HISTORY OF 
 
 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 
 
 IN IOWA 
 
 A STUDY IN AMERICAN POLITICS 
 
 BY 
 
 DAN ELBERT CLARK 
 
 SUP.MITTEI> TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE COLLEGE 
 
 01 THK STA TK UNIVERSITY OF IOWA IN Nls'F.TEEN-TE S S 
 PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OK THE REQTJIREME v 
 .">R THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OK PHILOSOPHY 
 
 IOWA CITY IOWA 
 1912 
 
EXCHANGE 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
HISTORY OF 
 
 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 
 IN IOWA 
 
 A STUDY IN AMERICAN POLITICS 
 
 BY 
 DAN ELBERT /CLARK 
 
 SUBMITTED TO THE FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE COLLEGE 
 
 OF THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA IN NINETEEN-TEN IN 
 
 PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS 
 
 FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY 
 
 IOWA CITY IOWA 
 1912 
 
AUTHOR'S PREFACE 
 
 THE Constitution of the United States provides 
 that each State shall be represented in the federal 
 Senate by two Senators who shall be chosen by the 
 State legislature, and that each State shall pre- 
 scribe by law the time, place, and manner of holding 
 elections of Senators but Congress may alter such 
 regulations except as to the place of holding the 
 elections. Until the enactment of a statute in 1866, 
 however, Congress left the regulation of senatorial 
 elections entirely to the State legislatures. 
 
 Twenty-five times during the history of Iowa has 
 the General Assembly been called upon to select men 
 to represent the Commonwealth in the Senate of the 
 United States ; and on three occasions the Governor 
 has made appointments, two of which were later 
 ratified by the legislature. Fifteen men have been 
 the recipients of this highest gift within the power of 
 the State. Two of them resigned before the expira- 
 tion of their terms in order to accept positions in 
 the President's Cabinet; death removed three in the 
 midst of their duties; still others remained for two 
 or three successive terms ; while one occupied a seat 
 
 7 
 
 549760 
 
8 AUTHOR'S PREFACE 
 
 in the upper house of Congress for a period of 
 thirty-five years. 
 
 For four of these men the governorship of the 
 State of Iowa proved a stepping stone to a seat in 
 the United States Senate. Six had previously repre- 
 sented the people of Iowa in the lower house of Con- 
 gress, either as Territorial Delegate or as Represen- 
 tative. One had been a Justice of the Supreme Court 
 of Iowa; while the remaining four were compara- 
 tively unexperienced in official position when they 
 were sent to the Senate. 
 
 The history of the election of United States Sen- 
 ators differs from the history of contests for election 
 to any other important office largely in the fact that 
 the electorate is very limited, since only the mem- 
 bers of the General Assembly participate directly in 
 the election of United States Senators. The task 
 which has confronted aspirants for this office, there- 
 fore, has been to win the votes of a majority of the 
 members of the legislature. 
 
 At the same time there has always been a wide- 
 spread interest in senatorial contests on the part of 
 the people of the State on account of the importance 
 of the office. And so candidates for Senator have 
 endeavored by various means to win popular favor 
 and thus indirectly to bring influence to bear on 
 members of the General Assembly. The most ef- 
 
AUTHOR'S PREFACE 
 
 fective means by which the claims of senatorial can- 
 didates have been brought before the people has 
 been through the newspapers. Each of the leading 
 candidates from 1846 down to the present time has 
 had loyal and active supporters among the editors 
 of the State. Circular letters, private correspond- 
 ence, and personal canvass are other means which 
 have been employed by candidates to further their 
 cause among both the members of the legislature and 
 the people at large. 
 
 While quiet work has often been begun far in ad- 
 vance of the date of election, senatorial contests have 
 usually begun in earnest early in the summer of the 
 year preceding the session of the legislature at 
 which United States Senators were to be elected. 
 Candidates in the ranks of both political parties an- 
 nounced themselves, and in many instances the con- 
 test for the senatorship has had an important effect 
 on State elections. Not only has the bearing of the 
 political complexion of the legislature on the election 
 of United States Senators been cited as an argument 
 for voting a straight ticket, but frequently legisla- 
 tive candidates have been nominated and elected on 
 the basis of their preference for senatorial candi- 
 dates. Frequently, also, nominating conventions 
 have definitely instructed legislative nominees rela- 
 tive to their votes for United States Senators. 
 
10 AUTHOR'S PREFACE 
 
 After the State elections the contest has as a rule 
 been limited to candidates of the party which has se- 
 cured a majority in the General Assembly. The 
 main effort after that time has been to secure the 
 party nomination in the caucus of members of the 
 legislature shortly after the convening of the As- 
 sembly. With only a few exceptions the winning of 
 the nomination of the dominant party has amounted 
 to an election, for there have seldom been instances 
 of bolting the caucus nominations in the votes in 
 joint convention. Except for the deadlocks which 
 began and closed the history of senatorial elections 
 in Iowa and the unusual election of James Harlan in 
 1855, the elections in the joint conventions of the two 
 houses of the legislature have been uneventful. 
 
 There was little variation in the methods of car- 
 rying on senatorial contests from the first campaign 
 until the year 1907, when the movement in favor of 
 the popular election of United States Senators which 
 had been growing for many years culminated in the 
 enactment of a statute providing for the nomination 
 of Senators by the people at primary elections. 
 Since 1907, therefore, it has been more necessary for 
 candidates to appeal directly to the people for sup- 
 port, and thus in the ranks of both of the leading 
 political parties there has been a more widespread 
 popular interest in senatorial contests. 
 
AUTHOR'S PREFACE 11 
 
 In the pages which follow the writer has endeav- 
 ored to present the main facts concerning the elec- 
 tion of United States Senators in Iowa from 1846 to 
 1912. An effort has been made to enumerate the 
 leading aspirants for the senatorships, to state the 
 arguments used for and against the various candi- 
 dates, and to indicate the campaign methods em- 
 ployed in the various contests. Since 1855 the Ke- 
 publican party has controlled the General Assembly, 
 and consequently it will be found that the writer has 
 limited the discussion quite largely to the Republican 
 candidates for United States Senator. In only a few 
 cases since 1855 has there been sufficient prospect 
 of Democratic success in the senatorial contests to 
 draw out the active efforts of candidates in the ranks 
 of that party. 
 
 The writer realizes that much interesting history 
 has been left unwritten in this volume. Behind the 
 scenes, as in most political contests, there have un- 
 doubtedly transpired many things which will never 
 be known except to those intimately concerned. 
 Doubtless influences were brought to bear in favor 
 of or against various candidates of which the public 
 knew nothing or at least had only vague suspicions. 
 It would be folly to declare that promises of money, 
 position, or power were never (if not frequently) 
 made to gain support and votes in the race for the 
 
12 AUTHOR'S PREFACE 
 
 coveted position. But it is believed that the history 
 of senatorial elections in Iowa is relatively free from 
 corrupt practices when compared with the history of 
 similar contests in many other Commonwealths. 
 
 The discussion of senatorial elections in Iowa 
 since 1900 has, for reasons which are obvious, been 
 limited to a mere chronicle of the main events and 
 features of the various contests. 
 
 The materials from which this volume was writ- 
 ten fall mainly in three classes. The Journals of the 
 Senate and House of Representatives of the General 
 Assembly of Iowa furnished the outline and the of- 
 ficial record of the elections. Newspaper files in the 
 collections of The State Historical Society of Iowa 
 at Iowa City and the Historical Department of Iowa 
 at Des Moines supplied the great body of informa- 
 tion concerning candidates and campaigns. The 
 writer endeavored to obtain an impartial view by 
 searching through the files of a large number of 
 newspapers of both political parties. 
 
 Finally a glimpse of the personal side of some of 
 the contests was gained from collections of the pa- 
 pers and correspondence of a number of the success- 
 ful candidates. Perhaps the most helpful in this 
 respect was the magnificent collection known as the 
 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan, which was kindly loaned to The State His- 
 
AUTHOR'S PREFACE 13 
 
 torical Society of Iowa by Mrs. Robert T. Lincoln, a 
 daughter of Senator Harlan. Much valuable mate- 
 rial was also secured from the Correspondence of 
 Samuel J. Kirkwood, the Correspondence of George 
 W. Jones, and other collections of papers which are 
 preserved in the Historical Department of Iowa at 
 Des Moines. 
 
 The preparation of this volume was begun sev- 
 eral years ago while the writer was a graduate stu- 
 dent in The State University of Iowa. From that 
 time until the reading of the last page of proof the 
 writer has benefited by the hearty interest and co- 
 operation of his associates in The State Historical 
 Society of Iowa, and grateful appreciation of their 
 many services is hereby expressed. Especially does 
 the writer desire to acknowledge his indebtedness to 
 Dr. Benj. F. Shambaugh, Superintendent of The 
 State Historical Society of Iowa, who first suggested 
 the writing of this volume and whose advice and en- 
 couragement have been a constant aid and inspira- 
 tion. 
 
 DAN ELBEBT CLARK 
 
 THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF IOWA 
 IOWA CITY IOWA 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 I. THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION IN 
 
 IOWA 17 
 
 II. THE ELECTION OF GEORGE W. JONES 
 
 IN 1852 . . . . . . . 50 
 
 III. THE FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HAR- 
 
 LAN 59 
 
 IV. THE CONTESTED ELECTION OF JAMES 
 
 HARLAN 88 
 
 V. THE ELECTION OF JAMES W. GRIMES 
 
 IN 1858 104 
 
 VI. THE ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN IN 
 
 1860 120 
 
 VII. THE ELECTION OF JAMES W. GRIMES 
 
 IN 1864 ^129 
 
 VIII. THE ELECTION OF HARLAN AND KIRK- 
 WOOD IN 1866 132 
 
 IX. THE ELECTION OF WRIGHT AND HOW- 
 ELL IN 1870 143 
 
 X. THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM B. ALLI- 
 SON IN 1872 152 
 
 XI. THE ELECTION OF SAMUEL J. KIRK- 
 WOOD IN 1876 168 
 
 15 
 
16 CONTENTS 
 
 XII. THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM B. ALLI- 
 SON IN 1878 180 
 
 XIII. THE ELECTION OF WILSON AND Mc- 
 
 DILL IN 1882 187 
 
 XIV. THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM B. ALLI- 
 
 SON IN 1884 200 
 
 XV. THE, ELECTION OF JAMES F. WILSON 
 
 IN 1888 210 
 
 XVI. THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM B. ALLI- 
 SON IN 1890 216 
 
 XVII. THE ELECTION OF JOHN H. GEAK IN 
 
 1894 222 
 
 XVIII. THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM B. ALLI- 
 SON IN 1896 235 
 
 XIX. SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 1900- 
 
 1911 239 
 
 NOTES AND EEFERENCES . . . 263 
 INDEX 311 
 
THE FIEST SENATOBIAL ELECTION 
 IN IOWA 
 
 WHEN the long controversy over boundaries had 
 been settled late in the summer of 1846 * and it was 
 definitely decided that Iowa should be admitted into 
 the Union, leading politicians began to cast their 
 nets for the many choice offices which statehood 
 would create. The most coveted offices naturally 
 were the two seats in the United States Senate, and 
 so the contest for these places began early and grew 
 in bitterness as time progressed. 
 
 The first general election for State officers and 
 for members of the General Assembly was held on 
 October 26, 1846. During the weeks immediately 
 preceding this election newspaper editors called the 
 attention of their readers to the fact that two United 
 States Senators were to be chosen by the General 
 Assembly and that the political complexion of the 
 legislature would determine whether Whigs or 
 Democrats would receive these much desired offices. 
 "Let every friend of the Tariff of 1842; every 
 advocate for the improvement of our Eivers and 
 Harbors; every opponent of the Sub Treasury and 
 the issuance of treasury notes, and every patriotic 
 voter in Iowa remember", urged the editor of an 
 
 2 17 
 
18 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Iowa City paper, "that the first General Assembly 
 will be charged with the responsible duty of electing 
 two Senators to represent the State of Iowa in the 
 Senate of the United States. . . . Shall Iowa 
 be misrepresented in the Senate by progressive 
 Locofocos, or truly represented by Whigs, or old 
 fashioned Democrats I ' ?2 
 
 The Democrats were the dominant party at this 
 time, and on October 26, 1846, they elected their 
 entire State ticket, and secured twelve of the 
 nineteen Senators; while the Whigs elected twenty 
 out of the thirty-nine Representatives. 3 Thus it 
 appeared that the Democrats would have a clear 
 majority on a joint ballot, and would be able to 
 reward two of their faithful leaders by electing them 
 to the dignified position of United States Senator. 
 Consequently it was within the ranks of the 
 Democratic party that the greatest hopes were 
 raised. Candidates for the nomination announced 
 themselves early, and began to canvass the situation 
 in support of their claims. Among the Whigs there 
 were doubtless many who looked with equal longing 
 toward the senatorships ; but, belonging to the 
 minority party, they lacked the prospect of probable 
 or even possible success to inspire them to an active 
 campaign. It was not until after the assembling of 
 the legislature, when the outlook was brighter, that 
 the Whig aspirants seem to have exerted themselves 
 to any great extent. 
 
 A stir was produced in both parties, however, 
 when it was discovered that in Lee County an 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 19 
 
 independent legislative ticket composed of both 
 Whigs and Democrats had been elected, and that the 
 orthodoxy of the three Locof oco members 4 could not 
 be depended upon. "For the information of our 
 readers without the bounds of Iowa ' ', wrote a Whig 
 editor at Iowa City, "we will state that we have a 
 party in this State, called Possums by their partizan 
 neighbors. They reside in Lee, the most populous 
 county in the State, and have a way of doing things, 
 which enables them to wield a prodigious influence 
 in a party conflict. . . . The last legislative 
 ticket was made up of one Whig and one Demo- 
 cratic Senator, and three Whig and two Democratic 
 Eepresentatives, and the entire ticket was elected 
 by a large majority. . . . There was a reg- 
 ular Locof oco ticket, and of course the Democrats 
 elected on the Independent ticket will not consider 
 themselves as instructed to go for Locof oco men or 
 measures." 5 
 
 Naturally there was much speculation as to the 
 course these three Independent Democrats from Lee 
 County would take in the election of United States 
 Senators. If they should vote with the Democrats 
 it was reasonably certain that Locofoco Senators 
 would be chosen. On the other hand, if they voted 
 with the Whigs there might be a victory for that 
 party ; while if they should vote independently they 
 might even prevent an election. Thus an element of 
 uncertainty added interest to the contest, and both 
 parties maneuvered for the support of the three 
 doubtful members. The Democrats charged the 
 
20 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 WMgs with "openly and shamefully boasting, that, 
 by the system of bargain and sale, for which they 
 have become notorious, they will secure the support 
 of the three democratic members from Lee county, 
 in the election of United States Senator 7 '. The 
 Whigs strenuously denied the charge, and sought to 
 gain favor with the three Independents by praising 
 their honesty and uprightness. 6 
 
 A majority of the Democrats of the southern part 
 of the State, from the first, seem to have favored 
 Augustus Caesar Dodge of Burlington, whose 
 services for two years as Eegister of the Land Office 
 at Burlington had made him many friends; and 
 who as Delegate to Congress for six years had 
 demonstrated his ability to care faithfully for the 
 interests of his constituents. 7 In the northern 
 portion of the State popular sentiment among the 
 Democrats was divided in support of a number of 
 men, the most prominent of whom were Judge 
 Thomas S. Wilson, Stephen Hempstead, and Lewis 
 A. Thomas all of Dubuque. In writing to his 
 friend Laurel Summers of the prospects of the 
 various aspirants early in October, Lewis A. Thomas 
 declared that there was a general feeling that Judge 
 Wilson had been "well treated by the Democratic 
 Party and therefore he ought to defer his pretentious 
 to others who have not been so highly favored." 8 
 It is probable, however, that this statement was 
 more or less colored by the fact that Thomas himself 
 was one of those who had not been "so highly 
 favored." At any rate Judge Wilson's chances 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 21 
 
 continued to grow brighter as the time for the 
 election approached. 
 
 The northern and southern portions of the State 
 were equally determined that the other section 
 should not capture both of the senatorships. Thus, 
 at this early date there was begun that sectional 
 strife which for so many years troubled the waters 
 of the senatorial sea at election time. Indeed, it was 
 not until in comparatively recent years that the 
 discordant cry of the sectionalist ceased to be heard 
 whenever a new Senator was to be selected. 
 
 Shortly before the meeting of the First General 
 Assembly there appeared in the columns of a 
 Locofoco journal at Iowa City a charge against the 
 Whigs which is interesting in the light of the 
 subsequent action of the Democratic members of the 
 legislature. It was asserted that the Whigs in some 
 parts of the State had "so far forgotten their 
 obligations as men and citizens of a republic, as to 
 menace us [the Democrats] with a refusal of the 
 Whig House to go into an election of United States 
 Senators ", if there was no prospect of a Whig 
 victory, and that this was "in character with those 
 political desperadoes who shamelessly boast of 
 purchasing freemen at the polls like cattle in the 
 shambles ". "But let them so refuse if they dare", 
 warned the editor. 9 
 
 This charge drew the fire of the Whig press all 
 over the State, and a vituperative war of words 
 ensued. "The Eeporter is hugely alarmed lest the 
 Whigs should follow the lead of Locofocoism", said 
 
22 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 one Whig editor. "Kemember that you always 
 put too low an estimate on the Whigs when 
 you judge them by the example set by practical 
 Locofocoism." 10 Eastin Morris, another Whig 
 editor, declared that if the Whig members were to 
 act as intimated in the Democratic allegation "they 
 would better deserve places in the penitentiary, than 
 seats in the Legislature." But, said he, "they are 
 constitutional law abiding men, and never have, and 
 never will cut any such capers. ' ' If any of the Whig 
 legislators elect contemplated such action he would 
 be pleased to receive their names, in order that they 
 might "take their stations among the Locofocos 
 where all disorganizers more properly belonged ". n 
 
 The meeting of the First General Assembly of the 
 new State of Iowa at Iowa City on November 30, 
 1846, drew to the seat of government a great number 
 of people from all parts of the State. ' i The taverns 
 and all the private boarding houses are crowded to 
 overflowing ", was the statement of a local editor. 
 "Some have come hither to enjoy a few gala days 
 with their friends in the legislature, and to see the 
 wheels of the new government set in motion; but 
 from the Senatorial and Judge-like faces, which meet 
 us at every turn, we are inclined to believe that 
 nearly half of the lobby members are aspirants to 
 seats in the United States Senate, or on the Supreme 
 Bench of Iowa, or the influential friends of those 
 who aspire to put on the Senatorial robe, or the 
 ermine of Justice." 12 
 
 Both parties held early caucuses. Although no 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 23 
 
 records have been found, the Whigs seem to have 
 determined upon Jonathan McCarty and Gilbert C. 
 E. Mitchell; while Judge Thomas S. Wilson and 
 Augustus Caesar Dodge were the choice of the 
 Democrats. 13 
 
 On Saturday, December 5, 1846, Irad C. Day 
 moved a resolution that the two houses should meet 
 at two o'clock on the following Monday for the 
 purpose of electing United States Senators. On 
 Monday morning the resolution was read a second 
 time, and after some discussion a substitute resolu- 
 tion was adopted providing for a joint convention 
 on December llth, to elect three Judges of the 
 Supreme Court and two United States Senators. 14 
 In the Senate this resolution was amended by 
 striking out all that part which related to the 
 election of Judges. 15 The House refused to concur 
 in the Senate's amendments; the Senate insisted; 
 and the House stood firm on disagreeing. A 
 committee of conference was appointed by each 
 house; but all to no purpose. Affairs seemed at a 
 standstill. "We can form no idea when the election 
 will take place", complained a Whig editor, "prob- 
 ably not until most of the candidates shall have left 
 for 'Home sweet Home/ " 16 
 
 The refusal of the Democratic Senate to accede 
 to the wishes of the Whig House elicited bitter 
 criticism from the Whig press. The charge which 
 a month earlier the Democrats had been making 
 against the Whigs was now applied to the Locofocos 
 in the legislature. "We understand that the Loco- 
 
24 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 focos have broken up in their caucuses more than 
 once", asserted one editor, "because 'Caesar was 
 ambitious' to go to Washington and take a seat in 
 the U. S. Senate." This was a slap at Augustus 
 Caesar Dodge and his friends who were charged with 
 sacrificing the best interests of the State to the 
 ambitions of one man. "It will take more time and 
 talent .... than all the Locofoco Senate has", 
 continued the writer, "to convince the people that 
 there is any good reason for the delay, or any 
 necessity for holding more than one session to elect 
 five officers". 17 
 
 In the midst of these proceedings, when the 
 atmosphere was already overcharged with excite- 
 ment, a new sensation was caused by the exposure 
 of an attempt at bribery. Shortly after two o'clock 
 on the afternoon of December 9, 1846, Nelson King, 
 member from Keokuk County, rose in his place in 
 the House of Eepresentatives and announced that 
 since taking his seat in the House he had been 
 approached by several persons in regard to casting 
 his vote for United States Senator "and that several 
 distinct propositions of money and other reward had 
 been offered him, if he would vote for General Dodge 
 for Senator, or J. C. Hall, or either of them, as may 
 or might be determined upon". He was assured, he 
 said, that he would be secure "from all blame or 
 suspicion, ' ' since he would be furnished with written 
 instructions from his constituents telling him how to 
 vote. Furthermore, he stated that Samuel T. 
 Marshall of Lee County "gave him a five dollar note 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 25 
 
 on the State Bank of Ohio .... and told him 
 to call on him at any future time and he would give 
 him one hundred dollars, or any amount he wanted ", 
 and that he had been informed that the money was 
 from Augustus C. Dodge. Finally, King asserted 
 that Marshall had given him two receipts for per- 
 sonal indebtedness. 18 
 
 A committee of five was appointed to investigate 
 the charge of bribery and was given full power to 
 send for persons and papers, and the Speaker of the 
 House was authorized to issue his warrant for 
 the arrest of S. T. Marshall. A resolution was 
 introduced thanking Nelson King "for his honest, 
 high-minded and patriotic conduct " in announcing 
 the attempt at bribery to secure his vote for Demo- 
 cratic Senators. 19 
 
 In the discomfiture of the Democrats at King's 
 startling announcement the Whigs found a soothing 
 balm for their own wounded feelings. The attempt at 
 bribery and corruption furnished Whig newspaper 
 men with abundant material for columns of scathing 
 denunciation and stinging satire. It seems that in ad- 
 dition to the offers of money, Marshall had promised 
 King they would make a gentleman of him if he 
 would vote for Dodge. ' ' Marshall 's idea of a gentle- 
 man must be fine clothes and 'lots' of cash Dodge 
 cash", satirized the editor of a Bloomington paper. 
 "Here we see, the promise, on the part of Marshall, 
 of money, office ; and above all something that should 
 make a gentleman of Mr. King. The voting for 
 Dodge and receiving a bribe to do so constituted a 
 
26 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 locofoco's idea of a gentleman!" Augustus Caesar 
 Dodge again came in for his share of Whig attention. 
 "Augustus Caesar Dodge !" continued the same edi- 
 tor, "any other name would make just as nice a man ; 
 but it would not sound half so big Peter Pelliken, 
 for instance, would not sound half as sonorous, nor 
 as Roman like, yet, Peter Pelliken might belong in 
 reality to a greater man than S. T. Marshall or his 
 patron Augustus Caesar Dodge. " 20 
 
 Further evidence of Locofoco manipulation to 
 secure votes for Democratic Senators was brought 
 out early in the progress of the King investigation. 
 This time it was two of the much sought after Lee 
 County Independents who were the objects of 
 attack, by a certain William Patterson 21 of their own 
 county, as is shown by the following affidavit : 
 
 I do hereby certify, that on Tuesday, December, 2d, 
 1846, I was authorized by Col. William Patterson, of Lee 
 county, Iowa, to offer to Josiah Clifton and Reuben Con- 
 lee each the use of one hundred dollars for ninety nine years 
 if desired, without interest, if they would give their votes in 
 an election then about to come on, for United States Sena- 
 tors in the General Assembly for such a man, or men, as the 
 said Colonel William Patterson, would name, for the office 
 of United States Senator. Also, I was authorized by Col. 
 Patterson and Silas Haight to offer Josiah Clifton, individ- 
 ually, on their own part and the part of their associates, to 
 enter into a bond of ten thousand dollars, if necessary, to 
 secure him an appointment in the Land Office as Register or 
 Receiver ; providing, he would vote for men for the United 
 States Senate, whom they would name. . . . 
 
 JOHNSON C. CHAPMAN. 22 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 27 
 
 While the excitement caused by the exposure of 
 bribery and corruption was still at its height, 
 each branch of the General Assembly maneuvered 
 to secure a joint convention upon terms which 
 accorded with the wishes of their respective majori- 
 ties. The Democrats in the Senate insisted on 
 choosing the Senators before going into an election 
 for Judges; while the Whig Eepresentatives were 
 equally determined that the Judges should be 
 selected first, and that both Senators and Judges 
 should be chosen during the same joint session. 23 
 The Whigs gave as the reason for their position that 
 the Supreme Court should convene on the first of 
 January, and that it was therefore necessary that the 
 Judges should be elected as early as possible. They 
 were not willing, however, to attribute honorable 
 motives to their opponents. " There is another 
 potent reason for electing the Supreme Judges 
 first"; wrote Eastin Morris in an Iowa City paper, 
 "and that is, that many of their opponents are 
 furiously opposed to it. They must have a party 
 reason for contending so strenuously for the election 
 of Senators first. They imagine that it would enable 
 them to gain some party advantage. Seeing this, 
 the Whigs have a right to thwart their schemes. " 24 
 
 However, when the legislature had been in ses- 
 sion three weeks and the prospect of an agreement 
 seemed as distant as ever, the Whigs were ready to 
 recede from their uncompromising position and 
 make concessions to the Locofocos. On December 
 14, 1846, the Senate passed a resolution to the effect 
 
28 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 that that body would proceed to the hall of the House 
 of Eepresentatives for the purpose of choosing 
 Supreme Court Judges, as soon after the election of 
 Senators as the House might agree upon. 25 This 
 proposition met with reluctant favor in the House 
 of Eepresentatives where on December 16th resolu- 
 tions were adopted stating that the House would be 
 prepared to receive the Senate on December 18th 
 and 19th for the election of Senators and Judges 
 respectively. 26 The resolution providing for the 
 election of Senators received a few unimportant 
 amendments in the Senate, was passed by a vote of 
 twelve to seven, 27 and was returned to the House 
 where the Senate amendments were concurred in by 
 a vote of thirty-eight to one. 28 The resolution as 
 finally passed not only specified the time of choosing 
 United States Senators, but went into some detail in 
 prescribing the manner in which the election should 
 be conducted. 29 
 
 On Friday morning, December 18, 1846, the two 
 houses of the General Assembly of Iowa met for the 
 first time in joint convention for the election of 
 United States Senators. The Old Stone Capitol was 
 the scene of unwonted animation. Leading poli- 
 ticians from all parts of the State, interested in the 
 outcome of the senatorial contest, had been in Iowa 
 City since the assembling of the legislature, and 
 they, of course, were present in full force. Besides 
 those vitally interested, the building doubtless held 
 others drawn thither by idle curiosity or the pros- 
 pect of an exciting session. 30 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 29 
 
 At half past eleven the members of the 
 Senate, preceded by their president, secretary, and 
 sergeant-at-arms, filed into the crowded hall of 
 the House of Eepresentatives and took the seats 
 assigned to them by Speaker Jesse B. Browne, who 
 acted as president of the convention. Silas A. 
 Hudson, Chief Clerk of the House, as secretary of 
 the convention, read the roll of the General Assembly 
 and every member answered to his name. Thomas 
 H. Benton, Jr. of the Senate, and G. W. Bowie of 
 the House were then appointed tellers and the voting 
 for Senator commenced. 31 
 
 No doubt deep silence reigned over the crowded 
 hall as Silas A. Hudson began to read the alpha- 
 betical list of members, and each in turn cast his 
 ballot for the man of his choice. When the last name 
 had been called and the votes were counted, it was 
 found that Jonathan McCarty, the Whig candidate, 
 had received twenty-nine votes; while Thomas S. 
 Wilson, the Democratic nominee, had only twenty- 
 eight votes. Senator Huner and Eepresentatives 
 Clifton and Conlee, the doubtful members from Lee 
 County, voted for McCarty, but to the surprise of 
 all, Senator Fullenwider of Des Moines County, a 
 staunch Whig, cast his ballot for Gilbert C. E. 
 Mitchell. 32 Thirty votes were necessary to elect, and 
 therefore Samuel Fullenwider 's failure to vote with 
 his Whig brethren was the means of defeating 
 McCarty. 
 
 When the result was announced the excitement 
 which had been suppressed during the balloting 
 
30 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 burst all bounds and a lively scene ensued. The 
 president scarcely had time to declare that there was 
 no election, and to put the question, "Will the Con- 
 vention proceed to a second balloting ?", before an 
 excited Locofoco moved to adjourn. The Democrats 
 saw very clearly that if a second ballot were taken 
 and Samuel Fullenwider should vote for McCarty 
 their own candidate would be defeated. l i The locos 
 were in a fix", wrote an eye witness of the proceed- 
 ings. "As Legislators and Senatorial electors they 
 were bound to proceed with the election. But as 
 locofocos they were bound to stave it off, regardless 
 of consequences, and they did not hesitate. Motion 
 after motion was made to adjourn. The ayes and 
 noes were taken alternately to adjourn the Con- 
 vention, for the sole purpose of preventing a second 
 balloting, and as often decided in the negative. ' ' A 
 motion to the effect that all motions to adjourn 
 should be considered out of order until after another 
 ballot had been cast met with furious opposition, and 
 the president declined to decide the question. Mo- 
 tions to adjourn indefinitely or to certain days were 
 made in such rapid succession that it was often 
 difficult to determine which was entitled to recog- 
 nition. The Democratic Senators threatened to 
 leave the convention, "and they were upon the point 
 of marching ", continued the narrator, "when Dr. 
 Davis requested a parley, and appealed to the 
 Convention to let them retire with the consent of the 
 Convention. At this critical stage of the row, Mr. 
 Benton, of Dubuque, left the Clerk's desk where he 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 31 
 
 had been employed as one of the tellers, and appealed 
 to the Convention in a mild, gentlemanly and 
 plausible manner to save the reputation of the 
 Legislature, and to let the Senate retire with the 
 consent of the Convention. His speech had a tran- 
 quilizing effect, and Messrs. Clifton and Conlee, 
 independents, voted in favor of an adjournment 
 until the 5th of January next." 33 The motion to 
 adjourn carried by a vote of thirty to twenty-eight, 
 and the Senate retired to its own chamber. 34 On the 
 following day the General Assembly adjourned to 
 meet again on January 4, 1847. 
 
 Again Whig newspapers teemed with abusive 
 editorials and condemnatory articles directed 
 against their opponents for preventing an election 
 of United States Senators. The Locofocos were 
 charged with fighting under the motto : 
 
 He that fights and runs away, 
 May live to fight another day; 
 But he that is in battle slain 
 May never live to fight again ! 35 
 
 1 'The understanding out of doors is, that there 
 will be no election during the present session", ran 
 the complaint in the columns of an Iowa City paper. 
 "The leading locofocos do not hesitate to say that 
 unless they can elect their men, they are determined 
 to stave off the election until there is another General 
 Assembly." "Will the people of Iowa sanction this 
 procedure?" demanded the editor. "Will they to 
 gratify the whims of a few office holders, and office- 
 seekers, consent that Iowa shall be unrepresented 
 
32 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 in the Senate of the United States for two years? 
 when the nation is at war when the questions of 
 protection of American labor and American manu- 
 factures are at stake and when a system of 
 Internal Improvement, of our Eivers and Harbors, 
 is about to be sacrificed at the shrine of party, they 
 will not, they can not, and we are almost tempted to 
 say, they dare not." 36 
 
 The recess of the General Assembly was a period 
 of scheming and intrigue on the part of the as- 
 pirants for the senatorships. It appears that after 
 the deadlock and consequent failure to elect on 
 December 18th, Jacob Huner, the independent Demo- 
 cratic Senator from Lee County, decided that he 
 would enter the lists. He confided his intention to 
 his fellow partizan, Josiah Clifton. The third mem- 
 ber of the independent trio from Lee County, Eeuben 
 Conlee, had died on December 23rd, and so Huner 
 and Clifton now held the balance of power on joint 
 ballot. Thus they hoped, by promising to go over to 
 the Democratic camp, to induce the Locofocos to 
 nominate Huner in place of Augustus Caesar Dodge. 
 The Democrats, however, refused to fall in with this 
 proposition, although they seem to have offered to 
 substitute Ver Planck Van Antwerp for Dodge, who 
 was particularly displeasing to Huner. 37 It was 
 secretly intimated a little later that Judge Thomas 
 S. Wilson had been somewhat involved in the at- 
 tempt to drop Dodge. 38 
 
 The Whigs were also active during these two 
 weeks. "The whigs", wrote ex-Governor James 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 33 
 
 Clarke to Laurel Summers, "were ready to bargain 
 with any one who could bring them votes enough to 
 elect their man ; they approached the friends of Gen. 
 Dodge repeatedly with offers of this kind, but were 
 in every instance within my knowledge repulsed. 
 That Judge Wilson and his friends have been tried 
 in the same way I doubt nof '. Milton D. Browning, 
 a Whig Senator from Des Moines County, intimated 
 the writer, was endeavoring "to concoct a bargain 
 for his own benefit with northern democrats. " 39 
 
 The legislature reassembled in the Old Stone 
 Capitol on January 4, 1847, and on the following 
 morning the Senate was informed that the House 
 would be prepared to receive the Senators in joint 
 convention at two o'clock that afternoon for the 
 purpose of electing two United States Senators. 40 
 Two o'clock came, but no Senators appeared in the 
 hall of the House of Eepresentatives ; and again the 
 chief clerk was sent to remind them that the hour 
 for the joint convention had arrived. 41 The sum- 
 mons passed unheeded. The Democratic majority 
 in the Senate, seeing no possibility of electing Loco- 
 focos, was determined to carry out its threat and 
 prevent an election. 
 
 "What will be the next move of the * democracy,' 
 or whether they will move at all, no whig can tell", 
 commented a Whig editor. "The whigs have done 
 their duty from the beginning, and will throw the 
 responsibility of the failure to elect, upon the loco- 
 f ocos, with a force which will cause a mighty shaking 
 of the dry bones of Polkery at the next election." 42 
 
34 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 As day after day passed even the most optimistic 
 lost hope of electing United States Senators. Reso- 
 lutions were passed by the House, but to no purpose. 
 The Senate would not concur. The embittered 
 feeling which existed between the two parties re- 
 ceived expression when, on the evening of February 
 24, 1847, S. B. Olmstead, a Democratic member of 
 the House, arose and offered the following reso- 
 lution : 
 
 Whereas, it is believed on all hands that a large majority 
 of the people of Iowa are democratic in their politics, and 
 approve of the policies and measures of the General Admin- 
 istration. And whereas, owing to the condition of parties 
 in the Legislature, it is out of the power of the Democratic 
 members to elect United States Senators, who will fairly 
 represent the wishes of the people, and in whom they have 
 confidence. And whereas, we have an abiding confidence 
 that our course, in refusing to permit the State to be mis- 
 represented in one of the branches of the National Legis- 
 lature, will be sustained by the people ; therefore 
 
 Resolved, That we unanimously resign our seats as mem- 
 bers of the House of Representatives. Provided the mem- 
 bers of the Senate will do the same. 
 
 The Whigs were ready with a reply. Elijah 
 Sells of Muscatine County proposed the following 
 substitute, which together with the original was 
 immediately laid on the table : 
 
 Whereas, a majority of the members of this House have 
 been willing at all times to go into the election of United 
 States Senators and Supreme Judges. And whereas, the 
 people are defeated in their Representation in the Senate 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 35 
 
 of the United States, in consequence of such refusal on the 
 part of the loco foco members of this General Assembly; 
 therefore, be it 
 
 Resolved, That those members, who have defeated the 
 election, be requested to resign, in order to enable the peo- 
 ple to elect such men as will regard their oaths and do their 
 duty. 43 
 
 The course of the Locofocos in the General 
 Assembly was the subject of caustic denunciation by 
 the Whigs at a large mass meeting held at Iowa City 
 on Washington's birthday. Inasmuch as the State 
 was deprived of its representation in the Senate of 
 the United States "by the unconstitutional refusal 
 of the Locofoco party of Iowa to consent to an 
 election ' ', they committed the interests of the people 
 of Iowa ' i to the kind care, and keeping, of the Hon. 
 John J. Crittenden of Kentucky, and the Hon. 
 Thomas Corwin of Ohio." 44 
 
 Furthermore, not all Democrats throughout the 
 State were willing to endorse the action of their 
 representatives in the legislature. "It is perhaps a 
 matter of regret", ran an editorial in the columns 
 of a Locofoco journal, "that any professing demo- 
 crats should so far lose sight of principles, no less 
 than the expressed will, and interests of the people 
 of [the] State, as to declare their willingness to see 
 the democratic party in the Legislature assume the 
 responsibility of indefinitely postponing the election 
 of United States Senators." 45 
 
 Late in the session, after much discussion and 
 amendment, the legislature passed "An Act to pro- 
 
36 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 vide for the election of United States Senators and 
 other officers ' ? , 46 which received the Governor's 
 approval on February 23, 1847. This law provided 
 for a joint convention to be held in the hall of the 
 House of Representatives at the session of the 
 General Assembly next preceding the expiration of 
 the term of a United States Senator, or at any 
 session when there should be a vacancy. The 
 president of the Senate, or in his absence, the 
 speaker of the House, was to preside over the joint 
 convention. One teller was to be appointed by each 
 house, and the chief clerk of the House of Repre- 
 sentatives was to act as secretary of the convention. 
 The names of the members were to be arranged in 
 alphabetical order, and each man was to vote viva 
 voce for Senator as his name was called. A majority 
 of the votes of the members present was necessary 
 to elect. The law further provided for adjourned 
 sessions of the joint convention, certificates of elec- 
 tion, credentials, and temporary appointment by the 
 Governor. Under the rules thus prescribed subse- 
 quent elections of United States Senators from Iowa 
 were conducted for nearly twenty years. 
 
 On February 25, 1847, the First General Assem- 
 bly adjourned sine die, and legislators, lobbyists, 
 and disappointed office seekers departed for their 
 homes. Thus ended the first act in the dramatic 
 contest over the election of the first United States 
 Senators from Iowa with the young Commonwealth 
 deprived of its full share of the first fruits of state- 
 hood. 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 37 
 
 During the spring and summer of 1847 the 
 senatorial question seems to have received little 
 attention, but late in the fall there was a sudden 
 revival of interest, due to rumors that Governor 
 Briggs intended to call a special session of the legis- 
 lature. Speculation was rife as to the probable 
 purpose of an extra session. "But a few weeks 
 since ' ', was the comment of a writer in an Iowa City 
 paper, ' l the leading locof oco papers expressed them- 
 selves adverse to the holding of a session, and it was 
 said by those supposed to be in the confidence of the 
 Executive, that that officer was immovably fixed in 
 his determination not to convene the General As- 
 sembly. All of a sudden, however, the organs of 
 locof ocoism changed their tune, and what before was 
 unwise and impolitic, is now become the height of 
 wisdom, and demanded by the best interests of the 
 people. . . . What sudden danger threatens the 
 people of Iowa, that their Solons are suddenly called 
 from their homes, and summoned to the capitol?" 47 
 
 Among the Whigs there was a disposition to 
 attribute the abrupt change in Governor Briggs 's 
 policy to the condition of affairs at Washington. 
 Outside pressure was believed to have been brought 
 to bear on the Governor. President Polk had gone 
 into office in 1845, after one of the most closely con- 
 tested elections in the history of this country, and 
 his unpopular war with Mexico had brought down 
 upon him the most violent criticism. In the Congress 
 soon to assemble it was certain that the Whigs 
 would have a majority in the House of Eepresenta- 
 
38 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 tives ; while in the Senate the Democrats might also 
 be in the minority if John C. Calhoun and his follow- 
 ers should act in accordance with their votes at the 
 preceding session. In this precarious state of his 
 fortunes President Polk had need of all possible 
 assistance, and it was claimed by the Whigs that he 
 had demanded help from Iowa through the election 
 of two Democratic Senators, and that this was the 
 reason for the extra session of the legislature. 48 
 
 Candidates for the senatorship appeared in all 
 parts of the State as soon as the probability of a 
 special session became known. " There is scarce a 
 town or village in the State which does not hold some 
 one, who is amply qualified, in his own estimation, 
 to represent the State in the above named capacity", 
 was the statement of a Bloomington editor. In 
 Dubuque alone he declared there were no less than 
 nine candidates, "all Locos of course." In Lee 
 County, continued the editor, "every bar-room 
 shanty, or other place of resort, is rife with specu- 
 lations as to who the fortunate persons will be on 
 whom the choice of the Legislature will fall. This 
 one says, ' Dodge,' 'Van Antwerp' that another 
 one says * Wilson,' Mason, Hall, Williams, Hemp- 
 stead and Benton all are spoken of they must 
 be fed; And so too must, 'Old Red.' " But if "Old 
 Eed" should decide to go to the Senate of the United 
 States, the writer declared, "we say to all those 
 1 lesser lights,' get out of the way the engine is 
 coming. " 49 
 
 On December 3, 1847, Governor Ansel Briggs 
 
THE FIKST SENATORIAL ELECTION 39 
 
 issued a proclamation calling a special session of the 
 General Assembly to meet at the capitol at Iowa City 
 on Monday, January 3, 1848. 50 To the people of the 
 thriving little capital city the advent of the legis- 
 lature meant not only a season of pleasure and 
 entertainment, but also a substantial increase in the 
 business of the town. The keepers of inns and 
 lodging houses were especially pleased with the 
 prospect and began early to make preparations for 
 the accommodation of their guests. 51 
 
 It was generally conceded that the chief object of 
 the extra session was the election of United States 
 Senators, and the Whigs were given early admoni- 
 tion as to the course they should pursue, through the 
 columns of a leading Whig journal. They should, 
 declared the editor, "without hesitation, meet in 
 convention and perform their sworn constitutional 
 duty, in the election of two United States Senators 
 and three Supreme Judges. The constitution says 
 they shall elect, and if no elections shall take place 
 let the responsibility of a failure continue to rest 
 upon the locofoco members." If it were found that 
 no Whig could be elected, it was the duty of the 
 Whigs to unite with the conservative Locofocos and 
 endeavor to elect "two respectable democrats" who 
 were opposed to the tariff of 1846 and the war with 
 Mexico, and who favored the Wilmot Proviso and 
 internal improvements at the expense of the general 
 government. "There is a blue and a better blue," 
 was the prudent advice, ' ' and a half a cake is better 
 than no bread." 52 
 
40 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 The General Assembly convened in extra session 
 on Monday, January 3, 1848. The first day was 
 consumed in effecting an organization. Caucuses 
 were doubtless held by both parties ; but the record 
 has apparently been lost, and there is little, indeed, 
 to indicate who were the most prominent candidates 
 for the senator ships at any time during the session. 
 Judge Thomas S. Wilson and Augustus Caesar 
 Dodge seem to have been the favorites among the 
 Democrats, while the Whigs seem to have centered 
 their efforts on defeating their opponents without 
 strongly advocating any candidates. 53 
 
 All hope of the election of Senators soon faded 
 away in a bitter controversy over the right of certain 
 Democratic members of either house, but more espe- 
 cially of the Senate, to retain their seats. In the 
 House of Eepresentatives on January 4, 1848, it was 
 announced that John N. Kinsman, the Eepresenta- 
 tive from the counties of Marion, Polk, Dallas, and 
 Jasper, was not entitled to his seat, because he 
 had during the preceding February resigned and 
 removed from the district which he claimed to 
 represent. 54 In the Senate on the following day a 
 similar charge was preferred against Senator James 
 Davis, and the right of Thomas Baker and John M. 
 Whitaker to represent their respective districts was 
 questioned on the ground that each had since his 
 election accepted a lucrative office. 55 In each case a 
 committee of three was appointed and given full 
 power to send for persons and papers and to investi- 
 gate the facts. 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 41 
 
 The committee appointed to investigate the case 
 of John N. Kinsman reported to the House without 
 recommendation, and after much discussion by a 
 strict party vote the seat was declared vacant on 
 January 21, 1848. 56 In the Senate, however, the 
 Democrats were in the majority; and so Davis, 
 Baker, and Whitaker were all allowed to retain their 
 seats, much to the disgust of the Whigs who sub- 
 mitted minority reports and entered solemn protests 
 on the journal. 57 
 
 It must be admitted that the Whigs had some 
 justification for the columns of censure which ap- 
 peared in their journals, charging the Locofocos with 
 attempting to secure the election of United States 
 Senators by the votes of illegal members of the Gen- 
 eral Assembly. Kinsman, Davis, and Baker were 
 clearly not entitled to their seats the first two 
 having resigned and having to all intents and pur- 
 poses removed from the districts they were chosen 
 to represent, though it was claimed that their resig- 
 nations never reached the Governor; while Baker 
 was actually enjoying the benefits of a county office. 
 John M. Whitaker, however, seems to have had some 
 rightful claim to his seat, and he was allowed to 
 remain in the Senate with but little opposition from 
 the Whigs. 
 
 Until John N. Kinsman's seat was declared 
 vacant the Whigs and Democrats were evenly 
 matched in the House of Eepresentatives, each 
 party having nineteen votes. The balance of power 
 thus rested in the hands of Josiah Clifton, the 
 
42 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Independent from Lee County, who was the ob- 
 ject of fulsome praise by the Whigs and, after 
 an unsuccessful wooing, of scathing denunciation by 
 the Democrats. It was stated that previous to the 
 meeting of the legislature Clifton had been ap- 
 proached by the Democrats and asked to write to 
 Governor Briggs promising to vote to go into a joint 
 convention for the election of United States Sena- 
 tors. He was assured, ran the account, that each 
 house would be purged of all illegal members, and 
 that he would not be acting contrary to the wishes of 
 his constituents, whom he considered as opposed to 
 the election of Augustus Caesar Dodge. With this 
 understanding Clifton appears to have made some 
 sort of a pledge to the Governor. But when the 
 legislature assembled, and it was found that the 
 Senate allowed Davis and Baker to retain their 
 seats, Clifton sided with the Whigs and, to use the 
 words of a Keokuk editor, "like an independent and 
 honest man" refused to vote to go into an election. 58 
 The Democrats, disappointed at their failure to 
 draw Clifton into their camp, could scarcely find 
 words strong enough to express their contempt for 
 him. "For after a Member, of his own free will, 
 without any solicitation from any quarter, has sol- 
 emnly pledged in writing to the Governor, to cast 
 his vote for a joint convention, without any qualify- 
 ing provision", was the comment of a violently 
 partisan Locofoco editor at Dubuque, "and after the 
 session is called, makes another di[s]tinct pledge to 
 the Representatives, and then repeatedly and wil- 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 43 
 
 fully refuses to discharge his obligations ; he has no 
 claim to public confidence, nor should his friends 
 object to any title, which may, so far as a name can, 
 exhibit to the public his true character." 59 
 
 As has been suggested the Whigs, with the aid of 
 Josiah Clifton, had a majority in the House of Rep- 
 resentatives, and thus were able to persist in their 
 refusal to go into joint convention as long as there 
 were illegal members in the Senate. Time after time 
 resolutions providing for a joint convention were 
 adopted in each branch of the legislature ; but since 
 the House refused to meet while James Davis and 
 Thomas Baker retained their seats and the Senate 
 declined to declare those seats vacant, the days 
 passed by and nothing was done. The General 
 Assembly adjourned on January 25, 1848, without 
 accomplishing the most important objects for which 
 the extra session had been called. Partisan politics 
 and personal jealousy had for a second time pre- 
 vented the election of United States Senators. 
 
 Whether in this instance the Whigs or the Demo- 
 crats were the most to blame is perhaps an even 
 question. Both parties exhibited a reprehensible 
 readiness to sacrifice public interest at the shrine of 
 party welfare. If, as seems to be the case, the Demo- 
 crats permitted two illegal members to retain their 
 seats in the Senate, the Whigs perhaps had some 
 justification according to the ethics of politics for 
 their refusal to go into joint convention. "Loco- 
 focoism in Iowa had culminated ", was the post- 
 session observation of a Whig editor, "and, the 
 
44 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 tremendous influences of patronage and power were 
 put in requisition to stay its rapid and total declina- 
 tion. His, is entitled to the name of a happy genius, 
 who suggested the idea of a special session, as a prop 
 to a desperate and sinking cause. Its result has 
 been, to exhibit to what expedients political as- 
 pirants will resort to accomplish an end." 60 
 
 Interest in the senatorial contest did not wholly 
 subside during the early months of 1848, for it was 
 realized that in December a new General Assembly 
 would convene and in all probability the long con 
 tinued dead-lock would be broken. At the August 
 election the Democrats rallied to the polls in full 
 force, and not only elected their entire State ticket 
 but secured a substantial majority in both branches 
 of the legislature. The hopes of Locof oco aspirants 
 for senatorial honors rose accordingly. "With the 
 aid of Gen. Taylor's popularity ", exulted a Demo- 
 cratic editor, "the whigs have succeeded, at the last 
 election, in securing to themselves the loss of both 
 houses of the legislature thus magnanimously giv- 
 ing to the Democracy both of the United States 
 senators." 61 
 
 Many weeks before the opening of the General 
 Assembly Democratic candidates for the senator- 
 ships traversed the State in the effort to create 
 public sentiment and enlist the interest of legislators 
 in their behalf. The Whigs, hopelessly in the mi- 
 nority, apparently took little part in the campaign. 
 Between rival candidates in the Democratic party, 
 however, a sharp contest was waged. Augustus 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 45 
 
 Caesar Dodge was again the favorite with the people 
 of the southern part of the State, although he was 
 not without some opposition. "Hall & Co. are mov- 
 ing Heaven & Earth to defeat my election to the 
 Senate ' ', wrote Dodge to a friend. ' ' Hall and Judge 
 Kinney are both, I am informed, from the best 
 authority, candidates for the Senate. The former 
 electioneers upon my demerits the length of time 
 I have been in office the money I have received. ' >62 
 In the northern section Judge Thomas S. Wilson was 
 once more a promising candidate, but a new star had 
 appeared in the person of George W. Jones of 
 Dubuque, formerly Delegate to Congress from the 
 Territory of Wisconsin. Between these two men 
 there began a bitter contest which not only added 
 excitement to this particular campaign, but was con- 
 tinued with growing intensity throughout many 
 subsequent years. 
 
 The legislature assembled for the second regular 
 session on December 4, 1848. On the following even- 
 ing the Democratic members of both houses, thirty- 
 eight in all, met in caucus in the hall of the House of 
 Eepresentatives. After excluding from the hall all 
 persons not qualified to remain, the roll was called 
 and the caucus proceeded to vote for candidates for 
 United States Senator. Each man wrote two names 
 on his ballot, and a majority of all the votes cast was 
 necessary to nominate. On the first ballot Augustus 
 Caesar Dodge received every vote and was duly de- 
 clared a candidate. A second and a third ballot were 
 then taken for the remaining candidate, but without 
 
46 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 success. On the fourth ballot, however, George W. 
 Jones was chosen by a vote of twenty-eight to ten 
 over his nearest competitor, Thomas S. Wilson. The 
 other persons voted for during the caucus were : Ver 
 Planck Van Antwerp, Stephen Hempstead, - 
 Smith, Joseph Williams, Philip B. Bradley, and 
 Charles Mason. 63 
 
 "As soon as the caucus adjourned, after the nom- 
 ination of senators", related the secretary of the 
 caucus many years later, "General Jones, who was 
 present, in his usual impulsive and generous manner, 
 cried out, 'Come, boys friends, everybody let's 
 go and have some refreshments.' . . . Being of 
 the refreshment class myself, I proceeded to hunt up 
 that establishment. I found it located on the north- 
 east corner of the public square, and to be what was 
 then called a first-class restaurant, with whiskey- 
 shop in connection. As a matter of course, as the 
 invitation was general, the crowd was not very select. 
 Friends, foes, old men, young men, members of the 
 legislature and lobbyists, boys, gamblers in short, 
 every class was represented, from the governor of 
 the state down to the rag-tag and bob-tail of the 
 city." 
 
 Candidate Jones urged the crowd to call for any- 
 thing they wanted, and in emphatic language ex- 
 pressed his supreme disregard for expenses. He 
 was taken at his word; some called "for stewed 
 oysters and some for raw ones, some for ' whiskey 
 straight' and others for hot toddy and 'Tom and 
 Jerry.' " With singing and uproarious noise the 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 47 
 
 celebration continued. It was suddenly discovered 
 that Dodge was not present, and a committee was 
 despatched to find him. When he appeared upon 
 the scene he apparently did not approve of the pro- 
 ceeding for he declared to Jones that "this looks 
 more like an entertainment for the rabble than for 
 friends, and, besides, this eating of oysters out of 
 the can, with every one with a can in his hand is a 
 fearful waste of raw material." Dodge's remon- 
 strances were in vain, however, "and the result was 
 a bill of between four and five hundred dollars for 
 Dodge and Jones to foot the next day." 64 
 
 No faithful chronicler has made public the record 
 of the Whig caucus, if any there was, but it is evident 
 that the Whigs in the legislature agreed to give the 
 empty compliment of their support to William H. 
 Wallace and Ealph P. Lowe. Whether there were 
 other prominent candidates for the nomination is 
 not known. 
 
 Since the Democrats had a majority of sixteen 
 in the House and a majority of three in the Senate, 
 there was little difficulty in determining on the time 
 for holding a joint convention. At two o 'clock on the 
 afternoon of December 7, 1848, the two houses met 
 in the hall of the House of Eepresentatives, where 
 were gathered many friends of the various candi- 
 dates. This time, however, there was not the breath- 
 less excitement of two years before, for the element 
 of uncertainty was lacking. A Democratic victory 
 could be the only possible result. 
 
 The roll was called by the secretary and every 
 
48 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 member was found to be present. Tellers were then 
 appointed, and nominations for Senators were in 
 order. Philip B. Bradley nominated Augustus 
 Caesar Dodge and Hugh E. Thompson announced 
 William H. Wallace as the choice of the Whigs. 
 When the votes were counted it was found that 
 Augustus Caesar Dodge had received thirty-eight, 
 just twice the number received by his opponent, and 
 he was declared "duly elected a Senator to represent 
 the State of Iowa in the Senate of the United 
 States. " C. J. McFarland then nominated George 
 W. Jones and Francis Springer presented the name 
 of Ealph P. Lowe. The roll was called a second time 
 and the vote stood thirty-eight to nineteen in favor 
 of George W. Jones. After electing Judges of the 
 Supreme Court, with the same majorities in favor 
 of the Democratic candidates, the convention ad- 
 journed until the following day when it reassembled 
 to witness the signing and attesting of the certificates 
 of election of the Senators and Judges. 65 
 
 Thus, after two years of unrepresented state- 
 hood the voice of Iowa was at last to be heard in the 
 Senate of the United States. Dodge and Jones 
 hastening to the National capital with their certifi- 
 cates of election and credentials were presented in 
 the Senate on December 26, 1848, and took the seats 
 assigned to them. The classification of the two new 
 Senators was then determined by lot. George W. 
 Jones drew the long term which would expire on 
 March 3, 1853; while the term drawn by Augustus 
 Caesar Dodge was to end on March 3, 1849. 66 
 
THE FIRST SENATORIAL ELECTION 49 
 
 When it became known at Iowa City that Dodge's 
 term would expire the following March, the General 
 Assembly, still in session, met in joint convention 
 and reflected him for a term of six years beginning 
 March 4, 1849. The other candidates at this time 
 were Francis Springer and Evan Jay, the former 
 receiving fifteen votes and the latter one vote ; while 
 Augustus Caesar Dodge was the name pronounced 
 by thirty-six members. 67 
 
 One evening not long after the second election of 
 Augustus Caesar Dodge, the Senate chamber in the 
 Old Stone Capitol presented a strange appearance. 
 The desks had all been removed and the dignified 
 legislative hall had been transformed into a ball- 
 room. Dodge had written from Washington and had 
 directed that a ball be given at his expense to the 
 members of the legislature and other prominent peo- 
 ple. 68 And so amid the music and friendly good will 
 of one of the most brilliant social events the capital 
 city had ever witnessed there was forgotten the 
 bitterness of the long contest over the United States 
 senatorships. 
 
II 
 
 THE ELECTION OF GEORGE W. JONES 
 IN 1852 
 
 IT was not until the fall of 1852 that the choice of a 
 United States Senator again became a topic of public 
 interest. By November of that year, however, the 
 prospect of an election in the near future had 
 brought a number of aspiring candidates into the 
 field, principally from the ranks of the Democratic 
 party. "Already several names have been men- 
 tioned in connection with this important post", 
 wrote a Fairfield editor of the Whig persuasion, 
 "but as that matter is entirely in the hands of the 
 Democracy we shall only be a looker on in Venice. ' ' 
 At the same time he deemed that it would not be 
 considered presumptuous in him "to express the 
 hope that the present ginger-bread incumbent should 
 not be again returned, while we have plenty of much 
 better men in the State who would fill the place with 
 honor and dignity." 69 It is very apparent from the 
 tenor of these remarks that the Whigs had little 
 hope of electing a man from their own party. 
 
 Opposition to George W. Jones, whose term was 
 to expire March 3, 1853, developed early and took 
 the most violent form. Few men in the history of 
 Iowa have been the object of such cutting vitupera- 
 
 50 
 
THE ELECTION OF JONES IN 1852 51 
 
 tion as was heaped upon Senator Jones during this 
 contest and throughout the remainder of his official 
 career. Furthermore, the condemnation did not 
 emanate merely from the Whigs, who seemed to be 
 bending all their energies in an attempt to discredit 
 Jones in the eyes of his followers. James M. Mor- 
 gan, editor of the Burlington Daily Telegraph, who 
 called himself a Democrat, though his paper was 
 professedly neutral, had become involved in a bitter 
 personal quarrel with the Dubuque Senator. The 
 following is only a fair sample of the attacks upon 
 Jones which appeared in his columns : 
 
 Jones' friends, if he have any left, will soon be com- 
 pelled to give him up in disgust, unless indeed they are 
 prepared to put up with any amount of folly, littleness, 
 and shamelessness on the part of their favorite. Conscious 
 of his utter unworthiness in every sense for the position 
 which he occupies conscious that his first election was a 
 fraud upon his party, and that he never merited the place 
 by reason of any service performed conscious of his in- 
 capacity to perform any act calculated to reflect any credit, 
 even the smallest upon the State and conscious of the fact 
 that the people of Iowa are rapidly finding him out as the 
 smallest potato in the whole political hill, and that his 
 chances for re-election must wane accordingly, he is ready 
 to stoop to any trick no odds how low, to make any pledges 
 no odds how dishonorable, and to instigate and encourage 
 any slander, no odds how false or ridiculous. It is a morti- 
 fying reflection that so high a position should be made the 
 plaything of unprincipled political gamblers and it is not 
 less mortifying that one occupying the place of U. S. Sena- 
 tor should be found at all times ready to prostitute himself 
 
52 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 to the commission of the lowest acts for the sake of "slip- 
 ping up" on an office which neither nature nor nature's 
 God ever intended him to occupy. 70 
 
 It was freely predicted that Jones and his 
 friends would resort to bribery and corruption of 
 every sort to secure a reelection. " Jones and his 
 crew will go to Iowa City prepared for a death 
 struggle ", was the forecast. "It is his last chance, 
 and he will 'go his pile' with the desperation of a 
 black leg reduced to his last trump. Money will be 
 freely spent, as it has been already, and offices with- 
 out limit, in and out of the State, will be promised 
 wherever it may be safe to offer the tempting bait. 
 . . . In a word, we may look for a contest the 
 most desperate in character, and the most corrupt 
 in its appliances, that has ever been attempted in 
 this or any other State. " 71 
 
 Much capital was made, especially in the south- 
 ern part of the State, out of Senator Jones 's attitude 
 toward railroad and river improvement bills in 
 Congress. It was charged that he was partial to his 
 section of the State and that he neglected the inter- 
 ests of his southern constituents. His action on the 
 floor of the Senate and in committees was reviewed 
 in great detail, and every effort was made to arouse 
 the sectional antagonism of the southern members 
 of the legislature. 72 
 
 It was not alone in the southern part of the State 
 that George W. Jones met with opposition. Eight 
 within his own stronghold at Dubuque he had many 
 bitter enemies. In this case, however, personal ani- 
 
THE ELECTION OF JONES IN 1852 53 
 
 mosity, rather than the displeasing actions of Jones 
 in Congress, was the cause of the opposition, which 
 seems to have originated late in the year 1850. At 
 that time, or not long afterward, a clique in which 
 D. A. Mahoney was one of the leading spirits found- 
 ed the Dubuque Herald, a paper supposedly neutral 
 in politics, but which, it appears, was established 
 mainly for the purpose of fighting Jones. 73 
 
 Thus the storm raged about the person of George 
 W. Jones for a month or more preceding the meeting 
 of the General Assembly. The claims of other 
 aspirants for the senator ship were given scant 
 attention by the public at large, if the newspapers 
 of the day may be taken as a trustworthy index. 
 The Whigs were so clearly in the minority that the 
 best they could hope for was the election of a Demo- 
 crat not entirely distasteful to them ; while the rival 
 candidates in the Democratic party hesitated to 
 announce themselves in the race against such a 
 strong opponent as Senator Jones. 
 
