The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1907-12-27

SEARCHING THE PAST
II. Ms IN CHICAGO posTl


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Politicians, or at least those who es-
cape burial on election day, rely for
victory more upon good candidates and
campaign funds than omens, which is
one of the reasons perhaps why Chi
| cago's record as the lucky republican
convention city was not made the
keynote of the arguments before the
national committee in Washington
last week But it might have been.
Six victors in seven campaigns is a
percentage no other town can come
anywhere near equaling now and pro
badly never will equal.
| The first time a Chicago
republican presidential candidate was
elected was in 1860, when the most
important convention that ever has
been held in this city convened in the
old "wigwam" and named as the choice
| of the party Abraham Lincoln. And
how wise a choice that was and how
able the Illinois lawyer the subsequent
years of the war of secession showed.
1t was great campaign that fol-
lowed the nominating of Lincoln. He
was opposed by three other candi-
dates, the scholarly and polished Doug
las, a democrat; Breckenridge, another
democrat, and Bell, the Union cand-
date. The excitement ran high all
over the country and in the south were
made open threats that the nation
would be severed if Lincoln were elee-
| ted. Yet in the end it was a com
paratively easy victory for the rail
| splitter, who received a popular vote
| of l,s6G,352 to l,375,l57 for Douglas.
| Eight years later in 1868, the re-
publicans again held their national
| convention in Chicago and selected
General Grant to be their leader. The
democratic candidate was Seymour,
and when the votes had been counted
| it was shown that Grant had won by
a majority of 350,45S. Then for
twelve years the republican party de-
serted its old stamping ground, re-
| turning in 1880 to nominate James A.
Garfield to succeed President Hayes.
| Winfield s. Hancock was the democra
| tic candidate that year and the cam
paign was a hot one, but the man
who had followed the towpath in
his youth had the advantage of Chi
cago luck"-along with other, things
land became the next president of
the Union by the narrowest of mar
gins receiving only 1913 more votes
than his principal rival.
The year 1884 brought the first
defeat of a republican nominated in
this city. That was the year when
James G. Blaine seemingly realized
his life's ambition by capturing the
republican nomination after one of the
most exciting conventions in the his
tory of the party. But that year the
democrats also held their convention
| in Chicago and the man they chose
! to contend for the mastery with the
Maine statesman was Grover Cleve-
land of New York. That was a cam
paign! Never was candidate more
bitterly lampooned than the plum
ed knight" but his brilliancy and mag
netism seemed to insure him the vie
tory Then in the closing days of the
struggle when the republican leaders
were reckoning up their candidates
majority, Blane's peryerse destiny de-
feated him. A clergyman until then
unknown outside of the city arose at
reception given the republican no.
minee by the clergy of New York City
and spoke the four famous words,
| Rum, Romanism and rebellion" II hen
came election day and the ."plumed
knight" was defeated and Burchard's
name was ON every mans tongue from
Maine to California. His four words
had thwarted an able politicians life
hope.
Not bit discouraged the repub-
leans came back to Chicago in 1888,
and this time nominated Benjamin
Harrison of Indiana. The democrats
thought the country wanted -four
wears more of Grover" and gave him
second nomination but in spite of
the advantage which is enjoyed by
the party in office, General Harrison
was victorious. After that for six
/ teen years the republicans turned their
backs upon the city which had served
them so well, and did not hold another
convention here until 1904 when Theo-
dore Roosevelt was declared the party
choice and proved that he was the
eountry's choice as well.
Considering the self-imposed handi-
caps under which the democratic presi-
Dental nominees usually labor that
party has done well in the years
when it held its conventions on the
shores of Lake Michigan, the record
to date standing two victories to two
defeats. Far back in 1864 the partys
delegates met in Chicago and chose
to run against President Lincoln Cen
eral George b. Mcclellan, Little Mae,
as the soldiers of his army had called
him. But the country loved the kindly
hearted man who had served it so well
| in the White House during the four
most trying years of its history and
Lincoln was reelected and thus sent
to his death in Ford's Opera house in
Washington on Good Friday night
1865.