Walworth County, Wisconsin - Chapter 11: Past and Present Divisions of Political Parties, 1912

Men of New England, New York and northern Ohm me1 in these .sixteen townships to build up a new community in no way essentially different from the communities they had just left far eastward. Most of these nun brought their political ideas, notions, or prejudices with them. They were Whigs and Democrats, with a few Abolitionists. They might vote, each according to his former habit, at elections for delegate in Congress and foi members of the territorial Assembly: but the record of the county's vote, if such record was ever preserved, is not found. Judging partly from the little now known of the sentiments at that time of successful candidate.-, there seems to have been a small Democratic majority or plurality. The later comers were mostly from the same states as were the first ground-breakers, and do not appear to have affected greatly the relative strength of parties. In the short infancy of the county and its towns it may be supposed that local affairs had more influence at elections than opinions prescribed by national conventions on tariff. United States Bank, sub-treasury, and internal impn ments. Writing of the earlier days, in which he played some pari. Judg I -ays: "Location of school houses, roads and amounl of tax lev) often made tqwn elections most spirited of any in the year. Politicians of "Id towns have no adequate idea of the spirit often manifested in a new town over these matters. Feuds were got up between leading families that have not passed away - and similarly throughout the we t." This may be a Macaulayan "heightened and telling way of putting things, for which allowance must be made." Whatever may have been the earlier facts as to April and November elections, the yearly inflow of settlers must have tended more and more t" clearly-drawn party lines in general elections. At the beginning of state government a new political question had just grown from the annexation of Mexican territory.

By [848 both Whig and Democratic parties of the Northern states wi already considerably leavened, as to their members, with the sentiment of non-extension of slavery, ami the "Wilmot Proviso" bad spoken the word for Walworth. At the general election of that year, while the electoral vote of Wisconsin was for Lewi- Cass, this county's vote was 1.494 for Van Buren ( Free-Soiler,), 804 for Taylor (Whig), 550 for Cass (Democrat). In 1852 the county vote was 1.432 for Hale (Free-Soiler). 1,141 for Pierce (Democrat), and 965 for Scott (Whig). In 1856 the returns showed 3,518 for Fremont, 1,297 for Buchanan. 4 for Fillmore. The intermediate state and congressional elections gave similar results, for at each of these the Free-Soil candidates were consistently preferred to Whigs or Democrats; though in 185 1 the Whig candidate for governor. Leonard J. Farwell, was of the Free-Soil wing of his party and therefore acceptable to Walworth. When, in 1854. a convention met to organize the Republican party of Wisconsin. Wynian Spooner was one of the leaders and lights of that high deliberation. From that year to 1910 the county's majority has been only for Republican -policies, measures and candidates. Until i860 the newspapers announced almost daily the arrival of one or more "prominent Democrats" - leaders or "wheel horse-" - of some state north of the Ohio and between two oceans at the all-receiving Republican camp.

At the dissolution of the Whig party a tew of its members joined the victorious Democracy, but by far the greater number went to the new and hopeful opposition. It was observed by some of these ex- Whigs that many converted Democrats were thrusting themselves into Republican leadership anil finding choice places on Republican ballot- with little or no probation or delay. Harley F. Smith, a lawyer of Elkhorn, who was both largely toleranl and harmlessly satirical, -aid to his Democratic friend Preston, early in the campaign of [860: "< 'tis, we shall beat you this year, surely." Preston answered drib'. "Aba!" and asked. "On-w hat-do-you-pred-i-cate-youro-pinion?" Smith's answer to this rather grandly-uttered question was: "Well, we have now taken about all the slippery fellows from your party into ours." In September. [856, Judge Doolittle, of the first circuit, who had resigned after the January term of court, was a defeated candidate for nomination at the Democratic congressional convention of the first district. Early in the following January be was chosen United States senator. Arthur Mc- Artlmr. the Democratic* president of the state Senate, and Wyman Spooner, the Republican speaker of the Assembly, refused to sign the certificate of Doolittle's election. This was "ii the ground that the constitution of Wisconsin disqualified judges for holding other office within the period for which the) bad been elected. Bui Doolittle was -cited at Washington, as Judges Trumbull and Harlan bad been two years earlier, in spite of similar provision in the Illinois and Iowa constitutions. Of course, some men said that Mr. McArthur wished to punish Doolittle for his conversion or deser-

