Milwaukee, say that the suffrage question was a mere humbug, and that no foreigner ought to be allowed to vote until he had resided in the country five years.
EDWARD CONNOR.
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 13th day of March, 1847.
H. G. ABBEY, Notary Public.
Same oath was made in the case of Richard Hackett, who had already denied it in-toto in the Courier of the 12th, giving Mr. Treat the lie direct.
From this it appears that these two gentlemen, Murphy and Hackett, both prominent as Irishmen as well as Democrats, were not only not in favor of the Constitution, but were candid enough to admit that to allow any foreigner, ignorant or learned, to vote before he had become somewhat acquainted with our form of government, was not only wrong in principle, but unjust to the native born, and perhaps did make the statement (or something like it,) sworn to above ; although denied as seen by Mr. Hackett. Hence the ire of the Courier.
It is a great pity, however, that there were not more of their way of thinking to-day. The country would be vastly better off if there were .*
* A greater outrage was never perpetrated upon any nation than was the inser- tion of this " universal suffrage " clause at the time of the adoption of the Con-
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MILWAUKEE UNDER THE CHARTER.
In "The Courier " of the 20th is the following spicy article from the pen of Wm. H. Sullivan on the course of Gen. King in sending missionaries up to Washington County to defeat the Constitution, in which, after asking Gen. King if he was the Whig party, and quoting all the slang phrases then in use, including " calithumpians,"* when speaking of the Native American party, who believe in Americans ruling America, and not naturalized foreigners, and comparing the course of that paper with that of the Barnegat pirates, who hung out false lights, he returns to the article of the roth,t and his reply, upon which he comments, is as follows :
" Our shot through the center yesterday morning hit that illustri- ous couple, the little general and the postmaster, (meaning Noonan,) in a tender spot. They limp terribly to-day ; but they ought to have made their stories agree. The Courier had made the statement that the article about Murphy & Hackett was written by Noonan before coming before the public .¿ The general, with his usual bluster, de- nies everything, and says Mr. Noonan has never written a line for the Sentinel. Mr. Noonan, however, in a private note to us this morning, owns up to writing the communication for the Sentinel, just to accommodate a personal friend. We are sorry that persons understanding each other as well as they do should differ so widely. Of course, they both knew the facts."-Ed.
It is hard to tell who lied in this matter, but the probabilities are that Noonan did, as he was at that time the head center of the " loco-
stitution, particularly in Wisconsin, upon the right of the native born Americans, each of whom must have lived in the country twenty-one years before they could vote. But here was a class of emigrants, just landed upon our shores, with no more perception of the duties of a citizen under a free government than a horse had, who could not tell who or what they were voting for, placed upon an equal footing with the native born. Can a government commit a greater folly than this? If they can I fail to see it, and all our troubles of a political nature in the infancy of our State had their birth in this unjust law. The ballot should be based upon education and property. All praise then to Messrs. Murphy and Hackett, for their determination to be just before they were generous.
* This was John Gale's party; and, as stated in a foot-note in Vol. I, page 141, has a larger membership to-day than any other in the country, and always will have.
+ Mr. Sullivan had written an article on the roth entitled " A Shot in the Cen- ter," in which he charges that Mr. Noonan (only think of it) was the author of the one in the Sentinel defending Messrs. Murphy and Hackett, insinuating that Gen. King could not write such an article for want of ability,-pretty "cheeky!"
# Although the Courier was the only party in sight, yet it was believed that the article in question was written by Noonan, as it certainly bore his ear-marks.
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MILWAUKEE UNDER THE CHARTER.
foco " wing of the Democratic party, and hated Gen. King politically, as the devil does holy water. It was at this time also that Noonan was accused of threatening to throw all his influence upon the " whig" side, whereupon Mr. Sullivan got off the following :
A BAD EGG,-The new associate editor of the Sentinel and Gazette, Josiah A. Noonan, shows his tracks too conspicuously for concealment. His threat to throw all his influence into the whig scale will come like a thunderclap in a clear sky upon the poor, stricken Democrats of the city and territory. But will he persist in this dreadful determination ?
What ! set the party by the ears, And drench the continent in tears ? That were poor fun ; Then, Noonan, honest, mighty chief, Pray let your anger now be brief- Hold up your gun !
