The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1874-10-08
ANNALS Oh BELFAST FOR NALF A CENTURY.
BY AN OLD S ETH ER
CHAPTER XXXH. (1S3S.)

Inc year 1000 was exceedingly lcdH III
local events. The people We're too busily
engaged in political manipulations to take
a hand in anything else; there was hardly
room for anything to happen save ''Elec-
ton" The contest between the two great
parties, Wing and Democratic, was bitter
ly personal, especially in this locality.
The Wings were the victors at the spring
election; the tables were turned at the
fall election with Il terrible whirl. The
Democrats carried everything before them.
They We're the ''outs' and fought with
desperation; the Gins" were equally des-
perate in their efforts to retain possession
Of the loaves and fishes. 1t was regular
'sbread and butter" campaign.
The political power of the State was in
| the hands OF the Wing party, Edward
Kent having been elected Governor. The
doctrine that ''to the victors belong the
spoils," although up to that period regard
| ed by the party as heretical, became prac-
tically an article in its creed. Col. Geo
Thatcher OF Monroe was appointed Sher-
| if of the County in place of Jacob Tratton
| removed; Bailey Pierce, Clerk OF the
Courts, in place of n Nj. Lowney removed ;
Solyman Heath, Register of Probate, in
place Of VIM. ii. Burrill, removed; and
| Webster Kelly, County Attorney, IN place
of Charles K. Porter removed. All the
| appointees, except Col. Thatcher, resided
in this place; Belfast was ''provided for"
Col. Thatcher was a son of Judge
| Thatcher Of the Supreme Court of Massa-
chusetts, once Member Of Congress He
| was born at Biddetord in 1870, graduated
at Harvard in 1872, studied law with Hon.
Cyrus King of Saco. where he commenced
practice in 1919. He removed from Saco
| to Monroe in 1889 and resided there until
| lS4l, when he was appointed Collector of
| Customs for this port, and came here To
| reside. In January, 1919, he resigned his
| office of Collector and returned to Mon
! roe. where he resumed business and re-
sided until 1858. when he removed
to Westtord Mass. where he died sud
| denly June II, 1891, aged sixty-six lie
was high-minded, kind hearted, honor
able gentleman.
| Mr.. Kelly was a lawyer by profession.
He was born in Salisbury, n H., and
graduated at Dartmouth in 1922 He
commenced the practice of his profession
at Frankfort from which place he re-
moved to Belfast He held the Office OF
| Deputy Collector under Col. Thatcher,
| Collector OF Customs for this port, APP
pointed in 1871. and during that term re
sided in Frankfort While residing in
this county he continued in the practice OF
the law and stood contessedly at the head
Of the Waldo County Bar He re
moved to Bangor in 1916, and from thence
to Boston in 1850. He was rapidly ac-
quiring rank at the Suffolk Bar. when on
a visit to his friends in New Hampshire
lie was taken suddenly i'll and died at
Henniker, July 4, 1850, aged torty-nine
| Two Mormon preachers visited our vii
lage on the 25d of February and held forth
in the evening to a large assemblage, at
tracted by curiosity to learn somewhat of
the faith of the 'Latter-day Saints" The
men We're both illiterate; they may. per
haps, have had the gift Of the Spirit; one
of them certainly had the gift of CAB to L
very extraordinary degree. He took his
text from one of the Epistles of St Paul
and evoked malediction on all who
should preach other doctrine than Christ
and Him crucitied" No converts to the
faith We're made here They We're more
successful on some OF the islands at the
eastward OF us, on which they had been
laboring
In the month of April following a series
Of ''protracted meetings, as they Were
styled, We're held by the various religious
denominations in our place not, probably
to neutralize the effect produced by the
Mormon preacher but from an honest
conviction that something should be done
to check the rising tide Of immortality and
irrelgion. There We're those who doubted
the expectancy OF the movement, ques-
tioning the permanency OF its apparent
| w rronI ,aSulfS NM oil no,
the morals Of our village needed reform
sadly.
One of the results of the Knox Conven-
ton and the dissensions in the democratic
party growing out of it, Of which mention
was made in a preceding chapter, was the
removal of Col. Daniel Lane from the
Collectorship of this Port and the appoint
ment of Nathaniel NJ Lowney, Esq this
event occurred early in the spring David
! w. Lothrop of this place was appointed
Deputy Collector and Inspector in place
of Nathaniel II. Bradbury and Isaac Allard
OF this place was appointed Deputy Col
lector at Frankfort in place of benjamin
Shaw
At the annual spring meeting. April
10th, Nathaniel II. Bradbury, Thomas
| Marshall and James Gammons We're
chosen Selectmen, Henry Colburn, Clerk
and John Haraden, Treasurer They were
all Wings with the exception Of Mr..
Bradbury, who was 3; member of that
branch of the Democratic Party which
assumed the name OF Conservative The
largest number of votes thrown was AS.
On the third day of May died Asa
Edmunds, Esq, aged eighty-one lie
came to this place from Connecticut the
year OF his coming is not known to the
compiler He was by profession a school
teacher md continued to practise his
vocation until far advanced in years He
was a Sergeant in the army of the Revo-
luton and was one of the picked men
who under Major William Barton crossed
over to Rhode Island in the night of July
9, 1777, and captured and brought off
Major General Richard Prescott of the
British army. lie was Chairman Of ON,
| Board of Selectmen at the time the British
| took possession of our town in 1914 the
same who replied to the bearer of the flag
OF truce, as narrated in a previous chap
ter, that had we received earlier notice of
the coming OF his Maesty's troops we
should have been prepared to give them Il
| different reception Master Edmunds was
! a large, portly gentleman-such an one as
| Shakespeare had IN his minds eye prOba~
| bly,, when he described the Justce-''of
fair, round belly, with good capon lined
and from the popularity OF his personal
appearance was sometimes called by the
bad boys of the day, Toad Edmunds"
He was the father of Alvan Edmunds, a
highly respected and worthy townsman
grandfather of the late Charles {. Ed
munds, and great grandfather Of the late
Norman n. Edmunds. Father, son, grand
son, and great grandson all rest in the
same plot in Grove Cemetery; the family
is extincct
Master Edmunds was prominent mem
| her OF the Masonic Fraternity. The first
code OF bylaws of Belfast Lodge was
! framed by him, it is said, in 1917 although
the first printed code, drafted by Samuel
Gordon, James Poor and Timothy Chase,
was not adopted until 1922. Master Ed
munds was the first Treasurer of the
| o5pa A Truthful nortrait of him NOT