Produced by Ed Ferris
Transcriber's note:
The dieresis is transcribed by a preceding hyphen. "Employe" is
replaced by "employee". The author's capitalization and spelling
are followed when consistent, but probable mistakes of the typesetter
have been corrected.
The right brackets (}) in the heading of quoted letters
represent a single bracket grouping those lines in the book, which
indicates a typeset heading on the stationery used.
LoC call number: E664.S57 1968
JOHN SHERMAN'S
RECOLLECTIONS
OF
FORTY YEARS
IN
THE HOUSE, SENATE AND CABINET.
AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY.
VOLUME I.
ILLUSTRATED
WITH PORTRAITS, FAC-SIMILE LETTERS, SCENES, ETC.
GREENWOOD PRESS, PUBLISHERS
NEW YORK 1968
Copyright, 1895, By John Sherman
SHERMAN BOOK.
First Greenwood reprinting, 1968
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS catalogue card number: 68-28647
Printed in the United States of America
PREFACE
These Recollections grew out of a long deferred purpose to publish
a selection of my speeches on public questions, but in collecting
them it became manifest that they should be accompanied or preceded
by a statement of the circumstances that attended their delivery.
The attempt to furnish such a statement led to a review of the
chief events of my public life, which covers the period extending
from 1854 to the present time. The sectional trouble that preceded
the Civil War, the war itself with all its attendant horrors and
sacrifices, the abolition of slavery, the reconstruction measures,
and the vast and unexampled progress of the republic in growth and
development since the war, presented a topic worthy of a better
historian than I am. Still, as my life was interwoven with these
events, I concluded that it was better that I state my recollection
of what I saw or heard or did in those stirring times rather than
what I said. Whether this conclusion was a wise one the reader must
judge. Egotism is a natural trait of mankind. If it is exhibited
in a moderate degree we pardon it with a smile; if it is excessive
we condemn it as a weakness. The life of one man is but an atom,
but if it is connected with great events it shares in their dignity
and importance. Influenced by this reasoning I concluded to postpone
the publication of my speeches except so far as they are quoted or
described in these memoirs.
When I entered upon their preparation the question arose whether
the book to be written was to be of my life, including ancestry
and boyhood, or to be confined to the financial history of the
United States with which I was mainly identified. This was settled
by the publishers, who were more interested in the number of copies
they could sell than in the finances of the United States.
Every man has a theory of finance of his own, and is indifferent
to any other. At best the subject is a dry one. Still, the problem
of providing money to carry on the expensive operations of a great
war, and to provide for the payment of the vast debt created during
the war, was next in importance to the conduct of armies, and those
who were engaged in solving this problem were as much soldiers as
the men who were carrying muskets or commanding armies. As one of
these I feel it my duty to present the measures adopted and to
claim for them such merit as they deserve.
These volumes do contain the true history of the chief financial
measures of the United States government during the past forty
years. My hope is that those who read them will be able to correct
the wild delusions of many honest citizens who became infected with
the "greenback craze," or the "free coinage of silver."
My chief regret is that the limit of these volumes did not permit
me to extend my narrative to the memorable battles and marches of
the Civil War, nor to a more general notice of my associates who
distinguished themselves in civil life. The omission of military
narrative is admirably compensated by the memoirs of the great
commanders on either side, and better yet by the vast collection
and publication, by the United States, of the "Records of the
Rebellion." The attempt to include in these volumes my estimate
of distinguished men still living who participated in the events
narrated would greatly extend them and might lead to injustice.
One of the fortunate results of the Civil War has been to diminish
the sectional prejudice that previously existed both in the north
and in the south. I would not check this tendency, but will gladly
contribute in every way possible to a hearty union of the people
in all sections of our country, not only in matters of government,
but also in ties of good will, mutual respect and fraternity. The
existence of slavery in some of the states was the cause of the
war, and its abolition was the most important result of the war.
So great a change naturally led to disorder and violence where
slavery had existed, but this condition, it is believed, is passing
away. Therefore I have not entered in detail into the measures
adopted as the result of the abolition of slavery.
This preface is hardly necessary, but I comply with the general
custom of adding at the beginning, instead of the end, an apology
for writing a book. This seems to me to be the chief object of a
preface, and I add to it an appeal for the kindly consideration of
the readers of these volumes.
John Sherman.
Mansfield, Ohio, August 30, 1895.
ILLUSTRATIONS
VOLUME I.
John Sherman
Dedham Street, Dedham, Essex County, England
Birthplace of John Sherman at Lancaster, Ohio
Mr. Sherman at the Age of Nineteen
Charles T. Sherman
First Court House at Mansfield, Ohio
Mr. Sherman's First Home in Mansfield, Ohio
Kansas Investigating Committee
Mr. Sherman at the Age of Thirty-five
Mr. Sherman's First Residence in Washington, D. C.
Senator Justin S. Morrill
Abraham Lincoln
General W. T. Sherman
Three Ohio Governors--Dennison, Tod, Brough
Colfax, Douglas, Fessenden, Ewing (Group.)
Edwin M. Stanton
U. S. Grant
United States Senators--43rd Congress
Mr. Sherman's Present Residence at Mansfield, Ohio
Library of Mr. Sherman's Mansfield Residence
AUTOGRAPH LETTERS
VOLUME I.
Certificate of Admission to Practice in Supreme Court, January 21,
1852
T. Ewing, December 31, 1848
Wm. H. Seward, September 20, 1852
Certificate of Election as United States Representative, December
9, 1854
Justin S. Morrill, April 1, 1861
W. B. Allison, March 23, 1861
John A. Dix, February 6, 1861
Simon Cameron, November 14, 1861
Edwin M. Stanton, December 7, 1862
Horace Greeley, February 7, 1865
Thurlow Weed, February 28, 1866
Schuyler Colfax, February 17, 1868
Vote on the Impeachment of Andrew Johnson, May 16, and 26, 1868
U. S. Grant, June 14, 1871
M. H. Carpenter, July 20, 1871
Roscoe Conkling, October 13, 1871
J. A. Garfield, September 25, 1874
R. B. Hayes, June 19, 1876
R. B. Hayes, February 19, 1877
Cyrus W. Field, March 6, 1877
Wm. M. Evarts, August 30, 1877
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
VOLUME I.
CHAPTER I.
ANCESTRY OF THE SHERMAN FAMILY.
Family Name is of Saxon Origin--"Conquer Death by Virtue"--Arrival
of Rev. John Sherman at Boston in 1634--General Sherman's Reply to
an English Sexton--Career of Daniel Sherman--My First Visit to
Woodbury--"Sherman's Tannery"--Anecdote of "Uncle Dan"--Sketch of
My Father and Mother--Address to Enlisting Soldiers--General Reese's
Account of My Father's Career--Religion of the Sherman Family--My
Belief.
CHAPTER II.
MY BOYHOOD DAYS AND EARLY LIFE.
Born at Lancaster, Ohio, May 10, 1823--Death of My Father and Its
Effect on Our Family--Early Days at School--A Dead Sheep in the
Schoolroom--Lesson in Sunday Sport--Some of My Characteristics--My
Attack on the Schoolmaster--Robbing an Orchard--A Rodman at Fourteen
and My Experiences While Surveying--Debates at Beverly--Early Use
of Liquor--First Visit to Mansfield in 1839--The Famous Campaign
of 1840--I Begin the Study of Law.
CHAPTER III.
OHIO, ITS HISTORY AND RESOURCES.
Occupation by the Indians--Washington's Expedition to the Head of
the Ohio River--Commencement of the History of the State--Topography,
Characteristics, etc., in 1787--Arrival of the First Pioneers--The
Treaty of Greenville--Census of 1802 Showed a Population of 45,028
Persons--Occupation of the "Connecticut Reserve"--Era of Internal
Improvement--Value of Manufactures in 1890--Vast Resources of the
Buckeye State--Love of the "Ohio Man" for His Native State.
CHAPTER IV.
ADMISSION TO THE BAR AND EARLY POLITICAL LIFE.
Law Partnership with my Brother Charles--Change in Methods of Court
Practice--Obtaining the Right of Way for a Railroad--Excitement of
the Mexican War and its Effect on the Country--My First Visit to
Washington--At a Banquet with Daniel Webster--New York Fifty Years
Ago--Marriage with Margaret Cecilia Stewart--Beginning of My
Political Life--Belief in the Doctrine of Protection--Democratic
and Whig Conventions of 1852--The Slavery Question--My Election to
Congress in 1854.
CHAPTER V.
EARLY DAYS IN CONGRESS.
My First Speech in the House--Struggle for the Possession of Kansas
--Appointed as a Member of the Kansas Investigating Committee--The
Invasion of March 30, 1855--Exciting Scenes in the Second District
of Kansas--Similar Violence in Other Territorial Districts--Return
and Report of the Committee--No Relief Afforded the People of Kansas
--Men of Distinction in the 34th Congress--Long Intimacy with
Schuyler Colfax.
CHAPTER VI.
BIRTH OF THE REPUBLICAN PARTY.
The Name Formally Adopted at Jackson, Michigan, in 1854--Nomination
of John C. Fremont at Philadelphia--Democratic Convention Nominates
James Buchanan--Effect of the Latter's Election on the North--My
Views Concerning President Pierce and His Administration--French
Spoilation Claims--First Year of Buchanan's Administration--Dred
Scott Case Decision by Supreme Court--The Slavery Question Once
More an Issue in Congress--Douglas' Opposition to the Lecompton
Scheme--Turning Point of the Slavery Controversy.
CHAPTER VII.
RECOLLECTIONS OF THE FINANCIAL PANIC OF 1857.
Its Effect on the State Banks--My Maiden Speech in Congress on
National Finances--Appointed a Member of the Committee on Naval
Affairs--Investigation of the Navy Department and its Results--Trip
to Europe with Mrs. Sherman--We Visit Bracklin's Bridge, Made Famous
by Sir Walter Scott--Ireland and the Irish--I Pay a Visit to
Parliament and Obtain Ready Admission--Notable Places in Paris
Viewed With Senator Sumner--The Battlefield of Magenta--Return Home.
CHAPTER VIII.
EXCITING SCENES IN CONGRESS.
I am Elected for the Third Term--Invasion of Virginia by John Brown
--His Trial and Execution--Spirited Contest for the Speakership--
Discussion over Helper's "Impending Crisis"--Angry Controversies
and Threats of Violence in the House--Within Three Votes of Election
as Speaker--My Reply to Clark's Attack--Withdrawal of my Name and
Election of Mr. Pennington--Made Chairman of the Committee of Ways
and Means--President Buchanan Objects to Being "Investigated"--
Adoption of the Morrill Tariff Act--Views Upon the Tariff Question
--My Colleagues.
CHAPTER IX.
LAST DAYS OF THE BUCHANAN ADMINISTRATION.
My First Appearance Before a New York Audience--Lincoln's Nomination
at the Chicago Convention--I Engage Actively in the Presidential
Canvass--Making Speeches for Lincoln--My Letter to Philadelphia
Citizens--Acts of Secession by the Southern States--How the South
was Equipped by the Secretary of the Navy--Buchanan's Strange
Doctrine Regarding State Control by the General Government--Schemes
"To Save the Country"--My Reply to Mr. Pendleton on the Condition
of the Impending Revolution--The Ohio Delegation in the 36th Congress
--Retrospection.
CHAPTER X.
THE BEGINNING OF LINCOLN'S FIRST ADMINISTRATION.
Arrival of the President-Elect at Washington--Impressiveness of
His Inaugural Address--I am Elected Senator from Ohio to Succeed
Salmon P. Chase--Letters Written to and Received from My Brother
William Tecumseh--His Arrival at Washington--A Dark Period in the
History of the Country--Letter to General Sherman on the Attack
Upon Fort Sumter--Departure for Mansfield to Encourage Enlistments
--Ohio Regiments Reviewed by the President--General McLaughlin
Complimented--My Visit to Ex-President Buchanan--Meeting Between
My Brother and Colonel George H. Thomas.
CHAPTER XI.
SPECIAL SESSION OF CONGRESS TO PROVIDE FOR THE WAR.
Condition of the Treasury Immediately Preceding the War--Not Enough
Money on Hand to Pay Members of Congress--Value of Fractional Silver
of Earlier Coinage--Largely Increased Revenues an Urgent Necessity
--Lincoln's Message and Appeal to the People--Issue of New Treasury
Notes and Bonds--Union Troops on the Potomac--Battle of Bull Run--
Organization of the "Sherman Brigade"--The President's Timely Aid
--Personnel of the Brigade.
CHAPTER XII.
PASSAGE OF THE LEGAL TENDER ACT IN 1862.
My Interview with Lincoln About Ohio Appointments--Governmental
Expenses Now Aggregating Nearly $2,000,000 Daily--Secretary Chase's
Annual Report to Congress in December, 1861--Treasury Notes a Legal
Tender in Payment of Public and Private Debts--Beneficial Results
from the Passage of the Bill--The War Not a Question of Men, but
of Money--Proposed Organization of National Banks--Bank Bills Not
Taxed--Local Banks and Their Absorption by the Government--The 1862
Issue of $150,000,000 in "Greenbacks"--Legal Tender Act a Turning
Point in Our Financial History--Compensation of Officers of the
Government.
CHAPTER XIII.
ABOLISHMENT OF THE STATE BANKS.
Measures Introduced to Tax Them out of Existence--Arguments That
Induced Congress to Deprive Them of the Power to Issue Their Bills
as Money--Bill to Provide a National Currency--Why Congress Authorized
an Issue of $400,000,000, of United States Notes--Issue of 5-20
and 10-40 Bonds to Help to Carry on the War--High Rates of Interest
Paid--Secretary Chase's Able Management of the Public Debt--Our
Internal Revenue System--Repeal of the Income Tax Law--My Views on
the Taxability of Incomes.
CHAPTER XIV.
LINCOLN'S EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION.
Slavery in the District of Columbia Abolished--Law Goes Into Effect
on April 10, 1862--Beginning of the End of Slavery--Military Measures
in Congress to Carry on the War--Response to the President's Call
--Beneficial Effects of the Confiscation Act--Visits to Soldiers'
Camps--Robert S. Granger as a Cook--How I Came to Purchase a
Washington Residence--Increase of Compensation to Senators and
Members and Its Effect--Excitement in Ohio over Vallandigham's
Arrest--News of the Fall of Vicksburg and Defeat of Lee at Gettysburg
--John Brough Elected Governor of Ohio--Its Effect on the State.
CHAPTER XV.
A MEMORABLE SESSION OF CONGRESS.
Dark Period of the War--Effect of the President's Proclamation--
Revenue Bill Enacted Increasing Internal Taxes and Adding Many New
Objects of Taxation--Additional Bonds Issued--General Prosperity
in the North Following the Passage of New Financial Measures--Aid
for the Union Pacific Railroad Company--Land Grants to the Northern
Pacific--13th Amendment to the Constitution--Resignation of Secretary
Chase--Anecdote of Governor Tod of Ohio--Nomination of William P.
Fessenden to Succeed Chase--The Latter Made Chief Justice--Lincoln's
Second Nomination--Effect of Vallandigham's Resolution--General
Sherman's March to the Sea--Second Session of the 38th Congress.
CHAPTER XVI.
ASSASSINATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
Johnson's Maudlin Stump Speech in the Senate--Inauguration of
Lincoln for the Second Term--My Trip to the South--Paying off a
Church Debt--Meetings to Celebrate the Success of the Union Army--
News of the Death of Lincoln--I Attend the Funeral Services--General
Johnston's Surrender to General Sherman--Controversy with Secretary
Stanton Over the Event--Review of 65,000 Troops in Washington--Care
of the Old Soldiers--Annual Pension List of $150,000,000--I am Re-
elected to the Senate--The Wade-Davis Bill--Johnson's Treatment of
Public Men--His Veto of the Civil Rights Bill--Reorganization of
the Rebel States and Their Final Restoration to the Union.
CHAPTER XVII.
INDEBTEDNESS OF THE UNITED STATES IN 1865.
Organization of the Greenback Party--Total Debt on October 31st
amounts to $2,805,549,437.55--Secretary McCulloch's Desire to
Convert All United States Notes into Interest Bearing Bonds--My
Discussion with Senator Fessenden Over the Finance Committee's Bill
--Too Great Powers Conferred on the Secretary of the Treasury--His
Desire to Retire $10,000,000 of United States Notes Each Month--
Growth of the Greenback Party--The Secretary's Powers to Reduce
the Currency by Retiring or Canceling United States Notes is
Suspended--Bill to Reduce Taxes and Provide Internal Revenue--My
Trip to Laramie and Other Western Forts with General Sherman--
Beginning of the Department of Agriculture.
CHAPTER XVIII.
THREE MONTHS IN EUROPE.
Short Session of Congress Convened March 4, 1867--I Become Chairman
of the Committee on Finance, Succeeding Senator Fessenden--Departure
for Europe--Winning a Wager from a Sea Captain--Congressman Kasson's
Pistol--Under Surveillance by English Officers--Impressions of John
Bright, Disraeli and Other Prominent Englishmen--Visit to France,
Belgium, Holland and Germany--An Audience with Bismarck--His Sympathy
with the Union Cause--Wonders of the Paris Exposition--Life in
Paris--Presented to the Emperor Napoleon III and the Empress Eugenie
--A Dinner at the Tuileries--My Return Home--International Money
Commission in Session at Paris--Correspondence with Commissioner
Ruggles--His Report--Failure to Unify the Coinage of Nations--
Relative Value of Gold and Silver.
CHAPTER XIX.
IMPEACHMENT OF ANDREW JOHNSON.
Judiciary Committee's Resolution Fails of Adoption by a Vote of 57
Yeas to 108 Nays--Johnson's Attempt to Remove Secretary Stanton
and Create a New Office for General Sherman--Correspondence on the
Subject--Report of the Committee on Impeachment, and Other Matters
Pertaining to the Appointment of Lorenzo Thomas--Impeachment
Resolution Passed by the House by a Vote of 126 Yeas to 47 Nays--
Johnson's Trial by the Senate--Acquittal of the President by a Vote
of 35 Guilty to 19 Not Guilty--Why I Favored Conviction--General
Schofield Becomes Secretary of War--"Tenure of Office Act."
CHAPTER XX.
THE FORTIETH CONGRESS.
Legislation During the Two Years--Further Reduction of the Currency
by the Secretary Prohibited--Report of the Committee of Conference
--Bill for Refunding the National Debt--Amounted to $2,639,382,572.68
on December 1, 1867--Resumption of Specie Payments Recommended--
Refunding Bill in the Senate--Change in My Views--Debate Participated
in by Nearly Every Senator--Why the Bill Failed to Become a Law--
Breach Between Congress and the President Paralyzes Legislation--
Nomination and Election of Grant for President--His Correspondence
with General Sherman.
CHAPTER XXI.
BEGINNING OF GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION.
His Arrival at Washington in 1864 to Take Command of the Armies of
the United States--Inaugural Address as President--"An Act to
Strengthen the Public Credit"--Becomes a Law on March 19, 1869--
Formation of the President's Cabinet--Fifteenth Amendment to the
Constitution--Bill to Fund the Public Debt and Aid in the Resumption
of Specie Payments--Bill Finally Agreed to by the House and Senate
--A Redemption Stipulation Omitted--Reduction of the Public Debt--
Problem of Advancing United States Notes to Par with Coin.
CHAPTER XXII.
OUR COINAGE BEFORE AND AFTER THE WAR.
But Little Coin in Circulation in 1869--General Use of Spanish
Pieces--No Mention of the Dollar Piece in the Act of 1853--Free
Circulation of Gold After the 1853 Act--No Truth in the "Demonetization"
Charge--Account of the Bill Revising the Laws Relative to the Mint,
Assay Offices and Coinage of the United States--Why the Dollar was
Dropped from the Coins--Then Known Only as a Coin for the Foreign
Market--Establishment of the "Trade Dollar"--A Legal Tender for
Only Five Dollars--Repeated Attempts to Have Congress Pass a Free
Coinage Act--How It Would Affect Us--Controversy Between Senator
Sumner and Secretary Fish.
CHAPTER XXIII.
SOME EVENTS IN MY PRIVATE LIFE.
Feuds and Jealousies During Grant's Administration--Attack on Me
by the Cincinnati "Enquirer"--Reply and Statement Regarding My
Worldly Possessions--I Am Elected to the Senate for the Third Term
--Trip to the Pacific with Colonel Scott and Party--Visit to the
Yosemite Valley--San Diego in 1872--Return via Carson City and Salt
Lake--We call on Brigham Young--Arrival Home to Enter Into the
Greeley-Grant Canvass--Election of General Grant for the Second
Term.
CHAPTER XXIV.
THE PANIC OF 1873 AND ITS RESULTS.
Failure of Jay Cooke and Co.--Wild Schemes "for the Relief of the
People"--Congress Called Upon for Help--Finance Committee's Report
for the Redemption of United States Notes in Coin--Extracts from
my Speech in Favor of the Report--Bill to Fix the Amount of United
States Notes--Finally Passed by the Senate and House--Vetoed by
President Grant and Failure to Pass Over His Objection--General
Effect Throughout the Country of the Struggle for Resumption--
Imperative Necessity for Providing Some Measure of Relief.
CHAPTER XXV.
BILL FOR THE RESUMPTION OF SPECIE PAYMENTS.
Decline in Value of Paper Money--Meeting of Congress in December,
1874--Senate Committee of Eleven to Formulate a Bill to Advance
United States Notes to Par in Coin--Widely Differing Views of the
Members--Redemption of Fractional Currency Readily Agreed to--Other
Sections Finally Adopted--Means to Prepare for and Maintain Resumption
--Report of the Bill by the Committee on Finance--Its Passage by
the Senate by a Vote of 32 to 14--Full Text of the Measure and an
Explanation of What It Was Expected to Accomplish--Approval by the
House and the President.
CHAPTER XXVI.
RESUMPTION ACT RECEIVED WITH DISFAVOR.
It Is Not Well Received by Those Who Wished Immediate Resumption
of Specie Payments--Letter to "The Financier" in Reply to a Charge
That It Was a "Political Trick," etc.--The Ohio Canvass of 1875--
Finance Resolutions in the Democratic and Republican Platforms--R.
B. Hayes and Myself Talk in Favor of Resumption--My Recommendation
of Him for President--A Democrat Elected as Speaker of the House--
The Senate Still Republican--My Speech in Support of Specie Payments
Made March 6, 1876--What the Financial Policy of the Government
Should Be.
CHAPTER XXVII.
MY CONFIDENCE IN THE SUCCESS OF RESUMPTION.
Tendency of Democratic Members of Both Houses to Exaggerate the
Evil Times--Debate Over the Bill to Provide for Issuing Silver Coin
in Place of Fractional Currency--The Coinage Laws of the United
States and Other Countries--Joint Resolution for the Issue of Silver
Coins--The "Trade Dollar" Declared Not to Be a Legal Tender--My
Views on the Free Coinage of Silver--Bill to Provide for the
Completion of the Washington Monument--Resolution Written by Me on
the 100th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence--Unanimously
Passed in a Day by Both Houses--Completion of the Structure Under
the Act.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
THE HAYES-TILDEN PRESIDENTIAL CONTEST.
Nomination of R. B. Hayes for President--His Fitness for the
Responsible Office--Political Shrewdness of Samuel J. Tilden, His
Opponent--I Enter Actively Into the Canvass in Ohio and Other States
--Frauds in the South--Requested by General Grant to Go to New
Orleans and Witness the Canvassing of the Vote of Louisiana--
Departure for the South--Personnel of the Republican and Democratic
"Visitors"--Report of the Returning Board--My Letter to Governor
Hayes from New Orleans--President Grant's Last Message to Congress
--Letter from President Hayes--Request to Become his Secretary of
the Treasury.
CHAPTER XXIX.
I BEGIN MY DUTIES AS SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY.
Legislative Training of Great Advantage to Me in My New Position--
Loan Contract in Force When I Took the Portfolio--Appointment of
Charles F. Conant as Funding Agent of the Treasury Department in
London--Redeeming Called Bonds--Sale of Four Per Cent. Bonds Instead
of Four and a Half Per Cents.--Popularity of the New Loan--Great
Saving in Interest--On a Tour of Inspection Along the Northern
Atlantic Coast--Value of Information Received on This Trip--Effect
of the Baltimore and Pittsburg Railroad Strikes in 1877 Upon Our
Public Credit.
CHAPTER XXX.
POLICY OF THE HAYES ADMINISTRATION.
Reception at My Home in Mansfield--Given by Friends Irrespective
of Party--Introduced by My Old Friend and Partner, Henry C. Hedges
--I Reply by Giving a Résumé of the Contests in South Carolina and
Louisiana to Decide Who Was Governor--Positions Taken by Presidents
Grant and Hayes in These Contests--My Plans to Secure the Resumption
of Specie Payments--Effects of a Depreciated Currency--Duties of
the Secretary of the Treasury--Two Modes of Resuming--My Mansfield
Speech Printed Throughout the Country and in England--Letters to
Stanley Matthews and General Robinson--Our Defeat in Ohio--An Extra
Session of Congress--Bills Introduced to Repeal the Act Providing
for the Resumption of Specie Payments--They All Fail of Passage--
Popular Subscription of Bonds All Paid for.
CHAPTER I.
ANCESTRY OF THE SHERMAN FAMILY.
Family Name is of Saxon Origin--"Conquer Death by Virtue"--Arrival
of Rev. John Sherman at Boston in 1634--General Sherman's Reply to
an English Sexton--Career of Daniel Sherman--My First Visit to
Woodbury--"Sherman's Tannery"--Anecdote of "Uncle Dan"--Sketch of
My Father and Mother--Address to Enlisting Soldiers--General Reese's
Account of My Father's Career--Religion of the Sherman Family--My
Belief.
The family name of Sherman is, no doubt, of Saxon origin. It is
very common along the Rhine, and in different parts of the German
Empire. It is there written Shearmann or Schurmann. I found it
in Frankfort and Berlin. The English Shermans lived chiefly in
Essex and Suffolk counties near the east coast, and in London.
The name appears frequently in local records. One Sherman was
executed for taking the unsuccessful side in a civil war. It was
not until the beginning of the 16th century that any of the name
assumed the arms, crest, and motto justified by their pride, property
or standing. The motto taken, "Conquer Death by Virtue," is a
rather meaningless phrase. It is modest enough, and indicates a
religious turn of mind. Nearly every family of the name furnished
a preacher. A few members of it attained the dignity of knighthood.
A greater number became landed property-holders, and more were
engaged in trade in London. Sir Henry Sherman was one of the
executors of the will of Lord Stanley, Earl of Derby, May 23, 1521.
William Sherman, Esq., purchased Knightston in the time of Henry
VIII; and a monument to him is in Ottery St. Mary, dated 1542. As
a rule the family belonged to the middle class and were engaged in
active occupations, earning their own bread, with a strong sense of
their rights and liberties as Englishmen.
The principal family of the name in the 16th century were the
Shermans of Yaxley in the county of Suffolk, a full detail of which
is given in Davy's Collections of that county. Edmond Sherman,
my ancestor, was a member of this family. He was born in 1585 and
was married to Judith Angier, May 26, 1611. He resided at Dedham,
Essex county, England, then a place of some importance. He was a
manufacturer of cloth, a man of means and high standing. He was
a Puritan, with all the faults and virtues of a sectary. He resisted
ship-money and the tax unlawfully imposed on tonnage and poundage.
He had the misfortune to live at the time when Charles I undertook
to dispense with Parliament, and to impose unlawful taxes and
burdens upon the people of England, and when the privileges of the
nobility were enforced with great severity by judges dependent upon
the crown. He had three sons, John, baptized on the 4th of January,
1614; Edmond, baptized June 18, 1616, and Samuel, baptized July
12, 1618. He had a nephew, known as "Captain John," somewhat older
than his sons, who was an active man in 1634.
At this time the migration to Boston, caused chiefly by the tyranny
of Charles I, was in active operation. Hume, in his history, says:
"The Puritans, restrained in England, shipped themselves off for
America, and laid there the foundations of a government which
possessed all the liberty, both civil and religious, of which they
found themselves bereaved in their native country. But their
enemies, unwilling that they should anywhere enjoy ease and
contentment, and dreading, perhaps, the dangerous consequences of
so disaffected a colony, prevailed on the king to issue a proclamation,
debarring those devotees access, even into those inhospitable
deserts. Eight ships, lying in the Thames, and ready to sail, were
detained by order of the council; and in there were embarked Sir
Arthur Hazelrig, John Hampden, John Pym, and Oliver Cromwell, who
had resolved, forever, to abandon their native country, and fly to
the other extremity of the globe; where they might enjoy lectures
and discourses, of any length or form, which pleased them. The
king had afterward full leisure to repent this exercise of
authority."
It appears that, influenced the same motives, Edmond Sherman
determined to remove his family, with his nephew, "Captain John,"
to Boston. In one statement made in respect to them it is said
that the father and his three sons and nephew embarked for Boston,
but this is doubtful. It is certain, however, that his son, Rev.
John Sherman and his son Samuel, and his nephew "Captain John,"
did go to Boston in 1634. It is quite as certain that if they were
accompanied by their father and their brother Edmond, that the two
latter returned again to Dedham in 1636. Edmond Sherman, senior,
lived and died at Dedham. One of his descendants, Rev. Henry Beers
Sherman, a few years ago visited Dedham and there found one of the
church windows of stained glass bearing the initials of Edmond
Sherman as having been his gift, and the record shows that one of
the buttresses of the church was erected at his expense. Mr. Henry
Beers Sherman there saw the pupils of a free school, endowed by
Edmond Sherman and still in operation, attending the church in
procession.
When in London, in the summer of 1889, I concluded to make a visit
to "the graves of my ancestors." I examined Black's Universal
Atlas to locate Dedham, but it was not to be found. I made inquiries,
but could discover no one who knew anything about Dedham, and
concluded there was no such place, although I had often read of
it. I was compelled, therefore, to give up my visit.
Senator Hoar, a descendant, through his mother, of Roger Sherman
of Revolutionary fame, was more fortunate or more persistent than
I, for he subsequently found Dedham and verified the accounts we
had of our common ancestor, and procured photographs, copies of
which I have, of the monument of Edmond Sherman, of the church near
which he was buried, and of the handsome school building, still
called "the Sherman Library," that he had left by his will for the
youth of Dedham, with a sufficient annuity to support it. Dedham
is but two or three miles from Manningtree, a more modern town on
the line of railroad, which has substantially obscured the ancient
and decayed village of Dedham.
The sexton of this church wrote General Sherman soon after he had
become distinguished as a military leader, calling his attention
to the neglected monument of his ancestor, Edmond Sherman, in the
churchyard, and asking a contribution for its repair. The general
sent a reply to the effect that, as his ancestor in England had
reposed in peace under a monument for more than two centuries,
while some of his more recent ancestors lay in unmarked graves, he
thought it better to contribute to monuments for them here and
leave to his English cousins the care of the monuments of their
common ancestors in England. This letter is highly prized by the
sexton and has been shown to visitors, among others to Senator
Hoar, as a characteristic memento of General Sherman.
Captain John Sherman, "Captain John," soon after his arrival in
Boston, settled in Watertown, Mass., where he married and had a
large family of children. Among his descendants was Roger Sherman
of the Revolution, by far the most distinguished man of the name.
He had the good fortune to contribute to and sign the three most
important papers of American history, the "Address to the King,"
the "Declaration of Independence" and the "Constitution of the
United States." Among other descendants of Captain John Sherman
were Hon. Roger Minot Sherman, of New Haven, a nephew of Roger
Sherman, a distinguished lawyer and a leading participant in the
Hartford Convention. William M. Evarts, George F. Hoar and Chauncey
M. Depew are descendants of Roger Sherman or of his brother.
Rev. John Sherman, the eldest son of Edmond Sherman, was born on
the 26th of December, 1613, at Dedham, England. He graduated at
Immanuel College, Cambridge, left college a Puritan and came over
to America in 1634, as above stated. He preached his first sermon
at Watertown, Massachusetts, under a tree, soon after his arrival
in this country. In a few weeks he went to New Haven, Connecticut,
and preached in several places, but finally settled at Watertown,
where he had a large family of children. His numerous descendants
are well distributed throughout the United States, but most of them
in the State of New York.
Samuel Sherman, the youngest son of Edmond Sherman, is the ancestor
of the family to which I belong. At the age of sixteen years he
came with his brother, Rev. John and his cousin "Captain John," in
April, 1634, in the ship "Elizabeth" from Ipswich, and arrived in
Boston in June, and for a time settled in Watertown, Massachusetts.
He afterward moved to Weathersfield, Connecticut, thence to Stamford
and thence to Stratford.
In Cothron's "History of Ancient Woodbury" there are found full
details of the life of Samuel Sherman and his numerous descendants
to the present generation. Of Samuel Sherman Mr. Cothron says:
"He was from Dedham, Essex county, England, came to this country
in 1634, and previous to the date of the new plantation, at Woodbury,
had been a leading man in the colony of Connecticut. He had assisted
in the settlement of several other towns in the colony, and now
undertook the same for Woodbury. He had been a member of the Court
of Assistants, or Upper House of the General Court, and Supreme
Judicial Tribunal, for five or six years from 1663, and held various
offices and appointments of honor and trust. He is referred to in
ancient deeds and documents as the 'Worshipful Mr. Sherman.' In
1676 he was one of the commission for Stratford and Woodbury."
The order of succession of the descendants of Samuel Sherman, the
ancestor of the family to which I belong, is as follows:
1. John Sherman, the fifth child of Samuel Sherman, was born at
Stratford, Conn., February 8, 1650. He early moved to Woodbury.
He died December 13, 1730.
2. John Sherman 2nd, the fifth child of John, was baptized June,
1687. He married Hachaliah Preston, July 22, 1714. He died 1727.
3. Daniel Sherman, the third child of John 2nd, was born August
14, 1721, and died July 2, 1799.
4. Taylor Sherman, the sixth child of Daniel, was born in 1758.
He married Elizabeth Stoddard in 1787, and died in Connecticut May
15, 1815. His widow died at Mansfield, Ohio, August 1, 1848.
5. Charles Robert Sherman, the eldest child of Taylor, was born
September 26, 1788, married Mary Hoyt, of Norwalk, Conn., May 8,
1810. He died on the 24th of June, 1829. His widow died at
Mansfield, Ohio, September 23, 1852. The had eleven children, six
sons and five daughters, all of whom lived to maturity. I am the
eighth child of this family.
The names and dates of the birth of the children of my parents are
as follows:
Charles Taylor Sherman . . . . . February 3, 1811.
Mary Elizabeth Sherman . . . . . April 21, 1812.
James Sherman . . . . . . . . . December 10, 1814.
Amelia Sherman . . . . . . . . . February 11, 1816.
Julia Ann Sherman . . . . . . . July 24, 1818.
William Tecumseh Sherman . . . . February 8, 1820.
Lampson Parker Sherman . . . . . October 31, 1821.
John Sherman . . . . . . . . . . May 10, 1823.
Susan Denman Sherman . . . . . . October 10, 1825.
Hoyt Sherman . . . . . . . . . . November 1, 1827.
Fanny Beecher Sherman . . . . . May 3, 1829.
Mr. Cothron, in his "History of Ancient Woodbury," after referring
to Samuel Sherman, makes this reference to his son John:
"The fame of his son John is particularly the property of the town.
He was distinguished, not only at home, but also in the colony.
He was Justice of the Quorum, or Associate County Judge, for forty-
four years from 1684; a Representative of the town for seventeen
sessions, and Speaker of the Lower House in May and October, 1711,
and Captain in the Militia, a high honor in those days. He was
the first Judge of Probate for the District of Woodbury, from its
organization in 1719, for nine years. The District them comprised
all of Litchfield county, and Woodbury in New Haven county. He
was an assistant, or member of the Upper House, for ten years from
1713."
John Sherman 2nd, does not seem to have taken any active part in
public affairs, and died before his father, at the age of forty.
His son Daniel, who lived to the age of eighty, covering the period
of the Indian wars, the French Canadian war, and the war of the
Revolution, took an active part in all the great events of that
period. Mr. Cothron says of him:
"Judge Daniel Sherman was perhaps the most distinguished man that
had arisen in the town previous to his day. He was a descendant
of Samuel Sherman, of Stratford, Connecticut, who emigrated to this
country from England, in company with his brother, Rev. John Sherman,
and his nephew, Captain John Sherman, ancestor of Hon. Roger Sherman.
He was a Justice of the Quorum for twenty-five years, and Judge of
the Litchfield County Court five years from 1786. For sixteen
years he was Probate Clerk for the District of Woodbury, and Judge
of that District thirty-seven years. He represented his native
town in the General Assembly sixty-five semi-annual sessions,
retaining the unbounded confidence of his fellow citizens. This
was by far the longest period of time anyone has ever represented
the town. He was a man of commanding powers of mind, of sterling
integrity, and every way qualified for the various public trusts
confided to this care. He died at a good old age, full of honor,
and was followed by the affectionate recollections of the inhabitants
of the town, among whom he had so long lived."
No portion of the people of the United States took a more decisive
part in the Revolutionary contest of 1775 than those of Connecticut.
The people of Woodbury caught the prevailing spirit, and, as early
as September 20, 1774, had a public meeting and made patriotic
resolves, and entered into associations for defense. Daniel Sherman,
then fifty-four years old, presided at this meeting and was appointed
president of the association of the delegates. Among other duties
they were to perform, was to ascertain whether any persons within
the limits of the town were hostile to the objects of the association,
and in that case they, using the spelling of the time, were to
"Cause the truth of the case to be published in the Gazette, to
the End that all such foes to ye Rights of British americai may be
publikly known and universially Comtemned as enemies to american
Liberty and thensforth we Do bind ourselves to break off all Dealings
With Such Persons and also will all Persons in other Towns and
Citys who shall be found Guilty as above Expressed, and that it
shall be ye Duty and Business of the sd Comtee to Receive and
Communicate all Such intelligence as they shall judge to be conducive
to ye Peace and Tranquility of this and the Neighboring Colonies;
this meeting presents their most thankfull acknowledgments to those
truly Honourable and Worthy Gentlemen members of ye Congress who
have Shewn themselves able advocates of the civil and Religious
liberty of the american Colonys.
"Voated, that the doings of this meeting be Recorded by the Town
Clerk, and a Copy thereof be forthwith sent to one of the printers
of the Connecticut Journal to be published accordingly. The Whole
of the above Written as voated in said Meeting."
He was a member of the "Committee of Inspection" of thirty, appointed
at the beginning of the war. On the 12th of April, 1784, they
resolved as follows:
"Voted, that those persons who joined the enemies of the United
States in the course of the late Civil war of what description
soever are denyed a residence in this Town from this date until
the Genll Assembly shall grant them full liberty for that purpose."
At a meeting held on the 3d of April, 1777, at which Daniel Sherman
was the Moderator, it was:
"Voated, that Each Able Bodied Effective man, who hath or shall
voluntarily Inlist into the Continental Army in such way and Manner
toward makeing the Quota of this Town for the space of Three years,
or during the war shall be Intitled to Receive out of the publick
Treasury of the Town the sum of Twenty Shillings Lawful money, as
an Addition to Each month's Wages he shall continue in the service,
to be paid to him, or to his order, at the End of Each six month's
service."
This was kept up during the war. Provision was made for a Council
of Safety, appointed annually by the Assembly, of from nine to
fourteen of the most distinguished men in the state, to aid the
governor in the organization and conduct of troops, of which Daniel
Sherman, his cousin Roger Sherman, Benjamin Huntington, and other
distinguished men were members. This committee was frequently in
session and the most responsible, arduous and difficult details of
the service were confided to its care. It was shown that during
the war Daniel Sherman contributed provisions to soldier's families
to the value of 2,718 pounds, 7 shillings and 8 pence. It would
seem from the following anecdote told of Daniel Sherman, that some
of his neighbors thought he had enjoyed his full share of honor:
"Mr. Sherman was a representative at the May session of the General
Assembly in 1791, and, it is related, desired to be elected to the
October session of the same year, in order to make the full number
of thirty-three years that he would have then represented the town.
But at the time of the election for the October session, the
Moderator of the meeting happened to think that he had his share
of honors, and when he made proclamation that the ballot-box was
open for the reception of votes, remarked in a loud tone of voice,
'Gentlemen, the box is now open; you will please to bring in your
ballots for him whom you _will have_ for your first representative
--_Honorable Daniel Sherman, of course!_ This simple incident gave
a change to the popular current, and on counting the votes it was
found that Honorable Nathaniel Smith was elected, instead of Mr.
Sherman."
Taylor Sherman, my grandfather, the son of Judge Daniel Sherman,
was born in 1758. He was married in 1787 to Elizabeth Stoddard
and removed to Norwalk, Connecticut, where he lived during the
remainder of his life. He died on the 15th of May, 1815.
My grandmother was born at Woodbury, Connecticut, on the 14th of
June, 1767. She lived to a good old age and died at Mansfield,
Ohio, on the 1st of August, 1848. She was a remarkable woman in
many respects, a Puritan of the strictest faith, of large mold,
being nearly six feet tall, and well proportioned. She was a
granddaughter of Rev. Anthony Stoddard, a man whose history strikingly
presents the peculiar characteristics of life in Connecticut during
the 18th century. The contract between the church and town of
Woodbury and Mr. Stoddard, for employment as pastor, commences as
follows:
"At a lawfull Towns-meeting ye 13th of August, 1700, in ordr to ye
settling of ye Reverend mr. Anthony Stoddard amongst us, in ye work
of ye ministry. And for his encouragement so to do;
"It was voted and agreed to allow him, as Maytenance in ye Work of
ye Ministry, seventy pounds per Anuu, in provision pay, or to his
Satisfaction, in Case of Faylure of provision pay. By provision
pay, is intended, whet, pease, indian corn & pork, proportionally:
Also fire wood:
"We do also promise, to build him an house here in Woodberry of
known Demensions; yt is to say, the Carpetners work & Masons work;
hee providing nayles and glass; by building ye sd house is intended,
doors, floures, fitting up and playstering and partitions, finishing
it, as also a well."
Then follow many other mutual stipulations, to which was added a
supplemental agreement as follows:
"Since wch time at a Lawfull Towns-meeting ye 25th of Novembr,
1700, It was Voted and agreedyt ye abovesd specices for mr Stoddard's
yearly maytenance bee levyed at ye prices following: Wheat at 4s
6d per Bush: pork at 3d pr lb: Indian Corn 2s 6d per Bush: Pease
three shillings per Bushll: And these prices for this yeare ye
Town will not vary from for ye future Exterordinary providences
interposing being exceapted.
"Recorded from ye originalls pr Jon Minor, Recorder, March, 1700-
1701."
Under this contract Mr. Stoddard served his congregation for sixty
years, and died September 7, 1760, in his eighty-third year, and
the sixty-first of his ministry. He was educated at Harvard College
and graduated in 1679. Mr. Cothron, in 1872, says of him:
"He was at the same time minister, lawyer and physician. Like many
of the early ministers of the colony, he prepared himself for the
practice of physic, that he might administer to the wants of the
body, as well as those of the mind. In this capacity he was often
called. The only person the author has found who ever saw him,
was Deacon Amos Squire, of Roxbury, who died two or three years
ago, aged ninety-nine, and who recollected having seen him when a
lad about eight years of age, while on a visit in this capacity to
his father, who had received a severe wound from an ax. He had
also done what other ministers did not, and that was to perfect
himself in legal knowledge."
It must be remembered that the pastor of a church in those days
was in quite a different position than one now, when the constitution
guarantees to every one liberty to worship God according to the
dictates of his conscience. The Congregational mode of worship
was then adopted and established by law in Connecticut, but it was
provided that all sober orthodox persons dissenting therefrom
should, on representing it to the General Court, be allowed to
worship in their own way. Such a privilege, however, was regarded
with distrust. Our fathers who desired religious freedom and
periled all for it in the wilderness, had not anticipated that they
would speedily have an opportunity to extend that toleration to
others which in the fatherland they had in vain sought for themselves.
The town church was, therefore, in substance, the only church, and
the preacher was the autocrat of the place.
Mr. Stoddard was not only a preacher, lawyer and doctor, but he
was also a fighter. In 1707 an expedition was made by the French
and Indians against New England, which created general alarm
throughout the country. Woodbury was exposed to the raids made by
the Indians, and suspicions were entertained that the neighboring
tribes would join the French and Indians in their foray. During
the continuance of this war, on one Sabbath evening, after the
conclusion of the services at church, while he was walking in his
garden, he discovered an Indian skulking among the surrounding
trees and bushes. Apparently without noticing the movements of
the Indian, he contrived to re-enter his house, and obtained his
gun. After playing the same game of skulking with his adversary
for a while, Mr. Stoddard got a fair view of him, discharged his
piece, and the Indian fell among the bushes. He dared not investigate
farther that night, but having quietly given the alarm, the
inhabitants sought their palisaded houses for the night. Early in
the morning he discovered another red foe, in the vicinity of his
companion, and whom he also laid low with his musket. By this time
the people had assembled, and after the country was scoured in all
directions for several hours, and no other savages were found, the
alarm subsided.
Before leaving my Woodbury ancestors, who resided there nearly one
hundred and fifty years, I wish to relate my first visit to Woodbury.
I was at West Point, as one of the Board of Visitors, one Saturday
in June, 1873, when I concluded to respond to an invitation I had
received, and go to Woodbury and spend the Sabbath there. I did
so and found, as I had anticipated, beautiful valleys with picturesque
hills, a rural air and a quiet, peaceful, Sunday outlook. I knew
no one except Hon. William Cothron, and him only by correspondence.
I believe he was superintendent of the Sunday school; but, at all
events, upon my presenting myself, and stating my desire to explore
Woodbury, he kindly consented, and went with me. I located many
of the most interesting objects in the town. The large, well-built
stone house of Daniel Sherman was still standing, made after the
usual pattern, two stories high with a lean-to roof in the rear,
and with low ceilings. He had lived there during most of his active
life, and had entertained Washington and Lafayette, when they at
different times visited the French vessels at Newport. The fortified
house of Rev. Anthony Stoddard was in a good state of preservation,
with its projecting eaves and loop holes for defense. We visited
the old church and graveyard, and drove southward to what were
called the "Sherman settlements." Evidently the comparatively few
families in Woodbury were in a state of comfort as they were found
to be living in good houses and drawing, no doubt, an income from
investments in the great and growing West.
On that quiet Sabbath day the village of Woodbury recalled to me
Mr. John H. Bryant's description of his native village:
"There lies a village in a peaceful vale,
With sloping hills and waving woods around,
Fenced from the blasts. There never ruder gale
Bows the tall grass that covers all the ground;
And planted shrubs are there, and cherish'd flowers,
And a bright verdure born of gentle showers."
Subsequently I again visited Woodbury with General Sherman. Mr.
Cothron was still there and was very kind to us. It seemed to me
that the old place had run down a little, that the walks were not
so clean, the grass was not as fresh in the fields, and evidently
the graveyards had lost some of their monuments, but a prominent
one had been erected in the churchyard to Rev. Anthony Stoddard,
to which General Sherman had contributed. We heard of no one of
our name in Woodbury, but when General Sherman saw an old sign,
"Sherman's Tannery," he said that he believed he had at last found
some tangible evidence of the residence of our fathers in Woodbury;
that Sherman had been a good honest tanner no doubt, and that was
the most that could be said of any one.
As I have said, my grandfather, Taylor Sherman, and his wife,
Elizabeth Stoddard, moved from Woodbury to Norwalk, where he
practiced his profession as a lawyer. He attained a good position
as such, and for many years he was a Judge of Probate. He became
early associated with the proprietors of the half million acres of
land lying in the western part of the Western Reserve in Ohio,
called "Sufferers' Land."
In the period immediately before and after the adoption of the
constitution several of the states laid claim to western lands,
founded upon grants by James I, the chief of which were the claims
of Virginia to the region north and west of the Ohio River, and
the claim of Connecticut to all the land lying west of Pennsylvania
to the South Seas and north of the 41st parallel of latitude.
These claims were finally compromised by Congress granting to
Virginia all the land lying between the Scioto and the Miami Rivers
in Ohio, and to Connecticut the land in Ohio north of the 41st
parallel, extending westward of Pennsylvania one hundred and twenty
miles.
During the Revolutionary War the coasts of Connecticut had been
subjected to several raids by the British and Tories, and several
towns, including Norwalk, Greenwich, Fairfield, Danbury, New Haven
and New London, had been burned. Indemnity had been proposed, but
the state was in no condition to pay such losses.
In the year 1800, the State of Connecticut granted to her citizens,
who were sufferers by fire during the Revolutionary War, a half
million acres of land, lying within the State of Ohio, which was
to be taken off the west part of what was called the "Western
Connecticut Reserve," now embraced in the counties of Huron and
Erie. By an act of the legislature of the State of Ohio, passed
in 1803, the sufferers were incorporated under the name of "The
proprietors of the half million acres of land, lying south of Lake
Erie, called 'Sufferers' Land.'" The affairs of this company, by
that act, were to be managed by a Board of Directors which, among
other things, was authorized to locate and survey said half million
acres of land, and partition it among the different claimants.
On the first day of November, 1805, Taylor Sherman was appointed
by the Board of Directors an agent to survey the above tract of
land, and, on the 16th day of December, of the same year, he entered
into a contract with John McLane and James Clarke, Jr., to survey,
or have surveyed, said tract. Taylor Sherman visited the fire
lands, and fully performed the duty imposed upon him. He also
purchased a considerable tract of this land in Sherman township,
Huron county, which was the foundation of the little fortune which
he left to his widow and children.
The whole of the Western Reserve, especially the western part of
it, was at that time in the possession of the Indians, who soon
afterwards engaged in open warfare with the white settlers. Surveys,
especially along the shores of Lake Erie, were extremely difficult,
owing to extensive bayous and swamps, but the surveys were made
where practicable, and where lines could not be run, straight lines
were drawn on the map, and the contents estimated. This gave rise
to long litigation, one case being reported in the 13th Volume of
Ohio Supreme Court Reports.
The gift of Connecticut to the sufferers was a wise and liberal
one, and after the War of 1812 it led to the migration to the
counties of Huron and Erie of a great number of persons from the
towns of Norwalk, Greenwich, Danbury, New Haven and New London.
The losses of the sufferers in these different towns had been
carefully examined and stated, and the sufferers were allowed land
in proportion to their losses. The formidable list of these
sufferers is a striking proof of the savage and destructive manner
in which the Revolutionary War was conducted by the British troops.
The whole Western Reserve at the beginning of the 19th century was
a wilderness, with not a single white inhabitant. The census of
1820, however, showed that it then contained a population of 58,608,
while that of 1890 showed a population of 678,561. Of these a
larger number and proportion were descendants of Connecticut parents
than are most inhabitants of that state. The industries, commerce,
wealth and intelligence of this region are not excelled by any
community of the same size anywhere else in the country.
As an illustration of the condition of this region in 1812, it may
be worth while to here record a truthful anecdote of Daniel Sherman,
the son of Taylor Sherman, and whom we knew as "Uncle Dan." In
the spring of 1812, when twenty-two years of age, he was sent by
his father to make improvements on his land in Huron county, by
building a log cabin and opening a clearing. He had with him a
hired man of the name of John Chapman, who was sent to Milan, twelve
miles away, to get a grist of corn ground, it being the nearest
and only mill in the county. Either on the way there, or while
returning, Chapman was killed by the Indians. Uncle Dan did not
hear of this until the next day, when, with a knapsack on his back,
he started for Mansfield, forty miles away. For thirty miles there
was a dense and unbroken forest without a settler. He arrived at
a blockhouse, six miles from Mansfield, but concluded that was not
strong enough to protect him. He then went to Mansfield, where
they had a better blockhouse, but he heard so many stories of
Indians that he did not feel safe there, and walked thence to his
brother's house in Lancaster, about seventy-five miles away, through
an almost continuous forest.
In November, 1813, Taylor Sherman was appointed, by President
Madison, Collector of Internal Revenue for the Second District of
Connecticut. He enjoyed the office but a short time and died, as
already stated, on the 15th day of May, 1815.
A sketch of my mother and father will throw some light upon the
lives of their children, but it is a delicate task to write of
one's parents. As I was but six years old when my father died I
have only a dim recollection of him, but materials for an interesting
sketch of his brief but active career are abundant. I know of no
citizen of Ohio of whom more anecdotes have been told, or whose
general and social life has been more highly appreciated, or whose
popularity has been more marked, than that of my father. During
the early years of my life at the bar I met many of the older
lawyers, contemporary with my father, and they all spoke of him in
the highest praise, and generally had some incident to tell of him
that happened in the days of the "Stirrup Court."
Charles Robert Sherman, my father, was born in Norwalk, Connecticut,
September 26, 1788, the eldest son of Judge Taylor Sherman and
Elizabeth Stoddard. He received the best educational advantages
of his day, and, when fully prepared, commenced the study of law
in the associated offices of his father and the Hon. Judge Chapman.
He was admitted to the bar in 1810, and on May 8, of that year,
married Mary Hoyt, also of Norwalk, who had grown up with him from
childhood. He could not go into the northern part where his father's
land lay, as it was then roamed over by hostile Indians, but followed
the usual route to Ohio by Pittsburg and Wheeling to Zanesville.
He located at Lancaster, but returned to Norwalk, Connecticut, in
the fall of 1810. In 1811 he returned to Lancaster, accompanied
by his wife. Ohio was then a frontier state, and in large portions
of its territory an unbroken wilderness. The way to it from their
New England home was far and weary, beset with many hardships and
exposed to great dangers. My father and mother were obliged to
journey the greater part of this distance on horseback, alternately
carrying their infant child upon a pillow before them. I only
advert to these incidents as they illustrate the self-reliant
character of the man, and the brave, confiding trust of his wife.
The little boy they carried upon the pillow, then their only son,
was Charles Taylor Sherman.
Soon after their arrival in Lancaster my father took a leading part
in the measures of defense against the British and Indians. I find
in an old and weather-beaten newspaper of Lancaster, Ohio, called
the "Independent Press," that on the 16th of April, 1812, at a
meeting of the first regiment of the first brigade of the third
division of the militia of Ohio, assembled at Lancaster for the
purpose of raising a company of volunteers to march immediately to
Detroit, my father, then major of that regiment, made a very
effective address to the regiment, the result of which was the
voluntary enlistment of the company required from Fairfield county.
He was then twenty-four years of age, and as this address is short,
and is the best evidence of his mental qualities, and of the standing
he had so early attained among the hardy settlers of that section,
mostly from Pennsylvania, I here insert a portion of it:
"_Fellow Soldiers:_--The crisis has arrived in which your country
calls upon you, her constitutional guardians, to rally round her
standard and to defend her rights and liberties--you are this day
assembled to declare whether you will voluntarily answer this call
or not. Fellow soldiers, the general of brigade and at whose
command and in whose name I now address you, cannot help but believe
that in this regiment which he once had the honor, personally, to
command, those choice spirits are to be found, that will not for
a moment hesitate to come forward and give the answer to their
country's call.
"You are not called upon to guard a tyrant's throne, or to enslave
a nation of freemen, neither are your exertions required to redress
a fancied wrong, or to revenge a supposed insult; but you are called
upon to preserve your own dwellings from the flames--your families
from destruction. Neither are you requested to go unprotected nor
unprovided;--everything that the patriot soldier could possibly
wish will be furnished you by the government--food complete and
sufficient for the necessities or conveniences of life--compensation
for your clothing,--arms of the best quality will be placed in your
hands, which will be generously given you if you do, as I know you
will, your duty.
"Should you chance to be disabled in the service, a pension will
be given you that will enable you to live in comfort and in ease;
or should the fortune of war number you with those brave and gallant
patriots that fearlessly poured out their life's blood upon the
heights of Bunker, the plains of Saratoga, or at the siege of
Yorktown--your families shall not be left unprotected or unprovided;
a generous and faithful government has promised that one hundred
and sixty acres of land shall be given to your heirs, the more than
means of existence, the means of every comfort that can render that
existence desirable.
"These, then, fellow soldiers, are the terms upon which sixty-four
of you are requested to draw your swords, shoulder your arms and
march to Detroit to defend the frontiers of your own territory.
And from these columns are there not more than this small number
that would rush upon even certain death at their country's call?
"The services required of you will not be arduous--'tis not that
you should invade the territory of a distant enemy--'tis not that
you should march far from your homes to fight battles in which you
are not, and which you do not feel yourselves, interested; but it
is to prevent the hostile foot of a foe from invading your territory
--it is to guard the sacred altar of your liberties, cemented by
the blood of your fathers, from the profanation of a tyrant's
polluting touch--it is to guard your dwellings, your friends, your
families, your all, from the desolating warfare of a fell savage
foe--it is that the midnight and sleeping couch of our infants may
not be awakened to death by the tremendous yell of an Indian warwhoop
--it is that the gray hairs of our fathers may not become the bloody
trophies of a cruel and insidious foe. Cruelty and a thirst for
blood are the inmates of an Indian's bosom, and in the neighborhood
of two contending powers they are never peaceful. If the strong
hand of power does not bend them down they will raise the tomahawk
and bare the scalping knife for deeds of blood and horror: The
purity of female innocence, the decrepitude of age, the tenderness
of infancy afford no security against the murderous steel of a
hostile Indian: to guard against the probable incursions of bands
of these murderers, I will not call them by the dignified name of
warriors, are you called upon to arm: and who in such a cause would
refuse to march or to bleed? And who would refuse to protect the
scattered settlements on our frontiers--the humble cottage and its
peaceful inhabitants?--Who would refuse to guard our fields from
desolation, our villages from destruction, or our towns from ruin?
--None, in whom there is a spark of patriot valor.
"But, fellow soldiers, you may be called upon the meet the legions
of Great Britain; every appearance indicates a state of approaching
hostilities--year after year has insult been added to insult--injury
has followed injury with rapid strides, and every breeze comes
laden with its tale of wrongs, and while we have borne their injuries
and their insults our government has endeavored, but in vain, to
reconcile our differences by amicable negotiation.
"The cup of our wrongs is full, and the voice of an indignant people
demands redress and revenge by every means in our power; 'tis that
voice that calls upon you to arm and meet the hosts of England.
"Do you fear the event of the contest? Call but to mind the period
of '76, without a government, without friends, without armies,
without men, without money, our fathers dared to resist her
aggressions upon our liberties; she determined to enslave us, and
a hardy band of freemen resolved on death rather than slavery,
encountered and conquered her boasted legions, established our
independence and left it as their richest legacy for us to maintain:
and do we, their sons, possessing all the advantages that we could
wish, all that they were deprived of, do we fear the contest when
half the world is confederate against her? Where is the spirit of
our fathers that urged them to battle and to victory? Is there no
latent spark of patriot ardor that the wrongs and indignities of
our country will kindle into a flame? Is there no thirst in our
bosoms for glory? Is it nothing for your names to be enrolled on
the list of fame? Does it rouse no generous and noble feelings in
your breasts to be a guardian shield and avenging sword to your
country? Are the grateful thanks of your countrymen and posterity
no inducement to valorous acts?
"Go then, fellow soldiers, assist to shield your country from the
destruction of an internal warfare, awake to honor and to glory,
rouse the native courage of an American freeman and march to deeds
of valor!
"Let the wings of fame come laden with the tale of your honors,
and bring joy to your mothers' hearts, and the pride of valorous
deeds to your fathers' bosoms; then shall your country reward and
bless you--posterity shall venerate your names, the world shall
own you as the constituent guardians of liberty and the bulwark of
your nation's freedom!"
I presume the soldiers enlisted at Lancaster were a part of the
army infamously surrendered by General Hull on the 16th of August,
1812. This event opened up the whole of the then western states
and territories to the inroads of the British and Indians, but was
brilliantly compensated by the splendid victory of Commodore Perry
at the battle of Lake Erie, on the 10th of September, 1813, in
which he destroyed the British fleet and announced his victory in
the stirring words, "We have met the enemy, and they are ours!"
This was followed by the complete triumph of General Harrison in
the battle of the Thames, October 5, 1813, in which Tecumseh was
killed, and the power of the British and Indians in that portion
of the field of operations practically destroyed.
My father was appointed by Mr. Madison, on the 9th of November,
1813, as Collector of Internal Revenue for the Third District of
Ohio. He was then engaged in the active practice of his profession.
He was required to employ deputies in each of the counties of
Fairfield, Pickaway, Madison, Franklin, Delaware, and Knox to
collect internal revenue taxes, when assessed. He took great care
in the selection of his deputies, and in all cases required bonds,
with security, from each deputy. At this period the only money in
Ohio was local bank paper money. No silver or gold coins could be
had, and the purchasing power of notes varied with the success or
defeat of our armies in the field. Internal taxes were imposed on
distilled spirits, on the retailing of spirits, on salt, sugar,
carriages, sales at auction, a stamp duty of one per cent. on bank
notes, on all notes discounted by a bank, and on inland bills of
exchange.
It is clearly shown by the papers on file in the treasury department
that Mr. Sherman exercised the utmost care in the collection of
these taxes through his deputies. No difficulty seems to have
occurred until July, 1817, when the government, without previous
notice, refused to take the paper then in circulation in Ohio, but
demanded notes of the Bank of the United States, or its branches,
one of which was located at Chillicothe. This left upon the hands
of his deputies a large amount of money that soon became utterly
worthless. The system of local banking failed and the loss fell
upon the holders of notes, and, largely, upon the collectors of
internal revenue and their deputies. Among my father's deputies
the principal one seems to have been Peter Apple, of Pickaway
county, who at the time of his appointment held a county office,
was postmaster, and a justice of the peace. He was a leading man,
of high character and standing, and supposed to be of considerable
wealth. In 1817 he became embarrassed and insolvent, and was
removed from his position as deputy. His bonds proved worthless,
and the whole loss and liability fell upon my father. This, with
other losses occurring through the failure of other deputies, was
the most unfortunate event of his life. His correspondence with
the Internal Revenue Bureau shows that he exercised the utmost care
in keeping and reporting his accounts, and the difficulties and
losses he sustained in converting local bills into such notes as
the government would receive in payment of taxes. It is clearly
shown that the loss was not caused by any failure or neglect on
his part. In like circumstances, under the existing law, Congress
has, in all cases where due diligence on the part of the collector
has been proven, relieved the collector. My father declined to
make any appeal for such relief, but applied the proceeds of all
his property, and a large part of his earnings, to make good, as
far as he could, the defalcations of his deputies. This loss was
a great embarrassment for him and his family during his life. It
did not affect his standing, either at home or with the government,
but it deprived him of many comforts, and his family of advantages
and opportunities for education which they otherwise would have had.
In the spring of 1815 my father was notified of the illness of his
father in Norwalk, and immediately went to Connecticut, but, owing
to the nature of the long journey, did not arrive until after his
father's death. The will of Taylor Sherman gave to his wife, and
daughter Elizabeth, all his real and personal estate in the State
of Connecticut, subject to the payment of his debts, which were
very small. He bequeathed to his two sons, Charles Sherman and
Daniel Sherman, ceratin lands in the town of Sherman, county of
Huron, Ohio, being part of the "Sufferers' Lands." The remainder
of his property lying in the State of Ohio he gave equally to his
wife and children. The estate was soon settled, and in the following
year, 1816, my grandmother and her daughter, Elizabeth, moved to
Ohio and became a part of the family of my father.
Under the old constitution of Ohio prior to 1850, the Supreme Court
was composed of four judges. They met at Columbus in the winter
to hold the court of last resort, but at other seasons they divided
into circuit courts composed of two judges, and went from county
to county attended by a bevy of the leading lawyers of the state,
all mounted on horseback and always ready for fun or frolic. I
gladly acknowledge that I have received many a kindness, and much
aid in business as well as political and social life, from the
kindly memory of my father. I shrink from writing of his personal
traits and genial nature, but insert, instead, brief extracts from
a sketch of him written, in 1872, as a part of a local history of
Fairfield county, Ohio, by General William J. Reese, who knew him
intimately. General Reese says:
"Established permanently at Lancaster in the prosecution of his
profession, the subject of this sketch rapidly rose to eminence as
a polished and eloquent advocate, and as a judicious, reliable
counsellor at law--indeed, in the elements of mind necessary to
build up and sustain such a reputation, few men were his equals,
and fewer still his superiors, in the State of Ohio or out of it.
But it was not only in the higher region of legal attainments that
he gained superiority; his mind was enriched with choice classic
cultivation also.
"Judge Sherman not only mastered the intricacies of Coke and
Littleton, but, as I have stated, he made himself familiar with
whatever was worthy of reading outside the books of law, and was
therefore fitted to shine in the domain of general literature as
well as in the realm of technical jurisprudence.
"During the pioneer years of Ohio its lawyers were obliged to
perform extensive circuits to practice their profession; they were
accustomed to accompany the courts from county to county, and in
this way to traverse an extent of country which, being uncalled
for at present, would appear fabulous in statement and difficult
to realize.
"Those early days also commemorated the warmest personal friendships
in the profession, and, indeed, this could hardly have been otherwise,
as they compelled its members into the closest habitual companionship.
They rode together in the same primitive style, their saddle-bags
stuffed with papers, documents, briefs, law-books, clothing, and,
peradventure, some creature delectation also. They were exposed
in common to the same inclemencies and impediments of travel, they
lodged together at the same inns or taverns, messed at the same
table, slept in the same rooms, and were not unfrequently coerced
by twos into the same bed. Free, jovial, genial, manly, and happy
times they were, when, after a hard-fought field-day of professional
antagonisms in court, the evening hours were crowded with social
amenities, and winged with wit and merriment, with pathos, sentiment
and song.
"If the sayings and doings at the festive evenings of the early
Ohio bar could be collected, there would be materials in rich
abundance from which a sympathetic and facile pen could compile a
volume of equal piquancy and sentimental refinement of patriotic
detail and humor, that alternate the pages of Sir Jonah Barrington,
or any other winsome work of the kind. This will not be questioned
for a moment when it is remembered that Henry Clay, Lewis Cass,
Philip Doddridge, Willis Silliman, David K. Este, and Charles
Hammond were frequent participants; that Philoman Beecher, William
W. Irvin, Thomas Ewing, William Stanberry, Benjamin Tappan, John
M. Goodenow, Jacob Parker, Orris Parrish, and Charles Goddard
habitually contributed to their entertainment, and that these were
often signalized with the hilarious fun of Creighton and the quaint
drolleries of Douglas. At these symposiums of recreation, and they
were held whenever the courts used to meet, Charles R. Sherman was
always the most welcome of companions, and contributed his full
share even to the ambrosial feasts,
'When all such clustering portions had
As made their frolic wild, not mad.'
"Thus endowed and so associated, he became a leading and a popular
people's lawyer, from the Ohio River to our northern lake.
"In 1823 he was elected by the legislature to the bench of the
Supreme Court of Ohio, and perhaps the only man in the state who
doubted his ability for this high position was himself. He told
the writer of these lines when speaking on the subject of his
appointment, that he assumed its duties with great personal diffidence
and apprehension. He feared that he lacked the ripe experience of
years necessary to hear and determine cases of magnitude in a court
of the last resort. His official associates were Calvin Pease,
Jacob Burnet, and Peter Hitchcock, and these are names of renown
in the judicial history of Ohio.
"Judge Sherman upon the bench fully realized the large expectations
of his professional friends and the public.
"His written opinions, published in 'Hammond's Reports of the
Supreme Court,' demonstrate a mind of the choicest legal capabilities.
They are clear, compact, yet comprehensive, intuitive, logical,
complete, and conclusive, and are respected by the bar and courts
in this and other states as judicial _dicta_ of the highest authority.
He won upon the bench, as he did at the bar, the affection and
confidence of his associates. They esteemed him for his gentle
and genial nature, for the brilliant flashes of his mind and the
solid strength of his judgment; above all, for the stainless
integrity of his character, as a judge and as a man.
"Under the provisions of our old constitution, the Supreme Court
was required to hold an annual term or sitting in each county of
the state, two of the judges officiating. In every court-room in
Ohio where Judge Sherman presided he made friends. His official
robes were worn by him as the customary habiliments of the man.
He was never distant, haughty, morose, austere, or overbearing on
the bench. It was not in his nature to be so anywhere, and it was
therefore always a personal pleasure to practice in his courts.
The younger members of the profession idolized him in every part
of the state; for them and their early efforts he systematically
sympathized, and he uniformly bestowed upon them the most gracious
compliment that any judge upon the bench can render to the oldest
practitioner at the bar--he gave them his interested and undivided
attention.
"He had entered upon the sixth year of his official term, was in
his manly meridian of life, in the full fruition of his matured
intellectual powers, in the plenitude of his public usefulness,
and in the enjoyment of apparent robust physical health, out upon
his circuit, and about to hold a session of the Supreme Court at
Lebanon, in Warren county, when suddenly, without any premonition,
he was struck down with a fatal malady, that was frightfully rapid
in its termination. The best medical aid was summoned from
Cincinnati; it was in vain. An express messenger was hurried to
Lancaster for Mrs. Sherman, but before she reached him her lamented
husband was dead.
"He died in Lebanon, June 24, 1829, in the 41st year of his age.
"I will not attempt to describe the outburst of public sorrow that
prevailed over this event. It was general and sincere, touching
and outspoken; but it was in Lancaster, it was here in his happy
home, which he made the home always of genial and open-hearted
hospitality--here among his neighbors and fellow-citizens of every
class and description, all of whom knew him and all of whom loved
him--that the intelligence of his death came with the most painful
and startling abruptness. They could not comprehend it. But
yesterday he was among them in perfect health, and now he is dead.
Men wept in our public streets. I do not believe he had a single
personal enemy on earth.
"Had Judge Sherman lived, higher and broader spheres of public
usefulness would have opened before him. There is no doubt whatever
that the same spontaneity of opinion that placed him upon the
supreme bench would have again united, when the vacancy happened,
to have sent him to the Senate of the United States, and those who
know him knew full well that his first prepared public utterance
in that chamber upon any pending matter of national importance
would have secured to him a brilliant national name. This is no
fancy penciling. It was conviction with his contemporaries, and
it would have been the record of history had he lived. As it is,
he has left to his children the heritage of his spotless public
reputation--of his loved and honored name.
"This fragmentary sketch would be more incomplete did I not mention
that Judge Sherman was a zealous and prominent member of the Masonic
fraternity, and that he filled its highest offices of honor in the
several grand bodies of Ohio."
General Reese, the author of this sketch, was born in Philadelphia,
Pa., on the 5th of August, 1804. He was a graduate of the University
of Pennsylvania, studied law and was admitted to practice in
Philadelphia. He then came to Ohio and was admitted to the bar in
Cincinnati and soon after settled in Lancaster. In 1829, soon
after the death of my father, he married my eldest sister, Mary
Elizabeth. He did not long pursue his profession but became a
merchant. He was prominent as a member of the board of public
works. In old militia times he was in command of the forces of
the state as its only major-general. He was grand master of the
Grand Lodge of Masons in Ohio for a series of years, and at the
same time held high rank in the Grand Lodge of the United States.
He was a handsome and accomplished gentleman, of pleasing manners
and liberal to a fault. He died on the 17th of December, 1883, at
Lancaster, in his eightieth year.
Of my mother I can scarcely write without emotion, though she died
more than forty years ago. Her maiden name was Mary Hoyt. She
was a member of a family, mostly merchants and sailors, who had
lived in Norwalk, Connecticut, since its first settlement. At the
period of the American Revolution the Hoyt family, composed of
several brothers, was divided in their allegiance, some as Tories,
some as Whigs. My mother's grandfather was a Whig. It is a
tradition in the family that one of the Tory brothers pointed out
the house of his brother, at the capture of Norwalk by the British
and Tories, as the nest of a rebel, and it was burned to the ground.
In this it shared the fate of the greater part of the town. The
Tories of the family went to St. Johns, but years after the war
was over they and their descendants returned to Connecticut and
New York, and many of them became prominent and respected citizens.
Isaac Hoyt, my grandfather, was a prominent citizen of Norwalk,
possessing considerable wealth for those days.
My mother was carefully educated at the then famous female seminary
at Poughkeepsie, New York. I remember the many embroidered pictures,
made with the needle and silk thread by the handicraft of my mother,
as a school girl, carefully framed, that decorated the old house
in Lancaster. The women of that day were trained more for the
culture and ornament of the house, more to knit stockings and weave
home spun than to make speeches on woman's rights. Soon after her
graduation she married Charles Robert Sherman, as before stated,
and their lives were blended. She sometimes rode with him when on
the circuit, and always on horseback. It was an adage in the
family, even to her grandchildren, that she was always ready for
a visit. I never knew her to scold, much less to strike, her
children. She was our sure refuge against grandmother, between
whom and my mother there was, however, the warmest affection. When
Aunt Elizabeth married Mr. Parker, grandmother followed her daughter
to their home in Mansfield.
When my mother, by the death of her husband, was left a widow with
eleven children and spare means of support, she received the sympathy
of all her neighbors and the kindly encouragement of everyone in
Lancaster. As her children scattered her resources increased, so
that after one year of widowhood she was quite independent. Like
Goldsmith's Vicar of Wakefield she was "passing rich" on four
hundred dollars a year. Soon the houses of her children were open
to her, but she clung to Lancaster until all her children had taken
flight, when, in the summer of 1844, she accepted the invitation
of her sons to make her home in Mansfield and removed there. She
had there her house and home. Her two youngest daughters, and the
writer of this, were her family, but in a very brief period all
around her were married. She still continued to occupy her home,
and always with some of her numerous grandchildren as guests. She
often visited her children, and her coming was always regarded by
them as a favor conferred by her. And so her tranquil life flowed
on until 1852, when she attended the state fair at Cleveland and
contracted a bad cold. She returned to Mansfield only to die on
the 23rd day of September, 1852, at the residence of her daughter,
Mrs. Bartley.
Before closing this sketch of my ancestors, it seems proper that
I refer to their religious beliefs and modes of worship. In England
they were classed as Puritans, and were members of the Presbyterian
church. In Connecticut they followed the doctrine and faith of
the Congregational church of Anthony Stoddard. Daniel Sherman had
his father were deacons of the congregation of Mr. Stoddard, and
his granddaughter, the wife of Taylor Sherman, carried her faith
and practice into her family, and maintained to her death the strict
morals, and close observance of the Sabbath day, that was the
established rule and practice of the Connecticut Congregationalist.
My mother's family, the Hoyts, were, with scarcely an exception,
members of the Episcopal church. My mother was reared in that
faith and practice from infancy, and was a member of that church
at the time of her marriage. When she emigrated to Lancaster she
found there no church of that denomination, and, therefore, joined
the Presbyterian church under the pastorage of Rev. John Wright,
who baptized all her children. At a later period, perhaps about
1840, when an Episcopal church was established in Lancaster, she
resumed her attendance and worship in that church. When she removed
to Mansfield she attended the Episcopal church at that place,
partook of its sacraments and usages, and died in that faith and
worship. All her living children and their families recognized
and supported the Episcopal church as their church, except the
children of General Sherman, who followed their mother and her
maternal ancestors in the faith and worship of the Catholic church.
The writer of this has a firm belief in the Bible as the only creed
of religious faith and duty, and willingly accords to every human
being the right to choose his form of worship according to his
judgment, but in case of doubt it is best to follow the teachings
of his mother.
With this, the sketch of my ancestors closes. Many will think it
is not part of my life, and that I have given too much space and
importance to it. If so, I hope they will pass it over without
reading. Each individual life is molded by one's ancestry, by the
incidents of his childhood, the training he receives in the family
and the school and the conditions and surroundings of his early
days. The boy is father to the man. It is difficult for one in
advanced age to recall or to measure the influence of each of these
in forming his character, but a statement of them is a necessary
preface to a history of his later life. My information as to my
ancestry is chiefly derived from the admirable local histories of
Connecticut, and, especially, from "Cothron's History of Ancient
Woodbury," "Hutchinson's History of Connecticut," and the local
records and traditions of Essex and Sussex counties in England.
I cannot claim for my ancestors superior rank, wealth or ability.
They were not specially distinguished for any of these, but they
were men of useful and honorable lives, of untarnished reputation,
highly esteemed by their contemporaries, thorough republicans in
the broad sense of that word, always for their country in any
contest for the right, and willing to yield equal political and
civil rights to all their countrymen of every creed and color.
CHAPTER II.
MY BOYHOOD DAYS AND EARLY LIFE.
Born at Lancaster, Ohio, May 10, 1823--Death of My Father and Its
Effect on Our Family--Early Days at School--A Dead Sheep in the
Schoolroom--Lesson in Sunday Sport--Some of My Characteristics--My
Attack on the Schoolmaster--Robbing an Orchard--A Rodman at Fourteen
and My Experiences While Surveying--Debates at Beverly--Early Use
of Liquor--First Visit to Mansfield in 1839--The Famous Campaign
of 1840--I Begin the Study of Law.
I was born at Lancaster, Ohio, on the 10th day of May, 1823, the
eighth child of Charles and Mary Sherman. My first distinct
recollection of events is connected with the scenes and incidents
that followed the death of my father on the 24th day of June, 1829.
I have a dim recollection before that time of being sent to school
with my elder brothers to keep me out of mischief, and of my father
praising me for learning the alphabet, but all other impressions
of my infancy were absorbed in the great family tragedy. We were
warned to keep quiet, and to remain out of doors, so as not to
disturb mother, who was critically ill, and, as our grandmother
was then supreme in the household, we knew that her will was law,
and that punishment invariably followed an offense. During these
enforced absences many were the wise resolves, or, rather, the
conceits, that the boys discussed for "helping mother."
But time, which mellows every misfortune, brought so many changes.
My sister, Elizabeth, was soon married to General William J. Reese.
My brother, Charles, came home a full-fledged graduate, and, as we
thought, very learned. Everybody was kind. The affairs of my
father were settled. The homestead and garden were secured to my
mother, and she had, in addition, a settled income from her father's
estate of $400 a year, while grandmother had her "fire lands," and
an assured but small income besides. In those days a little money
went a great way; but there were eleven children of us to be cared
for,--from Charles, aged eighteen, to Fanny, aged three months.
The separation of this family was imperative, but the friends of
my father were numerous, and their offerings were generous and
urgent. Charles entered the family of our cousin, Mr. Stoddard,
an old and leading lawyer in Dayton, Ohio, studied law, and in two
years was admitted to the bar. James, the next eldest brother,
accepted a clerkship in a store in Cincinnati, and from that time
paid his own way, becoming a merchant, first in Lancaster, and
later in Des Moines, Iowa. William Tecumseh was adopted into the
family of Hon. Thomas Ewing, who lived in the same square with us
in Lancaster. The two families were bound by ties and mutual aid
which were highly creditable to both. My father, Judge Sherman,
had been able to help Mr. Ewing in the beginning of his professional
career, and Mr. Ewing gratefully and generously responded. They
maintained the most intimate and cordial relations during their
lives and their families have since continued them, the bond being
strengthened by the marriage of William Tecumseh to Mr. Ewing's
daughter, Ellen. Lampson P., the fourth son, was adopted into the
family of Charles Hammond, of Cincinnati, a distinguished lawyer
of marked ability, the reporter of the Supreme Court of Ohio, and
editor and chief proprietor of the "Gazette," the leading newspaper
published in his day in Cincinnati.
While the reduction of our family was thus taking place I was kept
at school at Lancaster, where I made considerable advance in such
studies as a lad from six to eight years of age can pursue. I have
forgotten the names of my tutors. The present admirable system of
common schools in Ohio had not then been adopted, but the private
schools in Lancaster were considered very good, and most of the
boys of school age were able at little cost to get the rudiments
of an education.
In the spring of 1831, my father's cousin, John Sherman, a prosperous
merchant of Mt. Vernon, Ohio, accompanied by his bride, visited my
mother, and proposed to take me into his family and to keep me at
school until I was prepared to enter Kenyon College, five miles
from Mt. Vernon. This was a kindly offer and was gratefully
accepted. But I remember well the sadness I felt, and the tears
I shed, over the departure from home into the midst of strangers.
The old-fashioned stage coach was then the only medium of travel
and the fifty miles between Lancaster and Mt. Vernon were to me a
wearisome journey. For days after I arrived at Mt. Vernon I was
moping either at the house or at the store, but ere long became
accustomed to the change, and commenced my studies in the schools,
which, as I remember them, were admirably conducted by teachers of
marked ability, among whom were some who became distinguished in
professional and business life. One of the families that I became
intimate with was that of Mr. Norton, one of whose sons, J. Banning
Norton, who lately died in Dallas, Texas, was my constant companion.
We studied our lessons together, but frequently had quarrels and
fights. It was a "fad" of his to wear his finger-nails very long.
On one occasion I pummeled him well, but he scratched my face in
the contest. When I went home, marked in this way, I was asked
how I came to be so badly scratched and the best answer I could
make was that I had fallen on a "splintery log," and this got to
be a by-word in the school.
According to the usages of the time I was put early to the study
of Latin, which then seemed to be regarded as the necessary foundation
for an education. I must confess that during my stay in Mt. Vernon
I was rather a troublesome boy, frequently involved in controversies
with the teachers, and sometimes punished in the old-fashioned way
with the ferule and the switch, which habit I then regarded as
tyrannical and now regard as impolitic. I do not believe that the
policy of punishment adopted in the schools of those times would
be expedient to-day. It tended to foster a constant irritation
between the teacher and the pupil.
Among my school adventures at Mt. Vernon was one I heartily regret.
We had a teacher by the name of Lord. He was a small man, and not
able to cope with several of the boys in the school. We called
him "Bunty Lord." One evening after school four boys, of whom I
was one, while playing on the commons, found a dead sheep. It was
suggested that we carry the sheep into the schoolroom and place it
on Lord's seat. This was promptly done and I wrote a Latin couplet,
purporting that this was a very worthy sacrifice to a very poor
Lord, and placed it on the head of the sheep. The next morning
Lord found the sheep and made a great outcry against the indignity.
Efforts were made at once to ascertain the actors in this farce,
and proof was soon obtained. My handwriting disclosed my part in
the case, and the result was a prompt discharge of the culprits
from school; but poor Lord lost his place, because of his manifest
inability to govern his unruly pupils.
Another teacher I remember was of a very different type. This was
Matthew H. Mitchell. He was severe and dogmatic, allowing no
foolishness in his school. He was strict and impartial in his
treatment of the boys, and, though we did not like him, we respected
his power.
I had one adventure during these early boyhood days which nearly
cost me my life, and which Uncle John (as I called Mr. Sherman)
converted into a religious warning. One Sunday there was a freshet
in Owl Creek, on the south side of the town, and many people went
to see it, I among the rest. I was reckless, and, against the
advice of others, went out on a temporary foot-bridge which fell
and I dropped into the raging waters. How I escaped I hardly know,
but it was by the assistance of others. Uncle John said that I
was punished by the Almighty for violating the Sabbath. Ever after
that I was careful about Sunday sport.
I remember, while living at Uncle John's, witnessing the wedding
of his niece, Miss Leavenworth, to Columbus Delano. I sat upon
the stair steps during the ceremony, the first of the kind I ever
saw. I mention this because of my long acquaintance with Mr. Delano
and his family. He became a great lawyer and filled many offices
of high public trust, and is now (1895) living in vigorous health,
eighty-six years old. I also remember very well Henry B. Curtis
and his family. He married a sister of Mrs. Sherman of Mt. Vernon,
and had a number of children. He was a brother of Colonel Samuel
R. Curtis, distinguished in the Civil War, was an accomplished
lawyer, a careful business man, and a gentleman in every sense of
the word.
On the whole I regard my four years at Mount Vernon as well spent.
I advanced in my studies so that I could translate Latin fairly
well, I went through the primary studies, and obtained some
comprehension of algebra, geometry and kindred studies. In the
meantime the condition of our family had greatly changed and
generally improved. My sister Amelia was happily married to Robert
McComb, a merchant of Mansfield. My father's only sister was
married to Judge Parker, of Mansfield, to which place my grandmother
had followed her daughter, and my brother Charles had entered upon
his career as a lawyer in the same town.
Uncle John had a family of small children growing up and I felt I
was in the way. My mother was anxious for me to return home as
all her boys were away. I wanted to go. Uncle John, however,
expressed his desire for me to stay and enter Kenyon College, but
I knew that Mrs. Sherman preferred that I should leave as she had
her young children to care for. The result was my return to
Lancaster at the age of twelve. Mrs. Sherman is now living at
Washington, D. C., at the age of eighty-seven, with her son John.
I shall always remember with sincere gratitude her care and
forbearance manifested toward a rather wild and reckless boy at
the disagreeable age of from eight to twelve years. Affection may
make a mother bear with the torment of her own child at that age,
but will rarely induce an equal leniency toward that of another.
My return to Lancaster was a happy event in my life. I renewed my
old acquaintance with boys of my age, and was on intimate terms
with Philemon Ewing, Charles Garaghty, Frederick Reese, W. P. Rice,
W. Winthrop Sifford and others. My brother, William Tecumseh, was
three years my senior, and he and his associates of his own age
rather looked down upon their juniors. Still, I had a good deal
of intercourse with him, mainly in the way of advice on his part.
At that time he was a steady student, quiet in his manners and
easily moved by sympathy or affection. I was regarded as a wild,
reckless lad, eager in controversy and ready to fight. No one
could then anticipate that he was to be a great warrior and I a
plodding lawyer and politician. I fired my first gun over his
shoulder. He took me with him to carry the game, mostly squirrels
and pigeons. He was then destined to West Point, and was preparing
for it. To me the future was all unknown.
I entered, with all the boys referred to and many others, the
Academy of Mark and Matthew Howe, then well established, and of
great reputation,--and deservedly so. The schoolrooms were large,
and furnished with desks and chairs, an improvement upon the old
benches with boards in front. The course of studies mapped out
for me was much the same as I pursued at Mount Vernon, with a
specialty of the first six books of Euclid, and of algebra. Latin
was taught but little. From the first, arithmetic, algebra and
surveying were my favorite studies, and in those I became proficient.
We had an improvised theatre in which we acted plays and made
speeches.
When I entered the school Matthew Howe was the regulator, teacher
and dominie. He was the supreme autocrat, from whom there was no
appeal. All the boys respected him, for he certainly was a good
teacher, but they did not like his domineering way. I got along
with him pretty well for some months, but one day after I had
mastered my lessons I rested my head on my desk when I was sharply
reproved by him. I said that I did not feel very well and had
learned my lessons. He called me to the black-board and directed
me to demonstrate some problem in my lesson of Euclid. I went,
and, as I believed, had made the drawing and demonstrated the
problem. He said I had not, that I had failed to refer to a
corollary. I answered that he had not required this in previous
lessons. Some discussion arose, when, with the ferule in his hand,
he directed me to hold out mine. I did so, but as he struck my
right hand, I hit him with all the force I could command with my
left. This created great excitement in the school, all the students
being present, my brother Tecumseh among them. It was said at the
time that the boys were disposed to take sides with me, but I saw
no signs of it. The result was that I was expelled from the school,
but, by the intercession of my mother, and Mrs. Reese, after
explanations, I was restored, and during my two years with Mr. Howe
I had no other contention with him. He moved some years later to
Iowa, where he established another academy, and lived a long and
useful life. We had friendly correspondence with each other, but
neither alluded to our skirmish over a corollary in Euclid.
The pupils had the usual disposition among boys to play tricks on
each other. The academy was in a large square, the greater part
of which was an orchard of apple trees. Mr. Howe lived on the
corner of the square, some distance from the academy. The boys
were forbidden to climb the trees to shake down the fruit, but were
quite welcome to the fruit on the ground. One fall, when the apples
were ripe, the boys conspired to play a trick upon some of the
students and outsiders,--among them my brother Lampson, then on a
visit home from Cincinnati,--who were easily persuaded to rob the
orchard, none more willing than "Lamp." Those in the plot were to
watch and prevent interference. When the time came we had detailed
two or three boys in the academy to fire off muskets, well loaded
with powder and nothing else, when the signal was given. Everything
moved on according to programme. The boys detailed to shake down
the apples were in the trees, when, all at once, the firing of
musketry commenced. The boys dropped from the trees and scattered
in every direction. Some of them were caught in the pea vines of
Mr. Howe's garden, but most of them, with great labor, climbed over
the high fence around the ground and dropped on the outside "with
a thud," safe from powder! The dogs in the neighborhood lent their
aid to the outcry, and everybody was convinced that ruffians had
robbed Howe's orchard.
I suppose it will never occur that a generation of boys will not
do these things. At seventy-two I know it was wrong. At thirteen
I thought it was fun.
I now recall many pleasing memories of what occurred in the two
years "at home" at that period when the life of a boy is beginning
to open to the future. It is the period of greatest danger and
highest hope. At that time, 1835 to 1837, everybody was prosperous.
The development created by our system of canals had opened markets
for our produce. The public national debt had been paid. The pet
banks chartered after the destruction of the Bank of the United
States started upon a wild scheme of inflation. A craze to purchase
public land created an overflowing revenue. All causes combining
created a deceptive prosperity that could end only in one way.
All this was Greek to me. All I wanted, and the controlling wish
of my life, was to help mother. She was always kind, loving and
forbearing. No word of reproach ever fell from her lips to me.
She was the same to all her children, but if there was any difference,
or favor, it was for me. Even at that early age I had day dreams
for the future, and mother was the central picture. If fortunes
could be made by others why could I not make one! I wished I was
a man. It began to appear to me that I could not wait to go through
college. What were Latin and Greek to me, when they would delay
me in making my fortune!
Near the close of 1836 I wrote to my brother Charles at Mansfield,
asking him to get me employment. He discouraged me and said I
should stick to my studies, but I insisted that I was strong and
could make my own living. At this time Ohio had decided upon the
improvement of the Muskingum River from Zanesville to Marietta,
and the Board of Public Works had selected Colonel Samuel R. Curtis,
a graduate of West Point, as chief engineer. He was a brother of
Mr. Curtis, of Mount Vernon, and a friend of our family.
Charles had no difficulty in securing me employment as junior rodman
if, at the age of fourteen, I could perform the duties requed,--
which Colonel Curtis doubted. The work was not to commence until
the spring, when I was to be given a trial. I worked hard that
winter, for hard work, I thought, was the way to fortune. I studied
the mode of leveling. I saw a man on the Hocking canal operate
his instrument, take the rear sight from the level of the water in
the canal, then by a succession of levels backwards and forwards
carry his level to the objective point. Then the man was kind
enough to show me how, by simple addition and subtraction, the
result wanted could be obtained. I was well advanced in arithmetic
and in mathematics generally, and was confident, even if I was
hardly fourteen years old, that I could do the work of a junior
rodman.
About the first of May, 1837, the day of deliverance came. I was
to be my own master and make my own living! A fortune gilded with
hope was before me. I was to go in the stage thirty-six miles to
Zanesville, and thence by stage-route down the Muskingum River,
twenty-eight miles to McConnelsville. When the stage arrived at
my mother's house it was rather full, but there was still room
enough for me. All the family, and my comrades, had gathered to
see me off. My baggage, all new, was thrown into the boot, and I
took my seat in the stage. My heart sank a little as the stage
rolled over the hill and down the valley beyond, but the passengers
wanted to know who I was, where I was going, and what I was going
to do, and I think they got all the information they wanted, for
why should I not tell them of my visions of hope, sometimes called
plans! Oh! the golden dreams of childhood, the splendid anticipations
of boyhood, the fields of conquest to be won, the fortunes to be
made, all to vanish into thin air by the touch of reality.
I arrived at Zanesville long after dark, and very weary. I had
never been in so large a town before. The hotel was full of people,
but no one noticed me. I was hungry, but could only get the scraps
left, as the supper hour was past. I was to leave in the morning
at daylight without breakfast. I was shown into a small dark room,
on the third floor, and was to be called in the morning. I did
not like the place and was alone and in fear. I had more money
than ever before. Might I not be robbed? I took the precaution
to deposit my jack-knife on a chair within reach, to defend myself
in case of attack! My fears were soon lost in sleep. In the
morning I was aroused to take by place in the stage, but forgot my
knife, my only weapon of defense, and it was lost to me forever.
The bright morning revived my spirits. A hearty breakfast at
Taylorsville revived all my hopes and plans.
I arrived at McConnelsville about noon and stopped at the only
tavern in the place. I called at the headquarters of Colonel Curtis
and introduced myself to him. He received me very kindly and
introduced me to the office clerks, and to James M. Love, who, I
was told, would take me within a week to the engineer corps, then
running their levels at Beverly, sixteen miles away. I spent the
week pleasantly with him, and was intimately associated with him
during my service of two years. He subsequently studied law and
practiced his profession at Coshocton. When the Mexican War was
progressing he enlisted in one of the Ohio regiments, became a
captain, and, I think, a major, and rendered good service. He
subsequently migrated to Iowa and was appointed judge of the District
Court of the United States for that state. This position he held
for many years with distinction and honor. He died July 2, 1891.
When the time came for joining the corps Love proposed that we
start in the morning for Beverly, but I insisted that, as it was
only sixteen miles to Beverly, we could easily make the trip after
dinner. I had never walked so far as sixteen miles in my life,
but had walked or run three or four miles in an hour, and, by the
rules of arithmetic, we could easily go sixteen miles in five or
six hours. He yielded to my wishes, and, as our baggage had been
sent by the stage, we started about one o'clock, light of heart
and foot. When we had climbed the long hill south of McConnelsville,
about a mile and a half, I was a little tired, and I asked how far
we had gone; he said, "a mile and a half!" I began then to appreciate
my folly in not starting in the morning. He said nothing, but kept
at my slower pace, giving me a rest occasionally. It was sun-down
when we were six miles from Beverly, and I was completely tired
out. Still neither of us proposed to stop, as we could have done
at a farmer's house on the roadside. We reached the town of Beverly
about ten o'clock, weary and hungry. This tramp taught me a lesson
I never forgot,--not to insist upon anything I knew nothing about.
We found the corps the next day in camp in one large tent on the
east bank of the Muskingum River.
I had another experience, equally unpleasant, during our first
evening in camp. The members of our corps, five or six in number,
had been invited by Mr. Lindsley to attend a party at his house
near by. They accepted, and, as Love and I had no invitations, we
were left on guard in the tent containing the instruments and
supplies. When we were alone there came up suddenly a storm of
wind and rain,--not uncommon along the valley,--which flattened
the tent and flooded the ground on which it stood. We were thoroughly
soaked and utterly helpless, and, for a time, in real danger. I
remember my utter collapse at this new misfortune, but all we could
do was to wait and hope for the return of the corps. I must confess
that I quietly mingled my tears with the rain, but I did not tell
this to the boys when they returned after the storm was over. No
great damage was done. The tent was soon raised and secured in
place. The next morning I was given a rod and instructed how to
use it. I noticed that my associates did not have much confidence
in my ability to perform the duties, and, especially the senior
rodman, John Burwell. I followed instructions, however, and reported
my rod correctly. After a day or two they gave me a book in which
I was to enter the levels. In a very short time they were satisfied
that I could perform my duties, and I was soon trusted to make up
the record of levels, and the necessary additions and subtractions
in my book.
This little corps was composed of men, some of whom afterwards
became proficient as engineers, lawyers or preachers. Among them
were John B. Straughn, Wright Coffinberry, John Scott, John Burwell,
and James M. Love. The line of surveys were soon completed to
Marietta, the locks and dams were located, estimates of cost were
carefully made, the materials to be used were purchased and the
excavations and embankments to be made were computed. My associates
soon found that I could do the work assigned me, and in this way
I won their respect and forbearance.
After the surveys were completed, the members of the corps were
located at different places to take charge of the work. Mr.
Coffinberry was assigned to Lowell, and I was attached to him as
an assistant. John Scott, who had been at West Point, and, I think,
was a graduate, was assigned to Beverly, where a dam, lock and a
short canal were to be constructed. In the fall of 1837 he was
dismissed, I think, for intemperance. I was detailed, not exactly
to take his place, for which I was unfitted, but to look after some
details, and to keep the headquarters advised of the progress of
the work. It was soon found that I was able to measure embankments,
excavations, stone and other materials. The result was that I was
continued, at my early age, practically in charge of the work I
have mentioned. All plans came from headquarters and I was carefully
instructed from there what to do and how to do it. This was a
great and useful experience for me, and it continued until the
summer of 1839.
During most of that time I lived in the family of Mr. Paul Fearing,
an old and respected citizen of Beverly, who had long been engaged
in what was called the river trade. He transported the produce of
the country, chiefly pork, apples, wheat, and corn, from the
neighboring region on flats and scows down the Muskingum, Ohio and
Mississippi to New Orleans, stopping at the riverside towns, selling
his commodities and buying others. The boats were sold at New
Orleans for lumber. The captain and crew, generally consisting of
two men, would return by steamer with the proceeds of their traffic
in sugar, molasses and other productions of the south. This was
the early mode of traffic, but it had largely been broken up by
steamboats, so that at the time I refer to, Mr. Fearing's occupation
was gone; but he had a comfortable little fortune, and, with his
wife and only daughter, lived in a neat cottage on the banks of
the river at Beverly, where I became practically a member of his
family.
The community at Beverly was a very intelligent one, composed mainly
of settlers from Massachusetts on the Ohio Company's purchase.
The valley of the Muskingum is exceedingly fertile, but it is
comparatively narrow and confined by picturesque hills and ridges,
broken by water courses. The settlements were mostly in the valley,
for the hill lands were rough, covered by poor soil, and were
occupied chiefly for grazing. The portion of the valley at Beverly,
and south of it, was singularly fertile and pleasing, and very
valuable. Its owners and occupants were mostly of New England
birth and descent. Their productions had a ready market down the
river, and in that age, before railroads, the valley had a great
advantage in transportation and supplies over the interior parts
of the state. The people were, as a rule, educated in good schools,
and they had a college at Marietta and a female college at Zanesville.
The proposed improvement of the Muskingum, they believed, would
give them another advantage, by securing them water of a depth
sufficient for boats in the dry seasons of the year, as well as
during the "freshets," which they then had to depend upon, but
which at best were not very reliable in their habits, as I found
to my cost. This was to be corrected by the "improvement," which,
in their delusive hope, was to give them cheap water transportation
all the year around.
At that time railroads were in their infancy. They have since
practically destroyed or crippled all internal navigation on inland
rivers, reaching their iron arms over the United States, traversing
north and south, east and west--a vast gridiron of roads, in value
greater than the market value of all the land in the United States
in 1837. Before the first railroad was built in Ohio the Muskingum
improvement was completed, but it proved to be a bad investment.
The canals of Ohio and this improvement were, perhaps, the necessary
forerunner of the railroads to come, but the money expended on them
was practically lost. And I believe that the experiment now being
made by the United States in the improvement of the Ohio, Missouri
and Mississippi Rivers will end in a like result on a grander scale.
By the demolition of the forests which covered this great valley,
the supply and distribution of the waters and rivers in this region
will be so diminished at certain seasons as to render these water-
ways worthless for navigation. Engineers may make dams that will
hold water and locks that may lift a steamboat, but if the clearing
away of forests prevents the usual fall of rain and causes its
absorption into the earth, and if the dispersion of water by its
use and waste in cities, are to continue, the dam will not be
filled, and the lock will be like a stranded vessel, fit only as
a quarry for cut stone, or for a railway arch over a street of
asphalt in a growing city. Captain Fearing railed against the
steamboats as many now inveigh against the railroads, but these
two great agencies will divide the commerce of the world between
them. The railroads will possess the land, the steamboats the
ocean and the great fresh waters of the world. Possibly steamboats
may be utilized on short stretches of rivers, but even on these
they will have to compete with railroads having wide-reaching
connections which they do not possess. The money expended to levee
the Mississippi may be lost by the United States, but the planters
will receive some benefit from it in the protection given to their
crops. The steamboats in interior waters will be exchanged for
iron whalebacks, and new forces of a new nature, as yet only partly
developed, such a electricity, will contest with steam as a motive
power.
During the period of my stay on the Muskingum improvements I had
very excellent opportunities for study, of which I regret to say
I did not avail myself as well as I might have done. Still, I
occupied my leisure in reading novels, histories, and such books
as I could readily get. Many books were sent to me from Lancaster.
I purchased a number, and found some in Beverly which were kindly
lent to me. I read most of the British classics, as they are
called, the Spectator, Shakespeare, Byron, and Scott. I read all
I could find of the history of America. I tried to brush up my
Latin, but without much success. I had the frequent company of my
associates on the corps, all of whom were bright, able men, several
years in advance of me in age. We were frequently called to
headquarters at McConnelsville, a trip usually made on horseback,
and where we always had not only a cheerful, but a very instructive
time. Colonel Curtis was highly esteemed by us all, and his
treatment of me was kind and fatherly. He frequently complimented
me upon my work, and when he came through Beverly he visited me.
Among the diversions at Beverly we had occasional debates. One of
these was upon the dangerous subject of temperance, a topic not
then much discussed, for drinking of something stronger than water
was almost as universal as eating, and considered equally necessary.
However, there sprang up about this time a movement in favor of
temperance. It was thought best to discuss the subject at a public
meeting, a school teacher and I taking the side of temperance, and
two other young men opposing us. The meeting was well attended,
largely by the men employed on the public work who habitually
received a certain number of "jiggers" of whisky a day, at regular
hours. Whisky, not being taxed, was worth from fifteen to twenty-
five cents a gallon. It was not an expensive luxury, and was
regarded by all the workingmen on the improvement as a necessity.
At the end of the debate, which I do not remember to have been a
very notable one, the audience decided that we had the best of the
argument. The discussion created a great excitement. The workingmen
took up the cry that the Cumberland Presbyterians, the prevailing
sect there, and other Christians, were interfering with their habits
and comforts, and when the young schoolmaster appeared the next
day, they raised a shout and pursued him with sticks and stones.
He escaped with difficulty across the river, thus getting out of
the way. I heard of the trouble, but went up to the canal and made
my usual measurements. Not a word was said to me and no unkindness
shown. I understood afterwards that this was caused by a warning
given them by the contractor, who, hearing of the assault upon the
schoolmaster, told them that I was a part of the government and it
would not do to attack me; that to disturb me would have a very
bad effect upon them all. So, I was forgiven, and, indeed, I never
had any controversy during my time there with anyone connected with
the work, from John McCune, the contractor, to the humblest water
carrier about the works.
Early in the winter of 1838, I think in November, I had made up my
mind to go to Cincinnati on the usual leave after the close of
the works. As an excuse, and to procure means of paying for the
trip, I purchased, partly on credit, a barge and loaded it with
barreled salt, apples and other commodities, intending before the
freeze-up to avail myself of the usual rise in the river to float
to the Ohio and thence to Cincinnati. All went smoothly, the boat
was loaded and floated as far as Luke Shute, when the river was
found to be too low to proceed. Consequently the boat was tied up
and placed under the care of a man who slept aboard. We waited
for the river to rise, but it did not come. Both the Muskingum
and Ohio Rivers were very low that season and finally froze up
before the freshet came. This closing of navigation created a
great demand for salt in Cincinnati, as that article could not be
obtained from the up-river country, and it advanced to a price that
would have yielded me a little fortune had my boat not been among
those thus detained. I undertook to carry some of the salt by
flatboats, but they were frozen up. The packing season in Cincinnati
was going forward and salt bore a high price, but I knew it would
fall the moment the river opened. It was apparent that I would
lose on the salt, but I still clung to my purpose to go down the
river. Finally the freshet came, some time in January, I think,
and then, with three men on the barge, I floated down the river,
tying up at nights for safety, and stopping occasionally to sell
apples to the Kentucky farmers, I arrived at last in Cincinnati
and soon found that salt had greatly fallen in value, so I sold
the salt, boat and cargo upon the best terms I could get. The
result was a loss of about one hundred dollars. However, I had a
very pleasant visit in Cincinnati with my brother Lampson, who was
connected with the "Cincinnati Gazette." He was a member of the
family of Mr. Charles Hammond, his daughter, and son-in-law Mr.
L'Hommedieu. Mr. Hammond had been a warm friend of my father's
and was certainly one of the ablest writers of his day and generation,
as well as an accomplished lawyer. He was much pleased at my
adventure and especially with my rough shoes and warm Kentucky
jeans. He told me not to be discouraged, and flattered me with
the statement that a young fellow who could, at fifteen years of
age, do what I had done would make his way in the world.
At that time I saw Judge Burnett at his residence. He had been a
colleague of my father on the supreme bench, and during all his
manhood had been distinguished as a lawyer and a man of marked
ability. He wore a long queue, preserved the habits of the gentleman
of the old school, and was proud of being a Federalist. His book
called "Burnett's Notes" is perhaps the most valuable collection
of historical data pertaining to the early history of Ohio now
extant.
At this time I visited what was called Powers' "Hell." My brother
Lampson and I took the boatmen with us, and "Lamp," who was fond
of playing practical jokes, and knew the place better than I did,
took care to warn one of the roughest of my boatmen to seize hold
of a bar which was before him, and which "Lamp" knew would be
charged later with electricity, and to hold on to it for dear life.
We heard a rumbling sound inside, and finally saw flashes resembling
lightning, and we naturally seized on whatever was before us to
await the opening of "Hell." After more sheet lightning the veil
was drawn aside and there were before us representations of human
beings in every attitude of agony. At the same moment the electric
current was passed through certain bars before us, on one of which
the boatman held a firm grip, but no sooner was he charged with
electricity than his hair flew on end, he looked the picture of
terror, shouted in a loud voice, "O, hell!" and broke for the door.
Soon after we followed also, and that, to us, was the end of a
scene that ought never to have been exhibited.
I returned to Beverly in a steamboat and soon settled all the bills
of the salt speculation, but had to call upon Mr. McComb and my
brother, Charles, for a small sum to make up the deficit. I repaid
this sum later on, but Mr. McComb never failed, whenever I made a
business proposition that seemed hazardous, to say, with a great
haw-haw: "Well, John, that is one of your salt speculations."
The election in the fall of 1838 resulted in the choice of a
Democratic governor and state legislature, which, according to the
politics of the time, involved an entire change of state officials
and employees. Mr. Wall became a member of the Board of Public
Works, and was assigned, among other works, to the charge of the
Muskingum improvement. In the course of a few months, I think
about the last of June, 1839, Col. Curtis was removed, and Mr.
Macaboy was appointed superintendent in his place. At first it
was uncertain whether changes would be made in the subordinates of
the corps. Some of its members had become so much attached to Col.
Curtis that they thought it right and proper to send him a letter
expressing in substance their regret at his removal, their high
estimate of his services, and thanks for his kindness to them.
This was signed by Mr. Coffinberry, Mr. Burwell, Mr. Love and
myself. I am not certain that the others did not express the same
friendly feelings, but, at all events, the four whose names I have
mentioned were summarily dropped from the service.
Thus, after two years of faithful work with small pay, I was, at
the age of sixteen, turned adrift on account of politics.
I find among my papers, dingy with age, the correspondence with
Col. Curtis, and also the subsequent correspondence between Mr.
Wall and myself, in respect to my removal. My letter to Mr. Wall
was a disclaimer of any intention of disrespect to him in our letter
to Col. Curtis, and his reply was that we alleged that Col. Curtis
was removed without a cause, which he denied. I have no doubt,
from a present reading of the papers, but that he would have retained
me as a juvenile offender if I had made a suitable apology, but
the instinct of a boy to stand up for his party was strong. I was
a Whig of sixteen, and it was glorious to be a victim of
persecution.
