The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1884-11-19

State Casting its vote for him except New |
York. 1t would have done so had il not
neglected to choose electors in time. John /
Adams was elected Vice President.
They did not take as much interest in in |
augurations and meetings OF Congress then |
as now. Although the Constitution pro.
yided that the first Congress should convene i
in New York on the 4th Of March, 1850, it !
was not until April that a quorum OF the |
House of Representatives was secured, and |
i've days later before the Senate was ready ]
Tor business. Affairs dragged along 50 sloS.y !
that the Inauguration did not tie place ,
until the Goth OF April,
Washington .sade tour of the country |
during lI-1e 1ifst year he was President, visit
lpP all the States then in the Union. 1t was
not an electioneering tour, but tour OF in
speoiion, He furnished his own horses and
carriage, this being the only means OF travel
ing in those days. he introduced formal re-
ceptions to visitors and representatives OF
other Governments. He held a reception for
men on Tuesday, and Mrs. Washington re-
ceiyed both sexes on Friday, and on Thurs
dsy there was a dinner party for invited
guests.
Before the close of his FIRST term he made
it generally known that he did not desire a
reelection, partly because be desired to re-
tire to the quiet OF his Mount Vernon home
and partly to stop the talk about electing
him for life. James Madison and all the
leading public men joined not only IN re-
questiDg him TO serve another term, but in
insisting that he should do so. He was re-
elected in 1892 without opposition. This
election was fully as tame an affair as the
first one, but the Capitol had become more
of O social center, and Congressional affairs
were of more interesting character, there
being already two parties in each House.
About the time Washington's second
term was closing the two parties, Federal
and Republican, were getting pretty well
warmed up. John Adams, the Vice Presi-
dent, represented the former and Thomas
Jefferson, the first Secretary OF State, the
latter. They both entered the field for the
Presidency, and so did Thomas Pinckney and
Aaron Burr. Then no candidate was named
for Vice President, the Presidential candi-
date having the second highest number of
votes taking il. The friends of Adams and
Jefferson worked hard, and when it came to
vote Adams had II, Jefferson 6S. Pinckney
80 and Burr 30, with few scattering. JEFF
ferson was profuse in his congratulations to
Adams which caused George Clinton, Rufus
King and others to whisper, sour grapes"
when the matter was mentioned.
jefferson had it in for Adams, however.
He was but little about the Capitol, except
when presiding in the Senate, and took but
little part in politics, preferring rather to at
tend to his Monticello farm 1t is said that
he worked in the field every good day and
helped the hands about the barn when it
rained. He would hot read newspapers aud
seldom looked into book; yet he wrote con.
siderable on commerce and kindred subjects.
| He got most of his information in relation
| to State affairs from friends who visited him
| or through correspondence.
The Federalists nominated John Adams
! and @. @. PinckDey, ard the Republicans, or
| Democrats, as they were beginning to bo
called, brought out Jefferson and Burr
again. The contest was very spirited, the
| Republicans charging that Adams was a
monsrcbist and aristocrat. His friends in
| turn cited his famous speech made at the be.
| ginning of the war: The die is cast;
have crossed the Rubicon. Sink or swim,
| live or die, survive or perish with my coun-
| try, is my unalterable determination" His
record as q Representative and as Vice Presi-
! dent was overhauled. but there was no rsk-
| ing up OF private affairs.
When the electoral vote was counted
| Adams had but 65, Pinckney 81, while JEFF.
| ferson and Burr each had %. This necessi-
| tated throwing the election into the House,
as BUR was not designated as a candidate
| for Vice President, and his friends CLAIM
| that he was JJst as much entitled to the
| Presidency as Jefferson. The con test ia the
! House lasted for several weeks and grew
| very acrimonious. Several Of the quarrels
would have resulted in duets had it not been
| for the danger of one of the nIbatants be-
! ing killed, thereby giving the other side a
msjorjty OF one. Finally, on the Thirty
sixth ballot Jefferson won and Burr was
/ declared Vice President.
| In 1904 Jefferson was reelected President
/ by lis oct Of 176 electoral votes, and George
! Clinton was chosen Vice President. There
I was not much of q contest at this election;
1 the bitterness of the former having nearly all
/ disappeared. Before his first election Jeffer.
/ son had said he would not remove the off.
cials appointed by his predecessors. Presi.
/ dent Adams put in the last two days OF his
L
! and hurriedly left Washington CITY, to
! which the Capital had been removed shortly
/ before, refusing to remain for the Inaugural
! ton ceremonies. He was very sore toward
! Jefferson, and they remained az swords
| points for several years but finally became
friends again and both died on the same day,
| July 1S2G, and within an hour or two of the
same time John Adams lived long enough,
! however 10 have the extreme satisfaction OF
seeirg his son. John Quincy Adams, iusug.
ursted as the sixth President of the United
| States.
The campaign in which John Q. Adams
was elected was the first one OF real exciting
interest, at least as far as the general public
! were concerned. President Monroe had
made him his Secretary Of State. Having
/ been Minister to Russia, and being popular
among men of letters, he was easily induced
to believe be was "a bigger man than old
| Monroe" Scarcely had he gotten his seat
gan buzziDg around the heads of William
II. Crawford, Secretary of the Treasury and
John G. Calhoun, Secretary of War. Henry
Clay and Andrew Jackson were also brought
out, making five candidstes in all.
1t was q regular political circus. Elch
candidate had a strong following. aud they
went at each other hammer and toDgs,"
making the fire fl " Jackson was denounced
as backwcods "Yahoo," Adams was held
up as az sristoorat Crawford and Calhoun
as fire eaters" and Clay as nothing more
| than al orator in particular and a back
woodsman in general. The people became
excited, aud many were the broken heads
and bloody noses at "stump meetings
They were stump meetings in fact, as they
| were usually held in the woods, the speaker
standing on a stump. 1t was in this ca N
psigu that political speeches became known
as stump speeches" The contest between
Jackson and Clay was particularly bitter,
they both being from the West.
The election resulted in 81 electoral votes
for Adams, 80 for Jackson, Al for Crawford,
81 for Clay, Calhoun having Withdrawn in
| favor of Crawford. There being no choice,
| the election was thrown into the House OF