Recollections of Forty Years in the House, Senate and Cabinet Part 113

1. J. E. Campbell . . . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

2. J. E. Campbell . . . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

3. J. E. Campbell . . . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

4. Wm. McKinley . . . . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

5. Justin R. Whiting . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

6. Justin R. Whiting . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

7. B. b.u.t.terworth . . . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

8. John Sherman . . . . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

9. John Sherman . . . . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

10. S. S. c.o.x . . . . . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

11. Wm. C. P. Breckinridge . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

12. Wm. McAdoo . . . . . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

13. John R. McPherson . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

14. John R. McPherson . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

15. John R. McPherson . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

16. F. B. Stockbridge . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

17. F. B. Stockbridge . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

18. ................. . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

19. ................. . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

20. ................. . . . . . . Five Thousand Dollars.

The paper referred to in this alleged agreement as "Contract No.

1,000" purported to be a contract for the manufacture and introduction of the Hall and Wood ballot box, to be used by the United States government whenever it had the authority to use ballot boxes. The merit claimed for the box was that it was constructed in such a manner as to prevent fraudulent voting. This alleged agreement and contract, taken in connection with a bill introduced July 23, 1888, by Mr. Campbell, in the House of Representatives, "regulating Federal elections and to promote the purity of the ballot," which required the purchase by the government of the ballot box mentioned, would of course, if true, present a clear case of corruption on the part of the Members of Congress signing the agreement, so grave as to justify their expulsion.

A copy of this paper was handed by Governor Foraker to Murat Halstead on the 28th of September, and on the evening of that day the governor made a speech at the Music Hall, Cincinnati, in which he referred to Mr. Campbell having introduced the bill for the purchase of the ballot box. On the 4th of October, Halstead published in the "Commercial-Gazette" a fac-simile of the false paper, with the name of Campbell alone, the names of the other apparent signers not being given in the fac-simile and nothing being said about them.

On the 8th of October I was informed that it was whispered about Cincinnati that my name, with many others, was attached to the paper. I at once telegraphed that if this were so the signature was a forgery.

When I spoke at Orrville two days later I did not allude to the subject, regarding the whole thing as an election canard which would correct itself. In a brief time this became true. The whole paper was proven to be a forgery. The alleged signatures were made on tracing paper, from franks on doc.u.ments distributed by Congressmen.

All this was done by Wood, or by his procurement, in order to get an office through Governor Foraker. Halstead, on the 11th of October, published in his paper, over his own name, a statement that Mr. Campbell's signature was fraudulent, no mention being made of the other alleged signers of the paper. Subsequently, on the 10th of November, after the election, Foraker wrote a letter to Halstead giving a narrative of the mode by which he was misled into believing the paper to be genuine.

It has always seemed strange to me that Foraker, having in his possession a paper which implicated b.u.t.terworth, McKinley and myself, in what all men would regard as a dishonorable transaction, did not inform us and give us an opportunity to deny, affirm or explain our alleged signatures. An inquiry from him to either of the persons named would have led to an explanation at once. No doubt Foraker believed the signatures genuine, but that should not have deterred him from making the inquiry.

On the 12th of November, I wrote the following letter to Halstead:

"Senate Chamber, } "Washington, November 12, 1889.} "My Dear Sir:--Now that the election is over, I wish to impress upon you the importance of making public the whole history of the 'forged paper' about ballot boxes.

"While you believed in the genuineness of Campbell's signature you were entirely right in exposing him and the signers of the paper, for if it was genuine it was a corrupt and illegal transaction.

I only wonder that seeing the names upon it did not excite your doubt and cause inquiry, but, a.s.suming they were genuine, you had no right to suppress the paper because it involved your friends in a criminal charge. But now, since it is shown to be a forgery, a crime of the greatest character, it seems to me you ought at once to exercise your well-known energy and independence in exposing and denouncing, with equal severity, the man or men who forged, or circulated, or had anything to do with, the paper referred to. No delicacy or pity ought to shield them from the consequences of a crime infinitely greater than the signing of such a paper would have been. I know in this I speak the general sentiment of many prominent men, and you will appreciate the feeling of honor and fairness which appeals to you to denounce the men who, directly or indirectly, were connected with the fabrication of this paper. If my name was forged to it I will consider it my duty to prosecute all men who took that liberty. I will certainly do so whenever I have tangible evidence that my name was forged.

"Very truly yours, "John Sherman."