 Congress and the Fourth General Assembly of 
 Iowa opened on the same day December 6, 1852. 
 Senator George W. Jones, instead of repairing to 
 his post of duty at Washington, remained at Iowa 
 City, thereby laying himself open to merited crit- 
 icism. ' ' Senator Jones is not at Washington, where 
 he should be, attending to his public duty, ' ' declared 
 his implacable enemy at Burlington, "but is at Iowa 
 City ' legging ' for the Senate, and receiving his 
 eight dollars a day just like a top!" 74 "A depend- 
 ent for twenty years upon the spoils of place for a 
 
54 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 subsistence, and rendered disgustingly vain by the 
 distinction which position gives, G. W. Jones is the 
 last man in this world who would leave a stone un- 
 turned to keep himself in office. What to him are the 
 interests of the State, when the old habit is upon 
 him? . . . What to him is a solemn oath of 
 official faithfulness, when he has oaths of another 
 character to utter in furtherance of his re-elec- 
 tion ?" 75 
 
 About this time there was published at Dubuque 
 a forty page pamphlet containing a eulogistic sketch 
 of the life and services of George W. Jones. It 
 was doubtless intended as a campaign document, 
 as the members of the legislature seem to have each 
 been favored with a copy. Here again was oppor- 
 tunity for ridicule from the Jones opposition. The 
 pamphlet was referred to as "an awful dose" to 
 force upon the "unhappy wights" in the legislature, 
 who in addition to all their other troubles were now 
 "called upon to wade through 40 mortal pages to 
 find out who killed Cock Bobin!" 76 
 
 The convening of the General Assembly concen- 
 trated at Iowa City all the struggling forces in the 
 senatorial contest. "Jones and his crew, Wilson 
 and his friends, and Clark and his friends are having 
 a regular Kilkenny-cat fight of it", wrote a corre- 
 spondent to the F airfield Ledger. Lincoln Clark was 
 laughed at by his opponents in the Jones camp be- 
 cause he travelled "away back to the forests of 
 Lebanon, the ancient ruins of Ninevah, to Jerusalem 
 and the Plains of Joppa for his facts." Jones, on 
 
THE ELECTION OF JONES IN 1852 55 
 
 the other hand, was held up to scorn because of the 
 free use of profanity which characterized his can- 
 vass for the senatorship. 77 
 
 An Iowa City correspondent to a Muscatine 
 paper, writing on the day before the meeting of the 
 legislature, stated that the most prominent Demo- 
 cratic rivals of George W. Jones were Stephen 
 Hempstead, Joseph Williams, Thomas S. Wilson, 
 James Grant, E. W. Johnson, and Ver Planck Van 
 Antwerp. Some of these men had announced them- 
 selves as candidates and were making a strenuous 
 fight, while others had merely been mentioned by 
 their friends. It seemed probable at that time that 
 the Whigs would give the compliment of the minority 
 vote to Gen. Sargeant. 78 
 
 "The feeling is exceedingly bitter, " wrote the 
 correspondent, "frequent bickerings disturb the 
 public mind one personal collision, rather a fierce 
 and protracted one, has occurred, but without 
 any serious consequences, except black eyes and 
 scratched faces. The steel was not drawn, until the 
 belligerents were apart, and at safe distances. It 
 is understood that both parties carry the cutlery, 
 and are prepared for any emergency." The south- 
 ern Democrats were somewhat disposed to laugh at 
 the Dubuque candidates for furnishing an exciting 
 entertainment. "So great is the outside pressure", 
 continued the amused observer, "that the Legisla- 
 ture would have collapsed before this, had it not 
 been made of pretty stern stuff." 79 
 
 The struggle between the Jones forces and the 
 
56 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 opposition was so sharp that it was not until De- 
 cember 20th that the Democrats could agree to meet 
 in caucus. Although Congress had been in session 
 two weeks, Senator Jones remained at Iowa City 
 determined to see the end of the contest. A bit of 
 doggerel printed in a Burlington newspaper about 
 this time is a satirical comment upon Jones's well 
 known fastidiousness in matters of dress and per- 
 sonal appearance, intended no doubt to influence the 
 plain and unostentatious members of the legislature 
 against the Senator. The last verse runs : 
 
 'Tis not cologne, nor whiskers, nor clothes, 
 Or jewelled fingers, or nimble toes, 
 
 That wins the public trust ; 
 And no aspiring political elf, 
 Incapable e 'en to take care of himself, 
 Should e 'er be permitted to handle our pelf, 
 
 Or finger the national dust. 80 
 
 At the Democratic caucus on the evening of 
 December 20, 1852, George W. Jones received thirty 
 votes, a majority of one and was declared the candi- 
 date of the party for United States Senator. The 
 twenty-nine opposing votes were divided between 
 ten different men. 81 In spite of the bitterness which 
 existed those who expected a stormy session were 
 disappointed. The nomination was made on the first 
 ballot, and the business of the caucus was conducted 
 in a quiet, orderly manner. 82 
 
 The Democrats had a clear majority in both 
 branches of the General Assembly, and hence there 
 was no difficulty in determining upon a satisfactory 
 
THE ELECTION OF JONES IN 1852 57 
 
 time for holding a joint convention after the nomina- 
 tion had been made. At three o'clock on the after- 
 noon of December 21st the two houses assembled in 
 the hall of the House of Eepresentatives ; and in the 
 evening Warner Lewis was able to write to his friend 
 George W. Jones and inform him that "the long 
 hoped for object" had been gained. "Every demo- 
 crat, save one, stood up to the f odder ", said Lewis. 83 
 The vote stood, fifty-nine for Jones, and thirty-one 
 for George G. Wright, who was the choice of the 
 Whigs. Whether Wright had been chosen in caucus 
 or agreed upon by mutual consent is not known. 
 Benjamin Green, the one Democrat who did not 
 stand "up to the f odder ", cast his vote for John F. 
 Kinney. Three members were absent or not voting. 
 After the result was announced a certificate of 
 election was drawn up and signed, and the joint con- 
 vention dissolved. 84 
 
 George W. Jones, having ample assurance that 
 he would be reflected to his seat in the United States 
 Senate made arrangements for a supper to be given 
 to the legislature at his expense, and at noon on 
 December 21st made his tardy departure for Wash- 
 ington. 85 He appeared in the Senate on January 3, 
 1853, and on January llth his credentials of election 
 for the term of six years beginning March 4, 1853, 
 were presented by his colleague, Augustus Caesar 
 Dodge. 86 
 
 "The Die is Cast, and the State Disgraced !" was 
 the headline over an editorial in the bitterly anti- 
 Jones Burlington Daily Telegraph, in which the 
 
58 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 editor lamented over the fact that the State was 
 "saddled for a second time with one of its least 
 competent citizens as a Senator in Congress. ' ' The 
 people of the State, he went on to say, were over- 
 whelmingly opposed to Jones, and his election was a 
 subversion of the popular will. "As a citizen", was 
 his parting shot, "we regret the disgrace which the 
 election of such a man must bring upon the State 
 as a democrat, we feel that his success is a bribe 
 held out in advance to men to turn bolters and vio- 
 late every principle and usage of the party and as 
 a man, we deplore the degeneracy of the human 
 species when such a specimen is put up as a leader 
 among men I" 87 
 
Ill 
 
 THE FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 
 
 THE contest which culminated in January, 1855, in 
 the election of James Harlan to succeed Augustus 
 Caesar Dodge in the United States Senate is in many 
 respects the most interesting senatorial election in 
 the history of Iowa. The fight was long and bitter, 
 and the result was accomplished in an unusual man- 
 ner. But the chief significance of the election lies 
 in the fact that it was at the same time an integral 
 part of the great political revolution which was 
 stirring the Nation to its depths. For the first time 
 national questions played an important part in the 
 choice of a Senator from Iowa. 
 
 The year 1854 witnessed events and movements 
 which in their immediate importance and in their 
 consequences make it a significant date in our na- 
 tional history. Four years earlier Henry Clay's 
 compromise measures had averted impending dis- 
 aster, and people deluded themselves with the vain 
 hope that the question of slavery had been settled 
 for all time. In their national platforms of 1852 
 both the Whigs and the Democrats had vigorously 
 supported the compromise, including the Fugitive 
 Slave Law; and all attempts to reopen the wound 
 were deprecated on all sides. But in 1854 Stephen 
 
60 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 A. Douglas and his Kansas-Nebraska Act, with its 
 repeal of the time-honored Missouri Compromise, 
 rudely dispelled all hopes of a peaceful settlement 
 of the slavery controversy. "It is safe to say that, 
 in the scope and consequences of the Kansas- 
 Nebraska act, it was the most momentous measure 
 that passed Congress from the day that the senators 
 and representatives first met to the outbreak of the 
 civil war. It sealed the doom of the Whig party ; it 
 caused the formation of the Republican party on 
 the principle of no extension of slavery; it roused 
 Lincoln and gave a bent to his great political 
 ambition. It made the Fugitive Slave law a dead 
 letter at the North; it caused the Germans to be- 
 come Republicans; it lost the Democrats their hold 
 on New England; it made the Northwest Repub- 
 lican; it led to the downfall of the Democratic 
 party." 88 
 
 The passing of the Kansas-Nebraska Act was the 
 signal for a coalition of all the factions opposed to 
 the extension of slavery. Free Soilers, Abolition- 
 ists, Know-No things, and large numbers of Northern 
 Whigs and Democrats found common ground in their 
 opposition to the doctrines embodied in the ill-fated 
 law. The time was ripe for a new political party 
 whose cardinal principle should be resistance to the 
 further encroachment of the slave power. Conse- 
 quently when a body of Wisconsin citizens met at 
 Ripon in the spring of 1854, and later a similar meet- 
 ing held "under the oaks" at Jackson, Michigan, 
 proposed the formation of a new party to be called 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 61 
 
 "Kepublican" the suggestion met with immediate 
 favor, especially in the West. 
 
 The weighty events of the year 1854 made a pro- 
 found impression on the people of Iowa. And it was 
 from Iowa that there came the first tangible indica- 
 tion of the new movement of opposition to the 
 doctrines of Stephen A. Douglas. Here, as in the 
 country at large, the reaction against the Kansas- 
 Nebraska Act resulted in the amalgamation of the 
 Whigs and Free Soilers. The combination proved 
 too strong for the Democrats who had been in control 
 since the organization of the Territory. At the 
 August election James W. Grimes, a Whig of 
 pronounced anti-slavery principles, was chosen Gov- 
 ernor by a majority of over two thousand votes. 89 
 
 Thus the election of James Harlan in 1855 is not 
 only an important and interesting episode in the 
 political history of Iowa, but it was also one of the 
 earliest steps in the rise of the Eepublican party. 
 Its true significance can be understood only in the 
 light of the larger movement of which it was a part. 
 
 The feverish excitement which prevailed through- 
 out the entire country was well exemplified in Iowa 
 in the campaign for the election of State officers and 
 members of the legislature in 1854. The vanguard 
 of the great tide of immigration from New England 
 and the States north of the Ohio, which a few months 
 later broke across the Mississippi and spread out 
 over the prairies of Iowa, was already making itself 
 felt as a new moral force in the State. Eeligious 
 enthusiasm, prohibition agitation, and kindred mani- 
 
62 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 f estations characterized the period. But the Kansas- 
 Nebraska Act was the theme of discussion which 
 overshadowed all others, and the newcomers were 
 almost a unit in opposition to its doctrines. 
 
 Consequently, with great national problems to be 
 solved, both of the leading political parties in Iowa 
 went into the campaign with the determination to 
 elect a legislature which would choose a United 
 States Senator who would represent their views on 
 the all-absorbing question of the day. The Whigs 
 were especially anxious that Augustus Caesar Dodge 
 should be succeeded by an anti-Nebraska man. In 
 Jefferson County, for instance, a prominent Whig 
 editor urged his fellow partisans to turn out and 
 vote for Whig legislators in order to defeat Dodge 
 and insure the election of a man who would favor a 
 repeal of the Kansas-Nebraska Act. 90 After the 
 election another editor in the southern part of the 
 State, where the desire to displace Dodge was espe- 
 cially strong, rejoiced that "in any event, there will 
 be a majority of Anti-Nebraska and Anti-Dodge 
 men in the Legislature, thus rendering the great 
 Augustus Caesar 's cake dough, and securing the 
 election of one more favorable to the restoration of 
 the Compromise, to the U. S. Senate/' 91 
 
 At the August election, as has already been 
 stated, James W. Grimes was chosen Governor by a 
 combination of all the factions opposed to the Ne- 
 braska measure. The Democrats secured a majority 
 of one in the Senate which was composed of thirty- 
 one members ; while the Whigs elected forty out of 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 63 
 
 the seventy Bepresentatives, giving them a majority 
 on joint ballot. Thus at one blow the control of the 
 Democratic party was overthrown, and a new party 
 which was soon to designate itself Eepublican was 
 ushered into power. 
 
 "This political revolution seemed to open the 
 way for the transfer of many desirable official posi- 
 tions from the Democracy to the possession of 
 members of this new organization, which the latter 
 were not reluctant to acquire ", wrote one who was 
 among the first to reap the benefits of the new 
 regime. "The most coveted of these official ' plums' 
 were the three Judgeships constituting the Supreme 
 Court of the State, and one seat in the Senate of the 
 United States, then occupied by Hon. Augustus C. 
 Dodge, whose term of service would expire March 
 4th, 1855. " 92 
 
 The epidemic of office-seeking which always 
 accompanies a change of administration, and espe- 
 cially a transfer of power from one political party 
 to another, followed the August election. Among 
 those who had contributed their share toward bring- 
 ing in the new era were to be found many who 
 looked for reward in political preferment. The 
 United States senatorship was naturally the prize 
 which tempted the more ambitious, and candidates 
 for the position early announced themselves or were 
 brought before the public by their friends. 
 
 One of the first to enter the lists was Fitz Henry 
 Warren, a leading banker in Burlington. He had 
 come to the Territory in 1844 and from the first had 
 
64 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 taken a prominent part in politics, acting as delegate 
 to party conventions, drawing up platforms, and 
 conducting campaign work. He had served as First 
 Assistant Postmaster General under President Fill- 
 more, and as a member of the Whig National Com- 
 mittee in the campaign of 1852, thus gaining a wide 
 acquaintance among the politicians of the country. 
 "It was, therefore, natural' >, wrote a contemporary 
 in after years, "that now when the party for which 
 he had worked so zealously and successfully, had 
 achieved a signal triumph, and was able to reward 
 a few of its leaders, he should be selected for the first 
 prize." 93 
 
 Fitz Henry Warren, however, was by no means 
 acceptable in all parts of the State. His candidacy 
 was particularly displeasing to the editor of a 
 neutral paper at Dubuque, who expressed his dis- 
 approval by remarking that to elect Warren as 
 Senator would be "a depth of degradation, by the 
 way that we never anticipated this State would 
 reach, no matter into whose clutches the State 
 Government should fall." 94 The editor preferred 
 Milton D. Browning, also a Burlington aspirant for 
 the senatorship, although a much less prominent 
 man than his fellow townsman. He was approved 
 of as being a sound Whig, even though he was dis- 
 tasteful to "the abolitionized portion of the Whig 
 party." 95 
 
 Meanwhile, Warren's prospects continued to 
 grow brighter, and in spite of the revilings of bitter 
 enemies he was the most promising candidate for 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 65 
 
 the Whig nomination during the earlier weeks of the 
 contest. He pushed his campaign with all the skill 
 of the practiced politician; while Daniel F. Miller 
 traversed the State in his interest, visiting members 
 of the legislature and endeavoring to work up public 
 sentiment in favor of his chief. 96 
 
 The Democrats were less active than their op- 
 ponents, since there was very little hope of electing 
 a Democratic Senator. Naturally the friends of 
 Augustus Caesar Dodge were anxious that he should 
 be returned, and he was very generally supported 
 by his party throughout the State. Although the 
 Democrats did not control the General Assembly it 
 was nevertheless suggested that since they had a 
 majority in the Senate they could prevent the choice 
 of a Whig "by a factious refusal to go into an elec- 
 tion. ' m Even Dodge himself seems to have favored 
 this not altogether laudable proposal. "I have no 
 more idea of being elected by the Legislature soon 
 to convene ", he wrote to a friend about the middle 
 of November, "than I have that it will choose the 
 Czar Nicholas of Eussia to represent Iowa in the 
 Senate. The great object to be attained by demo- 
 crats should be to prevent an election. Far better to 
 be unrepresented than misrepresented. 
 Both parties in our State are committed to the prin- 
 ciple by precedent at least, to defeat an election of 
 Senators and Judges, if they can do so: vide the 
 failures of 1846 & 1847. " 98 
 
 It was not until shortly before the meeting of the 
 legislature that the name of James Harlan of Mt. 
 
66 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Pleasant, began to be used in connection with the 
 senatorship. And then it was only after earnest 
 solicitation on the part of his friends that he per- 
 mitted himself to be spoken of as a candidate for a 
 position which he felt himself poorly qualified to fill. 
 As a college president and as Superintendent of 
 Public Instruction he had been very successful and 
 had made for himself a wide circle of acquaintances. 
 But his training had not been of the character 
 usually considered requisite for holding a seat in the 
 Senate of the United States. He had never been a 
 politician in the sense of making office-holding his 
 business. 
 
 ' ' I had not thought of the position as either pos- 
 sible or desirable for me", wrote James Harlan 
 many years later when recording his recollections of 
 this contest which was such an important event in 
 his life. "My name had never, at any time, been 
 coupled with it in my own thoughts, or as far as I 
 then knew by any body else, until a short time before 
 the date fixed by law for the assembling of the mem- 
 bers of the General Assembly .... when Col- 
 onel Laurin Dewey, of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, in a 
 private conversation with me, casually remarked 
 that I ought to be the next United States Senator 
 from our State. I was both surprised and annoyed. 
 It seemed to me an attempt at flattery too extrava- 
 gant to be agreeable, which I could not understand, 
 coming from him." 99 
 
 Laurin Dewey then proceeded to say that Fitz 
 Henry Warren, who was at that time the leading 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 67 
 
 Whig aspirant, could not be elected. The Democrats 
 in both houses naturally would oppose him, and he 
 could not be elected without receiving the united 
 support of all the " Anti-Kansas Nebraska " mem- 
 bers of the legislature. This would be impossible 
 since many of the old line Whigs had combined 
 against Warren. The conversation ended at this 
 point, apparently without any statement from Har- 
 lan as to whether or not he desired to enter the 
 senatorial race. 
 
 A few days later Harlan received a visit from 
 Alvin Saunders, State Senator elect from Henry 
 County, who desired to talk with him concerning the 
 senatorial situation. Saunders corroborated the 
 statement made by Laurin Dewey to the effect that 
 the old line Whigs would not support Fitz Henry 
 Warren and expressed the belief that some other 
 Whig would stand a better chance of being elected. 
 Consequently he had come to ask Harlan if he would 
 accept the position if it should be found that the way 
 was open. "I responded that I was not a candi- 
 date "; runs James Harlan 's own account of the 
 conversation, "had not supposed that my name 
 would ever be mentioned in that connection, nor had 
 I given the matter a moment's thought." 
 
 Mr. Saunders said that he had supposed this to 
 be the case, and that he was not at all certain that it 
 would be possible to secure Harlan 's nomination. 
 4 'But if it should", he asked, "and we should think 
 it best to give the place to you, would you accept 
 it?" "Well", was the reply, "Colonel Saunders, I 
 
68 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 think it safe to answer that question in the affirma- 
 tive." 100 Thus, in striking contrast to the self- 
 assertiveness of some of the candidates for the 
 senatorship, James Harlan was finally led to give his 
 consent to the use of his name in the caucuses of his 
 party. 
 
 By the first of December a formidable number of 
 candidates had announced themselves or had been 
 mentioned by their friends. A correspondent to a 
 Dubuque paper, writing from Iowa City a few days 
 before the meeting of the General Assembly, stated 
 that only a few of the legislators had arrived, but 
 that the "working friends" of the various senatorial 
 aspirants were present in full force and were ma- 
 neuvering for their favorites. Fitz Henry Warren 
 and Ebenezer Cook, stated the correspondent, were 
 the most prominent candidates, but in his estimation 
 the fact that they were both bankers and supposedly 
 had plenty of money to spend, brought them "more 
 prominently before that portion of their party who 
 worship Mammon, than individuals who under other 
 circumstances would probably be held in higher 
 esteem" than either of them. Timothy Davis of 
 Dubuque was mentioned as a possibility. "Gov- 
 ernor Grimes, who is here, is thought not to be a 
 candidate," continued the writer, "but the wiser 
 ones think that he would not refuse the Senatorship, 
 if it were tendered to him." 101 
 
 The following day, December 2nd, the same 
 correspondent wrote that quite a number of the 
 legislators were in Iowa City, and that the canvass 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 69 
 
 for the senatorship was becoming "warm, excited 
 and somewhat virulent ". It was not thought that 
 George G. Wright would enter the race, but if he 
 should, the opinion was expressed that he would be a 
 "most formidable competitor ", 102 John P. Cook, 
 Jacob Butler, Stephen Whicher, Francis Springer, 
 Henry W. Starr, Joseph H. D. Street, Stephen B. 
 Shelladay, Jesse Bowen, and Milton D. Browning 
 were all men who were urged, each by a loyal coterie 
 of admirers, as worthy of the Whig nomination for 
 the senatorship. 103 James Harlan does not seem to 
 have been prominently mentioned until a week or 
 more later. His friends doubtless considered it ad- 
 visable to work quietly until they had the assurance 
 of strong support for their candidate. 
 
 The General Assembly convened at Iowa City on 
 December 4, 1854. Eight days later a resolution was 
 passed in the House of Representatives providing 
 for a joint convention at two o'clock on the afternoon 
 of Friday, December 15, for the purpose of electing 
 United States Senator and Supreme Court Judges. 104 
 A newspaper correspondent looked upon this reso- 
 lution as a piece of folly. "The Senate will not 
 concur at this time ' ', he said, ' ' and the house knows 
 it, but they will continually introduce such a reso- 
 lution merely to ascertain whether the whigs have a 
 majority. It looks as though they were a little 
 suspicious of the genuineness of some of the mem- 
 bers of their party. Somebody is f right ened!" 105 
 
 It was generally understood that the Whigs 
 would hold a caucus on the evening of December 
 
70 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 12th, and the contest seemed to be narrowed down 
 to Fitz Henry Warren and Ebenezer Cook, with the 
 best chances in favor of Warren. Nevertheless it 
 was thought that the caucus would be a stormy one, 
 and some people predicted that it would break up in 
 a row. 106 There were two factions in the Whig 
 party. One was composed of men who clung to the 
 declarations supporting the compromise measures 
 of 1850 made by their party in the presidential cam- 
 paign of 1852 and who called themselves National 
 Whigs. The other faction, which was by far the 
 larger, was made up of all the elements opposed to 
 slavery extension and styled itself the Anti-Nebraska 
 party. 
 
 1 ' Some few national whigs may bolt, if the caucus 
 should not adopt the whig Baltimore Platform which 
 I understand some one will offer for adoption", 
 wrote one observer. "On this rock, the Anti- 
 Nebraska party may split, but my own opinion of 
 them is that if it be necessary to carry their point 
 the nomination of Mr. Warren they will not hesi- 
 tate about adopting that platform, even if they 
 should split upon it the moment after it has served 
 their purpose. By adopting this platform the Anti- 
 Nebraska folks would completely turn the table upon 
 the National whigs." 107 
 
 For some reason, however, the Whig caucus was 
 not held on the evening of December 12th. This fact 
 may partially explain the unexpected action of the 
 Senate on the next day. The House resolution 
 favoring a joint convention was brought up for con- 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 71 
 
 sideration during the morning, and by a unanimous 
 vote the resolution was so amended as to provide for 
 holding the convention that afternoon, instead of on 
 the following Friday. 108 It may have been that the 
 Democrats, who had a majority of one in the Senate, 
 thought that by holding the convention while the 
 Whigs were still unorganized they might secure the 
 election of a man of whose principles they could 
 approve, even though he might not be a full-fledged 
 Democrat. And of course the Whigs in the Senate 
 as well as in the House were very willing to hold the 
 convention at any time on which the Democrats 
 should agree. 
 
 The House concurred in the Senate 's amendment, 
 and at two-thirty on the afternoon of Wednesday, 
 December 13, 1854, the "President and members 
 of the Senate preceded by their Secretary and 
 Sergeant at- Arms, entered the Hall of the House of 
 Eepresentatives, and having been duly announced, 
 took the seats assigned them." 109 The roll was 
 called by the Secretary. One Whig Eepresentative 
 was found absent and was excused. Tellers were 
 appointed, and nominations for Senator were in 
 order. 
 
 The lack of harmony or of definite understanding 
 in the ranks of both parties was now very apparent. 
 Fourteen different members of the legislature arose 
 and nominated as many different men for United 
 States Senator. The men whose names were thus 
 proposed for the consideration of the joint conven- 
 tion in the order of their nomination were : Augustus 
 
72 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Caesar Dodge, Enoch W. Eastman, James B. Howell, 
 Edward Johnstone, Joseph H. D. Street, James Har- 
 lan, Thomas W. Claggett, Jacob Butler, Thomas H. 
 Benton, Jr., Stephen B. Shelladay, George G. 
 Wright, Joseph Williams, Fitz Henry Warren, and 
 Ebenezer Cook. 110 Of these fourteen nominees, 
 Dodge, Eastman, Johnstone, Benton, and Williams 
 were Democrats; while the remaining nine were 
 identified with one or the other faction in the Whig 
 party. 
 
 When the votes were counted it was found that 
 no one had a majority. Fifty votes were necessary 
 to elect, and Augustus Caesar Dodge, who headed 
 the list, received only twenty-nine. Fitz Henry 
 Warren followed with sixteen votes. Edward John- 
 stone had eleven, James B. Howell nine, and Eben- 
 ezer Cook seven. Nobody else received over five 
 votes; and it should be noted that James Harlan 
 received only four. 111 
 
 After the failure of the first attempt to elect, two 
 unsuccessful efforts were made to adjourn and then 
 a second vote was taken. This time only nine of the 
 candidates received votes. Augustus Caesar Dodge 
 had the same number of votes as before. Fitz Henry 
 Warren, Edward Johnstone, and Ebenezer Cook 
 each gained slightly; while James Harlan received 
 twelve votes, thus placing him among the more 
 prominent candidates. But again there was no 
 election; and so after some little disagreement the 
 joint convention adjourned until ten o'clock the 
 following morning. 112 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 73 
 
 Both parties naturally realized that it would be 
 useless to go into another session of the joint con- 
 vention without determining upon the men whom 
 they would support for the senatorship. Conse- 
 quently caucuses were held that evening (December 
 13th). It is apparent that the majority of the Demo- 
 crats agreed to vote for Augustus Caesar Dodge, but 
 the record of their deliberations has not been found. 
 The action of the Whig or Anti-Nebraska caucus, 
 however, was a great surprise. It had been con- 
 fidently expected that either Fitz Henry Warren or 
 Ebenezer Cook would receive the nomination. In 
 fact the National Whigs refused to attend the caucus, 
 because they felt certain that Warren would be nom- 
 inated and they would be obliged to support him if 
 they took part in the proceedings. 113 Six ineffectual 
 ballots were taken in the caucus ; but on the seventh 
 ballot James Harlan, whose chances until this even- 
 ing had not been promising, received twenty-nine 
 votes. This was a majority of all the Whigs in the 
 legislature and Harlan was declared the nominee of 
 the party. 114 
 
 To James Harlan the nomination seems to have 
 been as unlocked for as it was surprising to the 
 general public. ' i Hence the reader may judge of my 
 surprise", he wrote in his autobiographical sketch, 
 "when, a few days subsequent to the meeting of the 
 Legislature at Iowa City, happening to meet Col. 
 Asbury B. Porter, E. L. B. Clark, and Chancey Nash, 
 all three of Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, who, being on their 
 way home from Iowa City, halted the horses on 
 
74 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 whicli they were riding, and saluting, informed me of 
 my ' nomination, by a Legislative caucus of Anti 
 Kansas-Nebraska Members, on the evening of De- 
 cember thirteenth, (13th,) 1854, for a seat in the U. 
 S. Senate I' " 
 
 "The above named gentlemen ", continued Har- 
 lan, "had been to Iowa City in the interest of the 
 election of Fitz Henry Warren, and, of course, were 
 not elated over the result, altho friends and towns- 
 men of mine. . . . And they informed me that 
 ' after my nomination he [Warren] advised all his 
 friends to support me, and if possible to secure my 
 election ; that he believed it to be possible ; and that 
 if he had been nominated he would have found some 
 way to reconcile the bolting Whigs ; but that he did 
 not know whether I could do so or not.' mi5 
 
 The nomination of James Harlan must have been 
 a severe blow to Fitz Henry Warren, whose services 
 to his party had fully justified the high hopes which 
 he had entertained of receiving this rich reward. 
 The manner in which he bore his defeat, and the 
 hearty support he accorded his successful rival must 
 ever be remembered to the credit of a man who was 
 not always free from criticism. 
 
 The general opinion was that Harlan had been 
 chosen in the hope of conciliating the National 
 Whigs, who were bitterly opposed to Warren. But 
 the keenest observers doubted whether Harlan would 
 be any more acceptable, and succeeding events 
 proved their doubts well grounded. 116 One writer 
 attributes Harlan 's nomination to the fact that in 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 75 
 
 his campaign against Thomas H. Benton, Jr. in 1848 
 for the office of Superintendent of Public Instruction 
 he had been cheated out of what rightfully belonged 
 to him. "This was felt to be an outrage by a large 
 number of people irrespective of party/' says the 
 writer, "and the result was to bring the injured 
 party prominently before the Fifth General Assem- 
 bly as a candidate for United States senator. Had 
 it not been for this circumstance, Fitz Henry Warren 
 would in all probability have received the distinction 
 of being the first Whig or Eepublican United States 
 senator from Iowa." 117 This view of the case, how- 
 ever, has little basis for acceptance. 
 
 The joint convention reassembled on the morning 
 of Thursday, December 14th. In spite of the fact 
 that both parties had held a caucus the night before, 
 five men were nominated for the senatorship. Ed- 
 ward Johnstone's name was again mentioned, al- 
 though Augustus Caesar Dodge was clearly the 
 choice of the majority of the Democrats. James 
 Harlan was nominated without any opposition from 
 the Anti-Nebraska Whigs, but the National faction, 
 still bolting, rallied around Ebenezer Cook. The 
 fifth name was that of Joseph H. D. Street, a Whig, 
 though of which branch it is difficult to determine. 118 
 
 When the nominations had been made Milton D. 
 Browning of Des Moines County suggested that the 
 candidates for the senatorship "be interrogated 
 relative to their views upon various national top- 
 ics." 119 This was the beginning of a series of petty 
 maneuverings by which Browning endeavored to 
 
76 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 work up a boom for himself for the coveted position. 
 He expressed a desire to know whether the candi- 
 dates were sound on the great compromises of 1820 
 and 1850. "This led to a lively debate, and cross- 
 fire of questions, in the course of which it was stated 
 by Mr. Russell, that Mr. Harlan .... was in 
 favor of amending the fugitive slave law. ' ' Further- 
 more, Harlan was charged by some of the National 
 Whigs with being a strong abolitionist and opposed 
 to the compromise of 1850. 120 In the midst of this 
 aimless discussion a motion was made to adjourn 
 until the following Thursday, and it was adopted by 
 a vote of fifty to forty-nine. 121 
 
 < t There is no knowing what will be done ' ', wrote 
 Samuel McFarland to James Harlan after the joint 
 convention had adjourned. ' ' The Locos & Browning 
 are moving heaven and earth to defeat any good 
 Whig. ... If we could have got a ballot this 
 morning, I think you would have been elected. All 
 the Warren men in fact every one in the caucus were 
 right in for you. Warren, himself, and his friends 
 said you were the nominee, and they were for you 
 they act like men." 122 
 
 Indeed, the prospect of electing a Senator seemed 
 more uncertain than ever after this second fruitless 
 attempt. Factional strife, jealousy, and conflicting 
 personal ambitions all combined to destroy harmony 
 in either party, but especially among the Whigs. 
 "The Woolies are determined that no one but a 
 Wooly shall be elected to the Senate by their votes", 
 wrote a newspaper correspondent. "The National 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 77 
 
 Whigs are as equally determined that no man who is 
 not sound upon the compromises shall receive their 
 votes for Senator. " The Democrats, on the other 
 hand, he declared, "are determined to preserve in- 
 tact the identity of the democratic party of Iowa and 
 therefore will not fuse with the national whigs." 123 
 
 James Harlan received letters from friends at 
 Iowa City informing him that the joint convention 
 had adjourned, ostensibly for the purpose of learn- 
 ing his views on the slavery question, but that in fact 
 it was a part of a movement to defeat him if pos- 
 sible. He was warned that he would be questioned 
 as to his opinion regarding the repeal of the Fugitive 
 Slave Law, and although his friends did not wish 
 him to compromise, they urged him not to fatally 
 commit himself to any radical views on the subject. 124 
 Shortly afterward Harlan received a formal letter 
 signed by eleven members of the House of Eepre- 
 sentatives, submitting to him a list of questions 
 which he was requested to answer in order that his 
 attitude might be known at the next meeting of the 
 joint convention. These questions which were nine 
 in number were designed to bring out Harlan's 
 views on the Fugitive Slave Law, the further agita- 
 tion of the slavery question, the "higher law" 
 doctrine of Seward, the constitutional power of Con- 
 gress to admit slave States, and the binding force of 
 the decisions of the Supreme Court of the United 
 States. 125 
 
 "Of course", wrote Harlan in his autobiography, 
 "I knew that the foregoing interrogatories had been 
 
78 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 prepared and presented to me .... simply as a 
 political trap: that the signers did not intend to 
 vote for me in any contingency. They, no doubt, 
 thought that any answer that it might be possible 
 for me to give would aid them in securing my defeat, 
 and open the way for the election of either a demo- 
 crat or pro slavery Whig". 126 
 
 Harlan therefore chose the course of wisdom and 
 decided to make no public response whatever to these 
 questions. Instead he went to Iowa City in order, as 
 he said, to "give any one who might desire it an 
 opportunity to interview me personally, face to 
 face." At the same time he carefully drew up a 
 formal reply to be used in case anyone desired to 
 interview him. This reply was worthy of an accom- 
 plished statesman, for it neither committed its 
 author to any particular position, nor laid him open 
 to criticism for avoiding the issue entirely. But 
 Harlan seems to have had little use for his reply, for 
 he states that "as I had expected, the authors of the 
 interrogatories had nothing to say, and carefully 
 kept out of my way." 127 
 
 When the joint convention met for the third time 
 on December 21, 1854, the spirit of discord was still 
 in evidence. The convention opened propitiously 
 enough with only three nominations: Augustus 
 Caesar Dodge, Ebenezer Cook, and James Harlan. 
 A vote was taken and Harlan received forty-seven 
 votes, Dodge forty-three, and Cook seven, while one 
 vote was given to Edward Johnstone. Although no 
 one had received a majority of the votes cast the 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 79 
 
 result seemed to augur the early election of James 
 Harlan, since only fifty votes were necessary to a 
 choice. But all hopes soon went glimmering. A 
 motion was made to temporarily suspend the election 
 of United States Senator and vote for Supreme 
 Court Judges, but it was defeated. An unsuccessful 
 attempt was made to adjourn until the third of Jan- 
 uary. The names of Thomas W. Claggett, Joseph H. 
 D. Street, Jacob Butler, and Bernhart Henn were 
 then added to the list of nominees, Augustus Caesar 
 Dodge's name was withdrawn, and another vote was 
 taken. This time Harlan dropped to forty-one, 
 while Ebenezer Cook received eighteen votes. Again 
 there was no majority and the convention adjourned 
 until three o'clock that afternoon. 128 
 
 The list of nominees received the addition of the 
 name of Thomas H. Benton, Jr. at the afternoon 
 session. Milton D. Browning was also nominated, 
 but at his request his name was withdrawn. When 
 the votes were counted James Harlan was found to 
 have forty-five, Ebenezer Cook forty-four, P. Gad 
 Bryan seven, Joseph H. D. Street one, and Thomas 
 H. Benton, Jr. one. The Democrats, with only a few 
 exceptions, supported Ebenezer Cook, the National 
 Whig candidate, who since the withdrawal of Dodge 
 from the contest was the most nearly in accord with 
 their views. The convention then adjourned until 
 the fifth of January. Five times the vote had been 
 taken for Senator and each time the possibility of 
 an election seemed more distant. 129 
 
 The recess was a period filled with the maneuv- 
 
80 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 erings of candidates for the senatorship, and much 
 interest was manifested in the contest throughout 
 the State. The failure to secure an election thus far 
 was a source of gratification to the Democrats. 
 ' ' There is yet some leaven left amid the incongruous 
 elements of which the major part of the present 
 General Assembly is composed", exulted a Demo- 
 cratic editor. "This fact is attested by the failure 
 of the woolly heads to elect their caucus candidate, 
 Mr. Harlan, on the recent balloting for U. S. Senator. 
 The ballots then and there cast prove that the Iowa 
 Legislature is not all abolition, or even the Whig 
 portion of it. And we trust that the fair fame of the 
 State will not be stained by the election to the re- 
 sponsible position of Senator, of any politician of 
 the Garrison school." 130 
 
 The Anti-Nebraska people, on the other hand, 
 were very much disgusted with the way things were 
 going. A prominent editor at Burlington devoted 
 considerable time and space to reviewing the situa- 
 tion. Harlan 's election, he declared, had been pre- 
 vented "by traitors in the Whig camp who, under 
 the specious guise of National Whiggery, are dally- 
 ing with the Locofoco party." "And that an ar- 
 rangement has been entered into is evident from this 
 nomination of Cook," he continued, "and from Mr. 
 Test's nomination of Senator Browning, which was 
 refused very much as Caesar refused the crown, 
 though not so often." 
 
 Furthermore, the Burlington editor predicted 
 that a bargain and sale would be carried into effect 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 81 
 
 which would result in the election of ' ' some old fogy, 
 one idea, Virginia Abstractionist, who disgraces the 
 country by calling himself a * National Whig I * Or 
 we shall have foisted upon us an Old Hunker Demo- 
 crat, of the leather-head breed, who never had but 
 one set of ideas, all of which could be told in five 
 words : i Free Trade and Hard Money ! ' But if the 
 thing is narrowed down to this, give us the Old 
 Hunker Democrat we say! We want no traitors 
 from our ranks sent to the Senate. If we must be 
 misrepresented, give us an out and out, up and down, 
 dyed in the wool Locof oco. But don 't send a traitor. 
 Don't stab us in the house of our friend. " Having 
 thus vigorously stated his own attitude and that of 
 his faction, the editor spoke in high terms of James 
 Harlan and expressed the hope that his name would 
 be "scrupulously adhered to until intrigue and dis- 
 honesty shall elect some other man, or render it 
 certain that no election can be effected. m31 
 
 Ebenezer Cook was severely criticized by the 
 Anti-Nebraskaites for intriguing with the Demo- 
 crats. It was even charged that he had promised to 
 ignore the question of slavery in his official conduct, 
 to vote for the admission of Kansas with slavery, 
 and to come out as a full-fledged Democrat if the 
 Locof ocos should secure a majority in the next Gen- 
 eral Assembly. Milton D. Browning also came in for 
 his share of animadversion because of his attempts 
 to ingratiate himself with the Democrats. Both 
 Cook and Browning seem to have made every effort 
 to secure the support of the seven or eight Democrats 
 
 6 
 
82 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 who had refused to vote for anyone but a member 
 of their own party. 132 
 
 6 ' There has been more lying, cheating, swindling 
 and corruption here this winter than was ever con- 
 ceived of in my philosophy", wrote Governor Grimes 
 at the end of the two-weeks interval. 133 The Gov- 
 ernor, however, wisely held aloof from the contest 
 and did not use his influence, at least not publicly, 
 for any particular candidate. 
 
 On January 5, 1855, pursuant to adjournment, 
 the joint convention again assembled for the election 
 of United States Senator and Supreme Court 
 Judges. Ebenezer Cook, Milton D. Browning, 
 Joseph H. D. Street, Augustus Caesar Dodge, and 
 James Harlan were nominated, but upon request the 
 names of Browning, Street, and Dodge were with- 
 drawn. The convention then voted for a sixth, 
 seventh, and eighth time for Senator with no more 
 effect than before. Harlan had forty-six, forty- 
 seven, and forty-seven votes respectively, while 
 Browning, in spite of the fact that his name had 
 been withdrawn, received seventeen, nineteen and 
 thirty-five votes respectively. 134 Then followed a 
 filibustering war of motions to adjourn and to go 
 into an election of Judges, ending finally in an ad- 
 journment until that afternoon at two o'clock. The 
 afternoon session was devoted entirely to the elec- 
 tion of George G. Wright and William G. Woodward 
 as two of the Supreme Court Judges, and to a long 
 drawn out contest for the third, in which Norman 
 W. Isbell was the leading candidate, though he could 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 83 
 
 not secure a majority of the votes. After six in- 
 effectual ballots the convention adjourned until the 
 following morning. 135 
 
 On Saturday, January 6, 1855, there was enacted 
 in the hall of the House of Eepresentatives a scene 
 such as has few equals in the legislative history of 
 Iowa. The Democrats evidently feared that Harlan 
 would be elected Senator if the joint convention 
 should meet again. Consequently the committee 
 which had been sent to inform the Senate that the 
 House was prepared to meet found that the Senate 
 had adjourned until the following Monday by a strict 
 party vote of sixteen to fifteen. 136 A number of 
 Senators, however, entered the hall of the House 
 without their president and took seats, and the 
 speaker declared that the joint convention was in 
 session. 
 
 The wildest confusion immediately followed this 
 announcement. Out in the lobbies the rebellious 
 Senators "attempted to kick up a row, but were over- 
 awed by General Brown, the House Sergeant-at- 
 Arms." 137 Inside the hall disorder prevailed. 
 " Members became furious, excited and mad", wrote 
 a newspaper correspondent who was a witness 
 of the dramatic proceedings. "Some loudly called 
 for order. Senators and Eepresentatives arose in 
 all parts of the House and each endeavoring to raise 
 their voices above the din and clamor of an excited 
 Assembly, added to the tumult of the throng. ' ' Some 
 declared that the joint convention was not in session 
 because the Senate was not present as an official 
 
84 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 body and because there was no president; while 
 1 ' others raised their voices to an alarming height and 
 nominated a presiding officer. " The speaker ap- 
 pointed a chairman and took part in the debate. 
 6 i The Chairman attempted to make a speech but was 
 called to order." "The Clerk of the House in 
 thundering tones, which broke out like the sudden 
 and quick report of a forty pounder ", declared that 
 he was secretary of the convention, and that nomina- 
 tions for a president pro tern were in order. "The 
 Secretary of the Senate raised his voice as far above 
 the roar of the thunder as is the yell of a whipped 
 spaniel above the bray of a hungry jackass, and 
 pronounced the whole proceedings out of order, and 
 declared no convention in session. Loud shouts, 
 cheers and stampings followed this decision, and all 
 was confusion worst confounded. ' ' 
 
 After an hour or more of angry tumult the 
 Democrats, "finding themselves outnumbered, and 
 perceiving that the lungs of the opposition excelled 
 their 's in power and tension, gave up the fight", and 
 all but three of them left the hall. Finally, to use 
 the figurative expression of the correspondent, "the 
 noisy elements subsided, the whirlwind passed by, 
 the dead and wounded picked themselves up, and 
 with woful countenances stared at each other", and 
 soon there ' ' reigned that awful silence which always 
 follows the raging storm". 138 
 
 The members who remained then elected William 
 W. Hamilton, a Senator from Dubuque County, as 
 president pro tern. The sergeant-at-arms was sent 
 
FIRST ELECTION OP JAMES HARLAN 85 
 
 to inform the absent members that the joint conven- 
 tion was ready to proceed to business. He reported 
 that he had been unable to find some of the missing 
 men, and that the others had refused to come in. 
 Further calling of the roll was dispensed with, and 
 a vote was taken for the remaining Judge of the 
 Supreme Court, resulting in the election of Norman 
 W. Isbell. Immediately afterward the convention 
 proceeded to the election of a United States Senator. 
 James Harlan received fifty-two votes, which was 
 "a majority of all the votes cast, and a majority of 
 the whole number of members of the General As- 
 sembly ". He was therefore declared duly elected 
 and a certificate of election was made out and at- 
 tested. 139 
 
 The unprecedented manner in which the election 
 was accomplished naturally gave rise to much dis- 
 cussion. The joint convention was clearly extra- 
 legal to say the least. Any intelligent interpretation 
 of the law prescribing the manner of choosing United 
 States Senators would have demanded that a 
 quorum of both houses should be present, although 
 this principle was not stated in so many words. 140 
 In this case not only was there not a quorum of the 
 Senate present, but strictly speaking the Senate did 
 not exist as an official body, because of its adjourn- 
 ment until the following Monday. On the other 
 hand, this adjournment of the Senate was a palpable 
 violation of good faith. It had been agreed to hold 
 the joint convention that morning, and instead of 
 abiding by their votes of the preceding day, the 
 
86 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Democratic members of the Senate made undue 
 haste to adjourn and leave their hall before the 
 House could prepare to meet them. Thus, while 
 the Whigs elected their candidate in a manner not 
 sanctioned by law, the Democrats made every ef- 
 fort to prevent the election by means, which if 
 not contrary to the spirit of the law, were at least 
 not in accord with the highest ideals of political 
 integrity. 141 
 
 The Democrats in both houses of the General As- 
 sembly drew up and entered upon the journals 
 emphatic protests against the proceedings of Janu- 
 ary 6th. 142 The newspapers took up the quarrel and 
 for several weeks a bitter war of words was 
 waged. Editors who classed themselves as Anti- 
 Nebraska men were much elated at the outcome, 
 and devoted many columns to the defense of the 
 legality of the election. The Democrats, on the 
 other hand, endeavored to alleviate their disap- 
 pointment by vigorous denunciation of their op- 
 ponents, and by attacks on Harlan. One editor, in 
 addition to other derogatory statements, declared 
 that Harlan was "a bigoted fanatic upon the 
 subject of Slavery, who would be allied in the 
 Senate, to an insignificant faction without in- 
 fluence and unable to command respect and yet 
 infinitely inferior to the feeblest intellect among 
 them." 143 
 
 Gradually the excitement subsided. James Har- 
 lan remained at his home at Mt. Pleasant awaiting 
 the time when he should enter upon the performance 
 
FIRST ELECTION OF JAMES HARLAN 87 
 
 of the duties which he believed himself legally com- 
 missioned to assume. Late in November, 1855, he 
 departed for Washington, and on December 3rd, he 
 was administered the oath of office and took his seat 
 as the first Eepublican United States Senator from 
 Iowa. 144 
 
IV 
 
 THE CONTESTED ELECTION OF 
 JAMES HAELAN 
 
 As far as the legislature and people of Iowa were 
 concerned the election of James Harlan on January 
 6, 1855, was a closed event. It now remained for 
 the United States Senate to determine whether or 
 not he should be allowed to retain his seat. Al- 
 though Harlan himself, in common with a majority 
 of the Anti-Nebraska party, felt fully satisfied of the 
 legality of the election, he nevertheless had mis- 
 givings as to the attitude which the Senate would 
 assume when it came to decide his case. A week 
 before his departure for Washington it appears that 
 Harlan wrote to James W. Grimes desiring to know 
 what course he would pursue as Governor in case of 
 an adverse decision: whether he would consider it 
 "such a vacancy as would justify an appointment 
 by the Governor ' ', or whether in his opinion it would 
 warrant calling a special session of the legislature. 145 
 Governor Grimes replied that he believed the 
 election had been legal, and therefore there could be 
 no vacancy, no matter what action the United States 
 Senate might take. Consequently he would not feel 
 justified either in making an appointment or re- 
 assembling the legislature unless some exigency 
 
 88 
 
CONTESTED ELECTION 89 
 
 should arise which was not then contemplated. He 
 was of the opinion, moreover, that with the existing 
 ill feeling in the General Assembly there would be no 
 election even if an extra session were called, and that 
 any appointment he might make would be rejected 
 by the United States Senate on the ground that, since 
 the legislature had failed to elect, there could be no 
 vacancy which the Governor could fill. 146 
 
 As has already been stated James Harlan took 
 his seat in the United States Senate on December 3, 
 1855. His colleague, George W. Jones, who pre- 
 sented his credentials at the same time, called 
 attention to the fact that at the preceding session a 
 protest from the Senate of Iowa had been put on 
 file declaring that Harlan 's election had been illegal. 
 But as he desired the cooperation of his new col- 
 league, Mr. Jones hoped he would be sworn in before 
 his case was referred to a committee and finally 
 decided, as he presumed it would be in a short time. 
 At the request of Senator Mason of Virginia the 
 protest was read, and then, there being no objection, 
 James Harlan took the oath of office and was al- 
 lowed to choose a seat from among those vacant. 147 
 
 The position of the new Senator at Washington 
 was anything but pleasant. Broken as he was in 
 health, almost a total stranger in the capital city, 
 and with little prospect of being allowed to retain his 
 seat, his letters to his wife during the first weeks of 
 his sojourn were full of gloom and anxious fore- 
 bodings. "I came to fight a battle for my right to a 
 seat in a body of eminent Statesmen a large majority 
 
90 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 of whom were politically hostile to my claim ; and all 
 of whom, except my colleague, were total strangers ' ', 
 wrote Senator Harlan many years later when re- 
 calling his first impressions of Washington official 
 life. "And I was affiliated with a new party then 
 just forming, to which the old WMg and Democratic 
 parties were bitterly hostile ; and whose representa- 
 tion in the Senate constituted a very small minority. 
 Of all the thousands of Government officials swarm- 
 ing around the Departments, from the President 
 down to the most humble employe, not one sympa- 
 thised with this new political organization. . . . 
 It would be very difficult for any one now to realise 
 the depressing influence of such a sentiment on the 
 mind of a stranger on entering such a community, 
 in which every man woman and child felt it to be 
 right and a duty to manifest hostility, because of 
 their consciencious belief that the new comer is a 
 criminal in his intentions and purposes, and his 
 presence highly dangerous to the peace, safety and 
 welfare of society." 148 
 
 It was not until August 13, 1856, that anything 
 was again said in regard to James Harlan 's right to 
 his seat in the Senate. On that day George W. Jones 
 moved that the resolutions of the Iowa Senate be 
 taken from the files and referred to the Committee 
 on the Judiciary without remarks. Mr. Harlan 
 asked that the matter be made a special order for an 
 early day. There was a bill before the house, how- 
 ever, and the President declined to entertain further 
 debate. 149 
 
CONTESTED ELECTION 91 
 
 On the following day Senator Jones again moved 
 that the papers in the case of his colleague be taken 
 up and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. 
 Senator James A. Bayard of Delaware, one of the 
 members of the committee, said he did not see how a 
 report could be made that session. It was voted to 
 take the papers from the files, and then Mr. Harlan 
 asked that their consideration be made the special 
 order for twelve o'clock the next day. After some 
 insignificant debate a vote was taken which resulted 
 in favor of the Iowa Senator's motion. 150 
 
 On Friday, August 15th, at the appointed time 
 Senator Eobert M. T. Hunter of Virginia moved to 
 postpone the special order and take up the civil 
 appropriation bill. Mr. Harlan insisted on his right 
 to be heard, and he had the support of Senator John 
 M. Clayton of Delaware. John P. Hale of New 
 Hampshire also objected to the postponement of the 
 hearing on the ground that it was a question of 
 privilege. "A question of privilege", he said, "is 
 one that overrides all others. . . . The very 
 name of the question, being one of privilege, pre- 
 vents it from being thus disposed of." Mr. Hunter 
 objected to this argument. "We are to adjourn 
 on Monday. We have no previous question here; 
 and if the Senate has no right to postpone this ques- 
 tion, the session may be spoken out." Furthermore, 
 he called attention to the fact that the question had 
 been postponed all the session thus far. Andrew P. 
 Butler of South Carolina, chairman of the Com- 
 mittee on the Judiciary, maintained that this was 
 
92 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 not a question of privilege since it was on a motion 
 to refer certain papers to a committee. It would 
 become a question of privilege when the committee 
 reported. Mr. Harlan said he had a right to object 
 to being tried by the Committee on the Judiciary. 
 Mr. Bayard, aroused by this statement, declared he 
 would have no objection to referring the question to 
 any other committee. "On personal grounds I 
 should be perfectly satisfied to have it go elsewhere, " 
 he said, l ' though I cannot say much for the courtesy 
 of the act which seeks on the part of the individual 
 himself, without just ground, to impliedly impute to 
 the members of that committee prejudice, or a dis- 
 position to do wrong. " 151 
 
 After a somewhat protracted debate the question 
 was put, and there were twenty-seven votes in favor 
 of postponement and eighteen against it. Twenty- 
 six Democrats and one ' ' old line ' ' Whig voted in the 
 affirmative ; while of the eighteen Senators voting in 
 the negative twelve were Eepublicans, four "old 
 line" Whigs, and two Democrats the latter being 
 George W. Jones of Iowa, and David L. Yulee, of 
 Florida. 152 During the remainder of this session 
 the question of Harlan 9 s right to his seat was not 
 again brought up, nor was any action taken at the 
 short special session which followed. "This debate 
 and this nearly unanimous vote of the democratic 
 Senators", wrote James Harlan, "seemed to me to 
 demonstrate the truth of my conjecture. . . . 
 That the democratic leaders had determined, for 
 political reasons, to defer the discussion and decision 
 
CONTESTED ELECTION 93 
 
 of my right to my seat until after the pending Presi- 
 dential election. " 153 
 
 The Thirty-Fourth Congress assembled for its 
 third session on December 1, 1856. On December 
 15th, George W. Jones again moved ' ' to take up the 
 credentials of the Hon. James Harlan, which lie on 
 the table, together with the resolutions of the Senate 
 of Iowa, heretofore presented, in regard to his elec- 
 tion. " This motion was agreed to, and Senator 
 Jones then moved that the papers be referred to the 
 Committee on the Judiciary. Mr. Harlan arose and 
 stated that although he did not desire to present any 
 extensive argument in support of his claim, he 
 wished to lay before the Senate the facts of the case. 
 He then read the provisions of the United States 
 Constitution relating to United States Senators, the 
 Iowa law providing for the manner of holding elec- 
 tions, some provisions of the Code of 1851, and the 
 record of his election from the Journal of the Iowa 
 House of Eepresentatives. He said he felt that he 
 was legally elected and that the movement against 
 him was for purely political reasons. To show the 
 attitude of some of the leading men of his own State, 
 Mr. Harlan read letters from Judges George G. 
 Wright and William G. Woodward of the Supreme 
 Court of Iowa, from William Vandever, Clerk of the 
 Supreme Court of Iowa, and from Governor Grimes, 
 in which all expressed their belief in the legality of 
 his election. 
 
 In conclusion Senator Harlan said that in the 
 event of an adverse decision, should the people of 
 
94 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Iowa desire his presence there, they would doubtless 
 find some means to return him, and if they should 
 desire someone else they would have no difficulty in 
 selecting an abler and better man. "I will not op- 
 pose the reference of this subject to Committee on 
 the Judiciary, " he continued, "although I find 
 among the members of that committee not one po- 
 litical friend. Every member -of that committee is 
 politically opposed to me upon the questions now at 
 issue before the country. " Nevertheless, he ex- 
 pressed his confidence in the fairness of the com- 
 mittee, and therefore would offer no objection to the 
 reference of the whole question to them. 154 
 
 A long debate followed in which an attempt was 
 made to have the case referred to a select committee 
 which should include at least one member politically 
 friendly to Mr. Harlan. But when the vote was 
 taken it was decided by a large majority to refer the 
 matter to the Committee on the Judiciary. 155 Not 
 until January 5, 1857, was the committee ready to 
 report. The report, which was very long, was not 
 read, except for the statement that the majority of 
 the committee had come to the conclusion that James 
 Harlan had not been duly elected to his seat in the 
 Senate. Both the majority and minority reports 
 were ordered printed, with the understanding that 
 they should come up for consideration as soon as 
 printed. 156 
 
 By the following morning, January 6, the reports 
 were printed and a copy placed on each Senator's 
 desk. After some debate a motion to proceed to the 
 
CONTESTED ELECTION 95 
 
 consideration of the report was adopted. Mr. 
 Bayard moved to postpone the consideration until 
 the following day, because the Senators had not had 
 time to read the reports and .become conversant with 
 the facts. "I do not wish to insist on a premature 
 decision of this question", replied Mr. Harlan. "It 
 will be remembered by the Senate, however, that this 
 protest has been lying on the table of the Senate for 
 nearly two years." It had been before the Com- 
 mittee on the Judiciary since December 16th, and 
 ample time had been given for thorough investiga- 
 tion. He thought it was due to his State to have the 
 question settled before the adjournment of the Iowa 
 legislature, which would continue in session for per- 
 haps twenty days longer. 157 
 
 Mr. Butler, the chairman of the committee, sup- 
 ported the Iowa Senator in his desire to have the 
 matter disposed of at once. Mr. Bayard still insisted 
 that more time should be given for the reading of 
 the reports. "The question must be discussed", he 
 said. William Bigler of Pennsylvania suggested 
 that if they should proceed without further delay to 
 the consideration of the question it would receive 
 ample discussion as both sides of the case would un- 
 doubtedly be presented in detail. Senator George 
 E. Pugh thought that since the report was long and 
 contained much irrelevant material it would be bet- 
 ter if the chairman should simply relate the facts in 
 the case and state the conclusions of the committee. 
 With this suggestion the reading of the report was 
 dispensed with and Mr. Butler took the floor. 158 
 
96 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 "As I have before said, Mr. President, " began 
 the courteous, dignified Senator from South Caro- 
 lina, "this case is not without its difficulties. It 
 certainly does involve, in my opinion, grave consid- 
 eration affecting the organization of the Federal and 
 State governments. I do not say that I am so far 
 wedded to my opinions that I would not readily 
 change them ; but I am sure that the gentleman from 
 Iowa will understand me fairly when I declare that 
 I really stand in a condition of indifferency so far as 
 regards the effect which the decision of the question 
 may have on him, or any person who wants his seat. ' ' 
 
 Mr. Butler then proceeded to relate the essential 
 facts of the report. He described in detail the long 
 history of the election; how the two houses of the 
 Iowa legislature had met day after day in joint con- 
 vention in the fruitless attempt to elect a Senator, 
 and how at last the result had been accomplished. 
 In his opinion ' ' the election was made by the House 
 of Representatives, with a few Senators, and those 
 Senators were not brought there by any communica- 
 tion with the Senate as a body as a component 
 part of the Legislature of Iowa". He then had the 
 Secretary read the act passed in 1847 by the General 
 Assembly of Iowa, regulating the manner of electing 
 United States Senators. According to this act he 
 argued that there could be no joint convention unless 
 both houses were present; and that if it was not a 
 convention of both houses it was not the legislature 
 and was therefore a violation of the Constitution of 
 the United States. The Senate was not present, nor 
 
CONTESTED ELECTION 97 
 
 were the few Senators who attended present in their 
 official capacity. If the Iowa law could be construed 
 to delegate to the House of Eepresentatives the 
 power to thus perform functions which were entrust- 
 ed to the legislature as a whole, it was clearly 
 unconstitutional. 
 