We will close this discussion with the following, taken from The Courier of the 22d :
MORE AID .- We discover in The Sentinel of this morning, another bad egg from the Post Office nest, and some new animals introduced into the political me- nagerie. Some old, exploded falsehoods, proven to be such upon the testimony of James Kneeland and Mr. Kimball, of a strictly personal character, are dug up and paraded before the public to draw of attention from the important issues now be- fore the people, We can't stop, at this stage of the battle, to notice this little, dirty missile, as it has no bearing upon the question in hand ; but if Gen. King, or Noonan are determined to throw mud, we will turn out one of our devils who, to accommodate them, will go into the gutter with them and spatter to their heart's content. *
That was pretty good,-the idea of Noonon's turning whig was, as they say in our day, "too awfully awful for anything." Sooner, says Mr. Sullivan, than such a thing should be,
'I'were better far That nature veil her face and groan in anguish,- Sooner would all the Whigs prefer to in state's prison languish.
I believe they would.
BIOGRAPHICAL.
There has probably never lived in Milwaukee a man of Josiah A.
* If anybody could beat Mr. Sullivan " throwing mud," it certainly was not Gen. King, as any one who has the files of the Courier for 1847 can testify. Mr. Sullivan was no saint.
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MILWAUKEE UNDER THE CHARTER.
Noonan's ability who could set more men by the ears than could he, or who took so much delight in doing it. And it is not to be dis- puted that he did it. He was possessed of a magnetism that enabled him to use men for his own purposes, even against their will, and did so use them whenever he chose so to do. A Democrat dyed in the wool, he would nevertheless work against his own party whenever he could see a chance, by so doing, to make more out of them than of his own; or for any purpose, just as the whim seized him; and politically was as untrustworthy as is financially a Chicago savings bank. He seemed to delight in war with all who refused in any way to follow his dictation ; and like Huebschmann, after an unusually stormy political career, crossed the " dark river," and is at rest. But, while life remains, no old settler will ever forget that a giant, intel- lectually, went out from among them when Josiah A. Noonan passed away.
THE EARTHQUAKE
Was the heading of an article giving an account of the great mass meeting of the friends of the Constitution at the Court House, March 15, at which Geo. H. Walker, E. G. Ryan, W. K. Wilson, and others, blew their " gas horns." Wm. K. Wilson was a bad egg, and cost the state a large amount of money by impeaching Judge Hubbell. He came among us as a " free soiler," turned Democrat, and in all future actions verified the old adage, that of all grades the worst is a renegade. His case like that of Huebschmann, was one of good material badly put together. He could pull down but could not build up again. And, after a stormy life, he too passed away. He was an Englishman.
Mr. Wilson was not the only one, however, who became a rene- gade in those days. There are three more in Milwaukee, native born, who played the same game, and to whom the Democrats would not give an office a second time on any terms; and certainly the Republicans, whom they betrayed, would not. These three men have now no political home, and are feeding on husks to-day.
It was at this meeting that Mr. Ryan, who then lived at Racine, made the threat that he would not visit the city again until the Con- stitution was adopted. But he did, all the same. There was also a
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MILWAUKEE UNDER THE CHARTER.
meeting held by the Germans at the Military Hall, at which Messrs. Hærtel, Liebhaber, Hasse, Gruenhagen and Huebschmann were speakers.
THE EARTHQUAKE.
Voice of Milwaukee! 1,500 Freemen in Council ! DON'T YOU HEAR THE PEOPLE COMING ?
THE meeting of the "friends of the Constitution," in this city, on Saturday night, was the most splendid affair of the season. We had told the Anties to do their best at their gathering on the 4th, and we would double upon them ; and gloriously was the pledge redeemed. In the afternoon, a beautiful hickory pole . was erected on the common in front of the Court House, with the Constitution nailed to its top, and the glorious stars and stripes unfurled to the breeze beneath it. The loud cannon proclaimed to heaven, and the hills echoed back the deter- mination of a host of freemen to sustain the charter of their rights, and defend that flag of their country as long as an enemy to either was left in the field.
At seven o'clock in the evening, the streets were filled with the outpouring mul- titude, with torches and music, all pressing towards the Court House Square, where two immense bonfires were lighted, completely illuminating the square and surrounding neighborhood. Having gathered in front of the Court House, the meeting was called to order by Mr. Upham ; and, on his motion, Col. George H. Walker was called to the chair. The chairman returned his thanks to the meeting in a few enthusiastic remarks, and introduced Hon. E. G. Ryan, of Racine. The tremendous cheering which went up from two acres of human faces when this gentleman came forward, showed the hearty manner in which the hard-working masses cherish the noble defenders of their rights.
