Evening journal., 1913-12-03
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
Why George Law Failed to
Get the Presidential
Nomination
By Holland.

Had the man for whom I voted
for the presidential nomination in
the national convention Of the Amer
lean party which was held in Phila-
delphia early in 1856 been nominated
we should have had as a candidate for
President a man who actually car
ried a hod as day laborer thirty
years before, his nomination" Cap
tain Frederick Wagner, who was pro-
vost marshal of New York City at
the time Of the draft riots in the sum-
mer of 1868. made this statement to
me while conversing recently upon
some features of the politics that pre-
vailed few years before the Civil
War.
" ] suppose that very few Of the
present generation and, in fact, none
but men who are well along in years
or who have studied our political his
tory, have ever heard of George Law,
continued Captain Wagner. yet but
for a very clever trick of politics
George Law would have been the
nominee Of the American party for
President instead of Millard Fillmore
in 1856.
Furthermore, had George Law
been nominated for President by the
American party the chances were at
least good that he would have been
nominated by the new Republican
party instead Of General John G..
Fremont.
"Some time after the Republican
national convention in 1856 had
placed General Fremont in nomina-
tion for the presidency | had a long
talk with Thurlow Weed. He told
me that if the American party had
nominated George Law he thought
that the Republican party would also
have nominated Law Had these two
parties nominated Law there was an
even chance that he would have beat
en- James Buchanan for the pres
idency.
George Law, whom / knew well.
had gained a national reputation, not
only as an engineer, but a great con-
tractor. His name was known all
over the United States in the early
forties as the young contractor who
had built the great aqueduct bridge
over the Harlem river by which the
waters Of the Croton aqueduct sys-
tenn were brought to Manhattan
Island and as the young carpenter
who had also built the wonderful res
ervoir which stood where the great
marble library which represents Gov
ornor Tilden's benefaction now
stands
George Law began life as a far
mer's boy not far from Troy, New
York. While still in his teens he
started away from home to earn his
living and to make a fortune. His
first job was that of hod carrier in
Troy. Twenty years later he was a
hank president in New York. and
thirty years later he was the master
Of steamship lines between New York,
the Isthmus of Panama and Cuba. He
was an intense American and a say
ing of his which was widely quoted
demonstrated his strong love for his
country. He realized what grAat op-
F, portunities our country offered TO
poor and friendless boys.
In New York we thought that
George Law would make a splendid
candidate for President. We could
carry on a rousing campaign fol
him by pointing to his life from tbs
humble post of hod carrier to thai
of one of the most influential Ameri
cans of his time.
Inc -NtM i yin tttCSdlto went ~
the Philadelphia convention enthusi-
astic in the support Of George Law s
nomination. I was a member of tha
delegation. Many of the delegates ol
the Southern States favored Laws
nomination. These delegates. how
ever, decided to hold a caucus on the
evening before the convention began
to vote for the presidential nomina.
tion. The expectation was that the
delegates from the Southern States
would heartily support the inomina
ton of George Law.
shortly after the caucus met
someone passed around among the