 Furthermore, the South Carolina Senator called 
 attention to the fact that the president of the Senate 
 had not been present at the joint convention, but 
 that a president pro tempore, a Senator, had been 
 chosen to preside over the convention. This was in 
 palpable violation of the Iowa law which stipulated 
 that in the absence of the president of the Senate, 
 the speaker of the House of Eepresentatives should 
 be the presiding officer of the convention. But the 
 joint convention had been illegal in another respect, 
 continued the Senator. ' i Each House had a right to 
 appoint its own teller, but when they went in on this 
 occasion, and made this election by this convention, 
 or this mass meeting, as I contend it was, the teller 
 of the Senate was not there. The judge who had 
 derived his authority from the Senate and a judge 
 of the election might have been a very important 
 officer the judge of the election appointed by the 
 Senate as such was not present. ' ' 
 
 These facts, stated Senator Butler, led him to the 
 conclusion that, according to a strict construction of 
 the Constitution of the United States and of the Iowa 
 law, the election had been illegal. He had stated the 
 case as simply as possible, and now yielded the floor 
 to Senator Robert Toombs of Georgia who would 
 
98 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 state the position of the minority of the committee. 159 
 The Senator from Georgia plunged at once into 
 the midst of the subject. "The question made by 
 the protest of the Senate of Iowa, which is the only 
 contest made in this case," he declared, "is solely 
 upon the point that they had no knowledge of the 
 joint convention. . . . Thus the question pre- 
 sented on the record, by the issue made by the Senate 
 of Iowa, is as to the fact whether or not they, as a 
 Senate, had official notice of the meeting at which 
 the sitting member was elected. ' ' In his opinion the 
 fact that the Senate did not attend the joint con- 
 vention in a body did not vitiate the election. The 
 Constitution of the United States provided that 
 Senators should be chosen by the legislatures of the 
 various States. In Iowa the legislature was com- 
 posed of a Senate and a House of Eepresentatives. 
 Congress had not exercised the power vested in it to 
 regulate the time and manner of electing Senators, 
 and as a consequence the legislature of Iowa had 
 enacted a law covering these points as far as Iowa 
 was concerned. This law stipulated that United 
 States Senators should be elected by a joint con- 
 vention of the two houses of the legislature. But 
 "to prevent the success of factious efforts to defeat 
 an election at the proper time, and thus to defeat the 
 will of the majority of the constitutional electors", 
 the law wisely provided that the joint convention 
 should have the power to prolong its own existence 
 by adjourning from time to time until someone was 
 elected. 
 
CONTESTED ELECTION 99 
 
 Governing themselves by this law the two houses 
 of the General Assembly met in joint convention. 
 Failing to elect on the first day the convention ad- 
 journed, and so on for several successive days, until 
 Friday, January 5, 1855, when after several fruitless 
 ballots it adjourned until the following morning at 
 ten o'clock. The members of the Senate, as a part 
 of the joint convention, were present when the ad- 
 journment took place, as was shown by their own 
 Journal. Moreover, they themselves concurred in 
 this adjournment and heard it announced by their 
 own president. As a consequence they had full and 
 ample notice of the time for the reassembling of the 
 joint convention. In spite of this fact the Senate 
 met on the morning of the sixth, before the time for 
 the convention, and adjourned until the following 
 Monday. As a result when the messenger from the 
 House entered the Senate chamber to announce 
 that the House was waiting, which announcement 
 was a mere act of courtesy and not necessary, no 
 Senate could be found. 
 
 A number of the Senators, however, continued 
 Senator Toombs, entered the hall of the House of 
 Eepresentatives and the joint convention, "com- 
 posed not of a minority, but of a majority, of all the 
 persons upon whom this duty devolved by the Con- 
 stitution of the United States and the law of Iowa, 
 proceeded to choose a Senator to represent that 
 State in this body. There was present a full quorum 
 of the electors. The electors were the Senators and 
 Eepresentatives of Iowa. . . . The question was 
 
100 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 then made that the Senate was not there as a Senate ; 
 and I say they could not be under this law of Iowa, 
 but the joint convention was there. The law of Iowa 
 declared, that in the absence of all other rules, they 
 should be governed by Jefferson 's Manual. Accord- 
 ing to that manual, a majority of the members of the 
 joint convention then assembled, if there had not 
 been a Senator present, were competent to perform 
 the duty which the law devolved upon the joint con- 
 vention. " Accordingly, the joint convention as 
 organized on the morning of January 6, 1855, even 
 though the Senate was not present as an official body, 
 was fully competent to elect a United States Senator. 
 
 Taking up the point of the necessity of giving an 
 official notice to the Senate of the time for the ad- 
 journed meeting of the joint convention, Mr. Toombs 
 declared that no such notice was required either by 
 the Constitution of the United States or by the Iowa 
 law. Eeplying to the objection that the law had been 
 violated in respect to the presiding officer, he stated 
 that the speaker of the House had been present, had 
 presided and put the questions, that during the prog- 
 ress of the convention a president pro tempore had 
 been chosen, but that both the speaker of the House 
 and the president pro tempore had signed the pro- 
 ceedings. Finally, as far as the tellers were con- 
 cerned their duties were purely ministerial. They 
 had only to record and count the votes, and they 
 could in no way affect the election. 160 
 
 Thus both sides of this complicated election case 
 were ably presented to the members of the United 
 
CONTESTED ELECTION T01 
 
 States Senate. In the long and earnest debate which 
 continued almost without interruption until January 
 12th a number of the most prominent members of 
 the Senate participated. In the main the arguments 
 were the same as those presented by Senators Butler 
 and Toombs. Among those upholding Mr. Butler's 
 view of the case were Senators Henry S. Geyer, 
 James A. Bayard, Charles E. Stuart, Isaac Toucey, 
 Stephen A. Douglas, and Judah P. Benjamin. Of 
 those supporting Eobert Toombs in his contention 
 that James Harlan was legally entitled to his seat 
 were Senators William H. Seward, George E. Pugh, 
 John P. Hale, William P. Fessenden, Lafayette S. 
 Foster, and Lyman Trumbull. 161 
 
 Finally, on January 12, 1857, a vote was taken on 
 a motion which had been made by Senator Toombs 
 amending the resolution of the majority report of 
 the Committee on the Judiciary so that it would 
 read: "Resolved, That JAMES HAKLAN is entitled to 
 his seat as a Senator from Iowa. ' ' The amendment 
 was lost by a vote of twenty-seven to eighteen. 
 Thereupon the resolution declaring that James Har- 
 lan was not entitled to his seat was put to a vote. 
 There were twenty-eight votes in the affirmative and 
 eighteen in the negative, and the seat which James 
 Harlan had held for over a year was declared 
 vacant. 162 
 
 "To all impartial thinkers, as it seems to me, 
 this objection to the legality of my election must ap- 
 pear to be merely technical and not substantial ", 
 was James Harlan 's comment on this adverse turn 
 
102 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 in his fortunes. "Nevertheless I did not then, and 
 do not now think that those who maintained that it 
 constituted a substantial defect were dishonest. It 
 is an illustration, however, of the psychological effect 
 of strong desire on the human judgment. Had I 
 been a member of the Democratic party I have not 
 the slightest doubt that my election would have been 
 held by a majority of the United States Senators to 
 have been valid." 163 
 
 The question of the legality of the first election of 
 James Harlan is a difficult one to decide. Strong 
 arguments can be presented on both sides. The 
 least that can be said of it is that it was unusual. 
 Perhaps the decision reached by the United States 
 Senate, even though influenced by party prejudice, 
 was the most satisfactory to all concerned. It came 
 as a balm to the wounded feelings of Harlan 's ene- 
 mies, both Democratic and Eepublican. And as far 
 as James Harlan himself was concerned, it deprived 
 him for only a short time of his seat in the Senate, 
 for he was soon reflected in an entirely regular man- 
 ner which left no doubt as to its legality. 
 
 The vote declaring that James Harlan was not 
 entitled to his seat in the United States Senate was 
 taken at about three o'clock on January 12, 1857, 
 and at four o'clock on the same afternoon the un- 
 seated Senator was on his way to Iowa City. Forced 
 to remain for nearly a day at Harrisburg, Pennsyl- 
 vania, he there witnessed the exciting election of 
 Simon Cameron to a vacant seat in the United States 
 
* 
 
 CONTESTED ELECTION 103 
 
 Senate. Proceeding on Ms journey on the following 
 day, lie finally reached Iowa City on Friday night, 
 January 16th, after many delays caused by the ex- 
 cessive cold and the deep snow. 164 
 
 The news of the Senate's action had been tele- 
 graphed ahead; and so when Harlan arrived at the 
 State capital he found that his friends had every- 
 thing in readiness to reelect him and that they were 
 only awaiting his presence. On the following after- 
 noon, January 17, 1857, at three o'clock the two 
 houses of the legislature met in joint convention and 
 every Eepublican legislator cast his vote for James 
 Harlan. Out of ninety-nine votes Harlan received 
 sixty-three, W. F. Coolbaugh thirty-five, and Wins- 
 low F. Barker one. Thus, beyond all possibility of 
 dispute James Harlan was chosen to fill out his un- 
 expired term which would end March 4, 1861. 165 
 That evening Senator Harlan was given a reception 
 by the Eepublican members of the legislature in the 
 Senate chamber of the Old Stone Capitol. 166 
 
 Believing it to be his duty to return at once to his 
 post at the national capital, Senator Harlan left 
 Iowa City on Monday, January 19th. He drove 
 sixty miles across the country in a sleigh to his home 
 at Mt. Pleasant, where he remained only a few days, 
 and then hastened on to Washington. On Thursday, 
 January 29, 1857, the credentials of his reelection 
 were presented by Lyman Trumbull of Illinois, the 
 oath of office was administered, and again James 
 Harlan took his seat in the United States Senate 
 amid the congratulations of his friends. 167 
 
THE ELECTION OF JAMES W. GRIMES IN 1858 
 
 THE extension or restriction of slavery was the great 
 national issue during the senatorial contest which 
 terminated in Iowa in January, 1858. The heritage 
 of the Kansas-Nebraska Act with its doctrine of 
 popular sovereignty was being reaped in "bleeding 
 Kansas ' ', and in Iowa the struggle was watched with 
 feverish interest. The Lecompton fraud fanned to 
 fury the blaze of indignation already kindled by the 
 Dred Scott Decision. Even the Democrats con- 
 demned this new attempt to subvert all principles of 
 popular government. Thus it became evident that 
 no man who favored the admission of Kansas with 
 the Lecompton Constitution could receive the sup- 
 port of either party for the senatorship. Within the 
 State sectional jealousy and bitter personal animos- 
 ity characterized the campaign. 
 
 As early as September a war was being waged 
 at Dubuque between two parties, known as the 
 Montagues and the Capulets, under the leadership 
 of George W. Jones and Thomas S. Wilson respec- 
 tively. These men were old-time rivals for political 
 office. Ten years before they had both been candi- 
 dates for the senatorship and Jones had been the 
 victor. Now their ambitions once more brought 
 
 104 
 
THE ELECTION OF GRIMES IN 1858 105 
 
 them into conflict. Jones wished to be reflected to 
 the position which he must vacate March 4, 1859; 
 while Wilson was equally desirous of securing the 
 seat in the Senate to which he had so long aspired. 
 "They are each exerting every power to secure the 
 mastery over the other ", wrote a Republican editor 
 who endeavored by every means to foster the bitter- 
 ness between the two men. ' ' They are provided with 
 newspaper organs, which advocate the claims of 
 their respective prototypes, and puff and blow like 
 liliputian whales at one another. mcs At another 
 time the same editor declared that Wilson "had 
 sunk himself in the mud so deep as to be almost 
 entirely out of sight before his shameful attack on 
 the General; and now he is morally and politically 
 dead and buried. ' ' Jones, on the other hand, seemed 
 to realize that he had been ' ' elevated higher than his 
 talents will bear" and was resorting to self-debase- 
 ment to bring himself down. But the combatants 
 were advised not to "quarrel about a silver spoon " 
 until they knew that one of them was to have it. 169 
 Meanwhile, in the State at large a great deal of 
 interest was being manifested in political affairs. 
 The excitement of the campaign for the election of 
 State officers was at its height, and never before was 
 so much emphasis placed on the importance of the 
 political complexion of the General Assembly. Pub- 
 lic attention was called to the fact that President 
 Buchanan endorsed the doctrine of Calhoun that 
 slavery existed wherever the Federal Constitution 
 prevailed as the supreme law, and that every Demo- 
 
106 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 cratic member of the legislature would give Ms vote 
 for a United States Senator who would stand by this 
 doctrine. 170 " Finally", declared one editor, "if the 
 Democracy have the majority in the Legislature, 
 they will send that pro-slavery doughface Gen. Jones 
 back to the U. S. Senate, or some gentleman equally 
 well adapted for clay to the hands of Southern pot- 
 ters." 171 It was even claimed that the Democratic 
 leaders would willingly barter off their Governor for 
 a Senator. "The question is not simply who shall 
 be our State officers, but mainly, shall Iowa be repre- 
 sented in the National Legislature by a groveling 
 pro-slavery sycophant, or by an upright, conscien- 
 tious, freedom-loving Bepublican?" 172 
 
 At the election which was held on October 13, 
 1857, the Eepublicans succeeded in electing their 
 entire State ticket and in securing a substantial ma- 
 jority in both houses of the legislature. Henceforth, 
 with the exception of the ridiculous contest which 
 continued to furnish excitement at Dubuque, the 
 senatorial campaign was chiefly confined to the ad- 
 herents of the new and victorious party. The 
 certainty that George W. Jones could no longer hope 
 to be returned to the Senate elicited a satirical com- 
 ment from a Chicago newspaper writer, who was 
 interested in the outcome in Iowa. "A light is ex- 
 tinguished in our sister State beyond the Missis- 
 sippi", he said, "and gloom falls over the northwest. 
 Jones is no more! Four days ago he shone with 
 comet lustre in the galaxy of the unwashed; now, 
 'sick almost to doomesday with eclipse.' As Dodge 
 
THE ELECTION OF GRIMES IN 1858 107 
 
 lost Pleiad sailed from the space two years ago, 
 so Jones wanders away to bear him company in the 
 regions of the infinite Nowhere. Par nobile discom- 
 fited demagogues ! . . . Dodge was the embodied 
 genius of the doughface. Jones never attained that 
 dignity." 173 
 
 The locality from which the new Senator should 
 be chosen immediately became an important consid- 
 eration, and sectional antagonism threatened to pre- 
 vent a calm selection based on fitness and training 
 for the position. The northern part of the State in- 
 sisted that George W. Jones 's successor should come 
 from that section, since the southern half already 
 had one Senator, in the person of James Harlan. 
 Party leaders in the southern counties were equally 
 determined that one of their number should go to the 
 Senate, although they professed to stand for the 
 choice of the best man irrespective of locality. 
 
 One of the earliest to enter the race for the sena- 
 torship was William Penn Clarke of Iowa City. He 
 was a man of strong anti-slavery principles, who had 
 taken a prominent part in the organization of the 
 Eepublican party in the State and who had attended 
 the preliminary Eepublican National Convention at 
 Pittsburgh in February, 1856. 174 Consequently it 
 was natural that he should aspire to a reward at the 
 hands of his party. James Thorington, a leading 
 lawyer of Davenport, was another man whose name 
 was among the first to be prominently mentioned. 
 He had just finished a successful term as Congress- 
 man from the Second District, and his efforts to 
 
108 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 secure railroad land grants had made him many 
 friends in the favored sections of the State, as well 
 as many enemies in the regions not directly bene- 
 fited by the grants. 175 A little later Frederick E. 
 Bissell, a successful Dubuque attorney, was brought 
 out by his friends in the northern part of the State. 176 
 But by far the best known and most promising 
 candidate for the senatorship from the beginning 
 was James W. Grimes of Burlington. His term as 
 Governor which was about to expire witnessed 
 events and movements which make it one of the most 
 significant periods of Iowa history. His election to 
 the governorship in 1854 was the first sign of the 
 ascendancy of the new party which was to hold un- 
 broken sway in the State for thirty-five years, and 
 James W. Grimes, more than any other man, de- 
 served the title sometimes given him of "Father of 
 Republicanism in Iowa ' '. In 1855 a revolution in the 
 ideas of temperance reform brought about the enact- 
 ment of a rigid prohibitory law. Two years later a 
 new State Constitution was adopted, and the capital 
 was moved from Iowa City to Des Moines. During 
 this period the State received a substantial increase 
 in population through the immigration of thousands 
 of sober, industrious, home-seekers from the east. 
 By 1856 the railroad was beginning to push its lines 
 of steel across the prairies toward the Missouri 
 Eiver, and Grimes 's efforts to aid this advance 
 earned for him the name of "The Great Missouri 
 Eiver Opener". In all these important movements 
 James W. Grimes took a definite and active part. 
 
THE ELECTION OF GRIMES IN 1858 109 
 
 The result was that at the close of his governorship 
 he had a host of friends in all parts of the State who 
 were anxious to confer upon him the higher honor of 
 the senatorship. He thus had the advantage of sup- 
 port in all sections of the State, while his opponents 
 could only depend with any degree of assurance upon 
 the votes of a portion of the legislators from their 
 own section. 
 
 And yet, in spite of the fact that he was probably 
 the most popular man in the State, Grimes could by 
 no means be certain of election without a vigorous 
 campaign. Not only was he confronted with the 
 problem of overcoming the claims of a number of 
 rival candidates based largely on sectional prejudice, 
 but he had many enemies within the ranks of his own 
 party whose highest aim for the time being was to 
 defeat him. Consequently, the senatorial contest ex- 
 cited much interest during the winter months. ' ' The 
 prospect for a glorious black republican scramble for 
 office at the sitting of the Legislature is good," was 
 the anticipation of a Democratic editor, "and we 
 expect some fun." 177 
 
 William Penn Clarke early in the campaign wrote 
 letters to a large number of the legislators elect, but 
 a majority of the replies were not of such a nature 
 as to be particularly encouraging. "I will be frank 
 to admit to you that I both have my mind made up 
 and have promised my aid My first choice is Jim 
 Thorington", was an answer which came from Tip- 
 ton. The writer stated that he favored Thorington 
 because he felt that injustice had been done him by 
 
110 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 not returning him to Congress, and because he could 
 command the greatest strength against Grimes. 178 
 "I am entirely unpledged and in fact think I should 
 remain so, and when the time for action comes en- 
 deavor to do what will be best for the party and 
 through its success the best good for the state & 
 nation", was the patriotic but non-committal re- 
 sponse from a resident of the Quaker community of 
 Springdale. 179 " While I would express no prefer- 
 ence as between you & Bissell", came a reply from 
 Des Moines, "allow me to say to you that which 
 ever of you may have the best show I think that I 
 can bring at least ten votes to your support, or to the 
 support of any man opposed to Grimes". 180 Indeed, 
 the correspondents for the most part seemed exceed- 
 ingly wary about making any definite promises. 
 
 James Thorington entered into the contest with 
 all his strength, and with valuable experience gained 
 in his campaign three years before for the position 
 of Eepresentative in Congress. On October 23rd he 
 wrote to James Harlan informing him of his decision 
 to enter the race for an office which he felt was due 
 to him as a reward for his services to the Eepublican 
 party and to the State. At the same time he ex- 
 pressed his determination to remain true to the 
 cause even though he should not be elected. ' ' Be this 
 as it may", he said, "the party shall not have the 
 opportunity of pleading ignorance of my wishes." 181 
 
 It was stated on good authority that immediately 
 after the result of the fall election was known, a 
 certain State officer who was interested in the elec- 
 
THE ELECTION OF GRIMES IN 1858 111 
 
 tion of James W. Grimes wrote to each of the 
 successful Eepublican candidates for the legislature 
 inquiring as to his preference for United States 
 Senator. In reply "a majority of all of them, in 
 confidence declared themselves in favor of the elec- 
 tion of James W. Grimes"; and the State officer 
 "forwarded these several letters, as fast as received, 
 to Mr. Grimes, and informed the several writers who 
 so committed themselves that he had done so." 182 
 
 Thus the leading candidates for the senatorship 
 endeavored to determine in advance the number of 
 votes they could expect to receive. Neither Freder- 
 ick E. Bis sell nor Judge William Smyth of Linn 
 County, whose name was added to the list of 
 aspirants, seem to have made a very strenuous 
 campaign. 
 
 The contest soon resolved itself into a purely 
 personal and sectional struggle in which every con- 
 ceivable pretext was made the basis of an attempt 
 to discredit James W. Grimes. It was insinuated, if 
 not openly charged, that he was using the funds of 
 the executive office to carry on his senatorial cam- 
 paign. "The strife for the Senatorship is still 
 raging, as numerous * little jokers' bearing those 
 ominous words: ' charge Executive Department,' 
 testify", was the comment of a Democratic neighbor 
 of the Governor. ' ' i That 's the way the money goes 
 pop goes the weasel. ' The question is, who pays 
 the piper while the ex-Governor dances to the tune 
 of a Senatorship?" 183 
 
 The part which Grimes played in securing the 
 
112 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 removal of the capital from Iowa City to Des Moines 
 was painted in dark colors by his enemies, and was 
 used with telling effect in some localities. One hos- 
 tile politician even went so far as to write that "if 
 we can get at the facts in the case of the Removal 
 of the Capitol, and particularly Grimes ' figuring he 
 can be knocked higher than ever baloon ascend- 
 ed." 184 William Penn Clarke seemed to share this 
 hope and belief, for he wrote to James Harlan that 
 one means which could be used to defeat Grimes 
 would be to expose his "official corruption " in con- 
 nection with the capital removal, "which, if the facts 
 can be obtained in some tangible shape, ought to 
 damn him". 185 It must be remembered in this con- 
 nection that William Penn Clarke lived in Iowa City, 
 and in common with his fellow citizens was sorely 
 disappointed at the removal of the capital. This 
 charge was also taken up by some of the opposition 
 newspapers, 186 but it had little effect except with 
 those who were angry at the change of location of 
 the capital or who welcomed any attack on Grimes. 
 Another movement of opposition might have 
 caused Grimes no little anxiety if it had met with 
 the approval of the man in whose interest it was 
 supposed to have originated. Early in the contest 
 it began to be whispered about among the friends of 
 James Harlan that the election of Grimes now would 
 mean the defeat of their favorite for reelection two 
 years later. The argument was that if Grimes were 
 chosen both Senators would live in the southern part 
 of the State, and that the next Senator must neces- 
 
THE ELECTION OF GRIMES IN 1858 113 
 
 sarily be elected from the north, thus leaving Harlan 
 in the cold. This possibility caused considerable 
 alarm among Harlan 's admirers, as is shown by the 
 fact that Harlan received numerous letters warning 
 him of the danger and urging him to tell them how to 
 act. * ' If this disposition of you, is with your consent 
 it is all right, but if not, your friends should make 
 active and immediate efforts to counteract it", wrote 
 A. W. Hackley of Dubuque. 187 "The editor of one 
 of our northern Eepublican papers, told me a few 
 days ago that Gov. Grimes openly tells the northern 
 Republicans to wait two years longer for a U. S. 
 Senator ", came the admonition from Iowa City. 188 
 William Penn Clarke, who was probably influenced 
 as much by his own ambition as by his anxiety for 
 James Harlan 's reelection two years later, wrote 
 asking Harlan to use his influence to defeat 
 Grimes. 189 
 
 "It seemed to me marvelous that Mr. Clarke, the 
 writer of the foregoing letter could have believed 
 that he had the least prospect of an election to a seat 
 in the United States Senate ", was James Harlan 's 
 comment in later years. "But it did not seem to me 
 to be proper that I should attempt to control the 
 election of my colleague. And the method suggested 
 by him to defeat the election. of Governor Grimes, 
 was, to my mind, excessively weak, to call it by no 
 more odious name." 190 It is evident, however, that 
 Harlan secretly took more interest in the contest 
 than this statement would indicate, for two weeks 
 before the opening of the legislature he wrote to 
 
 8 
 
114 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 William Penn Clarke, suggesting various possibili- 
 ties and dangers in the campaign against Grimes. 191 
 But Harlan did not openly support the opposition to 
 Grimes, and so the attempt to make capital out of 
 the possible clash between his interests and those of 
 Grimes had little effect in causing defection from 
 the latter. 
 
 As has been intimated, the strongest argument 
 used against James W. Grimes was the sectional 
 plea. The southern half of the State already had 
 one United States Senator, one Congressman, and a 
 majority of the State officers. It was, therefore, not 
 illogical to argue that the new Senator should come 
 from the north. If the north had been able to unite 
 on some strong candidate it is probable, or at least 
 possible, that the sectional issue would have defeated 
 Grimes in spite of his popularity in all parts of the 
 State. But Frederick E. Bissell, the only strictly 
 northern candidate of any prominence, was scarcely 
 known in political circles outside of Dubuque, and 
 hence sectional loyalty was not strong enough to 
 overcome personal admiration among Grimes 's 
 friends even in the north. 
 
 Another objection to Grimes shows the peculiar 
 mental gymnastics in which some men indulged in 
 their desire to hatch up reasons for his defeat. The 
 Eepublican party, as has been suggested, had been 
 organized by a union of former Whigs, Anti-Ne- 
 braska Democrats and Free-Soilers. It was now 
 suggested that since thus far the offices had been 
 given to former Whigs, the new Senator should be 
 
THE ELECTION OF GRIMES IN 1858 115 
 
 chosen from among one of the other elements, pref- 
 erably from among those who had formerly been 
 Democrats. 192 
 
 Descending to purely personal matters it appears 
 that James W. Grimes was taunted with being 
 slovenly in dress and appearance and unsocial and 
 surly by nature. Both Harlan and Grimes were 
 referred to in a Democratic journal as "icebergs 
 floating at random in the sea of politics ; avoided by 
 all warmer natures as much as possible and when 
 passed by other members, causing a shiver by the 
 cold and formal nod of the head and the surly 'good 
 morning.' m93 
 
 Meanwhile Grimes and his friends were quietly 
 at work. A number of the strongest Eepublican 
 newspapers in the State warmly supported his cause, 
 and all the indications of popular sentiment re- 
 mained decidedly in his favor. 
 
 A strange and somewhat amusing side attraction 
 throughout this contest was the struggle which con- 
 tinued with unabated fury at Dubuque between 
 George W. Jones and Thomas S. Wilson. "All the 
 arts of diplomacy have failed to bring about a recon- 
 ciliation, or to stay the rage and confusion of the 
 battle ", was the comment in a Dubuque newspaper 
 as late as December 19th. "The Generals are har- 
 anguing their armies, and urging them to contumacy 
 and cowardice. Each represents his opponent as his 
 personal enemy the enemy of his party, his coun- 
 try and his Senatorial interests. " 194 The reasons 
 for maintaining this senseless warfare, when it was 
 
116 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 certain that neither Jones nor Wilson could gain the 
 senatorship, are difficult to understand. But the ex- 
 planation given at the time was that Jones wished 
 the complimentary vote of his party as a recom- 
 mendation with which to apply to President Bu- 
 chanan for a good position after retiring from his 
 seat in the Senate. 
 
 By the time the Seventh General Assembly met 
 at Des Moines on January 11, 1858, all of the candi- 
 dates and issues of the contest were fairly before the 
 legislators. Alvin Saunders writing to James Har- 
 lan said that the town was full of outsiders ready to 
 be ' i sacrificed on the altar of their country ' '. It was 
 his opinion that unless the north united on some 
 strong man and worked hard for him James W. 
 Grimes would be elected. But, he said, "he will at 
 least feel, before he fully secures all the votes, that 
 the servant is not greater than his master & that he 
 must humble himself as a little child before he enters 
 his kingdom/' 195 
 
 Correspondents writing to their newspapers at 
 the opening of the session were not able to predict 
 with any certainty when the election would be held. 
 While the outside pressure among the lobbyists and 
 politicians was largely opposed to Grimes, the senti- 
 ment among members of the legislature was strongly 
 in his favor, and it seemed evident to all that he 
 would be the successful candidate. The opponents 
 of Grimes urged a postponement of the election in 
 the hope of causing discord in the party and de- 
 fections from the ranks of his adherents. 196 
 
THE ELECTION OF GRIMES IN 1858 117 
 
 Thus several days passed and an unrelenting 
 warfare was carried on against James W. Grimes by 
 a few bitter enemies. The leading opponent outside 
 of the rival candidates was Fitz Henry Warren. 
 What the motives were which induced him to labor 
 so energetically to defeat Grimes are not known, but 
 it is a fact that throughout the contest he was very 
 active in the opposition. His efforts, however, were 
 of little avail, for since his candidacy for Senator 
 three years before he seems to have lost much of his 
 popularity. A prominent Eepublican editor ex- 
 pressed the judgment that Warren had only "suc- 
 ceeded in giving himself a very high position on the 
 political shelf. " 197 
 
 Meanwhile the newspapers were full of specula- 
 tions as to the probable outcome. If the question 
 could have been submitted to a popular vote there 
 can be little doubt but that Grimes would have been 
 elected by an overwhelming majority of the Repub- 
 lican votes. " It is a period when no second or third 
 rate talent should be sent from any Northern State 
 to the American Senate", admonished Charles Aid- 
 rich in the Hamilton Freeman. "The great and 
 absorbing question of slavery domination is daily 
 assuming new phases, and new schemes are con- 
 stantly laid to subvert our liberties. ' ' It was a time, 
 he said, when the State should be represented by a 
 compeer of Sumner, Seward, and Hale, and he con- 
 sidered James W. Grimes fully up to the standard. 198 
 
 On January 25, 1858, both parties held caucuses. 
 In the Eepublican caucus the first informal ballot 
 
118 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 resulted in twenty-eight votes for James W. Grimes, 
 thirteen for James Thorington, nine for William 
 Smyth, five for David Bunker, five for Samuel Dart 
 (a fictitious name), and three for Timothy Davis. 
 On the first formal ballot Grimes received thirty- 
 eight, Thorington thirteen, Smyth eight, and Davis 
 three. 199 James W. Grimes, having a clear majority 
 of all the votes cast, was unanimously declared the 
 nominee of the party. It was estimated that if 
 another ballot had been necessary Grimes would 
 have received at least sixteen more votes. 200 "My 
 vote would have been much larger, and nearly unan- 
 imous, on the second ballot", wrote Grimes to his 
 wife, "as many voted for persons in their own 
 counties on the first ballot, by way of compliment, 
 who would have voted for me on the second ballot, 
 and for me on the first had their votes been neces- 
 sary. " 201 
 
 The Democratic caucus cast an informal ballot in 
 which Benjamin M. Samuels received nineteen votes, 
 George W. Jones thirteen, Thomas S. Wilson six, 
 Lincoln Clark one, and William F. Coolbaugh one. 
 A formal ballot was then taken, Samuels receiving 
 twenty-eight votes and Jones ten. 202 Benjamin M. 
 Samuels of Dubuque County was therefore nom- 
 inated to receive the empty compliment of the 
 Democratic votes for United States Senator. 
 George W. Jones had shortly before this time come 
 out openly in support of President Buchanan 's 
 policy toward the fraudulent Lecompton Constitu- 
 tion in Kansas, and his defeat now by Samuels was 
 
THE ELECTION OF GRIMES IN 1858 119 
 
 taken as an indication that Iowa Democrats repudi- 
 ated the President's course. 
 
 On the following day, January 26, 1858, the two 
 houses of the General Assembly met in joint con- 
 vention for the election of United States Senator. 
 Little interest was taken in what was merely a mat- 
 ter of form. The Eepublicans were so strongly in 
 the majority as to make the election of Grimes a 
 certainty, and there was no disposition to bolt the 
 nominations in either party. So when the votes 
 were counted and it was announced that James W. 
 Grimes was elected United States Senator for the 
 term of six years beginning March 4, 1859, no one 
 was surprised. Grimes received sixty-four votes, a 
 majority of twenty-three over Samuels. After elect- 
 ing a state printer, certificates of election were 
 drawn up and signed and the joint convention ad- 
 journed. 203 
 
 On the evening of January 29th, conforming to 
 the established custom, James W. Grimes gave a 
 supper to the members of the legislature and a num- 
 ber of other prominent citizens. Nearly two hundred 
 guests gathered at the Des Moines House to par- 
 ticipate in what was described as one of the most 
 brilliant events of the season. 204 Thus with expres- 
 sions of good will and amid the rejoicings of 
 Eepublicans all over the State the long contest came 
 to an end. 
 
VI 
 THE ELECTION OF JAMES HAELAN IN 1860 
 
 INTEREST in the election of a United States Senator 
 was revived during the summer of 1859, for it was 
 realized that upon the succeeding General Assembly 
 would devolve the duty of choosing a successor to 
 James Harlan. It was a period of great political 
 earnestness and activity. Party lines were closely 
 drawn upon the all-absorbing issue of human slav- 
 ery. The ever growing cloud of the irrepressible 
 conflict was casting its ominous shadow over the 
 Nation, and out on the frontier in Iowa men were 
 filled with anxious forebodings. It was natural, 
 therefore, that they should take an intense interest 
 in the election of all their officials, and especially of 
 those who should represent them in the halls of 
 Congress. 
 
 There seems to have been very little public dis- 
 cussion of the senatorial question until in August, 
 1859 ; but as early as July the friends of James Har- 
 lan began to write to him regarding his prospects of 
 reelection. It was the general opinion that while he 
 would doubtless have some competition within the 
 ranks of his own party he need have no apprehen- 
 sions as to the election of a Democratic legislature. 205 
 
 By the middle of August, however, newspaper 
 
 120 
 
THE ELECTION OF HARLAN IN 1860 121 
 
 editors began to pay some attention to the possi- 
 bilities in the election of a United States Senator. 
 From this time until after the State election in 
 October the bearing of the result upon the choice of 
 a Senator by the legislature during the following 
 winter was one of the important considerations in 
 the strenuous campaign. Indeed, it may be said that 
 the senatorial election of 1860 differs from those 
 which preceded it in the fact that it was to a greater 
 extent determined by the fall elections. James 
 Harlan had given ample satisfaction to the members 
 of his party throughout the State, and his reelection 
 virtually hung upon the question of whether the ma- 
 jority in the new legislature would be Eepublican or 
 Democratic. 
 
 During the State campaign of 1859 the Demo- 
 crats did all in their power to minimize the impor- 
 tance of great national issues and to deprecate their 
 introduction into the determination of local affairs. 
 They complained, for instance, that the speeches of 
 James Harlan in the United States Senate were 
 being circulated throughout the State as campaign 
 documents. The Democratic party was at this time 
 hopelessly divided on national issues, and the leaders 
 in Iowa were making desperate efforts to hold the 
 discordant elements together in the State election. 
 They were placed in the awkward position of 
 endeavoring to carry out the program of the admin- 
 istration at Washington and at the same time of 
 being forced to pass lightly over many of the acts 
 and policies of President Buchanan in the attempt 
 
122 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 to propitiate the dissatisfied members of the party. 
 Hence, their desire to disparage the introduction of 
 national issues into State politics. 
 
 The Eepublicans were quick to penetrate the de- 
 signs of their opponents. Eepublican newspapers 
 all over the State contained editorials warning their 
 readers to beware of the false doctrines of the Demo- 
 crats. "The Black Democracy ", wrote one editor, 
 "are contending that in our State election, this fall, 
 we have nothing to do with matters involved in na- 
 tional politics ; that the extravagances of the present 
 Administration, and the demands and atrocities of 
 the Slave Power are not to be at all considered in 
 this election. . . . The Legislature now to be 
 elected, elects a United States Senator for six years. 
 Has that nothing to do with national matters?" 206 
 It was declared that the Democrats had no hope of 
 electing their State ticket, but were bending every 
 effort to secure a majority in the legislature in order 
 to elect a United States Senator. Eepublicans were 
 warned to vote the entire ticket and not to trade off 
 their votes for a legislative candidate for Democratic 
 votes for State officers. Often an exaggerated em- 
 phasis was placed upon the importance of a single 
 vote, in the desire to hold voters to a straight ticket. 
 "A single vote in this County or some other County 
 in the State", was the solemn admonition of a Keo- 
 kuk editor, "may elect a single member of the 
 Legislature, whose single vote may decide the polit- 
 ical character of that branch of the Legislature, and 
 thereby decide who shall be United States Senator 
 
THE ELECTION OF HARLAN IN 1860 123 
 
 for six years. And that United States Senator may 
 in course decide during the next Presidential term 
 the political character of the United States Senate 
 by his votes. " 207 
 
 During the campaign the Democrats were urged 
 to greater activity by a number of circulars sent out 
 from Washington, D. C. These circulars purported 
 to come from what were known as the ' i Iowa Demo- 
 cratic Club Booms' '. It is evident, however, that 
 they were prepared under supervision of the Admin- 
 istration, which was in dire straits and not only 
 needed the moral support of Democratic victories in 
 State elections, but was especially anxious to gain 
 additional Democratic votes in Congress. One of the 
 circulars which was freely and as secretly as possible 
 distributed among the Democrats throughout the 
 State, called attention to the number of votes the 
 party must gain in each county in order to carry the 
 election. * ' Recollect, too, that a United States Sena- 
 tor is to be elected ", continued the circular, "in the 
 place of the man (Harlan) who, in his seat in the 
 Senate, proclaimed that the negro was the equal of 
 the white man, because, forsooth, they had arms, 
 heads, noses, ears, legs, &c. ! . . . Let every man 
 who believes that the negro is his equal vote for 
 members of the Legislature who will return Harlan, 
 the black man's candidate, to the Senate, but let us 
 white men vote for the white man's candidate!" 208 
 
 This attack upon Senator Harlan aroused his 
 friends to action. A Keokuk editor called upon Re- 
 publican voters to rally to the polls and ' ' rebuke this 
 
124 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 corrupt foreign and federal interference in your 
 State election, and hurl back with defiant scorn the 
 insolent charge that Harlan is the ' black man's can- 
 didate/ " 209 "Will the political and personal 
 friends of Senator Harlan stand idly by and permit 
 him to be calumniated and defeated by the Federal 
 Administration and its insolent slaveholding allies of 
 the South ?" 210 asked the editor of a paper published 
 at Mt. Pleasant, the home of James Harlan. The 
 Eepublican State Central Committee issued a cir- 
 cular declaring that the State ticket was reasonably 
 safe, but that the Democrats were using every means 
 to secure control of the legislature in order to elect 
 a Democrat in the place of James Harlan. They 
 even charged the Democrats with planning to import 
 voters from the neighboring States to carry the 
 elections in doubtful counties. 211 
 
 Thus the campaign was carried on until the 
 October elections, when the Republicans won a sub- 
 stantial victory by electing their State ticket and 
 gaining control of both branches of the General 
 Assembly. Henceforth it was no longer a question 
 of whether a Democrat or a Eepublican should be 
 sent to the United States Senate. It was now merely 
 a matter of choice between the various Eepublican 
 aspirants for the position, and public sentiment was 
 clearly in favor of the reelection of James Harlan. 
 "Nearly all the leading Eepublican journals in the 
 State have declared in favor of MB. HARLAN 's re- 
 election to the U. S. Senate, by the Legislature which 
 is soon to assemble ", declared a Mt. Pleasant editor. 
 
THE ELECTION OF HARLAN IN 1860 125 
 
 ' ' Of his success, with almost if not entire unanimity, 
 we have no doubt. " 212 And this was the attitude of 
 Eepublican editors to such an extent that there was 
 very little public discussion of senatorial possibilities. 
 
 There seems, however, to have been considerable 
 secret planning and figuring on the part of a number 
 of politicians who coveted a seat in the United States 
 Senate. During the three months preceding the 
 meeting of the legislature James Harlan received a 
 large number of letters from his friends, assuring 
 him of their support, warning him not to be too con- 
 fident of success, or informing him of the plans of 
 his rivals. 213 From James W. Grimes came the in- 
 telligence that Timothy Davis was in the field, but 
 the opinion was expressed that he would have little 
 chance of election. There was also a movement on 
 foot in the western part of the State, supposedly in 
 favor of Thomas H. Benton, Jr., but Senator Grimes 
 had no fear of this combination. "You are safe for 
 the reason that I was two years ago," he told Harlan, 
 "because there is no one else to unite on." 214 An- 
 other friend, writing from Clarinda, gave additional 
 warning of the efforts which were being made to 
 elect a man from the Missouri slope. The letter 
 intimated that the name of Fitz Henry Warren was 
 "mixed up in the matter", and the writer urged 
 Senator Harlan to be on his guard. 215 
 
 Among all the men spoken of as possible candi- 
 dates for the senatorship Chief Justice George G. 
 Wright seems to have been the one most feared by 
 Harlan 's friends. In spite of the fact that very 
 
126 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 early Judge Wright declared that he was not a 
 candidate but would support Harlan, anxiety as to 
 his course was not fully allayed until after the elec- 
 tion. "My own impression has been that Wright 
 would be the neucleus around which the opposition 
 to you, if any, would rally ", wrote Thomas Drum- 
 mond from Vinton. "But another letter received 
 from a coeditor friend to-day, intimates that Andrew 
 J. Stevens is the man. I hardly credit the last suppo- 
 sition, and presume that Stevens himself is possibly 
 in the interest of someone else." 216 And as late as 
 December 26, 1859, the same writer declared that 
 "Stevens may be the man, but I yet believe Wright 
 is the one on whom the opposition hope to concen- 
 trate". 217 Another of Harlan 's admirers, more 
 alarmed than Thomas Drummond over the possibili- 
 ties of Judge Wright's candidacy, wrote to Harlan 
 late in December and even went so far as to declare 
 that the Democrats were planning to support Wright 
 and that they hoped to draw off enough Republican 
 votes to elect him. He therefore urged Senator Har- 
 lan to be very vigilant and have his friends actively 
 at work. 218 This warning, of course, appears ridic- 
 ulous in the light of subsequent developments. 
 
 John A. Kasson was another man whose actions 
 were watched with interest by those who were espe- 
 cially anxious for James Harlan 's reelection. It is 
 quite evident that Kasson had at one time expressed 
 his willingness to be considered as a candidate for 
 the senatorship if there appeared to be any chances 
 for his success. But he was a comparatively new 
 
THE ELECTION OF HARLAN IN 1860 127 
 
 man in the Iowa political arena, and finding that he 
 could expect but little support he hastily withdrew 
 from the race. "K & his friends begin to see the 
 effect that this movement will have upon his future ' ', 
 wrote a friend to James Harlan early in November, 
 "and they now deny having had any such intentions. 
 So you see that the K. movement is about blown up. 
 Their secret plans are however well understood. 
 . . . I think that it is possible that they may start 
 some new man, but it will end about as K. has." 219 
 
 A number of other men were spoken of in letters 
 to James Harlan as aspirants to succeed him in the 
 Senate, but as they had few supporters little thought 
 was given to them as rivals. One politician, of the 
 type which believed in rotation in the enjoyment of 
 public offices, suggested the propriety of "allowing 
 some of the young men to step up to the fire and 
 warm themselves." 220 But the party as a whole was 
 too much in earnest in regard to the great problems 
 which were confronting the Nation to send anyone 
 but a man of experience and ability to the United 
 States Senate. 
 
 The General Assembly convened at Des Moines 
 on January 9, 1860. As usual the town was filled 
 with members of the "third house" seeking offices 
 or lobbying for some special interest. Realizing the 
 danger of delay the friends of James Harlan under 
 the leadership of Alvin Saunders succeeded in ar- 
 ranging a Republican caucus on the evening of 
 January 12th. The caucus was well attended and a 
 spirit of harmony prevailed. James Harlan was 
 
128 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 unanimously nominated for reelection in spite of the 
 disappointment of certain ambitious individuals. 221 
 ' ' Your nomination by acclamation in caucus was not 
 very well relished by a very few great men in our 
 party ", wrote Martin L. Morris to the successful 
 candidate. l i The first few days of the Session they 
 were somewhat clamorous but gradually subsided. 
 Now, there is not one of them, but asserts that you 
 were their first and only choice for that position. " 222 
 
 The Democrats in caucus decided to cast their 
 votes for Augustus Caesar Dodge, who for so long 
 had been the favorite of his party, although it seems 
 that in this case the choice was not made without 
 some difficulty. 223 
 
 The joint convention met in the hall of the House 
 of Eepresentatives at ten o'clock on the morning of 
 January 14th. Julius H. Powers nominated James 
 Harlan and Thomas W. Claggett nominated Augus- 
 tus Caesar Dodge. When the votes were counted it 
 was found that Harlan had seventy-three while 
 Dodge had only fifty-two. A certificate was, there- 
 fore, signed declaring that James Harlan had been 
 elected to represent Iowa in the United States Senate 
 for the term of six years beginning March 4, 1861. 224 
 
 Thus was another senatorial election accom- 
 plished. Nor can there be any doubt but that the 
 result accorded with the wishes of a majority of the 
 people of the State. Furthermore, the wisdom of 
 the choice was amply demonstrated during the event- 
 ful years which followed when the Nation had sore 
 need of the guidance of strong and loyal sons. 
 
VII 
 
 THE ELECTION OF JAMES W. GEIMES 
 IN 1864 
 
 THE senatorial election of 1864 was comparatively 
 uneventful. Indeed, it can scarcely be said that 
 there was any contest. The war naturally detracted 
 interest to a certain extent from political affairs 
 within the State. Furthermore, the Eepublican 
 party was by this time so strongly in the ascendancy 
 in Iowa that the Democrats had no hope of electing 
 a United States Senator. It seems to have been a 
 foregone conclusion, as early as any interest was 
 taken in the question at all, that James W. Grimes 
 would be reflected to the position which he had filled 
 since March 4, 1859, in a manner so satisfactory to 
 his constituents. 
 
 Early in the spring of 1863 Senator Grimes re- 
 ceived a letter from an editor in the eastern part of 
 the State asking him if he would be a candidate for 
 reelection. He replied that he was not at all 
 desirous to be returned to the Senate. ' ' On the con- 
 trary ", he continued, "I am rather averse to the 
 idea of continuing in public life beyond my present 
 term. Our friends have insisted that I shall serve 
 another term, and I have consented to do so, if, after 
 having surveyed the whole field, they are satisfied 
 
 9 129 
 
130 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 that the interest of the country and our party re- 
 quire it, or that they are unable to secure the 
 services of a better man." 225 
 
 During the campaign which preceded the fall 
 election in 1863 a few newspapers contained brief 
 editorials reminding their readers that a United 
 States Senator would be chosen by the next General 
 Assembly. Democratic editors used this plea more 
 frequently than their opponents. Ira C. Mitchell, in 
 an Iowa City paper, admonished all Democrats to 
 vote for Democratic members of the legislature, 
 since one member of the legislature might cast the 
 deciding vote in the election of a United States Sena- 
 tor, and "one Senator might save the nation, by 
 voting for some such patriotic measure as Grimes 
 has always voted against." 226 Another editor, 
 whose optimism for his party exceeded his clearness 
 of prophetic vision, predicted that the Democrats 
 would make a "clean sweep" of the State that fall, 
 and that the "abolition rebels", including Senator 
 Grimes would be "swept from places of power into 
 the common rubbish heap." 227 
 
 The Democrats did not make a "clean sweep" of 
 the State, however, for the Eepublicans were over- 
 whelmingly successful in the fall elections. In many 
 cases only men who were pledged to vote for the 
 reelection of James W. Grimes to the Senate were 
 chosen as members of the legislature. 228 
 
 As the time for the meeting of the General As- 
 sembly drew near Eepublican newspapers began to 
 speak out in favor of the reelection of Senator 
 
THE ELECTION OF GRIMES IN 1864 131 
 
 Grimes. About the only dissenting voices came from 
 the extreme western part of the State, where the old 
 sectional plea was urged in support of a western 
 man. But there was no one on whom the few op- 
 posing elements could unite, and in fact no other 
 candidates were seriously considered. Public senti- 
 ment was clearly and definitely on the -side of James 
 W. Grimes. 
 
 The Tenth General Assembly convened on 
 January 11, 1864, and proceeded without delay to 
 organize and take up the business of the session. 
 ' l There is not sufficient opposition to make any con- 
 test having a political bearing, piquant ", wrote a 
 correspondent. 229 On January 16th a joint conven- 
 tion was held and James W. Grimes, who had 
 received a unanimous nomination in caucus, was 
 reflected United States Senator by a vote which was 
 almost unanimous. Of the one hundred and thirty- 
 four votes cast, Senator Grimes received all but six. 
 John D. Jennings received five votes and Mr. Love 
 one vote. 230 Thus James W. Grimes was chosen to 
 represent Iowa in the United States Senate for 
 another six years by the largest majority ever given 
 a Senator from this State. 
 
VIII 
 
 THE ELECTION OF HARLAN AND 
 KIEKWOOD IN 1866 
 
 AMONG the last official acts of President Lincoln was 
 the appointment of James Harlan as Secretary of 
 the Interior to succeed John P. Usher, whose resig- 
 nation took effect May 15, 1865. The acceptance of 
 this position by Senator Harlan left vacant his seat 
 in the United States Senate for the remainder of his 
 term which would expire March 3, 1867. Conse- 
 quently there were two senatorships to be filled by 
 the General Assembly of Iowa in 1866, and in the 
 meantime the Governor might fill the vacancy by 
 appointment. 
 
 The news of the choice of James Harlan for the 
 Cabinet position naturally caused a flurry in Iowa 
 political circles. There were a number of men in the 
 State to whom the thought of going to the United 
 States Senate even for the brief period of the un- 
 expired term was by no means distasteful. The first 
 question was whether or not Governor Stone would 
 appoint. The general impression seems to have 
 been that he would not do so, and in fact several 
 newspapers strongly urged this policy. But the un- 
 certainty on this point continued to cause more or 
 less anxiety throughout the remainder of the year. 
 
 132 
 
ELECTION OF HARLAN AND KIRKWOOD 133 
 
 Late in March, 1865, Governor Stone wrote to 
 Samuel J. Kirkwood concerning the vacancy. While 
 he did not in so many words promise to appoint 
 Kirkwood, he declared that if the vacancy should 
 occur before the meeting of the legislature "I have 
 never doubted in my own mind that you would be 
 the man." 231 Again in June it appears that Stone 
 wrote to Kirkwood stating that he had been con- 
 sidering the matter and had decided to risk an 
 appointment, but that he would defer his action 
 until after the meeting of the Eepublican State Con- 
 vention, at which time he hoped to be nominated for 
 a second term as Governor. "I am importuned 
 almost night and day on this subject by the friends 
 of one or two other aspirants", he said, "and have 
 determined to not dispose of the elephant until I am 
 out of the woods myself. ' ' As before, the Governor 
 avoided an explicit promise to appoint Kirkwood, 
 but used language which any fair-minded person 
 would consider a direct agreement to do so. "There 
 is in some parts of the state a determined yet secret 
 opposition to you", he declared, "but an appoint- 
 ment by me will do much to quiet it, as my friends 
 will feel under obligation to endorse my action and 
 sustain me." 
 
 Stone was particularly anxious to have the assist- 
 ance of Kirkwood 's friends at the State Convention, 
 but he did not think it advisable for Kirkwood him- 
 self to be present "as it would help to give color to 
 the assumption" that there was "a bargain and 
 sale" between the two men. "There will be no ne- 
 
134 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 cessity for your friends to say anything about the 
 appointment at the convention, " he told Kirkwood, 
 "and their reticence on the subject will tend to keep 
 others quiet and avoid undue agitation of the ques- 
 tion. . . . You will be Senator and I Governor 
 again if our friends understand each other, and are 
 prudent and discreet in their management. " 232 
 
 It is evident that others besides Kirkwood con- 
 sidered that Stone had definitely promised to appoint 
 the "War Governor " to the senatorship. "After 
 Stone had promised to appoint you", wrote Mar- 
 cellus M. Crocker late in June, "persons in this 
 locality opposed to it and in favor of Kasson bullied 
 him into a fever almost, and in a conversation that I 
 had with him the day before the Convention he in- 
 timated that he might not appoint you until after 
 the election. ... I do not know but that if he 
 waits until after the election he may conclude to be a 
 candidate himself and go back to his old policy of 
 not appointing at all. I know that until he became 
 alarmed about his nomination he had intended to so 
 manage his cards as to be a candidate. ... I am 
 decidedly of the opinion that Stone ought to be held 
 to his promise and made to appoint. " 233 
 
 Governor Stone's conduct toward Kirkwood in 
 regard to the vacant senatorship was, to say the 
 least, not commendable. After giving ample prom- 
 ise of his intention to appoint Kirkwood, he not only 
 failed to fulfil that promise, but it is to be feared 
 that he secretly hoped for Kirkwood 's defeat at the 
 hands of the legislature in January, 1866. 
 
ELECTION OF HARLAN AND KIRKWOOD 135 
 
 The question of the senatorial succession became 
 further complicated early in the summer of 1865 
 when it was hinted about that James Harlan would 
 not be reluctant to return to the Senate. Several 
 letters passed between Harlan and Kirkwood re- 
 garding the latter 's candidacy; but perhaps the most 
 significant in this connection was one written by 
 Harlan on July 18th. He stated that as far as he 
 knew his friends would support Kirkwood for the 
 senatorship and he had little doubt of his election. 
 "I am not sure, however", he continued, "but I 
 would like to swap places with you after you have 
 grown a little tired of a seat in the senate, and feel 
 like taking a little recreation in running after thieves 
 that have been burrowing about this Department, 
 and living under its protecting aegis in the states 
 and territories. How would you like it ? " 234 Appar- 
 ently the Secretary of the Interior was not entirely 
 pleased with his position. 
 
 The newspapers soon took up the question, and 
 Eepublican editors, as in former years, warned their 
 readers that the Democrats were making strenuous 
 efforts to gain control of the legislature in order to 
 elect a Democratic Senator. It was asserted that 
 every issue was being made to subserve this end; 
 that the Democrats, for instance, in their State Con- 
 vention had voted to leave the liquor question to 
 each county to decide for itself, and thus it might be 
 "thimble-rigged by the local wire-pullers, and the 
 secret intriguers, bent upon carrying the Legislature 
 for the purpose named." 235 
 
136 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 From Washington came numerous communica- 
 tions on the subject of Harlan 's successor. It was 
 strongly urged that the question of locality should 
 not be allowed to enter into the choice, but that the 
 best man should be selected irrespective of locality. 
 According to these correspondents the man most 
 talked of for the senatorship by lowans at the capital 
 city was James F. Wilson, Congressman from the 
 First District. 236 It does not appear, however, that 
 Wilson made any effort to secure the position which 
 his friends were so anxious for him to receive. In 
 fact he later positively denied having any intention 
 of entering the contest. 237 
 
 By the latter part of October a number of names 
 were being urged in connection with the senatorship 
 by newspapers and politicians in various parts of 
 the State. Fitz Henry Warren, James F. Wilson, 
 Samuel J. Kirkwood, John A. Kasson, William M. 
 Stone, William Vandever, S. R. Curtis, Asahel W. 
 Hubbard, and William B. Allison all had their 
 champions, while others of less prominence received 
 some mention. 
 
 Meanwhile the possibility that James Harlan 
 would be a candidate for the position he had so lately 
 resigned was becoming more and more a certainty. 
 Indeed, it soon became apparent that the Secretary 
 of the Interior was making quiet but persistent plans 
 to regain his former seat in the United States Sen- 
 ate. Late in September Harlan was in Burlington, 
 and James W. Grimes wrote to Kirkwood stating 
 that it was believed at that place that Harlan wanted 
 
ELECTION OF HARLAN AND KIRKWOOD 137 
 
 the full term which would begin in March, 1867, 
 while Fitz Henry Warren was working for the un- 
 expired term. Furthermore, it was thought that 
 either a bargain to this effect would be made between 
 the two men, or that Harlan would take the long 
 term and secure for Warren a mission to Europe. 238 
 
 The actions of James Harlan were a special 
 source of anxiety to Kirkwood and his friends. The 
 * ' War Governor ' ' had a strong hold on the affections 
 of the people in many parts of the State, as is illus- 
 trated in a letter from William B. Lakin, a State 
 Senator elect to whom Kirkwood had written con- 
 cerning his vote at the coming General Assembly. 
 "The fact is, Governor", wrote Lakin, "I have been 
 so much in the habit of voting for you that I don't 
 well see how I could break the habit so early as the 
 year of grace 1866. " 239 But James Harlan was un- 
 doubtedly the most powerful figure in Iowa politics 
 at this time, and his wishes were bound to weigh 
 heavily in the contest. 
 
 Jacob Rich of Dubuque, at this time secretary of 
 the Senate Naval Committee, was one of Kirkwood 's 
 strongest supporters, and his position at Washing- 
 ton enabled him to observe the political schemes 
 which were being concocted at the capital. Until he 
 went to Washington, Eich seems to have been quite 
 confident of Kirkwood 's election. But in December 
 he wrote : " I cannot be so cheerful and confident of 
 your success as I was when I came here. I have 
 heard so much about what Harlan is doing, the ropes 
 he is pulling, the patronage he is wielding, and the 
 
138 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 power lie is using, to accomplish his election, that I 
 feel a good deal down in the mouth. " 24 A few days 
 later Kirkwood received a letter from another friend 
 at Washington in which it was stated that Harlan 
 was working silently and would not allow his name 
 to be used unless certain of election. A number of 
 persons connected with the Department of the In- 
 terior in various capacities, it was asserted, had been 
 sent to Iowa ostensibly on official business, but in 
 reality their mission was to serve the interests of 
 James Harlan in the senatorial contest. 241 
 
 James W. Grimes, William B. Allison, and others 
 in the Iowa delegation at Washington heartily 
 sympathized with Kirkwood and looked upon Har- 
 lan 's course with disfavor. It seems that Harlan 
 had virtually made a pledge to Grimes that he would 
 support Kirkwood for the senatorship, and his 
 change of front was considered an act of bad faith. 242 
 In fact the relations between Grimes and Harlan 
 were distinctly less friendly from this time forth. 
 
 As the time for the meeting of the legislature 
 approached it was very apparent that the real con- 
 test lay between Harlan and Kirkwood, although a 
 number of other men still had hopes of being chosen 
 for the unexpired term. Eepublican newspaper sup- 
 port was somewhat in Harlan 's favor, but there were 
 several editors who warmly espoused the cause of 
 Samuel J. Kirkwood. Editors friendly to Harlan 
 were perfectly willing that he should resign his 
 Cabinet position and resume his seat in the United 
 States Senate. They declared that their favorite 
 
ELECTION OF HARLAN AND KIRKWOOD 139 
 
 had gone into the Cabinet "against his own wishes 
 and at the urgent and continued solicitations of 
 President Lincoln and leading friends of the 
 Union." 243 Therefore, he should now be allowed to 
 return to the Senate if he should so desire. Further- 
 more, it was argued that if Harlan should be elected 
 for the long term which began March 4, 1867, he 
 could retain his position as Secretary almost to the 
 close of President Johnson's administration, after 
 which time he might be superseded anyway. 244 
 
 The friends of Kirkwood, on the other hand, 
 claimed that it was the general understanding when 
 James Harlan accepted the appointment to the 
 Cabinet that he had entirely abandoned the sena- 
 torial field. Consequently he should remain out of 
 the contest. Moreover, it was urged that it would be 
 subversive of the best interests of the country for 
 Harlan to leave the Cabinet at this time. "The 
 danger of the present crisis is from the executive, 
 not the legislative, department of government", was 
 the contention, "and should Mr. Harlan retire from 
 the Cabinet we have every reason to believe his place 
 would be filled by a ' conservative/ and the danger 
 increased." 245 
 
 The Eleventh General Assembly convened on 
 January 8, 1866. A Keokuk newspaper correspond- 
 ent who reached the capital city on January 5th 
 found the Savery House well filled with legislators, 
 State officials, clerks, "and many others of more or 
 less notoriety, forming that indispensable part of 
 any well regulated legislative body, 'The Third 
 
140 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 House. ' The political atmosphere, he said, was 
 already warm with the heat of the senatorial 
 contest. 246 
 
 During the early days of the session a sharp but 
 apparently good-natured war was waged between 
 the friends of the rival candidates. Kirkwood was 
 charged with being opposed to equal suffrage and 
 with having shirked that issue in the last State cam- 
 paign. He was accused of having agreed with the 
 friends of Harlan to take the short term as a means 
 of defeating a northern candidate. And finally it 
 was insinuated that all of the "War Governor V 
 military appointments had been made with a view to 
 aiding his own cause in the senatorial race. It was 
 urged against Harlan that to reelect him would be 
 heaping favors on one man at the risk of weakening 
 the organization of the party. Furthermore, it was 
 hinted about that Harlan had enriched himself in 
 the Department of the Interior. 247 "Then this one 
 was a Methodist ", ran an observer's account of the 
 arguments used, "while the other is a Nothingarian; 
 (that is, he believes in nothing and lives up to it,) 
 and, therefore, none but Methodists should support 
 the first, while everybody else and his wife ought to 
 support the latter!" 248 
 
 The Eepublican caucus was held sometime during 
 the first week of the session. Three ballots were 
 necessary for the choice of a candidate for the long 
 term. James Harlan and Samuel J. Kirkwood were 
 nearly tied on the first ballot, while three other men 
 each received a few votes. On the second ballot two 
 
ELECTION OF HARLAN AND KIRKWOOD 141 
 
 names were abandoned, and on the third James 
 Harlan received four votes more than the number 
 necessary for a choice. Only one ballot was re- 
 quired to choose a candidate for the short term. 
 Samuel J. Kirkwood received eighty votes, while the 
 highest number received by any of his six compet- 
 itors was sixteen. 249 
 
 The action of the caucus virtually amounted to 
 an election, for the Republicans were overwhelm- 
 ingly in the majority in both houses of the General 
 Assembly. A joint convention was held on January 
 13, 1866, and the choice of the caucus was heartily 
 confirmed. Kirkwood and Harlan each received one 
 hundred and eighteen votes, as opposed to twenty 
 votes received by J. F. Stoneman and H. H. Trimble, 
 the Democratic candidates for the short and the long 
 terms respectively. Fitz Henry Warren also re- 
 ceived one vote for the short term. 250 
 
 The outcome was naturally a disappointment to 
 those who had hoped for Kirkwood 's election to the 
 long term, and some of them were quick to assign 
 reasons for Harlan 's success. "I thought on the 
 first day of the Session that Gov. Kirkwood would 
 be elected", read the correspondence to an Iowa 
 City paper which came from Des Moines. "But the 
 lobby force consisted of two Indian Agents, two Pay- 
 masters, one Quartermaster, one Special Mail 
 Agent, four Assessors and Collectors of Int. Eev. 
 three or four Postmasters, one Brig. Gen. direct 
 from Washington and Methodist Preachers, without 
 number or piety. ' ' "I have had cause since coming 
 
142 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 here to change somewhat, my religious views ", con- 
 tinued the same writer. "I now believe fully in the 
 doctrine of total depravity, and I know that men can 
 and do fall from grace !" 261 
 
 There can be little doubt, however, but that the 
 result was eminently satisfactory to a majority of 
 the Eepublicans of Iowa, for James Harlan had won 
 for himself great popularity by his course in the 
 Senate during the momentous years preceding the 
 Civil War. And in the interval until Harlan should 
 take his seat the State would be ably represented by 
 another who had already proved his loyalty to her 
 interests and to the principles of Eepublicanism. 
 
