grantULYSSES SIMPSON GRANT. (1822-1885.)Two terms, 1869-1877.
ULYSSES SIMPSON GRANT. (1822-1885.)Two terms, 1869-1877.
Ulysses S. Grant had already become so identified with the history of our country that little remains to be added to that which has been recorded. He was born at Point Pleasant, Ohio, April 27, 1822. Appointed to West Point, he gave no evidence of special brilliancy, and was graduated in 1843 with only a fair standing. He did good service in the war with Mexico and was brevetted captain, but resigned his commission in 1854 and went into business, where he attained only moderate success. He was among the first to volunteer when the Civil War broke out. The opportunity thus presented for the full display of his military genius rapidly brought him to the front, the culmination of his career being reached when he compelled the surrender of General Lee at Appomattox Court-House in April, 1865, thereby bringing the long and terrible war to a triumphant conclusion. He was a man of simple tastes, modest, but with an unerring knowledge of his own abilities, thoroughly patriotic, honest, chivalrous, devoted to his friends, and so trustful of them that he remained their supporters sometimes after receiving proof of their unworthiness. The mistakes of his administration were due mainly to this trait of his character, which it is hard to condemn without reservation.
The country being fairly launched once more on its career of progress and prosperity, the government gained the opportunity to give attention to matters which it was compelled to pass by while the war was in progress. The first most important step was to call England to account for her help in fitting out Confederate privateers, when we were in extremity. It required considerable tact and delicacy to get the "Alabama Claims," as they were termed, in proper form before the British authorities, for they felt sensitive, but it was finally accomplished. The arbitration tribunal which sat at Geneva, Switzerland, in June, 1872, decreed that England should pay the United States the sum of $15,500,000 because of the damage inflicted by Confederate cruisers upon Northern commerce. The amount was paid, and friendly relations between the two countries were fully restored.
grantMRS. JULIA DENT GRANT.
MRS. JULIA DENT GRANT.
Our rapid growth had long since made the building of a railroad from the East to the Pacific a necessity that continually grew more urgent. Construction was begun as early as 1863, but the Civil War caused the work to lag, and at the end of two years only one hundred miles had been graded and forty laid. The progress then became more vigorous.
The road consisted of two divisions. The first was from Omaha, Nebraska, to Ogden, Utah, a distance of 1,032 miles, while the western division, known as the Central Pacific, covered the distance of 885 miles between Ogden and San Francisco. Steadily approaching each other, these long lines of railway met on the 10th of May, 1869, when the last spike, made of solid gold, was driven, and the two locomotives, standing with their pilots almost touching, joined in a joyous screech of their whistles. The important event was celebrated with much ceremony, for it was worthy of being commemorated.
RECONSTRUCTION COMPLETED.
The vexatious work of reconstruction was completed during the early months of 1870. Virginia had held out against the terms prescribed by Congress, but her senators and representatives were admitted to their seats in the latter part of January; those of Mississippi in the following month, and those of Texas in March, at which time the secretary of State issued a proclamation declaring the adoption of the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which guarantees negro suffrage. For the first time in almost twenty years, all the States were fully represented in Congress.
THE CHICAGO FIRE.
On the 8th of October, 1871, Chicago was visited by the greatest conflagration of modern times, with the single exception of that of Moscow. Like many events, fraught with momentous consequences, it had a trifling cause. A cow kicked over a lamp in a stable on De Koven Street, which set fire to the straw. A gale swiftly carried the flames into some adjoining lumber yards and frame houses. All the conditions were favorable for a tremendous conflagration. The fire swept over the south branch of the Chicago River, and raged furiously in the business portion of the city. The main channel of the river was leaped as if it were a narrow alley, and there were anxious hours when thousands believed the whole city was doomed. As it was, the fire-swept district covered four or five miles, and fully 20,000 buildings were burned. It is believed that 250 lives were lost, about 100,000 people made homeless, and $192,000,000 worth of property destroyed.
chicagoTHE BURNING OF CHICAGO IN 1871.
THE BURNING OF CHICAGO IN 1871.
Chicago's affliction stirred the sympathy of the whole country. Contributions were sent thither from every State, and everything was done to aid the sufferers who had lost their all. With true American pluck, the afflicted people bent to the work before them. Night and day thousands toiled, and within the space of a year a newer and more magnificent city rose like a Phœnix from its ashes. Chicago to-day is one of the grandest and most enterprising cities in the world.
SETTLEMENT OF THE NORTHWESTERN BOUNDARY.
