Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-09-21
Presidential Campaigns
I The dsrns-Jark son Crawford Clay
Race Of 1924.
By Frederic i. Hastfn
BY Frederic J. Haskin

] most interesting TEXTURES Of each of the
| presidential campaigns from 1924 To 1920.
| This series Of articles will be valuable To
everybody interested IN the present cam
paign for President, and will contain
| much interesting historical information
| Of the kind usually overlooked in the
| histories-tlis Incidents and the stories
Of the campaigns. Taken as whole, this
/ series will rrn complete history Of the
quadrcnnial struggles Of the American
people TO choose q President Cut them
out and paste them in yonr scrap-book. }
Washington, d. c., Sept. 2I-Wben
the citizens Of Blount county, Tennessee,
held rnass-meeting at Maryviile early
| in the year 1923 they little thought that
their action was 10 revolutionize the meth
ods Of choosing President Of the United
States; that they were 10 be responsible
for the beginning Of political party organi-
zations in this country; or that they we're
TO take the first step in the movement
which succeeded in obtaining recognition
of the fact that q man has a right 20 as
| pire 10 the office Of President, whether
trained or unframed in statecraft These
vitality important things which directly
resulted from the Biount county mass
meeting became issues in the campaign Of
! 1874 and caused that contest 70 be the
first IN which the American nation se-
lected a President according 10 the gen
ernl methods still obtaining.
Ihis Blount county mass meeting
started all the trouble n refused 20 BE-
bound by the then recognized rules that
President must be selected from among
those schooied IN statecraft and expert
eDced IN administration. Every PreSi-
dent up TO that time had been a man
directly connected with the separation
from England and the formation of the
Republic under the Constitution. Each
President had been either Vice President
or Cabinet officer in the administration
preceding his selection. The people had
practically nothing to say in the matter
Of choosing electors and such thing az
popular interest in a presidential cam
paign was unknown. Furthermore, with
the exception Of the four years Of John
Adams administration, the head of the
government had been a Virginian and
representative Of an exclusive cIioue
which set much store by knowledge and
culture, however democratic they nav
have been in their theories Of government.
THE -FOUR CANDIDATE.
TIE idea Of the succession 10 the Prea-
dency was firmly fixed in the minds Of the
politicians. Ii happened that four candi-
dates appeared on the horizon. They we're
John Quincy Adams of Massachusetts,,
Secretary Of State: William Fl. Crawford
Of Georgia, Secretary Of the Treasury;
John G. Calhoun Of South Carolina.
Secretary Of War, and Henry CLAW Of
Kentucky, Speaker Of the House Of Rem
resentatives. So II appeared that the
country was safe. whatever che outcorne.
for every one of the sspirants was train
ed statesman of prominence IN the adj
ministration.
Then this Blount county nass-rnecting
apeared on the scene II pow-woved
awhile one FIRST Monday" and then
adopted a resolution formally nominating
for President of the United States, AndrpT
Jackson of Tennessee. Thus originated
what would be known IN twentieth CEN
tury political nomenclature as the Ten
nessee Idea" Andrew Jackson had been
a great soldier. Everybody recognized
that fact and everybody praised him for
the strategy Of The Horseshoe and the
military genius OF the Battle of New Or
leans. But he had little or no experience
IN statecraft, notwithstanding a short
service IN both Houses Of Congress. The
conservatives all over the country held
As NA.BA A31aS BDSS AfGLFDT ana G[-fd
out: This man is not fit o-be President.
He Is undgnified. He can't speak French.
He doesn' know the classics. He wouldn
know how 70 act at dinner party. He Is
unspeakable.
For a time the three members Of
Monroe's Cabinet and the Speaker of the
House who were running for President
declined 70 pay much attention 10 the
Jackson candidacy, which was regarded
as Joke. At this time, II must be remem-
bered, there was only one party. The old
Federal party organization had disap-
peared and Monroe had received every
vote but one-in the electoral colleges OF
1870. The Democratic party had every
thing its own way.
KING CAUCUS CANNED.
The Tennessee Idea was crystallired
in a set Of resolutions passed by the state
legislature, and sent TO the legislatures OF
King Caucus" Presidential nominations
had been dictated by the congressional
caucus, but the method was already be-
coming unpopular. The Tennessee Idea
spread, and with it's spread the Tennessee
candidate became stronger. The Hero OF
New ORLEANS appealed TO the popular
mind, even il he was unpopular with the
statesmen.
Early in 1924 King Caucus made his
last stand, only So of the Dol members Of
Congress attending the meeting which
solemnly declared William III. Crawford.
Secretary Of the neaSury, TO be the reg
ul9r mocratic-Repubhcan nominee
for> President. Observation-Disclosures
was the official name Of the party. al
though either name was used popularity. /
The old conservative organization made a
firm stand for Crawford. He had the sup I
port of Thomas Jefferson, the founder OF the I
party, of President Monroe, and Of all 4
the ultra-conservative forces. But Jack 4
sons strength began 70 be apparent, and .
some of the practical politicians Of the 4
East were not slow TO recognize the fact. 4
A Jackson convention was held at Harris 4
burg, Pennsylvania, which adopted a \
resolution denouncing the scheme OF 4
succession TO the Presidency by a Cabinet |
officer. George III. Dallas was then boss 1
IN Pennsylvania and he handed the state 4
over to jackson. Whereupon Calhoun, 4
whose main strength had been in Pennsyl- 4
vania, withdrew from the race and was
by everybody as candidate fof
Vice President.
jackson was hailed as the Peoples (
ON the one side, and denounc-
ed as an audacious and presumptuous
lgnoramus on the other There were
then 24 states IN the Union. In 10 Of 1
these, presidential electors were chosen
by popular vote for a general ticket. in
the fashion now universally prevailing.
In seven, the electors were voted on by
districts. And IN the other seven. the