Mr. Ryan spoke for about two hours in an argumentative and eloquent manner which we never heard excelled. Although a piercing northwest wind swept over the crowd, chilling them to the bone, not a man left the ground, or seemed to feel the effect of the element-so absorbed were their faculties by the power of the speaker. It would be impossible for us to give anything like a synopsis of his speech, as we took no notes ; and his arguments were of that terse and compre- hensive style, that they could not well be condensed.
When the speaker closed, the Constitution Glee Club sang " The New Badger State," with great effect.
William K. Wilson, being loudly called for, mounted the stand, and in an elo- quent and manly appeal to his brother workingmen advocated the Constitution as the best ever presented for the suffrage of the masses. (Mr. Wilson is an en- lightened and independent mechanic,-one of those bold, free men, who dare to speak and act when duty calls, and as duty requires.) He called their attention to the struggle that has for ages been going on between labor and wealth, the means that has been used to monopolize in the hands of the few the production of the la. bor of the many. In time past, the multitude were governed by fear and super-
1
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MILWAUKEE UNDER THE CHARTER.
stition, and their ignorance and cowardice doomed them to a life of misery and toil. But now the non-producers or aristocracy are obliged to adopt new measures for monopolizing. Finesse now accomplishes what force was wont to do. The people are now robbed by special privileges and legislative monopolies. by shav- ers, brokers and bankers. These aristocratic pretensions have grown up and been fostered by the people on the ground of expediency. And thus have the true no- bility, the laboring men, been cheated of their rights, while ambitious demagogues have ruled them.
Now is the time to show that workingmen are worthy of the high destiny which the theory of our government claims for them-to teach these petty aristo- crats that democratic principles carried out, distribute the blessings of govern- ment to all, as free as the dews of heaven-that the people are themselves the sovereign or kingly power-the rulers of rulers-and that free suffrage in their hands is not a weapon in the hands of a blind man, but a lever of moral force to be applied to the progress of mankind.
After Mr. Wilson closed, the Glee Club sang " Clear the way for the Constitu- tion."
THE NEW JAIL,
For which Messrs. Chas. H. Moore, Lindsey Ward, and Morgan L. Burdick were the superintendents, was built this year by Wm. Sivyer .* Here is the call for bids.
TO BUILDERS .- Sealed proposals will be received by the undersigned, until the 25th day of March next, at II a. m., for building the Jail and Jailer's House, in this city, in accordance with the plan and specifications adopted by the Board of Supervisors for Milwaukee County, at their last session. The plan and specifica- tions can be seen at any time upon application to Lindsey Ward, to whom all pro- posals will be delivered or addressed. The undersigned reserve to themselves the right of accepting only such proposals as shall seem to them advantageous to the county. CHARLES H. MOORE, LINDSEY WARD, SUPERINTEND- MORGAN L. BURDICK, ENTS.
Milwaukee, Feb. 22.
STEAMBOATS
The steamboats from the lower lakes for 1847 were :
Saratoga, Capt. C. C. Stannard; St. Louis, Capt. F. Wheeler ; Baltic, Capt. A. T. Kingman; Niagara, Capt. Levi Allen; Louisi- ana, Capt. Thomas Richards ; James Madison, Capt. J. McFadyen ; Wiskonsan, Capt. James C. Gibson; Empire, Capt. Henry Randall; Oregon, Capt. L. H. Cotton ; Hendrick Hudson, Capt. D. Howe ;
* See Vol. 2, page 54.
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MILWAUKEE UNDER THE CHARTER.
Illinois, Capt. C. Blake; A. D. Patchin, Capt. H. Whitaker ; Nile, Capt. A. Allen.
Ice left the river April 2d, and the first boat from below was the Louisiana, April 29.
The April election this year on the 6th, was carried on with all the rancor and bitterness that such a matter as the adoption or rejection of a new Constitution was likely to engender.
TORCHLIGHT PROCESSION APRIL 3, AGAINST THE NEW CONSTITUTION.
This procession was a grand affair, the line extending from the foot of East Water Street to the Milwaukee House, where a bon- fire was kindled and speeches made, " Gov. N. Tallmadge," being among the prominent speakers.
