The Butler Weekly Times Newspaper, January 7, 1897, Page 2

THE MISSOURI SENATORS. Who They Have Been and How They Were Elected. i . . : | BS Ps : ie Pe fae Contests for the Toga From Barton and Ben- | sentiment resulted in vane. | Geyer and James S Green to en | leaving the ewis te ton to Vest.—Some Interesting Bits of Missouri History—Benton’s First Hard Fight for Election -Rapid Changes in War Times—The ‘*Red Apple’’ Campaign. From the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. Mis and The General Assembly of sourt will meet January 6, shortly thereafter will be required | to elect a United States senator to succeed George G. Vest. That Sen. Vest will succeed him self is admitted at the outset, since the legislature is democratic, and at this writing there has appeared no opposition to him in the ranks of his own party. But even the incident ot Senator Vest's re election for a fourth term is interesting, because of the fact that oniy once in the history of Mis souri bas one man been elected five times, and that man was altogether unpopular among the people of his own state. Senator Cockrell 18 in the midst of his fourth term, and will not probably be a candidate again, and, while he looks older than Vest. he is really younger. The tirst legislature of Missouri met in St. Louis in 1820, and unani mously elected David Barton as United States senator. He is alleg ed to have been brilliant in speech and action, and did the state faith ful service for many years. When it came to the election of his col league, the trouble began. Thomas H. Benton was the chief candidate, but he was new to the people of this state and came here under adverse qroumstances. Benton was a mem ber of the Tennessee legislature, and there had been a duel in that state between his brother Jesse Ben ton, aad Amos Carrol, in which Gen eral Andrew Jackson took the part of Carroll. He came to this state filled with hatred of Jackson, and, being naturally a quarrelsome a yet a brave man, while Missouri was then, as now, a worshiper of Jack on, he lost no time in getting him self into trouble. The first thing he did was to fight a duel with young Charles Lucas, then United States attorney, and son of the first chief justice of the territery, in which affair Lucas was killed under circumstances which put all the Ihucas influence against Benton After Barton’s election the balloting began for the election of a second denator, with Judge John B. C Lucas as his chief opponent. Ben- ton would have been defeated had not Barton intimated that he pre ferred the Tennesseean. Even then Benton received only one vote over that of Judge Lucas, and yet he re mained in the senate thirty years. Barton and Benton did not take their seats until after the admission of the state in 1821, and Barton, who was elected for the short term, was promptly re-elected in 1824, and Benton unanimously reelected in 1826. It is curious circumstance, in this connection, that, while Senator Barton was the pride of the state, and really responsible for Benton's long career in the senate, nobody ree members what Barton said or did that entitled him to the eminence which he occupied. In 1829 there were new candidates in the field, Barton having retired. Among them were Alexander Buck- ner, of Cape Girardeau, Jobn Miller and William H. Ashley. The two last named had beer prominent in the organization of the state govern ment, and had held both the offices of State Auditor and Secretary of | * State. There was a long struggle, | but Buckner was finally elected, the} vote standing as follows: Buckner 34, Miller 27, Ashley 2. It should/ be stated, however, that Ashley was not really a candidate, and that! those who voted for him did go, either out of admiration for the man or else out of dislike for the actual candidates. Tyal822 Thomas H. the ari, R re-elected, 26 south Ta : Coen, Tu a = = ' = ee Foe : SS = a . ° : e ife-lon come ounced himself a can | there were no railroads, and the | declaring that he was right in his | had been a life-long and uncom. friends, be anno Q | | | : section an advantage which other | parts of Missouri did not possess | So that when Buckner died in | 1833, it was felt that the southeast | was entitled to the succession. This almost unauimously, of Linn, of St. Genevieve, who received |75 votes, as against a scattering | yote of 19. | Dr. Linn was a charming gentle | man, albeit, not u great statesman, his continuously |until 1843, wher, by reason of a ter service extended rible accident, he was burned to death in bis own | state paid conspicuous honors to bis memory Linn had no opposition to his re election in 1536. But in 1838 there was some opposition to Benton. He home, and the was an imperious, tyrannical man, and so, when the ballot came on in the general assembly, it was found that Benton had 75 votes and Abel Leonard 48 votes. This Leonard was the father of the present Abiel Leonard, who is now among the political gossips for coal oil inspector under the patronage of bis kinsman, governor-elect Lon V. Stephens. In 1842 Dr. Linn was re elected by a vote of 119 to a scattering vote of 10, but bis death in 1843 created @ vacancy which had to be filled by a special election by the general as sembly. Meanwhile the state constitution was changed so as to give the gov ernor the power to fill the senatorial vacancies, and governor Thomas Reynold of Howard county at once appointed David R. Atchison of Platte to fill the vacuum occasioned by Dr Lian’s death. Reynolds, by the way, who wrote the bill and forced it through the legislature prohibiting imprisonment for debt, which up to that time had been the old English law in Missouri. When the legislature assembled in 1844, it elected Atchison for the then term of four years, he receiving 101 votes, as against 17 for Henry S Geyer and 13 scattering. It was Atchison who accomplished the “Platte Purchase,” which forms a unique niche in American history At the instigatioa of Doniphan and Atchison, United States Senators Benton and Linn pressed through congress a bill by which all the country now embraced in the coun ties of Atchison, Andrew, Buchanan, Holt, Nodaway and Platte became a part of Missouri. This it was which made Atchison famous, and it is re corded that during his career as United States senator he was presi- dent for one day. This was due to the fact that March 4, 1894, fell on Sunday, and President Taylor was not inaugurated until March 5 Polk’s term expired March 3, leay ing one day without a chief execu tive. Atchison, being president pro tem, of the senate, was technically the president on that day. At the meeting of the legislature in 1844 another effort was made to defeat Benton, but the great Mis sourian had inspired so much awe and fear that its materialization was a failure. He received 74 votes to 82 for T. B English aud 25 seatter- ing. Nobody seems to remember who English was, but he has gone down in loca! history as the first man after Benton's first election to scheduled make a really formidable fight on/| Benton. In 1849 General James S. Rollins appeared on the scene as an opponent of David R. Atchison, but the vote resulted: Atchison, 102: Rolling, 21; scattering, 8. Thence- forth Rollins had the senatorial and | the gubernatorial bee in his bonnet, and, while all his efforts in those di- rections were fruitless, he was al- Ways regarded asa courtly, honest gentleman, and he left to his pos- terity the name of being father to the state university at Columbia. But the opposition to Benton had been growing rapidly The dogmat ic old man came home to Missouri, in 1850 to find himself misunder- stood and actually turned down. He had become a strong frie d of Aa. resembles his i | The democratic Missourians, how- ever, were determined upon Benton's jdefeat for reelection. The whigs | took no part in the canvase, but the democrats put up Judge Henry S. compass the retirement of the im- perious man who had served ibirty years in the senate. Geyer was a jbut be made a few speeches against Benton, in the interest of General Stringfellow, who was afterward jelected attorney general. When the legislature met in Jan Benton defeated, the vote being Geyer, 80; Benton, 55; Stringfellow, 18; scattering, 4 Thereafter James S. Green was the most conspicuous man in Mis jSouri politics. He was a brilliant orator, companionable, earnest and honest, but also dissipated Benton bad been elected to the lower house of congress and became again in 1856 a candidate for re election to the senate. Green lampooned him on all occasions. From every school house and town hall he mimicked Benton and set the people all laugh- ing at the famous Missourian. Ben- ton