CHAPTER XXIX.

THE DIX CONVENTION.

HOW THE WAR DEMOCRAT, GENERAL DIX, WAS ELECTED GOVERNOR BY THE

REPUBLICAN PARTY.—THE CANDIDATES OF SENATOR CONKLING REJECTED.—HOW

DIX WAS SPRUNG ON THE CONVENTION, TO THE CONSTERNATION OF THE

CAUCUS.—JUDGE ROBERTSON’S DISAPPOINTMENT.—EXCITING SCENES IN THE

CONVENTION.—GENERAL DIX DECLINES THE NOMINATION, BUT RECONSIDERS AND

ACCEPTS ON THE ADVICE OF HIS WIFE AND GENERAL GRANT.—HOW DIX’S

ELECTION ENSURED GRANT’S SECOND TERM AS PRESIDENT.

Among the political events of the last quarter of a century in which I

took an active part, in common with some other Wall Street men, I think

the Utica Convention, at which General Dix was nominated for Governor of

this State, is entitled to special notice, particularly on account of

its effect upon national politics.

I was a delegate to that Convention. Just as I was stepping from the

train to the platform at Utica I was met by a gentleman who introduced

himself to me as the Private Secretary of Senator Conkling. He said he

came to convey an invitation to me from the Senator to be his guest

during my stay in that city. He escorted me to the carriage in waiting,

and I was taken to the palatial mansion of the Senator. I was the only

resident guest during my stay—an honor which I highly appreciated.

Several gentlemen were invited that evening to dinner, amongst whom were

Hon. Chester A. Arthur, A. B. Cornell, Wm. Orton and General Sharpe.

At the conclusion of a sumptuous repast the subject matter relating to

the Convention was introduced by Senator Conkling. The Senator turned to

me and said: “Mr. Clews, why would not George Opdyke be the best man for

Governor?” Mr. Opdyke and Senator Conkling had always been on excellent

terms, and a few weeks previously this aspirant for Gubernatorial honors

had been a guest at the house of the Senator, and General Grant had been

there at the same time. It was apparent, therefore, that Mr. Opdyke had

gained special recognition from the Senator as his candidate for

Governor, and that the choice had been sanctioned by General Grant. So

the visit of these two distinguished guests seemed to indicate that the

matter had been virtually, harmoniously and finally arranged, simply

awaiting the official approval of the Convention. Hence, the point of

the Senator’s inquiry directed to myself.

I replied: “Senator, I have a very high regard for Mr. Opdyke, as a man

of great ability, as well as a brother banker, but as we have, all of

us, a greater interest in what is to be done at this Convention, with a

view of re-electing General Grant, we must, in my judgment, sacrifice

all other interests thereto. Looking at the matter from that point of

view, I am bound to say, therefore, that George Opdyke is not our best

man. As you remember, he was Mayor of the city of New York at the time

of the great riots of 1863, which was the most critical period of the

country’s existence, and it was generally understood that in his

official capacity he showed the white feather. While I admit that the

excitement at the time was calculated to intimidate some of the

strongest hearts, still, Mr. Opdyke, as Chief Magistrate of the city,

was supposed to be equal to the emergency, and to meet it with firmness,

irrespective of personal danger. He was expected to be equal to the task

of ordinary self sacrifice in such a position, and he did not come up to

popular expectation.

“And you will recollect, Senator,” I continued, “that your own

brother-in-law, that able, worthy and popular man, Hon. Horatio Seymour,

was so far carried away by his predilections then, that he addressed the

crowd of peace-breakers as ‘friends.’ I confess that when a man like him

was so pronounced on that side it was a difficult matter for a Mayor to

have backbone enough to withstand the pressure. But public opinion is

not in the habit of making such fine distinctions to excuse want of

courage.

“If this is not an ample reason,” I said, “I can give you another, which

should be sufficient to determine that Mr. Opdyke is not our best man at

this time. He is young enough, however, and may be available at a future

period, when the asperities associated with these troublous times have

been fully smoothed down. During the war Mr. Opdyke had the misfortune

to be a special partner in a clothing manufacturing firm which had

received a contract from the Government to make clothing for the poor

fellows who were fighting our battles for the salvation of the country.

