The Leavenworth weekly times., 1879-07-03
A STORY OF 1877,
The Jeopardy In Which Stood Mr..
Samuel ]. Tildsn.
How He Would Have Fared If He
Had Attempted To Se;ze
the Presidency,
Pfesiden: Grants Plans as Narrated
by General Stewart L.
Wooi ford.

To the Editor Of the Neu Yg,E Uor1
| DEM: On an occasion of public interest
a leading New York newspaper sent me az
its representative to Gen. = l.. Woodford
| L United States District-Attorney for the
Southern District of New York, to obtsin
some important information. As We were
| friends OF thirty years standing, the Cen
| eral invited me into his private office, and
when he learned my business regretted that
he wss not at liberty to furnish the inform
| alton | sought. But he pressed me 10 stay.
| and the interview, which lasted for over an
hour, drifted naturally into matters which
were then exciting the attention of all Ioli-
ticians. As II was not the information |
had been sent to procure, regarded il as
my own affair, and, though / thought i;
not then ripe for publication, it was 40 im-
portant that ! immediately jotted it down
for future use if necessary. Az the present
moment gives it immediate interest and
value, | submit it to you now for use #
you should judge best. 1t is written ou,
from my notes OF that time, and runs thus.
JOHN F. MINIS.
at was always a mystery to ne, General.
that You accepted the appointment OF
United STATES District-Attorney at the
close of Grants administration. thought
you might have looked higher, for YOU had
chsmpioned the cause of Hayes and of hard
money in Odio, and you certainly had the
right to expect something extremely hand
some from this administration. Indeed, |
thought at the time it was foolish in you TO
have Withdrawn your name at Cincinnati
a. a candidate for the Vice Presidency"
"As to the Vice-Presidency," said Gen.
Woodford, al had gone to Cincinnati "a
the champion of Senator Conkling, and | |
could not do otherwise than did after our
failure to nominate him. / might have
looked odd otherwise.
In regard to my acceptance OF the Dis
trict-Attorneyship, can explain that BY
letting you into the secret Of little bit OF
history which may astonish you, "a it GER
tainly would astonish the quiet citizens OF
New York. You know how much excite
Commission that Mr.. Hayes had been
elected President in place of Mr.. Tilden
The air was Immediately filled With rumors
,f armed resistance to the decision of the
Commission. 1t was openly stated that in
Ill the Democratic States bodies of men
we're being marshaled and drilled for rev.
,IutlOn. 1nreats we're MADE mere and At |
many other points that Mr.. Tilden would
'e insugurated on tbe ith Of March in spite
# Grant and his army, that the Custom
Houses would be seized to create a
evenue, and that the Democratic President
Iould be seated by grand popular up ,
ising.
"New York, itwas plain, would be the ;
entral point Of the new revolution. Mr.
'iiden would take the oath on the steps Of q
he City Hall at the hands of one Of the
Judges, and simultaneously the i
u-tom House and Sub-Treasury would be d
:izsd. Bossts we're made that the busine-s v
len Of New York would make no opposi- b
on, but acquiesce in the situation from u
ar OF their homes being given over to an u
icsndiary mob"
"Do you think, General, there was any Il
nth in these rumors?" liz
81 am afraid there was only too much d
nth in them. Had the series of great i,
emocratic mas meetings that were pro- q