New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-01-01
INTEGRITY OF ELECTORS.
LETTER FROM THuRLoW WEED.

A LETTER FROM THURLOW WEED.
HISTORICAL FAITHFULNEss OF PRESIDENTIAL KLEC-
ToRs-REMINIsCENCEs OF TIKI ALBANY REGENCY
HOW JOHN QUINCY ADAMS DEFEATED WILL
LIAM H. CRAWFORD IN 1S24-vINDIcATIoN OF
THE INFAMOUS SEVENTEEN SENATORS"
To the Editor Of The tribune.
SIR: The thoughtful and suggestive tribute of
Presideueect Garfield to the hisioricf integrity Of
Presidential Electors has attracted such general at
tenton tfat"l ask leave to submit answer to the
following inquiry through the medium of Tx
TRIBUNE:
KENYON, O., Dec IS, 1880.
The Hon. THURLow WEED.
DEAR SIR: see by the newspapers that Mr.. Garfield,
In reply to the spokesman OF the Ohio electors when
eector has been known to cast his vote for nny one but
the candidate for whom he was elected 70 vote MY rec
jackson who was elected on another ticket and that
when the General elected in 1928 he rewarded TINS
though young constant reader of your much.vslued
paper which father for many years living then
mint many conflicts in when you were always found
for the right for which the good Lord seems TO be re-
"'rdns you with peaceful old age VERY " Sn xS
Until and including the year 1924 our Presiden-
tial Electors we're chosen by the Legislature Cir
cumstances impaired to that canvass an interest
heretofore unknown in State. Presidential
nominations had been made by Con ressonal eau
Gus. The prominent candidates were then William
II. Crawford, John Quincy Adams aud Henry Clay,
all three belonging to the Democratic (then
the Republican y party The friends of Messrs.
Adams and Clay protesting against that mode
of nomination, refused to go into eau
Gus, leaving the field to Mr. Crawford who became
the Congressional nominee. Subsequently
Messrs. Adams and Clay were brought forward as
independent candidates. The Legislature of 1924
Yves chosen before the Presidential issues had been
fully formed. There was a Democratic majority OF
more than two-thirds in the Assembly, while with
single exception the Senate was Democratic unit.
Jedediah Morgan, of Cayuga. was a selt-nomnated
candidates the remaining thirty senators were
dominated and elected as Democrats. The
Presidential question soon as the
Legislature met became exciting and
absorbing. Mr.. Van Buren, at the head of the AL
bany Regency, the most powerful political organiza-
ton ever known in this or any other State, sup
ported Mr. Crawford. The Clintonians "a small
minority, acting with Independent Democrats,
passed bill through the House giving the choice OF
Presidential Electors to the people. That bill was
defeated In the Senate by vote of II to 10.
neverto -be-forgotten struggle ensued. The friends
of Messrs. Adams and Clay constituted q small
majority on joint ballot. Without a combination
between the friends of Adams and Clay
the Crawford Electors were sure to be
chosen, and finally the friends of Adams and Clay
n
Henry Wheaton and myself. representing the
friends of Mr.. Adams with Peter B. Porter, Senator
Jesse Clark, of Seneca, and Assemblyman James
Mullett, of Chautauqua representing the friends of
Mr.. Clay, formed an electoral ticket consisting of
twenty-seven Adams men, with nine men taken
from the Crawford ticket and vouched for as Clay
men. The understanding was that if MIR.
Clay carried Louisiana, he should receive votes
enough from New-YOrk to make him one
of the three candidates to be voted for by the House
of Representatives.. That Union ticket was printed
by myself in the Office of The albany Daily advertiser,
from which every person was excluded till the work
was done. And the secret was 30 well kept that the
first knowledge the Crawford men bad Of it was
when the two houses met in joint convention.
Northumberland Root, the presiding officer, as
the canvass progressed, involuntariy and indig-
nantly exclaimed. "a printed split ticketp Per-
ley Reyes sprang to his feet and called upon
Senators to withdraw. Instantly General Tall
madge, in q stentOrian voice, demanded. in
the name of the sovereign people. that
their Representatives in obedience to the oath they
had taken, should remain until the solemn duty
imposed upon them by the Constitution was dis
charged. The canvass proceeded. resulting In the
choice of thirty-two Electors whose names were on
the split printed ticket. while upon four names
there was tie. The tie was occasioned by the loss
sembly from Livingston County, who. up to the last
moment, had been Clay man. The two houses
separated, and during the night the Regency gath
cred strength enough to elect four Crawford
Electors on the following day. Mr. Van
Buren, and his friends entertained no fear
or doubt of the of their ticket until the first
Union ballot was drawn from the box. Had they
been aware of their danger, the power which re-
claimed Senators John Cramer and Melancthon
Wheeler (Clay mem, would have secured the adhe-
sion of others. They did not even know that Graf
tan H. Wheeler of Steuben County. would vote
Jackson electoral ticket which, in effect. was
voting blank for no names could be courted
that were not found on the two tickets nominated
one by the Assembly and the other by the Senate,
PerreA Barker of Seneca Falls one of the Electors
whose names were transferred from the Crawford to
the Union ticket, was vouched for as Clay man by
Senator Jesse Clark. When the Electoral College
met in December, Mr.. Barker found himself en-
barrassed by the conflicting opportunities of the
Crawford and Clay men. His room w0s besieged
by the leaders of both factions. l occupied
room next to that of Mr.. Barker, who was
in frequent communication with me. The pressure
became 80 urgent, and he anxious to do right
that he appealed to for advice. suggested that
it would be better to rely upon somc older and moro
intimate friend as he said he should have
done il any such could have been reached
in season. Mr. Barker remembered that, in his
boyhood, when residing in Dutchess Coanty
William A. Duer, then o prominent lawyer
there, was the personal and political friend of his
father. Mr. Duer, now Circuit Judge. was re-
siding in Albany. taking no part in politics ad-
vised him to call ut oncs upon Judge Duer, by
whom did not doubt he would be wisely guided
He returned in great spirits. saying that after
be had made himself known to the Judge
and stated the popularity OF bis position.
he had haen advised to vote for jackson. | con