fought hard, but all tono avail. His day was done; his sun was set. In 1857 the general assembly voted thus for United States sena- tor: Green, 89; Benton, 33; Kennet 32; ecattering, 7. Kennet was the eouth-astern candidate, but that section of the state had lost much of its old time prestige and its final vote was in favor of Green. Trusten Polk was elected gov- erncr in 1856 He had been city counselor of St. Louis, but he bad no special public ability, save that of clean habits, honesty and devo- tion toevery trus:. In January, 1857, ehortly after his inauguration he was elected to the United States senate by the following vote: Polk, 101; Benton, 23; Gamble, 34; scat uary, 1851, was distinguished jurist, who bad served | enormous river trafic gave to that|support of the Jackson resolutions ; promising dewocrat | Followiog the new state constitut jacampaign of bitterness. jand sywt option of the on of 1865 came bate and All confederate soldiers personal th ¢ t between repub- rd Hieans and U lami | Frank P Bl | latter, cam serats. General with a determination : the state | f-arlessuess jin the first constitutional convention | which added greatly to his fame as the Liberal ticket. of the state, and was the man whoa soldier without reproach. fashioned the great seal of Missouri.| fight was in bebalf of the confeder- [the recently dec Green was not then a candidate, | ates, although he had been a most| Woodson was named as goverucr, His Louis, who caused |General Harney to be deposed, who jarsenal at St | secured the supremacy of General Lyon who fought the battle of Wil- | son Creek. It is related that on one occasion lhe had been advertised to speak at Warrensburg, and his friends there called upon him with theavlvice that he either should not speak at all, or should omit from his address his usual appeal for the enfrauchisment of ex,Confederate citizens. swer was characteristic. The fierce little man drew himself proudly up and answered, “Nobody has ever yet dared to call Frank P. Blaira cow ard. If there is an enemy in front I will meet him. I propose to speak tonight at the Court house, as ad- vertised, and the first man who un- dertakes to interfere will have trou- ble on his hands.” That night the Court house was crowded, and. as in those post-bel- lum days everybody carried a gun, the prospects for trouble were very brilliant. Frank P. Blair entered promptly at the appointed hous, pressed forward to the judge's desk and said: ‘Fellow citizens, I have been advised that it might be dang- erous to address you on ‘the issues |fusion of 1872, engin Was | year of “the "pos aggressive Union man througbout jthe war It was he who saved the! His an- Tue Gzbt was soon ended, Schurz; 124; dilate ‘the vote standing: | Phelps, 63. ' The Legislature of 1873 bad come to be almost entirely in possession 's were disfranchised of the Democrats,due to the famous | while 27 votes wero giyen to Esk ed by David ane H. Armstrong, then chairman of the | ed the forces of the/State democratic committee, and |opposition from his own party, iy Chas. P. Johnson, a republican, who lected lieutenant governor on That was the * when Judge Silas ‘after along bitter tight in the leo vention The contestants for Cuited States | Senator were Lewis V. Bogy | John B. Hen The battle re imaiusim the p cal history of the and 2. {State as “the red apple campaign.’ | Bogy’s interests were largely in the | hands of Colonel Tom Thorougman, | who was rarely seen without a red lapple in his hand, and who kept a | barrel of apples in his room for the | pleasure of his guests. Some scandal | prew eut of this contest, as it was | alleged that avast deal of money {had been speut by somebody. The Legislature appointed committees of investigation,and much testimony was taken, but the matter was soon dropped, and shortly passed out of public mind ‘The vote for the elec tion was as follows: Bogy, 86; Hen derson, 32; scattering, 13. Senator Bogy died in September, 1877, and Colonel Phelps, who had meanwhile become Governor of the State for four years, was called upon to fill the vacancy. ‘The governor filled it by appointing David H. Armstrong, who had nothing to qualify him for such a high position, save rugged honesty and complete devotion to his party. Francis M. Cockrell appeared on the scene in 1874, when he made a pending in this