THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1876--AT HOME--THE MARSH FARM NEAR LANSING.
The Michigan delegation to the Cincinnati Convention of 1876 selected
Mr. Chandler as the member of the National Republican Committee
for their State, and at the first formal meeting of that body (at
Philadelphia, early in July) he was chosen its chairman after a close
triangular contest between his friends and those of the Hon. A. B.
Cornell and Gen. E. F. Noyes. The committee at once opened rooms at
the Fifth Avenue Hotel in New York, with its Secretary, the Hon. R. C.
McCormick of Arizona, in immediate charge. Mr. Chandler made frequent
visits to the headquarters throughout the campaign, superintending the
general plan of operations and meeting with the executive committee; as
election-day approached his attendance became more constant.
Originally he felt confident of Republican victory, not believing that
in the centennial year the American people would render a political
verdict whose result would be the restoration of the disloyal classes
of the South to national supremacy. But, in September, evidences of
Republican apathy in the important States of Ohio and Indiana--more
especially in the former, which was the home of the Presidential
candidate--greatly disturbed him, and made it plain that the situation
was critical. It had become evident that organized brutality would give
all the close Southern States to the Democrats and even make doubtful
those which were strongly Republican, and that the merchantable and
criminal classes of New York city would be so used as to also cast the
electoral vote of that great State for the Opposition. The gravity of
the prospect then brought out Mr. Chandler's best qualities of party
leadership. Prompt aid was rendered in Ohio, and the National Committee
did more than its full share (Mr. Chandler making large personal
advances) to carry that State in the important October election.
After the serious loss of Indiana, measures were at once instituted
to organize the party for decisive work on the Pacific Slope, to see
that in those Southern States where there was any hope all lawful
measures were taken to defeat the plans of "the rifle clubs" and "the
white leagues," and to carry New York if that was possible. Nothing was
spared that would arouse the spirit of the party, and Mr. Chandler saw
that the means were forthcoming for every effort that promised to make
success more certain.
The elections showed that the calculations of the managers of the
Republican campaign were accurate, and were also adequate to "snatching
victory from the jaws of defeat." The effort to save New York failed,
and it and the neighboring States rewarded with their electoral votes
the unscrupulous and subtle skill of Governor Tilden's personal
canvass. But the Republican victories beyond the Rocky Mountains,
and the resolute resistance offered in South Carolina, Louisiana and
Florida, to the seizure of those States by political crimes ranging
from shameless fraud to wholesale massacre, still left success with the
Republicans after a contest without an American parallel in obstinacy,
bitterness and excitement. Mr. Chandler showed throughout the prolonged
electoral dispute "the courage which mounteth with the occasion," and
his firmness, vigor and activity were among the important factors in
the work of saving the fruits of the so narrowly-won victory. As soon
as the smoke lifted from the battle-field his dispatch appeared, "Hayes
has 185 votes and is elected," and he maintained that position to the
end without a shade of faltering. Knowing that the Republicans were
rightfully entitled to the electoral votes of, at least, Mississippi,
Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and South Carolina, he determined that in
the three States where the existence of Republican officials afforded
some ground for hope nothing should be left undone to deprive fraud and
violence of their prey, and he pushed every measure which seemed needed
to uphold the Republicans of Florida, Louisiana and South Carolina
in their lawful rights. In some of the important closing phases of
this exciting contest his counsels were not followed. The Electoral
Commission act was not a measure that he approved. Firmly believing
in the constitutional power of the President of the Senate to count
the electoral votes and announce the result, he held the position that
that officer should discharge that duty, and that the candidate thus
constitutionally declared elected should be duly inaugurated at all
hazards; and revolutionary threats were without effect upon his firm
purpose. The negotiations between the opposing party leaders which
attended the closing hours of the struggle, and which culminated in
the abandonment by the new administration of the Republican State
governments of the South, received no sanction from him. He regarded
such a policy as essentially perfidious, and as clouding the title
of Mr. Hayes to his high office, a title which Mr. Chandler believed
to be as clear as that possessed by any President chosen since the
formation of the constitution. Much else that attended the surrender
of the South to the bitter enemies of the republic he deprecated as
exceedingly harmful to the party of his faith, as unwise in tendency,
and as unjust in principle. He was not demonstrative in his criticisms
upon the new "policy," and his retirement to private life enabled him
to maintain a general silence upon the subject. But his disapproval of
a "conciliation," which he regarded as cowardly in its treatment of
friends and as foolish in its manifestation of undeserved confidence
in enemies, was profound.[39] Within two years the vindication of his
opinions was complete.
