Milford chronicle., 1928-06-29
LITTLE BAND WAGON
JOURNEYS n.r. MERRILL Rz
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co. 1928. Western Newspaper 0nion.N
1.-The Only Unanimously
Elected President

Elected PreSIdent
THE founding fathers, WHIT
4 framed the Constitution in the
belief that our Presidents would be
elected by a group of staid and
steady councillors of state, the elec
tOral college, uninfluenced by parti
sanship, would be surprised and
dumfounded by the hurrah and hull
labalOO accompanying the modern
American party nominating conven-
tiOn.
The first national party conven-
tiOn was not held for more than 40
years after the founding of the re-
public. Prior to that time various
eXpedients to place the names of
available men before the electoral
college were emplOyed-cOngres-
siOnal caucuses, legislative resOlu-
tiOns, state conventions, mass meet
ings.
But all these were of gradual evO-
luton. None of them were ready
for use in picking the first Presi-
dent.
The Constitution had not pro-
vided for any nominating methods.
Possibly this was partly because of
a general expectation that Wash
ingtOn would be the first President
and would continue to hold Office as
long as he wished.
There was hardly time, in any
event, to develop uniform nominat-
ing methods between the date on
which the government was formally
declared in operation and the date
set for the first election. Before
news got around to the farthest
states, by the slow means of COM
munication Of those times, that con-
gress had declared the states must
pick Presidential electors in Janu-
ary, 1889, it was almost time to Sc
lect them if they were to function.
Political attention in the. states
had been monOpOlized by the strug-
gle over ratifying the Constitution.
No preparation had been made for
the first election under it.
In five of the eleven states enti-
tied to participate in the election
(RhOde Island and North Carolina
not yet having ratified the COnsti-
tution) governors did not summon
the legislatures in time to provide
for an election by the people. Thus,
in Connecticut, New Jersey, Della
ware, South Carolina and Georgia
the legislatures made the selections
of Presidential electors.
Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia,
New Hampshire and Massachusetts
provided for popular election. Bur
the vote polled IN all five was very
light.
New York politicians wrangled so
long about the means of choosing
electors that the state lost its
chance to have any part in the cleo
tiOn.
Fortunately, in this more or less
unsettled condition of affairs, there
was almost universal agreement
upon the eminent availability of
George Washington to be the first
peafetime leader of the republic
that had been founded as result of
his wartime leadership.
A few, it is true, thought Of wise
old Benjamin Franklin for the
honor. But he was then in his
year. Most agreed
that was too old. Alexander Ham
ilton, on the other hand, was too
being still under the con-
limit Of thirty-fve. But
he was not too young to pull wires
skillfully.
The Constitution originally, be-
fore adoption of the Twelfth amend
ment, provided that each Presiden-
Eial electOr was to cast two votes.
The candidate receiving the largest
number was to be declared Presi-
lent; the next highest, vice presi-
lent.
John Adams of Massachusetts
vas most generally considered the
proper man for vice president.
Adams himself thought he had as
good a right as Washington to the
Presidency.
If all the electors had divided
heir two votes apiece between
and Adams, the result
would have been a tie, throwing
he election into congress. To avoid
his and insuring the immediate
victory of Washington, Hamilton
and quietly passed around
he suggestion that each elector
'ast one vote for Washington, but
hat a few throw their second votes
o some favOrite sons of their sew
.ral states.
This advice was followed more
than Hamilton expect
d. When the ballots were count
d it was found that Washington
lad been the unanimous choice of
he 60 electors participating. One
# the II electors who should have
lad a part in the procedure was
.ept home by gout, and another was
cebOund.
Adams, by contrast with Wash
ngton's go, received only "a votes,
he other % being widely scattered
n accordance with Hamilton's
title scheme.
That "black intrigue" as Adams
allied it, was a sorry blow to the
ride of the rather vain and stOlid
on of Massachusetts. He did not
orgive Hamilton for meddling with
rhat he thought would have been
lis chance to contest with Wash
ngtOn on equal terms for the honor
f being the first American Presi-
ont