This turnout was a new firebrand, and the Democrats in favor of the Constitution-prominent among whom were Col. Walker, and J. R. Treat, made an attempt to break it up, by making a rush for some of the torches, when opposite Treat's wagon shop, where Marshall & Illsley's Bank now stands. They got the torches (i. e.) they got them over the head. They were both instantly knocked down, and compelled to make an ignominious retreat by crawling under an old wagon, on their hands and knees, during which they got half a dozen kicks from Geo. G. Dousman and Giles A. Waite, which made them show the " hoith of activity." It was not a very dignified position for a man like Col. Walker to occupy, or Treat either for that matter, as on account of their immense weight their movements while " playing horse," were not very graceful, and no doubt they were both of them heartily ashamed of it afterwards. Treat was one of the old " line Democrats " and never split a ticket.
The Courier in commenting upon Tallmadge's speech has the fol- lowing couplet :
Here's Tallmadge the turn-stile, just spreading his sail To catch the first breeze of the popular gale,
He's been hard up for Jackson and hard down for Clay, And steady for nothing but official pay.
This was too true of Tallmadge; he was a demagogue anyway. The following is the official vote :
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MILWAUKEE UNDER THE CHARTER.
MILWAUKEE COUNTY OFFICIAL .- The following is the official result of the election in this county. Through some unaccountable omission on the part of the Inspectors, no returns were received from the town of Granville. We have there fore placed in the table the vote, as reported of that town. The majority against the Constitution was, it will be seen, 303 and against Equal Suffrage 416.
CONSTITUTION.
EQUAL SUFFRAGE.
Milwaukee City.
YES.
NO.
YES.
NO.
First Ward
322
378
172
248
Second Ward
406
275
75
115
Third Ward
253
375
78
182
Fourth Ward
122
184
62
56
Fifth Ward
44
225
61
35
Total City
1148
1437
458
636
Town of Milwaukee
18
24
7
18
Granville
116
IOI
Oak Creek
66
74
9
40
Lake
97
124
26
130
Greenfield
178
135
28
72
Wauwatosa
97
I33
8.4
44
Franklin
75
69
4
92
Total City and County
Aggregate vote, 3891.
Ist
2d
3d
4th
5th
TOTAL.
FOR MAYOR.
WARD.
WARD. WARD. WARD. WARD.
Horatio N. Wells
278
161
272
124
I34
974
Geo. H. Walker
223
174
142
55
37
621
FOR MARSHAL.
W. H. Palmer
248
163
199
104
115
829
Samuel Robinson
236
169
219
75
53
752
FOR ATTORNEY.
J. L. Doran
205
164
264
113
98
754
James S. Brown
280
170
162
69
67
748
FOR TREASURER.
Edmund Sanderson
282
165
281
II6
147
991
Charles S. Hurley
213
170
149
67
24
622
WARD OFFICERS.
The following are the officers elected in the several Wards .:
FIRST WARD .- Aldermen .- James B. Martin, Nelson Ludington and Victor Schulte. -
Assessors .-- James Johnson, Eliphalet Cramer and Cyrus D. Davis. Constable .- R. C. Jacks.
SECOND WARD .- Aldermen .- Joseph Walter, Owen Van Dyke and R. N. Mes- senger.
Assessors .- Henry Neiderman, Thomas McLean and Egbert Mosely. Street Inspector .- Joachim Gruenhagen, Constable .- J. H. Suppus.
7
1794
2099
616
1032
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MILWAUKEE UNDER THE CHARTER.
THIRD WARD .- Aldermen .- B. H. Edgerton, John Furlong and R. G. Owens.
Assessors .- William Brown, jr., Wm. M. Cunningham and A. McCormick. Street Inspector .- J. Coffee. Constable .- Patrick Guerin.
FOURTH WARD .- Aldermen .- James H. Rogers, Ira E. Goodall and Henry Sayres. Assessors .- Priam B. Hill, Caleb Harrison and Ezra Dewey. Constable .- John Mitchell.
FIFTH WARD .- Aldermen. - L. W. Weeks, Wm. A. Hawkins and G. A. Waite. Assessors .- Horace Headly, J. C. Smith and F. Niekirk.
Constable .- R. H. Bryant.
COMMON COUNCIL.
The following are the proceedings had at the session of the Coun- cil held April 14th, when the new Board were sworn in:
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