Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1875-12-23
a man 6f education and distinguished lin:
cage. -Four zlaya after the 1aflatt 1d expel

man 6f education and distinguished lin:
cage. -Four days after the 9a,9astto to expel
while Lyon was sitting in his seat With '&::ttih
his hat off, writing; Griswo'd eamic lip to
him, and assaulted 1iim, :jue1 as. Blocks
after wards assaulted Mn;sumner, By stltt.
ing him over the tread and shoulders with
hickory cane. Lyon, entansled in tho
desks and chairs, was some timerin. sos.,
ting to an open space. Soon the bclliger--
cnts dropped their weapons, clincl,ed, fell
to the floor, and enjoyed for short time
rough and tumble fight, until they were
pulled apart by their fellow members.
But even this was not the end of It. A
few minutes after, willie Griswold vas
standing in the corncrdf the room, Lyon
came near with cane in his hand. but
without any intention tb'renew the stsug.
gle. AS soon as tkeir eyes met their fury
was rekindled, and Lyon assaulted Gsis-
void with great violchcc. He had struck
several blows when another member sup
piled Griswold with "A 4tick, which IT,
stored equality between them. Other
members, however, interfered, end tho
combatants were finally separated.
This affair was the more to he regretted
because it gave some appearance of just'.
fication to those who desired to exclude
from Office of honor men who were 20 un.
fortunate as to have nj particular grand.
father. But if the reader will study close
ly the political history of the only four
countries that have ever had any "poli.
tics" namely, Greece, ROME England and
the United States, he will discover that /.
has been the aristocratic party which has
most hab:tually and instinctivelY resOrtcd
to brute violence.
Before the year 1893 ended Mathey Ly.
on was IN more serious trouble. The I'd.
ministraticn If John Adams was foolisl,
enough to:prosecute HIM under the abom-
Unable Sedition Law for having said IN his
paper, that the President had IAN unbound
ed thirst for ridiculous pomp and foolish
adulation,'' had written "bullying mes
sage" and uttered other trivial and harm
less words. Being convicted he was SEN
fenced to pay fine of thousand dollars.
AID be imprisoned for four calendar
months. Need it be said that the people
ofhis district stood by their representative:
While he was serving out his term in
prison, they re elected him to Congress by
greatly increased majority, and he came
back to Philadelphia in triumph. The
Federalists tried again to expcl him, and
obtained vote of forty nine for, TO forty.
five against'it. .Sech was the infatustion
Of that party oily eighteen months before
it was swept from power forever!
This prosecution and long absence At
the seat of government broke up Lyons
business in Vermont, and lie removed In
1901 to the New land ofKentucky, where
again he became leader both in business
and politics. In two years he came to
Congress from Kentucky His old enc
mics, the Fcdcralists, we're then in the
dwinaling minority; and Mathew Lyon,
from having been the butt Of an insolent
faction, found himself hero and favosi.e
of the Republican majority. Candid men
of both parties now perceived that lie was
a man Of sense, of frank and agreeable de-
meanor, good tempered, open to convic
ton. and we'll able to give his quota Of
sound advice lie served ia Congress un
til 1911, When he declined further re-elec~
ton, being sixty five years Of age. Some
years later, Mr.. Monroe appointed him
agent to the Cherokee Indians, aud he
continued to be an active buiincss man, q
patriotic politician, and faithful servant
Of his country, trusted by the Indians, and
beloved by his neighbors to the close OF
his long life. He died in 1922, At Spadre
Bluff, high up on the Arkansas river
aged seventy seven years.
On the fourth of July Congress honorsd
itself by ordering the fine Of q thousand
dollars, with forty-t two years interest upon
the same, to he paid to the heirs OF this
pioneer democrat.-New York LEDGER