Delaware gazette. [volume] (Delaware, Ohio) 1855-1886, 1868-06-26

. ! IHe Cincinnati 6dzette'S Nashville
correspondent has had an interview
with Governor -Brownlow which he
writes up in that paper. The follow
ing extract relating to Senator Fowler
and Andrew johnson will be found in
terestiDg. To the correctness of its state
ments Of JohnsOn's unpopularity with
East Tennessee UniOnists we can vouch
from personal knowledge:
FowLER's TREACHERY
My conversation with the Governor
took 81 somewhat extensive range but
as his views upon public issues are well
known, and, as they remain unchanged.
/ shall not attempt to present anything
more than some detached scraps Of my
talk with him.
The subject of Senator FowIer's
treachery was, OF course, discussed, and
i was struck with the forcibIe manner
in which the Governor spoke.
"Fovler was bought" !" said he, "as
better men have been before him. -
/ IFhetEerthe considerations were money,
or hope of future political preferment,
or ideas Of general advantage held out
to him, the Governor did not say; but
as to what he meant, I had not the least
trouble in drawing my own inference.
DO you think, said /, ''there is any
truth in the story that Fowler was led
20 take the course he did through love
/ for JohnsOn's daughter ?"
| 'No," said he, ''not at all Fowler is
/ exceeding weak but his weakness does
4 not lie in that direction"
/ 'Ihe worst result of lis detection, -
j remarked, sis that it has caused the
/ loyal people Of the land to lose faith in
/ Tennessee UniOnist generally"
yes" he replied with a sigh, 81 feel
I that keenly; he is in no sense a repre-
/ sentative man, and yet we are all to
/ some extent judged by him. Would to
/ God the fellow could have fallen only
/ for himself"
! THE RECREANT SENATOR'S HISTORY.
'Do understand you to say that
| Fowler should not be considered a rep
/ resentative man ?"
/ ''By no means" (" replied the Cover
nor, ''he had not the slightest pronin-
/ ence before the war he did nothing to
| distinguish himself during its eontinu-
ance. He came originally from Ohio.
and had been in the State but a yerv
few years when the war broke out. All
he had done here previously, was to
teach school at Gtaliatin. That being a
bitterly rebel locality, he left it and
came to Nashville. When Andy john
son was made Military Governor, he
appointed Fowler Comptroller. The Of
fee was then the meFes6 sinecures as
was -neeessaFf4y- the case; and Fowler
| being a pretty good clerk, managed to
make himself useful to johnson, as he
had no Official duties to prevent his do
ing. If he attE8cted the attention of
any one else about the Capitol, it was
by protesting to an unComprOnnfsing
and rampant radical-''
Sand how in the world y said I, "did
the Legislature come to elect him to the
responsi bic position Of United States
Senator, with such antecedeuts as
these ?''
F'Well, p replied Brownlow, s'the cir
cumstances were peculiar. At that
time, of course, Johnson's influences
was all powerful. Patterson was elect
ed Senator simply because he was An
dy's sOn-in-laW. Maynard might have
gone in successfully for the other seat |
had it not been conceded that one of the |
Senators must be chosen from Middle |
tennessee. w. H. Wisener, of Bedford /
county (Shelbyville), was the only cam
didate spoken of from that section
But he was not popular with the East /
tennessee Union men, because he had !
retained seat in the rebel Legislature
Of 1861, and gave. some votes there |
which they did not like. Besides this /
he was 1istasteful to johnson, having /
in former days been particularly and /
warmly opposed to him. Such being /
the situation, Johnson, at the pbop- /
er moment, aTtfully suggested his
Clerk, Fowler, as a proper person for
the place; and, although not one-tenth
of the members had ever heard of him /
before they found him in his clerkship, Il
and was slipped in, notwithstanding he /
had for the place neither fitness, quail
6catiOns. nor claims"
L listened to this narrative with deep
and at the close remarked
y ohnson's influence must have been
great, indeed"
Eyes, - said BrownIow, sit was re-
afterward that there was but
one thing which at that time he
do"
"And what was that ?' I asked.
Prevent my nomination tor the Gov
ernorshIp."
"But surely he didn't endeavor to do
that"
''CertainIy he did, both directly and
indirectly, and so far as the Middle and
West Tennesseeans were concerned, he
might have had some success, but the
East Tennesseeans, who knew both
j OhnsOn and myself YeUy well, were.
upon this point, utterly immovable |
[ was nominated Unan- !
animOuslY in convention Of more
than Eve hundred delegates"
Chow" said I, tdo you suppose Fow- !
Ter, when he returns, viii meet the be-
trayed and insulted people of Tennes- :
see ~
''I understand, y was the reply, ''that
be says he intends to take the stump t
and defend his course. If he does he {
viii have good time of it in East Ten 8
1essee, for every crowd he attempts to 4 .
address viii, before he has spoken a
dozen words, ask him Just how much q
he got for that vote. And then" said I
he, with a sly twinkle of the eve, fFov- Q
Ter is so eloquent and plausible that of Y
course he viii be able to maintain his t
ground :
The inimitable style in which the \
Governor said this, combined with my
own estimate of Fowler's abilities, L
made the idea of his defending his =
course before the loyal people of Ten =
1essee, seem so supremely Iudricous,
hat 1 broke out in a hearty laugh and J
-he subject was closed.
JOHNsON's INFLUENCE AIIssTATED.
ST am little surprised" >" said I 'sthat Z
1T the time Johnson endeavOred to pre- {
vent your nomination for Governor, he a
was not able to carry the East Tennes- Y
seeans against you. It is generally &
that his influence among the q
was even greater than else
where" q
at was aIl0ays least there" remark 3
5d BrOwnlOw, very quietly, but with b
IN expression of deep satisfaction upon f
ais face. a
s'But, Governor" said I, "the people I
If the country generally have an i'm Il
preston precisely the opposite of this. v
They think that Johnson controlled the o
East Tennesseeans at his will, and that o
% his inttuence the steadfast loyalty of IL
hat region, during the war, was almost O.
Wholly due T
s'Tt is au u.tter mistake" +" said be. =
rohnson's loyalty was due to the inIu-
,nce of the people of East Tennessee. II
lot theirs to him. He was always un- I
popular with them before the war. He d.
vas Democrat, they were Wings or 81
Americans. He never could have OBJ Fl
aimed any Office at their hands. When n
.e was elected Governor in 1856, over =
fentry, he went out Of East Tennessee tSSS
With over 10000 majority against him. q
ut was saved by the Middle and West al
divisions Of the State, which, although m
hey had no love for johnson, were nC