We had made a treaty with England in 1846 which located the line of our northwestern boundary along the 49th parallel westward to the middle of "the channel" separating the continent from Vancouver's Island, and then southward through the middle of the channel and of Fuca's Strait to the Pacific Ocean. It was found, however, there were several channels, and it was impossible to decide which was meant in the treaty. The claim of England included the island of San Juan, she insisting that the designated channel ran to the south of that island. Naturally, we took the opposite view and were equally insistent that the channel ran to the north, and that San Juan, therefore, belonged to us. The two nations displayed their good sense by referring the dispute to arbitration and selected the Emperor of Germany as the arbitrator. He decided in 1872 in our favor.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1872.
It was a curious presidential election that took place in 1872. The South was bitterly opposed to the Republican plan of reconstruction and a good many in the North sympathized with them. One of the strongest opponents of Grant's renomination was theNew York Tribune, of which Horace Greeley was editor. The Republicans who agreed with him were called "Liberal Republicans," while the Straight-out Democrats retained their organization. Naturally, the regular Republicans renominated Grant, but Henry Wilson, of Massachusetts, took the place of Schuyler Colfax as the nominee for the Vice-Presidency. Horace Greeley, who had spent his life in vigorously fighting the principles of the Democratic party, was now endorsed by that organization after his nomination by the Liberal Republicans, with B. Gratz Brown, of Missouri, as his running partner.
stock yardsSECTION OF CHICAGO STOCK-YARDS,THE LARGEST IN THE WORLD.
SECTION OF CHICAGO STOCK-YARDS,THE LARGEST IN THE WORLD.
The election was a perfect jumble. Eight candidates were voted for as President and eleven for Vice-President. Grant received 286 electoral votes and carried thirty-one States. Greeley was so crushed by his defeat that he lost his reason and died within a month after election. His electors scattered their votes, so that Thomas A. Hendricks, the regular Democratic candidate, received 42; B. Gratz Brown, 16; Charles J. Jenkins, 2; and David Davis, 1.
THE INDIAN QUESTION.
The second term of Grant was more troublous than the first. The difficulties with the Indians, dating from the first settlement in the country, were still with us. At the suggestion of the President, a grand council of delegates of the civilized tribes met in December, 1870, in the Choctaw division of the Indian Territory. The subject brought before them was the organization of a republican form of government, to be under the general rule of the United States. A second convention was held in the following July and a provisional government organized. A proposal was adopted that the United States should set aside large tracts of land for the exclusive occupancy and use of the Indians. These areas were to be known as "reservations," and so long as the Indians remained upon them they were to be protected from molestation.
This scheme seemed to promise a settlement of the vexed question, but it failed to accomplish what was expected. In the first place, most of the Indians were unfriendly to it. No matter how large a part of country you may give to a red man as his own, he will not be satisfied without permission to roam and hunt overallof it.
A more potent cause of trouble was the origin of all the Indian troubles, from the colonial times to the present: the dishonesty and rascality of the white men brought officially in contact with the red men. Not only did these miscreants pursue their evil ways among the Indians themselves, but there was an "Indian ring" in Washington, whose members spent vast sums of money to secure the legislation that enabled them to cheat the savages out of millions of dollars. This wholesale plundering of the different tribes caused Indian wars and massacres, while the evil men at the seat of the government grew wealthy and lived in luxury.
THE MODOC TROUBLES.
Trouble at once resulted from removing the Indians to reservations that were inferior in every respect to their former homes. The Modocs, who had only a few hundred warriors, were compelled by our government to abandon their fertile lands south of Oregon and go to a section which was little better than a desert. They rebelled, and, under the leadership of Captain Jack and Scar-faced Charley, a number took refuge among some lava beds on the upper edge of California. On the 11th of April, 1873, a conference was held between the Indian leaders and six members of the peace commission. While it was in progress, the savages suddenly attacked the white men. General Edward S. Canby and Dr. Thomas were instantly killed, and General Meachem, another member, was badly wounded, but escaped with his life.
The war against the Modocs was pushed. After much difficulty and fighting, they were driven to the wall and compelled to surrender. Captain Jack and two of his brother chiefs were hanged in the following October. The remaining members were removed to a reservation in Dakota, where they have given no further trouble.
CIVIL WAR IN LOUISIANA.
In the early part of this year, civil war broke out in Louisiana because of the quarrels over reconstruction measures. The difficulty first appeared two years earlier, when opposing factions made attempts to capture the Legislature by unseating members belonging to the opposing party. Matters became so grave that in the following January Federal troops had to be used to preserve the peace. In December, 1872, another bitter quarrel arose over the election of the governor and members of the Legislature. The returning board divided, one part declaring William P. Kellogg elected, while the other gave the election to John McEnery, the candidate of the white man's party. Most of the negro vote had been cast for Kellogg.
As a consequence, two rival State governments were organized. McEnery was enjoined by the United States district court from acting, because, as was asserted, the returning board which declared him elected had done so in defiance of its order.