The indebtedness of the Republicans to Mr. Chandler's attitude and
efforts in the presidential election of 1876 and the subsequent
electoral dispute can scarcely be exaggerated. Without his firmness,
the spirit with which he held his party up to the thorough assertion
of its rights, the liberality with which he advanced the large sums
required for legitimate expenditures, and the influence of his
indomitable resolution, the final victory would have been at least
vastly more difficult of attainment, if not actually impossible. In
him the enemy never found the slightest traces of failing will or
flagging strength. While the excitement was at its height, a Democratic
periodical published a cartoon, in which Mr. Chandler was caricatured
as standing colossus-like over a yawning chasm, holding up an elephant,
labeled "The Republican Vote," by a double-handed grasp upon its tail.
The humor of the rough sketch greatly delighted its subject, and he
kept it with him for the entertainment of his friends. He first saw it
after one of the Cabinet sessions, when it was produced by President
Grant and passed through the hands of the other Secretaries, until
it reached Mr. Chandler, who, after looking it over, said, gravely
pointing out his position in the cartoon: "Mr. President, one of three
things is certain: either the rocks upon which my feet are resting
will crumble, or the elephant's tail will break, or I shall land the
animal." Into the methods of his work he never feared examination. No
cipher dispatch disclosures have cast infamy upon his name, and eager
investigation by his political enemies still left his personal honor
untainted.
After the conclusion of Mr. Chandler's term of Cabinet service, he
remained in Washington for several weeks, and then accompanied General
Grant to Philadelphia, and was one of the party who escorted the
Ex-President down the Delaware when, on May 17, 1877, he commenced his
tour around the world. The next two years were spent by Mr. Chandler
in Michigan. His only prolonged absence from his Detroit home during
this period was caused by a two months' trip to the California coast
in June and July of 1877. A special car was placed at his service by
the Pacific Railroads (he was one of the earliest and most energetic
supporters of the trans-continental railway project), and he was
accompanied by Charles T. Gorham of Marshall, H. C. Lewis of Coldwater,
and S. S. Cobb of Kalamazoo. Denver, Salt Lake City, Los Angeles, San
Francisco, and the Yo Semite Valley were visited during the journey,
and everywhere Mr. Chandler was welcomed with noteworthy public
and private entertainments; his attractive social qualities shone
throughout the jaunt. Not a great traveler, yet he saw during his life
much of the world. In 1875, in company with Senators Cameron, Anthony
and others, he visited the leading cities of the South. During one of
the Congressional recesses of his second term, he passed some months
in Europe, and while still in active business he spent a winter in the
West Indies. His knowledge of the resources and points of interest of
the Worth and Northwest was extensive and thorough.
