The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1932-06-10
Held Theory Party Should Not
Nominate Best Man But
One With Least Enemies
BY RODNEY BUTCHER

Weed OF New York, whose name is
now but vague memory, made more
presidents than any one man has
made since.
The men he kept or tried to keep
from presidential nominations, how
ever, are today more famous than
those who landed in the White House
through his efforts.
1t was Weed, first Wing and then
Republican, who enunciated the
principle that the party must nomi-
nate not it's best man, but the man
with the fewest enemies and able to
get the most votes. He realized that
the slavery issue was defeating the best
men whenever they were nominated.
On that doctrine of availability he
twice defeated the presidential am
billions of Henry Clay, although he
made possible the election of John
Quincy Adams and encompassed the
nominations of General William
Henry Harrison and Zachary Taylor.
But in the end it was party'S de-
termination to pick winning candi-
date at all costs that defeated his Gull
minating ambton--the nomination Of
Governor William II. Seward OF New
York, who was turned down by Re-
publican convention that nominated
Abraham Lincoln.
Weed was a Journalist whose flrSt
important break into national poll
tics came as a young man when he &C
cidentally discovered bribery plot in
yolving members OF the New York
legislature which. if it had not been
baked, would have resulted IN the
election of William H. Crawford IN
stead of the second Adams.
He grew in influence among New
York Wings. eventually teamlng With
Senator and Governor Seward ana
with Horace Greeley. Working through
the Albany Evening Journal and be-
hind the scenes, averse to public Of
flee, he was the most powerful of the
three. He dictated appointments and
nominations which they accepted.
At the convention at Harrisburg in
1910 he plotted with ThaddeuS Stew
ems of Pennsylvania to block Henry
Clay, the one big national leader in
the Wing party, who was certainly the
majority choice of the Wings.
He and Stevens simply convinced
sufficient delegates that Clay could
not possibly carry New York and
PENNSYLVANIA, without whose electoral
votes the party obviously couldn't win.
Clay was a Mason and the anti-Ma-
sonic feeling of the time was bound to
defeat him in those important states,
according to Weed.
that Harrison could get the most votes.
He joined with other anti-Clay men
in arranging a series of private, in
formal ballots under the unit rule
Clay won on the first. but after three
days they had jockeyed Harrison into
majority
It was also necessary to lick Gen
eral Winfield Scott, the third strong
candidate. That was done when Stew
ems. possessing letter in which Scott
had sought to placate a northern
anti-slavery politician, dropped it on
the floor at the Virginia delegation S
headquarters and left the room.
Weeds political Judgment was vim
Dictated again in 1874. He had no one
vention nominated Clay, who was
beaten by Polk, the obscure Demo.
cratic dark horse
About 1886 Weed decided to get be-
hind General Taylor. who was making
hero of himself in the Mexican War.
He sent word to Taylor that he could
be the next president if he wouldn't
open his mouth to politicians and so
commit himself. Sure enough, Taylor
was nominated over Clay as Harrison
had been in 1840-and won.
Weed was in Europe in 1852 while
his friends at the Wing convention
were busy stopping both Daniel Web
ster and President Fillmore and nomi-
mating General Winfield Scott on the
53rd ballot
He joined the new Republican party
and at its first national convention in
1856 supported the nomination of John
c. Fremont, being convinced that the
party couldn't win on its first tryout
and holding his friend Seward for
1860.
But a combination of events and
circumstances turned the tide at the
convention itself. First, and perhaps
worst, Horace Greeley declared against
Seward.
Greeley's desertion, after 20 years
in which he and the New York Trib-
une had been the mouthpice of Sc
ward and Seward principies.was bally-
hooed by the opposition and dLsmayed
many of Stewards friends
hot aY-i II
have been nominated if the conven-
ton had balloted on the evening OF
Thursday. May II, as scheduled. But
the printers hadn't delivered the nee
esSary tally sheets to the secretaries
and despite the protests Of Weed and
his men the convention adjourned al
6 p. m.
During the night in hotel rooms,
Lincoln was nominated and Seward
defeated
In the small hours of Friday morn
ing two friends Of Lincoln sat with
two friends of Senator Simon Cam
cron of Pennsylvania, who had his
states delegation. The latter finally
were persuaded; Cameron was prom
ised cabinet job.
The biggest break in the convention
came when Cameron released his dele
gates and 48 of them went for Lincoln
on the second ballot. The favorite
sons piled on and Lincoln won on the
third.
No single political boss or even a
group is credited with Lincoln's NOM
ination. The most potent factor was
the new partys essential need for car
rying New Jersey, Pennsylvania, In
diana and Illinois, coupled with the
belief that Seward couldn't.
Weed became one of Lincoln's close
advisers, helped him pick cabinet
went to Europe on a Civil War mis-