The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1876-07-07
The Old system Of Presidential NOnlin-
ati0n.

Our Presidents and Vice Presidents
were mt first nominated by caucuses COM
posed of the Senators and members OF
the House of Representatives belonging
to each party. This caucus system, al
though we often see it decried by Eng
lish writers and papers, was really de-
rived by our early politicians from Eng
land. It became the habit Of the Par
hamentary leaders of the Wings and
Tories, soon after the revolution of 1858,
to meet at taverns or club-houses in
order to provide discipline for the party
ranks, to discuss and decide on meas
ures, and even on special votes, and to
delegate the oersOnneJof new ministries.
Many an entertaining story of these con-
claves, which often partook of n festive
and literary as well as deliberative char
acter, has come down to us IN the writ
ings ofs Addison, Steele, Hervey and
Horace Walpole; and, although they
were not known as "caucuses," they
were such in form and in purpose.
Even before the Revolution, Ameri-
can politics had taken a distinct party
shape, and what were virtually caucuses
were held in the quaint old inns of Bos-
ton, New York. and Philadelphia, on
the part OF both the Tories and the
patriots. 1t was often decided in these
conferences who should be sent to the
General Court, who should be made
Colonel of the militia, who should be
delegated to the Continental Congress.
At the SCREEN Dragon" in Boston, not
able conferences of the caucus order
were won't to be held, in which Hancock,
Adams, Otis, and Warren were leading
and inspiring spirits.
For the first three Presidential cleo
lions, however, there were no nominal
ing caucuses of Congressman, for the
reason that the candidates were very
clearly designated by the events of the
revolutionary and constitution-forming
period.
1t was in the year 1900, when sue
cessor was to be chosen to President
Adams, that. the first caucus recorded
in our history was held. 1t met at
Philadelphia, was called by the Repub
ican opposition, and comprised thirty
seven members of the lower house and
nine Senator's. There was nothing very
strict or formal about the meeting.
These gentlemen met to discuss candi-
dates, very likely in one of those coffee
houses which early Congressman used to
frequent in the Quaker City, and there
seems to have been no very sharp IL
valry for the places on the ticket. The
caucus was of one accord that Jefferson
should be presented to the people for
the Presidency.
The first caucus in which there was a
contest was held in January, 1908. JEFF
ferson YVES about to retire from the
Presidency. 1t was certain that the
nominee of his party would be elected.
Virginia, that had already furnished two
out of the three Presidents, supplied
the rival candidates to the Republican
caucus. One was James Madison, who,
having begun a Federalist, had become
a strong political adherent of Jefferson,
and was now Secretary of State. The
other was Col. Monroe, who had been
Minister to France. The caucus COM
prisei ninety-four Senators and men,
bers, and Madison was nominated by
eighty-three votes-George Clinton, the
then Vice President, receiving a renom-
ination for that Office George ".
75,0ie, IN Harper's Magazine for July.