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I t r 1 h r MD j By ELMO SCOTT WATSON ALl ALK about the 1932 Presidential II campaign Is already In the air and It wont won't be lon long now until the two major parties will be deciding where they will hold bold their conventions to select the standard bearers bearers In next years year's race So It Is appropriate at nt this time to recall that the first Presidential convention was held Just years ago ngo and the story of ot that historic gathering Is one atthe of at the Interesting incidents In our national national national na na- history which Is but known to most Americans Most Americans no doubt believe believe be be- lieve that we have had Presidential nominating conventions ever since American political parties parties par ties came Into existence and that such a method method method meth meth- od of ot selecting candidates was originated byone by byone byone one of ot the two major parties which have a always al ways dominated governmental affairs But Dut the fact Is that neither belief belle Is correct The republic re re- republic re- re public had been In existence more than four tour decades decades decades de de- cades and had already chosen six Presidents when this procedure which was regarded as a startling Innovation at the time came into ex ex- ex- ex More than that it was not the invention invention tion of ot one of ot the tIle then leading lendIng parties but it was brought into being by an obscure organization tion which played a minor role in one Presidential PresidentIal dentin campaign and then quickly passed out of existence Not even the fact that the two leading parties parties par par- ties of at that period Immediately adopted the national na national na- na convention Idea as have haye all later Inter parties parties par par- ties until now v it Is an essential part of ot the American political scheme schem has been sufficient to keep alive aUve the memory of at the Masonic Anti party a religious-political religious phenomenon which In Sn September 1831 held In Baltimore Md Mi the first authentic national Presidential nominating nominating ing convention And to round out the paradox of this historic Incident which is filled with paradoxes it should be recorded that the nomInee nominee nominee nomi nomI- nee of ot the Masonic Anti-Masonic party was himself a aMason aMason aMason Mason 1 J JIt It is probable that a national nominating convention would have come about eventually In the process of ot American political evolution even if it there had never been an Masonic Anti-Masonic party But It so happened that this organization came on the scene at a time when the growth of ot the Democratic spirit In the American people was rising to a high tide and the dissatisfaction tion with the previous method of choosing Presidential Presidential Pres I. I candidates bad reached Us its peak So whether by design or by chance this party responded responded re- re to a popular demand with a new and acceptable method and thus gets the credit for Inaugurating a custom which Is a milestone in American political history i. i During Daring the first two decades of ot our history as a n nation It became the practice for each party to hold a congressional caucus and nominate nom nomi nate hate candidates for President and vice dent But Dut gradually the caucus s grew into disfavor The dictum of ot the party members of ot congress was not always accepted by everybody In two powerful competitors for the succession succession successIon sion to Jefferson appeared Madison appeared Madison and Monroe Mon Mon- roe roe and and both were put forward by slate legislative legislative legis legis- caucuses In Virginia The congressional caucus decided In favor o of Madison Several Se members of at congress who did not favor Madison Madison Madi Madl son appealed to the country not only against the regularity of the procedure but against the caucus s system stem Itself But the caucus won out In that Instance and Madison was elected Pres 1 dent ent Though the congressional caucus continued to make presidential nominations until 1824 King Ring Caucus as it was now called continued to be regarded with more and more disfavor In 1824 William B II n. Crawford of ot Georgia was the caucus nominee of ot the Republican party but the rank and file of the party refused to accept accept accept ac ac- ac- ac him and he be came out third In the list of candidates in the election So King ICing Caucus was dethroned and Democratic America was ready for a new and more representative method method meth meth- od of ot choosing its candidates for President This was furnished by the AnU- AnU Masonic Anti party which was brought Into being by the following events In 1824 1821 a certain William Morgan settled In BatavIa N. N N