The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1920-10-06


presidential campaign Of 1872 re-
suited in a trasedy-the insanity
and death OF Horace Greeley. 1t
took the organization OF the Repub:
lican party out Of the hands Of the
men who had founded it and turned
it over to another group OF Republic
cans, in whose control it remained
until after the rise Of Roosevelt. 1t
added to the lexicon Of Democratic
party historians the. phrase the
Greeley fiasco." And. more import
ant Dian all, 1t marked the begins
ming bf the end Of the political party
orgaA newspaper. and vas respon-
sibleffor an Independent press.
The liberal Republican movement
Of 1S71-72 was the most consider
able detection the Republican party
had suffered since its organization.
Its effect on the party was not dis
astro1s, but it carried into the DEM
ocratic party many OF the men who
were most prominent in the early
days of Republicanism. It is re-
markable fact that more than two
thirds Of the men prominent in tho
Republican convention of 1856 and
1860, died Democrats or Independ-
ents.
Even more remarkable is the fact
that this great detection from Re-
publican ranks was the result of q
movement headed by Clement VAL
1andingham OF Ohio. Vallanding-
ham was the arch-Copperhead of
the whole north and was arrested
by General Burnside and banished
to the confederate states Of Amer
lea. and was execrated by every 10y
alist north OF the Mason and Dixon
line. Yet It was this same Valland-
ingham who, in 1871 in the famous
Dayton platform, declared for the
unification of all elements opposed
to Grant on the basis of complete
acceptance of the results of the war,
the reconstruction policy, the
amendments to the constitution and
SO on. So radically did this policy
differ from that formerly held by
northern Democrats that the VAL
landfngham movement was called
"The New Departure.
A Newspaper Campaign.
The Democratic press. headed by
the Missouri Republican, afterward
the St. Louis Republic, and the
Louisville Courier-Journal, broke
away from conventional moorings
and hailed the New Departure" AS
the political salvation Of the land
The vallandingham origin OF the
movement was lost sight of and Edi-
ttor Grosvenor of st. Louis and Edi-
tor Watterson of Louisville, be-
came the leaders in the Democratic
ranks.
Meanwhile General Grants ad-
ministration was alternating old
time Republican leaders by the
score. General Grant was a great
soldier, but his most ardent admir-
ers cannot commend his judgment
in selecting men to assist 5him in
civil administration. Scandals with
out number were continually arts
ing. The secretary Of war, Will
liam w. Belknap, and the Secretary
Of the navy, George NJ. Robson,
were accused of all kinds of graft.
The New York Sun. then edited by
Charles A. Dana, every day thun-
/, deredr against the Robbers at
Washington" Meanwhile General
Grant was blind to many things
was blinded to others. was too trust
full Of some Of his advisers and
was attempting to run the whole
administration on a military plan
Horace Greeley raised the flag OF
revolt in the Tribune. Charles
sumner, another chieftain of the an.
ti-slavery agitators, Joined in. Cas-.
sius M. Clay OF Kentucky and Hin.
ton r. Helper of North Carolina
the premier southern abolitionists
and Republicans, followed the new
departure" The movement was
crystallized by the merging of party
lines in Missouri in an effort to gain
complete amnesty for confederate
soldiers in that state. The Missouri
leaders issued call for national
convention to meet at Cincinnati.
A Gathering Of the Great.
When the Liberal Republican
National convention met at Gin.
cinnati ON May l.. the country be-
lieved it faced a political crisis
The personnel Of the convention
was extremely able. Few politica
gatherings in the history of thu
country showed SO many, famo0.
names on the roster. Carl Schuri
was permanent chairman and b.
made the speech Of the party revo
luton. The leading candidate a
first was Charles Francis Adam!
of Massachusetts,. Next to him wa!
Mr.. Greeley, and then Lyman
Trumbull Of Illinois, B. Graf
Brown of Missouri, David Davis o
Illinois, Andrew G. Curtin of Penn
sylvania and the perennial Salmon
p. Chase.
Greeley was nominated on tn,
sixth ballot and B. Gratz Brown o
Missouri was chosen for secon,