New-York tribune., 1886-05-02
r1 OpIDA "CARPETBAGGERS."
y,c1rRESQUE POLITICAL AND PERSONAL
ETCHINGS

,o+hap" rule IN FLORIDA WOuiu ne N"l"F'''' '''''
autmcntlon of William Watkia Hicks Witn him
,he world is slightly acquainted through MS once'
- 2piteau's spiritual adviser and ms speech'S
.hro,rh the North during the Garfield and bitihe
.r,oa,c,s Hicks was born IN Wales educated IN
pansrivania became a preacher, located III ''"or-
10 whore he edited "a religions weekly anu h"''S
,opoved 70 Florida establishing an oI'iSo e''
=. Frrit Cove on the s.. Johns. whore "" wal
Io+or he had his house burned down oy po'''i,"
.,c,n,es lie is very earnest in'"'
~; ho,r, is in a cause his eOquence Is captiNa'R
ondh his logic convincing He never hAd any ',0
of fear He be.ievel IN kepnohca"'S
ALWAYS spoke for II, though S''"ou "'' IL,
ana ncrsecuted IN all ways. lie was IN the L'HS'"-
A"O ,,,, tor,ns and WAS school COmnsslon-
,nCoyernor Stearns's Cabinet In January r1r''
1-;,oA S,otos Senator Con0ver came 10 IAN"
- HIS term was abOur 10 expire anu h' IL"
~, idea that a Democratic Legislature w0u
elect him if le made indlclous "oP. ,
own rcouest he Legisla ure aSheu M" W '''
on odlress before the members. Inc mecVinS was
Io,d in the Assembly Chamber. Ii was eSSehii'Y
q Democratic gathering Mr. Conoyer read MS
a,,oooh . amilk-an1-water essay on peace and good
will. Harrison Reed was called for, ana ne thouSh'
he might renounco Repubhcanism If the Demo-
cratic legislature would pay him some
SEQ 600 which he claimed he had advanced
10 the State in one of its hours of need. In the
hack part of the hall behind the railing score OF
Repnblcens stood. Hicks among them One OF
them called out Hcksw Two or three voices IN
,be hall family SAID HcksW The latter threw
aside shawl which he had around his shoulders
and marched up the ais C. The Democratic chair
man of the meeting vacated hls chair. Such tor
rent of eloqnence as Hicks poured out in the next
twenty minutes had never been heard in that hall
lie went over the theft of public property by seces
\ I l,,,., ,f hoS ia nDH0
Republican government the fact that there was a
large amount of hard cash left in the Treasury by
the Ecpubhcans hoped the Democrats would go on
with the cd work, and expressed his regard FOR
manly foes and his contempt for apostates ana
lvp,crites. The audience sdt spclbound ana theh
went ont INTO the night air cursng themselves be-
cause thcy had listened Mr. Hicks was pastor OF
q Methodist church in Jacksonville for six or eight
wears and when in Washington he preached to a
large and wealthy congregation there. lie bought
a great deal Of state land in this State at 50 cents
an acre years ago, and it is now worth so TO
SlOO He has several orange groves, on one OF
winch he is living in Orange County.
Ihave mentioned Simon Il. Conover's name lie
was from New-.Jersey. lie was graduated as doe
Tor in 1865 Immediately enlisted. and was as
signed to the Army Of the Cumberland as surgeon.
He was subsequently ordered to Lake CITY, Fla,
where he resigned his army appointment. lie was
q ad,leg,te TO the Chicago Convention in SOS then
a member Of the lower house of the Legislature and
i pre,idlng officer He was State Treasurer under
Governor Reel. Mr.. COlover served one term as
United States Senator. Although he NAV not he
called an able man, ne is an active and persistent
one. lie Is now living in comfort at Tallahassee.