Y Y He lie had been heen a Mason but becoming becomIng becoming be be- coming dissatisfied with the fraternity he published pub pub- a book which purported to reveal the secrets secrets secrets se se- crets of ol the thc order In 1820 1826 Morgan disappeared and the rumor was waR started that he had been abducted and murdered by the Masons There was no proof that they had anything to do with his disappearance but the tile incident was capitalized capitalized capitalized capital capital- upon b by enemies of ot th the order and through New York New England and Pennsylvania spread the suspicion that the order whose membership membership membership mem mem- was mainly from the thc wealthier classes was a secret political society as well as a fraternal fraternal fra fra- fra order whose Influence swayed Juries and legislatures So America had a first class menace menace menace men ace to get excited over and the politicians were t 0 t l x y r y x j b c Harris iriny quick to seize upon it to promote their own ambitions The result was the formation of ot the Masonic Anti-Masonic party part y at a national convention held In Philadelphia in September 1830 attended attended attended at at- tended by 00 oa delegates from 10 states There it was decided decIde to hold a national nominating convention convention con con- the next year Of Ot this party Prof Proto William Wllliam 0 O. Lynch In his book Fifty Y Years Tears cars of ot Party Warfare 1837 1789 published recently by the Bobbs Dobbs Merrill compan company com corn pan pany writes The Antl- Antl Masonic Anti strength was greatest In the East The movement made little little lit lit- little tle headway In the West save sae Ohio and was weak In the South In the New England states New York and Pennsylvania the number of ot Masons Anti-Masons was great The strongest est leaders appeared In these commonwealths Among the political leaders who had some prominence Inthe in inthe inthe the Masonic Anti-Masonic party were William II n. Seward Seward Seward Sew- Sew ard Thurlow Weed Millard Fillmore Albert n. n Tracy Francis Granger John Crary and Frederick Frederick Fred Fred- erick of ot New York Thaddeus Stevens Stevens Stevens Stev Stev- ens and Richard Rush of ot Pennsylvania Edward Everett and John Quincy Adams of ot Other leaders who looked with favor on the party were William WIrt John Marshall John C. C Calhoun John McLean and Daniel Webster Andrew Jackson who was then President was a Mason and seemed certain of re-election re unless some strong combination could be formed against him So an effort was made to induce Henry Clay to lead the new party or at least to unite the Masons Anti-Masons with the wing of ot the National Republican party part of ot which he lie was the leader under his banner The only trouble trouble trouble trou- trou ble with this effort was that Clay himself was wasa a Mason and although he was not an enthusiastic enthusiastic member of ot the order fhe the efforts to get him to renounce It t failed In September 1931 1031 Clay wrote a letter in reply reply reply re re- re- re ply to a committee of Masons Anti in Indiana who had asked ed him for his sentiments on Masonry Mason Mason- ry which may possibly have vitally affected his political fortunes and kept him from realIzIng realizing realizing real real- izing his fondest ambition of at going to the White House In tills this letter Clay said that should he give his views on Masonry it would imply that individual sentiments on the subject formed a proper consideration in regard to voting for persons to fill federal offices He declared that Americans should vote yote for President without regard to religious s social benevolent or literary lIterary literary liter lIter- ary associations Further than that he made a statement which was a criticism of ot AnU- AnU Mason Anti Iason ry when he said If Indeed you ou gentlemen will point to a provision in the Federal Constitution Constitution Constitution which can legitimately be made to operate operate operate op op- op- op erate upon the subject In question I would not hesitate to comply with your request This was a u definite turn down for tor the Anti Anti- Masons and years later Thurlow Weed declared that If It Clay had not written this letter the Masons Anti would have Joined the National Republicans and would have defeated Jackson Such a combination he declared would have given Clay New York Pennsylvania Vermont Georgia North Carolina and Louisiana in addition additIon addition ad ad- to the states that he did carr carry enough to have Insured him a safe sate majority in the thc electoral votes Turn Turning ng to their next best bet the Anti Anti- Masons picked upon William Wirt of at Maryland as their choice Wirt had been one of the attorneys attorneys attorneys at at- who had bad