IX 
 
 THE ELECTION OF WEIGHT AND HOWELL 
 
 IN 1870 
 
 THE senatorial election of 1870 resembled the one 
 which preceded it in that there was a long and a 
 short term to be filled. The long continued strain of 
 the impeachment trial of Andrew Johnson had 
 brought physical exhaustion and accompanying ill- 
 ness to James W. Grimes, who had faithfully 
 represented Iowa in the United States Senate since 
 1859. In the spring of 1869 he sailed for Europe 
 hoping that rest and a complete change of environ- 
 ment would speedily restore him to health. But he 
 had not been on the continent many weeks when he 
 suffered a severe attack of paralysis. Eealizing that 
 he would doubtless never be able to resume his seat 
 in the Senate, during the summer he sent his resig- 
 nation to Governor Merrill. 252 Thus, not only was 
 there a successor to Grimes to be chosen for the 
 regular term beginning March 4, 1871, but there was 
 a vacancy for the short period of the unexpired term 
 to be filled. 
 
 For some reason very little heat was developed 
 in the race for the senatorship until shortly before 
 the meeting of the legislature. It is possible that 
 the resignation of Grimes detracted somewhat from 
 
 143 
 
144 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 the bitterness and excitement which earlier in the 
 year had been expected. While the vacancy was an 
 added prize to be fought for, it nevertheless drew off 
 from the contest for the long term a number of 
 aspirants of lesser calibre, and thus decreased the 
 intensity of the rivalry. Moreover, the men who 
 soon came to be recognized as the leading candidates 
 for the long term conducted their campaigns with a 
 dignity and apparent good will which scorned per- 
 sonal attacks or vilification of rivals. 
 
 During the fall campaign there was some dis- 
 cussion of the senatorial question. In Lee County 
 for instance the Republicans in convention declared 
 their faith in the integrity and ability of George G. 
 Wright, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Iowa, 
 whom they endorsed as their preference for United 
 States Senator. 253 Similar expressions of approval 
 from other counties gave evidence of the Judge's 
 popularity. 
 
 Apparently in some minds there was a hope of 
 executive appointment to fill the vacancy, for Gov- 
 ernor Merrill was beset with clamorous inquiries as 
 to the course he intended to pursue. In November 
 he made a reply which dispelled all dreams of such a 
 consummation. He stated that the election of United 
 States Senators was clearly a right and duty of the 
 legislature, and that appointment by the Governor 
 should only be resorted to in case of an emergency, 
 which in this case did not exist. He would, there- 
 fore, leave the place open until the meeting of the 
 General Assembly only a few weeks later. 254 This 
 
ELECTION OF WRIGHT AND HOWELL 145 
 
 eminently wise attitude of Governor Merrill met 
 with general sanction, although there were not want- 
 ing those who thought they could detect in it a 
 scheme to appropriate the senatorship for himself. 
 
 A correspondent to a Chicago newspaper who 
 signed himself "Bet", writing late in November, 
 1869, reviewed in an apparently unbiased manner 
 the contest as it had progressed thus far. "Behind 
 the Legislature, among the people, among the farm- 
 ing and laboring classes," he said there would be a 
 power moving in favor of George W. Wright which 
 would be difficult to defeat. The purity and honesty 
 of Wright's public and private life, as well as his 
 recognized abilities, were the qualities which gained 
 for him a warm place in the affections of the people. 
 "As to locality, a question which will enter very 
 largely into the fight," continued the writer, "Mr. 
 Wright's position [at Des Moines] is one that is 
 considered favorable by some and unfavorable by 
 others. . . . The Senators have so long been in 
 the extreme South that the extreme North will make 
 locality one of the strongest arguments in their 
 presentation of a candidate." 
 
 William B. Allison of Dubuque, who since 1862 
 had brought honor to himself and his State by dis- 
 tinguished service in the lower house of Congress, 
 was the man upon whom the north generally united. 
 Furthermore, the correspondent asserted that Alli- 
 son had many strong friends in the southern part 
 of the State, among them being James F. Wilson, 
 who, in spite of much urging, had refused to enter 
 
 10 
 
146 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 the contest himself. It was suggested that in addi- 
 tion to this element of personal friendship between 
 the two men, "it should be remembered, if the North 
 has a Senator in the seat of Grimes, the South may 
 ask and receive the Senator that will take the seat 
 of Harlan, by which time Mr. Wilson may be more 
 Senatorially willing than he now is. ' ' 
 
 Dennis N. Cooley and George E. Willett, of 
 Dubuque and Decorah respectively, were other men 
 spoken of as possibilities for the long term. The 
 former especially had a good following and num- 
 bered among his friends James Harlan, who would 
 have the same motive for supporting Cooley that 
 might influence Wilson in the case of Allison. The 
 name of Governor Samuel Merrill was being used in 
 many quarters, and "Bet" expressed the opinion 
 that he would be elected if the necessity for a com- 
 promise candidate should arise. 
 
 Prominent among the candidates for the short 
 term were William Vandever and Josiah B. Grin- 
 nell. Both of these men had been in Congress, and 
 Grinnell had taken an active part in the debates 
 during the early years of Eeconstruction. It was in 
 consequence of bitter charges made by him during a 
 debate on the Freedman's Bureau in 1866 that Grin- 
 nell had been violently assaulted by Lovell H. 
 Eousseau of Kentucky. Grinnell was entirely un- 
 prepared for the attack, and before he could 
 prevent it he received several blows on the head 
 from a heavy cane. The fact that Eousseau escaped 
 with nothing more severe than a public reprimand 
 
ELECTION OF WRIGHT AND HOWELL 147 
 
 seems to have been a great disappointment to Grin- 
 nell's constituents. For in commenting upon his 
 chances for the senatorship the correspondent said 
 that "be the notion right or wrong, the expression 
 is very common in Iowa that Mr. Grinnell could 
 have from this people anything he would ask, if he 
 had given Eousseau 'as good or better than he 
 sent.' " 255 
 
 These then were the men whose names appeared 
 most often in the political columns of Iowa news- 
 papers during the weeks immediately preceding the 
 meeting of the General Assembly on January 10, 
 1870. Various predictions as to the outcome were 
 made, but it was generally conceded that the real 
 contest for the long term lay between George G. 
 Wright and William B. Allison. It was the old 
 struggle of section against section reappearing in 
 full vigor in spite of efforts to repress it. The oc- 
 casional bitterness exhibited during the campaign 
 was due more to this sectional jealousy than to the 
 rivalry of the leading candidates. 
 
 The convening of the legislature, as usual, was 
 the signal which brought flocking to Des Moines a 
 host of political retainers and lobbyists. Wright, 
 Allison, and Merrill were all represented in the 
 capital city by ardent supporters several days be- 
 fore the opening of the legislative session. "From 
 Friday the 7th up to Thursday evening of the Cau- 
 cus ' ', was the graphic account given by Benjamin F. 
 Gue, at the time editor of a Fort Dodge newspaper 
 and a strong champion of Judge Wright, "fresh 
 
148 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 delegations of Allison men arrived on every train. 
 They swarmed in every part of the city, over- 
 whelmed the Savery, gobbled up every member of 
 the Legislature upon his arrival, worked with that 
 determined energy, confidence and assurance of suc- 
 cess, that intimidated the inexperienced, shook the 
 confidence of many of their most sanguine oppo- 
 nents, and carried over into their ranks many of the 
 new members by sheer force of bluster and apparent 
 confidence of certain victory. A few of the old 
 veterans however, who had passed through such 
 fights before, were not alarmed, but quietly watched 
 every move, and never for a moment ceased their 
 earnest work needed to match the tireless vigilance 
 of their wily opponents. " 256 
 
 It was claimed that the Allison forces were 
 especially well organized and that they were sup- 
 ported by the combined railroad influence of the 
 State, as well as by a majority of the Federal officials 
 from Iowa. Nevertheless, on the first day of the 
 session Aylett E. Cotton, an acknowledged friend of 
 Judge Wright, was elected Speaker of the House by 
 a large majority. This election seems to have 
 brought alarm to the Allison camp, and if a con- 
 temporary writer is to be believed, ' ' dispatches were 
 hurried off to bring in more help." The next three 
 days were filled with excitement, and as the time for 
 the caucus drew near each side was confident of 
 victory. 257 
 
 On Thursday evening, January 13th, the Repub- 
 lican caucus was held in the hall of the House of 
 
ELECTION OF WRIGHT AND HOWELL 149 
 
 Representatives. One hundred and twenty-seven 
 legislators were present, and consequently it would 
 require sixty-four votes to nominate. After some 
 preliminary skirmishing the caucus proceeded to an 
 informal ballot for the long term. A counting of the 
 ballots revealed the fact that George G. Wright 
 lacked only one vote of nomination. William B. 
 Allison, much to the surprise of everyone, received 
 only thirty-nine votes; while Samuel Merrill re- 
 ceived twenty-four, and Samuel J. Kirkwood one. 
 One formal ballot was all that was needed, for 
 Wright received sixty-six, or two more than the re- 
 quired number of votes. Allison forged ahead to 
 forty-seven, Merrill dropped to thirteen, and one 
 solitary man persisted in voting for Kirkwood. 
 
 Following the nomination for the long term an 
 informal ballot for the short term was taken. 
 Josiah B. Grinnell and James B. Howell stood in the 
 lead, receiving thirty-nine and thirty-eight votes 
 respectively. Nine other men were given votes 
 ranging in number from one to twenty-four. On 
 the first formal ballot the number of names was re- 
 duced to six. No one, however, received the required 
 number of votes. Two more names were dropped 
 on the second ballot ; but again there was no choice, 
 although Howell was rapidly gaining over Grinnell. 
 On the third ballot Howell received seventy votes 
 and was declared the nominee for the short term. 258 
 
 Seventeen men constituted the Democratic cau- 
 cus, the deliberations of which were comparatively 
 uninteresting. Thomas W. Claggett of Keokuk, a 
 
150 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 well known figure in Iowa politics, was declared the 
 nominee of the party for the long term by acclama- 
 tion. An informal ballot for the short term resulted 
 in eight votes for John T. Stoneman, five for W. J. 
 Knight, three for William E. Leffingwell, and one for 
 D. M. Harris. No formal ballot was taken, the nom- 
 ination going to Stoneman by acclamation. 259 
 
 The senatorial question was virtually decided in 
 the Eepublican caucus, and it only remained for the 
 choice to be confirmed by the legislature as an of- 
 ficial body. This year for the first time a new 
 system of electing United States Senators was em- 
 ployed. In July, 1866, Congress passed an act 
 providing that on the second Tuesday of the session 
 preceding the expiration of a senatorial term, each 
 house of the legislature should choose separately a 
 man for Senator. At twelve o 'clock on the following 
 day the houses were to meet in joint convention and 
 the journals were to be compared. If it was found 
 that the same man had received a majority of the 
 votes in each house he was to be declared elected. 
 In case the same man had not received a majority in 
 each house, or if for some reason one house had 
 failed to make a choice, the joint convention was to 
 proceed with the election in the old manner. 260 
 
 Consequently on Tuesday, January 18, 1870, each 
 house of the General Assembly voted separately for 
 United States Senator. In each house George G. 
 Wright received the solid Eepublican vote, which 
 was a large majority, for the long term over Thomas 
 W. Claggett, the Democratic nominee. James B. 
 
ELECTION OF WRIGHT AND HOWELL 151 
 
 Howell was equally victorious over John T. Stone- 
 man in the vote for the vacancy. 261 At noon on the 
 following day the joint convention went through the 
 form of declaring that Wright and Howell had been 
 duly elected Senators. 262 
 
 George G. Wright was a man well fitted both by 
 training and by knowledge of the needs of his con- 
 stituents for the position to which he was elected. 
 He had lived in Iowa since Territorial days, having 
 entered upon the practice of law at Keosauqua in 
 1840. He had served as Prosecuting Attorney of 
 Van Buren County, and as State Senator. In 1850 
 he was a Whig candidate for Congress, but the de- 
 clining strength of his party defeated him. His 
 legal ability received recognition in 1855 when he 
 was elected Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of 
 Iowa, and it was from this exalted position that he 
 stepped into the senatorship on March 4, 1871. The 
 six years during which he represented Iowa in the 
 Senate brought added credit to a name which must 
 ever stand in the annals of the State as synonymous 
 with honesty and uprightness in public and private 
 life. The only regret is that Wright was not chosen 
 for the vacancy as well as for the long term. James 
 B. Howell was eminently worthy of the honor con- 
 ferred upon him, but his period of service was so 
 short that he could be little more than a silent mem- 
 ber. By the time he had become sufficiently ac- 
 quainted with the manner of conducting business in 
 the Senate to be of real service to his constituency 
 he was forced to retire. 
 
THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM B. ALLISON 
 
 IN 1872 
 
 SCAKCELY had George G. Wright been chosen United 
 States Senator from Iowa, in January, 1870, before 
 conferences were held and plans were made for the 
 contest which would occur two years later, when a 
 successor to James Harlan would be elected. 
 William B. Allison, apparently against his own in- 
 clinations, was persuaded by his friends to com- 
 mence immediate preparations for another race for 
 the position which had so lately been denied him. 
 And so even at that early day a quiet canvass was 
 begun. 263 
 
 But it was not until the midsummer of 1871 that 
 the question of the senatorial succession claimed 
 public attention to any great extent. From that 
 time, however, until the close of the struggle in 
 January, 1872, there was waged a campaign which is 
 one of the most interesting political contests in Iowa 
 history. It was preeminently a contest between per- 
 sons. Throughout the weeks and months of the 
 campaign the newspapers, for the most part lined 
 up on one side or the other, teemed with bitter and 
 abusive personal attacks. The lives and records of 
 the leading candidates were paraded before the pub- 
 
 152 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1872 153 
 
 lie with a vindictiveness which left unexploited no 
 incident which could possibly be turned into political 
 capital. Locality also played its usual role. The 
 northern part of the State had never had a Bepub- 
 lican United States Senator, and it clamored more 
 loudly than ever for this coveted recognition. Na- 
 tional questions were little discussed, except as they 
 were made the occasion for personal attacks. 
 
 It was early recognized that the real contest 
 would lie between James Harlan and William B. 
 Allison. The claims of each man were presented 
 with comparative calmness and moderation until the 
 latter part of June, 1871, when an acrimonious de- 
 bate was aroused by an insignificant incident. It 
 seems that J. P. Newman, Chaplain of the Metropol- 
 itan Methodist Church of Washington, D. C., the 
 church which James Harlan attended, wrote a num- 
 ber of letters to Methodist clergymen in Iowa urging 
 them to support Harlan for the senatorship. 264 In 
 some way this letter came into the hands of Har- 
 lan 's enemies, and a great furor was raised over 
 it. Whether true or not, the statement was made 
 that the letter had been lithographed and sent broad- 
 cast among the Methodist clergy. In long columns 
 of editorials the letter was denounced as an attempt 
 to make a political machine out of the Methodist 
 church, and as an appeal to sectarian prejudice for 
 political purposes. In columns just as long the edi- 
 tors friendly to Harlan denied that the letter was 
 more than a personal one written by Newman to a 
 few friends. They asserted that its contents were 
 
154 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 perfectly honorable and that it had nothing to do 
 with sectarianism. 
 
 James Harlan took a hand in the fray and wrote 
 a long letter to the public. He denied the statement 
 that Newman had sent a lithographed letter to Iowa. 
 He could not understand, he said, why he had been 
 singled out for persecution because of his religious 
 affiliations, when the church connections of other can- 
 didates now or in previous years had not been ques- 
 tioned. He considered the whole agitation as an effort 
 on the part of his opponents to "secure a compact 
 combination of all ' free thinkers ' within the Republic- 
 an organization, under cover of a foreign language, 
 in favor of a candidate; and then a combination of 
 the members of various religious denominations, by 
 an appeal to sectarian prejudice ; and lastly, to intim- 
 idate, silence, and render inactive, those who may 
 happen to be members of another denomination by 
 an outcry against church influence. ' * 265 
 
 Harlan 's letter served only to intensify the bit- 
 terness of the struggle. "What right has Mr. 
 Harlan to assert that the opposition manifested 
 towards him is because of his church fellowship", 
 asked Jacob Rich, editor of The Dubuque Times and 
 a warm friend of Allison, "and that Methodism in 
 his case appears as a badge of dishonor? Such a 
 statement gravely put forth by such a man as Mr. 
 Harlan, under such circumstances, is the most trans- 
 parent demagoguery. . . . We can not believe 
 that Mr. Harlan is likely to enhance the degree of 
 respect felt for him, by this attempt to make himself 
 appear as a martyr to Christian principles". 266 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1872 155 
 
 Other editors came to Harlan 's support with dec- 
 larations that it was to his honor that he had such a 
 good standing in his church. Harlan 's traducers 
 were likened to a party of young men, who, when out 
 on a lark, sometimes ridicule one of their number 
 who refuses to join in their carousals by calling him 
 a "Sunday School Teacher ", 267 For more than a 
 month the papers were full of comments on the 
 Newman letter, and then it was gradually forgotten 
 in the discussion of other things. 
 
 Another episode which occurred about this same 
 time was referred to by James Harlan in his charge 
 of an attempt being made to draw together all the 
 "free thinkers " in the party "under cover of a for- 
 eign language ". Theodore Guelich, the editor of a 
 German newspaper printed at Burlington, published 
 what purported to be an address to the Germans of 
 Iowa adopted by a German convention. It is evident 
 that parts of the address as published, especially 
 the part referring by name to James Harlan, were 
 without authority from the convention. 268 At any 
 rate it brought down upon the editor a storm of 
 condemnation from all sides. The term "liberal 
 Eepublicans ' ' as used in the address was now inter- 
 preted by some of Harlan 's friends as meaning 
 liberal in the religious sense. The charge of a com- 
 bination of "free thinkers " against Harlan was the 
 outcome of this interpretation. The address was 
 also denounced as an attempt to organize a nation- 
 ality in politics, to array the Germans in a solid 
 phalanx merely on the grounds of a common mother 
 
156 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 tongue, and for the purpose of gratifying the spite of 
 a few self-constituted leaders. It was branded as "a 
 hateful and disgusting piece of 'Knownothingism' 
 which ought to have and must have no place in 
 American politics." 269 
 
 Meanwhile the sectional plea was being strongly 
 urged in support of William B. Allison. It would 
 be a mistake, however, to suppose that the adherents 
 of either candidate were confined to any particular 
 section of the State. Up in Clayton County the 
 editor of the McGregor News strongly favored 
 James Harlan, and even went so far as to venture 
 the opinion early in the campaign that two-thirds of 
 the Eepublicans of northern Iowa had the same 
 preference. 270 The leading Eepublican journals in 
 Sioux City, Fort Dodge, and other places in the 
 northern and western parts of the State were ar- 
 rayed on the side of Harlan. On the other hand the 
 Iowa State Register at Des Moines and several 
 newspapers published in the southern section were 
 warm in their advocacy of Allison. Other candi- 
 dates attracted scattering support without regard to 
 locality as the contest progressed. But in the main 
 the north was for Allison; while the south more 
 especially the southeast rallied around its favor- 
 ite and much-favored son, James Harlan. 
 
 The Democrats seemingly took a greater interest 
 in the senatorial race than had usually been the case 
 since they had been so much in the minority as to 
 have no hope of electing a Senator from their own 
 number. Democratic editors devoted considerable 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1872 157 
 
 space to comments on the leading candidates, thus 
 furnishing fuel for the wrath of the opposing forces. 
 Democratic praise of Allison was sure to bring forth 
 sarcastic remarks from the friends of Harlan, and 
 vice versa. Thus an editor declared that since the 
 "endeavor to weaken Senator Harlan before the 
 people" had begun, "the whole pack of Democratic 
 hounds hearing the yelp of one join in a general 
 chorus dogging the track of the man whom they hate 
 because of his high services to the country and his 
 exalted ability; all this is well for him." For, he 
 said, "if democrats take sides as between two Re- 
 publicans, the one they attack we should most 
 respect." 271 A Burlington editor was indiscreet 
 enough to print a number of quotations from Demo- 
 cratic newspapers in support of Harlan, and he was 
 duly ridiculed by an Allison paper. 272 
 
 The attitude of the two candidates toward the 
 administration of President Grant was another mat- 
 ter which was made a basis for criticism, and was 
 one of the few instances in which national issues of 
 the day played a part in the contest. A revolt in the 
 Republican party, chiefly against the extreme co- 
 ercive measures employed in connection with Recon- 
 struction in the South, had resulted in the formation 
 of the so-called "liberal" wing of the party, which 
 nominated Horace Greeley for President in May, 
 1872. During the senatorial campaign in Iowa it 
 was a favorite pastime of Allison's detractors to 
 insist that he should not be elected because he was 
 in sympathy with this new movement of opposition 
 
158 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 to the administration. It was doubtless true that 
 Allison's strongest support came from this element 
 which was composed largely of the younger men in 
 the party; but his friends stoutly asserted that he 
 had always been a strong upholder of Grant's 
 policies. While Harlan was not classed with the 
 liberals by his opponents, it was charged that in 
 many respects he and some of his most prominent 
 followers were at variance with the principles of 
 Eepublicanism as embodied in the policies of the ad- 
 ministration. 273 
 
 So violent an agitation of the senatorial question 
 so long before even the legislators were chosen was 
 deprecated in many quarters. Judging from the 
 contest as carried on it was declared that a person 
 might think that there were only two men in Iowa 
 eligible to the office of Senator. Editors who took 
 this view proceeded to name a number of other men 
 who were worthy of the position and who were being 
 talked of by the people. Among those named were 
 Frank W. Palmer, William W. Belknap, Samuel J. 
 Kirkwood, William M. Stone, Henry O'Connor, 
 Grenville M. Dodge, C. F. Clarkson, Samuel Merrill, 
 and James F. Wilson. 274 
 
 Among these secondary candidates James F. 
 Wilson of Fairfield rapidly gained the strongest 
 support. Indeed, it soon became apparent that he 
 might hold the balance of power and seriously en- 
 danger the prospects of the two leading contestants. 
 Wilson was a well-known figure in Iowa politics. 
 He had served in both houses of the General As- 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1872 159 
 
 sembly of the State, and had been in Congress four 
 terms as Eepresentative from the First District. 
 Consequently, when, about the first of September, 
 he definitely announced his willingness to be con- 
 sidered for the senatorship a goodly following 
 immediately rallied to his support. "The bitter 
 strife raging in the Eepublican party has born 
 glorious fruit, ' ' came the enthusiastic greeting from 
 Marshalltown, "in as much as it has been the means 
 of calling out from his voluntary retirement, one of 
 the greatest men of this nation. . . . We reiter- 
 ate, that the U. S. Senator question is as effectually 
 disposed of as though the election had already been 
 held, and James F. Wilson is the man." 275 A num- 
 ber of other editors in different sections of the State 
 took up the fight for Wilson some because they 
 believed he was the strongest man, others because 
 they were weary of the struggle between Harlan and 
 Allison and were ready for a compromise candidate. 
 Newspaper opinion was a fair index to public senti- 
 ment. At a convention of Butler, Floyd, and Mitchell 
 counties, held at Charles City, a vote of preference 
 for United States Senator was taken. The result 
 was that Wilson received more votes even than Al- 
 lison, although the convention was held right in the 
 heart of the latter 's territory. 276 
 
 The opposition to Wilson came chiefly from the 
 Harlan camp. One of Harlan's most ardent sup- 
 porters took it upon himself on several occasions to 
 charge Wilson with unfairness to Allison in thus 
 entering the race after having shown every evidence 
 
160 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 of friendliness to the northern candidate. 277 Per- 
 haps this was an effort to stir up bitterness between 
 the friends of Allison and those of Wilson, but if so 
 it failed to accomplish the desired end. Allison 
 newspapers paid but little attention to the Wilson 
 boom, and this fact led to the belief in some quarters 
 that it was merely a diversion for Allison's benefit. 
 
 As the time for the State elections drew near 
 frequent complaints were made that the question of 
 the senatorial succession was overshadowing all 
 others, and that in some localities it was imperiling 
 the success of the Eepublican legislative ticket. "It 
 is strongly intimated that Mr. Harlan's friends de- 
 sire the defeat of ex-Gov. Kirkwood for State Sena- 
 tor in the Johnson County District", ran a communi- 
 cation in a Des Moines newspaper. "I can hardly 
 credit it. If Harlanism is the defeat of the Eepub- 
 lican nominations, in the fear that Republicans 
 elected may support Mr. Allison, Mr. Wilson or 
 Gov. Merrill, it is about time that we run all our 
 campaigns on personal issues and not on the great 
 issues of the nation and the Eepublican party. " 278 
 Jacob Eich of Dubuque in referring to the bolting 
 of legislative nominations asserted that the bolting 
 occurred only in districts in which the Eepublicans 
 had not nominated candidates favorable to Har- 
 lan. 279 
 
 Down in the southeastern corner of the State 
 political affairs were in a like unfortunate condition. 
 "As we understand it", was an editorial comment 
 on the situation, "the powerful malcontents are not 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1872 161 
 
 Allison men in any strict sense they are simply 
 and hotly anti-Harlan, and favor any good man's 
 election over him. We have had all proper respect 
 for Mr. Harlan, but we do not believe that he is of 
 sufficient state or national importance, or of suf- 
 ficient importance to any but the local office-holding 
 and office-seeking class, to justify the throwing of 
 five Eepublican counties to the dogs. Certain locali- 
 ties in the upper part of the State are in like manner 
 foaming at the mouth, having been gashed by Al- 
 lisonian fangs. This is, truly, a nice fight !" 280 
 
 After the election, which resulted in an over- 
 whelming Eepublican victory, the charges which had 
 been made in prediction were reiterated in retro- 
 spection. In some counties the friends of Allison 
 were made to shoulder the blame for Democratic 
 victories over Eepublican candidates known to favor 
 Harlan. In other districts like censure was heaped 
 upon Harlan 's supporters. The fight now assumed 
 a more bitter and determined character than before. 
 Every possible effort was made through the press 
 and through personal solicitation to influence the 
 legislators elect. The partisans evinced a greater 
 disposition to attack the record and reputation of 
 the leader of the opposing forces than to adduce 
 elaborate arguments in support of their own candi- 
 date. The careers of both James Harlan and 
 William B. Allison were now held up to the public 
 in a spirit of malignant criticism. Allison, however, 
 fared easier than his opponent, for Harlan was sub- 
 jected to a grilling such as has seldom if ever fallen 
 
 11 
 
162 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 to the lot of a candidate in a political campaign in 
 Iowa. 
 
 The most serious charges brought against Har- 
 lan were in regard to his conduct as Secretary of the 
 Interior during the year from May, 1865, to July, 
 1866, in which he held that position. It was asserted 
 that Harlan had secured the passage of a joint reso- 
 lution by Congress diverting large sums of money 
 for the purpose of clothing and feeding the Indians 
 in the southwestern part of the United States. This 
 money, it was claimed, had been fraudulently used. 
 Enormous prices had been paid for grain to the firm 
 of Perry Fuller and Company, and a portion of the 
 profit thus derived was employed in Harlan 's ser- 
 vice in the senatorial campaign against Kirkwood in 
 1865. Harlan, who formerly had lived very plainly, 
 about this time was said to have purchased an ex- 
 pensive house in Washington and to have furnished 
 it in magnificent style. 
 
 Another item in the indictment of James Harlan 
 in connection with the secretaryship was that he had 
 caused to be placed upon the pension rolls the names 
 of nearly three hundred Indians, in defiance of law, 
 custom, and usage. Through this means the govern- 
 ment had been defrauded out of hundreds of 
 thousands of dollars. Again it was claimed that 
 Harlan had authorized the sale of Cherokee Indian 
 lands without properly advertising them, and that 
 there had been fraud in the making of a treaty with 
 the Delaware Indians in July, 1866. Frauds were 
 also charged in the disposition of funds appropri- 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1872 163 
 
 ated for the Washington aqueduct, and in the 
 disbursement of the contingent fund of the Secre- 
 tary's office the assertion being made that Har- 
 lan 's son had been allowed to draw a salary from 
 the government while attending college. 281 
 
 Naturally Harlan 's friends did not leave charges 
 such as these unanswered. Not only did they brand 
 them as falsehoods, but column after column in the 
 newspapers was devoted to statements by United 
 States officials, high and low, and to extracts from 
 proceedings in Congress, all going to prove that the 
 ex-Secretary was not guilty of the corruption at- 
 tributed to him. 282 But, as is usually the case, to 
 demonstrate to a fair-minded person that the 
 charges were groundless and to counteract the in- 
 evitable damage of such charges, however untrue, 
 were two different things. And so up to the very 
 last Harlan was called upon to explain his actions 
 while in the Cabinet of President Johnson. 
 
 The principal attack upon the integrity of 
 William B. Allison was in connection with the rail- 
 roads, particularly the Sioux City and Pacific 
 Railroad Company. James F. Wilson also received 
 his share of denunciation on this charge. "The 
 evidence shows ", declared one of their accusers, 
 "that they did, while members of Congress, unite 
 in the organization of a railroad company, that they 
 did use their official influence to divert a branch of 
 the Pacific Eailroad, that they did use their official 
 influence to induce the President to recognize their 
 company as the proper company to build said road, 
 
164 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 and that it was so recognized and that the said com- 
 pany did build that branch and did get the 
 government subsidies therefor." 283 Through this 
 company, in which Allison and Wilson were leading 
 stockholders, the northern part of the State had been 
 deprived of the benefits of a direct connection with 
 the Union Pacific Railroad. "It is not believed here 
 that Mr. Allison has a clear record in regard to this 
 railroad ", wrote a Sioux City editor. "It is be- 
 lieved that he took hold of the enterprise purely as 
 a speculation. It is believed that he was successful. 
 It is known that he attained his end by betraying 
 confidence reposed in him. And it is further be- 
 lieved that he always stands ready to sell out his 
 friends to advance his own selfish interests." 284 
 There is no doubt but that these charges, although 
 energetically refuted by Allison's friends, were the 
 cause of much opposition to him in northern Iowa. 
 Other arguments, however, were used against the 
 two leading contestants during the progress of the 
 campaign. In 1870 James Harlan while in the Sen- 
 ate had voted against striking out the word "white" 
 during the discussion of an amendment to the nat- 
 uralization laws. This action was now interpreted 
 as faithlessness to Eepublican principles, in spite of 
 the fact that Harlan had previously voted in favor 
 of extending naturalization to persons of African 
 descent. 285 The prediction that strong railroad in- 
 fluence would be used in Allison's favor was met by 
 a communication from Washington stating that it 
 was rumored "that the New York San Domingo ring 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1872 165 
 
 will use their influence, and probably open their 
 purse strings, to aid in the re-election of Senator 
 Harlan, also that the High Tariff men of Pennsyl- 
 vania are earnestly at work for the same pur- 
 pose." 286 
 
 From incidents and attitudes in his public career 
 criticism of James Harlan descended to matters of a 
 more personal and petty character. His long ser- 
 vice in the Senate, while used as a strong argument 
 in his support by his friends, was at the same time 
 one of the objections urged against his reelection 
 by his enemies. "Certainly Mr. Harlan, if there is 
 in him that grandeur superior to all other Iowa men, 
 has already been honored above all other Iowa 
 men", exclaimed an opponent. "He could ask no 
 more; if he is a true American he should not, and 
 would not, now be found working with might and 
 main, and greedy ambition, to secure still longer 
 lease of power." 287 Again it was argued that the 
 interests of the State demanded a harmonious dele- 
 gation at Washington, whereas Harlan had assumed 
 a dictatorial attitude and was distinctly an element 
 of discord. Moreover, he had resided in the capital 
 city of the Nation almost entirely for the past 
 eighteen years, and had therefore lost touch with 
 Iowa people and conditions. 288 He was accused of 
 using the franking privilege to transmit copies of a 
 Mount Pleasant newspaper over the State as a cam- 
 paign document. 289 And to such disgraceful lengths 
 did some of his traducers go that one editor raised 
 the ridiculous question of whether Mrs. Harlan 
 
166 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 possessed the qualities most desirable in a Senator's 
 wife, since at one time in her life she had been a mil- 
 liner. 290 
 
 Allison was a comparatively new man in the 
 arena of Iowa politics outside of his own district, he 
 had fewer personal enemies than his opponent, and 
 consequently he was not the target for so many bit- 
 ter attacks. He was charged with holding free-trade 
 ideas, and with having sided with the Democrats in 
 the preceding session of Congress on the subject of 
 tariff reform. 291 And it was claimed that he was 
 using the Federal patronage to further his interests 
 in the senatorial race. 292 But he escaped with but 
 little of the malicious criticism accorded to Harlan. 
 
 The Fourteenth General Assembly convened on 
 January 8, 1872, and for more than a week in advance 
 the Savery Hotel in Des Moines was the scene of 
 conferences and preliminary caucuses made up of the 
 friends of the rival candidates. So well had the 
 situation been canvassed that on the night of Janu- 
 ary 10th, the third day of the session, the Repub- 
 licans held their senatorial caucus. Surprise and 
 disappointment were in store for the followers of 
 James Harlan. Sixty-one votes were necessary to 
 nominate. On the informal ballot Allison lacked 
 only one vote of nomination, while Harlan received 
 the ballots of only thirty-eight men. James F. 
 Wilson received twenty-two votes. The first formal 
 ballot was fruitless, showing little change in the 
 relative positions of the candidates. The second 
 formal ballot, however, gave Allison the victory by 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1872 167 
 
 a margin of two votes over the necessary number, 
 and by a majority of twenty- three over Harlan. 293 
 
 The Democrats held a caucus on the same even- 
 ing, but apparently adjourned without making any 
 nomination. 294 It seems to have been a fairly well 
 established custom in the minority party by this 
 time to cast the complimentary vote for the Demo- 
 cratic candidate for Governor in the preceding State 
 election, in this instance Joseph C. Knapp of Van 
 Buren County. 
 
 The two houses of the General Assembly met in 
 joint convention in the hall of the House of Bepre- 
 sentatives on January 17, 1872. A comparison of 
 the journals showed that Allison had received a 
 large majority in both houses, and he was therefore 
 declared duly elected United States Senator for the 
 term beginning March 4, 1873. 295 
 
 Thus was William B. Allison ushered into the 
 duties of the position which he held continuously 
 until the date of his death, August 4, 1908. The 
 result was accepted with good grace by his defeated 
 rival who now bade farewell to official life. He was 
 still to participate as a candidate in other cam- 
 paigns, but his power was forever broken. Through- 
 out his political career James Harlan was pursued 
 by a violent and unrelenting persecution which had 
 now gained its end in his downfall, but the impartial 
 reader of history must accord him a place among 
 Iowa 's leading statesmen. 
 
XI 
 
 THE ELECTION OF SAMUEL J. KIRKWOOD 
 
 IN 1876 
 
 THE nomination of Samuel J. Kirkwood for Gov- 
 ernor by the Republican State Convention on June 
 30, 1875, may be said to have been the first act in 
 the drama of the senatorial election of 1876. It was 
 a nomination virtually forced upon the reluctant ex- 
 Governor by an enthusiastic convention, in spite of 
 the fact that his aspiration to the senatorship was 
 known. If the political enemies of the "War Gov- 
 ernor " had been casting about for means to harass 
 him they could have hit upon no better scheme, for 
 the nomination and subsequent election as Governor 
 proved to be a stumbling block in his pathway to a 
 seat in the United States Senate. Within two days 
 after the convention Kirkwood received a letter from 
 a friend who ruefully informed him that his nomina- 
 tion for Governor meant his "funeral for Sena- 
 tor". 296 
 
 The newspapers immediately took up the con- 
 troversy. "The election of Gov. Kirkwood to the 
 U. S. Senate next winter seems to be a foregone 
 conclusion", wrote an admirer in the central part of 
 the State. "His nomination for Governor, against 
 his protest, removes all possibility of the charge 
 
 168 
 
THE ELECTION OP KIRKWOOD IN 1876 169 
 
 [that] he sought it as a stepping stone to the 
 Senatorship, and the enthusiasm with which his 
 nomination is received throughout the State evi- 
 dences the fact that he is the most popular man in 
 the party and the people's favorite. " 297 This view, 
 however, was by no means universally accepted. 
 "While Gov. Kirkwood has reason to be proud of 
 the manner in which the party has expressed its 
 confidence and respect, it does not follow that it will 
 make him Senator ", declared a Davenport editor. 
 "His position has its advantages, and possibly its 
 disadvantages, this only the canvass can deter- 
 mine. " 298 
 
 As the State campaign progressed during the 
 summer and early autumn the question of the sena- 
 torial succession received its due share of attention, 
 and other names, including that of James Harlan, 
 began to appear in the public print as participants 
 in the race. Some of the bitterness of the preceding 
 contest still rankled in the breasts of certain of Har- 
 lan 's opponents to such an extent that the editor of 
 the Sioux City Journal felt called upon to remon- 
 strate against the tendency in some quarters "to 
 follow Mr. Harlan with the ghosts of a past that 
 Iowa Eepublicans should be willing to put so far as 
 may be out of sight for the Allison-Harlan cam- 
 paign was one to be ashamed of." 299 
 
 The usual amount of space in the newspapers 
 was devoted to emphasizing the importance of elect- 
 ing legislators of the proper political principles. It 
 was pointed out that the State Senators elected that 
 
170 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 year would assist in choosing two full-term United 
 States Senators. Furthermore, Eepublican editors 
 cited the alarming fact that the lower house of Con- 
 gress was Democratic by a large majority, and 
 urged voters to rally to the polls in support of their 
 party's candidates. "During the period for which 
 our next Senator is chosen ", rang out the warning, 
 "the United States Senate may become the only bar- 
 rier to the complete and unlimited power of those 
 who fought for and sympathized with the slave- 
 holders rebellion may become the only breakwater 
 against that sea of irredeemable rag money with 
 which the Democrats threaten to overwhelm us." 300 
 The seriousness of the problems confronting the 
 Nation were also used as an argument against "the 
 candidacies of phenomenally small men" in the race 
 f or the senatorship. It was "not a year for . . . . 
 minnows", but those who "would play whale at 
 all ought to be fish of some size." 301 
 
 Meanwhile Kirkwood seemed reluctant to plunge 
 into the whirlpool of the political contest which lay 
 between him and the desired goal. Indeed, it is a 
 tribute to him that at this time and throughout the 
 entire campaign it required the repeated and im- 
 patient urgings of his friends to induce him to 
 employ even the most legitimate and honorable 
 means to push his own cause. J. N. Dewey, a faith- 
 ful and energetic supporter, wrote from Des Moines 
 and pointed out the necessity of getting to work, pro- 
 vided Kirkwood had "decided to plunge in and make 
 a bold, open stand-up fight for it, when the proper 
 
THE ELECTION OF KIRKWOOD IN 1876 171 
 
 time for open offensive action " should arrive. "I 
 know", he said, "how natural it is in you to shrink 
 from any such contest how loth to say, or to do 
 anything of yourself for yourself .... you 
 must shake off all that kind of sentiment. " 302 And 
 later in the year Jacob Rich wrote from Dubuque 
 expostulating with Kirkwood for his hesitancy to 
 make a thorough canvass of the legislators. " There 
 are many honorable ways to reach men", he de- 
 clared, "and these ways you and the immediate 
 advisers about you must study .... There is 
 honest expenditure a legitimate use of means 
 in this." 303 
 
 Kirkwood 's lieutenants, however, were fully 
 aware of the necessity of playing the game of politics 
 according to the rules if they expected to win. 
 Numerous candidates, some of them professional 
 office-seekers and not over-scrupulous in their meth- 
 ods, had appeared in the field. Moreover, the fall 
 elections passed, leaving the State still in the control 
 of the Eepublican party with the unwilling Kirk- 
 wood as Governor-elect. 
 
 By the middle of November five men Samuel 
 J. Kirkwood, James Harlan, William W. Belknap, 
 George W. McCrary, and Hiram Price stood out 
 clearly as possible winners in the race for the sena- 
 torship. Newspaper support was quite impartially 
 divided between these five men, although it was gen- 
 erally admitted that the chances were in favor of 
 either Kirkwood or Harlan. In fact almost up to the 
 last day it was difficult to predict with any degree of 
 
172 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 certainty what the outcome would be. The editor of 
 the Pella Blade thought " it would be a bad precedent 
 to establish that of making the executive chair 
 only a stepping stone to the U. S. Senate. Either 
 Belknap, Harlan or McCrary will suit us, but Kirk- 
 wood not at all." 304 Another editor, however, ob- 
 jected to the attempt "to crowd Gov. Kirkwood off 
 the track because he has just been elected Gov- 
 ernor", since it was well known that the office had 
 been virtually forced upon him. 305 
 
 From Mt. Pleasant came the statement that 
 "Price has lost ground, even among temperance 
 men. Belknap is too light timber altogether, and 
 McCrary, the best man mentioned for the place, has 
 but few followers, because neither he nor his friends 
 will stoop to trade or barter for votes". 306 Section- 
 alism in this contest seemingly had little to do with 
 the distribution of the support of the various candi- 
 dates. George W. McCrary stood equally in favor 
 with an editor in northern Iowa, who thus stated his 
 senatorial preference: 
 
 Not in favor of Kirkwood, lie is Governor for the next 
 two years ; not in favor of Harlan, he is tired ; not in favor 
 of Belknap, he is a military man ; not in favor of Price, he 
 is being freely used as a compromise candidate ; but in favor 
 of George W. McCrary, the honest, the able, the popular 
 man. 307 
 
 While the canvass as a whole was quiet and good- 
 natured when compared with the senatorial contest 
 which preceded it, there were a few instances of 
 vindictiveness. James Harlan was not permitted to 
 
THE ELECTION OF KIRKWOOD IN 1876 173 
 
 escape a revival of the charges made during the 
 former campaign and during the Credit Mobilier in- 
 vestigations in Congress. ' 'If we take all for Gospel 
 truth that the few opponents of Mr. Harlan are say- 
 ing about him through the press and in the byways ' ', 
 facetiously commented a Harlan admirer, "hanging 
 would be a gentle death for him, when compared to 
 his deserts. " 308 William W. Belknap met with ob- 
 jection in some quarters, as has been indicated, 
 because he was a military man, and also on the 
 alleged ground that his Eepublicanism was not as 
 strong as it might be. But against the latter charge 
 he found ready defenders even among those who did 
 not favor him for the senatorship. 309 
 
 Samuel J. Kirkwood was the man, however, who 
 bore the brunt of hostile criticism. From the time 
 of his acceptance of the nomination as Governor 
 until the day of his election to the Senate the gov- 
 ernorship was held up by his adversaries as a bar 
 to his hopes. And it must be admitted that many of 
 his personal admirers accepted this objection as 
 valid. Aside from this argument which had some 
 real foundation, certain factional leaders, especially 
 of the Harlan camp, seized every opportunity to 
 pick flaws in Kirkwood 's record or actions. 
 
 On November 18th the Sioux City Journal pub- 
 lished an extract from a letter written by Kirkwood, 
 apparently in response to certain editorial com- 
 ments. "You think I am losing ground for the 
 reason that I have not ' workers out cultivating the 
 ground' ", wrote the Governor. "It may be that I 
 
174 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 am losing for that reason, and if so, I must continue 
 to lose. I cannot make a 'dog fight' of this matter. 
 . . . I think I know myself pretty well, and I feel 
 sure that I would not want the position if I did not 
 think the Republicans of the State desired me to have 
 it." The people, he said, could easily make their 
 wishes on the subject known to their representatives 
 in the legislature. In his opinion the belief that con- 
 tests for seats in the Senate had at times been 
 decided upon other grounds than the general wish 
 of the people had hurt the Republican party ; and he 
 predicted that unless such a belief could be removed 
 the time would soon come when the election of Re- 
 publican Senators would be less frequent than it 
 had been in the past. 310 
 
 The editor of the Burlington Hawk-Eye, who, as 
 a matter of fact was the manager of the Harlan 
 forces, took immediate exception to this seemingly 
 inoffensive letter of Governor Kirkwood. "What 
 does the Governor mean by this?", the editor de- 
 manded. "Is it a prediction merely, or both a 
 prediction and a threat? It is a good deal for any 
 man to assume that he is the choice of a majority of 
 all the Eepublicans of the State, for any office before 
 that choice has been expressed, and it becomes quite 
 a grave matter when he either predicts, threatens, 
 or even intimates that he must be elected or no Re- 
 publican shall be." 311 Two weeks later the editor 
 again referred to Kirkwood 's "pretense of superior 
 public virtue" in a manner which indicated that he 
 still smarted under the term "dog-fight" which the 
 
THE ELECTION OF KIRKWOOD IN 1876 175 
 
 Governor-elect had used in speaking of the con- 
 test. 312 
 
 The comparatively insignificant record made by 
 Kirkwood while he occupied a seat in the United 
 States Senate for a brief period from 1865 to 1867 
 was also held up by the Burlington editor as a reason 
 for not electing Kirkwood to the senatorship. He 
 would be glad, he said, "to cover the whole affair 
 with the mantle of charity, if the Governor-elect and 
 would-be Senator had not found himself, in his own 
 estimation, to be altogether too great a man for the 
 official position in which the people of Iowa have 
 placed him." But the editor believed that a man's 
 qualifications for an office should be judged by his 
 past achievements in the same position. And he 
 could not find anything in Kirkwood 's legislative 
 record to entitle him to the senatorship. 313 
 
 Meanwhile, Kirkwood was apparently endeavor- 
 ing in a quiet manner, through correspondence and 
 otherwise, to learn the attitude of the members of 
 the legislature toward the various senatorial as- 
 pirants and especially toward himself. But it is 
 doubtful whether he received much encouragement 
 from the replies. A great many of the legislators 
 were unwilling to commit themselves on the subject ; 
 while others frankly stated that they considered the 
 acceptance of the governorship as an objection to 
 an election to the Senate. "I am satisfied that you 
 would make a good senator ;" wrote John Palmer 
 from Clarksville, "but would 'Newbold' make a good 
 Governor, provided you were made Senator ?" 314 
 
176 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 From a legislator at Cresco came the admonition 
 that " having been elected Governor in good faith, 
 there should be reasons good and strong, before sup- 
 planting the choice of the people so royally ex- 
 pressed the schemes of politicians to the contrary 
 notwithstanding. ' >315 
 
 There were occasional gleams of encouragement 
 for Kirkwood, however, when he received letters 
 like one from J. B. Shepardson of Marble Eock. 
 "I have looked over the field pretty closely", he 
 wrote, "and am rather favorable to the Election of 
 the old War Horse Governor." 316 
 
 With the assembling of the legislature in Janu- 
 ary the contest as usual centered in Des Moines. 
 Friends of the various candidates journeyed to the 
 capital city to aid the legislators in making the right 
 choice. Caleb Baldwin was recognized as a valiant 
 warrior in the Kirkwood camp, as were also Jacob 
 Eich and other leaders from northeastern Iowa, a 
 circumstance which confirmed the belief that Allison 
 was in sympathy with Kirkwood. Not all of the 
 politicians of Dubuque, Allison's home, however, 
 favored Kirkwood, for J. K. Graves from that city 
 and a prominent member of the House of Eepre- 
 sentatives was active in his espousal of the Harlan 
 cause. The Belknap and Price camps were by no 
 means deserted, but were more quiet, and apparent- 
 ly rested on their arms in the hope of a deadlock 
 between Kirkwood and Harlan. George W. Mc- 
 Crary likewise had his supporters, prominent among 
 them being Samuel S. Sample of Keokuk. 317 
 
THE ELECTION OF KIRKWOOD IN 1876 177 
 
 The time for the caucus was not generally known 
 until the evening of January llth, when it was an- 
 nounced for the following evening. ' ' The announce- 
 ment created a decided sensation, and made a stir 
 through the great crowd, and was followed by a 
 tumult at all of the different headquarters. It pre- 
 cipitated things with a rush, and made a busy night 
 of it." There was "also much telegraphing to and 
 fro, and plenty of bracing-up messages from home 
 ordered up by all sides." 318 Good humor, never- 
 theless, prevailed throughout the day, in spite of the 
 number of candidates and the rivalry for the coveted 
 position. 
 
 The Eepublican caucus on the evening of Janu- 
 ary 12th was an orderly and good-natured meeting. 
 Senator Fred A. Teale called attention to the rick- 
 ety condition of the building in which the caucus met 
 and warned the members "against indulgence in 
 tumultuous applause." Then to the surprise of 
 nearly everyone Senator John S. Woolson arose and 
 read a letter from James Harlan requesting that 
 his name be withdrawn from the list of candidates. 319 
 The chief cause of this withdrawal was learned on 
 the following day when it became known that Harlan 
 had been called to the bedside of his son, who had 
 been seized with a fatal illness while on his way to 
 California. 
 
 The withdrawal of Harlan 's name upset many 
 calculations, and so the informal ballot was watched 
 with great interest. When the votes were counted 
 it was found that no one had received the required 
 
 12 
 
178 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 fifty-six votes. Samuel J. Kirkwood was clearly in 
 the lead with fifty-three votes as compared with 
 twenty-four recorded in favor of his nearest com- 
 petitor, Hiram Price. The first formal ballot, how- 
 ever, resulted in fifty-six votes for Kirkwood, and he 
 was forthwith declared the unanimous choice of the 
 caucus. 320 
 
 In commenting upon the result of the caucus the 
 editor of the State Register stated his belief that 
 Harlan's withdrawal insured the choice of Kirk- 
 wood. "It was considered a general sign", he said, 
 "that the field was abandoned to the Governor, and 
 so several of Harlan's supporters went straight to 
 the winning camp, and not to Price, as the latter 
 gentleman had good reason to expect. " He consid- 
 ered Harlan's course as eminently wise from a 
 political standpoint, since it "left him without the 
 weight of a direct defeat to bear, gave the other 
 candidates a clear field, and took him out of the 
 contest in a better shape than anything else besides 
 a nomination could have taken him." 321 The same 
 editor predicted that the outcome would bring about 
 a recasting of political lines and sympathies all over 
 the State and a complicated contest for the senator- 
 ship two years hence. 322 The last part of this pre- 
 diction, at least, can hardly be said to have been 
 fulfilled. 
 
 What would have been the result had James Har- 
 lan permitted his name to remain on the list can only 
 be a matter of conjecture. The fact remains that on 
 January 19, 1876, the General Assembly met in joint 
 
THE ELECTION OF KIRKWOOD IN 1876 179 
 
 convention and declared Samuel J. Kirkwood duly 
 elected United States Senator from Iowa for six 
 years beginning on March 4, 1877. 323 The accept- 
 ance of the governorship, therefore, in the end did 
 not prove an insurmountable obstacle in the path- 
 way to the Senate. As will be seen, Kirkwood did 
 not fill out the entire term for which he was elected, 
 but in 1881 accepted a call to a seat in the President 's 
 Cabinet. 
 
XII 
 
 THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM B. ALLISON 
 IN 1878 
 
 ONE of the most bitter struggles in the history of 
 Iowa politics marked the first election of William B. 
 Allison to the United States Senate in 1872 ; but six 
 years later, at the expiration of his term, he was 
 reflected with scarcely a trace of opposition a cir- 
 cumstance that is rare in the annals of senatorial 
 elections in Iowa. Indeed, the reelection of James 
 W. Grimes in 1864 is the only previous senatorial 
 contest in Iowa history that was characterized by 
 anything like the same degree of unanimity. 
 
 The latter part of the year 1877 and the early 
 months of 1878 may almost be said to have consti- 
 tuted an "era of good feeling " in State politics. 
 There was a conspicuous absence of factions in the 
 Eepublican party, which was strongly in the ascend- 
 ancy. Moreover, the opposition of many Repub- 
 licans to the acts and policies of President Hayes 
 aided in allaying party antagonism. The prevailing 
 spirit of amity manifested itself especially in the 
 legislature of 1878, where John Y. Stone, a Eepub- 
 lican, was elected Speaker of the House with only 
 five dissenting votes. 
 
 As usual, comments upon the approaching sena- 
 
 180 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1878 181 
 
 torial election began to appear in the newspapers 
 early in the fall of 1877 and continued up to the time 
 of the election. With only a few exceptions these 
 comments advocated the return of William B. Al- 
 lison and reflect the same attitude on the part of a 
 majority of the people of the State. Even the 
 sectionalism so evident in previous and subsequent 
 contests was absent, for the approval of Senator 
 Allison was equally strong from all parts of the 
 State. "The Legislature just chosen will have, as 
 one of its duties, the election of a United States 
 Senator, for the Allison succession", ran an editorial 
 in a newspaper in south central Iowa, "and so far 
 as we have been able to see, the opinion is universally 
 in favor of Mr. Allison as his own successor. This 
 appears to us to be the fit thing to do." 324 
 
 From Onawa in the northwest came the state- 
 ment that "the people of Iowa will take pleasure in 
 returning to the Senate one whom all Iowa delights 
 to honor the present incumbent, Hon. Wm. B. 
 Allison. " 325 Similar quotations might be made al- 
 most indefinitely, but the situation is admirably 
 summarized in an editorial in the State Register late 
 in the season : 
 
 In the pretty general discussion which has been going on 
 in the State press for some time in regard to the successor 
 of Mr. Allison in the United States Senate, The State Reg- 
 ister has borne no part. We preferred to wait and see the 
 sentiment of the State and the wish of the party, and let 
 that determine our position in regard to the matter. We 
 have no wish specially to plead Mr. Allison's case if it 
 
 
182 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 should be developed that he was not the cordial choice of 
 the State as his own successor. We had supported him at 
 his first election, and supported him earnestly. His career 
 in the Senate was in no sense disappointing, but in every 
 respect satisfactory to us fully justifying and faithfully 
 fulfilling the expectations we had been led to have of him 
 as a Senator. The discussion of the succession has been 
 very general and protracted. Nearly every paper in the 
 State has spoken its mind concerning the question, and al- 
 most every Republican paper has spoken in favor of the 
 Senator's being his own successor. The expression on the 
 part of the people has been cordially to the same end. With 
 this conclusion of the press and the people, we find no hesi- 
 tation in agreeing, and accept of it with enthusiasm and 
 gratification. 326 
 
 Various reasons were assigned for the desira- 
 bility of reflecting Senator Allison. On the part of 
 those who might have preferred a different man the 
 apparent unanimity of the people of the State in 
 favor of Allison was accepted as a conclusive argu- 
 ment in his behalf. Furthermore, it was quite gen- 
 erally stated that during Ms six years of service 
 Senator Allison had faithfully represented the 
 wishes of Ms constituents, and that he occupied a 
 position of influence in the Senate of which all 
 lowans should be proud. "At Washington Mr. Al- 
 lison is accorded the position of the leading Kepub- 
 lican Senator of the West", declared a Des Moines 
 editor. And he called the roll of Senators from the 
 western States to prove the truth of Ms assertion. 327 
 
 Not only was Allison praised because he had been 
 faithful to the interests of the people of Iowa, but 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1878 183 
 
 also because he had remained true to the funda- 
 mental principles of Republicanism at a time when 
 there had been much back-sliding. ' ' In the dark and 
 doubtful days of the past summer, when there was 
 an effort being made to make Eepublicanism over 
 into Democracy", wrote a friendly editor, "he was 
 the first member of the Senate to take the stump, 
 and break the great and cautious stillness that all 
 the politicians were trying to keep. And he broke it 
 to say that he was for the Eepublicanism of the old 
 kind, that he was in favor of standing by the friends 
 of the party and not its enemies, and that he would 
 vote in the Senate for the Eepublican claimants from 
 the deserted States. . . . The ground he marked 
 out for himself then, as a Eepublican and a Senator, 
 all the Eepublicans of the Senate have since ad- 
 vanced to, and now occupy. " 328 Finally, the unan- 
 imous reelection of Senator Allison was urged as a 
 means of preventing a recurrence of factional strife 
 within the party, and of clearing the politics of the 
 State for the next senatorial succession. 329 
 
 While the sentiment of the State, as has been 
 indicated, was predominantly in favor of the return 
 of William B. Allison, there were a few hints of 
 opposition which may have caused his friends some 
 slight apprehension. The possibility that James 
 Harlan would again enter the race for the senator- 
 ship seemingly caused some uneasiness, for early in 
 December the editor of the Burlington Hawk-Eye 
 protested against certain editors who "imagine that 
 they are neglecting their duty if they do not indulge 
 
184 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 in an annual tirade of abuse of ex-Senator Harlan. ' ' 
 Signs of the annual outbreak were evident, and the 
 editor warned his contemporaries that the best way 
 to arouse a formidable feeling in favor of James Har- 
 lan was to make an unprovoked attack upon him. 330 
 
 It soon appeared, however, that there was some 
 ground for the suspicion of a possible Harlan can- 
 didacy. About the middle of December it was 
 learned that William Allen, Eepresentative from 
 Henry County, had issued a circular letter to the 
 members of the General Assembly in the effort to 
 organize an opposition to Senator Allison and a 
 movement in favor of James Harlan. 331 While the 
 letter was a decided failure as far as accomplishing 
 its purpose was concerned it drew from Harlan a 
 vigorous denial of his candidacy or of any connection 
 with the letter 332 and furnished fuel for numerous 
 newspaper comments. 
 
