Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1895-11-27
For the Herald and Tribune.
The First Mention of Folks Name For
President.

heooeo Poii,iSe auu Vi Andrew JACKSON,
In which he states that when Martin
Van Buren's letter, opposing the an.
%nexation of Texas, and which was first
published in the Eastern papers about
March, 1874, was shown to jackson at
the Hermitage, that then and there Old
Hickory Nominated" Polk for Presi
dent in 1874, and hat this was the first
mention made of Folks name in con-
nection with the Democratic nomina.
ton for the Presidency. Such, how
ever, is not the case; as we will show
further on in this article that Polk was
nominated, or a%tleast mentioned as the
Democratic nominee for President, here
in Jonesboro about June, 1S43. Going
back to 1886, those who are familiar
with the history Of that period will re.
member that the National House of
Representatives both in 1885 and 1887:
largely through Jackson's Influence,
too, for unless a man stood in with
old Hickory in those good old days he
got no Office.
In 1886 Tennessee wanted Hugh l..
White for her Presidential candidate,
but Jackson wanted Van Buren, for the
Democratic candidate, and Van Buren,
he would and did have. In order to
make things solid with Whites friends
Jackson offered White the Vice Presi.
dency on the. ticket with Van Buren,.
But White refused to accept the Vice
Presidential nomination on the ticket
with Van Buren,; and became a candi.
date for the Presidency, and what is
more wonderful still, he carried the
State OF Tennessee against the COM
bined influence of Jackson, Polk, Van
Buren, and all of Jackson's office hold
ers thrown in. Owing to the fact how.
ever that the opposition was divided up
between White, w. H. Harrison, w.
2. Manguim and Daniel Webster, Van
Buren, was elected. But history fails
to record how many sulphurous oaths
"Old Hickory" belched forth because
Tennessee voted for White. and not
Van Buren, in 1886 in 1889 Polk came
back to Tennessee and ran for Cover.
nor in order to redeem" the State and
place it in the jackson column"ready
for 1910. Polk defeated Cannon for
Governor in 1889, but when 1910 rolled
around, Tennessee voted for Harrison
and Tyler, and this too against the
combined influence of President Van
Buren,, ex.President Jackson, Governor
Polk and all the office holders, both
State and Federal.
When the time to name the candi-
dates for Governor in 1S41 rolled
around, Polk became a candidate to
succeed himself, but the Wings de-
termined to redeem" the State, and so
they named Jas. G.. Jones as their AN
didate. Jones was undoubtedly the
most wonderful man that ever figured
in Tennessee politics. Prior to 1889 he
was unknown as a public man outside
of Wilson County, but that year he
was elected to the Legislature and made
some character in that body by his
speeches, and in 1910 as a stumper. But
to pit such a seemingly common place
fellow as Jones against Polk was looked
upon by the Democrats as preposterous
in the extreme. Polk, who had served
a number of terms in Congress and
who had twice been Speaker of that
body, and who in 1S4l was one of the
most polished and gifted, the best
posted and the ablest stump speaker in
Tennessee. He and his Democratic
friends, therefore, looked forward to
an easy and a triumphant victory over
the long, lank uncouth plowman from
Wilson County.
But when they met on the stump,
such speeches as Jones made had never
before been heard in Tennessee, and
their like have never been heard since:
no II at that time could describe them,
nor has any one since that time been
able to describe them. Such crowds as
gathered to hear these two champions
had never before been seer in Tennes.
see. The fame of their can vass pre-.
coded them and great numbers of peo-
pie would 60 down into the country be-
low to hear them; then hear them in
their own county and then follow them
on into the next county. Here atJones
boro in 1S41 they spoke on the hill
then in woods-beyond Argenbright's S.
To be brief Jones was elected over
Polk by some 1900 votes. But the
Democrats could see how it was
was done, and so in 1S43 it was Polk
and Jones, with the same speeches,
only more so, over again. They reached
Jonesboro along in June and spoke in
the grove in the Jonesboro Graded
School yard. In the crowd was Adam
Broyles, ST., of Broylesville; he was
known throughout the lower end of
the county, not only as the best farmer
in that section, but also as a very ar.
dent Democrat. He was q great Jack
son man; Jackson was his idol and he
had always been one of Old Hickory's
most staunch supporters. And when
jackson passed through here along
about 1885, from Washington to the
Hermitage, he drove down by Mr..
Broyles' home and took breakfast with
him. 1t is needless then to add that