The Portland daily press., 1881-07-08
THE PRESS.
Vice Presidential Presidents.

VICE HTcSlu6nUldl
Like heirs apparent in hereditary monarch
les, the Vice Presidents of the American Re-
public appear to drift instinctively into oppo-
stion even when they are not named, in order
to appease the weaker of two hostile factions
within the party OF our vice presidential
Presidents, Tyler was the first He was chos-
en- in 1910 on the Wing ticket with General
Harrison, who was sixty nine years old when
he was inaugurated. Within few weeks af-
terward h. died from the effects of cold
caught while going to market in a truly DEM
ocratic fashion one raw March morning. He
fell victim to an over estimate of his constitu-
ton and physical powers, and not unwarned
by his friends, whose kindly suggestions were
not only unheeded, but seemed to annoy him.
He Law i'll in the White House only nine days
He was the first President who died in Office
His leath was an astounding shock to the
whole country, and when the people awoke to
the fact that another person whom they had
elected Vice President, and whom they knew
only as "Tyler too had become President,
there went up a universal and anxious query,
"Who is he-what sort of man is hep" But
the death of Harrison had been anticipated
several days before it happened. Tyler, VINO
was then at his home on the Potomac Penin-
sula, WAS sent for Immediately in Govern
ment steamer. He took the oath quietly and
priyately General Hsrrison's cabinet concur
ded that Mr. Tyler while performing the func-
tons of President, ought to bear the title of
"vice President acting President" but Mr..
TYLER, under the advice of Chief Justice Ia
new, at once assumed the full presidential
title He announced that he would retain the
Harrison cabinet, of which Daniel Webster
was Secretary of State. The Harrison-Tyler
Wings were in doubt and dismay, for Tyler
had been put on the ticket with the knowledge
that he was rather an erratic member of the
party. Within three months Mr.. Tyler vetoed
two fiscal measures of his party in Congress
looking to a destruction OF the Van Buren, sub
treasury system and to the re-establshmaDt OF
national bank. By the 18th Of September
what turned out to be final rupture between
the new President and the Wing party began
with the resignation of all the cabinet except
Mr. Webster who did not remain much lon
ger. The new cabinet was composed of NOM
inal Wings, but all the congressional Wings,
except Henry A. Wise and Caleb Gushing, de-
serted Tyler after the Wing congressman had
issued in the autumn of 1911 a celebrated man
ifesto drawn up by John p. Kennedy of Mary
land, calling for caucus committee, OF which
Kenneth G. Rayner, now in Government en-
ploy in Washington, is the only survivor.
From that time forward Tyler received his
main support frem the Democrats.
General TAYLOR was the second President
who died in office. He died in the month of
July. Only five days before his death, on In
dependence day, General Taylor had attended
the exercises at the Washington Monument.
These lasted above an hour, during which the
President, with the obstinacy of an old cam
paigner in the tropics refused to shelter him
self from an uncommonly hot sun even with
an umbrella Exhausted and overheated on
his return To the White House he ate cherries
n<I1 do, n,,1
ill. President Taylor's death, like that of Har-
rison, was expected for many hours before it
occurred. Immediately after that event the
cabinet officers addressed official letter to
Vice President Fillmore, giving him official
notification of the vacancy, of which in his
turn he gave official notice to the houses of
Congress, then in session over the compromise
measures He informed Congress that he
should take the oath as President on the same
day. 1t was administered in the hall of the
House Onto which the Senate bad also Gomez
by the venerable chief justice of the district,
Cranch, the Extraordinarily the way-of Mr.
Erastus Brooks Mr. Fillmore simply took the
oath, but made no address, and after taking it
retired. General Taylors cabinet showed as
unfriendly disposition towards Mr.. Fillmore
as tine cabinet of General Garfield has mani
Tested towards Mr.. Arthur. No favor he had
ever asked had ever been granted. He had
recommended two persons as collector and
postmaster at Buffalo, where he resided. Not
only were they not appointed; the places
were hlled with Seward or Antl-Slavery
and not Fillmore Silver Gray
Wings. AS soon as Fillmore became President,
Mr.. Clayton, Secretary of State, sent in his
resignation, and Daniel Webster was
appointed in his place A few days after
ward an entirely new cabinet was made in
which Mr. Filmores law partner and intimate
friend and adviser, Nathan K Hall, was
placed as Postmaster-General Thereafter dur
ing Mr.. Fillmore's Administration the breach
between the Stalwarts of that day Qhe Seward
Anti-Slavery Wbigs) and the Half-Breeds of
that day (the Silver-Grays) widened continual
ly. The party which elected Fillmore hated
him as intensely when he retired as Tyler had
been hated. The administrations of these two
Vice Presidents prepared the way for the sue
cesses of the Democrats in the election of Polk
who succeeded Tyler, and of Pierce who sue
ceeded Fillmore.
The third OF our Viee-Presidential Presidents,
Andrew johnson, took the oath as President
as quietly and privately as Tyler had taken it.
His quarrel with the Republicans was not of
such sudden and rapid growth as the quarrels
of Tyler and Fillmore with the Wings but it
became in the end quite as irreconcilabie, rad
ical and bitter. Johnson's differences with his
old party leaders, like those of Fillmore, grew
out of his refusal to wage war politically upon
the South. Like Tyler, johnson formally
joined the Democratic party before he left tho
White House, and like Tyler he sought, but
sought in vain, a denomination from Demo-
cratic national convention