Before each jostling political atom had as yel settled easily and firmly into its fitting place in the new political mass some slight personal jarring was liable to occur now and again. Dr. Philip Maxwell, who had become a Republican, had held Jackson's commission as a surgeon of the regular army, and he revered "Old Hickory" as a Mars in war and a Moses in politics Once urged to take Mime part in a Republican mass meeting For the county, bellied old Federalist, while he should stand up for two hours to abuse Gen -eral Jackson." The Doctor was over touchy, for the Judge did hut a< the old General of having invented the "spoils system." Such little differences, arising from previous political condition, soon di~.ippe.ncd. leaving no trace.

Thoroughness of organization began with tin- party's birth, for it was the work ot master hands. Leaders suppressed their rival ambitions and personal jealousies, and subalterns, such as local speakers and editors, were trained to concerted action. The party platform was simple and intelligible, and not liable to various interpretation. Even the earliesl receipt and publication of election results were not forgotten, as an instance may show, i in the night of election day in [856 a few shrewdly-observing men at Elkhorn sat till nearly daylight to receive returns from the other towns. They had little or no help from telegraph offices al the few railway stations; hut messengers rode through mini and darkness, and as each one came his 1, were found to vary so slightly from pre-estimates that the count) total differed scarce a hundred votes from the forecast. These political pre-calcula tors had allowed correct!) for the if conversions in thi

Instances may show how this was in that year with Democrats of Walworth, hopeful as they were as to the electoral result at large, and not inactive or noiseless at home. Lieutenant-Governor McArthur, in a speech at Elkhom (having been told that at the \pril elections this was found the only stronghold left to the county Democracy), likened the town to a "pearl on a black wooly string" The vol tl in November was. 11; insisted on allowing 2,000, and on such basis counted upon election. This estimate was here declared wildly extravagant. Election returns reached Milwaukee but slowly, hut the results in the other counties of the district seemed to warrant celebration with cannonade, procession, martial music, banquet, and joy unconfined. The firing was stopped and the rest of the order of pleasure suspended indefinitely as soon as a dispatch from Walworth told of -.370 majority there for Potter and hence of his election.

In that year the ratio of the Republican to the Democratic vote in the county was 73 to 27. For many years afterward it remained steadily at 68 to 32. In 1908 it was 67.93 to 32-°7- Including all the parties in the computation, the per centage of the total vote of that year was severally: Republican, 62.2; Democratic, 29.4; Prohibitionist, 7.3; Social Democratic, i.i ; with two votes for the Social Labor ticket. Though the course of general elections has been so nearly uniform, there has always been a discoverable tendency toward independent voting in assembly districts, cities and towns. Five times since 1855 regular Republican nominees for assemblymen have been defeated at the polls. In 1861 Hollis Latham, Democrat, was elected as a Union candidate over Richard P>. Flack. In 1863 John Jeffers. independent-Republican, prevailed over AJanson H. Barnes. In 1869 and 1870 Judge White. Democrat, similarly overcame regular Republican nominees. In 1877, for the place of district attorney, Alfred S. Spooner was chosen over Joseph 11. Page, of Whitewater - the only instance in which, the whole county voting, a Republican nominee has been defeated. Between 1855 and 1911 most Or all of the towns and cities have at some time or times elected Democratic members of the county board and other local officers - wherein Walworth differs little from such other American counties as an- generally Republican.

The several fluctuations, permanent or transitory, in party majorities at presidential and "off-year" elections have not been wholly unfelt here, though the county vote has nol always been noticeably affected bj them. The Greeley

Hayes-Tilden campaign seemed to move the parties into olden unity, as is not unlikely to occur whenever both parties have nominated wisely, Vboul four hundred Republicans changed their votes in the third Cleveland contest. At the congressional elections of [882, [886 and [890, Republican majorities were much reduced, but Stood well above zero.