I also find among my papers of that time, which I thought worthy
of preservation, a multitude of essays on as many different subjects,
and some efforts at poetry, all of which I consign to flames. Most
boys have had the same experience. The only benefit I derived was
the habit I formed of writing upon such subjects as attracted my
attention by reading, a habit I continued when studying law, in
preparing a case for trial, and in preparation for a debate in
Congress.
I returned at once to Lancaster. The great financial depression,
commencing in 1837, was now at its height. It was said that Ohio
State six per cent. bonds had been sold at fifty cents on the
dollar. Many banks were embarrassed and refused to discount notes,
while several failed, and their circulating notes became worthless.
I found that Lancaster had especially suffered, that many of its
leading business firms had suspended or were on the brink of failure.
I was then in excellent health, tall and slender and willing to
work. I received temporary employment from Dr. Kreider, who was
either Clerk of the Court or Recorder of Deeds, I do not remember
which. He gave me a dollar and a half a day, which I regarded as
a great favor, but the records were soon made up and I had nothing
to do.
It was at this period of my life that I fell into very bad habits.
Many of the boys about my age who were with me in Howe's school
were still about Lancaster, and were out of employment like myself.
We would meet on the street, or at the post office, or some place
of resort, to talk over old times, and got into the habit of drinking
poor wine, mostly made of diluted whiskey and drugs. The general
habit of drinking spirits was more common than now, but I had not
been subject to this temptation, as Col. Curtis was very strict in
prohibiting all such drinking. With the jolly good fellows I met
at Lancaster who had nothing to do, I could not refuse to join in
drinking the health of each other, and thus I was conscious frequently
of being more or less intoxicated. On one occasion, in the fall
of 1839, I went home very sick from drinking. My mother received
me with much surprise and sorrow, but neither complained nor scolded,
and, with the utmost kindness, put me to bed and watched over and
cared for me. I was not stupid enough to be unconscious of my
degradation and her affection, and then and there resolved never
to be in such a condition again, and from that time to this I am
not conscious of having been under the influence of liquor. I have
partaken of wine and spirits at weddings, feasts and dinners, I
have used it as a medicine, and in response to toasts and compliments,
but never to an extent to addle my brain or disturb my walk.
At that time intemperance was a common vice. Of the young men who
were my contemporaries a very large proportion became habitual
drunkards and died prematurely. No reform in my time has been so
general and beneficial as that of the disuse of drinking intoxicating
liquors, commencing in 1841. Formerly liquors were put on the
sideboard or table, and the invitation "take a drink" was as common
then as "take a seat" is now. This method of treating was shared
in by preachers of the Gospel, and by all who observed the courtesies
of social life. Now these conditions have greatly changed. Whisky
is banished to the drug store, the grocery and the saloon, and even
there it is under surveillance and so highly taxed as to furnish
a large proportion of the national revenue.
Some time in the autumn of 1839 I visited Mansfield for the first
time, on some business for General Reese, and it was then arranged
that early in the next spring I should return to study law with my
brother Charles. Mansfield was then a very unattractive village,
badly located on parallel ridges and valleys, but precisely in the
center of the very large county of Richland, then containing 900
square miles. The county covered a part of the high table-land
that separated the waters of Lake Erie and the Ohio River. It was
an almost unbroken forest during the War of 1812, with a few families
living in log houses, protected by block houses of logs from the
incursions of Indians, many of whom lived in the county. After
the war it was rapidly settled, chiefly from Pennsylvania, and
divided into farms of 160 acres or less, according to the new
congressional plan of townships six miles square, sections one mile
square, and subdivisions of forty, eight, and one hundred and sixty
acres. The topography of the country was high and rolling, from
900 to 1,350 feet above the sea, with innumerable springs of the
purest water, and small streams and creeks, all rising in the county
and flowing north or south into the Muskingum or Sandusky rivers.
The timber was oak, sugar, elm, hickory and other deciduous trees.
This valuable timber was the chief obstruction to the farmers. It
had to be deadened or cut away to open up a clearing for the cabin
and the field. The labor of two or three generations was required
to convert it into the picturesque, beautiful and healthy region
it now is.
The village of Mansfield has been converted into a flourishing city
of more than 15,000 inhabitants, with extensive manufacturing
establishments and a network of railroads reaching out to Cleveland,
Chicago, Pittsburg, Columbus, Cincinnati and Indianapolis. There
was no sign of this development when I first visited the place.
On my return to Lancaster I applied myself closely to study and
reading, mainly of history. I read Hume, Smollett and Miller's
histories of England, Gibbon's "Decline and Fall of the Roman
Empire," and such histories of the United States as I could procure.
It was at this time that the memorable "Log Cabin and Hard Cider
Campaign" of 1840 commenced. General Harrison had been nominated
in December, 1839, at Harrisburg, by the Whig party. He was a
distinguished general in the War of 1812, but had lived mainly a
quiet, modest life on his farm at South Bend, near Cincinnati.
The Democratic papers ridiculed him as a feeble old man, living in
a cabin and drinking hard cider. The Whigs turned these sarcasms
with great effect upon their adversaries. They compared the old
soldier and his excellent war record, living in a cabin with the
latch string out and eating corn bread, with "Matty Van, the used
up man," living in a palace, with roast beef every day, eating from
silver plate, with gold spoons, and drawing a salary of $25,000 a
year. This was no doubt demagoguism, but there was back of it the
great questions of protection to American industries, sound and
stable currency, and the necessity of economy in public expenditures.
A great meeting was held in Columbus in February, 1840. In the
procession were log cabins, filled with farmers and hauled by a
number of horses and oxen, and hard cider was on tap for all who
chose to drink. Songs were improvised, especially by Greiner, the
poet of the canvass. One of these songs, with the refrain, "The
Log Cabin Candidate will March to Washington," became famous and
prophetic.
Some time in March, 1840, taking the stage for Mansfield, I saw
signs of political excitement all along the way, even at that early
period of the canvass. My sister Susan, two years younger than I,
was with me. We met with no adventure worthy of notice until we
arrived at our destination, when, in ascending the hill to the
public square, the coach slipped and fell over on its side. This
we considered a bad omen. It was not, however, an unusual accident,
as the roads were always bad in March, and the coaches of the day
not worthy of the name. We were heartily welcomed into the family
of Robert McComb, who had married my sister, Amelia.
I was to study law, but under the laws of Ohio I could not be
admitted to practice until I arrived at the age of twenty-one years.
Our liberal laws presumed that a man of ordinary capacity could
master this profession in two years. What was I to do during the
two spare years? This question was left to the decision of my
uncle, Judge Parker, husband of my father's only sister. He was
a peculiar character, and, as I will have occasion to refer to him
again, I will give of him a brief biography. He was born in Nova
Scotia. His father was a merchant of some wealth who early decided
that his son should be educated in Ohio, and chose for him the
college at Athens. There young Parker not only received his
collegiate diploma, but became thoroughly attached to western habits
and opinions. He studied law with my father at Lancaster, and,
when admitted to the bar, went to Mansfield, where he practiced
law. He was genial, social, and especially fond of the society of
young people. I have often seen him stop on the streets of Mansfield
to watch boys playing marbles. He was conceded to be an able
lawyer, perhaps the best land lawyer and special pleader in that
part of Ohio. But he was not an advocate, partly owing to occasional
stuttering, but in jury cases employed my father until the latter
became a judge of the Supreme Court.
Mr. Parker had for some years before 1840 retired from active
practice, and was engaged with Robert McComb as a general merchant.
During, or about 1842, he was elected by the legislature of Ohio
presiding judge of the Court of Common Pleas, and became eminently
popular, and deservedly so. He was to be my guide and counselor.
A few words in regard to my brother, Charles Taylor, will explain
our relations, the confidence he reposed in me, and my deep
obligations to him. He was then a bachelor thirty years old, with
quite a lucrative practice, mainly in collecting debts due to New
York and other eastern merchants. Our banking system was then as
bad as it could be, exchange on New York was always at a premium,
and there was no confidence in our local banks. Charles was
substantially the banker in Mansfield and surrounding counties for
eastern merchants. He was a good speaker when he addressed a judge,
and his briefs were clear statements of the law of the case, but
when forced to speak to a jury he was exceedingly shy and sensitive.
He avoided jury trials. He was a fair speaker on popular topics,
and took great interest in current politics as a Whig. He was a
member of the Harrisburg convention that nominated General Harrison
for President, and made several creditable speeches in that canvass.
He was married in the fall of 1840 to Miss Elizabeth Williams, of
Dayton, Ohio, and I became a member of his family soon after.
The influence of the special traits and tendencies of Judge Parker
and my brother Charles upon my life was soon manifest. My course
of study, outlined by Judge Parker, commenced with Blackstone,
followed soon after by Coke on Littleton. As a compromise I was
allowed to read Kent's Commentaries, but Chitty's Pleadings had to
go along with Kent. The disinclination of Charles to have anything
to do with contested litigation became more marked, and I was
compelled, long before my admission to the bar, to look after such
cases as grew out of his practice. The pleadings then in vogue
were the declarations, pleas and replications of the English common
law. These I prepared after I had been a student for a year, and,
in cases within the jurisdiction of a justice of the peace, I
habitually appeared either in prosecution or defense.
As a matter of course, I was often outwitted and defeated, much to
my chagrin. In one case submitted to arbitration, a pettifogger
of bad repute by the name of Baldwin secured an award palpably
unjust. I felt more keenly than my client the injustice done him,
and never forgave Baldwin until he was indicted for perjury and
driven out of the county in disgrace.
While pursuing my studies, I was able in various ways to make enough
money to support myself. I wrote deeds and agreements, and drew
the first map of Richland county, showing subdivisions in farms,
the course of creeks and rivulets, and roads. I was also employed
to collect small debts, and, toward the close of my probation, I
was intrusted with large collections, one of which was in closing
the business of an old firm with outstanding credits of more than
$20,000.
In those days of primitive barter the merchant was the banker of
all the farmers dealing with him. The farmer sold to the merchant
most of his surplus products, including live stock and pork, and
purchased his supplies, mainly of clothing, tea, coffee, and the
like, and the merchant made advances on the growing crop. At the
close of the year the account was settled, generally with a balance
in favor of the merchant. Little money was used. It was a traffic
in commodities. It was not unusual for the merchant to drive horses
and cattle to Pittsburg or further east, and send the proceeds to
the eastern merchant.
In the fall of the year it was quite common for the farmer to load
upon his wagon his surplus wheat and haul it fifty miles to Sandusky
and Milan, receiving in return salt and farming implements, and
the balance in money. Wheat was then the only article that would
command cash. At this season the highway was often blocked with
long trains of wagons that would not give way for other vehicles.
At night the wagons would be parked on the roadside near a creek,
and the farmers and their boys would have a regular joyous picnic
on provisions brought from home. This was the life of a farmer
before the days of railroads, and I am not sure but it was a more
happy one than now. Then the village blacksmith or shoemaker, the
tinker, the carpenter and the mechanic of every trade had his shop
and was a far more important and independent citizen than now, when
grouped into large manufacturing and machine works.
While a student, I was frequently sent by my brother to Wooster,
the nearest bank, with large sums of money to purchase exchange on
New York for his clients. These trips I always made on horseback.
Once, as I was to start quite early in the morning, I received
nearly $2,000 in bills the night before, in two packages, and placed
them in my overcoat. In the morning I threw my overcoat over my
arm and went for my horse. Before mounting I felt for the money
and found it was gone. I started in alarm for the house and on my
way found one package of $1,000 lying on the sidewalk at the corner
of the street where I had passed, but the other was nowhere to be
seen. I felt sure it was picked up by some one. I at once gave
notice to my brother, and he took immediate measures to trace the
finder. I cannot express the chagrin and anxiety which I suffered
on account of my carelessness, but Charles uttered no reproach,
but prepared to replace the loss. Fortunately within a month the
lost money was traced to an "early drunkard," who found the package
on the pavement while going for his morning grog. He was watched
and at night was seen to take some money from his trunk. A search
warrant soon led to the restoration of the money, except a small
sum he had spent. This incident attached me the more to my brother.
The social life in Mansfield, while I was a student, was very
pleasant and instructive. The freedom, and yet propriety of
intercourse among the young people, was notable. We had social
meetings, parties, dances, and an occasional ball during the winter,
but in summer, riding in carriages and on horseback was the recreation
of the day. Fleming's Ravine, about five miles from Mansfield,
was the general gathering place for young and old. A small stream
had cut a deep ravine with rocky banks on either side. An old mill
with its overshot wheel spanned the ravine and filled it with noisy
rattle. The adjacent woods, where the fire was lit and the coffee
made, and the farm lands stretching beyond, made a picturesque
scene often described and always admired. Here we had dances,
frolics, speeches and fun, with healthy exercise in the open air.
These frolics were often made the subject of description in the
newspapers. On a notable occasion of one of these visits to
Fleming's Ravine, Mr. Franklin Barker, a law student, wrote for
one of the local papers a pleasing description of the scene under
the name of "The Fairy's Tale." He paraphrased Byron as follows:
"There was a sound of revelry by _day_
And Richland's capital gathered then
Her beauty and her chivalry and fair eyes
Looked love to eyes that spoke again."
Many of the persons present were named, or so described as to be
recognized. There was a good deal of egotism and assumption in
the narrative which created much feeling among those who had not
the good fortune to attend. Though I was present, and greatly
enjoyed the picnic, I thought it was a good opportunity to prick
the bubble of self esteem assumed by Barker, and wrote for the
rival newspaper a counter description signed "A Looker On." This
excited a good deal of interest at the time, but it has probably
faded, after half a century, from the memory of the few who survive;
it then created a rivalry and left its mark upon the future. The
destruction of the mill by a flood, the cutting away of the wood
and other causes, have changed this, so that the gathering place
of the young of my day is a thing of the past.
During my study of law, the bar at Mansfield was considered a very
able one, including among its members James Stewart, Thomas W.
Bartley, Jacob Brinkerhoff, Charles Sherman and others. All of
those named became judges, either of the courts of Ohio or of the
United States. During the same period there were also many law
students in the offices of these gentlemen, among them Samuel J.
Kirkwood, George W. Geddes, Thomas H. Ford, Henry C. Hedges, Willard
Slocum, Joseph Newman, Patrick Hull and others, who afterwards
became distinguished in civil or military life. These students,
myself among the number, organized a moot court, presided over by
Joseph Newman, then in active practice as a partner of Mr. Stewart.
We held famous moot courts in which cases were tried with all the
earnestness, industry and skill that could have been evoked by real
cases. In these trials Mr. Kirkwood and I were usually pitted
against each other, although he studied late in life, and was then
more than thirty years old. He was then a Democrat, but moved to
Iowa in 1856, became a Republican war governor of that state and
United States Senator. I have always regarded our contests in this
moot court as the most important part of my legal training.
The course of study pursued under the direction of Judge Parker
continued until my admission to the bar, though much interrupted
by the variety and nature of my employment. I read, in addition
to the routine works prescribed by Judge Parker, a great variety
of literary and historical works, and had substantially practiced
my profession a year or more in advance of my admission to the bar.
I arrived at the age of twenty-one on the 10th day of May, 1844,
and promptly on time on that day I was presented to the Supreme
Court "on the circuit," then sitting at Springfield, Ohio, for
admission to the bar. Several other students were presented, and,
according to the custom of that time, we were all referred to a
committee composed of General Samson Mason, Hon. Charles Anthony,
and one other lawyer whose name I do not recall. All were leading
lawyers of that place, and had been busily occupied in the court.
We met that evening at the office of one of these gentlemen to pass
the ordeal for which we had been preparing for years. A few
questions were put to us which were answered, when some question
was asked, the answer to which led to a decided difference of
opinion among the examiners, and a practical suspension of our
examination. It soon occurred to them that they were more interested
in the cases coming on "to-morrow" than in our efficiency as
incipient lawyers. I was asked under whom I studied. I answered
Judge Parker, and they all agreed that anyone who was certified by
him ought to be admitted.
My old and dearest friend, and boon companion, Dr. J. C. Buckingham,
of Springfield, was then entering upon his profession. He was an
admirable penman. He obtained leave of the clerk of the court, to
write out my certificate of admission as a member of the bar, and
this he did in beautiful form, handsomely illustrated. He attached
to it an enormous seal, and it was duly signed by the clerk of the
court. I have kept it as a memento of him, but have never had
occasion to present it to anyone. He, poor fellow, died prematurely
at Springfield, when in the full employment of his duties as a
physician, and with the most hopeful prospects of success in his
profession.
I must not forget that in my boyhood days I had a strong penchant
for military parade. I remember well the respect always shown to
Revolutionary veterans, who survived to the period of my boyhood.
At every meeting, political or otherwise, where these soldiers
appeared to share in the assemblage of citizens, they were received
with profound respect. Hats came off. They were given the best
seats, and every mark of honor was shown them. What boy did not
feel the gushings of patriotic emotion when one of these old veterans
appeared upon the stage. To a less degree, similar marks of respect
were shown to the soldiers of the War of 1812; but, though this
was as great and important an event in our history, it did not
light the spark of patriotic fire like the Revolutionary War.
Before the war for the Union broke out, military spirit died away,
especially in Ohio. Military organizations had fallen into disuse
and popular contempt. We had, it is true, in times far apart, what
were called militia musters, but Jack Falstaff's regiment was
nothing to our militia. I had the honor to be a member of the
staff of Colonel Urie, of Ashland, when the venerable General Wilson
was the Commander-in-Chief of the militia of that part of Ohio.
He was a hero of the War of 1812, and, as I remember, a gallant
and fine-looking old gentleman. The regiment--so called--without
guns, uniform, or anything proper for a soldier, was with some
difficulty formed into line, but a wavering line, across the public
square at Mansfield and along East and West Market streets, when,
by some misunderstanding of orders, the right of the regiment
marched to the right, and the left to the left. With some difficulty,
and a good deal of swearing, they were brought back into line and
dismissed. Militia day was a day of drunkenness and fighting. No
wonder that years passed without muster. Such was the military
condition of the United States when the War of the Rebellion sounded
the tocsin of alarm, and our generation was called upon to meet
the gravest struggle in American history.
CHAPTER III.
OHIO, ITS HISTORY AND RESOURCES.
Occupation by the Indians--Washington's Expedition to the Head of
the Ohio River--Commencement of the History of the State--Topography,
Characteristics, etc., in 1787--Arrival of the First Pioneers--The
Treaty of Greenville--Census of 1802 Showed a Population of 45,028
Persons--Occupation of the "Connecticut Reserve"--Era of Internal
Improvement--Value of Manufactures in 1890--Vast Resources of the
Buckeye State--Love of the "Ohio Man" for His Native State.
The life of a man is greatly influenced by the place of his birth,
the surroundings of his boyhood, and the habits and customs of the
community in which he lived. As I have been all my life a resident
of Ohio, and for more than forty years have been one of its
representatives in Congress, or the Cabinet, I feel that a brief
sketch of the history and resources of the state may not be out of
place in this biography. No adequate history of the state has been
written, though many works have given general outlines. The
materials are copious, but I can only state a few events that mark
the changes in its civilization. That it was once occupied by a
race now entirely extinct is evidenced by numerous mounds, earthworks
and lines of fortifications so extensive as to have required to
construct them a dense population with a knowledge of mathematics
far beyond that of any tribe or race existing on the American
continent, when discovered by Columbus. The works of the mound
builders can be seen, and have been described, but no ray of light
has been cast upon, or plausible suggestion made to account for,
the origin, existence or disappearance of this race.
Long after the settlement on the Atlantic Coast of the Thirteen
Colonies, the territory now included in the State of Ohio was part
of a vast unknown region north and west of the Ohio River. It was
roamed over by numerous tribes of Indians living in tents of bark
or skins, whose residence was generally as transitory as that of
the wandering tribes of Arabia. Many of these Indian tribes were
composed of a few families under the domination of a chief who went
out from his kindred as Abraham did, and planted his tents where
fancy led him, and moved at his whim or with his game. Every one
of the Indian tribes that had been driven by the white man from
the east and the south chose his camping and hunting grounds in
the region of the O-hi-o, often driving away a weaker tribe. Their
contests with white men had given them some knowledge of fire-arms,
and some of them had been marshaled under arms in the wars between
the English and the French, but, as a rule, the Indians encountered
by our race since the landing at Jamestown were all of the same
type of wandering savages. The difference between these tribes
can be accounted for by their location, whether on the seashore or
in the forest or plain, and by the strength of the tribe, from the
powerful Six Nations to the feeble band in possession of some chosen
valley.
Whatever may be said of the irrepressible conflicts between the
white man and the Indians, waged often with savage and relentless
cruelties on both sides, it may as truly be said that the same
savage conflicts have been carried on between the different tribes
of Indians, which often ended by the extermination of the weaker
tribe, or the absorption of the feeble remnant with the stronger
tribe. This was certainly the case with the Indian tribes of the
northwest territory. Ohio was the battleground for destructive
warfare between the Indian tribes long before the white man gained
a foothold on its soil.
In 1755, when the war with France commenced, the English settlements
covered the Atlantic Coast, but did not extend across the Alleghany
Mountains, though a few hardy pioneers may have wandered into the
wilderness beyond. But French missionaries, inspired with religious
zeal, had penetrated all the northwest territory, including the
great lakes. In 1673 Marquette and Joliet, two of these missionaries,
after years spent with the Indians on the shores of the lakes,
winning their confidence by humility and care, followed the lines
of the Fox and Wisconsin Rivers from the shores of Lake Michigan,
and discovered the great river "with a joy that could not be
expressed," and floated upon its waters to the mouth of the
Arkansas.
It is impossible to read the interesting narratives of these
missionaries, of their life among the Indians of the northwest,
and their enthusiastic description of the new and wonderful land
they had discovered, without a feeling of admiration and reverence.
The adventures and trials of these zealous priests read like romance;
but their description of natural scenes, of great rivers, mountains
and plains, now familiar to fifteen million of people, attest the
accuracy of their statements and the courage and zeal with which
they pursued their task.
The discovery of Marquette was diligently followed by Chevalier de
la Salle, a knight of fortune, of wonderful endurance, who, after
overcoming incredible difficulties, conducted an expedition by the
way of the lakes and the Mississippi River to its mouth. Thus the
King of France, by the piety and zeal of a priest and the courage
of an adventurer, was able to base his claims to fully half the
continent of North America upon grounds recognized as valid by
European law, namely, the discovery of the St. Lawrence, the
occupation of Canada, and the discovery of the Mississippi from
its source to its mouth. The great body of the continent is drained
by these two rivers. Their discovery and occupation was sufficient
at that time to give to France the right of exclusive possession
of that vast territory, for the title of the Indian tribes was not
considered valid by Christian powers. While the priests of France
were seeking to save the souls of the Indians, the Kings of France
were seeking to rob them of their property.
The French, during this period, erected a line of posts from the
mouth of the Mississippi, by way of the Wabash, Maumee and the
lakes, to Montreal, and finally, in 1733, established a line of
posts from Lake Erie to the junction of the Monongahela and Alleghany
Rivers, where Pittsburg now stands, and claimed the whole country
north of the Ohio from its source to its mouth.
And here, for the first time, comes into view the majestic form of
George Washington, then a young man of twenty-two. He was sent by
Governor Dinwiddie, of Virginia, to visit the several Indian tribes
at the head of the Ohio River and the French forces at Venango.
In the dead of winter he made his trip into the wilderness, and
soon ascertained that it was the fixed purpose of the French
authorities to occupy all the country to the sources of the Ohio,
including a large section of what is now a part of Pennsylvania
and New York. The commander, St. Pierre, declared his purpose of
seizing every Englishman within the Ohio valley. The result of
the expedition of Washington left no choice to the English government,
except to abandon their claim to the northwest territory, or to
declare war. The English title was based upon their occupation of
the shores of the Atlantic coast from Massachusetts to Georgia.
It was claimed that this occupation carried the right to possession
westward from sea to sea.
In the earliest grants to the colonies, especially to Virginia and
Connecticut, their western boundaries extended to the South Sea.
Where the South Sea lay, and what was the breadth of the continent,
was not defined by these kingly grants. James I and his councilors
then knew but little about America. There was no way to settle
this disputed title between the two powers but by war. A Virginia
company had built a fort on the south side of the Ohio, below the
site of the present city of Pittsburg. In 1754 the French troops
occupied the point at the junction of the Monongahela and Alleghany,
where the city of Pittsburg now is, and erected a fort.
Then followed the well-known war of the French and English, Braddock's
defeat, the heroism of Washington, the capture of Quebec and the
cession of Canada and the northwestern territory to Great Britain.
It is impossible to overrate the importance of these events upon
the future of America. The result was that the region east of the
Mississippi River and north of the Ohio River was the property of
Great Britain and the inheritance of the English race. The great
northwest was theirs, and fairly won.
The extinction of the French title to the Ohio territory was at
once followed by the claims of several colonies to parts of this
territory under grants from the British crown; but the English
government declared all the land west of the sources of the Atlantic
rivers as under the dominion of the king for the use of the Indians,
and all persons were forbidden to settle or remain within it. This
dispute was postponed by the War of the Revolution. An event during
the war, apparently of small importance, had a controlling influence
in securing to the United States the northwestern territory.
The State of Virginia, claiming title under a grant from the British
crown to the regions west of the Alleghanies, in 1778, organized
an expedition, under Colonel George Rogers Clark, to punish and
repel incursions of Indians, and capture the old French posts then
held by the English. This he accomplished, so that when negotiations
for peace were entered upon in 1782 our plenipotentiaries could
maintain the title of the United States to the northwestern territory,
not only by grants to the English colonies, but by conquest in war,
and actual possession at the time of the negotiations. The British
insisted on making the Ohio River a boundary of the United States.
Mr. Adams said that sooner than yield the western territory he
would exhort his countrymen to continue the war as long as they
could keep a soldier in the field. Mr. Jay was equally determined,
and finally the line of the lakes was agreed to.
The treaty of peace recognized the St. Lawrence, the lakes and the
49th parallel of latitude as the dividing line between the United
States and Canada. But the question arose whether the western
territory was the property of the United States as the result of
their joint struggle for independence, or of the several states
under the grants of the English crown. This dangerous controversy
delayed the formation of the federal government; but it was happily
settled by the cession of the territory to the United States, with
or without conditions and reservations, by the several states
claiming western lands.
As a part of this cession and settlement, and almost equal in
importance to the constitution of the United States, was the
celebrated ordinance organizing the northwestern territory. This
ordinance guaranteed the subdivision of the territory into states,
and secured to them, by a perpetual compact, the forms and substance
of a republican government, a proper disposition of the public
lands, and the formal prohibition of slavery in the territories,
and may be properly considered the commencement of the history of
the State of Ohio.
We may here pause to consider the condition, topography and
characteristics of the Territory, now the State, of Ohio in 1787,
when the first territorial government was organized by Congress.
It was bounded on the south and east by the Ohio River, touching
on its northeast border the States of Pennsylvania and New York;
on the north by Lake Erie, and on the west by an arbitrary line
not then defined, and contained about 40,000 square miles. Its
topography may be described as an elevated plain, its highest
elevation being 1,540 feet above the sea, its lowest depression
being 440 feet above the sea, and its mean altitude about 800 feet
above the sea. It is traversed by the comb of a watershed between
the river and the lakes, running from northeast to southwest across
the state, much nearer the lake than the river, at an elevation
above the sea of from 1,000 to 1,300 feet. The shed on either side
is penetrated by rivers of clear, pure water, in valleys of great
fertility, and usually with hillsides of a gentle slope and fertile
soil.
In 1787 it was an unbroken wilderness covered with great forests
and sparsely inhabited by savage tribes of Indians, only here and
there tempered by the civilizing teachings of the missionary. One
of the earliest descriptions I find of the famous Miami Valley is
as follows:
"The land beyond the Scioto, except the first twenty miles, is rich
and level, bearing walnut trees of huge size, the maple, the wild
cherry and the ash; full of little streams and rivulets; variegated
by beautiful natural prairies, covered with wild rye, blue grass
and white clover. Turkeys abounded, and deer and elks, and most
sorts of game; of buffaloes, thirty or forty were frequently seen
feeding in one meadow. Nothing is wanting but cultivation to make
this a most delightful country."
This favored land was thrown open for settlement at a time when
the people of the states had been impoverished by the war, when
there was neither money, credit nor commerce, when the government
of the Continental Congress had fallen into contempt, and the new
government was passing the ordeal of a vote in states jealous of
each other. It was the only land subject to sale by the United
States, for Kentucky was covered by Virginia grants, Western New
York was the property of land companies, and all beyond was a _terra
incognita_. There was a struggle for Ohio land among all the
northern states, including Virginia and Maryland. Companies were
formed, composed mostly of officers and soldiers of the Revolutionary
War, to secure from Congress favorable land grants. Virginia and
Connecticut had their ample reserves, New York had a large unoccupied
region in her territory, and the other northern states demanded
their shares in the common property of the United States. The
result was that all the states established settlements in Ohio,
and, for the first time in our history, the descendants of the
Puritans of New England, the Dutch of New York, the Germans and
Scotch-Irish of Pennsylvania, the Jersey Blues, the Catholics of
Maryland, the Cavaliers of Virginia and the loyal refugees of Canada
united their blood and fortunes in establishing a purely American
state on the soil of Ohio.
Among these early settlers were the foremost men of all the states,
the Revolutionary stock that won independence, who carried their
love of liberty and the principles and instincts of their localities
to a soil more fertile than any of the old states, and with natural
resources, climate and facilities for settlement and civilization
as favorable as any within their reach. The limits of this sketch
will not permit details of the progress of this migration. The
first difficulty it encountered was the toilsome way to the promised
land. All roads, such as they were, crossed the Alleghany Mountains,
or followed the longer route by the lakes. A voyage now easily
made in a day then occupied sixty days on foot or on horseback,
and every article of civilized life had to be transported with
painful labor over rude paths and roads, relieved sometimes by
barges and canoes on creeks and rivers.
When the first pioneers reached their destination, their land was
already occupied. Every part of Ohio was then in the possession
of Indians. The war they had maintained with the pioneers of
Kentucky only prepared them for the desperate struggle with new
invaders. The first settlement of the New England colony was made
in Marietta, April, 1788. From that day to the close of the war
with Great Britain in 1815 there were hostilities in some part of
Ohio with the Indians. There is not a county in Ohio that was not
at some time the scene of a battle with the Indians, or a skirmish,
or a massacre.
The interesting "Historical Collections," recently published by
Henry Howe, give many details of this local warfare. But, aside
from the danger that lurked at all times over the cabin of the
pioneer, there were more regular battles with the Indians fought
on the soil of Ohio than in any other state of the Union. The
defeat of General Harmer with 1,300 men, in 1790, in two battles
in the Scioto valley, laid open to predatory warfare all the
settlements in Ohio, and some in Kentucky. Every attempt at
negotiations was defeated by British interference.
In the following year, 1791, a force of over 2,000 men was organized
at Cincinnati under General St. Clair, and marched against the
Indians at the head waters of the Maumee. While encamped they were
attacked by the Indians and ignominiously defeated, losing a large
number of officers and men. They retreated in disorder, abandoning
their baggage and artillery, and throwing away their arms and
accoutrements. The loss in this disastrous campaign was more than
900 men, of whom 600 were killed. This calamity spread terror
throughout all the settlements as far as Pittsburg, and arrested
for a time the migration to Ohio.
The successive defeats of Harmer and St. Clair greatly impressed
General Washington with the necessity of marching an overwhelming
force against the Indians, and he appealed to Congress for the
necessary aid; but there was a manifest reluctance in Congress to
vote supplies, even if the failure to do so involved the abandonment
to the Indians of all the territory northwest of the Ohio. The
supplies, however, were granted, and General Wayne, a Revolutionary
hero, was placed in command.
In August, 1794, with a force of over 3,000 men, he advanced to
the confluence of the Maumee and the Auglaize, and there destroyed
the Indian villages and their abundant crops.
Following the Indians down the Maumee to a fort recently built by
the British, the forces of General Wayne attacked the Indians and
inflicted upon them a disastrous defeat. This victory settled
forever the occupancy of this territory by the white man, and the
irreversible fate of the poor Indian, though, as it will appear
hereafter, he struggled for this, his favorite region, for twenty
years more.
In looking back over a period of one hundred years it is impossible
to suppress a sense of injustice, and a feeling of sympathy for
the Indian in his unequal struggle. After their defeat by General
Wayne, a general conference of all the Indian tribes in the northwest
was proposed, and agreed upon, to be held during the following year
at Greenville. The full details of this conference are given by
Judge Burnet, in his "Notes on the Northwestern Territory." General
Wayne, in many "council fires," explained to the chiefs of the
numerous tribes the terms of the treaties made at Forts McIntosh
and Harmer, and demanded that they be ratified with additional
concessions and grants. Many of the replies, in the figurative
language of the Indians, are eloquent appeals to their "Great
Father" and their "Elder Brothers" to allow them to possess in
peace the land of their fathers; that they were not represented
when these treaties were made, and that their terms had not been
observed by their white brethren.
It was the same old story of injustice and wrong, of might against
right. They were compelled to accept the terms offered them. The
result was the cession by the Indians to the United States of 25,000
square miles of southern and eastern Ohio and many other tracts
west of Ohio. The Indians were to receive in return $20,000 in
presents, and an annuity of $9,500, to be distributed among the
tribes. By this treaty confidence was restored to the settlements,
and the tide of migration was renewed, and continued until the
breaking out of the War of 1812. But the treaty of Greenville did
not put an end to Indian hostilities. They still occupied northwestern
Ohio, and that part of the reserve west of the Cuyahoga River.
Occasional aggressions by both races led to outrages and murder,
usually followed by encroachments on Indian territory. In 1805
the remainder of the Western Reserve was ceded by treaty. In 1818
the northwestern part of Ohio was purchased by the United States
by treaty, subject to certain reservations, all of which were
subsequently ceded to the United States, the last by the Wyandots
in 1842, when the remnant, about 700 souls, moved to Kansas.
The most important, and by far the most dangerous, conspiracy of
Indians since the treaty of Greenville was organized by the "Prophet,"
a crazy enthusiast denounced as an impostor and accused of witchcraft,
and his brother, Tecumseh, a warrior of approved courage, possessed
of all the craft of the Indian, with remarkable intelligence and
comprehensive views. They united most of the tribes who had
participated in that treaty, and threatened with death all the
chiefs who were concerned in the subsequent treaties. This excited
the attention of General Harrison, then Governor of the Territory
of Indiana, who, in 1811, after many ineffectual conferences with
Tecumseh and the "Prophet," organized a force of 800 men and marched
against the "Prophet's" town, in what is now Cass county, Indiana.
The battle of Tippecanoe ensued, in which the Indians were totally
defeated and the town burned. The loss of the troops was so great
that General Harrison made a speedy retreat. The war with Great
Britain soon followed, and Tecumseh entered the British service.
He participated in most of the battles in Ohio and Michigan during
that war, and was killed at the battle of the Thames on the 5th of
October, 1813. With him ended all organized Indian hostilities in
Ohio.
Prior to 1798 all the laws governing the northwestern territory
were selected from the laws of the states by the territorial judges
appointed by the President. In that year it was ascertained that
the territory contained 5,000 white male inhabitants, when they
were authorized, as a matter of right, to organize and elect
representatives to a general assembly, who, with a legislative
council, were authorized to pass laws, subject to the veto of the
governor. The general assembly was duly organized on the 16th of
September, 1799, and was remarkable for the ability and distinction
of its members, most of whom had been soldiers in the Revolutionary
War. This was the beginning of home rule in Ohio. The life of
the territorial legislature was brief. Early in January, 1802, a
census was taken of the inhabitants in the eastern division of the
Territory, now the State of Ohio, by which it was found that it
contained 45,028 persons. Congress promptly authorized the people
to form a constitution and state government. This authority was
speedily acted upon, a convention of thirty-five members was elected,
and a constitution adopted November, 1802, without being submitted
to the people.
This constitution remained unaltered in a single particular for
fifty years. It was regarded at the time, and ever since, as a
model framework of state government, clear and brief in its
provisions, but comprehensive enough to meet the necessities of a
people growing in population from 45,000 to 1,980,329 in 1850.
The present constitution of Ohio was framed by a convention, which
met at Columbus, on the 6th of May, 1850, and adjourned on the 10th
of March, 1851. This constitution was ratified by a majority of
the people, and is still in force.
The decennial growth of the population of Ohio is here shown:
1802 . . . . 45,028
1810 . . . 230,760
1820 . . . . 381,295
1830 . . . 937,903
1840 . . . . 1,519,467
1850 . . . 1,980,329
1860 . . . . 2,339,511
1870 . . . 2,665,260
1880 . . . . 3,198,062
1890 . . . 3,672,316
In 1802 Ohio was eighteenth in rank among her sister states; in
1810 the thirteenth; in 1820 the fifth; in 1830 the fourth; in 1840
the third, and so continued until the recent census when the
marvelous growth of Chicago placed Illinois in advance of Ohio.
This remarkable growth was accompanied by rapid changes in the
habits and conditions of the people. Within a century they had
their struggle with the Indians; then their contest with nature in
a new country covered by forests--the "age of the pioneers;" then
the period of internal improvements, when roads and canals and
means of transportation were the great objects of desire; then the
marvelous development of railroads, followed by manufactures.
These changes, following in succession, are the most striking
features of the history of Ohio. I have already referred to the
pioneers who planted the first settlement, who bore the brunt of
Indian warfare, and firmly founded free institutions in Ohio.
After this period, and the organization of the state government,
the great migration to Ohio commenced which, within a century, was
destined to extend across the continent. The settler was generally
poor, bringing all his earthly possessions, with wife and children,
in a covered wagon, slowly traversing difficult roads to the new
and only land, then open to settlement. But the land was cheap,
the title clear, the soil good, and all were on the same footing,
willing to help each other. The task before him was discouraging.
He found his quarter-section in the unbroken forest, its boundary
blazed on the trees by the surveyor, and all around him a wilderness.
His first work was to erect a rough cabin of logs for a shelter;
his next to clear an opening for a crop. Every new settler was a
welcome neighbor, though miles away. The mail, the newspaper, the
doctor and the preacher were long in coming. In this solitary
contest with nature the settler had often to rely upon his gun for
food, upon simple remedies for new and strange diseases, and upon
the hope that his crop would be spared from destruction by wild
beasts.
This was the life of the early settler in every county in Ohio, as
each in its turn was organized and opened to settlement. A life
so hard, was yet so attractive that many pioneers, when a few
neighbors gathered around them, preferred to sell their clearings
and push further into the wilderness. In the meantime the older
settlements attracted newcomers. Mechanics and tradesmen came
along them. Then towns sprang up, and incipient cities, with corner
lots and hopeful speculators, tempted eastern capitalists to invest
their money in Ohio.
Ohio, in these early days, was the only outlet of the population
of the northern and middle states. Emigrants from the south,
following lines of latitude, went into Kentucky and Tennessee.
The great west, with its vast prairies and plains, was not then
accessible. Had it been so, the forests of Ohio might have been
left in solitude for many years to come. During all this period,
which we may properly call the pioneer stage, the settlers had no
market for their produce, except to supply the demand of incoming
immigrants. Grain and fruit would not bear the expense of
transportation. The only way to obtain ready money was to convert
corn and grain into hogs, horses and cattle, which were driven on
the hoof to Pittsburg and eastern cities. But little money
circulated, and that was chiefly irredeemable bank notes. The
clothing of the people was mainly of linsey-woolsey, home-made.
The spinning wheel, big and little, was to be found in every
household. Settlers near the banks of the Ohio River, and its
tributaries, had the advantage of floating their surplus products
in rough barges down the Ohio to New Orleans for a market, so that
the southern part of the state advanced rapidly, while the northern
part was still in the possession of the Indians.
When the Indian title was extinguished settlers came from Pennsylvania
into the counties immediately west of it, which are still, in the
habits of the people, in the location of houses and barns and the
cultivation of the soil, the precise counterpart of the region from
which the settlers came. The "Connecticut Reserve" was slowly
filled by the northern route of the lakes, almost exclusively from
New England, and the habits and customs of that region were
transported to their new homes, so that the "Western Reserve" to-
day is a striking type of old Connecticut in habits, and with the
same ideas. The lakes became the highway of commerce, and the
inhabitants of the interior carried their surplus grain and produce
in long lines of wagons to the new towns along the lake shore,
where it was exchanged for the necessaries of life and enough money
to pay taxes. All trade in the interior was by barter with merchants,
who became the bankers of the people.
The construction of the Erie Canal, and the introduction of steamboats
on the rivers and lakes, was the beginning of a great revolution.
Then followed in Ohio the era of internal improvement by the
construction of two lines of canal across the state, one from
Cleveland, on Lake Erie, to Portsmouth, on the Ohio River, and the
other from Toledo, on Maumee Bay, to the city of Cincinnati, with
the lateral canal to Pittsburg, and the improvement of the Muskingum
River by locks and canals.
Salmon P. Chase, then a young attorney at Cincinnati, in his
introduction to his compilation of the laws of the state, published
in 1833, thus describes the effect of these improvements upon the
prosperity of Ohio:
"They have afforded to the farmer of the interior an easy access
to market, and have enhanced the value of his farm and his productions.
They have facilitated intercourse between different sections of
the state, and have thus tended to make the people more united, as
well as more prosperous. They have furnished to the people a common
object of generous interest and satisfaction. They have attracted
a large accession of population and capital. And they have made
the name and character of Ohio well-known throughout the civilized
world, as a name and character of which her sons may be justly
proud."
This period of prosperity continued for twenty years, when, in
1846, a still greater revolution was introduced by the building of
railroads. The first object of this was to furnish cheaper
transportation of the produce of the farmer to the Ohio River and
Lake Erie. The first railroads were from the interior, north and
south. They were little better than tramways, supported by cross-
ties with longitudinal stringpieces covered with thin strips of
iron. The carriages were propelled by feeble engines, and it was
thought a matter of great importance when, by this new motive power,
a bushel of wheat could be transported from the interior to distances
of from fifty to a hundred miles for from six to ten cents. While
a young attorney, I thought it a grievous injustice that my client,
one of the new railroad companies, was compelled by a jury to pay
$2,000 for the right-of-way over twenty miles of farm land. It
was soon discovered that railroads were to be so successful that
they would supersede for the transportation of persons and passengers
all kinds of water transportation, and that lines running long
distances east and west would have the benefit of the through travel
and traffic. In rapid succession several lines of railroad were
built from the eastern cities across the state to the northwest,
west and southwest. Within twenty years from the first construction
of railways they had almost superseded all former modes of
communication, and had reduced the rates of travel and transportation
to less than one-half the former rates.
After the close of the Civil War the construction of railroads
rapidly increased, so that in 1890 the total miles of railway track
in Ohio was 10,464, and the valuation for taxes was $102,950,642,
a development in a single branch of industry far greater than in
any other. This improvement led to the adoption of a system of
free turnpikes in most of the counties in Ohio, constructed by
local taxation, so that now Ohio is as well supplied with well-
constructed turnpikes and railroads as any state in the Union, and
perhaps, as well as many European states.
Another great change in the industry of the people of Ohio rapidly
followed the construction of railroads. Manufacturing establishments
of almost every kind were rapidly constructed, mostly since the war.
It appears by census, prior to 1890, that in 1850 the total value
of manufactures of Ohio was $62,692,279; in 1860 it was $121,000,000;
in 1870 it was $269,713,610; in 1880 it was $348,298,300. In 1890
it was over $500,000,000. During the single year 1889 there were
incorporated over 400 new companies with a capital stock of
$25,584,500. Almost every article needed for use by the people is
thus produced at home, and great quantities of machinery, especially
of farming machines of every variety, are exported to every state
of the Union and to many foreign countries. The manufacturing
industry has thus become second only to that of agriculture, and
it is believed that, under the great impetus given by our protective
laws, the time is not far distant when the value of manufactured
products will be equal to, or greater than, the productions of the
farm.
The most striking result of the change in the industries of Ohio
is the rapid increase of city population, compared with farming
population. The following table will show the population of twenty
cities, by the censuses of 1850 and 1890:
1850. 1890.
Akron . . . . . . . 3,266 27,601
Canton . . . . . . 2,603 26,189
Chillicothe . . . . 7,100 11,288
Cincinnati . . . . 115,435 296,908
Columbus . . . . . 17,882 88,150
Cleveland . . . . 17,034 261,353
Dayton . . . . . . 10,977 61,220
Findlay . . . . . 1,256 18,553
Hamilton . . . . . 3,210 17,565
Ironton . . . . . ---- 10,939
Lima . . . . . . . 757 15,987
Mansfield . . . . 3,557 13,473
Newark . . . . . . 3,654 15,286
Portsmouth . . . . 4,011 12,394
Sandusky . . . . . 5,087 18,471
Springfield . . . 5,108 31,895
Steubenville . . . 6,140 13,394
Tiffin . . . . . . 2,718 10,801
Toledo . . . . . . 3,829 81,434
Zanesville . . . . 7,929 21,009
221,553 1,053,910
While the aggregate population of Ohio has increased 185 per cent.
since 1850, that of the cities named has increased 475 per cent.
The growth of cities and manufactures has been accompanied by the
discovery and development of a diversity of mineral resources of
great and increasing value.
The mining of coal was insignificant in 1850, while the product of
coal in 1890 is estimated at exceeding 12,000,000 tons.
Recently petroleum was discovered near Marietta and Lima, places
in Ohio remote from each other, thus supplying a new element for
commerce and a new agent for manufactures. Its properties and
innumerable uses have already been tested in Pennsylvania. The
annual supply by the census of 1890 was 12,471,466 barrels, second
only to that of Pennsylvania, and has not yet reached its maximum.
About the same period came the discovery of natural gas at Findlay,
in Hancock and surrounding counties. This subtle and mysterious
creation of nature has been applied locally as fuel for manufacture,
and as light and heat in many cities and towns. The duration of
its supply, however, cannot be determined.
The lakes on the north and the river on the south secure to the
people of Ohio cheap water transportation for the importation and
exportation of raw materials and finished products, while the
physical features of the country north and south of Ohio, in a
measure, compelled the construction of the great routes of railway
over its soil.
From the beginning Ohio has taken a leading part in furnishing
facilities for education to the rising generation. In early days,
when the population was sparse and scattered, day schools were
established, by voluntary effort, in counties, towns and neighborhoods
where the population was sufficient to justify it. At an early
period the State of Ohio established the common-school system, by
which every child between the ages of seven and fourteen years is
furnished with the rudiments of a good education. Some of these
schools have been so far advanced that in them any child showing
proficiency can secure, without cost, an education fully equal to
that furnished by the colleges of the country forty years ago.
The amount expended in 1890 for the support of public schools was
$11,407,499. The number of teachers employed was 19,526. The number
of persons enrolled between the ages of six and twenty-one was
1,123,985. The number of scholars who attended was 797,439. The
average attendance was 549,269. The excellence of the system of
common schools in Ohio is admitted on all hands to be equal to that
of any other state or section.
The charitable institutions of the state, including children's
homes, are equal to the best in any country in the world.
The building of churches and places of public worship commenced
with the first settlement in Ohio, and has kept pace fully with
the growth of population. In every community, great or small,
churches are open for the worship of the Almighty God. The broadest
toleration is not only permitted, but favored, by a universal public
sentiment. Every denomination of Christians who number enough to
make a congregation can readily secure a house of worship, not only
by gifts from its members, but by contributions made by other
professing Christians. The same charity is extended to Jews and
Gentiles professing any creed or having any form of worship.
The standing, ability and influence of the men engaged in the
professions in Ohio will compare favorably with any in the Union,
and especially is this true of the lawyers of the state. Many of
the lawyers who engaged in the fervent discussion which led to the
Revolution and then participated in the war, thrown upon their own
resources after the war, were among the early founders of the new
settlements in Ohio. They chiefly framed the first laws of the
state. Judge Burnet, one of them, had intrusted to him the
preparation of most of the laws of the territorial government.
The principal lawyers appeared in the constitutional convention
and in the legislatures subsequent, and contributed more than their
share in ingrafting upon our statutes the republican principles
and ideas found in the first constitution and laws of the state.
They shared with other settlers in all the hardships of pioneer
life. Innumerable anecdotes of their voyages through the forests
of southern and eastern Ohio, and the swamps of northwestern Ohio,
are preserved among the traditions of the bar.
It was the habit in those early days for the principal lawyers of
the state to follow the judges in their rounds from county to
county, attending the courts and aiding local attorneys in the
trial of important causes. They rode on horseback, with their
clothing and books in their saddlebags, and, where a better lodging
could not be found, camped in the woods by the roadside. The early
judges of the Supreme Court, some of whom were transferred to the
Supreme Court of the United States, rode in the same manner on
their circuit, administering justice impartially, but firmly, for
the salary of $1,000 a year, only raised to $100 a month about the
year 1820. The doctors and preachers shared the general life and
condition and the same homely fare as their patients and hearers.
A life like this developed individual character and produced many
men of odd characteristics, strange manners and peculiar dress and
conversation. The almost universal use of whisky during the pioneer
period in the family circle and in social life, and the habit of
treating and drinking, led to many wild scenes and fights, but,
unlike their brethren of the south, the contestants commonly were
content with the weapons nature gave them. It was not unusual,
when a quarrel arose, to gather around them, form a circle and give
them fair play and a free fight. There can be no doubt that in
those early days many rude scenes and fights and violence of many
kinds occurred, and such crimes were indulged with more charity
than now prevails. But it is equally true that thefts and the
meaner crimes were more rare than now, and when disclosed were
punished with greater severity than acts of violence. The stealing
of a horse was considered a greater crime than manslaughter without
malice or premeditation.
But all these habits and ideas have been greatly changed for at
least fifty years. The habit of drinking spirituous liquor at the
homestead, in the family circle, or on the farm, has almost entirely
ceased. As a rule, it is confined to saloons and bar-rooms, mostly
in the cities and large towns, and a "free fight" in the presence
of spectators could not now occur in any community in the state.
The enforcement of the criminal laws is as certain as in any other
community. The discipline of penitentiaries and reformatories and
houses of correction is founded upon the best examples of such
institutions in the older states, and the most civilized countries
of Europe.
There is one other quality developed by the people of Ohio which
will be readily conceded by all. The people from the earliest days
were born politicians, vigorous in the defense of their opinions
and firm in the maintenance of all their rights. The events in
their history developed a military instinct which led them to take
an active part whenever their country became involved in war. In
the pioneer age nearly every able-bodied man served either in the
Indian wars or in the War of 1812. In the Mexican war the State
of Ohio furnished her full quota of soldiers, and tendered thousands
more. In the political contests that preceded the Civil War the
lines between the two parties were sharply drawn, though when war
was commenced by the firing upon Fort Sumter the people were
practically united for its prosecution until the Union was restored
by the unconditional surrender of the Confederate armies. Questions
arose involving individual rights upon which the Democratic party
was divided, but it is due to history to say that in the great
struggle for national life the people of Ohio, without distinction
of party, with few individual exceptions, were on the side of the
Union.
The share taken by the several states in the Civil War is familiar
to all. Invidious comparisons ought not to be made. It will be
conceded that Ohio did its full part in this supreme contest. She
furnished to the Union army 319,659 soldiers, or more than one-
tenth of the national armies, out of a then population of 2,339,000,
some of whom served in every considerable battle of the war. She
furnished from among her sons the leading commanders of the Union
army, and a long list of distinguished officers who were conspicuous
in every battle of the war. The war Governors of Ohio were
conspicuous in their zeal and ability in organizing recruits, and
in care and attention to their comfort and wants. The people of
Ohio, both men and women, contributed freely in many ways for the
relief of the sick and wounded during the war, and after its close
provided homes for needy soldiers, and for the children of those
who fell.
I have carefully refrained from mentioning the names of the many
illustrious citizens of Ohio who contributed most to the organization,
growth and development of that state and of the United States, lest
I omit others equally worthy of honorable mention. The Governors
of Ohio have been selected for conspicuous service to the state,
or to the United States, and, though the powers of that officer,
under the constitution of Ohio, are not so great as in many of the
states, they were distinguished for ability, integrity and high
personal character. The roll of statesmen who have served Ohio in
the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States includes
many of commanding influence in the national councils, two of whom
have been Presidents of the United States, two Chief Justices of
the Supreme Court of the United States, and many others have occupied
seats as Justices of the Supreme Court, as heads of departments of
the executive branch of government, and representatives of the
highest rank in our diplomatic service.
It is not intended to make a comparison of the merits of individuals
or parties, nor of Ohio with other states, old or new. I concede
that all the states, old or new, have contributed to the strength
of the republic, the common hope and pride of all American citizens.
Local or state pride is entirely consistent with the most devoted
loyalty to the Union. All I have sought is to present truthfully
a mere outline of the history and resources of a state carved within
a century out of a wilderness, having at the beginning no inhabitants
but savage men and wild beasts, no mark of civilization except that
made by an extinct race leaving no name or date or history, and
now converted into the peaceful home of four millions of human
beings, possessed of a full share of property and wealth, a soil
rich and fertile, well cultivated by independent farmers, yielding
more than the entire production of all the colonies that rebelled
against Great Britain, and producing by varied industries and
developed resources more than all the states produced when the
constitution was adopted.
In intelligence, means of education, temperance, order and religious
observance, Ohio may fairly take its place among the most favored
communities in the world. It is a type of what can be accomplished
under favorable circumstances by a free people under a free
government, where each citizen enjoys the full and undisputed
possession of equal rights and opportunities. Ohio commenced its
existence on the western border line of civilization on the continent.
The center of population has already passed its borders, so that
it now takes its place, not in the west, but in the east. The new
communities that have been founded in the west are largely composed
of the sons and daughters of Ohio, who, following the example of
their ancestors, seek new fields for enterprise and industry. I
have observed that whenever I traveled in the west, however remote
the place, I found the "Ohio man" well advanced among his fellow
citizens, and actively contributing his full share to the growth
and prosperity of the community in which he lived, but retaining
his love for his native state, and always proud to say he was born
in Ohio.
CHAPTER IV.
ADMISSION TO THE BAR AND EARLY POLITICAL LIFE.
Law Partnership with my Brother Charles--Change in Methods of Court
Practice--Obtaining the Right of Way for a Railroad--Excitement of
the Mexican War and its Effect on the Country--My First Visit to
Washington--At a Banquet with Daniel Webster--New York Fifty Years
Ago--Marriage with Margaret Cecilia Stewart--Beginning of My
Political Life--Belief in the Doctrine of Protection--Democratic
and Whig Conventions of 1852--The Slavery Question--My Election to
Congress in 1854.
After I was admitted to the bar I felt the natural elation of one
who had reached the end of a long journey after weary waiting. I
spent two or three weeks in visiting my relatives in Dayton and
Cincinnati, attending the courts in those cities, where I observed
closely the conduct of judges and lawyers in the trial of cases,
and returned to Mansfield full of confidence, and with a better
opinion of myself than I have entertained since.
The first object I sought to accomplish was the removal of my mother
and her two unmarried daughters, Susan and Fannie, from Lancaster
to Mansfield. At this time all her sons were settled at homes
distant from Lancaster, and her other daughters were married and
scattered. By an arrangement between my brothers, Charles and
Tecumseh, and myself, I was to keep house with mother in charge,
Susan and Fannie as guests. This family arrangement was continued
until Susan and I were married and mother died.
To return to my admission to the bar. I felt that I was now a man.
I had heretofore banked mainly on the treasures of hope. My brother,
Charles Sherman, admitted me as an equal partner in his lucrative
practice, and thus I gained a foot-hold in the profession.
Fortunately for me, his timidity required me to attend stoutly
contested cases brought to us. The old distinction between law
and equity proceedings was then preserved, and Charles was a very
good equity counselor. With this line of distinction between us
we never had any difficulty in arranging our business, or in dividing
our labor. He was then agent and attorney for New York and eastern
creditors, the confidential adviser of our leading business men,
and the counselor of a very interesting sect, then quite numerous
in Richland county, called Quakers, or Friends, who could not
conscientiously take the usual oath, but in witnessing all necessary
legal papers, and in contests, made their affirmations. There was,
therefore, left to me the pleadings, oral or written, and the
struggle of debate and trial. The practice of the bar in Ohio had
greatly changed from that of the early decades of this century.
As I have stated, the judges, in the earlier decades, accompanied
by leading lawyers, mounted on horses, went from county to county
and disposed of the docket. The local lawyers had but little to
do. Now all this is changed. Each county has its bar and its
leading lawyers, and only when the case is of great importance a
"foreign" lawyer is called in. The change has been caused by the
abnormal growth of population. In 1830 the total population of
the state was only 938,000, that of many of the counties being very
small. In 1850 the population had more than doubled, amounting to
1,980,000. In 1890 it was 3,672,000, well distributed among the
counties according to their capacity for supporting this increase.
Other remarkable changes have also taken place during the same
period. The entire mode of conducting business in early days has
been abandoned. Cash payments and short accounts have taken the
place of barter and credit. The Ohio banking law of 1846, followed
and superseded by the national banking act of 1863, produced a
radical change in the forms, credit and solvency of paper money,
and, more than any other cause, has encouraged the holding of small
savings of money in savings banks and like institutions. These
favorable conditions tended to limit credits, to encourage savings,
and to change the vocation and habits of lawyers.
Changes in methods have also affected the legal profession. The
adoption of a code of laws, and of new and simple pleadings, rendered
useless half the learning of the old lawyers, driving some of them
out of practice. I knew one in Mansfield who swore that the new
code was made by fools, for fools, and that he never would resort
to it. I believe he kept his word, except when in person he was
plaintiff or defendant. Yet, the code and pleadings adopted in
New York have been adopted in nearly all the states, and will not
be changed except in the line of extension and improvement.
These reforms, and the many changes made in the organization of
our state and federal courts, have to a considerable extent lessened
the fees and restricted the occupation of lawyers. But it can be
said that the leading members of the legal profession proposed and
adopted these reforms, and always advocated any legislation that
tended to simplify and cheapen litigation and at the same time
protect life, property or reputation.
While these causes were operating against lawyers, agents of nature,
hitherto unknown, undiscovered, and wonderful, were being developed,
which were to completely revolutionize the methods of travel, the
transportation of goods, and the modes of production, thus opening
new fields for the employment of lawyers. Instead of assault and
battery cases, suits for slander and the collection of debts, the
attention of lawyers was directed to the development of railroads,
banking institutions and other corporations.
The construction of railroads caused a most remarkable revolution
in the habits and industries of our people. The first built in
Ohio ran from Lake Erie or the Ohio River, north or south into the
center of the state. Among them was the Sandusky & Mansfield road,
originally a short line from Sandusky to Monroeville, intended to
be run by horse power. It was soon changed to a steam road, the
power being furnished by a feeble, wheezing engine, not to be
compared with the locomotive of to-day. It was then extended to
Mansfield, and subsequently to Newark, but was not completed until
1846. It was built of cross-ties three feet apart, connected by
string pieces of timber about six by eight inches in dimensions,
and a flat iron bar two and one-half inches wide and five-eighths
of an inch thick. The worthlessness and danger of such a railroad
was soon demonstrated by innumerable accidents caused by the spreading
of rails, the "snaking" of the flat bars of iron through the cars,
and the feebleness of the engines. Both road and engines soon had
to be replaced. In every case which I recall the original investment
in the early railroads was lost.
It was thought when the first railroad from Sandusky to Mansfield
was completed that the road would save the farmer five or six cents
a bushel on his wheat in its transit to the lake, and yield a
handsome profit to the stockholders of the railroad. That was the
great benefit anticipated. No one then thought of the movement by
railroad, over vast distances, of grain, stock, and merchandise,
but regarded the innovation as a substitute for the old wagon trains
to the lake.
The construction of this railroad was considered at that time a
great undertaking. It was accomplished mainly by the leading
business men of Mansfield, but the road turned out to be a very
bad investment, bankrupting some and crippling others. I was
employed by the company to collect the stock and to secure by
condemnation the right-of-way from Plymouth to Mansfield. Much of
the right-of-way was freely granted without cost by the owners of
the land. As the chief benefit was to inure to the farmers, it
was thought to be very mean and stingy for one of them to demand
money for the right-of-way through his farm. I went over the road
from Mansfield to Plymouth with a company of five appraisers, all
farmers, who carefully examined the line of the railroad, and much
to my mortification, assessed in the aggregate for twenty miles of
railway track, damages to the amount of $2,000. I honestly thought
this an exorbitant award, but the same distance could not be
traversed now at a cost for right-of-way of ten times that sum.
The present admirable roads in Ohio have been built mainly by the
proceeds of bonds based upon a right-of-way.
In the meantime other railroads of much greater importance were
being built, and the direction of the roads, instead of being north
and south was from east to west, to reach a business rapidly
developing west of Ohio of far greater importance than the local
traffic of that state.
Among the most valuable of these railroads was the Pittsburg, Ft.
Wayne & Chicago, now a part of the system of the Pennsylvania
Railroad Company, by which it is leased. This road was built in
sections by three different corporations, subsequently combined by
authority of the legislatures of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and
Illinois. The first section was the Pittsburg & Ohio railroad from
Pittsburg to Crestline, twelve miles west of Mansfield.
There is perhaps no more remarkable material development in the
history of mankind than that of railroads in the United States
since 1845. The number of miles of such roads is now 171,804.72,
the actual cost of which with equipment amounting to $9,293,052,143.
The value of these railroads and their dependent warehouses and
stations is probably greater to-day than the value of the entire
property of the United States in 1840.
Contemporaneous with railroads came the telegraph, the cable, and
the telephone. The first telegraph wire was strung between Baltimore
and Washington in 1844. The first telegraph line through the State
of Ohio was from Cleveland via Mansfield to Columbus and Cincinnati,
and was established in 1848. At the close of the session of the
Supreme Court at Mansfield in that year, Judge Hitchcock, who
presided, asked me the road to Mt. Gilead, in Morrow county, a
county then recently created. I pointed to the telegraph wire
stretched on poles, and told him to follow that. The old Judge,
who had been on the supreme bench for over twenty years was quite
amused at the directions given. He laughed and said he had been
mislead by guideboards all his life, and now he was glad to be
guided by a wire.
The development and changes, soon after my admission to the bar,
turned somewhat the tide of my hopes and expectations. Our firm
soon lost the business of collecting debts for eastern merchants
by the establishment of numerous and safe banks under the state
act of 1846. Several of the old banks, especially those at Wooster,
Norwalk, and Massillon had utterly failed, and, I believe, paid no
part of their outstanding notes. The new banks, founded upon a
better system, one of which was at Mansfield, rapidly absorbed the
collections of eastern merchants from the part of Ohio in which we
lived. This loss was, however, more than made good by our employment
as attorneys for the several railroads through Richland county.
My brother gradually withdrew from his business in Mansfield, and
became the general attorney for the Pittsburg, Ft. Wayne & Chicago
Railroad.
In the meantime I had taken a junior part in the trial of several
cases in which I was greatly favored by Mr. Stewart, the most
eminent member of his profession at Mansfield. He gave me several
opportunities for testing my qualities before a jury, so that I
gradually gained confidence in myself as a speaker.
My Uncle Parker was then judge of the Court of Common Pleas. So
far from favoring me on account of my relation to him, he seemed
to wish to demonstrate his impartiality by overruling my pleadings
or instructing the jury against me. I am quite sure now that this
was fanciful on my part, for he was universally regarded as being
an excellent example of a just judge without favor or partiality.
During the early period of practice at the bar I studied my cases
carefully and had fair success. I settled more cases by compromises,
however, than I tried before a jury. I got the reputation of being
successful by full preparation and a thorough knowledge of the
facts and law of the case. In addressing a jury I rarely attempted
flights of oratory, and when I did attempt them I failed. I soon
learned that it was better to gain the confidence of a jury by
plain talk than by rhetoric. Subsequently in public life I preserved
a like course, and once, though I was advised by Governor Chase to
add a peroration to my argument, I did not follow his advice.
While I defended many persons for alleged crimes I never but once
prosecuted a criminal. My old friend, Mr. Kirkwood, was the
prosecuting attorney of the county, and I renewed with him my "moot
court" experience in frequent contests between real parties.
During this period I became a member of the order of Odd Fellows
in Mansfield. I took an active interest in the order, and was at
one time Noble Grand of the lodge. I have continued every since
to pay my dues, but have not been able to attend the meetings
regularly for some years. I have always thought, without any
reference to its supposed secrecy, that it is an association of
great value, especially in bringing young men under good social
influences with men of respectable character and standing.
Among the political incidents of this period I recall the excitement
that grew out of the Mexican War. The general feeling among all
classes, and the universal feeling among the Whigs was, that the
Mexican War was purposely and unjustly entered upon to extend the
institution of slavery. There is, now, no doubt that such was the
object of the war. After the battles at Palo Alto and Resaca de
la Palma a call was made upon the people of Ohio for two regiments
of volunteers. These were raised without much difficulty, one
being placed under the command of Col. Thomas L. Hamer, the other
under my old commander, Col. Samuel R. Curtis. I was somewhat
tempted to enter the service, though I did not believe in the
justice of the war. My old friend, Gen. McLaughlin, raised a
company in Mansfield, and my comrade on the Muskingum Improvement,
James M. Love, raised one in Coschocton, and Col. Curtis was to
command the regiment. My brother, William Tecumseh, then captain
in the regular army, was eager to go into the war. He had been
stationed at Pittsburg, on recruiting service, but during the
excitement visited us at Mansfield, and chafed over the delay of
orders to join the troops, then under General Taylor. No doubt
his impatience led him to be assigned to the expedition around Cape
Horn to occupy California, this, greatly to his regret, keeping
him out of the war with Mexico.
Whatever may have been the merits of this war in the beginning,
its fruits were undoubtedly of immense value to this country.
Without this war California might, like other provinces of Mexico,
have remained undeveloped. In the possession of the United States
its gold and silver have been discovered and mined, and, together
with all the vast interior country west of the Mississippi, it has
been developed with a rapidity unexampled in history.
In the winter of 1846-7, I for the first time visited the cities
of Washington, New York and Boston. I rode in a stage coach from
Mansfield to the national road south of Newark, and thence over
that road by stages to Cumberland, the railroads not having yet
crossed the mountains. From Cumberland I rode in cars to Baltimore,
occupying nearly a day. From Baltimore I proceeded to Washington.
On my arrival I went to the National Hotel, then the most popular
hotel in Washington, where many Senators and Members lodged. I
found there, also, a number of charming young ladies whose company
was much more agreeable to me than that of the most distinguished
statesmen. We had hops, balls and receptions, but I recall very
few public men I met at that time. Mr. Vinton, then the veteran
Member from Ohio, invited me to join for a few days his mess; he
was then boarding in a house nearly opposite the hotel, kept by an
Italian whose name I cannot recall. He was a famous cook. The
mess was composed entirely of Senators and Members, one of the
former being Mr. Crittenden, of Kentucky. I was delighted and
instructed by the free and easy talk that prevailed, a mixture of
funny jokes, well-told stories and gay and grave discussions of
politics and law.
My stay at the capital was brief as I wished to go to New York and
Boston. In New York I received from a relative a letter of
introduction to Benj. R. Curtis, then an eminent lawyer, and latterly
a more eminent justice of the Supreme Court. When I presented my
letter I was received very kindly and after a brief conversation
he said he was able to do me a favor, that he had a ticket to a
grand banquet to be attended by the leading men of Boston at Plymouth
Rock, on the anniversary of the landing of the Pilgrim Fathers,
and that Daniel Webster would preside. I heartily thanked him,
and on the next day, prompt on time, I entered the train at Boston
for Plymouth. When I arrived at the hotel, which is also a station-
house of the railway, I did not know a single person in the great
assemblage. In due time we were ushered into the dining hall where
the banquet was spread. There was no mistaking Webster. He sat
at the center of a cross table with the British minister on his
right and Jeremiah Mason on his left. At the other end of the room
sat Abbott Lawrence and other distinguished men. The residue of
the guests, merchants, poets, and orators of Massachusetts, filled
every seat at the tables. I sat some way down on the side and
introduced myself to my neighbors on the right and left, but my
eye was on Webster, from whom I expected such lofty eloquence as
he alone could utter.
Much to my surprise, when the time came for the oratory to commence,
Mr. Lawrence acted as toast master. We had stories, songs, poetry
and oratory, generally good and appropriate, but not from Webster.
And so the evening waned. Webster had been talking freely with
those about him. He displayed none of the loftiness associated
with his name. He drank freely. That was manifest to everyone.
His favorite bottle was one labeled "Brandy." We heard of it as
being "more than a hundred years old." It did not travel down to
us. Webster was plainly hilarious. At this time the conductor
appeared at a side door and announced that in fifteen minutes the
cars would start for Boston. Then Webster arose--with difficulty
--he rested his hands firmly on the table and with an effort assumed
an erect position. Every voice was hushed. He said that in fifteen
minutes we would separate, nevermore to meet again, and then, with
glowing force and eloquence, he contrasted the brevity and vanity
of human life with the immortality of the events they were celebrating,
which century after century would be celebrated by your children
and your children's children to the latest generation.
I cannot recall the words of his short but eloquent speech, but it
made an impress on my mind. If his body was affected by the liquor,
his head was clear and his utterance perfect. I met Mr. Webster
afterwards on the cars and in Washington. I admired him for his
great intellectual qualities, but I do not wonder that the people
of the United States did not choose him for President.
Soon after the national Whig convention of 1852, of which I was a
member, I heard this story told by his secretary. In the evening,
when Mr. Webster was at his well-known residence on Louisiana
Avenue, near Sixth street, he was awaiting the ballots in the
convention. When it came by the telegraph, "Scott 159, Fillmore
112, Webster 21," he repeated it in his deep tones and said: "How
will this read in history?" He did not like either Scott or
Fillmore, and was disappointed in the votes of southern members.
To be third in such a contest wounded his pride. He died before
the year closed. He was, perhaps, the greatest man of intellectual
force of his time, but he had faults which the people could not
overlook. Another incident about Mr. Webster, and the house in
which he lived, may not be without interest. On New Year's day of
1860, Mr. Corwin, Mr. Colfax and myself made the usual calls
together. Among the many visits we made, was one on a gentleman
then living in that house. As we entered, Mr. Corwin met an old
well-trained negro servant who had been a servant of Mr. Webster
in this house. I noticed that Mr. Corwin lost his usual gayety,
and as we left the house he turned to us, and, with deep emotion,
asked that we leave him at his lodgings, that his long associations
with Mr. Webster, especially his meetings with him in that house
during their association as members of the cabinet of Fillmore,
unfitted him to enjoy the usual greetings of the day. I felt that
the emotion of such a man as Corwin was the highest possible
compliment to the memory of Daniel Webster.
From Boston I returned to New York. There, in the families of two
brothers of my mother, both then living, I had a glimpse of New
York society. With Mr. Scott, the son-in-law of my uncle, James
Hoyt, I made nearly one hundred of the usual New Years' visits, then
customary in New York. This custom I am told has been abandoned,
but the New York of to-day is quite different from the New York of
1847. It still retained some of the knickerbocker customs of the
olden time. The site of the Fifth Avenue Hotel was then a stone-
yard where grave stones were cut. All north of Twenty-third street,
now the seat of plutocracy, was then sparsely occupied by poor
houses and miserable shanties, and the site of Central Park was a
rough, but picturesque body of woodland, glens and rocky hills,
with a few clearings partly cultivated. Even then the population
of New York was about 400,000, or more than three-fold that of any
city in the United States, and twenty-fold that of Chicago. Now
New York contains 2,000,000 inhabitants, and Chicago, according to
recent reports, about 1,700,000. Many cities now exist containing
over 100,000 inhabitants, the sites of which, in that year, were
within the limits of Indian reservations.
From New York I returned to Washington. Many incidents recur to
me but they were of persons now dead and gone, the memory of whom
will not be recalled by the present generation. Mr. Polk was then
President. He was a plain man, of ordinary ability and more
distinguished for the great events that happened during his presidency
than for anything he did himself. I attended one of his receptions.
His wife appeared to better advantage than he. I then saw Mr.
Douglas for the first time. I think he was still a Member of the
House of Representatives, but had attained a prominent position
and was regarded as a rising man. I wished very much to see Henry
Clay, the great favorite of the Whigs of that day, but he was not
then in public life.
There was nothing in Washington at that time to excite interest,
except the men and women in public or social life. The city itself
had no attractions except the broad Potomac River and the rim of
hills that surrounded the city. It then contained about 30,000
inhabitants. Pennsylvania avenue was a broad, badly paved,
unattractive street, while all the other streets were unpaved and
unimproved. All that part of the city lying north of K street and
west of Fourteenth street, now the most fashionable part of the
city, was then a dreary waste open, like all the rest of the city,
as free pasturage for cows, pigs, and goats. It was a city in
name, but a village in fact. The contrast between Washington then
and now may be referred to hereafter.
Upon my return from the east in February, 1847, I actively resumed
the practice of the law. I was engaged in several important trials,
but notably one at Mount Vernon, Ohio, where the contesting parties
were brothers, the matter in dispute a valuable farm, and the chief
witness in the case the mother of both the plaintiff and defendant.
It was, as such trials are apt to be, vigorously contested with
great bitterness between the parties. Columbus Delano was the
chief counsel for the plaintiff, and I was his assistant. I remember
the case more especially because during its progress I was attacked
by typhoid fever. I returned home after the trial, completely
exhausted, and on the Fourth of July, 1847, found myself in a raging
fever, which continued more than two months before I was able to
rise from the bed, and then I was as helpless as a child. I was
unable to walk, and was lifted from the house into the carriage to
get the fresh air, and continued under disability until October,
when I was again able to renew my business.
During my practice thus far, I had been able to accumulate in
property and money more than ten thousand dollars. I had, in
addition to my practice, engaged in a profitable business with
Jacob Emminger, a practical mechanic, in the manufacture of doors,
blinds and other building materials. We acquired valuable pine-
lands in Michigan and transported the lumber to our works at
Mansfield. We continued this business until I was appointed
Secretary of the Treasury, in March, 1877, when I sold out my
interest and also abandoned the practice of the law.
I spent the winter of 1847-8 at Columbus, where I made many
acquaintances who were of great service to me in after life, and
had a happy time also with the young ladies I met there. Columbus
was then the headquarters of social life for Ohio. It had a
population of about fifteen thousand, with few or no manufactures.
It has now a population of more than one hundred thousand, the
increase being largely caused by the great development of the
numerous railroads centering there, and of the coal and iron mines
of the Hocking Valley. It was also the natural headquarters of
the legal profession, the Supreme Court of Ohio, then under the
old constitution, and the District Court of the United States
holding their sessions there.
On the first day of August, 1848, my grandmother, Elizabeth Stoddard
Sherman, died at Mansfield at the residence of her daughter, Mrs.
Parker. Her history and characteristics have already been referred
to. She was to our family the connecting link between the
Revolutionary period and our times. She had a vivid recollection
of the burning of the principal towns of Connecticut by the British
and Tories, of the trials and poverty that followed the War of the
Revolution, of the early political contests between the Federalists
and Republicans, of the events of the War of 1812, and of her
journey to Ohio in 1816. She maintained a masterly care of her
children and grandchildren. She was the best type I have known of
the strong-willed, religious Puritan of the Connecticut school,
and was respected, not only by her numerous grandchildren, but by
all who knew her.
My brother-in-law, Thomas W. Bartley, was District Attorney of the
United States during the administration of Mr. Polk, and, as he
expected a change would be made by the incoming administration of
Taylor, he advised me to become a candidate for his place, as that
was in the line of my profession. I told him I doubted if my
experience of the bar would justify me in making such an application,
but he thought differently. I wrote to Mr. Ewing upon the subject
and he answered as follows:
"Washington, D. C., Dec. 31, 1848.
"John Sherman, Esq., Mansfield, Ohio.
"My Dear Sir:--I believe you would be able to perform the duties
of District Attorney, but your youth would be an objection to your
appointment, and in competition with one so long known, and so
highly esteemed, as Mr. Goddard is both professionally and politically,
would probably make your prospects but little encouraging. If you
conclude to withdraw your name, signify the fact and the reason by
letter to Mr. Goddard and it may be of use to you hereafter. I
am, with great regard,
"Yours, T. Ewing."
I complied with his advice, though Mr. Goddard, I think, declined
and Mr. Mason was accepted.
On the thirty-first of the same month I was married to Margaret
Ceclia Stewart, the only child of Judge Stewart, whom I had known
since my removal to Mansfield. She had been carefully educated at
the Female College at Granville, Ohio, and at the Patapsco Institute,
near Baltimore, Maryland. After the usual wedding tour to Niagara
Falls, Montreal and Saratoga, we settled in Mansfield, and I returned
to my profession, actively pursuing it until elected a member of
Congress.
It is not worth while to follow my professional life into further
detail. I shall not have occasion to mention that subject again.
Sufficient to say that I was reasonably successful therein. During
this period Henry C. Hedges studied law with my brother and myself,
and when admitted to the bar became my partner. Mr. Stewart was
elected by the legislature a judge of the Court of Common Pleas,
and after the adoption of the new constitution of 1851, he was
elected by the people to the same office.
I had determined in the fall of 1853 to abandon Mansfield and settle
in Cleveland, then rapidly growing in importance as the leading
city in the northern part of the state. I went so far as to
establish an office there and place in it two young lawyers,
nominally my partners, but the great political currents of that
time soon diverted me from the practice of the law into the political
contests that grew out of the repeal of the Missouri Compromise.
"The direful spring of woes unnumbered."
Before entering upon an account of my political life it seems
appropriate for me to state my political bias and position. I was
by inheritance and association a Whig boy, without much care for
or knowledge of parties or political principles. No doubt my
discharge from the engineer corps by a Democratic Board of Public
Works strengthened this bias. I shouted for Harrison in the campaign
of 1840. In 1842 I was enthusiastic for "Tom Corwin, the wagon-
boy," the Whig candidate for Governor of Ohio. In that canvass
Governor Corwin addressed a great meeting at Mansfield. I heard
his speech, and was full of enthusiasm. Mr. Corwin was certainly
the greatest popular orator of his time. His face was eloquent,
changeable at his will. With a look he could cause a laugh or a
tear. He would move his audience at his pleasure. I vividly
remember the impression he made upon me, though I cannot recall
anything he said. At the close of the meeting I was requested by
the committee in charge to take Mr. Corwin in a buggy to Bucyrus.
This I cheerfully did. I noticed that Mr. Corwin was very glum
and silent, and to cheer him up I spoke of his speech and of the
meeting. He turned upon me, and with some show of feeling, said
that all the people who heard him would remember only his jokes,
and warned me to keep out of politics and attend to my law. He
told me that he knew my father, and was present at his death at
Lebanon, where he, Mr. Corwin, lived. And then, brightening up,
he gave me an interesting account of the early settlement of Ohio,
and of the bar and bench, and of his early life as a wagon boy in
Harrison's army. His sudden fit of gloom had passed away. I do
not recall any circumstance that created a deeper impression on my
mind than this interview with Mr. Corwin. His advice to keep out
of politics was easy to follow, as no one could then dream of the
possibility of a Whig being elected to office in Richland county,
then called "the Berks of Ohio." Mr. Corwin was defeated at that
election.
I took but little part in the campaign of 1844, when Mr. Clay was
a candidate for President, but I then made my first political speech
to a popular audience and cast my first vote. The meeting was held
at Plymouth, and Honorable Joseph M. Root, the Whig candidate for
Congress, was to be the orator. For some reason Mr. Root was
delayed, and I was pressed into service. Of what I said I have
not the remotest recollection, but my audience was satisfied, and
I was doubly so, especially when Mr. Root came in sight. After
that I made a few neighborhood speeches in support of the Whig
candidate for governor, Mr. Mordecai Partley, a gentleman who for
several years had lived in Mansfield, but had long since retired
from public office after eight years' service in the United States
House of Representatives. Mr. Bartley received 147,378 votes, Mr.
Tod, Democrat, 146,461 votes and Mr. King, Third Party, 8,411 votes;
so close were parties divided in Ohio in 1844.
At this time I had but two definite ideas in respect to the public
policy of the United States. One was a hearty belief in the doctrine
of protection to American industries, as advocated by Mr. Clay,
and, second, a strong prejudice against the Democratic party, which
was more or less committed to the annexation of Texas, and the
extension of slavery. I shared in the general regret at the defeat
of Mr. Clay and the election of Mr. Polk. I took some part in the
local canvasses in Ohio prior to 1848, but this did not in the
least commit me to active political life. I was appointed a delegate
to the national Whig convention, held in Philadelphia, in 1848, to
nominate a presidential candidate. I accepted this the more readily
as it gave me an opportunity to see my future wife at her school
at Patapsco, and to fix our engagement for marriage upon her return
home. The chief incident of the convention was the struggle between
the friends of General Scott and General Taylor.
When the convention was being organized, Colonel Collyer, chairman
of the Ohio delegation, said there was a young gentleman in that
convention who could never hope to get an office unless that
convention gave him one, and nominated me for secretary of the
convention. Mr. Defrees said there was a delegate from Indiana in
the same condition and moved that Schuyler Colfax be made assistant
secretary. We then marched together to the platform and commenced
our political life, in which we were to be closely associated for
many years.
The nomination of General Taylor, cordially supported by me, was
not acceptable to all the Whigs of Ohio. The hostility to slavery
had grown chiefly out of the acquisition of Texas as a slave state.
An anti-slavery party headed in Ohio by Salmon P. Chase cast 35,354
votes for Van Buren. General Taylor was defeated in Ohio mainly
by this defection, receiving 138,360 votes. General Cass received
154,755 votes. General Cass received the vote of Ohio, but General
Taylor was elected President, having received a majority of the
electoral vote.
General Taylor proved a very conscientious and acceptable President.
His death, on the ninth day of July, 1850, preceded the passage of
the compromise measures of Henry Clay, commonly known by his name.
They became laws with the approval of Millard Fillmore.
It was my habit during this period to attend the annual state
conventions of the Whig party, not so much to influence nominations
as to keep up an acquaintance with the principal members of the
party. I had not the slightest desire for public office and never
became a candidate until 1854. In the state convention of 1850 I
heartily supported the nomination of General Scott for President,
at the approaching election of 1852. In this convention an effort
was made to nominate me for Attorney-General in opposition to Henry
Stanbery. I promptly declined to be a candidate, but received a
number of votes from personal friends, who, as they said, wanted
to introduce some young blood into the Whig party.
I then began seriously to study the political topics of the day.
I was classed as a conservative Whig, and heartily supported the
compromise measures of 1850, not upon their merits, but as the best
solution of dangerous sectional divisions. Prior to this time I
do not remember to have given any study, except through the newspapers
of the day, to the great national questions that divided the
political parties.
In the spring of 1852 I was designated by the state convention as
a delegate at large in association with Honorable Samuel F. Vinton
to the national Whig convention of that year. I was an earnest
advocate of General Scott, and rejoiced in his nomination. Here,
again, the slavery question was obtruded into national politics.
The clear and specific indorsement of the compromise measures,
though supported by a great majority, divided the Whig party and
led to the election of Franklin Pierce. In this canvass I took
for the first time an active part. I was designated as an elector
on the Scott ticket. I made speeches in several counties and
cities, but was recalled to Wooster by a telegram stating that my
mother was dangerously ill. Before I could reach home she died.
This event was wholly unexpected, as she seemed, when I left home,
to be in the best of health. She had accompanied her daughter,
Mrs. Bartley, to Cleveland to attend the state fair, and there, no
doubt, she was attacked with the disease of which she died. I took
no further part in the canvass.
I wish here to call special attention to the attitude of the two
great parties in respect to the compromise measures.
The Democratic national convention at Baltimore was held in the
first of June, 1852. The resolutions of that convention in reference
to slavery were as follows:
"12. _Resolved_, That Congress has no power under the constitution
to interfere with, or control, the domestic institutions of the
several states, and that such states are the sole and proper judges
of everything appertaining to their own affairs, not prohibited by
the constitution; that all efforts of the Abolitionists or others,
made to induce Congress to interfere with questions of slavery, or
to take incipient steps in relation thereto, are calculated to lead
to the most alarming and dangerous consequences, and that all such
efforts have an inevitable tendency to diminish the happiness of
the people, and endanger the stability and permanency of the Union,
and ought not to be countenanced by any friends of our political
institutions.
"13. _Resolved_, That the foregoing proposition covers, and is
intended to embrace, the whole subject of slavery agitation in
Congress, and, therefore, _the Democratic party of the Union,
standing on this national platform, will abide by, and adhere to,
a faithful execution of the acts known as the compromise measures
settled by the last Congress, 'the act for reclaiming fugitives
from service labor' included; which act, being designed to carry
out an express provision of the constitution, cannot, with fidelity
thereto, be repealed, nor so changed as to destroy or impair its
efficiency_.
"14. _Resolved, That the Democratic party will resist all attempts
at renewing in Congress, or out of it, the agitation of the slavery
question, under whatever shape or color the attempt may be made_."
The Whig convention, which met at Baltimore on the 16th of June,
1852, declared as follows:--
"8. _That the series of acts of the 32nd Congress, the act known
as The Fugitive Slave Law included, are received and acquiesced in
by the Whig party of the United States as a settlement in principle
and substance of the dangerous and exciting questions which they
embrace, and so far as they are concerned, we will maintain them,
and insist upon their strict enforcement_, until time and experience
shall demonstrate the necessity of further legislation to guard
against the evasion of the laws on the one hand, and the abuse of
their powers on the other--not impairing their present efficiency;
and we _deprecate all further agitation of the question thus settled
as dangerous to our peace, and will discountenance all efforts to
continue or renew such agitation whenever, wherever or however the
attempt may be made_, and we will maintain the system as essential
to the nationality of the Whig party and the integrity of the
Union."
It will be noticed that these platforms do not essentialy differ
from each other. Both declare in favor of acquiescence in the
compromise measures of 1850. The Democratic party more emphatically
denounces any renewal in Congress, or out of it, of the agitation
of the slavery question under whatever name, shape or color, the
attempt may be made. The Whig platform, equally positive in its
acquiescence in the settlement made, known as the compromise
measures, declared its purpose to: "Maintain them, and to insist
upon their strict enforcement until time and experience shall
demonstrate the necessity of further legislation to guard against
the evasion of the laws."
It would seem that under these platforms both parties were committed
to acquiescence in existing laws upon the subject of slavery, and
to a resistance of all measures to change or modify them.
I took quite an active part in this canvass and wrote to Mr. Seward,
then the great leader of the Whig party, inviting him to attend a
mass meeting in Richland county, to which I received the following
reply:
"Auburn, Sept. 20, 1852.
"John Sherman, Esq., Mansfield, Ohio.
"Dear Sir:--I have the honor of receiving your letter urging me to
accept the invitation of the Whig central committee to address a
mass meeting in Richland county, Ohio, on the second of October.
I appreciate fully the importance of the canvass in which we are
engaged, and I have some conception of the responsibilities of the
Whigs of Ohio. I wish, therefore, that it was in my power to comply
with the wishes, expressed in several quarters, by going among them
to attempt to encourage them in their noble and patriotic efforts,
but it is impossible. Public and professional engagements have
withdrawn me from my private affairs during the past two years,
and the few weeks of interval between the last and the next session
of Congress are equally insufficient for the attention my business
requires and for the relaxation of public labors which impaired
health demands. I am, dear sir, with great respect, you friend
and humble servant,
"William H. Seward."
The election of 1852 resulted in the overwhelming defeat of General
Scott, and the practical annihilation of the Whig party. Franklin
Pierce received 244 electoral votes, and General Scott but 42.
The triumphant election of Mr. Pierce, on the platform stated,
justified the expectation that during his term there would be no
opening of the slavery controversy by the Democratic party. If
that party had been content with the compromise of 1850, and had
faithfully observed the pledges in its platform, there would have
been no Civil War. Conservative Whigs, north and south, would have
united with conservative Democrats in maintaining and enforcing
existing laws. The efforts of the opponents of slavery and of
aggressive pro-slavery propagandists would have been alike ineffective.
The irrepressible conflict would have been indefinitely postponed.
Yet, as will appear hereafter, the leaders of the 33rd Congress of
both parties, and mainly on sectional lines, openly and flagrantly
violated the pledges of their party, and renewed a contest that
was only closed by the most destructive Civil War of modern times,
and by the abolition of slavery. As this legislation brought me
into public life, I wish to justify my statement by the public
records, with all charity to the authors of the measures who no
doubt did not anticipate the baleful events that would spring from
them, nor the expanded and strengthened republic which was the
final result. "Man proposes, but God disposes."
When the 33rd Congress met, on the 6th day of December, 1853, the
tariff issue was practically in abeyance. The net ordinary receipts
of the government for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1853, were
$61,587,031.68. The net ordinary expenditures of the government
for the same year were $47,743,989.09, leaving a surplus of revenue
over expenditures of $13,843,042.59, of which, $6,833,072.65 was
applied to the payment of the public debt, leaving in the treasury,
unexpended, about $7,000,000.00. The financial and political
condition of the United States was never more prosperous than when
this Congress met. The disturbance of this condition can be
attributed only to the passage of the act to organize the territories
of Nebraska and Kansas approved by President Franklin Pierce, May
30, 1854. The 32nd section of that act contained this provision:--
"That the constitution and all laws of the United States which are
locally inapplicable, shall have the same force and effect within
the said Territory of Kansas as elsewhere within the United States,
except the eighth section of the act preparatory to the admission
of Missouri into the Union, approved March sixth, eighteen hundred
and twenty, which, being inconsistent with the principle of non-
intervention by Congress with slavery in the states and territories,
as recognized by the legislation of eighteen hundred and fifty,
commonly called the compromise measures, is hereby declared
inoperative and void; it being the true intent and meaning of this
act not to legislate slavery into any territory or state, nor to
exclude it therefrom, but to leave the people thereof perfectly
free to form and regulate their domestic institutions in their own
way, subject only to the constitution of the United States:
_Provided_, That nothing herein contained shall be construed to
revive or put in force any law or regulation which may have existed
prior to the act of March sixth, eighteen hundred and twenty, either
protecting, establishing, prohibiting or abolishing slavery."
This act contained a similar clause relating to Nebraska.
To understand the effect of this provision it is necessary to review
the status of slavery in the United States under the constitution
and existing laws.
The articles of Confederation make no mention of slavery or slaves.
During and after the Revolution the general feeling was that slavery
would be gradually abolished by the several states. In the Ordinance
of 1787 for the government of the territories of the United States,
northwest of the Ohio River, it was expressly provided that:
"There shall be no slavery nor involuntary servitude in the said
territory, otherwise than in the punishment of crimes, whereof the
parties shall have been duly convicted; provided, always, that any
person escaping into the same, from whom labor or service is lawfully
claimed in any of the original states, such fugitive may be lawfully
reclaimed, and conveyed to the person claiming his or her labor or
service as aforesaid."
This provision applied to all the territory of the United States
that was subject to the jurisdiction of the Continental Congress.
The constitution of the United States did not mention either slaves
or slavery. Its two provisions relating to the subject were the
following:
"The migration or importation of such persons as any of the states
now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited
by the Congress prior to the year one thousand, eight hundred and
eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not
exceeding ten dollars for each person. . . .
"No person held to service or labor in one state, under the laws
thereof, escaping into another shall, in consequence of any law or
regulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but
shall be delivered up on claim of the party to whom such service
or labor may be due."
The first clause quoted was intended to enable Congress to prohibit
the introduction of slaves after the year 1808, and this was promptly
done. The second provision was intended to authorize the recapture
of slaves escaping from their owners to another state. It was the
general expectation of the framers of the constitution that under
its provisions slavery would be gradually abolished by the acts of
the several states where it was recognized.
The first great controversy that grew out of slavery was whether
Missouri should be admitted into the Union as a slave state, and
whether slavery should exist in the western territories.
The following provision became part of the law of March 6, 1820,
approved by President James Monroe, and known as the compromise
measure of that year:
"That, in all that territory ceded by France to the United States
under the name of 'Louisiana,' which lies north of 36 deg. 30 min.
north latitude, not included within the limits of the state
contemplated by this act, slavery and involuntary servitude,
otherwise than in the punishment of crimes whereof the party shall
have been duly conviced, shall be and is hereby, forever prohibited:
_Provided, always_, That any person escaping into the same, from
whom labor or service is lawfully claimed in any other state of
territory of the United States, such fugitive may be lawfully
reclaimed, and conveyed to the person claiming his or her labor or
service, as aforesaid."
This compromise measure fixed the boundary line between free and
slave states in all the territories then belonging to the United
States. Slavery was thus forever prohibited within the Territories
of Kansas and Nebraska. This happy solution was regarded as
something more than a mere enactment of Congress. It was a
territorial division between the two great sections of our country,
acquiesced in by both without question or disturbance for thirty-
four years. The memorable controversy that arose in the 31st
Congress in 1850 in respect to the territory acquired from Mexico
did not in the least affect or relate to the Territories of Nebraska
and Kansas. The subject-matter of the several bills originally
embraced in Mr. Clay's report of the committee of thirteen, defined
the northern boundary of the State of Texas on the line of 36 deg.
30 min. north latitude, provided for the addition of the State of
California, for territorial governments for New Mexico and Utah,
and for the surrender of fugitive slaves.
In the resolution annexing Texas to the United States there is this
express recognition of the Missouri Compromise line:
"New states of convenient size, not exceeding four in number, in
addition to said State of Texas, and having sufficient population,
may hereafter, by the consent of the said state, be formed out of
the territory thereof, which shall be _entitled to admission_ under
the provisions of the Federal constitution; and such states as may
be formed out of that portion of said territory lying _south_ of
36 deg. 30 min. north latitude, commonly known as the Missouri
Compromise line, _shall be_ admitted into the Union with or without
slavery, as the people of each state asking admission may desire."
The convention providing for the admission of California expressly
stipulated by a unanimous vote that slavery should be forever
prohibited in that state. The bill providing for a territorial
government for New Mexico, the great body of the territory which
lay south of the parallel of latitude 36 deg. 30 min., provided,
"That, when admitted as a state, the said territory, or any portion
of the same, shall be received into the Union, with or without
slavery, as their constitution may prescribe at the time of their
admission."
The act organizing the Territory of Utah, lying entirely north of
the 37th degree of latitude, contains no provision recognizing the
right of the people of that territory to permit slavery within its
borders. The situation of the state and its population precluded
the possibility of establishing slavery within its borders.
It will be perceived by the compromise measures of 1820 and 1850,
the existence or prohibition of slavery was fixed by express laws,
or by conditions which it was fondly believed defined the limits
of slavery, and thus set at rest the only question that threatened
the union of the states. This settlement was indorsed and ratified
by the two great parties in their national platforms of 1852, with
the solemn pledge of both parties that they would resist the re-
opening of these questions.
The Senate of the 33rd Congress was composed of 36 Democrats, 20
Whigs and 2 Free Soilers. The House was composed of 159 Democrats,
71 Whigs, and 4 Free Soilers, with Franklin Pierce as President of
the United States.
I need not narrate the long struggle in both Houses over the bill
to organize the Territories of Nebraska and Kansas. It was a direct
invitation for a physical struggle between the north and south for
the control of these territories, but it finally passed on the 30th
of May, 1854.
This act repealed in express terms the Missouri Compromise of 1820,
and falsely stated the terms of the compromise of 1850, which, as
I have shown, had no reference whatever to the Territories of
Nebraska and Kansas. It re-opened, in the most dangerous form,
the struggle between freedom and slavery in the western territories,
and was the congressional beginning of the contest which culminated
in the War of the Rebellion.
It is difficult, at this distance of time, to describe the effect
of the act of 1854 upon popular opinion in the northern states.
The repeal was met in Ohio by an overwhelming sentiment of opposition.
All who voted for the bill were either refused a nomination or were
defeated by the people at the polls. Party lines were obliterated.
In every congressional district a fusion was formed of Democrats,
Whigs and Free Soilers, and candidates for Congress were nominated
solely upon the issues made by the Kansas and Nebraska bill.
I had carefully observed the progress of the bill, had read the
arguments for and against it, and was strongly convinced that it
was the duty of every patriotic citizen to oppose its provisions.
The firm resolve was declared by the state convention of Ohio,
composed of men of all parties, that the institution of slavery
should gain no advantage by this act of perfidy. It was denounced
as a violation of a plain specific pledge of the public faith made
by acts of Congress in 1820 and in 1850. With this feeling there
ran current a conviction that the measure adopted was forced by
southern domination, and yielded to by ambitious northern dough-
faces anxious to obtain southern support.
Unfortunately the drift of parties was on sectional lines. The
whole south had become Democratic, so that a united south, acting
in concert with a few members from the north, could control the
action of Congress. I believe that a feeling did then prevail with
many in the south, that they were superior to men of the north,
that one southern man could whip four Yankees, that their institution
of slavery naturally produced among the masters, men of superior
courage, gentlemen who could command and make others obey. Whether
such a feeling did exist or not, it was apparent that the political
leaders in the south were, as a rule, men of greater experience,
were longer retained in the service of their constituents, and held
higher public positions than their associates from the north.
Besides, they had in slavery a bond of union that did not tolerate
any difference of opinion when its interests were involved. This
compact power needed the assistance only of a few scattered members
from the north to give it absolute control. But now the south was
to meet a different class of opponents. There had been growing
all over the north, especially in the minds of religious people,
a conviction that slavery was wrong. The literature of the day
promoted this tendency. The repeal of the Missouri Compromise
aroused the combative feeling of the north until it became general
among all parties and sects. Still, the north recognized the legal
existence of slavery in the south, and did not propose to interfere
with it, and was entirely content to faithfully observe the
obligations of the constitution and the laws, including those for
the return of fugitive slaves. A smaller, but very noisy body of
men and women denounced the constitution as "a covenant with hell
and a contract with the devil." A much large number of conservative
voters formed themselves into a party called the Free Soil party,
who, professing to be restrained within constitutional limits, yet
favored the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia. They
invoked the moral influence and aid of the government for the
gradual prohibition of slavery in the states. "Liberty is National,
Slavery is Sectional," was their motto.
The strong controlling feeling of the great body of the Whigs and
of the Democrats of the north, who opposed the Nebraska and Kansas
law was that the law was a violation of existing compromises,
designed to extend slavery over free territory, that it ought to
be repealed, but, if repeal was impracticable, organized effort
should be made to make both territories free states. "Slavery
shall gain no advantage over freedom by violating compromises,"
was the cry of a new party, as yet without a name.
It was on this basis in the summer of 1854, I became a candidate
for Congress. Jacob Brinkerhoff and Thomas H. Ford, both residents
of Richland county, Ohio, and gentlemen of experience and ability,
were also candidates, but we agreed to submit our pretensions to
a convention in that county, and I was selected by a very large
majority. A district convention was held at Shelby, in July. Mr.
James M. Root, for several terms a Member of Congress, was my chief
competitor, but I was nominated, chiefly because I had been less
connected with old parties and would encounter less prejudice with
the discordant element of a new party.
I made a thorough canvass through the district, composed of the
counties of Huron, Erie, Richland and Morrow. I visited and spoke
in every town and township in the district. William D. Linsley,
a Member of the 33rd Congress, was my competitor. He was a farmer,
of popular manners, but defective education. When first a candidate
a letter of his was published in which he spelled the word "corn"
"korne." The Whig newspapers ridiculed him for his faulty spelling,
but Democrats, who were offended at this criticism, said they would
show the Whigs how to plant corn, and the incident proved a benefit
rather than an injury to Lindsley. He had been elected to Congress
in 1852 against a popular Whig by a majority of 754. He had voted
against the Nebraska bill, but had cast one vote that opened the
way to the consideration of that bill, which action was made the
subject of criticism. This did not enter as a national element in
the canvass. The real issue was whether the Democrats and Free
Soilers would vote for a Whig. Among the Free Soilers I was regarded
as too conservative on the slavery question. They were not content
with the repeal of the offensive provisions of the Nebraska act,
but demanded the prohibition of slavery in all the territories and
in the District of Columbia. This feeling was very strong in the
important county of Huron.
When I spoke in North Fairfield I was interrupted by the distinct
question put to me by the pastor of the church in which I spoke,
and whose name I do not recall, whether I would vote for the
abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia. I knew this was
a turning point, but made up my mind to be frank and honest, whatever
might be the result. I answered that I would not, that the great
issue was the extension of slavery over the territories. I fortified
myself by the opinions of John Q. Adams, but what I said fell like
a wet blanket on the audience. I understood that afterwards, in
a church meeting, the preacher commended my frankness and advised
his people to vote for me.
This canvass, more than any other, assumed a religious tone, not
on sectarian, but on moral grounds. Our meetings were frequently
held in churches, and the speaker was invited to the pulpit, with
the Bible and hymn-book before him, and frequently with an audience
of men, women and children, arranged as for religious worship.
The probable course of Democrats opposed to the Nebraska bill was
more than a matter of doubt. They were in the main content with
Mr. Lindsley and voted for him. But out of the general confusion
of parties there arose what was known as the "Know-nothing" order,
or American party, opposed to the Catholics, and to free immigration.
It was a secret organization, with signs and grips. There were
perhaps one thousand of them in my district, composed about equally
of Democrats and Whigs. They were indifferent, or neutral, on the
political issue of the day.
The result of the election in October was against the Democratic
party in Ohio. Every Democratic candidate for Congress was defeated.
Twenty-one Members, all opposed to the repeal of the Missouri
Compromise, but differing in opinion upon other questions, were
elected to Congress. The composition of the delegation was somewhat
peculiar, as the party had no name, and no defined principles except
upon the one question of the extension of slavery. On the day of
the election everyone was in doubt. Mr. Kirkwood, who supported
Mr. Lindsley, told me it was the strangest election he had ever
seen, that everyone brought his ticket in his vest pocket, and
there was no electioneering at the polls. He expressed his opinion,
but not with much confidence, that Mr. Lindsley was elected. When
the votes were counted, it was found that I had 2,823 majority,
having carried every county in the district. Richland county, in
which I lived, for the first time cast a majority adverse to the
Democratic party, I receiving a majority of over 300 votes.
During the summer of 1855, the elements of opposition to the
administration of President Pierce organized as the Republican
party. County conventions were generally held and largely attended.
The state convention met at Columbus on the 13th day of July, 1855.
It was composed of heterogenous elements, every shade of political
opinion being represented. Such antipodes as Giddings, Leiter,
Chase, Brinkerhoff, and Lew Campbell met in concert. The first
question that troubled the convention was the selection of a
president. It was thought impolitic to take one who had been
offensively conspicuous in one of the old parties. The result was
that I was selected, much to my surprise, and, for a time, much to
my chagrin. Mr. Allison, since a distinguished Member of the United
States Senate, was elected secretary of the convention. I had
never presided over any assembly excepting an Odd Fellows' lodge.
When I assumed the chair I no doubt soon exposed my ignorance. A
declaration of principles was formulated as follows:
"1. _Resolved_, That the people who constitute the supreme power
in the United States, should guard with jealous care the rights of
the several states, as independent governments. No encroachment
upon their legislative or judicial prerogatives should be permitted
from any quarter.
"2. _Resolved_, That the people of the State of Ohio, mindful of
the blessings conferred upon them by the 'Ordinance of Freedom,'
whose anniversary our convention this day commemorates, should
establish for their political guidance the following cardinal rules:
"(1). We will resent the spread of slavery under whatever shape
or color it may be attempted.
"(2). To this end we will labor incessantly to render inoperative
and void that portion of the Kansas and Nebraska bill which abolishes
freedom in the territory withdrawn from the influence of slavery
by the Missouri Compromise of 1820; and we will oppose by every
lawful and constitutional means, the extension of slavery in any
national territory, and the further increase of slavery territory
or slave states in this republican confederacy.
"3. _Resolved_, That the recent acts of violence and Civil War in
Kansas, incited by the late Vice President of the United States,
and tacitly encouraged by the Executive, command the emphatic
condemnation of every citizen.
"4. _Resolved_, That a proper retrenchment in all public expenditures,
a thoroughly economical administration of our state government, a
just and equal basis of taxation, and single districts for the
election of members of the legislature, are reforms called for by
a wise state policy and justly demanded by the people.
"5. _Resolved_, That a state central committee, consisting of
five, be appointed by this convention, and the said committee, in
addition to its usual duties, be authorized to correspond with
committees of other states for the purpose of agreeing upon a time
and place for holding a national convention of the Republican party
for the nomination of President and Vice President."
Joshua R. Giddings was the solitary member of the committee opposed
to the resolutions, not, he said, because he objected to the
resolutions themselves, but he thought they were a little too
tender. They were not strong enough for the old guard and still
they were better than none. If it offended his brother to eat meat
he would eat no more while time lasted. He was opposed to this
milk for babes. He disagreed with his colleagues, but had had the
misfortune to disagree with people before. He was used to disagreement
and hoped everybody would vote for the platform.
Lewis D. Campbell said his friend from Ashtabula wanted to make an
issue with Frank Pierce. He did not wish to raise an issue with
the dead. He hoped everybody would vote for the platform. He did
not consider the resolutions milk for babes, but strong meat.
The platform was adopted by a unanimous vote.
The real contention was upon the nomination of governor. Salmon
P. Chase was nominated, but there was difference of opinion concerning
his somewhat varied political associations and some criticism of
them. In 1845 he had projected what was called a liberty convention.
In 1848 he had been a member of the Free Soil convention held at
Buffalo and since 1849 had been a Senator of the United States.
Thomas H. Ford, my townsman, was nominated as lieutenant governor,
as the representative of the Whig party. Jacob Brinkerhoff, also
of Mansfield, was nominated as judge of the Supreme Court. He had
been a Member of Congress from 1843 to 1847 as a Democrat, but
early took decided ground against the extension of slavery. He
was the reputed author of what is known as the "Wilmot Proviso."
On the 8th day of August this famous proviso was offered as an
amendment to a bill authorizing the President of the United States
to employ $3,000,000 in negotiations for a peace with Mexico, by
purchase of territory, by David Wilmot, of Pennsylvania, a Member
of the House. "That, as an express fundamental condition to the
acquisition of any territory from the Republic of Mexico by the
United States, neither slavery nor involuntary servitude should
ever exist in any part of said territory." This proviso was adopted
by the House, but was rejected by the Senate. It was the basis of
the organization known as the Free Soil party of 1848, and of the
Republican party in 1856.
The other candidates on the ticket were fairly distributed.
The canvass of 1855 was conducted mainly by Senator Chase and
Colonel Ford. I participated in it to some extent, but was chiefly
engaged in closing my business in preparation for the approaching
session of Congress. The result of the election was as follows:
Chase, 146,770 votes; Medill, 131,019; Allen Trimble, 24,276.
The election of Senator Chase, upon a distinctly Republican platform,
established the fact that the majority of the voters of Ohio were
Republicans as defined by the creed of that party.
In the summer of 1855 I made my first trip to Iowa, accompanied by
Amos Townsend and James Cobean. At that time Iowa was a far-off
state, thinly populated, but being rapidly settled. We passed
through Chicago, which at that time contained a population of about
50,000. The line of railroad extended to the Mississippi River.
From thence we traveled in a stage to Des Moines, now the capital
of Iowa, but then a small village with about 1,000 inhabitants.
