The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1912-09-18
JOHN c. FREMONT;
CID DAYS OF IS.
The Veterans Of the Early Political
Times in Iowa and the Warm
Presidential Con-
test.
NAMES ON WAGONS
Pole-RaIsing Very Popular and Much
| Speaking by Many Able Ora
tors-sketch "Woolly
Horse."
NAMES ON WAGONS

The veterans OF the old days of |
politics are meeting with Keokull peo- |
pie today-the Gays when Iowa had
been only a few years invested with
the dignity Of statehood and her
broad prairies and early forests had
scarcely been touched by the wood
mans axe, except to blaze a way to
direct the traveller on his course.
1 There we're no railroads here then
and there was a perfect stream OF
| emigrants bound for the still further
west "or bust" The presidential year
when Fremont ran was a notable
political period Any time Of the day,
from isolated homes, situated on the
highways, the settlers might look out
and see all kinds of vehicles, drawn by
i all kinds of animals used for that pur-
pose, horses, oxen, mules and cows.
4 Oftentimes they would see mixed
i team, even to a mich COW harnessed
up beside horse pulling quietly
/; along a prairie schooner in most OF
these cases, the wagons, large or
small, were covered, mostly with fac
tory cotton" with an occasional lay
er Of rag carpet and most OF these
: wagons bore the names of the owners
t favorite candidate for president and
vice president There were Buchanan
and Breckenridge" most of the time
4 abbreviated to Buck and Break;
: then Fremont and Dayton" or "The
Woolly Horse meaning Fremont, and
i Fillmore and DoDelson," emblazoned
S on the vehicles of this ever-moving
: caravan. 1t was wonderful sight
!. which will never be seen again and
y can scarcely be imagined.
!. Political pole-raising was a popular
L event. The democrats used hickory
/ wood, the others used quaking ash
4 and perhaps cotton wood. 1t Is not re
IS membered definitely as to this. The
u democrats usually had the talles'
% poles, probably because the hickories
o suitable for poles grew higher II
y those days than the other trees used
1T Anyhow, the old saying is, The long
est pole knocks the persimmon,' ant
l. possibly the reason why the demo
4 Gratis won that year was because the
d Iowa democrats used the longes
g poles Who knows?
n 1t is remembered dimly by boy
visitor to the state that year tina
there was much feeling shown in thu
contest and much speaking by man.
n able men.
The Candidates.
: There were three tickets for presi
dent and vice president in 1856 a
follows:
John C. Fremont and William I
h. Dayton, republican.
a James Buchanan of Pennsylvania
= and John G. Breckenridge of Ken
: lucky, democrats.
- Willard Fillmore of New York an
- Andrew Jackson Donelson of Tennes
80 see, a nephew of President Jackson.
The result of that election was tn
: election of Buchanan and Brecker
ridge.
:, The vote stood
y Fremont and Dayton received
!. popular vote of 341,264 and an elet
e toral vote of ia.
~, buCudHdH anu DiSShChi iuSO, PoP'
- lar vote, 1,S3S,169, and an electors
: vote of ia.
- Fillmore and Donelson, popular vot
- s74,534 and an electoral vote of s.
ed $4,000
I'd oo''" ~
~ John Charles Fremont was born
go Norfolk, Va, In 1913. ninety-nin
x,anrc a 90 Narf year 1912 will L