A fac-simile of the paper was then published with all the alleged signatures. The subject-matter was fully investigated by a committee of the House of Representatives, during which all the persons named in connection with it were examined under oath. It resulted in the unanimous finding of the committee as follows:

"In response to the first inquiry directed by the resolution, viz.:

'By whom said alleged contract was prepared, and whether the several signatures appended thereto are forged or genuine,'

"We find that said alleged contract was dictated (prepared) by Richard G. Wood, and that all the signatures thereto are forged.

"In response to the second inquiry directed by the resolution, viz.:

'If forged, what person or persons, if any, were directly or indirectly aiding, abetting, a.s.sisting, or knowingly consenting to the preparation and uttering of said forgery, and for what purpose,'

"We find that Richard G. Wood, Frank and L. Milward, and Frank S.

Davis were the only persons directly or indirectly aiding, abetting, a.s.sisting, or knowingly consenting to the preparation of said forgery with knowledge of its character.

"We further find that J. B. Foraker and Murat Halstead aided in uttering said forgery, Mr. Foraker by exhibiting the paper to several persons and thereafter delivering it to Mr. Halstead, and Mr. Halstead aided in uttering said forgery by publishing the forged paper on October 4, 1889, in the Cincinnati 'Commercial Gazette;'

but we find that neither of said parties, Foraker and Halstead, in uttering said paper, knew the same was a forgery.

"In response to the third inquiry directed by the resolution, viz.:

'Whether any of the Members whose names appeared on said alleged contract had or have, either directly or indirectly, any unlawful, corrupt or improper connection with, or interest in, the ballot boxes which are the subject-matter of said alleged contract.'

"We find that no one of the persons whose names appear on said alleged contract had or has, either directly or indirectly, any unlawful, corrupt, or improper, or any other connection with, or interest in, the ballot boxes which are said to be the subject of said alleged contract, and that there never was any other contract relating to said ballot boxes in which either of these persons, alone or jointly with others, was in any way interested."

William E. Mason, chairman of the committee, added to the report quoted the following just and true statement, which relieved Foraker and Halstead from the implication stated in the report:

"If our unanimous finding is correct that Messrs. Halstead and Foraker did not know the paper was forged when the uttered it, then they were deceived by some one, for we have found it was a forgery.

Being deceived, then, is their only offense.

"They each have made reputation and character equal perhaps to any of the gentlemen who were outraged by the forgery. Since they found they were deceived, they have done all in their power, as honorable men, to make amends. To ask more seems to me to be most unjust, and, believing as I do that the evidence does not warrant the censure indulged in by my a.s.sociates on the committee in their above additional findings, I most respectfully, but most earnestly, protest."

This unfortunate incident, not fully explained before the election, created sympathy for Campbell and naturally displeased friends of McKinley, b.u.t.terworth and myself. I did not feel the least resentment after Halstead denounced the forgery, but entered with increased energy into the canva.s.s. During this period I had promised to attend, on the 15th of October, a banquet given by the citizens of Cleveland to the delegates to the Pan-American Congress, then making a progress through the United States, to be presided over by my colleague, Senator Payne. As this speech is outside of the line of my usual topics, the toast being "The Congress of American States," and yet relates to a subject of vital importance, I introduce it as reported in the Cleveland "Leader:"

"Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen:--The toast you ask me to respond to is the expression of a hope indulged in by many of the ablest statesmen of the United States ever since our sister American states dissolved their political connections with European powers. Henry Clay, as early as 1818, when proposing to acknowledge the independence of the South American states, eloquently depicted the mutual advantage of closer commercial relations with those states. Mr.

Monroe proclaimed to the world the determination of the United States not to suffer any European power to interfere with the internal concerns of independent American states. Still no effective measures were adopted to promote intercourse between them. The hope of closer union has not been realized, mainly because of the neglect of the government of the United States. We have been too much engaged in political disputes and in the development of our own resources. Then we have had a serious unpleasantness among ourselves, which, if it had terminated differently, would have made us very unacceptable partners. But, now, all this is past and gone, and I can give a.s.surance to our guests that not only the government of the United States, but the people of the United States, all parties and of every section, have united heartily in inviting you here, that they will do their full share in carrying out your recommendations, and sincerely hope that your conference will lead to a congress of American nations.

"I look upon this conference as having the same relation to the future of America as the conference of the thirteen British colonies, in 1774, had to the declaration of American independence. That conference led to the const.i.tution of the United States and was the beginning of the independence of all the American states. Your conference is of infinitely greater importance, for your deliberations affect the interests of more than one hundred million people, while theirs only affected three million. But, more important still, your conference contemplates only peaceful aids for mutual benefit; theirs provided for war and a desperate struggle with superior forces.