The northern and western parts of the state were mostly unsold
public lands, open to entry. My three brothers, James, Lampson,
and Hoyt, were living in Des Moines. James was a merchant in
business. Lampson was the editor and proprietor of a newspaper,
and Hoyt was actively engaged in the purchase and sale of land.
With Hoyt for a guide we drove in a carriage as far north as Fort
Dodge, where a new land office had been recently established. The
whole country was an open plain with here and there a cabin, with
no fences and but little timber. We arrived at Fort Dodge on
Saturday evening, intending to spend some time there in locating
land. The tavern at which we stopped was an unfinished frame
building with no plastering, and sash without glass in the windows.
On the next day, Sunday, Cobean invited us to join him in drinking
some choice whisky he had brought with him. We did so in the dining
room. While thus engaged the landlady came to us and told Cobean
that she was not very well, and would be glad if he would give her
some whisky. He handed her the bottle, and she went to the other
end of the room and there poured out nearly a glass full and drank
it. Cobean was so much alarmed lest the woman should become drunk
that he insisted upon leaving the town immediately, and we acquiesced
and left. Afterwards we learned that she became very drunk, and
the landlord was very violent in denouncing us for giving her
whisky, but we got outside the county before the sun went down.
I had frequent occasion to be in Fort Dodge afterwards, but heard
nothing more of the landlord or his wife.
The road to Council Bluffs from Des Moines was over a high rolling
prairie with scarcely any inhabitants. The village of Omaha,
opposite Council Bluffs, contained but a few frame houses of little
value. The settlement of Iowa and Nebraska after this period is
almost marvelous. Iowa now (1895), contains over 2,000,000 and
Nebraska over 1,200,000 people. The twelve states composing the
north central division of the United States contained 5,403,595
inhabitants in 1850, and now number over 24,000,000, or more than
quadruple the number in 1850, and more than the entire population
of the United States in that year. I have frequently visited these
states since, and am not surprised at their wonderful growth. I
believe there is no portion of the earth's surface of equal area
which is susceptible of a larger population than that portion of
the United States lying north of the Ohio River, and between the
Alleghany Mountains and the Missouri River.
CHAPTER V.
EARLY DAYS IN CONGRESS.
My First Speech in the House--Struggle for the Possession of Kansas
--Appointed as a Member of the Kansas Investigating Committee--The
Invasion of March 30, 1855--Exciting Scenes in the Second District
of Kansas--Similar Violence in Other Territorial Districts--Return
and Report of the Committee--No Relief Afforded the People of Kansas
--Men of Distinction in the 34th Congress--Long Intimacy with
Schuyler Colfax.
In 1854 the Whig party had disappeared from the roll of parties in
the United States. It was a bad name for a good party. English
in its origin, it had no significance in American politics. The
word "Democratic," as applied to the opposing party, was equally
a misnomer. The word "Democracy," from which it is derived, means
a government of the people, but the controlling power of the
Democratic party resided in the southern states, where a large
portion of the people were slaves, and the ruling class were
slaveholders, and the name was not applicable to such a people.
The Republican party then represented the progressive tendency of
the age, the development of the country, the opposition to slavery
and the preservation of the Union. It was about to engage in a
political contest for the administration of the government. It
was in the minority in the Senate, and had but a bare plurality in
the House. It had to contest with an adverse Executive and Supreme
Court, with a well-organized party in possession of all the patronage
of the government, in absolute control of the slaveholding states,
and supported by strong minorities in each of the free states.
This was the condition of parties when the 34th Congress met in
the old halls of the Senate and House of Representatives on the
3rd of December, 1855. The Senate was composed of 43 Democrats
and 17 Republicans. There were four vacancies. The House was
composed of 97 Republicans, 82 Democrats, and 45 classed as Third
Party men, mostly as Americans. Eight Members were absent, and
not yet classified. An unusual proportion of the Members were new
in public life, the result of the revolution of parties caused by
the Nebraska bill. The Senate was already organized with Mr.
Bright, of Indiana, as president _pro tempore_.
The first duty of the House was to elect a speaker, a majority of
the Members present being necessary to a choice. The balloting
for speaker continued until February 2, 1856, when Nathaniel P.
Banks was elected under the plurality rule. During these two months
the House was without a speaker, and also without rules except the
general principles of parliamentary law. The clerk of the last
House of Representatives presided. Innumerable speeches were made,
some of them very long, but many brief ones were made by the new
Members who took the occasion to air their oratory. Timothy Day,
one of my colleagues, a cynical bachelor and proprietor of the
Cincinnati "Commercial," who sat by my side, was constantly employed
in writing for his paper. When a new voice was heard he would put
his hand to his ear, listen awhile and then, turning impatiently
to his writing, would say to me: "Another dead cock in the pit."
This cynical suppression of a new Member rather alarmed me, but on
the 9th of January, as appears from the "Globe," I ventured to make
a few remarks. When I sat down I turned to Mr. Day and said:
"Another dead cock in the pit." He relieved me by saying: "Not
quite so bad as that." The first speech I made in the House
contained my political creed at the time. I here insert a paragraph
or two:
"I desire to say a few words; and I would preface them with the
remark, that I do not intend, while I have a seat in this House,
to occupy much of its time in speaking. But I wish to state now
why I have voted, and shall continue to vote, for Mr. Banks. I
care not whether he is a member of the American party or not. I
have been informed that he is, and I believe that he is. But I
repeat I care not to what party he belongs. I understood him to
take this position,--that the repeal of the Missouri Compromise
was an act of great dishonor, and that under no circumstances
whatever will he--if he have the power--allow the institution of
human slavery to derive any benefit from that repeal. That is my
position. I have been a Whig, but I will yield all party preferences,
and will act in concert with men of all parties and opinions who
will steadily aid in preserving our western territories for free
labor; and I say now, that I never will vote for a man for speaker
of this house, unless he convinces me, by his conduct and by his
voice, that he never will, if he has the power to prevent it, allow
the institution of slavery to derive any advantage from repealing
the compromise of 1820.
"I believe Mr. Banks will be true to that principle, and, therefore,
I vote for him without regard to his previous political associations,
or to his adherence to the American party. I vote for him simply
because he has had the manliness to say here, that, having the
power, he will resist the encroachments of slavery, even by opposing
the admission of any slave state that may be formed out of the
territory north and west of Missouri."
Notwithstanding the promise I made not to occupy much of the time
of the House in speaking, and the cynicism of my friend Day, I did
partake frequently in the debate on the organization of the House.
I became involved in a contest with Mr. Dunn, of Indiana, who had
steadily refused to vote for Mr. Banks for speaker, to which I
deemed proper to refer. He said he was not to be deterred from
performing his duty, as he understood it, by the criticisms of the
"neophyte" from Ohio. I replied at considerable length and with
some feeling. In my reply I repeated my position in respect to
the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, declaring: "If the repeal
was wrong all northern and southern men alike ought to help to
reinstate that restriction. Nothing less than that will satisfy
the country; and if it is not done, as it probably will not be, we
will maintain our position of resisting the admission of Kansas as
a slave state, under all possible circumstances."
Later on in the debate I declared:
"I am no Abolitionist in the sense in which the term is used; I
have always been a conservative Whig. I was willing to stand by
the compromises of 1820 and 1850; but, when our Whig brethren of
the south allow this administration to lead them off from their
principles, when they abandon the position which Henry Clay would
have taken, forget his name and achievements, and decline any longer
to carry his banner--they lose all their claims on me. And I say
now, that until this wrong is righted, until Kansas is admitted as
a free state, I cannot act in party association with them. Whenever
that question is settled rightly I will have no disposition to
disturb the harmony which ought to exist between the north and
south. I do not propose to continue agitation; I only appear here
to demand justice,--to demand compliance with compromises fully
agreed upon and declared by law. I ask no more, and I will submit
to no less."
This was a narrow platform, but it was the one supported by public
opinion. I believed that a majority of the Members called Americans,
especially those from the south, were quite willing that Kansas
should be admitted as a free state, but local pride prevented such
a declaration. It is easy to perceive now that if this had been
promptly done the slavery question would have been settled for many
years. But that opportunity was permitted to pass unused. The
people, both north and south, were thoroughly aroused. No compromise
was possible. The contest could only be settled by the force of
superior numbers. That was the logic of the Nebraska bill, which
was an appeal to the people of both sections, already greatly
excited, to struggle for, and, if necessary, to fight for the
possession of a large and beautiful territory. It forced the
irrepressible conflict in the most dangerous form.
On the one side were the border ruffians of Missouri, hereafter
described, backed by the general sentiment of the south, and actively
supported by the administration and by leading Democrats who had
held high positions in the public service. On the other side were
a large number of free state men in the western states, who looked
forward to the opening of Nebraska and Kansas as a new field of
enterprise. They were quite ready to fight for their opinions
against slavery. They were supported by a general feeling of
resentment in the north, caused by the repeal of the Missouri
Compromise.
Long before the meeting of Congress the actual struggle for the
possession of Kansas commenced. After the passage of the Kansas
bill we had reports in the newspapers of gross frauds at pretended
elections of rival legislatures, of murder and other crimes, in
short, of actual civil war in Kansas; but the accounts were
contradictory. It was plainly the first duty of Congress to
ascertain the exact condition of affairs in that territory. This
could not be done until a speaker was elected.
On the 24th day of January, 1856, President Pierce sent to the
House of Representatives, still unorganized, a message upon the
condition of affairs in Kansas. A question was made whether a
message from the President could be received before a speaker had
been elected, but it was decided that the message should be read.
The first paragraph is as follows;
"Circumstances have occurred to disturb the course of governmental
organization in the Territory of Kansas, and produce there a
condition of things which renders it incumbent on me to call your
attention to the subject, and urgently to recommend the adoption
by you of such measures of legislation as the grave exigencies of
the case appear to require."
The President then gave his exposition of the condition of affairs
in that territory. This exposition was regarded as a partisan one
in favor of the so-called pro-slavery legislative assembly, which
met the 2d day of July, 1855. He recommended "that a special
appropriation be made to defray any expense which may become
requisite in the execution of the laws or the maintenance of public
order in the Territory of Kansas."
This was regarded as a threat of the employment of the army to
enforce the enactments of a usurping legislature. Congress took
no action upon the message until after the organization of the
House. On the 14th of January, 1856, a motion was made by Mr.
Houston that the message of the President, in reference to the
Territory of Kansas, be referred to the committee of the whole on
the state of the Union. This motion was agreed to. No further
action was taken upon the message, but it remained in abeyance.
Congress was not prepared to act without full information of the
actual condition of affairs in that territory.
On the 19th of March, 1856, the House of Representatives adopted
a series of resolutions offered by Mr. Dunn, of Indiana, as follows:
"_Resolved_, That a committee of three of the Members of this House,
to be appointed by the speaker, shall proceed to inquire into and
collect evidence in regard to the troubles in Kansas generally,
and particularly in regard to any fraud or force attempted, or
practiced, in reference to any of the elections which have taken
place in said territory, either under the law organizing said
territory, or under any pretended law which may be alleged to have
taken effect since. That they shall fully investigate and take
proof of all violent and tumultuous proceedings in said territory
at any time since the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska act, whether
engaged in by residents of said territory, or by any person or
persons from elsewhere going into said territory and doing, or
encouraging others to do, any act of violence or public disturbance
against the laws of the United States, or the rights, peace, and
safety of the residents of said territory; and for that purpose
said committee shall have full power to send for and examine and
take copies of all such papers, public records, and proceedings,
as in their judgment will be useful in the premises; and also, to
send for persons and examine them on oath, or affirmation, as to
matters within their knowledge touching the matters of said
investigation; and said committee, by their chairman, shall have
the power to administer all necessary oaths or affirmations connected
with their aforesaid duties.
"_Resolved, further_, That said committee may hold their investigations
at such places and times as to them may seem advisable, and that
they may have leave of absence from the duties of this House until
they shall have completed such investigation. That they be authorized
to employ one or more clerks, and one or more assistant sergeants-
at-arms, to aid them in their investigation; and may administer to
them an oath or affirmation faithfully to perform the duties assigned
to them respectively, and to keep secret all matters, which may
come to their knowledge touching such investigation as said committee
shall direct, until the report of the same shall be submitted to
this House; and said committee may discharge any such clerk or
assistant sergeant-at-arms for neglect of duty or disregard of
instructions in the premises, and employ others under like
regulations.
"_Resolved, further_, That if any persons shall in any manner
obstruct or hinder said committee, or attempt so to do, in their
investigation, or shall refuse to attend on said committee, and to
give evidence when summoned for that purpose, or shall refuse to
produce any papers, book, public record, or other proceeding in
their possession or control, to said committee, when so required,
or shall make any disturbance where said committee are holding
their sittings, said committee may, if they see fit, cause any and
every such person to be arrested by said assistant sergeant-at-
arms, and brought before this House, to be dealt with as for a
contempt.
"_Resolved, further_, That for the purpose of defraying the expenses
of said commission, there be and hereby is appropriated the sum of
ten thousand ($10,000) dollars, to be paid out of the contingent
fund of this House.
"_Resolved, further_, That the President of the United States be
and is hereby requested to furnish to said committee, should they
be met with any serious opposition by bodies of lawless men in the
discharge of their duties aforesaid, such aid from any military
force as may, at the time, be convenient to them, as may be necessary
to remove such opposition, and enable said committee, without
molestation, to proceed with their labors.
"_Resolved, further_, That when said committee shall have completed
said investigation, they report all the evidence so collected to
this House."
On the 25th of March, 1856, the speaker appointed Lewis D. Campbell,
of Ohio, William A. Howard, of Michigan, and Mordecai Oliver, of
Missouri, as the special committee of the House under the above
resolution. On the same day Mr. Campbell requested to be excused
from the committee referred to, and I was appointed by the speaker
in his place, leaving Mr. Howard as chairman.
I accepted the position assigned me with much diffidence. I knew
it was a laborious one, that it would take me away from my duties
in the House, expose me to a great deal of fatigue and some danger,
yet I felt that the appointment on so important a committee was a
high compliment when given to a new Member, and at once made
preparations for the task before me.
The committee organized at the city of Washington, on the 27th of
March, 1856.
Mrs. Sherman expressed a strong desire to accompany me. I tried
to frighten her from going, but this made her more resolute, and
I consented. She remained with or near us during our stay in Kansas
and Missouri, and for a time was accompanied by Mrs. Oliver, a
charming lady, to whom we were much indebted for kindness and
civility where most of her sex were unfriendly.
The investigation continued from our arrival at St. Louis, on the
12th day of April, 1856, until our arrival at Detroit, on the 17th
day of June following, and was conducted in all respects like a
judicial trial. The testimony taken filled an octavo volume of
1,188 pages.
Mr. Howard, during our stay in Kansas, was not in very good health,
but he never relaxed in his labor until the testimony closed. He
was a man of marked ability, a good lawyer, conservative in all
his ideas and tendencies, and throughly fair and impartial. At
his request I accompanied him, with our excellent corps of assistants,
to his home in Detroit, where his health so failed that he was
confined to his bed for a week. This threw upon me the preparation
of the report. The resolutions, under which we were acting, did
not require a report from the committee, but only required a report
of all the evidence collected, to the House of Representatives,
but we felt that such a report without a summary of the evidence
and principal facts proven would not be satisfactory to the House.
The majority and minority reports contained 109 pages of printed
matter and entered into full details as to the condition of affairs
in that territory, and of every election held therein. When the
act to organize the Territory of Kansas was passed, May 30, 1854,
the greater portion of the eastern border of the territory was
included in Indian reservations not open for settlements, and in
no portion were there more than a few white settlers. The Indian
population of the territory was rapidly decreasing, while many
emigrants from different parts of the country, were anxiously
waiting the extinction of the Indian title, and the establishment
of a territorial government, to seek new homes on the fertile
prairies which would be opened to settlement. It cannot be doubted
that if the free condition of Kansas had been left undisturbed by
Congress, that territory would have had a rapid, peaceful, and
prosperous settlement. Its climate, its soil, and its easy access
to the older settlements, would have made it the favored course
for the tide of emigration constantly flowing to the west, and in
a brief period it would have been admitted to the Union as a free
state, without sectional excitement. If so organized, none but
the kindest feelings would have existed between its citizens and
those of the adjoining State of Missouri. Their mutual interests
and intercourse, instead of endangering the harmony of the Union,
would have strengthened the ties of national brotherhood.
The testimony taken by the committee clearly showed that before
the proposition to repeal the Missouri Compromise was introduced
into Congress, the people of western Missouri were indifferent to
the prohibition of slavery in the territory, and neither asked nor
desired its repeal.
When, however, the prohibition was removed by the action of Congress,
the aspect of affairs entirely charged. The whole country was
agitated by the reopening of a controversy which conservative men
in different sections believed had been settled in every state and
territory by some law beyond the danger of repeal. The excitement
which always accompanied the discussion of the slavery question
was greatly increased by the hope, on the one hand, of extending
slavery into a region from which it had been excluded by law; and,
on the other, by a sense of wrong done by what was regarded as a
breach of public faith. This excitement was naturally transferred
into the border counties of Missouri and the territory, as settlers
favoring free or slave institutions moved into them.
Within a few days after the organic law passed, and as soon as its
passage could be known on the border, leading citizens of Missouri
crossed into the territory, held "squatter meetings," voted at
elections, committed crimes of violence, and then returned to their
homes. This unlawful interference was continued in every important
stage in the history of the territory; _every election_ was
controlled, not by the actual settlers, but by the citizens of
Missouri; and, as a consequence, every officer in the territory,
from constable to legislator, except those appointed by the President,
owed his position to non-resident voters. None were elected by
the settlers, and no political power whatever, however important,
was exercised by the people of the territory.
In October, 1854, the Governor of Kansas, A. H. Reeder, and other
officers appointed by the President, arrived in the territory.
Settlers from all parts of the country came in great number, entering
their claims and building their cabins. The first election was
for delegate to Congress and was held on the 29th of November,
1854. The governor divided the territory into seventeen election
districts, appointed judges, and prescribed proper rules for the
election. The report of the committee enters into full details as
to this election and all subsequent thereto in each district. The
conduct of the election in the second district, held at the village
of Douglas, nearly fifty miles from the Missouri line, is a fair
specimen of all the elections in Kansas. The report says:
"On the second day before the election large companies of men came
into the district in wagons and on horseback, and declared that
they were from the State of Missouri, and were going to Douglas to
vote. On the morning of the election they gathered around the
house where the election was to be held. Two of the judges appointed
by the governor did not appear, and other judges were selected by
the crowd; all then voted. In order to make a pretense of right
to vote, some persons of the company kept a pretended register of
squatter claims, on which anyone could enter his name, and then
assert he had a claim in the territory. A citizen of the district,
who was himself a candidate for delegate to Congress was told by
one of the strangers that he would be abused, and probably killed,
if he challenged a vote. He was seized by the collar, called a
damned Abolitionist, and was compelled to seek protection in the
room with the judges. About the time the polls were closed these
strangers mounted their horses and got into their wagons and cried
out, 'All aboard for Westport.' A number were recognized as
residents of Missouri, and among them was Samuel H. Woodson, a
leading lawyer of Independence. Of those whose names are on the
poll-books, 35 were resident settlers and 226 were non-residents."
In January and February, 1855, the governor, A. H. Reeder, caused
a census to be taken of the inhabitants and qualified voters in
Kansas. On the day the census was completed he issued his proclamation
for an election to be held March 30, 1855, for members of the
legislative assembly of the territory. The proclamation prescribed
the boundaries of the districts, the places for polls, the names
of judges, the apportionment of members, and the qualification of
voters. Had it been observed, a just and fair election would have
reflected the will of the people of Kansas. Before the election,
however, false and inflammatory rumors were busily circulated among
the people of western Missouri. They grossly exaggerated and
misrepresented the number and character of the emigration then
passing into the territory. By the active exertions of many of
the leading citizens, the passions and prejudices of the people of
that state were greatly excited. Several residents of Missouri
testified to the character of the reports circulated among and
credited by the people. These efforts were successful. By an
organized movement, which extended from Andrew county, in the north,
to Jasper county, in the south, and as far eastward as Boone and
Cole counties (Missouri), companies of men were collected in
irregular parties and sent into every council district in the
territory, and into every representative district but one. The
men were so distributed as to control the election in every district.
They went to vote, and with the avowed design to make Kansas a
slave state. They were generally armed and equipped, carrying with
them their own provisions and tents, and so marched into the
territory.
As this election was for a legislature, the validity of which was
contested, the committee took great pains to procure testimony as
to the election in each election district. The election in the
second district is a fair specimen. In that district, on the
morning of the election, the judges appointed by the governor
appeared and opened the polls. Their names were Harrison Burson,
Nathaniel Ramsay and Mr. Ellison. The Missourians began to arrive
early in the morning, some 500 or 600 of them in wagons and carriages
and on horseback, and under the lead of Samuel J. Jones, then
postmaster of Westport, Missouri; Claiborne F. Jackson and a Mr.
Steeley, of Independence, Missouri. They were armed with double-
barreled guns, rifles, bowie-knives and pistols, and had flags
hoisted. They held a sort of informal election off at one side,
at first for governor of Kansas Territory, and shortly afterwards
announced Thomas Johnson, of Shawnee Mission, elected governor.
The polls had been opened but a short time when Mr. Jones marched
with the crowd up to the window and demanded that they be allowed
to vote, without swearing as to their residence. After some noisy
and threatening talk, Claiborne F. Jackson addressed the crowd,
saying that they had come there to vote; that they had a right to
vote if they had been there but five minutes, and he was not willing
to go home without voting; this was received with cheers. Jackson
then called upon them to form into little bands of fifteen or
twenty, which they did, and went to an ox-wagon filled with guns,
which were distributed among them, and proceeded to load some of
them on the ground. In pursuance of Jackson's request, they tied
white tape or ribbons in their button holes, so as to distinguish
them from the "Abolitionists." They again demanded that the judges
resign. Upon their refusing to do so they smashed in the window,
sash and all, presented their pistols and guns, and at the same
time threatened to shoot. Some one on the outside cried out not
to shoot, as there were pro-slavery men in the house with the
judges. They then put a pry under the corner of the house, which
was built of logs, lifted it up a few inches, and let it fall again,
but desisted upon being again told that there were pro-slavery men
in the house. During this time the crowd repeatedly demanded to
be allowed to vote without being sworn, and Mr. Ellison, one of
the judges, expressed himself willing, but the other two judges
refused; thereupon a body of men, headed by Sheriff Jones, rushed
into the judges' room with cocked pistols and drawn bowie-knives
in their hands, and approached Burson and Ramsay. Jones pulled
out his watch and said he would given them five minutes to resign
in, or die. When the five minutes had expired and the judges had
not resigned, Jones now said he would given them another minute
and no more. Ellison told his associates that if they did not
resign there would be one hundred shots fired in the room in less
than fifteen minutes, and then snatching up the ballot-box ran out
into the crowd, holding up the ballot-box and hurrahing for Missouri.
About that time Burson and Ramsay were called out by their friends,
and not suffered to return. As Mr. Burson went out he put the
ballot poll-books in his pocket and took them with him, and as he
was going out Jones snatched some papers away from him, and shortly
afterwards came out himself, holding them up, crying, "Hurrah for
Missouri!" After he discovered they were not the poll-books he
took a party of men with him and captured the books from a Mr.
Umberger, to whom Burson had given them. They then chose two new
judges and proceeded with the election. They also threatened to
kill the judges if they did not receive their votes, or resign.
They said no man should vote who would submit to be sworn; that
they would kill any man who would offer to do so. Some of the
citizens who were about the window, but had not voted when the
crowd of Missourians marched up, upon attempting to vote were driven
back by the mob, or driven off. One of them, Mr. I. M. Mace, was
asked if he would take the oath, and upon his replying that he
would if the judges required it, he was dragged through the crowd
away from the polls, amid cries of "kill the damned nigger-thief,"
"cut his throat," "tear his heart out," etc. After they got into
the outside of the crowd they stood around him with cocked revolvers
and drawn bowie-knives, one man putting a knife to his breast to
that it touched him, another holding a cocked pistol to his ear,
while another struck at him with a club.
The Missourians declared that they had a right to vote, if they
had been in the territory but five minutes. Some said they had
been hired to come there and vote, and got a dollar a day, "and by
God they would vote or die there." They said the 30th day of March
was an important day, as Kansas would be made a slave state on that
day. They began to leave in the direction of Missouri in the
afternoon, after they had voted, leaving some thirty or forty around
the house where the election was held, to guard the polls till
after the election was over. The citizens of the territory were
not armed, except those who took part in the mob, and a large
portion of them did not vote. Three hundred and forty-one votes
were polled there that day, of which but some thirty were citizens.
A protest against the election was prepared and sent to the
governor.
A similarly organized and conducted election was held in each of
the other districts of the territory, varying only in degrees of
fraud and violence. In the fifteenth district it was proven that
several hundred Missourians appeared and voted. Several speeches
were made at the polls, and among those who spoke was Major Oliver,
one of our committee. He urged all persons to use no harsh words
and expressed a hope that nothing would be said or done to wound
the feelings of the most sensitive on the other side, giving some
reasons, based on the Missouri Compromise, why they should vote,
but he himself did not vote. The whole number of votes cast in
that district was 417. The number of legal voters was about 80.
Of the names on the poll-book but 62 were on the census roll. But
a small portion, estimated at one-fourth of the legal voters, voted.
The validity of the so called pro-slavery legislature rested upon
this election. It is hardly necessary at this late day to say that
such a legislative body could not rightly assume or lawfully exercise
legislative functions over any law-abiding community. Their
enactments were, by every principle of law and right, null and
void. The existence of fraud at the election was admitted by every
one, but it was defended on the ground that the New England Emigrant
Aid Society had imported a great number of emigrants into Kansas
for the sole purpose of making that territory a free state. This
claim was thoroughly investigated and the organization and history
of the society examined. The only persons who emigrated into the
territory under the auspices of this company in 1855, prior to the
election in March, was a party of 169 persons who came under the
charge of Charles Robinson, and of whom sixty-seven were women and
children. They came as actual settlers, intending to make their
homes in the territory, and for no other purpose. Some of them
returned, but most of them became settlers. A few voted at the
election in Lawrence but the number was small. The names of these
emigrants were ascertained and thirty-seven of them were found upon
the poll-books. This company of peaceful emigrants, moving with
their household goods, was distorted into an invading horde of
pauper Abolitionists, who were, with others of a similar character,
to control the domestic institutions of the territory, and then
overturn those of a neighboring state.
The invasion of March 30 left both parties in a state of excitement,
tending directly to produce violence. The successful party was
lawless and reckless, while assuming the name of the "Law and Order"
party. The Free State party, at first surprised and confounded,
was greatly irritated, but soon resolved to prevent the success of
the invasion. In some districts, protests were sent to the governor;
in others such action was prevented by threats, in others by want
of time, and in others by the belief that a new election would
bring a new invasion. About the same time, all classes of men
commenced carrying deadly weapons about their persons. Under these
circumstances, a slight or accidental quarrel produced unusual
violence. Lawless acts became frequent and passed unpunished.
This unhappy condition of the public mind was further increased by
acts of violence in western Missouri, where, in April, a newspaper,
called the "Parkville Luminary," was destroyed by a mob, and numerous
acts of violence and homicides committed. Some innocent persons
were unlawfully arrested and others ordered to leave the territory.
The first one notified to leave was William Phillips, a lawyer of
Leavenworth, and upon his refusal the mob forcibly seized him, took
him across the river, carried him several miles into Missouri, and
then tarred and feathered him, shaving one side of his head and
committing other gross indignities upon his person. Judge Lecompte,
chief justice of the territory, Colonel L. N. Burns, of Weston,
Missouri, and others, took part in and made speeches at a bitterly
partisan meeting, the tendency of which was to produce violence
and disorder.
After the most careful examination of the poll-books and the
testimony taken, we were convinced beyond all doubt that the election
of the 30th of March, 1855, was utterly void. It was the result
of an organized invasion from the State of Missouri, a lawless
seizure of the conduct of the election, and the open voting by
thousands of persons who neither resided in nor pretended to be
residents of Kansas. Not content with voting they made false
returns of votes never cast, and excluded legal voters because they
were "Abolitionists."
A more wanton and shameless overthrow of popular rights cannot be
found in history.
The so-called legislative assembly, thus elected, met at Pawnee,
on the 2nd of July, 1855. It attempted to make laws for Kansas,
and to that end adopted, in substance, the laws of the State of
Missouri in gross as the laws for the territory, but, to retain
its power, it provided that every officer of the territory, executive
and judicial, was to be appointed by the legislature, or by some
officer appointed by it.
The legality of this legislature was denied by the great majority
of the people who never acquiesced in or obeyed its enactments,
thus taking the only course open to them to secure a lawful
government.
While the alleged legislative assembly was in session, a movement
was instituted to form a state government, and apply for admission
into the Union as a state. The first step taken by the people of
the territory, in consequence of the invasion of March 30, 1855,
was the circulation, for signature, of a graphic and truthful
memorial to Congress. Every allegation in this memorial was
sustained by the testimony. No further step was taken, as it was
hoped that some action by the general government would protect them
in their rights. When the alleged legislative assembly proceeded
to construct the series of enactments referred to, the settlers
were of the opinion that submission to them would result in entirely
depriving them of the rights secured to them by the organic law.
Their political condition was freely discussed in the territory
during the summer of 1855. Several meetings were held in reference
to holding a convention to form a state government, and to apply
for admission into the Union as a state. Public opinion gradually
settled in favor of such an application to the Congress to meet in
December, 1855. The first general meeting was held at Lawrence,
on the 15th of August, 1855. Other meetings were held in various
parts of the territory, which indorsed the action of the Lawrence
meeting, and delegates were selected in compliance with its
recommendation. An election was called by a proclamation addressed
to the legal voters of Kansas, requesting them to meet at their
several precincts at the time and places named in the proclamation,
then and there to cast their ballots for members of a constitutional
convention, to meet at Topeka, on the fourth Tuesday of October.
Elections were held at the time and places designated, and the
returns were sent to the executive committee.
The result of the election was proclaimed by the executive committee,
and the members elect were required to meet on the 23rd of October,
1855, at Topeka. In pursuance of this proclamation and direction
the constitutional convention met at the time and place appointed,
and framed a state constitution. A memorial to Congress was also
prepared, praying the admission of Kansas into the Union as a state
under that constitution. The convention also provided that the
question of the adoption of the constitution, and other questions,
be submitted to the people, and required the executive committee
to take the necessary steps for that purpose.
Accordingly, an election was held on the 15th day of December,
1855, in compliance with the proclamation issued by the executive
committee who then issued a proclamation reciting the results of
the election of the 15th of December, and at the same time provided
for an election, to be held on the 11th day of January, 1856, for
state officers and members of the general assembly of the State of
Kansas. The election was accordingly held in several election
precincts, the returns of which were sent to the executive committee
who announced the result by a proclamation.
Thus, when we arrived in Kansas, two rival governments were in
existence, one the result of fraud and force, the other confessedly
incomplete, being without executive power or recognition. Congress
alone could settle the controversy by recognizing one or the other.
Its action and its failure to act will be stated further on.
A brief narrative of incidents while the committee was in Kansas
may be of interest.
We arrived by steamer at a place called Westport Landing, near the
mouth of the Kansas River. As I remember the place it was a mere
hamlet, composed of three dwellings, a store, a tavern, and a
blacksmith shop. We passed over the high rolling prairie, where
but a few and scattered cabins then existed, but which is now the
site of Kansas City, a beautiful city of 90,000 inhabitants. About
six miles from the landing we entered Westport, the headquarters
of the Santa Fé trade. This important trade in 1854 was conducted
with "prairie schooners," wagons of great dimensions rudely but
strongly built, each hauled by four or six mules or Indian ponies,
and all driven by as rough a set of men of mixed color, tribe and
nativity as could be found anywhere in the world. Their usual
dress was a broad brimmed felt hat, a flannel shirt, home-spun
trousers, without suspenders, and heavy cowhide boots outside of
their trousers, with a knife or pistols, or both, in their belts
or boots. They were properly classed as border ruffians, and as
a rule were whisky soaked.
The contrast of this region between then and now is a marked evidence
of the wonderful change that has been made within a single generation.
I have several times visited Kansas City and its environs since
1856. I have noted the change at each visit! The rolling prairie
has been checkered with streets and avenues, and the squares and
suburbs are dotted all over with residences, stores and workshops.
The landing, once a single pier, now extends miles along the Missouri
River. The border ruffians have disappeared with the Indians and
"greasers," and have been replaced by an active, intelligent and
prosperous community.
Mrs. Sherman and myself started in advance for Lawrence in an open
buggy drawn by one horse, and were told to follow the trail, and
this we had no difficulty in doing. We passed through one or more
Indian reservations, over as beautiful a country as the sun shines
upon, but without house or habitation, except Indian huts. We
arrived at Lawrence, a town less than two years old, and were
cordially received. The people there were fearing a raid by the
"border ruffians," but this was fortunately postponed until our
departure for Leavenworth.
The committee proceeded immediately to take testimony. Governor
Reeder acted in behalf of the Free State side, and General Whitfield
in behalf of the pro-slavery side, this being the conceded line of
demarcation between the opposing factions. The town was in embryo,
nothing finished, and my wife and I were glad to have a cot in a
room in the unfinished and unoccupied "Free State Hotel," soon
after burned to the ground by Jones, the marshal of Kansas, or his
deputies. There was no difficulty in obtaining witnesses or
testimony, but, as a rule, the witnesses on one side would only
testify in Lawrence, and those on the other in Lecompton or
Leavenworth. They were like soldiers in hostile armies, careful
to keep outside of the enemy's camp.
Dr. Robinson, afterwards Governor Robinson, was then by far the
ablest and bravest leader of the Free State cause. His history of
the Kansas conflict is the most interesting yet published. When
the committee visited Lecompton to take testimony, it was a surprise
to us that he not only offered, but insisted upon going to that
place, the headquarters and capital of the pro-slavery party. It
was then scarcely a hamlet, and its existence depended entirely
upon the success of that party. Dr. Robinson and I rode together
into the place. It was easy to see that he was not a welcome
visitor. Everyone but the committee carried arms. Several murders
and affrays had recently occurred, in regard to which we had taken
evidence. Here we had access to the poll-books of the contested
elections, and met on friendly terms with the officers of the
territory, the chief of whom were Judge Lecompte, chief justice of
the territory, after whom the town had been named, and Jones, the
marshal of the United States. Governor Shannon was, I think, also
there for a time. The quarters for lodging were even more limited
here than in Lawrence. I slept in a cot side by side with the one
occupied by Judge Lecompte, who, though a terror to the Free State
men, seemed to me to be a good humored gentleman, more violent in
his words than in his acts. We had no unpleasant incident while
there, though such had been prophesied at Lawrence.
From Lecompton the committee went to Topeka, then quite a small
village, now a city of 33,000 inhabitants. It was already ambitious
to become the Free State capital of Kansas, by reason of its central
position. There was then no settlement of any importance west of
Topeka. Some testimony was taken, but we soon returned to Lawrence,
and from thence went to Leavenworth. A large part of the distance
between these places was an Indian reservation. Mrs. Sherman and
I rode over it in a buggy, and found no white man's habitation on
the way. Its great value and fertility was easily perceived, and
it is now well settled by an active and prosperous population of
white men. On the road we met an Indian seated near his wigwam,
with a gun in his hand, and for a moment I feared he might use it.
He uttered some Indian gibberish, which we construed as an invitation
to enter his hut. We tied our horse, entered, and found no one
there but an old squaw. I gave the Indian some silver which he
greedily took, but indicated by his motions that he wanted a drink
of whisky, but this I was not able to give him.
Leavenworth was a new town near Fort Leavenworth, the then western
military post of the army of the United States. We placed ourselves
in communication with Colonel Sumner, then in command, but we had
no occasion to summon his official aid, though authorized by the
resolutions under which we were acting to call for such assistance
from any military force which was at the time convenient to us.
However, our meetings there were more disturbed than at any other
place. The trouble commenced at Lawrence shortly after our arrival
at Leavenworth. A company of about 700 armed men, the great body
of whom were not citizens of the territory, were marched into the
town of Lawrence under Marshal Donaldson and Sheriff Jones, officers
claiming to act under the law, and they then bombarded and burned
to the ground a valuable hotel and one private house, and destroying
two printing presses and material. The posse, being released by
the officers, proceeded to sack, pillage, and rob houses, stores,
trunks, even taking the clothing of women and children. The people
of Leavenworth were much alarmed, as threats were made to clean
out the "Black Republican Committee" at Leavenworth. No attempt
of that kind was made. Later on, Dr. Robinson was arrested on a
steamboat on the way with his wife to St. Louis. We had confided
to him a copy of the testimony taken, to be delivered to Mr. Banks,
speaker of the House. We believe that a knowledge of that fact
caused the arrest, but, fortunately, Mrs. Robinson, who had the
testimony safely secured in her clothing, was allowed to proceed
to Washington. Dr. Robinson was taken back to Leavenworth and
placed in prison, where I called upon him, but was rudely threatened,
and was only allowed to speak to him in the presence of the jailer.
We were frequently threatened through anonymous letters. On one
occasion, upon going in the morning to the committee room, I found
tacked upon the door a notice to the "Black Republican Committee"
to leave Kansas "upon penalty of death." I cut it from the door
and called upon a bystander to testify to the contents and the
place from which it was taken.
On one Sunday morning, while sitting in my lodging, a very rough
looking man entered, and I indicated to Mr. W. Blair Lord, our
stenographer, to take down what was said. With many oaths and
imprecations he told us that he had been robbed by ruffians of his
horses and wagon a few miles from Leavenworth; that he had offered
to fight them, but they were cowards; that he was born in Richland
county, Ohio, near Mansfield, and he wanted me to help him get his
traps. I knew his family as famous fighters. I asked him if he
would swear to his story. He said he would, and Mr. Lord read it
to him, oaths and all, from his stenographic notes. He stared at
Lord and demanded "Where in hell did you get that?" He was handed
the stenographic notes and, after looking at them, he exclaimed:
"Snakes, by God; but it is all true!" Whether he got his outfit
and traps I never knew.
The evidence at Leavenworth being closed the committee returned to
Westport, Missouri. While we were there we saw an armed and
organized body of residents of Missouri march across the line into
Kansas to retaliate, as we were told, the murder of five pro-slavery
men at Osawatamie. While they were marching into Westport from
the east, Governor Shannon, in obedience to the summons of the
committee, came into Westport from the territory, and in his presence
they filed off in regular array into the territory. It was difficult
to ascertain the precise causes of these murders, but it was shown
that they were in retaliation for those of certain Free State men,
one of whom was the son of John Brown, later the famous leader of
the attack on the fort at Harper's Ferry, and who had acted for
the committee in summoning witnesses to Lawrence. The testimony
in respect to these murders was vague, and the murderers were not
identified. Two years afterwards I met John Brown in Chicago, and
asked him about the murder of the pro-slavery men at Osawatamie;
he replied with spirit that they were not murdered, but that they
had been arrested, tried by a jury, convicted and executed. The
arrest, trial and execution must have been done during one night.
He did not disclose the names of the executioners, but his cool
statement was a striking picture of the scenes then enacted in
Kansas by both sides; both appealed to the law of force and crime,
and crime was justified by crime.
The evidence taken at Westport closed the investigation and Mr.
Howard and I returned to Detroit, as already stated.
The report was approved by Mr. Howard, and presented by him to the
House of Representatives, July 1, 1856, as a question of privilege.
The reception of it gave rise to much debate, but in the end I was
permitted on the same day to read it. The minority report of Mr.
Oliver was presented July 11 of that year. No action was taken on
the reports, but they were widely published.
On July 31, 1856, I made a speech on the Kansas contested election
between General Whitfield and Governor Reeder, during which I was
drawn into a discussion with Alexander H. Stephens, of Georgia,
and Mr. Oliver, of Missouri, in which the general questions involved
in the Kansas controversy were fully debated. I closed with this
language:
"The worst evil that could befall our country is civil war, but
the outrages in Kansas cannot be continued much longer without
producing it. To our southern brethren I especially appeal. In
the name of southern rights, crimes have been committed, and are
being committed, which I know you cannot and do not approve. These
have excited a feeling in the northern states that is deepening
and strengthening daily. It may produce acts of retaliation. You
are in a minority and, from the nature of your institutions, your
relative power is yearly decreasing. In excusing this invasion
from Missouri--in attempting to hold on to an advantage obtained
by force and fraud--you are setting an example which, in its
ultimate consequences, may trample your rights under foot. Until
these wrongs are righted, you must expect northern men to unite to
redress them. It may not be this year, but, as sure as there is
a God in heaven, such a union will be effected; and you will gain
nothing by sustaining northern agitators in violating the compromise
of your fathers."
On July 28, 1856, I offered, as an amendment to the army appropriation
bill, the following proviso:
"_Provided, nevertheless_, That no part of a military force of the
United States herein provided for, shall be employed in aid of the
enforcement of the enactments of the alleged legislative assembly
of the Territory of Kansas, recently assembled at Shawnee Mission,
until Congress shall have enacted either that it was or was not a
valid legislative assembly, chosen in conformity with the organic
law, by the people of said territory. And _Provided_, That until
Congress shall have passed on the validity of the said legislative
assembly of Kansas, it shall be the duty of the President to use
the military force in said territory to preserve the peace, suppress
insurrection, repel invasion, and protect persons and property
therein, and upon the national highways in the State of Missouri,
from unlawful seizures and searches. And _be it further provided_,
That the President is required to disarm the present organized
militia of the Territory of Kansas and recall all the United States
arms therein distributed, and to prevent armed men from going into
said territory to disturb the public peace, or aid in the enforcement
or resistance of real or pretended laws."
After long debate, this was agreed to by a vote of 80 yeas to 47
nays. The deliberate purpose of a majority of the House was to
prevent any further support of the Lecompton territorial legislature.
This amendment, however, was disagreed to by the Senate and referred
to a committee of conference. On the 18th of August, the last day
of the session, the disagreement continued and the conference report
was taken up for action. A motion was made that the House insist
upon its amendments and agree to another committee of conference.
This was defeated, but no definite action was taken, as a majority
of the House was opposed to a further conference, and so the army
bill failed.
On the same day the President, by proclamation, convened the two
Houses in extra session to meet on the 21st day of August, three
days later. The President, in his message, urged Congress to recede
from the Kansas proviso in the army bill. The Republicans of the
House were determined to insist upon that proviso, and, by repeated
votes, refused to withdraw it or to reconsider it, but, after a
session of nine days, the House finally yielded, but only after
the Senate had agreed to an amendment, which contained the substance
of the proviso offered by me, as follows;
"_Provided_, That no part of the military force of the United
States, for the support of which appropriations are made by this
act, shall be employed in aid of the enforcement of any enactment
heretofore passed by the bodies claiming to be the territorial
legislature of Kansas."
This amendment was agreed to and thus, in the final struggle, while
no effective measures to relieve the people of Kansas from the
tyranny imposed upon them were adopted, the declaration was made
that the military force of the United States should not be used to
aid in the enforcement of any enactment theretofore passed by bodies
claiming to be the territorial legislature of Kansas.
Thus it appears that during this long and wearisome session (for
in fact the two were but one), I was almost exclusively occupied
in a futile effort to restore the prohibition of slavery in Kansas,
according to the Missouri Compromise, but the struggle made was
fruitful in good. It strengthened the Free State sentiment in
Kansas, it aroused public sentiment in the north, and drove the
south to adopt new and strange theories which led to divisions in
the Democratic party and its disruption and overthrow in 1860.
The compromise made was understood to be the work of Mr. Seward,
and, though not satisfactory to the Republicans of the House, it
was at least a drawn battle, and, like Bunker Hill to Yorktown,
was the prelude to the Revolution that ended at Appomattox.
Among the many who attained distinction in the 34th Congress I can
only refer to a few, the chief of whom was Nathaniel P. Banks, who,
after a long struggle, was elected speaker. He was born in Waltham,
Massachusetts, January 30, 1816. He had risen into prominence
without any aid or advantage of early education or training. He
was the son of an overseer in a cotton factory at Waltham, where
he was for a time employed. He improved his leisure hours by the
study of history, political economy and the science of government.
He learned the trade of a machinist. He early acquired the habit
of speaking well on various subjects, and was elected as a Democratic
member of the legislature from his native town. In 1852 he was
elected to Congress, running upon the ticket with General Pierce,
the Democratic candidate for President. He took a decided stand
against the repeal of the Missouri Compromise. He was a man of
striking presence, with a fine voice and engaging manners. He
filled the difficult position of speaker with great credit, and is
still remembered by his associates as perhaps the best fitted for
the special duties of speaker of the House of any Member since the
time of Henry Clay. He was afterward elected Governor of Massachusetts
and continued in that position for several years. When the war
broke out he was appointed major-general of volunteers, but his
service in the army was not marked. After the war was over he was
re-elected to Congress, but seemed to have lost his power and
influence. In later years his memory was impaired and he "lagged
superfluous on the stage." He died September 1, 1894.
Lewis D. Campbell, of Ohio, was elected to Congress in 1848 as a
Whig, and re-elected to each successive Congress down to 1856, when
his seat was contested and the House of Representatives decided
against him. He and Banks were the leading candidates for the
speakership of the 34th Congress, but the majority of the anti-
Nebraska Members voted for Banks, and upon his election Campbell
was made chairman of the committee of ways and means, and had
substantial control of the business of that Congress. He never
was in hearty sympathy with the Republican party. He was subsequently
elected to the 42nd Congress in 1870 as a Democrat, but had lost,
in a great measure, his influence. He served for a time as colonel
of a regiment in the war. He was a man of marked ability but was
too erratic to be a successful leader in any cause or party.
In 1850, at the early age of twenty-seven, Galusha A. Grow was
elected a Representative in Congress from Pennsylvania. He was an
active and very useful Member. He took strong ground against the
repeal of the Missouri Compromise, and in 1859 was a competitor
with me for the position of speaker, but withdrew in my favor after
the first ballot. In the following Congress he was chosen speaker
and rendered very valuable service as such. After a continuous
service in Congress for fourteen years, he retired from active
political life and engaged in important business enterprises, but
always took an interest in political affairs. He was elected by
an overwhelming majority as a Member of the 53rd Congress at large
from his state.
Schuyler Colfax was a conspicuous Member of Congress from 1855
until he was nominated for the office of Vice President, in 1868,
on the ticket with General Grant. During this long period he
represented one district, and served for six years as speaker. He
was a very industrious, active Member. As we were of about the
same age, and our lives ran in parallel lines, we were often thrown
together. We and our families in Washington messed together in a
household for several years, and our intercourse was always friendly
and intimate. When he became Vice President he remarked to me that
I was first to enter the Senate, but he was first to become Vice
President. After his service as Vice President, he retired from
public life and delivered lectures upon many topics.
Many other Members of Congress, equally worthy of note, have passed
away from the scenes of life, and some few survive. I would gladly
recall their memory if my space would allow.
CHAPTER VI.
BIRTH OF THE REPUBLICAN PARTY.
The Name Formally Adopted at Jackson, Michigan, in 1854--Nomination
of John C. Fremont at Philadelphia--Democratic Convention Nominates
James Buchanan--Effect of the Latter's Election on the North--My
Views Concerning President Pierce and His Administration--French
Spoilation Claims--First Year of Buchanan's Administration--Dred
Scott Case Decision by Supreme Court--The Slavery Question Once
More an Issue in Congress--Douglas' Opposition to the Lecompton
Scheme--Turning Point of the Slavery Controversy.
During the first session of the 34th Congress, the opponents of
slavery were without a party name or organization. They agreed
only in the one demand, that slavery should not be established in
Kansas. On other questions they voted on old party lines. The
Members elected in 1854 in the northern states were Democrats,
Whigs or Free Soilers. Many of the Democrats still supported the
administration of President Pierce, and acquiesced in the doctrine
of popular sovereignty in the territories. A few of the Whigs, of
conservative leanings, acted with the Americans, or "Know-Nothings,"
of the south. A strong popular movement was initiated in some of
the western states as early as 1854 in favor of a new party. This
was especially the case in Wisconsin and Michigan. On the 6th of
July, 1854, a popular convention was held at Jackson, Michigan,
composed of hundreds of men of all parties, who denounced slavery
as a great moral, social and political evil, and resolved that,
postponing and suspending all differences with regard to political
economy or administrative policy, they would act cordially and
faithfully in unison to oppose the extension of slavery, and be
known as Republicans until the contest was terminated. This name
was assumed in other states of the north.
The state convention held in Ohio on July 13, 1855, formally declared
itself a convention of the Republican party. The long struggle in
Kansas, the elections in 1855, and the contest for the speakership
of the House, added strength to this movement, and the name
"Republican" was formally given to the new party by the national
convention held at Philadelphia, June 17, 1856, as the best expression
of its views and principles.
It appeared for the time that the new party would carry the country
in a blaze of enthusiasm. And, looking over the past, I am clearly
of the opinion that this would have been the result but for the
faulty nomination of Colonel John C. Fremont as the Republican
candidate for President, and the sagacious nomination of James
Buchanan as the Democratic candidate. The Republican party, still
composed of uncertain elements, sought only for a candidate that
was available. Seward or Chase was the natural candidate. They
were fully identified with the principles and purposes of their
party. They were men of marked ability, strong in their respective
states, each elected governor of his state and sure of its support,
but Chase was opposed on account of his advanced opinions on the
slavery question, and Seward was actively opposed by the so-called
American party, for his open hostility to its principles and policy.
All these sought for a new man, and public opinion gradually, but
strongly, turned to John C. Fremont. He had no experience in public
life, but he attracted attention by his bold explorations in the
west and, especially, by his marching to California, and occupation
of this Mexican territory. A strong effort was made to secure the
nomination of Justice McLean of the United States Supreme Court.
He had been long in public life, had been a cabinet officer in two
administrations, had been appointed to the supreme bench by Jackson,
had held this position for twenty-six years, and was a man of
spotless integrity. His nomination was strongly urged by conservative
Republicans in all the northern states, and by the delegates from
Pennsylvania, especially by Thaddeus Stevens, who asserted that the
nomination of Fremont would not only lose the State of Pennsylvania,
to the Republicans, but that the party would be defeated at the
presidential election. But the current of opinion in the west, in
New England and New York, was too strong in favor of Fremont, and
he was nominated.
The Democratic national convention met at Cincinnati, June 2, 1856,
for the nomination of candidates for President and Vice President.
Popular feeling was then strongly aroused against that party by
the assault of Brooks on Sumner, the removal of Reeder, the
appointment of Shannon, the crimes in Kansas, and the recent sacking
of Lawrence. A large proportion of northern Democrats, who still
adhered to their party, were restless under the violence of their
southern associates. It was this feeling, no doubt recognized by
both northern and southern Democrats, that prevented the nomination
of either Pierce or Douglas. Buchanan was regarded as a conservative
man of great experience, who, being absent from the country during
the entire period of the Kansas contest, would, it was believed,
and as his supporters affirmed, pursue a quieting policy that would
arrest and prevent further outrages and would secure fair elections
in that territory. He was popular in Pennsylvania, had served for
many years in each House of Congress, had creditably represented
the United States as minister to Russia and Great Britain, had been
Secretary of State and the head of the cabinet of President Polk.
He was unanimously supported by the delegation from Pennsylvania,
then a doubtful state, and, after many ballots and the defeat of
Pierce, was nominated with the acquiescence of Douglas. This
nomination greatly strengthened the Democratic party. It held in
that party the protection Democrats, and a large proportion of
those who in 1854 voted for anti-Nebraska Members of Congress.
The appointment of Colonel Geary of Pennsylvania as Governor of
Kansas, in the place of Governor Shannon, and his firm and impartial
administration, greatly aided the Democratic party. It was regarded
as evidence of a change of policy in Kansas, made at the request
of Mr. Buchanan.
The American party met at the city of Philadelphia soon after the
election of Banks as speaker, and nominated Millard Fillmore for
President and Donelson for Vice President. This movement did not
at first excite much attention, as it was known in the north it
would draw equally from the two great parties, and in the south
could only affect injuriously the Democratic party. Its platform
of principles was condemned by both the Republican and Democratic
conventions.
Mr. Fillmore took strong ground against what he called a sectional
ticket presenting both candidates from the free states, with the
avowed purpose of one part of the Union ruling over the whole United
States.
The nomination of Fremont, however, greatly strengthened the movement
in favor of Fillmore. There was a large element of the old Whig
party in the north, which, though friendly to Republican principles
and willing to support Seward or McLean, yet would not vote for
Fremont, who had none of the qualities that commanded their respect.
Such men as Ewing, Everett, Winthrop and Hilliard, conspicuous
leaders and eminent statesmen, announced their purpose to vote for
Fillmore. Mr. Choate, the eminent lawyer and statesman of
Massachusetts, declared his purpose to vote for Buchanan, upon the
plausible ground that, as the choice was between Buchanan and
Fremont, he was compelled, by a sense of duty, to vote for Buchanan.
At the same time leading Democrats in the south declared that if
Fremont was elected the Union could not and ought not to be preserved.
The Whigs of the south, with scarce an exception, were committed
to the support of Fillmore and Donelson, and joined in an outcry
of danger to the Union.
As the canvass progressed this feeling increased, and before its
close it became apparent that some of the older and more populous
Republican states would be lost by the Republican party. I shared
in this feeling of distrust of Fremont, but gave him my support.
I was nominated without any opposition for re-election to Congress
by a convention held at Shelby on the 12th day of August, 1856,
and was elected in October by a majority of 2,861.
I took an active part in the canvass, after the adjournment of
Congress, mainly in southern Ohio, where it was apparent that the
nomination of Buchanan was popular. In Pennsylvania, especially
in Philadelphia, the cry was for "Buck, Breck and free Kansas."
John G. Forney, the chairman of the Democratic state committee,
promised that if Buchanan was elected there would be no interference
with the efforts of the people of Kansas to make that territory a
free state. The result of the canvass was that Buchanan carried
the states of Pennsylvnia, New Jersey, Indiana, Illinois and
California at the November election and was elected.
In reviewing the past it is apparent that the election of Buchanan
was necessary to convince the people of the north that no successful
opposition to the extension of slavery could be made except by a
party distinctly pledged to that policy. Mr. Buchanan encountered
difficulties which no human wisdom could overcome. Whatever may
have been his desire he was compelled, by the prevailing sentiment
in his party, to adopt measures that made a conflict between the
sections inevitable. The election of Fremont would probably have
precipitated this conflict before the north was ripe for it. His
conduct during the early period of the war proves that he would
have been unequal to such an emergency. His defeat was the
postponement of the irrepressible conflict until it became apparent
to all that our country must be all free or all slave territory.
This was the lesson taught by the administration of Buchanan, and
Lincoln was best fitted to carry it into execution.
Pierce was still President, but after his defeat for the nomination
he changed his policy materially. Events were allowed to develop
in Kansas with a growing tendency in favor of the Free State party.
Judge Lecompte was removed from an office the duties of which he
was totally unfit to perform. A large number of emigrants from
many of the northern states were preparing to move in the spring
to Kansas. Governor Geary of that territory, who had taken a
decided stand in favor of equal and exact justice to all men, was
met by opposition from the pro-slavery faction. His life was
threatened and strong demands were made for his removal. He became
satisfied that he would not be sustained by the administration,
and on the 4th of March, 1857, resigned his position.
Immediately upon the assembling of Congress in December, 1856, and
before the usual message had been sent to the President, notifying
him that the House of Representatives was prepared to enter upon
the duties of the session, a contest sprang up over the question
of administering the oath of office to Mr. Whitfield as a delegate
from the Territory of Kansas, and a struggle resulted which continued
until the 9th of December, when the oath of office was administered
to him and he took his seat.
President Pierce sent to the House of Representatives, December 2,
1856, his last message. He commenced it with a careful review of
the Kansas question and this led to a debate which continued during
the entire session. On the 8th of December I undertook to answer
as much of the message as related to the slavery question. He had,
in the message, defended the repeal of the restriction of slavery
contained in the Missouri Compromise, asserting that this compromise
was unconstitutional and abortive, but I showed that it had been
recognized as in full force by every administration since and
including that of Monroe, that it did not extend to the territory
acquired from Mexico, and that it was consistent with the compromise
acts of 1850. He asserted that the purpose was not only to exclude
slavery from Kansas, but also from places where it then existed.
I showed this to be inaccurate by the express denial of such purpose
in every platform of the Republican party. I then declared that
"If I had my voice, I would not have one single political Abolitionist
in the northern states. I am opposed to any interference by the
northern people with slavery in the slave states; I act with the
Republican party, with hundreds of thousands of others, simply
because the Republican party resists the extension, but does not
seek the abolition, of slavery."
My speech, as reported, expresses, as I believe, the limit and
extent of the aims of the Republican party at that time. The only
regret I feel is that the tone and temper of my remarks were not
such as should be addressed to the President of the United States
by a Member of Congress.
What I say of myself can be truthfully said of many other Members.
The feeling against the President was embittered by the firm stand
taken by him in support of a policy which we regarded as unpatriotic,
and dangerous in the highest degree to the public peace and the
national Union. In his last message he defended or excused the
lawless efforts made by residents of Missouri to establish slavery
in Kansas. He made no effort to prevent the invasion of Kansas or
the crimes committed against its citizens. He appointed many
governors for this territory, and in every instance where they
sought to protect the rights of its people, he either removed them
or denied them his support. This was the case with Reeder and
Shannon. Even Governor Geary, whom he praised in his message, and
whom Buchanan had lauded during the canvass, was abandoned by both,
and compelled to resign because he sought to protect all citizens
alike.
President Pierce was properly, according to usage, a candidate for
re-election when the convention met to nominate his successor, but
he was defeated by Buchanan. Mr. Douglas, the chief instrument in
the passage of the Nebraska bill, met a like fate. Buchanan was
saved only by the popular cry of "Buchanan, Breckenridge and Free
Kansas," and the confident belief, founded upon his declaration,
that his election would secure freedom to Kansas.
The political excitement existing during the whole of President
Pierce's term entered into social life in Washington. The President
was not brought into contact with those who differed with him in
opinion. His family afflictions were, no doubt, the partial cause
of this. The sincere friendship that often exists between political
adversaries in public life were not possible during this period.
Social lines were drawn on sectional lines, and in the north party
lines became hostile lines. Such causes, no doubt, led to unjust
criticism of the President, and, in turn, caused him to regard his
political adversaries as enemies to their country and disturbers
of the public peace. I scarcely remember seeing him during this
Congress, and was strongly prejudiced against him. A more careful
study of the motives and conduct of public men during this period
has changed my opinion of many of them, and, especially, of President
Pierce. That he was a genial, social and agreeable companion is
affirmed by all who were familiar with him. That his opinions were
honestly entertained, and firmly supported, is shown by his adherence
to them without change or shadow of turning. In this respect he
compares favorable with many leading men of his party, who stifled
their opinions to meet the currents of the day. He had been a
general of distinction in the Mexican War and a Member of both the
Senate and House of Representatives. He was a leading lawyer in
his state. His messages to Congress, considered in a literary
view, were able state papers, clearly and strongly expressed. It
was his great misfortune to have to deal with a controversy that
he did not commence, but he did not shrink from the responsibility.
He believed in the policy of non-intervention in the territories,
and so did not prevent the "border ruffians" of Missouri crossing
the line and voting at every election in Kansas, setting up a bogus
legislature, adopting the laws of Missouri as the laws of Kansas,
and establishing negro slavery in that territory. Fortunately a
more numerous, courageous and intelligent population reversed all
this, and led, not only to the exclusion of slavery in Kansas, but
also to its abolition in the United States.
With the kindly biography of President Pierce, written by his
friend, Nathaniel Hawthorne, before me, I can appreciate his ability,
integrity and agreeable social qualities, and only regret that he
was President of the United States at a time when the sagacity of
a Jefferson, the determined courage of a Jackson, or the shrewdness
and wisdom of a Lincoln, were needed to meet the difficulties and
dangers which he had to encounter.
There is but one more personal incident of the 34th Congress I care
to mention. Mr. Banks designated me as a member of the committee
on foreign affairs. Mr. Alexander C. M. Pennington, as chairman
of that committee, handed me the voluminous papers in reference to
the French Spoilation Claims. They covered an interesting period
of American history, embracing all that between 1793 and 1801, in
which were involved important negotiations both in England and
France, and outrages committed upon our, then, infant government
by the government of France and Great Britain. I had all the
feeling of natural indignation against those great powers who sought
to draw the United States into their controversies, and practice
upon us enormities and outrages that we would not submit to for a
moment in our day. Yet, after a full and careful examination of
all the papers in the case, I became thoroughly satisfied that
these claimants, whatever might be said as to their claims against
the French government, had absolutely no foundation for a claim
against the United States.
I wrote an adverse report, but it was suppressed in the committee.
Bills for the payment of these claims were presented from time to
time. In 1870 Senator Sumner reported favorably to the Senate a
bill for the purpose from the committee on foreign relations. It
was opposed by Senator Thurman and myself and again laid aside.
On the 14th of December, 1882, the bill was again pressed, the
debate which ensued clearly showing that the United States pressed
these claims against France to the verge of war.
The whole case is this: Certain depredations were committed by
the French government and by the citizens of France, upon the
citizens of the United States, previous to the beginning of the
present century. The government of the United States did all it
could to secure payment and compensation to its citizens for these
depredations. The French government denied the validity of the
claims, holding, on the other hand, that the government of the
United States had violated the treaties made with it under
circumstances of sacred obligation, that its citizens therefore
were justified in doing what they had done in seizing upon American
vessels, and taking from them goods called contraband of war, and
in committing these depredations. It uniformly justified and
maintained the action of its cruisers in doing these things. In
other words, our claims were repudiated by France, their payment
being refused, and, as we could not force their payment, we simply
abandoned them. Recently they have been referred to the court of
claims, without regard to the lapse of time, and large sums of
money are now being paid by the United States for the depredations
committed by the French nearly one hundred years ago, to descendants,
three generations removed, of merchants and ship owners, who, with
all their losses, enjoyed the most profitable commerce in the
history of our mercantile marine. Their payment is, perhaps, the
most striking evidence of the improvidence of Congress in dealing
with antiquated claims against the government.
The first year of Buchanan's administration, 1857, will always be
noted as one of great political excitement, of sudden changes and
unexpected results. At its beginning the Democratic party was in
complete possession of all branches of the government. The House
of Representatives, elected in the fall of 1856, had a strong
Democratic majority. The Senate was composed of 37 Democrats, 20
Republicans and 4 Americans. The Supreme Court was composed of 5
Democrats from the slave states, and 2 Democrats and 2 Whigs from
the free states. The cabinet of Buchanan had four members from
the southern states and three from the northern. The south had
full control of all departments of the government, with the President
in hearty sympathy with the policy of that section. The condition
of Kansas alone caused it trouble. The firm and impartial course
of Governor Geary had imparted confidence and strength to the Free
State citizens of that territory, who were now in an unquestioned
majority through the large emigration from the north during the
spring of 1857. The doctrine of popular sovereignty could not,
therefore, be relied upon to establish slavery in Kansas, and it
was abandoned. New theories had to be improvised and new agencies
called into action.
I was present when the oath of office was administered to Mr.
Buchanan, on the 4th of March, 1857. With my strong sympathy for
the Free State people of Kansas, I hoped and believed that he would
give some assurance that the pledges made for him in the canvass
would be carried out, but the statement in his inaugural address,
that the difference of opinion in respect to the power of the people
of a territory to decide the question of slavery for themselves
would be speedily and finally settled, as a judicial question, by
the Supreme Court of the United States, in a case then pending
before it, naturally, excited suspicion and distrust. It was
regarded as a change of position, a new device in the interest of
slavery. In two days after the inauguration, Chief Justice Taney
delivered the opinion of the Supreme Court in the Dred Scott case,
as to the status of negroes in the United States. He said:
"They had, for more than a century before, been regarded as beings
of an inferior order, and altogether unfit to associate with the
white race, either in social or political relations; and so far
inferior that they had no rights which the white man was bound to
respect, and that the negro might justly and lawfully be reduced
to slavery for his benefit."
He said negroes "were not intended to be included in the word
'citizens' in the constitution, and therefore could claim none of
the rights and privileges which that instrument provides for and
secures to the citizens of the United States;" and announced as
the opinion of the court that the Missouri Compromise act was not
warranted by the constitution and was therefore void.
These declarations were in no sense necessary to the decision of
the case before the court, as it was held that Dred Scott was a
resident of Missouri and subject as a slave to the laws of that
state.
Justices McLean and Curtis dissented from the decision of the court,
and in elaborate opinions refuted, as I think, every position of
the Chief Justice.
Thus the Kansas question became a political question in the Supreme
Court. At once the south rejected the doctrine of popular sovereignty,
and demanded, as a constitutional right, that slaves moved into a
territory must be protected like other property, whether the people
of the territory wish it or not. This was the first time in our
history when this great tribunal entered into the political arena.
Its action encouraged the south, but produced a strong feeling of
resentment in the north, and widened the breach between the two
great sections of the country.
Mr. Buchanan, early in his administration, found it necessary to
appoint a Governor of Kansas. He selected Robert J. Walker, of
Mississippi, who had held high positions in the national government,
having been Secretary of the Treasury and Senator of the United
States. He appointed Fred. P. Stanton, of Tennessee, as secretary
of the territory. Mr. Stanton had long been a Member of high
standing of the House of Representatives. Both were southern men
and both wished to see Kansas a slave state, but both were honorable
men who would not seek to gain their ends by dishonest means.
After a careful estimate, made by them, it was believed that there
were, in the territory, 9,000 Free State Democrats, 8,000 Republicans,
6,000 pro-slavery Democrats, and 500 pro-slavery Americans. A
strong effort was made by Governor Walker to induce these elements
to join in a movement for a convention to frame a constitution,
with a view to admit Kansas as a state in the Union. The Free
State men, while anxious for such a result, were not willing to
trust their adversaries with the conduct of such an election,
without some safeguards against the repetition of the frauds and
violence of the previous elections. The result was that only 2,200
persons took part in choosing delegates to what became the notorious
Lecompton convention.
Both before and after this so-called election Governor Walker
promised that the constitution, when adopted, should be submitted
to a vote of the people, and he added his assurance that the
President of the United States would insist upon this condition.
On the 12th of July Mr. Buchanan wrote to Governor Walker:
"On the question of submitting the constitution to the _bona fide_
resident settlers of Kansas, I am willing to stand or fall. In
sustaining such a principle we cannot fail. It is the principle
of the Kansas-Nebraska bill, the principle of popular sovereignty,
and the principle at the foundation of all popular government.
The more it is discussed, the stronger it will become. Should the
convention of Kansas adopt this principle, all will be settled
harmoniously."
This promise was soon after violated, and the President declared
in an open letter:
"At the time of the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska act slavery
existed, and still exists, in Kansas, under the constitution of
the United States. This point has at last been finally decided by
the highest tribunal known to our laws. How it could ever have
been seriously doubted is a mystery."
It was known that the delegates elected would adopt a pro-slavery
constitution and ask for admission to the Union. It was equally
well known that no such constitution would be adopted by the people
of Kansas. Under these circumstances the President, pressed by
his cabinet, yielded to the demands of the south, violated his
pledges, and supported the convention in the extreme measures
adopted by it.
In the meantime the Free State party in Kansas, composed of nearly
equal proportions of Republicans and Democrats, was persuaded by
Governor Walker to take part in the regular election for the
territorial legislature. The result was, the Free State party
elected nine of the thirteen councilmen, and twenty-four of the
thirty-nine representatives. This should have settled the Kansas
controversy, and it would have done so on the principle of popular
sovereignty, but a broader constituency in the south demanded that
the doctrine of the Dred Scott case should be applied to and
enforced, not only in Kansas, but in all the states. Henceforth
the Lecompton constitution must be considered, not as a local
question, but as a national one. The imperative issue, as pithily
stated by Lincoln, was, all slave or all free states. The battle
was to commence in Kansas, but was to become national in its scope.
The constitutional convention met on the 19th of October, 1857,
within two weeks after the election of the legislature, but in its
action little interest was taken, a quorum being preserved with
difficulty. It adopted a pro-slavery constitution, which, it was
well known, if submitted to the people, would be rejected by an
overwhelming majority, and if not submitted would be resisted, if
necessary, by open force. The President, Governor Walker, and all
parties, had promised that the constitution, when framed, would be
submitted to a popular vote. How not to do it, and yet appear to
do it, was a problem worthy of a gang of swindlers, and yet the
feeling was so strong in administration circles, that the plan
devised as below given was cordially approved by the cabinet and
acquiesced in by the President.
The constitution adopted by the convention provided: "The right
of property is before and higher than any constitutional sanction,
and the right of the owner of a slave to such slave and its increase
is the same and as inviolable as the right of the owner of any
property whatever." Another provision of the constitution was that
it could not be amended until after the year 1864, and even then
no alteration should "be made to affect the rights of property in
the ownership of slaves."
The election was to be held on December 21, 1857. The people might
vote for the "constitution with slavery" or the "constitution with
no slavery." In either event, by the express terms of the
constitution, slavery was established for a time in Kansas and the
doctrine of the Dred Scott case was to be embodied in our laws.
No opportunity was offered to the people to vote against the
constitution.
It is difficult to characterize in proper terms the infamy of these
proceedings. The Free State party would take no part in the proposed
election on December 21, and it resulted, for the constitution with
slavery, 6,226 votes, of which 2,720 were proven to be fraudulent;
for the constitution without slavery, 589. Governor Walker promptly
denounced the outrage. He said: "I consider such a submission of
the question a vile fraud, a base counterfeit, and a wretched device
to prevent the people voting even on the slavery question." "I
will not support it," he continued, "but I will denounce it, no
matter whether the administration sustains it or not."
Mr. Buchanan supported the scheme after the constitution had been
adopted by the convention. The elections in the fall preceding
were favorable to the Democrats, and Mr. Buchanan was naturally
encouraged to hope that his party had regained popular ascendancy,
but the Lecompton juggle created a profound impression in the north,
and divided the Democratic party to a greater extent than did the
Kansas-Nebraska bill, especially in the northwest and in Ohio,
where the feeling of resentment was almost universal. Mr. Douglas,
the great leader for the repeal of the Missouri Compromise, took
immediate ground against the pro-slavery plan, and protested to
the President against it. An open breach occurred between them.
When Congress assembled, the Lecompton scheme became the supreme
subject for debate. Mr. Douglas assumed at once the leadership of
the opposition to that measure. He said: "Up to the time of
meeting of the convention, in October last, the pretense was kept
up, the profession was openly made, and believed by me, and I
thought believed by them, that the convention intended to submit
a constitution to the people, and not to attempt to put a government
into operation without such a submission." But instead of that,
"All men must vote for the constitution, whether they like it or
not, in order to be permitted to vote for or against slavery."
Again he said: "I have asked a very large number of the gentlemen
who framed the constitution, quite a number of delegates, and still
a larger number of persons who are their friends, and I have received
the same answer from every one of them. . . . They say if they
allowed a negative vote the constitution would have been voted down
by an overwhelming majority, and hence the fellows should not be
allowed to vote at all." He denounced it as "a trick, a fraud upon
the rights of the people."
Governor Walker declared: "I state it as a fact, based on a long
and intimate association with the people of Kansas, that an
overwhelming majority of that people are opposed" to the Lecompton
constitution, "and my letters state that but one out of twenty of
the press of Kansas sustains it. . . . Any attempt by Congress to
force this constitution upon the people of Kansas will be an effort
to substitute the will of a small minority for that of an overwhelming
majority of the people."
On the 28th of January, 1858, during the debate on the Lecompton
constitution, I made an elaborate speech, entering fully into the
history of that constitution and the events that preceded it, and
closed as follows:
"In conclusion, allow me to impress the south with two important
warnings she has received in her struggle for Kansas. One is, that
though her able and disciplined leaders on this floor, aided by
executive patronage, may give her the power to overthrow legislative
compacts, yet, while the sturdy integrity of the northern masses
stands in her way, she can gain no practical advantage by her well-
laid schemes. The other is, that while she may indulge with impunity
the spirit of filibusterism, or lawless and violent adventure, upon
a feeble and distracted people in Mexico and Central American, she
must not come in contact with that cool, determined courage and
resolution which forms the striking characteristic of the Anglo-
Saxon race. In such a contest, her hasty and impetuous violence
may succeed for a time, but the victory will be short-lived and
transient, and leave nothing but bitterness behind. Let us not
war with each other; but with the grasp of fellowship and friendship,
regarding to the full each other's rights, and kind to each other's
faults, let us go hand in hand in securing to every portion of our
people their constitutional rights."
I may as well here briefly follow the progress and end of the Kansas
controversy. Mr. Stanton, the acting governor in the absence of
Governor Walker, convened an extra session of the territorial
legislature, in which the Free State men had a majority. The
legislature provided for an election to be held January 4, 1858,
at which a fair vote might be taken on the constitution. At this
election the vote stood: For the constitution with slavery, 138;
for the constitution without slavery, 24; against the constitution,
10,226.
Notwithstanding this decisive evidence of the opposition to the
Lecompton constitution by the people of Kansas, Mr. Buchanan sent
a copy of it to Congress, and, recommending the admission of Kansas
under that organic act, said:
"It has been solemnly adjudged, by the highest judicial tribunal
known to our laws, that slavery exists in Kansas by virtue of the
constitution of the United States. Kansas is therefore at this
moment as much a slave state as Georgia or South Carolina."
During the controversy Gen. Denver, a conservative Democrat, a
native of Virginia, long a resident of Ohio and a representative
from California in the 34th Congress, was appointed Governor of
Kansas. His predecessors, four of his own party, Reeder, Shannon,
Walker and Stanton, had been either removed or compelled to resign,
every one refusing to execute the extreme pro-slavery policy of
the President. His efforts to secure justice to the citizens of
Kansas would in all probability have led to his removal, but the
march of events withdrew the question involved from the people of
Kansas to the halls of Congress. The policy of the administration
was driving a wedge into the Democratic party. The bill for the
admission of Kansas under the Lecompton constitution passed the
Senate by a vote of 33 yeas to 25 nays, four northern Democrats
and two southern Americans voting with the Republicans against it.
In the House of Representatives, composed of 128 Democrats, 92
Republicans and 14 Americans, the bill was defeated by the adoption
of an amendment which provided that the Lecompton constitution
should be submitted to a vote of the people of Kansas, but this
amendment was disagreed to by the Senate, and the disagreement was
referred to a committee of conference. The result was the adoption
of a substitute known as the English bill. This bill, though
faulty, and partisan, provided for the admission of Kansas under
the Lecompton constitution, but provided also for a submission of
the English bill to a vote of the people of Kansas. On the 2nd of
August a vote was taken in Kansas, and 11,300, out of a total vote
of 13,088, were cast against the English proposition. Thus the
Lecompton constitution and the English bill were defeated, the
exclusion of slavery made absolute, and the State of Kansas admitted
into the Union as a free state, under a constitution approved by
the people, but not until January 29, 1861.
This memorable result was the turning point of the slavery controversy.
The people of the south hastened preparations for a dissolution of
the Union and a civil war. The Confederate congress, meeting four
days later, on February 9, elected Jefferson Davis as its president,
he having resigned as United States Senator, January 21, 1861,
eight days before Kansas was admitted to the Union.
I have given much space to this Kansas controversy, for I wish to
impress upon the readers of this volume that the war was not caused
by agitation for the abolition of slavery, but by aggressive measures
for the extension of slavery over free territory. A large and
influential class of southern men were born politicians, and were
mainly slaveholders. They had, from the beginning of the government,
a large influence, and held more public offices of chief importance
than their northern associates. They were constantly complaining
of opinions expressed by a comparatively few Abolitionists against
slavery, while the great body of the north were either indifferent
to or sympathized with them in their opposition to the Abolitionists.
CHAPTER VII.
RECOLLECTIONS OF THE FINANCIAL PANIC OF 1857.
Its Effect on the State Banks--My Maiden Speech in Congress on
National Finances--Appointed a Member of the Committee on Naval
Affairs--Investigation of the Navy Department and its Results--Trip
to Europe with Mrs. Sherman--We Visit Bracklin's Bridge, Made Famous
by Sir Walter Scott--Ireland and the Irish--I Pay a Visit to
Parliament and Obtain Ready Admission--Notable Places in Paris
Viewed With Senator Sumner--The Battlefield of Magenta--Return Home.
In the summer of 1857 there occurred one of those periodical
revulsions which seem to come after a term of apparent prosperity.
On the 24th of August the Ohio Life Insurance & Trust Company
failed. That single event, in itself unimportant, indicated an
unhealthy condition of trade, caused by reckless speculation, high
prices, the construction of railroads in advance of their need, a
great increase of imports, and the excessive development of cities
and towns. All credits were expanded. The immediate results of
the panic were the suspension of credits, the diminution of imports,
the failure of banks, and the general or partial suspension or
lessening of all industries. The revenues of the government were
greatly diminished.
On the 1st of July, 1857, the balance in the treasury was $17,710,000.
On the 1st of July, 1858, the balance was reduced to $6,398,000,
and during the year preceding, the United States borrowed $10,000,000.
On the 1st of July, 1859, the surplus was reduced to $4,320,000,
and during the year preceding the United States borrowed $20,774,000.
This sudden change in the financial condition of the treasury was
an indication of a like or greater change in the condition of every
person engaged in productive industries.
The panic especially affected the state banks. These banks were
authorized by the laws of several states to issue notes as money
payable on demand, with no common system or methods of redemption,
and varying in value according to the solvency of the banks issuing
them. The banks in a few of the states maintained their notes at
par, or at a small discount, but the great body of the notes could
circulate only in the states where issued, and then only because
their people could get no other money in exchange for their products.
The necessities created by the Civil War compelled the United States
to borrow large sums, and to aid in this a national currency was
provided, concerning which a statement of the measures adopted will
be made hereafter. It is sufficient here to state that the national
currency adopted proved one of the most beneficial results of the
war.
The financial stringency of 1857 led to a careful scrutiny of
appropriations for the support of the government.
On the 27th of May, 1858, I expressed my views in respect to the
expenditures of the United States. This speech was the first effort
I made in Congress to deal with the finances of the national
government. In the previous Congresses I had devoted my time to
the struggle in Kansas. At the meeting of the 35th Congress, I
naturally turned to the condition of the finances, then the paramount
subject of interest in the country, and, especially in Ohio, devoting
most of my time to a careful study thereof. The speech referred
to on national finances was the result of much labor, and I believe
it will bear favorable scrutiny even at this late day. It certainly
attracted the attention of my colleagues, and no doubt led to my
transfer, at the next Congress, to the committee of ways and means.
In this speech I state fully the increase of expenditures and the
diminution of the revenues, and the then condition of the treasury.
I quote as follows:
"And yet, sir, for this alarming condition of the public finances,
the administration has no measures of relief except loan bills and
paper money in the form of treasury notes. No provision is made
for their payment; no measure of retrenchment and reform; but these
accumulated difficulties are thrust upon the future, with the
improvidence of a young spendthrift. While the secretary is waiting
to foresee contingencies, we are prevented by a party majority from
instituting reform. If we indicate even the commencement of
retrenchment, or point out abuses, on this side of the House, we
are at once assailed by members of the committee of ways and means."
I cited the abuses and usurpations of the executive departments in
diverting specific appropriations to purposes not authorized by
law. I said: "The theory of our government is, that a specific
sum shall be appropriated by a _law_ originating in this House,
for a specific purpose, and within a given fiscal year. It is the
duty of the executive to use that sum, and no more, especially for
that purpose, and no other, and within the time fixed."
I pointed out cases where the departments assumed the power to
transfer appropriations made for one purpose, to other purposes in
the same department. Another abuse by the executive departments
was the habit of making contracts in advance of appropriations,
thus, without law, compelling Congress to sanction them or violate
the public faith. All these evils have since been remedied by
restrictive legislation. The habit of the Senate to load down
appropriation bills with amendments already refused by the House
of Representatives, and then insist that, if not agreed to, the
bill would fail, was more frequent then than now, but under the
practice now established an amendment finally disagreed to by either
House is abandoned.
An illustration of the former practice in the Senate occurred in
the 36th Congress, when I was chairman of the committee on ways
and means. An appropriation bill was loaded down with amendments,
among them an appropriation of $500,000 each for the construction
of public buildings in Charleston and New Orleans. The amendments
were disagreed to and referred to a committee of conference, of
which Senator Toombs was a member. His first expression in the
committee was that the House must agree to the items for Charleston
and New Orleans or the bill would fail. I promptly answered that
I would report what he said to the House, and _the bill would fail_.
He said nothing further, the conference agreed, and the bill passed
without any mention of Charleston or New Orleans. Even now the
abuse I refer to sometimes occurs, but the general rule and practice
is to exclude any item of an appropriation bill not freely agreed
to by both Houses.
It was generally agreed that the views expressed by me on the 27th
of May were sound in principle, but the strong partisan feeling
that ran through the speech weakened its effect. I insert the last
two paragraphs:
"But, sir, I have no hope, while this House is constituted as it
is now, of instituting any radical reform. I believe that the
House of Representatives should be in opposition to the President.
We know the intimate relations made by party ties and party feelings.
We know that with a party House, a House a majority of whose Members
are friends of the President, it is impossible to bring about a
reform. It is only by a firm, able, and determined opposition--
not yielding to every friendly request, not yielding to every urgent
demand, not yielding to every appeal--that we can expect to reform
the abuse in the administration of the government.
"At the beginning of this session, I did hope that a majority of
this House would compose such an opposition; and while on the one
hand it crushed the unholy attempt to impose an odious constitution
--by force, or with threats or bribes--upon a free people, it would
be prepared to check the reckless extravagance of the administration
in the disbursement of the public funds. But the power of party
ties and the executive influence were too potent. We can only look
now to the virtue and intelligence of the people, whose potent will
can overthrow Presidents, Senators, and majorities. I have an
abiding hope that the next House of Representatives will do what
this should have done, and become, like its great prototype, the
guardian of the rights and liberties of the people."
At the beginning of the 35th Congress I was appointed by Speaker
Orr a member of the committee on naval affairs, with Mr. Bocock as
chairman. Among the subjects referred to the committee was the
capture, by Commodore Paulding of the United States navy, of William
Walker, engaged in an armed foray against Nicaragua. It was fully
considered, and on the 3rd of February, 1858, the majority of the
committee, through Mr. Bocock, made a full report, accompanied by
the following resolutions:
"_Resolved_, That the act of Hiram Paulding, a captain of the United
States navy, in arresting General William Walker, was not authorized
by the instructions which had been given him from the navy
department.
"_Resolved_, That while we have no reason to believe that the said
Paulding acted form any improper motives or intention, yet we regard
the act in question as a grave error, and deserving, for the reason
already given, the disapproval of the American Congress."
By direction of the minority of the committee I submitted a minority
report as a substitute, as follows:
"_Resolved_, That Commodore Hiram Paulding, in arresting William
Walker and his associates, and returning them to the jurisdiction
of the United States, acted within the spirit of his orders, and
deserves the approbation of his country."
It appeared, from the documents submitted, that in September, 1857,
Walker was fitting out, within the limits of the United States, a
military expedition against the Republic of Nicaragua, that on the
18th of September, Lewis Cass, Secretary of State, issued a circular
letter, warning all persons against setting on foot such expeditions,
and urging all officers of the United States to enforce the provisions
of the law cited by him, to prevent such expeditions "so manifestly
prejudicial to the national character and so injurious to the
national interests."
A copy of this circular was transmitted to Commodore Paulding, for
his guidance, by the Secretary of the Navy, and he was required to
regard the instruction contained in it as addressed to himself.
Commodore Chatard was suspended for failing to arrest Walker within
the port of San Juan. Commodore Paulding arrived at San Juan on
the 6th day of December. Walker and his men were in sight on shore,
at Punta Arenas, opposite San Juan. This point, though within the
limits of Nicaragua, has been successively claimed and occupied by
Costa Rica, Nicaragua and the so-called Mosquito Kingdom, under
British protection. It was an almost deserted point, to which a
British subject had set up a doubtful title, founded upon a purchase
from a pilot of the port of San Juan. Its occupants were engaged
as a military force, and were then waging war against the existing
government of Nicaragua--a government with which ours was at peace,
and one so weak that it was inhuman to fight it. Although freshly
landed from our shores, in violation of our laws, and controlling
no spot except that they occupied--receiving, so far as we know,
no accession or aid from the natives of the country, they issued
orders and manifestoes headed;
"Headquarters Army of Nicaragua,
Punta Arenas, December 2, 1857."
Their leader signed these orders:
"William Walker,
Commander-in-Chief, Army of Nicaragua."
There was no doubt that the expedition was the very one denounced
by the Secretary of State in the circular, and by the Secretary of
the Navy in his orders, for Walker and his men sought no disguise.
Under these circumstances, Commodore Paulding arrested Walker and
his men and returned them to the jurisdiction of the United States.
This brief and imperfect sketch of the voluminous majority and
minority reports of the committee will convey but a faint idea of
the excitement created by this arrest. An attempt was made to
censure Commodore Paulding, but it utterly failed. The purpose of
Walker was to seize Nicaragua, adopt slavery and convert the Central
American states into slaveholding communities, and thus strengthen
slavery in the United States. It was the counterpart of the
movements in Kansas, and was supported by powerful influence in
the southern states.
Another investigation of great importance was ordered by the House
of Representatives, upon the following resolution introduced by me
on the 18th of January, 1859:
"Whereas, D. B. Allen, a citizen of the State of New York, specifically
charges that certain officers in the navy department, in awarding
contracts for the construction of vessels of war of the United
States, have been guilty of partiality, and of violation of law
and their public duty: and whereas, grave charges have been made
that money appropriated for navy yards and for the repair of vessels
of the United States, has been expended for partisan purposes, and
not for the purposes prescribed by law: Therefore,
"_Resolved_, That a committee of five members be appointed to
examine, 1. Into the specifications and bids for, and the terms
of, the contracts for the work and labor done, or materials furnished
for the vessels of the United States, constructed, or in process
of construction or repair, by the United States, since the 4th day
of March, 1857, and the mode and manner of awarding said contracts,
and the inducements and recommendations influencing such awards.
2. Into the mode and manner, and the purpose, in which the money
appropriated for the navy and dock yards, and for the repair and
increase of vessels, has been expended. That said committee have
power to send for persons and papers, and have leave to report by
bill or otherwise."
This investigation occupied most of the remaining session of that
Congress. The committee of five was composed of Messrs. Sherman,
Bocock, Ritchie, Groesbeck and Ready, three Democrats and two
Republicans, of which I was chairman. The committee took a mass
of testimony, disclosing abuses and frauds of a startling character,
covering over 1,000 printed pages. The majority of the committee,
Messrs. Bocock, Groesbeck and Ready, submitted a report condemning
the glaring abuses proven, and, while reporting the inefficiency
and incompetency of subordinate officers and employees, yet declared
that nothing had been proven which impeached the personal or official
integrity of the Secretary of the Navy. They proposed the following
resolutions:
"1. _Resolved_, That the testimony taken in this investigation
proves the existence of glaring abuses in the Brooklyn navy yard,
and such as require the interposition of legislative reform; but
it is due to justice to declare that these abuses have been slowly
and gradually growing up during a long course of years, and that
no particular administration should bear the entire blame therefor.
"2. _Resolved_, That it is disclosed, by the testimony in this
case, that the agency for the purchase of anthracite coal for the
use of the navy has been, for some time past, in the hands of a
person wholly inefficient and grossly incompetent, and that reform
is needed in the regulations which exist on that subject; but there
is no proof which traces any knowledge of such inefficiency and
incompetency to the responsible authorities in Washington, nor any
which shows that the need of reform grows especially out of any
act of theirs; but, on the contrary, it is expressly proven that
the supply of coal for the naval service has been purchased during
this administration upon terms relatively as favorable as ever
heretofore.
"3. _Resolved_, That while we could never sanction or approve any
arrangement, on the part of an officer of the government, which,
under pretense of making contracts for supplies, was designed to
confer especial and exclusive favor upon individuals, yet, in the
contract entered into in September, 1858, between the navy department
and W. C. N. Swift, for the supply of live oak to said department,
it is clearly proven by the testimony that, if the Secretary of
the Navy did contemplate any favor to said Swift, he did not design
to bestow it to the detriment of the government, but that in all
he did in this matter he kept always in view the good of the public
and the interests of the service.
"4. _Resolved_, That in the letting of the contracts for the
construction of the steam machinery for the vessels of the navy
during the present administration, nothing has been shown which
calls for the interposition of the Congress of the United States;
but it is manifest that the present head of the navy department
has displayed a very laudable zeal to secure the greatest amount
of speed and efficiency attainable for said vessels.
"5. _Resolved_, That nothing has been proven in this investigation
which impeaches, in any way, the personal or official integrity of
the Secretary of the Navy."
The minority report was made by Ritchie and myself on the 24th of
February, 1859, in which we recommended the following resolutions:
"_Resolved_, That the Secretary of the Navy has, with the sanction
of the President, abused his discretionary power in the selection
of a coal agent and in the purchase of fuel for the government.
"_Resolved_, That the contract made by the Secretary of the Navy,
under date of September 23, 1858, with W. C. N. Swift, for the
delivery of live oak timber, was made in violation of the law, and
in a manner unusual, improper, and injurious to the public service.
"_Resolved_, That the distribution, by the Secretary of the Navy,
of the patronage in the navy yard among Members of Congress was
destructive of discipline, corrupting in its influence, and highly
injurious to the public service.
"_Resolved_, That the President and Secretary of the Navy, by
receiving and considering the party relations of bidders for
contracts with the United States, and the effect of awarding
contracts upon pending elections, have set an example dangerous to
the public safety and deserving the reproof of the House.
"_Resolved_, That the appointment, by the Secretary of the Navy,
of Daniel B. Martin, chief engineer, as a member of the board of
engineers, to report upon proposals for constructing machinery for
the United States, the said Martin at the same time being pecuniarily
interested in some of said proposals, is hereby censured by this
House."
No action was taken on these reports during that session, which
terminated on the 4th of March; but in the succeeding Congress the
resolutions of the minority were reported favorably from the
committee on the expenditures of the navy department, and, after
debate, were adopted, a separate yea and nay vote being taken on
each resolution, and the vote generally being 119 in favor of the
resolution and 60 against, a large number of Democrats voting for
each resolution.
This investigation, and the action of the House of Representatives
upon it, led to radical reforms in the purchase of supplies in the
navy department, and stamped with deserved censure the Secretary
of the Navy, and his subordinates, who participated in his action.
In the spring of 1859, Mrs. Sherman and I started on my first trip
to Europe, on the steamer "Vanderbilt," without any definite route
or plan. Fortunately, we formed on shipboard some pleasant
acquaintances, among others Judge Harris of the Supreme Court of
New York, afterwards Senator of the United States, and his wife.
Each had children by a former marriage, who had arrived at or near
manhood or womanhood, and all were pleasant traveling companions.
Mr. Platt and his wife, of New York, a young married couple, were
of the party. We were fortunate in the weather and the sea. I
had often encountered the waves of Lake Erie, but the ocean was to
me the great unknown, and I imagined that from its magnitude, its
waves would be in proportion to its size, but, instead, the waves
of the Atlantic were a gentle cradle compared with the short and
chopping movement of the lake. Since then I have crossed the ocean
many times, but never was sea sick. We thought the voyage of eleven
days a brief one, but now it is reduced to six or seven days, on
vessels much greater and stronger. We landed safely at Southampton
late in the evening. Many of the passengers left immediately for
London, but our party, with others, went to the hotel. We seemed
to overcrowd the capacity of the place. One of our passengers, a
young gentleman from Baltimore, said to me he would drive out those
Englishmen, who were quietly enjoying themselves in the waiting
room. He had been a quiet gentlemanly passenger, but he changed
his tone and manner, was boisterous in his talk and rather rude.
One by one the Englishmen departed, slamming the door after them,
casting a sour look at their persecutor, but he was not disturbed
until "the coast was clear," and then quieting down in his usual
manner he said he knew these Englishmen, and thought he would give
them a chance to abuse the d----d Americans. After long waiting
we had a good supper.
On the next day, or the day following, we visited the Isle of Wight,
and what is misnamed the "New Forest"--which is very old instead
of new, and is an open park instead of a forest--in the neighborhood.
Like most travelers we soon went to London. This great city
impressed me more by the association of great men and women who
had lived and died in it than by the grandeur of its buildings and
public works. Every street and many houses in it recalled the
names of persons whose writings I had read, and of others whose
deeds made them immortal. As Parliament was not in session we
shortened our visit in London until our return. My trip to Scotland
was especially interesting. Mrs. Sherman, a daughter of Judge
Stewart, was in her face and affinities a thorough Scotch woman,
though her ancestors for several generations were born in America.
She was familiar with Scottish history, and with the geography of
Scotland. Our visit to Edinburgh and its environs was to her like
a return to familiar scenes. In our slow progress towards the
lakes we stopped at Callender over Sunday. After looking into the
well-filled church we started for Bracklinn bridge, made famous in
Scott's "Lady of the Lake." "Bracklinn's thundering wave" is a
beautiful cascade made at a place called the Bridge of Bracklinn,
by a mountain stream called the Keltie, about a mile from the
village of Callender, in Mentieth. Above a chasm where the brook
precipitates itself from a height of at least 50 feet, there is
thrown, for the convenience of the neighborhood, a rustic foot
bridge, of about three feet in breadth, and without ledges, which
is scarcely to be crossed by a stranger without awe and apprehension.
We were told it was but a short walk, a mile or two, but we soon
found that Scottish miles were very long. On the way we encountered
an old woman, dressed in Scotch plaid, of whom we inquired the way
to Bracklinn bridge. She pointed out the way, and in return asked
us where we lived. We told her the United States. She replied,
in language we could hardly understand, "Ah, ye maun come a lang
way to spay it." She then told us where to leave the road and how
to find the bridge. There was nothing remarkable at the bridge,
nothing to justify "But wild as Bracklinn's thundering roar," but
the genius of Sir Walter invested it with his glamour.
"It had much of glamour might
To make a lady seem a knight."
The lakes of Scotland we would call bays. The waters of the ocean
fill these deep depressions between high hills. A boat ride over
these interlocked waters was pleasing, but the views did not impress
me like the lakes in Switzerland in the midst of high mountains,
nor did they compare with the grandeur of the Yellowstone Lake,
6,000 feet above the sea, with surrounding mountains rising to the
height of 12,000 feet, and covered with snow. We were much pleased
with Scotland and its people until we arrived at Glasgow. Here we
walked about the city. It seemed to be crowded with discontented,
unhappy people, with sad faces and poorly clad. We were told not
to go into certain portions of the city, as we might be insulted.
We soon left Glasgow for Belfast and visited different parts of
Ireland, and especially the city of Cork, and Lake Killarney. The
southern part of Ireland was very beautiful, the herbage was fresh
and green, and the land productive. The great drawback was the
crowds of beggars, who would surround us wherever we went, soliciting
alms, but they were generally good humored. I saw little of the
disposition to fight attributed to them. At a subsequent visit I
saw much more of Ireland and the Irish people, but on this, my
first visit, I left with a very kindly impression of the country
and the people. We have more people of Irish descent in the United
States than now live in Ireland, and they have done their full part
in our development, not only as laborers, but in all the walks and
professions of life. They are heartily welcomed in our midst. If
all the discontented people of Ireland would migrate to the United
States we would welcome them if they would leave their Irish vs.
English politics behind them. We have enough possible points of
controversy on this continent with Great Britain, without importing
from that country old controversies that have been the occasion of
wars and rumors of war for centuries.
We made but a short stay in Dublin and crossed the channel to
Caernarvon. Here we took the old tally-ho coach. Despite all that
is said about railroads and steamboats, I believe in the old-
fashioned stage coach, and especially in the one in which we crossed
the hills of Wales, in full view of Mount Snowdon. We remained
over Sunday in a village on the way, inquired for the church, and
were shown to a very pretty church building near by. When we
entered we found perhaps ten or fifteen persons, mostly women.
The pastor, with an assistant, soon entered, and services commenced.
The pastor read his part, and the assistant led, and practically
made, the responses. The singing was led by the assistant and
shared in by the few women present. The sermon was short and
lifeless and the entire service--though read from the Book of Common
Prayer, as fine a model of impressive English as exists--was
spiritless. When we left the church we met lines of well-dressed,
but plain, proper men, women and children in Sunday garb. I inquired
where these people came from, and was informed they were Methodists
on the way home from their meeting house. This settled the question
with me. The church I attended was the "established church,"
supported by taxes on all the people, and the Methodist meeting
was the church of the people, supported by their voluntary
contributions. How such a policy could have been sustained so long
was beyond my comprehension. Our policy of respect and toleration
for all religious sects, but taxes for none, is a better one.
Our party, still consisting of Judge Harris and family, Mr. Platt
and wife, and Mrs. Sherman and myself, visited several of the
central counties and towns of England, chiefly the towns of Warwick,
Stratford, Kenilworth and Leamington. This is well trodden ground
for tourists, and I need not repeat the many descriptions of
interesting places and the historic names and events attached to
them.
When we returned to London, I visited the courts of law, Westminster
Abbey, and the new Parliament House. I had no difficulty in gaining
free access to the gallery of the House of Commons by stating that
I was a Member of the House of Representatives. Though I had
letters of introduction to members of Parliament I did not present
them. Judge Harris was greatly interested in the proceedings of
the courts of London, while I wandered through every part of the
great city. We attended, by invitation, a dinner given by the
Goldsmith's Guild, and accepted some invitations, among them that
of Mr. Morgan, the leading American banker in London.
Our congenial party then separated with mutual regret, Judge Harris
going to the Rhine and Mrs. Sherman and I to Paris. Here we remained
some time. Senator Sumner, not yet recovered from the blows of
Brooks, had been some time in Paris and accompanied us to many of
the noted places in that city--among them I remember the grave of
Lafayette.
Our visit was during the Franco-Italian-Austrian War. I was anxious
to reach the seat of war. On the way we made hurried visits to
Geneva, and Lake Leman. After traversing this lake we took the
coach over the Alps, on the road to Milan, stopping several times
on the way. We passed over the battle field at Magenta but a few
days after the battle was fought. We saw there the signs of
destructive war. The killed had been buried and the wounded were
in hospitals, but the smell of dead horses poisoned the air, and
the marks of the battle were on almost every house. We pushed on
to Milan and were comfortably quartered. The city was full of
soldiers on the way to the army to the eastward. It was then known
that a battle was about to be fought at Solferino. I was very
anxious to witness a battle. General Crittenden, of the United
States army, was attached as an aid to the French army, and I sought
the same facility, but the authorities would not permit it. I was
assured that my horse would be taken from me, especially as I could
not speak French, and that I would be treated as a spy unless I
was formally attached to a particular command. I therefore gave
up my contemplated trip and awaited the battle, which occurred in
a day or two. I then returned to Switzerland by the Simplon Pass,
and visited Berne, Luzerne, and Neuchâtel. From thence I returned
to London and soon after embarked on the "Vanderbilt" for home.
CHAPTER VIII.
EXCITING SCENES IN CONGRESS.
I am Elected for the Third Term--Invasion of Virginia by John Brown
--His Trial and Execution--Spirited Contest for the Speakership--
Discussion over Helper's "Impending Crisis"--Angry Controversies
and Threats of Violence in the House--Within Three Votes of Election
as Speaker--My Reply to Clark's Attack--Withdrawal of my Name and
Election of Mr. Pennington--Made Chairman of the Committee of Ways
and Means--President Buchanan Objects to Being "Investigated"--
Adoption of the Morrill Tariff Act--Views Upon the Tariff Question
--My Colleagues.
On the 29th of July, 1858, I received the congressional nomination
for my third term without opposition, and, in October following,
was elected as a Member of the 36th Congress, by a majority of
2,331 over S. J. Patrick, Democrat.
The memorable campaign in Illinois in that year excited profound
interest throughout the United States, the debate between Douglas
and Lincoln attracting universal attention. The result was favorable
to Douglas, and the legislature re-elected him Senator, but Mr.
Lincoln attained such distinction and prominence as to place him
at once in the position of a formidable candidate for the presidency
in 1860. This debate made it clear that the struggle between free
and slave institutions was to be continued and to become the
controlling issue of the future.
The murder of Broderick by Terry, in California, on the 13th of
September, 1859, under color of a duel, excited profound interest
and made that state Republican. The election of a governor in
Ohio, in the fall of that year, preceded by a debate of much interest
between William Dennison, the Republican candidate, and Judge
Ranney, the Democratic candidate, added greatly to the political
excitement then existing, and ended in the election of Mr. Dennison.
A few days after this election--on the 17th of October--the invasion
of the State of Virginia by John Brown startled the country, and,
more than all other causes, aroused the southern people to a state
of great excitement, amounting to frenzy. Brown, with a few
followers of no distinction, captured the United States arsenal at
Harper's Ferry, took possession of the bridge which crosses the
Potomac, fortifying it with cannon, stopped trains, cut telegraph
wires, killed several men, and seized many prominent citizens,
holding them as hostages. Wild reports were circulated of a rise
of the negroes in the neighborhood, the uprising accompanied by
all the horrors of a servile war, and a general alarm prevailed
throughout the State of Virginia and the south. The insurrection
was, however, speedily suppressed, mainly by the state militia,
and the few insurgents not killed were captured by United States
marines under Colonel Robert E. Lee, soon afterwards to be commander-
in-chief of the rebel forces in the Civil War.
Brown was tried for murder and executed. This foolish and criminal
invasion was the work of a fanatic who all his lifetime had been
a violent opposer of slavery, and who while in Kansas had participated
more or less in the Osawatamie murders. His son was killed by the
"border ruffians" near his home in Kansas, for which a fearful
revenge was taken upon the murderers. Brown, having always been
an Abolitionist, and being crazed by these events, believed it his
duty to wage a relentless war against slavery, and, with the courage
but shortsightedness of a fanatic, and with the hope of the resistance
of the slaves of the south, undertook this wild scheme to secure
their freedom.
Under such exciting conditions Congress convened on the 5th day of
December, 1859, divided politically into 109 Republicans, 101
Democrats and 27 Americans. No party having a majority, it was
feared by some that the scenes of 1855, when Banks was elected
speaker only after a long struggle, would be repeated. That contest
was ended by the adoption of the plurality rule, but in this case
a majority could not agree upon such a rule, and the only possible
way of electing a speaker was by a fusing of Members until a majority
voted for one person.
It was well understood that the Republican vote would be divided
between Galusha A. Grow and myself, and it was agreed between us
that whichever received a majority of the Republican vote should
be considered as the nominee of that party. On the first vote for
speaker, Thomas S. Bocock, of Virginia, the Democratic candidate,
received 86 votes, I received 66, Galusha A. Grow 43, and 21
scattering. Mr. Grow then withdrew his name. On the same day John
B. Clark, of Missouri, offered this resolution:
"Whereas certain Members of this House, now in nomination for
speaker, did indorse and recommend the book hereinafter mentioned,
"_Resolved_, That the doctrine and sentiments of a certain book,
called 'The Impending Crisis of the South--How to meet it,' purporting
to have been written by one Hinton R. Helper, are insurrectionary
and hostile to the domestic peace and tranquility of the country,
and that no Member of this House who has indorsed and recommended
it, or the compend from it, is fit to be speaker of this House."
In the absence of rules, Mr. Clark was allowed to speak without
limit and he continued that day and the next, reading and speaking
about the Helper book. John A. Gilmer, of North Carolina, offered
as a substitute for the resolution of Mr. Clark a long preamble
closing with this resolution:
"_Therefore resolved_, That, fully indorsing these national
sentiments, it is the duty of every good citizen of this Union to
resist all attempts at renewing, in Congress or out of it, the
slavery agitation, under whatever shape and color the attempt may
be made."
A motion was made to lay both resolutions on the table, and was
lost by a tie vote of 116 yeas and 116 nays. In the absence of
rules a general debate followed, in which southern Members threatened
that their constituents would go out of the Union. The excitement
over the proposition to compile a political pamphlet, by F. P.
Blair, an eminent Democrat and slaveholder, from a book called "The
Impending Crisis" written and printed by a southern man, seemed so
ludicrous that we regarded it as manufactured frenzy. After John
S. Millson, of Virginia, a conservative Democrat, who was opposed
to the introduction of the Clark resolution, had exhibited unusual
feeling, I said:
"I have until this moment regarded this debate with indifference,
because I presumed it was indulged in for the purpose of preventing
an organization. But the manner of the gentleman from Virginia,
my respect for his long experience in this House, my respect for
his character, and the serious impression which this matter seems
to have made upon his mind, induce me to say a few words. I ask
that the letter which I send up may be read."
The following letter was thereupon read from the clerk's desk:
"Washington City, December 6, 1859.
"Dear Sir:--I perceive that a debate has arisen in Congress in
which Mr. Helper's book, the 'Impending Crisis,' is brought up as
an exponent of Republican principles. As the names of many leading
Republicans are presented as recommending a compendium of the
volume, it is proper that I should explain how those names were
obtained in advance of the publication. Mr. Helper brought his
book to me at Silver Spring to examine and recommend, if I thought
well of it, as a work to be encouraged by Republicans. I had never
seen it before. After its perusal, I either wrote to Mr. Helper,
or told him that it was objectionable in many particulars, to which
I adverted; and he promised me, in writing, that he would obviate
the objections by omitting entirely or altering the matter objected
to. I understand that it was in consequence of his assurance to
me that the obnoxious matter in the original publication would be
expurgated, that Members of Congress and other influential men
among the Republicans were induced to give their countenance to
the circulation of the edition so to be expurgated.
"F. P. Blair,
"Silver Spring.
"Hon. John Sherman."
I then continued:
"I do not recollect signing the paper referred to; but I presume,
from my name appearing in the printed list, that I did sign it.
I therefore make no excuse of that kind. I never read Mr. Helper's
book, or the compendium founded upon it. I have never seen a copy
of either. And here, Mr. Clerk, I might leave the matter; but as
many harsh things have been said about me, I desire to say that
since I have been a Member of this House, I have always endeavored
to cultivate the courtesies and kind relations that are due from
one gentleman to another. I never addressed to any Member such
language as I have heard to-day. I never desire such language to
be addressed to me, if I can avoid it. I appeal to my public
record, during a period of four years, in this body; and I say not
that there is not a single question agitating the public mind, not
a single topic on which there can be sectional jealousy or sectional
controversy, unless gentlemen on the other side of the House thrust
such subjects upon us. I repeat, not a single question. We have
pursued a course of studied silence. It is our intention to organize
the House quietly, decently, in order, without vituperations; and
we trust to show to Members on all sides of the House that the
party with which I have the honor to act can administer this House
and administer this government without trespassing upon the rights
of any."
Soon after, in answer to an inquiry from Shelton F. Leake, of
Virginia, I said:
"Allow me to say, once for all, and I have said it five times on
this floor, that I am opposed to any interference whatever of the
people of the free states, with the relation of master and slave
in the slave states."
This was followed by a heated debate, the manifest purpose of which
was to excite sectional animosity, and to compel southern Americans
to co-operate with the Democratic Members in the election of a
Democrat for speaker. The second ballot, taken on the close of
the session of December 8, exhibited no material change except that
the Republican vote concentrated on me. I received 107 votes, Mr.
Bocock 88, Mr. Gilmer 22, and 14 scattering.