In the face of this prohibition, McEnery was inaugurated. The question was referred to the Federal government, which declared in favor of Kellogg. Thereupon the McEnery government disbanded, but in the latter part of 1874 McEnery again laid claim to election. D.P. Penn, his lieutenant-governor, and his armed followers took possession of the State House. A fight followed in which Kellogg was driven from the building, twenty-six persons killed and a large number wounded. Kellogg appealed to Washington for help. McEnery, who was absent during these violent proceedings, now returned and took the place of Penn. President Grant ordered his supporters to disperse and General Emory forced McEnery to surrender. The peace was broken in January, 1875, over the election of members to the Legislature, and the Federal troops were again called to restore order. A congressional committee was sent South to investigate, and finally the quarrel was ended and Kellogg was recognized as the legal governor.
ADMISSION OF COLORADO.
Colorado became the thirty-eighth State in August, 1876. The name is Spanish, and refers to that part of the Rocky Mountains noted for its many colored peaks. Colorado has more than thirty peaks within its borders whose height is quite or nearly three miles. The wild, mountainous region was explored in 1858 at two points, one near Pike's Peak and the other in the southwestern portion. Both exploring parties discovered gold, which, while abundant, is hard to extract. The Territory was organized in 1861, and the principal discoveries of the enormous deposits of silver have been made since 1870. The date of Colorado's admission has caused it often to be referred to as the "Centennial State."
THE PANIC OF 1873.
We had learned the meaning of hard times in 1837 and again in 1857. Once more, in 1873, the blight fell upon the country. There were various causes, all of which, in one sense, were the war. Prices had become inflated, money was plentiful, and cities, towns, and people had become extravagant. A mania seemed to seize municipal corporations for indulging in "improvements," which brought ruinous debts upon the municipalities. Enormous sums of money were invested in the building of new railroad lines where the country was not developed sufficiently to repay the expenditures. The quantity of goods brought into this country was much in excess of that exported, a fact which turned the balance of trade, as it was termed, against us. This required the sending abroad of a large amount of money.
As illustrative of the extravagance in railroad building, it may be said that, in the single year 1871, 8,000 miles were put in operation. Instead of using ready money with which to build these lines, bonds were issued by the railroad companies, which expected to pay the debts out of the future earnings of the roads. In the course of five years $1,750,000,000 were invested in railroad projects. The same speculative spirit pervaded mining and manufacturing companies, which also borrowed money by issuing bonds. A great amount of these were sold abroad, after which the home market was industriously worked through the newspapers, which overflowed with glowing promises. Thousands of poor widows, orphans, and the trustees of estates invested all their scanty savings in these enterprises.
Then the failures began. The banking firm of Jay Cooke & Company, Philadelphia, one of the greatest in the United States, suspended, and the whole country was alarmed. Next came the panic, which reached its height in a few months. This was followed by dull times, when factories closed, and multitudes were thrown out of employment. Several years passed before the country fully recovered from the panic of 1873.
NOTABLE DEATHS.
Many noted men died during those times. The bluff, aggressive, and patriotic Edwin M. Stanton, Lincoln's war secretary, passed away in December, 1869, shortly after his appointment to the bench of the supreme court by President Grant. General R.E. Lee, who had become president of the Washington and Lee University, died at his home in Lexington, Virginia, in 1870. Among others of prominence who died in the same year were General George H. Thomas and Admiral Farragut. In 1872, William H. Seward, Horace Greeley, Professor Morse, and General George H. Meade breathed their last, and in the year following Chief Justice Chase and Charles Sumner died. Millard Fillmore and Andrew Johnson, as has been stated, died respectively in 1874 and 1875.
lee monumentMONUMENT TO GENERAL LEE AT RICHMOND, VIRGINIA.
MONUMENT TO GENERAL LEE AT RICHMOND, VIRGINIA.
The Democrats now gained a majority in the House of Representatives for the first time since 1860. Among the members elected from the South were several distinguished military leaders of the Southern Confederacy, besides Alexander H. Stephens, of Georgia, who had been its vice-president.
It was about this time that gold was discovered among the Black Hills, which by treaty belonged to the Sioux Indians, since the section was within their reservation. White men were warned to keep away, and steps were taken by the military authorities to prevent them entering upon the forbidden ground. But no risk or danger is sufficient to quench men's thirst for gold, and thousands of the most desperate characters hurried to the Black Hills and began digging for the yellow deposit.
CUSTER'S MASSACRE.
The Sioux are fierce and warlike. They have given our government a great deal of trouble, and, finding their reservation invaded by white men, they retaliated by leaving it, burning houses, stealing horses, and cattle, and killing settlers in Wyoming and Montana. Their outrages became so serious that the government sent a strong military force thither under Generals Terry and Crook, which drove a formidable body of warriors under the well-known Sitting Bull and others toward the Big Horn Mountains and River.
crookGENERAL GEORGE CROOK.