The clothing made by this firm was rejected on account of the

inferiority of the material, and this is said to have been the first

application of the term ‘shoddy’ to army clothing in this country.”

Mr. Conkling seemed to be amazed at my statement, and admitted that his

protegé would not do. He felt considerably embarrassed in regard to his

position with reference to Mr. Opdyke. He said, “Mr. Opdyke is here and

expects the nomination. Some one ought to tell him to withdraw.”

Thereupon Mr. A. B. Cornell volunteered to undertake this delicate duty.

He promptly performed it, and afterwards reported that the work had been

accomplished. He said that Mr. Opdyke at once consented to comply with

the modest request, but was so mad about it that he had left the city by

the first train for home, being unwilling to remain for the convention.

Prior to his departure, however, he had advised the Hon. W. H.

Robertson, who was the next prominent candidate, of his withdrawal, and

of the support of his constituency so far as his name could control it.

Mr. Robertson, who had been prominent in the preliminary canvass, was

gratified at this turn of affairs, and encouraged by his new accession

of strength. He was quick to embrace the opportunity now left open, as

there were no other candidates whom he feared. So the whole of that

night he worked arduously and faithfully for the object in view.

When I left the Conkling mansion next morning, after breakfast, I

mingled freely with the delegates, and found, from the efforts made the

previous night, that the nomination of Judge Robertson was a foregone

conclusion, and the candidate himself was sure of it. The Robertson boom

had become suddenly popular. In fact, it was in the air.

I was invited to General Arthur’s parlors, where the caucus had its

headquarters. It was customary with General Arthur, in those days, to

take parlors for that purpose at State Conventions. I found the rooms

filled with distinguished members of the party, and it was assumed by

all that Robertson was the candidate for Governor; it was also proposed

that we should march in a body to his hotel, to congratulate him, and to

assure him of the fact that we were all for him. I declined to be of the

number on that mission, to the great chagrin of some of my friends. When

asked for my reasons, I said that I had no feeling of personal hostility

towards Mr. Robertson, but as the New York _Times_ had not been pleased

with his conduct while State Senator, and had severely criticized him

thereafter, I felt satisfied that under no circumstances could we rely

upon the _Times_ to support our ticket if he were at the head of it; and

as that was the only paper in New York that we had to fight our battles

then, it was all important that we should nominate a ticket that would

not be antagonistic to it, in order that we might have its endorsement

and full co-operation.

The rest of the gentlemen went to pay their respects to Judge Robertson,

as pre-arranged, and during their absence I went to the telegraph office

and sent the following message to General John A. Dix, to his residence

at 3 West Twenty-first street, New York:

You are favored by many of the delegates for Governor. If

nominated will you accept? For the sake of the country, answer

in the affirmative.

“HENRY CLEWS.”

To this I received the following:

“I have telegraphed your dispatch to West Hampton, where my

father now is.

“Aug. 21 1872.

“JOHN W. DIX.”

A short time afterwards the Convention met, and the name of Robertson

was presented. The management had been so ably conducted since the

departure of Mr. Opdyke, that there seemed to be an overwhelming hurrah

in favor of Robertson, though it was evident that many of the delegates

did not know why they cheered, except by force of imitation. The

Convention at first, as has been the case on many similar

occasions—except that there never was any occasion precisely similar to

this one—did not seem to know its own mind, and was apparently well in

hand by the management. Several most laudatory speeches were made in

favor of Robertson, which placed him on the very pinnacle of popularity

with the Convention, as manifested by the cheering and wild hurrahs with

which the speeches were received. The management was thoroughly

convinced that the popular tide had begun to flow in favor of their

candidate, beyond the possibility of ebbing until it carried him to

port, and there was probably no man in that enthusiastic audience more

fully convinced of the fact than Robertson himself.

Several other nominations were made, but that of Robertson overshadowed

them all.

When the gavel was about to descend on the choice of the people, as

expressed through their intelligent representatives by every sign of

enthusiastic approval, the audience being almost exhausted with this

high pressure of excitement, and when it was just prepared to relapse

into a more thoughtful and deliberate mood, I sprung General Dix on the

Convention. The mere mention of the name of that veteran seemed to

inspire the vast assemblage with new life. The announcement acted like

magic, and appeared to throw all the previous work of the Convention

into utter oblivion.