[Illustration: PLAT OF THE MARSH FARM.[40]]
The marsh farm, which Mr. Chandler bought near the city of Lansing,
and the experiments in extensive and systematic drainage which he made
thereon, always received a generous share of his attention when he was
in Michigan. This enterprise was one in which he unhesitatingly made
large investments with the view of settling definitely questions of
manifest public importance. In 1857 the State of Michigan gave to its
Agricultural College the public lands in the four townships of Bath, De
Witt, Meridian, and Lansing, which were designated on the surveyor's
maps as "swamp lands;" in the main the sections covered by the grant
were marshy, although their rectilinear boundaries included some solid
ground. Mr. Chandler purchased from the college and other owners a farm
of 3,160 acres, located four miles (by railroad) from Lansing, in the
towns of Bath and De Witt in Clinton county; it included about 1,900
acres of marsh meadow, 500 acres of tamarack swamp, and 800 acres of
oak-opening uplands. The marsh was traversed by a slender water-course,
deviously connecting some small lakes with a stream known as the
Looking-glass river. The upland portion of the farm was thoroughly
fertile, but its development and cultivation did not specially interest
Mr. Chandler, except as furnishing the needed base for his experiments
upon the marsh. He said: "Michigan contains thousands of acres of
precisely this kind of land. The drainage of this particular marsh is
difficult, as much so as is the case with any land in this peninsula
which is not a hopeless swamp. If this tract can be reclaimed, others
can be, and I propose to give the experiment of reclamation a thorough
trial. I have the money, and I believe I have the pluck. If I succeed,
it will be a good thing for the State, for it will show how to add
millions of dollars worth of land to its farms. If I fail, it will
also be a good thing, for it will settle an open question, and no man
need repeat my attempt." He pushed this experiment vigorously from the
time of its commencement until his death, and gave to it his frequent
personal supervision: His investments in the marsh farm soon came to
be counted by many tens of thousands of dollars. Originally, practical
farmers were inclined to regard his operations as sheer folly, but as
they saw the purpose, methods and thoroughness of his work, a just
appreciation of its aim followed. Mr. Chandler never disguised the
character of this enterprise. Repeatedly he said to visitors at the
farm and to friends, "I have a theory--that is a remarkably expensive
thing to have--and I propose to test it here; it will make me poorer,
but it may make others richer some time." The public value of his
experiment he believed to be great, and that fact he was quick to make
prominent whenever it seemed necessary.
[Illustration: THE "BIG DITCH" (WINTER SCENE).]
The general plan of drainage operations consisted in connecting by
a large ditch Park lake (which has an area of 235 acres) with the
Looking-glass river. This main ditch was constructed by straightening
the bed of Prairie creek, and possessed descent enough to ensure a slow
current in wet seasons. It is about four miles in length, and averages
fourteen feet in width by four in depth. At intervals of forty rods
are constructed lateral ditches, as a rule five feet in width at the
top by three in depth. This part of the work had not been completed at
the time of Mr. Chandler's death, but still the lateral ditching had
reached about fifty miles in aggregate length, and had well drained
about 1,000 acres in the western end of the marsh near the outlet into
the Looking-glass. In that portion of the farm the first results of
the drainage--the rotting down of the peaty surface of the marsh into
a vegetable mold--have already manifested themselves satisfactorily.
The extent to which this decomposition will continue is not completely
tested, nor does it yet appear what will be the full measure of the
arability of soil, which will be created by this process, supplemented
by the tile draining which will follow the subsidence of the marsh to
a permanent level. This peaty surface varies from two and a half feet
to a rod in depth and promises to become an enormously productive soil.
The experiments thus far tried upon it have resulted hopefully. Much
of the native grass furnished excellent hay, and stock fatted upon it
thoroughly with no more than the usual allowance of grain. The tame
grass sown was chiefly Fowl Meadow and Timothy. The former Mr. Chandler
had seen growing in Holland on reclaimed land, and he determined to
give it a trial; he was only able to find the seed in the Boston
market, and there paid for it four dollars per bushel of eleven pounds.