GENERAL GEORGE CROOK.
Generals Reno and Custer rode forward with the Seventh Cavalry to reconnoitre, and discovered the Indians encamped in a village nearly three miles long on the left bank of the Little Big Horn River. Custer, who was an impetuous, headlong officer, instantly charged upon the Indians without waiting for reinforcements.
This woeful blunder was made June 25, 1876. All that is known of it has been obtained from the Indians themselves. They agree that Custer and his men dashed directly among the thousands of warriors, and that they fought with desperate heroism, but Custer and every one of his men were killed. The number was 261. General Reno held his position at the lower end of the encampment on the bluffs of the Little Big Horn until reinforcements arrived. Soldiers were sent to the neighborhood, and there was more sharp fighting. It was a long time and there was much negotiation necessary before the Sioux could be persuaded to return to their reservation in Dakota.
On the 4th of July, 1876, the United States was one hundred years old. Preparations had been on foot for several years to give it a fitting celebration. A bill was passed by Congress as early as March, 1871, providing that an exhibition of foreign and American arts, products, and manufactures should be held under the auspices of the government of the United States. A centennial commission was appointed, consisting of General Joseph R. Hawley, of Connecticut; Professor John L. Campbell, of Indiana; Alfred T. Goshorn, of Ohio; and John L. Shoemaker, of Pennsylvania. Naturally Philadelphia, where the Declaration of Independence was written and signed, was selected as the most fitting place to hold the celebration. Fairmount Park, one of the largest and finest in the world, was set apart for the buildings.
The invitations sent to other nations were courteously accepted, the following being those that took part: The Argentine Confederation, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, China, Denmark, Ecuador, Egypt, France (including Algeria), German Empire, Great Britain and her colonies, Greece, Guatemala, Hawaii, Haiti, Honduras, Italy, Japan, Liberia, Mexico, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Norway, Orange Free State, Persia, Peru, Portugal, Russia, Siam, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tunis, Turkey, United States of Colombia, and Venezuela.
To furnish room for the display of the myriads of articles, five principal buildings were erected, viz.: the Main Building, 1,876 feet long and 464 feet wide; the Art Gallery or Memorial Hall, Machinery Hall, Agricultural Hall, and Horticultural Hall. The exhibition was formally opened by President Grant, May 1st, and closed by him six months later. The daily attendance began with about 5,000, but rose to 275,000 toward the close. The total number of visitors was some 10,000,000, and the total receipts, as officially given out, were $3,761,598. The exhibition was a splendid success in every sense.
THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1876.
Few people to-day understand the danger through which the country passed in the autumn and winter of 1876. In June, the two great political parties put their presidential tickets in the field. That of the Republicans was Rutherford B. Hayes, of Ohio, and William A. Wheeler, of New York; of the Democrats, Samuel J. Tilden, of New York, and Thomas A. Hendricks, of Indiana. The Independent Greenback party also nominated a ticket, at the head of which was the venerable philanthropist, Peter Cooper, of New York, with Samuel F. Cary, of Ohio, the candidate for the vice-presidency.
There was little difference between the platforms of the two leading parties. The Democrats declared forreformthrough all the methods of the administration. The Republicans were equally loud in their calls for the reform of every political abuse, and for the punishment of any and all who made wrongful use of political offices. They also insisted that the rights of the colored men should be safeguarded, and denounced the doctrine of State sovereignty, of which there was little to be feared, since it had been effectually killed by the war.
The Greenbackers made considerable stir. They also used the shibboleth of reform, but put the currency question before all others. Although the government was committed to the redemption of the national legal-tenders and bonds in gold, the Greenbackers insisted that this was impossible, and was also unjust to the debtor class. They claimed, further, that it was the duty of the government to provide a national paper currency, based not on specie, but on bonds bearing a low rate of interest. The Republicans and Democrats maintained that the government could not abrogate its promises of redeeming the currency and bonds in gold.
The Greenback party polled 81,740 votes, the Prohibition 9,522, and the American 2,636, none gaining an electoral vote. For several days after the November election, it was generally believed that the Democrats had been successful, though a few Republican papers, notably theNew York Times, persistently claimed that the Republican ticket had been successful.
hallMEMORIAL HALL OF 1876.
MEMORIAL HALL OF 1876.
There was a dispute in four States. In Louisiana, the returning board threw out the returns from several parishes on the ground of intimidation and fraud, thereby placing 4,000 majority to the credit of the Republicans. The Democrats insisted that the rejected votes should be counted, and, had it been done, Tilden would have been elected.