The debate continued and was participated in by my colleague, S.
S. Cox, who asked me about the fugitive slave law. I declined, as
I had before, to answer any interrogatories and said: "I will
state to him, and to gentlemen on the other side of the House, that
I stand upon my public record. I do not expect the support of
gentlemen on that side of the House, who have, for the last four
years, been engaged in a series of measures--none of which I approve.
I have no answers to give to them."
The third ballot produced no material change. I received 110,
Bocock 88, Gilmer 20, and 13 scattering.
In the meantime, the invasion of Harper's Ferry was debated in the
Senate at great length and with extreme violence, producing in both
houses intense irritation and excitement. Keitt, of South Carolina,
charged upon the Republicans the responsibility of Helper's book
and John Brown's foray, exclaiming: "The south here asks nothing
but its right. . . . I would have no more; but, as God is my judge,
as one of its Representatives, I would shatter this republic from
turret to foundation-stone before I would take one tittle less."
Lamar, of Mississippi, declared that the Republicans were not
"guiltless of the blood of John Brown and his co-conspirators, and
the innocent men, the victims of his ruthless vengeance." Pryor,
of Virginia, said Helper's book riots "in rebellion, treason, and
insurrection, and is precisely in the spirit of the act which
startled us a few weeks since at Harper's ferry." Crawford, of
Georgia, declared: "We will never submit to the inauguration of
a black Republican President."
The Republicans generally remained silent and demanded a vote.
Mr. Corwin, then a Representative from Ohio, elected after a long
absence from public life, endeavored to quiet the storm. Frequent
threats of violence were uttered. Angry controversies sprang up
between Members, and personal collisions were repeatedly threatened
by Members, armed and ready for conflict. No such scenes had ever
before occurred in the Congress of the United States. It appeared
many times that the threatened war would commence on the floor of
the House of Representatives. The House remained in session the
week between Christmas and New Year's Day. During this excitement
my vote steadily increased until on the 4th day of January, 1860,
on the 25th ballot, I came within three votes of election; the
whole number of votes cast being 207; necessary to a choice 104,
of which I received 101. John A. McClernand, of Illinois, received
33, Gilmer 14, Clement L. Vallandigham, of Ohio, 12, and the
remainder were scattering.
At this time Henry Winter Davis, of Maryland, an American, said to
me, and to others, that whenever his vote would elect me it should
be cast for me. J. Morrison Harris, also an American from the same
state, was understood to occupy the same position. Garnett B.
Adrain, of New Jersey, an anti-Lecompton Democrat, who had been
elected by Republicans, it was hoped would do the same. Horace F.
Clark, of New York, also an anti-Lecompton Democrat who had been
elected by Republicans, could at any moment have settled the
controversy in my favor. It was well known that I stood ready to
withdraw whenever the requisite number of votes could be concentrated
upon any Republican Member. The deadlock continued.
On the 20th of January, 1860, Mr. Clark, who had introduced the
Helper resolution, said:
"I wish to make a personal explanation with regard to my personal
feelings in the matter of this resolution. I never read the letter
of which the gentleman from Georgia speaks, and do not take to
myself articles that appear in newspapers, unless they make
imputations against my moral integrity. That resolution was
introduced by me, as I have frequently remarked, with no personal
ill-feeling towards Mr. Sherman, the Republican candidate for
speaker, apart from what I considered to be an improper act of his
--namely, the recommendation of that book. So far as that affects
his political or social character, he must of course bear it."
I replied as follows:
"The gentleman from Missouri, for the first time, I believe, has
announced that it was his purpose, in introducing this resolution,
to give gentlemen an opportunity to explain their relations to the
Helper book. I ask him now whether he is willing to withdraw the
resolution for the purpose he has indicated, temporarily, or for
any time?"
Mr. Clark said:
"I will endeavor to answer the gentleman. I avowed my purpose
frankly at the time I introduced the resolution, in the remarks
with which I accompanied its introduction. The gentleman from Ohio
propounds the question more directly whether I am willing to withdraw
the resolution for the purpose which I avow? Sir, at the very
instant it was offered, I gave the gentleman that opportunity and
I have given it to him since. I say to the gentleman that he has
had two opportunities to make that explanation; but he has failed
to relieve himself of the responsibility he took when he signed
that book and recommended its circulation."
I replied:
"I will say that that opportunity has never been rendered to me.
When the gentleman introduced his resolution, offensive in its
character, at an improper time, in an improper manner, he cut off
--what he says now he desires to give--an opportunity for explanation.
It is true that three days afterward, when the gentleman from
Virginia (Mr. Millson) appealed to me, I stated to him frankly how
may name became connected with that paper. I did not sign the
paper; but it seems that the Hon. E. D. Morgan, a Member of the
last Congress, and a friend of mine, came to me when I was in my
place, and asked me to sign a recommendation for the circulation
of a political pamphlet, to be compiled by a committee, of which
Mr. Blair, a slaveholder of Missouri, was one, from a large book
by Helper, a North Carolinian. I said to him that I had not time
to examine the book; but if there was nothing offensive in it, he
might use my name. Thereupon, this gentleman attached my name to
that paper. This information I did not have at the time the
gentleman from Virginia addressed me, but I said to him I had no
recollection of having signed the paper, but presumed I had, from
my name appearing in the printed list. I subsequently acquired it
from Mr. Morgan, whose letter was published. That I believe was
sufficient under the circumstances. I know there are Members on
that side of the House who have considered it as satisfactory; and
my friends so regard it. At the time I stated that I had not read
the book, that I did not know what was in it.
"The gentleman alludes to another time. The other day, when this
subject was again brought before the House by him, in language
which, although he claims to be courteous, I could not regard as
such, when I was, by implication, but with a disclaimer of personal
offense, charged with disseminating treason, with lighting the
torch in the dwelling of my southern brethren, and of crimes of
which, if I was guilty, I should not be entitled to a seat upon
this floor, I then rose in my place and told the gentleman from
Missouri that if he would withdraw that resolution I would answer
this book page by page, or those extracts one by one, and tell him
whether I approved them or not. The gentleman refused to withdraw
the resolution. Long ago he was notified by me, and my friend from
Pennsylvania (Mr. Morris) announced on the floor, that this resolution
was regarded by me as a menace, and, if withdrawn, would lead to
a frank avowal, or disavowal.
"I say now that I do not believe it is the desire of the gentleman
to give me that opportunity. If he does desire it, I am willing
to do now what I said I would have done then. And I say, with
equal emphasis, that never, so help me God, whether or not the
speaker's chair is to be occupied by me, will I do so while that
resolution is before this body, undisposed of. I regard it as
offensive in its tone, unprecedented, unparliamentary, and an
invasion of the rights of representation. Under the menace clearly
contained in it, I never will explain a single word contained in
those extracts.
"If the gentleman will withdraw his resolution, even for a moment,
to relieve me from the menace--he may reinstate it afterwards if
he chooses--I will then say what I have to say in regard to those
extracts. But while it stands before the House, intended as a
stigma upon me, and sustained by an argument without precedent in
parliamentary history, he cannot expect me to say more than I have
done. I believe not only my friends, but the gentlemen on the
other side of the House, who have a sense of honor, believe that
my position is correct. I know that some of them regard my statement
made on the third day of the session as full and satisfactory, and
all that, under the circumstances, it was proper for me to indicate.
"For gentlemen now to press this matter; to agitate the country;
to spread these extracts all over the south, and to charge the
sentiments of this book upon me, and my associates here; to proclaim,
day after day, that the Republicans entertain these sentiments and
indorse them, is not that ingenuous, candid and manly course which
a great party like the Democratic party ought to pursue. While we
may conduct our political quarrels with heat, and discuss matters
with zeal and determination, it ought to be done with fairness and
frankness. The mode in which this resolution has been pressed
before the country, and I, with my hands tied and my lips sealed
as a candidate, have been arraigned day by day, is without a
precedent, not only in history but in party caucuses, in state
legislatures, in state conventions or anywhere else.
"I said when I rose the other day that my public opinions were on
record. I say so now. Gentlemen upon the other side have said
that they have examined that record to ascertain what my political
opinions were. They will look in vain for anything to excite
insurrection, to disturb the peace, to invade the rights of states,
to alienate the north and south from each other, or to loosen the
ties of fraternal fellowship by which our people have been and
should be bound together. I am for the Union and the constitution,
with all the compromises under which it was formed, and all the
obligations which it imposes. This has always been my position;
and these opinions have been avowed by me on this floor and stand
now upon your records. Who has brought anything from that record
against me that is worthy of answer? . . .
"I have never sought to invade the rights of the southern states.
I have never sought to trample upon the rights of citizens of the
southern states. I have my idea about slavery in the territories,
and at the proper time and in the proper way I am willing to discuss
the question. I never made but one speech on the subject of slavery,
and that was in reference to what I regarded as an improper remark
made by President Pierce in 1856. I then spread upon the record
my opinions on the subject; and I have found no man to call them
into question. They are the opinions of the body of the Republicans.
They are the opinions which I now entertain. Gentlemen are at
liberty to discuss these questions as much as they choose, and I
will bear my share of the responsibility for entertaining those
opinions. But I now speak to my personal record. . . .
"Again these gentlemen, while publishing in their speeches all over
the country that I am in effect a traitor, etc., by implication,
it is true, disavowing, as I am glad to say each of them have done,
any design to be personally offensive, but in a way which answers
the same purpose; yet when called upon to show proof or specifications,
they fail to do so; and the only act for which I have been arraigned
before the American people is that, in a moment when I was sitting
here, busy at my desk, and one of my friends, and late a Member of
this House, came to me and asked me to sign a paper recommending
the publication of a political tract; that, when I authorized my
name to be put to that recommendation, by that very act I became
a traitor and would place the torch in the hands of the incendiary.
I say this is not fair argument. And I again repeat that if the
Member from Missouri (Mr. Clark) desires to know what my sentiments
are in regard to the extracts read at the clerk's table, the only
portion of the Helper book I have seen or read, I will give them
if he will remove a menace from me. I never did do anything under
menace. I never will. It is not in my blood and these gentlemen
cannot put it there."
Mr. Clark rose to speak, but I continued:
"The gentleman will excuse me, I have, so far as I am concerned in
this contest, been quiet and patient. I desire to see an organization
of the House opposed to the administration. I think it is our
highest duty to investigate, to examine and analyze the mode in
which the executive powers of this government have been administered
for a few years past. That is my desire. Yes sir, I said here,
in the first remark I made, that I did not believe the slavery
question would come up at all during this session. I came here
with the expectation that we would have a business session, that
we would analyze the causes of the increased expenditures of the
government and the proper measures of redress and retrenchment.
I did not believe that the slavery question would come up, and but
for the unfortunate affair of Brown at Harper's Ferry, I did not
believe there would be any feeling on the subject. Northern Members
came here with kindly feelings, no man approving the foray of John
Brown and every man willing to say so; every man willing to admit
it as an act of lawless violence. We came here hoping that, at
this time of peace and quiet, we might examine, inquire into, and
pass upon, practical measures of legislation tending to harmonize
the conflicting elements of the government and strengthen the bonds
of Union. The interests of a great and growing people present
political questions enough to tax the ability and patriotism of us
all.
"Such was our duty; but the moment we arrived here--before, sir,
we even had a formal vote,--this question of slavery was raised by
the introduction of the resolution of the gentleman from Missouri.
It has had the effect of exciting the public mind with an irritating
controversy. It has impaired the public credit and retarded the
public business. The debate founded upon it has been unjust,
offensive, wrong, not only to the Republicans here, not only to
those with whom I act, but to all our common constituents, north
and south. The gentlemen who have advocated that resolution have
stirred up bad blood, and all because certain gentlemen have
recommended that a compilation be made of a book. Even yet we may
retrieve the loss of valuable time. We could now go to work,
organize the House and administer the powers of this House with
fairness and impartiality.
"In conclusion, let me say that by no act or effort have I sought
the position I now occupy before the House. The honor was tendered
me by the generous confidence and partiality of those with whom it
has been my pride to act, politically. Their conduct in this
irritating controversy has justified my attachment.
"If I shall ever reach the speaker's chair, it will be with
untrammeled hands and with an honest purpose to discharge every
duty in the spirit which the oath of office enjoins; and to organize
the House with reference to the rights and interests of every
section, the peace and prosperity of the whole Union, and the
efficient discharge of all the business of the government. And
whenever friends who have so gallantly and liberally sustained me
thus far believe that my name in any way presents an obstacle to
success, it is my sincere wish that they should adopt some other.
Whenever any one of my political friends can combine a greater
number of votes than I have been honored with, or sufficient to
elect him by a majority or plurality rule, I will not stand in this
position one hour; I will retire from the field, and yield to any
other gentleman with whom I act, the barren honors of the speaker's
chair; and I promise my friends a grateful recognition of the
unsolicited honor conferred upon me, and a zealous and earnest co-
operation."
Pending the vote on the 39th ballot and before it was announced,
Robert Mallory, of Kentucky, an American, appealed to the Democrats
to vote for William N. H. Smith, of North Carolina, also an American,
which would elect him. The Democrats thereupon changed their votes
to Mr. Smith, making many speeches in explanation of their action.
Perceiving that this would elect Mr. Smith I arose and for the
first time cast my ballot for speaker, voting for Mr. Corwin.
Three other Members who had voted for Mr. Smith changed their votes,
which defeated the election on that ballot.
After this vote I conferred with Davis and George Briggs, of New
York, Americans, and Adrain. I had the positive assurance of these
three gentlemen that if I would withdraw they would vote for William
Pennington, of New Jersey, and thus secure a Republican organization
of the House. I referred this proposition to my Republican
associates, and a majority of them were opposed to any change.
Francis E. Spinner, of New York, said he would never change his
vote from me, and Thaddeus Stevens said he never would do so until
the crack of doom. When afterwards reminded of this Mr. Stevens
said he thought he "heard it cracking."
I felt the responsibility, but on the 30th of January, 1860, I
determined to withdraw. In doing so I made the following remarks,
as printed in the "Congressional Globe:"
"Mr. clerk--[Loud cries of 'Down,' 'Down,' 'Order,' 'Order,' 'Let
us have the question,' etc.] Eight weeks ago, I was honored by
the votes of a large plurality of my fellow Members for the high
office of speaker of this House. Since that time they have adhered
to their choice with a fidelity that has won my devotion and respect;
and, as I believe, the approbation of their constituents. They
have stood undismayed amidst threats of disunion and disorganization;
conscious of the rectitude of their purposes; warm in their attachment
to the constitution and Union, and obedient to the rules of order
and the laws. They have been silent, firm, manly. On the other
hand, they have seen their ancient adversary and their only natural
adversary, reviving anew the fires of sectional discord, and broken
into fragments. They have seen some of them shielding themselves
behind a written combination to prevent the majority of the House
from prescribing rules for its organization. They have heard others
openly pronounce threats of disunion; proclaim that if a Republican
be duly elected President of the United States, they would tear
down this fair fabric of our rights and liberties, and break up
the union of these states. And now we have seen our ancient
adversary, broken, dispersed and disorganized, unite in supporting
a gentleman who was elected to Congress as an American, in open,
avowed opposition to the Democratic organization.
"I should regret exceedingly, and believe it would be a national
calamity, to have anyone who is a supporter, directly or indirectly,
of this administration, or who owes it any allegiance, favor or
affection, occupying a position of importance or prominence in this
House. I would regard it as a public calamity to have the power
of this House placed, directly or indirectly, under the control of
this administration. It would be, it seems to me, a fatal policy
to trust the power of this House to the control of gentlemen who
have proclaimed that under any circumstances, or in any event, they
would dissolve the union of these states. For this reason we would
be wanting in our duty to our God and our country, if we did not
avert such a result of this contest. I regard it as the highest
duty of patriotism to submerge personal feelings, to sacrifice all
personal preferences and all private interests, to the good of our
common country. I said here a few days ago, and I always stood in
the position, that when I became convinced that any of my political
friends or associates could receive further support outside of the
Republican organization, I would retire from the field and yield
to him the honor of the position that the partiality of friends
has assigned to me. I believe that time has now arrived. I believe
that a greater concentration can now be made on another gentleman,
who, from the beginning, has acted with me.
"Therefore, I respectfully withdraw my name as a candidate. And
in doing so, allow me to return my heartfelt thanks for the generous
and hearty support of all my political friends, and especially to
those gentlemen with whom I have not the tie of a party name, but
the higher one of a common purpose and sympathy. And if I can ask
of them one more favor, it would be that in an unbroken column,
with an unfaltering front and unwavering line, each of them will
cast his vote in favor of any one of our number who can command
the highest vote, or who can be elected speaker of this House."
A ballot was immediately taken, but, much to my chagrin, the
gentlemen named did not change their votes, and Mr. Pennington
still lacked three votes of an election. I again appealed to Davis
and Briggs, and finally, on the 1st of February, Mr. Pennington
received their votes. The result was announced; Pennington, 117
votes; McClernand, 85; Gilmer, 16; 15 scattering; giving Pennington
a majority of one, and thus, after a long and violent contest, a
Republican was elected speaker of the House of Representatives.
I was entirely satisfied with the result. I had received every
Republican vote and the votes of a large number of anti-Nebraska
Democrats and Americans. No cloud rested upon me, no allegation
of misconduct or unfitness was made against me. I would have been
easily and quickly elevated but for the abnormal excitement created
by Brown's invasion and the bitterness of political antagonism
existing at that time. Many Members who felt it their duty to oppose
my election, subsequently expressed their regret that I was not
elected. I had voted for Mr. Pennington during the contest, had
a high respect for him as a gentleman of character and influence,
long a chancellor of his state, and a good Republican.
When the canvass was over, I felt a sense of relief. During its
continuance, I had remained, with rare exceptions, silent, though
strongly tempted, by political criticism, to engage in the debate.
I had, during the struggle, full opportunity to estimate the capacity
and qualifications of different Members for committee positions,
and had the committees substantially framed, when Pennington was
elected. I handed the list to him, for which he thanked me kindly,
saying that he had but little knowledge of the personal qualifications
of the Members. With some modifications, made necessary by my
defeat and his election as speaker, he adopted the list as his own.
He designated me as chairman of the committee of ways and means,
of which I had not previously been a member.
The organization of the House was not completed until the 9th day
of February, 1860. The officers designated by the Republicans were
generally elected. Congress seemed to appreciate the necessity of
prompt and vigorous action on the business of the session. Still,
whatever question was pending, political topics were the object of
debate, but were rarely acted upon, as the condition of the House
prevented anything like political action. Nearly all the measures
adopted were of a non-political character. The chief work of the
session was devoted to appropriations, and the preparation and
enactment of a tariff bill. At that time, the great body of
legislation was referred to the committee of ways and means, which
then had charge of all appropriations and of all tax laws, and
whose chairman was recognized as the leader of the House, practically
controlling the order of its business.
By the 13th of March, I was able to say, in behalf of the committee,
that all the annual appropriation bills were ready for the
consideration of the House, and promised that if the House would
sustain the committee, all these bills could be passed before the
meeting of the Charleston convention. Notwithstanding the partisan
bitterness which was exhibited against me while I was a candidate
for speaker, I had no cause to complain of a want of support by
the House, in the measures reported from that committee. Since
then the work of that committee has been distributed among a number
of committees.
The first political contest was caused by a message of President
Buchanan, protesting against action under a resolution by the House
of Representatives, passed on the 5th of March, providing for a
committee of five members, to be appointed by the speaker, for the
purpose of investigating "whether the President of the United
States, or any other officer of the government, has, by money,
patronage, or other improper means, sought to influence the action
of Congress for or against the passage of any law pertaining to
the rights of any state or territory." The committee appointed
came to be commonly known as the Covode committee.
This message was regarded as a plain interference with the
unquestionable power of the House to investigate the conduct of
any officer of the government, a process absolutely necessary to
enable the House to exercise the power of impeachment. Upon the
reception of the message I immediately replied to it, and a general
debate arose upon a motion to refer it to the committee on the
judiciary. That motion was adopted and the committee reported a
resolution in the following words, which was finally adopted after
debate, by a vote of 88 yeas and 40 nays:
"_Resolved_, That the House dissents from the doctrines of the
special message of the President of the United States of March 28,
1860;
"That the extent of power contemplated in the adoption of the
resolutions of inquiry of March 5, 1860, is necessary to the proper
discharge of the constitutional duties devolved upon Congress;
"That judicial determinations, the opinions of former Presidents
and uniform usage, sanction its exercise; and
"That to abandon it would leave the executive department of the
government without supervision or responsibility, and would be
likely to lead to a concentration of power in the hands of the
President, dangerous to the rights of a free people."
This resolution was regarded as a severe reproach to the President,
who was not content to let the matter rest there, but on the 25th
of June sent to the House of Representatives, a message restating
the position in his former message. He denounced the proceedings
of that committee as a violation of the letter and spirit of the
constitution. But for the lateness of the session the message
would have been the subject of severe animadversion. Late as it
was Benjamin Stanton, of Ohio, entered his protest and moved that
the message be referred to a select committee of five, with power
to report at the next session. This, after a brief debate, was
adopted.
During the entire session, while the current business was progressing
rapidly, the political questions involved in the pending presidential
canvass, the topics of Kansas and slavery, were frequently obtruded
into the debate. On the 23rd of April, William T. Avery, a Democratic
Member from Tennessee charged that "an overwhelming majority of
the Republican party in this House, headed by Mr. Sherman--in fact,
every member of that party present when the vote was taken, excepting
some fourteen or fifteen--indorsed the doctrine of the abolition
of slavery everywhere."
In the course of a reply to this charge I said:
"I think there is not a Member on this side of the House who is
not now willing to make the declaration broadly, openly, that he
is opposed to any interference whatever with the relations of master
and slave in the slave states. We do believe that Congress has
the power to prohibit slavery in the territories; and whenever the
occasion offers, whenever the proper time arrives, whenever the
question arises, we are in favor of exercising that power, if
necessary, to prevent the extension of slavery into free territory.
We are frank and open upon this subject. But we never did propose,
and do not now propose, to interfere with slavery in the slave
states. I hope the gentleman will put these observations in his
speech, so that the gentleman's constituents may see that we 'black
Republicans' are not so very desirous of interfering with their
interests or rights, but only desirous of preserving our own."
Mr. Ashmore inquired: "Are you not in favor of abolishing slavery
in the District of Columbia?"
I replied:
"I have stated to my constituents, over and over again, that I am
opposed to interference with slavery in the District of Columbia.
That is my individual position. The Republican party never took
a position on the subject. Some are for it, and some against it.
I have declared to my constituents, over and over again, that I
did not think it proper to agitate the question of the abolition
of slavery in the District of Columbia; because I believe that this
is the very paradise of the free negro. I believe that practically,
though not legally, he is better off in the District than in any
portion of the United States. There are but few slaves here, and
the number is decreasing daily. As an institution, slavery scarcely
exists here, and I am willing to leave it to the effect of time."
On the 12th of March, 1860, Justin S. Morrill, of Vermont, by
instruction of the committee of ways and means, reported a bill
"to provide for the payment of outstanding treasury notes, to
authorize a loan, to regulate and fix duties on imports, and for
other purposes." This became the law commonly known as the Morrill
tariff act, which, from the time of its introduction to this day,
had been the subject of debate, amendment, criticism and praise.
It was referred to the committee of the whole on the state of the
Union, and its consideration occupied a large proportion of the
remainder of the session. Nearly one hundred Members entered into
the debate and some of them made several speeches upon the subject.
Being at the time much occupied with the appropriation bills, I
did not give much attention to the debate, but had taken part in
the preparation of the bill in the committee of ways and means,
and concurred, with rare exceptions, in the principles and details
of the measure.
Mr. Morrill was eminently fitted to prepare a tariff bill. He had
been engaged in trade and commerce, was a man of sound judgment,
perfectly impartial and honest. Representing a small agricultural
state, he was not biased by sectional feeling or the interests of
his constituents. He regarded the tariff as not only a method of
taxation, but as a mode of protection to existing industries in
the United States with a view to encourage and increase domestic
production. He was moderate in his opinions, kind and fair in
expressing them, and willing to listen with patience to any
proposition of amendment. He still lives at the venerable age of
eighty-five, and has been, during all the long period since the
report of the bill named after him, to this time, in public life,
and still retains the confidence and affection of his constituents
and colleagues.
I did not participate in the debate until the time came when, in
the judgment of the committee of ways and means, it was necessary
to dispose of the bill, either by its passage or defeat. On the
7th of May, 1860, the bill being before the House, I moved that
all debate on it should cease at one o'clock the next day. Some
opposition was evinced, but the motion was adopted. I then made
my first speech upon the subject of the tariff. The introductory
paragraphs state the then condition of the treasury as follows:
"The revenue act of March 3, 1857, which it is now proposed to
repeal, has proved to be a crude, ill-advised, and ill-digested
measure. It was never acted upon in detail in either branch of
Congress, but was the result of a committee of conference in the
last days of the session, and was finally passed by a combination
of hostile interests and sentiments. It was adopted at a time of
inflated prices, when the treasury was overflowing with revenue.
When that condition of affairs ceased, it failed to furnish ordinary
revenue, and by its incidental effects operated injuriously to
nearly every branch of industry.
"It went into operation on the 1st of July, 1857. At that time
there was in the treasury of the United States a balance of
$17,710,114. The amount of the public debt then remaining unpaid,
none of which was then due, was a little over $29,000,000. So that
there was in the treasury of the United States, when the tariff
act of 1857 went into operation, nearly enough to have paid two-
thirds of the public debt. Within one year from that time, the
public debt was increased to $44,910,777.
"On the 1st of July, 1859, the public debt had increased to
$58,754,699. On the 1st of May, 1860, as nearly as I can ascertain,
the public debt had risen to $65,681,099. The balance in the
treasury on the first of July next, as estimated by me, will be
$1,919,349.
* * * * *
"Under the operation of the tariff of 1857, the deficit in the
revenue is over $52,000,000. It may be stated thus:
Balance in the treasury, July 1, 1857 . . . . . . . . . $17,710,114
Balance in the treasury, July 1, 1860, estimated . . . 1,919,349
$15,790,765
Amount of public debt May 1, 1860 . . . $65,681,199
Amount of public debt July 1, 1857 . . 29,060,386 36,620,813
$52,411,578"
It was manifest from these statements that there was an imperative
necessity for the passage of some measure to increase the revenues.
We could hardly hope that, in the excited state of the public mind
and the known position of the Senate, the bill could pass at that
session. The government had been conducted for three years by
borrowing money in time of peace. The appropriations had been
reduced during that session by the committee of ways and means
below the estimate of the treasury, as stated by me to the House.
I then said:
"I desire now to say that the committee of ways and means, who have
had charge of appropriation bills, have endeavored, faithfully and
honestly, without regard to party divisions--and all parties in
this House are represented in that committee--to cut down the
appropriations to the lowest practicable point; and thus to reduce
the expenses of the government. I have before me a table showing
that, upon the estimates submitted to us, by the Secretary of the
Treasury, for the ordinary expenses of the government, we have been
able to reduce the amount about $1,230,000."
After a careful statement of the condition of the treasury and the
necessity for further supplies, I expressed this opinion of the
pending bill:
"In my judgment Mr. Morrill's bill is a great improvement on the
tariff of 1857. It is more certain. It is more definite. It
gives specific duties. There is another reason why it is better
than the tariff of 1857. That tariff is made up of complex and
inconvenient tables. The number of tables is too great; and in
some cases the same article is in two tables. Thus, flaxseed comes
in with a duty of ten per cent.; and yet linseed, the same thing,
yielding the same product, the same oil, is admitted duty free.
The bill of Mr. Morrill, on the other hand, fixes three _ad valorem_
tables; one at ten per cent., one at twenty, and the other at
thirty. There is a number of specific duties, and then there is
a free list. It conforms to our decimal currency, and the duties
under it are easily calculated. There can be but little dispute
about home and foreign valuation under it. It will yield a revenue
sufficient to pay the expenses of the government. It is more simple
and more certain. It substitutes specific for _ad valorem_ duties
whenever practicable. For these reasons, it is obvious Mr. Morrill's
bill ought to receive the sanction of Congress."
The bill not only provided for a sufficient revenue, but was
distinctively a bill for incidental protection to all American
industries, impartially and fairly applied. I said I desired to
have this bill passed,
"Because it is framed upon the idea that it is the duty of the
government, in imposing taxes, to do as little injury to the industry
of the country as possible; that they are to be levied so as to
extend a reasonable protection to all branches of American industry.
I think that is right. Every President of the United States, from
Washington to this time, has recognized that principle, including
Mr. Buchanan.
"We may make a tariff to raise the sum of $40,000,000, and injure
every industrial interest of the country. The committee of ways
and means report a tariff bill which will produce $65,000,000, and
will do no injury to any industrial interest. I believe that it
will give a reasonable fair protection for the great industries of
agriculture, manufacture, and commerce, which lie at the basis of
the prosperity of this country."
Mr. Morrill participated in this debate by brief but clear statements
in respect to the details of the bill. On the 8th of May, 1860,
he said, in the course of some remarks upon the bill:
"I think if the gentleman will examine this bill, he will find that
the average rates of duties upon manufactured articles are not
higher, but rather lower, than they are now; but being to a large
extent specific, they will prove of great value to the country, in
giving steadiness to our markets, as well as to the revenue; and
because frauds will be to a very great extent obviated, which are
now practiced under our _ad valorem_ system, and which have made
our government almost equal in infamy to that of Mexico and other
countries, where their revenue laws are a mere farce."
The bill, despite its merits, was assailed with all forms of
amendments from all parts of the House. Many of the amendments
were adopted, until the bill became so mottled that Mr. Morrill,
discouraged and strongly inclined against the bill as changed, was
disposed to abandon it to its fate. He was not familiar with the
rules, and, for this reason, labored under a disadvantage in the
conduct of the bill. I believed not only in the merits of the
measure, but that by a process strictly in accordance with the
rules, it might be restored substantially as it was reported by
the committee. To secure that effect Mr. Morrill offered an
amendment in the nature of a substitute for the bill. To that I
offered as an amendment a bill which embodied nearly all of the
original bill as reported, with such modifications as were evidently
favored by the House, without affecting the general principles of
the measure.
The vote, upon my substitute being adopted in place of the substitute
offered by Mr. Morrill, prevented any amendment to my amendment
except by adding to it. The result of it was that the House, tired
with the long struggle, and believing that the measure thus amended
was in substance the same as the original bill reported, finally
passed the bill on the 10th day of May, 1860, by the vote of 105
yeas to 64 nays.
As this was my birthday, I remember to have celebrated it, not only
as my birthday, but as the day on which the Morrill tariff bill
passed the House of Representatives.
We knew upon the passage of this bill that it could not pass the
Senate during that session. It was taken up in that body, debated
at length, and finally, on the 20th of June, it was, in effect,
postponed until the next session.
I might as well here follow the Morrill tariff bill to its final
passage at the next session of this Congress.
On the 20th of December, 1860, Mr. Hunter, from the committee on
finance, to whom was referred the tariff bill, reported it back
with a recommendation that it be postponed until the 4th day of
March following. This was, in effect, to reject the bill, as
Congress terminated on that day. The committee on finance, and a
majority of the Senate as then constituted, was opposed to the
passage of the bill, but the secession movements, then openly
threatened, soon changed the political complexion of the Senate,
by the resignation of Senators on account of the secession of their
states. On the 18th of January, 1861, Mr. Cameron, of Pennsylvania,
moved to take up the bill, and, upon his motion, it was made a
special order for the following Wednesday. On the 23rd of January
it was referred to a committee of five members, consisting of Mr.
Simmons, Mr. Hunter, Mr. Bigler, Mr. Fessenden, and Mr. Gwin. This
was done on the same day when the committees of the Senate were
reorganized on account of the withdrawal of Senators. The special
committee appointed by the Vice President was friendly to the bill.
Then for the first time it became possible to secure favorable
action in the Senate. Many amendments were proposed and adopted
by the Senate, but they did not materially affect the general
principles upon which the bill was founded. It passed the Senate
with these amendments by the decided vote of 25 yeas to 14 nays.
All of the amendments of the Senate but one were promptly agreed
to by the House, and a conference between the two Houses was ordered.
Messrs. Simmons, Bigler and Hunter were the managers on the part
of the Senate and Messrs. Sherman, Phelps and Moorhead on the part
of the House.
On the 27th day of February, five days before the close of the
session, the conferees reported to the Senate their agreement and
the report of the committee was adopted without objection or division
of that body, and also by the House of Representatives, and the
bill was signed by President Buchanan.
This law, passed in the throes of a revolution, and only possible
as the result of the withdrawal of Senators to engage in the war
of secession, met all the expectations of its friends. It was
fair, just and conservative, and would, in peaceful times, yield
about $50,000,000 a year, the amount of national expenditures in
1860, and, at the same time, protect and strengthen all existing
home industries, and lay the foundation for great increase in
production. It was destined, however, to begin its existence at
a period of revolution. The secession of eleven states precipitated
the war, involving enormous expenditures, in the face of which all
revenue laws were inadequate and powerless. The credit of the
government, its resources and capacity for taxation, had to be
appealed to. Resort was had to every possible mode of taxation
that could be devised by the ingenuity of man, to supply the
requirements of the war, and to maintain the public credit. The
Morrill tariff act was, therefore, greatly modified by subsequent
laws, the duties doubled and in some cases trebled. Internal taxes,
yielding twofold the amount collected from customs, were levied,
and cheerfully paid, and duties on imported goods were quickly
increased. The details of this act became the victim of the war,
but the general principles upon which it was founded, the application
of specific duties where possible, and the careful protection
extended to the products of the soil and the mine, as well as of
the workshop, have been maintained to a greater or less extent
until the present time.
I have participated in framing many tariff bills, but have never
succeeded in securing one that I entirely approved. The Morrill
tariff bill came nearer than any other to meeting the double
requirement of providing ample revenue for the support of the
government and of rendering the proper protection to home industries.
No national taxes, except duties on imported goods, were imposed
at the time of its passage. The Civil War changed all this, reducing
importations and adding tenfold to the revenue required. The
government was justified in increasing existing rates of duty, and
in adding to the dutiable list all articles imported, thus including
articles of prime necessity and universal use. In addition to
these duties, it was compelled to add taxes on all articles of home
production, on incomes not required for the supply of actual wants,
and, especially, on articles of doubtful necessity, such as sprits,
tobacco and beer. These taxes were absolutely required to meet
expenditures for the army and navy, for the interest on the war
debts and just pensions to those who were disabled by the war, and
to their widows and orphans.
These conditions have, in a measure, been fulfilled. The war is
over; the public debt has been diminished to one-third of the amount
due at the close of the war. The pension list is the chief and
almost only outstanding obligation growing out of the war, but this
is fully met by internal taxes on spirits, tobacco and beer. What
is needed now is a tariff or tax on imported goods sufficient in
amount to meet the current expenditures of the government, and
which at the same time will tend to encourage the production in
this country of all articles, whether of the farm, the mine or the
workshop, that can be readily and at reasonable cost produced in
this country.
And here we meet the difficulty that the mode, extent, manner and
objects of tariff taxation are unhappily mixed up in our party
politics. This should not be so. Whether the mode of taxation
should be by a percentage on the _value_ of goods imported, or by
a duty imposed on the weight or quantity, depends upon the nature
of the article. If the article is sold in the market by weight or
quantity, the duty should be specific, _i. e._, a certain rate on
the unit of weight or quantity. If it is of such a nature that
its value cannot be measured by weight or quantity the duty should
be _ad valorem, i. e._ a percentage of its value. This is matter
of detail to be fixed by the custom of merchants. As a rule it is
better to fix the duty upon weight or measure, rather than upon
value, for by the former mode the amount is easily ascertained by
the scale or yard stick, while to base the duty upon value, changing
from day to day, is to invite fraud and litigation.
The extent or rate of duty to be imposed should depend entirely
upon the pecuniary wants of the government, and the nature of the
article imported. If the article is one of luxury, mainly consumed
by the rich, the duty should be at a higher rate than upon an
article in general use. This principle is sometimes disputed, but
it would seem that in a republic a just discrimination ought to be
made in favor of the many rather than of the few. On this principle
all political parties have acted. The rates have been higher on
silks, satins, furs and the like than on goods made of cotton,
wool, flax or hemp. To meet the changing wants of the government
all articles should be classified in schedules, so that the rate
of duty on a single schedule, or on many schedules, could be advanced
or lowered without disturbing the general scheme of taxation.
As to the manner of taxation and the places where duties should be
collected, all will agree that they should be paid as nearly as
possible where the goods are to be consumed. The concentration of
importations at any one port on the coast, or at several ports,
gives to the people residing at or near such favored ports an
advantage over the people living in the interior of the country.
The system of interior ports, or places of delivery to which goods
may be consigned, has been adopted and generally approved. The
object is that all parts of the country shall have equal facilities
and bear equally the burdens of taxation.
The method of importations should be so simplified that any person,
in any part of the United States, may order from any commercial
port or country any article desired and be able to receive it and
pay the prescribed duty, at any considerable port or city in the
United States that he may designate.
As to the objects of tariff taxation there is and always will be
an honest difference of opinion. The main purpose is to secure
the revenue from foreigners seeking our market to dispose of their
products. The United States has the right, exercised by every
nation, to determine upon what terms the productions of foreign
nations shall be admitted into its markets, and those terms will
be such as its interests may demand. Great Britain may admit nearly
all commodities free of duty, but even that country is guided by
her interests in all her commercial regulations. All other nations
classified as civilized seek, like the United States, by tariff
laws, not only to secure revenue, but to protect and foster domestic
industries. Japan has won its entrance among civilized nations by
securing treaties with European countries and the United States,
by which she has been relieved from restrictions as to her duties
on imports, and now has the right to regulate and fix her import
duties as her interest dictates.
The United States has from the beginning of its government declared
that one object of duties on imports is the encouragement of
manufactures in the United States, and, whatever may be the dogma
inserted in a political party platform, tariff legislation will
continue to have a double object, _revenue and protection_. This
was strikingly exemplified by the recent action of Congress in the
passage of the tariff law now in force.
The real difficulty in our tariff laws is to avoid unequal and
unjust discrimination in the objects of protection, made with a
view to favor the productions of one state or section at the cost
of another state or section. The dogma of some manufacturers, that
raw materials should be admitted free of duty, is far more dangerous
to the protective policy than the opposition of free traders. The
latter contend that no duties should be levied to protect domestic
industry, but for revenue only, while the former demand protection
for their industries, but refuse to give to the farmer and miner
the benefit of even revenue duties. A denial of protection on
coal, iron, wool and other so-called raw materials, will lead to
the denial of protection to machinery, to textiles, to pottery and
other industries. The labor of one class must not be sacrificed
to secure higher protection for another class. The earth and all
that is within it is the work of God. The labor of man that tends
to develop the resources buried in the earth is entitled to the
same favor and protection as skilled labor in the highest branch
of industry, and if this is not granted impartially the doctrine
of protection proclaimed by the founders of our government, supported
for more than a hundred years of wonderful progress, will be
sacrificed by the hungry greed of selfish corporations, who ask
protection for great establishments and refuse to grant it to the
miner, the laborer and the farmer.
Another principle must be ingrafted into our tariff laws, growing
out of new modes of production by corporations and combinations.
Until recently each miner, each artisan, and each manufacturer,
had to compete in the open market with everyone engaged in the same
industry. The general public had the benefit of free competition.
This tended to lower prices on many commodities, to increase the
quantity produced, and to supply the home market, thus excluding
importations. The tendency since the Civil War in every branch of
industry has been to consolidate operations. To effect this,
corporations have been created in most of the states and granted
such liberal corporate powers, without respect to the nature of
the business to be conducted, and with terms and privileges so
favorable, that private enterprise without large capital cannot
compete with them. Instead of small or moderate workshops, with
a few hands, we now have great establishments with hundreds of
employees, and all the capital of scores of stockholders under the
control of a few men, and often of one man. This may be of benefit
by reducing the cost of production, but it also involves two dangers,
one the irrepressible conflict of labor with capital, and the other
the combination of corporations engaged in the same business to
advance prices and prevent competition, thus constituting a monopoly
commanding business and controlling the market.
This power in the hands of a few is at this moment the disturbing
element in many of our great industries. It is especially dangerous
when it is promoted by rates of duty on imported goods higher than
are necessary to cover the difference in the cost of labor here
and abroad. When such conditions occur, the monopoly becomes
offensive. Such combinations are denounced and punished by the
laws of almost every civilized government and by the laws of many
of our states. They should be denounced and punished by the laws
of the United States whenever they affect any matter within the
jurisdiction of the United States. Whenever the tendency of a
monopoly is to prevent mutual competition, and to advance prices
for any articles embraced in our tariff laws, the duty on the
article should be at once reduced or repealed.
As Members of Congress, divided by party lines and crude platforms,
must in the main, care for and protect local interests, I do not
believe any fair, impartial and business tariff can be framed by
them. It would be better for Congress, the law-making power, after
determining the amount to be raised, to sanction and adopt a careful
tariff bill, framed by an impartial commission, large enough to
represent all sections and parties, all employers and employees.
Hitherto, the tariffs framed by Congress have been rejected by the
people. Each party, in its turn, has undertaken the task with a
like result. Let us try the experiment of a tariff framed, not by
a party upon a party platform, but by the selected representatives
of the commercial, industrial, farming and laboring classes. Let
Congress place upon the statute book such a law, and the tariff
question will cease to be the foot ball of partisan legislation.
The remainder of the session was occupied chiefly in the consideration
of appropriation bills. These were carefully scrutinized; many
estimates of the departments were reduced. As usual, appropriations
were increased in the Senate, but most of the amendments were
rejected in conference.
The bill authorizing a loan for the redemption of treasury notes
was passed on the 22nd day of June. Congress adjourned at noon
June 25, 1860.
This memorable Congress, commencing with a contest which threatened
violence on the floor of the House of Representatives, was held
unorganized for sixty days by a defeated party upon a flimsy pretext,
and during all that time we had to listen to open threats of
secession and disunion made by its members. No previous Congress
had exhibited such violence of speech and action. When fully
organized it quieted down, and, with occasional exceptions, proceeded
rapidly to the discharge of its public duties. A greater number
of contested bills were passed at this Congress than usual. Most
of these measures came from the committee of ways and means. The
members of that committee were Messrs. John Sherman, of Ohio, Henry
Winter Davis, of Maryland, John S. Phelps, of Missouri, Thaddeus
Stevens, of Pennsylvania, Israel Washburn, Jr., of Maine, John S.
Millson, of Virginia, Justin S. Morrill, of Vermont, Martin J.
Crawford, of Georgia, and Elbridge G. Spaulding, of New York. Of
these but two, Mr. Morrill and myself, survive. A brief notice of
those who are numbered with the dead may not be out of place.
Henry Winter Davis was the most accomplished orator in the House
while he was a Member. Well educated in college, well trained as
a lawyer, an accomplished writer and eloquent speaker, yet he was
a poor parliamentarian, a careless member in committee, and utterly
unfit to conduct an appropriation or tariff bill in the House. He
was impatient of details, querulous when questioned or interrupted,
but in social life and in intercourse with his fellow Members he
was genial, kind and courteous. On one occasion, when I was called
home, I requested him to take charge of an appropriation bill and
secure its passage. He did as I requested, but he was soon
embarrassed by questions he could not answer, and had the bill
postponed until my return. I felt for Mr. Davis a personal
attachment, and I believe this kindly feeling was reciprocated.
He served in the House of Representatives during most of the war,
and joined with Senator Wade in opposition to Mr. Lincoln's re-
election in 1864. He died at Baltimore on the 20th of December,
1865, when in the full vigor of matured manhood.
John S. Phelps in 1860 was an old and experienced Member. Born in
Connecticut he removed to Missouri as early as 1837. In 1844 he
was elected to Congress as a Democrat, and continued as a Member
sixteen years, being chairman of the committee of ways and means
during the 35th Congress. He was a valuable Member, patient,
careful, industrious, and had the confidence of the House. He was
moderate in his political opinions, and, though a resident of
Missouri, he took the Union side in the Civil War.
Thaddeus Stevens, one of the most remarkable men of the last
generation, was born in Vermont near the close of the last century;
and was well educated. He taught school and studied law. He
removed to Pennsylvania and there engaged in turbulent politics;
served several years as a member of the state legislature; was
elected to Congress in 1848 and served four years. He was known
to be an aggressive Whig and a dangerous opponent in debate; was
re-elected in 1858 as a Republican and at once took the lead in
the speakership contest. His sarcasm was keen and merciless. He
was not a very useful member of the committee. He was better in
the field of battle than in the seclusion of the committee. Still,
when any contest arose in the House over bills reported by the
committee, he was always ready to defend its action. Though a
cynical old bachelor, with a deformed foot and with a bitter tongue
for those he disliked, he was always charitable and kind to the
poor. He was quiet and impartial in his charity, recognizing no
distinction on account of color, but usually preferring to aid
women rather than men. I was often the witness of his charities.
He continued in active public life until his death on the 11th of
August, 1868. For some time before his death he was unable to walk
up the marble steps of the capitol and two stout negroes were
detailed to carry him up in a chair. On one occasion when safely
seated he grimly said to them, "Who will carry me when you die?"
Mr. Stevens was a brave man. He always fought his fights to a
finish and never asked or gave quarter.
Israel Washburn, Jr., of Maine, was one of three brothers, Members
of this Congress. Israel was the eldest, and, perhaps, the most
active, of the three. He received a classical education, studied
law and was admitted to the bar in 1830. He was a good debater
and a useful member of the committee. He had been in Congress ten
years, including the 36th. He subsequently became governor of
Maine, and collector of customs at Portland.
John S. Millson, of Virginia, had long been a Member of Congress,
was fifty-two years old, and regarded as a safe, conservative man
of fair abilities.
Martin J. Crawford, of Georgia, was a lawyer of good standing. He
was elected a Member of Congress in 1854, and continued as such
until the rebellion, in which he took an active part. When Georgia
seceded, he, with his colleagues, formally withdrew from Congress.
Crawford and I had been friendly, and somewhat intimate. He was
a frank man, openly avowing his opinions, but with respectful
toleration of those of others. After he withdrew we met in the
lobby; he bade me good-bye, saying that his next appearance in
Washington would be as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
of the Confederate States. I told him that he was more likely to
appear as a prisoner of war. I then warned him that the struggle
would be to the death, and that the Union would triumph. Long
afterwards, when I visited the fair at Atlanta, he recalled our
conversation and admitted I was the best prophet. We spent the
evening and far into the night talking about the past and the
future. He evinced no regret for the result of the war, but quietly
acquiesced, and was then a judge in one of the courts in that state.
Elbridge G. Spaulding, of New York, was an excellent Member. He
had a taste for financial problems and contributed a good deal to
the measures adopted, in this and the 37th Congress, to establish
a national currency and to build up the public credit. These
Members, with Mr. Morrill and myself, were charged with the most
important legislation in the 36th Congress, and I believe that the
general opinion of the House was that we did our duty well.
CHAPTER IX.
LAST DAYS OF THE BUCHANAN ADMINISTRATION.
My First Appearance Before a New York Audience--Lincoln's Nomination
at the Chicago Convention--I Engage Actively in the Presidential
Canvass--Making Speeches for Lincoln--My Letter to Philadelphia
Citizens--Acts of Secession by the Southern States--How the South
was Equipped by the Secretary of the Navy--Buchanan's Strange
Doctrine Regarding State Control by the General Government--Schemes
"To Save the Country"--My Reply to Mr. Pendleton on the Condition
of the Impending Revolution--The Ohio Delegation in the 36th Congress
--Retrospection.
I have followed this important session of Congress to its close,
but while the debate continued in Congress a greater debate was
being conducted by the people. Never before was such interest felt
in the political questions of the day. In many of the cities of
the country clubs were organized for political discussions, and
persons in public life were pressed to make speeches or lectures
on the topics of the day. The Young Men's Central Republican Union,
of New York, arranged a series of lectures, the first of which was
delivered by Frank P. Blair, the second by Cassius M. Clay, and
the third by Abraham Lincoln. The remarkable address of the last
named had great influence in securing his nomination for President.
It was the first time Mr. Lincoln had spoken in New York, where he
was then personally almost unknown. His debate with Douglas had
excited general attention. Using the language of his biographers:
"When, on the evening of February 27, 1860, he stood before his
audience, he saw not only a well-filled house, but an assemblage
of listeners in which were many whom, by reason of his own modest
estimate of himself, he would have been rather inclined to ask
advice from than to offer instruction to. William Cullen Bryant
presided over the meeting.
* * * * *
"The representative men of New York were naturally eager to see
and hear one who, by whatever force of eloquence or argument, had
attracted so large a share of the public attention. We may also
fairly infer that, on his part, Lincoln was no less curious to test
the effect of his words on an audience more learned and critical
than those collected in the open air meetings of his western
campaigns. This mutual interest was an evident advantage to both;
it secured a close attention from the house, and insured deliberation
and emphasis by the speaker, enabling him to develop his argument
with perfect precision and unity, reaching perhaps the happiest
general effect ever attained in any one of his long addresses."
His speech was printed by the leading papers of the city, and, in
pamphlet form, was widely distributed and read.
I was invited by the Republican Union to make one of these addresses,
and, though very much occupied and having little time for preparation,
I accepted the invitation, and spoke at Cooper Institute in the
city of New York on the 30th of April, 1860. It was my first
appearance before a New York audience, and I confess that I was
not satisfied with the address. I undertook, what I never attempted
before, to read a political speech to a popular audience. While
I was treated kindly I felt quite sure my speech was a disappointment.
A recent reading of it confirms my opinion that it was not equal
to the occasion or the audience.
I was also invited by the Republican Club of Philadelphia to make
a speech ratifying the nomination of Lincoln and Hamlin and spoke
at a meeting held May 28, 1860. My address was entirely impromptu,
and was far better, both in manner and matter, than the speech in
New York, and was received with great applause. Since that time,
I have never attempted to make a popular address from manuscript.
Every speaker should know the substance of what he intends to say,
but ought to rely for his words upon the spirit and temper of the
audience.
The summer of 1860 was ominous of domestic discord and civil war.
The success of the Republicans in the House of Representatives,
the violent scenes in the House, notably those between Potter,
Pryor, Barksdale, and Lovejoy, were indications that the south was
aggressive, and that the north would fight. The meeting of the
Democratic convention at Charleston, on the 23rd of April, soon
disclosed an almost equal division of its members as to slavery in
the territories. The southern platform was adopted by a majority
of one in its committee on resolutions, but rejected by a majority
of the convention. This was the vital issue between the followers
of Davis and Douglas, and Douglas won. A majority of the delegates
from six of the southern states thereupon withdrew from the convention
and adjourned to Richmond. Thus, the first secession was from a
Democratic convention. The remainder of that convention adjourned
to Baltimore, at which city Douglas was nominated for President.
The seceding delegates nominated Breckenridge. Thus, the Democratic
party, which, in every stage of the slavery controversy, had taken
sides with the south, was itself broken on the rock of slavery,
and condemned to certain defeat.
The Republican convention met at Chicago on the 16th of May, with
a defined line of public policy which was adopted unanimously by
the convention. The only question to be determined was, who should
be the candidate for President, who would best represent the
principles agreed upon. Seward, Chase and Bates were laid aside,
and Abraham Lincoln, one stronger than any of these, was unanimously
nominated. The nomination of a candidate by a third party, ignoring
the slavery question, did not change the issue. The conflict was
now between freedom and slavery, an issue carefully avoided by the
two great parties prior to the repeal of the Missouri Compromise.
Thus Douglas, as a consequence of his own act, was destined to
defeat, and the irrepressible conflict was to be finally determined
by the people in the choice between Lincoln and Breckenridge, with
the distinct declaration, made by the delegates seceding from the
Charleston convention, that if Lincoln was elected their states
would secede from the Union, and establish an independent government
founded upon slavery. This was the momentous issue involved in
the election.
Congress adjourned on the 28th of June, 1860. On the 17th of July,
I was unanimously renominated at Shelby. John Shauck, a venerable
Quaker, 80 years of age, claimed to right to nominate me as he had
done in previous conventions. He was absent at the moment, but
the convention, in deference to his known wishes, awaited his
coming. From that time until the election, I was actively engaged
in the presidential canvass. I spent but little time in my district,
as there was but a nominal opposition to my election. The Democratic
candidate, Barnabus Burns, was a personal friend, and sympathized
with me on many subjects. Scarcely a week day passed that I did
not speak at least once.
Of the many speeches made by me in that canvass, I recall but very
few. I have already referred to my debate with Cox, if it can
properly be called a debate. It was friendly badinage. He charged
me with pulling the Morrill tariff bill through by a trick. I
answered that if it was a trick, it was a trick well played, as
the bill passed by a vote of 105 to 64, many Democrats voting for
it. He complained of the duties on wool, declaring that the farmers
were sacrificed. I showed that the duties on wool had been advanced.
He said I was president of a Know Nothing Lodge in Mansfield. I
said this was simply a lie, and that there were plenty of Douglas
Democrats before me who knew it. He said that I initiated therein,
Sam Richey in a stable. I asked who told him that story, when the
audience called out loudly for Burns. Mr. Burns rose and said he
did not tell Mr. Cox so. I said I was glad to hear it, that it
was a silly lie made up out of whole cloth, and asked if Richey
was present. Richey was in the crowd, and rose amid great laughter
and applause and said: "Here I am." I said: "Well, friends, you
see my friend, Richey, is a genuine Irishman, but he knows, as I
know, that Cox's story is a falsification. Mr. Cox says I am a
political thief; don't think he charges me with stealing sheep, he
only means to say I stole squatter sovereignty. It is petty larceny
at best. But I did not steal Douglas squatter sovereignty."
I then proceeded to define the difference between the only two
parties with definite principles. The real contest was, not between
Lincoln and Douglas, or between Cox and me, but between Breckenridge
and Lincoln, between free institutions and slave institutions,
between union and disunion. I refer to this debate with Cox to
show how local prejudices obscured the problem then involved. The
people of Ohio were divided on parallel lines, for Cox and I agreed
on Kansas, but he was for Douglas and I for Lincoln, while the
south was brooding over secession, if either Lincoln or Douglas
should be elected.
I went into most of the congressional districts of Ohio and perceived
a strong leaning in favor of Lincoln, but Douglas also had many
supporters. The Democratic party of Ohio was satisfied with Douglas'
popular sovereignty, especially as it, as they alleged, had secured
freedom for Kansas. Breckenridge had no great following in Ohio,
and Bell and Everett less.
I spent several days in the canvass in Pennsylvania, Indiana, New
Jersey and Delaware, all warmly contested states, the votes of
which would determine the election. It soon became apparent that
Lincoln was the only candidate who could secure a majority of the
electoral vote. This fact, and the known difficulty of securing
an election by the House in case of failure of an election by the
Electoral College, greatly aided Mr. Lincoln. I presented this
argument with care and fullness in a speech delivered at Philadelphia
on the 12th of September, 1860. It was printed at the time and
largely circulated. I quote a paragraph, which contains the one
fact upon which my argument rested:
"Owing to the division of the Democratic party, the Republican
party is the only one that can hope to succeed by a direct vote of
the people. This is a fact I need not discuss, for it was written
at the threshold of the contest by the conventions of Charleston
and Baltimore. If the election were to be determined by the rule
of plurality--a rule now adopted in every state in the Union--
intelligent men would consider it already decided; but the rule of
the majority is fixed by the constitution, and if Pennsylvania does
not vote for Lincoln, then the election devolves upon the House of
Representatives. In that event the constitution requires the House
to choose immediately, by ballot, a President from the persons,
not exceeding three, having the highest number of electoral votes.
The vote must be taken by states, and not by Representatives. The
three millions of people of Pennsylvania will have only the same
political power as the one hundred thousand people of Delaware."
I recently read this speech, and, in view of the events that followed
I can say that every prophecy made, and every argument stated, has
been verified and sustained by the march of events. My opening
criticism of Mr. Buchanan's administration may seem to be partisan
and unjust, but the general opinion now is that his fault was
feebleness of will, not intentional wrong. Mr. Buchanan was
surrounded by men who had already made up their minds to destroy
the Union, one of whom had already committed acts of treachery in
the distribution of arms and military supplies, and all of whom
avowed the legality and rightfulness of secession. I think what
I said was justified by the conditions existing when the speech
was made. The residue of my speech was certainly moderate enough
to satisfy the most conservative mind. I give the closing
paragraphs:
"These are, so far as I know, the leading ideas of the Republican
party. I appeal to your candor if they do not commend themselves
to the judgment of reasonable men. Is this the party which you
would combine and conspire against, and to defeat which you would
unite hostile elements? Is it to defeat these ideas that you would
risk scenes of violence in the House, or the subversion of the
constitution by the Senate of the United States? Is it to defeat
this noble policy that you would longer trust a broken-down, corrupt
and demoralized administration? Is it for this that you would
continue in power a party that, by a long enjoyment of the patronage
of the government, has become reckless and corrupt?
"If you will take the responsibility of preventing the triumph of
the Republican party, you may do so, but it will require a close
fusion of all the elements to defeat it. It is young and vigorous.
It has all the unity and discipline of the old Democratic party.
It holds most of the opinions, modified by experience, of the old
Whig party. It has the conservative moderation of the People's
party, which has influenced its nominations. It adheres to every
principle proclaimed by the old Republican party of Jefferson. We
have confidence in the integrity and patriotism, and wisdom of our
standard bearers--Lincoln and Hamlin. If Mr. Lincoln cannot be
recommended as a parlor President, like General Pierce, and is not
familiar with the etiquette of foreign courts, as is Mr. Buchanan,
we know that he is honest, faithful, courageous and capable. No
man can read his celebrated debates with Mr. Douglas, without
forming a high opinion of his capacity. He is better for having
lived but a short time in Washington, for that city of politicians
is not particularly celebrated for sound principles or right morals.
Born in Kentucky, descended from a Pennsylvania stock, the son and
grandson of Virginians, raised in Indiana and Illinois, familiar
by his own experience with the wants and interests and aspirations
of the people, he possesses the same traits of character which made
Jackson and Clay, in their day and generation, leaders of parties
and of men. Let us, my friends, unite in electing him President
of the United States."
Lincoln was elected. He received 180 electoral votes; Breckenridge
72; Douglas 12; Bell 39. The question then was whether the people
of the seceding states would try to carry into effect their
declaration. I had no doubt they would try, but I was equally
confident they would fail.
As events progressed in the south, citizens of the north held
popular meetings in nearly all our cities and in many rural
communities. I was invited by leading citizens of Philadelphia to
attend a public dinner in that city in December, 1860. I could
not attend in person, but wrote them a letter which defined clearly
my convictions and my conception of the duties of our people in
view of passing events. I insert it here:
"Washington, December 22, 1860.
"Gentlemen:--Your note of the 15th inst., inviting me to attend a
public dinner in your city, on Friday evening next, was duly
received.
"I remember with pleasure the kindness shown me during the recent
canvass by our political friends in Philadelphia, and would gladly
avail myself of the proposed celebration, to mingle my personal
thanks with your rejoicings, over the recent triumph of our political
principles. Other engagements and duties, however, will not allow
me that pleasure.
"No state can dispute with Pennsylvania the honor of this triumph.
Her own son was upon trial, and her voice of condemnation was
emphatic and decisive. The election of Governor Curtin foreshadowed
her decision, and strengthened our cause in every state where
freedom of election is allowed to the people. Her verdict in
November reconsidered and reaffirmed her verdict in October. And
now, since the victory is won, let us not lose the fruits of it.
"Fidelity to principle is demanded by the highest patriotism. The
question is not whether this or that policy should prevail; but
whether we shall allow the government to be broken into fragments,
by disappointed partisans, condemned by four-fifths of the people.
It is the same question answered by General Jackson in his proclamation
of 1833. It is the same question answered by Henry Clay in the
Senate in 1850. It is the same question answered by Madison and
Jefferson, and recently by Wade and Johnson. It is a question
which, I feel assured, every one of you will answer, in the patriotic
language of General Jackson--'_The Union, it must be preserved_.'
"Such would be the voice of the whole country, if the government
was not now administered by those who not only threaten treason,
but actually commit it, by turning the powers of the government
against itself. They kill the government they have sworn to maintain
and defend, because the people, whose agents they are, have condemned
them. In this spirit we have seen a Secretary of the Treasury,
charged with the financial credit of the government, offering for
sale the bonds of the government, and at the same moment declaring
that it will be overthrown, and that he would aid in overthrowing
it. We see other high officers receiving _pay_ for services to
the government, and yet, at the same moment, plotting its destruction.
We see the treasury robbed by subordinate officers amid the general
ruin. Stranger still, we see the President of the United States
acknowledging his duty to execute the laws, but refusing to execute
them. He admits that the constitution is the supreme law; that
neither a state nor the citizens of a state can disregard it; and
yet, armed as he is with all the executive power, he refuses even
to protect the property of the United States against armed violence.
He will not heed General Cass, the head of his cabinet. He will
not heed General Scott, the head of the army. He has transferred
to southern states more than one hundred thousand arms, of the
newest pattern and most effective calibre, to be turned against
the government.
"The American people are now trembling with apprehension lest the
President allow our officers and soldiers to be slaughtered at
their posts, for want of the aid which he has refused, or, what is
far more disgraceful, shall order the flag of the Union to be
lowered, without resistance to lawless force.
"Treason sits in the councils, and timidity controls the executive
power. The President listens to, and is controlled by, threats.
He theorizes about coercing a state when he should be enforcing
the laws against rebellious citizens. He admits that the states
have surrendered the power to make treaties, coin money, and regulate
commerce, and yet we will probably have the novel and ridiculous
farce of a negotiation between the President and a state, for the
surrender of forts, and arsenals, and sovereignty. Congress can
do nothing, for the laws now are sufficient, if executed. Impeachment
is too slow a remedy. The constitution provided against every
probable vacancy in the office of President, but did not provide
for utter imbecility.
"The people, alarmed, excited, yet true to the Union and the
constitution, are watching with eager fear, lest the noble government,
baptized in the blood of the Revolution, shall be broken into
fragments, before the President elect shall assume the functions
of his office.
"What pretext is given for this alarming condition of affairs?--
for every treasonable act has its pretext. We are told that the
people of the southern states _apprehend_ that Mr. Lincoln will
deprive them of their constitutional rights. It is not claimed
that, as yet, their rights have been invaded, but upon an _apprehension_
of evil, they will break up the most prosperous government the
providence of God ever allowed to man.
"We know very well how groundless are their apprehensions, but we
are not even allowed to say so to our fellow-citizens of the south.
So wild is their apprehension, that even such statesmen as Stephens,
Johnson, Hill, Botts and Pettigrew, when they say, 'wait, wait,
till we see what this Republican party will attempt,' are denounced
as Abolitionists--Submissionists. You know very well that we do
not propose to interfere in the slightest degree with slavery in
the states. We know that our leader, for whose election you rejoice
has, over and over again, affirmed his opposition to the abolition
of slavery in the District of Columbia, except upon conditions that
are not likely to occur; or to any interference with the inter-
state slave trade, and that he will enforce the constitutional
right of the citizens of the slave states to recapture their fugitive
slaves when they escape from service into the free states. We know
very well that the great objects which those who elected Mr. Lincoln
expect him to accomplish will be to secure to free labor its just
right to the territories of the United States; to protect, as far
as practicable, by wise revenue laws, the labor of our people; to
secure the public lands to actual settlers, instead of non-resident
speculators; to develop the internal resources of the country, by
opening new means of communication between the Atlantic and the
Pacific, and to purify the administration of the government from
the pernicious influences of jobs, contracts, and unreasoning party
warfare.
"But some of you may say, all this is very well, but what will you
do to save the Union? Why don't you compromise?
"Gentlemen, remember that we are just recovering from the dishonor
of breaking a legislative compromise. We have been struggling,
against all the powers of the government, for six years, to secure
practically what was expressly granted by a compromise. We have
succeeded. Kansas is now free. The Missouri restriction is now
practically restored by the incipient constitution of Kansas, and
safer yet, by the will of her people. The baptism of strife through
which she has passed has only strengthened the prohibition. There
let it stand.
"But our political opponents, who have dishonored the word compromise,
who trampled, without a moment's hesitation, upon a compromise,
when they expected to gain by it, now ask us to again compromise,
by securing slavery south of a geographical line. To this we might
fairly say: There is no occasion for compromise. We have done no
wrong; we have no apologies to make, and no concessions to offer.
You chose your ground, and we accepted your issue. We have beaten
you, and you must submit, as we have done in the past, and as we
would have done if the voice of the people had been against us.
As good citizens, you must obey the laws, and respect the constituted
authorities. But we will meet new questions of administration with
a liberal spirit. Without surrendering our convictions in the
least, we may now dispose of the whole territorial controversy by
the exercise of unquestioned congressional power.
"The only territory south of the line, except that which, by treaty
with Indian tribes, cannot be included within the jurisdiction of
a state, is New Mexico. She has now population enough for admission
as a state. Let Congress admit her as a state, and then she has
the acknowledged right to form, regulate, change, or modify her
domestic institutions. She has now a nominal slave code, framed
and urged upon her by territorial officers. Practically, slavery
does not exist there. It never can be established there. In a
region where the earth yields her increase only by the practice of
irrigation, slave labor will not be employed. At any rate, it is
better to settle all questions about slavery there, by admitting
the territory as a state. While a territory, it is insisted that
slavery shall be protected in it. We insist that Congress may
prohibit it, and that the people have an undisputed right to exclude
slaves. Why not, by terminating their territorial condition,
determine this controversy? The same course might now properly be
adopted with all the territories of the United States.
"In each of the territories there are, now, small settlements
scattered along the lines of transit. Within five years, the least
populous will contain sufficient population for a Representative
in Congress. Dakota, Washington, Nevada, and Jefferson are destined
soon to be as familiar to us as Kansas and Nebraska. It is well
worthy the consideration of the old states, whether it is not better
to dispense with all territorial organizations--always expensive
and turbulent--and, at once, to carve the whole into states of
convenient size, for admission. This was the Jeffersonian plan,
which did not contemplate territories, but states. It was also
sanctioned by General Taylor, and, but for his death, would have
been adopted.
This is an easy, effectual remedy, within the power of Congress,
and in its nature an irrevocable act. There is no necessity of an
amendment to the constitution. It is not at all probable that two-
thirds of both houses of Congress and three-fourths of the states
can agree to any amendments. Why attempt it, unless to invite new
contests, to again arouse sectional animosities? We know that if
Mexico is acquired the south will demand it for slavery, and the
north for free institutions. We must forego, for the present, new
conquests, unless the love of acquisition is stronger than the love
of domestic peace.
"Suppose it to be conceded that the constitution should be amended,
what amendment will satisfy the south? Nothing less than the
protection of slavery in the territories. But our people have
pronounced against it. All who voted for Mr. Lincoln or Mr. Douglas
--over three million three hundred thousand citizens--voted against
this claim. Less than a million voted for it. Should the great
majority yield to a meagre minority, especially under threats of
disunion? This minority demand that slavery be protected by the
constitution. Our fathers would not allow the word 'slave' or
'slavery' in the constitution, when all the states but one were
slaveholding. Shall we introduce these words when a majority of
the states are free, and when the progress of civilization has
arrayed the world against slavery? If the love of peace and ease,
and office, should tempt politicians and merchants to do it, the
people will rebel. I assure you, whatever may be the consequence,
they will not yield their moral convictions by strengthening the
influence of slavery in this country. Recent events have only
deepened this feeling.
"The struggle to establish slavery in Kansas; the frequent murders
and mobbings, in the south, of northern citizens; the present
turbulence and violence of southern society; the manifest fear of
the freedom of speech and of the press; the danger of insurrection;
and now the attempt to subvert the government rather than submit
to a constitutional election--these events, disguise it as you may,
have aroused a counter irritation in the north that will not allow
its representatives to yield merely for peace, more than is prescribed
by the letter and spirit of the constitution. Every guarantee of
this instrument ought to be faithfully and religiously observed.
But when it is proposed to change it, to secure new guarantees to
slavery, to extend and protect it, you invoke and arouse the anti-
slavery feeling of the north to war against slavery everywhere.
"I am, therefore, opposed to any change in the constitution, and
to any compromise that will surrender any of the principles sanctioned
by the people in the recent contest. If the personal-liberty bills
of any state infringe upon the constitution, they should at once
be repealed. Most of them have slumbered upon the statute book
for years. They are now seized upon, by those who are plotting
disunion, as a pretext. We should give them no pretext. It is
always right and proper for each state to apply to state laws the
test of the constitution.
"It is a remarkable fact that neither of the border free states--
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, nor Iowa--have
any such upon their statute books. The laws of these states,
against kidnapping, are similar to those of Virginia and Kentucky.
The laws of other states, so-called, have never operated to release
a single fugitive slave, and may be regarded simply as a protest
of those states against the harsh features of the fugitive slave
law. So far as they infringe upon the constitution, or impair, in
the least, a constitutional right, they are void and ought to be
repealed.
"I venture the assertion that there have been more cases of kidnapping
of free negroes in Ohio, than of peaceable or unlawful rescue of
fugitive slaves in the whole United States. It has been shown that
the law of recapture and the penalties of rescue have been almost
invariably executed. Count up all the cases of rescue of negroes
in the north, and you can find in your newspapers more cases of
unlawful lynching and murder of white men in the south. These
cases have now become so frequent and atrocious, as to demand the
attention of the general government. The same article of the
constitution that secures the recapture of fugitives from service
and justice, also secures the rights of citizens of Pennsylvania
and Ohio to all the immunities and privileges of citizens of the
several states. No law has been passed by Congress to secure this
constitutional right. No executive authority interposes to protect
our citizens, and yet we hear no threats of retaliation or rebellion
from northern citizens or northern states. So, I trust, it ever
may be.
"The great danger that now overshadows us does not arise from real
grievances. Plotters for disunion avail themselves of the weakness
of the executive to precipitate revolution. South Carolina has
taken the lead. The movement would be utterly insignificant if
confined to that state. She is still in the Union, and neither
the President nor Congress has the power to consent to her withdrawal.
This can only be by a change in the constitution or the acquiescence
of the people of the other states. The defense of the property of
the United States and the collection of the revenues need not cause
the shedding of blood, unless she commences a contest of physical
force. The increase, in one year, of our population is greater
than her entire population, white and black. Either one of several
congressional districts in the west has more white inhabitants than
she has. Her military power is crippled by the preponderance of
her slaves. However brave, and gallant, and spirited her people
may be, and no one disputes these traits, yet it is manifest she
is weak in physical force. This great government might well treat
with indulgence paper secession, or the resolves of her convention
and legislature, without invoking physical force to enforce the
laws among her citizens.
"Without disrespect to South Carolina, it would be easy to show
that Shay's rebellion and the whisky insurrection involved the
government in greater danger than the solitary secession of South
Carolina. But the movement becomes imposing when we are assured
that several powerful states will very soon follow in the lead of
South Carolina; and when we know that other states, still more
powerful, sympathize with the seceding states, to the extent of
opposing, and perhaps resisting, the execution of the laws in the
seceding states.
"In this view of the present condition of public affairs, it becomes
the people of the United States seriously to consider whether the
government shall be arrested, in the execution of its undisputed
powers, by the citizens of one or more states, or whether we shall
test the power of the government to defend itself against dissolution.
Can a separation take place without war? If so, where will be the
line? Who shall possess this magnificent capital, with all its
evidences of progress and civilization? Shall the mouth of the
Mississippi be separated from its sources? Who shall possess the
territories? Suppose these difficulties to be overcome; suppose
that in peace we should huckster and divide up our nationality,
our flag, our history, all the recollections of the past; suppose
all these difficulties overcome, how can two rival republics of
the same race of men, divided only by a line of a river for thousands
of miles, and with all the present difficulties aggravated by
separation, avoid forays, disputes, and war? How can we travel on
our future march of progress in Mexico, or on the high seas, or on
the Pacific slope, without collision? It is impossible. To
peacefully accomplish such results we must change the nature of
man. Disunion is war! God knows, I do not threaten it, for I will
seek to prevent it in every way possible. I speak but the logic
of facts, which we should not conceal from each other. It is either
hostilities between the government and the seceding states; or, if
separation is yielded peaceably, it is a war of factions--a rivalry
of insignificant communities, hating each other, and contemned by
the civilized world. If war results, what a war it will be!
Contemplate the north and south, in hostile array against each
other. If these sections do not know each other _now_ they will
_then_.
"We are a nation of miliary men, naturally turbulent because we
are free, accustomed to arms, ingenious, energetic, brave and
strong. The same qualities that have enabled a single generation
of men to develop the resources of a continent, would enable us to
destroy more rapidly than we have constructed. It is idle for
individuals of either section to suppose themselves superior in
military power. The French and English tried that question for a
thousand years. We ought to know it now. The result of the contest
would not depend upon the first blow of the first year, but blood
shed in civil war will yield its baleful fruit for generations.
"How can we avert a calamity at which humanity and civilization
shudder? I know no way but to cling to the government framed by
our fathers, to administer it in a spirit of kindness, but in all
cases, without partiality, to enforce the laws. No state can
release us from the duty of obeying the laws. The ordinance or
act of a state is no defense for treason, nor does it lessen the
moral guilt of that crime. Let us cling to each other in the hope
that our differences will pass away, as they often have in times
past. For the sake of peace, for the love of civil liberty, for
the honor of our name, our race, our religion, let us preserve the
Union, loving it better as the clouds grow darker. I am willing
to unite with any man, whatever may have been his party relations,
whatever may be his views of the existing differences, who is
willing to rely on the constitution, as it is, for his rights; and
who is willing to maintain and defend the Union under all circumstances,
against all enemies, at home or abroad.
"Pardon me, gentlemen, for writing you so fully. I feel restrained,
by the custom of the House of Representatives, from engaging there
in political debate; and yet I feel it is the duty of every citizen
to prepare his countrymen for grave events, that will test the
strength and integrity of the government.
"Believing that our only safety is in a firm enforcement of the
laws, and that Mr. Lincoln will execute that duty without partiality,
I join my hearty congratulation with yours that he is so soon to
be President of the United States. With great respect, I remain,
very truly,
"Your obedient servant,
"John Sherman.
"Messrs. Wm. Reid, D. J. Cochran, L. S. Fletcher, H. E. Wallace,
Chas. O'Neill, _Committee_."
The leading events in the progressive secession may be briefly
stated. The States of South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida,
Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas, Texas, North Carolina, Tennessee,
and Virginia, severally in the order named, adopted ordinances of
secession. Each of them committed acts of war against the United
States. They seized forts, navy yards, arsenals, customhouses,
post offices and other public buildings of the United States.
South Carolina, on the 27th of December, 1860, seized Fort Moultrie
and Castle Pinckney, a light-house tender, and a schooner. On the
31st, she took possession of the United States arsenal, post office,
and customhouse in Charleston, the arsenal containing seventy
thousand stand of arms and other stores. On the 9th of January,
1861, she took possession of the steamer "Marion" at Charleston,
and on that day the "Star of the West" was fired upon.
Georgia, on the second day of January, 1861, took possession of
Forts Pulaski and Jackson and the United States arsenal. On the
12th of January, she took possession of the arsenal at Augusta,
containing howitzers, cannon, muskets and large stores of powder,
ball and grape. On the same day she seized the United States
steamer "Ida." On the 8th of February, she took possession of all
the money received from customs. On the 21st, she seized three
New York vessels at Savannah. Florida, on the 12th of January,
1861, took possession of the navy yards at Forts Barrancas and
McRae; also the Chattahoochie arsenal, containing 800,000 cartridges
of different patterns and 50,000 pounds of gunpowder.
Alabama took possession of Fort Morgan, the Mount Vernon arsenal,
some pieces of cannon, and large amounts of munitions of war. She
took possession also of the revenue cutter "Lewis Cass."
Mississippi, on the 20th of January, seized the fort at Ship Island
and the United States hospital on the Mississippi River.
On the 11th of January, Louisiana took possession of Forts Jackson,
St. Philip, and Pike, and the arsenal at Baton Rouge containing
fifty thousand small arms, twenty heavy pieces of ordnance, three
hundred barrels of powder and other military supplies. On the
28th, she took possession of all commissary and quartermaster stores
in the possession of the United States officials within her borders.
On the first of February, she seized the mint and customhouse
containing $599,303 in gold and silver.
Texas, on the 20th of February, took Forts Chadbourne and Belknap
with all the property of the Overland Mail Company. On the 25th,
General Twiggs, an officer of the army of the United States,
traitorously surrendered all government stores in his command,
estimated at $1,300,000 in value, including money and specie, thirty-
five thousand stand of arms, twenty-six pieces of mountain artillery,
and other military stores.
On the 2nd of March, she seized the revenue cutter "Dodge" and Fort
Brown.
Arkansas seized the arsenal at Little Rock, containing nine thousand
small arms, forty cannon, and a quantity of ammunition.
Virginia, according to the statement of Governor Letcher, would
have seized Fortress Monroe, but that it was firmly held by national
troops.
These were some of the acts of war committed by the seceding states
before the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln.
What was done by the administration of James Buchanan to meet these
acts of war? The answer to this question is a most painful confession
of feebleness, vacillation and dishonor. It was shown conclusively
that Floyd, the Secretary of War, during 1860 transferred from
Springfield and other armories to southern arsenals 65,000 percussion
muskets, 40,000 altered muskets and 10,000 rifles. On the 20th of
October, he ordered 40 columbiads and four 32 pounders to be sent
from the arsenal to the Fort, at Galveston in Texas, the building
of which had hardly been commenced. It was shown by a report of
a committee of the House that the vessels of the United States were
dispersed by the Secretary of the Navy to distant ports, for the
purpose of preventing their use in the defense of the property of
the United States.
The Mobile "Advertiser" said:
"During the past year, 135,430 muskets have been quietly transferred
from the northern arsenal at Springfield alone, to those in the
southern states. We are much obliged to Secretary Floyd for the
foresight he has thus displayed in disarming the north and _equipping
the south for this emergency_."
Jefferson Davis, on January 9, 1860, in introducing into the Senate
a bill to authorize the sale of public arms to the several states
and territories, significantly said: "There are a number of
volunteer companies wanting to purchase arms, but the states have
not a sufficient supply."
This bill was agreed to by the Senate by a party vote, yeas 28,
nays 18. In the House the bill was never reported.
Mr. Buchanan, in his annual message at the beginning of the 2nd
session of the 36th Congress, announced the startling doctrine that
a state could not be coerced by the general government, and said:
"After much serious reflection, I have arrived at the conclusion
that no such power has been delegated to Congress nor to any other
department of the federal government. It is manifest, upon an
inspection of the constitution, that this is not among the specific
and enumerated powers granted to Congress; and it is equally apparent
that its exercise is not 'necessary and proper for carrying into
execution' any one of these powers."
Again he says:
"Without descending to particulars, it may be safely asserted that
the power to make war against a state is at variance with the whole
spirit and intent of the constitution. . . .
"The fact is, that our Union rests upon public opinion, and can
never be cemented by the blood of its citizens shed in civil war.
If it cannot live in the affections of the people it must one day
perish. Congress possesses many means of preserving it by
conciliation; but the sword was not placed in their hand to preserve
it by force."
This doctrine, if acquiesced in, would leave the United States
utterly powerless to preserve its own life, whatever might be the
exigencies, even against the most insignificant state in the Union.
It was manifest that while Buchanan remained President, and Commander-
in-Chief of the army and navy, it was utterly futile to resist the
secession of the least of these states, or even to protect the
public property in them.
On the 4th of December, 1860, the House of Representatives organized
what is known as the "committee of thirty-three," of which Mr.
Corwin, of Ohio, was chairman. So much of the President's message
as related to the perilous condition of the country was referred
to it. Propositions of all kinds were sent to the committee, but
the final result was, as anticipated, a disagreement upon all the
measures proposed.
On the 16th of January, 1861, Mr. Crittenden offered his celebrated
resolutions, proposing certain amendments to the constitution of
the United States, in relation to slavery, but they were rejected
in the Senate and were not acted upon in the House.
A peace conference was held at Washington, at the request of the
legislature of Virginia, composed of delegates from the several
states appointed by the governors thereof. John Tyler was president
and Thomas Ewing, of Ohio, was one of the most active and influential
members of the conference. It sat during nearly all the month of
February and recommended seven articles of amendment to the
constitution. These propositions were adopted by the conference
and reported to the Senate on the 2nd of March, and were rejected
by a vote of 3 yeas and 34 nays. Subsequently they were again
offered by Mr. Crittenden and rejected by a vote of 7 yeas and 28
nays. They were presented to the House on the 1st of March, 1861,
and were there rejected.
A Senate committee of 13 was organized on the 18th of December,
1860, to consider the condition of the country, but its report was
disagreed to by the Senate. Many other propositions of adjustment
were made both in the Senate and House, but none of them were agreed
to. Not only were no measures adopted to prevent secession, but
it was proposed by Mr. Mason, that, to avoid the possibility of a
conflict between the forces of the army and navy and of the seceding
states, all the laws providing for the use of the army in aid of
the civil authorities in executing the laws of the United States,
should be suspended and made inoperative in those states. These
were the laws passed during the term of President Jackson and, at
his earnest request, to enable the government to enforce the laws
of the United States against the opposition of the State of South
Carolina. It was a striking presentation of the difference between
General Jackson and James Buchanan.
Mr. Hunter, of Virginia, proposed to retrocede to the seceding
states, the property of the United States. The last act of Jefferson
Davis was to offer a joint resolution providing:
"That upon the application of a state, either through a convention
or legislature thereof, asking that the federal forces of the army
and navy may be withdrawn from its limits, the President of the
United States shall order the withdrawal of the federal garrisons,
and take the needful security for the safety of the public property
which may remain in said state.
"That whenever a state convention, duly and lawfully assembled,
shall enact that the safety of the state requires it to keep troops
and ships of war, the President of the United States be, and he is
hereby authorized and directed to recognize the exercise of that
power by the state, and by proclamation to give notice of the fact
for the information and government of all parties concerned."
On the 11th of February, 1861, Burton Craige, of North Carolina,
offered a joint resolution:
"That the President of the United States be, and is hereby required
to acknowledge the independence of said government (The Confederacy
of the United States South) as soon as he is informed officially
of its establishment; and that he receive such envoy, ambassador,
or commissioner as may or shall be appointed by said government
for the purpose of amicably adjusting the matters in dispute with
said government."
Such was the hopeless condition of the United States in the last
months of the administration of James Buchanan. It would appear
from the resolute action of the seceding states, their union as
Confederate States, the hopeless imbecility of the President of
the United States, the presence of the seceded traitors in both
houses of Congress, the weakness and feebleness of that body, left
but little hope for the preservation of the Union. The future
presaged a civil war, and opened up a dark prospect, a discouraging
example for future republics, but the 4th of March came, and a new
life was infused into the national councils.
The second session of the 36th Congress commenced on the 3rd day
of December. The message of the President I have already commented
upon. It was regarded as a feeble wail of despair, an absolute
abnegation of the powers of the general government. No expectation
or hope was indulged in that the President would do any act or say
any word to arrest or delay the flagrant treason, then being
committed in South Carolina. "After me the deluge" was written on
every page of his message. Our only hope was in the good time
coming, when, at the close of his term, he would retire to private
life.
Having charge of the appropriation bills as chairman of the committee
of ways and means, of the 36th Congress, I was only solicitous to
secure the passage of these bills, so that the new administration
would have money to meet the current wants of the government.
Within a few days, all these bills were reported, and were pushed
forward and passed at an early period of the session.,
I purposely postpone consideration of the financial condition of
the United States during this session so as to consider it in
connection with the measures adopted at the called session in July,
1861.
The House of Representatives was almost constantly occupied in
considering and rejecting the many schemes "to save the country,"
already referred to. The only political speech I made was in reply
to an ingenious speech of my colleague, George H. Pendleton, made
on the 18th day of January, 1861. I replied on the same day without
preparation, but with a lively appreciation of the dangers before
us. As I believe that it states fully and fairly the then condition
of the impending revolution, I insert extracts from it here:
"I have listened with respect and attention to all that has fallen
from my colleague. Much that he has said I approve; but it seems
to me that instead of appealing to this side of the House for
conciliation, kindness and forbearance, he should appeal to those
around him, who alone, provoke the excitement now prevailing in
this country.
"He says the army should not be used to coerce a state. If by this
he means that the army should not be used to conquer a state, to
compel her to be represented, to maintain the courts or post offices
within her limits, to burn her cities or desolate her fields, he
is entirely correct. I do not believe any administration will
pursue such a policy. But, sir, we have a government, a great
government, to maintain. It is supreme within the powers delegated
to it; and it is provided with ample authority to protect itself
against foreign or domestic enemies. It has the exclusive right
to collect duties on imports. It is the exclusive owners of forts,
arsenals, navy yards, vessels, and munitions of war. It has a
flag, the symbol of its nationality, the emblem of its power and
determination, to protect all those who may of right gather under
its folds. It is our duty, as the representatives of this government,
to maintain and defend it in the exercise of its just powers. Has
it trespassed upon the rights of a single individual? Does any
citizen of South Carolina allege that this government has done him
wrong? No man can say that. The government for years has been in
the hands of the Democratic party, whose power and patronage have
been controlled chiefly by southern citizens; and now, when the
Republican party is about to assume the reins, these citizens seek
to subvert it. They organize revolution under the name of
secession.
"What have they done? The State of South Carolina has seized the
customhouse in the city of Charleston, has closed that port, and
prevented the United States from the exercise of their conceded
exclusive power of collecting the revenue from imports. It has
taken, by force, money from the treasury of the United States, and
applied it to its own use. It has seized the arms and munitions of
war of the United States deposited in arsenals within the conceded
exclusive jurisdiction of the United States, and turned them against
the army of the United States. It has seized a loyal citizen of
the United States engaged in the discharge of his duty, imprisoned
him, and threatened his life, for the exercise of a plain constitutional
duty, charging him with treason against the State of South Carolina.
It has taken citizens of different states rightfully and peacefully
attending to their business, insulted them, inflicted the most
degrading indignities upon them, and then forcibly expelled them.
It has raised a military force of artillery, cavalry, and infantry,
with the avowed purpose of expelling, or, to use their own chosen
word, coercing, the United States from the forts, arsenals, and
other property of the United States. When Major Anderson removed
from Fort Moultrie to Fort Sumter, it seized Fort Moultrie, Fort
Pinckney, and other property of the United States.
"More recently they fired upon a vessel in the employ of the United
States, conveying reinforcements and provisions to our troops. In
this act of war, they used the cannon and munitions of war paid
for out of our treasury. Forts ceded by the State of South Carolina
to the United States were used to expel a vessel of the United
States in the pursuit of its lawful commerce. WHen the 'star-spangled
banner' was hoisted to her mast-head, as a sign of nationality,
appealing to all the patriotic recollections which cluster around
it--your flag, my flag, the flag of Virginia, of Ohio, of Kentucky,
of Massachusetts, the flag of every state and of the whole Union,
the rustle of whose folds has so often excited the pride and
patriotic ardor of Americans in every part of the habitable globe
--that flag, invoked for the protection of an unarmed vessel,
carrying provisions to our own troops, was fired upon and dishonored.
An act of war by citizens of the United States, and therefore an
act of treason, was applauded by officers and citizens of that
state, and perhaps by those of other states. It was not an act of
war against you and me merely, but against every loyal and patriotic
citizen of this great republic. Up to that moment we had done
nothing. This government had been more forbearing, more quiet,
more complacent, under this series of offenses, than any government
instituted since the foundation of governments.
"And now, Mr. chairman, the same lawless violence is breaking out
in other parts of the country. Forts, arsenals, navy yards, and
vessels of war, intrusted without defense to the patriotism of the
people, have, upon one pretext or another, been seized, and are
now held by lawless force. Upon the recommendation of Members of
Congress, Fort Pulaski was seized by troops, under an order from
the Governor of Georgia. I suppose there is not a Member upon the
opposite side who will declare that it would be given up peacefully
to the troops of the United States if it were demanded by our
national authorities. More recently still, the navy yard at
Pensacola was taken by an armed force, under the order of the
Governor of Florida. I have here a telegraphic dispatch sent to
this government:
'_January 12, 1861_.--Commissioners appointed by the Governor of
Florida with a regiment of armed men at the gate, demanded the
surrender of this navy yard, having previously taken possession of
one of the magazines. I surrendered the place and struck my flag
at half-past one o'clock, p. m., this day.'
"Mr. chairman, suppose Great Britain, suppose France, suppose all
the powers of the world combined, had thus outraged the flag of
the United States; would not every one of us have demanded men and
money to wipe out the indignity, and to repel further like assaults,
at whatever hand? Yet, sir, the Governor of Florida, before the
State of Florida had seceded, goes with an armed force, seizes upon
our property, and turns the guns of the people of the United States
against the army and the navy of the United States. I am also told
--with what truth I do not know--that cannon are planted upon the
banks of the Mississippi River, at or near the city of Vicksburg,
in the State of Mississippi, and that our steamboats are now
compelled to land there and to give an account of themselves. We
do not know at what moment they may be subject to tribute and
seizure. To whom? To the State of Mississippi? I agree with all
my colleagues from the State of Ohio, from both sides of the House,
that there is one thing immutable--a law that is a higher law. It
is, that the Mississippi River, gathering all the rivulets of the
northwest into one current, must be permitted to float our commerce,
uninterrupted and untrammeled, to the sea, or thousands of men will
float down upon its waters and make it free.
"No one doubts, I suppose, that the forts at the mouth of the
Mississippi are in the possession, not of the troops of the United
States, but troops that will resist the troops of the United States.
There is no doubt that Baton Rouge has been seized; no doubt, sir,
that act after act of war has been repeated.
"I ask you, as the representative of a brave people, what shall we
do? The question is not, shall we coerce a state? but shall we
not defend the property of the United States against all enemies,
at home and abroad, here or wherever the flag of our country floats?
Must this government submit to insult and indignity? Must it
surrender its property, its flag, its nationality? Do you, gentlemen
from Virginia, whose great statesman had so large a share in laying
the foundations of our government, desire to see it thus dishonored?
Are you ready to join excited men, who will not listen to reason;
who even spurn your patriotism as timidity; who reject your counsels,
and who would drag you as unwilling victims at the heel of their
car of juggernaut, crushing under its weight all hope of civil
liberty for ages to come? Are you aroused into madness by political
defeat?
"Sir, it was but the other day that I was told by a distinguished
citizen of an absolute monarchy--and the remark made a deep impression
on my mind--that he deplored the events now transacting around us;
that he deplored what he considered the inevitable fall of this
republic, but, said he, one good will result from it; it will stop
forever the struggle for free institutions in Europe; it will
establish upon a secure basis the existing governments of the Old
World. I felt that the remark was true. If this government cannot
survive a constitutional election; if it cannot defend its property
and protect our flag; if this government crumbles before the first
sign of disaffection, what hope is there for free institutions in
countries where kings and nobles and marshals and hereditary
institutions and laws of primogeniture have existed for ages? Sir,
when the masses of any people, inspired by the love of country,
have demanded in modern times the right of self-government, they
have been pointed to France with its revolution of 1798, to South
America, where changing republics rise and disappear so rapidly
that not ten men in this House can tell me their names, and also
to Mexico. God forbid that the despots of the Old World should
ever adorn their infernal logic by pointing to a disrupted Union
here! It is said, with a poet's license, that--
'Freedom shrieked as Kosciusko fell.'
"But, sir, freedom will die with the fall of this republic, and
the survivors of the calamity will find springing into existence
military despotisms north, south, east and west. Instead of two
divisions, there will be many divisions. The condition of this
country will be worse than that of Mexico, because we are a braver,
a more powerful, people, who will fight each other with greater
tenacity. If this republic is dissolved, the man now lives who
will be the Napoleon of some section thereof. All history teaches
us that whenever a free government is disrupted a military despotism
of force is substituted for the will of the people; and we have no
right to suppose that our country will be an exception to the
general rule.
"I appeal to the Representatives of the border states to arrest
the progress of this storm for a little time, at least. Let us
see whether there is any hope for peace and conciliation. If there
is not, then, if we cannot agree, let us fight; but if we can agree,
let us do it like men, and not be hurried off by wild and insane
feelings of rage and disappointment, by the weakest state in this
confederacy. Sirs, if you do calm this storm, peace will again
smile upon our country. If you do not, I see nothing but civil
war before us. My colleague may paint in beautiful language the
blessings of peace; and cry 'peace! peace!' when there is no peace;
but, Mr. chairman, you and I see already rising in the west, where
military feeling is so rife, a spirit which will not brook much
longer the insults already cast upon the flag of our country. I
do not threaten, for I dread--nor for you or me, or the Members of
this House, for I suppose we have the ordinary courage of our race,
and we are but atoms in the storm--but thousands and millions of
men, like us, will regret the day when this government was hurried
into revolution, without opportunity for parley or delay.
"If your people will not aid the government in maintaining the
public property in the seceding states, then we must do it in spite
of you, or perish in the attempt. We must not allow the government
to crumble at our feet. You can arrest this movement, and you
alone can do it. I ask you, gentlemen from Virginia and the south,
does not your blood boil with indignation when you read of the
surrender of our forts and the dishonor of our flag? Are they not
yours as well as mine? Has the feeling of sectionalism become
stronger than love of country? I ask if the same patriotism which
brought your fathers and mine into common battlefields, amid all
the storms of the Revolution, does not now rebel when you are forced
into a civil war by the madness of a few men in the southern states?
Sir, I do not believe it. For the moment, under the smart of
imaginary wrongs, under the disappointment of political defeat,
your people may be hurried into acts of madness; but when returning
reason comes, woe be to them who have led them astray! Then a
single wave of the star-spangled banner will silence the miserable
party cries with which you have misled them.
"Let us not deceive ourselves with the idea that this government
can be broken up on Mason and Dixon's line, or upon any other line,
without involving us in all we dread. There is no man, with a head
to reason and a heart to feel, who does not shudder at the idea of
civil war. Do you suppose that this government can be divided into
two, according to the plan of the gentleman from Virginia (Mr.
Garnett), with this capitol, with the mouth of the Mississippi,
with the territories, and a thousand things that unite us, without
provoking civil war? Why, sir, we may do all we can to prevent
it; we may throw ourselves into the breach; we may stand up and
yield everything, or cringe down and yield everything; but I tell
you that will not stop the surging waves. If this government is
divided, though we may agree to separate in peace--though every
man here may sign the bond--we know that events hurriedly running
forward will bring these two sections in hostile array against each
other; and then, what a war is there, my countrymen! I know that
your southern people are brave, spirited, active, quick; no man
doubts that; but if you have made any misapprehension about the
northern people--if you suppose that, because they are cold, because
they are not fired by your hot blood, they will not perform their
duty everywhere, you are very much mistaken. We are the equals of
each other; we are of the same blood, the same parentage, the same
character; your warm sun has quickened your blood, but our cold
climate has steadied our intellects and braced our energies.
"I again repeat, Mr. chairman, that we should not allow ourselves
to be deceived by words. The question is not whether the United
States will coerce a state, but whether a state shall coerce the
government; whether this noble fabric, devised by our fathers,
shall fall without a blow. I appeal to you again; I appeal to the
Representatives of all the states, whether we shall allow Fort
Sumter, the only place where our flag floats in the harbor of
Charleston, to be surrendered at discretion.
"For one, I say, NEVER! NEVER! Even if to-morrow I should vote to
give South Carolina license to leave the confederacy, if I had the
power, yet, while that flag floats, it is the bounden and sacred
duty of this government to protect it against all enemies, and at
all hazards. I had fondly hoped, while we disagreed, and while I
knew that our disagreement was marked and decided, that you,
gentlemen of the south, would yourselves take the lead in the
defense of our property and our honor; therefore I sat silent. I
had hoped that, while we were discussing, you would insist upon
the protection of the property of the United States, and that our
flag should not be dishonored until we separated, in peace or in
war.
"I was much struck by a remark made the other day by the honorable
Senator from Mississippi (Mr. Davis), that if we could not agree
with each other, we ought to separate in peace--that we should take
this old flag, and fold it away, and keep it as a much-loved memento
for us all. But, sir, we cannot do that now. It has been lowered
and tarnished, and we all know and feel it.
"I was surprised that my colleague (Mr. Pendleton) did not vote
for the resolution offered by the gentleman from New Jersey, in
regard to Major Anderson. I hoped that the Ohio delegation would
unite in favor of the resolution. I was still more surprised,
allow me to say to the Representatives of Kentucky, that when their
own gallant son had but performed his bounden duty they should have
refused to vote to sustain him in his removal from Fort Moultrie
to the strongest point in his command.
"The resolution simply expressed a desire to enforce the laws and
to preserve the Union--no more. I am willing to stand on this
platform. I can join heartily with all those who made that pledge,
whatever else they may think or believe about the questions that
divide our people. If we can stand by each other, if our constituents
will stand by us in that emphatic declaration, I do believe the
good ship that has borne us thus far on a prosperous voyage will
outlive the storm. But, sir, if we yield too far to the fury of
the waves; if we now surrender, without resistance, the forts,
arsenals, dock-yards, and other property of the government, we only
demonstrate that we are not fit for the duties assigned us; and,
if our names survive our times, they will only be recorded as those
of a degenerate race, who had not the manhood to preserve what
their fathers won.
"Gentlemen cannot come here and say, 'We demand this; or, we demand
that; stand and deliver.' That is the language of the highwayman.
This is a great tribunal, where men reason and judge and weigh and
doubt and hesitate and talk--and we have a good deal of that. No
section and no state can, because the presidential election has
gone against it, say, 'We will have this change in the constitution,
or we will fire upon your flag; we will have that change in the
constitution, or we will seize upon your forts.' That is not the
principle upon which this government was founded. Mr. Jefferson,
when elected President in 1801, declared the true principle. He
said it was the duty of all good citizens to obey the constitution;
to submit to a constitutional election; and he congratulated the
country that the Federalists were willing to give the Democrats a
fair trial. . . .
"Under the grave responsibility upon which we are acting, I feel
it to be my duty to you, my fellow Members, and to my countrymen,
north and south, to say frankly, that, in voting for this army
bill, I vote with the expectation that the army will be used in
protecting the acknowledged property of the United States, in
recovering that which has been unlawfully taken, and in maintaining
the Union.
"It may be said that the gravity of the events that surround us
demands a greater force than is provided by this bill. The regular
army is a mere skeleton. The present force will scarcely defend
our frontier from Indian incursions; but it forms a nucleus capable
of any re-enforcement demanded by the exigencies of the times. I
do not contemplate, in any event, hostile invasions of the soil of
any state, unless demanded for the defense of the acknowledged
property of the United States. It is the duty of the government
to suppress insurrection in a state; but in this event the military
power can only be used in strict subordination to the civil authority.
If the civil authority refuse to call for such aid, or suppress
the courts, the military power cannot interfere. If the courts
are closed, the duties of postmasters must necessarily be suspended.
No doubt this measure will soon be adopted. If the revenue is
refused, or cannot be collected, then goods cannot be imported,
and ports must be closed. If a state shall, in violation of the
constitution, undertake to regulate commerce, then her commerce
must be suspended.
"No doubt other measures can be devised that will preserve the
peace of the country until the people of the states may confer in
a constitutional way, unless one or more of the seceding states
shall, by military force, shed the blood of their fellow-citizens,
or refuse to surrender to the proper authorities the acknowledged
property of the government. I know that all the gentlemen around
me must deeply deplore a civil war, especially if that war shall
involve the fate of this capital and the disruption of the government.
No man can contemplate the inevitable results of such a war without
the most serious desire to avert it. It is our duty as Members of
the House, it is the duty of Congress, I am happy to say it is now
the acknowledged duty of the President, as it is of the incoming
administration, to use forbearance to the extremest point. Let
not physical force be arrayed in civil war until the last hope of
peace and conciliation has been exhausted; then let each branch of
the government, acting in concert with each other, perform its
respective duties, though the heavens fall!
"What can we do for peace and conciliation? I anticipate at once
your reply; you say, 'Let us compromise; yield what we demand of
you. Let us compromise, and we will preserve the Union; civil war
will be averted.' This, I know, is the earnest appeal of patriotic
men in the southern states, who would gladly give their lives to
stop the march of treason in those states. How useless it is to
talk about compromises, concessions, conciliation, adjustment,
when, if everything was conceded, the integrity of the government
may be broken up by a majority of a single state. If we hold this
Union, and all the rights it secures to us, and all the hopes we
have upon it, upon the whim or will of a single state, then, indeed,
it is the weakest government ever devised by man. If a single
state may destroy our nationality, then, indeed, is the wisdom of
our fathers the wisdom of babes. We can no longer talk about the
weakness of the old confederacy or anarchy of Mexico.
"Sir, we owe it as the most sacred of duties to put down this
heresy. If it now fortifies itself by sectional animosities, if
it rises from party rebellion to sectional and civil war, still it
must, and will, be met with determined resistance. Upon this point,
I am glad to say, the people of Ohio are united, if the unanimous
voice of the legislature of that state is a true indication.
"Again, I say, what is the use of concession, conciliation, or
compromise, when, if we yield everything you demand, you cannot
say to us 'It will save us from disunion or war?' Are we not in
danger of quarreling about terms of conciliation, when traitors
are overthrowing the government we wish to preserve? Are we not
dividing ourselves for their benefit? What will satisfy South
Carolina and Florida and Mississippi and Alabama? They want
disunion, and not compromise or conciliation. The Democratic party
would not agree to their terms, and they seceded from the Charleston
and Baltimore conventions. Is it likely that we will yield what
our northern Democratic friends could not yield? Can you expect
this 'black Republican party,' as you please to call it, will yield
to you what your northern Democratic associates dare not? It is
utterly idle to talk about any such terms of concession. I do not
believe any terms which our people could yield, and preserve their
own self-respect, would satisfy South Carolina, Florida, or some
of the other southern states, because they are bent upon disunion.
"We know that gentlemen who represented South Carolina on this
floor, if the newspapers correctly report them, declared in the
Charleston convention, held recently, that they had brooded over
this matter for long years, and that they only sought an opportunity,
an occasion, or, if I may use the word, a pretext, for the secession
of the State of South Carolina and the disruption of the Union.
Some stated that they had brooded over disunion and prayed for its
consummation since boyhood. We know, sir, that the seeds of this
revolution were sowed in the time of Andrew Jackson and John C.
Calhoun. We know that in 1832 the doctrines upon which this
revolution is going forward were initiated, and from that time the
young men of South Carolina have been educated in the school of
disunion. They have cherished these doctrines in their innermost
hearts. All the concessions we might make, all the compromises we
could agree to, all the offerings of peace we could make for the
salvation of the Union, would not be able to secure the desired
end, if South Carolina could prevent it.
"Again, we might, on this side, properly say we have done nothing
to impair any constitutional right. We propose to do nothing to
infringe yours. We have succeeded in a constitutional way in
electing a President of the United States. All we ask is that he
may be inaugurated in peace, and may develop his policy in the
usual manner. We can add that this is the demand of all our people,
not only of those who voted for Mr. Lincoln, but of every loyal
citizen. You tell us your people are excited and alarmed, that
they apprehend that an overwhelming anti-slavery element is about
to be inaugurated in power that will, directly or indirectly, affect
the constitutional rights of your states.
"Perhaps you will confess, what you know to be true, that for
political purposes, in the struggle of partisans for ascendancy,
both parties in the south have united to fire the southern mind
against the hated 'black Republicans' of the north. Speeches have
been distorted, single sentences have been torn from their context
and made to deceive and mislead. Garrison, Wendell Phillips,
Seward, Lincoln and latterly Douglas, have been mixed in a hated
conglomerate, and used to excite your people. A philosophic opinion
of Mr. Seward has been construed as the statement of a settled
purpose to overthrow slavery in the states, although in the very
paragraph itself all idea of interference by the people of the free
states with slavery in the slave states is expressly excluded. It
is but a year since you inflamed your constituents because some of
your fellow-Members recommended, without reading, a book written
by one of your own citizens, containing obnoxious opinions about
slavery. Nearly all of you gave birth, vitality, and victory to
the Republican party, by adopting a policy you now join in condemning.
Some of you broke down the only political organization that could
compete with us, and thus gave us an easy victory. You have all
contributed, more or less, in perverting the public mind as to our
principles and purposes. And I tell you, gentlemen, that when you
call the Republican party an abolition party, in the sense you use
the word abolition; when you quote from Garrison, Wendell Phillips,
and from like extreme men, and circulate their opinions all over
the south, telling the people of your states that the people of
the north have been educated in these sentiments, profess them,
and are going to put down slavery in the states, you do a great
injustice to the intelligence and the safety of your people.
"I have heard here, over and over again, this course of agitation,
pursued only the other day in the Senate of the United States.
Mr. Douglas quoted from one of the speeches of Mr. Lincoln that
passage so familiar to us all, that, in his opinion, that states
would at some day be all slave or all free. Sir, in this time when
the people of the southern states are in a storm of excitement,
that speech of the Senator from Illinois is sent over those states
as tending to show that Mr. Lincoln would in some way interfere
with slavery in the states. Mr. Lincoln answered this inference
with a solemn disclaimer over and over again on the same 'stump'
with that Senator. I ask whether it was just to quote the opinion
without giving the disclaimer? It certainly was not. We might
answer all you say by declaring that the Republican party does not
propose to interfere with your constitutional rights. I have no
doubt that the administration of Mr. Lincoln will carry out the
doctrines of the Chicago platform; but not the platform as you
pervert it. Sir, it will convince the southern people that all
the things said about us are unfounded. What, then, will be the
fate of hundreds of politicians in the southern states who have
stirred their people up to the present intense excitement?
"Yet the baptism of misrepresentation, through which this Republican
party has thus far advanced, does not excuse us from doing all in
our power to produce conciliation, harmony, peace, quiet, a fair
and honest adjustment of all the difficulties that surround us. . . .
"Now, Mr. chairman, I have gone over the whole field. I have given
my views, speaking for no other man, frankly and fearlessly, and
I will stand by them now and in the future. I have given you my
opinion upon all these points. I tell you that this whole controversy
was fought and won by us two years ago, and all you have to do now
is to admit Kansas. That is the only act of power now needed.
There let it stand. Let us live together like a band of brothers.
If we cannot agree with you about slavery, why, you do not agree
with us. I know there has been a great deal of intemperance of
language on this subject; but I ask, if it has been used upon our
side, has it not been used upon yours? If there has been harsh
and violent words used, I have not uttered them that I know of.
If I have, I beg every man's pardon; because I think that violent
language, calculated to stir up excitement and agitation, ought
not be used in a deliberative assembly. I ask you if you have not
sins to repent of, if we have? Let us be at peace. Let us go on
with the administration of the government kindly, harmoniously,
hopefully, trusting in that providence of Almighty God which has
thus far guided and guarded us, until this nation has become a
marvel to the world. Can we not go on in the same way in which we
have gone on in the past? Why not let the Republican administration
be inaugurated in peace and quiet? Try it in the name of God!
Are you cowards, that you would flee from an apprehension? I know
you are not. Stand by the old ship of state! Give the Republican
administration a fair chance. If it does not do right, you will
find thousands--ay, millions--in the northern states who will stand
by you. I believe it will do right. Give it a trial. That is
all we ask, and what we demand at all hazards."