Auotherof the "carpetbag" senators was Abijah
Gilbert who came from Gilbertsville n. Y, and
settled at ST. Augustine. He was reputed to be a
man of wealth and do not know that he had any
desire for Office until that of United States Senator
was suggested to him by Frederick W. Dockery
not ovcr-scrupulous fellow from Rhode Island
who had been appointed Collector of Gus
toms at Jacksonville. At all events Dock
cry got large sum of money from
Nj Gilbert "tO make the Legislature all
,pht" and he went to Tallahassee with a generous
supply of all kinds of SPIRITS opening bar and
free lunch in both parlOrs Of the one large hotel.
where he worked dav and night tor-Dockcry
{" Why. You caunot be United States Senator"
sa d one man TO him "You are not twenty five
years old !" ,
d" Oh. don't mind little tnlng ike tnat! was
DocEcry overdid the business, and when the re-
action came two three # Gilberrs friends took
adyapta.e of II and secured his election. Mr. Gil
bert was succeeded by JOneS-a Democratic - car
p,tbageer,' by the way, for be was born IN Ireland
AZ 10 DOckery one day somebody telegraphed
him from W SHIN gton that two Treasury examiners
were coming t. Jacksonville. Dockery locked mp
his safe and. forgetting to leave the combination,
vent TO iiavana by way of Cedar Keys. In Havana
ne was sclzed by Tie SpaniaIds as a rebel
Spy, pat III Moro Castle. tired by eonri
the tinted States Consul, sent IN chains
10 Madrid dungeon, bribed the turnkey. made his
way 10 the Mediterranean, aud escaped In an open
boat, was picked mp by an Eng ilsn snip; taken 10
London. borrowed money enough OF W. H. Gleason.
buy ticker to New-lork, gave hlmseit up TO
United States marshal. and was brought back to
Honda to ausNer an Indictment that had been
found against hlm for taking the money winch the
Two Treasury officials did not find In the safe, after
spending four weeks IN opening 1t with the and OF
dulls and gunpowdcr. DOckery conducted his own
defence showed defect i'll the return OF the i'll
Clctmemt. and was dIScharged by United states
Judge settle in 1876 lie became . burden 10 old
time acquaIntances-I believe he never had friend
and they bought ticket and put him Oh board a
train for the NOrth.
was a carpet tbagger' from Wisconsin, of an adj
vcuturous disposition. gong far bey0nd he pale OF
civilization, even to the wiids OF Dade COUNTY;
where he became the of large tracts of l1nd
which the State sold for 80 cents Often
and often has be told me Of the Eden Ike goIes OF
thecoast country of Dade. Yet home
has been at Eau Gallle in BICvald County. Dade
County according to ihe census of 1870 had
population OF eighty-hve. |, always cast fourteen
Sotes Gleason certified TO the fact. Most Of the
voters worked GeaSOns land. aud il is probable
that the returns were correct. The count stood
nine Republican and live Democratic. Gleason was
clerk OF the county, ana Always, represented ~ III
fhc Legislature. He was elected Lieutcnant-Gov-
ernor with Hamilton Reed. His ideas of Florida
were ALWAYS exalted, and hc was III London TO en-
gage English capital to develop part OF tie state,
when called upon by Dockcry. mission IN which
le was unsuccessful being eight or ten years ahead
OF his time. Mr. Gleason is well on, having large
income from his fruit orchards at Eau Gal!Ie. =,
One Of the most prominent men III Florida poll
tics is HoratiO Bsbee, jr. He was horn IN Canton,
Me-, i'll 1889. lie has just been graduated from
Tufts College when the war broke out, and he at
once enlisted in the first organization that was at
hand-the 9Th MISUNDERSTANDING the three
months as "a private Then he went home and hciped
raise the 9th Maine. of winch he was
elected Lieutenant Colonel He was gallant /
l.t,tL Ms WAY he
tered ont of service in 1868 at Jacksonville. Here
he married a Southern gIl, and started West to /
study law He stopped at Roc kiord, lll liked the
Mace and got IN opportunity TO enter The office Of
L., Wric.l.t On lnnn aluittel 10 lie