El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-11-02
Breaking Up Of the Parties
N-CONGRESSIONAL CAMPAIGNS.

THE Wing landslide of 1910 which
| elected "Tippecanoe and Tyler
| too" gave the Wings a large
majority Of the house of representa-
| tives, but like the popular Wing fci
| lowing it was united in nothing but
opposition to Van Buren, and the pre-
| vailing type of Democracy. General
| Harrison died after only a month in
! the white house and was succeeded by
John Tyler, a Calhoun Democrat whose
refusal to support Van Buren, was bas-
ed not upon his sympathy with Clay
! and other Wing leaders, but upon the
| fact that Van Buren, was too much
| of loose constructionist. The Wing
majority passed a bill chartering 4
national bank. Tyler vetoed it, An
other bill was drawn TO meet the OBJ
| jections of ithe president, but he We
teed that also. The Wings denounced
him, and in the off" year election of
1912 the Democrats won a sweeping
victory and gained control of the low
er house of congress by a majority of
two to one
Texas Becomes an Issue.
The slavery question was becoming
more and more acute, sectional strife
was becoming more and more bitter.
But neither party was willing to take
stand on this ali important question.
The abolitionist party made it's appear
ance in 1910, but its candidates re-
ceived only a few more than 1000
votes. President Tyler favored the an
neXation of Texas, which would add
TO the slave territory. The Texas quos
ton became the principal issue. AS
the campaign of 1874 approached it
seemed that Clay and Van Buren,
would be the leaders of the two par
OF 4 Ax-iv7 crf IL
agreed to keep the Texas question out
of the presidential campaign. That
action cost Van Buren, the Democratic
nomination, for while he had a ma
jority of the delegates he could not
get the necessary two-thirds, and by
grace of Andrew Jackson, then virtu-
ally on his death bed. James K. Polk
was nominated by the Democrats at
Baltimore.
Clay received the Wing nomination
He weakened himself materially By
writing to an Alabama Wing that he had
no personal objection to the annexa-
ton of Texas. Polk materially
strengthened himself by demanding
the complete occupation of Oregon 10
the northernmost boundary, and his
slogan of "Fifty-four forty or fight
was as compelling in it's alliterative
lure as was the "Tippecanoe and Ty-
Ter, too of four years before. The
Liberty Abolitionist party polled more
than $1,000 votes of which $4,000 We're
cast in New York. Had these votes
gone to Clay he would have been elect
ed But even yet the sectional issue
was not clearly drawn Polk and Clay
were both southerners and slavehold-
ers Polk failed to carry his own
state of Tennessee, the only time a
successful presidential candidate ever
failed to get the electoral woes of his
own state He did carry many north |
ern states. however-Illinois, Indiana, |
Maine, Michigan. New Hampshire. |
New York and Pennsy lvania4 Clay |
carried five slave states-Kentucky, |
Tennessee, Delaware, Maryland and |
North Carolina.
Make Changes In Congress.
Yet in the congressional elections |
of 1S46 the people refused to be ih
fluenced by the war with Mexico and
casting all party and personal Loyalty |
aside they elected a new congress. |
OF the 22S memebers chosen that ar :
fewer than a hundred had served in the |
previous congress. The proportion or |
new members was greater than at any !
time, not excepting even the Young
congress elected in 1919.
Among the new men elected in that
year by the revolt of the Conscience
Wings" OF Illinois, was Abraham Lin
coin. On the same day be took his
seat in the house, jefferson Davis was
sworn in as a senator from Mississippi
Born in the same twelvemonth and
within a few miles Of each other IN
Kentucky, one had gone to Illinois in
poverty and wretchedness to become in
time the great leader OF the union
cause. the preserver of the union ard
the chief apostle of American De-
The other had quit the army
after a brilliant career and was now
Mississippi patrician, destined to be-
come the chief champion OF Calhoun
of states rights and fated 10
captain the lost cause of the south.
In this congress there was nominal
Wing majority, but in fact the south
was in control and party lines lid
not measure sectional differences
The party organizations were based
lpon the prejudices engendered in past
quarrels, and depended for
heir success upon the personality "1
heir candidates. Neither party was
,rave enough to adopt a platform Of
principles dealing with the main queS-
ion actually at issue.
sectionalism Grows.
Congressional elections, however, be-
ran to take on more anu more IIle COI- ! ,
ring of sectionalism. Even as early
Is 1914 several prominent New York
Democrats, who had supported Van
suren for the nomination, advised me
eople to vote for Polk, but at the
anne time, TO elect members Of con- ]
,ress opposed to annexation. Chief
lmong these T.nsuGgent"N Democrats
vas William Cullen Bryant, editor OF
he New York Evening Post This was
he first gun fired in the battle be- !
ween insurgent and regular Demo I
rats which was to give the opportuu- ,
ty for founding the new Republican
arty. II
The off" year of 1916 was a rev.
lutionary one in politics in all parts
I the union, but in New York espec-
ally the partisan and factional war
are was bitter Many old members
{ congress retired, others were defeat
a for nominat ions, others were beaten
I the polls, often by an independent
andidate bearing the same party Ia
ell