The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1895-10-29

nave completely luSlllleu tne measure,
and although my enemies may condemn
the harshness Of the remedy yet my
friends will approve of 1t; the newspa-
per squlbs which have and will appear
on the occasion are OF no consequence
they may tell lies as usual, but they
cannot take off the beating"
And on March 10th, 1898, he writes his
father, Governor Griswold, evidently in
reply to letter in which his father had
cautioned him against amy further VIC
lence, as follows:
~ have no idea of committing any fur
Their violence myself;the violence which I
committed by chastising the Vermonter
had become absolutely necessary. I
was reduced to the necessity either of
leaving Congress with disgrace to my
self, and, in addition thereto, to leave a
stigma on the state which would be
constantly thrown at our representa-
tive, or to wipe off the stigma by in
ficting a public chastisement, chose
the latter, as believe every man who
possessed any spirit would have done;
and, although 1 regret the occasion, yet
I believe 1 shall never lament the meas
ure."
Edmund Quincy in his life of his ia
Their, Josiah Quincy, who was CO league
of Griswold, thus speaks Of the affair;
"In 1897 he Gyon) went to Congress,
where he inaugurated in January, 1898,
the series of aets of personal insult and
violence which have disgraced congress
from time to time, by splitting in the
| ap
some occasion of offense he took at him.
The house refusing to expel him by a
strict party, vote, Mr.. Griswold took
justice into his own hands, and caned
him in his seat a few days afterwards,
for which singular process he too went
scot-free, also by a party vote, neither
the administration nor the opposition
commanding the two-thirds requisite for
the expulsion of a member"
Griswold's excuse for an attack which
so nearly resembled the attack of
Brooks upon Sumner, but fortunately
resulted in less serious consequences,
was, as will be seen, that the house hav-
ing refused by a strict party vote to
expel Lyon for splitting in his face, there
was nothing left for him to do but to
take the case in his own hands, and
administer the cane in order to preserve
his own honor, and to prevent a stigma
and disgrace from attaching to the state
and to himself.
Two caricatures of the affray became
quite famous-one representing the first
occurrence, pictured the Vermonter as
a lion with the countenance of man
wearing wooden sword, and splitting in
Griswold's face, who eXclaims, what a
beastly action This caricature it is
now impossible to obtain, and we know
1t only by description.
The other caricature representing the
second assault is still in existence, and
is so curious that have had it repro.
duced.
There is little in the history of this
incident of which either Connecticut OF
Vermont can be proud, and yet it may
be said of both of the actors that they
were men who though widely differing
in birth, temperament and education
We're types of the political parties of the
day. Aside from the fierce animositie.
. engendered in those times, they were
each kind, affable, and indeed lovablt
men. Connecticut honors the memoir,
Of GriswGld and Vermont honors tn,
memory Of Lyon Reference to the i'm
fortunate contest is valuable only as re
calling to our attention the history o
the period and serving to remind III
that much as we may deprecate some o
!, the features of present political strif
and what we are wont to term the Ii
cense Of the partisan press, there ha
been vast Improvement in this respec
since the administration Of Presiden
John Adams