It is a species of Red Top, and soon yielded from one and a half to
two tons of excellent hay per acre. For four seasons this seeding-down
with tame grasses was tried with satisfactory results, and then other
experiments followed. In the fall of 1878, twelve acres of marsh, then
well seeded-down with grass, were thoroughly plowed by Superintendent
Hughes, who, in the following season, raised thereon corn, potatoes,
rutabagas and oats. The results conclusively showed that the marsh
possessed general productiveness, although the experiment itself was
marred by the unseasonable frosts of 1879. The corn looked well at
the outset, but was severely injured in the end. The potato crop was
a good one, and the yield of oats was also large. In the fall of 1879
another tract of twelve acres was plowed, and the same experiment was
put in process of repetition. Superintendent Hughes is of the opinion
that within another year, the reclaimed marsh will produce 100 bushels
of corn to the acre. A short time before his death, Mr. Chandler said
that, in view of the success which had attended the experiments already
tried, he now felt confident that in time his farm would be pointed
out as an ague-bed transformed into one of the most valuable pieces of
property in Central Michigan, and would demonstrate the reclaimability
of large tracts of swamp land in that State. About 500 acres of the
marsh are seeded with Fowl Meadow grass; about 300 acres of this is
mowed, and the remainder is used for pasturage. Over 400 tons of
excellent hay were cut there in the season of 1879.
[Illustration: THE SUPERINTENDENT'S HOUSE AT THE MARSH FARM.]
Outside of the interest attaching to it by reason of the drainage
experiments, the Chandler farm would deserve notice as one of the
most thoroughly equipped and stocked of the new farms of Michigan.
It is traversed by a state road, and by the Jackson, Lansing and
Saginaw Railroad (which has established a signal station near the
farm-house). Its buildings are located upon the highest ground. They
are substantially constructed, and surrounded with all the evidences
of thrift. The main house of the farm, which is occupied by the
superintendent and his family, is a commodious frame structure, two
stories in height, and conveniently partitioned off into spacious
and airy apartments. Near it is the house-barn (32 by 54 feet in
dimensions) with sheep-sheds adjoining. About a half-mile to the east
are two tenant houses, occupied by families employed on the farm. On
the east side of the state road, at a distance of half a mile, is a
large barn, erected in 1879; its main portion is 41 by 66 feet in
dimensions, with a wing 38 by 90 feet; its height is 44 feet to the
ridge; attached are sheds 250 feet in length and "L" shaped. This
barn is largely used for storage purposes, and will receive 250 tons
of hay. The basement of its wing is divided into 60 cattle stalls, 30
on each side, with a broad passage through the center. The stalls are
ingeniously arranged in the most improved style, and with a special
regard for cleanliness. In the basement of the main barn is a large
root cellar (capable of holding 2,000 bushels of potatoes, turnips,
etc.), stabling accommodations for eight horses, two large box-stalls
for stallions, a feed-room 20 by 25 feet in size, numerous calf-pens,
and many other conveniences. Located above are two granaries, each
12 by 28 feet in dimensions. Attached to the barn, but in a separate
building, is a 12-horse-power engine, used for cutting feed, and for
other farm purposes. A large automatic windmill and pump supply water
in abundance.
The farm is well stocked; on it are seventeen horses, including "Mark
Antony," an imported Normandy stallion, which is a fine specimen of the
Percheron breed. There are also 120 head of handsome graded cattle on
the farm, 300 sheep graded from Shropshire Down bucks, and 23 pure-bred
Essex swine. In wagons and implements of every kind the equipment
is complete, and all are of the best manufacture and most improved
quality. The force of laborers on the farm as a rule includes five men
in summer and three in winter, large gangs being employed during the
two months of the haying season, and also when there is any extensive
fencing or ditching enterprise to be pushed.
[Illustration: THE MAIN BARN OF THE MARSH FARM.]
Mr. Chandler's experiments were closely watched by the farmers of
Michigan. Visits were frequent from them singly, in small parties,
and in club or grange excursions to the marsh, and they always met a
hospitable reception. Letters of inquiry also came from many parts of
the State, giving evidence of the widespread character of the interest
felt. Mr. Chandler himself when in Michigan visited the farm at least
once a month, inspecting the work thoroughly, discussing plans with the
superintendent, making suggestions, and giving orders. His experience
as a farmer in his boyhood furnished ideas which were yet useful and
a judgment which was well-informed; still he was ready to welcome all
innovations that promised good results, and he closed many discussions
with his superintendents by remarking, "If you come at me with facts,
that is enough; I never argue against them." At the farm he also
found the most congenial relaxation. He would come there jaded out
with the excitement and labor of political contest and public life;
in stout clothing and heavy boots he would scour the meadows, examine
ditching, look up the stock, oversee labor, and work himself if there
was an inviting opportunity. A day or two of this life would bring
rest, hearty appetite, and sound sleep, would relieve his nerves from
tension, and restore his vital powers to their natural activity. He
always rated his visits to the marsh farm as a certain and delightful
tonic.