 It was intimated that the Allen letter might have 
 been issued for the purpose of ascertaining the posi- 
 tion of the legislators, and that it was really in the in- 
 terest of Senator Allison. The Sioux City Journal, 
 however, ridiculed this idea. i l The Eepublican senti- 
 ment of the State has been so clearly expressed in fa- 
 vor of the retention of Mr. Allison ", stated the editor, 
 "that upon the part of Mr. Allison's friends no solic- 
 itude in his behalf could have suggested this attempt 
 at pumping. " 333 Another editor believed that if the 
 legislators "were disposed to branch out after a 
 new candidate they would not be likely to make" 
 Representative Allen their "father confessor". 334 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1878 185 
 
 The real source and animus of the Allen letter 
 also caused much speculation. A newspaper cor- 
 respondent in the northern part of the State wrote 
 that "a rumor is current that a revelation will be 
 made that will connect three prominent Dubuque 
 men with the copying of the letter." The cor- 
 respondent further referred to a current intimation 
 that an "ex-government official" had offered the 
 letter to an eastern newspaper for one hundred 
 dollars as "pure cussedness", and predicted that 
 there would be a surprise when the truth was 
 known. 335 "Let the truth come out if the fur must 
 fly", commented a Cedar Falls editor. "The blame 
 now rests on Henry Clay n .336 
 
 The Allen letter was the only approach to an or- 
 ganized effort to place a candidate in the field 
 against Allison during this contest. Practically the 
 only hint of objection to him on account of his poli- 
 cies was the rumor that he would be opposed because 
 of his advocacy of the remonetization of silver. But 
 the storm of protest which this rumor aroused 
 proved conclusively that Senator Allison 's views on 
 the silver coinage question were thoroughly in ac- 
 cord with the wishes of the people of Iowa. 337 
 
 The unanimity which characterized the approval 
 of Senator Allison by the newspapers and people of 
 the State manifested itself in the caucus of the Ee- 
 publican members of the legislature, held on the 
 evening of January 14, 1878. The caucus did not 
 last half an hour and resulted in the nomination of 
 William B. Allison by acclamation, without a ballot 
 
186 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 being taken and without a dissenting vote. Short 
 speeches were made by William Larrabee, William 
 M. Stone, Alfred Hebard, and William Allen, the 
 author of the famous circular. It was the latter who 
 moved that the nomination be made by acclamation, 
 and his remarks elicited enthusiastic applause. 338 
 
 On January 23rd the two houses of the General 
 Assembly met in joint convention. A comparison of 
 the journals revealed the fact that of the one hun- 
 dred and forty-two votes cast for United States 
 Senator William B. Allison had received one hun- 
 dred and four. 339 Of the remaining thirty-eight 
 votes Daniel F. Miller received thirty-five, and E. N. 
 Gates three. 340 
 
 i 'Nobody came forward to contest the senatorial 
 nomination with Mr. Allison ' ', was the post-election 
 comment of a Burlington editor, * * and even the dem- 
 ocrats seem[ed] inclined to vote for him as nearly 
 as possible by nominating a relic of a former age as 
 a candidate so that in the future when the history 
 of the state comes to be written, it may be said with 
 truth that Mr. Allison had no opposition." 341 
 
XIII 
 
 THE ELECTION OF WILSON AND McDILL 
 IN 1882 
 
 THE senatorial contest of 1882 opened with consid- 
 erable earnestness fully a year before the election 
 occurred. As early as January 21, 1881, a lengthy 
 discussion of the political situation in Iowa with 
 special reference to the senatorship appeared in a 
 Des Moines newspaper. A correspondent had in- 
 quired whether there was any truth in the statement 
 that James Harlan was "a candidate for Governor, 
 or for the Kirkwood succession in the Senate ", and 
 whether John H. Gear was a candidate for a third 
 term as Governor or was in reality seeking a seat 
 in the United States Senate. To the first inquiry 
 the editor replied that it was generally believed that 
 Harlan was not a candidate for either position, but 
 that he would accept either if elected. As to Gear 
 the editor disclaimed any authority to speak definite- 
 ly, but expressed the opinion that "he is not a 
 candidate for a third term as Governor, and that he 
 is candidate for Senator". 
 
 The possibility that Iowa would be given a place 
 in President Garfield's Cabinet also received some 
 attention, and, according to the editor, indications 
 at that time seemed to point to the calling of James 
 
 187 
 
188 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 F. Wilson to the Cabinet, either as Secretary of the 
 Interior or of the Treasury. It was thought that if 
 Wilson did not go into the Cabinet he would be a 
 candidate for Senator. There was also a possibility 
 that John A. Kasson would be a candidate. In con- 
 clusion the editor stated that "Gov. Kirkwood is a 
 candidate, and the indications now are all in favor 
 of his election, although Gov. Gear has much 
 strength and many active friends. m42 
 
 That Samuel J. Kirkwood at this time fully ex- 
 pected to be a candidate for a second term in the 
 Senate is very evident from his correspondence. On 
 February 20th Jacob Eich, who had long been one of 
 Kirkwood 's most ardent supporters, wrote from Des 
 Moines stating that he had held conferences with a 
 number of prominent politicians in the capital city. 
 "All see that Gear is working like a Trojan ", said 
 Eich, "but none have fears of a contest between him 
 and you. There is a feeling, however, of anxiety as 
 to what may come of the cabinet complication, if it 
 takes Allison out of the Senate ". The possibility 
 that Kirkwood himself might be given a seat in the 
 Cabinet was also hinted at by Eich. And finally he 
 admonished Kirkwood that if the fight for the Senate 
 was to go on he should "have some man in every 
 congressional district actively at work, with a head 
 either here or at Iowa City to whom reports must be 
 made of the situation in every legislative district. 
 There should be some money for traveling expenses 
 of these Dist. Agents and for postage. " 343 
 
 At about this same time J. N. Dewey, another of 
 
ELECTION OF WILSON AND McDILL 189 
 
 Kirkwood's trusted lieutenants, wrote a long letter 
 discussing the prospects in the senatorial contest. 
 He thought that there was no foundation in the 
 rumors to the effect that an alliance had been made 
 between Buren E. Sherman and John H. Gear, 
 whereby the former was to run for Governor and 
 the latter for Senator. There might be some truth 
 in a similar rumor with respect to Gear and William 
 Larrabee. But in the opinion of the writer the man 
 most to be feared was neither Gear, Sherman, or 
 Larrabee, but James Harlan, "with the Methodist 
 church behind him." "The 'brethren' by dele- 
 gates or otherwise I don't know which", Dewey 
 wrote, "assembled here some weeks since, brother 
 Harlan among them, to consult as to the best inter- 
 ests of this part of the Vineyard, when it was 
 determined to hold a State Convention here in May 
 next At that time delegations from every parish 
 will be on hand and the Harlan ball that is to 
 bowl him into the Gubernatorial & thence into 
 the Senatorial chair will get a first ' class' send 
 off". 344 
 
 As the days passed the possibility of Kirkwood's 
 appointment to a position in the President 's Cabinet 
 developed into a probability, but Jacob Rich was 
 still at Des Moines keeping in touch with the pre- 
 liminary maneuvers for the senatorship. "Gear is 
 everywhere, and with his hands into everything", 
 he wrote on March 3rd. "Whether it counts most, 
 for or against him, is not certain. But as soon as 
 this cabinet business is solved, and it is certain that 
 
190 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 you are not going into it, we must have a meeting of 
 your friends here, and go to work." 345 
 
 Certainty came, however, on March 5th when the 
 news was telegraphed to Iowa that President Gar- 
 field had appointed Kirkwood as Secretary of the 
 Interior. The entire aspect of the senatorial contest 
 was immediately changed, for as long as Kirkwood 
 remained in the race there was small chance for any- 
 one else to win. "The telegraph says you have the 
 Interior Portfolio", wrote a friend, "allow me to 
 congratulate you. It is right & proper but I don't 
 know what kind of a fight you have left us in Iowa 
 over your vacant shoes ' '. 346 
 
 Upon the resignation of Samuel J. Kirkwood 
 from the Senate, Governor Gear appointed James 
 W. McDill to fill the vacancy until the ensuing ses- 
 sion of the General Assembly, 347 at which time it 
 would be necessary not only to choose someone to fill 
 out the remainder of Kirkwood 's unexpired term but 
 also to elect a Senator for the full term beginning 
 on March 5, 1883. With two prizes to tempt con- 
 testants the campaign now opened with real earnest- 
 ness. 
 
 James F. Wilson of Fairfield, who hitherto had 
 received casual mention in connection with the sena- 
 torship, immediately came into prominence as a full- 
 fledged and acknowledged candidate. "So things 
 have turned out! and now I have got a job on my 
 hands", he wrote to Kirkwood on March 7th. "I 
 have written to a number of persons today advising 
 them that I shall be a candidate for Senator. . . . 
 
ELECTION OF WILSON AND McDILL 191 
 
 It is important now to fix your friends as soon as 
 possible, and I wish you would give this matter a 
 little attention. " 348 
 
 The newspapers now took up the question and it 
 was not long until it was evident that the contest 
 would lie between three or four men. James F, 
 Wilson perhaps received the most favorable com- 
 ment throughout the State in general, but there were 
 several other men who had strong local support. 
 Next to Wilson stood Governor Gear, and a Des 
 Moines editor intimated that Wilson should look well 
 to his forces or he would be out-generaled by the 
 Governor. John A. Kasson had many admirers in 
 central Iowa, while James W. McDill was strong in 
 the southwestern part of the State. Hiram Price, 
 said the editor, was a possibility, and there was no 
 doubt that James Harlan was " seeking entrance to 
 this upper field by the strong gate of the Governor- 
 ship ". Moreover, other men were "feeling about 
 their shoulders, to see if nature did not intend them 
 to hold a toga. " 349 
 
 So general and earnest did the discussion of 
 candidates become that by the first of June the sena- 
 torial question threatened to overshadow all other 
 political issues and to determine the nomination of 
 members of the General Assembly. Several news- 
 papers deprecated this state of affairs. "This ques- 
 tion, whether a United States Senatorial succession 
 should be precipitated into a contest in the party 
 before its proper time, imperilling many other and 
 equally important interests of the party and State ' ', 
 
192 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 declared an influential editor, "is one which may 
 now well be considered. . . . It is a good deal 
 to say that Legislators should be chosen who will 
 first be sound according to the opinion of any one 
 locality in their preferences for United States 
 Senator. " 35 
 
 There were others, however, who disagreed with 
 this view. They admitted that "it can be more 
 easily ascertained which way the Senatorial cat is 
 about to jump, after the election. " But in their 
 opinion "the people ought to have a full and free 
 discussion of the candidates placed before them be- 
 fore they elect members of the Legislature whose 
 duty it will be to elect a Senator. If the people in 
 one locality are especially opposed to some well 
 known candidate, they have a perfect right to know 
 something of how their Eepresentative expects to 
 vote." 351 
 
 Whatever the views of the newspaper editors it 
 appears that the politicians of the State in general 
 considered the senatorship the most important local 
 issue of the year; for in a great many county and 
 district Eepublican conventions resolutions were 
 adopted in favor of the election of some particular 
 man as United States Senator. In many instances 
 nominees for members of the legislature were given 
 definite instructions as to how they should vote in 
 the senatorial election. "The most of the Eepub- 
 lican County Conventions in this District have 
 passed resolutions in favor of Kasson for United 
 States Senator ", was the announcement made in a 
 
ELECTION OF WILSON AND McDILL 193 
 
 Des Moines newspaper. 352 In the convention in 
 Greene County a resolution to instruct for James F. 
 Wilson was unexpectedly introduced and was adopt- 
 ed by a narrow margin of two or three votes, 
 although it was the opinion of a local editor that 
 another convention equally representative of the 
 people of the county, might favor instructing for 
 any one of a number of candidates. 353 
 
 From Dubuque came the statement that the nom- 
 ination of J. E. Anderson as State Representative 
 from the seventy-seventh district was "a Wilson 
 victory over Gear for U. S. Senator. " 354 A district 
 convention at Earlham in the southwestern part of 
 the State nominated C. B. Hunt for State Senator 
 and by acclamation instructed him to vote for John 
 A. Kasson for United States Senator. 355 The Mus~ 
 catine County convention instructed for Wilson, 
 casting eighty-one votes in his favor as opposed to 
 thirty-one for Gear and smaller votes for Kasson 
 and McDill. 356 The Scott County delegation in the 
 legislature was renominated with the exception of 
 Bruce Seaman, who was a Wilson man, while the 
 convention was solid for Gear. 357 
 
 Thus all over the State the senatorial question 
 played a decisive part in determining nominations in 
 local conventions. By the middle of September it 
 was estimated that fifty-four counties, having fifty 
 members in the legislature, had instructed for James 
 F. Wilson, the other candidates receiving only scat- 
 tered support. 358 
 
 A few weeks later, however, consternation was; 
 
 13 
 
194 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 spread through the camps of the rival candidates. 
 The death of President Garfield as the result of the 
 assassin's bullet elevated Chester A. Arthur to the 
 presidency, and soon there came rumors that there 
 would be certain changes in the Cabinet. Among the 
 portfolios in connection with which a change seemed 
 imminent was that of the Secretary of the Interior. 
 Naturally the possibility that Samuel J. Kirkwood 
 would again be in a position to accept the senator- 
 ship caused much anxiety among those to whom his 
 acceptance of the cabinet office had given hope for 
 their own chances in the senatorial race. 
 
 Kirkwood 's admirers were willing that he should 
 remain in the Cabinet, but at the same time it was 
 evident that they would welcome an opportunity to 
 return him to the Senate. " There is a strong prob- 
 ability that Secretary Kirkwood will retire from the 
 Cabinet ", said an Iowa City editor, "and, in that 
 event, his many friends throughout the State will 
 insist that he be returned to the U. S. Senate from 
 which he was called by President Garfield. He was 
 not a candidate for Cabinet honors, but yielded to 
 the entreaties of the late Chief Magistrate to become 
 one of his advisers. It is proper, therefore, that he 
 should be placed in his former position. " 359 A cor- 
 respondent to a Chicago paper thought it would not 
 be surprising if Kirkwood should be nominated for 
 Senator "as he once was for Governor, 'in the name 
 of the people of Iowa' without his knowledge or 
 consent. It would be very like Iowa Eepublicans to 
 do that. Circumstances have altered the case very 
 
ELECTION OF WILSON AND McDILL 195 
 
 materially since many of the legislative nominations 
 were made, and instructions given candidates will be 
 considered in the light of existing facts." 360 
 
 The editor of the Iowa State Register at Des 
 Moines was especially ardent in his advocacy of re- 
 turning Kirkwood to the Senate in case he should 
 leave the Cabinet. "Some Iowa newspapers", he 
 declared, "are taking a great deal of pains to state 
 just who shall and who shall not be candidates for 
 the United States Senatorships. . . . Just now 
 they are pointing out that it was understood that 
 Secretary Kirkwood intended to close his public life 
 with his term in the Interior Department, and that 
 he could not therefore become a candidate for the 
 Senatorship even if he should leave the Cabinet 
 now." The editor admitted that this statement 
 might represent Kirkwood 's intention in the matter, 
 but there were many thousand Eepublicans in Iowa 
 who might think differently. "Once upon a time", 
 he continued, "they wanted Samuel J. Kirkwood to 
 be a candidate for Governor much against his will, 
 and the majority ruled. It may be so again." 361 
 
 For fully two months the same newspaper con- 
 tinued to urge the election of Kirkwood. "He is not 
 only the strongest man we have for the Senate as a 
 State, ' ' he wrote early in November, ' ' but he also rep- 
 resents that type of Republicanism which is in over- 
 whelming majority in Iowa. . . . Let the so-called 
 stalwart or Grant-Conkling-Arthur administration 
 make up its Cabinet as it will, and wholly of its own 
 kind, as it undoubtedly has the right to do." 362 
 
196 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 "No well posted Iowa man can doubt the un- 
 equalled popularity of Gov. Kirkwood in Iowa and 
 with his party, " said the editor three weeks later. 
 ' ' His whole history, and the history of the State, for 
 twenty years, are proofs of it. Every year and every 
 campaign affirm it. The writer of this was for two 
 years Chairman of the Eepublican State Committee, 
 and in those two years there were ten requests and 
 appeals for speeches from Kirkwood where there was 
 one for any other man in the State, and the Chair- 
 men in other years tell us that the same thing was 
 true with them. His name in Iowa to-day warms the 
 public heart as no other name touches it, the mere 
 announcement of his name for a public speech will 
 draw a greater crowd than any other Iowa man will 
 draw, and his appearance in public or in a party 
 convention is always a signal for such applause as 
 the Eepublicans of Iowa give to no other man." 363 
 
 Judging from newspaper comments and from the 
 letters which Kirkwood received from Iowa the 
 movement in his favor was rapidly gaining large 
 proportions. But the hopes of his friends, as well 
 as the fears of the various senatorial aspirants, soon 
 proved to be groundless. Kirkwood firmly refused 
 to permit his name to be used again in the senatorial 
 contest. On October 3, 1881, he wrote as follows to 
 his confidential friend, Jacob Rich: 
 
 I have your letters of the 21st & 28th. It seems to me 
 you should not have written the latter knowing me as I 
 hope you do and knowing the relations of Wilson & myself 
 I think you could have taken it for granted that I would 
 
ELECTION OF WILSON AND McDILL 197 
 
 not permit my name to be used to his prejudice in any way 
 in the fight he has so gallantly made for the Senate But 
 as you seem to have some doubt on the subject I now say 
 to you that I am earnestly for the election of Wilson to the 
 Senate, that I think he ought to be elected and that I will 
 not permit my name to be used in any way to his prejudice. 
 You may do what you please with this letter except publish 
 it I have a horror of seeing my name in print in such 
 connection, but show it to any one & to all with whom in 
 your judgment it may have any weight. 364 
 
 A further indication of the friendly understand- 
 ing which existed between Wilson and Kirkwood is 
 to be found in a letter which the latter wrote to a 
 Sioux City friend at about this same time. Further- 
 more, this letter furnishes a glimpse of Kirkwood 7 s 
 attitude toward public office. He wrote, in part : 
 
 When I expected a year ago to be a candidate for re- 
 election to the Senate Wilson very generously refused to 
 contest the matter with me. 
 
 When my name was used for my present position, al- 
 though he had been named & was strongly supported for 
 the same place [he] again declined to make a contest Under 
 these circumstances I cannot allow my name to be used 
 against him and I feel sure you will agree with me in this. 
 
 If it were not on McDuTs account I would like if I 
 leave the Cabinet to serve out the term to which I was 
 elected six years ago I am not under any special obliga- 
 tions to McDill but I do not like the idea of a fight with him 
 Indeed the good people of Iowa have done so much for 
 me that I do not feel like making a fight with any one for 
 their favor. 365 
 
 Thus the candidates in the contest remained as 
 
198 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 they had been before rumors of changes in the Cab- 
 inet began to cause speculation. By this time it was 
 very apparent that James F. Wilson stood the best 
 chance of winning the long term, while James W. 
 McDill had little opposition for the short term. 
 Moreover, it is probable that Kirkwood's attitude 
 counted strongly in favor of Wilson. 
 
 But the latter was not without enemies nor did 
 he escape without some more or less bitter criticism 
 from the press. One editor referred to Wilson 's 
 "self-devotion and that of his friends to build him 
 up as the Crown-Prince of Iowa's political realm", 
 and spoke of "their testy peevishness at any syl- 
 lable that does not sound unconditional surrender to 
 his imperial adulation above other men". 366 An- 
 other paper reviewed Wilson's service in securing 
 legislation for railroads, but declared that he was 
 not "as some would have us believe, the great source 
 from which Iowa Eepublicanism sprung. . . . 
 However potential he may have been with the rail- 
 roads, in the politics of the State he doesn't stride as 
 a Colossus of Ehodes among pigmies." 367 
 
 Thus the discussion was carried on until the time 
 for the meeting of the legislature. Political issues 
 were almost ignored, and the question was based 
 largely on the relative merits of the respective can- 
 didates. In spite of Samuel J. Kirkwood's emphatic 
 refusal to reenter the race his name was strongly 
 urged as late as the first of January by the Iowa 
 State Register. "No man can serve Iowa as Kirk- 
 wood can serve it", said the editor. "No Iowa man 
 
ELECTION OF WILSON AND McDILL 199 
 
 has the confidence of the Nation as he has it, and 
 Iowa itself has more confidence in him than in any 
 other of its men." 368 
 
 The Nineteenth General Assembly convened on 
 January 9, 1882, and on the following evening the 
 Eepublican members held their senatorial caucus. 
 Contrary to general expectations the most cordial 
 harmony prevailed. Scarcely had the Chairman, 
 William Larrabee, announced that the caucus was in 
 session when Governor John H. Gear arose and in a 
 brief speech withdrew his name from the contest. 
 James F. Wilson was then nominated by Eldin H. 
 Hartshorn, whereupon H. Y. Smith of Polk an- 
 nounced the withdrawal of John A. Kasson and 
 seconded the nomination of Wilson. The nomina- 
 tion was further seconded by John C. Shrader of 
 Johnson County "in behalf of the friends of the Old 
 War Governor Samuel J. Kirkwood." McDill was 
 nominated by acclamation for the short term. Wil- 
 son came into the room later and made a brief and 
 appropriate speech in appreciation of the honor 
 which had been conferred upon him. 369 
 
 On January 25, 1882, the two houses of the Gen- 
 eral Assembly met in joint convention, and upon a 
 comparison of the journals it was found that the 
 choice of the Eepublican caucus had been confirmed 
 by large majorities. L. G. Kinne and D. P. Stubbs 
 each received a light vote for the full term; while 
 M. M. Ham and Daniel Campbell received a like 
 support from the opposition forces for the short 
 term. Certificates of election were therefore issued 
 to James F. Wilson and James W. McDill. 370 
 
XIV 
 
 THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM B. ALLISON 
 
 IN 1884 
 
 THE political campaign in Iowa in 1883 was a stormy 
 one, because of the intense agitation of the subject 
 of prohibition. In 1882 the people of the State had, 
 by a majority of nearly thirty thousand, voted to 
 amend the State Constitution in such a manner as 
 to prohibit the manufacture and sale of intoxicating 
 liquors. A few months later, however, the Supreme 
 Court declared the amendment invalid because of a 
 technical error in its adoption. The advocates of 
 prohibition were naturally very much disappointed, 
 and in 1883 they turned to the Republicans in the 
 hope of inducing that party to take a positive stand 
 in the matter. Their hope was not in vain. In 1879 
 the Eepublicans in their platform had pledged them- 
 selves to secure the submission of a prohibitory 
 amendment; and so a plank was placed in the plat- 
 form of 1883 declaring that since the sentiment of 
 the people of Iowa, as expressed in the vote on the 
 amendment, was strongly in favor of prohibition, 
 the party pledged itself to secure the adoption of a 
 rigid prohibitory law at the next session of the Gen- 
 eral Assembly. The Democrats, on the other hand, 
 declared strongly in favor of a license law as op- 
 
 200 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1884 201 
 
 posed to prohibition, and thus the issue was squarely 
 drawn. 371 
 
 It is little wonder, therefore, when the leading 
 newspapers of the State, both Republican and Dem- 
 ocratic, were literally flooded throughout the year 
 with articles and editorials on the prohibition ques- 
 tion, that the senatorial succession should receive 
 but scant attention until shortly before the fall elec- 
 tions. It was also natural that the two issues should 
 react upon each other in the campaign. Indeed, 
 there was some truth in the statement of a Demo- 
 cratic editor that "with prohibition on one side and 
 an U. S. Senator on the other, if the republicans 
 aren't between the devil and the deep sea, then no 
 one ever was in that fix." 372 
 
 It would not be correct, however, to speak of the 
 senatorial election of 1884 as a contest. Within the 
 ranks of the Eepublican party there was no hint of 
 opposition to the reelection of Senator Allison, and 
 from first to last no candidate appeared against him. 
 The Democrats, on the other hand, took an unusually 
 active interest in the situation, and from them and 
 the Greenbackers came the only efforts to weaken 
 Allison in the estimation of the people of the State. 
 The Democrats hoped that the endorsement of pro- 
 hibition would cause such a large defection from the 
 ranks of the Eepublicans that a Democratic majority 
 might be secured in the legislature, and thus a Demo- 
 cratic United States Senator might be elected. Con- 
 sequently certain Democratic leaders were not 
 averse to seizing every opportunity to attack Al- 
 
202 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 lison's record and reputation. In fact, were it not 
 for the persistent storm of bitter criticism raised by 
 a number of Democratic speakers and editors, and 
 especially by the leader of the Greenbackers, the 
 story of the election of William B. Allison in 1884 
 could be told in a very few words. 
 
 It was about the middle of August, 1883, just at 
 the time of Senator Allison's bereavement by the 
 tragic death of his wife, that he was first assailed 
 with charges of corruption in connection with grants 
 to Iowa railroads twenty years before. And thus the 
 question of his reelection became a prominent issue. 
 Eepublican editors were severe in their denunciation 
 of those who made calumnious charges against Al- 
 lison when his lips were sealed by sorrow, and many 
 Democrats likewise deprecated the actions of their 
 brother partisans. 
 
 "General Weaver, who has heretofore appeared 
 to the people of Iowa as being a man of kind heart 
 and humane feelings, despite of all his insincere po- 
 litical courses", declared a Des Moines editor, "in 
 his speech in Des Moines last Monday night while 
 Senator Allison was barely yet returned to his deso- 
 late home from the grave of his wife made a 
 savage personal assault upon him and his personal 
 as well as his political honor. To do this he went 
 back to a stale and stupid falsehood which died of 
 its own malice twenty years ago, and which, during 
 the past campaigns occurring since that time, has 
 never been used by Democratic papers and speakers, 
 and revamped it to his audience, against a man 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1884 203 
 
 who never wronged him by so much as a harsh word, 
 fairly with the glee that is shown alone by those 
 who can exult over a man's helplessness in sorrow 
 or his silence in death. " 373 
 
 In addition to James B. Weaver, who was candi- 
 date for Governor on the Greenback ticket, it was 
 asserted that L. G. Kinne, the Democratic candidate 
 for the same office, was making similar charges 
 against Allison in his speeches throughout the 
 State. 374 
 
 The particular corruption with which Allison was 
 charged during this campaign was in connection with 
 railroads in northwestern Iowa. It was asserted, 
 for instance, that he had voted for the subsidy of 
 bonds and lands for the construction of the Sioux 
 City & Pacific Eailroad, a branch of the Union Pa- 
 cific in which he was especially interested, and that 
 later he had voted to double the subsidy. Moreover, 
 it was charged that he had been influential in chang- 
 ing the route of the Cedar Eapids & Missouri Eiver 
 Eailroad, which company was now attempting to 
 defraud settlers in Monona County out of their 
 lands. Finally, the statement was made that Allison 
 had made millions of dollars out of the Sioux City 
 & Pacific Eailroad. 375 
 
 The Greenback candidate for Governor even went 
 so far in one of his speeches as to urge it "as a moral 
 and religious duty that every republican, democrat, 
 prohibitionist and greenbacker owed to God, his 
 country, his neighbor and himself to see to it that 
 he so voted for senators and representatives that not 
 
204 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 a single legislator should be found to stand up and 
 vote to return Allison the monopolist, the corrup- 
 tionist and subsidy grabber to the United States 
 senate/' 376 
 
 The leading Eepublican newspapers of the State 
 contained column after column of editorials and ex- 
 tracts from the Congressional Globe defending Al- 
 lison against the attacks made upon him. It was 
 pointed out that at the time the original subsidy of 
 bonds and lands was voted to the Sioux City branch 
 of the Union Pacific, Allison had not even been elect- 
 ed to his first term in Congress and therefore could 
 not be held in any way responsible. 377 The charge 
 relative to the alleged frauds against the settlers in 
 Monona County was met with the statement that the 
 Cedar Eapids & Missouri Eiver Eailroad had re- 
 ceived its grant of lands from the State of Iowa and 
 not from Congress, and that it was a road in which 
 Allison had absolutely no interest, financial or other- 
 wise. Furthermore, a sworn statement from the 
 attorney of the Monona County settlers was pub- 
 lished showing that Senator Allison was in no way 
 responsible for their difficulties. 378 
 
 The fact that Allison had voted to increase the 
 subsidy of the Union Pacific in 1864 was admitted, 
 but it was shown that such legislation was a neces- 
 sity in order to secure the construction of much 
 needed railroads and that the act met with universal 
 approval at the time of its adoption. 379 Finally, the 
 claim that Allison had made millions of dollars out 
 of the Sioux City & Pacific Eailroad was branded as 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1884 205 
 
 a gross falsehood, since that road had not paid a 
 single dividend to any of its stock-holders, and Al- 
 lison was by no means a wealthy man. 380 
 
 As the time for the fall elections drew near the 
 opposing parties in the campaign charged each other 
 with insincerity with respect to the prohibition 
 question. "To secure a democratic United States 
 senator from Iowa", said a Eepublican editor, "is 
 the primary object of the present political contest in 
 Iowa, in the esteem of the leaders and managing 
 men of the democracy. . . . Affecting great zeal 
 in behalf of the anti-prohibition crusade, the Iowa 
 democracy were for a time very successful in de- 
 ceiving a large class of voters as to the central object 
 of the democratic canvass." The battle-cry of the 
 Democrats and Greenbackers was declared to be 
 "Anything to beat Allison." 381 
 
 Another Eepublican editor charged James B. 
 Weaver with inconsistency in his attitude toward 
 prohibition. "Professing to antagonize Gov. Sher- 
 man because he is not [a] good enough prohibition- 
 ist", declared the editor, "Weaver nevertheless 
 urges upon the prohibition Greenbackers in every 
 place he visits the entire subordination of their re- 
 gard for prohibition to the end of defeating a 
 Eepublican U. S. Senator. Prohibition must be held 
 supreme as far as the Governorship is concerned, 
 because Greenback prohibitionists must be kept from 
 Sherman by voting for Weaver. But as to the 
 Legislature, there must be no consideration of pro- 
 hibition. Vote for license Democrats or whiskey- 
 
206 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Democrats or saloon-Democrats any kind of a 
 Democrat says Weaver, so you get a vote against 
 a Eepublican U. S. Senator." 382 
 
 Eloquent appeals were made to Eepublican 
 voters to vote a straight ticket in order that the 
 legislation might not be turned over to the control 
 of the Democrats. And in fact there appears to have 
 been some need for this warning, for a Davenport 
 editor stated that a large number of people "before 
 disposed to join in the mad desire to ' punish the 
 republicans' because of the prohibition question, 
 have come to a halt in their determination " upon 
 realizing the bearing which their vote would have 
 upon the senatorial election. 383 
 
 The Democrats and Greenbackers, on the other 
 hand, branded many of the Eepublican leaders with 
 hypocrisy in pretending to advocate prohibition as 
 the main issue in the campaign, while as a matter of 
 fact they were working every wire to save Allison. 384 
 
 The fall elections passed and the State still re- 
 mained under Eepublican control, although with 
 decreased majorities. It was believed in some quar- 
 ters that the senatorial question and the popularity 
 of Senator Allison were largely responsible for pre- 
 venting a Democratic victory. "Hundreds bolted 
 the platform, " declared J. K. Graves of Dubuque, 
 who had received Democratic mention as a possible 
 anti- Allison candidate, "but there were thousands 
 who, reaching the very verge, were induced to pause 
 and vote the republican ticket through Senator Al- 
 lison's efforts and the efforts of his immediate 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1884 207 
 
 friends. ... . We only pulled Governor Sher- 
 man through by 2,500; the senatorial issue saved 
 him from inevitable defeat." 385 
 
 While the election of William B. Allison was now 
 generally looked upon as a foregone conclusion, a 
 number of Democratic papers still persisted in their 
 assaults upon him. It was even claimed that the 
 Democrats were offering their votes in the legisla- 
 ture to any Eepublican who would appear as a 
 candidate against Allison. 386 And one Democratic 
 editor, more inclined to prophecy than his fellows, 
 declared that the i ' last republican governor has been 
 elected in Iowa, the last republican legislature will 
 soon be in session, and it will elect the last repub- 
 lican U. S. Senator to aid the monopolist in throt- 
 tling the people." 387 
 
 There was no break during this time, however, in 
 Eepublican approval of Allison, and when the Re- 
 publican members of the legislature met in caucus on 
 the evening of January 15, 1884, the greatest har- 
 mony prevailed. The roll-call indicated that a full 
 caucus was present, and nominations for Senator 
 were declared in order. Senator T. E. Clark then 
 arose and in an "eloquent and stirring speech, 
 which produced a profound impression, presented 
 the name of Hon. William B. Allison." The nomi- 
 nation was seconded by several other members in 
 brief speeches, and when it appeared that there were 
 no further names to be voted upon, a rising vote was 
 called for and "every member rose to his feet amid 
 the enthusiastic applause of the assembly". 388 
 
208 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 A deputation was then sent to apprise Senator 
 Allison, who was in Des Moines, of his nomination 
 and to invite him to the caucus. When the applause 
 which greeted the Senator's entrance into the hall 
 had subsided, in a few modest and well chosen words, 
 he expressed his appreciation of the honor which 
 had been conferred upon him. He then " repaired 
 to his room at the Kirkwood, where he was called 
 upon by crowds of people up to 11 o'clock, when he 
 took the Eock Island train and left direct for his 
 duties at Washington ", 389 
 
 "It was the extraordinary scene of an extraor- 
 dinary event", declared the editor of the Iowa State 
 Register in discussing the nomination of Allison. 
 "For never before", he continued, "has any great 
 State given such high preferment as the State of 
 Iowa has now given to Senator Allison." 390 
 
 The reelection of William B. Allison was now 
 assured, but certain Democratic members of the 
 legislature were apparently determined to assail his 
 official record up to the very last moment. In the 
 House of Eepresentatives on the morning of Janu- 
 ary 22nd, the day on which each house cast its vote 
 for United States Senator, Eepresentative Joel 
 Stewart introduced a series of resolutions calling for 
 an investigation of the charges against Senator Al- 
 lison. In introducing these resolutions, however, 
 Stewart met with the disapproval of a number of his 
 own party as well as of the Eepublicans, and the 
 resolutions were indefinitely laid on the table by a 
 decisive vote. 391 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1884 209 
 
 On January 23rd the two houses met in joint con- 
 vention to compare their journals on the vote for 
 United States Senator. The result revealed a total 
 of ninety votes for William B. Allison, as opposed to 
 forty-eight for Benton J. Hall, ten for D. M. Clark, 
 and one for L. G. Kinne. 392 There was some doubt, 
 however, as to whether the law of Congress regu- 
 lating senatorial elections had been technically ful- 
 filled with respect to the date of holding the election, 
 and so the process was repeated one week later, with 
 substantially the same result. 393 And thus the elec- 
 tion of William B. Allison to his third term in the 
 United States Senate was made a certainty beyond 
 the chance for dispute. 
 
XV 
 
 THE ELECTION OF JAMES F. WILSON 
 IN 1888 
 
 A FEW pages will be sufficient to contain the narra- 
 tive of the second election of James F. Wilson to 
 the United States Senate in 1888. It is true that 
 during the months which preceded the caucus of the 
 Eepublican members of the legislature there was 
 manifest some opposition to Wilson within the ranks 
 of his own party. But, while Eepublican sentiment 
 was by no means as unanimous in favor of Wilson as 
 it had been for the return of Allison four years earli- 
 er, the opposition was neither united nor active and 
 until nearly the last moment no candidate definitely 
 appeared against him. Moreover, the Democrats 
 apparently took little interest in the senatorial ques- 
 tion. Thus the contest, if such it might be called, 
 was uneventful and provoked but little comment in 
 the newspapers. 
 
 The question of a successor to Senator Wilson 
 was occasionally mentioned throughout the year 
 1887, but it was not until late in the summer, when 
 the fall elections were approaching, that the dis- 
 cussion became at all general. From that time until 
 the question was settled by the legislature a tendency 
 to prefer the election of a new man to succeed Sen- 
 
 210 
 
THE ELECTION OF WILSON IN 1888 211 
 
 ator Wilson appeared in different sections of the 
 State. "Governor Larrabee is to-day the strongest 
 man, politically, in the State ", was the suggestion 
 which came from Muscatine, not far from Wilson 's 
 home. "Why not send him to the United States 
 Senate T' 394 This sentiment met with the approval 
 of an editor in the southwestern part of the State, al- 
 though he lamented the fact that in the election of 
 Larrabee ' ' Iowa would lose the best officer that ever 
 occupied the gubernatorial chair. " 395 
 
 John A. Kasson also received favorable com- 
 ments during the late summer as a possible candi- 
 date for the senatorship, but his advocates were as 
 widely scattered as were those of William Larrabee. 
 The editor of the Keokuk Gate City thought that 
 Kasson would be the one finally selected to make the 
 race against Wilson, since he was the only man in 
 the State strong enough to make any headway in 
 such a contest. 396 At Marshalltown, in central Iowa, 
 Kasson also found favor. 397 
 
 The county and district nominating conventions 
 also furnished some evidence of unsettled public 
 opinion on the senatorial question. It was asserted 
 that a number of counties which were supposed to be 
 Wilson strongholds had gone against him. Special 
 attention was called to the fact that both of the 
 legislative nominees in Marshall County were op- 
 posed to Wilson, although six years before that 
 county had furnished him his leading support. 398 
 On the other hand, Wilson received hearty endorse- 
 ment in a number of counties. 
 
212 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 A movement in favor of a Union soldier for 
 Senator received considerable support during the 
 summer and fall. ' * The plain people of Iowa have a 
 great many sensible notions ", was the comment 
 which appeared in a Des Moines newspaper. "One 
 of these notions is that the Republican party should 
 not put all of its enthusiasm for the Union soldier 
 in its platform and forget him in its ticket/' 399 An- 
 other editor pointed out the fact that there was a 
 score of ex-Confederate soldiers in Congress and 
 declared that it was "but right that Iowa send a 
 man to the Senate who fought on the other side." 400 
 But the Union soldier idea apparently wasted itself 
 in talk, for no candidate was selected to put the idea 
 to a practical test, unless the support given to 
 William P. Hepburn at the eleventh hour was sug- 
 gested by his service in the War of the Rebellion. 
 
 The friends of James F. Wilson endeavored to 
 make light of the soldier in politics movement, as 
 well as of the locality plea which was advanced in 
 favor of a man from the western part of the State. 
 From Fort Dodge, in the midst of the section which 
 was demanding a western candidate, came the state- 
 ment that "the soldier plea is not a strong one 
 against such a man as Wilson, who was as strong 
 and useful a patriot in congress during the war as 
 he could have been, or any lowan was, on the tented 
 field." 401 
 
 Shortly before the meeting of the legislature 
 William P. Hepburn received considerable favorable 
 comment as a candidate against Wilson; and Judge 
 
THE ELECTION OF WILSON IN 1888 213 
 
 Reed was occasionally mentioned in the western part 
 of the State. But with these two exceptions the op- 
 position to Wilson was unorganized and indefinite, 
 and even those who preferred someone else for Sen- 
 ator were forced to concede his nomination by a sub- 
 stantial majority of the Republican members of the 
 legislature. 
 
 The Republican caucus was held on Tuesday 
 evening, January 10, 1888, the day following the 
 convening of the General Assembly. The calling of 
 the caucus at so early a date was somewhat unusual 
 and was resented by the friends of Hepburn, who 
 had succeeded in working up something of a boom 
 for their favorite. " There had been no talk of 
 Tuesday evening ", declared a Des Moines editor, 
 "and invariable precedent whenever there had been 
 a contest, had deferred the time for the caucus until 
 the latter part of the week, and in some instances as 
 late as the Monday night before the day of election. 
 Inquiry also showed that there had been no meeting 
 of the committee, but the call had been carried 
 around to the different members and their signa- 
 tures had been secured in one or two instances at 
 least through a misunderstanding. This fact alone 
 would seem to make the call irregular if not illegal, 
 and therefore null and void." 402 
 
 In spite of the protest of the Hepburn men the 
 caucus was, nevertheless, held in pursuance of the 
 call, although a motion for postponement was only 
 defeated by a vote of forty-seven to forty-five. Be- 
 fore any nominations could be made Timothy J. 
 
214 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Caldwell withdrew the name of William P. Hepburn 
 in a speech tinged with bitterness, charging the 
 Eepublican party with being profuse in their praise 
 of old soldiers but of failing to do anything for them 
 when it came to offices. James F. Wilson was then 
 nominated as was also William Larrabee, but Eobert 
 G. Eeiniger immediately arose and announced that 
 Larrabee positively forbade the use of his name. 
 The nomination of Wilson was thereupon made 
 unanimous. 403 
 
 The friends of Colonel Hepburn were inclined to 
 feel that the result had been achieved through un- 
 fair means on the part of the supporters of the 
 successful candidate, although no wrong intentions 
 were attributed to Wilson himself. "It is a com- 
 pliment no less to the individual than the principle 
 involved ", declared an editor who sympathized with 
 this view in speaking of Hepburn's candidacy, "that 
 without any preliminary organization, and in the 
 face of every disadvantage in the conditions of the 
 contest, he showed a positive strength that fore- 
 shadowed his nomination had the caucus been held 
 at the usual time." 404 
 
 As was the case four years earlier the two houses 
 of the General Assembly voted for United States 
 Senator on two separate days, January 17th and 
 24th, and joint conventions were held to compare the 
 journals on January 18th and 25th, in order to make 
 certain that the provisions of the Federal law had 
 been complied with. In each case James F. Wilson 
 received an overwhelming majority of the votes cast, 
 
THE ELECTION OF WILSON IN 1888 215 
 
 his nearest competitor being T. J. Anderson, the 
 Democratic nominee. Daniel Campbell, J. E. Eeed, 
 John A. T. Hull, and Henry Wallace were other men 
 who received votes varying in number from one to 
 three. 405 A certificate of election was therefore is- 
 sued to James F. Wilson for his second and last 
 term in the United States Senate. 
 
XVI 
 
 THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM B. ALLISON 
 IN 1890 
 
 FOE the third time the question of a successor to 
 Senator William B. Allison became a topic of dis- 
 cussion in Iowa during the year 1889. For over 
 sixteen years he had represented the State in the 
 upper house of Congress in a manner satisfactory 
 to a great majority of his constituents. Thus, in 
 many respects the campaign resembled the one six 
 years before. Such opposition as there was to him 
 was scattered, and no candidate appeared against 
 him within the ranks of his own party. Further- 
 more, the Democrats again took an interest in the 
 question, and during the weeks immediately pre- 
 ceding the fall elections the prohibition question 
 complicated the situation, though not to such an 
 extent as in the previous campaign. 
 
 At the same time the campaign had its peculiar 
 features, for this was the year of the Democratic 
 victory in the election of Horace Boies as Governor. 
 While the Eepublicans still retained supremacy in 
 the legislature it was on the basis of such a small 
 majority that complete harmony was necessary 
 within the party to elect a United States Senator. 
 It was doubtless this fact that encouraged the feeble 
 
 216 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1890 217 
 
 opposition to Allison which appeared in a few 
 quarters. 
 
 Just as had been the case two years before, 
 William Larrabee was early mentioned as the proper 
 man for the senatorship. "Larrabee for governor; 
 Hutchinson for Lieutenant-Governor ; then Larrabee 
 for United States Senator and Hutchinson for gov- 
 ernor, is the latest ", 406 declared an editor, who 
 opposed Allison throughout the contest. "We'll 
 venture the peanuts that the above ticket will not be 
 nominated", 407 was the reply of an editor in a 
 neighboring town ; and his prophecy proved true. 
 
 Another newspaper which opposed the reelection 
 of Allison and favored William Larrabee for the 
 senatorship was the Des Moines News. At first the 
 editor objected to Allison's alleged views on the rail- 
 road question, but being forced to drop these ob- 
 jections on account of a speech by the Senator, he 
 charged Allison with timidity in facing the issues of 
 the day. ' ' Senator Allison has evidently been hear- 
 ing from the people ", ran the editor's comment. 
 "His Sigourney speech, of which we print a liberal 
 extract elsewhere, is the most pronounced utterance 
 of his cautious and timid political life. It shows 
 that he realizes the delicacy and danger of his posi- 
 tion. But it does not prove that he is the man to 
 represent Iowa in the Senate. Governor Larrabee 
 ought to have his seat; and it is a matter of deep 
 and general regret that he is not a candidate for 
 it." 408 It was especially asserted that Allison de- 
 sired to avoid expressing a definite opinion on the 
 
218 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 prohibition question, but lie was ably defended by 
 his friends. 409 
 
 The charges of corruption in connection with the 
 building of railroads in northwestern Iowa, which 
 had been made against Allison six years before, 
 were again brought forward and as indignantly de- 
 nied and refuted by his friends. 410 At the same time 
 the masses of the Eepublican party indicated their 
 confidence in the senior Senator by resolutions of 
 endorsement in county conventions. 
 
 The result of the fall elections gave the Demo- 
 crats the hope that they might attract the votes of a 
 sufficient number of Eepublican legislators to elect 
 a Senator of their own choice. "The Democratic 
 scheme to buy four Eepublican votes in the Iowa 
 Legislature to defeat Allison, and elect John C. Bills, 
 a free-trader, to the United States Senate, has cre- 
 ated a sensation ", 411 declared an eastern Iowa 
 editor. But in reply there came the assurance that 
 a bill for the taxation of church property introduced 
 in the Iowa Senate had "sounded the political death- 
 knell of John C. Bills. " 412 There was also a sug- 
 gestion that the Democrats would nominate a Eepub- 
 lican in order to defeat Allison, 413 but in general it 
 may be said that the Democrats favored the re- 
 election of Allison in case they could not choose a 
 man from their own ranks. 
 
 While the comparative equality of the two parties 
 in the approaching General Assembly infused hope 
 into the Democratic camp and. into the minds of a 
 few dissatisfied Eepublicans, it likewise caused con- 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1890 219 
 
 siderable apprehension among the supporters of 
 Allison who were best able to estimate the possibili- 
 ties in the contest. "Scores of the Bepnblican 
 papers that assume to make light of the tremendous 
 effort that is being made to defeat Senator Allison 
 would change their tune if they were a little nearer 
 the seat of war > ', came the warning from the capital 
 city. 414 The possibility that a few anti-prohibition 
 Eepublicans might go over to the Democrats added 
 an element of uncertainty to the situation. Further- 
 more, a temporary local movement in favor of Judge 
 James H. Rothrock of Cedar Eapids caused some 
 disturbance until the Judge made a public declara- 
 tion that he would not be a candidate. 415 
 
 It became apparent late in December that there 
 would be a sharp contest over the speakership of the 
 House of Representatives of the Iowa legislature, 
 and it was naturally expected that the senatorial 
 question would be affected thereby. The Democrats 
 threatened that if the Republicans did not concede 
 the speakership to them they would filibuster and 
 prevent the election of Allison. The Republicans, 
 on the other hand, declared that if a speaker was not 
 chosen and the legislature organized the Democrats 
 could not inaugurate their Governor, and therefore 
 a failure to elect a United States Senator would only 
 result in leaving Allison in his seat. 416 
 
 Republican editors were now very earnest in 
 calling upon the Republican members of the legis- 
 lature to be true to their party. An interview with 
 Samuel J. Kirkwood was reprinted from an eastern 
 
220 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 newspaper, asserting that Allison's candidacy was 
 all that had saved the legislature from going Demo- 
 cratic at the fall elections. This being the case it 
 would be base ingratitude for Eepublican legislators 
 to vote against Allison. 417 "We believe that every 
 Eepublican county convention held in the state 
 passed a resolution favorable to the re-election of 
 Senator Allison", admonished a northern Iowa 
 writer, "and every Eepublican elected to the legis- 
 lature is under the most solemn obligation of party 
 fealty and political honor to vote for the dis- 
 tinguished senator. " 418 
 
 Thus the question stood when the members of the 
 General Assembly began to arrive at Des Moines for 
 the session which was to convene on January 13, 
 1890. A Democratic paper in the capital city fre- 
 quently contained assertions that corporation men 
 were coming to Des Moines to aid in the Allison 
 campaign. For instance, Grenville M. Dodge hap- 
 pened to be in the city to attend some meetings of 
 railroad directors, and it was declared that he had 
 come to bring railroad influence to bear in favor of 
 Allison. But the Senator's friends pointed out that 
 if Dodge had come all the way from New York City 
 to aid Allison he would have chosen a time when 
 there was more material to work upon, since at the 
 time of his visit there were only three members of 
 the legislature in Des Moines. 419 
 
 The scattered opposition to Senator Allison 
 failed to attain its object, for on the evening of 
 January 16th he was unanimously renominated by 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1890 221 
 
 an enthusiastic Eepublican caucus attended by every 
 Eepublican member of the legislature except four 
 who voted by proxy. There were no other nomina- 
 tions and the caucus was entirely harmonious. 420 
 
 Although the question was now practically set- 
 tled it was not until nearly two months later that the 
 legislature gave official confirmation to the choice of 
 Senator Allison, for it was not until February 19th 
 that John T. Hamilton was elected Speaker of the 
 House on the one hundred and thirty-seventh bal- 
 lot. 421 The second Tuesday after the organization 
 of the General Assembly, therefore, was March 4, 
 1890. On that day the two houses voted separately 
 for United States Senator, and on the following day 
 the journals were compared in joint convention. Of 
 the votes cast William B. Allison received seventy- 
 nine as opposed to sixty-three for S. T. Bestow, the 
 Democratic nominee, and eight for William Lar- 
 rabee. 422 Another term of six years in the United 
 States Senate was thus allotted to Senator Allison. 
 
XVII 
 THE ELECTION OF JOHN H. GEAR IN 1894 
 
 THE story of the long contest which preceded the 
 senatorial election of 1894 reads like a repetition of 
 the memorable campaigns of twenty and thirty years 
 earlier. Instead of a single Republican candidate 
 with only feeble opposition there were a number of 
 Republican aspirants who remained in the field till 
 the question was settled by the legislative caucus; 
 while the Democrats gave valiant support to one of 
 their number until the fall elections deprived them 
 of all hope of success. 
 
 The year 1893 was a year of sharp political con- 
 tests in Iowa. Republican leaders were determined 
 to stem the tide of Democratic victory as evidenced 
 in two successive terms of Horace Boies as Gov- 
 ernor. Casting about for means to this end they 
 accurately hit upon the real cause of Republican 
 defeat in the past two campaigns namely, the con- 
 tinued endorsement of prohibition as the best means 
 of solving the liquor problem. And so it was de- 
 cided to abandon an issue which had operated so 
 disastrously to the party, and in the State platform 
 it was declared that "prohibition is no test of Re- 
 publicanism ", and the liquor question was relegated 
 to the care of the General Assembly. 423 As a result, 
 
THE ELECTION OF GEAR IN 1894 223 
 
 after a lively campaign, the Republicans elected 
 Frank D. Jackson as Governor by an overwhelming 
 majority, and were equally successful with respect 
 to the other State officers and the legislature. 
 
 Scarcely second in popular interest was the dis- 
 cussion of the United States senatorial succession 
 which continued throughout the year. Senator 
 James F. Wilson, now approaching the end of his 
 second term, having early declared that he would not 
 be a candidate for reelection, the necessity of choos- 
 ing an entirely new man added novelty and zest to 
 the contest; and many were the politicians who be- 
 gan to dream of themselves sitting in the upper 
 house of Congress. 
 
 Indeed, as early as the fall of 1892, a year and 
 a half before the contest closed, a number of men 
 were being favorably mentioned as capable of filling 
 the position soon to be vacated by Senator Wilson. 
 A Democratic editor, reviewing the situation about 
 the middle of January, mentioned James S. Clark- 
 son, John H. Gear, William P. Hepburn, Albert B. 
 Cummins, David B. Henderson, John Y. Stone, and 
 James E. Blythe as Eepublicans who were looking 
 longingly toward the senatorship. "The prevailing 
 opinion among democrats and not a few repub- 
 licans", concluded the editor, "is that it makes very 
 little difference who the republican candidate may 
 be, as the people have already decided upon Horace 
 Boies, for that position. ' M24 There was also about 
 this time a movement in favor of Walter I. Hayes 
 of Clinton, then the only Democratic member of 
 
224 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Congress from Iowa, but he declined the nomination 
 since Horace Boies was clearly the choice of the 
 majority of the Democrats. 425 
 
 Editor Eichard P. Clarkson in discussing the 
 prospects early in 1893 added a number of prominent 
 names to the list of possibilities presented by his 
 Democratic contemporary. George D. Perkins, 
 Jonathan P. Dolliver, Edwin H. Conger, John A. T. 
 Hull, James Wilson, and John F. Lacey were men 
 who were considered worthy of the honor, although 
 Editor Clarkson naturally looked with especial favor 
 upon Albert B. Cummins of Des Moines. 426 
 
 After this preliminary discussion of possible 
 candidates the question of the senatorial succession 
 was permitted to rest until early in the summer. 
 There had been considerable talk by both parties, 
 but especially by the Democrats, of nominating Sen- 
 ators at the State conventions. But as the time for 
 the Democratic convention approached this plan was 
 abandoned, apparently at the request of Governor 
 Boies, who was still the party favorite for the sena- 
 torship. According to the Republican version, the 
 question was settled by the Democratic State Central 
 Committee which met in Des Moines during the 
 second week in June. "The object was stated to be, 
 in the confidential recesses of the committee room", 
 ran the account, "that the governor may be given a 
 chance to draw out of the fight for the senatorship 
 as soon as he is convinced that the race is hope- 
 less. " 427 Thus it was decided not to make a nom- 
 ination at the State convention, and the incident 
 
THE ELECTION OF GEAR IN 1894 225 
 
 served to bring down on the Democrats the jeers of 
 Republican editors. 428 
 
 Although the formal announcement of the can- 
 didacy of Albert B. Cummins was apparently not 
 made until the latter part of November, he had an 
 able advocate in Editor Clarkson who presented his 
 name to the people of the State in a long editorial 
 late in August. The editor called attention to the 
 fact that the influence which Iowa exerted in the 
 upper house of Congress must soon pass into the 
 care of younger men. And among the younger Re- 
 publicans in the State no one was better qualified to 
 fill the position than the Des Moines lawyer. "Mr. 
 Cummins' record as a Republican is clear and un- 
 sullied ", declared Clarkson, in summing up the 
 arguments in favor of his candidate, "he is a life 
 long Republican, although he has not always been 
 able to agree with other Republicans on the question 
 which the party has repeatedly declared is no test of 
 Republicanism. . . . His campaign tour last 
 month was almost a triumphal march. . . . He 
 is young, courageous, brilliant, able, of regal mind 
 and warm heart; his candidacy is full of magnet- 
 ism". 429 
 
 At the Democratic State Convention Horace 
 Boies was nominated for a third term as Governor. 
 But in spite of this fact it was declared that he was 
 still a candidate for the senatorship and would be 
 the choice of his party. This statement was made on 
 the authority of the Dubuque Herald, the editor of 
 which had formerly been private secretary to Gov- 
 
 15 
 
226 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 ernor Boies, and was cited as a warning to 
 Republican voters. "Gov. Boies is not running for 
 governor this year he is running for the United 
 States senate, while poor old Mr. Bestow is the real 
 candidate for an office of which he can not fill one 
 side", commented a Des Moines editor. "Gov. 
 Boies is only a blind on the ticket. He is only a 
 mask. Pull it away and you see the face of Bes- 
 tow. " 43 
 
 The importance of every vote was now strongly 
 emphasized by Eepublican leaders. It was asserted 
 that not even during the Civil War was Iowa's vote 
 of such great consequence in National affairs, since 
 never before had Iowa been in a position to change 
 the political complexion of either house of Congress. 
 The State Senators elected that year would have a 
 voice in choosing two United States Senators. 
 "Changing one or both of Iowa's United States 
 Senators ", continued the warning, "may keep the 
 National senate Democratic for a quarter of a cen- 
 tury, if not permanently, for if the Democrats gain 
 the power to elect the Iowa senator in the next legis- 
 lature they will have the strength to redistrict every 
 congressional, legislative and judicial district in the 
 state, in such a manner as to give Democracy a 
 majority of the congressmen, a majority in each 
 branch of the legislature and a majority of the dis- 
 trict judges of the state. " Therefore, Republican 
 voters were urged to be on their guard against the 
 Democratic assertions that National issues had no 
 part in the campaign. 431 
 
THE ELECTION OF GEAR IN 1894 227 
 
 At the fall elections, as has been stated, the Ee- 
 publicans were overwhelmingly successful. Thence- 
 forth the senatorial question became more than ever 
 the chief subject of political interest. The Demo- 
 crats, now eliminated from the race, assumed the 
 role of onlookers in the contest between the various 
 Eepublican rivals. 
 
 November was a month of formal announce- 
 ments of candidacy by the senatorial aspirants. The 
 names of John H. Gear, Albert B. Cummins, John 
 F. Lacey, William P. Hepburn, George D. Perkins, 
 and John Y. Stone were now placed definitely before 
 the people as avowed candidates. At the same time 
 the question of locality rose into prominence as an 
 issue in the contest. With the exception of George G. 
 Wright and James W. MeDill all of the Senators from 
 Iowa had thus far come from the eastern part of the 
 State. Furthermore, Senator Allison's home was at 
 Dubuque and hence it was urged that Wilson's suc- 
 cessor should come from central or western Iowa. 
 
 The effect of the election of an eastern man upon 
 the candidacy of William B. Allison to succeed him- 
 self for a fifth term two years hence was used with 
 great force by those who favored a western candi- 
 date, as well as by those who feared for Allison's 
 welfare. "The position gained by Senator Allison 
 through his long experience has made him not only 
 an honor to Iowa, but a necessity to the nation", 
 commented a Dubuque editor. "Until the monetary 
 question is fully settled no man is so badly needed 
 in the councils of our nation as our efficient repre- 
 
228 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 sentative in the upper house. If the friends of the 
 senator do not desire his usefulness limited to the 
 remaining two years of the present term they will 
 see that the western part of the state is not neglected 
 this time. This is intended for a pointer. " 432 
 
 The locality argument was naturally used most 
 strongly against John H. Gear of Burlington. A 
 loyal Cummins supporter insisted that it was not 
 fair to allow Dubuque and Des Moines counties to 
 have both of the United States Senators. These 
 counties went strongly Democratic at the last elec- 
 tion, while the central and western parts of the State 
 returned large Republican majorities. The senato- 
 rial candidates in eastern Iowa were not of such over- 
 towering ability that the question of locality could be 
 ignored in the distribution of political honors. 433 
 
 The friends of Gear, on the other hand, main- 
 tained that locality should not be the deciding factor 
 in the campaign and that it ought not operate against 
 their candidate. It was asserted that a United 
 States Senator was the representative of the entire 
 State and there had been no instance in which he 
 had attempted to advance the interests of the par- 
 ticular locality in which he resided, to the neglect of 
 the rest of the State. Moreover, while it was ad- 
 mitted that the Senators and many other Federal 
 appointees had come from the eastern third of the 
 State, it was shown that a majority of the State 
 officials had for many years been selected from cen- 
 tral and western Iowa. 434 
 
 Major Lacey, declared a Democratic editor who 
 
THE ELECTION OF GEAR IN 1894 229 
 
 continued to take a lively interest in the contest, was 
 "the candidate of the opposition to the republican 
 central committee and the so-called ring which man- 
 aged the last campaign." A meeting of Major 
 Lacey's leading supporters was said to have been 
 held in Des Moines during the last week in Novem- 
 ber, and at this meeting there were present Lafayette 
 Young of Des Moines, Albert Swalm of Oskaloosa, 
 Ben McCoy of Oskaloosa, Secretary of State Mc- 
 Farland and others. 433 
 
 The friends of Albert B. Cummins were also 
 actively at work under the leadership of a well 
 organized committee consisting of George G. Wright, 
 R. P. Clarkson, C. H. Gatch, Edwin H. Conger, C. G. 
 McCarthy, and others. This committee prepared a 
 circular letter urging the claims of their candidate 
 and sent it over the State, especially to members of 
 the legislature. 436 
 
 Through all the campaign ex-Governor Gear was 
 forced to bear the brunt of opposition from the 
 friends of the other rivals, for he was the only dis- 
 tinctly eastern candidate. For instance, it was 
 claimed that Gear, being nearly seventy years of age, 
 was too old to be of great service to the State in the 
 Senate. To send him there in order that he might 
 "round out" his career, as some of his friends urged, 
 sounded very well, but it would not be profitable for 
 the people of Iowa. The only way in which the State 
 could have another Senator who would compare with 
 Allison would be to send a young man and allow him 
 to become efficient through experience. 437 
 
230 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Again the antagonism between the interests of 
 Gear and Allison was pointed out. Every vote cast 
 for Gear, it was declared, was a direct stab at Al- 
 lison. Northeastern Iowa was especially warned 
 against lending its support to the Burlington candi- 
 date, since the Gear opposition had indicated its 
 intention of working against Allison when he came 
 up for reelection in case northeastern Iowa stood for 
 Gear. 438 
 
 Alleged support by corporations was another 
 argument used against Gear by his opponents. 
 ' ' There never was in the history of Iowa politics ", 
 charged one editor, "a more relentless machine at 
 work than now. The Q road, some of the state cen- 
 tral committee and the postmasters and ex-federal 
 office holders manipulated by Gear himself are seek- 
 ing to cover the field and garner the benefits. ' ' And 
 again in the same paper the writer referred to Gear 
 as ' i the candidate of a packed caucus, backed by cor- 
 porate interests as represented by the Q road". 439 
 
 Late in December a new candidate was added to 
 the list in the person of Lorenzo S. Coffin of Fort 
 Dodge, who earlier in the year had refused the Pro- 
 hibition nomination as Governor. The announce- 
 ment of his candidacy was looked upon in some 
 quarters as adding another worthy contestant to the 
 race. There were others, however, doubtless taking 
 exception to Coffin's well known views on the liquor 
 question, who greeted his candidacy as a joke, and 
 referred to him as playing "the buffoon's part in 
 the existing play of politics". 440 
 
THE ELECTION OF GEAR IN 1894 231 
 
 The lobbies of the Des Moines hotels were alive 
 with friends of the various senatorial candidates 
 several days before the legislature convened on 
 January 8, 1894. Eumors of dark horses and com- 
 promise candidates were rife. From one source 
 came the statement that the " contest will be close, 
 and it would not be strange if Larrabee was named 
 as the best settlement of the wrangle. ' >441 The name 
 of J. S. Clarkson was again brought forward as one 
 on which followers of the different standards might 
 unite. 
 
