The evening times., 1896-05-21
PRESIDENT FOR ONE DAY.
Unique Distinction of IA Man Now
Almost Forgotten.

Almost Forgotten.
Grover Cleveland today is known as the
twenty third President of the United
States. He was in his first term The
twenty-first President, so 1t would seem
that the chair OF the Chief Executive OF
this republic has been occupied by only
twenty-five men. This is what general
history says.
There have been twenty-three men In
the office of President. and one of them
wore the honor for only one day. His
name is completely forgotten now.
March 4, 1919, came on Sunday, a day
that the Constitution does not recognize
as legal in the transa ction OF such official
business as administering the oath of
office. On that day at noon, President
Folks term OF office ended. the President
elect Zachary Taylor could not take his
place, or at least did not think he could.
The prospect of the country being without
an official head for the twentyfour hours
or there being doubt about who would be
the head. created discussion in Congress
and in the press.
When Gen. Taylor arrived in Washington
a few days before the Inauguration he was
bcsought to take the oath of office on
Sunday so as To prevent confusion and
what some persons believed TO be danger
Gus. 1t was in the hot days of the Free
Soilers'' and the Barn Stormers' and the
storm of slavery was bre wing. During Sat
urday and Saturday night there were haif
dozen fights in Congress. The Capitol was
a camp of violence, but Gen. Taylor held
out that he would not become President on
Sunday.
David R. Atchison of Missouri was Pres
ident pro tempore OF the Senate, and it was
held by Congress that the functions of
President must devolve upon him from
Sunday noon until Monday noon, and Tor
these twenty-four hours he has had the
States, having all the functions and powers
OF that office. The oath OF the office was
not administered Ia him for the same rea
son that ii was not Immediately admin
istered to Gen. Taylor; but he, being vir
tually Vice President, it was not considered
necessary.
That President Atchison considered him
self president there can be no doubt, for on
Monday morning, when the Senate reassem-
bled, he sent TO the White House for the
seal OF the great office, and signed one or
two Officials papers as President. These
were some small acts in connection with the
Inauguration that had been neglected by
President Polk.
But there was much fun and good-natured
badinage indulged in among Atchison's
friends and himself during his short Prcsi-
dental term He was Democrat, while
the Presdent-eiect was Wing. A ma
Jority of the Senate was Democratic. and
his friends jokingly proposed to him to usurp
the office by calling the army to his back
and preventing ''Oid Ironsides'' from be-
ing sworn in. If any such thing had been
seriously contemplated, Gen. Taylor was too
much the idol of the army to let 1t be sue
cessful.
Had Gen. Taylor been an unpopular man
and had Atchison had the character and am
bition OF dictator with "A friendly army.
Congress and timid supreme court, Presi-
dent Atchison's name would probably not
have been so soon forgotten and the consti-
tutionai day OF inauguratiDg the President
of the United States would have been
changed SO thatit would never a gain fall on
Sunday.