The delegation from Ohio, during this Congress, was regarded as a
very strong one. I do not disparage any by a brief reference to
a few.
Thomas Corwin was, by far, the most distinguished member of the
delegation. I have already referred to his eminence as a popular
orator. His speech against the Mexican War, though unfortunate as
a political event, has always been regarded as one of the most
eloquent ever made in either House of Congress. His speech in
reply to Crary, of Michigan, is still remembered as the best specimen
of humorous satire in our language. He had served in the legislature
of Ohio, as a Member of Congress for ten years, as Governor of
Ohio, as a Member of the Senate, and as Secretary of the Treasury.
After an absence from public life for six years, he was elected a
Member of the 36th Congress. Here he was regarded as the "peacemaker"
of the House. In the contest for speaker, he made a long speech,
in which he exhibited marked ability, humor, pathos and persuasive
eloquence. As chairman of the committee of thirty, he did all that
man could do to quiet the storm, to compromise and soothe the
contending factions, but this was beyond human power. He was re-
elected to the 37th Congress, but in 1861 was appointed minister
to Mexico by Mr. Lincoln. In December, 1865, he attended a party
of his Ohio friends, at which I was present. He was the center of
attraction, and, apparently, in good health and spirits. He was
telling amusing anecdotes of life in Ohio "in the olden times," to
the many friends who gathered around him, when, without warning,
he suffered a stroke of apoplexy and died within two or three days,
leaving behind him none but friends. Tom Corwin, "the wagon-boy,"
had traveled through all the gradations of life, and in every stage
was a kind friend, a loving father, a generous, noble and honest
man.
The life of George H. Pendleton was a striking contrast to that of
Corwin. He was a favorite of fortune. His father was a distinguished
lawyer and a Member of Congress. George had the advantage of a
good education and high social position, a courtly manner, a handsome
person and a good fortune. He served several terms in the House
of Representatives and six years in the Senate. He was the candidate
for Vice President on the Democratic ticket with McClellan, and a
prominent candidate for nomination as President in 1868. He was
minister to Germany during the first term of Cleveland as President.
He died November 24, 1889. My relations with him were always
pleasant.
Samuel S. Cox was an active, industrious and versatile Member of
Congress for more than twenty years. He was born in Ohio, graduated
at Brown University, was admitted to the bar, but, I believe, rarely
practiced his profession. His natural bent was for editorial and
political conflicts, in which most of his life was spent. He was
a good debater, overflowing with humor without sarcasm. In the
campaign of 1860, he and I had a running debate at long range. In
a speech at Columbus, then his residence, I spoke of his erratic
course on the Lecompton bill. He replied at Mansfield with
shrewdness, humor and ability. I reviewed his speech at the same
place, and we kept up a running fire during that canvass, but this
did not disturb our friendly relations. Some years later, he
removed to New York, where he was soon taken into favor, and was
elected several times to Congress. He was the author of several
books of merit, and was the champion of a measure establishing the
life-saving service of the country upon its present footing. He
may be classified as a leading Member of the House of Representatives,
a bright and successful speaker and a copious author. He died
September 10, 1889.
John A. Bingham was regarded, next to Mr. Corwin, as the most
eloquent member of the Ohio delegation, and, perhaps with one or
two exceptions, of the House of Representatives. He studied law
and was admitted to the bar in 1840. He served for sixteen years
in the House of Representatives on the judiciary and other important
committees, and took an active and leading part in all the debates
during this long period. He was a man of genial, pleasing address,
rather too much given to flights of oratory, but always a favorite
with his colleagues and associates. He was subsequently appointed
United States minister to Japan, where he remained for many years.
He still lives at a ripe old age at Cadiz, Ohio.
During the existence of the 36th Congress, I do not recall any
political divisions in the committee of ways and means, unless the
tariff is considered a political measure. It was not so treated
by the committee. The common purpose was to secure sufficient
revenue for the support of the government. The incidental effect
of all duties was to encourage home manufactures, but, as the rule
adopted was applied impartially to all productions, whether of the
farm, mine, or the workshop, there was no controversy except as to
the amount or rate of the duty. The recent dogma that raw materials
should not have the benefit of protection did not enter the mind
of anyone. The necessity of economy limited the amount of
appropriations, but if the war had not changed all conditions, the
revenues accruing would have been sufficient for an economical
administration of the government.
In a retrospect of my six years as a Member of the House of
Representatives, I can see, and will freely admit, that my chief
fault was my intense partisanship. This grew out of a conscientious
feeling that the repeal of the Missouri Compromise was an act of
dishonor, committed by a dominating party controlled by slaveholders
and yielded to by leading northern Democrats, headed by Douglas,
with a view on his part to promote his intense ambition to be
President of the United States. I felt that this insult to the
north should be resented by the renewed exclusion, by act of
Congress, of slavery north of the line of latitude 36 degrees 30
minutes. This feeling was intensified by my experience in Kansas
during the investigation of its affairs. The recital by the Free
State men of their story, and the appearance and conduct of the
"border ruffians," led me to support extreme measures. The political
feebleness of Mr. Buchanan, and the infamy of the Dred Scott
decision, appeared to me conclusive evidence of the subserviency
of the President and the Supreme Court to the slave power. The
gross injustice to me personally, and the irritating language of
southern Members in the speakership contest, aroused my resentment,
so that in the campaign of 1860 I was ready to meet the threats of
secession with those of open war.
It was unfortunate that the south at this time was largely represented
in Congress by men of the most violent opinions. Such men as Keitt,
Hindman, Barksdale, and Rust, were offensive in their conduct and
language. They were of that class in the south who believed that
the people of the north were tradesmen, hucksters, and the like,
and therefore were cowards; that one southern man was equal in a
fight to four northern men; that slavery was a patent of nobility,
and that the owner of slaves was a lord and master. It is true
that among the southern Members there were gentlemen of a character
quite different. Such men as Letcher, Aiken and Bocock entertained
no such opinions, but were courteous and friendly. But even these
shared in the opinions of their people that, as slavery was recognized
by the constitution, as an institution existing in many of the
states, it should not be excluded from the common territory of the
Union, except by the vote of the people of a territory when assuming
the dignity and power of a state. It would appear that as in 1860
the exclusion of slavery from Kansas was definitely settled by the
people of that state, and that as the only region open to this
controversy was New Mexico, from which slavery was excluded by
natural conditions, there was no reason or ground for an attempt
to disrupt the Union. In fact, this pretense for secession was
abandoned by South Carolina, and the only ground taken for attempting
it was the election of Mr. Lincoln as President of the United
States. If this was conceded to be a just cause for secession,
our government would become a rope of sand; it would be worse than
that of any South American republic, because our country is more
populous, and sections of it would have greater strength of attack
and defense. This pretense for secession would not have been
concurred in by any of the states north of South Carolina, but for
the previous agitation of slavery, which had welded nearly all the
slaveholding states into a compact confederacy. This was done,
not for fear of Lincoln, but to protect the institution of slavery,
threatened by the growing sentiment of mankind. Upon this question
I had been conservative, but I can see now that this contest was
irrepressible, and that I would soon have been in favor of the
gradual abolition of slavery in all the states. This could not
have been effected under our constitution but for the Rebellion,
so that, in truth, South Carolina, unwittingly, led to the only
way by which slavery could be abolished in the present century.
The existence of slavery in a republic founded upon the declaration
that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their
creator with certain inalienable rights, and that among them are
life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, is an anomaly so pregnant
with evil that it is not strange that while it existed it was the
chief cause of all the serious contentions that threatened the life
of the republic. The framers of the constitution, finding slavery
in existence in nearly all the states, carefully avoided mention
of it in that instrument, but they provided against the importation
of slaves after a brief period, and evidently anticipated the
eventual prohibition of slavery by the voluntary action of the
several states. This process of prohibition occurred until one-
half of the states became free, when causes unforeseen made slavery
so profitable that it dominated in the states where it existed,
and dictated the policy of the United States. The first controversy
about slavery was happily settled by the Missouri Compromise of
1820. But a greater danger arose from the acquisition of territory
from Mexico. This, too, was postponed by the compromise of 1850,
but unhappily, within four years, the repeal of the Missouri
Compromise re-opened the controversy that led to the struggle in
Kansas. Douglas prescribed the doctrine of popular sovereignty.
Davis contended that slaves were property and must be protected by
law like other property. Lincoln declared that "a house divided
against itself cannot stand," that slavery must be lawful or unlawful
in all the states, alike north as well as south. Seward said that
an irrepressible conflict existed between opposing and enduring
forces, that the United States must and would become either entirely
a slaveholding nation or entirely a free labor nation. Kansas
became a free state in spite of Buchanan and then the conflict
commenced. The southern states prepared for secession. Lincoln
became President. The war came by the act of the south and ended
with the destruction of slavery. This succession of events,
following in due order, was the natural sequence of the existence
of slavery in the United States.
"God moves in a mysterious way,
His wonders to perform."
CHAPTER X.
THE BEGINNING OF LINCOLN'S FIRST ADMINISTRATION.
Arrival of the President-Elect at Washington--Impressiveness of
His Inaugural Address--I am Elected Senator from Ohio to Succeed
Salmon P. Chase--Letters Written to and Received from My Brother
William Tecumseh--His Arrival at Washington--A Dark Period in the
History of the Country--Letter to General Sherman on the Attack
Upon Fort Sumter--Departure for Mansfield to Encourage Enlistments
--Ohio Regiments Reviewed by the President--General McLaughlin
Complimented--My Visit to Ex-President Buchanan--Meeting Between
My Brother and Colonel George H. Thomas.
Abraham Lincoln, the President elect, arrived in the city of
Washington on the 23rd day of February, 1861, and, with Mrs. Lincoln,
stopped at Willard's Hotel where I was then living. On the evening
of his arrival I called upon him, and met him for the first time.
When introduced to him, he took my hands in both of his, drew
himself up to his full height, and, looking at me steadily, said:
"You are John Sherman! Well, I am taller than you; let's measure."
Thereupon we stood back to back, and some one present announced
that he was two inches taller than I. This was correct, for he
was 6 feet 3½ inches tall when he stood erect. This singular
introduction was not unusual with him, but if it lacked dignity,
it was an expression of friendliness and so considered by him.
Our brief conversation was cheerful, and my hearty congratulations
for his escape from the Baltimore "roughs" were received with a
laugh.
It was generally understood when Mr. Lincoln arrived that his
cabinet was definitely formed, but rumors soon prevailed that
dissensions existed among its members, that Seward and Chase were
rivals, that neither could act in harmony with the other, and that
both were discontented with their associates. I became satisfied
that these rumors were true. I do not feel at liberty, even at
this late day, to repeat what was said to me by some of the members
selected, but I was convinced that Lincoln had no purpose or desire
to change the cabinet he had selected in Springfield, and that he
regarded their jealousies (if I may use such a word in respect to
the gentlemen so distinguished) as a benefit and not an objection,
as by that means he would control his cabinet rather than be
controlled by it.
Mr. Lincoln delivered his inaugural address from the east steps of
the capitol, on the 4th day of March, 1861. I sat near him and
heard every word. Douglas stood conspicuous behind him and suggesting
many thoughts. I have witnessed many inaugurations, but never one
so impressive as this. The condition of the south already organized
for war, the presence of United States troops with general Scott
in command, the manifest preparation against threatened violence,
the sober and quiet attention to the address, all united to produce
a profound apprehension of evils yet to come. The eloquent peroration
of Mr. Lincoln cannot be too often repeated, and I insert it here:
"In _your_ hands, my dissatisfied fellow-countrymen, and not in
_mine_, is the momentous issue of civil war. The government will
not assail you. You can have no conflict, without being yourselves
the aggressors. _You_ have no oath registered in Heaven to destroy
the government, while _I_ shall have the most solemn one to 'preserve,
protect, and defend' it.
"I am loth to close. We are not enemies, but friends. We must
not be enemies. Though passion may have strained, it must not
break, our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory,
stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave, to every living
heart and hearthstone, all over this broad land, will yet swell
the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will
be, by the better angels of our nature."
Salmon P. Chase, then Senator, was appointed Secretary of the
Treasury. I know with what doubt and reluctance he accepted this
office. On the 7th of March his resignation as Senator was
communicated to the Senate. In anticipation of it the legislature
of Ohio was canvassing for his successor. My name was mentioned
with many others. I was in doubt whether I ought to be a candidate,
or even to accept the position if tendered. I had been elected as
a Member of the next Congress and was quite certain of election as
speaker of the House of Representatives. The Republicans had a
decided majority in that body and a feeling was manifest that I
should have, without opposition, the position to which I had been
unjustly deprived by the previous House. This was to me a coveted
honor. I, therefore, did not follow the advice of my friends and
go to Columbus. A ballot was taken in the caucus of Republican
members of the general assembly, and I received a plurality but
not a majority, the votes being scattered among many other candidates
of merit and ability. My name was then withdrawn. Several ballots
were taken on a number of days without result. I was then telegraphed
to come to Columbus. I went and was nominated on the first vote
after my arrival, and promptly elected as Senator, to fill the
vacancy occasioned by the resignation of Mr. Chase.
I received many letters of congratulation, among which were two
which I insert:
"Dubuque, March 23, 1861.
"Hon. John Sherman:--Allow me to sincerely congratulate you upon
your signal triumph at Columbus. I can assure you that no recent
event has given me so much sincere gratification as your election,
which I think a most worthy reward to a faithful public servant.
Republics are not so ungrateful as I supposed when I was defeated
for Dist. Atty.
"Sincerely your friend,
"Wm. B. Allison."
"Strafford, April 1, 1861.
"Hon. John Sherman, Mansfield, Ohio.
"My Dear Sir:--I congratulate you upon your election to the Senate
of the U. S., but still I regret that you have left the House where
I think you might have rendered more important services to your
country than you will find opportunity to do in the Senate. You
could without doubt, I think, have been Speaker, had you possessed
any ambition for the position. That would have been for two years
only, but it would be at a crisis that will figure in our history.
Then you are greatly needed in economical questions with our party
--many of whom have no just idea of the responsibility of the
Republican party or a Republican Representative. I see no material
worth mentioning for leaders in our House, and though I am glad to
have you suited, I do much regret your translation to the higher
branch. I suppose we may be called back by Seward about the 1st
of June.
"Our tariff bill is unfortunate in being launched at this time, as
it will be made the scape-goat of all difficulties. In fact the
southern Confederacy would have made a lower tariff had we left
the old law in force and precisely the same troubles would have
been presented.
"Yours, very sincerely,
"Justin S. Morrill."
The Senate being then in special session, the oath prescribed by
law was administered to me, and on the 23rd of March, 1861, I took
my seat in that body. I had, however, before my election, witnessed,
with deep humiliation, the Senate debates, feeling that the Republican
Senators were too timid in the steps taken to purge that body of
persons whom I regarded as traitors. I cannot now read the debates
without a feeling of resentment. Breckenridge, Mason, Hunter and
Powell still retained their seats as Senators from Kentucky and
Virginia, and almost daily defended the secession of the southern
states, declaring that the states they represented would do likewise.
These and other declarations I thought should have been promptly
resented by the immediate expulsion of these Senators. Wigfall,
of Texas, though his state had seceded, was permitted to linger in
the Senate and to attend executive sessions, where he was not only
a traitor but a spy. His rude and brutal language and conduct
should have excluded him from the Senate in the early days of the
session, but he was permitted to retire without censure, after a
long debate upon the terms of his proposed expulsion. I took no
part in the debates of that session, which closed March 28, 1861,
five days after my becoming a Member. I remained in Washington
until after the fall of Sumter in April following.
During this period my brother, William Tecumseh, came to Washington
to tender his services in the army in any position where he could
be useful. I had corresponded with him freely in regard to his
remaining in Louisiana, where he was president of the Louisiana
State Seminary of Learning and Military Academy. He had been
embarrassed in his position by my attitude in Congress, and,
especially, by the outcry against me for signing the Helper book.
He was very conservative in his opinions in regard to slavery, and
no doubt felt that I was too aggressive on that subject. In the
summer of 1860 he made his usual visit to Lancaster, and, finding
that I was engaged in the canvass and would on a certain day be at
Coshocton, he determined to go and hear me "to see whether I was
an Abolitionist." He was greatly embarrassed by a memorable speech
made by Mr. Corwin, the principal speaker on that occasion. We
sat upon the stand together, and he very excitedly said: "John,
you must not speak after Corwin." He was evidently impressed with
the eloquence of that orator and did not wish me to speak, lest
the contrast between our speeches would be greatly to my disparagement.
I told him that he need not trouble himself, that I was to speak
in the evening, though I might say a few words at the close of Mr.
Corwin's address. He remained and heard me in the evening, and
concluded on the whole that I was not an Abolitionist.
After the election of Mr. Lincoln I wrote him a letter, which will
speak for itself, as follows:
"Mansfield, Ohio, November 26, 1860.
"My Dear Brother:--Since I received your last letter, I have been
so constantly engaged, first with the election and afterwards in
arranging my business for the winter, that I could not write you.
"The election resulted as I all along supposed. Indeed, the division
of the Democratic party on precisely the same question that separated
the Republican party from the Democratic party made its defeat
certain. The success of the Republicans has saved the country from
a discreditable scramble in the House. The disorders of the last
winter, and the fear of their renewal, have, without doubt, induced
a good many citizens to vote for the Republican ticket. With a
pretty good knowledge of the material of our House, I would far
prefer that any one of the candidates be elected by the people
rather than allow the contest to be determined by Congress. Well,
Lincoln is elected. No doubt, a large portion of the citizens of
Louisiana think this is a calamity. If they believe their own
newspapers, or, what is far worse, the lying organs of the Democratic
party in the free states, they have just cause to think so. But
you were long enough in Ohio, and heard enough of the ideas of the
Republican leaders, to know that the Republican party is not likely
to interfere, directly or indirectly, with slavery in the states
or with the laws relating to slavery; that, so far as the slavery
question is concerned, the contest was for the possession of Kansas
and perhaps New Mexico, and that the chief virtue of the Republican
success was in its condemnation of the narrow sectionalism of
Buchanan's administration and the corruption by which his policy
was attempted to be sustained. Who doubts but that, if Buchanan
had been true to his promises in submitting the controversy in
Kansas to its own people, and had closed it by admitting Kansas as
a free state, that the Democratic party would have retained its
power? It was his infernal policy in that state (I can hardly
think of the mean and bad things he allowed there without swearing)
that drove off Douglas, led to the division of the Democratic party
and the consequent election of Lincoln.
"As a matter of course, I rejoice in the result, for in my judgment
the administration of Lincoln will do much to dissipate the feeling
in the south against the north, by showing what are the real purposes
of the Republican party. In the meantime, it is evident we have
to meet in a serious way the movements of South Carolinian
Disunionists. These men have for years desired this disunion; they
have plotted for it. They drove Buchanan from his Kansas policy;
they got up this new dogma about slave protection, they broke up
the Charleston convention merely to advance secession; they are
now hurrying forward excited men into acts of treason, without
giving time for passion to cool or reason to resume its sway. God
knows what will be the result. If, by a successful revolution,
they can go out of the Union, they establish a principle that will
break the government into fragments. Some local disaffection or
temporary excitement will lead one state after another out of the
Union. We shall have the Mexican Republic over again, with a
fiercer race of men to fight with each other. Secession is
revolution. They seem bent upon attempting it. If so, shall the
government resist? If so, then comes civil war, a fearful subject
for Americans to think of.
"Since the election I have been looking over the field for the
purpose of marking out a course to follow this winter, and I have,
as well as I could, tested my political course in the past. There
has been nothing done by the Republican party but what merits the
cordial approval of my judgment. There have been many things said
and done by the Republican leaders that I utterly detest. Many of
the dogmas of the Democratic party I like, but their conduct in
administering the government, and especially in their treatment of
the slavery question, I detest. I know we shall have trouble this
winter, but I intend to be true to the moderate conservative course
I think I have hitherto undertaken. Whatever may be the consequences,
I will insist on preserving the unity of the states, and all the
states, without exception and without regard to consequences. If
any southern state has really suffered any injury or is deprived
of any right, I will help reduce the injury and secure the right.
These states must not, merely because they are beaten in election,
or have failed in establishing slavery where it was prohibited by
compromise, attempt to break up the government. If they will hold
on a little while, they will find no injury can come to them,
unless, by their repeated misrepresentation of us, they stir up
their slaves to insurrection. I still hope that no state will
follow in the wake of South Carolina; then the weakness of her
position will soon bring her back again or subject her to ridicule
and insignificance.
"It may be supposed by some that the excitement in the south has
produced a corresponding excitement in the north. This is true in
financial matters, especially in the cities. In political circles
it only strengthens the Republican party. Even Democrats of all
shades say, 'The election is against us; we will submit and all
must submit.' Republicans say, 'The policy of the government has
been controlled by the south for years, and we have submitted; now
they must submit.' And why not? What can the Republicans do half
as bad as Pierce and Buchanan have done?
"But enough of this. You luckily are out of politics, and don't
sympathize with my Republicanism, but as we are on the eve of
important events, I write about politics instead of family matters,
of which there is nothing new.
"Affectionately yours,
"John Sherman."
In December I received this letter from him:
"Louisiana State Seminary of Learning and Military Academy,}
"Alexandria, December 1, 1860. }
"Dear Brother:--. . . The quiet which I thought the usual acquiescence
of the people was merely the prelude to the storm of opinion that
now seems irresistible. Politicians, by heating the prejudices of
the people and running with the current, have succeeded in destroying
the government. It cannot be stopped now, I fear. I was in
Alexandria all day yesterday, and had a full and unreserved
conversation with Dr. S. A. Smith, state senator, who is a man of
education, property, influence, and qualified to judge. He was,
during the canvass, a Breckenridge man, but, though a southerner
in opinion, is really opposed to a dissolution of our government.
He has returned from New Orleans, where he says he was amazed to
see evidences of public sentiment which could not be mistaken.
"The legislature meets December 10, at Baton Rouge. The calling
of a convention forthwith is to be unanimous, the bill for army
and state ditto. The convention will meet in January, and only
two questions will be agitated,--immediate dissolution, a declaration
of state independence, and a general convention of southern states,
with instructions to demand of the northern states to repeal all
laws hostile to slavery and pledges of future good behavior. . . .
When the convention meets in January, as they will assuredly do,
and resolve to secede, or to elect members to a general convention
with instructions inconsistent with the nature of things, I must
quit this place, for it would be neither right for me to stay nor
would the governor be justified in placing me in this position of
trust; for the moment Louisiana assumes a position of hostility,
then this becomes an arsenal and fort. . . .
"Let me hear the moment you think dissolution is inevitable. What
Mississippi and Georgia do, this state will do likewise.
"Affectionately,
"W. T. Sherman."
On the 15th of December I wrote him:
"I am clearly of the opinion that you ought not to remain much
longer at your present post. You will, in all human probability,
be involved in complications from which you cannot escape with
honor. Separated from your family and all your kin, and an object
of suspicion, you will find your position unendurable. A fatal
infatuation seems to have seized the southern mind, during which
any act of madness may be committed. . . . If the sectional
dissensions only rested upon real or alleged grievances, they could
be readily settled, but I fear they are deeper and stronger. You
can now close your connection with the seminary with honor and
credit to yourself, for all who know you speak well of your conduct,
while be remaining you not only involve yourself, but bring trouble
upon those gentlemen who recommended you.
"It is a sad state of affairs, but it is nevertheless true, that
if the conventions of the southern states make anything more than
a paper secession, hostile collisions will occur, and probably a
separation between the free and the slave states. You can judge
whether it is at all probable that the possession of this capital,
the commerce of the Mississippi, the control of the territories,
and the natural rivalry of enraged sections, can be arranged without
war. In that event, you cannot serve in Louisiana against your
family and kin in Ohio. The bare possibility of such a contingency,
it seems to me, renders your duty plain, to make a frank statement
to all the gentlemen connected with you, and with good feeling
close your engagement. If the storm shall blow over, your course
will strengthen you with every man whose good opinion you desire;
if not, you will escape humiliation.
"When you return to Ohio, I will write you freely about your return
to the army, not so difficult a task as you imagine."
General Sherman then wrote me as follows:
"Alexandria, La., December, 1861.
"Events here seem hastening to a conclusion. Doubtless you know
more of the events in Louisiana than I do, as I am in an out-of-
the-way place. But the special session of the legislature was so
unanimous in arming the state and calling a convention that little
doubt remains that Louisiana will, on the 23rd of January, follow
the other seceding states. Governor Moore takes the plain stand
that the state must not submit to a 'black Republican President.'
Men here have ceased to reason; they seem to concede that slavery
is unsafe in a confederacy with northern states, and that now is
the time; no use of longer delay. All concessions, all attempts
to remonstrate, seem at an end.
"A rumor says that Major Anderson, my old captain (brother of
Charles Anderson, now of Texas, formerly of Dayton and Cincinnati,
Larz, William and John, all of Ohio), has spiked the guns of Fort
Moultrie, destroyed it, and taken refuge in Sumter. This is right.
Sumter is in mid-channel, approachable only in boats, whereas
Moultrie is old, weak, and easily approached under cover. If Major
Anderson can hold out till relieved and supported by steam frigates,
South Carolina will find herself unable to control her commerce,
and will feel, for the first time in her existence, that she can't
do as she pleases. . . .
"A telegraph dispatch, addressed to me at Alexandria, could be
mailed at New Orleans, and reach me in three days from Washington."
I wrote him the following letter on the 6th of January, 1861:
"Dear Brother:--. . . I see some signs of hope, but it is probably
a deceptive light. The very moment you feel uncomfortable in your
position in Louisiana, come away. Don't for God's sake subject
yourself to any slur, reproach, or indignity. I have spoken to
General Scott, and he heartily seconds your desire to return to
duty in the army. I am not at all sure but that, if you were here,
you could get a position that would suit you. I see many of your
friends of the army daily.
"As for my views of the present crisis, I could not state them more
fully than I have in the inclosed printed letter. It has been very
generally published and approved in the north, but may not have
reached you, and therefore I send it to you.
"Affectionately your brother,
"John Sherman."
Later he wrote me:
"Alexandria, January 16, 1861.
"My Dear Brother:--I am so much in the woods here that I can't keep
up with the times at all. Indeed, you in Washington hear from New
Orleans two or three days sooner than I do. I was taken aback by
the news that Governor Moore had ordered the forcible seizure of
the Forts Jackson and St. Philip, at or near the mouth of the
Mississippi; also of Forts Pike and Wood, at the outlets of Lakes
Bogue and Pontchartrain. All these are small forts, and have rarely
been occupied by troops. They are designed to cut off approach by
sea to New Orleans, and were taken doubtless to prevent their being
occupied, by order of General Scott. But the taking the arsenal
at Baton Rouge is a different matter. It is merely an assemblage
of store-houses, barracks, and dwelling-houses, designed for the
healthy residence of a garrison, to be thrown into one or the other
of the forts in case of war. The arsenal is one of minor importance,
yet the stores were kept there for the moral effect, and the garrison
was there at the instance of the people of Louisiana. To surround
with the military array, to demand surrender, and enforce the
departure of the garrison, was an act of war. It amounted to a
declaration of war and defiance, and was done by Governor Moore
without the authority of the legislature or convention. Still,
there is but little doubt but that each of these bodies, to assemble
next week, will ratify and approve these violent acts, and it is
idle to discuss the subject now. The people are mad on this
question.
"I had previously notified all that in the event of secession I
should quit. As soon as knowledge of these events reached me, I
went to the vice president, Dr. Smith, in Alexandria, and told him
that I regarded Louisiana as at war against the federal government,
and that I must go. He begged me to wait until some one could be
found to replace me. The supervisors feel the importance of system
and discipline, and seem to think that my departure will endanger
the success of this last effort to build up an educational
establishment. . . . You may assert that in no event will I forego
my allegiance to the United States as long as a single state is
true to the old constitution. . . .
"Yours,
"W. T. Sherman."
And again:
"Louisiana State Seminary of Learning and Military Academy,}
"Alexandria, January 18, 1861. }
"Dear Brother:--Before receiving yours of the 6th, I had addressed
a letter to Governor Moore at Baton Rouge, of which this is a copy:--
'_Sir:_--As I occupy a quasi military position under the laws of
the state, I deem it proper to acquaint you that I accepted such
position when Louisiana was a state in the union and when the motto
of this seminary was inscribed in marble over the main door: "By
the liberality of the General Government. The Union Esto perpetua."
Recent events foreshadow a great change, and it becomes all men to
choose. If Louisiana withdraw from the federal Union, I prefer to
maintain my allegiance to the old constitution as long as a fragment
of it survives, and my longer stay here would be wrong in every
sense of the word. In that event, I beg that you will send or
appoint some authorized agent to take charge of the arms and
munitions of war here belonging to the state, or advise me what
disposition to make of them. And furthermore, as president of the
board of supervisors, I beg you to take immediate steps to relieve
me as superintendent the moment the state determines to secede;
for on no earthly account will I do any act or think any thought
hostile to, or in defiance of, the United States.
'With respect, etc.,
'W. T. Sherman.'
"I regard the seizure by Governor Moore of the United States arsenal
as the worst act yet committed in the present revolution. I do
think every allowance should be made to southern politicians for
their nervous anxiety about their political powers and the safety
of slaves. I think that the constitution should be liberally
construed in their behalf, but I do regard this civil war as
precipitated with undue rapidity. . . . It is inevitable. All
legislation now would fall powerless on the south. You should not
alienate such states as Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri.
My notice is that this war will ruin all politicians, and that
military leaders will direct the events.
"Yours
"W. T. S."
On the first of February he wrote as follows:
"I have felt the very thoughts you have spoken. It is war to
surround Anderson with batteries, and it is shilly-shally for the
south to cry 'Hands off! No coercion!' It was war and insult to
expel the garrison at Baton Rouge, and Uncle Sam had better cry
'Cave!' or assert his power. Fort Sumter is not material save for
the principle; but Key West and the Tortugas should be held in
force at once, by regulars if possible, if not, by militia. Quick!
They are occupied now, but not in force. While maintaining the
high, strong ground you do, I would not advise you to interpose an
objection to securing concessions to the middle and moderate states,
--Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and Missouri. Slavery there is
local, and even if the world were open to them, its extension would
involve no principle. If these states feel the extreme south wrong,
a seeming concession would make them committed. The cotton states
are gone, I suppose. Of course, their commerce will be hampered. . . .
"But of myself. I sent you a copy of my letter to the Governor.
Here is his answer:
'_Dear Sir:_--It is with the deepest regret I acknowledge the
receipt of your letter of the 18th instant. In the pressure of
official business I can only request you to transfer to Professor
Smith the arms, munitions, and funds in your hands, whenever you
conclude to withdraw from the position you have filled with so much
distinction. You cannot regret more than I do the necessity which
deprives us of your services, and you will bear with you the respect,
confidence, and admiration of all who have been associated with you.
'Very truly, your friend and servant,
'Thos. D. Moore.'
"This is very handsome, and I do regret this political imbroglio.
I do think it was brought about by politicians. The people in the
south are evidently unanimous in the opinion that slavery is
endangered by the current of events, and it is useless to attempt
to alter that opinion. As our government is founded on the will
of the people, when that will is fixed, our government is powerless,
and the only question is whether to let things slide into general
anarchy, or the formation of two or more confederacies which will
be hostile sooner or later. Still, I know that some of the best
men of Louisiana think this change may be effected peacefully.
But even if the southern states be allowed to depart in peace, the
first question will be revenue.
"Now, if the south have free trade, how can you collect revenues
in the eastern cities? Freight from New Orleans to St. Louis,
Chicago, Louisville, Cincinnati, and even Pittsburg, would be about
the same as by rail from New York, and importers at New Orleans,
having no duties to pay, would undersell the east if they had to
pay duties. Therefore, if the south make good their confederation
and their plan, the northern confederacy must do likewise or
blockade. Then comes the question of foreign nations. So, look
on it in any view, I see no result but war and consequent changes
in the form of government."
These letters, written at their dates, on the spur of the moment,
present the condition of affairs as viewed by General Sherman and
myself when they occurred.
With the conviction just stated General Sherman came to Washington
about the time of my election to the Senate. He was deeply impressed
with the certainty of war and of its magnitude, and was impelled
by the patriotic sentiment that, as he had been educated at the
expense of the government for military service, it was his duty,
in the then condition of the country, to tender his services. I
therefore escorted him to the White House. His statement of the
interview given in his "Memoirs" is not very full, for, while Mr.
Lincoln did say, in response to his tender, "I guess we will manage
to keep house," he also expressed a hope, which General Sherman
knew to be delusive, that the danger would pass by and that the
Union would be restored by a peaceful compromise. This was,
undoubtedly, the idea then uppermost in the minds of both the
President and Mr. Seward. At this time the public mind in the
north was decidedly in favor of concessions to the south. The
Democrats of the north would have agreed to any proposition to
secure peace and the Union, and the Republicans would have acquiesced
in the Crittenden Compromise, or in any measure approved by Lincoln
and Seward.
The period between the 4th of March and the 12th of April was the
darkest one in the history of the United States. It was a time of
humiliation, timidity and feebleness. Fortunately for the future
of our country the rebels of the south were bent upon disunion;
they were hopeful and confident, and all the signs of the times
indicated their success. They had possession of all the forts of
the south, except Fortress Monroe, Fort Sumter, and two remote
forts in Florida. They had only to wait in patience, and Fort
Sumter would necessarily be abandoned for want of supplies. Fortress
Monroe could not be held much longer by the regular army, weakened
as it was by the desertion of officers and men, and public sentiment
would not justify a call for troops in advance of actual war. The
people of South Carolina were frenzied by their success thus far,
and, impatient of delay, forced an attack on Fort Sumter, then held
by a small garrison under command of Major Robert Anderson. The
first gun fired on the 12th of April, 1861, resounded throughout
the United States and the civilized world, touching an electric
chord in every family in the northern states and changing the whole
current of feeling. From this time forth, among the patriotic
people of the loyal states, there was no thought or talk of
compromise. That this insult to our flag must be punished, "that
the Union must and shall be preserved," were the resolves of millions
of men, without respect to party, who but the day before were eager
for compromise. The cold and cautious men of the north were at
last awakened from their indifference.
The impression made upon my mind by the attack on Fort Sumter is
expressed in a letter I wrote from Washington to my brother, General
Sherman, as he was then called, at midnight of the 12th of April:
"Washington, April 12, 1861.
"Dear Brother:--I was unexpectedly called here soon after receiving
your letter of the 8th, and at midnight write you. The military
excitement here is intense. Since my arrival I have seen several
officers, many citizens, and all the heads of departments except
Blair. There is a fixed determination now to preserve the Union
and enforce the laws at all hazards. Civil war is actually upon
us, and, strange to say, it brings a feeling of relief; the suspense
is over. I have spent much of the day in talking about you. There
is an earnest desire that you go into the war department, but I
said this was impossible. Chase is especially desirous that you
accept, saying that you would be virtually Secretary of War, and
could easily step into any military position that offers.
"It is well for you seriously to consider your conclusion, although
my opinion is that you ought not to accept. You ought to hold
yourself in reserve. If troops are called for, as they surely will
be in a few days, organize a regiment or brigade, either in St.
Louis or Ohio, and you will then get into the army in such a way
as to secure promotion. By all means take advantage of the present
disturbances to get into the army, where you will at once put
yourself in a high position for life. I know that promotion and
every facility for advancement will be cordially extended by the
authorities. You are a favorite in the army and have great strength
in political circles. I urge you to avail yourself of these
favorable circumstances to secure your position for life; for,
after all, your present employment is of uncertain tenure in these
stirring times.
"Let me now record a prediction. Whatever you may think of the
signs of the times, the government will rise from this strife
greater, stronger, and more prosperous than ever. It will display
energy and military power. The men who have confidence in it, and
do their full duty by it, may reap whatever there is of honor and
profit in public life, while those who look on merely as spectators
in the storm will fail to discharge the highest duty of a citizen,
and suffer accordingly in public estimation. . . .
"I write this in great hurry, with numbers around me, and exciting
and important intelligence constantly repeated, even at this hour;
but I am none the less in earnest. I hope to hear that you are on
the high road to the 'General' within thirty days.
"Affectionately your brother,
"John Sherman."
Two days later I wrote him:
"Washington, Sunday, April 14, 1861.
"Dear Brother:--. . . The war has really commenced. You will have
full details of the fall of Sumter. We are on the eve of a terrible
war. Every man will have to choose his position. You fortunately
have a military education, prominence, and character, that will
enable you to play a high part in the tragedy. You can't avoid
taking such a part. Neutrality and indifference are impossible.
If the government is to be maintained, it must be by military power,
and that immediately. You can choose your own place. Some of your
best friends here want you in the war department; Taylor, Shiras,
and a number of others, talk to me so. If you want that place,
with a sure prospect of promotion, you can have it, but you are
not compelled to take it; but it seems to me you will be compelled
to take some position, and that speedily. Can't you come to Ohio
and at once raise a regiment? It will immediately be in service.
The administration intends to stand or fall by the Union, the entire
Union, and the enforcement of the laws. I look for preliminary
defeats, for the rebels have arms, organization, unity; but this
advantage will not last long. The government will maintain itself
or our northern people are the veriest poltroons that ever disgraced
humanity.
"For me, I am for a war that will either establish or overthrow
the government and will purify the atmosphere of political life.
We need such a war, and we have it now. . . .
"Affectionately yours,
"John Sherman."
He wrote in reply:
"The time will come in this country when professional knowledge
will be appreciated, when men that can be trusted will be wanted,
and I will bide my time. I may miss the chance; if so, all right;
but I cannot and will not mix myself in this present call. . . .
"The first movements of the government will fail and the leaders
will be cast aside. A second or third set will rise, and among
them I may be, but at present I will not volunteer as a soldier or
anything else. If Congress meet, or if a national convention be
called, and the regular army be put on a footing with the wants of
the country, if I am offered a place that suits me, I may accept.
But in the present call I will not volunteer."
He criticised the call for 75,000 militia for three months, saying
that the best of men could only be made indifferent soldiers in
three months, and that the best of soldiers could accomplish nothing
in three months in such a country as ours. He therefore would not
volunteer for such a service, but his mind was occupied with military
plans. The correspondence between us shows that he had a better
conception of the magnitude and necessities of the war than civilians
like myself.
He wrote to Mr. Cameron, Secretary of War, from St. Louis, on May
8, 1861:
"I hold myself now, as always, prepared to serve my country in the
capacity for which I was trained. I did not and will not volunteer
for three months, because I cannot throw my family on the cold
support of charity, but for the three years' call made by the
President an officer could prepare his command and do good service.
I will not volunteer, because, rightfully or wrongfully, I feel
myself unwilling to take a mere private's place, and having for
many years lived in California and Louisiana, the men are not well
enough acquainted with me to elect me to my appropriate place.
Should my services be needed, the record or the war department will
enable you to designate the station in which I can render best
service."
When Mr. Lincoln was elected President, there was no general feeling
among the northern people that war would result from his election.
It was not believed, although it had been threatened, that the
southern states would take up arms to resist the accession of a
President not of their choice. The love of Union and the orderly
obedience to constituted authority had been so well established
among our people that, while politicians might threaten, but few
really believed that war, of which they knew nothing, was to come
upon us. The result was that when the southern states, one by one,
seceded, and Fort Sumter was fired upon, and the forts and arsenals
of the south were captured, a new inspiration dawned upon the people
of the north, a determination became general that, cost what it
would, the Union should be preserved to our children and our
children's children. That feeling was not confined to party lines.
I am bound to say that the members of the Democratic party in the
loyal States, in the main, evinced the same patriotic determination
to maintain the cause of the Union, as those of the Republican
party. Their sons and their kindred formed part of every regiment
or force raised in the United States.
At this distance of time from the opening of the Civil War, I have
endeavored to take an impartial retrospect of the causes that led
the south to engage therein. Undoubtedly, the existence of negro
slavery in the south was the governing excitement to war. The
owners of slaves knew that the tenure of such property was feeble.
Besides the danger of escape, there was the growing hostility to
slavery in a preponderance of the people of the United States,
restrained only by its recognition by the constitution. The slave
owners believed that, by secession, they could establish a republic,
founded on slavery, with an ample field in Mexico and Central
America for conquest and expansion. They had cultivated a bitter
sectional enmity, amounting to contempt, for the people of the
north, growing partly out of the subserviency of large portions of
the north to the dictation of the south, but chiefly out of the
wordy violence and disregard of constitutional obligation by the
Abolitionists of the north. They believed in the doctrine of an
irrepressible conflict long before it was announced by Seward.
South Carolina, far in advance of other southern states, led in
promulgating the legal rights of secession, until they came to be
acquiesced in by all these states. They committed themselves to
it in the Charleston convention. Their speakers declared, during
the canvass, that if Lincoln was elected, their states would secede.
When elected, the first gun was fired on Fort Sumter, in South
Carolina, where all the people were determined on war. The struggle
once commenced, the natural sympathy of the southern states was
with South Carolina. The States of Virginia, North Carolina and
Tennessee, where a strong Union sentiment prevailed, hesitated and
delayed, but the young and active spirits were with the south, and
these carried the states named into the general conflict. Once in
the war, there was no way but to fight it out. I have no sympathy
with secession, but I can appreciate the action of those who were
born and reared under the influence of such teachings. Who of the
north can say, that in like conditions, he would not have been a
rebel?
Looking back from my standpoint now, when all the states are re-
united in a stronger Union, when Union and Confederate soldiers
are acting together in both Houses of Congress in legislating for
the common good, when, since 1861, our country has more than doubled
its population and quadrupled its resources, when its institutions
have been harmonized by the abolition of slavery, when the seceding
states are entering into a friendly and hopeful rivalry, in the
development of their great resources, when they have doubled or
trebled their production of cotton, when they are producing the
greater part of their food, when they are developing their manufactures
of iron and steel, and introducing the spindle and loom into the
cities and villages, it seems to me that men of the south surely
will appreciate, if they do not approve, what I said in the Senate
early in the war:
"I would stake the last life, the last dollar, the last man, upon
the prosecution of the war. Indeed, I cannot contemplate the
condition of my country if it shall be dissevered and divided.
Take the loyal states as they now stand and look at the map of the
United States, and regard two hostile confederacies stretching
along for thousands of miles across the continent. Do you not know
that the normal condition of such a state of affairs would be
eternal, everlasting war? Two nations of the same blood, of the
same lineage, of the same spirit, cannot occupy the same continent,
much less standing side by side as rival nations, dividing rivers
and mountains for their boundary. No, Mr. president, rather than
allow this war to terminate except upon the restoration of the
Union intact in all its breadth and length, I would sacrifice the
last man and see the country itself submerged.
"Rather than yield to traitors or the intervention of foreign
powers, rather than bequeath to the next generation a broken Union,
and an interminable civil war, I would light the torch of fanaticism
and destroy all that the labor of two generations has accumulated.
Better a desert and universal poverty than disunion; better the
war of the French Revolution than an oligarchy founded upon the
labor of slaves. But, sir, there is no need of this. The resources,
wealth, and labor of twenty millions of freemen are amply sufficient
to meet not only the physical, but financial, difficulties of the
war. Thank God! the test to which all nations in the course of
their history are subjected, is applied to us when we have a
insignificant national debt; when our resources were never more
manifest; when the loyal states are so throughly united; when our
people are filled with a generous enthusiasm that will make the
loss of life and burden of taxation easy to bear. If we conquer
a peace by preserving the Union, the constitution, our nationality,
all our ample territories, the rebound of prosperity in this country
will enable a single generation easily to pay the national debt,
even if the war is protracted until desolation is written upon
every rebel hearthstone."
This, I believe, expressed the spirit and determination of the
loyal states of the north, at the beginning of the war. With
opinions so widely divergent in the two sections, and with a fixed
purpose of each to stand by them, there was no way that poor frail
human nature could devise to decide the controversy except to fight.
From the graves of the dead, who fought on opposite sides for their
country of their state, there has been a resurrection, honorable
to both sections, a Union stronger, more united and glorious than
the Union established by our fathers, and with a rebound of prosperity
greater than we could conceive of in 1862. This war, though fearful
in the sacrifice of property and life, has resulted in a better
understanding among the people of both sections. Each has for the
other a higher respect and regard. I sincerely hope and believe
in the good time coming when sectional lines will not divide
political parties, and common interests and a broader nationality
will have destroyed sectional feeling and jealousy.
As the result of the war we command the respect of all foreign
nations. The United States, as a great republic, has become an
example already followed by European nations. It has at least
secured the respect and forbearance of the ruling class in Great
Britain, who never forgot or forgave the rebellion of our ancestors
against King George III and the parliament of Great Britain. It
has stamped the language, the laws, and the boasted freedom of
Englishmen, upon a population double that in the mother country,
and they, in turn, are taking lessons from us in extending to their
people equality of rights and privileges.
I remained in Washington a few days and then started for my home
at Mansfield, to encourage enlistments, but found that no help was
needed; that companies were enlisted in a day. One was recruited
by William McLaughlin, a gallant soldier in the war in Mexico, a
major general of the Ohio militia who had arrived at the age of
sixty years. He dropped his law books and in twelve hours had a
company of one hundred men ready to move at the command of the
governor. A like patriotism was aroused in all parts of the state,
so that in a very short time two full regiments, numbering 2,000
men, were organized under the command of Colonel A. McD. McCook,
of the United States army, and were on the way to Washington, then
blockaded by the roughs of Baltimore. I met them at Harrisburg
and went with them to Philadelphia. They were camped at Fairmount
Park, and were drilled with other regiments by Colonel Fitz John
Porter, the entire force being under the command of General
Patterson.
When the blockade was opened, by the skill and audacity of General
Benjamin F. Butler, the two Ohio regiments were ordered to Washington
and were there reviewed by President Lincoln, at which time a
pleasant incident occurred which may be worthy of mention. I
accompanied the President to the parade, and passed with him down
the line. He noticed a venerable man with long white hair and
military bearing, standing in position at the head of his company
with arms presented, and inquired his name. I said it was General
McLaughlin and hurriedly told him his history, his politics and
patriotism. The President, as he came opposite him, stopped, and
leaving his party advanced to McLaughlin and extended his hand.
McLaughlin, surprised, had some difficulty in putting his sword
under his left arm. They shook hands and Lincoln thanked him,
saying when men of his age and standing came to the rescue of their
country there could be no doubt of our success. McLaughlin highly
appreciated this compliment. He afterwards enlisted for the war
and died in the service of his country.
These two regiments were subsequently ordered to Harrisburg, to
which place they went, accompanied by me, and there they formed a
part of the command of General Patterson, which was to advance on
Martinsburg and Winchester to aid in a movement of General McDowell
against the enemy at Bull Run. I was serving on the staff of
General Patterson as a volunteer aid without pay. While at Harrisburg
it was suggested to me that ex-President Buchanan, then at his
country home near that city, had expressed a wish to see me. As
our personal relations had always been pleasant, though our political
opinions were widely different, I called upon him, I think with
Colonel Porter, and we were cordially received. I was surprised
at the frankness and apparent sincerity of the opinions expressed
by him in relation to the war. He said he had done all he could
to prevent the war, but now that it was upon us it was the duty of
all patriotic people to make it a success, that he approved all
that had been done by Mr. Lincoln, of whom he spoke in high terms
of praise. I believe he was sincere in the opinions he then
expressed, and know of nothing said or done by him since that time
that could create a doubt of his sincerity.
About the middle of June the command of General Patterson moved
slowly to Chambersburg, where it remained several days under constant
drill, then to Hagerstown and to the village of Williamsport on
the Potomac. While at the latter place General Sherman, who had
been at Washington and received his commission as colonel of the
13th United States infantry, then being recruited, came to visit
me at my lodgings in a country tavern. He then met for the first
time in many years his old classmate, Colonel, afterwards Major-
General, George H. Thomas, who then commanded a regular regiment
of the United States army in the force under the command of General
Patterson. The conversation of these two officers, who were to be
so intimately associated in great events in the future, was very
interesting. They got a big map of the United States, spread it
on the floor, and on their hands and knees discussed the probable
salient strategic places of the war. They singled out Richmond,
Vicksburg, Nashville, Knoxville and Chattanooga. To me it has
always appeared strange that they were able confidently and correctly
to designate the lines of operations and strategic points of a war
not yet commenced, and more strange still that they should be
leading actors in great battles at the places designated by them
at this country tavern.
The next day General Thomas crossed the river into Virginia, but
the order was soon countermanded, it is said, by General Scott,
and General Thomas returned to the north bank of the Potomac.
General Sherman returned to Washington to drill his raw troops for
the battle of Bull Run. I soon after returned by stage to Frederick,
Maryland, to take my seat in the Senate, Congress having been
convened to meet in special session on the 4th of July.
CHAPTER XI.
SPECIAL SESSION OF CONGRESS TO PROVIDE FOR THE WAR.
Condition of the Treasury Immediately Preceding the War--Not Enough
Money on Hand to Pay Members of Congress--Value of Fractional Silver
of Earlier Coinage--Largely Increased Revenues an Urgent Necessity
--Lincoln's Message and Appeal to the People--Issue of New Treasury
Notes and Bonds--Union Troops on the Potomac--Battle of Bull Run--
Organization of the "Sherman Brigade"--The President's Timely Aid
--Personnel of the Brigade.
To understand the measures to be submitted to Congress at its
approaching session, it is necessary to have a clear conception of
the condition of the treasury at that time, and of the established
financial policy of the government immediately before the war.
On the meeting of Congress in December, 1860, the treasury was
empty. There was not enough money even to pay Members of Congress.
The revenues were not sufficient to meet the demands for ordinary
expenditures in time of peace. Since 1857 money had been borrowed
by the sale of bonds and the issue of treasury notes bearing
interest, to meet deficiencies. The public debt had increased
during the administration of Mr. Buchanan about $70,000,000. The
Secretary of the Treasury, Howell Cobb, resigned on the 10th of
December, 1860, declaring that his duty to Georgia required such
action. He had aided in every possible way to cripple the department
while in charge of it.
On the 16th of the same month Congress authorized the issue of
$10,000,000 treasury notes, to bear interest at the lowest rate bid.
On the 18th Secretary Philip F. Thomas, Mr. Cobb's successor,
invited bids for $5,000,000 of treasury notes, part of the $10,000,000
authorized, at the rate of interest offered by the lowest bidder.
Offers at 12 per cent. or less were made for $1,831,000 (the bulk
of the offers being at 12 per cent.) which were accepted and
additional offers were received at interest varying from 15 to 36
per cent., but were refused. Immediately after the decision of
the department on these offers was announced, the assistant treasurer
at New York advised the secretary that certain parties would take
the residue of the $5,000,000 offered, through the Bank of Commerce,
at 12 per cent. This proposition was accepted, on condition that
the amount required to make up the five millions should be deposited
without delay. The whole amount was applied to the payment of
overdue treasury notes and other pressing demands on the treasury.
Secretary Thomas resigned on the 11th of January, 1861, and John
A. Dix became Secretary of the Treasury. In answer to my inquiry
Secretary Dix, in an official letter, dated January 18, 1861, stated
the terms of the sale of treasury notes and that: "The amount
required to meet the outstanding current and accruing dues before
the close of the present fiscal year, besides any additional charges
on the treasury created by legislation during the present session
of Congress, is $44,077,524.63." He recommended a further issue
of $25,000,000 of bonds, and suggested that the states which had
received deposits under the act for the distribution of surplus
revenue in General Jackson's time might be called upon to return
such deposits, and added: "If, instead of calling for these
deposits, it should be deemed advisable to pledge them for the
repayment of any money the government might find it necessary to
borrow, a loan contracted on such a basis of security, superadding
to the plighted faith of the United States that of the individual
states, could hardly fail to be acceptable to capitalists."
In this connection I received the following note:
"Treasury Department, February 6, 1861.
"Hon. John Sherman.
"Dear Sir:--I send a preamble and resolution, and a letter to your
governor. Will you read and send them at once? You, as a Member
of Congress, can say what I cannot with propriety--that no states
which guarantee bonds of the United States to the amount of the
public moneys in its hands, will be likely to be called on to repay
these moneys--at all events during the twenty years the bonds of
the United States will run.
"I am truly yours,
"John A. Dix.
"P. S.--I cannot put out my notice for a loan till your state acts,
and the time is very short."
Subsequently I received the following letter:
"Treasury Department, February 11, 1861, 7 p. m.
"Dear Sir:--My plan for raising money to meet the outstanding
liabilities of the government, and to enable the incoming administration
to carry on its financial operations without embarrassment till it
shall have time to mature a plan for itself, has met with an obstacle
quite unexpected to me. The committee of ways and means in the
House has declined to report a bill to authorize me to accept the
guaranties voluntarily tendered by the states. Mr. Spaulding, of
New York, and Mr. Morrill, of Vermont, I learn, have objections.
Unless they withdraw their opposition the bill cannot be reported,
and the plan must fail. In that case I shall not deem it proper
to ask for a loan of more than two millions to meet the redemption
of treasury notes, which fall due before the 4th of March. The
state of the country is such that a larger amount thrown on the
market would have a most disastrous influence on the public credit.
I do not think I can borrow two millions at more than 90 per cent.
With a guaranty such as the states have offered, I can get eight
millions at par. The alternative is to authorize me to accept the
guaranty, or leave the treasury with scarcely anything in it and
with outstanding demands, some of them very pressing, of at least
six millions of dollars, for you and your political friends to
provide for. If anything is done it should be to-morrow, as I
ought to publish the notice on Wednesday. Perhaps you can see the
gentlemen referred to to-night and remove their objections. I am,
very truly, your obedient servant,
"John A. Dix."
On the 8th of February, 1861, a bill became a law providing for
the sale of $20,000,000 six per cent. bonds, and these were sold
at the rate of $89.10 for $100, yielding $18,415,000.
Such was the humiliating financial condition of the government of
the United States at the close of Mr. Buchanan's administration.
The expenditures of the government for the fiscal year ending June
30, 1861, were $84,577,258.60, of which $42,064,082.95 was procured
from loans and treasury notes, leaving a balance in the treasury,
at the close of the fiscal year 1861, of $2,395,635.21. This
condition still existed when Congress subsequently met in special
session.
Under the sub-treasury laws then in force, the revenues of the
government were received and held only in the treasury at Washington,
and in sub-treasuries located in a few of the principal cities of
the United States, and could be paid out only upon the draft of
the treasurer of the United States, drawn agreeably to appropriations
made by law. No money could be received into the treasury except
gold and silver coin of the United States, and such treasury notes
as were receivable for bonds. State bank notes were not received
for government dues. This exclusion grew out of the general failure
of banks after the War of 1812 and the panic of 1837, and had caused
the outcry in 1840 of: "Gold for the office holders; rags for the
people." But this policy of the government to receive only its
own coin or notes was sustained by popular opinion.
Silver dollars were not in circulation in 1861. Their issue was
provided for at the beginning of our government, but, as they were
most of the time more valuable than gold coin of like face value,
they were hoarded or exported. Their coinage was suspended by an
order of President Jefferson in 1805, and after this order only
1,300 silver dollars were coined by the United States prior to
1836. From 1836 to 1861 silver dollars were coined in small
quantities, the aggregate being less than one and one-half million,
and they were generally exported. It is probable that when Mr.
Chase became Secretary of the Treasury, there was not in the United
States one thousand silver dollars. In 1853, and prior to that
year, fractional silver coins were worth for bullion more than
their face value, and, therefore, did not circulate. Small change
was scarce, and fractional notes, called "shinplasters," were issued
in many parts of the United States. Mexican coin, debased and
worn, was in circulation. To remedy this evil Congress, by the
act of February 21, 1853, during Pierce's administration, prescribed
the weight of the silver half dollar as 192 grains instead of 206¼
grains, fixed by the coinage act of 1792, and the weight of the
quarter, dime and half dime of silver was reduced in the same
proportion. As these new coins were less valuable than gold at
the rate coined, they were made a legal tender in payment of debts
only for sums not exceeding five dollars. The silver bullion for
these coins was purchased at market value, and the privilege
theretofore granted to a depositor of silver bullion to have it
coined for him was repealed. This law had the beneficial effect
of driving out of circulation "shinplasters" and worn coins, and
supplied in ample quantity new full weight silver coins of handsome
device, the government receiving the profit of the difference
between the market value of the silver and its coinage value.
Under this law the coinage of silver rapidly increased, so that,
within two years after the passage of the act of 1853, more silver
was converted into fractional coins and was in active use among
the people than was contained in all the silver dollars coined
under "free coinage" from the beginning of the government to 1878.
While silver was thus made useful to the fullest extent possible,
it was, from its weight and bulk, inadequate and inconvenient for
the vast demands of the government during the war. Silver and gold
together could not meet this demand. There was known to be in the
country at that time, of specie in circulation, $250,000,000, of
state bank notes, $180,000,000, in all $430,000,000. This amount,
experience had shown, was necessary to meet exchanges in ordinary
times of peace. The disturbance of a civil war would likely
stimulate production for a time and require even more circulation
for current business. This circulation, if drawn from its ordinary
channels, would bring no end of confusion and distress to the
people, and the government, to meet the demand occasioned by carrying
on a war, must look elsewhere for a circulating medium with which
to meet its enormous disbursements which must necessarily be made
almost wholly in actual cash--checks being, from the character of
payments, of little avail.
There was no escaping the issue of credit money in some form, and
of whatever form adopted we knew that gold and silver would soon
disappear under the shadow of war--that they would be hoarded or
exported.
This is the universal result of great wars long protracted. It
was our experience during our Revolution and the War of 1812, and
of Great Britain and all European nations during the Napoleonic
wars. What should take the place of gold and silver for currency?
The only answer was to substitute for the time the notes of the
United States, with all the sanction and credit which the republic
could confer, in the place of coin. We could not, with safety,
accept bank notes issued by state corporations, varying in terms
and credit according to the laws of twenty-three separate states.
To establish a credit of our bonds and notes these measures at
least were necessary: First, to increase largely the revenues from
customs duties to be paid in coin; second, impose all forms of
internal taxes authorized by the constitution; third, create a
national currency redeemable in coin, with no fixed time for
redemption, but made a legal tender for all debts, public and
private, except customs duties; fourth, borrow any moneys needed
on the most favorable terms possible.
On the 4th of July, 1861, the Senate convened in compliance with
the proclamation of the President, from whom it received a message
containing a clear statement of the events that followed his
inaugural address. He described the attack upon Fort Sumter and
said:
"By the affair at Fort Sumter, with its surrounding circumstances,
that point was reached. Then and thereby the assailants of the
government began the conflict of arms, without a gun in sight or
in expectancy to return their fire, save only the few in the fort,
sent to that harbor years before for their own protection, and
still ready to give that protection in whatever was lawful. In
this act, discarding all else, they have forced upon the country
the distinct issue, 'immediate dissolution or blood.'
"And this issue embraces more than the fate of these United States.
It presents to the whole family of man the question, whether a
constitutional republic, or democracy--a government of the people
by the same people--can or cannot maintain its territorial integrity
against its own domestic foes. It presents the question, whether
discontented individuals, too few in number to control administration
according to organic law in any case, can always, upon the pretenses
made in this case, or on any other pretenses, or arbitrarily,
without any pretense, break up their government, and thus practically
put an end to free government upon the earth. It forces us to ask:
'Is there, in all republics, this inherent and fatal weakness?'
'Must a government, of necessity, be too _strong_ for the liberties
of its own people, or too _weak_ to maintain its own existence?'
"So viewing the issue, no choice was left but to call out the war
power of the government; and so to resist force employed for its
destruction, by force for its preservation."
He closed with this appeal to the people:
"It was with the deepest regret that the Executive found the duty
of employing the war power in defense of the government forced upon
him. He could but perform this duty, or surrender the existence
of the government. No compromise by public servants could in this
case be a cure; not that compromises are not often proper, but that
no popular government can long survive a marked precedent that
those who carry an election can only save the government from
immediate destruction by giving up the main point upon which the
people gave the election. The people themselves, and not their
servants, can safely reverse their own deliberate decisions.
"As a private citizen, the Executive could not have consented that
those institutions should perish; much less could he, in betrayal
of so vast and so sacred a trust as these free people have confided
to him. He felt that he had no moral right to shrink, or even to
count the chances of his own life, in what might follow. In full
view of his great responsibility, he has, so far, done what he has
deemed his duty. You will now, according to your own judgment,
perform yours. He sincerely hopes that your views and your action
may so accord with him as to assure all faithful citizens who have
been disturbed in their rights of a certain and speedy restoration
of them, under the constitution and the laws.
"And having thus chosen our course, without guile and with pure
purpose, let us renew our trust in God, and go forward without fear
and with manly hearts."
Secretary Chase also submitted to Congress, on the first day of
the session, a clear statement of the financial condition of the
United States. He estimated the sum needed for the fiscal year
ending June 30, 1862, at $318,519,581. He recommended a large
increase of duties on imports, especially upon such articles as
were then free from duty; also a direct tax of $20,000,000, to be
apportioned among the states according to population; also a tax
on distilled spirits, ale, beer, tobacco, bank notes, and other
articles of domestic production. He also suggested the property
of those engaged in insurrection or in giving aid and comfort to
insurgents should be made to contribute to the expenditures made
necessary by their criminal misconduct. As the receipts from
taxation would still be inadequate to meet the expenses of the war,
he discussed the best mode and form of borrowing money, including
bonds running for a long period with a fixed rate of interest, and
treasury notes bearing interest, payable on demand.
Kansas having recently been admitted into the Union, twenty-three
states were represented in the Senate by forty-six Senators. Eleven
states being in open war against the United States, twenty-one of
their Senators withdrew, but Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee, remained
in the Senate, making the total of Senators forty-seven. Some of
these Senators were new in congressional life, and some had been
transferred from the House of Representatives. This transfer of
a Member, though eagerly sought, is not for a time agreeable.
However conspicuous the Member may have been in the House, he must
take his place in the Senate at the bottom of the ladder, and,
according to Senatorial usage, must be reasonably modest in expressing
his opinions. The withdrawal of so many Senators in 1861, however,
gave the new Members better positions than usual. I was assigned
to the committee on finance and on naval affairs.
At that time the committee on finance had charge of all bills
appropriating money for the support of the government, all tax or
revenue bills, all loan and coinage bills, and, generally, all
bills relating to the treasury department, and to the finances of
the government. It was soon manifest that, in view of the war,
and the enormous sums required to conduct it, the task of the
committee would be a Herculean one, and that the labor required
would fall chiefly on Mr. Fessenden, the chairman of the committee,
and, I may with due modesty add, myself. My former position in
the House of Representatives, as chairman of the committee of ways
and means, and my personal association with Secretary Chase, with
whom I was intimate, led to my taking an active part in financial
legislation, which was considered my specialty. Congress, in
substantial conformity with the recommendations of Secretary Chase,
passed the act to authorize a loan which was approved July 17,
1861, providing for the issue of $250,000,000 of bonds running
twenty years, bearing not exceeding seven per cent. interest, or
treasury notes for not less than fifty dollars each, bearing interest
at not less than seven and three-tenths per cent. annually, and
payable in three years, and treasury notes of less denomination
than fifty dollars, not bearing interest and not exceeding $50,000,000,
payable on demand, and commonly known as demand notes. We knew
that this act was entirely inadequate for the great struggle before
us. The problem was not whether we could muster men, but whether
we could raise money. We had to create a system of finance that
would secure an enlarged revenue, unquestioned credit, absolute
certainty of payment of interest in coin, a national currency, and
such economy as is possible during war.
The first feeble attempt to create a national currency was the
issue of demand notes under the act of July 17, 1861, described as
follows:
"And the Secretary of the Treasury may also issue, in exchange for
coin, and as part of the above loan, or may pay for salaries or
other dues from the United States, treasury notes of a less
denomination then fifty dollars, not bearing interest, but payable
on demand by the assistant treasurer of the United States, at
Philadelphia, New York or Boston."
The fatal defect of these notes was the promise to pay on demand.
How could they be paid? In what kind of money? They could not be
paid out of the current revenue, for that was insufficient to meet
current expenses. No reserve was provided for their payment, and,
when paid, there was no authority for their re-issue. All other
forms of securities bore interest, and these notes, not bearing
interest, were convertible into bonds and that was the end of them.
If that was the process why issue them at all? They did not prevent,
but rather expedited, the disappearance of gold. Of American silver
dollars there were none. Even the new fractional silver coins rose
to a premium, and were hoarded or exported. Still, the necessity
existed for some form of paper money that would be available for
circulation. The solution of this problem was properly left to
the next regular session of Congress.
Congress did not act upon the recommendations for internal taxes,
but this subject was also left over until the next session. It
did provide, however, for a large increase of revenue from imports,
mainly upon articles that were then free from taxation and upon
articles regarded as luxuries; also for a direct tax on the states
of $20,000,000, and for a graded tax, from and after the first day
of January, 1862, upon the annual income of every person residing
in the United States, from whatever source the income should be
derived; if such annual income should exceed the sum of $800 a tax
of three per cent. on the excess above that limit. A provision
was made reducing the tax on incomes from treasury notes and other
securities of the United States one-half. The tax on incomes of
citizens of the United States residing abroad was placed at five
per cent., except on that portion derived from interest on treasury
notes and other securities of the United States, which was taxed
one and one-half per cent.
While Congress was engaged in legislative duties in Washington,
the military forces of the Confederate States were gathering in
Virginia, with the principal force at Manassas, about twenty-five
miles southwest of Washington, under the command of General
Beauregard. The Union troops, composed mainly of three months'
volunteers, were in camp occupying the region about Washington on
both banks of the Potomac River, under the immediate command of
General McDowell, but with Lieutenant General Scott in full command.
I frequently visited the Union camps where the soldiers, fresh from
civil life and confident of easy success over the "rebels," were
being drilled. The cry was, "On to Richmond!" They could not
foresee the magnitude of the task they had undertaken. I will not
attempt to narrate the incidents of the Battle of Bull Run. I knew
it was to be fought on Sunday, the 21st of July. Soon after noon
of that day I mounted my horse, and with James Rollins, a Member
of Congress from Missouri, called on General Scott, and inquired
for news of the battle then going on. He told us he was quite sure
of a favorable result, but feared the loss of his gallant officers
as, the troops being raw, it would be necessary for their officers
to lead them. We crossed the pontoon bridge from Georgetown, and
then, passing by Arlington, we went to a new fort on the main road
from the Long Bridge. As we approached we could hear the distant
firing of cannon. We asked a sentinel on duty if he had heard the
sound all day. He said, "Yes, but not so loud as now." This was
significant but not encouraging. We returned to my lodgings on
Fifteenth street. Everywhere there was an uneasy feeling. At
eight o'clock in the morning I started for the residence of the
Secretary of War to get information of the battle. As I approached
I was seized by the arm, and, turning, saw Secretary Cameron. I
asked about the battle, but, without answering, he hurried me into
the house and said: "Our army is defeated, and my brother is killed."
He then gave way to passionate grief. His brother, Colonel Cameron,
had been killed, and the Union army was in full retreat. I was
enjoined to say nothing until morning. I obeyed his injunction.
At eleven o'clock that night I heard the clatter of a horse's feet
in full gallop. My nephew, Robert McComb, a boy about nineteen,
a private soldier in an Ohio regiment, but detailed as an orderly,
had been sent to the rear with a message. He saw the army in
retreat, and, being well mounted and believing that discretion was
the better part of valor, rode rapidly to my lodgings in Washington.
It is uncertain whether he or "Bull-Run" Russell, an English
reporter, made the best time to the Long Bridge. McComb gave me
a doleful account of the battle and retreat. The official reports
from both armies show that it was a drawn battle. General Sherman,
in his "Memoirs," gives a graphic history of the battle and expresses
the same opinion.
Still, the battle of Bull Run was an important event. It dispelled
the illusion of the people of the north as to the duration and
gravity of the war. It demonstrated the folly of ninety days'
enlistments. It brought also, to every intelligent mind, the
dangers that would inevitably result from disunion. On the 22nd
of July, the day after the battle, the bill to authorize the
employment of 500,000 volunteers became a law.
On the 29th of July two bills, one for the increase of the military
establishment of the United States, and one to provide for the
suppression of the rebellion, were passed. On the 5th of August
an act passed for the better organization of the military establishment.
Armed with the largest military power ever conferred upon a President,
with the almost unlimited power of taxation, the administration of
Mr. Lincoln entered upon the task before it.
Having passed these provisions in aid of the government, the special
session of Congress closed on the 6th of August, 1861.
I immediately returned to my home at Mansfield. Regiments were
being organized but it seemed to me that the mode of enlistment
was too slow. The people, though still resolute, were somewhat
troubled by the failure of military operations. I felt this so
strongly that I determined at once to adopt some plan to raise a
brigade to be composed of two regiments of infantry, one battery
of artillery and one squadron of cavalry. When I made application
to Governor Dennison for the requisite authority, he feared my plan
might interfere with existing organizations then being enlisted in
the different parts of the state, and I was persuaded to wait until
after the 15th regiment was recruited and in the field, and the
42nd was well under way. I also made up my mind to delay actual
recruiting until after the election in October of that year, so
that no political bias might enter into it.
On the 24th of September I addressed a letter to the Hon. Simon
Cameron, Secretary of War, as follows:
"Mansfield, Ohio, September 24, 1861.
"Hon. Simon Cameron, Secretary of War:
"Dear Sir:--I respectfully ask for an order granting me leave to
recruit and organize, in this part of Ohio, a brigade of two
regiments of infantry, one squadron of cavalry, and two companies
of artillery. I know I can do it promptly. The squadron of cavalry
authorized to Major McLaughlin may, if desired, be considered as
part of the brigade.
"For reasons that are probably unjust the governor and state military
authorities are less successful than I hoped, and I know that I
can get you recruits that they cannot. I wish no rank, pay, or
expenses for myself, and will freely act without compensation. I
care not who are the field officers, so I know they are men of
honor, honesty and experience. I will only ask of the department
the usual rations, pay and armament and equipage for the men; I
ask nothing for myself, will undertake upon my individual responsibility
to purchase any of them desired, receiving in return government
securities therefor.
"I will so execute the order as not to interfere with the state
authorities, and will act in subordination to them. I will freely
confer with the government as to details, but would rather be left
as free as practicable in the selection of officers.
"I hope, my dear sir, this application will receive your sanction,
and I will stake my reputation and property that what I offer shall
be accomplished.
"Very truly yours,
"John Sherman."
On the same day, in order to secure the active co-operation of
Secretary Chase, I wrote him as follows:
"Mansfield, Ohio, September 24, 1861.
"Hon. S. P. Chase, Secretary of the Treasury:
"My Dear Sir:--I have to-day written to General Cameron, asking an
order allowing me to recruit a brigade in this part of Ohio. I
know I can do it. I ask no office, rank, pay, or expenses for
myself, and will undertake to recruit this force in subordination
to the state and general government, and within such limits as may
be allowed. Whatever may be the reason, it is manifest that
voluntary enlistment needs the spur of active exertion and
solicitation. This I am willing to give, and, from offers freely
made to me by personal acquaintances, know that I can enlist hundreds
whom the state authorities cannot reach.
"Can I ask your favorable influence and co-operation? I will pay
my own expenses, and ask only rations, tents and armament for the
men. Any of these I am willing to purchase upon my individual
credit, receiving in payment government securities. I pledge you
my reputation and all I am worth to accomplish what I offer.
"If it is objected that my operation will interfere with state
enlistments, I will agree to subordinate my movements to the orders
of the governor, but for the good of the service I hope to be left
as free as possible. In the selection of officers I should want
to be especially consulted, so as to insure the honor, probity and
personal habits of such officers. Further than this I have no
choice.
"If this meets your approbation promptly say so to General Cameron,
and let him set me to work.
"Very truly yours,
"John Sherman."
About the same time I had arranged with Governor Dennison for a
plan of enlistment which enabled the recruits to select their
officers, by allowing persons securing a certain number of recruits
to be captains, a less number first lieutenants, and a less number
second lieutenants. The governor very kindly agreed that he would
commission the persons selected in this way, leaving the regimental
organization to be composed of the best material that could be
found anywhere. On the 28th of September I issued and distributed,
mainly in the region near the line of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne &
Chicago railroad, this circular:
"TO THE YOUNG MEN OF OHIO.
"I am authorized by the governor of Ohio to raise at once two
regiments of infantry and a battery of artillery, and a squadron
of cavalry.
"I am also authorized to recommend one lieutenant for each company,
who shall at once receive their commissions and be furnished with
proper facilities for enlisting. I am now ready to receive
applications for such appointments, accompanied with evidence of
good habits and character, the age of applicant, and his fitness
and ability to recruit a company.
"Major Wm. McLaughlin will command the squadron of cavalry.
"The company officers will be designated by the soldiers of each
company, subject to the approval of the governor.
"The field officers are not yet designated, but shall be men of
experience, and, if possible, of military education.
"The soldiers shall have, without diminution, all they are entitled
to by law.
"Danger is imminent. Promptness is indispensable. Let the people
of Ohio now repay the debt which their fathers incurred to the
gallant people of Kentucky for the defense of Ohio against the
British and Indians. They now appeal to us for help against an
invasion more unjustifiable and barbarous.
"Letters can be addressed to me, marked 'Free,' at Mansfield, Ohio.
"John Sherman.
"Mansfield, Ohio, September 28, 1861."
The matter thus rested until after the election on the 9th of
October, when squads rapidly formed into companies, and within
twenty days Camp Buckingham was opened near Mansfield.
In the performance of this self-imposed duty, I encountered but
one difficulty, and at one time a very serious one, the selection
of regimental officers, and especially of commanders of regiments.
I knew that military warfare was an art, a trade, an occupation,
where education, experience and preparation are absolutely essential
to effective service. The materials for soldiers abound everywhere,
but without discipline, order, obedience, and severe drilling men
are not soldiers. It was my desire to secure for the commanders
of regiments two graduates of West Point. I made application direct
to Washington for various details of officers of the regular army,
so that the soldiers in Camp Buckingham might have experienced
drill masters from the beginning. I failed to receive an answer,
and went to Washington, earnestly impressed with the importance of
my mission, and determined, if possible, that these men enlisted
by me should not be placed in the front of the enemy until they
had had all the benefit they could derive from military discipline
and drilling. When I arrived I found that Secretary Cameron was
indisposed to interfere with the purely military details of the
army, while General Scott, a brave old soldier whom I always loved
and admired, was firmly of the opinion that the favorable result
of the war depended upon strengthening the regular army, maintaining
its force and discipline, and especially retaining its valuable
officers. The regular army, almost disbanded at the beginning of
the war, was gradually filling up upon the basis of a new organization
and long enlistments, but it was idle, it seemed to me, to expect
that the young men of the country would enlist in the regular
service. While ready to respond to the call of their country in
its actual peril, they had no purpose to become regular soldiers
for life. It appeared to me, therefore, that the manifest policy
of the government should be to allow the regular army to be gradually
absorbed into the volunteer service, where the young officers
educated at the expense of the government might impart instruction
to regiments and brigades, instead of to squads and companies. I
spoke to General Scott about this, and the result of my interview
was very unpleasant. I fear we both lost our temper, though I
never ceased to respect the old general for the great service he
had rendered his country; but his day was past.
After consulting Major Garesche, Assistant Adjutant-General, as to
the names of officers, I then applied to the President, explained
to him fully the situation of affairs, my promise, the gathering
of the soldiers in Camp Buckingham, their inexperience, and want
of drill masters, their ardent patriotism, stated my interview with
General Scott, and appealed to him to help me out of the dilemma.
I never shall forget the interview with Mr. Lincoln, for he did
not hesitate, but sent for Major Garesche, and gave me the coveted
order before I left him, directing the Secretary of War to detail
two second lieutenants, James William Forsyth, of Ohio, and Charles
Garrison Harker, of New Jersey, and Sergeants Bradley and Sweet, of
the regular army, for service in the Ohio Volunteers, under my
direction. This order was the key that unlocked the difficulty
and gave to the force the elements of military discipline. At the
same time the requisite orders were given for uniforms, arms of
the best pattern, cannon, horses and various equipments.
I then procured the detail of Major Robert S. Granger, of the United
States army, to command the camp and to organize the force. He
had graduated as a cadet from Ohio, was one of the officers of the
regular army surrendered by General Twiggs to the State of Texas
before the beginning of the war, and had given his parole not to
serve in the army until exchanged. Though this was not held to
apply to the enlistment of volunteers he so construed his parole
as to prevent him from serving in his regiment until duly exchanged.
When this was done he entered the service and was rapidly promoted
to Major General of Volunteers.
Within sixty days 2,340 young men of Ohio were formed into the 64th
and 65th regiments, the 6th battery of artillery, and McLaughlin's
squadron of cavalry, armed with the best arms then in the service,
uniformed, equipped and partly drilled as soldiers, ready to march,
and actually marching, to the seat of war. No better material for
soldiers, and no better soldiers in fact, ever enlisted in any
cause or any service.
I insert a letter from General Garfield written when he was in
command of this brigade:
"Headquarters, 20th Brigade, }
"In the Field, 6 Miles from Corinth, Miss., May 17, 1862.}
"Hon. John Sherman, Washington, D. C.
"Dear Sir:--I am now in command of the 20th Brigade, composed of
the 64th and 65th Ohio (the regiments raised by yourself) and the
13th Michigan and 51st Indiana Regiments. I have sent forward to
Washington the name of Lt. D. G. Swain (65th Ohio) of Salem, O.,
for appointment as A. A. Gen. on my staff. He is an excellent
officer, and his nomination has been approved by Gen. Buell. I
will be particularly obliged to you if you will aid in securing
his appointment as soon as possible. The whole army advances toward
Corinth this morning.
"Very respectfully yours,
"J. A. Garfield,
"Brig. Gen. Vols. U. S. A."
When General Sherman was in Louisville in October, 1861, he was
called upon by Secretary Cameron, and they engaged in a general
discussion of the military situation. General Sherman said that
for aggressive movements, the United States would require 200,000
men. This was so far beyond the ideas of the time that he was
regarded as crazy, and was soon after relieved from his command by
General Buell. Secretary Cameron was blamed for this, but his
letter to me, here inserted, shows that he was absent from Washington
when the order was made:
"War Department, Nov. 14, 1861.
"Sir:--Your letter of the 10th inst. is received. General Sherman
was recalled from the command in Kentucky during my absence at the
north on official business. Since my return on the 11th, I have
not had time to make any inquiries concerning the cause of the
change, but I feel certain it was not from any want of confidence
in the patriotism or capacity of your brother. He has been ordered
to Missouri, under the immediate command of Major General Halleck,
of the regular army, and the fact that he has been so assigned is
evidence of the confidence reposed in him.
"Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
"Simon Cameron, Secretary of War."
CHAPTER XII.
PASSAGE OF THE LEGAL TENDER ACT IN 1862.
My Interview with Lincoln About Ohio Appointments--Governmental
Expenses Now Aggregating Nearly $2,000,000 Daily--Secretary Chase's
Annual Report to Congress in December, 1861--Treasury Notes a Legal
Tender in Payment of Public and Private Debts--Beneficial Results
from the Passage of the Bill--The War Not a Question of Men, but
of Money--Proposed Organization of National Banks--Bank Bills Not
Taxed--Local Banks and Their Absorption by the Government--The 1862
Issue of $150,000,000 in "Greenbacks"--Legal Tender Act a Turning
Point in Our Financial History--Compensation of Officers of the
Government.
About this time I had an interview with Mr. Lincoln which may be
of interest. In making the local appointments in Ohio he was
naturally governed largely by his strong affinities for old Whig
associates in Congress, of one of whom, General Schenck, he was
especially fond. I thought some of his appointments in Ohio were
not judicious, and concluded I would go to him and make a general
complaint of the distribution of these offices. I felt that he
failed to consider the fact that the Republican party contained
many men who had not belonged to the Whig party. I requested an
interview with him which was promptly granted, and called at his
office one evening. He was seated in an easy chair and seemed to
be in excellent humor. I proceeded to complain of some of his
appointments in Ohio and as I progressed the expression of his face
gradually changed to one of extreme sadness. He did not say a
word, but sank in his chair, placing his feet upon the table, and
looking, as I thought, the picture of despair. I proceeded with
my complaint until I began mentally to reproach myself for bothering
the President of the United States with so unimportant a matter as
the choice of persons to fill local offices in Ohio, when the
country was in the throes of revolution. Finally I told him I felt
ashamed to disturb him with such matters and would not bother him
again with them. His face brightened, he sat up in his chair and
his whole manner changed, until finally he almost embraced me. He
then told me many interesting stories of his short service in
Congress and of the men with whom he was brought in contact. The
close of the interview was very pleasant and I kept my promise to
him about his appointments.
When Congress convened on the 2nd of December, 1861, the financial
condition of the government was more alarming than at any other
period during the war.
The Secretary of the Treasury had ample and complete authority,
given him by the act of July, 1861, to borrow money on the credit
of the government, but he could not deal with the system of state
banks then existing in the several states. He was forbidden, by
the sub-treasury act of 1846, to receive notes of state banks and
was required to receive into and pay from the treasury only the
coin of the United States; but by the act of August 5, 1861, he
was permitted to deposit to the credit of the Treasurer of the
United States, in such solvent specie-paying banks, as he might
select, any of the moneys obtained from loans, the moneys thus
deposited to be withdrawn only for transfer to the regularly
authorized depositaries, or for the payment of public dues, including
certain notes payable on demand, as he might deem expedient. He
had, however, no authority to receive from individuals or banks
any money but coin.
The coin received from the Boston, New York, and Philadelphia banks,
in payment of their subscriptions to the government loans, to the
amount of nearly $150,000,000, had to be sent to every point in
the United States to meet public obligations, and, when thus
scattered, was not readily returned to the banks, thus exhausting
their resources and their ability to loan again.
The demand notes, authorized by the act of July 17, 1861, were also
paid out by the treasury; but from time to time were presented for
redemption in coin or in payment of customs duties to the exclusion
of coin, and thus both the banks and the government were greatly
crippled, the banks suspending specie payments on the 30th day of
December, 1861.
At this time an army of 500,000 Union soldiers was in the field,
and a powerful navy, with vast stores of artillery and ammunition,
had been created. In providing for their sustenance, comfort and
equipment the government had been obliged to incur expenses far
exceeding in magnitude any which had been hitherto known in its
history, aggregating nearly $2,000,000 per day.
It was apparent that a radical change in existing laws relating to
our currency must be made, or the government would practically be
unable to make the current disbursements on account of the war,
and the destruction of the Union would be unavoidable, notwithstanding
the immense resources of the country which had then hardly been
touched.
The annual report of Secretary Chase reached Congress on the 10th
of December, having been delayed by the press of business. So much
of it as related to the currency was the basis of the long debates
that followed. The circulation of the banks of the United States
on the 1st of January, 1861, was reported at $202,000,767. Of this
$152,000,000, in round numbers, was in the loyal states, including
West Virginia, and $50,000,000 in the rebel states, the whole
constituting a loan without interest from the people to the banks,
costing the latter only the expense of issue and redemption and
the interest on the specie kept in hand for the latter purpose.
The secretary called especial attention to the organization and
nature of these banks, and questioned whether a currency of banks
issued by local institutions under state laws was not in fact
prohibited by the national constitution. He said:
"Such emissions certainly fall within the spirit, if not within
the letter, of the constitutional prohibition of the emission of
'bills of credit' by the states, and of the making by them of
anything except gold and silver coin a legal tender in payment of
debts. However this may be, it is too clear to be reasonably
disputed that Congress, under its constitutional powers to lay
taxes, to regulate commerce, and to regulate the value of coin,
possesses ample authority to control the credit circulation which
enters so largely into the transaction of commerce, and affects in
so many ways the value of coin. In the judgment of the secretary,
the time has arrived when Congress should exercise this authority."
He described with great force the weakness of the state banking
system, and the repeated losses by the people of the United States
on account of the failure of such banks. He recommended two plans
by either of which he held that these banks might be absorbed, and
a national currency be substituted in the place of their issues.
One plan proposed the gradual withdrawal from circulation of the
notes of private corporations, and the issue in their stead of
United States notes, payable in coin on demand, in amounts sufficient
for the useful ends of a representative currency. The other proposed
a system of national banks authorized to issue notes for circulation
under national direction, to be secured as to prompt convertibility
into coin by the pledge of United States bonds and other needful
regulations. He discussed these two plans at length, but concluded
by recommending a system of national banks, the advantages of which
would be uniformity in currency, uniformity in security, an effectual
safeguard against depreciation, and protection from losses from
discounts and exchanges. He expressed the opinion that such notes
would give to the government the further advantage of a large demand
for government securities, of increased facilities for obtaining
the loans required for the war, a reduction of interest, and a
participation by the government in the profit of circulation without
risking the perils of a great money monopoly. It will be noticed
that the secretary nowhere suggested the suspension of coin payments,
or making the notes a legal tender in payment of public and private
debts, or the redemption in coin of the bank notes to be issued.
These recommendations were referred to the committee of ways and
means of the House, and by it to a sub-committee, of which Elbridge
G. Spaulding, of New York, was chairman. Undoubtedly we owe to
him, more than to any other individual Member, the important and
radical changes made in our currency system by the act reported by
him to the House and amended in the Senate. Mr. Spaulding perceived
the objection to the recommendations of Secretary Chase that they
did not provide for any payments but in coin, or call for a suitable
provision that the notes when issued should be a legal tender for
public and private debts, or for their reissue in case of payment,
nor did they provide for the absorption of the demand notes
outstanding, which were, on their face, payable on demand, an
obligation that could not be ignored without severely impairing
the public credit. It was also apparent that the system of national
banks proposed by the secretary could not be organized and put in
effective force for a year or more, and that in the meantime the
state banks would be in a condition of suspension, without coin or
the possibility of obtaining it, and, with no effective money which
the people were bound to receive, or which the government could
receive, it would have been difficult to carry on the operations
of the war.
The first bill introduced by Mr. Spaulding, on the 30th of December,
met some of these difficulties. It provided for the issue of
$50,000,000 treasury notes, payable on demand, the notes to be
receivable for all debts and demands due to or by the United States,
to be a legal tender in payment of all debts, public or private,
within the United States, and exchangeable at their face value,
the same as coin, at the treasury of the United States, and the
offices of the assistant treasurers in New York, Boston, Philadelphia,
St. Louis and Cincinnati, for any of the coupon or registered bonds
which the secretary was authorized to issue. It also contained
this provision: "Such treasury notes may be reissued from time to
time as the exigencies of the public service may require," the
first authority ever given for the reissue of treasury notes after
redemption.
On the 7th of January, 1862, Mr. Spaulding reported the bill to
the House with some important changes, and it soon became the
subject of a long and interesting debate. On the 22nd of January,
Secretary Chase returned Mr. Spaulding's bill to him and suggested
some modifications, referring to the legal tender clause as follows,
being his first reference to that clause:
"Regretting exceedingly that it is found necessary to resort to
the measure of making fundable notes of the United States a legal
tender, but heartily desiring to co-operate with the committee in
all measures to meet existing necessities in the most useful and
least hurtful to the general interest, I remain," etc.
In a letter to the committee of ways and means, on the 29th of
January, the secretary said:
"The condition of the treasury certainly needs immediate action on
the subject of affording provision for the expenditures of the
government, both expedient and necessary. The general provisions
of the bill submitted to me seem to me well adapted to the end
proposed. There are, however, some points which may, perhaps, be
usefully amended.
"The provision making United States notes a legal tender has
doubtless been well considered by the committee, and their conclusion
needs no support from any observation of mine. I think it my duty,
however, to say, that in respect to this provision my reflections
have conducted me to the same conclusion they have reached. It is
not unknown to them that I have felt, nor do I wish to conceal that
I now feel, a great aversion to making anything but coin a legal
tender in payment of debts. I has been my anxious wish to avoid
the necessity of such legislation. It is, however, at present
impossible, in consequence of the large expenditures entailed by
the war, and the suspension of the banks, to procure sufficient
coin for disbursements; and it has, therefore, become indispensably
necessary that we should resort to the issue of United States notes.
. . . Such discrimination should, if possible, be prevented; and
the provision making the notes legal tender, in a great measure at
least, prevents it, by putting all citizens, in this respect, on
the same level, both of rights and duties."
On the 3rd of February the secretary wrote to Mr. Spaulding as
follows:
"Mr. Seward said to me on yesterday that you observed to him that
my hesitation in coming up to the legal tender proposition embarrassed
you, and I am very sorry to observe it, for my anxious wish is to
support you in all respects.
"It is true that I came with reluctance to the conclusion that the
legal tender clause is a necessity, but I came to it decidedly,
and I support it earnestly. I do not hesitate when I have made up
my mind, however much regret I may feel over the necessity of the
conclusion to which I come."
On the 5th of February the secretary became more urgent, and wrote
to Mr. Spaulding the following brief note:
"My Dear Sir:--I make the above extract from a letter received from
the collector of New York this morning. It is very important the
bill should go through to-day, and through the Senate this week.
The public exigencies do not admit of delay.
"Yours truly,
"S. P. Chase.
"Hon. E. G. Spaulding."
It will thus be perceived that, whatever may have been the
constitutional scruples of Secretary Chase in respect to the legal
tender clause, he yielded to it under the pressure of necessity,
and expressed no dissent from it until, as chief justice, his
opinion was delivered in the case of Hepburn vs. Griswold, in the
Supreme Court of the United States.
The bill, much modified from the original, passed the House of
Representatives by the decided vote of yeas 93, nays 59. As it
passed the House it contained authority to issue, on the credit of
the United States, United States notes to the amount of $150,000,000,
not bearing interest, payable to bearer at the treasury of the
United States, at Washington or New York. It provided that
$50,000,000 of said notes should be in lieu of the demand treasury
notes authorized by the act of July 17, 1861, and that said demand
notes should be taken up as rapidly as practicable. It provided
that the treasury notes should be receivable in payment of all
taxes, duties, imports, excise, debts and demands of all kinds due
to the United States, and all debts and demands owing by the United
States to individuals, corporations and associations within the
United States, and should be lawful money and a legal tender, in
payment of all debts, public and private, within the United States.
This bill came to the Senate on the 7th of February. It was followed
on the same day by a letter from Secretary Chase to Mr. Fessenden,
as follows:
"Sir:--The condition of the treasury requires immediate legislative
provision. What you said this morning leads me to think that the
bill which passed the House yesterday will hardly be acted upon by
the Senate this week. Until that bill shall receive the final
action of Congress, it seems advisable to extend the provisions of
the former acts, so as to allow the issue of at least $10,000,000
in United States notes, in addition to the $50,000,000 heretofore
authorized. I transmit a bill framed with that object, which will,
I trust, meet your approval and that of Congress. Immediate action
on it is exceedingly desirable."
The request for authority to issue $10,000,000 additional demand
notes was immediately granted, and the bill was passed without
opposition.
The currency bill was considered in the committee on finance of
the Senate, and four important and radical amendments were reported
by that committee. These amendments were as follows:
First--That the legal tender notes should be receivable for all
claims and demands against the United States, of every kind
whatsoever, "_except for interest on bonds and notes, which shall
be paid in coin_."
Second--That the secretary might dispose of United States bonds,
"at the market value thereof, for coin or treasury notes."
Third--A new section authorizing deposits in the sub-treasuries at
five per cent., for not less than thirty days, to the amount of
$25,000,0000, for which certificates of deposit might be issued.
Fourth--An additional section, No. 5, "that all duties on imported
goods and proceeds of the sale of public lands," etc., should be
set apart to pay coin interest on the debt of the United States;
and one per cent. for a sinking fund, etc.
It was felt that if no provision was made for the payment of the
interest on the bonds in coin, they would depreciate more and more,
while such payment would tend, as it did, to maintain them nearer
to their specie standard. In order to obtain coin for the payment
of interest, provision was made that all duties on imported goods,
and the proceeds of the sale of public lands, should be payable in
coin and be set apart to pay coin interest on the debt of the United
States, and one per cent. for a sinking fund to provide for ultimate
redemption of the bonds. These amendments were considered of prime
importance. It was felt that the duty on imported goods should
not be lessened by any depreciation of our local currency. Such
importations were based upon coin values, and the tax levied upon
them was properly required to be paid in coin. This security of
coin payment enabled the government to sell bonds at a far higher
rate than they would have commanded without it, and tended also to
limit the depreciation of United States notes. The bill and
amendments were reported on the 12th, and became the subject of
what was regarded as a very able debate.
There was decided opposition in the Senate to the legal tender
clause, headed by Mr. Fessenden. Mr. Collamer, who also was opposed
to it, made a motion to strike it out. Upon that subject I made
my first lengthy speech in the Senate, a few extracts from which
I insert:
"The motion of the Senator from Vermont now for the first time
presents to the Senate the only question upon which the members of
the committee of finance had any material difference of opinion,
and that is, whether the notes provided for in this bill shall be
made a legal tender in payment of public and private debts. Upon
this point I will commence the argument where the Senator from
Maine left it.
"In the first place, I will say, every organ of financial opinion
--if that is a correct expression--in this country agrees that
there is such a necessity, in case we authorize the issue of demand
notes. You commence with the Secretary of the Treasury, who has
given this subject the most ample consideration. He declares, not
only in his official communications here, but in his private
intercourses with the members of the committee, that this clause
is indispensably necessary to the security and negotiability of
these demand notes. We all know from his antecedents, from his
peculiar opinions, that he would probably be the last man among
the leading politicians of our country to yield to the necessity
of substituting paper money for coin. He has examined this question
in all its length and breadth. He is in a position where he feels
the necessity. He is a statesman of admitted ability, and
distinguished in his high opinion. He informs us that, without
this clause, to attempt to circulate as money the proposed amount
of demand notes of the United States, will prove a fatal experiment.
"In addition to his opinion, we have the concurring opinion of the
Chamber of Commerce of the city of New York. With almost entire
unanimity they have passed a resolution on the subject, after full
debate and consideration. That resolution has been read by your
secretary. You have also the opinion of the committee of public
safety of the city of New York, composed of distinguished gentlemen,
nearly all of whom are good financiers, who agree fully in the same
opinion. I may say the same in regard to the Chambers of Commerce
of the city of Boston, of the city of Philadelphia, and of almost
every recognized organ of financial opinion in this country. They
have said to us, in the most solemn form, that this measure was
indispensably necessary to maintain the credit of the government,
and to keep these notes anywhere near par. In addition, we have
the deliberate judgment and vote of the House of Representatives.
After a full debate, in which the constitutionality, expediency
and necessity of this measure were discussed, in which all the
objections that have been made here, and many more, were urged,
the House of Representatives, by a large vote, declared that it
was necessary to issue United States notes, and that this clause
was indispensable to their negotiation and credit. . . .
"A hard necessity presses the government. $100,000,000 is now
due the army, and $250,000,000 more up to July first. The banks
of New York, Boston and Philadelphia, have exhausted their capitals
in making loans to the government. They have already tied up their
capital in your bonds. Among others, Mr. Vail, the cashier of the
Bank of Commerce, the largest bank corporation in the United States,
and one that has done much to sustain the government, appeared
before the finance committee, and stated explicitly that the Bank
of Commerce, as well as other banks of New York, could aid the
government no further, unless your proposed currency was stamped
by, and invested with, the attributes of lawful money, which they
could pay to others as well as receive themselves.
"Bonds cannot be sold except at a great sacrifice, because there
is no money to buy them. As soon as the banks suspended, gold and
silver ceased to circulate as money. You cannot sell your bonds
for gold and silver, which is the only money that can now be received
under the sub-treasury law. This currency made a legal tender was
necessary to aid in making further loans. I insisted that the bill
was constitutional. The Senator from Vermont has read extracts
from the debates in the national convention, and from Story's
'Commentaries,' tending to show that Congress cannot authorize the
issue of bills of credit. But I submit to him that this question
has been settled by the practice of the government. We issued such
bills during the War of 1812, during the war with Mexico, and at
the recent session of Congress. We receive them now for our
services; we pay them to our soldiers and our creditors. These
notes are payable to bearer; they pass from hand to hand as currency;
they bear no interest. If the argument of the Senator is true,
then all these notes are unauthorized. The Senator admits that
when we owe a debt and cannot pay it, we can issue a note. But
where does he find the power to issue a note in the constitution?
Where does he find the power to prescribe the terms of the note,
to make it transferable, receivable for public dues? He draws all
these powers as incidents to the power to borrow money. According
to his argument, when we pay a soldier a ten dollar demand bill,
we borrow ten dollars from the soldier; when I apply to the secretary
of the Senate for a month's pay, I loan the United States $250.
This certainly is not the view we take of it when we receive the
money. On the other hand, we recognize the fact that the government
cannot pay us in gold. We receive notes as money. The government
ought to give, and has the power to give, to that money, all the
sanction, authority, value, necessary and proper, to enable it to
borrow money. The power to fix the standard of money, to regulate
the medium of exchanges, must necessarily go with, and be incident
to, the power to regulate commerce, to borrow money, to coin money,
to maintain armies and navies. All these high powers are expressly
prohibited to the states and also the incidental power to emit
bills of credit, and to make anything but gold and silver a legal
tender. But Congress is expressly invested with all these high
powers, and, to remove all doubt, is expressly authorized to use
all necessary and proper means to carry these powers into effect.
"If you strike out the legal tender clause you do so with the
knowledge that these notes will fall dead upon the money market of
the world. When you issue demand notes, and announce to the world
your purpose not to pay any more gold and silver, you then tender
to those who have furnished you provisions and services this paper
money. What can they do? They cannot pay their debts with it;
they cannot support their families with it, without a depreciation.
The whole then depends on the promise of the government to pay at
some time not fixed on the note. Justice to our creditors demands
that it should be a legal tender; it will then circulate all over
the country, and it will be the lifeblood of the whole business of
the country, and it will enable capitalists to buy your bonds.
The only objection to the measure is that too much may be issued.
He did not believe the issue of $150,000,000 would do any harm.
It is only a mere temporary expedient. . . .
"I have thus, Mr. president, endeavored to reply to the constitutional
argument of the Senator from Vermont. Our arguments must be
submitted finally to the arbitration of the courts of the United
States. When I feel so strongly the necessity of this measure, I
am constrained to assume the power, and refer our authority to
exercise it to the courts. I have shown, in reply to the argument
of the Senator from Maine, that we must no longer hesitate as to
the necessity of this measure. That necessity does exist, and now
presses upon us. I rest my vote upon the proposition that this is
a necessary and proper measure to furnish a currency--a medium of
exchange--to enable the government to borrow money, to maintain an
army and support a navy. Believing this, I find ample authority
to authorize my vote. We have been taught by recent fearful
experience that delay and doubt in this time of revolutionary
activity are stagnation and death. I have sworn to raise and
support your armies; to provide for and maintain your navy; to
borrow money; to uphold your government against all enemies, at
home and abroad. That oath is sacred. As a Member of this body,
I am armed with high powers for a holy purpose, and I am authorized
--nay, required--to vote for all laws necessary and proper for
executing these high powers, and to accomplish that purpose. This
is not the time when I would limit these powers. Rather than yield
to revolutionary force, I would use revolutionary force. Here it
is not necessary, for the framers of the constitution did not assume
to foresee all the means that might be necessary to maintain the
delegated powers of the national government. Regarding this great
measure as a necessary and proper one, and within our power to
enact, I see plain before me the path of duty, and one that is easy
to tread."
The motion to strike out the legal tender clause in the bill was
defeated by a vote of yeas 17, nays 22. The amendments proposed
by the finance committee were agreed to substantially as reported
by the committee. The bill finally passed by a vote of yeas 30,
nays 7. The House agreed to the amendment providing for the payment
of the interest on bonds and notes in coin, and disagreed to the
remaining amendments, and these were referred to a committee of
conference, composed of Messrs. Fessenden, Sherman and Carlisle,
of West Virginia, of the Senate and Messrs. Stevens, Horton, and
Sedgwick, of the House. The conference met, and, after two or
three days of full discussion, the material parts of the disagreements
between the two Houses were settled. The provision that coin only
be received for duties on imports, and that it be held as a fund
to pay the interest on the bonded debt, was retained. The report
of the conference was agreed to by both Houses, and on the same
day the bill was approved by the President. Thus, the legal tender
act, after a most able and determined opposition, became a law on
the 25th of February, 1862.
It would be difficult to measure the beneficial results that rapidly
followed the passage of this bill. The public credit was greatly
strengthened by the provision for the payment of interest in coin
furnished by duties on imported goods. The legal tender clause
was acquiesced in by all classes, and we had, for the first time,
in circulation national paper money as the actual standard of value.
It was silent as to time of its payment, but each note contained
a promise of the United States to pay a specific sum, and the
implied obligation was to pay in coin as soon as practicable.
On the 11th of July, 1862, a further issue of $150,000,000 United
States treasury notes (or "greenbacks," as they were commonly called
from their color) of the same description was authorized, and
subsequent issues increased the total amount to $450,000,000, the
extreme limit. By the act of March 31, 1863, fractional currency
was authorized to an amount not exceeding $50,000,000, to take the
place of fractional silver coins, which had entirely disappeared
from circulation, and this amount was issued.
The passage of the legal tender act was the turning point of our
physical and financial history. Less than a year before the
government was bankrupt; our bonds bearing six per cent. interest
were sold at a discount; our national expenditures exceeded our
receipts; loans could only be made upon the basis of coin, and this
coin was disappearing from circulation. We had to appeal to the
patriotism of bankers to accept the demand notes of the United
States as money, with no prospect of being able to pay them. Our
regular army was practically disbanded by the disloyalty of many
of its leading officers. Washington was then practically in a
state of siege, forcing me, in May, 1861, to go there at the heels
of the 7th regiment of New York militia, avoiding the regular
channels of travel. The city of Baltimore was decked under the
flag of rebellion. Through the State of Maryland, loyal citizens
passed in disguise, except by a single route opened and defended
by military power. The great State of Kentucky, important as well
from its central position as from the known prowess and courage of
its people, hung suspended in doubt between loyalty and secession.
In the State of Missouri, St. Louis was the only place of unquestioned
loyalty, and even there we regarded it a fortunate prize that we
were able to take the public arms from a government arsenal. The
whole State of Virginia, with the single exception of Fortress
Monroe, was in the possession of the revolutionary force.
But from the passage of the legal tender act, by which means were
provided for utilizing the wealth of the country in the suppression
of the rebellion, the tide of war turned in our favor. Delaware,
after a short hesitation, complied with the proclamation of the
President. Maryland had, by clear and repeated votes and acts,
arrayed herself on the side of the Union. Her rebellious sons who
fought against the old flag could not tread in safety on a single
foot of the soil of that state. Western Virginia, the eastern
peninsula, and many ports on the eastern coast, were securely
reclaimed. The State of Kentucky had distinctly, by the vote of
her people, and by the action of all her constituted authorities,
proclaimed her loyalty, and her sons were fighting side by side
with the soldiers of other states to expel traitors who, in her
days of doubt, had seized upon a small portion of her soil, which
they still occupied. In the State of Missouri the constituted
authorities, organized by a convention of the people duly elected,
were sustained by physical power in nearly all the state, and the
rebellion there was subsiding into bands of thieves, bridge burners,
and small parties of guerillas, who could soon be readily controlled
by local militia. In nearly every rebellious state, the government
had secured a foothold, and an army of half a million men, armed,
organized and disciplined, impatiently awaited the word of command
to advance the old banner of our country against every foe that
stood in its way. Where does the history of nations present an
example of greater physical weakness followed so soon by greater
physical strength? When have results more wonderful been accomplished
in eight months?
At the beginning of the year 1862 we were physically strong but
financially weak. Therefore, I repeat, the problem of this contest
was not as to whether we could muster men, but whether we could
raise money. There was great wealth in the country but how could
it be promptly utilized? To that question the diligent attention
of Congress was applied. The banks which had aided us with money
were crippled and had suspended coin payments. The Secretary of
the Treasury was begging at the doors of both Houses for means to
meet the most pressing demands. On the 15th of January, 1862, the
London "Post," the organ of Lord Palmerston, said:
"The monetary intelligence from America is of the most important
kind. National bankruptcy is not an agreeable prospect, but it is
the only one presented by the existing state of American finance.
What a strange tale does not the history of the United States for
the past twelve months unfold? What a striking moral does it not
point? Never before was the world dazzled by a career of more
reckless extravagance. Never before did a flourishing and prosperous
state make such gigantic strides towards effecting its own ruin."
The legal tender act, with its provision for coin receipts to pay
interest on bonds, whatever may be said to the contrary by theorists,
was the only measure that could have enabled the government to
carry on successfully the vast operations of the war. Our annual
expenditures at that time were four times the amount of our currency;
were three times the aggregate coin of the country; were greater
than any ever borne by any nation in ancient or in modern times.
The highest expenditure of Great Britain during her war with
Napoleon, at a time when her currency was inflated, when she made
the Bank of England notes a legal tender, was but £100,000,000.
Anticipating these enormous expenditures I introduced a bill which
became a law on the 31st of July, 1861, which provided for a
commission to examine and report as to the compensation of all
offices for the government, the commission to be composed of two
Members of the Senate, three Members of the House of Representatives,
one officer of the navy, and one officer of the army, who were
directed to examine and report, as soon as practicable, a fair and
just compensation for each officer of the government, and such
regulations as would secure a more economical collection of the
revenue. When this bill was pending I stated its purpose and my
hope to accomplish a reduction of the expenditures of the government,
or, at least, an equalization of the salaries then paid to the
different officers. We sought economy by the reduction of expenses.
I was chairman of this commission, and Senator Clark, of New
Hampshire, was my associate. The commission collected a mass of
information, and upon it based several bills introduced in the
second session of the 37th Congress. Some of these were made
nugatory by the rise of prices, measured in most cases by the fall
in value of our currency, but many of their provisions were ingrafted
into other bills that became laws.
The organization of national banks, authorized to issue circulating
notes, is so intimately connected with legal tender United States
notes that I think it proper to consider them in connection, though
the banking law did not pass until 1863. The two forms of currency,
one issued directly by the government as lawful money of the United
States and a legal tender, and the other issued by private
corporations, but secured by bonds of the United States, constitute
a system of national currency which, organized in the midst of war,
was an important aid to the government in its great struggle, and
when placed at par with coin by the resumption act has proven to
be the best paper money created by legislation in this or any other
country.
The issue of circulating notes by state banks had been the fruitful
cause of loss, contention and bankruptcy, not only of the banks
issuing them, but of all business men depending upon them for
financial aid. Inflation and apparent prosperity were often followed
by the closing of one bank and distrust of all others. The notes
of a broken bank were rarely paid, the assets of such bank being
generally applied to the payment of other liabilities, leaving the
loss to fall on the holders of the notes, mostly innocent persons
of limited means. This led to the adoption in 1846 of the sub-
treasury system, by which all payments to the treasury were required
to be in coin, to be held until required for disbursements on
government account. This protected the United States, but it did
not save the people from loss, as, from necessity, they were
compelled to use bank bills authorized by the several states,
varying in value and security, and chiefly limited in circulation
to the state in which issued. With a narrow view of the powers of
the national government, Congress had repeatedly refused to authorize
a national bank, a policy I heartily approve, not from a doubt of
the power of Congress to grant such a charter, but from the danger
of intrusting so vast a power in a single corporation, with or
without security. This objection did not lie against the organization
of a system of national banks extending over the country, which
required every dollar of notes issued to be secured by a larger
amount of bonds of the United States, to be deposited in the treasury
of the United States, thus saving the note holder from all possibility
of loss.