prosecuted Aaron Burr for tor tree trea treason on had served as general attorney-general in the cabinets s of both Madison and Monroe and was widely regarded as an able and outstanding man So when the first national nominating convention ever held In the United States assembled assembled as as- in the old Athenaeum in Baltimore in September 1831 it selected Wirt as its choice for candidate for tor President and named Amos Ellmaker of ot Pennsylvania as his running mate for vice president And this despite the fact tact that Wirt was a n Mason of ot many years standing 4 Y J and had never renounced his allegiance to that order His letter of acceptance has often been cited ns as a practical renunciation of ot Masonry but it was far tar from that In it he said In substance substance sub sub- stance that both In conversation and in letters to friends he had spoken en of the contentions over Masonry as a subject more fit for farce than tragedy and had been grieved at seeing some of my ray friends involved In what appeared to me such a wild and unjust persecution against so harmless an nn institution as Freemasonry Free Free- masonry The candidate of the Masons Anti-Masons then admitted ad nd matted his ideas upon the subject had undergone undergone undergone under under- gone some modification however and that he be did find some cause for tor alarm in the actions of or overzealous members of or the order Concerning Concerning Concerning Con Con- the new party he was asked to lead Wirt wrote after describing his own affiliation with Masonry extending over o a period of ot 80 BO years I 1 had supposed that the very principles of your union was a war of or Indiscriminate proscription proscrIption proscription pro pro- against all persons throughout the United States who had ever borne the name of ot Mason that you would put in nomination no persons who had ever eer been a Mason and who would not moreover moreo pledge himself to become a party to such a war of Indiscriminate extermination tion and wield the appointing power of ot the office under your dictation who would not in short become the president of your our part party instead of ot beIng being being be be- ing the Ule President of ot the United States I am happy to find that t this ls I Is s an error This attitude of their candidate was far tar from satisfactory to the lie more earnest of the Anti Anti- Masons and they became even more more dissatisfied when the campaign got under way For Wirt VIrt made no attempt to carry carryon on on active actie cam cam- How plainly he felt that an unpleasant Job had been wished off on him and that there w was s no hope of at his being elected Is shown by a n letter which he wrote to Judge Carr an Intimate Intimate Inti Inti- mate friend In It he said I 1 had thought I had no right to object to the Masons Anti-Masons proposing m me to the consideration of the people for the office of ot President Every other chance of ot uniting the opposition to Jackson had vanished This alone remained and faint as it was I considered It m my dut duty to permit the offer to be made It has been made the National Republicans have ha declared d against the union which alone I had in view I Ican Ican Ican can perceive neither dignity nor decency In continuIng con con- con con- continuing the nomination It Is true that when I accepted the nomination nomination nomina nomina- tion I knew that this state of ot things might arise But it Is not true that I knew If It It should arise the Masons anti would still persist In the nom nom- It never entered into my Imagination that they could wish to do so vain aln and foolish a thing What end can It answer to themselves It will only expose c their weakness They cannot carry a single state except perhaps Vermont In such circumstances what a figure will they and their candidate make in a Presidential contest It will annihilate them and me too by the mere force of or ridicule He De was a true prophet Not only did Clay fall fan to beat Jackson as Wirt had hoped but as he had also predicted Vermont Yermont with its seven electoral votes was the only state carried by the antI anil EY Erin n John Flo Floyd d of Georgia who ran as an independent did better than that that He got 11 electoral votes After the tile election of ot 1832 this party part disappeared from the national scene Most of ot its members were absorbed by the Whigs although in Pennsylvania It con its Identity for tor several years yeara and elected a governor go In 1835 But even eyen though It played such a small part on the American political stage the Masonic anti-Masonic party and Its standard standard- hearer bearer William Wirt are deserving of ot remembrance remembrance brance as fiS the party which gave to the countr country the national convention system by Western Newspaper Union |