"I do not recall, in the annals of man, a meeting of the selected representatives of any nations with n.o.bler aims or with greater opportunity for good than this conference of American states. You seek to prevent war by peaceful negotiations and arbitration; you seek to promote intercourse with each other by land and by sea; you seek, as far as the wants and interests of each nation will permit, to remove unnecessary restrictions to trade and commerce; you seek to bring into closer union sixteen republics and one empire, all of them governed by free inst.i.tutions. You do not unite to conquer, but to help each other in developing your resources and in exchanging your productions.

"If your conference deals wisely with your opportunity you will light a torch that will illuminate the world. You will disband armies, you will convert ships of war into useful agencies of commerce; you will secure the construction of a continuous line of railways from New York to Buenos Ayres, with connections to the capital city of every American country; you will contribute to the construction of the Nicaraguan Ca.n.a.l and all other feasible methods of transportation between the Atlantic and Pacific; you will unite in a generous rivalry of growth and progress all the American states. And, more important than all, you will pave the way for a congress in which all these states will be represented in a greater than an Amphictyonic council, with broader jurisdiction and scope than the rulers of ancient Greece conceived of.

"Is this to be only a dream? I do not think so. The American states are now more closely united in interest than any other part of the world. Our inst.i.tutions are similar. We nourish no old- time feuds to separate us. Our productions do not compete with, but supplement, each other. Their direct exchange in American vessels is the natural course of trade. The diversity of language is less marked than in any other continent. The sentiment is universal in America that America belongs to Americans, that no European power should vex us with its policy or its wars; that all parts of America have been discovered and are not open to further discovery; each country belongs to the people who occupy it, with the clear and unquestioned right of home rule. Such, at least, is the feeling in the United States.

"And now, looking back with pride over a century of growth, exhibiting to you, as we are doing by a rather tiresome journey, what we have done, and appreciating fully the rapid progress and enormous resources of our sister American states, recognizing your equality and absolute independence, whatever may be your population or extent of territory, we say to you, in all frankness, that we are ready and willing to join you in an American congress devoted exclusively to the maintenance of peace, the increase of commerce, and the protection and welfare of each and all the states of the American continents."

On the 19th of October I addressed a great audience in Music Hall, Cincinnati, at which b.u.t.terworth and Grosvenor also made speeches.

In this speech I especially urged the election of Governor Foraker and answered the cry against him for running for a third term. I said:

"Now, you have a good ticket, as I said, from top to bottom. I need not add anything more with respect to Governor Foraker, who, I believe, ought to be elected, not only because he has been a good soldier, but because he has been a good governor. Nor do I fear that cry about a third term. How should I fear it, when I am an example of a man serving on the fifth term of six years each? If Foraker has done his duty well for two terms, it is a good reason why he would do better the next time. If he made any mistakes in the past, he will have a chance to correct them in the future, and I believe he will do so if he has made any; and I don't believe he has."

On the 24th of October I was to address a meeting in Columbus, and hearing that Governor Foraker was sick, at his residence, I called upon him, and we had a free and friendly conversation. I did not introduce the subject of the ballot box forgery, but a.s.sured him that I was doing, and intended to do, all I could to promote his election. He thanked me heartily, expressed his regret that he was unable to take part in the canva.s.s, but hoped to do so before its close. At one of the largest indoor meetings ever held in Columbus, that evening, I especially urged the importance of Governor Foraker's election, and ridiculed, to the best of my ability, the cry that was made for a third term. I called attention to the fact that all that could be said against Governor Foraker was that he was running for a third term. Continuing, I said:

"Why for a third term? Because he did so well in both his previous terms that the Republican party of Ohio was willing to sanction him as its candidate for a third term--and intend to elect him.

Why should not a man be nominated by the Republicans for a third term as Governor of Ohio? What is there in the office that prevents his full and free and complete performance of all the duties imposed upon him as Governor of Ohio? Why, they say the President, by a prescriptive rule that has been established since the time of Washington, cannot be nominated for a third term. What of that?

The powers of the Governor of Ohio and the President of the United States are as different as a and z, and are as wide apart as heaven and earth. The President of the United States is armed with more power during his four years than any prince or potentate of Europe; he exercises a power greater than any man in any country of the world, whether a monarchy or empire. But is there any similitude between the Governor of Ohio and the President of the United States?

What power has he? The Governor of Ohio has less power than almost any other governor of the United States."