Secretary Chase, in his report of December 9, 1861, recommended
that a tax be imposed upon notes issued by state banks and also
that Congress should exercise its authority to establish a system
of national banks, with proper safeguards and limitations. A bill
was introduced for the latter purpose in the House of Representatives
in 1861, but, owing to the urgency for legislation on war measures,
it was not acted upon.
CHAPTER XIII.
ABOLISHMENT OF THE STATE BANKS.
Measures Introduced to Tax Them out of Existence--Arguments That
Induced Congress to Deprive Them of the Power to Issue Their Bills
as Money--Bill to Provide a National Currency--Why Congress Authorized
an Issue of $400,000,000, of United States Notes--Issue of 5-20
and 10-40 Bonds to Help to Carry on the War--High Rates of Interest
Paid--Secretary Chase's Able Management of the Public Debt--Our
Internal Revenue System--Repeal of the Income Tax Law--My Views on
the Taxability of Incomes.
Long before I became a Member of Congress I had carefully studied
the banking laws of the several states. The State of Ohio adopted,
in 1846, an improved system of banking. My study and experience
as a lawyer in Ohio convinced me that the whole system of state
banks, however carefully guarded, was both unconstitutional and
inexpedient and that it ought to be overthrown. When I entered
Congress I was entirely prepared, not only to tax the circulation
of state banks, but to tax such banks out of existence. But, while
this feeling prevailed in the west, the opposite feeling prevailed
in the New England and Middle States, where their banking system
had been so improved that bank failures were rare, and bank bills
were protected by mutual guaranties.
The Secretary of the Treasury had, in two annual messages, proposed
a tax on the circulation of bank bills. He believed that the
existing bank circulation prevented or embarrassed the process of
funding, by which alone the bonds of the United States could be
absorbed. He was forbidden by law to receive bank bills in exchange
for bonds or for any purpose, so that the current money of the
people was not available for the purchase of bonds. This was an
additional argument for taxing the state banks out of existence.
I introduced a measure for this purpose as an amendment to the
revenue bill, but it was postponed to save it from defeat.
I introduced a bill in January, 1863, containing two sections, the
first to levy a tax of two per cent. per annum on the circulation
of all bank bills, and the second to provide for a tax of ten per
cent. on all fractional currency under one dollar issued by
corporations or individuals. Upon this bill I made a carefully
prepared speech, not only defending the proposed tax, but declaring
my purpose to urge a gradual increase of the tax until all state
bank bills were excluded from circulation. As the reversal of this
policy is threatened I feel justified in briefly restating the
argument that induced Congress to deprive all state banks of the
power to issue their bills as money.
I drew the distinction between the ordinary powers of banking and
the issue of bank bills. I said that the business of banking proper
consisted in loaning money, discounting bills, facilitating exchanges
of productions by the agency of commercial paper, and in receiving
and disbursing the deposits of individuals. The issue of bank
bills was an exclusive privilege conferred only on a few corporations.
It was a privilege that an individual could not enjoy. No person
could issue his bills in the form of paper money without a corporate
franchise granted him and his associates, either by a general
banking law, or by an act of incorporation. All the business of
banking might be exercised by private individuals except this
franchise. There was no reason why any one individual or a
partnership might not carry on all the business incident to banking
except this one of issuing bills to circulate as money. The largest
banking houses in the world did not exercise the privilege of
issuing bills. The strongest banks in the United States, such as
the Bank of Commerce of New York, had but little or no circulation,
while the weakest banks supported themselves and made profit by
issuing the largest quantity of bills authorized. The law then
existing taxed heavily the business of banking proper. All commercial
paper--checks, drafts, orders, bills of exchange, protests, bonds
--every instrument that was used in the ordinary process of banking
--was heavily taxed, while bank bills were not taxed at all. A
private banker doing business had to pay a license of $100, but a
bank of circulation was expressly exempted from the necessity of
procuring a license. The tax law, as it stood, had this significant
provision: "But not to include incorporated banks legally authorized
to issue notes as circulation." Every commercial instrument was
required to pay a stamp tax, but this did not attach to a bank
bill. Bank notes issued for circulation were expressly excepted.
The only tax levied upon banks of circulation was a tax of three
per cent. on the net income. This tax could be deducted from the
dividend of the stockholders. The discrimination in favor of banks
of circulation ran through all the tax laws, while other corporations,
such as railroad companies, insurance companies and the like, were
subject to heavy taxes.
The profits of banking were then very great. The average profits
of the banks of New York were twelve and one half per cent. per
annum. The burdens imposed upon the banks by their charters were
lessened by the suspension of specie payments. When the banks had
to keep in their vaults coin to the amount of one-third of their
circulation, and were liable to be called upon any day for the
redemption of their notes in gold and silver, they might claim
exemption from taxes on their circulating notes. But during the
suspension of coin payment there ws no such liability. Whether
right or wrong the banks suspended specie payments, and increased
their currency without paying either principal of it or interest,
or tax on it, though in direct violation of law in some states.
I referred in my speech to an interview which was sought by the
banks of our chief commercial cities with the Secretary of the
Treasury, to which they invited the financial committees of the
two Houses to hear their propositions for carrying on the financial
operations of the government. We all went to the office of the
Secretary of the Treasury, and the proposition was there made that
the United States should issue no paper money whatever, that the
specie clause, as it is called, of the sub-treasury act should be
repealed, and that we should carry on the war upon the basis of
the paper money of the banks, legalizing the suspension of specie
payments, and that the government should issue no paper except upon
an interest of six per cent., or higher if the money markets of
the world demanded more. That was their plan of finance, the plan
substantially adopted in the War of 1812, and which had been
condemned by every statesman since that time, a plan of carrying
on the operations of our government by an association of banks over
which Congress had no control, and which could issue money without
limit so far as national laws affected it. That was the scheme
presented to us by very intelligent gentlemen engaged in the banking
business. They were honest and in earnest, but it appeared to me
as pretentious and even ludicrous.
It was claimed that a tax on banks interfered with vested rights.
I said that all taxes that were levied by the government were to
maintain vested rights, liberty and life. All these corporate
franchises were held subject to the power of taxation in Congress,
which was sometimes necessary to be exercised in the most potent
manner in order to maintain the government. The state could not,
by an act of incorporation, place their property beyond the power
of Congress. The only question was what rate of taxation ought to
be adopted. The rate proposed--two per cent.--I insisted was not
too high, because it was only one-third of the profit derived from
the issue of paper money without interest, the principal of which
was not paid in coin. I stated distinctly that the purpose of the
bill was not merely to levy a reasonable tax on the banks, but also
to induce them to withdraw their paper, in order to substitute for
it a national currency. I then reviewed in considerable detail
the history of our currency legislation, from the act chartering
the first bank of the United States to the beginning of our Civil
War, showing the view taken by the most eminent statesmen of our
country in favor of the establishment of uniform national currency
as the highest object of legislation. Mr. Madison said in his
message:
"It is, however, essential to every modification of the finances
that the benefits of a uniform national currency should be restored
to the community. The absence of the precious metals will, it is
believed, be a temporary evil; but, until they can again be rendered
the general medium of exchange, it devolves on the wisdom of Congress
to provide a substitute which shall equally engage the confidence
and accommodate the wants of the citizens throughout the Union."
I said that when coin, the best of currency, was driven out of
circulation, by the existence of war or extraneous circumstances,
it was the duty of Congress to provide a substitute. In 1816
Congress did this by establishing the Bank of the United States.
Most of the state banks shortly afterward exploded, and almost
their entire issue outstanding at the time fell as a loss to the
people of the United States. The Bank of the United States did
furnish for a while a stable currency. After its charter expired
in 1836, the controversy was between gold and silver, and paper
money as a currency. Nearly all the statesmen of that time believed
it was necessary to have a national currency in some form, but
there was a part in the country that believed the only true national
currency was gold and silver coin. After a controversy that I
would not review, the sub-treasury system was finally adopted.
The government had then no occasion to borrow money. Its debt was
paid off and there was a large surplus in the treasury, which was
distributed among the states. The agency of a United States bank
was no longer necessary to sustain the public credit. The object
then was to secure a safe deposit and custody of the public revenues.
The state banks failed to furnish a safe redeemable currency. In
1837 their notes were in the hands of the people, depreciated and
dishonored, if not entirely worthless. Therefore, I thought wisely,
the sub-treasury system was adopted, by which gold and silver coin
was the only money received or paid out by the government. I
believed that such was a true policy in the absence of national
banks. I also stated that if peace were restored to our country,
we ought, as soon as possible, to go back to the basis of gold and
silver coin, but, in the meantime, we must meet the exigencies of
the hour. Paper money was then a necessity. Gold and silver were
hoarded. War always had led, and always would lead, to the hoarding
of the precious metals. Gold and silver flee from a state of war.
All nations in the midst of great wars have been compelled to resort
to paper money. It was resorted to by our fathers during the
Revolution. It was only by the use of paper money that England
maintained her wars with Napoleon. At several periods during these
wars gold and silver were at a greater premium in England than they
were in this country.
I then proceeded to discuss the power of Congress to issue paper
money. I quoted an extract from the report of Mr. Dallas, in
December, 1815, in which he stated:
"By the constitution of the United States, Congress is expressly
vested with the power to coin money, to regulate the value of
domestic and foreign coin in circulation, and (as a necessary
implication from positive provisions) to emit bills of credit;
while it is declared by the same instrument that 'no state shall
coin money, or emit bills of credit.' The constitutional authority
to emit bills of credit has also been exercised in a qualified and
limited manner. . . .
"The constitutional and legal foundation of the monetary system of
the United States is thus distinctly seen; and the power of the
federal government to institute and regulate it, whether the
circulating medium consist of coin or of bills of credit, must, in
its general policy, as well as in the terms of its investment, be
deemed an exclusive power."
These extracts from a document of great ability, state the whole
question in a few words. Congress has the power to regulate
commerce; Congress has the power to borrow money, which involves
the power to emit bills of credit; Congress has the power to regulate
the value of coin. These powers are exclusive. When, by the force
of circumstances beyond our control, the national coin disappears,
either because of war or of other circumstances, Congress alone
must furnish the substitute. No state has the power to interfere
with this exclusive authority in Congress to regulate the national
currency, or, in other words, to provide a substitute for the
national coin.
I next stated the objections to local banks. The first was the
great number and diversity of bank charters. There were 1,642
banks in the United States, established by the laws of twenty-eight
different states, and these laws were as diverse, I might say, as
the human countenance. We had the state bank system with its
branches. We had the independent system, sometimes secured by
local bonds, sometimes by state bonds, sometimes by real estate,
sometimes by a mixture of these. We had every diversity of the
bank system in this country that has been devised by the wit of
man, and all these banks had the power to issue paper money. With
this multiplicity of banks, depending upon different organizations,
it was impossible to have a uniform national currency, for its
value was constantly affected by their issues. There was no common
regulator; they were dependent on different systems. The clearing
house system adopted in the city of New York applied only to that
city. There was no check or control over these banks. There was
a want of harmony and concert among them. Whenever a failure
occurred, such as that of the Ohio Life Insurance and Trust Company,
it operated like a panic in a disorganized army; all of the banks
closed their doors at once and suspended specie payments.
Another objection to these local banks was that of their unequal
distribution among the states. In New England the circulation of
the banks was about $50,000,000, while in Ohio, a state with three-
fourths of the population of all New England, it was but $9,000,000.
The contrast, if made with other states, was still more marked.
I called attention to the fact that the circulation of banks in
the eastern states had then reached about $130,000,000, and of that
amount, $40,000,000 was circulating in the west. If these notes
were driven out of circulation and the United States notes substituted,
a contribution would be made to the treasury of the United States
of $2,400,000 a year, for the mere interest of a currency which
the west did not prefer, but was compelled to use.
I called attention to the loss to the people by counterfeiting,
which could not be avoided when we had such a multitude of banks.
It then required experts to detect counterfeits. It was impossible
to prevent counterfeiting. An expert could save the banks, but
the loss fell upon the people. By the substitution of national
currency we substantially could lose nothing by counterfeiting.
The notes would be few in kind, only three or four of them, all
issued by the United States, all of a uniform character, that could
not be counterfeited. I described, with some detail, the loss to
the people of the United States by bills of broken banks, computed
them to be equivalent to five per cent. per annum of all the bills
issued. On an average, every twenty years the entire bank circulation
ceased to exist or deteriorated.
The loss of exchange from the west to the east on local currency
was one per cent. This loss was usually made a gain to themselves
by the bankers and "shavers." Under the most favorable state of
trade between the east and west an exchange of one per cent. was
demanded from drafts and bills of exchange. With a national
currency, uniform and equal throughout the country, this cost for
exchange would not exist or would be greatly reduced. I called
attention to the then increasing volume of local currency in the
United States. When the United States had issued $250,000,000 of
notes, the banks had largely increased their circulation. This
tended to depreciate both United States and bank notes.
I discussed at similar length the proposition that, as the states
were forbidden by the constitution to authorize the issue of bills
of credit, they were equally forbidden to authorize corporations
to issue circulating notes, which were bills of credit. Upon this
point it seemed to me that the authorities were absolutely conclusive.
That position was taken by the most eminent members of the
constitutional convention, by Joseph Story in his "Commentaries,"
by Daniel Webster, and other great leaders of both parties since
that time. It was in reference to these bills that Mr. Webster
used the language often quoted:
"A disordered currency is one of the greatest of political evils.
It undermines the virtues necessary for the support of the social
system, and encourages propensities destructive of its happiness.
It wars against industry, frugality, and economy; and it fosters
the evil spirits of extravagance and speculation. Of all the
contrivances for cheating the laboring classes of mankind, none
has been more effectual than that which deludes them with paper
money. This is the most effectual of inventions to fertilize the
rich man's field by the sweat of the poor man's brow. Ordinary
tyranny, oppression, excessive taxation, these bear lightly on the
happiness of the mass of the community, compared with a fraudulent
currency, and the robberies committed by depreciated paper."
In speaking of the bank circulation then afloat in the country, he
further said:
"It is further to be observed that the states cannot issue bills
of credit; not that they cannot make them a legal tender, but that
they cannot issue them at all. Is not this a clear indication of
the intent of the constitution to restrain the states, as well from
establishing a paper circulation as from interfering with the
metallic circulation? Banks have been created by states with no
capital whatever, their notes being put into circulation simply on
the credit of the state or the state law. What are the issues of
such banks but bills of credit issued by the state? I confess,
Mr. president, that the more I reflect on this subject, the more
clearly does my mind approach the conclusion that the creation of
state banks, for the purpose and with the power of circulating
paper, is not consistent with the grants and prohibitions of the
constitution."
I insisted that if there was no money in this country but United
States notes, the process of funding would be going on day by day.
Whenever there was too great an accumulation of these notes they
would be converted into bonds; the operation would go on quietly
and silently. I quoted the authority of Secretary Chase that it
was his deliberate judgment, after watching this process with all
his conceded ability, that but for the influence of this local bank
paper he would be able to carry on the war without the issue of
more paper money, that the currency then outstanding and that which
by law he was authorized to issue would be sufficient to carry it
on. Such a currency would lead to the conversion of the notes into
bonds, and by this process the people would absorb the national
loan and enable him to carry on the government without any sacrifice
to them.
It was not strange that Mr. Jefferson, near the close of the War
of 1812, stated more clearly than I could do the conflict between
local bank paper and United States notes. He, who during his whole
life was so mindful of the rights of the states, and so jealous of
paper money, in brief and terse language designated the only way
in which our country could carry on war. In his letter to Mr.
Cooper, dated September 10, 1814, just at the close of the war, he
said:
"The banks have discontinued themselves. We are now without any
medium, and necessity, as well as patriotism and confidence, will
make us all eager to receive treasury notes, if founded on specific
taxes.
"Congress may now borrow of the public, and without interest, all
the money they may want, to the amount of a competent circulation,
by merely issuing their own promissory notes of proper denominations
for the larger purposes of circulation, but not for the small.
Leave that door open for the entrance of metallic money. . . .
Providence seems, indeed, by a special dispensation, to have put
down for us, without a struggle, that very paper enemy which the
interest of our citizens long since required ourselves to put down,
at whatever risk.
"The work is done. The moment is pregnant with futurity, and if
not seized at once by Congress, I know not on what shoal our bark
is next to be stranded. The state legislatures should be immediately
urged to relinquish the right of establishing banks of discount.
Most of them will comply, on patriotic principles, under the
convictions of the moment, and the non-complying may be crowded
into concurrence by legitimate devices."
I also quoted another extract to show that this matter filled the
mind of Mr. Jefferson. He said:
"Put down the banks, and if this country could not be carried
through the longest war, against her most powerful enemy, without
ever knowing the want of a dollar, without dependence on the
traitorous classes of her citizens, without bearing hard on the
resources of the people, or loading the public with an indefinite
burthen of debt, I know nothing of my countrymen. Not by any novel
project, not by any charlatanry, but by ordinary and well-experienced
means; by the total prohibition of all paper at all times, by
reasonable taxes in war, aided by the necessary emissions of public
paper of circulating size, this bottomed on special taxes, redeemable
annually as this special tax comes in, and finally within a moderate
period--even with the flood of private paper by which we were
deluged--would the treasury have ventured its credit in bills of
circulating size, as of five or ten dollars, etc., they would have
been greedily received by the people in preference to bank paper."
On the 26th of January, 1863, I introduced in the Senate a bill to
"provide a national currency, secured by a pledge of United States
stocks, and for the circulation and redemption thereof." This bill
took the usual course, was referred to the committee on finance,
was reported favorably with a number of amendments, and was fully
debated in the Senate. On the 9th of February, 1863, a cursory
debate occurred between Mr. Collamer, of Vermont, and myself, which
indicated a very strong opposition to the passage of the banking
bill. Various amendments were proposed and some adopted. I became
satisfied that if a strong effort was not made the bill would either
be defeated or postponed. I then, without preparation, made a
long, and as I think, a comprehensive, speech covering the general
subject and its principal details. It was the only speech of
considerable length that was made in favor of the bill in the
Senate. There seemed to be a hesitancy in passing a measure so
radical in its character and so destructive to the existing system
of state banks.
I said the importance of the subject under consideration demanded
a fuller statement than had as yet been made of the principle and
object of the bill. It was the misfortune of war that we were
compelled to act upon matters of grave importance without that
mature deliberation that would be secured in peaceful times. The
measure affected the property of every citizen of the United States,
and yet our action for good or evil must be concluded within a few
days or weeks of that session. We were to choose between a permanent
system designed to establish a uniform national currency based on
the public credit, limited in amount, and guarded by all the
restraints which the experience of men had proved necessary, and
a system of paper money without limit as to amount, except for the
growing necessities of war.
I narrated the history of the bill, of its introduction in December,
1861, its urgent recommendation by the Secretary of the Treasury
in two annual reports, and the conditions that then demanded
immediate action upon it. I stated the then financial condition
of the country. Gold was at a premium of between fifty and sixty
per cent. and was substantially banished from circulation. We were
in the midst of war, when the necessities of the government required
us to have large sums of money. We could not choose as to the mode
in which we should get that money. If we pursued the ordinary
course, the course that had been sufficient in times of peace to
raise money, of putting our bonds into the market and selling them
for what they would bring, it would be at a great sacrifice. We
knew this from the history of other nations and from our own
experience. We therefore must look for some system of finance that
would give us all the aid possible, either in the form of paper
money or by the agencies of associated banks. We knew very well
that after the war was over the government would still be largely
in need of money.
I then reviewed the various financial measures since the commencement
of the war. We were then in the peculiar condition of a nation
involved in a war without any currency whatever which by law could
be used in the ordinary transactions of public business. Gold was
withdrawn by the suspension of specie payments. The money of the
banks could not be used because the laws of the United States
forbade it, and we were without any currency whatever. Under these
circumstances, Congress had authorized the issue of $400,000,000
of United States notes. That this measure was wise but few would
controvert. We were compelled, by a necessity as urgent as could
be imposed upon any legislature, to issue these notes. To the
extent to which they were issued they were useful; they were a loan
by the public and without interest; they were eagerly sought by
our people; they were taken by our enemies in the south, by our
friends in the north; they were taken in the east and the west.
They furnished the best substitute for gold and silver that could
then be devised, and if we could limit United States notes to the
amount then authorized by law they would form a suitable and valuable
currency.
We had but four expedients from which to choose. First, to repeal
the sub-treasury act and use the paper of local banks as a currency;
second, to increase largely the issue of United States notes; third,
to organize a system of national banking, and fourth, to sell the
bonds of the United States in the open market. I discussed each
of these expedients in considerable detail. The practical objection
to the further issue of United States notes was that there was no
mode of redemption; they were safe; they were of uniform value,
but there was no mode pointed out by which they were to be redeemed.
No one was bound to redeem them. They were receivable but not
convertible. They were debts of the United States but could not
be presented anywhere for redemption. No man could present them
except for the purpose fo funding them into the bonds of the United
States. They were not convertible into coin. They lacked that
essential element in currency.
Another objection was that they were made the basis of state bank
issues. Under the operation of the act declaring United States
notes to be a legal tender, the state bank circulation had increased
from $120,000,000 to $167,000,000. The banks sold their gold at
a large premium, and placed in their vaults United States notes
with which to redeem their own notes. While the government had
been issuing its paper money some of the banks were inflating the
currency, by issuing paper money on the basis of United States
money. Illustrations of this inflation were given of existing
banks, showing enormous issues based upon a comparatively small
amount of legal tender notes. The issue of United States notes by
the government, and the making them a legal tender, was made the
basis of an inflated bank circulation in the country, and there
was no way to check this except by uniting the interest of the
government, the banks, and the people, together, by one uniform
common system.
I said that during war local banks were the natural enemies of a
national currency. They were in the War of 1812. Whenever specie
payment was suspended, the power to issue a bank note was the same
as the power to coin money. The power granted to the Bank of France
and the Bank of England to issue circulating notes was greatly
abused during the period of war. It was a power that ought never
to be exercised except by the government, and only when the state
was in danger. It was the power to coin money, because when a bank
issued its bill without the restraint of specie payments, it
substantially coined money and false money. This was a privilege
that no nation could safely surrender to individuals or banks.
Upon this point I cited a number of authorities, not only in our
own country, but in Europe. While I believed that no system of
paper money should depend upon banks, I was far from objecting to
their agency. They were useful and necessary mediums of exchange,
indispensable in all commercial countries. The only power they
derived from corporation not granted to all citizens was to issue
notes as money, and this power was not necessary to their business
or essential to their profit. Their business connected them with
the currency, and whether it should be gold or paper they were
deeply interested in its credit and value. Was it not then possible
to preserve to the government the exclusive right to issue paper
money, and yet not injuriously affect the local banks? This was
the object of that bill.
But, it was asked, why look at all to the interest of the banks,
why not directly issue the notes of the government, and thus save
to the people the interest on the debt represented by the notes in
circulation? The only answer to this was that history taught us
that the public faith of a nation alone is not sufficient to maintain
a paper currency. There must be a combination between the interests
of private individuals and the government. Our revolutionary
currency, continental money, depreciated until it became worthless.
The assignats of France, issued during her revolutionary period,
shared the same fate. Other European countries which relied upon
government money alone had a similar experience. An excessive
issue of paper money by the government would produce bankruptcy
and repudiation, not only of the notes abroad, but of bonds also.
The government of the United States had in circulation nearly
$400,000,000 United States notes. We had a bank circulation of
$160,000,000. If we increased our circulation, as was then proposed,
it would create an inflation that would evidently lead to the
derangement of all business affairs in the country. Whatever might
be the hazards, we had to check this over expansion and over issue.
If a further issue of United States notes were authorized, it would
be at once followed by the issue of more bank paper, and then we
would have the wildest speculation. Hitherto the inflation had
not extended to many articles. Real estate had not been much
affected by it.
The question then occurred whether the bank bill proposed by the
Secretary of the Treasury, and introduced by me into the Senate,
would tend to secure a national currency beyond the danger of
inflation. This, the principal question involved, was discussed
at length. I contended that the notes issued would be convertible
into United States notes while the war lasted, and afterwards into
coin; that the currency would be uniform, of universal credit in
every part of the United States, while the bank bills, which it
would supersede, were current only in the states in which they were
issued. It would furnish a market for our bonds by requiring them
to be held as the security for bank notes, and thus advance the
value of the bonds. The state bank bills would be withdrawn, and
the state banks would be converted into national banks with severe
restrictions as to the amount of notes issued, and these only issued
to them by the general government upon ample security. The similarity
of notes all over the United States would give them a wider
circulation. I insisted that the passage of the bill would promote
a sentiment of nationality.
The policy of this country ought to be to make everything national
as far as possible. If we were dependent on the United States for
a currency and a medium of exchange, we would have a broader and
more prosperous nationality. The want of such nationality, I then
declared, was one of the great evils of the times; and it was that
principle of state rights, that bad sentiment that had elevated
state authority above the great national authority, that had been
the main instrument by which our government was sought to be
overthrown. Another important advantage the banks would derive
from this system, I urged, would be that their notes would be
guarded against all frauds and all alterations. There would be
but five or six kinds of notes in the United States, instead of
the great diversity there was then. In 1862 the number of banks
existing was 1,500, and the number whose notes were not counterfeited
was 253. The number of kinds of "imitations" was 1,861. The number
of kinds of "alterations" was 3,039. The number of kinds of
"spurious" was 1,685. This was the kind of currency that was
proposed to be superseded. Under the new system, the banks would
be relieved from all this difficulty.
Other advantages to the banks would be that they might become
depositaries of the public money, that their notes, being amply
secured, would be received in all payments due to or from the United
States, while the notes of state banks could not be so received,
as they were dishonored and disgraced from the beginning, being
refused by the national government.
This is an imperfect view of the question as it was then presented
to my mind. I knew the vote upon the passage of the bill would be
doubtful. The New England Senators, as a rule, voted for the bill,
but Senators Collamer and Foote had taken decided grounds against
it, and it was believed that Mr. Anthony and his colleague would
do likewise. I informed Secretary Chase of my doubt as to the
passage of the bill, and especially whether Mr. Anthony would vote
for it; without his vote I did not think it would pass. Mr. Chase
called at the Senate and had an interview with Mr. Anthony, in my
presence, in which he urged him strongly, on national grounds, to
vote for the bill, without regard to local interests in his own
state. His remarks made an impression upon Mr. Anthony who finally
exclaimed that he believed it to be his duty to vote for the bill,
although it would be the end of his political career. When the
vote was taken his name was the first recorded in favor of the
bill. It passed by a vote of 23 yeas and 21 nays, so that I was
entirely correct that if he had voted against the bill it would
have been defeated by a tie vote.
These two measures, the absorption of the state banks, and the
establishment of the system of national banks, taken in connection
with the legal tender act, were the most important financial measures
of the war, and, tested by time, have fully realized the anticipations
and confident assurance of their authors.
This system of national banks has furnished to the people of the
United States a currency combining the national faith with the
private stock and private credit of individuals. They have a
currency that is safe, uniform, and convertible. Not one dollar
of the notes issued by national banks has been lost to any person
through the failure of a bank. We have a currency limited in
amount, restrained and governed by law, checked by the power of
visitation and by the limitation of liabilities, safe, uniform,
and convertible in every part of the country. Every one of these
conditions prophesied by me has been literally realized.
Next in importance to a national currency was the problem of the
public debt. The issue of $50,000,000, demand notes, authorized
in 1861, was a forced expedient to meet immediate demands. A
prudent man, engaged in business, would not borrow money payable
on call unless he had securities which he could immediately convert
into money. Such liabilities are proper in a stock exchange or in
a gambling operation, to be settled by the receipt or payment of
balances on the rise or fall in the market of stocks or produce.
These demand notes gave Secretary Chase more trouble than any other
security, and they were finally absorbed in the payment of customs
duties.
On the 17th of July, 1861, Congress authorized the Secretary of
the Treasury to borrow, on the credit of the United States, within
twelve months, $250,000,000, for which he was authorized to issue
bonds, coupon or registered, or treasury notes, the bonds to bear
interest not exceeding seven per cent., payable semi-annually,
irredeemable for twenty years. The treasury notes were to be of
any denominations fixed by the Secretary of the Treasury, not less
than fifty dollars, and to be payable three years after date, with
interest at the rate of seven and three-tenths per cent. per annum,
payable semi-annually. He was also authorized to issue, in exchange
for coin, as a part of the loan of $250,000,000, treasury notes
payable on demand, already referred to, or treasury notes bearing
interest at the rate of three and sixty-five hundredths per cent.
per annum, and payable in one year from date and exchangeable at
any time for treasury notes of fifty dollars and upwards. These
forms of security were the most burdensome that were issued by the
government during the war. The terms of these securities were
somewhat altered by the act approved August 5, 1861.
These laws were superseded by the act of February 28, 1862, which
may be regarded as the most important loan law passed during the
war. It authorized the Secretary of the Treasury to issue, on the
credit of the United States, $150,000,000 of United States notes,
commonly called greenbacks, already described. Of these, $50,000,000
were to be in lieu of the demand treasury notes authorized to be
issued by the act of July, 1861, above referred to. It also
authorized the Secretary of the Treasury to issue $500,000,000 of
coupon, or registered, bonds, redeemable at the pleasure of the
United States after five years, and payable twenty years from date,
bearing interest at the rate of six per cent. per annum, payable
semi-annually. These are what were known as the 5-20 bonds. In
reference to these securities, Secretary Chase, in his report of
December 4, 1862, said:
"These measures have worked well. Their results more than fulfilled
the anticipations of the secretary. The rapid sale of the bonds,
aided by the issue of United States notes, furnished the means
necessary for the conduct of the war during that year."
On the 3rd of March, 1863, the Secretary of the Treasury was
authorized to borrow, from time to time, on the credit of the United
States, a sum not exceeding $300,000,000 for the current fiscal
year, and $600,000,000 for the next fiscal year, payable in coin,
at the pleasure of the government, after such periods as may be
fixed by the secretary, not less than ten, or more than forty,
years from date. These bonds, known as the 10-40's, bearing five
per cent. interest, were exempt from taxation by or under state or
municipal authority. This act also provided for the issue of a
large increase of non-interest bearing treasury notes, which were
made lawful money and a legal tender in payment of all debts, public
or private, within the United States, except for duties on imported
goods and interest on the public debt. Additional 10-40 bonds were
authorized by the act of June 30, 1864. But it may be said that
the 5-20 and 10-40 bonds became the well-known, recognized securities
of the United States, the sale of which at par, in connection with
the treasury notes of different forms, furnished the United States
the money to carry on the war. In the sale of these securities
the secretary was actively assisted by the banks and bankers of
the United States, and especially by Jay Cooke, who was the most
effective agent of the government in the sale of 5-20 bonds.
Secretary Chase, in his report of December 10, 1863, discussed at
length the objects to be kept studiously in view in the creation
of debt by negotiations of loans or otherwise: First, moderate
interest; second, general distribution; third, future controllability;
and, fourth, incidental utility.
The first loans were made upon the extravagant rate of interest of
seven and three-tenths per cent. The reason for this was the fact
that there was no currency the secretary could receive in exchange
for bonds. As already stated, specie payments were suspended by
the banks December 31, 1861. He was forbidden by law to receive
bank bills, and he knew that Congress would not and ought not to
repeal this law. After such suspension coin was scarce and difficult
to obtain. Afterwards, when the legal tender notes were authorized
and issued, he sold his bonds bearing six per cent. interest at
par for notes, but these notes had already largely depreciated
compared with coin. Still, they were money, readily taken for all
supplies, and enabled him to sell securities running a shorter
period. A diversity of securities maturing at different times were
exchanged for notes, and finally he was able to sell five per cent.
bonds at par, so that, on the 30th of September, 1863, two months
previous to his report, securities and notes then outstanding
amounted to $1,222,113,559. The fist bonds were irredeemable for
twenty years. The second bonds were redeemable in five, but payable
in twenty, years. The third bonds, bearing five per cent. interest,
were redeemable after ten years. It will be perceived that under
this arrangement the rate of interest on securities issued was
constantly reduced. The notes received in payment of bonds
depreciated or advanced in sympathy with the progress of our armies
and the prospects of success. The general purpose was to secure
as low a rate of interest as possible, to distribute the securities
among the largest number of persons possible, to provide the best
mode, time and terms for redemption, and to put the securities in
such form as to be used as a currency. No one can question the
wisdom of the management of the public debt by Secretary Chase.
The origin and development of the present system of internal taxes
must be interesting to every student of finance. The policy of
the government had been to confine, as far as possible, national
taxes to duties on imports, and, in ordinary times, this source of
revenue, exclusively vested in the United States, together with
the proceeds of the sale of public lands, was ample to defray the
current expenses of the government. During and shortly after the
War of 1812 resort was had to direct taxes apportioned among the
states respectively, and to internal taxes authorized by the
constitution under the name of excises, but the necessities of the
treasury becoming more urgent, and the reliance on the public credit
becoming more hazardous, Congress, at the special session which
convened in May, 1813, determined to lay the foundations of a system
of internal revenue, selecting in particular those subjects of
taxation which would be least burdensome. These taxes were at
first limited to one year, but were extended from time to time, so
that they acquired the name of "war taxes." A direct tax of
$3,500,000 was laid upon the United States, and apportioned among
the states respectively for the year 1814. Taxes were imposed on
sugar refined in the United States, on carriages, on licenses to
distillers of spirituous liquors, and other forms of internal
production. It was estimated that the internal taxes and the direct
tax would yield $3,500,000. For the fiscal year ending June 30,
1815, internal taxes yielded $5,963,000. In 1816 they yielded
$4,396,000. In 1817 they yielded $2,676,000, after which there
was no revenue from internal taxes except from the collection of
arrears, amounting in 1818 to $947,946, the law providing for such
taxes having expired by limitation. A comparison between the
receipts from this source then and the receipts subsequently derived
from internal revenue, is a significant indication of the difference
in population and wealth between 1812 and 1862.
When the Civil War commenced and the necessity of a large increase
of revenue became apparent, Secretary Chase, in his report to
Congress of the date of July 4, 1861, called attention to the
necessity of provision for a gradual increase in the revenue to
maintain the public credit, and to meet the current demands. His
recommendation as to internal taxes has already been referred to.
The act of August 5, 1861, previously mentioned, levied a direct
tax of $20,000,000 and an income tax. This act proved to be a
crude and imperfect measure, and it was modified or superseded by
the act of July 1, 1862. This act, carefully framed, was the basis
of the present system of internal revenue. It created a new office
in the treasury department, to be called the office of commissioner
of internal revenue. No less than thirteen acts of Congress were
passed prior to August 1, 1866, enlarging and defining the duties
of the office, and prescribing the taxes imposed by these several
laws. When this act was first framed we anticipated much greater
difficulties in the collection of the tax than actually occurred.
We had doubts whether the taxation imposed by this law would be
patiently submitted to by our constituents, but these misgivings
soon disappeared and the taxes imposed by that act were cheerfully
and promptly paid. I gave to the study and consideration of this
act, and the various amendatory acts, a large portion of my time.
At the end of the war internal taxes were cheerfully paid by the
people, and yielded far more revenue to the government than the
customs duties and all other sources of revenue combined.
The receipts from internal revenue for the first four years under
this law were as follows;
For the year ending June 30, 1863 . . . . $37,640,787
For the year ending June 30, 1864 . . . . 117,145,748
For the year ending June 30, 1865 . . . . 211,129,529
For the year ending June 30, 1866 . . . . 310,906,984
These taxes were mainly upon spirits, tobacco and beer, but they
also included stamp taxes of various kinds, special taxes on
particular industries, and income taxes, so that practically nearly
all forms of domestic manufactures were subject to a greater or
less tax, according to the nature of the article. So sweeping were
the provisions that it was frequently a matter of joke as well as
comment.
Some one remarked to Senator Collamer that everything was taxed
except coffins. He rejoined: "Don't say that to Sherman or he
will have them on the tax list before night!"
The general prosperity that existed during the war under such a
burden of taxation was frequently a matter of surprise. The truth
is that all productive industries were active because of the enormous
demand made by the army for supplies of all kinds, and everyone
who was willing to work could find plenty of employment. The
depreciation of the currency caused by the war did not embarrass
anyone, as the interest on securities was promptly paid in coin,
and greenbacks were the favorite currency of the people. The people
did not stop to inquire the causes of the nominal advance in prices;
they only knew that the United States note was cheerfully received
in every part of the United States as the current money of the
country. At the beginning the tax on whisky was 20 cents per
gallon, but it was gradually increased until it reached $2 a gallon,
when frauds and illicit distilling became serious evils. The tax
was then reduced to 90 cents a gallon.
When I became Secretary of the Treasury, I was impressed with the
magnitude of illicit distilling, even after the rate was reduced.
At that time several hundred men, mostly in the mountain regions
of North Carolina and Tennessee, were under arrest for violation
of the laws against illicit distilling. A delegation of them,
accompanied by Senator Ransom, appeared before me, and I heard
their apologies for distilling, and their complaints against the
officers. We entered into a formal engagement by which they agreed
to stop illicit distilling upon condition that they should be
relieved of punishment for their past acts, and, so far as I could
learn, they substantially observed their obligation. As a rule,
they were rough mountaineers who regarded whisky as a prime necessity
of life, and thought they ought to be allowed to convert their
grain into something better.
As the necessity for excessive taxation diminished after the war
was over, taxes on various articles were gradually repealed, until,
in 1894, they consisted of practically four items, spirits, tobacco,
fermented liquors, and oleomargarine. These are the figures for
two years:
Receipts during fiscal years
Objects of Taxation. ended June 30--
1893. 1894.
Spirits . . . . . . $94,720,260.55 $85,259,252.25
Tobacco . . . . . . 31,889,711.74 28,617,898.62
Fermented Liquors . 32,548,983.07 31,414,788.04
Oleomargarine . . . 1,670,643.50 1,723,479.90
In respect to these taxes, that on oleomargarine was not intended
as, nor is it, a very material revenue tax. The purpose was
especially to prevent the fraudulent imitation of butter by using
an extract of beef. The tax on spirits, tobacco and beer ought to
be retained as the best objects of taxation either of domestic or
imported goods. Neither of these is an article of necessity, but
all are used purely to gratify an appetite, in many cases indulged
to excess.
All civilized nations have come to regard these articles as the
best subjects of taxation. To the extent that whisky is used as
a beverage it is hurtful in its influence upon the individual and
upon society at large. It is the cause of innumerable crimes, of
poverty and distress in the family and home. Still, it is an
appetite that will be gratified, however severe may be the laws
against its use, and while this habit exists the tax upon whisky,
by limiting the quantity consumed, is beneficial to society at
large. It is true that alcohol, the base of whisky, is useful in
the arts and in the preparation of medicines and vinegar. If some
feasible plan could be prescribed by which alcohol or spirits thus
used could be freed from tax, it would be right to exempt it, but
no such plan has been found that includes security against frauds
being practiced to evade the tax on whisky. The tax on tobacco
and cigars is a moderate one, but the consumption of them is far
less dangerous than that of spirits in their influence upon society.
The tax on the cheaper form of tobacco and cigars is comparatively
small and does not add materially to the cost of tobacco in any of
its forms. No complaint is made of it. Its consumption is so
general that the tax is fairly distributed and falls mainly on the
richer classes, as the tax is increased in proportion to the value
of the tobacco. Beer, a beverage of almost universal use, yields
the large sum of $30,000,000 a year, at the rate of one dollar a
barrel. This does not cause a perceptible increase of the cost to
the consumer, but rather tends to maintain the good quality of beer
by the surveillance of the officers of internal revenue. No general
complaint has been made of this tax. All internal taxes are
collected at less cost than any other form of taxation devised,
and should be maintained as long as the expenses growing out of
the war shall remain unpaid.
The patience and even cheerfulness with which the people of the
United States submitted to this severe taxation on their domestic
productions, was a matter of surprise, not only among our own
people, but in European countries. In 1867, accompanied by Mr.
Adams, our minister to England, I had the pleasure of breakfasting
with Mr. Gladstone at his official residence, and he referred to
the ease with which we collected, without complaint, taxes so
burdensome as ours then were. He asked me if it was true that we
had collected $1,600,000 annually from a tax on matches. I told
him that we not only did so but that I had never heard a word of
complaint, and the quality of matches was vastly improved while
their price was actually reduced. He threw up his hands and said
that the people of England would not submit to such tax and if any
ministry would propose it, it would soon be out of power. Strange
to say an administration of which Mr. Gladstone was at the head
did subsequently propose such a tax, but it was so severely arraigned
that it was at once abandoned.
The income tax, varied somewhat in terms from year to year, continued
in force until 1870, when it was proposed to repeal it as no longer
necessary. By the terms of the then existing law it expired in
1872. I urged as strongly as I could its retention at least until
the time expired, but it was repealed. I then believed, and now
believe, that a moderate income tax, levied on all incomes above
the sum of $1,000, or above a sum that will supply the ordinary
wants of an average family in the United States with the necessaries
of life, should be levied, according to the exigencies of the public
service. In the present condition of affairs, I doubt the expediency
of such a tax, especially in view of the decision of the Supreme
Court of the United States recently rendered.
The distinction made by that court between incomes from the rent
of land and other incomes seems narrow and technical. A tax upon
the value of land is a direct tax, and must be apportioned among
the states according to population, but it does not follow that a
tax on incomes from land is a direct tax. An income means that
gain which results from business, or property, of any kind, from
the proceeds of a farm, the profits derived from trade and commerce,
and from any occupation or investment. In common language the word
income applies to money received from any source. It may be
qualified as gross income and net income. It may be limited by
words defining the source of the income, as, from land, merchandise
or banking, but, in its general sense, it means gross savings from
all sources. When received in money it is an income and not until
then. An income tax was paid, and cheerfully paid, by American
citizens during and since the war, in vast sums, and it did not
occur to citizen, lawyer or judge that the constitution of the
United States made a distinction between incomes from rents and
income from notes or bonds. The states tax both land and bonds.
Why may not the United States tax income from each alike? Many of
the largest incomes in the United States are derived from rents.
To except them by technical reasoning from a general tax on incomes
will tend to disparage the Supreme Court among "plain people." If
incomes from rents must be excepted, then no income tax ought to
be assessed. This decision, if adhered to, may cripple the government
in times of emergency. If made when the income tax was first
imposed, it would have reduced the national revenue $347,000,000,
for no income tax would have been enacted if rents were excluded
from taxable incomes.
I do not propose to narrate the numerous internal revenue laws,
which have been enacted and modified at every session of Congress
since 1861, or the innumerable objects of taxation embraced in
them, for such a narrative would fill too much space. The discussion
of these laws occupied a large portion of the time of Congress.
The articles or productions subject to taxation included for a time
nearly everything for the use of man. I trust the time is far
distant when such sweeping internal taxation will be required again,
but if it should come, the Congress of that day can find in our
experience resources more bountiful than Aladdin's lamp.
Direct taxes, to be apportioned among the states, are not likely
to be again assessed after the experience we had as to the last
direct tax. Besides the difficulty of collecting it, there is the
palpable objection that it is an unequal, and therefore an unjust,
tax. New states, and especially agricultural states, have not the
same ability to pay direct taxes as older commercial and manufacturing
states, having within them great cities with accumulated wealth,
in the form of stocks, bonds and patents.
The office of commissioner of internal revenue has fortunately been
filled, as a rule, by gentlemen of standing and character of a high
order of intelligence, and their work has been of great service to
the United States. This important bureau ought to be, and no doubt
will be, retained as a part of the organized machinery of the
government, and the taxes collected by it will be necessary as long
as our public debt remains, and until the list of pensioners will
be obliterated by the hand of time.
CHAPTER XIV.
LINCOLN'S EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION.
Slavery in the District of Columbia Abolished--Law Goes Into Effect
on April 10, 1862--Beginning of the End of Slavery--Military Measures
in Congress to Carry on the War--Response to the President's Call
--Beneficial Effects of the Confiscation Act--Visits to Soldiers'
Camps--Robert S. Granger as a Cook--How I Came to Purchase a
Washington Residence--Increase of Compensation to Senators and
Members and Its Effect--Excitement in Ohio over Vallandigham's
Arrest--News of the Fall of Vicksburg and Defeat of Lee at Gettysburg
--John Brough Elected Governor of Ohio--Its Effect on the State.
Another question of grave political significance was presented to
the 37th Congress early in this session, that of the abolition of
slavery in the District of Columbia. I had from the beginning
declared my opposition to any interference with slavery in the
District, but the changed condition of the country demanded a change
of public policy in this respect. Slavery was made the pretext
for, and, I believe, was, the real cause of the war. It had a
foothold in the District of Columbia, but it existed there in its
mildest form. By the census of 1860 there were, in the District
of Columbia, 11,107 free negroes, 3,181 slaves, and 60,785 white
people. It was considered the paradise of free negroes, where they
were almost exclusively employed as laborers in household service.
When the war broke out a considerable number of slaves ran away
from disloyal masters in Virginia and Maryland, seeking safety
within our lines and finding employment in the District of Columbia.
As the war approached, most of the slaves in the District were
carried away by their owners into Virginia, and other southern
states, so that in 1862 it was estimated there were not more than
1,500, and probably not 1,000, slaves in the District, while the
number of free negroes increased to 15,000. As a matter of course,
when Virginia seceded no attempt was made to recapture runaway
slaves from that state, and they became practically free. It was
known that there was at that time a strong disposition in Maryland
to try the experiment of emancipation, and it was believed that
after the war was over Virginia would adopt the same policy. Little
doubt was felt as to the power of Congress to abolish slavery in
the District, should such a course be deemed expedient. By the
constitution Congress was invested with express "power to exercise
exclusive legislation, in all cases whatsoever, over such district
as may, by cession of particular states, and the acceptance of
Congress, become the seat of government of the United States."
This power had been recognized by the most eminent statesmen of
our country, and also by the Supreme Court of the United States.
Until Mr. Calhoun doubted or denied the power it was not questioned
by any considerable number. The real question was whether that
was the time for emancipation. I endeavored to give to the subject
careful consideration, and came to the conclusion that it was
expedient then to emancipate the very few slaves in the District,
fewer than there had been at any time within forty years, and fewer
than would likely be in case the war should end. I believed also
that the social influence of Washington, and the wealth and property
controlled and owned in a great measure by slaveholding residents
there, had been always against the government of the United States
and in favor of the Rebellion. While slavery existed it was a
constant source of annoyance and irritation. The great mass of
our constituents were opposed to slavery, morally, socially and
politically. They felt it was wrong and would not change their
opinion. As long as slavery existed in the District, where Congress
had the power to abolish it, agitation and excitement would be
ceaseless. The great body of the people of the northern states
were opposed to the institution theoretically, as were very many
of the most intelligent people of the southern states. I felt that
now was the time when this moral conviction should be heard and
heeded by the national legislature. I felt that we were bound to
consult the material interest of the people of the District, and
that emancipation would add to the value of their property and also
add to the population of the city. The abolition of slavery would
bring to the city intelligent mechanics and laboring men who would
never compete with the labor of slaves, and who, finding none there
but freemen, would develop the great advantages of the city. In
a speech I made upon the subject I enlarged upon this consideration
and said:
"I see no reason why Washington, with a free population and as a
free city, situated here at the head of the Potomac, with remarkable
facilities of navigation, with great conveniences of communication,
reaching to the west by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, the
political capital of the country, might not be a great free city,
illustrating by its progress the operation of free institutions.
But it can only be done by the active, interested labor of free
people. Simply as a municipal regulation it would be wise to
abolish slavery in this district, because slavery is opposed to
the moral convictions of the great mass of the people of this
country, and the existence of slavery here keeps out of this District
an active, loyal, true, manly, generous body of laborers, who will
never compete in their labor with the labor of slaves."
There was another reason why the experiment of emancipation could
be best tried in the District of Columbia. Emancipation was
evidently the ultimate end of this question. We had the power to
try the experiment. It would be an example likely to be followed
at the close of the war by many of the border states. I therefore
made up my mind in favor of the measure, made a long speech for
the bill and voted for it. It became a law on April 10, 1862.
At that early day, I believed that it was the duty of Congress to
confiscate the slaves in the seceding states as the natural result
of the war. These states had placed themselves in a position by
rebellion where they had no constitutional rights which we were
bound to observe. The war being open and flagrant to break up the
Union, they were not entitled to the benefit of any stipulation
made in their favor as states in the Union. I also favored the
granting of aid to any policy of emancipation that might be adopted
in the border states of Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri, but Congress
was indisposed to extend the provisions of the then pending measure
beyond the District of Columbia.
The President of the United States, on September 22, 1862, issued
his proclamation containing the following declaration:
"That on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves
within any state of designated part of a state, the people whereof
shall be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then,
thenceforward, and forever, free; and the executive government of
the United States, including the military and naval authority
thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons,
and will do no act or acts to repress such persons, or any of them,
in any efforts they may make for their actual freedom."
This was carried out in a subsequent proclamation of January 1,
1863, in which the President declared:
"And by virtue of the power and for the purpose aforesaid, I do
order and declare that all persons held as slaves, within said
designated states and parts of states, are, and henceforward shall
be, free; and that the executive government of the United States,
including the military and naval authorities thereof, will recognize
and maintain the freedom of said persons."
This was the beginning of the end of slavery.
In following the important financial measures of the 37th Congress,
I have purposely passed by, in their order of time, other measures
of vital interest that were acted upon in that Congress. The
military measures adopted were on the same grand scale as the
financial measures I have referred to. In 1861 the United States
contained a population of 32,000,000 people, of whom about 10,000,000
were in the seceding states, some of whom were opposed to secession,
but a greater number living in states that did not secede were in
hearty sympathy with the rebellion. No preparation for war had
been made in any of the loyal states, while in the disloyal states
preparations had been made by the distribution of arms through the
treachery of Secretary Floyd. When the seceding states organized
a confederate government, the executive branch of the general
government was under the management and control of those who favored
the rebellion, or were so feeble or indifferent that they offered
no resistance whatever to such organization. The President of the
United States declared, in an executive message, that the general
government had no power to coerce a state. On the accession of
President Lincoln, the confederate government was better organized
for resistance than the Union was for coercion. When war actually
commenced, the capital at Washington was practically blockaded,
and in the power of the Confederates.
The response of the loyal states to the call of Lincoln was perhaps
the most remarkable uprising of a great people in the history of
mankind. Within a few days the road to Washington was opened, but
the men who answered the call were not soldiers, but citizens,
badly armed, and without drill or discipline. The history of their
rapid conversion into real soldiers, and of the measures adopted
by Congress to organize, arm and equip them, does not fall within
my province. The battles fought, the victories won, and the defeats
suffered, have been recorded in the hundred or more volumes of "The
Records of the Rebellion," published by the United States. The
principal events of the war have been told in the history of Abraham
Lincoln by Nicolay and Hay, and perhaps more graphically by General
Grant, General Sherman, General Sheridan, Alexander H. Stephens,
Fitz Hugh Lee, and many others who actively participated in the
war, and told what they saw and knew of it.
The military committees of the two Houses, under the advice of
accomplished officers, formulated the laws passed by Congress for
the enlistment, equipment and organization of the Union armies.
Henry Wilson, of Massachusetts, was chairman of the committee on
military affairs of the Senate, and he is entitled to much of the
praise due for the numerous laws required to fit the Union citizen
soldiers for military duty. His position was a difficult one, but
he filled it with hearty sympathy for the Union soldiers, and with
a just regard for both officers and men.
Among the numerous bills relating to the war, that which became
the act to suppress insurrection, to punish treason and rebellion,
and to seize and confiscate the property of rebels, excited the
greatest interest, giving rise to a long debate. It was founded
on the faulty idea that a territorial war, existing between two
distinct parts of the country, could be treated as an insurrection.
The law of nations treats such a war as a contest between two
separate powers, to be governed by the laws of war. Confiscation
in such a war is not a measure to be applied to individuals in a
revolting section, but if the revolt is subdued, the property of
revolting citizens is subject to the will of the conqueror and to
the law of conquest. The apparent object of the law referred to
was to cripple the power of the Confederate States, by emancipating
slaves held in them, whenever such states fell within the power of
the federal army. This object was accomplished in a better and
more comprehensive way by the proclamation of the President. The
confiscation act had but little influence upon the result of the
war, except that it gathered at the wake of our armies in the south
a multitude of negroes called "contrabands," who willingly performed
manual labor, but were often an incumbrance and had to be fed and
protected.
The freedom of these "contrabands" was the result of the war, and
not of the confiscation act. In the later period of the war, they,
in common with the free negroes from the north, were organized into
regiments commanded by white men, and rendered valuable service to
the Union cause.
When the confiscation bill was pending, on the 23rd of April, 1862,
I made a speech in support of an amendment offered by me and in
substance adopted. A few extracts of my speech will show my opinions
on this subject:
"Confiscation is not only justified by the laws of war, by the
practice of many nations, but it is practiced by our enemies in
the most obnoxious way. They seize all kinds of property of loyal
citizens; they destroy contracts; confiscate debts. All the property
of citizens of loyal states which is within a disloyal state is
seized without exception, and that whether such citizen has aided
the government or not. They also seize the property of all citizens
in disloyal states who will not commit an act of treason by aiding
them. Yet they profess to be governed by a constitution similar
to the constitution of the United States, so far as it relates to
the rights of person and property. They draw the distinction
between the laws of war and the laws of peace. . . .
"Sir, it is time there was an end of this. We are at war. We must
destroy our enemies or they will destroy us. We must subdue their
armies and we must confiscate their property. The only question
with me is as to the best measure of confiscation. That some one
should be enacted, and that speedily, is not only my conviction of
duty, but it will be demanded by those who will have to bear the
burdens of the war. Now, it is the interest of every citizen in
a seceding state to be a rebel. If a patriot, his property is
destroyed. If a rebel, his property is protected alike by friend
and foe. Now, the burdens of war will fall, by heavy taxation,
upon loyal citizens, but rebels are beyond our reach. How long
can we conduct such a war? Sir, we have been moderate to excess.
War is a horrible remedy, but when we are compelled to resort to
it, we should make our enemies feel its severity as well as
ourselves. . . .
"If too much is attempted in the way of confiscation, nothing will
be accomplished. If nothing is confiscated, you array against you
all who wish in a civil war merely to preserve their property and
to remain quiet. This is always a large class in every community.
If rebellion will secure their property from rebels and not endanger
it to the government, they are rebels. Those whose position or
character have secured them offices among the rebels can only be
conquered by force. Is it not, therefore, possible to frame a bill
which will punish the prominent actors in the rebellion, proclaim
amnesty to the great mass of citizens in the seceding states, and
separate them from their leader? This, in my judgment, can be done
by confining confiscation to classes of persons. The amendment I
propose embraces five classes of persons."
The confiscation act was more useful as a declaration of policy
than as an act to be enforced. It was denounced by the Confederates
and by timid men in the north, but the beneficial results it aimed
at were accomplished, not by law, but by the proclamation of the
President and by the armed forces of the United States.
The several acts providing for enrolling and calling out the national
forces gave rise to much debate, partly upon sectional lines. The
policy of drafting from the militia of the several states, the
employment of substitutes and the payment of bounties, were contested
and defended. I insisted that if a special fund for hiring
substitutes was raised, it ought to be by a tax upon all wealthy
citizens, and not confined to the man who was drafted. These and
numerous questions of a similar character occupied much time, and
created much feeling. It is now hardly worth while, in view of
the results of the war, to revive old controversies. It is sufficient
to say that all the laws passed to organize the national forces
and call out the militia of the several states in case of emergency
contributed to the success of the Union armies. I do not recall
any example in history where a peaceful nation, ignorant of military
discipline, becoming divided into hostile sections, developed such
military power, courage and endurance as did the United States and
Confederate States in our Civil War. Vast armies were raised by
voluntary enlistments, great battles were fought with fearful losses
on both sides, and neither yielded until the Confederates had
exhausted all their resources and surrendered to the Union armies
without conditions, except such as were dictated by General Grant
--to go home and be at peace.
During the entire war Washington was a military camp. Almost every
regiment from the north on the way to the army in Virginia stopped
for a time in Washington. This was especially the case in 1861.
It was usual for every new regiment to march along Pennsylvania
Avenue to the White House. Among the early arrivals in the spring
of 1861 was a regiment from New Hampshire, much better equipped
than our western regiments. My colleague, Ben Wade, and I went to
the White House to see this noted regiment pass in review before
Mr. Lincoln. As the head of the line turned around the north wing
of the treasury department and came in sight, the eyes of Wade fell
upon a tall soldier, wearing a gaudy uniform, a very high hat, and
a still higher cockade. He carried a baton, which he swung right
and left, up and down, with all the authority of a field marshal.
Wade, much excited, asked me, pointing to the soldier: "Who is
that?" I told him I thought that was the drum major. "Well," he
said, "if the people could see him they would make him a general."
So little was then known of military array by the wisest among our
Senators.
It was quite a habit of Senators and Members, during the war, to
call at the camps of soldiers from their respective states.
Secretary Chase often did this and several times I accompanied him.
The "boys," as they preferred to be called, would gather around
their visitors, and very soon some one would cry out "a speech, a
speech," and an address would usually be made. I heard very good
speeches made in this way, and, in some cases, replied to by a
private soldier in a manner fully as effective as that of the
visitor.
In the early period of the war the private soldier did not forget
that he was as good as any man. One evening Major, afterwards
Major-General, Robert S. Granger and I were strolling through "Camp
Buckingham," near Mansfield, Ohio, and came to a young soldier
boiling beans. He was about to take them off the fire when Granger
said: "My good fellow, don't take off those beans; they are not
done." The young soldier squared himself and with some insolence
said: "Do you think I don't know how to boil beans?" Granger,
with great kindness of manner, said: "If you had eaten boiled
beans in the army as many years as I have you would know it is
better to leave them in the pot all night with a slow fire." The
manner of Granger was so kindly that the soldier thanked him and
followed his advice. General Granger died at Zanesville, Ohio,
April 25, 1894, after having been on the retired list for over
twenty-one years. He was a gallant, as well as a skillful, officer.
Peace to his memory.
It was my habit, while Congress was in session during the war, to
ride on horseback over a region within ten miles of Washington,
generally accompanied by some army officer. I became familiar with
every lane and road, and especially with camps and hospitals. At
that time it could be truly said that Washington and its environs
was a great camp and hospital. The roads were generally very muddy
or exceedingly dusty. The great army teams cut up and blocked the
roads which were either of clay or sand, but the air was generally
refreshing and the scenery charming. I do not know of any city
that has more beautiful environs, with the broad Potomac at the
head of tide water, the picturesque hills and valleys, the woodland
interspersed with deciduous and evergreen trees, the wide landscape,
extending to the Blue Ridge on the west, the low lands and ridges
of Maryland and the hills about Mt. Vernon. The city of Washington,
however, was then far from attractive. It was an overgrown village,
with wide unpaved avenues and streets, with 61,000 inhabitants
badly housed, hotels and boarding houses badly kept, and all
depending more or less upon low salaries, and employment by the
government. All this has been changed. The streets and avenues
have been paved and extended. The old site is now well filled with
comfortable mansions and business blocks, and a large portion of
the District outside the city is being occupied with villas and
market gardens. The mode of living has greatly changed. Before
and during the war, Senators and Members lived in boarding houses
in messes, formed of families of similar tastes and opinions.
Society, if it may be so called, was chiefly official, of which
justices of the Supreme Court and cabinet officers were the head,
and Senators and Members of Congress were the most numerous guests.
When I entered Congress my pay as a Member was $8 a day during the
season, and it was said we had "roast beef;" but we paid for it if
we had it. At the close of the 34th Congress the compensation was
increased to $3,000 a year. During the latter part of the war and
afterwards, prices of food, board and lodging were considerably
advanced.
In 1864 I offered the proprietor of Willard's Hotel my monthly pay
of $250 for board and lodgings, in very modest quarters, for my
wife and myself, but he demanded $300 a month. This led me to
purchase a house in which to live, a change which I have never
regretted. It was quite the fashion then for the old families,
who were in full sympathy with the Confederates, to underrate
property (even their own) in Washington, on the ground that when
the Confederacy was acknowledged the capital would be removed, and
real estate could, therefore, be obtained upon very reasonable
terms.
After the war the feverish revival of business growing out of our
expanded currency led to such reckless extravagance in improvements
by public officials in Washington that for a time it threatened
the bankruptcy of the city, but, as this leads me in advance of
events, I will recur hereafter to the Washington of to-day.
During 1870 Congress passed a law increasing the compensation of
Senators and Members from $3,000 to $5,000 a year, and justified
this increase by the inflated prices of everything measured by a
depreciated currency. There would have been but little complaint
of this by the people had not the law been made retroactive. It
was made to take effect at the beginning of that Congress, though
when the law was passed Congress was nearly ended. This "back
pay," amounting to over $3,000, was very unpopular, and led to the
defeat of many Members who voted for it. At home they were called
"salary grabbers." Several Senators and Members, I among the
number, declined to receive the back pay. But it was said that
the Congressmen could apply for it at any time in the future when
the excitement died away. This led me to write Francis E. Spinner,
Treasurer of the United States, to ascertain how I could cover into
the treasury my back pay. His answer was characteristic, and is
here inserted. Spinner, long since dead, was a peculiar character.
He was with me in the House of Representatives, was appointed
Treasurer of the United States by President Lincoln, and continued
as such until 1875. He was a typical officer, bold, firm and
honest. He was also a true friend, a model of fidelity and courage.
"Treasury of the United States,}
"Washington, July 3, 1873. }
"My Dear Sir:--Your letter of the 28th ultimo has been received.
"I sympathize with you most fully. I too have had my share of lies
told on me, by Dana and his 'Sun,' and shall be disappointed if
the libels are not continued, especially if I do right. Really
you have a white elephant on your hands. You can neither take the
back pay, nor leave it where it is, nor draw it and redeposit it,
without subjecting yourself to the yelping of the damned curs, that
bark at the heels of every honest man.
"If you will turn to the proviso in Section 5, of the General
Appropriation Bill, approved July 12, 1870, at page 251, volume
16, of the Statutes at Large, you will, I think, be satisfied that
your back pay would never lapse to the treasury. Should you leave
it, as it now is, I think it would at all times be subject to your
order, and to the order of your heirs afterwards. The department
has decided that the appropriations for the pay of Members of
Congress is _permanent_. The papers say that the Comptroller has
decided that the back pay would lapse in two years. I called on
him to-day, and he furnished me with a copy of his opinion, which
is herewith inclosed you, and wrote me a note, a copy of which is
also inclosed, in which he says--'it could not be carried back
until after two years; whether it can be carried back is another
question, which I do not intend to decide.' There are two ways
that the amount can be carried back into the treasury: First, by
drawing out the amount, and redepositing it; and second, by directing
the secretary of the senate, by written order, to turn the amount
into the treasury. I, of course, can't advise you what to do.
"Very respectfully yours,
"F. E. Spinner, Tr., U. S.
"Hon. John Sherman, Mansfield, Ohio."
In the spring of 1863, the financial operations of the government
were eminently successful. In the fall of 1862, Secretary Chase
endeavored to sell the $500,000,000 5-20 six per cent. bonds,
authorized by the act of February 25, 1862, through experienced
officers in New York, and could not get par for them. He then
employed Jay Cooke, of Philadelphia, to take charge of this loan,
and within a year it was sold by him, to parties all over the
country, at par. The entire cost of placing the loan was less than
three-eighths of one per cent. It furnished the greater part of
the means necessary to conduct the war during 1863.
The early victories of Grant and Forts Henry and Donelson had
rescued Kentucky, and opened up the Cumberland and Tennessee Rivers
to the heart of the south. The battle of Shiloh, though won at a
great sacrifice, inspired the western army with confidence, and
gave General Sherman his first opportunity to prove his ability as
a soldier. The timid handling of that army by Halleck and its
subsequent dispersion by his orders, and the general operations of
both the armies in the west and in Virginia, created a feeling of
despondency in the loyal states which was manifested in the election
in the fall of 1862. The military operations in the early part of
1863 did not tend to restore confidence.
At this period I received the following letter from Secretary
Stanton, which evidenced his appreciation of General Sherman:
"Washington, D. C., December 7, 1862.
"Hon. John Sherman.
"Dear Sir:--The general's letter is returned herewith, having been
read with much interest and great admiration of his wisdom and
patriotism. If our armies were commanded by such generals we could
not fail to have a speedy restoration of the authority of the
government, and an end of the war.
"I beg you to give him my warmest regards, and no effort of mine
will be spared to secure to the government the fullest exercise of
his abilities. With thanks for the favor, I am,
"Yours truly,
"Edwin M. Stanton."
The attack by General Sherman upon the defenses of Vicksburg had
been repulsed, but the effect of this had been counteracted by the
capture of Arkansas post with over 5,000 prisoners. General Grant
had failed in his operations in Mississippi. General Hooker had
been defeated at Chancellorsville, and Lee was preparing to make
an advance into Maryland and Pennsylvania.
On May 1, 1863, Clement L. Vallandigham, for several years a Member
of Congress from Ohio, in a speech made at Mount Vernon, denounced
the government with great violence, and, especially, an order issued
by General Ambrose E. Burnside, commanding the department of the
Ohio, announcing that "all persons, found within our lines, who
commit acts for the benefit of the enemies of our country, will be
tried as spies or traitors, and if convicted will suffer death."
Burnside enumerated among the things which came within his order,
the writing or carrying of secret letters, passing the lines for
treasonable purposes, recruiting for the Confederate service. He
said: "The habit of declaring sympathy for the enemy will not be
allowed in this department; persons committing such offenses will
be at once arrested, with a view to being tried or sent beyond our
lines into the lines of their friends."
Vallandigham denounced this order as a base usurpation of arbitrary
power; said that he despised it, and spat upon it, and trampled it
under his foot. He denounced the President, and advised the people
to come up together at the ballot box and hurl the tyrant from his
throne. Many of his hearers wore the distinctive badges of
"copperheads" and "butternuts," and, amid cheers which Vallandigham's
speech elicited, was heard a shout that Jeff. Davis was a gentleman,
which was more than Lincoln was.
This speech was reported to General Burnside. Early on the 4th of
May a company of soldiers was sent to arrest Vallandigham, and the
arrest was made. Arriving at Cincinnati, he was consigned to the
military prison and kept in close confinement. This event caused
great excitement, not only in Cincinnati, but throughout the State
of Ohio. On the evening of that day a great crowd assembled at
Dayton, and several hundred men moved, hooting and yelling, to the
office of the Republican newspaper, and sacked and then destroyed
it by fire. Vallandigham was tried by a military commission, which
promptly sentenced him to be placed in close confinement in some
fortress of the United States, to be designated by the commanding
officer of the department, there to be kept during the continuance
of the war. Such an order was made by General Burnside, but it
was subsequently modified by Mr. Lincoln, who commuted the sentence
of Vallandigham, and directed that he be sent within the Confederate
lines. This was done within a fortnight after the court-martial.
Vallandigham was sent to Tennessee, and, on the 25th of May, was
escorted by a small cavalry force to the Confederate lines near
Murfreesboro, and delivered to an Alabama regiment.
Vallandigham made a formal protest that he was within the Confederate
lines by force, and against his will, and that he surrendered as
a prisoner of war. His arrest for words spoken, and not for acts
done, created great excitement throughout Ohio and the country.
A public meeting was held in New York on May 16, which denounced
this action as illegal--as a step towards revolution. The Democratic
leaders of Ohio assumed the same attitude, and made a vigorous
protest to the President. It is not necessary to state this incident
more fully. Nicolay and Hay, in their history of Lincoln, narrate
fully the incidents connected with this arrest, and the disposition
of Vallandigham. The letters of the President in reply to Governor
Seymour, and to the meeting in Ohio, are among the most interesting
productions of Mr. Lincoln. He doubted the legality of the arrest.
He quoted the provision of the constitution that the privilege of
the writ of habeas corpus "should not be suspended unless, in cases
of invasion or rebellion, the public safety may require it." He
had suspended the privileges of that writ upon the happening of
contingencies stated in the constitution and, therefore, the
commanding officer was justified in making the arrest, and he did
not deem it proper to interfere with the order of the commanding
officer.
This incident was made more important when, on the 11th of June,
the Democratic convention of the State of Ohio met at Columbus and
there formally nominated Vallandigham as the candidate of that
party for Governor of Ohio. This presented directly to the people
of that state the question of the legality and propriety of the
arrest of Vallandigham. The Republican party subsequently met and
nominated for governor John Brough, a lifelong Democrat, but in
through sympathy with the Union cause.
It is difficult, now, to describe the intense excitement in Ohio
over the issue thus made--at times breaking into violence.
Vallandigham was received with great favor in the different cities
of the south, and finally, embarking on board of a vessel which
ran the blockade at Wilmington, he arrived at Bermuda on the 22nd
of June, from which place he took passage to Canada, arriving at
Niagara Falls about the middle of July.
The feeling of anger and excitement among the loyal people of Ohio
increased, so that it was manifest that if Vallandigham entered
the state he would be in great danger, and a quasi civil war might
have arisen. I heard men of character and influence say distinctly
that if Vallandigham came into the state he would be killed, and
they, if necessary, would kill him. It was then understood that
Mr. Lincoln was disposed to allow him to enter the state. Senator
Wade and I met at Washington and had a conversation with Mr. Lincoln.
We told him the condition of feeling in Ohio, and of our confident
belief that if his order of banishment was revoked, it would result
in riots and violence, in which Vallandigham would be the first
victim. He gave us no positive assurance, but turned the conversation
by saying that he thought Vallandigham was safer under British
dominion, where he would have plenty of friends.
In June, 1863, my health was somewhat impaired, and Mrs. Sherman
and I concluded to visit New England for a change of scene, and
for the benefit of the ocean air. We visited Newport in advance
of the season and found it deserted. We went to Boston, and there
heard of the advance of Lee in Pennsylvania, and the fierce contest
going on in the rear of Vicksburg. I became uneasy and started
for home with the intention of proceeding to Vicksburg, but at
Cleveland we heard the glad tidings of great joy, the fall of
Vicksburg and the defeat of Lee at Gettysburg.
These victories, occurring on the same day, aroused the enthusiasm
and confidence of the loyal people of the United States, especially
the people of Ohio. Instead of a trip to Vicksburg I was soon
enlisted in the political canvass, and this for three months occupied
my attention. Meetings were held in every county and in almost
every township of the state. All on either side who were accustomed
to speak were actively engaged. My opening speech was made at
Delaware on the 29th of July. I was intensely interested in the
canvass, and therefore insert a few paragraphs from that speech,
as an indication of the state of feeling existing at that time:
"The political campaign in Ohio this season presents some singular
features. We are in the midst of a great civil war, in which it
is safe to say that one million of men are now arrayed in arms
against each other. There are, perhaps, now, from Ohio, one hundred
thousand of her best and bravest citizens in the field, in hospitals
or camps, sharing the burdens of war. The immediate stake involved
is nothing less than national existence; while the ultimate stake
involves nothing less than civil liberty for generations yet to
come. In the midst of this contest the Democratic party, through
its most eloquent orators, endeavor to make a personal issue. They
propose to withdraw our armies, to abandon the war, and to try the
question whether their candidate for governor has been legally
convicted as a traitor to his country.
"We are assured by Mr. Pugh, the Democratic candidate for lieutenant
governor, who is one of the most eloquent and able young men in
the state, that here in Ohio we have been subjected to a tyranny
as intolerable as that of King Bomba of Naples. When we ask for
evidence of this tyranny, we are told that Clement L. Vallandigham
has been illegally convicted and illegally banished; and that if
we are fit to be free we must stop and examine the record in his
case, and not be turned from it by clamors about prosecuting the
war, or of concluding peace. And we are told that if we don't do
all this we are helpless slaves and deserve no better fate. Now,
as I do not desire to be a slave, and do not wish the people of my
native state to be slaves, I will so far depart from my usual course
in political discussion as to examine the personal issue thus made.
"I had supposed, fellow-citizens, that nowhere in the wide world
did people live as free from oppression as in the State of Ohio.
But the Democratic party has sounded the alarm that our liberties
were jeopardized in that Mr. Vallandigham has been, as they assert,
illegally convicted and banished. Before alluding to matters of
more general interest I propose to consider that question.
"The candidate of the Democratic party was convicted by a military
tribunal for aiding the enemy with whom we are at war. For this
he was expelled beyond our lines, and was within the lines of the
enemy when nominated for governor of Ohio. By the judgment of a
military tribunal, composed mainly of his political friends, approved
by General Burnside, the chief military officer within the state,
sanctioned by Judge Leavitt--a judge selected by Vallandigham
himself--of the United States court, he was convicted and sentenced
to imprisonment during the war. By the mercy of the President he
was released from imprisonment and sent beyond our lines. While
thus banished as a convicted traitor, by military authority, the
Democratic party of the State of Ohio nominated this man as a
candidate for governor, and you are called upon to ratify and
confirm that nomination, to intrust this man, convicted as a traitor,
with the chief command of our militia, the appointment of all its
officers, and the management of the executive authority of the
state; and that, too, in the midst of a war with the rebels he was
convicted of aiding. . . .
"And here is the marked distinction between the two parties. The
Union party strikes only at the rebels. The Democratic party
strikes only at the administration. The Union party insists upon
the use of every means to put down the rebels. The Democratic
party uses every means to put down the administration. I read what
is called the Democratic Platform, and I find nothing against the
rebels who are in arms against the best government in the world;
but I find numerous accusations against the authorities of the
government, who are struggling to put down the rebels. I find no
kindly mention of the progress of our arms, no mention of victories
achieved and difficulties overcome; no mention of financial measures
without a parallel in their success; no promise of support, no word
of encouragement to the constituted authorities; no allowance made
for human error; not a single patriotic hope. It is a long string
of whining, scolding accusations. It is dictated by the spirit of
rebellion, and, before God, I believe it originated in the same
malignant hate of the constituted authorities as has armed the
public enemies. I appeal to you if that is the proper way to
support your government in the time of war. Is this the example
set by Webster and Clay, and the great leaders of the Whig party
when General Jackson throttled nullification; or is it the example
of the tories of the Revolution?"
Brough visited, I think, every county in the state. Everywhere
his meetings were large and enthusiastic, but it must be said also
that the Democratic meetings, which were equally numerous, were
very largely attended. The people were evidently anxious to hear
both sides.
Towards the close of the campaign I accompanied Mr. Brough through
the populous central counties of the state. We spoke, among other
places, in Newark, Zanesville and Lancaster. The meetings were
not merely mass meetings, but they were so large that no human
voice could reach all those present, and speeches were made from
several stands in the open air, each surrounded by as many as could
hear. This indication of public feeling was somewhat weakened by
the fact that the Democratic meetings were also very large, and
the ablest members of that party were actively engaged in the
canvass. The "martyr" in Canada was the hero of these meetings,
and his compulsory arrest and absence from the state, but near its
border, was the constant theme of complaint. It was observed that
the rival meetings were attended by men of both parties in nearly
equal numbers, so that it was difficult to form an opinion of the
result. Mr. Brough kept a memorandum book containing the names of
the counties in the state and the estimated majorities for or
against him in each county. At night, when the crowds dispersed,
he would take out his book, and, upon the information received that
day, would change the estimate of his majorities. In view of the
enormous attendance at, and interest in, the Democratic meetings,
he was constantly lowering his estimated majority on the home vote,
until finally it declined to 5,000, with the army vote known to be
very largely in his favor. At Lancaster, where he had lived and
published a strong Democratic paper for many years, and where I
was born, he carefully analyzed his list, and, throwing his book
upon the table, emphatically said that he would not reduce his
majority of the home vote one vote below 5,000. The Democratic
party, however, seemed confident of Vallandigham's election. The
result was that Brough was elected by the unprecedented majority
of 101,000, of which 62,000 was on the home vote and 39,000 on the
vote of the soldiers in the field, they having the privilege of
voting.
This settled once for all the position of Ohio, not only on the
question of the war, but on the determination of its people to
support Mr. Lincoln in the use of all the powers granted by the
constitution as construed by him, and to prosecute the war to final
success. Vallandigham remained in Canada until June, 1864, when
he returned quietly to Ohio, where he was permitted to remain.
His presence injured his party. His appearance in the national
convention at Chicago in 1864, and active participation in its
proceedings, and his support of General McClellan, greatly, I think,
diminished the chances of the Democratic ticket. He died seven
years later by an accidental wound inflicted by himself.
I have always regarded Brough's election in Ohio upon the issue
distinctly made, not only as to the prosecution of the war, but in
support of the most vigorous measures to conduct it, as having an
important influence in favor of the Union cause equal to that of
any battle of the war. The results of all the elections in the
several states in 1863 were decidedly victories for the Union cause,
and especially in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Maryland.
CHAPTER XV.
A MEMORABLE SESSION OF CONGRESS.
Dark Period of the War--Effect of the President's Proclamation--
Revenue Bill Enacted Increasing Internal Taxes and Adding Many New
Objects of Taxation--Additional Bonds Issued--General Prosperity
in the North Following the Passage of New Financial Measures--Aid
for the Union Pacific Railroad Company--Land Grants to the Northern
Pacific--13th Amendment to the Constitution--Resignation of Secretary
Chase--Anecdote of Governor Tod of Ohio--Nomination of William P.
Fessenden to Succeed Chase--The Latter Made Chief Justice--Lincoln's
Second Nomination--Effect of Vallandigham's Resolution--General
Sherman's March to the Sea--Second Session of the 38th Congress.
The 38th Congress met on the 7th of December, 1863. The Members
of the House of Representatives were elected in the fall of 1862,
perhaps the darkest period of the war for the Union cause. The
utter failure of McClellan's campaign in Virginia, the defeat of
Pope at the second battle of Bull Run, the jealousies then developed
among the chief officers of the Union army, the restoration of
McClellan to his command, the golden opportunity lost by him at
Antietam, the second removal of McClellan from command, the slow
movement of Halleck on Corinth, the escape of Beauregard, the
scattering of Halleck's magnificent army, the practical exclusion
of Grant and his command, and the chasing of Bragg and Buell through
Kentucky--these, and other discouraging events, created a doubt in
the public mind whether the Union could be restored. It became
known during the happening of these events that Mr. Lincoln had
determined upon the emancipation of slaves in states in rebellion
by an executive act. He said to the artist, F. B. Carpenter:
"It had got to be midsummer, 1862; things had gone on from bad to
worse, until I felt that we had reached the end of our rope on the
plan of operations we had been pursuing; that we had about played
our last card, and must change our tactics, or lose the game. I
now determined upon the adoption of the emancipation policy; and
without consultation with, or the knowledge of, the cabinet, I
prepared the original draft of the proclamation."
Of the cabinet, Blair deprecated this policy on the ground that it
would cost the administration in the fall elections. Chase doubted
the success of the measure and suggested another plan of emancipation,
but said that he regarded this as so much better than inaction on
the subject that he would give it his entire support. Seward
questioned the expediency of the issue of the proclamation at that
juncture. The depression of the public mind consequent upon repeated
reverses was so great that he feared the effect of so important a
step.
In consequence of the opposition, the proclamation was postponed.
On the 22nd of September, the President, having fully made up his
mind, announced to the cabinet his purpose to issue the proclamation
already quoted. What he did, he said, was after full deliberation
and under a heavy and solemn sense of responsibility.
The effect of this proclamation upon the pending elections in Ohio
was very injurious. I was then actively engaged in the canvass
and noticed that when I expressed my approbation of the proclamation,
it was met with coldness and silence. This was especially so at
Zanesville. The result was the election in Ohio of a majority of
Democratic Members of Congress. This, following the overwhelming
Republican victory in 1861, when Tod was elected governor by a
majority of 55,203, was a revolution which could only be ascribed
to the events of the war and to the issue of the proclamation. It
may be also partially ascribed to the discontent growing out of
the appointments, by Governor Tod, of officers in the volunteers.
The same discontent defeated the renomination of Governor Dennison
in 1861. Such is the usual result of the power of appointment,
however prudently exercised.
The House of Representatives was promptly organized on the 7th of
December, 1863, by the election of Schuyler Colfax as speaker.
The session of Congress that followed was perhaps the busiest and
most important one in the history of our government. The number
of measures to be considered, the gravity of the subject-matter,
and the condition of the country, demanded and received the most
careful attention. The acts relating to the organization of the
army and the one increasing the pay of soldiers, made imperative
by the depreciation of our currency, as well as the draft and
conscription laws, received prompt attention. The enrollment act,
approved February 24, 1864, proved to be the most effective measure
to increase and strengthen the army. The bounty laws were continued
and the amount to be paid enlarged. The laws relating to loans,
currency, customs duties and internal taxes required more time and
occupied a great portion of the session. The revenue bill enacted
at that session was far more comprehensive and the rates much higher
than in any previous or subsequent law. It provided for an increase
of all internal taxes contained in previous laws, and added many
new objects of taxation, so as to embrace nearly every source of
revenue provided for by American or English laws, including stamp
duties upon deeds, conveyances, legal documents of all kinds,
certificates, receipts, medicines and preparations of perfumery,
cosmetics, photographs, matches, cards, and indeed every instrument
or article to which a stamp could be attached. It also provided
for taxes on the succession to real estate, legacies, distributive
shares of personal property, and a tax of from five to ten per
cent. on all incomes above $600, upon all employments, upon all
carriages, yachts, upon slaughtered cattle, swine and sheep, upon
express companies, insurance companies, telegraph companies,
theaters, operas, circuses, museums and lotteries, upon all banks
and bankers, brokers, and upon almost every article of domestic
production. It placed a heavy tax upon licenses, upon dealers in
spirits, upon brokers, lottery-ticket dealers and almost every
employment of life.
It largely increased the tax on spirits, ale, beer, porter, and
tobacco in every form. Not content with this, on the last day of
the session, Congress levied a special income tax of five per cent.,
to provide for the bounties promised to Union soldiers. This
drastic bill occupied the attention of both Houses during a
considerable portion of the session, and became a law only on the
30th of June, 1864, within four days of the close of the session.
It was greatly feared that the law could create discontent, but it
was received with favor by the people, few if any complaints being
made of the heavy burden it imposed. The customs duties were
carefully revised, not in the interest of protection but solely
for revenue. Nearly all the articles formerly on the free list
were made dutiable, and they proved to be copious sources of revenue,
especially the duties on tea, coffee, spirits of all kinds, wines,
cigars, and tobacco in every form.
During that session Congress passed two important loan bills, which
practically confided to the Secretary of the Treasury the power to
borrow money in almost any form that could be devised. The first
act, approved March 3, 1864, authorized him to borrow, on the credit
of the United States, $200,000,000 during the current fiscal year,
redeemable after any period not less than five years, and payable
at any period not more than forty years from date, in coin, and
bearing interest at six per cent. per annum. It also provided for
the issue of $11,000,000 5-20 bonds which had been sold in excess
of the $500,000,000 authorized by law. By the act approved June
30, 1864, the Secretary of the Treasury was authorized to borrow,
on the credit of the United States, $400,000,000, on bonds redeemable
at the pleasure of the United States after a period of not less
than five, nor more than forty, years from date, bearing an annual
interest of not exceeding six per cent., payable semi-annually in
coin. He was authorized to receive for such bonds lawful money of
the United States, or, at his discretion, treasury notes, certificates
of indebtedness or certificates of deposit, issued under any act
of Congress. These bonds were similar in general description to
the 5-20 bonds already provided for, but bore interest at five per
cent. instead of six.
By these measures the people of the United States had placed in
the power of the government almost unlimited sources of revenue,
and all necessary expedients for borrowing. Strange as it may
appear, under the operation of these laws the country was very
prosperous. All forms of industry hitherto conducted, and many
others, were in healthy operation. Labor was in great demand and
fully occupied. This will account for the passage of several laws
that would not be justified except in an emergency like the one
then existing. Among these was an act to encourage immigration,
approved July 4, 1864. This act grew out of the great demand for
labor caused by the absence of so many men in the army. A commission
of immigration was provided. Immigrants were authorized to pledge
their wages, for a term not exceeding twelve months, to repay the
expense of their immigration. These contracts were declared to be
valid in law and might be enforced in the courts of the United
States or of the several states and territories. It provided that
no immigrant should be compulsorily enrolled for military service
during the existing insurrection, unless such immigrant voluntarily
renounced, under oath, his allegiance to the country of his birth,
and declared his intention to become a citizen of the United States.
This law could only be justified by the condition of affairs then
existing.
Another law, alike indefensible, but considered important at the
time, regulating the sale of gold, was approved June 17, 1864.
It declared unlawful a contract for the purchase or sale and delivery
of any gold coin or bullion, to be delivered on any day subsequent
to the making of the contract. It also forbade the purchase or
sale and delivery of foreign exchange, to be delivered at any time
beyond ten days subsequent to the making of such contract, or the
making of any contract for the sale and delivery of any gold coin
or bullion, of which the person making such contract was not at
the time of making it in actual possession. It also declared it
to be unlawful to make any loans of money or currency to be repaid
in coin or bullion or to make any loan of coin or bullion to be
repaid in currency. All these provisions were made to prevent what
were regarded as bets on the price of gold. This law, however,
proved to be ineffective, as all such laws interfering with trade
and speculation must be, and was soon repealed.
The national banking act, which passed at the previous session,
was carefully revised and enacted in a new form, and it still
remains in force, substantially unchanged by subsequent laws. By
this new act the office of comptroller of the currency was created.
Under its provisions, aided by a heavy tax on the circulating notes
of state banks, such banks were converted into national banks upon
such conditions as secured the payment of their circulating notes.
The financial measures, to which I have referred, were the work of
the committees of ways and means of the House and on finance in
the Senate. They occupied the chief attention of both Houses, and
may fairly be claimed by the members of those committees as successful
measures of the highest importance. I was deeply interested in
all of them, took a very active part in their preparation in
committee, and their conduct in the Senate, and, with the other
members of the committee, feel that the measures adopted contributed
largely to the final triumph of the Union cause. Certainly, the
full power of the United States, its credit and the property of
its people were by these laws intrusted to the executive authorities
to suppress the rebellion.
In addition to military and financial measures, that session was
prolific in many other measures of primary importance. The Union
Pacific Railroad Company, which had been chartered by the previous
Congress, found itself unable to proceed, and appealed to Congress
for additional aid. This was granted by the act of July 2, 1864.
Under this act, the first lien of the United States for bonds
advanced to the company, provided for by the act of 1862, was made
subordinate to the lien of the bonds of the company sold in the
market--a fatal error, which led to all the serious complications
which followed. The proceeds of the sale of the first mortgage
bonds of the company, with a portion of those issued by the United
States in aid of the company, built both the Union and Central
Pacific, so that the constructors of those roads, who were mainly
directors and managers of the company, practically received as
profit a large portion of the bonds of the United States issued in
aid of the work, and almost the entire capital stock of the company.
If the act had been delayed until after the war, when the securities
of the United States rapidly advanced in value, it could not have
passed in the form it did. The construction of the road was
practically not commenced until the war was over. The constructors
had the benefit of the advancing value of the bonds and of the
increasing purchasing power of United States notes.
It was unfortunate that the bill for the construction of the Northern
Pacific Railroad came up at the same time. It was a faulty measure,
making excessive grants of public lands to aid in the construction
of a railroad and telegraph line from Lake Superior to Puget Sound.
It was an act of incorporation with broad and general powers,
carelessly defined, and with scarcely any safeguards to protect
the government and its lavish grants of land. Some few amendments
were made, but mostly in the interest of the corporation, and the
bill finally passed the Senate without any vote by yeas and nays.
These two bills prove that it is not wise during war to provide
measures for a time of peace.
During the same session the Territories of Colorado, Nebraska and
Nevada were authorized to form state governments for admission into
the Union, and a government was provided for each of the Territories
of Montana and Idaho. The great object of organizing all the Indian
country of the west into states and territories was to secure the
country from Indian raids and depredations.
By far the most beneficial action of Congress at this session was
the passage of the 13th article of the constitution of the United
States, viz., "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except
as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly
convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place
subject to their jurisdiction."
It was thoroughly debated, and passed the Senate by the large vote
of 38 yeas and 6 nays. It subsequently received the sanction of
the House and of the requisite number of states to make it a part
of the constitution. This was the natural and logical result of
the Civil War. In case the rebellion should fail, it put at an
end all propositions for compensation for slaves in loyal states,
and all question of the validity of the emancipation proclamation
of Abraham Lincoln.
The following letter of Secretary Chase shows the extremity of the
measures deemed to be necessary at this period of the war:
"Treasury Department, May 26, 1864.
"My Dear Sir:--I inclose two drafts of a national bank taxation
clause--one marked 'A,' providing for the appropriation of the
whole tax to the payment of interest or principal of the public
debt and repealing the real estate direct tax law, and another
marked 'B,' dividing the proceeds of the tax between the national
and the loyal states. In either form the clause will be vastly
more beneficial to the country than in the form of the bill, whether
original or amended.
"I also inclose a draft of a section providing for a tax on banks
not national in the internal revenue act. It substantially restates
the House proposition limiting it to banks of the states. Some
discrimination in favor of the national system which affords
substantial support to the government as compared with the local
system, which circulates notes in competition with those issued by
the government, seems to me indispensably necessary. It is impossible
to prevent the depreciation of the currency unless Congress will
assume its constitutional function and control it; and it is idle
to try to make loans unless Congress will give the necessary support
to the public credit. I am now compelled to advertise for a loan
of fifty millions, and, to avoid as far as practicable the evils
of sales below par, must offer the long bonds of '81. Should the
provisions I ask for be denied, I may still be able to negotiate
the loan on pretty fair terms; but I dread the effects on future
loans.
"Hitherto I have been able to maintain the public credit at the
best points possible with a surcharged circulation. My ability to
do so is due mainly to the legislation of the session of 1862-63.
I must have further legislation in the same direction if it is
desired to maintain that ability.
"Yours truly,
"S. P. Chase.
"Hon. John Sherman."
A few days before the close of the session, on the 29th of June,
1864, Mr. Chase tendered his resignation as Secretary of the
Treasury. This created quite a sensation in political circles.
It was thought to be the culmination of the feeling created by the
nomination of Lincoln and the alleged rivalry of Chase, but the
statements made in the "History of Lincoln," by Nicolay and Hay,
and the "Biography of Chase," by Schuckers, clearly show that the
cause of the resignation arose long anterior to this event and
gradually produced a condition of affairs when either Mr. Lincoln
had to yield his power over appointments or Mr. Chase retire from
his office. No good would result from analyzing the events which
led to this resignation. The cause was perhaps best stated by Mr.
Lincoln in accepting it, as follows:
"Your resignation of the office of Secretary of the Treasury, sent
me yesterday, is accepted. Of all I have said in commendation of
your ability and fidelity I have nothing to unsay, and yet you and
I have reached a point of mutual embarrassment in our official
relation which it seems cannot be overcome or longer sustained
consistently with the public service."
The nomination of David Tod, of Ohio, as Secretary of the Treasury
to succeed Mr. Chase, was not well received in either House. If
the Members had known Tod as well as I did, they would have known
that he was not only a good story teller, but a sound, able,
conservative business man, fully competent to deal with the great
office for which he was nominated. His declination, however,
prevented a controversy which would have been injurious, whatever
might have been the result. An anecdote frequently told by him
may, perhaps, explain his nomination.
When he was elected Governor of Ohio, he went to Washington to see
Mr. Lincoln, to find out, as he said, what a Republican President
wanted a Democratic Governor of Ohio to do in aid of the Union
cause. He called at the White house, sent in his card, and was
informed that the President was engaged, but desired very much to
see Governor Tod, and invited him to call that evening at 7 o'clock.
Promptly on time Governor Tod called and was ushered into the room
where, for the first time, he saw Mr. Lincoln. Mutual salutation
had scarcely been exchanged before the announcement was made that
David K. Cartter was at the door. Mr. Lincoln asked the governor
if he had any objection to Cartter hearing their talk. The governor
said no, that Cartter was an old friend and law partner of his.
Soon after Governor Nye of Nevada was announced. The same inquiry
was made and answered, and Nye joined the party, and in the same
way Sam. Galloway, of Ohio, and a famous joker from New York, whose
name I do not recall, came in. Then grouped around the table, Nye
led off with a humorous description of life in the mines in the
early days of California, and the others contributed anecdotes,
humor and fun, in which Lincoln took the lead, "and I" (as Tod told
the story), "not to be behindhand, told a story;" and so the hours
flew on without any mention of the grave matters he expected to
discuss with the President. When the clock announced the hour of
eleven, Mr. Lincoln said he made it a habit to retire at eleven
o'clock, and, turning to Tod, said: "Well, Governor, we have not
had any chance to talk about the war, but we have had a good time
anyway; come and see me again." It then dawned upon the governor
that this little party of kindred spirits, all friends of his, were
invited by the President to relive him from an interview about the
future that would be fruitless of results. Neither could know what
each ought to do until events pointed out a duty to be done.
Lincoln knew that Tod was a famous story teller, as were all the
others in the party, and availed himself of the opportunity to
relieve his mind from anxious care.
Governor Tod told me this anecdote and related many of the stories
told at that symposium.
The nomination of William P. Fessenden as Secretary of the Treasury
was a natural one to be made, and received the cordial support of
Members of the Senate, even of those who did not like his occasional
ill temper and bitterness. And here I may properly pause to notice
the traits of two men with whom I was closely identified in public
life, and for whom I had the highest personal regard, although they
widely differed from each other.
Mr. Fessenden was an able lawyer, a keen incisive speaker, rarely
attempting rhetoric, but always a master in clear, distinct statement
and logical argument. He had been for a number of years dyspeptic,
and this, no doubt, clouded his temper and caused many of the bitter
things he said. When I entered the Senate, I was, at his request,
placed on the committee on finance, of which he was chairman. He
was kind enough to refer to my position in the House as chairman
of the committee of ways and means, and my action there, and to
express the hope that I would be able to aid him in dealing with
financial question, in which he had no training and but little
interest. I accepted the position with pleasure, and in general
co-operated with him, though on many important subjects we widely
differed. His appointment as Secretary of the Treasury left me
chairman of the committee on finance, but my intercourse with him
continued while he was secretary. During the short period in which
he held that office, I had many conferences with him in respect to
pending questions. When he returned to the Senate, on the 4th of
March, 1865, he resumed his old place as chairman of the committee
on finance, and continued in that position nearly two years, when,
his health becoming more feeble, he resigned his membership of that
committee, and I again took his place as chairman and held it until
appointed Secretary of the Treasury in 1877. His health continued
to fail and he died at Portland, Maine, September 8, 1869.
With Mr. Chase I had but little acquaintance and no sympathy during
his early political career. His edition of the "Statutes of Ohio"
was his first work of any importance. He was at times supposed to
be a Whig and then again classed as a Democrat. Later he became
a member of the national convention of Free Soilers held at Buffalo,
August 9, 1848, over which he presided. This convention was composed
of delegates from eighteen states, and included in its active
members many of the most eminent Whigs and Democrats of a former
time. It nominated Martin Van Buren for the Presidency, and Charles
Francis Adams for Vice President. General Taylor, the nominee of
the Whig party, was elected President, but Mr. Van Buren received
291,342 votes, being nearly one-eighth of the whole number of votes
cast.
It so happened that when the Ohio legislature met in December,
1848, it was composed of an equal number of Whigs and Democrats
and of two members, Townsend and Morse, who classed themselves as
Free Soilers. They practically dictated the election of Mr. Chase
as United States Senator. They secured his election by an
understanding, express or implied, with the Democratic members,
that they would vote for Democrats for all the numerous offices,
which, under the constitution of the state as it then stood, were
appointed by the legislature. This bargain and sale--so-called--
created among the Whigs a strong prejudice against Chase. But
events in Congress, especially the act repealing the Missouri
Compromise, practically dissolved existing parties, and left Mr.
Chase in the vantage ground of having resisted this measure with
firmness. He was universally regarded as a man of marked ability
and honest in his convictions. In the election for Members of
Congress in 1854, he supported what were known as the anti-Nebraska
candidates, and, no doubt, contributed to their election. When he
was nominated for governor, I was naturally brought into friendly
relations with him, and these, as time advanced, were cordial and
intimate. Our correspondence was frequent, mostly of a personal
character, and our intimacy continued while he lived. When he was
Secretary of the Treasury I was frequently consulted by him, and
had, as I believe, his entire confidence. I have a great number
of letters from him written during that period.
In September, 1864, Mr. Chase was my guest at Mansfield for a day
or two. He was evidently restless and uneasy as to his future.
I spoke to him about the position of chief justice, recently made
vacant by the death of Taney. He said it was a position of eminence
that ought to satisfy the ambition of anyone, but for which few
men were fitted. Early in October I received a letter from him
which shows he was actively engaged in the canvass, and that the
common belief that he did not desire the election of Mr. Lincoln
was without foundation. He wrote as follows:
"Louisville, October 2, 1864.
"My Dear Sir:--Some days since I informed the secretary of the
state central committee that I would, as far as possible, fill the
appointments which ill-health had obliged Gov. Tod to decline.
Seeing afterwards, however, that he had determined to meet them
himself, I acceded to requests from other quarters to given them
what help I could. The first intimation I had that he would fail
in any of them was your letter, put into my hands just as I was
leaving Cincinnati for New Albany last Friday. It was then too
late to recall my own appointments, and, of course, I cannot be at
Mansfield. I should be glad to be there; but regret the impossibility
of it the less since I should not meet you. I am really glad you
are going to Logansport. The election of Gov. Morton is of vast
importance to our cause. And, then, Colfax, I feel most anxious
for him. I hope you can go to his district. I wanted to go myself;
but was urged to other parts of Indiana, and was left no chance to
reach it till this week; which must be given to Ohio in aid of
Stevenson and Bundy, except that I speak here to-morrow (Monday),
and Tuesday night in Covington.
"There has been a very large accumulation of troops here, for
Sherman. Col. Hammond telegraphed the department at Washington
yesterday that, communications being now re-established from
Nashville to Atlanta, he could commence sending them forward
immediately; and doubtless the movement will begin tomorrow. I
congratulate you most heartily of his splendid success thus far
and on the certainty that no effort will be spared to maintain his
army at the highest possible point of efficiency.
"There appears to be no truth in the report of a co-operative
movement in aid of Sheridan for Tennessee. Burbridge's expedition
is for a point beyond Abingdon where there are important salt works,
and he intends returning thence through Knoxville. So I learn from
one who ought to know; but don't understand it. _That game_ seems
hardly worth the candle.
"We had a splendid meeting in Aurora yesterday and our friends are
confident of Gov. Morton's re-election. Thousands of people stood
in a pouring rain to hear me and Gov. Lane talk to them, and
profounder or more earnest attention I never witnessed. It will
gratify you, I am sure, to know that I receive, wherever I go,
unequivocal manifestations of a popular confidence and appreciation,
which I did not suppose I possessed.
"There is not now the slightest uncertainty about the re-election
of Mr. Lincoln. The only question is, by what popular and what
electoral majority. God grant that both may be so decisive as to
turn every hope of rebellion to despair!
"You ask about Mr. Fessenden's remaining in the cabinet. He will
be a candidate for re-election to the Senate; and if successful
will leave his present post in March, or sooner if circumstances
allow. He has been in communication with me since he took charge,
and in every step, with perhaps one slight exception, his judgment
has corresponded with mine. He sees several matters now in quite
a different light from that in which they appeared to him when
Senator. He would now, for example, _cordially support_ your
proposition for a heavy discriminating tax upon all unnational
circulation. And he is more than just--he is very generous in his
appreciation of the immense work of organization and effective
activity to be found in the department.
"How signally are events confirming my views as to the value of
gold, compared with national currency. How clear it is now that
if Congress had come boldly to the act of marked discriminative
taxation on all non-national circulation and final prohibition
after a few years, say two--or at most three--gold would now have
been at not more than fifty per cent. premium and that resumption
of specie payments might have been effected within a year. I trust
the next session will witness bolder and better legislation. It
will be one of your brightest honors that you so clearly saw and
so boldly followed the path of reform; for certainly no greater
boon--except liberty itself--can be conferred upon a nation than
a truly national and thoroughly sound currency.
"Yours most truly,
"S. P. Chase.
"Hon. John Sherman."
After the election he wrote me the following letter, in which he
referred to the appointment of a chief justice, with an evident
desire for the office:
"Cincinnati, November 12, 1864.
"My Dear Sir:--The papers still state you are in Washington. I am
glad of it, and hope you may be able to render good service to our
friend, Fessenden. The task of preparing a report is no light one.
At least it always made me sweat and keep late hours. May he find
a safe deliverance from the labor.
"All sorts of rumors are afloat about everything. Those which
concern me most relate to the vacant seat on the bench; but I give
little heed to any of them. My experience in Washington taught me
how unreliable they are. If what I hear is any index to the state
of opinion, Mr. Lincoln must be satisfied that in acting on the
purpose expressed in your letters, he will have the almost, if not
quite, unanimous approval of the Union men throughout the country.
So I 'possess my soul in patience,' and urge nothing.
"If it did not seem to me a sort of indelicacy even to allow to
anyone the slightest occasion to say that I solicit or even ask
such an appointment as a favor or as a reward for political service,
I should now be on my way to Washington; but I think it due to
myself as well as the President to await his decision here; though,
if appointed, I hope the appointment will be considered as made
from the country at large rather than from Ohio alone. My legal
residence is here; but my actual domicile is still in the District.
"Please write me, if you can, when the President will act. Let me
know too how the military and political aspects at Washington appear
to you. We have achieved a glorious political victory, which must
greatly help our military prospects and possibilities.
"Mr. Miller has just come in and says he goes to Washington to-
night. Had he come before I began, I should have spared you this
letter; only asking him to make verbally the inquiries I have just
set down; but I will send it with 'answer respectfully solicited.'
"Yours very cordially,
"S. P. Chase.
"Hon. John Sherman."
Early in December I received the following letter, which indicates
very clearly that Mr. Chase was anxious for the position of chief
justice, and wished his appointment made, if at all, before his
arrival in Washington:
"Cleveland, December 2, 1864.
"My Dear Sir:--Yours of the 27th of November reached me here to-
day. Yesterday I fulfilled my appointment to make an address on
the dedication of the college edifice recently erected at Mount
Union, under the patronage of the Pittsburg conference of the
Methodist church. A number of leading men of the denomination were
present and assured me of the profound wishes of themselves and
the most influential men of the connection for my appointment.
These indeed seem to be universal except with an inconsiderable
number whom various circumstances have made unfriendly personally.
So that I cannot doubt that the President's adherence to his declared
intention is more important to our cause and to his administration
than it is to me personally. Not to be appointed after such
declaration and such expressions would, no doubt, be a mortification;
but it would not, I think, be any serious injury to me.
"I expect to be in Washington, Tuesday or Wednesday. I should have
been there long since had this appointment been determined either
way; but I must come now. My personal duties, unconnected with
it, have required and now require my attention, and though I hated
to come before I knew that there remains nothing to hope or fear
concerning it, I must. I will be at the Continental, Philadelphia,
Tuesday morning.
"Our news from Tennessee is important and encouraging. Garfield's
success against Forrest was brilliant. I hope Thomas will succeed
as well against Hood.
"General Sherman must now be near the coast. His enterprise is
full of hazard, but a hazard wisely incurred as it seems to me.
I ardently hope that 'out of the nettle, danger, he will pluck the
flower, safety.'
"Our majority on the presidential election in Ohio turns out much
less than I anticipated. It will hardly, if at all, exceed fifty
thousand.
"Faithfully yours,
"S. P. Chase.
"Hon. John Sherman."
When I returned to Washington at the beginning of the next session
I called upon the President and recommended the appointment of Mr.
Chase. We had a brief conversation upon the subject in which he
asked me pointedly the question whether if Chase was appointed he
would be satisfied, or whether he would immediately become a
candidate for President. I told him I thought his appointment to
that great office ought to and would satisfy his ambition. He then
told me that he had determined to appoint him and intended to send
the nomination to the Senate that day and he did so, December 6,
1864. After Mr. Chase had become chief justice he still had a
lingering interest in the financial policy of the country. On
March 1, 1865, I received from him the following letter. The
portion which refers to the legal tender laws will naturally excite
some interest in view of his decision against the power of Congress
to make the notes of the United States a legal tender. He wrote:
"At Home, March 1, 1865.
"My Dear Sir:--More to fulfill a promise than with the hope of
service I write this note.
"Your speech on the finances is excellent. There are one or two
points on which I shall express myself otherwise; but, in the main,
it commands the fullest assent of my judgment.
"Your appreciation of the currency question exactly corresponds
with my own; only I would not give up the national currency even
if we must endure for years depreciation through the issues of
state banks before getting rid of them.
"The clause in the bill, as it came from the House, imposing a tax
of ten per cent. on all notes not authorized by Congress which may
be paid out after this year by any bank, whether state or national,
will do much towards making our currency sound.
"I will briefly indicate what I should prefer and what I should
most zealously labor to have sanctioned by Congress if I were at
the head of the treasury department.
"1. Let the monthly tax on state bank circulation be increased to
one-half of one per cent.
"2. Provide that any bank may pay into the national treasury the
amount of its circulation in United States notes or national currency
and that on such payment the bank making it shall be exempt from
taxation on circulation.
"3. Provide for the application to the redemption of the circulation
represented by such payments, of the United States notes or national
currency so paid in, and strictly prohibit the paying out of such
notes for any other purpose.
"This measure contemplates:
"1. An exclusive national currency.
"2. Relief of the state banks from taxation upon circulation which
they cannot get in.
"3. The assumption of the duty of redemption by the national
treasury with means provided by the state banks.
"4. Reduction in the amount in circulation while the payments into
the treasury are being made and opportunity of some provision for
redemption which will not again increase it.
"The effect will be:
"1. Healthful condition of currency and consequent activity in
production and increase of resources.
"2. Gradual restoration of national notes to equality with specie
and the facilitating of resumption of specie payments.
"3. Improvement of national credit.
"4. Diminution of national expenditures and possible arrest of
the increase of national debt.
"Half measures are better than no measures; but thorough measures
are best.
"I will only add, that while I have never favored legal tender laws
in principle, and never consented to them except under imperious
necessity, I yet think it unwise to prohibit the making of any of
the treasury notes authorized by the bill now before Congress legal
tenders. The compound interest legal tender notes have then
fulfilled all my expectations for their issue and use; and may be
made most useful helps in gradual reduction of the volume of
circulation by substituting them for legal tenders bearing no
interest.
"I cannot elaborate this now. You will see how the thing will work
without any suggestion of mine. Faithfully your friend,
"S. P. Chase.
"Hon. John Sherman."
From my long and intimate acquaintance with Chief Justice Chase I
am quite sure that the duties of the great office he then held were
not agreeable to him. His life had been a political one, and this
gave him opportunity for travel and direct communion with the
people. The seclusion and severe labor imposed upon the Supreme
Court were contrary to his habits and injurious to his health. It
took him some years to become accustomed to the quiet of judicial
life. He presided over the Senate while acting as a court of
impeachment during the trial of Andrew Johnson in 1868. While
strongly opposed to the impeachment, he manifested no sign of
partiality. He died in New York city on the 7th of May, 1873, at
the age of sixty-five.