 Excitement increased apace as the legislators ar- 
 rived and the General Assembly organized for the 
 work of the session. The date for the caucus was 
 the first question for decision. A conference of the 
 advisers of the rival leaders was held on Tuesday 
 evening, January 9th ; and it was determined to hold 
 the caucus for State printer, State binder, and 
 wardens of the penitentiaries on Friday evening, 
 while the senatorial caucus was postponed until the 
 following Monday, January 15th. This decision was 
 considered a victory for the anti-Gear forces, since 
 Gear was claimed to be anxious for an early test of 
 strength. The other candidates were pleased with 
 the outcome as it would furnish an opportunity 
 for trading and log-rolling at the caucus on Friday 
 evening. It was quite evident that Gear was in the 
 lead, but each of the opposing candidates hoped to 
 win the votes of those who opposed Gear after the 
 first ballot in the caucus. 442 
 
 Every effort was made during the short time that 
 
232 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 remained to prejudice the members of the legislature 
 against Gear. The locality plea and the effect of 
 Gear's election on Allison's chances were constantly 
 harped upon. Furthermore, the cry was raised that 
 the Gear faction was circulating petitions in central 
 and western Iowa. " These petitions ", was the as- 
 sertion, "recite in large letters that the people, espe- 
 cially those who sign it, are first for the candidate 
 from the particular district in which such county is 
 situated, and then in little letters, so as to be hardly 
 visible, it is recited that Gear is their second choice. 
 The men who are circulating these petitions are paid 
 for their services. These signatures will be used to 
 persuade western and central Iowa members that 
 their constituents want them to vote for an eastern 
 Iowa man." 443 
 
 The hour set for the Republican caucus on Mon- 
 day evening, January 15th, found the galleries in 
 the hall of the House of Eepresentatives crowded 
 with anxious spectators. The caucus organized with 
 Merritt W. Harmon as chairman, and upon the 
 recommendation of the caucus committee it was de- 
 termined that no nominating speeches should be 
 made. Thereupon nominations were declared to be 
 in order, and one after another members arose and 
 named John H. Gear, John Y. Stone, John F. Lacey, 
 A. B. Cummins, George D. Perkins, W. P. Hepburn, 
 and L. S. Coffin. 
 
 Seven names were thus submitted to the choice 
 of the caucus. Amid breathless silence a ballot was 
 taken and read. John H. Gear had received forty- 
 
THE ELECTION OF GEAR IN 1894 233 
 
 two votes ; while his nearest competitor, William P. 
 Hepburn, had only nineteen. Lacey, Stone, Cum- 
 mins, and Perkins ran about even, with votes 
 ranging from ten to thirteen, and L. S. Coffin brought 
 up the rear with four votes. No one had received 
 enough votes to nominate, and so a second ballot was 
 taken. This time Gear forged ahead to fifty, draw- 
 ing votes from nearly all of the other candidates 
 except Cummins, who gained three, making him 
 fifteen. And yet there was no nomination. The 
 interest of the spectators was intense as the names 
 were called on the third ballot. Gradually the Gear 
 vote mounted above the result on the previous bal- 
 lot, but it was not until almost the last ballot had 
 been read that his victory was made certain. Then 
 it was found that he had received fifty-seven votes 
 as opposed to the total of fifty-five given to his 
 opponents. 444 All of the candidates were brought 
 before the caucus amid great applause, and each 
 made a brief address. 
 
 The Democratic caucus was held on the same 
 evening in the Senate chamber, where Horace Boies 
 was nominated without opposition, no other candi- 
 date being named. 445 
 
 The result naturally was a disappointment to 
 those who felt strongly that eastern Iowa was get- 
 ting more than its share. "Central and western 
 Iowa will yet be represented in their own legislature 
 by men who will be true to their constituents ' ', was 
 the determined comment of Kichard P. Clarkson, 
 ' ' and when that day arrives they will gain the rights 
 
234 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 and benefits of representation. Keep your eye on 
 all legislators who have thus denied their constitu- 
 ents the right of representation." The same editor 
 asserted that Secretary of State William M. Mc- 
 Farland and Auditor of State Cornelius G. Mc- 
 Carthy, both of whom had worked against Gear, had 
 been threatened with defeat for reelection unless 
 they ceased their opposition. 446 
 
 The result, however, was accepted with good 
 grace on all sides, for throughout the whole contest 
 no objection had been raised against Gear person- 
 ally, except in respect to his age. On January 17th 
 and 24th the houses of the General Assembly met in 
 joint convention and each time John H. Gear re- 
 ceived an overwhelming majority over Horace Boies, 
 his Democratic opponent; 447 and once more the 
 question of the senatorial succession was settled. 
 
XVIII 
 
 THE ELECTION OF WILLIAM B. ALLISON 
 IN 1896 
 
 No other man in Iowa history has ever received the 
 long continued and almost universal support and 
 confidence of his constituents that was given to 
 Senator William B. Allison. His first election was 
 accomplished only after a long and bitter contest, 
 but thereafter he was returned time after time with 
 ever lessening opposition, until the contest that came 
 shortly before his death. Thus it is that his re- 
 election in 1896 met with the unanimous approval 
 of the Eepublicans of Iowa, as well as of a majority 
 of the members of the Democratic party. His in- 
 fluence in the United States Senate and in the 
 councils of the Nation was so well recognized that 
 there was no thought of supplanting him by a new 
 and inexperienced man. 
 
 The absence of any dissenting voice in the ranks 
 of the Eepublican party in this case may also be 
 accounted for by the fact that during the fall of 1895 
 and the months which followed, the name of Senator 
 Allison was frequently mentioned as a candidate for 
 the presidential nomination. Indeed, it may be said 
 that there was a distinct Allison boom, not only in 
 Iowa, but in many of the States west of the Missis- 
 
 235 
 
236 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 sippi Eiver. And so it would have been the height 
 of disloyalty for his party in Iowa to have shown 
 the least dissatisfaction with his record as a Sena- 
 tor. The threats and warnings made two years 
 earlier were all forgotten, the locality argument was 
 ignored, and all sections united in supporting him 
 for the senatorship. 
 
 The prohibition question was again an issue in 
 the State campaign of 1895 and during the months 
 which immediately preceded the meeting of the legis- 
 lature a movement was put on foot to secure a 
 re-submission of a prohibitory amendment to the 
 State Constitution. The movement furnished op- 
 portunity for a small partisan newspaper warfare 
 in which the Eepublicans were charged with being 
 afraid of the issue which had in the past proved a 
 thorn in the flesh of the party. Furthermore, an 
 effort was made to bring about dissension among the 
 Republicans by complicating Allison's senatorial 
 and presidential chances with the re-submission 
 question. 
 
 "Preliminary to the campaign for the nomina- 
 tion of Allison for the presidency ", declared The 
 Des Moines Leader, "it is deemed necessary, in 
 order to put him before the public in the light of the 
 favorite son of a republican state, that he be given 
 a triumphant re-election to the senate this winter. 
 But the same legislature, the Eepublicans of which 
 will vote for Allison for the senatorship, will be 
 called upon to deal with the resubmission question. " 
 The Eepublicans, declared the editor, wished to de- 
 
THE ELECTION OF ALLISON IN 1896 237 
 
 feat re-submission because the approval of prohi- 
 bition by the legislature would imply that Allison 
 was the choice of prohibitionists and would great- 
 ly injure his chances in the race for the presidential 
 nomination. Consequently it had been decided to 
 work against the election of certain legislative 
 candidates who were known to be strongly in 
 favor of the re-submission of a prohibitory amend- 
 ment. "It is not understood that this course has 
 the specific endorsement of the state central com- 
 mittee, in its official capacity ' ', concluded the editor, 
 "but the inner circle of Allison boomers think they 
 can work it. ' ' 448 
 
 In the same paper two months later the Eepub- 
 licans were charged with another nefarious scheme 
 in the interest of Allison's presidential candidacy. 
 It was said that a plan was being concocted to elect 
 Allison as soon as possible after the convening of 
 the General Assembly, pass the necessary appropri- 
 ation bills, and then adjourn the legislature until 
 after the National Eepublican Convention in June 
 without taking up the liquor question. This was to 
 be accomplished under the pretense of giving time 
 for a committee to make a thorough examination of 
 the proposed new code. This would leave the Al- 
 lison candidacy free from prejudice either way on 
 the liquor question. 449 
 
 These charges, of course, were promptly taken 
 up and branded as ridiculous by Allison's friends. 
 "Only a bungler", said Editor Clarkson, "wxmld 
 hope to advance Senator Allison's interests in such 
 
238 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 a manner. When the legislature meets it will pro- 
 ceed to business, without regard to the malicious 
 stories of papers like the Leader. " 45 
 
 Succeeding events proved the truth of this asser- 
 tion; for there was nothing in the action of the 
 General Assembly, which convened on January 13, 
 1896, to indicate an attempt to adjourn as had been 
 charged. On Wednesday evening, January 15th, the 
 Eepublican members of the legislature met in caucus 
 and gave to William B. Allison the most enthusiastic 
 nomination of his entire career, thus indicating to 
 the Nation at large that the State of Iowa stood 
 squarely behind the movement to place him in the 
 White House. There were eloquent and eulogistic 
 speeches of nomination by Lyman Ellis and M. L. 
 Temple on behalf of the members of the Senate and 
 House of Eepresentatives respectively, and seconding 
 speeches by Thomas D. Healy and W. C. McArthur. 
 The nomination was then made by acclamation, and 
 amid hearty applause Senator Allison was escorted 
 to the Speaker's desk, where he spoke briefly in 
 appreciation of the honor conferred upon him. 451 
 
 An overwhelming vote in favor of Allison was 
 revealed when the two houses of the legislature met 
 in joint convention on January 22, 1896. One hun- 
 dred and eighteen votes were cast for him; while 
 Washington I. Babb, the Democratic nominee, re- 
 ceived but twenty-five. One vote was cast for Frank 
 Q. Stuart. 452 At the age of sixty-six, therefore, 
 William B. Allison was almost unanimously re- 
 turned to the United States Senate. 
 
XIX 
 
 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 1900-1911 
 
 THERE were five elections of United State Sena- 
 tors in Iowa in the eleven years beginning with 1900 
 and ending with the session of the Thirty-fourth 
 General Assembly in 1911. In three cases there were 
 sharp contests, while in two instances the elections 
 were accomplished with scarcely any opposition. 
 But all of these elections are so recent and in several 
 instances factional feeling was so strong that to 
 present a detailed discussion at this time would be 
 both impracticable and unwise. Consequently, no 
 effort will be made to treat these contests in detail, 
 but rather to present merely the main facts and in- 
 cidents in each case. 
 
 THE ELECTION OF JOHN H. GEAE IN 1900 
 
 The decade under discussion opens with the dra- 
 matic contest between John H. Gear and Albert B. 
 Cummins which ended in January, 1900. In the 
 campaign much of the same ground was covered as 
 in the contest in which the same men were involved 
 six years earlier. There was this difference, how- 
 ever, that the race was practically narrowed down 
 to two candidates and was consequently more direct 
 and intense. 
 
 ' 239 
 
240 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Many of the arguments which had been advanced 
 against Gear in the previous contest were revived, 
 and in addition some new ones were employed. 
 Gear's age was frequently referred to as a serious 
 objection to his reelection. A letter written by him 
 in February, 1881, was quoted in which he had ob- 
 jected to the reelection of Samuel J. Kirkwood on 
 the ground of age Kirkwood being sixty-nine 
 years old at the time. The inconsistency of his own 
 candidacy at the age of seventy-five was thus pointed 
 out by his opponents. 453 
 
 Locality was likewise again urged against Gear 
 to a certain extent, though this point was not espe- 
 cially emphasized. The injustice of allowing two 
 Mississippi Eiver counties to have both United 
 States Senators, when all of western Iowa had been 
 thus far practically unrepresented in the Senate, 
 was occasionally referred to by the supporters of 
 Cummins; and there were suggestions that Gear's 
 election would mean the defeat of Allison in 1902. 
 
 Again, bad faith was imputed to Gear in that, as 
 was alleged, a number of the legislators had been 
 induced to vote for him in 1894 by the declaration 
 that he desired only one term in the Senate to 
 "round out" his political career and by a wager 
 which he made at that time that he would not again 
 be a candidate for the senatorship. 454 An attempt 
 was also made to array the laboring men of the party 
 against Gear by charging him with a lack of sym- 
 pathy with the efforts of labor to secure justice. 
 His record in attempting to settle the labor troubles 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 1900-1911 241 
 
 at the United States Arsenal on Rock Island was 
 cited as evidence. 455 Moreover, his methods of car- 
 rying on the campaign for the senatorship were 
 referred to as cheap and undignified. He had sent 
 out circular letters to prominent Republicans in all 
 parts of the State, asking their support and stating 
 that his age should not be used as an argument 
 against him. The sort of help that could be secured 
 by a printed circular letter and four cents in stamps 
 was alluded to as very cheap help. 456 
 
 But the argument used with the greatest energy 
 in the attempt to prevent the reelection of Gear was 
 the charge that he was the candidate of a "Sena- 
 torial Trust ", a dangerous political machine which 
 was endeavoring to assume a dictatorship in Iowa 
 politics. The men who made up this "Senatorial 
 Trust" or "Regency" were said to be the members 
 of the Iowa delegation in the lower house of Con- 
 gress, a number of Federal officials from Iowa, and 
 five or six candidates who had run against Gear for 
 the senatorship in 1894. These men, especially the 
 Congressmen and former senatorial candidates, it 
 was said, had declared that they would not be candi- 
 dates for the senatorship in this contest in case it 
 appeared that Gear would win. Thus they had com- 
 bined to dictate the election of Gear or of some 
 other one of their number in case the election of Gear 
 could not be accomplished. The danger of permit- 
 ting this alleged machine to gain control of the State 
 was again and again pointed out by those who were 
 working for the success of Albert B. Cummins. 457 
 
 16 
 
242 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Senator Gear, on the other hand, had a great 
 many ardent supporters among the Eepublican edi- 
 tors and politicians of Iowa, and the attacks upon 
 him were repelled with vigor. The age argument 
 was declared to be unjust because Senator Gear was 
 in better physical and mental condition than when 
 first elected, besides having the advantage of ex- 
 perience in the Senate. As far as Gear's attitude 
 toward the laboring man was concerned it was de- 
 clared that his record needed no defense, and he was 
 given the title of " Iowa's Great Commoner". 458 
 
 Finally, the existence of any i ' Senatorial Trust ' ' 
 or machine organized to return Gear to the Senate 
 was denied. If the Congressmen and other pol- 
 iticians named were actually working for Gear it was 
 merely because of personal preference, or for a 
 reason even more potent namely, the desire of 
 their constituents. These men doubtless wished to 
 retain their own positions and to have attempted 
 anything of the character alleged would have meant 
 defeat for them. Furthermore, more than one of 
 these very politicians was believed to imagine "that 
 the finger of destiny is pointing at him" in con- 
 nection with the senatorship, either at this time or 
 later. 459 
 
 The Gear support, however, was not content 
 merely to defend their own candidate. They waged 
 offensive warfare also against the candidacy of 
 Albert B. Cummins. The chief point of their op- 
 position was the record of Cummins as a Eepublican, 
 and the emphasis on this point was continued 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 1900-1911 243 
 
 throughout the campaign. In 1887 Mr. Cummins 
 had been the choice of a group of Eepublicans (who 
 refused to support the prohibition policy) as their 
 candidate for State Representative. His candidacy 
 was endorsed by the Democrats, and with the aid of 
 Democratic votes he had been elected. 
 
 On the other hand the supporters of Cummins 
 declared that as a member of the legislature he had 
 voted with the Eepublicans on all questions except 
 prohibition. But the fact that he had been elected by 
 the aid of Democratic votes was sufficient to blacken 
 his record as a Republican in the eyes of his op- 
 ponents. The Council Bluffs Nonpareil referred to 
 ' ' the political errors Cummins fell into when he sup- 
 ported Boies for Governor and ran on the demo- 
 cratic ticket. ' ' 46 Another editor asked : ' ' What will 
 he do if the republican party of the nation declares 
 in favor of some moral question and he differs with 
 them? Will he do as he did with the party in Iowa 
 when it incorporated the temperance question in its 
 platform?" 461 Such were the comments and queries 
 which appeared in the newspapers favorable to Gear 
 throughout the campaign. 
 
 In addition to the main argument used against 
 Albert B. Cummins was the charge that his man- 
 agers had continually endeavored to subordinate 
 every party interest to the success of their candi- 
 date. It was charged that to such an extent had this 
 effort been carried that even the appointment of a 
 state-house janitor was hailed as a Cummins vic- 
 tory; that the senatorial question had been carried 
 
244 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 into every legislative district with the intention of 
 determining the choice of legislators ; that a move- 
 ment was started to make a nomination for the sena- 
 torship at the State Convention, but agitation along 
 this line had subsided when it was found that a 
 majority of the delegates to the convention were 
 Gear men ; that an attempt had been made to dictate 
 the election of the speaker of the House of Eepre- 
 sentatives; 462 and finally it was asserted that back 
 of Mr. Cummins was a ' ' Eegency ' ' or machine whose 
 chief purpose was to build up Des Moines as the 
 center and head of political power in Iowa. i ' This ' ', 
 said Editor J. L. Waite, "more than personal ad- 
 miration of the candidate, inspires the politicians of 
 Polk county in this campaign ", 463 
 
 It was with an exchange of such charges as have 
 been indicated that the contest between the two men 
 raged throughout the year 1899. The county and 
 district nominating conventions, together with the 
 fall elections of members of the legislature, fur- 
 nished ample opportunity for speculation and figur- 
 ing. Both sides claimed the victory almost up to the 
 date of the legislative caucus ; but an impartial count 
 would doubtless have foreshadowed the success of 
 Senator Gear. 
 
 The outcome became very evident when on Jan- 
 uary 8, 1900, the first day of the session of the 
 Twenty-eighth General Assembly, Willard L. Eaton, 
 the candidate of the Cummins supporters for the 
 speakership, was defeated by D. H. Bowen. The 
 senatorial caucus was held on the evening of the 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 1900-1911 245 
 
 same day, and it proved comparatively uninterest- 
 ing. All hope of the election of Albert B. Cummins 
 was now gone, and so in the caucus his name was 
 withdrawn by Thomas A. Cheshire in a speech ex- 
 pressive of entire good feeling. John H. Gear was 
 then nominated for the senator ship by acclama- 
 tion. 464 The Democrats had chosen Fred E. White 
 as their nominee, but they were so much in the 
 minority that when the journals of the two houses 
 were compared in joint convention on January 17th 
 it was found that White had received only thirty- 
 two votes, while Gear had one hundred and eleven, 
 and was therefore declared his own successor in the 
 Senate. 465 
 
 During the progress of this campaign a predic- 
 tion was made by the editor of The Iowa City 
 Republican which is interesting in the light of 
 subsequent developments. "No one denies Mr. 
 Cummins ability and brilliancy, both of which are 
 unusual ", said the editor. "However, under exist- 
 ing circumstances he is in no sense a logical 
 candidate for the United States senate nor would 
 he be if Mr. Gear were not in the field. The line of 
 succession passes through Mr. Gear's hands to Mr. 
 Dolliver, who seems to be tightening his grasp 
 thereon. " 466 
 
 THE APPOINTMENT OF JONATHAN P. DOLLIVER 
 
 Probably the editor who made this prediction lit- 
 tle dreamed how soon it would be fulfilled. On July 
 14, 1900, Senator John H. Gear died in the seventy- 
 
246 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 sixth year of his life. The entire senatorial question 
 was thus reopened, and there was much conjecture 
 and advice as to the course which Governor Shaw 
 would pursue. It was generally believed that the 
 Governor himself had a personal ambition to go to 
 the Senate, and there were hints that he might work 
 to that end. But all doubt was removed on Wednes- 
 day, August 22nd, when it was announced that 
 Jonathan P. Dolliver had been appointed to the 
 vacant senatorship until the next session of the 
 General Assembly, when his friends were confident 
 that the appointment would be confirmed. 467 
 
 THE ELECTION OF ALLISON AND DOLLIVEE IN 1902 
 
 Albert B. Cummins, however, had not buried his 
 aspirations for the senatorship, and his adherents 
 declared that he would be an active candidate for 
 election by the legislature. "If Dolliver and Cum- 
 mins had been in each other's places ", said former 
 State Auditor McCarthy, one of the managers of the 
 Cummins campaign, "and the governor had ap- 
 pointed Cummins, Mr. Dolliver and his friends 
 would not have laid down and they would have been 
 justified in declining to do so. Just so with Cum- 
 mins. . . . Mr. Cummins can defeat Dolliver in 
 the legislature, and inside of a year and a half it will 
 be United States Senator Cummins. " 468 
 
 Before the meeting of the next General Assembly 
 in 1902, however, the wheel of politics had turned 
 and Albert B. Cummins had been elected Governor 
 of Iowa. As a result the promised contest for the 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 1900-1911 247 
 
 Gear succession in the Senate did not materialize. 
 There was virtually no objection to the election of 
 Jonathan P. Dolliver. Moreover, in 1902 the legisla- 
 ture was once more called upon to choose a successor 
 to William B. Allison, whose fifth term was about to 
 expire. In this case, also, there was unanimity of 
 feeling which precluded any opposition to the return 
 of the veteran Senator to his seat at Washington. 
 Indeed, so great was the pride of the people of Iowa 
 in the influence which William B. Allison exerted in 
 National affairs that it was even proposed, with 
 much prospect of success, that the crowning touch 
 be given to Allison's long career by a unanimous 
 non-partisan reelection to the Senate. 469 
 
 The Eepublican caucus of members of the legisla- 
 ture was held on the evening of January 14, 1902, 
 and William B. Allison and Jonathan P. Dolliver 
 were nominated by acclamation the former for 
 the full term as his own successor, and the latter for 
 the remainder of the Gear term. 470 Eight days later 
 the result received official confirmation by the legis- 
 lature, both men receiving one hundred and nineteen 
 votes. E. H. Thayer received twenty Democratic 
 votes for the long term, and John J. Seerley was 
 complimented in a similar manner for the Gear suc- 
 cession. 471 
 
 THE ELECTION OF DOLLIVEK IN 1907 
 
 On account of the change in the years in which the 
 General Assembly held its session, occasioned by the 
 biennial election law, five years now elapsed before 
 
248 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 another senatorial election was held in Iowa. In 
 March, 1907, Senator Dolliver 's term would expire 
 and therefore the General Assembly which convened 
 in January of that year was obliged to fill the posi- 
 tion thus to be left vacant. The contest, which 
 preceded the election, hardly deserves the name. 
 Senator Dolliver had given general satisfaction and 
 so there was but little opposition to his return. Late 
 in November there were hints that an effort was 
 being made to supplant Dolliver by Cummins, and 
 that Leslie M. Shaw was looking toward taking Al- 
 lison's place. This scheme was said to be a plan of 
 the Standpatters to get revenge on Dolliver and at 
 the same time to get Cummins out of Iowa. 472 But 
 it was asserted that Governor Cummins would not 
 be a party to any such scheme, which assertion was 
 verified by the Governor's personal denial of his 
 candidacy two months later. 473 x 
 
 With the refusal of Governor Cummins to enter 
 the field the opposition to Dolliver subsided, and in 
 the legislative caucus on Monday night, January 21, 
 1907, he was nominated by acclamation without an 
 opposing candidate. 474 The Democratic nominee 
 was Claude E. Porter, who received a total of forty- 
 five votes in the official ballots in the two houses of 
 the legislature, while Jonathan P. Dolliver was vic- 
 torious by a vote of one hundred and ten. 475 
 
 THE PEIMAKY LAW 
 
 It was shortly before this election that a move- 
 ment which had long been growing in favor of the 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 1900-1911 249 
 
 popular election of United States Senators received 
 a decided impetus. For many years there had been 
 occasional suggestions urging an amendment to the 
 Constitution of the United States whereby Senators 
 might be chosen directly by the people. As early as 
 1872 this agitation found expression in a resolution 
 in the Iowa Senate, and at many subsequent sessions 
 of the General Assembly there were similar resolu- 
 tions reflecting the desire of the people in certain 
 parts of the State. 476 The climax of the movement 
 came in 1906, when, in response to a suggestion of 
 Governor Cummins the legislature passed a joint 
 resolution authorizing the Governor of Iowa to 
 invite the Governors of the various States to send 
 delegates to a convention to be held at Des Moines 
 or elsewhere. The purpose of this convention was 
 to secure "such action on the part of the several 
 states as will result in a constitutional convention 
 for the proposal of an amendment to the constitution 
 of the United States providing for the election of 
 United States senators by a direct vote." 477 
 
 In pursuance of this resolution Governor Cum- 
 mins issued invitations, and on December 5, 1906, 
 delegates from sixteen States assembled in conven- 
 tion at Des Moines for a session of two days. The 
 Governors of many other States wrote letters ex- 
 pressing their hearty approval of the object of the 
 gathering. The addresses and deliberations of this 
 convention aroused widespread interest and the re- 
 sult was that Congress was strongly urged to submit 
 the proposed amendment to a vote of the people. 478 
 
250 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 It was perhaps partly in response to the senti- 
 ment aroused by this convention that the primary 
 election law enacted by the legislature in 1907 was 
 made to include United States Senators. 479 It is, 
 moreover, an interesting fact that since the adoption 
 of the primary nomination plan there has been little 
 agitation in Iowa for the direct election of United 
 States Senators. 
 
 THE ELECTION OF ALBEKT B. CUMMINS 
 
 Scarcely had the primary law been adopted when 
 the senatorial question again became a topic of pop- 
 ular interest. At the primaries in June, 1908, the 
 people would have their first opportunity to choose 
 senatorial candidates, by selecting party nominees 
 for successor to Senator Allison. It early became 
 known that Governor Cummins would be a candidate 
 and prospects of a bitter contest between his friends 
 and those of Senator Allison, with little attention 
 paid to other aspirants, soon developed. Moreover, 
 the campaign which was waged from November, 
 1907, until June, 1908, is unique in the history of 
 Iowa in that the claims of the rival candidates were 
 brought directly before the people in a long series of 
 speeches by the leaders in both camps. 
 
 The campaign for Senator Allison was opened by 
 Senator Jonathan P. Dolliver in a speech at Council 
 Bluffs on November 25, 1907. Thereafter Senator 
 Dolliver was the principal speaker for his colleague, 
 and until the choice of the people had been recorded 
 at the primaries he labored incessantly and effective- 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 1900-1911 251 
 
 ly in behalf of Senator Allison. In his Council 
 Bluffs speech Dolliver declared that Governor Curn- 
 mins, if he kept his word, was virtually debarred 
 from entering the race on account of statements 
 which he had made in writing in 1906 to the effect 
 that he was not a candidate for the senatorship to 
 succeed Allison. These statements, he declared, had 
 been used to secure Cummins the aid of Allison's 
 friends in the gubernatorial contest. 480 
 
 This declaration on the part of Senator Dolliver 
 introduced into the campaign its most sensational 
 element. The Cummins supporters immediately de- 
 nied the assertion and demanded that Dolliver pro- 
 duce his proof. In response to this demand he 
 published the famous "Torbert Letter ", which as 
 printed in the newspapers reads as follows : 
 
 Dubuque, la., Dec. 11, 1907. 
 Hon. J. P. DOLLIVER, Washington, D. C. 
 
 Dear Senator: I have received your letter of Dec. 9. 
 For many years I have been an admirer and warm sup- 
 porter of Governor Cummins in all his campaigns. On 
 Oct. 19, 1905, he was in Dubuque and his candidacy for 
 renomination and re-election as governor became the sub- 
 ject of a conversation between us. Suggestions had been 
 frequent that he was an aspirant for Senator Allison's 
 place in the senate and that his renomination and re-election 
 as governor would only strengthen him for the contest with 
 Senator Allison. These intimations were not only a hin- 
 drance in my work for the governor, but I felt that I could 
 not properly do anything injurious to Senator Allison and 
 so on that occasion I mentioned to him that these sugges- 
 tions were being made and he told me positively that so 
 
252 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 long as Senator Allison desired to be senator from Iowa, he, 
 Cummins, would be his (Allison's) friend and supporter. 
 I carried this assurance to a number of Senator Allison's 
 friends who I thought might be induced to support Mr. 
 Cummins in his candidacy for the governorship. 
 
 Their responses were somewhat skeptical and gave me 
 the idea that it would be of advantage to Governor Cummins 
 to give me a written statement on this subject which I might 
 show to Senator Allison 's friends and thus assure them of the 
 governor's position as he had verbally stated it to me. Ac- 
 cordingly in the spring of 1906 I had some correspondence 
 on this subject with both Governor Cummins and Mr. F. R. 
 Conaway, who in the governor's frequent absence from Des 
 Moines on his campaign work was looking after the govern- 
 or's political interests. My last letter on this subject being 
 to Mr. Conaway on April 18, in which I wrote as follows : 
 
 "As I wrote you yesterday, I think certainly nothing 
 would help the governor more in Dubuque and the Third 
 district than making some denial that Governor Cummins 
 wanted Senator Allison's seat in the senate." 
 
 The following is an exact copy of Governor Cummins' 
 reply to my suggestion : 
 
 "I note what you say in regard to Senator Allison. I 
 am not a candidate for Senator Allison's place nor have I 
 ever suggested the thing to mortal man. It is simply abom- 
 inable the way my enemies lie about me. I am a candidate 
 for governor, nothing else. It would be just as appropriate 
 for me to deny that I was a candidate for president of the 
 United States or for the appointment to some vacancy on 
 the supreme court of the United States as to deny a can- 
 didacy against Senator Allison. It is unmitigated rot and 
 should not deceive any man. With sincere regards, 
 I am yours very truly, 
 
 (Signed) ALBERT B. CUMMINS. " 481 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 1900-1911 253 
 
 Naturally, each side in the contest interpreted the 
 Torbert letter in its own way. The friends of Al- 
 lison declared that it, together with the Governor's 
 verbal statement, was a bona fide promise not to be 
 a candidate for the senatorship against Allison, and 
 that it was therefore an act of bad faith to enter the 
 race at this time. On the other hand, Governor 
 Cummins in the formal announcement of his can- 
 didacy on December 15, 1907, emphatically denied 
 that he had ever promised Willard H. Torbert that 
 he would not be a candidate against Allison. He was 
 not, he said, a candidate for the Senate in 1906 when 
 the letter was written, but it was absurd to imagine 
 that he would agree never to enter the race for 
 Allison's place. He was perfectly willing to leave 
 the question to the decision of the people. 482 More- 
 over, a leading pro-Cummins editor called attention 
 to the fact that even had the alleged agreement been 
 made it could not be binding upon the people of the 
 State of Iowa. 483 
 
 The general features of the long and somewhat 
 heated campaign which followed are well known 
 the charges that were made back and forth as Gov- 
 ernor Cummins, Senator Dolliver, and others inter- 
 ested in the success of the rival candidates travelled 
 over the State speaking at all the principal cities and 
 towns in the endeavor to secure popular support. 
 The age and comparative feebleness of Senator 
 Allison was a favorite point of attack by the Cum- 
 mins supporters; while the Governor was charged 
 with unscrupulous ambition by his opponents. The 
 
254 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 views of both candidates on the public questions of 
 the day were examined in the minutest detail. The 
 newspapers were literally flooded with articles and 
 comments on the senatorial situation; and the con- 
 test was the subject of general conversation. 
 
 As June 2nd, the date of the primaries, ap- 
 proached each side claimed the victory. But when 
 the ballots had been cast and counted it was found 
 that William B. Allison was the choice of the Bepub- 
 lican voters by a majority of ten thousand six 
 hundred and thirty-five votes. Claude R. Porter re- 
 ceived the undivided support of the Democrats; 
 while Malcolm Smith and John M. Work were the 
 recipients of the feeble vote of the Prohibitionists 
 and Socialists respectively. 484 Thus it appeared set- 
 tled that, unless the Eepublicans in the legislature 
 failed to carry out the expressed wishes of their 
 constituents, Senator Allison would be returned 
 once more to the United States Senate. 
 
 But for the second time within the decade the 
 decision of the people was stayed by the hand of 
 death. On August 4, 1908, Senator William B. 
 Allison passed away at his home in Dubuque. Al- 
 though there was universal sorrow at the news of his 
 death, naturally the political excitement which had 
 been stilled by the primary elections almost imme- 
 diately rose to fever heat. The friends of Governor 
 Cummins, while regretting the manner in which the 
 opportunity had been opened, insisted that now 
 there was no reason why their leader should not 
 attain the position to which he had so long aspired. 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 1900-1911 255 
 
 The chief subject for discussion and speculation 
 now was the course which Governor Cummins would 
 pursue. There seemed to be three alternatives from 
 which the Governor might choose and still remain a 
 candidate for the senatorship. He might make a 
 temporary appointment and then take his chances 
 at the legislative caucus when the General Assembly 
 met in January, 1909. Again, he might immediately 
 resign from the governorship with the understand- 
 ing that he should be appointed Senator by his 
 successor. Finally, it was suggested that he call an 
 extra session of the legislature either to settle the 
 question or to make it possible for the Republicans 
 again to express their choice at a primary election. 
 The latter course was adopted, and on August 25th 
 Governor Cummins issued a proclamation calling the 
 legislature to convene in extra session on the last 
 day of the same month to consider and pass an 
 amendment to the primary election law. 485 
 
 The Thirty-second General Assembly, therefore, 
 met in extra session on August 31, 1908. After some 
 debate an amendment to the primary election law 
 was adopted, providing that if "the candidate of any 
 party for the office of senator in the congress of the 
 United States who has received the highest number 
 of votes in his party at any primary election as a 
 candidate for such office, die, resign or remove from 
 the state of his residence, or for any other cause a 
 vacancy in such candidacy shall occur after such 
 primary is held and before thirty days prior to the 
 day of the general election in November next follow- 
 
256 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 ing, a new primary election shall be held by the 
 members of such party on the day of such general 
 election for the purpose of again nominating and 
 expressing their choice for a candidate for said 
 office ". 486 
 
 This amendment, however, applied only to the 
 nomination of a candidate for the full term beginning 
 in March, 1909. The General Assembly therefore 
 undertook to elect someone to fill out Allison's un- 
 expired term. A Eepublican caucus was called for 
 the evening of September 4th, but only the members 
 of the so-called Progressive wing of the party, which 
 favored Cummins for the senatorship, were pres- 
 ent. 487 The absence of the standpat legislators was 
 taken as an indication that they would bolt the 
 caucus nomination, and this proved to be the case. 
 The Republican caucus nominated Governor Cum- 
 mins, while the Democrats chose Claude R. Porter 
 as their candidate. On September 8th the two 
 houses voted separately for United States Senator 
 and on the following day met in joint convention for 
 a comparison of the journals. 
 
 Out of the total number of votes cast Cummins 
 received sixty-four and Porter forty-five. The re- 
 maining votes were distributed among the following 
 fourteen men, in numbers varying from one to six- 
 teen: Walter I. Smith, Joseph R. Lane, Frank D. 
 Jackson, William Larrabee, George D. Perkins, 
 Warren Garst, A. B. Funk, John F. Lacey, W. P. 
 Hepburn, George W. Clarke, Gilbert N. Haugen, 
 Albert F. Dawson, James H. Trewin, and Andrew J. 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 1900-1911 257 
 
 Baker. No one having received a sufficient number 
 of votes to elect, the joint convention took two 
 further ballots with practically the same result. 
 The name of George M. Curtis was added to the list, 
 but on the other hand five names which had appeared 
 on the first ballot were dropped. 488 
 
 Realizing the futility of further balloting and the 
 fact that the expense of the extra session was daily 
 increased, the legislature adjourned to meet again 
 on November 24th, after the result of the primary 
 vote had been determined. It was provided, how- 
 ever, that the members of the General Assembly 
 should receive no additional compensation or mile- 
 age for reconvening on November 24th. 489 
 
 Thus, the senatorial question was once more 
 transferred to the public arena. The contest now 
 lay between Albert B. Cummins, the leader of the 
 Progressive Eepublicans, and John F. Lacey, the 
 candidate of the Standpatters. Once more the news- 
 papers were filled with discussions of the situation 
 and the people listened to earnest speeches in behalf 
 of the two candidates. At the general elections on 
 November 3rd the Eepublicans expressed their pref- 
 erences on separate blanks prepared for that pur- 
 pose, and when the votes were canvassed it was 
 found that Cummins was victorious by the over- 
 whelming majority of over forty- two thousand. 490 
 
 Consequently when the extra session of the 
 General Assembly reconvened on November 24th 
 there was no doubt that Governor Cummins, being 
 the choice of the Republican voters of the State for 
 
 17 
 
258 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 the long term in the Senate, would be speedily elect- 
 ed to fill out the short term also. The joint conven- 
 tion re-assembled and a ballot was taken, which 
 resulted in one hundred and seven votes for Albert 
 B. Cummins and thirty-five for Claude E. Porter. 491 
 The last act in this political drama was enacted on 
 January 20, 1909, when the choice expressed at the 
 November primaries was confirmed by the Thirty- 
 third General Assembly and Senator Cummins was 
 elected for the term of six years beginning on March 
 4, 1909. 492 
 
 THE ELECTION" OF WILLIAM S. KENYON 
 
 In the ordinary course of events the next senato- 
 rial election would not have come until the session of 
 the General Assembly in 1913, with the contest cen- 
 tering about the primaries in June, 1912. But on 
 October 16, 1910, the people of the State were 
 shocked by the unexpected news that Senator Jona- 
 than P. Dolliver had passed away at his home in Fort 
 Dodge. Nearly three years of the term for which he 
 had been elected still remained, and the filling of the 
 vacancy became a topic of great interest. The name 
 of William S. Kenyon of Fort Dodge was given early 
 prominence; at the same time nearly every prom- 
 inent Eepublican leader in the State was mentioned 
 as a possibility. Senator Dolliver 's death occurred 
 too late for the amendment to the primary law to be 
 applicable, and thus the action of Governor Carroll 
 was anxiously awaited. Finally, on November 12th 
 he appointed Lafayette Young, Sr. of Des Moines to 
 
SENATORIAL ELECTIONS 1900-1911 259 
 
 fill the vacancy until the legislature would elect a 
 successor to Senator Dolliver. 493 
 
 By the time the General Assembly convened on 
 January 9, 1911, there were unmistakable signs of a 
 deadlock. There was little chance of an immediate 
 agreement between the Progressive and Standpat 
 wings of the Republican party. And it was evident 
 that neither the Progressives nor the Standpatters 
 nor the Democrats could elect their candidate, pro- 
 viding there were no desertions from the other two 
 camps. The basis for a long contest was apparent 
 when the votes cast in the two houses separately 
 were canvassed in joint convention on January 18th. 
 Claude R. Porter, the Democratic candidate, stood 
 in the lead with fifty votes ; while the Standpat nom- 
 inee, Lafayette Young, Sr., had thirty-three. The 
 votes of the Progressives were divided between A. B. 
 Funk, H. W. Byers, William S. Kenyon, Warren 
 Garst, C. H. Wilson, and Guy S. Feely, twenty-one 
 and twenty-two votes going to A. B. Funk and 
 William S. Kenyon respectively. Carl F. Franke, 
 usually classed as a Standpatter, received two 
 votes. 494 
 
 No one had received a majority of the votes cast, 
 and hence the joint convention proceeded to ballot 
 for the election of a Senator, but without success. 
 As is well known, this process was repeated each day 
 of the session until the last day, April 12th, when the 
 long deadlock was finally broken. The Progressives 
 gradually centered their votes on William S. Ken- 
 yon, although there were occasional dissenting bal- 
 
260 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 lots. The support of the Standpatters remained firm 
 for Lafayette Young, Sr. until February 15th, when 
 his name was withdrawn in favor of Justice Horace 
 E. Deemer, who hitherto had not been a contest- 
 ant. 495 The immediate result of this change of front 
 was an increase in the votes given to Deemer over 
 the number received by Young. But the hope of thus 
 ending the struggle soon glimmered, for the joint 
 convention assembled day after day at the hour of 
 noon and balloted in vain. The spirit of compromise 
 and concession was not present. Not until the last 
 day of the session had arrived and the sixty-seventh 
 ballot was cast did the deadlock come to an end. On 
 April 12th, on the second ballot of the day, William 
 S. Kenyon received eighty-five votes and was de- 
 clared "duly elected as United States Senator in 
 Congress to fill the vacancy for the term ending 
 March 4, 1913. >' 496 
 
 This contest closes the history of the election of 
 United States Senators from Iowa for a period of 
 sixty-five years from 1846 to 1911. The first and the 
 last elections were accomplished only after long 
 deadlocks, while in between were many contests 
 characterized by intense rivalry and dramatic in- 
 cidents. Throughout this period Iowa has been 
 represented in the United States Senate by men of 
 ability, honesty, and faithfulness to their constitu- 
 ents. 
 
NOTES AND EEFEEENCES 
 
 261 
 
NOTES AND KEFERENCES 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 1 For discussions of this controversy see Shambaugh 's 
 Maps Illustrative of the Boundary History of Iowa in The 
 Iowa Journal of History and Politics, Vol. II, pp. 372-376 ; 
 and Pelzer's Augustus Caesar Dodge, pp. 112-127. 
 
 2 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, 
 No. 19, October 21, 1846. 
 
 3 The Bloomington Herald (New Series), Vol. I, No. 
 25, November 6, 1846. 
 
 4 Senator Jacob Huner, and Representatives Josiah 
 Clifton and Reuben Conlee. Gue's History of Iowa, Vol. 
 I, p. 238. 
 
 6 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, 
 No. 22, November 11, 1846. 
 
 6 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, 
 No. 24, November 25, 1846. 
 
 7 Pelzer's Augustus Caesar Dodge, Chs. IV- VIII. 
 
 8 Letter dated October 4, 1846. Correspondence of 
 Laurel Summers, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 9 Quoted from the Iowa Capital Reporter in The Bloom- 
 ington Herald (New Series), Vol. I, No. 27, November 20, 
 1846. 
 
 10 The Bloomington Herald (New Series), Vol. I, No. 
 27, November 20, 1846. 
 
 263 
 
264 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 11 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, 
 No. 24, November 25, 1846. 
 
 12 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, 
 No. 25, December 2, 1846. 
 
 13 See Gue's History of Iowa, Vol. I, p. 238. 
 
 A diligent search has failed to produce any information 
 concerning Jonathan McCarty, except that he was a resident 
 of Lee County. See Gue's History of Iowa, Vol. I, p. 238. 
 
 Gilbert C. R. Mitchell was one of the early settlers of 
 Davenport, where he engaged in the practice of law. In 
 1843 he was elected to the lower house of the Legislative 
 Assembly of the Territory of Iowa and in 1846 received the 
 nomination for Congressman from the new State, but was 
 defeated. He later became mayor of the city of Davenport 
 and in 1857 was elected Judge of the Fourteenth Judicial 
 District. He remained a Whig until that party began to 
 take on Free Soil ideas, when he transferred his allegiance 
 to the Democrats. Annals of Iowa y (1st Series), Vol. II, 
 pp. 262, 263. 
 
 Judge Thomas S. Wilson, of Dubuque, was a prominent 
 figure in early Iowa, having been one of the three Judges 
 of the Supreme Court during the Territorial period. He 
 continued to play a prominent part in State politics for 
 many years as will be seen in the course of this narrative. 
 
 For a full account of the life of Augustus C. Dodge see 
 Pelzer's Augustus Caesar Dodge in the Iowa Biographical 
 Series. 
 
 14 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, 
 pp. 40, 41. 
 
 15 Journal of the Senate, 1846-1847, p. 33. 
 
 16 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, 
 No. 26, December 9, 1846. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 265 
 
 17 The Bloomington Herald (New Series), Vol. I, No. 
 
 30, December 11, 1846. 
 
 18 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, 
 pp. 54, 55. King submitted a number of papers in support 
 of his assertions. For an excellent discussion of this 
 bribery case see Miss Martin's A Bribery Episode in the 
 First Election of United States Senators in Iowa in The 
 Iowa Journal of History and Politics, Vol. VII, p. 483. 
 
 19 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, 
 pp. 56, 57. 
 
 The investigating committee which was later increased 
 to seven members, held several sessions, took the testimony 
 of a number of persons, and reported without recommenda- 
 tion on February 4, 1847. On the day of adjournment a 
 resolution was adopted administering a public reprimand 
 to Samuel T. Marshall for contempt of the House in offer- 
 ing a bribe to one of its members. See Journal of the 
 House of Representatives, 1846-1847, pp. 236, 425, 437-472. 
 
 20 The Bloomington Herald (New Series), Vol. I, No. 
 
 31, December 18, 1846. 
 
 21 William Patterson was the father-in-law of Samuel 
 T. Marshall who was accused of the attempt to bribe Nelson 
 King. The Bloomington Herald (New Series), Vol. I, No. 
 31, December 18, 1846. 
 
 22 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, 
 p. 472. See also pp. 461-470. 
 
 23 Journal of the Senate, 1846-1847, pp. 41, 43, 45 ; and 
 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, pp. 
 67-69, 75. 
 
 24 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, 
 No. 27, December 16, 1846. 
 
266 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 25 Journal of the Senate, 1846-1847, p. 45. 
 
 26 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, 
 pp. 83-85. 
 
 27 Journal of the Senate, 1846-1847, pp. 55, 56. 
 
 28 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, 
 pp. 92, 93. 
 
 29 The full text of the resolution as given in the Journal 
 of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, p. 92, is as 
 follows : 
 
 Kesolved, by the General Assembly of the State of Iowa, That 
 the Senate and House of Eepresentatives of said State, meet together 
 in the hall of said House on Friday, the 18th instant, at half past 
 eleven, A. M. of said day, and proceed and elect two Senators to the 
 Congress of the United States; and that the manner in which said 
 election shall be conducted shall be as follows, to wit: The names 
 of the members voting in joint election, as aforesaid, shall be called 
 alphabetically, and upon the call of each member's name, he shall 
 vote for one person for the office of United States Senator; and the 
 clerks or tellers, as the case may be, shall note down opposite to each 
 member's name, as he votes, the name of the person for whom he 
 votes. And after all of the names of the members of the General As- 
 sembly shall have been called over, the clerks or tellers, as the case 
 may be, shall count the number of votes given for each and every 
 person voted for, and the person having a majority of all the votes 
 given for Senator, as aforesaid, shall be declared to have been duly 
 elected. 
 
 Sec. 2. And thereupon, the said General Assembly, in joint con- 
 vention, as aforesaid, shall proceed to elect another Senator, in the 
 manner aforesaid. 
 
 30 See Gue's History of Iowa, Vol. I, p. 238. 
 
 31 Journal of the Senate, 1846-1847, pp. 57, 58 ; and 
 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, p. 95. 
 
 32 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, 
 pp. 95, 96. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 267 
 
 33 The Iowa Standard (New Series), Vol. I, No. 28, De- 
 cember 23, 1846. 
 
 34 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, 
 pp. 98, 99. 
 
 35 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, 
 No. 28, December 23, 1846. 
 
 36 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, 
 No. 28, December 23, 1846. 
 
 The Whigs had some basis for their complaint, for a no 
 less prominent Democrat than ex-Governor James Clarke, 
 in writing to Laurel Summers on December 29, 1846, made 
 the following statement : 
 
 My motto is Better be not represented at all than misrepresented; 
 and if two democrats cannot be elected I would take the responsi- 
 bility of holding off. ... I fear, however, that the members will 
 not all be found possessed of sufficient nerve to carry out this policy, 
 and therefore shall not be surprised at any result which may take 
 place. 
 
 Correspondence of Laurel Summers, Historical De- 
 partment, Des Moines. 
 
 37 Gue's History of Iowa, Vol. I, p. 239. 
 
 38 Letter from Bernhardt Henn to George W. Jones, 
 dated January 17, 1847. Correspondence of George W. 
 Jones, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 39 Letter dated December 29, 1846. Correspondence of 
 Laurel Summers, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 40 Journal of the Senate, 1846-1847, p. 67. 
 
 41 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, 
 p. 110. 
 
 42 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, 
 No. 30, January 13, 1847. 
 
268 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 43 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1846-1847, 
 p. 415. 
 
 44 The Bloomington Herald (New Series), Vol. I, No. 
 41, February 26, 1847. 
 
 45 Quoted from the Lee County Democrat in The Iowa 
 Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. I, No. 34, February 
 10, 1847. 
 
 46 Laws of Iowa, 1846-1847, pp. 92-94. 
 
 47 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. II, 
 No. 14, November 24, 1847. 
 
 48 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. II, 
 No. 14, November 24, 1847. 
 
 49 The Bloomington Herald (New Series), Vol. II, No. 
 81, December 4, 1847. 
 
 The "Old Red" here spoken of was probably Thomas 
 Hart Benton, Jr., or possibly James M. Morgan. 
 
 50 Shambaugh 's Messages and Proclamations of the Gov- 
 ernors of Iowa, Vol. I, p. 418. 
 
 51 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. II, 
 No. 17, December 15, 1847. 
 
 52 The Iowa Standard (Iowa City), New Series, Vol. II, 
 No. 15, December 1, 1847. 
 
 53 Keokuk Register, Vol. I, No. 34, January 13, 1848. 
 
 54 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1848 (extra 
 session), p. 12. 
 
 55 Journal of the Senate, 1848 (extra session), pp. 7, 
 13, 14. 
 
 It seems that James Davis had removed from Wapello 
 to Keokuk and had accepted the position of United States 
 Deputy Surveyor. Thomas Baker had been elected and was 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 269 
 
 serving as Prosecuting Attorney in Polk County; while 
 John M. Whitaker had been appointed Agent of the Treas- 
 ury Department, to make selections for school lands, though 
 it was not proved that he received any compensation. 
 Keokuk Register, Vol. I, No. 37, February 3, 1848; and 
 Journal of the Senate, 1848 (extra session), p. 56. 
 
 56 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1848 (extra 
 session), p. 159. 
 
 57 For reports of committees and protests see Journal of 
 the Senate, 1848 (extra session), pp. 25, 34, 39, 56, 70. 
 
 58 Keokuk Register, Vol. I, No. 37, February 3, 1848. 
 
 59 Weekly Miners' Express (Dubuque), Vol. VII, No. 
 22, February 9, 1848. 
 
 G0 Keokuk Register, Vol. I, No. 37, February 3, 1848. 
 
 61 Iowa Democratic Enquirer (Bloomington), Vol. I, No. 
 16, October 28, 1848. 
 
 62 Letter dated October 2, 1848. Correspondence of 
 Gideon S. Bailey, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 For an account of Dodge 's activities during the months 
 preceding the meeting of the General Assembly see Pelzer's 
 Augustus Caesar Dodge, pp. 134, 135. 
 
 63 From an account of the caucus by its secretary, Ly- 
 sander W. Babbitt, in Annals of Iowa (1st Series), Vol. IX, 
 No. 4, October, 1871, pp. 654-656. For a biography and 
 autobiography of Senator Jones see Parish's George Wal- 
 lace Jones in the Iowa Biographical Series. 
 
 64 Article on The First Democratic Legislative Caucus in 
 the State of Iowa, by L. W. Babbitt, in Annals of Iowa (1st 
 Series), Vol. X, No. 2, April, 1872, pp. 125-127. 
 
 65 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1848-1849, 
 pp. 28-32, 35. 
 
270 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 66 Congressional Globe, 2nd Session, 30th Congress, p. 
 97. 
 
 67 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1848-1849, 
 pp. 377, 378. The joint convention was held on January 
 10, 1849. 
 
 68 Pelzer's Augustus Caesar Dodge, p. 137. 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 69 Fairfield Ledger, Vol. II, No. 50, November 25, 1852. 
 
 70 Burlington Daily Telegraph, Vol. II, No. 148, No- 
 vember 30, 1852. 
 
 71 Burlington Daily Telegraph, Vol. II, No. 151, De- 
 cember 3, 1852. 
 
 72 See the files of the Burlington Daily Telegraph for 
 the latter part of November, 1852. 
 
 73 Iowa Democratic Enquirer (Muscatine), Vol. V, No. 
 
 22, December 4, 1852. 
 
 74 Burlington Daily Telegraph, Vol. II, No. 153, De- 
 cember 6, 1852. 
 
 75 Burlington Daily Telegraph, Vol. II, No. 151, De- 
 cember 3, 1852. 
 
 76 Burlington Daily Telegraph, Vol. II, No. 155, De- 
 cember 8, 1852. 
 
 77 Fairfield Ledger, Vol. II, No. 52, December 9, 1852. 
 
 78 Iowa Democratic Enquirer (Muscatine), Vol. V, No. 
 
 23, December 11, 1852. 
 
 Thomas L. Sargeant, of Des Moines County, is doubtless 
 the man referred to as "Gen. Sargeant". 
 
 79 Iowa Democratic Enquirer (Muscatine), Vol. V, No. 
 23, December 11, 1852. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 271 
 
 8 Burlington Daily Telegraph, Vol. II, No. 164, De- 
 cember 18, 1852. 
 
 81 Democratic Banner (Davenport), Vol. V, No. 8, De- 
 cember 24, 1852. The vote stood as follows: Jones 30, 
 Johnson 6, Kinney 5, Clark 5, Grant 4, Negus 4, Thompson 
 1, Williams 1, Carleton 1, Hempstead 1, Bates 1. 
 
 82 Iowa Democratic Enquirer (Muscatine), Vol. V, No. 
 25, December 25, 1852. 
 
 83 Letter dated December 21, 1852. Correspondence of 
 George W. Jones f Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 84 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1852-1853, 
 pp. 89-91. 
 
 85 Iowa Democratic Enquirer (Muscatine), Vol. V, No. 
 25, December 25, 1852. 
 
 86 Congressional Globe, 2nd session, 32nd Congress, pp. 
 180, 256. 
 
 87 Burlington Daily Telegraph, Vol. II, No. 168, De- 
 cember 23, 1852. 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 88 Rhodes 's History of the United States, Vol. I, pp. 
 490, 491. 
 
 89 For a discussion of this campaign see Pelzer's The 
 History and Principles of the Democratic Party of Iowa 
 1846-1857, in The Iowa Journal of History and Politics, 
 Vol. VI, No. 2, pp. 204-211. 
 
 90 Fairfield Ledger, Vol. IV, No. 33, August 3, 1854. 
 
 91 Demoine Courier (Ottumwa), Vol. VI, No. 31, August 
 17, 1854. 
 
 92 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan, p. 850. 
 
272 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 93 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan, p. 856. 
 
 94 Dubuque Daily Herald, Vol. IV, No. 148, October 10, 
 1854. 
 
 95 Dubuque Daily Herald, Vol. IV, No. 153, October 16, 
 1854. 
 
 96 From a statement in the Keosauqua Union, reprinted 
 in the Dubuque Daily Herald, Vol. IV, No. 151 [157], Fri- 
 day, October 18 [20], 1854. 
 
 97 Burlington Tri-WeeUy Hawk-Eye (Third Year), Vol. 
 I, No. 6, November 23, 1854. 
 
 98 Letter dated November 14, 1854, to Dr. Gideon S. 
 Bailey, found in the Bailey collection of letters in the His- 
 torical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 99 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan, p. 852. 
 
 100 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan, pp. 852, 854. 
 
 101 Daily Express and Herald (Dubuque), Vol. IV, No. 
 
 196, December 5, 1854. 
 
 102 Daily Express and Herald (Dubuque), Vol. IV, No. 
 
 197, December 6, 1854. 
 
 103 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan, pp. 857, 858. See also the Burlington Daily Tele- 
 graph, Vol. V, No. 151, December 8, 1854. The name 
 Shelladay is to be found spelled in every conceivable man- 
 ner, but the spelling here used seems to have been most 
 generally employed. 
 
 104 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1854-1855, 
 pp. 57, 58. The resolution was first introduced on Decem- 
 ber 9. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 273 
 
 105 Iowa Democratic Enquirer (Muscatine), Vol. VII, 
 No. 23, December 14, 1854. 
 
 106 Burlington Tri-Weekly Hawk-Eye (Third Year), 
 Vol. I, No. 16, December 16, 1854. Also Daily Express and 
 Herald (Dubuque), Vol. IV, No. 208, December 19, 1854. 
 
 107 Daily Express and Herald (Dubuque), Vol. IV, No. 
 208, December 19, 1854. 
 
 108 Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, p. 42. 
 
 109 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1854-1855, 
 p. 61. 
 
 110 Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, p. 44. There are a 
 few slight differences between the record in the journals of 
 the houses in the matter of the spelling and arrangement of 
 names, and the Journal of the Senate seems the more satis- 
 factory for reference at this particular point. 
 
 111 The complete vote was as follows: Augustus Caesar 
 Dodge 29, Fitz Henry Warren 16, Edward Johnson [John- 
 stone] 11, James B. Howell 9, Ebenezer Cook 7, Jacob 
 Butler 5, Joseph H. D. Street 5, Stephen B. Shelladay 4, 
 James Harlan 4, Thomas H. Benton, Jr. 3, George G. 
 Wright 3, E. W. Eastman 1, Joseph Williams 1, and J. C. 
 HaU I. Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, pp. 44, 45. 
 
 It should be noted that J. C. Hall received one vote 
 although he had not been nominated, and that although 
 Thomas W. Claggett had been nominated he received no 
 votes. 
 
 112 Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, pp. 45-48. The 
 second vote stood as follows : A. C. Dodge 29, F. H. Warren 
 18, Edward Johnson [Johnstone] 14, James Harlan 12, J. 
 B. Howell 9, Ebenezer Cook 8, J. H. D. Street 5, S. B. 
 Shelladay 2, E. W. Eastman 1. 
 
 18 
 
274 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 113 Letter from Samuel McFarland to James Harlan, 
 dated December 14, 1854. Autobiographical Manuscript 
 and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 1 14 The ballots were as follows : 
 
 First ballot. Warren 17, Harlan 13, Street 1, Cook 2, 
 Howell 11. 
 
 Second ballot. Warren 18, Harlan 17, Cook 2, How- 
 ell 8. 
 
 Third ballot. Warren 18, Harlan 19, Cook 1, Howell 
 6, Shelladay 1. 
 
 Fourth ballot. Warren 21, Harlan 18, Howell 6. 
 
 Fifth ballot. Warren 21, Harlan 23. 
 
 Sixth ballot. Warren 18, Harlan 27. 
 
 Seventh ballot. Warren 16, Harlan 29. 
 
 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan, p. 876. 
 
 115 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan, pp. 859, 860. 
 
 116 See the Daily Express and Herald (Dubuque), Vol. 
 IV, No. 208, December 19, 1854. 
 
 117 Stiles 's General Fitz Henry Warren in Annals of 
 Iowa (Third Series), Vol. VI, No. 7, pp. 486, 487. 
 
 118 Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, p. 49. 
 
 119 Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, p. 49. 
 
 120 Iowa Democratic Enquirer (Muscatine), Vol. VII, 
 No. 24, December 21, 1854. 
 
 121 Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, p. 50. 
 
 122 Letter from Samuel McFarland to James Harlan, 
 dated December 14, 1854. Autobiographical Manuscript 
 and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 275 
 
 123 Daily Express and Herald (Dubuque), Vol. IV, No. 
 211, December 22, 1854. "Wooly" was a term applied to 
 the Anti-Nebraska men, because of their leaning toward 
 abolitionism. 
 