[Illustration: MR. CHANDLER'S RESIDENCE IN WASHINGTON.]
In private life Mr. Chandler kept up the habits which marked his public
career. His voluminous correspondence was never neglected. Napoleon's
method of leaving letters unopened for three weeks, because within
that time most of them would need no replies, he reversed. As a rule,
every communication addressed to Mr. Chandler was promptly answered;
to even mere notes of compliment brief responses were sent. Of course
this practice made a confidential secretary indispensable, and that
position was held for some years by a Mr. Miller; after his death (in
1870) it was discreetly and faithfully filled by George W. Partridge.
Matters entrusted to Mr. Chandler's care by constituents always
received early attention; the same statement is true of applications
from the humblest stranger who preferred a claim upon his attention,
and it includes political enemies as well as friends. Mr. Chandler
regarded meeting these demands as part of his public duties; no other
prominent man of his day gave to such matters a tithe of the time and
energy devoted to them by him, and this was one source of his hold upon
the popular affection. Of course much labor was involved, but this was
offset by the fact that in all his duties he was regular, punctual
and systematic; his mercantile training helped him greatly in this
respect, and it was said of him truly, "He has never been excelled as
a 'business Senator' at Washington." While not a student, he was a man
who prepared for every important action. In his speeches he aimed at
nervous strength and effectiveness. For oratorical finish he cared
nothing, but simple language, terse sentences, some plain word whose
meaning was an argument in itself--these he sought for unceasingly.
He apologized for the length of one of his brief speeches because he
had not had time to make it shorter. Not rarely he would put into a
sentence of ten Saxon words the power of a philippic, and this rough
missile would crush where mere rhetoric would have only irritated. Mr.
Chandler never failed as a speaker to command the popular attention,
and his force and the simplicity of his diction were greatly aided
by the sincerity which illuminated them. The vigor and truth of
conviction, which made him so ardent a champion of the party of his
political faith, marked his speeches, and made his appeals potent with
his hearers. "His words were simple and his soul sincere." In fact,
his sincerity and honesty were the salient qualities of the man. His
was not a faultless character; but it was above baseness, and it was
free from affectation, from cant, and from hypocrisy. The record of his
public life recalls Emerson's estimate of Bonaparte: "This man showed
us how much may be accomplished by the mere force of such virtues as
all men possess in less degree--namely, by punctuality, by personal
attention, by courage, and by thoroughness." But more honorable to his
memory is the fact that concerning the man himself can be justly quoted
Carlyle's eloquent tribute to Burns: "He is an honest man.... In his
successes and his failures, in his greatness and his littleness, he is
ever clear, simple and true, and glitters with no lustre but his own.
We reckon this to be a great virtue--to be, in fact, the root of most
other virtues."
[Illustration: MR. CHANDLER'S RESIDENCE IN DETROIT.] a game of
Mr. Chandler's social nature was a hearty one. His manners were easy,
he was affable with all, and he was without the slightest tinge of
aristocratic tastes or prejudice. No false dignity surrounded him; with
his friends his laugh was ready; he liked whist, enjoyed a good story,
found pleasure in social gatherings, was entertaining in conversation,
and easily gave way to the natural jollity of his spirits. Exact
and stern as he often was, his intimates found him a most agreeable
companion Few men have ever bound friends to themselves more firmly.
He surrounded his homes with the comforts that wealth could supply,
and yet was not ostentatious. His Washington residence he purchased
for about $40,000 in 1867 from Senor Bareda, the Peruvian Minister.