While Congress was in session, the Republican national convention
met at Baltimore on the 7th day of June, 1864, to nominate candidates
for President and Vice President of the United States, and to
announce the principles and policy of the Republican party of the
United States. The nomination of Mr. Lincoln had already been made
by state legislatures and by the loyal people of the United States
in every form in which popular opinion can be expressed. The feeble
expressions of dissent were but a whisper compared with the loud
proclamations coming from every loyal state in favor of Lincoln.
The convention, with unanimous assent, ratified and confirmed the
popular choice.
The nomination for Vice President was dictated by the desire to
recognize the loyalty and patriotism of those who, living in states
in rebellion, remained true and loyal to the Federal Union. Though
Mr. Johnson disappointed the expectations of those who nominated
him, yet at that time his courage and fidelity and his services
and sacrifices for the cause of the Union fully justified his
nomination.
More important, even, than the choice of candidates, was the
declaration by the convention of the policy of the Republican party.
The key-note of that policy was the third resolution, as follows:
"_Resolved_, that as slavery was the cause, and now constitutes
the strength of this rebellion, and as it must be always and
everywhere hostile to the principles of republican government,
justice and the national safety demand its utter and complete
extirpation from the soil of the republic; and that we uphold and
maintain the acts and proclamations by which the government, in
its own defense, has aimed a deathblow at the gigantic evil. We
are in favor, furthermore, of such an amendment to the constitution,
to be made by the people in conformity with its provisions, as
shall terminate and forever prohibit the existence of slavery within
the limits or the jurisdiction of the United States."
This was the logical result of the war. If it was carried into
full execution, it would settle on a just and sure foundation the
only danger that ever threatened the prosperity of the Union. This
was happily carried into full effect by the constitutional amendment
to which I have already referred.
The Democratic convention met at Chicago on the 29th of August,
1864, and nominated George B. McClellan as the candidate for
President and George H. Pendleton as Vice President; but far more
important and dangerous was the second, and the only material
resolution of the platform which was drawn by Vallandigham and was
as follows:
"_Resolved_, that this convention does explicitly declare, as the
sense of the American people, that after four years of failure to
restore the Union by the experiment of war, during which, under
the pretense of a military necessity of a war power higher than
the constitution, the constitution itself has been disregarded in
every part, and public liberty and private right alike trodden
down, and the material prosperity of the country essentially
impaired, justice, humanity, liberty and the public welfare demand
that immediate efforts be made for a cessation of hostilities with
a view to an ultimate convention of all the states, or other
peaceable means, to the end that, at the earliest practicable
moment, peace may be restored on the basis of the federal union of
all the states."
This was a false declaration, and was also a cowardly surrender to
enemies in open war. These two resolutions made the momentous issue
submitted to the American people. From the moment it was made the
popular mind grew stronger and firmer in favor of the prosecution
of the war and the abolition of slavery, and more resolute to resist
the surrender proposed to rebels in arms. Prior to the adoption
of this resolution, there was apparent languor and indifference
among the people as to who should be President, but after its
adoption there could be no doubt as to the trend of popular opinion.
Every sentiment of patriotism, the love of flag and country, the
pride of our people in the success of our soldiers, and the resentment
of the soldiers themselves at this slur on their achievements--all
contributed to the rejection of the candidates and the platform of
the Democratic party, and the overwhelming victory of the Republican
party.
I had already entered into the canvass when this resolution of
Vallandigham was adopted. It was only necessary to read it to the
people of Ohio to arouse resentment and opposition. The scattered
opposition to Mr. Lincoln, much of it growing out of his conservatism,
at once disappeared. The discontented Republicans who met in
convention at Cleveland again became active in the Republican ranks.
The two parties that grew out of factional politics in New York,
the Blair party and its opponents in Missouri, and the army of
disaffected office-seekers, waived their dissensions and griefs.
Horace Greeley and the extreme opponents of slavery, represented
by Wendell Phillips, not satisfied with the slow, but constitutional
process of emancipation proposed by Lincoln, when compelled to
choose between that plan of abolition and unconditional surrender
to slavery, naturally voted for Lincoln. The great body of patriotic
Democrats in all the states, who supported the war, but were still
attached to their party, quietly voted for Lincoln. In Ohio,
especially, where a year before they voted against Vallandigham
for his disloyalty, they naturally voted against his resolution
for surrender to the rebels.
During the campaign I accompanied Johnson to Indiana where he made
patriotic speeches to great audiences. His arraignment of the
autocracy of slaveholders in the south was very effective. The
current of opinion was all in favor of Lincoln. The result of the
election for Members of Congress in the states voting in October
was a decisive indication of the result in November. All the
central states elected a large majority of Republican Members of
Congress. In Ohio the Union party had a majority of over 50,000
and elected 17 Republican and 2 Democratic Members of the House of
Representatives. In 1862 Ohio elected 14 Democratic and 5 Republican
Members. The presidential election that followed on the 8th of
November, 1864, resulted in an overwhelming victory for Lincoln.
He received 212 and McClellan 21 electoral votes, the latter from
the States of New Jersey, Delaware and Kentucky. This political
victory had a more decisive effect in defeating the rebellion than
many battles. I returned to Washington soon after the election.
I was naturally deeply interested in the movements of General
Sherman's march to the sea. Towards the close of November we had
all sorts of rumors from the south, that General Sherman was
surrounded by Confederate troops, that his supplies were cut off,
that successful attacks had been made upon his scattered forces.
I naturally became uneasy, and went to President Lincoln for
consolation and such news as he could properly give me. He said:
"Oh, no, we have no news from General Sherman. We know what hole
he went in at, but we do not know what hole he will come out of,"
but he expressed his opinion that General Sherman was all right.
Soon after, authentic information came that General Sherman had
arrived at Savannah, that Fort McAllister was taken, and the army
was in communication with the naval forces. The capture of Savannah
and the northward march of General Sherman's army is part of the
familiar military history of the country.
The second session of the 38th Congress convened on the 5th of
December, 1864. It was a busy and active session confined mainly
to appropriations, loan and currency bills. The necessary expenditures
had been so greatly increased by the war that the aggregate amounts
appropriated naturally created some opposition and alarm, but there
was no help for it. As chairman of the committee on finance I did
all I could to reduce the appropriations for civil expenses, but
in respect to military expenditures there could scarcely be any
limit, the amount necessary being dependent upon military success.
The hopeful progress of the war gave encouragement that in a brief
period the power of the Confederate States would be exhausted and
peace would follow. We had, however, to legislate upon the basis
of the continued prosecution of the war, and it therefore became
necessary to increase the revenues in every possible way, and to
provide for new loans. The act approved March 3, 1865, authorized
the Secretary of the Treasury to borrow not exceeding $600,000,000,
and to issue therefore bonds or treasury notes of the United States
in such form as he might provide. This was the last great loan
authorized during the war. An act to provide internal revenue to
support the government was approved on the same day, which modified
many of the provisions of the previous act, but added subjects of
taxation not embraced in previous laws. It especially increased
the taxes on tobacco in its various forms. The 6th section
provided:
"That every national banking association, state bank, or state
banking association, shall pay a tax of ten per centum on the amount
of notes of any state bank or state banking association, paid out
by them after the first day of July, eighteen hundred and sixty-
six."
This tax on state bank circulation was a practical prohibition of
all state bank paper, and before the time fixed for the commencement
of the tax, this circulation entirely disappeared. Additional
duties were placed upon certain foreign importations. Provisions
were also made for the collection in the insurrectionary districts
within the United States of the direct taxes levied under the act
of 1862. During the entire season my labor was excessive, and when
it closed my health and strength were greatly impaired.
CHAPTER XVI.
ASSASSINATION OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
Johnson's Maudlin Stump Speech in the Senate--Inauguration of
Lincoln for the Second Term--My Trip to the South--Paying off a
Church Debt--Meetings to Celebrate the Success of the Union Army--
News of the Death of Lincoln--I Attend the Funeral Services--General
Johnston's Surrender to General Sherman--Controversy with Secretary
Stanton Over the Event--Review of 65,000 Troops in Washington--Care
of the Old Soldiers--Annual Pension List of $150,000,000--I am Re-
elected to the Senate--The Wade-Davis Bill--Johnson's Treatment of
Public Men--His Veto of the Civil Rights Bill--Reorganization of
the Rebel States and Their Final Restoration to the Union.
On the 4th of March, 1865, at the inauguration of the President
and Vice President elect, a scene occurred in the Senate chamber,
which made a serious impression, and was indicative of what was to
occur in the future. About eleven o'clock of that day Andrew
Johnson, Vice President, was shown into the room in the capitol
assigned to the Vice President. He complained of feeling unwell
and sent for either whisky or brandy, and must have drunk excessively
of it. A few minutes before twelve o'clock he was ushered into
the Senate to take the oath of office and to make the usual brief
address. He was plainly intoxicated and delivered a stump speech
unworthy of the occasion. Before him were assembled all the
principal officers of the government and the diplomatic corps. He
went on in a maudlin and rambling way for twenty minutes or more,
until finally he was suppressed by the suggestion of the secretary
that the time for the inauguration had arrived, and he must close.
The procession was formed for the inauguration at the east front
of the capitol, where a great multitude was gathered. There Mr.
Lincoln delivered his memorable inaugural address. Referring to
the condition of the controversy at the time of his former inaugural,
he said:
"Both parties deprecated war; but one of them would _make_ war
rather than let the Union survive; and the other would _accept_
war rather than let it perish. And the war came."
He hopefully predicted the result of the war, but he said:
"Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by
the bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall
be sunk, and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall
be paid by another drawn with the sword, as was said three thousand
years ago, so still it must be said, 'The judgments of the Lord
are true and righteous altogether.'"
His peroration will always be remembered for its impressive
eloquence:
"With malice towards none, with charity for all, with firmness in
the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to
finish the work we are in; to bind up the nation's wounds; to care
for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and
his orphan; to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and
lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations."
Soon after the adjournment I was invited by Secretary Stanton, with
many other Senators and our families, to take a trip to the south
in the steamer "Baltic." Among those on board were Senators Simon
Cameron, Wade, Zach. Chandler, and Foster, of Connecticut, then
president _pro tempore_ of the Senate. The sea was exceedingly
boisterous. Nearly all on board were sea sick, but none so badly
as Wade and Chandler, both of whom, I fear, violated the third
commandment, and nearly all the party were in hearty sympathy with
them. I was a good sailor and about the only one who escaped the
common fate. We visited the leading places of interest along the
coast, but especially Charleston, Beaufort and Savannah. Charleston
had but recently been evacuated. General Sherman was then on his
march through North Carolina. In Charleston everything looked
gloomy and sad. I rode on horseback alone through different parts
of the city, and was warned by officers not to repeat the ride,
as, if my name was known, I would be in danger of being shot.
We arrived in Beaufort on Sunday morning. The town was then full
of contrabands. We remained there that day and received an invitation
from a negro preacher to attend religious services at his new
meeting-house. About fifteen or twenty of the party went to the
"meeting-house," a new unfinished skeleton-frame house of considerable
size without any plastering--a mere shell. We were shown to seats
that had been reserved for us. The rest of the congregation were
negroes in every kind of dress and of every shade of color. The
scene was very interesting, but the sermon of the preacher was
little better than gibberish. He was a quaint old man, wearing
goggles and speaking a dialect we could hardly understand. At the
close of his sermon he narrated how the meeting-house had been
built; that John had hauled the logs, Tom, Dick and Harry, naming
them, had contributed their labor, but they were in debt something
over $200, and, with a significant glance at our little party, he
thought this was a good time to take up a collection. No sooner
was this said than Cameron, whispering to me, said: "Let's pay
it; I'll give twenty dollars," and when the hat came around, instead
of the usual dimes and quarters in ragged currency, it received
greenbacks of good denominations. In the meantime the old preacher,
highly elated, called upon the audience to sing "John Brown's Body."
A feeble, piping voice from an old negro woman started the singing
and the rest of the negroes, with loud melodious voices, joined
in, and, before it was through, the rest of us joined in. The hat,
when returned to the preacher, was found to contain more than fifty
dollars in excess of the amount necessary to pay off the debt.
Then, with many thanks to us by the preacher, the audience was
requested to remain standing until their visitors left.
Our visit at Savannah was very interesting. We there found many
leading citizens of the town who were social and kind, treating us
in a friendly way by rides around the city.
In the latter part of March, I was invited by General Sherman, then
on a visit to Grant near Petersburg, Virginia, to go with him to
Goldsboro, North Carolina, where his army was then encamped.
Secretary Stanton was my next door neighbor, and our families were
intimately associated. I invited his eldest son, Edwin, then a
young man studying law, to accompany me, an invitation which he
gladly accepted. We joined General Sherman at Fortress Monroe and
accompanied him on the steamer "Bat" to Newbern and thence by rail
to Goldsboro. There was a sense of danger in traveling by rail
through a country mostly unoccupied, but we reached the army at
Goldsboro safely. There I had my first view of a great army in
marching garb. Most of the troops had received their new uniforms
and equipments, but outlying regiments were constantly coming in,
ragged, with tattered hats, shoes and boots of every description,
almost black from exposure and the smoke of the pine woods, and as
hardy a looking set of men as one could conceive of. They had
picked up all kinds of paraphernalia, "stove pipe" hats being the
favorite, and had all sorts of wagons gathered in their march.
Their appearance was rapidly changed by new uniforms. After a
brief visit I returned to Washington, and thence to my home in
Mansfield.
I was invited soon after, on the 14th of April, to attend a mass
meeting at Columbus to celebrate the success of the Union army.
I accepted the invitation and attended an immense meeting in the
open air on the capitol grounds, and there Samuel Galloway and
myself made addresses. Meetings were held, congratulations uttered
in the evening of that day. The whole city was in holiday attire,
ornamented with flags, and everywhere and with everybody, there
was an expression of joy. I retired late at night to my room in
the hotel, and after my fatigue slept soundly.
Early the next morning Rush Sloane, a personal friend, rapped at
my door and announced to me the news of the assassination of Lincoln,
and, as then reported, that of Seward. The change from joy to
mourning that day in Columbus was marked and impressive. No event
of my life created a more painful impression than this news following
the rejoicings of the day before. I returned to Washington and
attended the funeral services over the body of Mr. Lincoln, then
about to be carried on the long journey to his old home in Springfield,
Illinois.
On the 6th of May, in response to the invitation of my neighbors
in Mansfield, I made an address upon the life and character of the
dead President. It expressed the opinion and respect I then
entertained for him, and now I could add nothing to it. As time
moves on his name and fame become brighter, while most of his
contemporaries are one by one forgotten.
Soon after the death of Mr. Lincoln, the terms of the surrender of
General Johnston to General Sherman became the subject of a violent
controversy. On the 21st of April, Secretary Stanton issued an
order to General Grant to proceed immediately to the headquarters
of General Sherman and direct operations against the enemy. He
issued a bulletin in which he intimated that Davis and his partisans
were on their way to escape to Mexico or Europe with a large amount
of gold plundered from the Richmond banks and from other sources,
and that they hoped to make terms with General Sherman by which
they would be permitted with their effects, including their gold
plunder, to go to Mexico or Europe. The most violent and insulting
paragraphs were published in the newspapers, substantially arraigning
General Sherman as a traitor and imputing to him corrupt motives.
I felt myself bound at once, not to defend the terms of surrender,
but to repel the innuendoes aimed at General Sherman. This led me
into a controversy with Mr. Stanton, not worth while to recall.
I believed then and still believe that he was under the influence
of perhaps a well-grounded fear that his life was in danger. The
atmosphere of Washington seemed to be charged with terror, caused
by the assassination of Lincoln, the wounding of Seward and the
threats against all who were conspicuous in political or military
life in the Union cause. Now, since we are fully informed of all
the surrounding circumstances connected with the surrender, and
the belief of General Sherman that he was strictly carrying out
the policy of President Lincoln, it is plain that he acted in what
he supposed was the line of duty. He did not comprehend that the
fatal crime in Washington changed the whole aspect of affairs.
His agreement with Johnston was on its face declared to be inoperative
until approved by the authorities at Washington, and, while the
political features of the surrender could not be approved, a simple
notification of disapproval would have been cheerfully acted upon
and the orders of the President would have been faithfully carried
out.
General Sherman, when he received notice of the disapproval of his
action, at once notified Johnston, and new terms were arranged in
exact accordance with those conceded by General Grant to General
Lee.
I remained in Washington until the arrival, on the 19th of May, of
General Sherman's army, which encamped by the roadside about half
way between Alexandria and the Long Bridge. I visited the general
there and found that he was still smarting under what he called
the disgrace put upon him by Stanton. I advised him to keep entirely
quiet, said the feeling had passed away and that his position was
perfectly well understood. I persuaded him to call on the President
and such members of the cabinet as he knew, and accompanied him.
He was dressed in full uniform, well worn, was bronzed and looked
the picture of health and strength. As a matter of course he
refused to call on Stanton and denounced him in unmeasured terms,
declaring that he would insult him whenever the opportunity occurred.
When he came in contact with his fellow officers and found that
they sympathized with him his anger abated, and by the time the
great review took place, he seemed to have recovered his usual
manner.
The review of General Meade's army was to occur on Tuesday, May
23, and that of General Sherman's, as it was called, on the 24th.
General Sherman, with his wife and her father, Hon. Thomas Ewing,
and myself, were present on the reviewing stand on the first day
of the review. He received on the stand the congratulations of
hundreds of people and seemed to enjoy every moment of time. He
was constantly pointing out to Mr. Ewing and myself the difference
between the eastern and western armies, in which he evidently
preferred the Army of the West. On the next day, prompt to the
time stated, attended by a brilliant staff, he rode slowly up
Pennsylvania avenue at the head of his column, and was followed by
a magnificent army of 65,000 men, organized into four army corps,
and marching with that precision only possible with experienced
troops. His description of the scene in his "Memoirs" proves his
deep interest in the appearance of his army and his evident pride
in it. When he arrived at the grand stand, where the President
reviewed the troops, he dismounted, left the line, came upon the
stand and took his place by the side of the President. Everyone
knew his relations to Stanton, and was curious to see the result
of their meeting. I stood very near the general, and as he approached
he shook hands with the President and the members of the cabinet,
but when Stanton partially reached out his hand, General Sherman
passed him without remark, but everyone within sight could perceive
the intended insult, which satisfied his honor at the expense of
his prudence. However, it is proper to say that these two men,
both eminent in their way, became entirely reconciled before the
death of Mr. Stanton. General Sherman always stopped with me when
he was temporarily in Washington, and I know that in a brief period
they met and conversed in a friendly way. When Mr. Stanton lay
upon his death bed, General Sherman not only called upon him, but
tendered his services, and exhibited every mark of respect for him.
The great body of the volunteer forces was disbanded, the officers
and soldiers were returning to their homes. To most of them the
war was a valuable lesson. It gave them a start in life and a
knowledge and experience that opened to door to all employment,
especially to official positions in state and nation. In all
popular elections the soldier was generally preferred. This was
a just recognition for his sacrifices and services. I hope and
trust that while a single survivor of the War of the Rebellion is
left among us, he will everywhere be received with honor and share
all the respect which the boys of my generation were so eager to
grant and extend to the heroes of the Revolutionary War. The
service of one was as valuable as the other, rendered on a broader
field, in greater numbers, with greater sacrifices, and with the
same glorious results of securing the continuance of an experiment
of free government, the most successful in the history of mankind
and which is now, I profoundly trust, so well secured by the heroism
and valor of our soldiers, that for generations and centuries yet
to come no enemy will dare to aim a blow at the life of the republic.
For the wounded and disabled soldiers and the widows and orphans of
those who fell, a larger provision of pensions was freely granted
than ever before by any nation in ancient or modern times.
Provision was made by the general government, and by most of the
loyal states, for hospitals and homes for the wounded. The bodies
of those who died in the service have been carefully collected into
cemeteries in all parts of the United States. If there has been
any neglect or delay in granting pensions, it has been caused by
the vast number of applications--more than a million--and the
difficulty as time passes in securing the necessary proof. The
pension list now, thirty years after the war, requires annually
the sum of more than $150,000,000, or three times the amount of
all the expenses of the national government before the war. No
complaint is made of this, but Congress readily grants any increase
demanded by the feebleness of age or the decay of strength. I
trust, and believe, that this policy will be continued until the
last surviving soldier of the war meets the common fate of all.
I participated in the canvass of 1865, when General Jacob D. Cox,
the Republican candidate for governor of Ohio, and a Republican
legislature were elected with but little opposition. The first
duty of this legislature was to elect a Senator. There was a
friendly contest between General Robert C. Schenck, Hon. John A.
Bingham and myself, but I was nominated on the first ballot and
duly elected.
I received many letters from Horace Greeley, in the following one
of which he showed great interest in my re-election to the Senate:
"New York, February 7, 1865.
"Hon. John Sherman:
"My Dear Sir:--Yours of the 5th inst. at hand. I can assure you
that the combination to supplant you in the Senate is quite strong
and confident of success. I did not mean to allude to the controversy,
but was compelled to by the dispatch which got into our columns.
I observe J. W. wrote 'locality' as he says, but the change to
'loyalty' was a very awkward one in these days; so I felt compelled
to correct it.
"I fear more the raids of Thad. Stevens on the treasury than those
of Mosby on our lines.
"Yours,
"Horace Greeley."
When Congress met on the 4th of December, 1865, it had before it
two important problems which demanded immediate attention. One
was a measure for the reconstruction of the states lately in
rebellion and the other was a plan for refunding and paying the
public debt. It was unfortunate that no measure had been provided
before the close of the war defining the condition of the states
lately in rebellion, securing the freedmen in their new-born rights,
and restoring these states to their place in the Union. Therefore,
during the long vacation, from April to December, the whole matter
was left to executive authority. If Lincoln had lived, his action
would have been acquiesced in. It would have been liberal, based
upon universal emancipation of negroes, and pardon to rebels. It
was supposed that President Johnson would err, if at all, in imposing
too harsh terms upon these states. His violent speeches in the
canvass of 1864, and his fierce denunciation of the leaders in the
Rebellion, led us all to suppose that he would insist upon a
reconstruction by the loyal people of the south and that reasonable
protection would be extended to the emancipated negroes. The
necessity of legislation for the reconstruction of the Confederate
states was foreseen and provision had been made by Congress, during
the war, by what was known as the Wade-Davis bill, to provide for
the reorganization of these states. During the 37th Congress,
Henry Winter Davis, though not then a Member of the House of
Representatives, prepared a bill to meet this exigency. It was a
bill to guarantee to each state a republican form of government.
It embodied a plan by which these states, then declared by Congress
to be in a state of insurrection, might, when that insurrection
was subdued or abandoned, come back freely and voluntarily into
the Union. It provided for representation, for the election of a
convention and a legislature, and of Senators and Members of
Congress. It was a complete guarantee to the people of the
insurrectionary states that upon certain conditions these states
might resume their place in the Union when the insurrection had
ceased. This bill he handed to me. I introduced it at his request.
It was referred to the judiciary committee, but was not acted upon
by it.
Afterwards Mr. Davis came into the 38th Congress as a Member of
the House of Representatives. Among the first acts performed by
him after taking his seat was the introduction of this same bill.
On the 15th of December, 1863, it was debated in the House of
Representatives and passed by a very decided vote, and was sent to
the Senate. It was reported to the Senate favorably, but in place
of it was substituted a proposition offered by B. Gratz Brown, of
Missouri. This substitute provided a mode by which the eleven
Confederate states might, when the Rebellion was suppressed within
their limits, be restored to their old places in the Union. The
bill was sent back to the House with the proposed substitute. A
committee of conference was appointed, and the House preferring
the original bill, the Senate receded from its amendment, and what
was known as the Wade-Davis bill passed. It went to President
Lincoln, who did not approve it, and it did not become a law, but
on the 8th of July, 1864, after the close of the session, he issued
the following proclamation:
"Whereas, at the late session Congress passed a bill to guaranty
to certain states, whose governments have been usurped or overthrown,
a republican form of government, a copy of which is hereunto annexed;
and whereas the said bill was presented to the President of the
United States for his approval less than one hour before the _sine
die_ adjournment of said session, and was not signed by him; and
whereas the said bill contains, among other things, a plan for
restoring the states in rebellion to their proper practical relation
in the Union, which plan expresses the sense of Congress upon that
subject, and which plan it is now thought fit to lay before the
people for their consideration:
"Now, therefore, I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States,
do proclaim, declare, and make known, that while I am (as I was in
December last, when by proclamation I propounded a plan for
restoration) unprepared, by a formal approval of this bill, to be
inflexibly committed to any single plan of restoration; and while
I am also unprepared to declare that the free state constitutions
and governments already adopted and installed in Arkansas and
Louisiana shall be set aside and held for naught, thereby repelling
and discouraging the loyal citizens who have set up the same as to
further effort, or to declare a constitutional competency in Congress
to abolish slavery in states, I am at the same time sincerely hoping
and expecting that a constitutional amendment abolishing slavery
throughout the nation may be adopted."
He added his reasons for not approving the Wade-Davis bill. He
did not entirely disapprove of it, but said it was one of numerous
plans which might be adopted. Mr. Sumner stated, on the floor of
the Senate, that he had had an interview with President Lincoln
immediately after the publication of that proclamation, and it was
the subject of very minute and protracted conversation, in the
course of which, after discussing the details, Mr. Lincoln expressed
his regret that he had not approved the bill. I have always thought
that Mr. Lincoln made a serious mistake in defeating a measure,
which, if adopted, would have averted many if not all the difficulties
that subsequently arose in the reconstruction of the rebel states.
The next and closing session of that Congress neglected to provide
for the reorganization of these states, and, thus, when Mr. Johnson
became President, there was no provision of law to guide him in
the necessary process of reconstruction. Thus, by the disagreement
between Congress and President Lincoln, which commenced two years
before the close of the war, there was no law upon the statute book
to guide either the President or the people of the southern states
in their effort to get back into the Union. It became imperative
during the long period before the meeting of Congress that President
Johnson should, in the absence of legislation, formulate some plan
for the reconstruction of these states. He did adopt substantially
the plan proposed and acted upon by Mr. Lincoln. After this long
lapse of time I am convinced that Mr. Johnson's scheme of reconstruction
was wise and judicious. It was unfortunate that it had not the
sanction of Congress and that events soon brought the President
and Congress into hostility. Who doubts that if there had been a
law upon the statute book by which the people of the southern states
could have been guided in their effort to come back into the Union,
they would have cheerfully followed it, although the conditions
had been hard? In the absence of law both Lincoln and Johnson did
substantially right when they adopted a plan of their own and
endeavored to carry it into execution. Johnson, before he was
elected and while acting as military governor of Tennessee, executed
the plan of Lincoln in that state and subsequently adopted the same
plan for the reorganization of the rebel states. In all these
plans the central idea was that the states in insurrection were
still states, entitled to be treated as such. They were described
as "The eleven states which have been declared to be in insurrection."
There was an express provision that:
"No Senator or Representative shall be admitted into either branch
of Congress from _any of said states_ until Congress shall have
declared _such state_ entitled to such representation."
In all the plans proposed in Congress, as well as in the plan of
Johnson, it was declared that states had no right while in insurrection
to elect electors to the electoral college; they had no right to
elect Senators and Representatives. In other words they could not
resume the powers, rights and privileges conferred upon states by
the Constitution of the United States, except by the consent of
Congress. Having taken up arms against the United States, they by
that act lost their constitutional powers within the United States
to govern and control our councils. They could not engage in the
election of a President, or of Senators or Members of Congress;
but they were still states. The supreme power of Congress to
change, alter or modify the acts of the President and to admit or
reject these states and their Senators and Representatives at its
will and pleasure, and the constitutional right of the respective
Houses to judge of the election, returns and qualifications of its
own Members were recognized. When Mr. Johnson came into power he
found the Rebellion substantially subdued. His first act was to
retain in his confidence, and in his councils, every member of the
cabinet of Abraham Lincoln, and, so far as we know, every measure
adopted by him had the approval and sanction of that cabinet.
Every act passed by Congress, with or without his assent, upon
every subject whatever, connected with reconstruction, was fairly
and fully executed. He adopted all the main features of the Wade-
Davis bill--the only one passed by Congress. In his proclamation
of May 9, 1865, he provided:
"First, That all acts and proceedings of the political, military,
and civil organizations which have been in a state of insurrection
and rebellion within the State of Virginia against the authority
and laws of the United States, and of which Jefferson Davis, John
Letcher, and William Smith were late the respective chiefs, are
declared null and void."
Thus, with a single stroke, he swept away the whole superstructure
of the Rebellion. He extended the tax laws of the United States
over the rebel territory. In his proclamation of May 29, he says:
"To the end, therefore, that the authority of the government of
the United States may be restored, and that peace, order, and
freedom may be established, I, Andrew Johnson, President of the
United States, do proclaim and declare that I hereby grant to all
persons who have directly or indirectly participated in the existing
Rebellion, _except as hereinafter excepted_, amnesty and pardon,
with restoration of all rights of property, _except as to slaves_,
and except in cases where legal proceedings, under the laws of the
United States providing for the confiscation of property of person
engaged in rebellion, have been instituted, &c."
He enforced in every case full and ample protection to the freedmen
of the southern states. No complaint from them was ever brought
to his knowledge in which he did not do full and substantial justice.
The principal objection to his policy was that he did not extend
his proclamation to all the loyal men of the southern states,
including the colored as well as the white people. It must be
remembered in his justification that in every one of the eleven
states before the Rebellion the negro was, by the laws, excluded
from the right to vote. In Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York that
right was limited. In a large majority of the states, including
the most populous, negro suffrage was then prohibited. It would
seem to be a great stretch of power on his part, by a simple
mandatory proclamation or military order, to confer the franchise
on a class of people, who were then prohibited from voting not only
in the eleven southern states, but in a majority of the northern
states. Such a provision, if it had been inserted, could not have
been enforced, and, in the condition in which slavery left the
negro race, it could hardly be defended. I cannot see any reason
why, because a man is black, he should not vote, and yet, in making
laws, as the President was then doing, for the government of the
community, he had to regard the prejudices, not only of the people
among whom the laws were to be executed, but also of the army and
the people who were to execute those laws, and no man can doubt
but what at that time there was a strong and powerful prejudice in
the army and among all classes of citizens against extending the
right of suffrage to negroes, especially down in the far south,
where the great body of the slaves were in abject ignorance.
It must be also noted that in the Wade-Davis bill Congress did not
and would not make negro suffrage a part of its plan. Even so
radical an anti-slavery man as my colleague, Senator Wade, did not
propose such a measure. The effort was made to give emancipated
negroes the right to vote, and it was abandoned. By that bill the
suffrage was conferred only upon _white_ male loyal citizens. And
in the plan of the President, he adopted in this respect the very
same conditions for suffrage as those proposed by Congress. I
believe that all the acts and proclamations of President Johnson
before the meeting of Congress were wise and expedient, and that
there would have been no difficulty between Congress and the
President but for his personal conduct, and, especially, his
treatment of Congress and leading Congressmen. The unfortunate
occurrence, already narrated, at his inauguration, was followed by
violent and disrespectful language, unbecoming the President,
especially, his foolish speech made on the 22nd of February, 1866,
in which he selected particular persons as the objects of denunciation.
He said:
"I fought traitors and treason in the south. I opposed the Davises,
the Toombses, the Slidells, and a long list of others, which you
can readily fill without my repeating the names. Now, when I turn
round, and at the other end of the line find men, I care not by
what name you call them, who still stand opposed to the restoration
of the Union of these states, I am free to say to you that I am
still in the field."
And again he said:
"I am called upon to name three at the other end of the line; I am
talking to my friends and fellow-citizens, who are interested with
me in this government, and I presume I am free to mention to you
the names of those whom I look upon as being opposed to the
fundamental principles of this government, and who are laboring to
pervert and destroy it."
Voices: "Name them!" "Who are they!"
He replied:
"You ask me who they are. I say Thaddeus Stevens, of Pennsylvania,
is one; I say Mr. Sumner, of the Senate, is another; and Wendell
Phillips is another."
The violence of language, so unlike that of Abraham Lincoln, added
to the hostility to Mr. Johnson in Congress, and, I think, more
than any other cause, led to his impeachment by the House of
Representatives.
In the beginning of the controversy between Congress and the
President, I tried to act as a peacemaker. I knew Mr. Johnson
personally, his good and his bad qualities. I sat by his side in
the Senate chamber during the first two years of the war. I was
with him in his canvass in 1864. I sympathized with him in his
struggles with the leaders of the Rebellion and admired his courage
during the war, when, as Governor of Tennessee, he reorganized that
state upon a loyal basis. The defect of his character was his
unreasoning pugnacity. He early became involved in wordy warfare
with Sumner, Wade, Stevens and others. In his high position he
could have disregarded criticism, but this was not the habit of
Johnson. When assailed he fought, and could be as violent and
insulting in language and acts as anyone.
Under these circumstances I made a long and carefully considered
speech in the Senate on the 26th of February, 1866, in which I
stated the position of Congress on the reconstruction measures,
and the policy adopted by Johnson from Lincoln. Either of these
plans would have accomplished the provisional restoration of these
states to the Union, while all agreed that, when admitted, they
would be armed with all the powers of states, subject only to the
constitution of the United States. I believed then, and believe
now, that the quarrel with Johnson did much to weaken the Republican
party. In consequence of it several Republican Senators and Members
severed their connection with that party and joined the Democratic
party. Johnson, irritated by this antagonism, drifted away from
the measures he had himself advocated and soon after was in open
opposition to the party that elected him. I here insert passages
from my speech, which expressed my views at the time, and which I
now feel were justified by the then existing opinions and conditions
of political life:
"Sir, I can imagine no calamity more disgraceful than for us by
our divisions to surrender, to men who to their country were enemies
in war, any or all of the powers of this government. He, who
contributes in any way to this result, deserves the execrations of
his countrymen. This may be done by thrusting upon the President
new issues on which the well-known principles of his life do not
agree with the judgment of his political associates. It may be
done by irritating controversies of a personal character. It may
be done by the President turning his back upon those who trusted
him with high power, and thus linking his name with one of the most
disgraceful in American history, that of John Tyler. I feel an
abiding confidence that Andrew Johnson will not and cannot do this;
and, sir, who will deny that the overbearing and intolerant will
of Henry Clay contributed very much to the defection of John Tyler?
But the division of the Whig party was an event utterly insignificant
in comparison with the evil results of a division in the Union
party.
"Where will be the four million slaves whom by your policy you have
emancipated? What would be their miserable fate if now surrendered
to the custody of the rebels of the south? Will you, by your demand
of universal suffrage, destroy the power of the Union party to
protect them in their dearly purchased liberty? Will you, by new
issues upon which you know you have not the voice of the people,
jeopard these rights which you can by the aid of the Union party
secure to these freedmen? We know that the President can not and
will not unite with us upon the issues of universal suffrage and
dead states, and he never agreed to. No such dogmas were contemplated,
when, for his heroic services in the cause of the Union, we placed
him, side by side, with Mr. Lincoln as our standard-bearer. Why,
then, present these issues? Why decide upon them? Why not complete
the work so gloriously done by our soldiers in securing union and
liberty to all men without distinction of color, leaving to the
states, as before, the question of suffrage.
"Sir, the curse of God, the maledictions of millions of our people,
and the tears and blood of new-made freedmen will, in my judgment,
rest upon those who now for any cause destroy the unity of the
great party that has led us through the wilderness of war. We want
now peace and repose. We must now look to our public credit. We
have duties to perform to the business interests of the country,
in which we need the assistance of the President. We have every
motive for harmony with him and with each other, and for a generous
and manly trust in his patriotism. If ever the time shall come
when I can no longer confide in his devotion to the principles upon
which he was elected, I will bid farewell to Andrew Johnson with
unaffected sorrow. I will remember when he stood in this very
spot, five years ago, repelling with unexampled courage the assaults
of traitors. He left in their hands wife, children, property, and
home, and staked them all on the result. I will remember that when
a retreating general would have left Nashville to its fate, that
again, with heroic courage, he maintained his post. I will remember
the fierce conflicts and trials through which he and his fellow-
compatriots in east Tennessee maintained our cause in the heart of
the Confederacy. I will remember the struggles he had with the
aristocratic element of Tennessee, never ashamed of his origin and
never far from the hearts of the people.
"Sir, you must not sever the great Union party from this loyal
element of the southern states. No new theories of possible utopian
good can compensate for the loss of such patriotism and devotion.
Time, as he tells you in his message, is a great element of reform,
and time is on your side. I remember the homely and encouraging
words of a pioneer in the anti-slavery cause, an expelled Methodist
preacher from the south, who told those who were behind him in his
strong anti-slavery opinions: 'Well, friends, I'll block up awhile;
we must all travel together.' So I say to all who doubt Andrew
Johnson, or who wish to move more rapidly than he can, to block up
awhile, to consolidate their great victory with the certainty that
reason and the Almighty will continue their work. All wisdom will
not die with us. The highest human wisdom is to do all the good
you can, but not to sacrifice a possible good to attempt the
impracticable. God knows that I do not urge harmony and conciliation
from any personal motive. The people of my native state have
intrusted me with a position here extending four years beyond the
termination of the President's term of office. He can grant me no
favor.
"If I believed for a moment that he would seek an alliance with
those who, by either arms or counsel or even apathy, were against
their country in the recent war, and will turn over to them the
high powers intrusted to him by the Union party, then, sir, he is
dishonored, and will receive no assistance from me; but I will not
force him into that attitude. If he shall prove false to the
declaration made by him in his veto message, that his strongest
desire was to secure to the freedmen the full enjoyment of their
freedom and property, then I will not quarrel with him as to the
means used. And while, as he tells us in this same message, he
only asks for states to be represented which are presented in an
attitude of loyalty and harmony and in the persons of representatives
whose loyalty cannot be questioned under any constitutional or
legal test, surely we ought not to separate from him until, at
least, we prescribe a test of their loyalty, upon which we are
willing to stand. We have not done it yet. I will not try him by
new creeds. I will not denounce him for hasty words uttered in
repelling personal affronts.
"I see him yet surrounded by the cabinet of Abraham Lincoln, pursuing
Lincoln's policy. No word from me shall drive him into political
fellowship with those who, when he was one of the moral heroes of
this war, denounced, spit upon him, and despitefully used him.
The association must be self-sought, and even then I will part with
him in sorrow, but with the abiding hope that the same Almighty
power that has guided us through the recent war will be with us
still in our new difficulties until every state is restored to its
full communion and fellowship, and until our nation, purified by
war, will assume among the nations of the earth the grand position
hoped for by Washington, Clay, Webster, Lincoln, and hundreds of
thousands of unnamed heroes who gave up their lives for its glory."
I received many letters in commendation of this speech, among others
the following from Thurlow Weed, who was in full sympathy with
Secretary Seward:
"Albany, N. Y., February 28, 1866.
"Dear Sherman:--You have spoken words of wisdom and patriotism--
spoken them boldly at the right time. They will help save the
Union--and they will save the Union particularly if fanatics and
despots will allow it to be saved. Just such a speech at the moment
it was made is worth more than all that has been said in Congress
since the session commenced. I thank you gratefully for it.
"Yours truly,
"Thurlow Weed."
I still hoped that the pending civil rights bill would be approved
by the President, and that then the controversy would end. On the
17th of March, 1866, I made a speech at Bridgeport, Conn., in which
I said:
"Now, I say, that upon all these various propositions, upon the
necessity of a change in the basis of representation, upon the
necessity for protecting the negroes, upon this question of suffrage
--upon all these questions that have arisen in our politics of
late, the differences between Andrew Johnson and Congress are not
such as need excite the alarm of any patriotic citizen. No, my
friends, we have a great duty to perform to our country. Every
man in public life now has a heavy responsibility resting upon him,
in the discharge of which he is bound to follow the dictates of
his own conscience, given to him by Almighty God. There are, there
must be, differences of opinion; God has so made us that we must
differ; it is the established nature of the human mind to disagree.
It is only by discussion and comparison of views that the highest
human wisdom is elicited. Therefore, I say again, that no Union
man need feel anxious or uneasy because of the differences between
the President and Congress. Let me tell you, as the solemn conviction
with which I address you to-night, that Andrew Johnson never will
throw the power we have given him into the hands of the Copperhead
party of the United States.
"I have many reasons for this faith. One is that no nomination
has ever been sent by Andrew Johnson to the Senate of the United
States of any man of that stripe of politics. No flattery, no
cajolery can draw him from that line. He is a man who fights his
own battles, and whether they are old friends or foes that assail
him he fights them with equal freedom and boldness, and sometimes,
perhaps indiscreetly; but that is a fault of his character, which
need excite no uneasiness in the minds of the people.
"On Thursday, the day that I left Washington, we sent to him a bill
which secures to all the colored population of the southern states
equal rights before the law, the civil rights bill. It declares
that no state shall exclude any man on account of his color from
any of the natural rights which, by the Declaration of Independence,
are declared to be inalienable; it provides that every man may sue
and be sued, may plead and be impleaded, may acquire and hold
property, may purchase, contract, sell and convey; all those rights
are secured to the negro population. That bill is now in the hands
of the President. If he sign it, it will be a solemn pledge of
the law-making power of the nation that the negroes shall have
secured to them all these natural and inalienable rights. I believe
the President will sign it."
Unfortunately at the end of ten days the President sent to the
Senate the civil rights bill, referred to, with his message vetoing
it. It passed both Houses with the requisite two-thirds majority,
and thus became a law. This veto was followed by other vetoes,
and, practically, the President abandoned his party. From this
time forth, I heartily joined with my political associates in the
measures adopted to secure a loyal reorganization of the southern
states. I was largely influenced by the harsh treatment of the
freedmen in the south under acts adopted by the reconstructed
legislatures. The outrages of the Ku-Klux-Klan seemed to me to be
so atrocious and wicked that the men who committed them were not
only unworthy to govern, but unfit to live. The weakness of the
position of Congress in the controversy with Mr. Johnson, was, that
it had furnished no plan of reconstruction and he was compelled to
act upon the urgency of events. Many efforts were made to provide
legislation to take the place of the proclamations and acts of the
President, but a wide divergence of opinion in the Republican party
manifested itself, and no substantial progress was made until near
the close of the second session of the 39th Congress. Several
bills were then pending in each House to provide governments for
the insurrectionary states. On the 13th of February, 1867, during
the short session, a bill with that title came from the House of
Representatives. It was manifest unless this bill could be acted
upon, that, in the then condition of Congress, all legislation
would fail. It was kept before the Senate and thoroughly debated.
On the 16th of February, after consultation with my political
colleagues, I moved a substitute for the House bill. The fifth
section of this substitute embodied a comprehensive plan for the
organization of the rebel states with provision for elections in
said states, and the conditions required for their administration
and restoration to the Union and the exercise by them of all the
powers of states, and provided for the election of Senators and
Members of Congress. In presenting this substitute, I briefly
stated my reasons for it, as follows:
"The principle of this bill is contained in the first two lines of
the preamble. It is founded upon the proclamation of the President
and Secretary of State made just after the assassination of President
Lincoln, in which they declared specifically that the Rebellion
had overthrown all civil governments in the insurrectionary states,
and they proceeded by an executive mandate to create governments.
They were provisional in their character, and dependent for their
validity solely upon the action of Congress. These are propositions
which it is not now necessary for me to demonstrate. These
governments have never been sanctioned by Congress, nor by the
people of the states where they exist. Taking that proclamation
and the acknowledged fact that the people of the southern states,
the loyal people, whites and blacks, are not protected in their
rights, but that an unusual and extraordinary number of cases occur
of violence, and murder, and wrong, I do think it is the duty of
the United States to protect these people in the enjoyment of
substantial rights.
"Now, the first four sections of this substitute contain nothing
but what is the present law. There is not a single thing in the
first four sections that does not now exist by law.
"The first section authorizes the division of the rebel states into
military districts. That is being done daily.
"The second section acknowledges that the President is the commanding
officer of the army, and it is made his duty to assign certain
officers to those districts. That is clearly admitted to be right.
"The third section does no more than what the Supreme Court in
their recent decision have decided could be done in a state in
insurrection. The Supreme Court in their recent decisions, while
denying that a military tribunal could be organized in Indiana
because it never had been in a state of insurrection, expressly
declared that these tribunals might have been, and might now be,
organized in insurrectionary states. There is nothing in this
third section, in my judgment, that is not now and has not been
done every month within the last twelve months by the President of
the United States. The orders of General Sickles, and many other
orders I might quote, have gone further in punishment of crime than
this section proposes.
"Now, in regard to the fourth section, that is a limitation upon
the present law. Under the present law many executions of military
tribunals are summarily carried out. This section requires all
sentences of military tribunals which affect the liberty of the
citizen to be sent to the commanding officer of the district. They
must be approved by the commanding officer of the district; and so
far as life is concerned the President may issue his order at any
moment now, or after this bill passes, directing that the military
commander of the district shall not enforce a sentence of death
until it is submitted to him, because the military officer is a
mere subordinate of the President, remaining there at the pleasure
of the President.
"There is nothing, therefore, in these sections, that ought to
alarm the nerves of my friend from Pennsylvania, or anybody else.
I cannot think that these gentlemen are alarmed about the state of
despotism that President Johnson is to establish in the southern
states. I do not feel alarmed; nor do I see anything in these
sections as they now stand that need endanger the rights of the
most timid citizen of the United States. They are intended to
protect a race of people who are now without protection.
"Now, in regard to the fifth section, which is the main and material
feature of this bill, I think it is right that the Congress of the
United States, before its adjournment, should designate some way
by which the southern states may reorganize loyal state governments
in harmony with the constitution and laws of the United States,
and the sentiment of the people, and find their way back to these
halls. My own judgment is that the fifth section will point out
a clear, easy, and right way for these states to be restored to
their full power in the government. All that it demands of the
people of the southern states is to extend to all their male
citizens, without distinction of race or color, the elective
franchise. It is now too late in the day to be frightened by this
simple proposition. Senators can make the most of it as a political
proposition. Upon that we are prepared to meet them. But it does
point out a way by which the twenty absent Senators, and the fifty
absent Representatives can get back to these halls, and there is
no other way by which they can justly do it.
"It seems to me that this is the whole substance of the bill. All
there is material in the bill is in the first two lines of the
preamble and the fifth section, in my judgment. The first two
lines may lay the foundation adopting the proclamation issued first
in North Carolina, that the Rebellion had swept away all the civil
governments in the southern states; and the fifth section points
out the mode by which the people of those states in their own
manner, without any limitations or restrictions by Congress, may
get back full representation in Congress. That is the view I take
of this amended bill; and taking that view of it I see no reason
in the world why we should not all vote for it."
The substitute was adopted on the same day and the bill, thus
amended, was passed by a vote of yeas 29, nays 10. In the House
it was agreed to with slight amendments, which were finally concurred
in by the Senate, on February 20, 1867. It was sent to the President
and was not approved by him, but was, on the 2nd of March, passed
over his veto by a vote of two-thirds of both Houses.
Upon the law, long deferred, the several states mentioned in it
were organized and restored to their place in the Union. The
preamble and fifth and sixth sections of this law are as follows:
"An Act to Provide for the More Efficient Government of the Rebel
States.
"Whereas, no legal state governments or adequate protection for
life or property now exists in the rebel states of Virginia, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Louisiana,
Florida, Texas, and Arkansas; and whereas it is necessary that
peace and good order should be enforced in said states until loyal
and republican state governments can be legally established:
Therefore,
"_Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled:_ . . .
"Sec. 5. _And be it further enacted_, That when the people of any
one of said rebel states shall have formed a constitution of
government in conformity with the constitution of the United States
in all respects, framed by a convention of delegates elected by
the male citizens of said state, twenty-one years old and upward,
of whatever race, color, or previous condition, who have been
resident in said state for one year previous to the day of such
election, except such as may be disfranchised for participation in
the Rebellion, or for felony at common law, and when such constitution
shall provide that the elective franchise shall be enjoyed by all
such persons as have the qualifications herein stated for electors
of delegates, and when such constitution shall be ratified by a
majority of the persons voting on the question of ratification who
are qualified as electors for delegates, and when such constitution
shall have been submitted to Congress for examination and approval,
and Congress shall have approved the same, and when said state, by
a vote of its legislature, elected under such conditions, shall
have adopted the amendment to the constitution of the United States,
proposed by the 39th Congress, and known as article fourteen, and
when said article shall have become a part of the constitution of
the United States, said state shall be declared entitled to
representation in Congress, and Senators and Representatives shall
be admitted therefrom on their taking the oath prescribed by law,
and then and thereafter the preceding sections of this act shall
be inoperative in said state: _Provided_, That no person excluded
from the privilege of holding office by said proposed amendment to
the constitution of the United States shall be eligible to election
as a member of the convention to frame a constitution for any of
said rebel states, nor shall any such person vote for members of
such convention.
"Sec. 6. _And be it further enacted_, That, until the people of
said rebel states shall be by law admitted to representation in
the Congress of the United States, any civil government which may
exist therein shall be deemed provisional only, and in all respects
subject to the paramount authority of the United States at any time
to abolish, modify, control, or supersede the same; and in all
elections to any office under such provisional governments all
persons shall be entitled to vote, and none others, who are entitled
to vote, under the provisions of the fifth section of this act;
and no person shall be eligible to any office under any such
provisional governments who would be disqualified from holding
office under the provisions of the third article of said constitutional
amendment."
At the same time, the financial question, embracing the currency,
the public debt and the national revenue were of the highest
importance and demanded immediate consideration. Hugh McCulloch,
the Secretary of the Treasury, had been during most of his life a
banker in the State of Indiana, of acknowledged ability as such,
but with little or no experience as a financier dealing with public
questions. He was the first comptroller of the currency under the
banking act, and rendered valuable service in organizing the system
of national banks, though he had not originally favored the system,
but was, at the time of its adoption, a strong supporter of sound
state banks. In his first report to Congress on the 4th of December,
1865, he, as Secretary of the Treasury, took strong ground against
United States notes as a circulating medium and their being made
a legal tender as money. He regarded the legal tender acts as war
measures, and, while he did not recommend their repeal, he expressed
his opinion that they ought not to remain in force one day longer
than would be necessary to enable the people to prepare for a return
to the constitutional currency. He denied the authority of Congress
to issue these notes except in the nature of a loan, and affirmed
that the statute making them a legal tender for all debts, public
and private, was not within the scope of the duties or the
constitutional powers of Congress; that their issue as lawful money
was a measure necessary in a great emergency, but, as this emergency
did not then exist, the government should, as speedily as possible,
withdraw them, and he recommended that the work of retiring the
notes should be commenced without delay and carefully and persistently
continued until all were retired. He proposed to do this by the
sale of bonds for United States notes outstanding and their withdrawal
and cancellation. He recommended as a substitute the notes of
national banks, but even these notes he thought redundant, and said:
"There is no fact more manifest that the plethora of paper money
is not only undermining the morals of the people by encouraging
waste and extravagance, but is striking at the root of our material
prosperity by diminishing labor . . . and if not speedily checked,
will, at no distant day, culminate in widespread disaster. The
remedy, and the only remedy within the control of Congress, is, in
the opinion of the secretary, to be found in the reduction of the
currency."
The chief part of his report was devoted to the danger of inflation
and the necessity of contraction. He said the longer contraction
was delayed the greater must the fall eventually be, and the more
serious its consequences.
In accordance with the recommendations of Secretary McCulloch, a
bill was introduced in the House by Justin S. Morrill, which
authorized the Secretary of the Treasury, at his discretion, to
sell any of the description of bonds authorized by the act of March
3, 1865, the proceeds to be used only to retire treasury notes or
other obligations issued under any act of Congress. This bill as
reported would have placed in the power of the secretary the
retirement of all United States notes at his discretion. An
amendment was made in the House which provided:
"That of United States notes not more than ten millions of dollars
may be retired and canceled within six months from the passage of
this act, and thereafter not more than four millions of dollars in
any one month."
The bill as it came to the Senate was as follows:
"An act to amend an act entitled 'An act to provide ways and means
to support the government,' approved March third, eighteen hundred
and sixty-five.
"_Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled_, That the act
entitled 'An act to provide ways and means to support the government,'
approved March third, eighteen hundred and sixty-five, shall be
extended and construed to authorize the Secretary of the Treasury,
at his discretion, to receive any treasury notes or other obligations
issued under any act of Congress, whether bearing interest or not,
in exchange for any description of bonds authorized by the act to
which this is an amendment; and also to dispose of any description
of bonds authorized by said act, either in the United States or
elsewhere, to such an amount, in such manner, and at such rates,
as he may think advisable, for lawful money of the United States,
or for any treasury notes, certificates of indebtedness, or
certificates of deposit, or other representatives of value, which
have been or which may be issued under any act of Congress, the
proceeds thereof to be used only for retiring treasury notes or
other obligations issued under any act of Congress; but nothing
herein contained shall be construed to authorize any increase of
the public debt: _Provided_, That of United States notes not more
than ten millions of dollars may be retired and canceled within
six months from the passage of this act, and thereafter not more
than four millions of dollars in any one month: _And provided
further_, That the act to which this is an amendment shall continue
in full force in all its provisions, except as modified by this act.
"Sec. 2. _And be it further enacted_, That the Secretary of the
Treasury shall report to Congress at the commencement of the next
session the amount of exchanges made or money borrowed under this
act, and of whom and on what terms; and also the amount and character
of indebtedness retired under this act, and the act to which this
is an amendment, with a detailed statement of the expense of making
such loans and exchanges."
This bill, without change, became a law April 12, 1866. I believed
then, and now know, that the passage of this law was a great
misfortune. It enabled the Secretary of the Treasury to retire at
a rapid rate United States notes and to largely increase the bonded
indebtedness of the United States. It would no doubt have brought
us abruptly to the specie standard and made us dependent for
circulating notes upon the issues of national banks.
At this time there was a wide difference of opinion between Secretary
McCulloch and myself as to the financial policy of the government
in respect to the public debt and the currency. He was in favor
of a rapid contraction of the currency by funding it into interest
bearing bonds. I was in favor of maintaining in circulation the
then existing volume of currency as an aid to the funding of all
forms of interest-bearing securities into bonds redeemable within
a brief period at the pleasure of the United States, and bearing
as low a rate of interest as possible. Both of us were in favor
of specie payments, he by contraction and I by the gradual advancement
of the credit and value of our currency to the specie standard.
With him specie payments was the primary object, with me it was a
secondary object, to follow the advancing credit of the government.
Each of us was in favor of the payment of the interest of bonds in
coin, and the principal, when due, in coin. A large proportion of
national securities were payable in lawful money, or United States
notes. He, by contraction, would have made this payment more
difficult, while I, by retaining the notes in existence, would
induce the holders of currency certificates to convert them into
coin obligations bearing a lower rate of interest.
CHAPTER XVII.
INDEBTEDNESS OF THE UNITED STATES IN 1865.
Organization of the Greenback Party--Total Debt on October 31st
amounts to $2,805,549,437.55--Secretary McCulloch's Desire to
Convert All United States Notes into Interest Bearing Bonds--My
Discussion with Senator Fessenden Over the Finance Committee's Bill
--Too Great Powers Conferred on the Secretary of the Treasury--His
Desire to Retire $10,000,000 of United States Notes Each Month--
Growth of the Greenback Party--The Secretary's Powers to Reduce
the Currency by Retiring or Canceling United States Notes is
Suspended--Bill to Reduce Taxes and Provide Internal Revenue--My
Trip to Laramie and Other Western Forts with General Sherman--
Beginning of the Department of Agriculture.
During this period a party sprang up composed of men of all parties
called the Greenback party, who favored an increase of United States
notes, and the payment of all United States bonds and securities
in such notes. This difference of opinion continued until the
resumption of specie payments, in January, 1879.
I propose to state here the measures adopted in respect to the
national currency and debt during the rest of the administration
of President Johnson.
The total debt of the United States on the 31st of October, 1865,
was $2,808,549,437.55 in twenty-five different forms of indebtedness
of which, $1,200,000,000 was payable at the option of the Secretary
of the Treasury, or within a brief period. The amount of United
States notes outstanding was then $428,160,569, and of fractional
currency $26,057,469, in all $545,218,038. All of this money was
in active circulation, in great favor among the people, worth in
use as much as national bank notes, and rapidly rising in value
compared with coin. It was the least burdensome form of indebtedness
then existing. The treasury notes and compound interest notes were
in express terms payable in this lawful money, and, therefore, bore
a higher rate of interest than the bonds, which, by their express
terms or necessary implication, were payable in coin only.
It was insisted that the amount of United States notes was in excess
of what was needed for currency in time of peace and might safely
be gradually reduced. This effort to contract the currency was
firmly resisted by several Senators, myself among them. The Supreme
Court decided that Congress had full power to make these notes a
legal tender. They were far better than any form of currency
previously existing in the United States. During the war, when
the expenditures of the government reached nearly $1,000,000,000
a year they were indispensable. Those most opposed to irredeemable
paper money acknowledged this necessity. The only objection to
them was that they were not equivalent to coin in purchasing power.
After the war was over, the general desire of all was to advance
these notes nearer to par with coin, but not to withdraw them.
The rising credit and financial strength of the United States would,
it was believed, bring them to par without injustice to the debtor,
but the rapid withdrawal of the notes would add to the burden of
debts and cripple all forms of industry. It would convert the
compound interest notes and treasury notes bearing seven and three
tenths per cent. interest, amounting to over $1,000,000,000 expressly
payable in United States notes, into coin liabilities. The bill
prepared at the treasury department contemplated the conversion of
all United States notes into bonds. In that form the bill was
defeated in the House of Representatives, but it was reconsidered
and an amendment was then made limiting the retirement of notes to
$4,000,000 a month. This gained for the bill enough votes to secure
its passage. Even the withdrawal of $48,000,000 a year was soon
found to be oppressive and was subsequently repealed.
When this bill came before the committee on finance, I found myself
alone in opposition to it. I could not impress my colleagues of
the committee with the grave importance of the measure, and its
wide-reaching influence upon our currency, debt and credit. They
regarded it simply as a bill to change the form of our securities.
I felt confident that without the use of United States notes we
could not make this exchange. When the bill was brought before
the Senate by Mr. Fessenden, chairman of the committee, he made no
statement of its terms, but only said:
"I have merely to say that this bill is reported by the committee
on finance without amendment as it came from the House of
Representatives. The committee on finance, on careful examination
of it, came to the conclusion that the bill was well enough as it
stood, and did not deem it advisable to make any amendment. It
has been before the Senate a considerable time, and I presume every
Senator understands it. I ask, therefore, for the question."
I replied:
"I regret very much that I differ from the committee on finance in
regard to this bill. This is the only bill on the subject of the
public debt on which I have not been able to concur with that
committee. . . .
"If Senators will read this bill they will find that it confers on
the Secretary of the Treasury greater powers than have ever been
conferred, since the foundation of this government, upon any
Secretary of the Treasury. Our loan laws, heretofore, have generally
been confined to the negotiation of a single loan, limited in
amount. As the war progressed, the difficulties of the country
became greater, and we were more in the habit of removing the
limitations on the power of the Secretary of the Treasury; but
generally the power conferred was confined to a particular loan
then in the market. This bill, however, is more general in its
terms. This bill authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury to sell
any character of bonds without limit, except as to the rate of
interest. The authority conferred does not limit him to any form
of security. It may run for any period of time within forty years.
He may sell the securities at less than par, without limitation as
to rate. He may sell them in any form he chooses. He may put them
in the form of treasury notes or bonds, the interest payable in
gold or in paper money. He may undertake, under the provisions of
this bill, to fund the whole debt of the United States. The only
limit as to amount is the public debt, now $2,700,000,000. The
power conferred on the Secretary of the Treasury is absolute. It
is not only for this year, or during the current fiscal year, or
for the next year, but it is for all time, until the act shall be
repealed. It gives him absolute power to negotiate bonds of the
United States to the amount of $2,700,000,000, without limiting
the rate at which they shall be sold, and only limiting the rate
of interest inferentially. The description of the bonds in the
act of March 3, 1865, referred to here, would probably limit the
rate of interest to six per cent. in coin, and seven and three-
tenths per cent. in currency; but with this exception there is no
limitation.
"It seems to me that in the present condition of our finances there
is no necessity for conferring these large powers on the Secretary
of the Treasury. The people are not generally aware of the favorable
condition of our finances. The statement of the public debt laid
on our tables the other day does not show fully the condition of
the finances. It is accurate in amounts, but does not give dates
of the maturity of our debts. But a small portion of the debt of
the United States will be due prior to August, 1867, that will give
the secretary any trouble. But little of the debt which he will
be required to fund under the provisions of this bill matures before
August, 1867. The temporary or call loan, now over one hundred
millions, may readily be kept at this sum even at a reduced rate
of interest. The certificates of indebtedness, amounting to sixty-
two millions, may easily be paid from accruing receipts, or, if
necessary, may be renewed or funded at the pleasure of the secretary.
None of the compound interest notes or the seven-thirty notes mature
until August, 1867. . . .
"There is, therefore, no immediate necessity for these vast powers.
The question then naturally occurs, why grant them? I have carefully
considered this question, and I do not think there is now any
immediate necessity for granting these powers. No debt is maturing
that is likely to give the government any trouble; and yet we are
now about to confer upon the Secretary of the Treasury, powers that
we cannot, in the nature of things, recall. It is true we may
repeal this law next year, but we know very well that when these
large powers are granted they are very seldom recalled; they are
made the precedents of further grants of powers and are very rarely
recalled. It seems to me that the whole object of the passage of
this bill is to place it within the power of the Secretary of the
Treasury to contract the currency of the country, and thus, as I
think, to produce an unnecessary strain upon the people. This
power I do not think ought to be given to him. The House of
Representatives did not intend to give him this power. They debated
the bill a long time, and it was defeated on the ground that they
would not confer on the secretary this power to reduce the currency,
and finally it was only passed with a proviso contained in the bill
which I will now read:
'_Provided_, That of United States notes not more than $10,000,000
may be retired and canceled within six months from the passage of
this act, and thereafter not more than $4,000,000 in any one month.'
"The purpose of the House of Representatives was, while giving the
secretary power to fund the debt as it matured or even before
maturity, giving him the most ample power over the debt of the
United States, to limit his power over the currency, lest he might
carry to an extreme the view presented by him in his annual report.
If this proviso would accomplish the purpose designed by the House
of Representatives, I would cease all opposition to this bill; but
I know it will not, and for the very obvious reason, that there is
no restraint upon the power of the Secretary of the Treasury to
accumulate legal tender notes in the treasury. He may retire
$200,000,000 of legal tender notes by retaining them in his possession
without cancellation, and thus accomplish the very purpose the
House of Representatives did not intend to allow him to accomplish.
He may sell the bonds of the United States, at any rate he chooses,
for legal tenders, and he may hold those legal tenders in his
vaults, thus retiring them from the business of the country, and
thus produce the very contraction which the House of Representatives
meant to deny him power to do. Therefore, this proviso, which only
limits the power of canceling securities or notes, does not limit
his power over the currency, and he may, without violating this
bill, in pursuance of the very terms of this bill, contract the
currency according to his own good will and pleasure.
"My own impression is, that the Secretary of the Treasury, in
carrying out his own policy, will do so. He says he will not
contract it unreasonably or too rapidly, but I believe he will
contract the currency in this way. He has now in the vaults of
the treasury $60,000,000 in currency and $62,000,000 in gold--a
larger balance, I believe, than was ever before kept in the treasury
until within the last two or three months; a larger balance than
was ever found in the treasury during the war. What is the object
of accumulating these vast balances in the treasury? Simply to
carry out his policy of contraction. With this power of retaining
in the treasury the money that comes in, what does he care for the
limitation put upon this bill by the House of Representatives?
That says that he shall not retire and cancel more than $10,000,000
of United States notes within six months, and not more than $4,000,000
in any one month thereafter; but why need he retire and cancel them
when he can retain them in the vaults of the treasury, and thus
contract the currency? . . .
"I do not doubt in the least either the integrity or the capacity
of the present incumbent of the treasury department. I have as
much confidence in him as anyone; but this question of the currency
is one that affects so intimately all the business relations of
life, the property of every man in this country, his ability to
pay taxes, his ability to earn food and acquire a living, that no
man ought to have the power to vary the volume of currency. It
ought to be regulated by law, and the law ought to be so fixed and
so defined that every business man may transact his business with
full knowledge of the amount of the currency, with all its limits
and qualifications. I ask you, sir, how any prudent or judicious
man can now engage in any important business, in which he is
compelled to go into debt, with this large power hanging over him.
It would be unsafe for him to do so. The amount of the currency
ought to be fixed by law, whether much or little. There ought to
be a limit, and no man ought to have the power at pleasure to
enlarge or contract that limit. . . .
"Then there is the further power to reduce the currency, a power
that has not heretofore been granted to any Secretary of the
Treasury. The amount heretofore has been fixed and limited by law.
By the first clause of this bill the secretary is authorized to
receive treasury notes, or United States notes of any form or
description, and there is no limitation to this power, except the
clause which I have read to you. That limits his power to retire
and cancel the United States notes, but not to accumulate the
enormous balances on hand. My own impression has been, and when
this bill was before the committee on finance I believed, it would
be better for that committee to report to the Senate a financial
project to fund the debt of the United States. I believe that now
is the favorable time to do it. If a five per cent. bond, a long
bond of proper description and proper guarantee, was now placed
upon the market, with such ample powers to negotiate it as ought
to be given to the Secretary of the Treasury, such a loan as was
authorized two years ago, at a reduced rate of interest, to be
exempt from taxation, I have no doubt whatever, the Secretary of
the Treasury could fund every portion of the debt of the United
States as it matured. . . .
"I do not like to embarrass a bill of this kind with amendments,
because I know it is difficult to consider amendments of this sort,
requiring an examination of figures and tables. I have prepared
a bill very carefully, with a view to meet my idea, but I will not
present it now in antagonism to this bill passed by the House of
Representatives and the view taken by the finance committee, because
I know, in the present condition of the Senate, it would not probably
be fully considered. My only purpose now is to point out the fact
that is perfectly clear to the mind of every sensible man who has
examined this bill, that the bill as it stands does not carry out
the manifest intention of the House of Representatives when they
passed it, and that the proviso, limiting the power of the secretary
over the legal tender currency, does not accomplish the purpose
which they designed, and without which I know the bill never could
have passed the House of Representatives."
Mr. Fessenden: "If the House of Representatives did not understand
what they were doing when they passed this bill, it arises from
the fact that they did not give the rein to their imagination, as
the honorable Senator from Ohio seems to have done to his, and take
it for granted that the Secretary of the Treasury had a purpose to
accomplish, and that he would not hesitate to take any means in
his power to accomplish it, improperly against the manifest will
of Congress, against the interests of the country, and against his
own interests as Secretary of the Treasury."
I replied:
"I appeal to the Senator whether that is a fair statement of my
argument?"
Mr. Fessenden: "That is the way precisely that I understand it."
I said:
"That is precisely as no gentleman could have understood me. I
never said that the secretary improperly would do so and so by any
means. It is one of the honorable Senator's modes of stating
propositions."
Mr. Fessenden: "I certainly did not mean to say that the honorable
Senator supposed he designed to do so, but such seems to be the
result of his argument--that the Secretary of the Treasury having
the power, as he says, there is danger that he might abuse it in
that precise way; else his argument amounts to nothing at all as
against the bill. I certainly acquit my friend of any sort of
desire or intention to throw any imputation on the Secretary of
the Treasury. That he did not mean to do. . . ."
I said:
"I do not think it wise to confer on the Secretary of the Treasury
the power to meet the indebtedness not accruing for a year, or two,
or three years. I do not think it is necessary, in our present
financial condition, to authorize him to go into market now and
sell bonds at current market rates with a view to pay debts that
do not mature for a year or two. I have no doubt before the five-
twenty loans are due we shall retire every dollar of them at four
or five per cent. interest. No one who heeds the rapid developments
of new sources of wealth in this country, the enormous yield of
gold now, the renewal of industry in the south, the enormous yield
of cotton, the growing wealth of this country, and all the favorable
prospects that are before us, doubts the ability of this government
before this debt matures to reduce it to four or five per cent.
interest. . . .
"The Secretary of the Treasury may sell bonds at any rate to meet
debts as they accrue, but that is not the purpose of this bill."
Mr. Fessenden: "That is all the purpose there is in it."
I said:
"Then there is no necessity for it."
Mr. Fessenden: "Yes, there is. I differ from you."
I continued:
"We have here the tables before us. The honorable Senator and I
know when this debt matures. . . .
"That is the power now given, and he will use the power. He may
think it to his interest to retire the whole of the seven-thirties
or the ten-forties; but is it wise for us to give him that power
now, at the heel of the war and before things have settled down?
I do not think it is.
"I repeat, I do not wish to call in question the integrity of the
Secretary of the Treasury. The Senator interjects by saying we
must look ahead. I have done so. The difference between us is
that I anticipate that the future of this country will be hopeful,
buoyant, joyous. We shall not have to beg money of foreign nations,
or even of our own people, within two or three years. Our national
debt will be eagerly sought for, I have no doubt. I take a hopeful
view of the future. I do not wish now to cripple the industry of
the country by adopting the policy of the Secretary of the Treasury,
as he calls it, by reducing the currency, by crippling the operations
of the government, when I think that under any probability of
affairs in the future, all this debt will take care of itself. I
believe that if the Secretary of the Treasury would do nothing in
the world except simply sit in his chair, meet the accruing
indebtedness, and issue his treasury warrants, this debt will take
care of itself, and will fund itself at four or five per cent.
before very long. All that I object to in this bill is the power
it gives the Secretary of the Treasury over the currency, to affect
the currency of the country now and to anticipate debts that are
not yet due. . . .
"That is what I am afraid of, his interference to contract the
currency. The honorable Senator from Maine, however, would seem
to think that I impute to him a wrong motive, and therefore I
corrected him when he made the remark that I seemed to suppose the
secretary was doing this improperly. I think not. The Secretary
of the Treasury informed us that he desired to reduce the currency,
and he has been doing it as far as he could. He has been accumulating
large balances. He was opposed to the proviso which has been
inserted in this bill, and yielded to it only with reluctance.
That is admitted on all hands, and he is not precluded either in
honor or propriety from carrying out his policy if you gave him
the power to do it."
This bill became a law on the 12th of April, 1866. President
Johnson relied entirely upon McCulloch, and had no opinions upon
financial topics.
Now, nearly thirty years after the passage of this act, it is
manifest that it was far the most injurious and expensive financial
measure ever enacted by Congress. It not only compelled the United
States to pay the large war rates of interest for many years, but
postponed specie payments until 1879. It added fully $300,000,000
of interest that might have been saved by the earlier refunding of
outstanding bonds into bonds bearing four or five per cent. interest.
Mr. Fessenden, then chairman of the committee on finance, committed
a grave error in hastily supporting the bill, an error which I
believe he greatly regretted and which, in connection with his
failing health, no doubt led him to resign his position as chairman
of that committee. Although our debate was rather sharp, it did
not disturb our friendly relations. With McCulloch in the treasury
department, nothing could be done.
If the funding clauses of this act had been limited to the conversion
of compound interest notes, treasury notes bearing interest,
certificates of indebtedness, and temporary loans into bonds
redeemable at the pleasure of the United States after a brief time,
bearing not exceeding five per cent. interest, retaining in
circulation during this process of refunding all the then outstanding
United States notes, the result would have been greatly beneficial
to the United States, but this was not the chief object of the
Secretary of the Treasury. His primary object was to convert United
States notes into interest-bearing bonds, and thus force the
immediate resumption of specie payments or the substitution of
national bank notes for United States notes. The result of his
refunding was largely to increase the amount of six per cent. bonds,
the most burdensome form of security then outstanding. In October,
1865, the amount of six per cent. bonds was $920,000,000; on the
1st of July, 1868, the six per cent. bonds outstanding were
$1,557,844,600. The increase of these bonds under the operation
of this law was thus over $637,000,000.
The result of this policy of contraction was not only to increase
the burden of the public debt, but it created serious derangement
of the business of the country. It excited a strong popular
opposition to the measures adopted.
The Greenback party, as it was called, grew out of this policy of
contraction, and for a time threatened to carry the election of a
majority of the Members of Congress. It contended practically for
an unlimited issue of legal tender United States notes, and the
payment of all bonds and securities in United States notes. This,
however, did not disturb Secretary McCulloch. In his annual report
of December 3, 1866, he again urged the policy of a further reduction
of United States notes. He was not satisfied with the reduction
already provided for, and recommended that the reduction should be
increased from $4,000,000 a month, as contemplated by the act of
April 12, 1866, to $6,000,000 a month for the fiscal year, and to
$10,000,000 a month thereafter. He said:
"The _policy_ of contracting the circulation of the government
notes should be definitely and unchangeably established, and the
_process_ should go on just as rapidly as possible without producing
a financial crisis or seriously embarrassing those branches of
industry and trade upon which our revenues are dependent. That
the policy indicated is the true and safe one, the secretary is
thoroughly convinced. If it shall not be speedily adopted and
rigidly, but judiciously, enforced, severe financial troubles are
in store for us."
He insisted that the circulation of the country should be further
reduced, not by compelling the national banks to retire their notes,
but by the withdrawal of United States notes. When reminded of
the great saving of interest in the issue of $400,000,000 United
States notes, he answered:
"Considerations of this nature are more than counterbalanced by
the discredit which attaches to the government by failing to pay
its notes according to their tenor, by the bad influence of this
involuntary discredit upon the public morals, and the wide departure,
which a continued issue of legal tender notes involves, from the
past usages, if not from the teachings of the constitution itself."
He said:
"The government cannot exercise powers not conferred by its organic
law or necessary for its own preservation, nor dishonor its own
engagements when able to meet them, without either shocking or
demoralizing the sentiment of the people; and the fact that the
indefinite continuance of the circulation of an inconvertible but
still legal tender currency is so generally advocated indicates
how far we have wandered from old landmarks both in finance and in
ethics."
The growing opposition of the people at large to the contraction
of the currency seemed to have no effect upon his mind.
He again recurs to the same subject in his annual report to Congress,
in December, 1867. After stating that the United States notes,
including fractional currency, had been reduced from $459,000,000
to $387,000,000, and the funded debt had been increased $684,548,800,
he urged as a measure regarded by him as important, if not
indispensable for national prosperity, the funding or payment of
the balance of interest-bearing notes, and a continued contraction
of the paper currency. He urged that the acts authorizing legal
tender notes be repealed, and that the work of retiring the notes
which had been issued under them should be commenced without delay,
and carefully and persistently continued until all were retired.
This policy of contraction, honestly entertained and persistently
urged by Secretary McCulloch in spite of growing stringency, led
Congress, by the act of February 4, 1868, to suspend indefinitely
the authority of the Secretary of the Treasury to make any reduction
of the currency by retiring or canceling United States notes.
Who can doubt that if he had availed himself of the power given
him to refund the interest-bearing notes and certificates of the
United States into bonds bearing a low rate of interest, leaving
the United States notes bearing no interest to circulate as money,
he would have saved the government hundreds of millions of dollars?
If irredeemable notes were a national dishonor, why did he not urge
their redemption in coin at some fixed period and then reissue
them, and maintain their redemption by a reserve in coin?
The act of February 25, 1862, under which the original United States
notes were issued, provided that:
"Such United States notes shall be received the same as coin, at
their par value, in payment for any loans that may be hereafter
sold or negotiated by the Secretary of the Treasury, and may be
reissued from time to time as the exigencies of the public interest
shall require."
This provision would have maintained the parity of United States
notes at par with bonds, but under the pressure of war it was deemed
best by Congress, upon the recommendation of Secretary Chase, to
take from the holder of United States notes the right to present
them in payment for bonds after the first day of July, 1863. If
this privilege, conferred originally upon United States notes, had
been renewed in 1866, with the right of reissue, bonds and notes
would together have advanced to par in coin. But this is what the
contractionists especially opposed. They demanded the cancellation
of the notes when presented, a contraction of the currency when
offering our bonds. It is easy now to perceive that a conservative
use of United States notes, convertible into four per cent. bonds,
would have steadily advanced both notes and bonds to par in coin.
But the equally erroneous opposing opinions of contractionists and
expansionists delayed for many years the coming of coin resumption
upon a fixed quantity of United States notes.
Among the acts of this Congress of chief importance is the act
approved July 13, 1866, to reduce taxes and provide internal revenue.
The passage of such an act required much labor in both Houses, but
especially so in the House of Representatives, where tax bills must
originate. It was a compromise measure, and, unlike previous acts,
did not reach out for new objects of taxation, but selected such
articles as could bear it best, and on some of these the tax was
increased. A great number of articles that enter into the common
consumption of the people and are classed as necessities of life
were relieved from taxation. The general purpose of the bill was
in time to concentrate internal taxes on such articles as spirits,
tobacco and beer. The tax on incomes was continued but limited to
the 30th of June, 1870. I have already stated the marked development
of internal taxation, and this measure was one of the most important
in the series to produce great revenue at the least cost, and of
the lightest burden to the taxpayer.
Soon after the passage of the act, approved April 12, 1866, to
contract the currency, I introduced a bill, "To reduce the rate of
interest on the national debt and for funding the same." In view
of the passage of that act I did not expect that a funding bill
would meet with success, but considered it my duty to present one,
and on the 22nd of May, 1866, made a speech in support of it. The
bill provided for the voluntary exchange of any of the outstanding
obligations of the United States for a bond running thirty years,
but redeemable at the pleasure of the United States after ten years
from date, bearing interest at the rate of five per cent., payable
annually. On reading that speech now I find that, though I was
much more confident than others of converting our maturing securities
into five per cent. bonds, the general opinion then prevailing,
and acted upon by the Secretary of the Treasury, was to issue six
per cent. bonds as already stated. I soon found that it was idle
to press the funding bill upon Congress, when it was so much occupied
with reconstruction and with Andrew Johnson. The refunding and
many other measures had to be postponed until a new administration
came into power. Congress had unfortunately authorized the issue
of six per cent. bonds for accruing liabilities, and thus postponed
refunding at a lower rate of interest.
The long and exciting session of Congress that ended on the 28th
day of July, 1866, left me in feeble strength and much discouraged
with the state of affairs. I had arranged with General Sherman to
accompany him in an official inspection of army posts on the western
plains, but did not feel at liberty to leave Washington until
Congress adjourned. The letter I wrote him on the 8th of July
expresses my feelings as to the political situation at that time:
"United States Senate Chamber,}
"Washington, July 8, 1866. }
"Dear Brother:--It is now wise for you to avoid all expressions of
political opinion. Congress and the President are now drifting
from each other into open warfare. Congress is not weak in what
it has done, but in _what it has failed to do_. It has adopted no
unwise or extreme measures. The civil rights bill and constitutional
amendments can be defended as reasonable, moderate, and in harmony
with Johnson's old position and yours. As Congress has thus far
failed to provide measures to allow legal Senators and Representatives
to take their seats, it has failed in a plain duty. This is its
weakness, but even in this it will have the sympathy of the most
of the soldiers, and the people who are not too eager to secure
rebel political power. As to the President, he is becoming Tylerized.
He was elected by the Union party for his openly expressed radical
sentiments, and now he seeks to rend to pieces this party. There
is a sentiment among the people that this is dishonor. It looks
so to me. What Johnson is, is from and by the Union party. He
now deserts it and betrays it. He may varnish it up, but, after
all, he must admit that he disappoints the reasonable expectations
of those who intrusted him with power. He may, by a coalition with
copperheads and rebels, succeed, but the simple fact that nine-
tenths of them who voted for him do not agree with him, and that
he only controls the other tenth by power intrusted to him by the
Union party, will damn him forever. Besides, he is insincere; he
has deceived and misled his best friends. I know he led many to
believe he would agree to the civil rights bill, and nearly all
who conversed with him until within a few days believed he would
acquiesce in the amendments, and even aid in securing their adoption.
I almost fear he contemplates civil war. Under those circumstances
you, Grant and Thomas ought to be clear of political complications.
As for myself, I intend to stick to finance, but wherever I can I
will moderate the actions of the Union party, and favor conciliation
and restoration.
"Affectionately yours,
"John Sherman."
After the adjournment I proceeded to St. Louis, and with General
Sherman and two staff officers, went by rail to Omaha. This handsome
city had made great progress since my former visit. We then went
by the Central Pacific railroad to Fort Kearney, as far as the
rails were then laid. There our little party started through the
Indian Territory, riding in light wagons with canvas covers, each
drawn by two good army mules, escorted by a squad of mounted
soldiers. We traveled about thirty miles a day, camping at night,
sleeping in our wagons, turned into ambulances, the soldiers under
shelter tents on blankets and the horses parked near by. The camp
was guarded by sentinels at night, and the troopers lay with their
guns close at hand. Almost every day we met Indians, but none that
appeared to be hostile. In this way we traveled to Fort Laramie.
The country traversed was an unbroken wilderness, in a state of
nature, but singularly beautiful as a landscape. It was an open
prairie, traversed by what was called the North Platte River, with
scarcely water enough in it to be called a creek, with rolling
hills on either side, and above, a clear sky, and air pure and
bracing. It was the first time I had been so far out on the plains,
and I enjoyed it beyond expression. I was soon able to eat my full
share of the plain fare of bread and meat, and wanted more.
After many days we reached Fort Laramie, then an important post
far out beyond the frontier. We remained but a few days, and then,
following south along the foot hills, we crossed into the Laramie
plains to Fort Sanders. This was the last post to the west in
General Sherman's command. From thence we followed the course of
the Cache la Poudre. On the way we camped near a station of the
Overland Stage Company, for change of horses and for meals, in a
charming and picturesque region. The keeper of the station soon
called and inquired for me, and I found that he was a former resident
of Mansfield, who married the daughter of an old friend. He invited
our party to his house, and there I met his wife, who, in this
region without any neighbors or habitations near, seemed to be
perfectly happy and fearless, though often disturbed by threatened
Indian outbreaks. We were handsomely entertained. It was a great
relief to sleep one night in a comfortable bed, after sleeping for
many nights with two in a narrow wagon. We then proceeded to
Greeley, where we found a small settlement of farmers. From thence
to Denver, we found a few cabins scattered over a vast open plain
stretching as far as the eye could reach to the east, with the
mountains on the west rising in grandeur and apparently presenting
an insurmountable barrier. I have seen many landscapes since that
were more bold and striking, but this combination of great mountains
and vast plains, side by side, made an impression on my mind as
lasting as any natural landscape I have seen.
At Denver, General Sherman and I were handsomely entertained by
the citizens, many of whom General Sherman knew as soldiers under
his command during the war, and some of whom I knew as former
residents of Ohio. They were enthusiastic in their praise of
Colorado. It seemed to me the air was charged with a superabundance
of ozone, for everyone was so hopeful of the future of Denver, that
even the want of rain did not discourage them and some of them
tried to convince me that irrigation from the mountains was better
than showers from the sky. Denver was then a town of less than
5,000 inhabitants and now contains more than 110,000. Colorado
had less than 50,000 inhabitants in 1870, and in 1890 it had 412,198,
an increase of nearly ten fold in twenty years. But this marvelous
growth does not spring from the invigorating air and flowing springs
of Colorado, but from the precious metals stored in untold quantities
in her mountains. From Denver General Sherman had to continue his
inspection to the southern posts, and I was called home to take
part in the pending canvass. I started in a coach peculiar to the
country, with three or four passengers, over a distance of about
four hundred miles to Fort Riley, in Kansas. We had heard of many
Indian forays on the line we were to travel over and there was some
danger, but it was the only way to get home. Each of the passengers,
I among the number, had a good Winchester rifle, with plenty of
ammunition. The coach was a crude rattle-trap, noisy and rough,
but strong and well adapted to the journey. It was drawn by four
horses of the country, small but wiry. We had long reaches between
changes. The stations for meals had means of defense, and the food
set before us was substantial, mainly buffalo beef, chickens and
bread. A good appetite (always a sure thing on the plains) was
the best sauce for a substantial meal, and all the meals were
dinners with no change of courses. We saw on the way many evidences
of Indian depredations, one of which was quite recent, and two or
three settlers had been killed. We met no Indians on the way, but
we did meet myriads of buffaloes, scattered in vast herds to the
north and south of us as far as the eye could reach. It is sad to
reflect that all these animals have been exterminated, mainly in
wanton sport by hunters who did not need their flesh for food or
their hides for leather or robes. This destruction of buffaloes
opened the way for herds of domestic cattle, which perhaps in equal
numbers now feed upon the native grass of the prairies.
In a recent visit to western Nebraska and South Dakota, I saw these
cattle in great numbers in good condition, cheaply cared for and
sold for four cents a pound on the hoof. The owners of these cattle
purchased land from settlers who had acquired title under the
homestead or pre-emption laws, as suitable sites for ranches,
including a permanent lake or pond for each, an indispensable
requisite for a ranch. This being secured, they built houses to
live in and sheds for the protection of their cattle in winter,
and thus obtained practical possession, without cost or taxes, of
all the government land needed for their ranges. Sad experience
has convinced settlers in all the vast rainless region of the west,
that they cannot produce grain with any certainty of harvesting a
crop, and thousands who have made the experiment in western Kansas
and Nebraska and in eastern Colorado and Wyoming have recently
abandoned their improvements and their claims. It seems now that
this part of our country must be given up to the herders of cattle.
The Indians and buffaloes have disappeared and the "cowboys" and
domestic cattle and horses have taken their place, to give way, no
doubt, in time, to the farmer, when the water will be drawn from
the earth by artesian wells, and life and vitality will thus be
given to a soil as rich as the Kansas valley.
We reached the end of our stage ride at Fort Riley, and were glad
to enter into the cars of the Kansas Pacific railroad, though they
were as dirty and filthy as cars could well be. All this has been
changed. Now the ride over the plains from Kansas City to Denver
can be made, in a comparatively few hours, in comfort and safety.
I returned to Ohio to take my usual part in the canvass in the fall
of 1866, and returned to Washington in time for the meeting of
Congress on the first Monday in December.
Prior to 1862 but little attention was given by Congress to the
greatest and most important industry of mankind, that of agriculture.
This is especially true of the United States, where the majority
of its inhabitants are engaged in farming. Agriculture has furnished
the great body of our exports, yet this employment had no representative
in any of the departments except a clerk in the Patent Office.
The privileges granted by that bureau to inventors had no relation
to work on the farm, though farming was greatly aided by invention
of farm implements during the period of the war, when a million of
men were drawn from their occupations into the army. This anomaly
led to the passage, on the 15th of May, 1862, of the act to establish
the department of agriculture. Though called a department its
chief officer was a commissioner of agriculture, who was not for
many years a member of the cabinet. The first commissioner, Isaac
Newton, appointed by Lincoln, was a peculiar character, a Quaker
of Philadelphia, a gardener rather than a farmer, but he was an
earnest and active officer. The appropriations for his department
were very small, but enabled him to distribute valuable seeds and
cuttings, which were in great demand and of real service to farmers.
I early took an active part in promoting his efforts and especially
in producing him appropriations and land where he could test his
experiments. He applied for authority to use that portion of
Reservation No. 2 between 12th and 14th streets of the mall in
Washington, then an unsightly waste without tree or shrub, but he
was notified that the use of it was essentially necessary to the
war department as a cattle yard. When the war was over Congress
appropriated it for the use of his department. He took possession
of it about the middle of April, 1865, and, though the ground was
an unbroken soil of tenacious clay, he fertilized and pulverized
a part of it and planted a great variety of seeds for propagation,
and covered the remaining portions of it with grass and cereals.
His reports increased in interest and were in great demand. His
office work was done in inconvenient parts of the Patent Office,
and the necessity of better accommodations was constantly pressed
upon Members of Congress. I took an active interest in the subject,
and offered an amendment to the civil appropriation bill to
appropriate $100,000 for a suitable building for the department of
agriculture on the reservation mentioned. There was a disposition
in the Senate to ridicule Newton and his seeds, and Mr. Fessenden
opposed the appropriation as one for an object not within the
constitutional power of Congress. The amendment, however, was
adopted on the 28th day of February, 1867. Newton died on the 19th
of June of that year, but on the 22nd of August, John W. Stokes,
as acting commissioner, entered into a contract for the erection
of the building, and Horace Capron, as commissioner, completed the
work within the limits of his appropriation, a rare result in the
construction of a public building. The building is admirably
adapted for the purposes designed. The unsightly reservation has
been converted by Mr. Capron and his successors in office into one
of the most beautiful parks in Washington. The department of
agriculture is now represented in the cabinet, and in practical
usefulness to the country is equal to any of the departments.
CHAPTER XVIII.
THREE MONTHS IN EUROPE.
Short Session of Congress Convened March 4, 1867--I Become Chairman
of the Committee on Finance, Succeeding Senator Fessenden--Departure
for Europe--Winning a Wager from a Sea Captain--Congressman Kasson's
Pistol--Under Surveillance by English Officers--Impressions of John
Bright, Disraeli and Other Prominent Englishmen--Visit to France,
Belgium, Holland and Germany--An Audience with Bismarck--His Sympathy
with the Union Cause--Wonders of the Paris Exposition--Life in
Paris--Presented to the Emperor Napoleon III and the Empress Eugenie
--A Dinner at the Tuileries--My Return Home--International Money
Commission in Session at Paris--Correspondence with Commissioner
Ruggles--His Report--Failure to Unify the Coinage of Nations--
Relative Value of Gold and Silver.
During the last session of the 39th Congress the relations between
President Johnson and Congress became such that it was deemed
advisable to provide by law for a session of the new Congress on
the 4th of March, 1867, that being the commencement of the term
for which the Members were elected.
The law, in my opinion, ought to be a permanent one, so that the
will of the people, as evidenced by the elections, may be promptly
responded to. But such was not the purpose of this act. The reason
was that, under the claim of authority made by the President, there
was a fear that he might recognize the states in insurrection before
they had complied with the conditions prescribed by law for
reconstruction.
In pursuance of this law the 40th Congress met on the day named.
I took the oath as Senator, my colleague, Benjamin F. Wade, president
_pro tem._ of the Senate, administering it. I became chairman of
the committee on finance by the voluntary retirement of Mr. Fessenden.
I knew this had been his purpose during the session just closed.
He complained of his health, and that the confinement and labor of
the position he held added to his infirmity. At the same time it
was agreed that the duties of the committee should be divided by
referring all appropriations to a committee on appropriations, and
I was to choose between the two committees. The House of
Representatives had already divided the labors of the committee of
ways and means, a corresponding committee to that on finance, among
several committees, and the experiment had proved a success. I
preferred the committee on finance, and remained its chairman until
I became Secretary of the Treasury. Mr. Fessenden took the easy
and pleasant position of chairman of the committee on public
buildings and grounds, and held that position until he died in
September, 1869. I have already expressed my opinion of his
remarkable ability as a debater and as a statesman of broad and
conservative views. His only fault was a hasty temper too often
displayed, but as often regretted by him.
Congress adjourned on the 30th of March, to meet again on the 3rd
of July. The Senate was called to a special session by proclamation
of the President on the 1st day of April, 1867. It remained in
session until the 20th of April and then adjourned _sine die_.
I did not remain until the close of the session, but about the 10th
of April sailed from New York for Europe in the steamer "City of
Antwerp." I went for needed rest, a change of air and scene, and
had in view, as one of the attractions of the voyage, a visit to
the exposition at Paris in that year. My associates on the ocean
were Colonel Morrow, United States Army, and John A. Kasson, Member
of Congress from Iowa, and we remained together until I left London.
I had no plan, route or business, except to go where I drifted with
such companions as I met. The only limitation as to time was the
duty of returning to meet the adjourned session of the Senate in
July. I have no memoranda in respect to the voyage and preserved
no letters about it. Still, the principal scenes and events are
impressed on my mind and I will narrate them as I now recall them.
The passage on the ocean was a favorable one. We had some rain
but no winds that disturbed my digestion. But few on the vessel
were seasick, and these mainly so from imagination. The captain,
whose name I do not recall, was a jolly Englishman, but a careful,
prudent and intelligent officer. I sat by his side at his table.
After leaving port we soon took our places at table for our first
meal on board. He inquired of me if I was a good sailor. I told
him I would be as regular in my attendance at meals as he. He
laughed and said he would like to wager some wine on that. I
cheerfully accepted his bet, and, true to my promise, I did not
miss a meal during the voyage, while he three or four times remained
at his post on deck when the air was filled with fog or the waves
were high. He paid the bet near the end of the voyage, and a number
of his passengers, including Morrow and Kasson, shared in the treat.
I can imagine no life more pleasing than a tranquil, but not too
tranquil, sea, with a good ship well manned, with companions you
like, but not too many. The quiet and rest, the view of the ocean,
the sense of solitude, the possibility of danger, all these broken
a little by a quiet game of whist or an interesting book--this I
call happiness. All these I remember to have enjoyed on this, my
fifth trip on the ocean.
In due time we arrived at Queenstown in Ireland. It was about the
time a party of Irishmen, in some town in England rescued some of
their countrymen from a van in charge of English constables, one
or more of whom were killed or wounded. Morrow, Kasson and I
concluded we would spend a few days in "Ould Ireland." Morrow and
Kasson believed they were of Irish descent, though remotely so as
their ancestors "fought in the Revolution." We remained in and
about Cork for two or three days. We visited and kissed the Blarney
Stone, saw the Lakes of Killarney, and drove or walked about the
interesting environs of Cork and Queenstown. We sought no acquaintance
with anyone.
We were all about the age of forty, physically sound, and both
Morrow and Kasson had the military air and step of soldiers. We
soon became conscious that we were under surveillance. One day an
officer called at our lodgings and frankly told us that there was
so much excitement about Fenian disturbances in England, and such
political ferment in Ireland, that an examination of the baggage
of passengers was required and he wished to examine ours. I told
him who we were, and introduced him to Morrow and Kasson, and
offered my trunk for inspection. They did the same, Kasson producing
also a small pistol from his valise. The officer had heard of that
pistol. Kasson had fired it at the birds hovering about the vessel.
This had been reported to the police. The officer took the pistol
and it was returned to Kasson some days after at Dublin. Morrow
ridiculed the pistol and told the officer that Kasson could not
hit or hurt him at ten paces away, but the officer was only half
satisfied. We soon after went to Dublin, but we felt that we were
under suspicion. All Americans were then suspected of sympathizing
with the Irish. We told our consul at Dublin of our adventures at
Cork, and he said we were lucky in not being arrested. We went to
a steeple chase a few miles from Dublin, where gentlemen rode their
own horses over a long and difficult route, leaping barriers and
crossing streams. We enjoyed the scene very much and mingled freely
in the great crowd, but always feeling that we were watched. The
next day we started to cross the channel to Holyhead.
We took the steamer at Dublin Bay and found aboard a large company
of well-dressed passengers, such as we would find on a summer
excursion from New York. Morrow, who was a handsome man of pleasing
manners and address, said he could pick out Americans from the
crowd. I doubted it. He said: "There is an American," pointing
out a large, well-built man, who seemed to be known by the passengers
around him. I said he was an Englishman. Morrow stepped up to
him and politely said that he had a wager with a friend that he
was an American. "Not by a d----d sight," replied the Englishman.
Morrow apologized for the intrusion, but the gentleman changed his
tone and said that his abrupt answer was caused by a letter he had
lately received from a nephew of his whom he had sent to America
to make his fortune. His nephew had written him now that the rebels
were put down, the next thing to do would be to put down "old
England." Morrow said there was too much of that kind of gasconade
in America, and that after our desperate struggle at home we would
not be likely to engage in one with England.
We arrived safely in London. In my first visit in 1859, with my
wife, we were sight-seers. Now I sought to form acquaintance with
men whose names were household words in all parts of the United
States. By the courtesy of our consul general at Liverpool, Thomas
H. Dudley, I met John Bright, Disraeli, and many others less
conspicuous in public life. I have already mentioned my breakfast
with Gladstone during this visit. Mr. Dudley, then in London,
invited Mr. Bright to a dinner as his principal guest. Of all the
men I met in London, Mr. Bright impressed me most favorably. Finely
formed physically, he was also mentally strong. He was frank and
free in his talk and had none of the hesitation or reserve common
with Englishmen. He was familiar with our war and had no timidity
in the expression of his sympathy for the Union cause. If we ever
erect a monument to an Englishman, it should be to John Bright.
I heard Disraeli speak in the House of Commons and was introduced
to him at a reception at Lord Stanley's. In the ten days I spent
in London I saw as much of social life as could be crowded into
that time. Charles Francis Adams was then United States minister
at London, and I am indebted to him for many acts of kindness.
When we were Members of the House of Representatives together he
had the reputation of being cold and reserved and he was not popular
with his fellow Members, but in London he was distinguished for
his hospitality to Americans. He certainly was very kind to me,
entertaining me at dinner and taking pains to introduce me to many
peers and members whose names were familiar to me. While receptions
are very common in London during the session, the Englishman prefers
dinners as a mode of entertainment. It is then he really enjoys
himself and gives pleasure to his guests. The sessions of parliament,
however, interfere greatly with dinners. The great debates occur
during dining hours, so that, as Mr. Adams informed me, it was
difficult to arrange a dinner that would not be broken up somewhat
by an unexpected debate, or a division in the House of Commons.
The precedence of rank had to be carefully observed. The unsocial
habit of not introducing guests to each other tended to restrain
conversation and make the dinner dull and heavy. Still the forms
and usages in social life in London are much like those in Washington.
But here the ordinary sessions of each House of Congress terminate
before six o'clock, leaving the evening hours for recreation.
The presidential mansion is the natural resort of all who visit
Washington. The doors are always open to visitors at stated hours,
and the President is easy of access to all who call at such hours.
Formerly presidential receptions were open to all comers, and the
result was a motley crowd, who formed in line and shook hands with
the President, bowed to the attending ladies, passed into the great
east room and gradually dispersed. In late years these receptions
have become less frequent, and in their place we have had diplomatic,
military and navy, and congressional receptions, for which invitations
are issued. During the usual period before Lent card receptions
are given by the cabinet, by many Senators and Members, and by
citizens, for which invitations are issued. I know of no place
where the entrance into society is so open and free as in
Washington.
From London I went, by way of Dieppe and Rouen, to Paris, where my
first call was on General Dix and his family. Next I visited the
exposition, and wandered through and about and around it. I have
attended many exhibitions, but never one before or since that
combined such magnitude and completeness in size, form and location,
and such simplicity in arrangement and details, as the Paris
Exposition of 1867. I spent ten days in this inspection, and in
walking and driving around Paris and its environs. Through the
kindness of General Dix, then envoy extraordinary and minister
plenipotentiary, I received invitations to many meetings and
receptions given by Mayor Haussman and other officers of the French
government to visitors from abroad connected with the exposition.
I accepted some of them, but purposely postponed this social part
of my visit until I returned from Berlin.
From Paris I went to Antwerp via Brussels. At this latter place
I met Doctor John Wilson, then United States consul at Antwerp.
He was an old friend at Washington, where he served during the
greater part of the war as an army surgeon. He was a man of
remarkable intelligence, familiar with nearly every part of Europe,
and especially with France, Belgium and Prussia. He readily
acquiesced in my invitation to accompany me to Berlin. On the
invitation of Henry S. Sanford, our minister to Brussels, I returned
to that city, and met at dinner the principal officers of Belgium,
such as we designate cabinet ministers. I drove with Mr. Sanford
to Waterloo and other famous historic places in and about that
beautiful city.
From Brussels we went to the Hague, where General Hugh Ewing, a
brother-in-law of General Sherman, was United States minister.
After a brief stay in Holland, General Ewing, Doctor Wilson and
myself went to Berlin. Prussia was then a kingdom of rising power,
and Berlin was a growing city, but not at all the Berlin of to-day.
Bismarck was recognized as a great statesman and, although far less
prominent than he afterwards became, he was the one man in Germany
whom I desired to see or know. Mr. Joseph A. Wright, late United
States minister at Berlin, had recently died, and his son, John C.
Wright, who was in charge of the legation, had no difficulty in
securing me an audience with Bismarck, accompanying me to the
official residence, where I was introduced to him. Bismarck spoke
English with a German accent, but was easily understood. When I
spoke of recent events in Europe he would turn the conversation to
the United States, asking me many questions about the war and the
principal generals in the opposing armies. He was in thorough
sympathy with the Union cause, and emphatically said that every
man in Prussia, from the king to his humblest subject, was on the
side of the Union, and opposed to the Rebellion. What a pity, he
said, it would have been if so great a country as the United States
had been disrupted on account of slavery. I mentioned my visit to
the international fair at Paris and my intention to return, and he
said he would be there.
This interview, which lasted, perhaps, forty minutes, was as informal
and frank as the usual conversation of friends. Bismarck was then
in full health and strength, about fifty years old, more than six
feet high, and a fine specimen of vigorous manhood in its prime.
I found the same feeling for the United States expressed by a
popular meeting in the great exposition hall in Berlin. Our little
party was escorted to this place on Sunday afternoon by Mr. Kreismann,
our consul at Berlin. As we entered the hall, Mr. Kreismann advanced
to the orchestra, composed of several military bands, and said
something to the leader. When we took our seats at one of the
numerous tables he told me to pay attention after the first item
of the second part of the programme before me, and I would hear
something that would please me. At the time stated, a young man
advanced to the front of the stage, with a violin in his hand, and
played exquisitely the air "_Yankee Doodle Is the Tune_," and soon
after the entire band joined in, filling the great hall with American
music. The intelligent German audience, many of whom knew the
national airs of all countries, realized at once that this addition
to the programme was a compliment to the Americans. They soon
located our little party and then rose, and fully two thousand
persons, men, women and children, waved their handkerchiefs and
shouted for America.
The feeling in favor of the United States was then strong in all
parts of Europe, except in France and England. In these countries
it was somewhat divided--in France by the failure of Maximilian,
and in England by the rivalry of trade, and sympathy with the south.
Generally, in referring in Europe to the people of the United
States, the people speak of us as Americans, while those of other
parts of America are Canadians, Mexicans, etc.
After a pleasant week in Berlin I went by way of Frankfort, Wiesbaden
and Cologne to Paris. The exposition was then in full operation.
It may be that greater numbers attended the recent exposition at
Chicago, but, great as was its success, I think, for symmetry, for
plans of buildings, and arrangement of exhibits, the fair at Paris
was better than that at Chicago. The French people are well adapted
for such exhibits. The city of Paris is itself a good show. Its
people almost live out of doors six months of the year. They are
quick, mercurial, tasteful and economical. A Frenchman will live
well on one-half of what is consumed or wasted by an American. I
do not propose to describe the wonderful collection of the productions
of nature or the works of men, but I wish to convey some idea of
life in Paris during the thirty days I spent in it.
Louis Napoleon Bonaparte was then Emperor of the French, and Haussman
was mayor of the city of Paris. General Dix, as before stated,
was United States minister plenipotentiary and envoy extraordinary
at the court of France. Upon my arrival, I hired what in Paris is
called an apartment, but which includes several rooms, comprising
together a comfortable residence. Many similar apartments may be
in the same building, but with them you need have no communication,
and you are detached from them as fully as if each apartment was
a separate house. The concierge, generally a woman, takes charge
of your room, orders your breakfast if you require one, and keeps
the key of your apartment when you are absent. It is a charming
mode of living. You can dine or lunch when you will, and are master
of your time and your apartment. I employed a neat, light carriage
and one horse, with a driver who knew a smattering of several
languages, and found him trusty and faithful--all this at a cost
that would disgust the ordinary hotel proprietor in the United
States, and especially the hack driver of any of our cities. This,
in Paris, was the usual outfit of a gentleman.
General Dix advised me on whom and when and how I should make my
calls. My card in the usual form announced that I was "Sénateur
des États Unis d'Amérique." A Parisian could not pronounce my name.
The best he could do was to call me "Monsieur le Sénateur." With
a few words of French I acquired, and the imperfect knowledge of
English possessed by most French people, I had no difficulty in
making my way in any company. I received many invitations I could
not accept. I attended a reception at the Palais Royal, the
residence of the mayor, dressed in the ordinary garb for evening
parties, a dress coat and trousers extending to the knees, and
below black silk stockings and pumps. I felt very uncomfortable
in this dress when I entered the reception room, but, as I found
every gentleman in the same dress, we become reconciled to it.
Subsequently I attended a reception at the Tuileries, at which I
was presented by General Dix to the emperor and empress.
One feature of this presentation I shall always remember. The
general company had been gathered in the great hall. The diplomatic
representatives of many countries were formed in line according to
their rank, attended by the persons to be presented. Soon a door
was opened from an adjoining room and the Emperor of the French,
escorting, I think, the Empress of Russia, passed along the line
and saluted the ambassadors and ministers in their order, and the
ladies and gentlemen to be presented were introduced by name to
the emperor. General Dix presented Fernando Wood, of New York,
and myself. Following the French emperor came the Emperor of Russia
escorting the Empress Eugenie of France, and the same mention of
our names was made to her. Following them came kings, the Prince
of Wales and others of like rank, each accompanied by distinguished
peers of his country. Third or fourth in this order came the King
of Prussia, Prince Bismarck, and General Von Moltke. When Bismarck
passed he shook hands with Dix and recognized me with a bow and a
few words. If the leaders in this pageant could have foreseen what
happened three years later--that King William would be an emperor,
that Bonaparte would be his prisoner and Eugenie a refugee from
republican France--the order of the march would have been reversed.
Soon after this reception, I was invited by the emperor to attend,
with General Dix and his daughter, a dinner at the Tuileries. Such
an invitation is held to be in the nature of a command. I accompanied
them, and was agreeably surprised to find that the dinner was quite
informal, though more than forty sat at table. When I entered the
room one of the ladies in waiting came to me and introduced me to
a lady whom I was to escort to the table. Presently she returned
and said: "Oh, I understand monsieur does not speak French, and
marquise does not speak English. Will monsieur allow me to be a
substitute?" I agreed with great pleasure. Both the guests and
the hosts were promptly on time. I was introduced to the emperor
and empress. She was very gracious to her guests, passing from
one to another with a kindly word to all. I noticed her greeting
to Miss Dix was very cordial. The emperor engaged in a conversation
with me that continued until the dinner was announced,--fully ten
minutes. He asked many questions about the war, and especially
about General Sherman. I answered his questions as I would to any
gentleman, but felt uneasy lest I was occupying time that he should
bestow on others. General Dix was by my side, and encouraged the
conversation. When the dinner was announced each guest knew his
place from the card furnished him, and the party was seated without
confusion.
I need not say that the young lady I escorted was a charming woman.
I did not learn whether she was married or not, but have always
regarded her action in relieving me from a silent dinner as the
highest mark of politeness. She was bright and attractive, and I
certainly did and said all I could to amuse her, so what I expected
to be a dull dinner turned out to be a very joyful one.
It is impossible for an American to visit Paris without enjoyment
and instruction. The people of Paris are always polite, especially
to Americans. The debt of gratitude for the assistance of France
in our War of the Revolution is never forgotten by a true American,
and Frenchmen are always proud of their share in establishing the
independence of America. The two Bonapartes alone did not share
in this feeling. The Americans are liberal visitors in Paris.
They spend their money freely, join heartily in festivities, and
sympathize in the success and prosperity of the French republic.
If I was not an American I certainly would be a Frenchman. I have
visited Paris three times, remaining in it more than a month at
each visit, and always have been received with civility and kindness.
