The Northern Pacific farmer. [volume] (Wadena, Minn.) 1878-1885, 1881-01-27
GEN. JACKSON.

| His Journey To Be lnaugrated- The Attempt
Upon His Life--His Religious Belief.
Correspondence of the Cincinnati Commercial
Gen. jackson made the journey on steam
boatby way of the Cumberland and Ohio Rlv-
ers as far as Pittsburg, and thence by coach
to Washington, without any alarming incl
dent, and was everywhere received with
heartiest acclamahons. Acqulescence IN
the result of the election was instantaneous,
and his treatment happily disappointed the
| gloomy representations OF his h1enos. IL
was continuous ovation.
While President his life, owing to the ma
ture of some of the political measures urg-
ed by him, and the dep1e ssing effect they
for the time had upon the business inter-
ests of the country, was often threatened
He was twiceattacked, but once onlyW1te muir
derous intent This occur red Jan. 30, 1885.
The President was attending, at the Capt.
toll, the funeral of the Hon. Warren Il.
Davie, a late Representatives. Congress from
South Carolina. While stepping out upon
the portico, holding the arm of Mr.. Wood
bury, the Secretary of the Navy, he was
confr onted by stranger who, at the dls-
lance of eight feet, deliberately leveled
weapon missed fire. He dropped it and
ms family drew another, which also missed
fire. The President, discovering his des-
perate design, released his hold OF Mr.
Woodburys arm and advanced toward him
furiously with uplifted cane, but before ne
could reach him Lieut.. Gedney, of the Navy,
had knocked the assassin down and dlsarm-
ed him. He was taken to jail, and proved
to be crazy Englshman named Lawrence,
a house painter by occupation, but long out
of employment, and, like Bellingham, who
slew Mr.. Percival, the British Prime Min
lister, in 1911, attributed his business mis-
fortunes to the Government, and held it's
head responsible for them. With greater
humanity than was shown Bellingham,
Lawrence was sent to lunatic asylum,
where, after several years confinement. he
died.
The president for some time believed
that this attempt on his life was the result
of a conspiracy, and the person he most
suspected was the Hon. George Poindexter,
Senator from Mississippi. There are pre-
served with his papers two afidavits, which
probably furnished the foundation of such
an impression.
David Stewart having made an oath on
the Holy Evangels deposeth and saith that
about tn last day of December, 1884, or the
LIST of January last 1885, he, the deponent,
saw Richard Lawrence 60 into Senator
L
half-street, on the Tuesday before the
attempt to assassinate the President of the
United States: he, this deponent, saw Sen
ator Poindexter and Lawrence in Senator
Poindexter's passage-wa in conversation.
"Mordicai Foy, under the same sOlemni-
ties, testi6es that his shop is opposite to the
dwelling house Of Senator Poindexter, and
that he hath seen Richard Lawrence go into
Senator Poindexter's house, and return out
again at different times; and particularly on
the Tuesday previous to Lawrence's at
tempt to assassinate the President of the
United States did he see the said Lawrence
go into Senator Poindexter's house and re-
turn"
Upon the back of these documents is in
dorsed in the Presidents handwriting:
David Stewart and Mordicai Foy-affi-
davits-saw Lawrence frequently going in
Tuesday before attempt to assassinate
President. He and Poindexter seen in con-
versation on Tuesday before the attempt on
the President, February 4, 1886"
Gen. jackson and Gov. Poindexter had
once been friends. The latter was his ablest
and most eloquent defender when the
General's conduct in the Seminole war was
arraigned in 1919. While their quarrel had
it's origin in politics, there was also mixture
of personal misunderstanding and repulsion.
So prejudiced was Jackson's mind toward
his former friend that he could have believed
almost anything of him. Lawrence's visits
to Gov Poindexter's house were satisfacto-
rily explained. He had called there to
solicit work.
1t is we'll known that Gen. jackson joined
the Presbyterian church near the close of
his life. He had promised his wife, who
was a very devout member of that sect, to
do this as soon as he was free from politics,
and when improper motives could not be
imputed to him for the act. To crafty her
pious wishes, he had, at his own expense,
built a small brick chapel on the Hermitage
plantation. which he regularly attended
when at home. At the time of his
death he was, I believe, the ''ruling
Elder" of the congregation, an office which
he was accustomed to declare he valued
higher than the Presidency. There is an old
story that when the fact of his death was
communicated to Mr.. Clay, his great rival
in politics, the question loosely arose as to
the probabilities of his final salvation. Mr..
Clay listened for moment and remarked:
ooh yes; all couldn't prevent it," The
Hon. Thomas L. Jones relates an anecdote
of similar nature. In letter of the late
Gov. Call, of Florida, who was once, as I
have mentioned, on the military staff of
Gen. jackson, and was present at his obse-
quies, I find this: ''Shortly after the funeral,
one of the old negro women at the Hermit
age was visiting Nashville, and met with an
acquaintance, negro woman also, who
probably belonged to a Wing family and
had imbibed it's political prejudices. DO
you think your old masters gone to heaven?
was asked of her doubtingly. Gone to
heaven! answered the other with an air of
sanctified disdain, why of course he has,
and added, If he wanted to go dar, I'd like
to know who's gwine to stop him." She
evidently believed that even so doughty
saint as Peter could not resist the imperious
will of her dead master.