 124 Letters from J. J. Matthews and Daniel Anderson, 
 dated December 14, 1854. Autobiographical Manuscript 
 and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 125 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 126 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 127 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 Harlan 's reply reads as follows: 
 
 Iowa City Dec 20th. 1854 
 Gentlemen : 
 
 Yours of the 14th inst. informing me of the adjournment of the 
 Convention of the two houses of the General Assembly of the State 
 of Iowa to enable members to become acquainted with the views of 
 gentlemen whose names had been presented as candidates for the 
 senate of the U. States, and propounding a list of interrogatories 
 involving grave questions of Constitutional Law, of Legislative Ex- 
 pediency, and of Conscience, and requesting a reply, to be laid before 
 the Convention on the 21st inst. has been received. And in reply I 
 beg leave to say that if elected to the Senate of the United States, 
 in all Constitutional questions that might arise, I would expect to be 
 guided in my action by the decision of the Supreme Court and the 
 well settled principles of Constitution [al] Law in all questions of 
 Legislative Expediency, by the views and wishes of the Legislature 
 and people of Iowa and in all questions of Conscience by the Bible. 
 
 128 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1854-1855, 
 pp. 102-108. This journal is more satisfactory at this point 
 because of greater detail. 
 
 The last vote was as follows: Harlan 41, Cook 18, 
 
276 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Claggett 13, Henn 10, Street 6, Butler 3, P. Gad Bryan 3, 
 Dodge 2, Lincoln Clark 1, Benjamin M. Samuels 1. 
 
 129 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1854-1855, 
 pp. 109-111. 
 
 130 Iowa Democratic Enquirer (Muscatine), Vol. VII, 
 No. 24, December 21 [28], 1854. 
 
 ^Burlington Tri-Weekly Hawk-Eye (Third Year), 
 Vol. I, No. 23, January 2, 1855. 
 
 132 Burlington Tri-Weekly Hawk-Eye (Third Year), 
 Vol. I, No. 23, January 2, 1855. 
 
 133 Letter from James W. Grimes to George Frazee, 
 dated January 6, 1855. Printed in the Annals of Iowa 
 (Third Series), Vol. VII, No. 3, p. 235. 
 
 134 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1854-1855, 
 pp. 151-156. 
 
 The votes at this session were : 
 
 Sixth vote. Harlan 46, Cook 21, Browning 17, Bryan 
 6, Henn 4, Wm. McKay 1, Benton 1, Claggett 1. 
 
 Seventh vote. Harlan 47, Cook 29, Browning 19, John 
 G. Shields 2, McKay 1, Thompson 1. 
 
 Eighth vote. Harlan 47, Browning 35, Cook 14, 0. D. 
 Tisdale 1, Benton 1, McKay 1. 
 
 There are a few discrepancies between the two journals. 
 The Senate Journal gives Cook twenty-two on the sixth 
 vote, and includes the name of Richard Bonson as having 
 received one. On the seventh vote the name of "W. A. 
 Thurston is given instead of that of Thompson given in the 
 House Journal. Which record is correct is not known. 
 See Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, p. 106. 
 
 135 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1854-1855, 
 pp. 163-178. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 277 
 
 136 Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, p. 116. 
 
 137 Letter from James W. Grimes to some person not 
 designated, dated January 7, 1855. Printed in Salter's 
 The Life of James W. Grimes, p. 64. 
 
 138 Iowa Democratic Enquirer (Muscatine), Vol. VII, 
 No. 27, January 11, 1855. 
 
 This account is doubtless somewhat exaggerated, but the 
 facts are correct, and it is not more extravagant than de- 
 scriptions printed in other newspapers of the day. 
 
 139 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1854-1855, 
 pp. 184-188. See also Burlington Tri-Weekly Hawk-Eye 
 (Third Year), Vol. I, No. 27, January 11, 1855. 
 
 The final vote was as follows: James Harlan 52, Bern- 
 hart Henn 2, William McKay 1, James Grant 1. 
 
 140 Laws of Iowa, 1846-1847, p. 92. 
 
 141 The question of the legality of the election will re- 
 ceive more adequate discussion later in dealing with the 
 contest in the United States Senate. 
 
 142 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1854-1855, 
 pp. 188-190, 208-211 ; Journal of the Senate, 1854-1855, pp. 
 122, 129. 
 
 143 Daily Express and Herald (Dubuque), Vol. IV, No. 
 227, January 11, 1855. 
 
 144 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 34th Congress, p. 2. 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 145 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 146 Letter from James W. Grimes, dated November 17, 
 1855. Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
278 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 147 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 34th Congress, p. 2. 
 
 148 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 149 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 34th Congress, p. 
 2079. 
 
 150 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 34th Congress, p. 
 2098. 
 
 151 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 34th Congress, pp. 
 2129, 2130. 
 
 152 Congressional Globe, 1st Session, 34th Congress, p. 
 2130; and Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of 
 James Harlan. 
 
 153 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 154 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 34th Congress, pp. 
 112-115. 
 
 155 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 34th Congress, pp. 
 115-117. 
 
 156 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 34th Congress, p. 
 221. 
 
 157 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 34th Congress, p. 
 238. 
 
 168 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 34th Congress, pp. 
 
 238, 239. 
 
 159 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 34th Congress, pp. 
 
 239, 240. 
 
 160 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 34th Congress, pp. 
 240-244. 
 
 161 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 34th Congress, pp. 
 244-246, 248-257, 260-270, 287-299. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 279 
 
 162 Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 34th Congress, p. 
 299. 
 
 163 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 164 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 165 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1856-1857, 
 pp. 360-362. 
 
 166 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 167 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan; also Congressional Globe, 3rd Session, 34th Con- 
 gress, p. 499. 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 168 The Dubuque Daily Times, Vol. I, No. 79, September 
 
 14, 1857. 
 
 169 The Dubuque Daily Times, Vol. I, No. 82, September 
 17, 1857. 
 
 170 Davenport Weekly Gazette, Vol. XVII, No. 7, Octo- 
 ber 10 [15], 1857. 
 
 171 Davenport Weekly Gazette, Vol. XVII, No. 6, Octo- 
 ber 8, 1857. 
 
 172 The Dubuque Daily Times, Vol. I, No. 80, September 
 
 15, 1857. 
 
 173 Quoted from the Chicago Tribune in The Weekly 
 Ottumwa Courier (New Series), Vol. II, No. 45, November 
 5, 1857. 
 
 174 See Gue's History of Iowa, Vol. IV, pp. 52, 53, for a 
 sketch of the life of William Penn Clarke. 
 
280 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 175 See Gue's History of Iowa, Vol. IV, pp. 263, 264, for 
 a sketch of the life of James Thorington. 
 
 lie Frederick E. Bissell came to Dubuque in 1845, and 
 for some time he studied law in the office of James Craw- 
 ford and taught school. He was at different times the law 
 partner of Timothy Davis and Lincoln Clark. At the time 
 of his candidacy for the senatorship he was senior partner 
 of the firm of Bissell, Mills & Shiras, "a firm probably 
 doing the largest law business in Northern Iowa." He was 
 also President of the Dubuque, St. Peters and St. Paul Rail- 
 road, and a stockholder in various harbor and improvement 
 companies. The Dubuque Weekly Times, Vol. I, No. 22, 
 November 25, 1857. 
 
 177 Daily Iowa State Gazette (Burlington), Vol. Ill, No. 
 113, November 11, 1857. 
 
 178 Letter from Will Spicer, dated November 12, 1857. 
 Correspondence of William Penn Clarke, Vol. II, No. 90, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 179 Letter from J. W. Cattell, dated December 6, 1857. 
 Correspondence of William Penn Clarke, Vol. II, No. 81, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 180 Letter from M. W. Farner, dated December 10, 1857. 
 Correspondence of William Penn Clarke, Vol. II, No. 79, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 181 Letter dated October 23, 1857. Autobiographical 
 Manuscript and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 182 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 183 Daily Iowa State Gazette (Burlington), Vol. Ill, No. 
 121, November 20, 1857. 
 
 184 Letter from M. W. Farner to William Penn Clarke, 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 281 
 
 dated December 10, 1857. Correspondence of William 
 Penn Clarke, Vol. II, No. 79, Historical Department, Des 
 Moines. 
 
 185 Letter dated December 16, 1857. Autobiographical 
 Manuscript and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 186 See the Iowa State Journal (Des Moines), Vol. I, No. 
 46, December 26, 1857. 
 
 187 Letter dated December 5, 1857. Autobiographical 
 Manuscript and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 188 Letter from A. J. Kynett, dated December 14, 1857. 
 
 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James Har- 
 lan. 
 
 189 Letter dated December 16, 1857. Autobiographical 
 Manuscript and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 190 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 191 Letter from James Harlan, dated December 21, 1857. 
 
 Correspondence of William Penn Clarke, Vol. II, No. 77, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 192 See letter from A. J. Kynett to James Harlan, dated 
 December 14, 1857. Autobiographical Manuscript and Pa- 
 pers of James Harlan. 
 
 193 Daily Iowa State Gazette (Burlington), Vol. Ill, No. 
 136, December 9, 1857. 
 
 194 The Dubuque Daily Times, Vol. I, No. 84, December 
 19, 1857. 
 
 195 Letter dated January 10, 1858. Autobiographical 
 Manuscript and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 196 The Dubuque Weekly Times, Vol. I, No. 29, January 
 
282 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 13, 1858 ; and The Fairfield Ledger, Vol. VIII, No. 2, Janu- 
 ary 14, 1858. 
 
 197 The Fairfield Ledger, Vol. VIII, No. 4, January 28, 
 1858. 
 
 198 Hamilton Freeman (Webster City), Vol. I, No. 29, 
 January 28, 1858. 
 
 199 Daily Iowa State Gazette (Burlington), Vol. Ill, No. 
 180, January 31, 1858 ; also Davenport Weekly Gazette, Vol. 
 XVII, No. 23, February 4, 1858. 
 
 200 Letter from George G. Wright to James Harlan, 
 dated January 25, 1858. Autobiographical Manuscript 
 and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 201 Letter from James W. Grimes to Mrs. Grimes, dated 
 January 25, 1858. Printed in Salter 's The Life of James 
 W. Grimes, p. 113. 
 
 202 Davenport Weekly Gazette, Vol. XVII, No. 23, Feb- 
 ruary 4, 1858. 
 
 203 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1858, pp. 
 130-134. 
 
 204 The Dubuque Weekly Times, Vol. I, No. 32, February 
 10, 1858. 
 
 CHAPTEE VI 
 
 205 See letters written to James Harlan by John Tees- 
 dale, James W. Grimes, Elijah Sells, and others during 
 July, 1859. Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of 
 James Harlan. 
 
 206 The Home Journal (Mount Pleasant), Vol. IV, No. 
 13, September 29, 1859. 
 
 207 Quoted from the Keokuk Gate City in The Weekly 
 Hawk-Eye (Burlington), September 10, 1859. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 283 
 
 208 Des Moines Valley Whig (Keokuk), Vol. XIV, No. 5, 
 September 26, 1859. 
 
 209 Des Moines Valley Whig (Keokuk), Vol. XIV, No. 5, 
 September 26, 1859. 
 
 210 The Home Journal (Mount Pleasant), Vol. IV, No. 
 13, September 29, 1859. 
 
 211 Des Moines Valley Whig (Keokuk), Vol. XIV, No. 6, 
 October 3, 1859. 
 
 212 The Home Journal (Mount Pleasant), Vol. IV, No. 
 24, December 15, 1859. 
 
 213 Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers of James 
 Harlan. 
 
 214 Letter from James "W. Grimes to James Harlan, 
 dated November 4, 1859. Autobiographical Manuscript 
 and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 215 Letter from Thomas M. Bowen to James Harlan, 
 dated November 30, 1859. Autobiographical Manuscript 
 and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 216 Letter from Thomas Drummond to James Harlan, 
 dated December 7, 1859. Autobiographical Manuscript 
 and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 217 Letter from Thomas Drummond to James Harlan, 
 dated December 26, 1859. Autobiographical Manuscript 
 and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 218 Letter from W. C. Drake to James Harlan, dated 
 December 23, 1859. Autobiographical Manuscript and 
 Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 219 Letter from Elijah Sells to James Harlan, dated No- 
 vember 8, 1859. Autobiographical Manuscript and Papers 
 of James Harlan. See also letters from Hawkins Taylor 
 
284 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 and Eliphalet Price to James Harlan, dated November 4, 
 1859. 
 
 220 See letter from Thomas Drummond to James Har- 
 lan, dated December 7, 1859. Autobiographical Manu- 
 script and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 221 Iowa Weekly Republican (Iowa City), Vol. X, No. 
 582, January 18, 1860. 
 
 222 Letter from Martin L. Morris to James Harlan, 
 dated January 14, 1860. Autobiographical Manuscript 
 and Papers of James Harlan. 
 
 223 Des Moines correspondence to the Keosauqua Repub- 
 lican, Vol. V, No. 16, January 28, 1860. 
 
 224 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1860, pp. 
 79-81. 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 225 Letter from James W. Grimes to the editor of the 
 Linn County Register, dated May 2, 1863. Printed in 
 Salter's The Life of James W. Grimes, p. 236. 
 
 226 State Press (Iowa City), Vol. Ill, No. 41, September 
 12, 1863. 
 
 227 Burlington Weekly Argus, Vol. II, No. 19, September 
 24, 1863. 
 
 228 See letter from James W. Grimes to Mrs. Grimes, 
 dated September 28, 1863. Printed in Salter's The Life of 
 James W. Grimes, p. 238. 
 
 229 The Home Journal (Mt. Pleasant), Vol. VIII, No. 31, 
 January 30, 1864. 
 
 230 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1864, p. 66. 
 See also The Home Journal (Mt. Pleasant), Vol. VIII, No. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 285 
 
 31, January 30, 1864. The identity of the Mr. Love who 
 received one vote is not known. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 231 Letter from William M. Stone to Kirkwood, dated 
 March 30, 1865. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 232 Letter from William M. Stone to Kirkwood, dated 
 June 2, 1865. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 233 Letter from Marcellus M. Crocker to Kirkwood, 
 dated June 23, 1865. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirk- 
 wood, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 234 Letter from James Harlan to Kirkwood, dated July 
 18, 1865. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, His- 
 torical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 235 Muscatine Daily Journal, Vol. XI, No. 21, September 
 11, 1865. 
 
 236 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, September 30, and 
 October 21, 1865. 
 
 237 See letter from James W. Grimes to Kirkwood, dated 
 January 7, 1866. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 238 Letter from James W. Grimes to Kirkwood, dated 
 September 27, 1865. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirk- 
 wood, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 239 Letter from William B. Lakin to Kirkwood, dated 
 November 10, 1865. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirk- 
 wood, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 240 Letter from Jacob Rich to Kirkwood, dated Decem- 
 
286 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 her 14, 1865. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 241 Letter from W. Reynolds to Kirkwood, dated Decem- 
 ber 19, 1865. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, His- 
 torical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 242 Letters from Jacob Rich to Kirkwood, dated De- 
 cember 14 and 29, 1865. Correspondence of Samuel J. 
 Kirkwood, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 243 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, November 25, 1865. 
 See also extracts from other newspapers printed in this 
 issue. 
 
 244 Muscatine Daily Journal, Vol. XI, No. 125, January 
 3, 1866. 
 
 245 Iowa City Republican, Vol. XVII, No. 894, January 
 10, 1866. 
 
 246 The Weekly Gate City (Keokuk), Vol. XX, No. 21, 
 January 9, 1866. 
 
 247 Letter from H. A. Wiltse to Kirkwood, dated Janu- 
 ary 13, 1866. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 248 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, January 20, 1866. 
 
 249 The ballots for the long term were as follows : 
 First ballot. James Harlan 50, Samuel J. Kirkwood 
 
 44, Asahel W. Hubbard 17, William Vandever 4, George G. 
 Wright 1. 
 
 Second ballot. Harlan 57, Kirkwood 46, Hubbard 14. 
 
 Third ballot. Harlan 63, Kirkwood 42, Hubbard 12. 
 
 The ballot for the short term was as follows : Samuel J. 
 Kirkwood 80, Enoch W. Eastman 7, William Vandever 9, 
 Fitz Henry Warren 16, George G. Wright 1, James Harlan 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 287 
 
 2, Grenville M. Dodge 1. Iowa City Republican, Vol. 
 XVII, No. 895, January 17, 1866. 
 
 250 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1866, pp. 
 64-66. 
 
 25i lowa City Republican, Vol. XVII, No. 895, January 
 17, 1866. 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 252 Sailer's The Life of James W. Grimes, pp. 367, 371, 
 372. Senator Grimes died on February 7, 1872. 
 
 253 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XIV, 
 No. 32, September 22, 1869. 
 
 254 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XIV, 
 No. 41, November 24, 1869. 
 
 255 Quoted from the Chicago Tribune in the Weekly Iowa 
 State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XIV, No. 42, December 1, 
 1869. The correspondent was James S. Clarkson, now 
 living in New York City. 
 
 256 The Iowa North West (Fort Dodge), Vol. VI, No. 8, 
 January 20, 1870. 
 
 257 The Iowa North West (Fort Dodge), Vol. VI, No. 8, 
 January 20, 1870. 
 
 258 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. VIII, 
 No. 321, January 14, 1870. 
 
 The ballots for the short term were as follows : 
 Informal ballot. J. B. Grinnell 39, J. B. Howell 38, 
 William Vandever 24, D. N. Cooley 6, John Scott 8, John 
 A. Kasson 2, D. P. Stubbs 4, Thomas Ballinger 1, Joel 
 Brown 2, Samuel Merrill 1, Joel Smith 1, blank 1. 
 
 First ballot. Howell 56, Grinnell 39, Vandever 19, 
 Scott 11, Brown 2, Cooley 1. 
 
288 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Second ballot. Howell 60, Grinnell 42, Scott 14, Van- 
 dever 3. 
 
 Third ballot. Howell 70, Grinnell 41, Scott 12, Van- 
 dever 3. 
 
 259 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XIV, 
 No. 49, January 19, 1870. 
 
 260 Act of July 25, 1866. United States Statutes at 
 Large, Vol. XIV, p. 243. 
 
 261 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1870, pp. 
 80, 81 ; Journal of the Senate, 1870, pp. 39, 40. 
 
 262 Journal of the House of { Representatives, 1870, pp. 
 90, 91. 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 263 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, December 28, 1871. 
 
 264 This letter may be found in the Burlington Weekly 
 Hawk-Eye, July 6, 1871. It contained nothing more than 
 any person might write in support of a friend. 
 
 265 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, July 6, 1871. 
 
 2 6 The Dubuque Weekly Times, Vol. XVIII, No. 27, 
 July 5, 1871. 
 
 267 Quotation from the Fort Dodge Republican in the 
 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, July 27, 1871. 
 
 268 The "German Address" may be found in the Bur- 
 lington Weekly Hawk-Eye, July 6, 1871. 
 
 269 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, August 3, 1871. 
 
 270 Quotation from the McGregor News in the Burling- 
 ton Weekly Hawk-Eye, June 29, 1871. 
 
 271 Quotation from the Ottumwa Courier in the Burling- 
 ton Weekly Hawk-Eye, July 6, 1871. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 289 
 
 272 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 
 300, December 29, 1871. 
 
 273 jr or counter charges in this respect see the Burling- 
 ton Weekly Hawk-Eye, August 3, 1871 ; and The Dubuque 
 Weekly Times, Vol. XVIII, No. 34, August 23, 1871. 
 
 274 See quotations from other newspapers in the Daily 
 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, Nos. 182 and 
 185, August 9 and 12, 1871. 
 
 275 Quotation from the Marshall County Times in the 
 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 204, 
 September 5, 1871. 
 
 270 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 
 212, September 13, 1871. 
 
 277 F or instance see the Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, 
 September 28, 1871. 
 
 278 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 
 230, October 4, 1871. 
 
 279 The Dubuque Weekly Times, Vol. XVIII, No. 40, 
 October 4, 1871. 
 
 280 Quotation from The Washington Press in the Daily 
 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 208, Sep- 
 tember 8, 1871. 
 
 281 ;p or complete statements of these charges see the 
 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, Nos. 298, 
 305, and 307, December 27, 1871, and January 4 and 6, 
 1872. 
 
 282 ;p or instance see the Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye , 
 December 21 and 28, 1871. 
 
 283 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, December 21, 1871. 
 
 284 Quotation from The Sioux City Journal in the Bur- 
 lington Weekly Hawk-Eye, December 28, 1871. 
 
 19 
 
290 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 285 The Dubuque Weekly Times, Vol. XVIII, No. 39, 
 September 27, 1871. 
 
 286 Quotation from the Pella Blade in the Daily Iowa 
 State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 285, December 9, 
 1871. 
 
 287 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 
 298, December 27, 1871. 
 
 288 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 
 307, January 7, 1872. 
 
 289 Quotation from the Winterset Sun in the Daily Iowa 
 State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 181, August 8, 
 1871. 
 
 290 Quotation from the Mount Pleasant Press in the 
 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 185, 
 August 12, 1871. 
 
 291 See The Dubuque Weekly Times, Vol. XVIII, No. 37, 
 September 13, 1871, for a statement of this charge together 
 with a reply to it. 
 
 292 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, December 28, 1871. 
 
 293 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 
 310, January 11, 1872. The ballots were as follows : 
 
 Informal ballot. Allison 60, Harlan 38, Wilson 22. 
 First formal ballot. Allison 59, Harlan 42, Wilson 20. 
 Second formal ballot. AUison 63, Harlan 40, Wilson 17. 
 
 294 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. X, No. 
 310, January 11, 1872. 
 
 295 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1872, pp. 
 95, 96. In the Senate Allison received forty-two votes and 
 Harlan seven. In the House of Representatives the vote 
 stood seventy-six for Allison and twenty for Sarlan. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 291 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 296 Letter from Chief Justice William E. Miller to Kirk- 
 wood, dated July 2, 1875. Correspondence of Samuel J. 
 Kirkwood, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 297 Quoted from the Marshall Times in The Iowa Daily 
 State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XIV, No. 162, July 8, 
 1875. 
 
 298 Quoted from the Davenport Gazette in the Burling- 
 ton Weekly Hawk-Eye, Thursday, July 15, 1875. 
 
 299 Quoted from the Sioux City Journal in The Iowa 
 Daily State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XIV, No. 182, 
 July 31, 1875. 
 
 300 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Thursday, Septem- 
 ber 9, 1875. 
 
 301 The Iowa Daily State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XIV, No. 205, August 27, 1875. 
 
 302 Letter from J. N. Dewey to Kirkwood, dated Sep- 
 tember 19, 1875. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 303 Letter from Jacob Rich to Kirkwood, dated Novem- 
 ber 10, 1875. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 304 Quoted from the Pella Blade in The Iowa Daily 
 State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XIV, No. 258, November 
 3, 1875. 
 
 305 Quoted from the Oskaloosa Herald in The Iowa Daily 
 State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XIV, No. 273, November 
 20, 1875. 
 
 306 Quoted from the Mt. Pleasant Free Press in The 
 
292 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 Iowa Daily State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XIV, No. 263, 
 November 9, 1875. 
 
 307 Quoted from the Spirit Lake Beacon in The Iowa 
 Daily State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XIV, No. 277, No- 
 vember 25, 1875. 
 
 308 Quoted from the Brighton Star in the Burlington 
 Weekly Hawk-Eye, December 30, 1875. 
 
 309 jp or instance see the Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, 
 December 9, 1875. 
 
 310 See an extract from the Governor's letter in the 
 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, December 9, 1875. 
 
 311 Burlington Weekly Haivk-Eye, December 9, 1875. 
 
 312 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, December 23, 1875. 
 
 313 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, December 30, 1875. 
 
 314 Letter from John Palmer to Kirkwood, dated No- 
 vember 15, 1875. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 315 Letter from Warren Danforth to Kirkwood, dated 
 November 26, 1875. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirk- 
 wood, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 316 Letter from J. B. Shepardson to Kirkwood, dated 
 December 15, 1875. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirk- 
 wood, Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 317 The Iowa Daily State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XV, No. 28, January 11, 1876. 
 
 318 The Iowa Daily State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XV, No. 29, January 12, 1876. 
 
 319 The Iowa Daily State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XV, No. 30, January 13, 1876. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 293 
 
 320 The Iowa Daily State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XV, No. 30, January 13, 1876. 
 
 The ballots in the caucus were as follows : 
 
 Informal ballot. W. W. Belknap 15, Hiram Price 24, 
 
 Samuel J. Kirkwood 53, George W. McCrary 15, blank 2. 
 Formal ballot. Kirkwood 56, Price 27, Belknap 13, 
 
 McCrary 14. 
 
 321 The Iowa Daily State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XV, No. 32, January 15, 1876. 
 
 322 T/te Iowa Daily State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XV, No. 30, January 13, 1876. 
 
 323 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1876, pp. 
 47, 48. 
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 324 Quoted from the Oskaloosa Herald in the Dubuque 
 Weekly Times, Wednesday, October 31, 1877. 
 
 323 Quoted from the Onawa Gazette in the Dubuque 
 Weekly Times, Wednesday, November 7, 1877. 
 
 326 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXI, 
 No. 48, December 21, 1877. 
 
 327 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXI, 
 No. 48, December 21, 1877. 
 
 328 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXI, 
 No. 48, December 21, 1877. The stand on the part of 
 Senator Allison, here referred to, doubtless had to do with 
 certain appointments of ex- Confederates made by President 
 Hayes. 
 
 329 Daily Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XVI, 
 No. 310, December 18, 1877. 
 
294 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 330 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Thursday, December 
 6, 1877. 
 
 331 Muscatine Weekly Journal, Friday, December 21, 
 1877. 
 
 332 Dubuque Weekly Times, Wednesday, December 12, 
 1877 ; and quotation from the Burlington Hawk-Eye in the 
 Dubuque Weekly Times, Wednesday, January 9, 1878. 
 
 333 Quoted from the Sioux City Journal in the Dubuque 
 Weekly Times, Wednesday, December 19, 1877. 
 
 334 The Cedar Falls Gazette, Vol. XVIII, No. 38, De- 
 cember 21, 1877. 
 
 335 Quoted from the MacGregor correspondence to the 
 Dubuque Herald in The Cedar Falls Gazette, Vol. XVIII, 
 No. 40, January 4, 1878. 
 
 336 The Cedar Falls Gazette, Vol. XVIII, No. 40, Janu- 
 ary 4, 1878. 
 
 337 p or instance see the Muscatine Weekly Journal, Fri- 
 day, January 4, 1878 ; and The Cedar Falls Gazette, Vol. 
 XVIII, No. 41, January 11, 1878. 
 
 338 jn or accounts of the caucus see the Weekly Iowa State 
 Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXI, No. 52, January 18, 
 1878; and the Dubuque Weekly Times, Wednesday, Janu- 
 ary 23, 1878. 
 
 339 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1878, p. 49. 
 
 340 Journal of the Senate, 1878, p. 30 ; Journal of the 
 House of Representatives, 1878, p. 39. There is a discrep- 
 ancy between the figures given in the two journals and the 
 total vote as stated in the record of the joint convention. 
 
 341 Burlington Weekly Hawk-Eye, Thursday, January 
 24, 1878. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 295 
 
 CHAPTEE XIH 
 
 342 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), VoL 
 XXV, No. 1, January 21, 1881. 
 
 343 Letter from Jacob Rich to Kirkwood, dated Febru- 
 ary 20, 1881. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 344 Letter from J. N. Dewey to Kirkwood, dated Febru- 
 ary 21, 1881. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 345 Letter from Jacob Rich to Kirkwood, dated March 
 3, 1881. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, His- 
 torical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 346 Letter from S. M. Finch to Kirkwood, dated March 
 5, 1881. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, His- 
 torical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 347 James W. McDill took his seat in the United States 
 Senate on March 14, 1881. Congressional Record, Special 
 Session of the Senate, 47th Congress, pp. 14, 15. 
 
 348 Letter from James F. Wilson to Kirkwood, dated 
 March 7, 1881. Correspondence of Samuel J. Kirkwood, 
 Historical Department, Des Moines. 
 
 349 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), VoL 
 XXV, No. 9, March 18, 1881. 
 
 350 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), VoL 
 XXV, No. 21, June 10, 1881. 
 
 351 Quoted from the Vinton Observer in the Weekly 
 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXV, No. 21, June 
 10, 1881. 
 
 352 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), VoL 
 XXV, No. 24, July 1, 1881. 
 
296 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 353 See quotation from the Jefferson Bee in the Weekly 
 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXV, No. 24, July 
 1, 1881. 
 
 354 Quoted from the Dubuque Times in the Iowa City 
 Daily Republican, Vol. VI, No. 1586, July 28, 1881. 
 
 355 See quotation from the Atlantic Telegraph in the 
 Iowa City Daily Republican, Vol. VI, No. 1600, August 13, 
 1881. 
 
 356 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XXV, No. 33, September 2, 1881. 
 
 357 Quotation from the Dubuque Times in the Weekly 
 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXV, No. 34, Sep- 
 tember 9, 1881. 
 
 358 Iowa City Daily Republican, Vol. VI, No. 1628, Sep- 
 tember 16, 1881. 
 
 359 Iowa City Daily Republican, Vol. VI, No. 1639, Sep- 
 tember 30, 1881. 
 
 360 Quoted from the Chicago Evening Journal in the 
 Iowa City Daily Republican, Vol. VI, No. 1639, September 
 30, 1881. 
 
 361 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XXV, No. 38, October 7, 1881. 
 
 362 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XXV, No. 42, November 4, 1881. 
 
 363 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XXV, No. 45, November 25, 1881. 
 
 364 Letter from Kirkwood to Jacob Rich, dated October 
 3, 1881. Letter Book of Samuel J. Kirkwood, July 12, 
 1881-June 27, 1885, pp. 31, 32, State Historical Society of 
 Iowa, Iowa City. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 297 
 
 365 Letter from Kirkwood to E. R. Kirk, dated October 
 20, 1881. Letter Book of Samuel J. Kirkwood, July 12, 
 1881-June 27, 1885, p. 53, State Historical Society of Iowa, 
 Iowa City. 
 
 360 Quoted from the Worth County Eagle in the Weekly 
 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXV, No. 42, No- 
 vember 4, 1881. 
 
 367 Quoted from the Cedar Rapids Republican in the 
 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXV, No. 
 44, November 18, 1881. 
 
 368 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XXV, No. 51, January 6, 1882. 
 
 369 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. 
 XXV, No. 52, January 13, 1882. 
 
 370 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1882, pp. 
 80-82. The vote in the House for the full term stood: 
 James F. Wilson 68, L. G. Kinne 19, D. P. Stubbs 6, 
 absent or not voting, 7. The vote in the House for the 
 short term stood : James W. Dill 68, M. M. Ham 18, Daniel 
 Campbell 6, absent or not voting, 8. In the Senate Wilson 
 received 42, Kinne 2, and Stubbs 2 ; while for the short term 
 McDill received 42, Ham 2, and Campbell 2. Journal of 
 the House of Representatives, 1882, pp. 66, 67 ; and Journal 
 of the Senate, 1882, pp. 56, 57. 
 
 CHAPTER XIV 
 
 371 See the writer's History of Liquor Legislation in 
 Iowa in The Iowa Journal of History and Politics, Vol. VI, 
 pp. 535-539. 
 
 372 Iowa State Press (Iowa City), Vol. XXIII, No. 37, 
 September 12, 1883. 
 
298 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 373 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 
 201, August 24, 1883. 
 
 *lowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 
 201, August 24, 1883. 
 
 s Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 
 220, September 15, 1883. 
 
 * 76 Iowa State Press (Iowa City), Vol. XXIII, No. 40, 
 October 3, 1883. 
 
 377 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 
 220, September 15, 1883. 
 
 378 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 
 220, September 15, 1883 ; and Iowa City Daily Republican, 
 Vol. VII, No. 340, October 4, 1883. 
 
 379 Account of speech by James Harlan in The Burling- 
 ton Hawk-Eye, October 3, 1883. See also the Iowa State 
 Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 220, September 15, 
 1883. 
 
 380 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 
 220, September 15, 1883. 
 
 381 Quoted from the Davenport Gazette in The Burling- 
 ton Hawk-Eye, October 3, 1883. 
 
 382 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 
 220, September 15, 1883. 
 
 383 Quoted from the Davenport Gazette in The Burling- 
 ton Hawk-Eye, October 7, 1883. 
 
 384 See for instance an account of a speech by James B. 
 Weaver in the Iowa State Press, Vol. XXIII, No. 40, Octo- 
 ber 3, 1883. 
 
 385 Statement by J. K. Graves quoted in the Iowa State 
 Press, Vol. XXIII, No. 49, December 5, 1883. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 299 
 
 386 The Burlington Hawk-Eye, November 29, 1883. 
 
 387 Iowa State Press, Vol. XXIII, No. 51, December 19, 
 1883. See also the same paper for January 16, 1884. 
 
 388 loiva State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 
 323, January 16, 1884. 
 
 S8Q Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 
 323, January 16, 1884. 
 
 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Vol. XXII, No. 
 323, January 16, 1884. 
 
 391 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1884, p. 36. 
 
 392 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1884, p. 45. 
 For the separate votes in the House and Senate respectively 
 see Journal of the House of Representatives, 1884, p. 39; 
 and Journal of the Senate, 1884, p. 39. 
 
 393 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1884, pp. 
 97, 98, 112, 113 ; and Journal of the Senate, 1884, pp. 83, 84. 
 The law of Congress regulating the election of United States 
 Senators provided that the election should begin on the 
 second Tuesday after the legislature had effected its organ- 
 ization. The organization of the General Assembly this 
 year was effected on Tuesday, January 15th, and conse- 
 quently there was some doubt as to what would be consid- 
 ered the second Tuesday. 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 394 Quoted from the Muscatine Journal in The Iowa 
 State Register (Des Moines), August 13, 1887. 
 
 395 Quoted from the Audubon Republican in The Iowa 
 State Register (Des Moines), August 13, 1887. 
 
 396 See quotation from the Keokuk Gate City in The 
 Iowa State Register (Des Moines), August 26, 1887. 
 
300 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 397 See The Iowa State Register (Des Moines), August 
 23, 1887. 
 
 398 T/te Fort Dodge Messenger, Vol. XXIII, No. 39, 
 August 18, 1887. 
 
 399 The Iowa State Register (Des Moines), August 19, 
 1887. 
 
 400 Quoted from the Montezuma Republican in The Iowa 
 State Register (Des Moines), August 19, 1887. 
 
 401 The Fort Dodge Messenger, Vol. XXIV, No. 5, De- 
 cember 22, 1887. 
 
 402 The Iowa State Register (Des Moines), January 10, 
 
 1888. 
 
 403 The Iowa State Register (Des Moines), January 11, 
 
 1888. 
 
 404 The Iowa State Register (Des Moines), January 11, 
 
 1888. 
 
 405 Tn e vote in the Senate on January 17th stood : James 
 F. Wilson 31, T. J. Anderson 26, Daniel Campbell 3, J. R. 
 Reed 1, and John A. T. Hull 1. Journal of the House of 
 Representatives, 1888, p. 98. 
 
 The vote in the Senate on January 24th stood: James 
 F. Wilson 29, T. J. Anderson 10, and Henry Wallace 1. 
 In the House the votes stood: James F. Wilson 57, T. J. 
 Anderson 19, Daniel Campbell 3, J. R. Reed 1, and John 
 A. T. Hull 1. Journal of the House of Representatives, 
 1888, p. 123. 
 
 CHAPTEB XVI 
 
 406 Quoted from the Cedar Rapids Gazette in the Iowa 
 City Daily Republican, Vol. XIII, No. 205, July 5, 1889. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 301 
 
 407 Iowa City Daily Republican, Vol. XIII, No. 205, 
 July 5, 1889. 
 
 408 Quoted from the Des Moines Daily News in the Iowa 
 City Daily Republican, Vol. XIII, No. 286, October 10, 
 1889. 
 
 409 See mention of this charge in The Cedar Rapids 
 Times, Vol. XXXIX, No. 7, October 1, 1889; and the Iowa 
 City Daily Republican, Vol. XIV, No. 48, January 11, 1890. 
 
 410 See The Iowa State Register (Des Moines), October 
 18, 1889. 
 
 411 Iowa City Daily Republican, Vol. XIV, No. 16, De- 
 cember 2, 1889. 
 
 412 Quoted from- the Clinton Herald in the Iowa City 
 Daily Republican, Vol. XIV, No. 21, December 7, 1889. 
 
 413 The editor of the Bedford Democrat was apparently 
 among those who favored this plan. See the Iowa City 
 Daily Republican, Vol. XIV, No. 10, November 23, 1889. 
 
 414 Quoted from The Iowa State Register in the Iowa 
 City Daily Republican, Vol. XIV, No. 22, December 9, 1889. 
 
 415 The Cedar Rapids Times, Vol. XXXIX, No. 13, De- 
 cember 12, 1889. 
 
 416 Iowa City Daily Republican, Vol. XIV, No. 29, De- 
 cember 18, 1889. 
 
 417 Quoted from the Boston Journal in the Iowa City 
 Daily Republican, Vol. XIV, No. 30, December 19, 1889. 
 
 418 Quoted from the Howard County Times in The Iowa 
 State Register (Des Moines), January 9, 1890. 
 
 419 The Iowa State Register (Des Moines), January 7, 
 1890. 
 
302 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 420 The Iowa State Register (Des Moines), January 18, 
 1890. 
 
 421 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1890, p. 83. 
 This result was achieved only after an agreement between 
 the Democrats and Republicans in which all the legislative 
 positions were provided for. 
 
 422 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1890, p. 
 168. 
 
 CHAPTEB XVII 
 
 423 Iowa Official Register, 1894, p. 100. 
 
 424 The Des Moines Weekly Leader, November 17, 1892. 
 
 425 The Des Moines Weekly Leader, December 22, 1892. 
 
 426 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Jan- 
 uary 13, 1893. 
 
 427 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), June 
 16, 1893. 
 
 428 See for instance The Iowa Citizen (Iowa City), Sep- 
 tember 1, 1893. 
 
 429 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), 
 August 25, 1893. 
 
 430 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Sep- 
 tember 8, 1893. 
 
 431 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Octo- 
 ber 6, 1893. 
 
 432 Weekly Times (Dubuque), November 24, 1893. 
 
 433 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), No- 
 vember 24, 1893. 
 
 434 See The Iowa Citizen (Iowa City), December 15, 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 303 
 
 1893; and a quotation from the Clinton Herald in The 
 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), December 22, 
 1893. 
 
 435 The Des Moines Weekly Leader, November 30, 1893. 
 
 436 The Des Moines Weekly Leader, December 21, 1893. 
 
 437 Weekly Times (Dubuque), January 2, 1894. 
 
 438 See the Weekly Times (Dubuque), December 22, 
 1893, and January 2, 1894. 
 
 439 Weekly Times (Dubuque), January 2, 1894. 
 
 440 The Des Moines Weekly Leader, January 4, 1894. 
 
 441 Quoted from the Mason City Globe in the Weekly 
 Times (Dubuque), January 5, 1894. 
 
 442 See The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), 
 January 12, 1894; and The Des Moines Weekly Leader, 
 January 11, 1894. 
 
 443 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Jan- 
 uary 12, 1894. 
 
 444 p or g 00( j acc ounts of the Republican caucus see The 
 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), January 19, 
 1894; and The Des Moines Weekly Leader, January 18, 
 1894. 
 
 The first ballot stood: Gear 42, Hepburn 19, Lacey 10, 
 Stone 13, Cummins 12, Coffin 4, Perkins 12. 
 
 The second ballot stood: Gear 50, Hepburn 14, Lacey 
 8, Stone 12, Cummins 15, Coffin 2, Perkins 11. 
 
 The third ballot stood: Gear 57, Hepburn 15, Lacey 8, 
 Stone 11, Cummins 10, Coffin 1, Perkins 12. 
 
 445 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Jan- 
 uary 19, 1894. 
 
 446 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Jan- 
 uary 19, 1894. 
 
304 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 447 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1894, pp. 
 78, 97. On January 17th Gear received 111 votes, Boies 
 28, and W. H. Butler 1. On January 24th Gear received 
 98, Boies 25, and Butler 1. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 448 The Des Moines Weekly Leader, October 17, 1895. 
 
 449 The Des Moines Weekly Leader, December 26, 1895. 
 
 450 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), De- 
 cember 27, 1895. 
 
 451 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Jan- 
 uary 17, 1896. 
 
 452 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1896, p. 69. 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 453 See The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), 
 August 25, 1899. 
 
 454 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), May 
 5, 1899. 
 
 455 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), Sep- 
 tember 15 and 22, 1899. 
 
 456 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), 
 August 25, 1899. 
 
 457 |n or instance, see The Weekly Iowa State Register 
 (Des Moines), July 7 and 14, and December 22, 1899. 
 
 458 See The Burlington Hawk-Eye, September 7, 1899. 
 
 459 See quotation from the Cedar Rapids Republican in 
 The Burlington Hawk-Eye, June 29, 1899. 
 
 460 Quoted from The Council Bluffs Nonpareil in The 
 Burlington Hawk-Eye (Weekly), July 6, 1899. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 305 
 
 461 Quoted from the Howard County Times (Cresco), in 
 The Burlington-Hawk-Eye (Weekly), August 10, 1899. 
 
 4G2 The Burlington Hawk-Eye (Weekly), August 31, 
 1899. 
 
 463 The Burlington Hawk-Eye (Weekly), January 4, 
 1900. 
 
 464 p or accounts of the caucus see The Weekly Iowa 
 State Register (Des Moines), January 12, 1900; and The 
 Burlington Hawk-Eye (Weekly), January 11, 1900. 
 
 465 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1900, p. 95. 
 
 466 Quoted from The Iowa City Republican in The 
 Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), July 28, 1899. 
 
 467 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), 
 August 24, 1900. 
 
 468 The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), 
 August 24, 1900. 
 
 469 See The Weekly Iowa State Register (Des Moines), 
 December 13, 1901 ; and The Burlington Hawk-Eye (Week- 
 ly), January 9, 1902. 
 
 470 The Burlington Hawk-Eye (Weekly), January 16, 
 1902. 
 
 471 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1902, pp. 
 76, 77. 
 
 472 The Register and Leader (Des Moines), November 
 28, 1906. 
 
 473 The Register and Leader (Des Moines), January 13, 
 1907. 
 
 474 The Register and Leader (Des Moines), January 22, 
 1907. 
 
 20 
 
306 SENATORIAL ELECTIONS IN IOWA 
 
 475 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1907, p. 
 153. 
 
 476 See Van der Zee's Amendments to the Constitution 
 of the United States Proposed in the State Legislature of 
 Iowa 1846-1909 in The Iowa Journal of History and Pol- 
 itics, Vol. VII, pp. 396-401. 
 
 477 Laws of Iowa, 1906, p. 212. 
 
 478 See the Report of Proceedings of the Inter-State 
 Senatorial Amendment Convention held at Des Moines, 
 Iowa, December, 1906. 
 
 479 Laws of Iowa, 1907, p. 51. 
 
 480 The Register and Leader (Des Moines), Vol. LVIII, 
 No. 147, November 26, 1907. 
 
 481 The Register and Leader (Des Moines), Vol. LVIII, 
 No. 165, December 14, 1907. 
 
 482 The Register and Leader (Des Moines), Vol. LVIII, 
 No. 167, December 16, 1907. 
 
 483 The Register and Leader (Des Moines), Vol. LVIII, 
 No. 166, December 15, 1907. 
 
 484 Iowa Official Register, 1909-1910, pp. 600-605. 
 
 485 The Register and Leader (Des Moines), Vol. LIX, 
 No. 55, August 26, 1908. 
 
 486 Laws of Iowa, Extra Session, 1908, p. 3. 
 
 487 The Register and Leader (Des Moines), Vol. LIX, 
 No. 65, September 5, 1908. 
 
 488 Journal of the House of Representatives, Extra Ses- 
 sion, 1908, pp. 92-94, 100-103. 
 
 489 Laws of Iowa, Extra Session, 1908, p. 6. 
 
 490 Iowa Official Register, 1909-10, p. 600. 
 
NOTES AND REFERENCES 307 
 
 491 Journal of the House of Representatives, Extra Ses- 
 sion, 1908, pp. 120-122. 
 
 492 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1909, pp. 
 168-170. Albert B. Cummins received 143 votes, and 
 Claude R. Porter 41. 
 
 493 The Register and Leader (Des Moines), Vol. LXI, 
 No. 135, November 13, 1910. 
 
 494 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1911, p. 
 182. 
 
 495 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1911, p. 
 494. 
 
 496 Journal of the House of Representatives, 1911, pp. 
 1924, 1925. The final vote stood: Claude R. Porter 51, 
 Horace E. Deemer 19, William S. Kenyon 85. Among 
 those not mentioned on the first ballot who received votes 
 occasionally during the deadlock were Paul E. Stillman, 
 J. U. Sammis, Henry Wallace, Daniel Hamilton, George W. 
 Clarke, and Horace M. Towner. The Democratic vote was 
 for a time transferred to Frank A. 'Connor. 
 
INDEX 
 
INDEX 
 
 ABOLITIONISTS, 60 
 
 Aldrich, Charles, 117 
 
 Allen, William, circular letter 
 written by, 184, 185; refer- 
 ence to, 186 
 
 Allison, William B., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 136; attitude 
 of, toward Harlan, 138; quali- 
 fications and advantages of, 
 145, 146; reference to, 146, 
 153, 154, 159, 160, 176, 210, 
 229, 293; contest between 
 Wright and, 147, 148; alleged 
 support of, by railroads and 
 federal officials, 148; votes re- 
 ceived by, 149, 290; prepara- 
 tion of, for contest of 1872, 
 152; distribution of support- 
 ers of, 156; praise of, by Dem- 
 ocrats, 157; attitude of, to- 
 ward administration, 157, 158; 
 character of supporters of, 
 158; attempt to stir up bitter- 
 ness between Wilson and, 159, 
 160; partisanship of friends 
 of, 161; criticism of career of, 
 161, 162; charges against in- 
 tegrity of, 163, 164; charge of 
 railroad influence in favor of, 
 164, 220; personal attacks on, 
 166; nomination of, 166, 167, 
 185, 208, 220, 221, 238, 247; 
 first election of, 167; bitter- 
 ness of first election of, 180; 
 popular approval of, 181-183; 
 position of, at Washington, 
 182; fidelity of, to Eepublican- 
 ism, 182, 183; hints of opposi- 
 tion to, 183-185; election of, in 
 1878, 186; possibility of ap- 
 pointment of, to Cabinet, 188; 
 
 approval of, by Eepublicans, 
 201, 207, 216; efforts of Demo- 
 crats and Greenbackers to de- 
 feat, 201, 202, 205; bereave- 
 ment of, 202; charges of cor- 
 ruption against, 202-204, 218; 
 defense of, against charges of 
 corruption, 204, 205; effect of 
 candidacy of, on State elec- 
 tions, 206, 207, 219, 220; Dem- 
 ocratic opposition to, 207; 
 speech by, 208, 238; resolution 
 to investigate charges against, 
 208; election of, in 1884, 209; 
 question of successor to, 216; 
 arguments against, 217; atti- 
 tude of Democrats toward, 
 218; alarm among friends of, 
 218, 219; obligation of Eepub- 
 licans to vote for, 220 ; election 
 of, in 1890, 221; effect of 
 election of eastern man on can- 
 didacy of, 227, 228, 230, 232; 
 continued support of, 235; 
 presidential boom in favor of, 
 235, 236; effect of prohibition 
 question on candidacy of, 236, 
 237; election of, in 1896, 238; 
 election of, in 1902, 246, 247; 
 proposal for non-partisan re- 
 election of, 247; opening of 
 campaign of, against Cum- 
 mins, 250; alleged promise of 
 Cummins to support, 251-253; 
 contest between Cummins and, 
 253, 254; victory of, at pri- 
 maries, 254; death of, 254; at- 
 tempt to elect successor to, 
 256 
 
 Anderson, J. E., 193 
 
 Anderson, T. J., defeat of, for 
 
 311 
 
312 
 
 INDEX 
 
 senatorship, 215; votes re- 
 ceived by, 300 
 
 Anti-Nebraska Democrats, 114 
 
 Anti-Nebraska party, 67, 70, 75; 
 prediction of split in, 70; cau- 
 cus held by, 73; disgust of, at 
 failure to elect Senator, 80; 
 criticism of Cook by, 81; ela- 
 tion of, at election of Harlan, 
 86; belief of, in legality of 
 election, 88; hostility to, at 
 Washington, 90 
 
 Appointment by Governor (see 
 Governor) 
 
 Arthur, Chester A., 194 
 
 BABB, Washington I., votes re- 
 ceived by, 238 
 
 Baker, Andrew J., votes received 
 by, 256, 257 
 
 Baker, Thomas, right of, to seat 
 in Senate, 40, 41; reference to, 
 42, 43, 268, 269 
 
 Baldwin, Caleb, 176 
 
 Ballinger, Thomas, vote received 
 by, 287 
 
 Baltimore Platform, 70 
 
 Barker, Winslow F., vote received 
 by, 103 
 
 Bates, Curtis, vote received by, 
 271 
 
 Bayard, James A., 91, 92, 95, 101 
 
 Belknap, William W., mention 
 of, for senatorship, 158 ; candi- 
 dacy of, for senatorship, 171; 
 newspaper comment relative to, 
 172; objections to, 173; hope 
 of followers of, 176; votes re- 
 ceived by, 293 
 
 Benjamin, Judah P., 101 
 
 Benton, Thomas H., Jr., appoint- 
 ment of, as teller, 29; appeal 
 of, to convention, 30, 31; men- 
 tion of, for senatorship, 38; 
 nomination of, 72, 79; refer- 
 ence to, 75, 268; votes received 
 by, 79, 273, 276; movement in 
 favor of, 125 
 
 Bestow, S. T., votes received by, 
 221; reference to, 226 
 
 Bigler, William, 95 
 
 Bills, John C., plan for election 
 of, as Senator, 218 
 
 Bissell, Frederick E., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 108; reference 
 to, 110, 111, 280; lack of 
 prominence of, 114 
 
 Bloomington (Muscatine), 25, 38 
 
 Blythe, James E., mention of, for 
 senatorship, 223 
 
 Boies, Horace, election of, as 
 Governor, 216; reference to, 
 222, 224, 243; mention of, for 
 senatorship, 223, 224; nomina- 
 tion of, for Governor, 225; 
 scheme in favor of, 226; nomi- 
 nation of, for Senator, 233; 
 defeat of, 234; votes received 
 by, 304 
 
 Bonson, Eichard, 276 
 
 Bowen, D. H., election of, as 
 Speaker, 244 
 
 Bowen, Jesse, mention of, for 
 senatorship, 69 
 
 Bowie, G. W., appointment of, as 
 teller, 29 
 
 Bradley, Philip B., 46, 48 
 
 Bribery, exposure of attempts at, 
 24-27 
 
 Briggs, Ansel, rumor of calling 
 of extra session by, 37; out- 
 side pressure brought to bear 
 on, 37, 38; extra session called 
 by, 38, 39; promise of Clifton 
 to, 42 
 
 Brown, Joel, votes received by, 
 287 
 
 Browne, Jesse B., joint conven- 
 tion presided over by, 29; ref- 
 erence to, 83 
 
 Browning, Milton D., candidacy 
 of, for senatorship, 33, 64, 69; 
 suggestion by, 75; maneuvers 
 of, for senatorship, 75, 76; 
 nomination of, 79, 82; refer- 
 ence to, 80; condemnation of, 
 81; votes received by, 82, 276 
 
 Bryan, P. Gad, votes received by, 
 79, 276 
 
 Buchanan, James, doctrine of 
 
INDEX 
 
 313 
 
 Calhoun endorsed by, 105; ref- 
 erence to, 116, 118, 121; diffi- 
 culties of administration of, 
 123 
 
 Bunker, David, votes received by, 
 118 
 
 Burlington, 20, 51, 53, 56, 57, 63, 
 64, 80, 108, 136, 155, 157, 174, 
 175, 183, 228, 230 
 
 Butler, Andrew P., 91, 95, 101; 
 speech by, relative to contested 
 election, 96, 97 
 
 Butler, Jacob, mention of, for 
 senatorship, 69; nomination of, 
 72, 79; votes received by, 273, 
 276 
 
 Butler, W. H., votes received by, 
 304 
 
 Butler County, 159 
 
 Byers, H. W., votes received by, 
 259 
 
 CABINET, public sentiment relative 
 to resignation of Harlan from, 
 138, 139; condemnation of 
 Harlan 's conduct as member 
 of, 162, 163; appointment of 
 Kirkwood to, 179, 190; ques- 
 tion of appointment to, 187, 
 188; possibility of appoint- 
 ment of Kirkwood to, 188-190; 
 rumor of changes in, 194 
 
 Caldwell, Timothy J., 213, 214 
 
 Calhoun, John C., 38; doctrine 
 of, relative to slavery, 105 
 
 Cameron, Simon, election of, to 
 Senate, 102 
 
 Campbell, Daniel, votes received 
 by, 199, 215, 297, 300 
 
 Candidates, announcement of, 18, 
 55, 63-69, 107, 108, 125-127, 
 136, 171, 227; nomination of, 
 23, 45, 46, 56, 71, 72, 73, 75, 
 148-150, 166, 167, 177, 178, 
 199, 207, 213, 214, 220, 221, 
 232, 233, 238, 244, 245, 247, 
 248, 256; schemes of, 32, 33; 
 discussion of, 38, 145-147, 158, 
 191-193, 211, 212, 223, 224; 
 choice of, by Democrats, 40; 
 
 canvass of State by, 44; nomi- 
 nation of, at primaries, 254; 
 votes for in 1911, 259 
 
 Capital, removal of, 108; charges 
 against Grimes in connection 
 with removal of, 112 
 
 Capulets, contest between Mon- 
 tagues and, 104, 105 
 
 Carleton, Mr., vote received by, 
 271 
 
 Carroll, B. F., appointment of 
 Young by, 258 
 
 Caucus, candidates nominated by, 
 23, 40, 45, 46, 56, 73, 117, 
 118, 127, 128, 140, 141, 148- 
 150, 166, 167, 177, 178, 185, 
 186, 199, 207, 208, 213, 214, 
 220, 221, 232, 233, 238, 244, 
 245, 247, 248, 256; failure of 
 Whigs to hold, 70; predictions 
 concerning, 70; irregularity of, 
 213; question of date of, 231 
 
 Cedar Falls, 185 
 
 Cedar Rapids, 219 
 
 Cedar Eapids and Missouri Eiver 
 Railroad, charges of corruption 
 in connection with, 203, 204 
 
 Chapman, Johnson C., affidavit 
 of, charging attempt at brib- 
 ery, 26 
 
 Charles City, 159 
 
 Cherokee Indians, fraud in con- 
 nection with lands of, 162 
 
 Cheshire, Thomas A., 245 
 
 Chicago, Burlington and Quincy 
 Railroad, alleged support of 
 Gear by, 230 
 
 Church, effort to involve, in poli- 
 tics, 154 
 
 Civil War, effect of, on Iowa pol- 
 itics, 129; reference to, 226 
 
 Claggett, Thomas W., nomination 
 of, 72, 79, 149, 150; reference 
 to, 128, 273; defeat of, 150; 
 votes received by, 276 
 
 Clarinda, 125 
 
 Clark, D. M., votes received by, 
 209 
 
 Clark, Lincoln, ridicule of, 54; 
 votes received by, 118, 271, 276 
 
314 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Clark, E. L. B., 73 
 
 Clark, T. E., 207 
 
 Clarke, George W., votes received 
 by, 256; reference to, 307 
 
 Clarke, James, letter to Summers 
 from, 32, 33, 267 
 
 Clarke, William Perm, candidacy 
 of, for Senator, 107; letters of, 
 to members of legislature, 109; 
 disappointment of, at removal 
 of capital, 112; attitude of 
 Harlan toward, 113; letter to 
 Harlan from, 113; letter from 
 Harlan to, 114; sketch of life 
 of, 279 
 
 Clarkson, C. F., mention of, for 
 senatorship, 158 
 
 Clarkson, James S., review of 
 senatorial candidates by, 145- 
 147; mention of, for senator- 
 ship, 223; reference to, 231, 
 287 
 
 Clarkson, Eichard P., discussion 
 of senatorial prospects by, 
 224; reference to, 225, 229, 
 233, 237 
 
 Clarksville, 175 
 
 Clay, Henry, effect of compro- 
 mise measures of, 59 
 
 Clayton, John M., 91 
 
 Clayton County, 156 
 
 Clifton, Josiah, attempt at brib- 
 ery of, 26; vote cast for Mc- 
 Carty by, 29; reference to, 31, 
 32, 43, 263; balance of power 
 held by, 41; denunciation of, 
 by Democrats, 42, 43 
 
 Clinton, 223 
 
 Coffin, Lorenzo S., candidacy of, 
 for Senator, 230; defeat of, in 
 caucus, 232, 233; votes re- 
 ceived by, 303 
 
 Committee on the Judiciary, mo- 
 tion to refer contested election 
 to, 90, 91, 93, 94; reports of, 
 94, 95 
 
 Compromise of 1850, attitude of 
 Harlan toward, 76 
 
 Conaway, F. E., 252 
 
 Conger, Edwin H., mention of, 
 
 for senatorship, 224; reference 
 to, 229 
 
 Congress, political complexion 
 of, 37, 38, 226; absence of 
 Jones from, 56; most momen- 
 tous act passed by, 60; power 
 of, to admit slave States, 77; 
 failure of, to regulate manner 
 of electing Senators, 98; need 
 of more Democratic votes in, 
 123; act of, regulating election 
 of Senators, 150, 299; defeat 
 of Wright for election to, 151; 
 service of Wilson in, 159 ; need 
 for Union soldiers in, 212 
 
 Conlee, Eeuben, attempt at brib- 
 ery of, 26; votes cast for Mc- 
 Carty by, 29; reference to, 31, 
 263 ; death of, 32 
 
 Constitution of Iowa (1857), 
 adoption of, 108; prohibitory 
 amendment to, 200 
 
 Constitution of United States, 
 provision of, relative to elec- 
 tion of Senators, 97, 98, 100; 
 suggestion for amendment to, 
 249 
 
 Cook, John P., mention of, for 
 senatorship, 68; reference to, 
 70, 80; nomination of, 72, 75, 
 78, 82; votes received by, 72, 
 78, 79, 273, 274, 275, 276; de- 
 feat of, for nomination, 73; 
 criticism of, 81 
 
 Cook, John P., mention of, for 
 senatorship, 69 
 
 Coolbaugh, William F., votes re- 
 ceived by, 103, 118 
 
 Cooley, Dennis N., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 146; votes re- 
 ceived by, 287 
 
 Corporations, alleged support of 
 Gear by, 230 
 
 Corwin, Thomas, 35 
 
 Cotton, Aylett E., election of, as 
 Speaker, 148 
 
 Council Bluffs, 243; speech by 
 Dolliver at, 250, 251 
 
 Credit Mobilier, charges against 
 Harlan in connection with, 173 
 
INDEX 
 
 315 
 
 Cresco, 176 
 
 Crittenden, John J., 35 
 
 Crocker, Marcellus M., letter to 
 Kirkwood from, 134 
 
 Cummins, Albert B., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 223, 248, 250; 
 reference to, 224, 228, 240, 
 241; praise of, 225; announce- 
 ment of candidacy of, 227, 
 253; committee of supporters 
 of, 229; defeat of, in caucus, 
 232, 233 ; contest between Gear 
 and, 239; arguments against, 
 242-244; support of, by Demo- 
 crats, 243; desire of, for sena- 
 torship, 246; election of, as 
 Governor, 246; refusal of, to 
 be candidate, 248; convention 
 called by, 249; alleged promise 
 of, to support Allison, 251-253; 
 contest between Allison and, 
 253, 254; new opportunity for, 
 254; alternatives facing, 255; 
 extra session called by, 255; 
 nomination of, 256; votes re- 
 ceived by, 256, 303; campaign 
 between Lacey and, 257; vic- 
 tory of, at primaries, 257; 
 election of, 257, 258 
 
 Curtis, George M., 257 
 
 Curtis, Samuel B., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 136 
 
 DALLAS County, 40 
 
 Dart, Samuel (fictitious name), 
 118 
 
 Davenport, 107, 169, 206 
 
 Davis, James, appeal of, to con- 
 vention, 30 ; right of, to seat in 
 Senate, 40, 41; reference to, 
 42, 43, 268 
 
 Davis, Timothy, mention of, for 
 senatorship, 68; vote received 
 by, 118 ; candidacy of, for Sen- 
 ator, 125 
 