Though it is a great manufacturing city, chiefly in articles of
luxury requiring the highest skill, yet it is also a most beautiful
city in its location, its buildings, public and private, its museums
and opera houses, its parks and squares, its wide streets and
avenues, and especially the intelligence of its people. Science
and art have here reached their highest development. We may copy
all these, but it will require a century to develop like progress
in America.
I returned to England for a few days and then took the steamer
"City of Paris" for New York, where I arrived on the 13th of July.
I took the cars for Washington and arrived ten days after the
session had commenced.
While I was in Paris a special international commission, composed
of delegates from seventeen nations, was sitting to consider, and,
if possible, agree on a common unit of money for the use of the
civilized world. Mr. Samuel B. Ruggles, a gentleman of the highest
standing and character, was the representative of the United States
on this commission. It should be remembered that at this time the
only currency in circulation in the United States was the legal
tender notes of the United States and the notes of national banks.
Neither gold nor silver coin was in circulation, both being at a
premium in currency. At this time silver bullion was at a premium
over gold bullion, the legal ratio being sixteen to one. In other
words, sixteen ounces of silver were worth, in the open market,
three to five cents more than one ounce of gold. All parties in
the United States were then looking forward to the time when United
States notes would advance in value to par with gold, the cheaper
metal.
The question before the commission was how to secure a common coin
that would be the measure of value between all nations, and thus
avoid the loss by exchange of the coins of one nation for those of
another. Mr. Ruggles knew that I had studied this question, and
therefore wrote this letter:
"Paris, May 17, 1867.
"My Dear Sir:--You are, of course, aware that there is a special
committee now in session, organized by the Imperial Commission of
France, in connection with the 'Paris Exposition,' composed of
delegates from many of the nations therein represented. Its object,
among others, is to agree, if possible, on a common unit of money,
for the use of the civilized world.
"I perceive that the opinions of the committee are running strongly
in favor of adopting, as the unit, the existing French five-franc
piece of gold.
"May I ask what, in your opinion, is the probability that the
Congress of the United States, at an early period, would agree to
reduce the weight and value of our gold dollar, to correspond with
the present weight and value of the gold five-franc piece of France;
and how far back such a change would commend itself to your own
judgment?
"I would also ask the privilege of submitting your answer to the
consideration of the committee.
"With high respect, faithfully your friend,
"Samuel B. Ruggles,
"U. S. Commissioner to the Paris Exposition and Member of the
Committee.
"Hon. John Sherman,
"Chairman of the Finance Committee of the Senate of the United
States, etc., etc., etc., now in Paris."
To this letter I made the following reply:
"Hotel Jardin des Tuileries, May 18, 1867.
"My Dear Sir:--Your note of yesterday, inquiring whether Congress
would probably, in future coinage, make our gold dollar conform in
value to the gold five-franc piece, has been received.
"There has been so little discussion in Congress upon the subject
that I cannot base my opinion upon anything said or done there.
"The subject has, however, excited the attention of several important
commercial bodies in the United States, and the time is now so
favorable that I feel quite sure that Congress will adopt any
practical measure that will secure to the commercial world a uniform
standard of value and exchange.
"The only question will be, how can this be accomplished?
"The treaty of December 23, 1865, between France, Italy, Belgium,
and Switzerland, and the probable acquiescence in that treaty by
Prussia, has laid the foundation for such a standard. If Great
Britain will reduce the value of her sovereign two pence, and the
United States will reduce the value of her dollar something over
three cents, we then have a coinage in the franc, dollar and
sovereign easily computed, and which will readily pass in all
countries; the dollar as five francs and the sovereign as 25 francs.
"This will put an end to the loss and intricacies of exchange and
discount.
"Our gold dollar is certainly as good a unit of value as the franc;
and so the English think of their pound sterling. These coins are
now exchangeable only at a considerable loss, and this exchange is
a profit only to brokers and bankers. Surely each commercial nation
should be willing to yield a little to secure a gold coin of equal
value, weight, and diameter, from whatever mint it may have been
issued.
"As the gold five-franc piece is now in use by over 60,000,000 of
people of several different nationalities, and is of convenient
form and size, it may well be adopted by other nations as the common
standard of value, leaving to each nation to regulate the divisions
of this unit in silver coin or tokens.
"If this is done France will surely abandon the impossible effort
of making two standards of value. Gold coins will answer all the
purpose of European commerce. A common gold standard will regulate
silver coinage, of which the United States will furnish the greater
part, especially for the Chinese trade.
"I have thought a good deal of how the object you propose may be
most readily accomplished. It is clear that the United States
cannot become a party to the treaty referred to. They could not
agree upon the silver standard; nor could we limit the amount of
our coinage, as proposed by the treaty. The United States is so
large in extent, is so sparsely populated, and the price of labor
is so much higher than in Europe, that we require more currency
per capita. We now produce the larger part of the gold and silver
of the world, and cannot limit our coinage except by the wants of
our people and the demands of commerce.
"Congress alone can change the value of our coin. I see no object
in negotiating with other powers on the subject. As coin is not
now in general circulation with us, we can readily fix by law the
size, weight, and measure of future issues. It is not worth while
to negotiate about that which we can do without negotiation, and
we do not wish to limit ourselves by treaty restrictions.
"In England many persons of influence and different chambers of
commerce are earnestly in favor of the proposed change in their
coinage. The change is so slight with them that an enlightened
self-interest will soon induce them to make it, especially if we
make the greater change in our coinage. We have some difficulty
in adjusting existing contracts with the new dollar; but as contracts
are now based upon the fluctuating value of paper money, even the
reduced dollar in coin will be of more purchasable value than our
currency.
"We can easily adjust the reduction with public creditors in the
payment or conversion of their securities, while private creditors
might be authorized to recover upon the old standard. All these
are matters of detail to which I hope the commission will direct
their attention.
"And now, my dear sir, allow me to say in conclusion that I heartily
sympathize with you and the others in your efforts to secure the
adoption of the metrical system of weights and measures.
"The tendency of the age is to break down all needless restrictions
upon social and commercial intercourse. Nations are now as much
akin to each other as provinces were of old. Prejudices disappear
by contact. People of different nations learn to respect each
other as they find that their differences are the effect of social
and local custom, not founded upon good reasons. I trust that the
industrial commission will enable the world to compute the value
of all productions by the same standard, to measure by the same
yard or meter, and weigh by the same scales.
"Such a result would be of greater value than the usual employments
of diplomatists and statesmen.
"I am very truly yours,
"John Sherman."
As the result of its investigation the commission agreed, with
entire unanimity, that the gold five-franc piece should be adopted
as the unit of value, and that the coins of all nations represented
should be based upon that unit or multiples thereof. This would
require a slight change in the quantity of gold in the dollar of
the United States, amounting to a reduction of about three cents,
a reduction in the pound sterling of England of about one penny,
and a slight reduction or increase in the gold coins of other
countries.
Mr. Ruggles reported the proceedings and recommendation of the
commission to the President, and his report was referred to
Congress.
A private letter to me from Mr. Ruggles, dated December 30, 1867,
shows the nature of the opposition to the measure proposed, being
entirely from British opposition to a change in the pound sterling.
He wrote:
"New York, December 30, 1867.
"My Dear Mr. Sherman:--You may have perceived, within the last
week, articles in the 'New York Evening Post,' the 'New York Times'
and the 'World,' on the subject of the proposed monetary unification;
the first denying its _propriety_, the second its _practicability_,
and the third underrating its _importance_.
"The articles are hastily and ignorantly and, in some respects,
bitterly written. My first impulse was to briefly answer each of
them in its respective newspaper. On further reflection, it seemed
more decorous that, as a member of the 'conference,' I should first
appear before the Senate committee now in possession of all the
papers, and there render any proper explanations, and not obtrude
myself as a combatant in the newspapers, prematurely and only
partially defending my official action. If, however, you should
think that the articles should be answered without delay, I could
readily cause it to be done, by other persons.
"I cannot but think that the dignity of the subject, formally
presented as it now is, to our national authorities, by a diplomatic
assemblage representing nearly all the civilized nations of the
Christian world, entitles it to a full discussion before the Senate
committee, to be followed by a maturely considered report, fairly
weighing and presenting to the country all the merits and demerits,
facilities and difficulties of the measure.
"I am just at the moment confined to my house by an 'influenza,'
but if I can be of any service, either before the committee or
elsewhere, I shall hold myself subject to your official call, for
any duty, after the 7th or 8th of January, which you may indicate.
"You must have perceived that my report to the department of state,
having in view the possibility of European readers, abstained from
some considerations which might properly be brought to the notice
of the committee of the American Senate.
"It is strange, indeed, to see American newspapers eagerly maintaining
the inviolability of the 'pound sterling,' when it has become
entirely evident that the great monetary struggle of the future
must lie between the British pound and the American dollar. In
truth, this was virtually admitted in the 'conference' by Mr.
Graham, one of the British delegates, and master of the royal mint.
"With high regard, faithfully yours,
"Samuel B. Ruggles.
"Hon. John Sherman,
"Chairman Senate Finance Comittee, etc., etc., etc."
We were called upon to legislate upon the subject. The French
government promptly acquiesced in the coin proposed. Mr. Ruggles'
report said that several governments had already assented to it.
The report was referred to the committee on finance of the Senate,
who submitted a favorable report with a bill to carry out the
recommendations, and that report was published. There was no
dissent from the plan except that Senator Morgan, of New York,
thought it would interfere with the profit of New York brokers in
changing dollars into pounds. As a matter of course, it would have
interfered with the exchanges of New York and London, the great
money centers of the world. It would have interfered with bullion
dealers who make profit in exchanging coins; but the whole of it
was for the benefit of each country.
No man can estimate the benefit it would have conferred upon our
own people. It was only defeated by the refusal of Great Britain
to assent to the change of her pound sterling by the reduction of
its value about one penny. But pride in the existing coins, so
strong in that country, defeated the measure, although it had been
assented to by her representatives in that monetary congress; and
so the thing ended.
It is easy now to perceive that if this international coin had been
agreed to it would have passed current everywhere, as it could
rapidly be exchanged at sight without going through the hands of
brokers. I do not believe that Mr. Morgan would have insisted on
his opposition, as the only ground of his objection was, it would
have destroyed the business of the money changers of New York.
Even his resistance would have been ineffectual, as the committee
and the Senate were decidedly in favor of the bill and the opposition
of New York brokers would have added strength to the measure.
The greatest statesmen of Europe and America have sought for many
years to unify the coinage of nations, and to adopt common standards
of weights and measures, so that commerce may be freed from the
restrictions now imposed upon it, but Great Britain has steadily
opposed all these enlightened measures, and thus far has been able
to defeat them.
My report from the committee on finance, made to the Senate June
7, 1868, contains a full statement of the acts of the monetary
conference at Paris, and of the approval of its action by many of
the countries there represented, and of the support given to the
plan in Great Britain by many of her ablest statesmen and the great
body of her commercial classes, but the party then in power in
parliament refused its sanction, and thus, as already stated, the
measure failed.
It has been quite common, during recent discussion about silver,
to attribute the alleged demonetization of that metal to the action
of the Paris monetary conference. In 1867, when this conference
was in session, as already stated, sixteen ounces of silver were
worth more than one ounce of gold. Fifteen and one-half ounces of
silver were the legal equivalent of one ounce of gold in all European
countries. No suggestion was made or entertained to disturb the
circulation of silver. The only object sought was to secure some
common coin by which other coins could be easily measured. As gold
was the most valuable metal in smallest space, and the five-franc
gold piece of France was the best _unit_ by which other coins could
be measured, other gold coins were to be multiples of the unit, so
that five francs would be a dollar and five dollars would be a
pound. The coins of other nations would be made to conform to
multiples of this unit.
It was perfectly understood that, while silver was the chief coin
in domestic exchanges in every country, it was not convenient for
foreign commerce, owing to its bulk. The ratio between gold and
silver was purely a domestic matter, to be determined by each
country for itself. It is apparent that the chief cause of the
fall of the market value of silver is its increased production.
This affects the price of every commodity, cotton, corn, or wheat
as well as silver. The law of supply and demand regulates value.
It is the "higher law" more potent than acts of Congress. If the
supply is in excess of demand the price will fall, in spite of
legislation. The most striking evidence of this was furnished by
our recent legislation by which we purchased over 400,000,000 ounces
of silver at its market value and hoarded it, and yet the price of
it steadily declined. We can coin it into silver dollars, but we
can keep these dollars at par with gold only be receiving them as
the equal of gold when offered.
CHAPTER XIX.
IMPEACHMENT OF ANDREW JOHNSON.
Judiciary Committee's Resolution Fails of Adoption by a Vote of 57
Yeas to 108 Nays--Johnson's Attempt to Remove Secretary Stanton
and Create a New Office for General Sherman--Correspondence on the
Subject--Report of the Committee on Impeachment, and Other Matters
Pertaining to the Appointment of Lorenzo Thomas--Impeachment
Resolution Passed by the House by a Vote of 126 Yeas to 47 Nays--
Johnson's Trial by the Senate--Acquittal of the President by a Vote
of 35 Guilty to 19 Not Guilty--Why I Favored Conviction--General
Schofield Becomes Secretary of War--"Tenure of Office Act."
During the spring and summer of 1867 the question of impeaching
Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, was frequently
discussed in the House of Representatives. The resolutions relating
to his impeachment were introduced by James M. Ashley, of Ohio, on
the 7th of March, 1867, and they were adopted on the same day.
These resolutions instructed the judiciary committee, when appointed,
to continue the inquiry, previously ordered, into certain charges
preferred against the President of the United States, with authority
to sit during the sessions of the House, and during any recess the
Congress might take.
On the 25th of November, 1867, a majority of the committee on the
judiciary reported a resolution of impeachment, as follows:
"_Resolved_, That Andrew Johnson, President of the United States,
be impeached of high crimes and misdemeanors."
This resolution was accompanied by a long report and the testimony,
all of which was ordered to be printed, and made the special order
for Wednesday, December 4, 1867. James F. Wilson, of Iowa, made
a minority report against the resolution of impeachment, signed by
himself and Frederick E. Woodbridge, of Vermont. Samuel S. Marshall,
of Illinois, also made a minority report in behalf of himself and
Charles A. Eldridge, of Wisconsin.
On the 7th of December, the resolution of impeachment reported by
the committee on the judiciary at the previous session was disagreed
to by a vote of 57 yeas and 108 nays. This decision of the House
of Representatives against an impeachment on the charges then made
was entirely justified. This imposing process was not authorized
for misconduct, immorality, intoxication or neglect of duties, such
as were alleged in the report of the committee, but only for high
crimes or misdemeanors. The House properly made this distinction,
and here the accusations against the President would have ended,
but for his attempt, in violation of the constitution and law, to
place General Lorenzo Thomas in an important office without the
advice and consent of the Senate, then in session.
In the latter part of 1867, and the early part of 1868, I became
involved in a controversy, between President Johnson, General Grant
and General Sherman, which caused the last-named serious embarrassment.
As much of the correspondence between these parties has been
published in the "Sherman Letters," I at first thought it best not
to make any reference to the matter, but upon reflection, and to
explain subsequent events, I insert the letters in their order.
General Sherman was summoned to Washington, by the President, and
upon his arrival there wrote me the following letter:
"Washington, October 11, 1867.
"Dear Brother:--I have no doubt that you have been duly concerned
about my being summoned to Washington.
"It was imprudently done by the President without going through
Grant. But I think I have smoothed it over so that Grant does not
feel hurt. I cannot place myself in a situation even partially
antagonistic with Grant. We must work together. Mr. Johnson has
not offered me anything, only has talked over every subject, and
because I listen to him patiently, and make short and decisive
answers, he says he would like to have me here. Still he does not
oppose my going back home. . . .
"On Monday I will start for St. Louis by the Atlantic and G. W.
road, and pass Mansfield Tuesday. Can't you meet me and ride some
miles? I have been away from home so much, and must go right along
to Fort Laramie, that I cannot well stop at Cleveland or Mansfield,
and would like to see you for an hour or so to hear your views of
the coming events. . . .
"Yours affectionately,
"W. T. Sherman."
And on his return to St. Louis he continues:
. . . "I have always talked kindly to the President, and have
advised Grant to do so. I do think that it is best for all hands
that his administration be allowed to run out its course without
threatened or attempted violence. Whoever begins violent proceedings
will lose in the long run. Johnson is not a man of action but of
theory, and so long as your party is in doubt as to the true mode
of procedure, it would be at great risk that an attempt be made to
displease the President by a simple law of Congress. This is as
much as I have ever said to anybody. I have never, by word or
inference, given anybody the right to class me in opposition to,
or in support of, Congress. On the contrary, I told Mr. Johnson
that from the nature of things he could not dispense with a Congress
to make laws and appropriate money, and suggested to him to receive
and make overtures to such men as Fessenden, Trumbull, Sherman,
Morgan, and Morton, who, though differing with him in abstract
views of constitutional law and practice, were not destructive.
That if the congressional plan of reconstruction succeeded, he
could do nothing, and if it failed or led to confusion, the future
developed results in his favor, etc.; and that is pretty much all
I have ever said or done. At the meeting of the society of the
army of the Tennessee on the 13th inst., I will be forced to speak,
if here, and though I can confine myself purely to the military
events of the past, I can make the opportunity of stating that in
no event will I be drawn into the complications of the civil politics
of this country.
"If Congress could meet and confine itself to current and committee
business, I feel certain that everything will work along quietly
till the nominations are made, and a new presidential election will
likely settle the principle if negroes are to be voters in the
states without the consent of the whites. This is more a question
of prejudice than principle, but a voter has as much right to his
prejudices as to his vote. . . ."
I answered:
"Mansfield, Ohio, November 1, 1867.
"Dear Brother:-- . . . I see no real occasion for trouble with
Johnson. The great error of his life was in not acquiescing in
and supporting the 14th amendment of the constitution in the 39th
Congress. This he could easily have carried. It referred the
suffrage question to each state, and if adopted long ago the whole
controversy would have culminated; or, if further opposed by the
extreme radicals, they would have been easily beaten. Now I see
nothing short of universal suffrage and universal amnesty as the
basis. When you come on, I suggest that you give out that you go
on to make your annual report and settle Indian affairs. Give us
notice when you will be on, and come directly to my house, where
we will make you one of the family.
"Grant, I think, is inevitably the candidate. He allows himself
to drift into a position where he can't decline if he would, and
I feel sure he don't want to decline. My judgment is that Chase
is better for the country and for Grant himself, but I will not
quarrel with what I cannot control.
"John Sherman."
And later I wrote:--
"If you can keep free from committals to Johnson, you will surely
as you live be called upon to act as President. The danger now is
that the mistakes of the Republicans may drift the Democratic party
into power. If so, the Rebellion is triumphant, and no man active
in suppressing it will be treated or honored. Grant is not injured
by his correspondence with Johnson, but no doubt feels annoyed. . . ."
At this time President Johnson had come to open disagreement with
Mr. Stanton, his Secretary of War, and wished to force him from
the cabinet. Mr. Stanton had refused to resign and had been upheld
by Congress. The President then turned for help in his difficulties
to General Grant, commanding the army; but the latter found that
any interference on his part would be illegal and impossible.
Mr. Johnson then planned to create a new office for General Sherman,
that of brevet general of the army, in order to bring him to
Washington.
The following letters and telegrams refer to this difficulty:
"(Confidential.)
"Library Room, War Department, }
"Washington, D. C., January 31, 1868.}
"To the President:--Since our interview of yesterday I have given
the subject of our conversation all my thoughts, and I beg you will
pardon my reducing the result to writing.
"My personal preferences, if expressed, were to be allowed to return
to St. Louis to resume my present command, because my command was
important, large, suited to my rank and inclination, and because
my family was well provided for there, in house facilities, schools,
living, and agreeable society.
"Whilst, on the other hand, Washington was for many (to me) good
reasons highly objectionable. Especially because it is the political
capital of the country and focus of intrigue, gossip, and slander.
Your personal preferences were, as expressed, to make a new department
east adequate to my rank, with headquarters at Washington, and to
assign me to its command--to remove my family here, and to avail
myself of its schools, etc.; to remove Mr. Stanton from his office
as Secretary of War, and have me to discharge the duties.
"To effect this removal two modes were indicated: To simply cause
him to quit the war office building and notify the treasury department
and the army staff departments no longer to respect him as Secretary
or War; or to remove him, and submit my name to the Senate for
confirmation. Permit me to discuss these points a little, and I
will premise by saying that I have spoken to no one on the subject,
and have not even seen Mr. Ewing, Mr. Stanbery, or General Grant
since I was with you.
"It has been the rule and custom of our army, since the organization
of the government, that the officer of the army second in rank
should be in command at the second place in importance, and remote
from general headquarters. To bring me to Washington would put
three heads to an army,--yourself, General Grant, and myself,--and
we would be more than human if we were not to differ. In my judgment
it would ruin the army, and would be fatal to one or two of us.
"Generals Scott and Taylor proved themselves soldiers and patriots
in the field, but Washington was fatal to them both. This city
and the influences that centered here defeated every army that had
its head here from 1861 to 1865, and would have overwhelmed General
Grant at Spottsylvania and Petersburg, had he not been fortified
by a strong reputation already hard earned, and because no one then
living coveted the place. Whereas in the west we made progress
from the start, because there was no political capital near enough
to poison our minds and kindle into light that craving itching for
fame which has killed more good men than battles. I have been with
General Grant in the midst of death and slaughter--when the howls
of people reached him after Shiloh; when messengers were speeding
to and fro, between his army and Washington, bearing slanders to
induce his removal before he took Vicksburg; in Chattanooga, when
the soldiers were stealing the corn of the starving mules to satisfy
their own hunger; at Nashville, when he was ordered to the 'forlorn
hope' to command the army of the Potomac, so often defeated--and
yet I never saw him more troubled than since he has been in
Washington, and has been compelled to read himself a 'sneak and
deceiver,' based on reports of four of the cabinet, and apparently
with your knowledge. If this political atmosphere can disturb the
equanimity of one so guarded and so prudent as he is, what will be
the result with one so careless, so outspoken, as I am? Therefore,
with my consent, Washington never.
"As to the Secretary of War, his office is twofold. As cabinet
officer he should not be there without your hearty, cheerful consent,
and I believe that is the judgment and opinion of every fair-minded
man. As the holder of a civil office, having the supervision of
money appropriated by Congress, and of contracts for army supplies,
I do think Congress, or the Senate by delegation from Congress,
has a lawful right to be consulted. At all events, I would not
risk a suit or contest on that phase of the question. The law of
Congress of March 2, 1867, prescribing the manner in which orders
and instructions relating to 'military movements' shall reach the
army, gives you, as constitutional commander in chief, the very
power you want to exercise, and enables you to prevent the secretary
from making any such orders and instructions, and consequently he
cannot control the army, but is limited and restricted to a duty
that an auditor of the treasury could perform. You certainly can
afford to await the result. The executive power is not weakened,
but, rather, strengthened. Surely he is not such an obstruction
as would warrant violence or even a show of force which could
produce the very reaction and clamor that he hopes for, to save
him from the absurdity of holding an empty office 'for the safety
of the country.'
"With great respect, yours truly,
"W. T. Sherman."
"Headquarters Military Division of the Missouri,}
"St. Louis, Mo., February 14, 1868. }
"To the President:
"Dear Sir:--It is hard for me to conceive you would purposely do
me an unkindness, unless under the pressure of a sense of public
duty, or because you do not believe me sincere.
"I was in hopes, since my letter to you of the 31st of January,
that you had concluded to pass over that purpose of yours, expressed
more than once in conversation, to organize a new command for me
in the east, with headquarters in Washington; but a telegram, from
General Grant, of yesterday, says that 'the order was issued ordering
you' (me) 'to Atlantic division;' and the newspapers of this morning
contain the same information, with the addition that I have been
nominated as 'brevet general.' I have telegraphed to my own brother
in the Senate to oppose my nomination, on the ground that the two
higher grades in the army ought not to be complicated with brevets,
and I trust you will conceive my motives aright. If I could see
my way clear to maintain my family, I should not hesitate a moment
to resign my present commission and seek some business wherein I
would be free from those unhappy complications that seem to be
closing about me, in spite of my earnest efforts to avoid them;
but necessity ties my hands, and I submit with the best grace I
can, till I make other arrangements.
"In Washington are already the headquarters of a department, and
of the army itself, and it is hard for me to see wherein I can
render military service there. Any staff officer with the rank of
major could surely fill any gap left between those two military
offices; and by being placed at Washington I shall be universally
construed as a rival to the general in chief, a position damaging
to me in the highest degree. Our relations have always been most
confidential and friendly, and if, unhappily, any cloud of difficulty
should arise between us, my sense of personal dignity and duty
would leave me no alternative but resignation. For this I am not
yet prepared, but I shall proceed to arrange for it as rapidly as
possible, that when the time does come (as it surely will if this
plan is carried into effect), I may act promptly.
"Inasmuch as the order is now issued, I cannot expect a full
revocation of it, but I beg the privilege of taking post at New
York, or at any point you may name, within the new military division,
other than Washington.
"This privilege is generally granted to all military commanders,
and I can see no good reasons why I, too, may not ask for it; and
this simple concession, involving no public interest, will much
soften the blow which, right or wrong, I construe as one of the
hardest I have sustained in a life somewhat checkered with
adversity.
"With great respect, yours truly,
(Signed) "W. T. Sherman, Lieutenant General."
"Headquarters Military Division of Missouri,}
"St. Louis, February 14, 1868. }
"Dear Brother:-- . . . I am again in the midst of trouble, occasioned
by a telegram from Grant saying that the order is out for me to
come to the command of the military division of the Atlantic,
headquarters at Washington. The President repeatedly asked me to
accept of some such position, but I thought I had fought it off
successfully, though he again and again reverted to it.
"Now, it seems, he has ordered it, and it is full of trouble for
me. I wrote him one or two letters in Washington, which I though
positive enough, but have now written another, and if it fails in
its object I might as well cast about for new employment. The
result would be certain conflict, resulting in Grant's violent
deposition, mine, or the President's.
"There is not room on board of one ship for more than one captain.
"If Grant intends to run for President I should be willing to come
on, because my duties would then be so clearly defined that I think
I could steer clear of the breakers--but now it would be impossible.
The President would make use of me to beget violence, a condition
of things that ought not to exist now.
"He has no right to use us for such purposes, though he is commander
in chief. I did suppose his passage with Grant would end there,
but now it seems he will fight him as he has been doing Congress.
I don't object if he does so himself and don't rope me in. . . .
"If the President forces me into a false position out of seeming
favor, I must defend myself. It is mortifying, but none the less
inevitable.
"Affectionately,
"W. T. Sherman."
(Telegram.)
"Washington, February 14, 1868.
"From St. Louis, February 14, 1868.
"To General U. S. Grant, Commander U. S. Army:
"Your dispatch informing me that the order for the Atlantic division
was issued, and that I was assigned to its command, is received.
"I was in hopes I had escaped the danger, and now, were I prepared,
should resign on the spot, as it requires no foresight to predict
such must be the inevitable result in the end.
"I will make one more desperate effort by mail, which please await.
(Signed) "W. T. Sherman, Lieutenant General."
(Telegram.)
"Dated St. Louis, February 14, 1868.
"Received at House of Representatives, February 14.
"To Hon. John Sherman:
"Oppose confirmation of myself as brevet general on ground that it
is unprecedented, and that it is better not to extend the system
of brevets above major general. If I can't avoid coming to Washington
I may have to resign.
"W. T. Sherman, Lieutenant-General."
This correspondence, some of which was published, excited a great
deal of attention, and I received many letters in regard to it,
one of which I insert:
"Washington, D. C., February 17, 1868.
"Dear Sherman:--How nobly and magnanimously your gallant brother
has acted. If A. J. was not callous to all that would affect
gentlemen generally, he would feel this rebuke stingingly. But
since he has betrayed the men who elected him he is proof against
such things.
"Yours very truly,
"Schuyler Colfax."
Upon the receipt of General Sherman's telegram I requested the
committee on military affairs to take no action upon his nomination,
as he did not desire, and would not accept, the proposed compliment.
This correspondence then followed:
"Headquarters Military Division of the Missouri.}
"St. Louis, Mo., February 17, 1868. }
"Dear Brother:-- . . . I have not yet got the order for the Atlantic
division, but it is coming by mail, and when received I must act.
I have asked the President to let me make my headquarters at New
York, instead of Washington, making my application of the ground
that my simply being in Washington will be universally construed
as rivalry to General Grant, a position which would be damaging to
me in the extreme.
"If I must come to Washington, it will be with a degree of reluctance
never before experienced. I would leave my family here on the
supposition that the change was temporary. I do not question the
President's right to make the new division, and I think Congress
would make a mistake to qualify his right. It would suffice for
them to nonconfirm the brevet of general. I will notify you by
telegraph when the matter is concluded.
"Affectionately,
"W. T. Sherman."
(Telegram.)
"Received Washington, February 20, 1868.
"From St. Louis, Mo., February 20, 1868.
"To General U. S. Grant:
"The President telegraphs that I may remain in my present command.
I write him a letter of thanks through you to-day. Congress should
not have for publication my letters to the President, unless the
President himself chooses to give them.
(Signed) "W. T. Sherman, Lieut. General."
"Headquarters Army of the United States.}
"Washington, February 21, 1868. }
"Dear Sir:--By General Grant's direction I inclose a copy of a
dispatch from General Sherman, seeming to indicate his preference
that the correspondence in question should not now be made public.
"Respectfully yours,
"C. B. Comstock, B. B. S.
"Hon. John Sherman, United States Senate."
A few days after this, General Sherman went to Washington in response
to the President's order, and while there had several interviews
with the President relating to the change of his command. He
objected very strongly, as has been seen, to any such change,
because he felt that he could not hold a command in Washington
without interfering with Grant's interests, and because he had a
rooted objection to living in Washington in the midst of the turmoil
of politics. These objections were embodied in three letters which
General Sherman wrote and showed to Grant before he sent them to
the President. One of them found its way into the public press,
and created a disturbance which called forth the following letters:
"Headquarters Army of the United States,}
"Washington, D. C., February 22, 1868. }
"Hon. J. Sherman, United States Senate.
"Dear Sir:--The 'National Intelligencer' of this morning contains
a private note which General Sherman sent to the President whilst
he was in Washington, dictated by the purest kindness and a
disposition to preserve harmony, and not intended for publication.
It seems to me that the publication of that letter is calculated
to place the general in a wrong light before the public, taken in
connection with what correspondents have said before, evidently
getting their inspiration from the White House.
"As General Sherman afterwards wrote a semi-official note to the
President, furnishing me a copy, and still later a purely official
one sent through me, which placed him in his true position, and
which have not been published, though called for by the 'House,'
I take the liberty of sending you these letters to give you the
opportunity of consulting General Sherman as to what action to take
upon them. In all matters where I am not personally interested,
I would not hesitate to advise General Sherman how I would act in
his place. But in this instance, after the correspondence I have
had with Mr. Johnson, I may not see General Sherman's interest in
the same light that others see it, or that I would see it in if no
such correspondence had occurred. I am clear in this, however,
the correspondence here inclosed to you should not be made public
except by the President, or with the full sanction of General
Sherman. Probably the letter of the 31st of January, marked
'confidential,' should not be given out at all.
"Yours truly,
"U. S. Grant."
The following letter was addressed to the "National Intelligencer,"
a Washington newspaper:
"United States Senate Chamber, }
"Washington, February 22, 1868.}
"Gentlemen:--The publication in your paper yesterday of General
Sherman's note to the President, and its simultaneous transmission
by telegraph, unaccompanied by subsequent letters withheld by the
President because they were 'private,' is so unfair as to justify
severe censure upon the person who furnished you this letter,
whoever he may be. Upon its face it is an informal private note
dictated by the purest motives--a desire to preserve harmony--and
not intended for publication. How any gentleman receiving such a
note could first allow vague but false suggestions of its contents
to be given out, and then print it, and withhold other letters
because they were 'private,' with a view to create the impression
that General Sherman, in referring to ulterior measures, suggested
the violent expulsion of a high officer from his office, passes my
comprehension. Still I know that General Sherman is so sensitive
upon questions of official propriety in publishing papers, that he
would rather suffer from this false inference than correct it by
publishing another private note, and as I know that this letter
was not the only one written by General Sherman to the President
about Mr. Stanton, I applied to the President for his consent to
publish subsequent letters. This consent was freely given by the
President, and I therefore send copies to you and ask their
publication.
"These copies are furnished me from official sources; for while I
know General Sherman's opinions, yet he did not show me either of
the letters to the President, during his stay here, nervously
anxious to promote harmony, to avoid strife, and certainly never
suggested or countenanced resistance to law--or violence in any
form. He no doubt left Washington with his old repugnance to
politics, politicians, and newspapers very much increased by his
visit here.
"John Sherman."
"United States Senate Chamber, February 23, 1868.
"Dear Brother:--I received your letters and telegrams, and did not
answer because events were moving so rapidly that I could say
nothing but might be upset before you got the letter.
"Now you can congratulate yourself upon being clear of the worst
complications we have ever had. Impeachment seems to be a forgone
conclusion so far as the House of Representatives is concerned,
based upon the alleged _forcible_ expulsion of Stanton. No one
disputes the right of the President to raise a question of law upon
his right to remove Stanton, but the forcible removal of a man in
office, claiming to be in lawfully, is like the forcible ejectment
of a tenant when his right of possession is in dispute. It is a
trespass, an assault, a riot, or a crime, according to the result
of the force. It is strange the President can contemplate such a
thing, when Stanton is already stripped of power, and the courts
are open to the President to try his right of removal. The President
is acting very badly with respect to you. He creates the impression
that you acted disingenuously with him. He has published your
short private note before you went to Annapolis, and yet refuses
to publish your formal one subsequently sent to him, because it
was 'private.' The truth is, he is a slave to his passions and
resentments. No man can confide in him, and you ought to feel
happy at your extrication from all near connection with him. . . .
Grant is anxious to have your letters published, since the note
referred to was published. I will see Grant and the President this
evening, and if the latter freely consents, I will do it informally;
but if he doubts or hesitates, I will not without your expressed
directions. In these times of loose confidence, it is better to
submit for a time to a wrong construction, than to betray confidential
communications. Grant will, unquestionably, be nominated. Chase
acquiesces, and I see no reason to doubt his election. . . .
"Affectionately,
"John Sherman."
"Headquarters Military Division of the Missouri.}
"St. Louis, Mo., February 25, 1868. }
"Dear Brother:-- . . . I am in possession of all the news up to
date--the passage of the impeachment resolution, etc.--but I yet
don't know if the nomination of T. Ewing, Senior, was a real thing
or meant to compromise a difficulty.
"The publication of my short note of January 18, is nothing to me.
I have the original draft which I sent through Grant's hands, with
his indorsement back to me. At the time this note must have been
given to the reporter, the President had an elaborate letter from
me, in which I discussed the whole case, and advised against the
very course he has pursued, but I don't want that letter or any
other to be drawn out to complicate a case already bad enough.
"You may always safely represent me by saying that I will not make
up a final opinion until called on to act, and I want nothing to
do with these controversies until the time comes for the actual
fight, which I hope to God may be avoided. If the Democratic party
intend to fight on this impeachment, which I believe they do not,
you may count 200,000 men against you in the south. The negroes
are no match for them. On this question, the whites there will be
more united than on the old issue of union and secession. I do
not think the President should be suspended during trial, and, if
possible, the Republican party should not vote on all side questions
as a unit. They should act as judges, and not as partisans. The
vote in the House, being a strictly party vote, looks bad, for it
augurs a prejudiced jury. Those who adhere closest to the law in
this crisis are the best patriots. Whilst the floating politicians
here share the excitement at Washington, the people generally
manifest little interest in the game going on at Washington. . . .
"Affectionately yours,
"W. T. Sherman."
"United States Senate Chamber.}
"Washington, March 1, 1868. }
"Dear Brother:--Your letter of the 25th is received. I need not
say to you that the new events transpiring here are narrowly watched
by me. So far as I am concerned, I mean to give Johnson a fair
and impartial trial, and to decide nothing until required to do
so, and after full argument. I regard him as a foolish and stubborn
man, doing even right things in a wrong way, and in a position
where the evil that he does is immensely increased by his manner
of doing it. He clearly designed to have first Grant, and then
you, involved in Lorenzo Thomas' position, and in this he is actuated
by his recent revolt against Stanton. How easy it would have been,
if he had followed your advice, to have made Stanton anxious to
resign, or what is worse, to have made his position ridiculous.
By his infernal folly we are drifting into turbulent waters. The
only way is to keep cool and act conscientiously. I congratulate
you on your lucky extrication. I do not anticipate civil war, for
our proceeding is unquestionably lawful, and if the judgment is
against the President, his term is just as clearly _out_ as if the
4th of March, 1869, was come. The result, if he is convicted,
would cast the undivided responsibility of reconstruction upon the
Republican party, and would unquestionably secure the full admission
of all the states by July next, and avoid the dangerous questions
that may otherwise arise out of the southern vote in the Presidential
election. It is now clear that Grant will be a candidate, and his
election seems quite as clear. The action of North Carolina removed
the last doubt of his nomination.
"Affectionately yours,
"John Sherman."
"Headquarters Military Division of the Missouri,}
"St. Louis, March 14, 1868. }
"Dear Brother:--I don't know what Grant means by his silence in
the midst of the very great indications of his receiving the
nomination in May. Doubtless he intends to hold aloof from the
expression of any opinion, till the actual nomination is made,
when, if he accepts with a strong radical platform, I shall be
surprised. My notion is that he thinks that the Democrats ought
not to succeed to power, and that he would be willing to stand a
sacrifice rather than see that result. . . . I notice that you
Republicans have divided on some of the side questions on impeachment,
and am glad that you concede to the President the largest limits
in his defense that are offered. I don't see what the Republicans
can gain by shoving matters to an extent that looks like a foregone
conclusion.
"No matter what men may think of Mr. Johnson, his office is one
that ought to have a pretty wide latitude of opinion. Nevertheless,
the trial is one that will be closely and sternly criticised by
all the civilized world. . . .
"Your brother,
"W. T. Sherman."
At this time I wrote from Washington:
"You notice the impeachment proceedings have commenced. As a matter
of course, I have nothing to say about them. It is strange that
they have so little effect on prices and business. The struggle
has been so long that the effect has been discounted. . . .
"The President was very anxious to send you to Louisiana, and only
gave it up by reason of your Indian command. He might think that
your visit to Europe now was not consistent with the reason given
for your remaining at St. Louis. Still, on this point you could
readily ask his opinion, and if that agrees with Grant's you need
feel no delicacy in going. No more favorable opportunity or time
to visit Europe will likely occur. . . ."
General Sherman replied:
"I hardly know what to think of the impeachment. Was in hopes Mr.
Johnson would be allowed to live out his term, and doubt if any
good will result by a change for the few months still remaining of
his term. A new cabinet, and the changes foreshadowed by Wade's
friends, though natural enough, would have insufficient time to do
any good. I have a private letter from Grant as late as March 18,
but he says not a word of his political intentions. So far as I
know, he would yet be glad of a change that would enable him to
remain as now. . . ."
On the 27th of February, 1868, Mr. Stevens made the following
report:
"The committee on reconstruction, to whom was referred, on the 27th
of January last, the following resolution:
'_Resolved_, That the committee on reconstruction be authorized
to inquire what combinations have been made or attempted to be made
to obstruct the due execution of the laws; and to that end the
committee have powers to send for persons and papers, and to examine
witnesses on oath, and report to this House what action, if any,
they may deem necessary; and that said committee have leave to
report at any time.'
"And to whom was also referred, on the 21st day of February, instant,
a communication from Hon. Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War, dated
on said 21st day of February, together with a copy of a letter from
Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, to the said Edwin
M. Stanton, as follows:
'Executive Mansion, }
'Washington, D. C., February 21, 1868.}
'Sir:--By virtue of the power and authority vested in me, as
President, by the constitution and laws of the United States, you
are hereby removed from office as secretary for the department of
war, and your functions as such will terminate upon the receipt of
this communication.
'You will transfer to Brevet Major General Lorenzo Thomas, Adjutant
General of the Army, who has this day been authorized and empowered
to act as Secretary of War _ad interim_, all records, books, papers,
and other public property now in your custody and charge.
'Respectfully yours,
'Andrew Johnson.
'Hon. Edwin M. Stanton, Washington, D. C.'
"And to whom was also referred by the House of Representatives the
following resolution, namely:
'_Resolved_, That Andrew Johnson, President of the United States,
be impeached of high crimes and misdemeanors.'
"Have considered the several subjects referred to them, and submit
the following report:
"That in addition to the papers referred to the committee, the
committee find that the President, on the 21st day of February,
1868, signed and issued a commission or letter of authority to one
Lorenzo Thomas, directing and authorizing said Thomas to act as
Secretary of War _ad interim_, and to take possession of the books,
records, and papers, and other public property in the war department,
of which the following is a copy:
'Executive Mansion, }
'Washington, February 21, 1868.}
'Sir:--Hon. Edwin M. Stanton having been this day removed from
office as secretary for the department of war, you are hereby
authorized and empowered to act as Secretary of War _ad interim_,
and will immediately enter upon the discharge of the duties pertaining
to that office. Mr. Stanton has been instructed to transfer to
you all the records, books, papers, and other public property now
in his custody and charge.
'Respectfully yours,
'Andrew Johnson.
'To Brevet Major General Lorenzo Thomas, Adjutant General of the
United States Army, Washington, District of Columbia.
'Official copy respectfully furnished to Hon. Edwin M. Stanton.
'L. Thomas
'Secretary of War _ad interim_.'
"Upon the evidence collected by the committee, which is herewith
presented, and in virtue of the powers with which they have been
invested by the House, they are of the opinion that Andrew Johnson,
President of the United States, be impeached of high crimes and
misdemeanors. They therefore recommend to the House the adoption
of the accompanying resolution:
"Thaddeus Stevens,
"George S. Boutwell,
"John A. Bingham,
"C. T. Hulburd,
"John F. Farnsworth,
"F. C. Beaman,
"H. E. Paine.
"Resolution providing for the impeachment of Andrew Johnson,
President of the United States:
'_Resolved_, That Andrew Johnson, President of the United States,
be impeached of high crimes and misdemeanors in office.'"
On the 24th of February the resolution providing for impeachment
was adopted by a vote of 126 yeas and 47 nays.
On the same day Mr. Stevens introduced the following resolution,
which was agreed to:
"_Resolved_, That a committee of two be appointed to go to the
Senate and, at the bar thereof, in the name of the House of
Representatives and of all the people of the United States, to
impeach Andrew Johnson, President of the United States, of high
crimes and misdemeanors in office, and acquaint the Senate that
the House of Representatives will, in due time, exhibit particular
articles of impeachment against him and make good the same; and
that the committee do demand that the Senate take order for the
appearance of said Andrew Johnson to answer to said impeachment.
"2. _Resolved_, That a committee of seven be appointed to prepare
and report articles of impeachment against Andrew Johnson, President
of the United States, with power to send for persons, papers, and
records, and to take testimony under oath."
The speaker then announced the following committees under these
resolutions:
"Committee to communicate to the Senate the action of the House
ordering an impeachment of the President of the United States:--
Thaddeus Stevens, of Pennsylvania, and John A. Bingham, of Ohio.
"Committee to declare articles of impeachment against the President
of the United States:--George S. Boutwell, of Massachusetts; Thaddeus
Stevens, of Pennsylvania; John A. Bingham, of Ohio; James F. Wilson,
of Iowa; John A. Logan, of Illinois; George W. Julian, of Indiana;
and Hamilton Ward, of New York."
The trial of this impeachment by the Senate was an imposing spectacle,
which excited profound interest during its continuance. It was
soon developed that the gravamen of the charges was not the removal
of Stanton, but was the attempt of the President to force General
Lorenzo Thomas into a high office without the advice and consent
of the Senate.
In the trial of this impeachment I wished to be, and I think I was,
absolutely impartial. I liked the President personally and harbored
against him none of the prejudice and animosity of some others.
I knew he was bold and rash, better fitted for the storms of
political life than the grave responsibilities of the chief magistrate
of a great country. His education, such as it was, was acquired
late in life, when his character was formed and his habits fixed.
Still, his mind was vigorous and his body strong, and when thoroughly
aroused he was an able speaker; his language was forcible and apt
and his influence over a popular audience was effective. I disliked
above all things to be a judge in his case. I knew some of my
associates were already against the President, and others were
decided in his favor. I resolutely made up my mind, so far as
human nature would admit, to fairly hear and impartially consider
all the evidence produced and all the arguments made.
The counsel for the President were Henry Stanbery, B. R. Curtis,
Jeremiah S. Black, William M. Evarts, William S. Groesbeck, and
Thomas A. R. Nelson. The managers on the part of the House of
Representatives were John A. Bingham, George S. Boutwell, James F.
Wilson, John A. Logan, Thomas Williams, Benjamin F. Butler and
Thaddeus Stevens. The trial lasted nearly two months, was ably
conducted on both sides, and ended by the acquittal of the President,
on the eleventh article of impeachment, by a vote of 35 guilty and
19 not guilty. Two-thirds of those voting not having pronounced
"guilty," as required by the constitution, the President was
acquitted upon this article. Two other articles were voted on with
the same result. Thereupon, on the 26th day of May, 1868, the
Senate sitting as a court of impeachment adjourned without day.
Mr. Stanton resigned and General Schofield became Secretary of War.
I voted for conviction for the reasons stated in the opinion given
by me. I have carefully reviewed this opinion and am entirely
content with it. I stated in the beginning my desire to consider
the case without bias or feeling. I quote in full the opening
paragraphs:
"This cause must be decided upon the reasons and presumptions which
by law apply to all other criminal accusations. Justice is blind
to the official station of the respondent, and to the attitude of
the accusers speaking in the name of all the people of the United
States. It only demands of the Senate the application to this cause
of the principles and safeguards provided for every human being
accused of crime. For the proper application of these principles
we ourselves are on trial before the bar of public opinion. The
novelty of this proceeding, the historical character of the trial,
and the grave interests involved, only deepen the obligation of
the special oath we have taken to do impartial justice according
to the constitution and laws.
"And this case must be tried upon the charges now made by the House
of Representatives. We cannot consider other offenses. An appeal
is made to the conscience of each Senator of guilty or not guilty
by the President of eleven specific offenses. In answering this
appeal a Senator cannot justify himself by public opinion, or by
political, personal, or partisan demands, or even grave considerations
of public policy. His conscientious conviction of the truth of
these charges is the only test that will justify a verdict of
guilty. God forbid that any other shall prevail here. In forming
this conviction we are not limited merely to the rules of evidence,
which, by the experience of ages, have been found best adapted to
the trial of offenses in the double tribunal of court and jury,
but we may seek light from history, from personal knowledge, and
from all sources that will tend to form a conscientious conviction
of the truth. And we are not bound to technical definitions of
crimes and misdemeanors.
"A willful violation of the law, a gross and palpable breach of
moral obligations tending to unfit an officer for the proper
discharge of his office, or to bring the office into public contempt
and derision, is, when charged and proven, an impeachable offense.
And the nature and criminality of the offense may depend on the
official character of the accused. A judge would be held to higher
official purity, and an executive officer to a stricter observance
of the letter of the law. The President, bound as a citizen to
obey the law, and specially sworn to execute the law, may properly,
in his high office as chief magistrate, be held to a stricter
responsibility than if his example was less dangerous to the public
safety. Still, to justify the conviction of the President there
must be specific allegations of some crime or misdemeanor involving
moral turpitude, gross misconduct, or a willful violation of law,
and the proof must be such as to satisfy the conscience of the
truth of the charge.
"The principal charges against the President are that he willfully
and purposely violated the constitution and the laws, in the order
for the removal of Mr. Stanton, and in the order for the appointment
of General Thomas as Secretary of War _ad interim_. These two
orders were contemporaneous--part of the same transaction--but are
distinct acts, and are made the basis of separate articles of
impeachment."
I stated the grounds of my conviction that the action of the
President, in placing Lorenzo Thomas in charge of the office of
Secretary of War, without the advice and consent of the Senate,
was a clearly illegal act, committed for the purpose of obtaining
control of that office. I held that the President had the power
to remove Secretary Stanton, but that he had not the power to put
anyone in his place unless the person appointed was confirmed by
the Senate.
Did the act of March 2, 1867, commonly known as the "tenure of
office act," confer this authority? On the contrary, it plainly
prohibits all temporary appointments except as specially provided
for. The third section repeats the constitutional authority of
the President to fill all vacancies happening during the recess of
the Senate by death or resignation, and provides that if no
appointment is made during the following session to fill such
vacancy, the office shall remain in abeyance until an appointment
is duly made and confirmed, and provision is made for the discharge
of the duties of the office in the meantime. The second session
provides for the suspension of an officer during the recess, and
for a temporary appointment _during the recess_. This power was
exercised and fully exhausted by the suspension of Mr. Stanton
until restored by the Senate, in compliance with the law. No
authority whatever is conferred by this act for any temporary
appointment during the session of the Senate, but, on the contrary,
such an appointment is plainly inconsistent with the act, and could
not be inferred or implied for it. The sixth section further
provides:
"That every removal, appointment, or employment, made, had, or
exercised, contrary to the provisions of this act, and the making,
signing, sending, countersigning, or issuing of any commission or
letter of authority for, or in respect to, any such appointment or
employment, shall be deemed, and are hereby declared to be, high
misdemeanors, and, upon trial and conviction thereof, every person
guilty thereof shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $10,000,
or by imprisonment not exceeding five years, or both said punishments,
in the discretion of the court."
This language is plain, explicit, and was inserted not only to
prohibit all temporary appointments except during the recess, and
in the mode provided for in the second section, but the unusual
course was taken of affixing a penalty to a law defining the official
duty of the President. The original bill did not contain penal
clauses; but it was objected in the Senate that the President had
already disregarded mandatory provisions of law, and would this;
and therefore, after debate, these penal sections were added to
secure obedience to the law, and to give to it the highest sanction.
I quote my view of the action of the President:
"Was not this act willfully violated by the President during the
session of the Senate?
"It appears, from the letter of the President to General Grant,
from his conversation with General Sherman, and from his answer,
that he had formed a fixed resolve to get rid of Mr. Stanton, and
fill the vacancy without the advice of the Senate. He might have
secured a new Secretary of War by sending a proper nomination to
the Senate. This he neglected and refused to do. He cannot allege
that the Senate refused to relieve him from an obnoxious minister.
He could not say that the Senate refused to confirm a proper
appointee, for he would make no appointment to them. The Senate
had declared that the reasons assigned for suspending Mr. Stanton
did not make the case required by the tenure of office act, but I
affirm as my conviction that the Senate would have confirmed any
one of a great number of patriotic citizens if nominated to the
Senate. I cannot resist the conclusion, from the evidence before
us, that he was resolved to obtain a vacancy in the department of
war in such a way that he might fill the vacancy by an appointment
without the consent of the Senate, and in violation of the constitution
and the law. This was the purpose of the offer to General Sherman.
This was the purpose of the appointment of General Thomas. If he
had succeeded as he hoped, he could have changed his temporary
appointment at pleasure, and thus have defied the authority of the
Senate and the mandatory provisions of the constitution and the
law. I cannot in any other way account for his refusal to send a
nomination to the Senate until after the appointment of General
Thomas. The removal of Mr. Stanton by a new appointment, confirmed
by the Senate, would have complied with the constitution. The
absolute removal of Mr. Stanton would have created a temporary
vacancy, but the Senate was in session to share in the appointment
of another. An _ad interim_ appointment, without authority of law,
during the session of the Senate, would place the department of
war at his control in defiance fo the Senate and the law, and would
have set an evil example, dangerous to the public safety--one which,
if allowed to pass unchallenged, would place the President above
and beyond the law.
"The claim now made, that it was the sole desire of the President
to test the constitutionality of the tenure of office act, is not
supported by reason or by proof. He might, in August last, or at
any time since, without an _ad interim_ appointment, have tested
this law by a writ of _quo warranto_. He might have done so by an
order of removal, and a refusal of Mr. Stanton's requisitions. He
might have done so by assigning a head of department to the place
made vacant by the order of removal. Such was not his purpose or
expectation. He expected by the appointment of General Sherman at
once to get possession of the war department, so when General Thomas
was appointed there was no suggestion of a suit at law, until the
unexpected resistance of Mr. Stanton, supported by the action of
the Senate, indicated that as the only way left."
It is difficult to convey, by extracts, a correct idea of a carefully
prepared opinion, but this statement shows my view of the case,
and, entertaining it, I felt bound, with much regret, to vote
"guilty" in response to my name, but I was entirely satisfied with
the result of the vote, brought about by the action of several
Republican Senators. There was some disposition to arraign these
Senators and to attribute their action to corrupt motives, but
there was not the slightest ground for the imputations. Johnson
was allowed to serve out his term, but there was a sense of relief
when General Grant was sworn into office as President of the United
States.
CHAPTER XX.
THE FORTIETH CONGRESS.
Legislation During the Two Years--Further Reduction of the Currency
by the Secretary Prohibited--Report of the Committee of Conference
--Bill for Refunding the National Debt--Amounted to $2,639,382,572.68
on December 1, 1867--Resumption of Specie Payments Recommended--
Refunding Bill in the Senate--Change in My Views--Debate Participated
in by Nearly Every Senator--Why the Bill Failed to Become a Law--
Breach Between Congress and the President Paralyzes Legislation--
Nomination and Election of Grant for President--His Correspondence
with General Sherman.
During the 40th Congress, extending from the 4th of March, 1867,
to the 4th of March, 1869, the chief subjects of debate were the
contraction of the currency, the refunding of the public debt, the
payment of United States notes in coin, and a revision of the laws
imposing internal taxation and duties on imported goods.
Early in the first session of this Congress, the opposition of the
people to the policy of contraction, constantly pressed by Secretary
McCulloch, became so imperative that both Houses determined to take
from him all power to diminish the volume of currency then in
circulation. On the 5th of December, 1867, Robert C. Schenck,
chairman of the committee of ways and means, reported a bill in
the following words:
"_Be it enacted, etc._, That so much of an act entitled 'An act to
amend an act to provide ways and means to support the government,'
approved April 12, 1866, as authorizes the Secretary of the Treasury
to retire United States notes to an amount not exceeding $4,000,000
in any one month, is hereby repealed.
"Sec. 2. _And be it further enacted_, That from and after the
passage of this act the further reduction of the currency by retiring
or canceling United States notes shall be, and hereby is,
prohibited."
This bill was taken up for consideration on the 7th of December,
and, after a brief debate, with little opposition, passed the House
by the vote of 127 yeas and 32 nays. It was sent to the Senate,
referred to the committee on finance, and was carefully considered.
That committee, with but two dissenting voices, directed me to
report the bill to the Senate with a single amendment. On the 9th
of January, 1868, I called up the bill for consideration, and made
a brief explanation, in which I said the committee, after full
reflection, had thought proper to recommend the passage of the bill
of the House of Representatives, in substance as it was sent to
us, only changing the phraseology. I said that the bill contemplated
further legislation during that session. It was understood by all
that some more comprehensive measures must be adopted during that
session, but until further legislation there should be no more
contraction of the currency. I thus stated the reasons which, in
my opinion, justified the passage of the bill:
"_First_. It will satisfy the public mind that no further contraction
will be made when industry is in a measure paralyzed. We hear the
complaint from all parts of the country, from all branches of
industry, from every state in the Union, that industry for some
reason is paralyzed, and that trade and enterprise are not so well
rewarded as they were. Many, perhaps erroneous, attribute all this
to the contraction of the currency--a contraction that I believe
is unexampled in the history of any nation. $140,000,000 has been
withdrawn out of $737,000,000 in less than two years. There is no
example, that I know of, of such rapid contraction. It may be
wise, it may be beneficial, but still it has been so rapid as to
excite a stringency that is causing complaint, and I think the
people have a right to be relieved from that.
"_Second_. This bill will restore to the legislature their power
over the currency, a power too important to be delegated to any
single officer of the government. I do not wish to renew the
discussion that occurred here two years ago on the passage of the
law of April 12, 1866; but it is still my opinion, as it has been
always, that the question of the amount of currency ought to be
fixed by Congress. We have the power to coin money, and to regulate
the value thereof. We have coined money in the form of paper money,
and certainly the power of Congress in this respect ought not to
be delegated to any single officer. If contraction ought to be
established as a policy it should be by Congress, not by the
Secretary of the Treasury, and it is not wise to confer upon any
officer of the government a power of this kind, which can be and
may be properly controlled and limited by Congress.
"_Third_. This will strongly impress upon Congress the imperative
duty of acting wisely upon financial measures, for the responsibility
will then rest entirely upon Congress, and will not be shared with
them by the Secretary of the Treasury.
"_Fourth_. It will encourage business men to continue old, and
embark in new, enterprises, when they are assured that no change
will be made in the measure of value without the open and deliberate
consent of their representatives.
"These considerations are amply sufficient to justify this measure,
but it is only preliminary to others of far greater importance that
must command our attention. These involve--
"1. The existence of the banking system of the United States.
"2. The time and manner of resuming specie payments.
"3. The mode of redeeming the debt of the United States and the
kind of money in which it may be redeemed; and, in this connection,
the taxes, if any, that may be levied upon the public creditors.
"4. Such a reduction of our expenditures and taxes as will relieve
our constituents, as far as practicable, from the burdens resulting
from the recent war."
This led to a long debate, which continued until the 15th of January,
when the bill, as amended, passed by a vote of 33 years and 4 nays.
These decisive votes against contraction definitely settled the
policy of the government to retain in circulation the then existing
volume of United States notes. The disagreement between the two
Houses was referred to a committee of conference, and the conferees
reported the bill in the following form:
"_Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled_,
"That, from and after the passage of this act, the authority of
the Secretary of the Treasury to make any reduction of the currency,
by retiring or canceling United States notes, shall be, and is
hereby, suspended; but nothing herein contained shall prevent the
cancellation and destruction of mutilated United States notes, and
the replacing of the same with notes of the same character and
amount."
This bill was sent to the President, and, not having been returned
by him within ten days, it became a law without his approval, under
the constitution of the United States.
On the 17th of December, 1867, I reported from the committee on
finance a bill for refunding the national debt and for a conversion
of the notes of the United States. This bill was accompanied by
an elaborate report. This report was carefully prepared by me,
and met, I believe, the general approval of the committee on finance.
In that Congress there were but five Democratic Senators, and it
so happened that all the members of the committee on finance were
Republicans, but these represented widely different opinions on
financial subjects. I undertook, in this report, to deal in a
general way with these topics. Upon a careful reading of it now
I find but little that I do not approve. The general policy set
out in this report was subsequently embodied into laws, but the
measures relating to refunding the debt and the resumption of specie
payments were not adopted until several years after the date of
the report.
The ascertained debt on the first day of December, 1867, as stated
by the Secretary of the Treasury, was $2,639,382,572.68, divided
as follows:
Debt bearing coin interest.
5 per cent. bonds, 10-40's, and old fives $205,532,580.00
6 per cent. bonds of 1867 and 1868 . . . . 14,690,941.80
6 per cent. bonds, 1881 . . . . . . . . . 282,731,550.00
6 per cent. 5-20 bonds . . . . . . . . . . 1,324,412,550.00
Navy pension fund . . . . . . . . . . . . 13,000,000.00
----------------
$1,840,367,891.80
Debt bearing currency interest.
6 per cent. bonds . . . . . . . . . . . . $18,601,000.00
3-year compound interest notes . . . . . . 62,249,360.00
3-year 7-30 notes . . . . . . . . . . . . 285,587,100.00
3 per cent. certificates . . . . . . . . . 12,855,000.00
----------------
$379,292,460.00
Matured debt not presented for payment.
3 year 7-30 notes, due August 15, 1867 . . $2,855,400.00
Compound interest notes, matured June 10,
July 15, August 15, and October 15, 1867 7,065,750.00
Bonds, Texas indemnity . . . . . . . . . . 260,000.00
Treasury notes, acts July 17, 1861 and
prior thereto . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163,011.64
Bonds, April 15, 1842 . . . . . . . . . . 54,061.64
Treasury notes, March 3, 1863 . . . . . . 868,240.00
Temporary loan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,880,900.55
Certificates of indebtedness . . . . . . . 31,000.00
----------------
$14,178,363.83
Debt bearing no interest.
United States notes . . . . . . . . . . . $356,212,473.00
Fractional currency . . . . . . . . . . . 30,929,984.05
Gold certificates of deposit . . . . . . . 18,401,400.00
----------------
$405,543,857.05
Total debt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
$2,639,382,572.68
Amount in treasury, coin . . . . . . . . . $100,690,645.69
Amount in treasury, currency . . . . . . . 37,486,175.24
Amount of debt less cash in treasury . . . . . . . . . . .
$2,501,205,751.75
Besides the amounts thus stated there were large balances due to
loyal states, upon accounts not then rendered or ascertained, and
to individuals for losses sustained during the war.
The ascertained debt consisted of twenty different forms of liability,
some payable in coin and some in lawful money. Much of this debt
was due on demand, but the great body of it was payable in from
one to twenty years, while the unascertained debt was being stated
from time to time and had to be met from accruing revenues. Nearly
$300,000,000 of debt had been paid out of current revenue since
the close of the war. The first recommendation of the committee
was that the debt should be refunded as rapidly as practicable into
bonds bearing as low a rate of interest as possible, payable in
twenty or thirty years, but redeemable at the pleasure of the United
States in five or ten years. This recommendation was based on the
fixed policy of the government to limit the duration of a bond
within its lifetime, and thus leave it to the option of the government
to pay its indebtedness and to reduce the rate of interest after
a brief period, if the condition of the public revenues and of the
money market should enable it to do so.
Here the question arose whether the bonds known as the 5-20 bonds
could be paid in lawful money after the period of five years, when,
by their terms, they were redeemable. These bonds promised to pay
so many dollars. Other bonds were specifically payable in coin,
and still other bonds were payable in lawful money; that is, in
United States notes. These notes were then at a discount, being
worth in the market about 88 cents in coin. But the notes were
obligations of the United States, and it was the duty, and then
within the power of the United States, to advance these notes to
par in coin.
The majority of the committee, I among them, believed that the
United States should not take advantage of its own wrong, in not
redeeming its notes in coin, but should either advance these notes
to par in coin, or pay its bonds in coin. The committee, therefore,
recommended that both the notes and bonds should be received in
exchange for the funding bonds, and that the notes should be reissued
and maintained at par with coin, and be supported by a reserve of
coin ample to maintain the notes at par with coin. In other words,
the United States would resume specie payments. The committee
expressed the opinion that, with the system of taxation then in
existence, this policy of refunding and resumption could be
maintained, and that the rate of interest then paid could be reduced
to four or five per cent., and the money then in circulation would
be kept at par with coin at the cost only of the interest on the
bullion and coin held to meet any notes presented for redemption.
The committee also recommended that the internal and tariff taxes
be revised to correct irregularities or defects, and to repeal such
as were oppressive.
While the committee opposed any contraction of the currency it also
opposed any increase of it. The general theory of the report was
to advance both bonds and notes to par in coin, and to issue bonds
in such form and terms that the government could redeem them, or
renew them at lower rates of interest.
The report states:
"Your committee are therefore of opinion that no legal tender notes,
beyond the amount now limited by law, should be issued under any
pressure of financial or political necessity until they are
convertible into gold and silver. Our duty is to elevate the
'greenback,' the standard of national credit, to the standard of
gold, the money of the world. Until then we are not on a substantial
foundation. Let us make the dollar of our promise in the pocket
of a laboring man equal to the dollar of our mint. The rapidity
of the process is a question of public policy. It may be by
gradually diminishing the volume of currency, or be left at its
present amount until increased business or improved credit bring
it up to the specie standard."
The refunding bill was taken up by the Senate on the 27th of
February, 1868, and was fully discussed by me. After stating its
general objects I said:
"It is with this view, and actuated by this principle, that the
committee on finance have endeavored to make this a bill of relief,
reducing, if possible, consistent with the public faith, the interest
of the public debt, and giving increased value to United States
notes. We have endeavored in this bill to accomplish three results:
First, to reduce the rate of interest with the voluntary consent
of the holders of our securities; second, to make a distinct
provision for the payment of the public debt; and third, to give
increased value to United States notes, and to provide for a gradual
resumption of specie payments. All these are objects admitted to
be of the highest importance. The only question is, whether the
measure proposed tends to accomplish them."
I then quoted the example of the United States and Great Britain
in reducing the rate of interest on public securities. I do not
approve all I said in that speech. It has been frequently quoted
as being inconsistent with my opinions and action at a later period.
It is more important to be right than to be consistent. I then
proposed to use the doubt expressed by many people as to the right
of the government to redeem the 5-20 bonds in the legal tender
money in circulation when the bonds were sold, as an inducement to
the holders of bonds to convert them into securities bearing a less
rate of interest but specifically payable in coin. Upon this policy
I changed my opinion. I became convinced that it was neither right
nor expedient to pay these bonds in money less valuable than coin,
that the government ought not to take advantage of its neglect to
resume specie payments after the war was over, by refusing the
payment of the bonds with coin. I acted on this conviction when
years afterwards the resumption act was adopted, and the beneficial
results from this action fully justified my change of opinion.
The debate on this bill was participated in by nearly every Senator,
and was conceded to be the most comprehensive and instructive debate
on financial questions for many years.
The bill, as it then stood, authorized the Secretary of the Treasury
to issue registered or coupon bonds of the United States, in such
form and of such denominations as he might prescribe, payable,
principal and interest, in coin, and bearing interest at the rate
of five per cent. per annum, payable semi-annually, such bonds to
be payable forty years from date and to be redeemable in coin after
ten years.
It authorized the exchange of the bonds commonly known as the 5-20
bonds for the bonds authorized by that bill. It also authorized
the holders of United States notes to the amount of $1,000, or any
multiple of that sum, to convert them into the five per cent. bonds
provided for by the bill. This bill passed the Senate on the 14th
of July, 1868. It passed the House of Representatives soon after,
with amendments that were disagreed to by the Senate. The bill
and amendments were referred to a conference committee which reported
a modified bill which passed both Houses and was sent to President
Johnson, but at so late a period of the session that it was not
approved by him and thus failed to become a law.
The committee on finance at the next and closing session of that
Congress deemed it useless to report another funding bill, and on
the 16th of December, 1868, I reported, by direction of that
committee, the following resolution:
"_Resolved by the Senate_, That neither public policy nor the good
faith of the nation will allow the redemption of the 5-20 bonds
until the United States shall perform its primary duty of paying
its notes in coin or making them equivalent thereto; and measures
shall be adopted by Congress to secure the resumption of specie
payments at as early a period as practicable."
This resolution was the foundation of the act "to strengthen the
public credit," the first act subsequently adopted in General
Grant's administration. Neither this nor any other financial
measure was pressed to a conclusion, as we knew that any measure
that would be sanctioned by Congress would probably be vetoed by
the President. This, however, did not stop the almost continuous
financial debate which extended to the currency, banking, funding
and taxation. The drift of opinion was in favor of resumption
without contraction, and funding at low rates of interest on a coin
basis. The wide breach between Congress and the President paralyzed
legislation. But one vital question had been settled, that no
further contraction of the currency should occur; and it was well
settled, though not embodied in law, that no question would be made
as to the payment of bonds in coin.
While Congress was drifting to a sound financial policy, the
President and his Secretary of the Treasury were widely divergent,
the former in favor of repudiation, and the latter in favor of
paying and canceling all United States notes.
President Johnson, in his last annual message to Congress, on the
9th of December, 1868, substantially recommended a repudiation of
the bonds of the United States, as follows:
"Upon this statement of facts it would seem but just and equitable
that the six per cent. interest now paid by the government should
be applied to the reduction of the principal in semi-annual
installments, which in sixteen years and eight months would liquidate
the entire national debt. Six per cent. in gold would, at present
rates, be equal to nine per cent. in currency, and equivalent to
the payment of the debt one and half times in a fraction less than
seventeen years. This, in connection with the other advantages
derived from their investment, would afford to the public creditors
a fair and liberal compensation for the use of their capital, and
with this they should be satisfied. The lessons of the past admonish
the lender that it is not well to be over anxious in exacting from
the borrower rigid compliance with the letter of the bond."
While the President wished to apply the interest on the United
States bonds to the redemption of the principal, the Secretary of
the Treasury was pressing for the restoration of the specie standard.
I quote from his report to Congress, made on the same day the
message of the President was sent us:
"The first and most important of these measures are those which
shall bring about, without unnecessary delay, the restoration of
the specie standard. The financial difficulties under which the
country is laboring may be traced directly to the issue, and
continuance in circulation, of irredeemable promises as lawful
money. The country will not be really and reliably prosperous
until there is a return to specie payments. The question of a
solvent, convertible currency, underlies all the other financial
and economical questions. It is, in fact, a fundamental question;
and until it is settled, and settled in accordance with the teachings
of experience, all attempts in other financial and economical
reforms will either fail absolutely, or be but partially successful.
A sound economy is the lifeblood of a commercial nation. If this
is debased the whole current of its commercial life must be disordered
and irregular. The starting point in reformatory legislation must
be here. Our debased currency must be retired or raised to the
par of specie, or cease to be lawful money, before substantial
progress can be made with other reforms."
Under these circumstances, it was manifest that no wise financial
legislation could be secured until General Grant should become
President of the United States.
The Republican national convention met at the city of Chicago, on
the 20th of May, 1868. It declared its approval of the reconstruction
policy of Congress, denounced all forms of repudiation as a national
crime, and pledged the national good faith to all creditors at home
and abroad, to pay all public indebtedness, not only according to
the letter, but the spirit, of the law. It favored the extension
of the national debt over a fair period for redemption, and the
reduction of the rate of interest whenever it could be honestly
made. It arraigned, with severity, the treachery of Andrew Johnson,
and deplored the tragic death of Abraham Lincoln. The entire
resolutions were temperate in tone; they embodied the recognized
policy of the Republican party, and made no issue on which Republicans
were divided.
The real issue was not one of measures, but of men. The nomination
of General Grant for President, and Schuyler Colfax for Vice
President, upon the basis of reconstruction by loyal men, was
antagonized by the nomination, by the Democratic convention, of
Horatio Seymour for President, and Francis P. Blair for Vice
President, upon the basis of universal amnesty, and immediate
restoration to power, in the states lately in rebellion, of the
men who had waged war against the government.
In this contest, Grant was the representative Union soldier of the
war, and Seymour was the special representative of the opponents
in the north to the war. Grant received 197 electoral votes, and
Seymour 72.
A few hours in advance of the meeting of the national convention,
there was a great mass meeting of soldiers and sailors of the war,
a delegation from whom, headed by General Lucius Fairchild, of
Wisconsin, entered the convention after its organization and
presented this resolution:
"_Resolved_, That as the soldiers and sailors, steadfast now as
ever to the Union and the flag, fully recognize the claims of Gen.
Ulysses S. Grant to the confidence of the American people, and
believing that the victories won under his guidance in war will be
illustrated by him in peace by such measures as will secure the
fruits of our exertions and restore the Union upon a loyal basis,
we declare our deliberate conviction that he is the choice of the
soldiers and sailors of the Union for the office of President of
the United States."
This resolution was received with great applause. Henry S. Lane,
of Indiana, leaped upon a chair, and moved to nominate Grant by
acclamation. This was done without rules and amid great excitement.
I need not say that I gave to General Grant my cordial and active
support. From the beginning of the canvass to the end, there was
no doubt about the result. I spoke on his behalf in several states
and had frequent letters from him. Assuming that his election was
already foreordained, I invited him to stop with me in Mansfield,
on his way to Washington, and received from him the following
autograph letter, which, though dated at Headquarters Army of the
United States, was written at Galena, Illinois:
"Headquarters Army of the United States,}
"Washington, D. C., October 26, 1868. }
"Dear Senator:--Your invitation to Mrs. Grant and myself to break
our journey east and spend a day or two with you was duly received,
and should have been sooner acknowledged. I thank you for the
invitation and would gladly accept it, but my party will be large
and having a special car it will inconvenience so many people to
stop over. Mrs. Grant too and her father are anxious, when they
start, to get through to Washington before they unpack.
"Yours truly,
"U. S. Grant.
"Hon. J. Sherman, U. S. S."
On the same day he wrote a letter to General Sherman, which was
referred to me by the latter. I regard this letter, which exhibits
closely the cordial relations existing, at the time, between the
two men, as of sufficient interest to justify its publication:
"Headquarters Army of the United States,}
"Washington, D. C., October 26, 1868. }
"Dear General:--Your letter inclosing one from your brother was
duly received. As I did not want to change your determination in
regard to the publication of the correspondence between us, and am
getting to be a little lazy, I have been slow in answering. I had
forgotten what my letter to you said but did remember that you
spoke of the probable course the Ewings would take, or something
about them which you would not probably want published with the
letters. The fact is, general, I never wanted the letters published
half so much on my own account as yours. There are a great many
people who do not understand as I do your friendship for me. I do
not believe it will make any difference to you in the end, but I
do fear that, in case I am elected, there will be men to advocate
the 'abolition of the general' bill who will charge, in support of
their motion, lack of evidence that you supported the Union cause
in the canvass. I would do all I could to prevent any such
legislation, and believe that without my doing anything the confidence
in you is too genuine with the great majority of Congress for any
such legislation to succeed. If anything more should be necessary
to prove the falsity of such an assumption the correspondence
between us heretofore could then be produced.
"I agree with you that Sheridan should be left alone to prosecute
the Indian War to its end. If no treaty is made with the Indians
until they can hold out no longer we can dictate terms, and they
will then keep them. This is the course that was pursued in the
northwest, where Crook has prosecuted war in his own way, and now
a white man can travel through all that country with as much security
as if there was not an Indian in it.
"I have concluded not to return to Washington until after the
election. I shall go very soon after that event, however. My
family are all well and join me in respects to Mrs. Sherman and
the children.
"Yours truly,
"U. S. Grant.
"Lt. Gen. W. T. Sherman, U. S. Army."
In the spring of 1871 there was a good deal of feeling against
Grant, and some opposition indicated to his renomination for the
presidency. Several influential papers had recommended the nomination
of General Sherman, who then, as always afterwards, had resolutely
announced his purpose not to allow his name to be used in connection
with the office of President. This suggestion arose out of the
feeling that injustice had been done to General Sherman by the
Secretary of War, Mr. Belknap, who practically ignored him, and
issued orders in the name of the President, greatly interfering
with the personnel of the army. This led to the transfer of General
Sherman from Washington to St. Louis. General Sherman made no
complaint of Grant, who had the power to control the action of the
Secretary of War, but the general impression prevailed that the
friendly relations that had always subsisted between the President
and General Sherman had been disturbed, but this was not true. I
have no doubt that Grant, in the following letter, stated truthfully
his perfect willingness that General Sherman should, if he wished,
be made his successor as President:
"Long Branch, N. J., June 14, 1871.
"Dear Senator:--Being absent at West Point until last evening, for
the last week, your letter of the 5th inst., inclosing one to you
from General Sherman, is only just received. Under no circumstances
would I publish it; and now that the 'New York Herald' has published
like statements from him it is particularly unnecessary. I think
his determination never to give up his present position a wise one,
for his own comfort, and the public, knowing it, will relieve him
from the suspicion of acting and speaking with reference to the
effect his acts and sayings may have had upon his claims for
political preferment. If he should ever change his mind, however,
no one has a better right than he has to aspire to anything within
the gift of the American people.
"Very truly yours,
"U. S. Grant.
"Hon. J. Sherman, U. S. S."
CHAPTER XXI.
BEGINNING OF GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION.
His Arrival at Washington in 1864 to Take Command of the Armies of
the United States--Inaugural Address as President--"An Act to
Strengthen the Public Credit"--Becomes a Law on March 19, 1869--
Formation of the President's Cabinet--Fifteenth Amendment to the
Constitution--Bill to Fund the Public Debt and Aid in the Resumption
of Specie Payments--Bill Finally Agreed to by the House and Senate
--A Redemption Stipulation Omitted--Reduction of the Public Debt--
Problem of Advancing United States Notes to Par with Coin.
President Grant entered into his high office without any experience
in civil life. In his training he was a soldier. His education
at West Point, his services as a subordinate officer in the Mexican
War, and as the principal officer in the Civil War of the Rebellion,
had demonstrated his capacity as a soldier, but he was yet to be
tested in civil life, where his duties required him to deal with
problems widely differing from those he had successfully performed
in military life. I do not recall when I first met him, but was
confident it was before his coming to Washington, in March, 1864,
to take command of the armies of the United States. His arrival
in Washington then was not generally known until he entered the
dining hall at Willard's hotel. He came in alone, and was modestly
looking for a vacant seat when I recognized him and went to him
and invited him to a seat at my table. He quietly accepted, and
then the word soon passed among the many guests to the tables, that
General Grant was there, and something like an ovation was given
him. His face was unknown, but his name and praise had been sounded
for two years throughout the civilized world. His coming to take
full command of the Union forces was an augury of success to every
loyal citizen of the United States. His personal memoirs, written
in the face of death, tell the story of his life in a modest way,
without pretension or guile. I am not sure that he added to his
fame by his eight years of service as President of the United
States, but what he did in subduing the Rebellion will always keep
his name among those of the greatest benefactors of his country.
He was elected because of his military services, and would have
been elected in 1868 by any party that put him in nomination,
without respect to platform or creed.
He opened his inaugural address with these words:
"Your suffrages, having elected me to the office of President of
the United States, I have, in conformity with the constitution of
our country, taken the oath of office prescribed therein. I have
taken this oath without mental reservation and with the determination
to do to the best of my ability all that it requires of me. The
responsibilities of the position I feel but accept them without
fear. The office has come to me unsought. I commence its duties
untrammeled. I bring to it a conscientious desire and determination
to fill it to the best of my ability to the satisfaction of the
people.
"On all leading questions agitating the public mind I will always
express my views to Congress, and urge them according to my judgment;
and when I think it advisable will exercise the constitutional
privilege of interposing a veto to defeat measures which I oppose.
But all laws will be faithfully executed whether they meet my
approval or not.
"I shall on all subjects have a policy to recommend, but none to
enforce against the will of the people. Laws are to govern all
alike, those opposed as well as those who favor them. I know no
method to secure the repeal of bad or obnoxious laws so effective
as their stringent execution."
And closed with these words:
"In conclusion I ask patient forbearance one toward another throughout
the land, and a determined effort on the part of every citizen to
do his share toward cementing a happy Union; and I ask the prayers
of the nation to Almighty God in behalf of this consummation."
I believe he strictly performed what he thought was his duty, and
if he erred, it was from a want of experience in the complicated
problems of our form of government. The executive department of
a republic like ours should be subordinate to the legislative
department. The President should obey and enforce the laws, leaving
to the people the duty of correcting any errors committed by their
representatives in Congress.
The first act of the 41st Congress, entitled "An act to strengthen
the public credit," was introduced in the House of Representatives
by General Schenck, on the 12th of March, 1869, and was passed the
same day. It came to the Senate on the 15th of March, and, on my
motion, was substituted for a similar bill, reported from the
committee on finance, and, after a brief debate, was passed by the
decisive vote of 42 yeas and 13 nays, as follows:
"That in order to remove any doubt as to the purpose of the government
to discharge all just obligations to the public creditors, and to
settle conflicting questions and interpretations of the law by
virtue of which said obligations have been contracted, it is hereby
provided and declared that the faith of the United States is solemnly
pledged to the payment in coin, or its equivalent, of all obligations
of the United States not bearing interest, known as United States
notes, and of all interest-bearing obligations of the United States,
except in cases where the law authorizing the issue of any such
obligations has expressly provided that the same may be paid in
lawful money or other currency than gold and silver. But none of
said interest-bearing obligations not already due shall be redeemed
or paid before maturity, unless at such time United States notes
shall be convertible into coin at the option of the holder, or
unless at such time bonds of the United States bearing a lower rate
of interest than the bonds to be redeemed can be sold at par in
coin. And the United States also solemnly pledges its faith to
make provision, at the earliest practicable period, for the redemption
of United States notes in coin."
It was approved by the President and became a law on the 19th of
March. Thus the controversy as to the payment of bonds in coin
was definitely decided.
But little else of importance was done by Congress during this
session. The usual general appropriation bill for the Indian
department having failed in the previous Congress, a bill for that
purpose was introduced in the House of Representatives and became
a law on the 10th of April. The bill to provide for deficiencies
was passed on the same day. A change was made in the tax on
distilled spirits and tobacco, and provision was made for submitting
the constitutions of Virginia, Mississippi and Texas to a vote of
the people. A number of measures of local importance were passed,
and, on the 10th of April, the Congress adjourned without day.
The Senate convened in pursuance of a proclamation of the President
immediately on the adjournment of Congress, and after a few days,
confined mainly to executive business, adjourned.
The early movements of Grant as President were very discouraging.
His attempt to form a cabinet without consultation with anyone,
and with very little knowledge, except social intercourse with the
persons appointed, created a doubt that he would not be as successful
as a President as he had been as a general, a doubt that increased
and became a conviction in the minds of many of his best friends.
The appointments of Stewart and Borie were especially objectionable.
George S. Boutwell was well fitted for the office of Secretary of
the Treasury, to which he was appointed after Stewart was excluded
by the law. Washburne was a man of ability and experience, but he
was appointed Secretary of State only for a brief time, and was
succeeded by Hamilton Fish. Mr. Fish was eminently qualified for
the office, and during both of the terms of Grant discharged the
duties of it with great ability and success. Jacob D. Cox, of
Ohio, was an educated gentleman, a soldier of great merit, and an
industrious and competent Secretary of the Interior.
The impression prevailed that the President regarded these heads
of departments, invested by law with specific and independent
duties, as mere subordinates, whose function he might assume. This
is not the true theory of our government. The President is intrusted
by the constitution and laws with important powers, and so by law
are the heads of departments. The President has no more right to
control or exercise the powers conferred by law upon them than they
have to control him in the discharge of his duties. It is especially
the custom of Congress to intrust to the Secretary of the Treasury
specific powers over the currency, the public debt and the collection
of the revenue. If he violates or neglects his duty he is subject
to removal by the President, or impeachment by the House of
Representatives, but the President cannot exercise or control the
discretion reposed by law in the Secretary of the Treasury, or in
any head or subordinate in any department of the government. This
limitation of the power of the President, and the distribution of
power among the departments, is an essential requisite of a republican
government, and it is one that an army officer, accustomed to give
or receive orders, finds it difficult to understand and to observe
when elected President.
Congress convened on the 6th of December, 1869. The chief
recommendations submitted to Congress by the President related to
the gradual reconstruction of the states lately in rebellion, to
the resumption of specie payments and the reduction of taxation.
The relations of Great Britain and the United States growing out
of the war were treated as a grave question, and a hope was expressed
that both governments would give immediate attention to a solution
of the just claims of the United States growing out of the Civil
War. The message was brief, modest, conservative and clear. He
closed by saying that on his part he promised a rigid adherence to
the laws and their strict enforcement.
The most important measure consummated during this Congress was
the adoption of the 15th amendment of the constitution of the United
States, declared, in a proclamation of the Secretary of State,
dated March 30, 1870, to have been ratified by the legislatures of
twenty-nine of the thirty-seven states, as follows:
"The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be
denied or abridged by the United States, or by any state, on account
of race, color, or previous condition of servitude."
It is a question of grave doubt whether this amendment, though
right in principle, was wise or expedient. The declared object
was to secure impartial suffrage to the negro race. The practical
result has been that the wise provisions of the 14th amendment have
been modified by the 15th amendment. The latter amendment has been
practically nullified by the action of most of the states where
the great body of this race live and will probably always remain.
This is done, not by an express denial to them of the right of
suffrage, but by ingenious provisions, which exclude them on the
alleged ground of ignorance, while permitting all of the white
race, however ignorant, to vote at all elections. No way is pointed
out by which Congress can enforce this amendment. If the principle
of the 14th amendment had remained in full force, Congress could
have reduced the representation of any state, in the proportion
which the number of the male inhabitants of such state, denied the
right of suffrage, might bear to the whole number of male citizens
twenty-one years of age, in such state. This simple remedy, easily
enforced by Congress, would have secured the right of all persons,
without distinction of race or color, to vote at all elections.
The reduction of representation would have deterred every state
from excluding the vote of any portion of the male population above
twenty-one years of age. As the result of the 15th amendment, the
political power of the states lately in rebellion has been increased,
while the population, conferring this increase, is practically
denied all political power. I see no remedy for this wrong except
the growing intelligence of the negro race, which, in time, I trust,
will enable them to demand and to receive the right of suffrage.
The most important financial measure of that Congress was the act
to refund the national debt. The bonds known as the 5-20's, bearing
interest at six per cent., became redeemable, and the public credit
had so advanced that a bond bearing a less rate of interest could
be sold at par. The committee on finance of the Senate, on the
3rd day of February, 1870, after more care and deliberation, than,
so far as I know, it has ever bestowed on any other bill, finally
reported a bill to fund the public debt, to aid in the resumption
of specie payments, and to advance the public credit.
The first section authorized the issue of $400,000,000 of bonds,
redeemable in coin at the pleasure of the United States, at any
time after ten years, bearing interest at five per cent.
The second section authorized the issue of bonds to the amount of
$400,000,000, redeemable at the pleasure of the government, at any
time after fifteen years, and bearing interest at four and a half
per cent.
The third section authorized the issue of $400,000,000 of bonds,
redeemable at any time after twenty years, and bearing interest at
the rate of four per cent.
The proceeds of all these bonds were to be applied to the redemption
of 5-20 and 10-40 bonds, and other obligations of the United States
then outstanding.
It will be perceived that this bill provided for the issue of
securities, all of which were redeemable within twenty years, and
two-thirds of which were redeemable within fifteen years, so that
if the bill, as reported by the committee on finance, had become
the law, no such difficulty as we labored under eighteen years
later, when we had a large surplus revenue, would have existed.
The bill passed the Senate, in substantially the form reported from
the committee on finance, by the large vote of 33 to 10, and was,
perhaps, the most carefully prepared of any of the financial measures
of the government.
In opening the debate, I called the attention of the Senate to the
great advantage the government had derived from making its bonds
redeemable at brief periods, like the 5-20 bonds, the 10-40 bonds,
and the treasury notes. I also called attention to the fact that
the same principle of maintaining the right to redeem had been
ingrafted in the bill then before the Senate, that the duration of
the bonds was divided into three periods of ten, fifteen, and twenty
years, during which time, by the gradual application of the surplus
revenue, the whole debt might be paid. This was the bill sent by
the Senate to the House of Representatives, and if it had been
adopted by the House, there would have been no trouble about the
application of the surplus revenue, but by common consent it would
have been used in the speedy extinction of the public debt.
The bill was sent to the House of Representatives on the 11th of
March, and there seems to have slept for nearly three months without
any action on the part of the House.
On the 6th of June the committee on ways and means reported House
bill 2167, covering the same subject-matters as were contained in
the Senate bill. The consideration of this bill was commenced, by
sections, on the 30th of June. The material part of the first
section of this bill is as follows:
"That the Secretary of the Treasury is hereby authorized to issue,
in a sum or sums not exceeding in the aggregate $1,000,000,000,
coupon or registered bonds of the United States, in such form as
he may prescribe, and of denomination of $50, or some multiple of
that sum, redeemable in coin of the present standard value at the
pleasure of the United States after thirty years from the date of
their issue, and bearing interest payable semi-annually in such
coin at the rate of four per cent. per annum."
Thus it will be perceived that instead of the three series of bonds
provided by the Senate, the House proposed to authorize the issue
of $1,000,000,000, redeemable in coin after thirty years from the
date of their issue, with interest at four per cent. This difference
in the description of the bonds was the chief difference between
the propositions of the House and the Senate. To emphasize this
difference I quote what was said by the chairman of the House
committee, Mr. Schenck, in reporting the bill:
"It is a proposition to refund a portion of the public debt of the
country at a very much lower rate of interest. It is a proposition
that $1,000,000,000 of that debt shall take the form of bonds, upon
which the United States will agree to pay only four per cent. per
annum. But, in order to make those bonds acceptable to capitalists
at home and abroad, further provision is made that the bonds
themselves shall have a longer time to run, not merely for thirty
years, but that they shall only be redeemable after thirty years;
thus giving them, without the objections, the advantages which in
a great degree attach to a perpetual loan."
This bill, with a very limited debate, passed the House on the 1st
of July, and then immediately was offered as a substitute for the
Senate bill, and was adopted.
Those two rival propositions, differing mainly upon the question
of the character of the bonds to be issued, were sent to a committee
of conference, composed on the part of the Senate of Messrs. Sherman,
Sumner and Davis. The chief controversy in the conference was as
to the description of funding bonds to be provided for. After many
meetings it was finally agreed that the bonds authorized should be
$200,000,000 five per cent. bonds, $300,000,000 four and a half
per cent. bonds, of the character described in the Senate bill,
and $1,000,000,000 of four per cent. bonds, as described in the
House bill. In other words, it was a compromise which, like many
other compromises, was in its results an injury of great magnitude,
but it was an honest difference of opinion between the Senate and
the House, in which, tested by the march of time, the Senate was
right and the House was wrong. But it was perfectly manifest that
without this concession by the Senate to the House, the bill could
not have passed, and even with this concession, the first report
of the committee of conference was disagreed to by the House,
because of certain provisions requiring the national banks to
substitute the new bonds as the basis of banking circulation.
This disagreement by the House compelled a second committee of
conference, in which the contested banking section was stricken
out, and the bill agreed to as it now stands on the statute books.
And thus thirty-year securities, subsequently at a premium of more
than twenty-five per cent., were forced into the law by the determined
action of the House.
This proved to be an error. No bonds should have been authorized
that did not contain a stipulation that the government might pay
them at pleasure, after a brief period and before they became due.
This stipulation during the war was inserted in the 5-20 and the
10-40 bonds. Its wisdom and importance were demonstrated by the
early substitution of bonds bearing a lower rate of interest for
the 5-20 six per cent. bonds. When this precedent was cited, and
its saving to the government shown, it was strongly urged by the
House conferees that such a provision would prevent the sale of
bonds, and that there was no probability that bonds bearing less
than four per cent. could be sold at any time at par. This was
proven to be an error within a short period, for securities of the
United States bearing three per cent. interest have been sold at
par.
Some years later, Senator Beck, of Kentucky, arraigned me for
consenting to the issue of bonds running thirty years, but I was
able to show by the public records that I resisted this long duration
of the four per cent. bonds, that the House insisted upon it, and
that Mr. Beck, then a Member of the House, voted for it. The same
objection was made by the Senate conferees to the bonds bearing
four and a half and five per cent., that no stipulation was made
authorizing the government to anticipate the payment of these bonds.
Under the Senate bill the bonds would have been redeemable in a
brief period, and would, no doubt, have been redeemed by bonds
bearing four, three and a half, or three per cent. interest.
The bill, as it passed, authorized the conversion of all forms of
securities, then outstanding, into the bonds provided for by the
refunding act at par one with the other. The Secretary of the
Treasury could sell the bonds provided for by the refunding act at
par, and with the proceeds pay off the then existing securities as
they became redeemable. In the discussion of this bill in the
Senate, on the 28th of February, 1870, I made a carefully prepared
speech, giving a detailed history of the various securities
outstanding, and expressed the confident opinion that the existing
coin bonds bearing six per cent. interest, and other securities
bearing interest in lawful money, could be refunded into bonds
running for a short period, bearing a reduced rate of interest.
I said:
"After a long and memorable debate of over two months in both Houses
of Congress, the act of February 25, 1862, was adopted. That was
a revolutionary act. It was a departure from every principle of
the financial policy of this government from its foundation. It
overthrew, not only the mode and manner of borrowing money, but
the character of our public securities, and was the beginning of
a new financial system, unlike anything that had been ventured upon
by any people in the world before. This new policy was adopted
under the pressure of the severest necessities, and only because
of those necessities, and was intended to meet a state of affairs
never foreseen by the framers of the constitution.
"Now, sir, it is important to understand the principles of this
act; for this act was the foundation of all the financial measures
during the war. It was upon the basis of this act, enlarged and
modified from time to time, that we were enabled to borrow
$3,000,000,000 in three years and to put down the most formidable
rebellion in modern history. This act was based upon certain
fundamental conditions.
"Extraordinary power was conferred upon the Secretary of the Treasury
to borrow money in almost any form, at home or abroad, practically
without limitation as to amount, or with limits repeatedly enlarged.
Every form of security which the ingenuity of man could devise was
provided for by this act or the acts amending it. Under these acts
bonds were issued, payable in twenty years, treasury notes were
issued, certificates of indebtedness, compound-interest notes, and
other forms of indebtedness, with varying rates of interest. There
were, however, distinct limitations upon the nature and character
of these loans. It was stipulated first, that more than six per
cent. interest in gold should not be paid on the bonds issued, nor
more than seven and three-tenths interest in currency should be paid
on the notes issued; and _second, all the loans provided by this
act were short loans_, redeemable within a short period of time at
the pleasure of the United States. Thus the gold bonds were
redeemable after five years, the treasury notes were redeemable
after three years, and all forms of security were within the power
of the United States at the end of five years at furthest. And
third, no securities were to be sold at less than par. Their
unavoidable depreciation was measured, not by the rate of their
discount, but by the depreciation of the currency. We held our
bonds at par in paper money, though at times they were worth only
forty per cent. of gold. . . .
"Now, Mr. president, it may be proper to state the reasons for this
policy. Short loans were adopted that we might not bind the future
to the payment of usurious rates of interest. We recognized the
existence of a great pressing necessity that would tend to depreciate
the public credit; and we took care, therefore, not to make these
loans for a long period, so as to bind the future to the payment
of the rates which we were then compelled to pay.
"We provided for gold interest and gold revenue, to avoid the
extreme inflations of an irredeemable currency. We wished to rest
our paper fabric on a coin basis, and to keep constantly in view
ultimate specie payments. I believe but for that provision in the
loan act of February 25, 1862, that in 1864 our financial system
would have been utterly overthrown. There was nothing to anchor
it to the earth except the collection of duties in coin and the
payment of the interest on our bonds in coin.
"But, sir, the most important and the most revolutionary principle
of the act of February 25, 1862, was the legal tender clause. This
was a measure of imperious and pressing necessity. I can recall
very well the debates in the Senate and in the House of Representatives
upon the legal tender clause. We were then standing in the face
of a deficit of some $70,000,000 of unpaid requisitions to our
soldiers. Creditors in all parts of the country, among them the
most powerful corporations of this country, had refused our demand
notes, then very slightly depressed. We were under the necessity
of raising two or three million dollars per day. We were then
organizing armies unheard of before. We stood also in the presence
of defeat, constant and imminent, which fell upon our armies in
all parts of the country. It was before daylight was shed upon
any part of our military operations. We adopted the legal tender
clause then as an absolute expedient. Remembering the debate, I
know with what slow steps the majority of the Senate came to the
necessity of adopting legal tenders."
The debt of the United States on the 31st of August, 1866, when it
reached its maximum, amounted to $2,844,649,627. On the 1st of
March, 1870, the debt had been reduced to less than $2,500,000,000,
of which about $400,000,000 was in United States notes, for the
redemption of which no provision was made. It was the confident
expectation of Congress, which proved to be correct, that before
the refunding operations were complete, the debt would be gradually
reduced, so that the sum of $1,500,000,000, provided for in the
law, would be sufficient to refund all existing debts, except United
States notes, into the new securities.
The process of refunding progressed slowly, was confined to the
five per cent. bonds, and was somewhat interrupted by the financial
stringency of 1873.
By the act approved January 20, 1871, the amount of five per cent.
bonds authorized by the act approved July 14, 1870, was increased
to $500,000,000, but the act was not to be construed to authorize
any increase of bonds provided for by the refunding act.
Prior to the 24th of August, 1876, there had been sold, for refunding
purposes, the whole of the $500,000,000 five per cents. authorized
by that act, and on that day Lot M. Morrill, Secretary of the
Treasury, entered into a contract for the sale of $40,000,000 of
the four and a half per cent. bonds authorized by the refunding
act. By this process of refunding an annual saving had been made
of $5,400,000 a year, by the reduction of interest in the sale of
$540,000,000 bonds. On the 9th day of June, 1877, I, as Secretary
of the Treasury, terminated the contract made by Mr. Morrill, my
predecessor, and placed on the market the four per cent. bonds
provided for by the refunding act. The subsequent proceedings
under this act will be more appropriately referred to hereafter.
The more difficult problem remained of advancing United States
notes to par in coin. This could be accomplished by reducing the
amount of these notes outstanding, and, thus, by their scarcity,
add to their value. They were a legal tender in payment for all
debts, public and private, except for duties on imported goods and
interest on the public debt. As long as these notes were at a
discount for coin they could circulate only in the United States,
and until they were at par with coin, coin would not circulate as
money in the United States, except to pay coin liabilities. The
notes were a dishonored, depreciated promise, the purchasing power
of which varied day by day, the football of "bulls and bears." In
many respects these notes were better than any other form of
depreciated paper money, for the people of the United States had
full confidence in their ultimate redemption. They were much better
and in higher favor with the people than the state bank notes which
they replaced and which were not only depreciated like United States
notes but had been often proven worthless in the hands of innocent
holders. They were as good as national bank notes, however well
secured, for these notes were not payable in coin, but could be
redeemed by United States notes. Still, with all their defects
the United States notes were the favorite money of the people, and
any attempt to contract their volume was met by a strong popular
opposition.
As already stated, the gradual reduction of the volume of United
States notes, urged so strongly by Secretary McCulloch, and provided
for by the resumption act, met with popular opposition and was
repealed by Congress. Under these conditions it became necessary
to approach the specie standard of value without a contraction of
the currency. The act to strengthen the public credit, already
referred to, was the beginning of this struggle. The government
was, by this act, committed to the payment of the United States
notes in coin or its equivalent. But when and how was not stated
or even considered. The extent to which Congress would then go,
and to which popular opinion would then consent, was the declaration
that the "United States solemnly pledges its faith to make provision
at the earliest practicable period for the redemption of United
States notes, in coin." Many events must occur before the fulfillment
of this promise could be attempted.
CHAPTER XXII.
OUR COINAGE BEFORE AND AFTER THE WAR.
But Little Coin in Circulation in 1869--General Use of Spanish
Pieces--No Mention of the Dollar Piece in the Act of 1853--Free
Circulation of Gold After the 1853 Act--No Truth in the "Demonetization"
Charge--Account of the Bill Revising the Laws Relative to the Mint,
Assay Offices and Coinage of the United States--Why the Dollar was
Dropped from the Coins--Then Known Only as a Coin for the Foreign
Market--Establishment of the "Trade Dollar"--A Legal Tender for
Only Five Dollars--Repeated Attempts to Have Congress Pass a Free
Coinage Act--How It Would Affect Us--Controversy Between Senator
Sumner and Secretary Fish.
At the date of the passage of the act "to strengthen the public
credit," on March 19, 1869, there was but little coin in circulation
in the United States except gold coin, and that was chiefly confined
to the Pacific coast, or to the large ports of entry, to be used
in payment of duties on imported goods. Silver coins were not in
circulation. The amount of silver coined in 1869 was less than
one million dollars and that mainly for exportation. Fractional
notes of different denominations, from ten to fifty cents, were
issued by the treasury to the amount of $160,000,000, of which
$120,000,000 had been redeemed, and $40,000,000 were outstanding
in circulation or had been destroyed. These fractional notes
superseded silver coin as United States notes superseded gold coin.
The coinage laws as they then existed were scattered through the
laws of the United States from 1793 to 1853, and were in many
respects imperfect and conflicting.
The ratio fixed by Alexander Hamilton, of fifteen ounces of silver
as the equivalent of one ounce of gold, was, at the time it was
adopted, substantially the market ratio, but the constant tendency
of silver to decline in relative value to gold had been going on
for years and it continued to decline, almost imperceptibly perhaps,
and the legal ratio in France having been fixed at fifteen and a
half to one, there was an advantage in shipping gold to that country
from this, and consequently very little if any of our gold, even
if coined, came into circulation. By the act of 1793 foreign coins
were made a legal tender for circulation in this country, and the
Spanish silver dollar, on which ours was founded, with the 8th or
"real" pieces, found great favor. Singularly enough, in Mexico
and the West Indies, the Spanish population would exchange their
dollars for ours, dollar for dollar, although their pieces, if not
worn, were each three grains heavier. This led to an exchange of
our dollars for the Spanish ones, which were promptly recoined at
the mint at a fair profit to the depositor.
This put upon the government the expense of manufacturing coins
with no advantage. The evil grew so great that in 1806 the further
coinage of our silver dollars was prohibited by President Jefferson,
in an order issued through the state department, as follows:
"Department of State, May 1, 1806.
"Sir:--In consequence of a representation from the director of the
Bank of the United States, that considerable purchases have been
made of dollars coined at the mint for the purpose of exporting
them, and as it is probable further purchases and exportations will
be made, the President directs that all the silver to be coined at
the mint shall be of small denominations, so that the value of the
largest pieces shall not exceed half a dollar.
"I am, etc.,
"James Madison.
"Robert Patterson, Esq., Director of the Mint."
The coinage of the silver dollar at our mint was not resumed until
1836. The small and worn Spanish pieces, being legal tender, also
drove from circulation our fractional coins coming bright and plump
from the mint. Bank notes and these worn pieces furnished the
circulation of the country.
The condition of the currency became so objectionable that in 1830
the subject was taken up by a special committee of the House of
Representatives, appointed for the purpose. Three reports were
submitted, in one of which the committee stated that of $37,000,000
coined at our mints only $5,000,000 remained in circulation. A
bill was submitted to the House fixing the ratio at 15.625 to one,
and was strongly urged. There appeared no special opposition to
the measure for a time, but the feeling of opposition to the
circulation of bank bills had become very strong among the people
and was reflected by the administration.
In the Senate the opposition to bank bills was headed by Thomas H.
Benton, who openly advocated so changing the coinage ratio that
gold would circulate to the exclusion of the notes, and perhaps
incidentally of silver also. The matter of providing for silver,
however, received little attention. The ratio was changed to
sixteen to one, John Quincy Adams and Daniel Webster joining with
Calhoun and Benton in bringing it about. It was well understood
at the time that the operation of this act would banish silver.
The object of the change was distinctly stated, especially by Mr.
Benton, who said:
"To enable the friends of gold to go to work at the right place to
effect the recovery of that precious metal, which their fathers
once possessed; which the subjects of European kings now possess;
which the citizens of the young republics to the south all possess;
which even the free negroes of San Domingo possess; but of which
the yeomanry of America have been deprived for more than twenty
years, and will be deprived forever, unless they discover the cause
of the evil and apply the remedy to its root."
By the act of 1834, superadded to by the act of 1837, the ratio of
sixteen to one instead of fifteen to one was adopted. The result
was that gold coins were largely introduced and circulated; but as
sixteen ounces of silver were worth more than one ounce of gold,
the silver coins disappeared, except the depreciated silver coin
of other countries, then a legal tender. To correct this evil,
Congress, on the 21st of February, 1853, provided for the purchase
of silver bullion by the government, to be coined by it and not
for the owners of the bullion. That was the first time the government
had ever undertaken to buy bullion for coinage purposes. It provided
for the purchase of silver bullion and the coinage of subsidiary
silver coins at the ratio of less than fifteen to one. No mention
was made of the dollar in the act of 1853. It had fallen into
disuse and when coined was exported, being more valuable as bullion
than as coin.
As the value of the minor coins was less that gold at the coinage
ratio, they were limited as a legal tender to five dollars in any
one payment. They were, in fact, a subsidiary coin made on government
account, and, from their convenience and necessity, were maintained
in circulation. They were similar to the coins now in use, revived
and re-enacted by the resumption act of 1875.
It was not the intention of the framers of this law to demonetize
silver, because they were openly avowed bimetallists, but it limited
coinage to silver bought by the government at market price. They
saw, in this expedient, a way in which silver could be more generally
utilized than in any other. Mr. R. M. T. Hunter, an avowed
bimetallist, in a report to the United States Senate, said:
"The mischief would be great indeed if all the world were to adopt
but one of the precious metals as the standard of value. To adopt
gold alone would diminish the specie currency more than one-half;
and the reduction the other way, should silver be taken as the only
standard, would be large enough to prove highly disastrous to the
human race."
He evidently did not consider the purchase of silver bullion at
its coinage value by the government, instead of the free coinage
of silver, as monometallism.
After the passage of the act of 1853, gold in great quantities,
the produce of the mines of California, was freely coined at the
ratio of sixteen to one, and was in general circulation. If, then,
the purchase of silver, instead of the free coinage of silver, is
the demonetization of silver, it was demonetized practically in
1834, and certainly in 1853, when the purchase of silver and its
use as money increased enormously. In 1852 the coinage of silver
was less than $1,000,000. In the next year the coinage of silver
rose to over $9,000,000, and reached the aggregate of nearly
$50,000,000 before the beginning of the Civil War. Then, as now,
the purchase of silver bullion led to a greater coinage than free
coinage.
This was the condition of our coinage until the war, like all other
great wars in history, drove all coins into hoarding or exportation,
and paper promises, great and small, from five cents to a thousand
dollars, supplanted both silver and gold.
When, therefore, it became necessary to prepare for the coinage of
gold and silver to meet the requirements of the act of 1869, "to
strengthen the public credit," it was deemed by the treasury
department advisable to revise and codify the coinage laws of the
United States. Mr. Boutwell, then Secretary of the Treasury, with
the assistance of John Jay Knox, deputy comptroller, afterwards
comptroller, of the currency, and the officers of the mints of the
United States, prepared a complete code of the coinage laws. It
was submitted to experts, not only to those in the treasury but
also to all persons familiar with the subject. The bill was
entitled, "An act revising and amending the laws relative to the
mint, assay offices, and coinage of the United States."
The law, tested by experience, is conceded to be an excellent
measure. A single provision of the bill has been the subject of
charges and imputations that the silver dollar was, in a fraudulent
and surreptitious way, "demonetized" by this act. There is not
the slightest foundation for this imputation. The bill was sent
to me as chairman of the committee on finance, and submitted to
the Senate with this letter:
"Treasury Department, April 25, 1870.
"Sir:--I have the honor to transmit herewith a bill revising the
laws relative to the mint, assay offices, and coinage of the United
States, and accompanying report. The bill has been prepared under
the supervision of John Jay Knox, deputy comptroller of the currency,
and its passage is recommended in the form presented. It includes,
in a condensed form, all the important legislation upon the coinage,
not now obsolete, since the first mint was established, in 1792;
and the report gives a concise statement of the various amendments
proposed to existing laws and the necessity for the change recommended.
There has been no revision of the laws pertaining to the mint and
coinage since 1837, and it is believed that the passage of the
inclosed bill will conduce greatly to the efficiency and economy
of this important branch of the government service.
"I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant,
"Geo. S. Boutwell, Secretary of the Treasury.
"Hon. John Sherman,
"Chairman Finance Committee, United States Senate."
Section 15 of the original bill omitted the silver dollar. It was
as follows:
"Sec. 15. _And be it further enacted_, That of the silver coin,
the weight of the half dollar, or piece of 50 cents, shall be 192
grains; and that of the quarter dollar and dime shall be, respectively,
one-half and one-fifth of the weight of said half dollar. That
the silver coin issued in conformity with the above section shall
be a legal tender in any one payment of debts for all sums less
than one dollar."