State. I believe the advice was bad.” Here he drew a couple of revolvers from his pocket and laid them softly on the desk be fore him. Then he went on: “But lest there might be some turbulent tering, 3. Polk was expelled from the senate on January 10, 1862, on the charge of disloyalty. The election of 1861 was fyll of turmoil and excitement. There was 8 great contest over the senatorship and everybody felt that the position of the state with respect to the Union depended very largely upon the man chosen to represent its interests in the United States sen- ate, and Polk had said little, but it was known that he could be relied upon for the confederacy. The next question was that of a colleague who had similar sympathies. There were many ballots, but it was not until March, 1861, that the election took place, resulting in the triumph of Waldo P. Johnson of St. Clair county, a grim old lawyer, who presided over the constitutional convention of 1876 and remained unreconstructed until his death. The vote for senator was: Johnson, 81; Doniphan, 36; English, 29. Jobhn- Son was expelled from the senate | January 10, 1862, for disloyalty to | the national government. The expulsion of Polk and John-! son left two senatorships vacant. Meanwhile the war had changed the complexion of state politics, and provincial governor Willard P. Hall, one week later, appointed Robert Wilson of Andrew and John B. Her-| derson of Pike to represent Missouri jin the state. | The legislature convened in No- | vember, 1863, and proceeded at once to partially undo the work of Governor Hall by electing B. Gratz Brown of St. Louis and John B. | Henderson. Brown was then editor | of the Democrat, and a prominent (Union man. Colonel James QO. Broadhead, then the factotum of | the provisional government, was the | Principal opponent of Brown, who| became the governor of the state in| | 1870 and was the liberal party nom- |inee for vice president in 1872 the ticket with Horace Gree ‘vote for senator was: Brown Broadhead, 65; scattering, 2 The | - 74; | Hen. | { whose nature and derson was elected by the following | t vote: Henderson, scattering, 12 1 man present who should be inclined to interfere with me, I want to say at the outset that I intend to resent any and all interruptions.” Repub- licans and Demverats united in pro longed cheers, and his speech, al though bitter and fuller than usual of invective, met with no opposing demonstration. Blair became a candidate for the United States Senate. His Repub lican opponent was the distinguished lawyer, Charles P Drake, who had presided over the constitutional con- vention of 1865, and after whom the constitution was named. Mr. Drake made no canvase, but when the Leg- islature met, in January, 1867, the vote for Senator resulted: Drake, 127; Blair, 64; scattering, 14. Three years later, December, 1870, Mr. Drake was appointed judge of the Washington City Court of Claime, a lifetime office, and resigned the Sen- atorsaip. He died two years age. Daniel T. Jewett, still a familiar figure on the streets of St Louis, was appointed Senator December 19, 1870, vies Drake, and held the office just one month, when the Gen- eral Assembly, which by that time had becume Democratic, by reason of the Liberal party—composed of Republicans and Democrats—elected Frank P. Blair to the Senate to fil! Judge Drake's unexpired term, end- ing March 4, 1873, the yote being: Blair, 102; Henderson. 59; Benjamin, | 5. Henderson had a majority of one! in the State Senate, due to the fact that when the final vote in the Uni- ted States upon the question of the impeachment of Andrew Jackson came up he cast the deciding vote! against impeachment. Heis now a millionaire resident of Washington city, and occupies one of the finest mansions at the capital. lal Jobn MeNeil to a Missouri Feder- There was a very stirring contest, for Senator in 1869. Colonel Jobn | ' had served gallantly in the Union| army: he had met with the Federal | and republican approbation as i ary Governor of Arkansas, under! canvass for the democratic nomina tion as governor,and after a protract- ed struggle was defeated in conven tion by Charles H. Hardin, by a fraction of a vote. The delegates were on the eye of a riot, when Cook rell took the stand, swung his big white hat,and called for three cheers for Hardin, who had been fairly