It is located on H between Thirteenth and Fourteenth streets, and is
a handsome house with spacious parlors and dining room upon the first
floor; commodious apartments occupy the upper stories, which are
connected by rich staircases of black walnut. Mr. Chandler's office
was located in the basement, and has been the scene of many important
consultations between famous men on questions of party policy and
public concern. His Detroit home was the mansion on the Northwest
corner of Fort and Second streets, which he built in 1855-'56. It
is situated in spacious grounds, and is of the plain Roman style of
architecture, which aims at the simple in outline and massive in
effect. A semi-circular drive and path lead to it through the gate-ways
of a heavy and handsome fence and into a large _porte cochere_. Thence
wide stone steps rise through solid mahogany doors to a broad hall,
whose floor of inlaid woods is partly hidden by rich rugs. On the
right is the drawing room, a spacious apartment furnished in blue and
gold, and abounding in tasteful ornaments and handsome paintings. In
it stands Randolph Rogers's marble bust of Mr. Chandler, executed
about 1870. Opposite and connected by folding doors are the library
and dining room. The former's shelves are well filled with the best
works of standard authors, including many ancient chronicles seldom
found in private book collections. Back of the dining room and across
a transverse hallway is the apartment that was Mr. Chandler's private
office; its walls are literally covered with shelving containing
Congressional annals and reports and many public documents. The
appointments of the numerous other rooms are tasteful and complete,
and all the surroundings of the house are in keeping with its quiet
elegance. In 1858 Mr. Chandler met there with an accident of nearly
fatal results. He followed his little daughter upon a search for some
escaping gas, and was caught with her in a room in which a large mass
of that inflammable vapor was exploded by a lighted candle. To add
to the danger of the situation the door was closed upon them by a
frightened servant. Mr. Chandler seized his child and sheltered her
from serious danger, and groped his way out blinded and scorched. It
was then found that his hands and face were badly burned, and the loss
of his eyesight was threatened. Careful treatment and his vigorous
constitution ultimately brought about a full recovery, and the only
traces left of the casualty were some slight affections of the facial
muscles and an unusual pallor of countenance.
Mr. Chandler's domestic life was a thoroughly happy one. He married
Letitia Grace Douglass of New York, a noble Christian woman, whose
social accomplishments blended dignity with grace, and who met to the
full her large share of the exacting duties attendant upon public
life and high station. Their only child was a daughter, Mary Douglass
Chandler, who was married, while her father was a Senator, to the Hon.
Eugene Hale of Ellsworth, Maine. She inherited many of her father's
traits, and his affection for her was rooted in the inner fibres of his
strong nature. Her children, his three little grandsons, often knew him
as a rollicking playfellow, and he counseled with her freely and often,
and she shared in his confidence as well as his love. Throughout his
life he expressed his appreciation of the devoted attachment of his
wife and child by many acknowledgments that do not belong to a public
chronicle; his will left his great estate to them as his sole heirs,
"share and share alike."
FOOTNOTES:
[39] In the fall of 1877 Mr. Chandler delivered the annual address
before the Branch County Agricultural Society, and while in Coldwater
was the guest of the Hon. Henry C. Lewis of that city, who invited a
few friends to meet him socially. In the course of the conversation
Mr. Chandler said that he was going to his Lansing farm to spend a few
days. His reticence in regard to the Hayes administration was then a
matter of remark, and the Hon. C. D. Randall said to him: "Well, Mr.
Chandler, when you get out in the center of your great farm and alone,
you will have a fine opportunity to express your opinion about the
Hayes 'policy.'" Mr. Chandler's reply was: "No, sir; that Lansing farm
will never answer my purpose. To do that I shall have to be on the top
of a high hill behind the meeting-house and with the wind blowing the
other way!" The audience responded with a hearty laugh.
[40] The heavy black lines in this map are the boundaries of the
farm; the waving lines indicate the border of the uplands surrounding
the marsh. The drainage is from Mud Lake via "the big ditch" to the
Looking-glass river. The lateral ditching (of which there are over
fifty miles) is shown on the plat by the fine lines.