Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-04-26
of THE EVENING STAR.

company A, state guard, called to
Fort Clary from July to September. 1864.
Searching the records he came upon this mus
ter roll, and the foregoing comment was written
under the head of remarks" against the name
of Private Hannibal Hamlin.
MIR. Hamlin was at that time Vice President
OF the United States, and it is a curious fact
little known outside of his own State-that
this great man, whom all our Maine people re-
spect despite his radical political ideas, and
whom Massachusetts remembers as whilom COL
lector for the port of Boston, while holding the
next to the highest Office in the nations gift.ac
tually enlisted as a private in the United States
service. at critical stage of the war. and donning
Ibis suit of blue" and shouldering his musket
held himself subject to call to the front or
wherever else the military powers that be might
ordain.
He Is justly proud of this record and also
That 1t is his province to represent the extreme
right OF the Maine Grand Army line. he being
the Oldest member of that organization in the
state Although an octogenarlan he goes annu-
ally 10 the meeting of the national encamp-
ment, not lnfrequenty III some far western
state and his presence is sure to awaken lively
enthusiasm among the boys in >ue At the
81. Louis encampment few years ago, by
pretty coincidence, Maine was represented In
her delegation by both the oldest and the
youngest of her G. "A. II. men, Hannibal HamIin
and Edwin c. Milliken, the difference in whose
ages Is over forty years. Private Hgmlin served
the two months of his term OF enlistment at
fort Clary and was then honorably discharged.
HAMLIN AND FREMONT.
1t is not little singular that of all the promi-
nent actors in our great national war drama
about the only ones left upon the stage are Han
nlbal Hamlin and Fremont And this recalls the
remarkable Fremont-H amlin campaign of ST in
Maine, campaign which. to quote the words
or Mr.. Hamlin, further on. was climaXed by an
election that set IN motion a ball that rolled
on and resulted in the election of Lincoln as
President" He might have added: And of
Hamlin as Vice President"
mat September campaign in Maine was by
the whole nation watched with bated breath
as her verdict it was supposed, would fore
shadow the result of the titantic struggle in
November. But the Maine horoscope how
ever, proved Elusive, for. although the state
wheeled from the democratic into the republi-
can column by heavy majority. 10. when No
vember came the much boosted Quaker repub-
llcan reserve i'll Pennsylvania proved a myth
ana Buchanan rode triumphantly into the
White House
But to return to the state campaign. Where
was the man, who by the prestige of his name
might lead the republican party to victory?
Inc incumbent of the gubernatOrial chair was
democrat. Hon. Samuel Wells, who, in the
reaction following the so-called Maine liquor
law riot in Portland III June. 1855. which had
been suppressed, though not without blood
shed, by the intrepid author of the law
Mayor Neal Dow, had been elected over his
predecessor, Gov. Arson L. Morrill, (brother of
the late ex-united States Senator and treasurer
Lot NJ. Morrill), republican and Maine law
candidate, by about 5000 majority. Through
the efforts of Judge Henry Carter (now of
Haverhlll, Mass of the Portland Advertiser,
James u. Blaine of the kennebec Journal and
ont nl 1.,.t.1
question as "a political issue temporarily
ignored and all the anti-savery elements were
moblllzed into a harmonious, solid force The
man selected to lead this force was Hannibal
Hanlln. then of Hamden a democrat who not
long before had broken from his party and gone
over to the republicans. A native of
Maine. brainy and adrot politician. yet
withal a man of sterling personal integrity and
worth, who, as member of the legislature and
OF both branches OF Congress-to which he had
first been elected as Representative in 1873
iiau made brilliant record his was rightly
deemed the name to conjure by. At first re-
luctant he soon yielded to the opportunities
OF those prominent in Maine republican coun-
CHS. resigned his seat in the Senate and took
the stump for what they were pleased to term
Free speech, free men, Fremont
TOLD BY MR.. HAMLIN HIMSELF.
The result of that contest is best told by Mr..
Hamin himself in the following extract from a
ieetcI W the WTltcT OI ILLS sketcn:
Il think the political campaign in Maine in
1856 and its results the most remarkable of any
that has ever taken place in this country. In
1855, think, the democrats carried the state
by about 5000 majority. In 1856 the republi-
cans were successful and their majority over
the democrats was about 26 600; over the demo-
Gratis and straight wings united about $4,000
That election set the ball in motion that rolled
on and resulted in the election of Lincoln as
President
Saturday evening before the election on
being asked for my opinion, at a very large
meeting in Bangor, stated that the republi-
cans would carry the state by TO- 600 majority,
with good margin for much larger major
lty. Well, the margin proved a large one, as
the result shows. Some of my friends thought
me a little wild in my estimate, but the esti-
mate proved to be wild only in undertaking
the result. Yours, truly, II. HAMLIN."
THE OLDEST SURVIVING MEMBERS
Mr.. Hamlin and Hon. Freeman H. Morse are
the oldest surviving ex-Representatives in Con-
gress from Maine. The former lives in Ban
gor; the latter in England, where he at one
time represented our government as consul
When Mr.. Hamlin was first elected to Con-
gress Maine had seven congressional districts:
she now has four, which is likely to be reduced
to three by the next census. The delegation
was composed of the following: Luther Sever
ance, printer, whig; F. H. Morse merchant.
wing; Robert z. Dunlap, lawyer, democrat;
Hannibal Hamlin, lawyer. democrat; Joseph
Herrick farmer. democrat; Sheppard Cary,
merchant, democrat; Benjamin White, farmer.
democrat. The Senators were John Fairfield
democrat, and George Evans, whig Names
present delegation is: Senators. VIM. p FRYE
and Eugene Hale; Representatives, L. B. Reed,
Nelson Dingley, Seth L. Miliken Charles A.
Boutelle.
LOOKING BACKWARD.
MIR. Hamlin has certainly played diversity of
parts in Gfe-teacher, lawyer, journalist, Iegis-
lator, Congressman, Vice President, United
States collector, soldier, private citizen. His
general health is good, barring little touch Of
rheumatism in one of his knees. short time
ago, while journeying from his home in Bangor
to his native town OF Paris, in western Maine.
he remarked to an acquaintance II feel about
one hundred and twentysyears old in that knee
today, but otherwise feel as well and young
as ever did. am few months past seventy
nine years of age. 1 am not a member of a
family remarkable for longevity To be sure
am now on my way to Paris Hill to see
sister who is eghty-three years of age-the
only one besides myself of the family living
but my father died at the age of fftv-fiye.
when was teaching school at Paris, and so
suddenly that did not reach him until after
his death. am now out of politics. l have
not been in Washington often since I retired
from public life, but keep well abreast of the |
times, as most Of my time is now devoted to |
reading"