nominated. In this year the Mis souri republican and Colonel James O. Broadhead bolted the democratic ticket, alleging that the party had been turned over, boots and breeches to the rebels,and that the democrats who helped save the Union were no longer considered in the party coun- cils. With the assembling of the Leg islature, in 1875, Cockrell, an ex- Confederate general, came forward asa candidate for the Senate. Be- cause of his generous conduct at the State convention and during the campaign, he had practically a walk- over, the yote resulting: Cockrell, 92; Parker, 23; Schurz, 5; Shields, 1; absent, 3. In 1879 the General Assembly voted upon a successor to Bogy, to fill the unexpired term from January to Marck. Under ordinary circum stances David H. Armstroug, the governor's appointee, might have been confirmed for the brief time remaining. Butthe democrats were indignant because Armetrong had voted for the contirmation o1 Gener- al office, and he could not stem the tide. It was all in vain that he told the members in his biunt way, “If it had not been for the help I had from MeNeil in 1872, none of you fellows would be holding office to- day.” Gen. James Sheilde, the hero of two wars and United States Senator | from three states, was chosen, and served the remaining six weeks. The State campaign of 1876 bad| proved a bitter one inside the dem | ocratic ranks It was a contest for | |supremacy between the Usiou and| ex-Confederate wings of the party. | George G. Vest reprented the latter | | 5. Phelps had been the democratic/and John S. Phelps tue former, op-| PHOTOGRAPHER : On| nominee for governor in 1868: he! posing candidates for governor ynvention met, V. When the Phelps were race, but there is a legend yet ¢ that Samuel J. Tilden, for President, te! son City “(. AAGEDORN . executed in the highest style of the . ee lee elected in 1879, Vest Was the ——- choice, receiving votes. Gustavus A. Pinkelobarg, \who had made a gatlar | nt TACS as the republican candidate for gover received the 18 republican vol ibaugh. Cockrell was re elected without | 1SS1, the yote be | Dyer, /6 g Cockrell, lig, 43; Broadhead, 1: De Bernard, Also, without opposition, he wag ' re-elected in 1887, and again in 1893, Vest’s success is a matter of sim. lar and familiar history He wag. i to aug. jeeed himself in 1885 and in 189],ang ichosen xlmost unanimously j will now probably close hig career i) by a fourth eleetion in 1897, | In formal opposition to Vest and | Cockrell the republican members of i the Legislature bave complimenteg Major Warner of Kansas City, Chauncey I. Filley and others with their votes for Senator, but always without hope of doing more than to reward faithfel campaigners by such organized recogaition. THE Bates County Bank BUTLER, MO. Successor to Bates Co. National Bank, Established in 187C. Paid up capital $125,000 A general banking business trang acted. F. J. TYGARD, President, HON. J. B. NEWBERRY Vice-Pres, J. C. CLARK Cashier ee DR. J. M, CHRISTY, HOMOEOPATHIU PHYSICIAN AND SURGEON, Office, front room over McKibbens store. All callanswered at office dayor night. Specialattention given to temale dis eases. DENTIST. Newly Fitted up Rooms, Qver Jeter’s Jewelry Store. Entrance, vame that leads to Hagedorn’s Studio, north sive square , Butler, Mo. Dr. R. Fred Jones Physician, Office over McKibben store.cResidence, M. BE. church parsonage, corner Ohio & Havannah streets. T C. BOULWARE, Physician and e Surgeon. Office norta'side square Butler, Mo. Diseasesof women and chit en aspecialtv.} G. .W ROBINSON, M.D. PHYSICIAN AND SURGEON. Special attention to diseases of Chest, Nose and Throat Calis answered night and day. Officer Culver Mo. : DR. T. F. LOCKWOOD. See attention givne Surgery. Chronic and | Nervous diseases, Does a general practice j both in the city and country Calla answered jatalltimes Office over Joe Meyers on East jside (J. Residence 2nd house North of Mee Brides cn Havana street. A. W. Tacawan SMITH THURMAN. LAWYERS, Office over Bates County Natn’l Bank. Butlea, Missouri. . J. Sura. | | i | Gates & CLARK, ATTORNAYS AT LAW. Office over the Missouri/§State Bank orth side square. N The Old Reliable North Side Square. Has the best equipped gallery im Southwest Missouri. All Styles of Photogrphing art, and at reasonable prices, ¥ th, A op ally. 2d to n Wor Crayo ec! / a work EDORN.