In South Carolina, two bodies claimed to be the legal Legislature and both canvassed the returns, one giving a plurality of 800 to the Republican ticket and the other a smaller majority to the Democratic. Precisely the same wrangle occurred in Florida, where each side claimed a majority of about a hundred. Matters were still more complicated in Oregon, where a Republican elector was declared ineligible, because he held the office of postmaster at the time he was chosen elector. The governor proposed to withhold the certificate from him and give it to a Democrat. Had everything claimed by the Republicans been conceded, they would have had 185 and the Democrats 184. It was necessary, therefore, for the Republicans to maintain every point in order to secure their President, for it was beyond dispute that Tilden had received 184 electoral votes. On the popular vote, he had 4,284,885 to 4,033,950 for Hayes. Each party charged the other with fraud, and thousands of Democrats were so incensed at what they believed was a plot to cheat them out of the presidency that they were ready to go to war. Had they done so, it would have been the most terrible peril that ever came upon the Republic, for the war would not have been one section against the other, but of neighborhood against neighborhood throughout the land.
tildenSAMUEL J. TILDEN (1814-1886.)
SAMUEL J. TILDEN (1814-1886.)
As if nothing in the way of discord should be lacking, the Senate was Republican and the House Democratic. The election being disputed, it fell to them to decide the question—something they would never do, since they were deadlocked. This was so apparent that thoughtful men saw that some new and extraordinary means must be found to save the country from civil war.
Congress, after long and earnest discussion, passed a bill creating an Electoral Commission, to which it was agreed to submit the dispute. This commission was to consist of fifteen members, five to be appointed by the House, five by the Senate, and the remaining five to consist of judges of the Supreme Court.
The Senate being Republican, its presiding officer, the Vice-President, named three Republicans and two Democrats; the House naturally appointed three Democrats and two Republicans; while of the Supreme Court, three were Republicans and two Democrats. This, it will be noted, gave to the commission eight Republicans and seven Democrats. The body by a strict party vote decided every dispute in favor of the Republicans, and on the 2d of March, 1877, two days before inauguration, Rutherford B. Hayes was decided President-elect of the United States.
commissionTHE ELECTORAL COMMISSION WHICH DECIDED UPON THE ELECTION OF PRESIDENT HAYES.Composed of three Republican and two Democratic Senators, three Democratic and two Republican Representatives, three Republican and two Democratic Justices of the Supreme Court; total, eight Republicans and seven Democrats. By a strict party vote the decision was given in favor of Mr. Hayes, who, two days later, March 4, 1877, was inaugurated President of the United States.
THE ELECTORAL COMMISSION WHICH DECIDED UPON THE ELECTION OF PRESIDENT HAYES.Composed of three Republican and two Democratic Senators, three Democratic and two Republican Representatives, three Republican and two Democratic Justices of the Supreme Court; total, eight Republicans and seven Democrats. By a strict party vote the decision was given in favor of Mr. Hayes, who, two days later, March 4, 1877, was inaugurated President of the United States.
R.B. Hayes—The Telephone—Railway Strikes—Elevated Railroads—War with the Nez Perce Indians—Remonetization of Silver—Resumption of Specie Payments—A Strange Fishery Award—The Yellow Fever Scourge—Presidential Election of 1878—James A. Garfield—Civil Service Reform—Assassination of President Garfield—Chester A. Arthur—The Star Route Frauds—The Brooklyn Bridge—The Chinese Question—The Mormons—Alaska Exploration—The Yorktown Centennial—Attempts to Reach the North Pole by Americans—History of the Greely Expedition.
THE NINETEENTH PRESIDENT.
hayesRUTHERFORD BIRCHARD HAYES (1823-1893)One term, 1877-1881.
RUTHERFORD BIRCHARD HAYES (1823-1893)One term, 1877-1881.
Rutherford Birchard Hayes was born in Delaware County, Ohio, October 4, 1822, and was graduated from Kenyon College at the age of twenty years. In 1845 he completed his legal studies at Harvard University, and practiced law, first at Marietta, in his native State, then at Fremont, and finally in Cincinnati. He entered the military service, at the beginning of the war, as major, and rose to the rank of brevet major-general. His career as a soldier was creditable. While still in the service, in 1864, he was elected to Congress, and was governor of Ohio in 1867, 1869, and again in 1875. His popularity as chief magistrate of one of the leading States led to his nomination to the presidency, to which, however, it must be conceded, he had not a clear title. He died at Fremont, Ohio, January 17, 1893.
President Hayes proved his desire to strengthen the fraternal feeling between the North and South by appointing as a member of his cabinet David McKey, his postmaster-general. Mr. McKey was from Tennessee, and had served the Confederacy during the Civil War. Hayes' administration on the whole was uneventful, though marked by a number of incidents which deserve mention. It was in 1877 that the first telephone for business purposes was put into use. It connected the residence of Charles Williams, in Somerville, Massachusetts, with his business office in Boston, three miles distant. Alexander Bell, of the latter city, was the inventor of the instrument, which is now in general use throughout the country, and serves to connect points more than a thousand miles apart.
RAILWAY STRIKES.
In the summer of 1877 occurred one of the most violent outbreaks among labor men that has ever been known in this country. There was unrest in the mining districts over the question of wages, and the dissatisfaction spread to the principal manufacturing points. When the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad made a reduction of 10 per cent. in the pay of its employees it was followed, July 14th, by a partial strike on their line. The men had the sympathy of workmen throughout the country, and the strike spread to the Pennsylvania, Erie, New York Central, and their western connections, including the Missouri and Pacific, and a number of less important lines west of the Mississippi.
The Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers is one of the most intelligent and conservative labor organizations in the country. It has won the respect of corporations as well as of the community-at-large by its fairness and its refusal to engage in strikes, except as a last resort against grievances. Its members are located in all parts of the country, and include a good many thousands. In the strike named the Brotherhood took the lead, and the firemen, brakemen, and other railroad employees joined them. The result was the stoppage of the wheels of commerce and the ruin of vast amounts of perishable freight, to say nothing of the expensive delays of all kinds. The railroad companies called upon the various State authorities for protection in operating their lines, but, as is generally the case, the militia were either in sympathy with the strikers or were afraid of them. As a final resort, an appeal was made to the United States government, whose soldiers understand only one duty, that of obeying orders.
The strikers stopped all trains in Baltimore and Martinsburg, West Virginia, and defied the authorities. The militia were scattered, but a few regulars were sufficient to raise the blockade. On the 20th of July, in an attempt of the rioters to resist the clearing of the streets in Baltimore, nine persons were killed and a score wounded. The strike extended until it included the whole country, with the exception of the cotton-growing States.
The most dangerous outbreak was in Pittsburg, where an immense mob held control of the city for two days. Disorder and violence reigned, and the authorities were powerless. When on the 21st soldiers appeared on the streets they were assailed with stones and pistol-shots, and they replied with several volleys which killed and wounded a number of rioters. This only added fuel to the flames, and the mob became more savage than ever. The soldiers were attacked so furiously that they ran into a roundhouse of the railway company for protection. There they were besieged, and oil cars were rolled against the building and fired with the purpose of burning the soldiers to death. The firemen were not allowed to put out the flames, and it was several days before the defenders were rescued.
The infuriated mob applied the torch to the buildings of the railroad company, gutted cars, scattered or carried off the contents, burst open and drank barrels of whiskey, and raged like so many wild beasts. Before the terrific outbreak subsided, the Union Depot and all the machine shops and railway buildings in the city were burned. Among the losses were 126 locomotives and 2,500 cars laden with valuable freight. The regular troops finally subdued the rioters, but not until a hundred people had been killed and property destroyed to the value of five million dollars.
There was rioting accompanied with violence in Chicago, Buffalo, Columbus, Ohio, and at many other points. In Chicago, on the 26th of July, nineteen persons were killed. St. Louis was disturbed, but there was no special outbreak. In San Francisco a savage attack was made on the Chinese and the managers of the lumber yards. At one period, on 6,000 miles of railroad not a wheel was turned, and 100,000 laborers were idle or assisting in the rioting. Such violent ebullitions soon expend themselves. By-and-by the men began returning to their work, and within two or three weeks all the railroads were operating as usual.
About this time the elevated railway system was adopted in New York City. It has proved so convenient that many lines have been added in the metropolis, and the same means of travel is used in other cities, though of late years electric trolley cars have been widely introduced.
THE NEZ PERCE WAR.
When Lewis and Clark journeyed across the upper part of our country, at the beginning of the century, they made a treaty with the Nez Perce Indians, whose home was in the northwest. They were visited afterward by missionaries, and no trouble occurred with them until after our war with Mexico. A large section of their land was bought by the United States government in 1854, and a reservation was set apart for them in northwestern Idaho and northeastern Oregon. As in the case of the Seminoles of Florida however, many of the chiefs were opposed to the sale of their lands, and, when the date came for their departure, refused to leave.
Chief Joseph of the Nez Perces was one of the most remarkable Indians of the century. He was shrewd, sagacious, brave, and remarkably intelligent. General Wesley Merritt, of the United States army, has pronounced his military genius of the highest order, and, in the incidents we are about to narrate, his exploit in its way has never been surpassed. A good many people will recall seeing Joseph at the ceremonies at the tomb of General Grant in 1897, where his fine military appearance attracted much attention.
In 1877, General Howard, commanding the department of the Columbia, marched against the troublesome Nez Perces with a small force of regulars. Being too weak to fight the soldiers, Chief Joseph, at the head of his band, repeatedly eluded them with masterly skill. This strange chase continued for hundreds of miles, Joseph keeping his women, children, and impedimenta not only intact, but beyond reach of the pursuers, who were filled with admiration of his genius. In the autumn of 1877, the Nez Perces passed through the mountains of northern Montana, where they were confronted by Colonel Miles and the regulars. Even then Joseph could not be brought to battle, and crossed the Missouri near the mouth of the Mussel Shell. In the Bear Paw Mountains, however, his camp was surrounded and he was brought to bay. The Nez Perces fought with great bravery, but were defeated. Joseph faced the inevitable, and, walking forward to where General Howard was sitting on his horse, handed him his rifle. Then, pointing to the sun in the sky, he said: "From where the sun is in yonder heavens, I fight the white man no more."
General Howard admired the valiant and chivalrous warrior, who had conducted his campaign not only with rare skill, but without any of the outrages and cruelties which seem natural to the American race. He took his hand, and promised to be his friend. General Howard was able to keep his promise, and secured such a favorable location for Joseph and his band that they have been peaceable and satisfied ever since.
REMONETIZATION OF SILVER.
The money or currency question has long been a disturbing factor in politics. During the war the silver currency had been out of circulation, its place being taken for awhile by postage stamps and afterward by "shinplasters," which were paper fractional parts of a dollar. In 1873, Congress made gold the exclusive money standard. Silver depreciated some ten per cent., and the "hard money" people opposed the measures that were set on foot to remonetize silver; that is, to bring it into circulation again. Such a bill was passed, then vetoed by the President, promptly repassed over his veto, and it was ordered that the coinage of silver should proceed at a rate not to exceed $2,000,000 a month. About this time (December 18, 1878), gold and paper money for the first time in seventeen years was of equal value.
grantGRANT AT WINDSOR CASTLE..
GRANT AT WINDSOR CASTLE..
In accordance with the law of 1875, specie payments by the United States government was effected January 1, 1879. At that time there was an accumulation of $138,000,000 in the United States treasury, nearly all of it gold, representing forty per cent. of the outstanding bonds. The mere knowledge of this fact so strengthened the public credit that, instead of the anticipated rush on the 1st of January, only $11,000,000 was offered for redemption. The problem of specie payment proved to be a bugbear.
THE FISHERY AWARD.
By the treaty of Washington, signed in 1872, Americans were allowed to take fish of every kind, except shellfish, on the seacoasts and shores and in the bays, harbors, and creeks of the provinces of Quebec, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward's Island, and the adjacent islands, without restriction as to the distance from shore. In return for this privilege, our government agreed to charge a duty upon certain kinds of fish brought by British subjects into American harbors. There were other mutual concessions, and, in order to balance matters and make everything smooth, the whole question was placed in the hands of an arbitration commission, which began its sessions in the summer of 1877, at Halifax. The commission included a member appointed by the Queen, one by the President, and the third by the Austrian ambassador at the Court of St. James. Our country was astounded by the verdict of this commission, which was that the United States should pay the sum of $5,000,000 to the British government. Even England was surprised, and our government was disposed to refuse to accept the verdict; but to do that would have established a bad precedent, and the sum named was paid to Great Britain in the autumn of 1878.
THE YELLOW FEVER SCOURGE.
Yellow fever has been one of the most dreadful scourges that our country has suffered. It first appeared on this continent in 1780, when Boston was ravaged in the summer of that year. It afterward appeared in New York and Philadelphia, especially in 1793 and 1797, after which its visitations have been mainly confined to the South, where the sanitation measures have been less rigid than in the North. It has been proven that strict quarantine and absolute cleanliness are safeguards against its entrance, though, after the frightful plague has once appeared in a place, it is impossible to stamp it out. It subsides before the approach of frost and cold weather, and the cure for those smitten is to carry them to cool elevations. Thus far science has not been able to discover the real nature of yellow fever, nor to provide a remedy. It has been established, however, that it is due to bacilli or disease germs, as is the case with cholera, consumption, and many other diseases, and there is reason to believe a specific remedy will soon be brought to light.
One of the most destructive visitations of yellow fever was in the summer and autumn of 1873. Memphis and New Orleans suffered the most, and at one time those cities were abandoned by all who could leave them. Other portions of the country contributed every possible assistance in the way of medical help, nurses, and money, but before the scourge was extirpated by cool weather fully 15,000 persons had succumbed.
PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1878.
The Republican National Convention was held in Chicago at the opening of June. As General Grant had returned from his memorable tour round the world, having been received everywhere with the highest honors, a determined effort was now made to renominate him for a third term. Roscoe Conkling, United States senator from New York, was the leader in the movement, and the whole number of Grant's supporters was 306, who without a break cast their vote for him thirty-six times in succession. They failed because of the widespread opposition to any man holding the exalted office for a longer period than Washington, the Father of his Country.
The principal rivals of General Grant were James G. Blaine, of Maine, and John Sherman, of Ohio. There being a deadlock, the supporters of these two candidates united and thereby nominated James A. Garfield, of Ohio, with Chester A. Arthur, of New York, as the nominee for Vice-President.
grant againGRANT IN JAPAN.
GRANT IN JAPAN.
The Democratic Convention, which met in Cincinnati in the latter part of June, placed in nomination General Winfield S. Hancock, of New York, and William H. English, of Indiana. The prospect of Hancock's election was excellent, but he destroyed it by one of those unfortunate expressions which more than once have defeated candidates for high office. When questioned concerning the tariff he expressed the opinion that it was a "local issue," a remark which many accepted as displaying ignorance of the important subject, and they, therefore, voted against him. The result was as follows: James A. Garfield and Chester A. Arthur, 214 electoral votes; W.S. Hancock and W.H. English, 155; James B. Weaver and B.J. Chambers, the Greenback candidates, received 307,306 popular votes; Neal Dow and H.A. Thompson, the Prohibition, 10,305; and John W. Phelps and S.C. Pomeroy, American, 707; but none of the three secured an electoral vote.
garfieldTHE BOY JAMES GARFIELD BRINGINGHIS FIRST DAY'S EARNINGS TO HIS MOTHER.
THE BOY JAMES GARFIELD BRINGINGHIS FIRST DAY'S EARNINGS TO HIS MOTHER.
James A. Garfield was born at Orange, Cuyahoga County, Ohio, November 19, 1831. While he was an infant his father died and he was left to the care of his noble mother, to whom he was devotedly attached.
Garfield spent his boyhood in the backwoods, and at one time was the driver of a canal-boat. He became strong, rugged, and a fine athlete, and at the same time obtained the rudiments of an English education. At the age of seventeen he attended the high school at Chester, and by hard study acquired an excellent knowledge of Latin, Greek, and algebra. He was a student at Hiram College, and became an instructor in 1854. The same year he entered Williams College, from which he was graduated with honor in 1856. He returned to Ohio, and was appointed a professor in Hiram College. He indulged his taste for politics and law, and served for a time in the State Senate, but was president of the college when the war broke out. He at once volunteered, and was appointed lieutenant-colonel and afterward colonel of the Forty-second Regiment of Ohio Volunteers.
Garfield displayed remarkable ability in the military service, and had he remained would have won high distinction. As a brigadier-general he did fine work in Kentucky and Tennessee. He was chief-of-staff to General Rosecrans, and showed great gallantry in the tremendous battle of Chickamauga. He was in the field when elected to Congress in 1862. His desire was to remain, but, at the personal request of President Lincoln, he entered Congress, where it was felt his help was needed in the important legislation before the country. The estimate in which he was held by his fellow-citizens is shown by the fact that he served as a member of Congress for seventeen years. In 1879 he was chosen United States senator, but did not take his seat because of his nomination for the presidency.
CIVIL SERVICE REFORM.
The question of "civil service reform," as it is termed, assumed prominence during the term of Hayes. This, as all understand, means that the public offices should be filled not in accordance with politics, but be determined by fitness. The charge has been made with reason that, when public servants have become skilled in the discharge of their duties, they are turned out to make room for the friends of the new administration, where politics are different. In that way public service is injured.
garfieldJAMES A. GARFIELD (1831-1881.)One partial term, 1881.
JAMES A. GARFIELD (1831-1881.)One partial term, 1881.
The opponents of civil service reform maintain, on the other hand, that there are thousands out of office who are just as capable as those in office, and that the party ought to reward those that have helped it to success. "To the victor belong the spoils" was the policy of Andrew Jackson, and it has been followed in a greater or less degree ever since. The cry of civil service reform was long a well-sounding motto with which to catch votes, but no serious effort was made to enforce it. Hayes tried his hand, but the clamor for political rewards was so insistent that he gave it up, and matters dropped back into their old ruts. The vexatious question was inherited by Garfield, and the hope was general that he would not only make a determined effort, but would succeed in carrying out the principles of real civil service reform.
The task soon proved beyond the capacity of himself or any human being. It seemed as if nearly every man in the country had been the deciding factor in the election of the President, while the "original Garfield man" would have formed a full regiment. The executive threw up his hands, and decided to pass over the plague to the next administration.