Of Foreign-born citizens, Scandinavians, who are most largely from Norway, have been almost unanimously Republicans. The Germans and most others have been divided about proportionately between the greater parties, the Republicans taking the larger number. The generally current notion that the trish-born arc nearly all Democrats leaves oul the very imporl element of aon Catholic Irish, most of whom have Keen and are Republicans. Since the Civil war there has Keen a perceptible re-distribution, politically, Catholic citizens, who are not hereditary bondmen of any part) ; though a ma jority of those of Walworth are still Democratic. Thi red population is a negligible quantity - less than one hundred in the county. The attitude of Walworth toward their race was shown by the vote in [849 on extension of suffrage: Yes. 970: no, 189. Further, there had been no need, for its bel ter enforcement here, to add in 1851 new sections and heavier penalties to the older fugitive slave law: for neither the old law nor the new one was likely to be effective here. The "underground railway" had man) stations and station agents within the county borders, and the geographers of W worth knew the routes to Canada much better than the ways backward to hondage.

It was needful that most of this chapter should he used to sel forth the rise, progress and later status of the party which is responsible for shap ing the county's policies and administering its affairs. How U has done other things and what have been the substantial results ma) he seen ,,r inferred from the story of the county, even as imperfectly told in the foregoing and following pages. As to that party's present status, little need he said h( since history's concern is with things done and recorded, and not with things moved, seconded and debated. In 1895, after four years of exclusion, the Republican party resumed the administration of state government. Since that time new definitions of the party creed have been proposed and opposed, and in part, at least, imposed by the new school of Republicanism. Men of Walworth made haste hut slowl) to change, even slightly, tin- ideas and usaj which had prevailed for a half century: hut by 1004 were drawn wholly into the state-wide strife. In that year's election while Mr. Roosevelt's plurality was 3,522, his vote 73.4 per cent, of the count) total, Governor l Toilette's plurality over Peck was hut 248, or 4 per cent. \t the same election his primary-election hill, which became the law of the state, was generally negatived by his Republican opponents, hut it had a majority of the smaller of 76.3. The ratio of voters to whole population since i860 has l, preciably higher for this county than for the state It is no 443 inhabitants, lour principal cau iroportion oi small alien population, the generally easily accessible polling places and the active interest of men (and women) of all parties in nominations and elections.

\s a party, the Whigs left too little trace in the public records by which to distinguish their actions from those of other men of their time, and it is not now easy to name any considerable number of them with certainty. Assuredly, they were not insignificant in number, and among them was their full proportion of men of character and ability. A majority of these men were sons and grandsons of Whigs of the Revolution, and it was their harmless boast that as a whole they were better representatives than their opponents of the higher intelligence and morality and the truer patriotism of the American people. As citizens of a community then in its formative stage they must have had their due influence upon the affairs of villages and towns, school districts, and religious societies. There seems to have been among them a few unavowed Abolitionists. More of them joined the Free- Soil Democrats of 1848 and 1852. Nearly all of them passed as if naturally into the Republican movement of 1854.

Democrats of the county were and are generally of like origin with their invincible opponents, who have found them as to personal value, if not as to number, not unworthy political foemen. Though so long kept from high places, they have not been without the weight and influence of their personal qualities on public business, and they have often found humbler official usefulness in their towns. The chief difference between them and their out-« numbering competitors for places of honor, trust and profit may be found by simple subtraction. The several official lists include much of the active and publicly useful clement of the Republican party. Tt is not aside from the general purpose of this work to name a few men of this greater of the several minorities - men of differing personal qualities, more or less honored in their party and not unvalued by their fellow citizens of all parties. ( )f these were Maurice L. Avers. John Brown, Henry B. Clark, David and Elisha Coon, George Cotton, Harvey M. Curtiss, Ebenezer Dayton, Francis Dillon, \ndn-u Ferguson, < ieorge < rale, I >r. I [armon ( nay. Perry G. Harrington, Drs. John M. and Samuel W. Henderson, Augustus C. and Jesse R. Kinne, Mollis Latham, Ebenezer Latimer, Darius McKibbin, John II. Martin. John Mather, Win. I'itt Meacham, James I). Merrill, Cyril L. Oatman, Dr. Alexander S. Palmer, George Passage, Soldan Powers, Otis Preston. LeGrand Rockwell. 1 harles Wales, Dr, Henry Warue. \rchihald W'oodard. Dr. George II. Yoin

Tlie Prohibitionists arc sufficient in number t" hold a column of the official ballot for their nominees. Their influence on the public weal is ii"t to be measured with exactness by their showing at the polls. There is, no doubt, a strength not always of measurable political value in consistent and unselfish devotion to high, though to manj men seemingly impracticable, aims.