 Dawson, Albert F., votes received 
 by, 256 
 
 Day, Irad C., resolution by, 23 
 
 Deadlock in 1911, 259, 260 
 
 Dean, Henry Clay, 185 
 
 Decorah, 146 
 
 Deemer, Horace E., candidacy of, 
 260; votes received by, 307 
 
 Delaware Indians, fraud in mak- 
 ing treaty with, 162 
 
 Delegate to Congress, service of 
 Dodge as, 20; service of Jones 
 as, 45 
 
 Democratic party, cause of down- 
 fall of, 60; overthrow of, 63; 
 division in, 121; difficulties 
 confronting leaders of, 121, 
 122 
 
 Democratic State Convention, 
 135, 225 
 
 Democrats, 17, 19, 39, 43, 55, 60, 
 92, 102, 115, 166; contest for 
 senatorships among, 18; dom- 
 inance of, 18; charges made 
 against Whigs by, 19, 20; can- 
 didates of, for senatorship, 20, 
 21, 23, 40, 50, 55, 72, 141, 221, 
 223, 224, 238, 247, 248, 259; 
 charges against, 23, 24, 124, 
 205; discomfiture of, at brib- 
 ery episode, 25; controversy 
 between Whigs and, 27; elec- 
 tion of McCarty feared by, 30 ; 
 refusal of, to accept Huner, 
 32; refusal of, to meet in joint 
 convention, 33-35 ; resolution 
 of, in House, 34; regret of, at 
 failure to elect Senators, 35; 
 strength of, in Congress, 38; 
 equality between Whigs and, 
 41; illegal members allowed to 
 retain seats by, 41; denuncia- 
 tion of Clifton by, 42, 43 ; suc- 
 cess of, in State elections, 44; 
 rivalry among, 44, 45; caucus 
 held by, 45, 46, 56, 73, 128, 
 149, 150, 167, 233, 245, 256; 
 majority of, in legislature, 47, 
 56; failure of appearance of 
 candidates among, against 
 Jones, 53; attitude of, toward 
 compromise, 59; loss of New 
 England by, 60: defeat of, 61, 
 84; majority of, in Senate, 62; 
 lack of activity among, 65; op- 
 
316 
 
 INDEX 
 
 position of, to Warren, 67; 
 plan of, to gain advantage over 
 Whigs, 71; refusal of, to fuse 
 with National Whigs, 77; sup- 
 port of Cook by, 79; satisfac- 
 tion of, at failure to elect Sen- 
 ator, 80; intrigues of Cook 
 with, 81; efforts of Cook and 
 Browning to secure support of, 
 81, 82; fear of, of election of 
 Harlan, 83; protests of, 
 against election of Harlan, 86; 
 questionable practices of, 86; 
 hostility of, to new party, 90; 
 reason for postponement of 
 Harlan 's case by, 92, 93; con- 
 demnation of Lecompton fraud 
 by, 104; danger of control of 
 legislature by, 105, 106 ; attack 
 on Grimes by, 111; repudiation 
 of Buchanan by, 119; efforts 
 of, to minimize importance of 
 national issues, 121; Repub- 
 licans warned against, 122, 
 135, 206; circulars distributed 
 among, 123; minority of, 129; 
 prediction of success of, 130; 
 interest of, in Harlan-Allison 
 contest, 156, 157; responsibil- 
 ity for victories of, 161; ma- 
 jority of, in lower house of 
 Congress, 170; declaration of, 
 in favor of license law, 200; 
 attitude of, toward charges 
 against Allison, 202; efforts 
 of, to defeat Allison, 201, 202; 
 charges against Eepublicans 
 by, 206; opposition of, to Alli- 
 son, 207; resolutions against 
 Allison by, 208; lack of inter- 
 est of, in contest, 210; interest 
 of, in senatorial contest, 216; 
 victory of, 216; hope of, of 
 electing Senator, 218; attitude 
 of, toward Allison, 218; con- 
 test between Republicans and, 
 over Speaker, 219; possibility 
 of victory of, 219; efforts of 
 Republicans to end success of, 
 222; failure of, to nominate 
 
 Senator at State Convention, 
 224; elimination of, from con- 
 test, 227; approval of Allison 
 by, 235; endorsement of Cum- 
 mins by, 243; support of Por- 
 ter by, 254 
 
 Department of Interior, officials 
 of, sent to Iowa, 138; charges 
 against Harlan in connection 
 with, 140 
 
 Des Moines, removal of capital 
 to, 108, 112 ; meeting of legis- 
 lature at, 127; correspondence 
 from, 141; reference to, 145, 
 147, 156, 160, 166, 170, 182, 
 187, 188, 189, 191, 193, 195, 
 202, 208, 212, 213, 217, 220, 
 224, 225, 229, 231, 236, 244, 
 258; convention at, 249 
 
 Des Moines County, 33, 75, 228 
 
 Des Moines House, supper at, 119 
 
 Dewey, J. N., letter to Kirkwood 
 from, 170, 171, 188, 189 
 
 Dewey, Laurin, conversation of, 
 with Harlan, 66, 67 
 
 Dodge, Augustus Caesar, support 
 of, in southern Iowa, 20, 44, 
 45, 48; nomination of, 23, 45, 
 71, 72, 73, 75, 78, 82, 128; 
 charges against, 24; attempt at 
 bribery to secure votes for, 24- 
 26; money furnished to Mar- 
 shall by, 25; satirical comment 
 relative to, 26; attempt to 
 supplant, 32; attempt to bribe 
 friends of, 33; mention of, for 
 senatorship, 38; support of, by 
 Democrats, 40, 65; reference 
 to, 42, 47, 57, 63, 107; first 
 election of, 48; term drawn by, 
 48; reelection of, 49; ball giv- 
 en by, 49; successor to, 59; de- 
 sire for defeat of, 62; scheme 
 favored by, 65; votes received 
 by, 72, 78, 273, 276; withdraw- 
 al of name of, 79 
 
 Dodge, Grenville M., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 158; alleged 
 support of Allison by, 220; 
 vote received by, 287 
 
INDEX 
 
 317 
 
 Dolliver, Jonathan P., mention 
 of, for senatorship, 224; pre- 
 diction relative to, 245; ap- 
 pointment of, 245, 246; elec- 
 tion of, in 1907, 247, 248; ef- 
 nomination of, 247, 248; elec- 
 tion of, in 1907, 247, 248; ef- 
 forts of, in support of Allison, 
 250, 251; Torbert letter pub- 
 lished by, 251; death of, 258; 
 election of successor to, 258- 
 260 
 
 Douglas, Stephen A., importance 
 of Kansas-Nebraska Act of, 
 60; first indication of opposi- 
 tion to doctrine of, 61; refer- 
 ence to, 101 
 
 Dred Scott Decision, 104 
 
 Drummond, Thomas, letters to 
 Harlan from, 126 
 
 Dubuque, 38, 42, 45, 51, 55, 68, 
 108, 113, 114, 137, 145, 146, 
 160, 171, 176, 185, 193, 206, 
 227; opposition to Jones at, 
 52, 53 ; sketch of life of Jones 
 published at, 54; objections to 
 Warren at, 64; contest between 
 Jones and Wilson at, 104, 105, 
 106, 115, 116; death of Allison 
 at, 254 
 
 Dubuque County, 84, 118, 228 
 
 EARLHAM, 193 
 
 Eastern Iowa, residence of Sena- 
 tors in, 227 
 
 Eastman, Enoch W., nomination 
 of, 72; votes received by, 273, 
 286 
 
 Eaton, Willard L., defeat of, for 
 speakership, 244 
 
 Ellis, Lyman, 238 
 
 Europe, trip of Grimes to, 143 
 
 FAIRFIELD, 50, 54, 158, 190 
 
 Federal officers, efforts of, in 
 support of Harlan, 141; al- 
 leged support of Gear by, 241 
 
 Feely, Guy S., votes received by, 
 259 
 
 Fessenden, William P., 101 
 
 Fillmore, Millard, 64 
 First District, Wilson as Repre- 
 sentative from, 159 
 Floyd County, 159 
 Fort Dodge, 147, 156, 212, 230; 
 
 death of Dolliver at, 258 
 Foster, Lafayette S., 101 
 Franke, Carl F., votes received 
 
 by, 259 
 
 Free Soilers, 60, 114; amalgama- 
 tion of Whigs and, 61 
 Free thinkers, charge of effort to 
 
 array, against Harlan, 154, 155 
 Freedman's Bureau, debate on, 
 
 146 
 Fugitive Slave Law, attitude of 
 
 political parties toward, 59; 
 
 attitude toward, in North, 60; 
 
 attitude of Harlan toward, 76; 
 
 reference to, 77 
 Fullenwider, Samuel, vote cast 
 
 for Mitchell by, 29; reference 
 
 to, 30 
 Funk, A. B., votes received by, 
 
 256, 259 
 
 GARFIELD, James A., question of 
 Cabinet appointment by, 187, 
 188; appointment of Kirkwood 
 by, 190; death of, 194 
 
 Garst, Warren, votes received by, 
 256, 259 
 
 Gatch, C. H., 229 
 
 Gates, E. N., votes received by, 
 186 
 
 Gear, John H., political aspira- 
 tions of, 187; reference to, 
 188, 189, 193, 244; activity of, 
 188; appointment of McDill 
 by, 190; mention of, for sena- 
 torship, 191, 223; withdrawal 
 of name of, 199 ; announce- 
 ment of candidacy of, 227; 
 arguments against, 228-230, 
 240, 241; chances in favor of, 
 231; efforts to defeat, 231, 
 232; petitions circulated by, 
 232; nomination of, 232, 233, 
 245 ; first election of, 234 ; eon- 
 test between Cummins and, 
 
318 
 
 INDEX 
 
 239; defense of, by friends, 
 242; opposition of friends of, 
 to Cummins, 242 ; second elec- 
 tion of, 245; prediction of suc- 
 cessor to, 245; death of, 245, 
 246; election of successor to, 
 247; votes received by, 303, 
 304 
 
 General Assembly, first election 
 of members of, 17; importance 
 of political complexion of, 17, 
 18, 105, 106; first meeting of, 
 22; controversy in, relative to 
 joint convention, 27; first joint 
 convention of, 28; adjourn- 
 ment of, 31, 36, 43, 257; re- 
 cess of, 32; acts of, relative to 
 election of Senators, 36, 96, 
 98; rumor of extra session of, 
 37; calling of extra session of, 
 39; extra session of, 40, 255; 
 illegal members of, 40, 41; 
 Democratic majority in, 44, 
 56; convening of, 53, 69, 116, 
 127, 131, 139, 147, 166, 176, 
 199, 220, 231, 238, 244, 248, 
 257, 259; doubt of election by, 
 89; majority of Eepublicans 
 in, 106, 119, 124, 141; separate 
 vote by houses of, 150; circu- 
 lar letter to members of, 184, 
 185; effect of senatorial ques- 
 tion on election of members of, 
 191-193; change in years of 
 sessions of, 247; resolutions in, 
 relative to popular election of 
 Senators, 249; attempt of, to 
 elect Senator, 256 
 
 Germans, change in politics of, 
 60; address to, 155; attempt 
 to make political faction of, 
 155 
 
 Geyer, Henry S., 101 
 
 Governor, law providing for ap- 
 pointment by, 36; election of 
 Grimes as, 61, 62; question of 
 appointment by, 88, 132, 144; 
 importance of administration 
 of Grimes as, 108; effect of 
 nomination of Kirkwood for, 
 
 168, 169; effect of election of 
 Kirkwood as, 173; aspirations 
 of Harlan for election as, 187; 
 method of nominating Kirk- 
 wood for, 194, 195; election of 
 Boies as, 216; election of Jack- 
 son as, 223; appointment of 
 Dolliver by, 246; election of 
 Cummins as, 246; appointment 
 of Young by, 258 
 
 Grant, James, mention of, for 
 senatorship, 55; votes received 
 by, 271, 277 
 
 Grant, Ulysses S., attitude of 
 candidates toward administra- 
 tion of, 157, 158 
 
 Grant-Conkling-Arthur adminis- 
 tration, 195 
 
 Graves, J. K., support of Harlan 
 by, 176; reference to, 206 
 
 Greeley, Horace, 157 
 
 Green, Benjamin, 57 
 
 Greenbackers, efforts of, to de- 
 feat Allison, 201, 202; candi- 
 date of, for Governor, 203; 
 charges against, 205; charges 
 against Republicans by, 206 
 
 Greene County, 193 
 
 Grimes, James W., election of, as 
 Governor, 61, 62; mention of, 
 for senatorship, 68; comment 
 of, on senatorial contest, 82; 
 letter from Harlan to, 88; re- 
 ply of, to Harlan, 88, 89; let- 
 ter from, read by Harlan, 93 ; 
 events during governorship of, 
 108; popularity of, 109; op- 
 ponents of, 109; evidences of 
 opposition to, 110; letters 
 written by friend of, 110, 111 ; 
 arguments used against, 111- 
 115; effort to array Harlan 
 against, 112, 113; attitude of 
 Harlan toward election of, 
 113, 114; attack on personal 
 character of, 115; widespread 
 support of, 115; probability of 
 election of, 116; warfare 
 against, 117; popular support 
 of, 117, 131; nomination of, 
 
INDEX 
 
 319 
 
 118; election of, 119; supper 
 given by, 119; letter to Harlan 
 from, 125; certainty of re- 
 election of, 129; attitude of, 
 toward reelection, 129, 130; 
 legislators pledged to vote for, 
 130; reelection of, 131; letter 
 to Kirkwood from, 136, 137; 
 attitude of, toward Harlan, 
 138; illness of, 143; resigna- 
 tion of, 143; effect of resigna- 
 tion of, 143, 144; reference to, 
 146, 180; death of, 287 
 
 Grinnell, Josiah B., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 146; assault 
 on, by Eousseau, 146, 147; 
 votes received by, 149, 287, 288 
 
 Gue, Benjamin F., account of 
 senatorial contest by, 147, 148 
 
 Guelich, Theodore, address pub- 
 lished by, 155, 156 
 
 HACKLEY, A. W., letter to Harlan 
 from, 113 
 
 Haight, Silas, 26 
 
 Hale, John P., 91, 101, 117 
 
 Hall, Benton J., votes received 
 by, 209 
 
 Hall, J. C., attempt at bribery to 
 secure votes for, 24; mention 
 of, for senatorship, 38, 45; 
 vote received by, 273 
 
 Ham, M. M., votes received by, 
 199, 297 
 
 Hamilton, Daniel, 307 
 
 Hamilton, John T., election of, as 
 Speaker, 221 
 
 Hamilton, William W., election 
 of, as Speaker pro tern., 84 
 
 Harbors, improvement of, 17, 32 
 
 Harlan, James, significance of 
 first election of, 59, 61; efforts 
 to secure candidacy of, 65-67; 
 promise of, to be candidate, 
 67, 68; quiet work in support 
 of, 69; nomination of, 72, 73, 
 75, 78, 82, 127, 128, 140, 141; 
 votes received by, 72, 78, 79, 
 82, 273, 274, 275, 276, 277, 286, 
 287, 290; news of nomination 
 
 brought to, 73, 74; reason for 
 nomination of, 74, 75; charges 
 against attitude of, toward sla- 
 very, 76; letter from McFar- 
 land to, 76; list of questions 
 sent to, 77, 78; reply of, to in- 
 terrogatories, 78; praise of, 
 81; fear of election of, 83; 
 first election of, 85; unusual 
 features of first election of, 
 85, 86, 102; protests against 
 election of, 86, 89; oath of of- 
 fice taken by, 87, 89; contested 
 election of, 88-102; belief of, 
 in legality of election, 88; let- 
 ter to Grimes from, 88; letter 
 from Grimes to, 88, 89, 125; 
 credentials of, presented, 89; 
 unpleasant position of, at 
 Washington, 89, 90; postpone- 
 ment of discussion of right of, 
 to seat, 90-92; reasons for 
 postponement of election case 
 of, 92, 93; speech by, relative 
 to contested election, 93, 94; 
 reports of committee relative 
 to election of, 94, 95; desire 
 of, to have election case de- 
 cided, 95; speech of Butler 
 relative to contested election 
 of, 96, 97; defense of, by 
 Toombs, 98-100; debate on 
 contested election of, 101; 
 seat of, declared vacant, 101; 
 reasons for unseating of, 
 101, 102; departure of, for 
 Iowa, 102; senatorial elec- 
 tion witnessed by, 102; arrival 
 of, in Iowa City, 103; reelec- 
 tion of, 103; reception given 
 to, 103; return of, to seat in 
 Senate, 103; reference to, 107, 
 115, 127, 146, 153, 159, 173; 
 letter from Thorington to, 110; 
 letter from Clarke to, 112, 113; 
 effort to arouse opposition of, 
 to Grimes, 112, 113; letter 
 from Hackley to, 113; at- 
 titude of, toward sugges- 
 tion of Clarke, 113; attitude 
 
320 
 
 INDEX 
 
 of, toward election of Grimes, 
 113, 114; letter from Saunders 
 to, 116; question of successor 
 to, 120, 152; letters from 
 friends of, 120; satisfactory 
 service of, in Senate, 121; cir- 
 culation of speeches of, 121; 
 attack upon, by Democrats, 
 123; defense of, 123, 124; pub- 
 lic sentiment in favor of, 124, 
 125; support of, by Wright, 
 126; letters from Drummond 
 to, 126; caucus arranged by 
 friends of, 127; letter from 
 Morris to, 128; election of, in 
 1860, 128; appointment of, as 
 Secretary of Interior, 132; de- 
 sire of, to leave Cabinet, 135; 
 efforts of, to regain seat in 
 Senate, 136-138 ; rumor of bar- 
 gain between Warren and, 137 ; 
 attitude of Grimes and Allison 
 toward, 138; contest between 
 Kirkwood and, 138-140; elec- 
 tion of, in 1866, 141; explana- 
 tion of election of, 141; popu- 
 larity of, 142; support of 
 Cooley by, 146; letter written 
 by Newman in favor of, 153- 
 155; charge of combination of 
 free thinkers against, 155; dis- 
 tribution of supporters of, 
 156 ; support of, by Democrats, 
 157; attitude of, toward ad- 
 ministration, 158 ; opposition 
 of friends of, to Wilson, 159; 
 partisanship of friends of, 160, 
 161; criticism of career of, 
 
 161, 162; charges against, in 
 connection with secretaryship, 
 
 162, 163; salary drawn by son 
 of, 163; defense of, against 
 charges, 163; criticism of vote 
 of, on naturalization laws, 164; 
 support of, by San Domingo 
 ring, 164, 165; personal at- 
 tacks on, 165, 166; defeat of, 
 for nomination, 166, 167; end 
 of official career of, 167; men- 
 tion of, for senatorship, 169, 
 
 171, 191; chances in favor of, 
 171; newspaper comment rela- 
 tive to, 172; revival of charges 
 against, 172, 173; manager of 
 forces of, 174; support of, by 
 Graves, 176; withdrawal of 
 name of, 177 ; illness of son of, 
 177; effect of withdrawal of, 
 177, 178; possibility of candi- 
 dacy of, 183, 184; denial of 
 candidacy of, 184; political as- 
 pirations of, 187; support of, 
 by Methodists, 189 
 
 Harlan, Mrs. James, qualifica- 
 tions of, for Senator's wife, 
 165, 166 
 
 Harmon, Merritt W., 232 
 
 Harris, D. M., vote received by, 
 150 
 
 Harrisburg (Pennsylvania), Har- 
 lan at, 102 
 
 Hartshorn, Eldin H., 199 
 
 Haugen, Gilbert N., votes re- 
 ceived by, 256 
 
 Hayes, Eutherford B., opposition 
 to policies of, 180; reference 
 to, 293 
 
 Hayes, Walter L, mention of, for 
 senatorship, 223 
 
 Healy, Thomas D., 238 
 
 Hebard, Alfred, 186 
 
 Hempstead, Stephen, mention of, 
 for senatorship, 20, 38, 55; 
 reference to, 46; vote received 
 by, 271 
 
 Henderson, David B., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 223 
 
 Henn, Bernhart, nomination of, 
 79; votes received by, 276, 277 
 
 Henry County, 67, 184 
 
 Hepburn, William P., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 212, 223; op- 
 position of friends of, to hold- 
 ing of caucus, 213; withdrawal 
 of name of, 214; dissatisfac- 
 tion of friends of, 214; an- 
 nouncement of candidacy of, 
 227; defeat of, in caucus, 232, 
 233; votes received by, 256, 
 303 
 
INDEX 
 
 321 
 
 House of Representatives, major- 
 ity of Whigs in, 18, 62, 63; 
 controversy between Senate 
 and, 23, 24, 27; exposure of 
 attempt at bribery in, 24; 
 readiness of, to meet in joint 
 convention, 33; resolutions in, 
 34, 35; political situation in, 
 41, 42; refusal of, to go into 
 joint convention, 43 
 
 Howell, James B., nomination of, 
 72, 149; votes received by, 72, 
 273, 274, 287, 288; election of, 
 150, 151; shortness of term of, 
 151 
 
 Hubbard, Asahel W., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 136; votes re- 
 ceived by, 286 
 
 Hudson, Silas A., roll called by, 
 29 
 
 Hull, John A. T., votes received 
 by, 215, 300; mention of, for 
 senatorship, 224 
 
 Huner, Jacob, vote cast for Mc- 
 Carty by, 29; aspirations of, 
 for senatorship, 32; reference 
 to, 263 
 
 Hunt, C. B., 193 
 
 Hunter, Robert M. T., motion by, 
 91 
 
 Hutchinson, 217 
 
 IMMIGRATION, vanguard of tide 
 of, 61; reference to, 108 
 
 Independents, election of, to leg- 
 islature, 19; speculation as to 
 course of, 19; efforts to secure 
 support of, 19, 20; attempt to 
 bribe, 26 
 
 Indians, fraud in connection with 
 appropriation and pensions for, 
 162 
 
 Internal improvements, 32, 39 
 
 Iowa, admission of, into Union, 
 17; first election in, 17; im- 
 portance of politics of repre- 
 sentatives of, 18; sectionalism 
 in, 21; need for representation 
 of, in Senate, 31, 32; resolution 
 of Whigs relative to interests 
 
 21 
 
 of, 35; failure to elect Sena- 
 tors from, 36; help demanded 
 from, by Polk, 38; first Sena- 
 tors from, 48; influence of na- 
 tional issues in, 59; attitude 
 of, toward Kansas-Nebraska 
 Act, 61; excitement in, 61; 
 immigration to, 61; first Re- 
 publican United States Sena- 
 tor from, 87; interest of peo- 
 ple of, in struggle in Kansas, 
 104; increase in population of, 
 108; interest in slavery ques- 
 tion in, 120; difficulties con- 
 fronting Democratic leaders in, 
 121; effect of Harlan >s ap- 
 pointment on politics in, 132; 
 federal officials- sent to, 138; 
 need of harmonious delegation 
 from, 165; bitter political con- 
 test in, 180; discussion of po- 
 litical situation in, 187, 188; 
 position of Kirkwood in, 195, 
 196; best Governor of, 211; 
 importance of vote of, in Con- 
 gress, 226; first primary nomi- 
 nation of Senators in, 250; 
 character of Senators from, 
 260 
 
 Iowa's Great Commoner, 242 
 
 Iowa City, 17, 18, 19, 28, 31, 37, 
 49, 69, 73, 74, 77, 78, 107, 113, 
 130, 141, 188, 194, 245; first 
 meeting of legislature at, 22; 
 crowds of people in, 22; mass 
 meeting of Whigs at, 35; de- 
 light of people of, at extra ses- 
 sion, 39; criticism of presence 
 of Jones at, 53, 54; senatorial 
 contest at, 54; correspondence 
 from, 55, 68; continued pres- 
 ence of Jones at, 56 ; departure 
 of Harlan from, 102, 103; ar- 
 rival of Harlan at, 103; re- 
 moval of capital from, 108, 
 112 
 
 Iowa Democratic Club Rooms, 
 123 
 
 Isbell, Normal W., candidacy of, 
 for Judge, 82; election of, 85 
 
322 
 
 INDEX 
 
 JACKSON, Frank D., election of, 
 as Governor, 223; votes re- 
 ceived by, 256 
 
 Jackson (Michigan), meeting at, 
 60 
 
 Jasper County, 40 
 
 Jay, Evan, vote received by, 49 
 
 Jefferson County, 62 
 
 Jefferson's Manual, 100 
 
 Jennings, John D., votes received 
 by, 131 
 
 Johnson, Andrew, 139, 163; im- 
 peachment trial of, 143 
 
 Johnson, E. W., mention of, for 
 senatorship, 55; votes received 
 by, 271 
 
 Johnson County, 160 
 
 Johnstone, Edward, nomination 
 of, 72, 75; votes received by, 
 72, 78, 273 
 
 Joint convention, controversy 
 over holding of, 23, 24, 27; 
 provision for holding of first, 
 27, 28 ; meeting of first, 28, 29 ; 
 excitement in first, 29-31; re- 
 fusal of Senate to meet in, 33- 
 35; law relative to holding of, 
 36, 150; promise of Clifton to 
 go into, 42; refusal of Clifton 
 to go into, 42; refusal of 
 House to meet in, 43; meeting 
 of, 47, 48, 49, 57, 71, 103, 119, 
 128, 141, 167, 178, 179, 186, 
 199, 209, 214, 221, 234, 256, 
 258, 259; efforts to make ar- 
 rangements for, 69; arrange- 
 ments for, 70, 71; nominations 
 in, 71, 72; adjournment of, 72, 
 76, 79; reassembling of, 75, 
 78, 82; confusion in, 83, 84; 
 question of legality of, 85, 86; 
 reason for illegality of, 96, 97; 
 legality of, upheld, 99, 100 
 
 Jones, George W., candidacy of, 
 for Senator, 45; contest be- 
 tween Wilson and, 45, 104, 105, 
 115, 116; nomination of, 46, 
 48, 56; celebration of nomina- 
 tion by, 46, 47 ; term drawn by, 
 48; condemnation of, 50, 52; 
 
 opposition to, at Dubuque, 52, 
 53; newspaper founded to op- 
 pose, 53; lack of candidates 
 against, 53; criticism of, for 
 absence from Washington, 53, 
 54; pamphlet containing sketch 
 of life of, 54; ridicule of, 54, 
 55; struggle of friends and 
 foes of, 55, 56; doggerel rela- 
 tive to, 56; letter from Lewis 
 to, 57; second election of, 57; 
 departure of, for Washington, 
 57; comment on election of, 
 57, 58; credentials of Harlan 
 presented by, 89; reference to, 
 90, 91, 92, 106; motion by, 93; 
 satirical comment relative to, 
 106, 107; sectional antagonism 
 over successor to, 107; desire 
 of, for Democratic vote, 116; 
 votes received by, 118, 271 
 Judges of Supreme Court (See 
 Supreme Court) 
 
 KANSAS, struggle in, 104; refer- 
 ence to, 118 
 
 Kansas-Nebraska Act, impor- 
 tance of, 60, 62; reaction 
 against, in Iowa, 61; heritage 
 of, 104 
 
 Kasson, John A., aspiration of, 
 for senatorship, 126, 127; ref- 
 erence to, 134, 188; mention 
 of, for senatorship, 136, 191, 
 211; resolutions in favor of, 
 192, 193; withdrawal of name 
 of, 199; votes received by, 287 
 
 Kenyon, William S., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 258; votes re- 
 ceived by, 259, 307 ; support of, 
 by Progressives, 259, 260; elec- 
 tion of, 260 
 
 Keokuk, 42, 122, 123, 139, 149, 
 176, 211 
 
 Keokuk County, 24 
 
 Keosauqua, 151 
 
 King, Nelson, attempt at bribery 
 of, 24-26; resolution of thanks 
 to, 25; papers submitted by, 
 265 
 
INDEX 
 
 323 
 
 Kinne, L. G., vote received by, 
 
 199, 209, 297; charges against 
 
 Allison by, 203 
 Kinney, John F., candidacy of, 
 
 for Senator, 45; votes received 
 
 by, 57, 271 
 Kinsman, John N., controversy 
 
 over right of, to seat, 40, 41; 
 
 seat of, declared vacant, 41 
 Kirkwood, Samuel J., promise of 
 
 Stone to appoint, 133, 134; 
 
 letter from Harlan to, 135; 
 
 mention of, for senatorship, 
 
 136, 158; letter from Grimes 
 to, 136, 137; anxiety of friends 
 of, 137; letter from Eich to, 
 
 137, 138, 171, 188, 189, 190; 
 pledge of Harlan to support, 
 138; contest between Harlan 
 and, 138-140; nomination of, 
 140, 141, 178; disappointment 
 of friends of, 141; election of, 
 to short term, 141; votes re- 
 ceived by, 149; attempt to de- 
 feat, for State Senator, 160; 
 reference to, 162, 199, 240; ef- 
 fect of nomination of, for Gov- 
 ernor, 168, 169; letter from 
 Dewey to, 170, 171, 188, 189; 
 reluctance of, to make cam- 
 paign, 170, 171; election of, as 
 Governor, 171; chances in fa- 
 vor of, 171; effect of election 
 of, as Governor, 172; newspa- 
 per comment relative to, 172; 
 letter written by, to newspaper, 
 173, 174; criticism of, 173- 
 175; efforts of, to learn atti- 
 tude of legislators, 175; letter 
 from Palmer to, 175; record 
 made by, in Senate, 175; letter 
 from Shepardson to, 176; sup- 
 porters of, 176; election of, in 
 1876, 179; appointment of, to 
 Cabinet, 179, 190; candidacy 
 of, for senatorship, 188, 189; 
 possibility of appointment of, 
 to Cabinet, 188-190; resigna- 
 tion of, from Senate, 190; let- 
 ter from Wilson to, 190, 191; 
 
 21* 
 
 rumor of removal of, from 
 Cabinet, 194; movement in fa- 
 vor of election of, as Senator, 
 194-196; strength of, in Iowa, 
 195, 196; refusal of, to be can- 
 didate, 196, 197; attitude of, 
 toward public office, 197; 
 friendship between Wilson and, 
 197; praise of, 198, 199; inter- 
 view with, 219, 220; votes re- 
 ceived by, 286, 293 
 
 Kirkwood Hotel, 208 
 
 Knapp, Joseph C., choice of, as 
 Democratic candidate, 167 
 
 Knight, W. J., votes received by, 
 in caucus, 150 
 
 Know-Nothings, 60 
 
 LABOB, protection of, 32; atti- 
 tude of Gear toward, 240, 241 
 
 Lacey, John F., mention of, for 
 senatorship, 224 ; announce- 
 ment of candidacy of, 227; ob- 
 jections to, 228, 229; meeting 
 of supporters of, 229; defeat 
 of, in caucus, 232, 233; votes 
 received by, 256, 303; cam- 
 paign between Cummins and, 
 257 
 
 Lakin, William B., letter to 
 Kirkwood from, 137 
 
 Lane, Joseph E., votes received 
 by, 256 
 
 Larrabee, William, 186, 189, 199, 
 231; mention of, for senator- 
 ship, 211, 217; withdrawal of 
 name of, 214; votes received 
 by, 221, 256 
 
 Lecompton Constitution, 104; ef- 
 fect of support of, by Jones, 
 118 
 
 Lee County, independent legisla- 
 tive ticket in, 18, 19; efforts 
 to secure support of legislators 
 from, 20; attempt to bribe in- 
 dependents from, 26; vote of 
 independents from, 29; refer- 
 ence to, 32, 42; discussion of 
 senatorial question in, 38; en- 
 dorsement of Wright in, 144 
 
324 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Leffingwell, William E., votes re- 
 ceived by, 150 
 
 Legislators, resolutions favoring 
 resignation of, 34, 35 
 
 Lewis, Warner, letter to Jones 
 from, 57 
 
 Lincoln, Abraham, effect of Kan- 
 sas-Nebraska Act on, 60; ap- 
 pointment of Harlan by, 132; 
 reference to, 139 
 
 Liquor question, disposition of, 
 by Democrats, 135 
 
 Locality, question of, 107; depre- 
 cation of emphasis on, 136; 
 importance of, 145, 153; em- 
 phasis on, 212, 228, 240 
 
 Locofocos, 18, 19, 22, 39; charge 
 against Whigs by, 21; charges 
 against, 23, 24, 31, 32, 35, 41; 
 manipulation of, to secure 
 votes, 26; concessions to, by 
 Whigs, 27 ; raising of hopes of, 
 44 (see also Democrats) 
 
 Love, Mr., vote received by, 131, 
 285 
 
 Lowe, Ralph P., nomination of, 
 47, 48; defeat of, 48 
 
 McARTHUB, W. C., 238 
 
 McCarthy, C. G., 229, 234, 246 
 
 McCarty, Jonathan, nomination 
 of, 23; votes received by, 29; 
 defeat of, 29; fear of election 
 of, 30; reference to, 264 
 
 McCoy, Ben, 229 
 
 McCrary, George W., candidacy 
 of, for senatorship, 171; news- 
 paper comment relative to, 
 172; support of, by Sample, 
 176 ; votes received by, 293 
 
 McDill, James W., appointment 
 of, to vacancy, 190 ; mention 
 of, for senatorship, 191; refer- 
 ence to, 193, 197, 227, 295; 
 chance in favor of, 198; nomi- 
 nation of, 199; election of, 
 199; votes received by, 297 
 
 McFarland, C. J., 48 
 
 McFarland, Samuel, letter to 
 Harlan from, 76 
 
 McFarland, William M., 229, 234 
 
 McKay, William, vote received 
 by, 276, 277 
 
 Mahoney, D. A., newspaper 
 founded by, 53 
 
 Manufactures, protection of, 32 
 
 Marble Eock, 176 
 
 Marion County, 40 
 
 Marshall, Samuel T., attempt of, 
 to bribe King, 24-26 ; arrest of, 
 25; reference to, 26; public 
 reprimand of, 265; relation of, 
 to Patterson, 265 
 
 Marshall County, 211 
 
 Marshalltown, 159, 211 
 
 Mason, Charles, mention of, for 
 senatorship, 38; reference to, 
 46 
 
 Mason, James M., 89 
 
 Merrill, Samuel, 143, 147, 160; 
 refusal of, to make appoint- 
 ment, 144, 145; possibility of, 
 as compromise candidate, 146; 
 votes received by, 149, 287; 
 mention of, for senatorship, 
 158 
 
 Methodist Church, support of 
 Harlan by, 189 
 
 Methodist clergymen, letter writ- 
 ten to, by Newman, 153 
 
 Methodists, attempts to secure 
 support of, 140 
 
 Metropolitan Methodist Church 
 of Washington, D. C., chaplain 
 of, 153 
 
 Mexico, war with, 37, 39 
 
 Miller, Daniel F., efforts of, in 
 favor of Warren, 65; votes re- 
 ceived by, 186 
 
 Mississippi River, immigration 
 across, 61 
 
 Missouri Compromise, repeal of, 
 60 
 
 Missouri River, extension of rail- 
 roads towards, 108 
 
 Missouri River Opener, The 
 Great, 108 
 
 Missouri slope, effort to elect 
 Senator from, 125 
 
 Mitchell, Gilbert C. R., nomina- 
 
INDEX 
 
 325 
 
 tion of, 23; vote cast for, 29; 
 
 reference to, 264 
 Mitchell, Ira C., 130 
 Mitchell County, 159 
 Monona County, defrauding of 
 
 settlers of, 203, 204 
 Montagues, contest between Cap- 
 
 ulets and, 104, 105 
 Morgan, James M., condemnation 
 
 of Jones by, 51, 52; reference 
 
 to, 268 
 
 Morris, Eastin, 22, 27 
 Morris, Martin L., letter to Har- 
 
 lan from, 128 
 Mt. Pleasant, 65, 66, 73, 86, 103, 
 
 124, 165, 172 
 Muscatine, 55, 211 
 Muscatine County, 34, 193 
 
 NASH, Chauncey, 73 
 
 National Republican Convention, 
 237 
 
 National Whigs, prediction of 
 bolting by, 70; refusal of, to 
 attend caucus, 73; attempt to 
 conciliate, 74; candidate of, 
 75; charges against Harlan by, 
 76; refusal of Democrats to 
 fuse with, 77 
 
 Naturalization, attitude of Har- 
 lan toward, 164 
 
 Negus, Charles, number of votes 
 received by, 271 
 
 New England, loss of, by Demo- 
 crats, 60; immigration from, 
 61 
 
 New York City, 220 
 
 Newbold, Joshua G., 175 
 
 Newman, J. P., excitement over 
 letter written by, 153-155 
 
 Northern Iowa, men favored by, 
 for Senator, 20, 21 ; contest be- 
 tween southern Iowa and, 21; 
 candidates in, 45; desire of, 
 for Senator, 107, 145, 153; 
 lack of strong candidate in, 
 114; attitude of, toward Har- 
 lan, 156 
 
 Northwest, effect of Kansas-Ne- 
 braska Act on, 60 
 
 O'CONNOR, Frank A., 307 
 
 O 'Connor, Henry, mention of, for 
 senatorship, 158 
 
 Offices, contest for, 17 
 
 Ohio, note on State Bank of, 
 given to King, 25 
 
 Ohio Biver, immigration from 
 States north of, 61 
 
 "Old Red", 38, 268 
 
 Old Stone Capitol, 28; reassem- 
 bling of legislature in, 33; ball 
 in, 49; reception in, 103 
 
 Olmstead, S. B., resolution by, 34 
 
 Onawa, 181 
 
 Oskaloosa, 229 
 
 PACIFIC Bailroad, diverting of 
 branch of, 163 
 
 Palmer, Frank W., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 158 
 
 Palmer, John, letter to Kirk- 
 wood from, 175 
 
 Patterson, William, attempted 
 bribery by, 26; relation of, to 
 Marshall, 265 
 
 Pella, 172 
 
 Pelliken, Peter (fictitious name), 
 26 
 
 Pennsylvania, 165 
 
 Perkins, George D., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 224; announce- 
 ment of candidacy of, 227; de- 
 feat of, in caucus, 232, 233; 
 votes received by, 256, 303 
 
 Perry Fuller and Company, 162 
 
 Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania), con- 
 vention at, 107 
 
 Polk, James K., criticism of, 37; 
 help demanded from Iowa by, 
 38 
 
 Polk County, 40, 244 
 
 Popular sovereignty, doctrine of, 
 effect of, 104 
 
 Population, increase in, 108 
 
 Porter, Asbury B., 73 
 
 Porter, Claude B., votes received 
 by, 248, 256, 258, 259, 307; 
 nomination of, 254, 256 
 
 Possums, success of, in Lee Coun- 
 ty, 19 
 
326 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Powers, Julius H., 128 
 
 Price, Hiram, candidacy of, for 
 senatorship, 171, 191; newspa- 
 per comment relative to, 172; 
 hope of followers of, 176; ref- 
 erence to, 178; votes received 
 by, 178, 293 
 
 Primary election, result of vote 
 at, 254 
 
 Primary law, enactment of, 248- 
 250; amendment to, 255, 256 
 
 Progressives, presence of, in cau- 
 cus, 256; leader of, 257; can- 
 didates of, 259; deadlock be- 
 tween Standpatters and, 259, 
 260 
 
 Prohibition, agitation of question 
 of, 61, 200, 201; effect of 
 question of, on senatorial con- 
 test, 201, 236, 237; charges of 
 insincerity with respect to, 205, 
 206; defection from Eepublic- 
 an party on account of, 206; 
 opinion of Allison relative to, 
 217; effect of endorsement of, 
 222; abandonment of, by Ee- 
 publicans, 222; refusal of 
 group of Eepublicans to sup- 
 port, 243 
 
 Prohibitionists, candidate of, 254 
 
 Prohibitory law, enactment of, 
 108; pledge of Eepublicans to 
 secure, 200 
 
 Pugh, George E., 95, 101 
 
 EAILROAD land grants, efforts of 
 Thorington to secure, 108 
 
 Eailroads, criticism of attitude of 
 Jones toward, 52; extension of, 
 108; alleged support of Allison 
 by, 164, 220 ; service of Wilson 
 to, 198; Allison charged with 
 corruption in connection with, 
 202-204, 218; objection to 
 views of Allison relative to, 217 
 
 Eeconstruction, 146 ; revolt 
 against policy of, 157 
 
 Eeed, J. E., mention of, for sen- 
 atorship, 212, 213; votes re- 
 ceived by, 215, 300 
 
 Eegency, alleged support of Cum- 
 mins by, 244 
 
 Eegister of Land Office, service 
 of Dodge as, 20; promise to 
 secure appointment of Conlee 
 as, 26 
 
 Eeiniger, Bobert G., 214 
 
 Eepublican National Convention, 
 delegate to, 107 
 
 Eepublican party, cause of for- 
 mation of, 60; first steps in 
 organization of, 60, 61; first 
 victory of, 63; service of 
 Clarke to, 107; first sign of 
 ascendancy of, 108; services of 
 Thorington to, 110; composi- 
 tion of, 114; dominance of, 
 129; revolt in, 157; absence of 
 factions in, 180; opposition of, 
 to Hayes, 180; fidelity of Al- 
 lison to, 182, 183; position of 
 Wilson in, 198 ; defection from, 
 on account of prohibition, 206; 
 charge of Caldwell against, 
 214; fidelity of Cummins to, 
 242, 243; lack of harmony in, 
 259 
 
 Eepublican State Central Com- 
 mittee, circular issued by, 124 
 
 Eepublican State Convention, 
 133, 134, 168; plan, to make 
 nomination at, 244 
 
 Eepublicanism in Iowa, Father 
 of, 108 
 
 Eepublicans, joining of, by Ger- 
 mans, 60; reference to, 92, 102, 
 174; reception given to Harlan 
 by, 103; victory of, in State 
 elections, 106, 124, 130, 161, 
 171, 206, 223, 227; support of 
 Grimes by, 117; majority of, 
 in legislature, 119, 141, 216; 
 warnings to, 122, 123, 135, 
 170, 206, 219, 220, 226; de- 
 fense of Harlan by, 123, 124; 
 caucus held by, 127, 128, 140, 
 141, 148, 149, 166, 167, 177, 
 185, 186, 199, 207, 208, 213, 
 214, 220, 221, 232, 233, 238, 245, 
 247, 256; satisfaction of, with 
 
INDEX 
 
 327 
 
 Harlan, 142; endorsement of 
 Wright by, in Lee County, 144 ; 
 effect of senatorial contest on 
 prospects of, 160; resolutions 
 of conventions held by, 192, 
 193; attitude of, toward Kirk- 
 wood, 195, 196; pledge of, to 
 secure prohibitory law, 200 ; 
 approval of Allison by, 201, 
 235; attitude of, toward 
 charges against Allison, 202; 
 defense of Allison by, 204, 
 205; charges against Demo- 
 crats by, 205; charges against, 
 206; attitude of, toward Wil- 
 son, 210; confidence of, in Al- 
 lison, 218; alarm among, 218, 
 219; contest between Demo- 
 crats and, over Speaker, 219; 
 efforts of, to end Democratic 
 success, 222; abandonment of 
 prohibition by, 222; charge 
 against, in connection with pro- 
 hibition, 236, 237; letters sent 
 by Gear to, 241; choice of Al- 
 lison by, at primaries, 254; 
 vote of, at special primary, 257 
 
 Eich, Jacob, letter to Kirkwood 
 from, 137, 138, 171, 189, 190, 
 196, 197; reference to, 154, 
 160, 176; letter to Harlan 
 from, 188 
 
 Eipon (Wisconsin), 60 
 
 River improvement bills, attitude 
 of Jones toward, 52 
 
 Eivers, improvement of, 17, 32 
 
 Eoek Island, labor troubles at 
 arsenal on, 241 
 
 Eothrock, James H., movement in 
 favor of, 219 
 
 Eousseau, Lovell H., assault on 
 Grinnell by, 146, 147 
 
 Russell, Samuel A., 76 
 
 SAMMIS, J. U., 307 
 
 Sample, Samuel S., 176 
 
 Samuels, Benjamin M., nomina- 
 tion of, 118; reason for nomi- 
 nation of, 118, 119; defeat of, 
 119; vote received by, 276 
 
 San Domingo ring, support of 
 Harlan by, 164, 165 
 
 Sargeant, Thomas S., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 55; reference 
 to, 270 
 
 Saunders, Alvin, conversation of, 
 with Harlan, 67, 68; letter to 
 Harlan from, 116; reference 
 to, 127 
 
 Savery Hotel, 139, 148, 166 
 
 Scott, John, votes received by, 
 287, 288 
 
 Scott County, 193 
 
 Seaman, Bruce, 193 
 
 Secretary of Interior, appoint- 
 ment of Harlan as, 132; desire 
 of Harlan to resign as, 135; 
 charges against Harlan on ac- 
 count of conduct as, 162, 163; 
 possibility of appointment of 
 Wilson as, 188 ; appointment of 
 Kirkwood as, 190 
 
 Secretary of Treasury, possibility 
 of appointment of Wilson as, 
 188 
 
 Sectionalism, beginning of, 21 
 
 Sections of Iowa, contest be- 
 tween, 104, 107, 114, 156; lack 
 of contest between, 181 
 
 Seerley, John J., votes received 
 by, 247 
 
 Sells, Elijah, resolution by, 34, 35 
 
 Senate (Iowa), majority of Dem- 
 ocrats in, 18, 62 ; controversy 
 between House and, 23, 24, 27 ; 
 refusal of, to meet in joint 
 convention, 33-35; illegal mem- 
 bers of, 40; refusal of, to un- 
 seat illegal members, 43; ad- 
 journment of, to escape joint 
 convention, 83, 99; violation of 
 good faith by, 85, 86; protest 
 by, 89; effect of absence of, 
 from joint convention, 96-100 
 
 Senate (United States), first con- 
 test for seats in, 17; presenta- 
 tion of Dodge and Jones in, 
 48; criticism of actions of 
 Jones in, 52; probability of re- 
 jection of appointment by, 89; 
 
328 
 
 INDEX 
 
 seat taken in, by Harlan, 89; 
 political complexion of, 89, 
 90; effect of decision of, 102; 
 record made by Kirkwood in, 
 175; fidelity of Allison to Re- 
 publicanism in, 183; resigna- 
 tion of Kirkwood from, 190 
 
 Senate Naval Committee, secre- 
 tary of, 137 
 
 Senator, United States, scheme to 
 prevent election of, 65; largest 
 majority ever given to, in Iowa, 
 131 (see also candidates) 
 
 Senatorial Trust, alleged support 
 of Gear by, 241; denial of ex- 
 istence of, 242 
 
 Senators, United States, first elec- 
 tion of, 17-49 ; attempt at brib- 
 ery in election of, 24-27; reso- 
 lution relative to manner of 
 electing, 28; failure to elect, 
 36, 43; act of General Assem- 
 bly relative to election of, 36, 
 96, 98; calling of extra session 
 for election of, 39; act of Con- 
 gress regulating election of, 
 150, 299; effect of State 
 elections, on election of, 169, 
 170; places of residence of, 
 in Iowa, 227; election of, 
 from 1900 to 1911, 239; move- 
 ment in favor of popular elec- 
 tion of, 248-250; primary law 
 for nomination of, 250; close 
 of history of election of, 260 
 (for list of Senators see table 
 of contents and for a general 
 survey of senatorial elections 
 see preface) 
 
 Seward, William H., higher law 
 doctrine of, 77; reference to, 
 101, 117 
 
 Shaw, Leslie M., appointment of 
 Dolliver by, 246; mention of, 
 for senatorship, 248 
 
 Shelladay, Stephen B., mention 
 of, for senatorship, 69; nomi- 
 nation of, 72; difference in 
 spelling of name, 272; votes re- 
 ceived by, 273, 274 
 
 Shepardson, J. B., letter to Kirk- 
 wood from, 176 
 
 Sherman, Buren R., 189, 205, 207 
 
 Shields, John G., votes received 
 by, 276 
 
 Shrader, John C., 199 
 
 Sigourney, 217 
 
 Silver, attitude of Allison toward 
 remonetization of, 185 
 
 Sioux City, 156, 173, 184, 197 
 
 Sioux City and Pacific Railroad, 
 163; charges of corruption in 
 connection with, 203, 204 
 
 Slavery, hope of settlement of 
 question of, 59; coalition of 
 factions opposed to, 60; at- 
 tempt to learn attitude of Har- 
 lan relative to, 77; attitude of 
 Cook toward, 81; importance 
 of, as political issue, 104, 120; 
 doctrine of Calhoun relative to, 
 105 
 
 Smith, Mr., 46 
 
 Smith, H. Y., 199 
 
 Smith, Joel, vote received by, 287 
 
 Smith, Malcolm, nomination of, 
 254 
 
 Smith, Walter I., votes received 
 by, 256 
 
 Smyth, William, candidacy of, 
 for Senator, 111; votes re- 
 ceived by, 118 
 
 Socialists, candidates of, 254 
 
 Soldier, movement in favor of, 
 for Senator, 212 
 
 Southern Iowa, support of Dodge 
 by, 20, 45; contest between 
 northern Iowa and, 21; argu- 
 ments against Jones in, 52; de- 
 sire of, for Senator, 107; refer- 
 ence to, 112; offices held by 
 residents of, 114; home of Sen- 
 ators in, 145; attitude of, to- 
 ward Allison, 156 
 
 Speaker of House, election of 
 Cotton as, 148; election of 
 Stone as, 180; contest over 
 election of, 219; election of 
 Hamilton as, 221 
 
 Springdale, 110 
 
INDEX 
 
 329 
 
 Springer, Francis, 48; votes re- 
 ceived by, 49; mention of, for 
 senatorship, 69 
 
 Standpatters, leader of, 257 ; can- 
 didates of, 259; deadlock be- 
 tween Progressives and, 259, 
 260 
 
 Starr, Henry W., mention of, for 
 senatorship, 69 
 
 State officers, first election of, 17 
 
 Statehood, offices created by ad- 
 mission to, 17 
 
 Stevens, Andrew J., 126 
 
 Stewart, Joel, resolutions intro- 
 duced by, 208 
 
 Stillman, Paul E., 307 
 
 Stone, John Y., election of, as 
 Speaker, 180; mention of, for 
 senatorship, 223 ; announce- 
 ment of candidacy of, 227; de- 
 feat of, in caucus, 232, 233; 
 votes received by, 303 
 
 Stone, William M., anxiety con- 
 cerning appointment by, 132; 
 promise of, to appoint Kirk- 
 wood, 133, 134 ; mention of, for 
 senatorship, 136, 158; refer- 
 ence to, 186 
 
 Stoneman, John T., votes received 
 by, 141; nomination of, for 
 short term, 150; defeat of, 151 
 
 Street, Joseph H. D., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 69; nomina- 
 tion of, 72, 75, 79, 82; votes 
 received by, 79, 273, 274, 276 
 
 Stuart, Charles E., 101 
 
 Stuart, Frank Q., 238 
 
 Stubbs, D. P., vote received by, 
 199, 287, 297 
 
 Sub-treasury, 17 
 
 Summers, Laurel, letter from 
 Thomas to, 20; letter from 
 Clarke to, 32, 33, 267 
 
 Sumner, Charles, 117 
 
 Superintendent of Public Instruc- 
 tion, service of Harlan as, 66; 
 contest for office of, 75 
 
 Supreme Court of Iowa, candi- 
 dates for seats on, 22 ; proposal 
 for joint convention to ebct 
 
 judges of, 23 ; controversy over 
 time of electing judges of, 27, 
 28; election of judges of, 48, 
 82 ; motion to vote for judges 
 of, 79; Wright as Chief Jus- 
 tice of, 151 
 
 Supreme Court of United States, 
 force of decisions of, 77 
 
 Swalm, Albert, 229 
 
 TARIFF of 1842, 17 
 
 Tariff of 1846, 39 
 
 Taylor, Zachary, 44 
 
 Teale, Fred A., 177 
 
 Temperance reform, revolution in 
 ideas of, 108 
 
 Temple, M. L., 238 
 
 Test, James D., 80 
 
 Thayer, E. H., votes received by, 
 247 
 
 Thomas, Lewis A., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 20 
 
 Thompson, Hugh R., 48, 271, 276 
 
 Thorington, James, political ca- 
 reer of, 107, 108; reference to, 
 109; campaign of, for senator- 
 ship, 110; votes received by, 
 118 ; sketch of life of, 280 
 
 Thurston, W. A., 276 
 
 Tipton, 109 
 
 Tisdale, O. D., vote received by, 
 276 
 
 Toombs, Eobert, 97, 101; defense 
 of Harlan by, 98-100; vote on 
 motion by, 101 
 
 Torbert, Willard H., 253 
 
 Torbert Letter, 251-253 
 
 Toucey, Isaac, 101 
 
 Towner, Horace M., 307 
 
 Treasury notes, 17 
 
 Trewin, James H., votes received 
 by, 256 
 
 Trimble, H. H., votes received by, 
 141 
 
 Trumbull, Lyman, 101; creden- 
 tials of Harlan presented by, 
 103 
 
 UNION Pacific Eailroad, 164; 
 branch of, 203, 204 
 
330 
 
 INDEX 
 
 Usher, John P., appointment of 
 Harlan as successor to, 132 
 
 VAN Antwerp, Ver Planck, 32, 
 46; mention of, for senator- 
 ship, 38, 55 
 
 Van Buren County, 151, 167 
 
 Vandever, William, letter from, 
 read by Harlan, 93; mention 
 of, for senatorship, 136, 146; 
 votes received by, 286, 287, 288 
 
 Vinton, 126 
 
 WAITE, J. L., 244 
 
 Wallace, Henry, vote received by, 
 215, 300; reference to, 307 
 
 Wallace, William H., nomination 
 of, 47, 48; defeat of, 48 
 
 Warren, Fitz Henry, candidacy 
 of, for senatorship, 63; polit- 
 ical career of, 63, 64; objec- 
 tions to, 64; chances in favor 
 of, 64, 65; impossibility of 
 election of, 66, 67; reason for 
 support of, 68; reference to, 
 70, 75, 125; nomination of, 72; 
 votes received by, 72, 141, 273, 
 274, 286; defeat of, for nomi- 
 nation, 73; disappointment at 
 defeat of, 74; manner of bear- 
 ing ' defeat by, 74 ; support of 
 Harlan by, 76; opposition of, 
 to Grimes, 117 ; mention of, for 
 senatorship, 136; rumor of 
 bargain between Harlan and, 
 137 
 
 Washington (D. C.), political 
 conditions at, 37, 38; criticism 
 of absence of Jones from, 53, 
 54; departure of Jones for, 
 57; departure of Harlan for, 
 87; unpleasant position of 
 Harlan at, 89, 90; return of 
 Harlan to, 103; circulars sent 
 out from, 123; communications 
 from, 136; reference to, 137, 
 138; house purchased by Har- 
 lan in, 162; need of harmoni- 
 ous delegation at, 165; position 
 of Allison at, 182 
 
 Washington aqueduct, fraud in 
 connection with appropriation 
 for, 163 
 
 Washington 's Birthday, Whig 
 mass meeting on, 35 
 
 Weaver, James B., attack on Al- 
 lison by, 202, 203; charges 
 against, 205, 206 
 
 West, attitude of, toward new 
 party, 61; leading Eepublican 
 Senator from, 182 
 
 Western Iowa, desire of, for Sen- 
 ator, 212, 227, 240; State of- 
 ficials in, 228; disappointment 
 of, 233, 234 
 
 Whicher, Stephen, mention of, 
 for senatorship, 69 
 
 Whig National Convention, dele- 
 gate to, 64 
 
 Whig party, doom of, 60; split 
 in, 70 
 
 Whigs, 17, 19, 43, 60, 92, 114; 
 majority of, in House of Eep- 
 resentatives, 18, 43, 62, 63; 
 lack of hope among, 18, 50, 
 53; efforts of, to secure sup- 
 port of independents, 20; 
 charges against, 21; reply of, 
 to charges, 21, 22; candidates 
 nominated by, 23, 47, 55, 57, 
 72; charges against Democrats 
 by, 23, 24, 31, 32; comments 
 of, on bribery episode, 25, 26; 
 controversy between Democrats 
 and, 27; concessions made by, 
 27; defeat of candidate of, 
 29; activities of, during recess 
 of legislature, 32, 33; resolu- 
 tion by, in House, 34, 35 ; mass 
 meeting of, 35; reasons for ex- 
 tra session explained by, 37; 
 strength of, in Congress, 37, 
 38; duty of electing Senator 
 pointed out by, 39; efforts of, 
 to defeat opponents, 40; dis- 
 
 _ gust of, at retention of illegal 
 members, 41; equality between 
 Democrats and, 41; praise of 
 Clifton by, 42; minority of, 
 44; efforts of, to discredit 
 
INDEX 
 
 331 
 
 Jones, 51; attitude of, toward 
 compromise, 59; amalgamation 
 of Free Soilers and, 61; desire 
 of, to elect Senator, 62; oppo- 
 sition of, to Warren, 67; ex- 
 pectations concerning caucus 
 by, 69, 70; failure of, to hold 
 caucus, 70; willingness of, to 
 go into convention, 71; caucus 
 held by, 73; need of reconcil- 
 ing bolting, 74; factional strife 
 among, 76, 77; illegal manner 
 of electing candidate of, 86; 
 hostility of, to new party, 90 
 
 Whitaker, John M., right of, to 
 seat in Senate, 40, 41; refer- 
 ence to, 269 
 
 White, Fred E., nomination of, 
 245; defeat of, 245 
 
 Willett, George B., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 146 
 
 Williams, Joseph, mention of, for 
 senatorship, 38, 55; reference 
 to, 46; nomination of, 72; 
 vote received by, 271, 273 
 
 Wilmot Proviso, 39 
 
 Wilson, C. H., votes received by, 
 259 
 
 Wilson, James, mention of, for 
 senatorship, 224 
 
 Wilson, James F., mention of, for 
 senatorship, 136, 158; support 
 of Allison by, 145; reference 
 to, 146, 160, 191; political ca- 
 reer of, 158, 159; support of, 
 159; opposition to, 159, 160; 
 charges against integrity of, 
 163, 164; votes received by, 
 166, 290, 297, 300; possibility 
 of appointment of, to Cabinet, 
 187, 188; announcement of 
 candidacy of, 190; instructions 
 to vote for, 193 ; friendship be- 
 tween Kirkwood and, 197; 
 chance in favor of, 198; crit- 
 icism of, 198; nomination of, 
 199, 214; first election of, 199; 
 attitude of Republicans to- 
 ward, 210; absence of candi- 
 
 dates against, 210; desire for 
 new man to succeed, 210, 211; 
 attitude of county conventions 
 toward, 211; attitude of 
 friends of, toward soldier 
 movement, 212; lack of organ- 
 ization in opposition to, 213; 
 second election of, 214, 215; 
 question of successor to, 223 
 
 Wilson, Thomas S., mention of, 
 for senatorship, 20, 38, 55; im- 
 provement in chances of, 20, 
 21; nomination of, 23; votes 
 received by, 29, 118; desire of, 
 to drop Dodge, 32; reference 
 to, 33, 54, 264; support of, by 
 Democrats, 40; contest be- 
 tween Jones and, 45, 104, 105, 
 115, 116; defeat of, for nomi- 
 nation, 46 
 
 Wisconsin, meeting of citizens of, 
 60 
 
 Wisconsin, Territory of, Delegate 
 to Congress from, 45 
 
 Woodward, William G., election 
 of, to Supreme Court, 82; let- 
 ter from, read by Harlan, 93 
 
 Woolson, John S., 177 
 
 Work, John M., nomination of, 
 254 
 
 Wright, George G., votes received 
 by, 57, 273, 286; mention of, 
 for senatorship, 69; nomina- 
 tion of, 72, 149; election of, to 
 Supreme Court, 82; letter 
 from, read by Harlan, 93 ; fear 
 of possible candidacy of, 125, 
 126; endorsement of, 144; 
 qualifications of, for senator- 
 ship, 145; contest between Al- 
 lison and, 147, 148; election of, 
 150; official career of, 151; 
 reference to, 152, 227, 229 
 
 YOUNG, Lafayette, Sr., 229; ap- 
 pointment of, 258; votes re- 
 ceived by, 259; withdrawal of 
 name of, 260 
 
 Yulee, David L., 92 
 
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY, 
 BERKELEY 
 
 THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE 
 STAMPED BELOW 
 
 Books not returned on time are subject to a fine of 
 50c per volume after the third day overdue, increasing 
 to $1.00 per volume after the sixth day. Books not in 
 demand may be renewed if application is made before 
 expiration of loan period. 
 
 301931 
 
 AUG 946 
 
 2Dec'52RL 
 
 30IW62WA 
 REC'D LD 
 
 NOV 6 
 
 75m-7,'30 
 
YC 09323 
 
 549760 
 31 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY