Show If Wendell Willkie Wins in November Hell He'll Be Sixth Political Dark Horse To Be Stabled in the White House Dy Hy ELMO SCOTT WATSON b by Western Newspaper er Union F AS the Republican party I IF hopes and believes Wendell Wendell Wendell Wen Wen- dell Willkie is the winner in the Presidential race next November he will become the sixth dark horse to be bc stabled in the thc White House For only five times in our nations nation's nations nation's nations nation's na na- tion's history of years have the people elected to the highest office in the land aman aman a n man who was either unknown before his nomination or was not seriously considered as a potential candidate James Knox Polk was the first of the dark horse breed of can can- He was a Tennessee country country coun coun- tl try lawyer who went to congress for seven terms and became a strong partisan of Old Hickory Jackson Due mainly to Jackson's Jacksons Jacksons Jackson's Jacksons Jackson's Jack Jack- sons son's influence he became I speaker of the house of representatives representatives representatives and later governor of I Tennessee He lIe was defeated for I re-election re to that office and his I political career seemed ended i i As the time for Democratic convention convention con can of 1844 approached the strongest contender for the nomination nomination nomi nomi- nation was Martin Van Buren who had served one term as President but had lost to the Whig candid candidate candidate candi candi- d date Gen William Henry Harri Harri- Harrison Harrison son son in 1840 Van Buren had the backing of General Jackson but butS the Southern Democracy was sus BUS S i t t Y a JAMES K K POLK I of him and his attitude toward slavery During the first seven ballots at the convention in Baltimore Van Buren had a majority of the delegates' delegates votes But due to the strength of Lewis Cass of Michigan Michi gan he could not get the two- two thirds vote required by party rules After the seventh ballot the southern delegates secured a recess and held a caucus They decided to rally behind the defeated defeated defeated de de- Tennessee governor who was right on the slavery question question ques tion and who enjoyed the friendship friendship friend friend- ship of Jackson Beyond Polk's Folks Dopes Hopes Polk had no hope of being the Presidential nominee but he had made it known that he would accept accept ac ac- ac the vice ice presidency On the eighth ballot the southerners I sprang their surprise candidate I and the New York delegates withdrew Van Burens Buren's name On the next roll roil call they swung to Polk other states followed and when the ninth ballot ended the kPA y n JAMES A. A GARFiELD first dark horse in convention history a man who hadn't been mentioned for the honor 24 hours previously had been unanimously nominated Of 01 course the Whigs were delighted delighted de de- lighted to have a no body as asan asan asan an opponent for lor their candidate Henry Clay But their jubilation jubilation jubilation tion was premature For Clay the Kentuckian angered the South by pussyfooting on the question of ot annexing Texas thereby adding slave territory and the new Liberty party of Abolitionists headed by James w. w G. G Birney diverted enough votes o from Clay to give Polk an easy victory Eight years later the Democrats Democrats Democrats Demo Demo- again nominated and elect- elect n v o oj j r j IR I I R R R. R D. D HAYES I ed a dark horse candidate Franklin Pierce our only President President dent from New Hampshire Educated Educated Edu Edu- at Bowdoin college he was wasa wasi a successful young lawyer when he was elected to congress at the age of 29 and to the senate when he was only 33 But because Mrs Pierce was a shy woman who hated public life lile Pierce resigned resigned re se- signed from the senate and went back to his law practice in Concord Con Con- cord At the outbreak of the War with Mexico he entered the service service service ice came out as a brigadier- brigadier general and announced that he was through with public life for for- ever But the political situation during during dur dur- ing the next five years changed all aU that When the Democratic convention opened In Baltimore on June 1 I 1852 the leading candIdates candidates candidates can can- were Lewis Cass of MichIgan Michigan Michigan Mich Mich- igan James Buchanan of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Pennsylvania Penn Penn- sylvania and Stephen A. A Douglas of Illinois For 28 ballots none of these men was able to secure the necessary two-thirds two majority major major- ity Then the convention decided decided decided ed it had better turn to a new candidate who had taken no part partin in the slavery dispute and had therefore Incurred no bitter enmities enmities en en- in other words a nobody nobody no nobody body Some of ot the Maine delegates suggested the senator ex-senator from their neighboring state So Franklin Pierce was trotted out as a dark horse received 15 votes on the ballot and gained steadily until the when he received 55 By that time it was apparent that the band wagon was on its way and the delegates hastily climbed on On the ballot Pierce received of the votes The Whigs nominated Gen Winfield Scott hoping that Old Fuss and Feathers could repeat the victory of that other hero of the Mexican war Old Rough and Ready Taylor But the Democrats' Democrats young Mexican war general swept the he election field with electoral votes to Scotts Scott's 42 Pierce tried for in 1856 but was defeated and vanished vanished van van- fished from the political scene First Republican Dark Horse Thus far the Democratic party had been the one which supplied dark horse candidates But beginning in 1876 1878 the Republicans took their turn In that year James G G. G Blaine was their logical logical logical logi logi- cal candidate and in the early balloting at the convention in Cincinnati Cincinnati Cincinnati Cin Cin- he was within 30 votes of victory However the Man ManFrom ManFrom ManFrom From Maine had his enemies who were determined to block his nomination Among the favorite sons who were trailing along on complimentary complimentary complimentary com com- votes otes was Rutherford B B. B Hayes of Ohio a lawyer who became a major major general general in the Union army then returned home to serve two terms in congress and three terms as governor of his native state He lie was scarcely scarcely scarcely scarce scarce- ly known outside the borders of Ohio and during the spirited contest contest contest con con- test between Dlaine's Blaines partisans and his enemies no one paid much attention to Hayes Hayes' 61 votes Roscoe Conkling of New York had the support of the New York and Pennsylvania delegates but when it became apparent that Conkling had no chance to beat Elaine Blaine the Pennsylvanians began to throw their support to Ohio's favorite son This started a swing which carried the Buckeye Buckeye Buckeye Buck Buck- eye dark horse to victory by 38 1 votes to Blaines Blaine's The Democrats nominated Samuel J. J Tilden of New York and in the election it seemed that Tilden had won Then occurred the famous incident of the contested contested con con- tested electoral votes of Florida Louisiana and South Carolina the appointment by congress of an electoral commission and its 8 to 7 vote in favor of Hayes So another dark horse went to the White House but there are those who still believe that he had lost the election before the electoral commissions commission's vote sent him Wm there Although Hayes was not a great President he was probably the best of any of the dark horses Declaring that he serves his party best who serves his country country coun I try best Hayes gave the country country coun coun- try an administration which set seta a high mark for lor future dark horse Presidents to try to equal The first of these was another Buckeye James A. A Garfield Securing Se Se- Securing curing an education by his own efforts he became a teacher and was elected to the Ohio senate which he left in 1861 to become the youngest general brigadier-general inthe in inthe inthe the Union army He came out atthe of at the war a major-general major and was sent to congress where his principal principal principal prin prin- cipal distinction was his loyalty to Blaine Grant Tries for a Third Term The 1880 Republican convention was again a battle between Conkling and Blaine but this time the New York leader was trying to secure a third term for Ulysses S. S Grant Although Grant led Blaine in the voting from the first ballot Conkling could not muster up quite enough votes to r secure the nomination for the ex dent Garfield was present at the convention convention convention con con- as the leader of the Ohio 4 e ti I v f i I FRANKLIN PIERCE delegation pledged to John Sher Sher- man lie He made the speech placIng placing placing ing Shermans Sherman's name in nomination nomination nomination nomina nomina- tion and as it turned out succeeded succeeded succeeded suc suc- in nominating himself by doing it For when it became apparent apparent ap ap- ap parent that neither Grant nor Blaine could win the convention con turned to a compromise candi candi- date On the ballot Garfield received received received re re- re- re 17 votes He immediately protested that he was there in the interests of Sherman but the chairman ruled him out of order and the balloting proceeded On the ballot the break came The Blaine and Sherman forces swung behind Garfield and he was nominated with votes to Grants Grant's Garfield easily defeated defeated defeated de de- de- de the Democratic nominee Gen Winfield Scott Hancock but buthis buthis buthis his career as President was cut short by the bullet of a a i t. t 1 J N ti r- r I I WARREN G. G HARDING pointed seeker office Charles J Guiteau September 19 1881 a little more than six months after he had entered the White House The story of the fifth dark horse President is so recent and so familiar to most Americans as to need only brief briet mention here The 1920 Republican convention convention convention con con- was in Chicago a fight between Gen Leonard Wood and Gov Frank 0 O. O Lowden of Illinois for the nomination It soon became became became be be- came apparent that a hopeless deadlock would woud wo d prevent the nomination nomination nom nom- of eith either r candidate Then followed the now now famous famous night conference in a smoke e filled hotel room and the next day Senator Warren G G. G Harding an Ohio favorite son was a selected selected se se- e as the nominee Harding defeated his fellow-Buckeye fellow Gov James M. M Cox electoral votes to and entered the th e White House pledged to bring th the e country back to normalcy Isis His administration marred b by y scandals reminiscent of the Grant Gran t regime ended August 2 1923 1933 when death summoned tl this s ill UI fated Ohioan the second d dark horse President to die di e in the harness |