After Mr. Bruce and the Hon. E. Delafield Smith had spoken, I said: “On

behalf of the bankers and business men of New York, regardless of party,

the nomination of John A. Dix would do more for the Republican party in

the national contest than any other that could be named. No other man

would receive equal confidence of the great monied interests of the

metropolis.”

The scene that followed the remarks of these gentlemen and myself is

indescribable. The whole audience arose to their feet and cheered

vehemently. If the house had been struck with lightning the caucus

managers could not have been more surprised, and Judge Robertson must

have begun to doubt his own identity.

Concerning the scene in the Convention at this juncture, the New York

_Herald_ the next morning had the following:

“The enthusiasm excited by the representatives of Henry Clews

carried the Convention, and it only wanted to put the question

to the delegates to result in a triumph for the Dix interest.

There was great confusion in the hall at this moment. Delegates

attempted to make themselves heard from all parts of the hall.

There were heard the first notes of the coming avalanche of

victory for the Dix ticket. The stentorian voice of a delegate

from St. Lawrence, mighty almost as the cataract of Niagara, was

heard above the din, proclaiming that the St. Lawrence

delegation endorsed the nomination of Dix. Further enthusiasm

was thus excited. Then followed Kings, Jefferson, Cayuga and

others, lost in the cheering that was incessantly kept up. The

whole of the delegation seemed under one impulse to fall into

line under the flag raised by Dix as the standard-bearer of the

party. Then came a demand that no ballot should be taken,

formally or informally, but that the nomination of General Dix

be made by acclamation. The Hon. William A. Wheeler, the

chairman, said such a motion was not in order, as there were

other candidates before the Convention. This difficulty, like

every other, was soon swept away in the tornado of excitement

consequent upon the sudden and unexpected course of affairs, so

lately garbled and mixed up, had taken; and the clear course

that the name of one man, held back to the lucky moment, had

arrived, to give it a talismanic power, opened to the previous

bewildered senses of the delegates when the Bald-Eagle of

Westchester, the proposer of Judge Robertson, arose and

announced the withdrawal of his nominee’s name. A thunder of

applause followed this announcement, which was echoed and

re-echoed, when the several other proposers withdrew in quick

succession the names of their candidates. Then came again the

call to put the name of General Dix by acclamation to the

Convention. The vote was put and was unanimously carried, with

the greatest excitement ever before witnessed at a Convention.”

The New York _Times_ said editorially:

“The Convention of this State has placed at the head of its

ticket two of the strongest names it could possibly have

selected. In General Dix it has nominated a Democrat who is free

from all the reproaches which the last twelve years have brought

upon the Democratic party—a man whose character is without a

stain, whose strenuous efforts to assist the Union during the

rebellion ought never to be forgotten, who has been one of our

most indefatigable assistants in the work of reform, and whose

integrity and abilities alike entitle him to the respect of the

public. No one can doubt that if we have General Dix as Governor

of this State the affairs of the community will be managed with

discretion, dignity and a high sense of honor. We purposely

refrained from recommending candidates to the Convention, but

now that all is over, we need not disguise our opinion that

General Dix was the very best man that could have been chosen.

Honest Democrats will gladly support him, Republicans have every

reason to arrange themselves by his side, for he has identified

himself with every great work in which they have been

interested. He has always done his duty, no matter what position

he has occupied, and we shall be proud to assist in electing him

as Governor of this State. If we could not trust such a man as

General Dix, it would be very hard to carry on the work of

popular government at all.”

At the close of the proceedings I sent the following despatch to General

Dix:

“I took the responsibility of putting your name forward as a

candidate for Governor, and now rejoice in apprising you of your

nomination by the Convention by acclamation.

“HENRY CLEWS.”

On my return to New York, to my utter dismay, I found the following

telegram awaiting me:

“WEST HAMPTON, Aug. 22, 1872.

“HENRY CLEWS:

“I have been compelled to decline.

“JOHN A. DIX.”

That afternoon I went down to Long Branch to see General Grant, and

spent the evening with him. I showed him the despatch from General Dix,

declining the nomination, and expressed the opinion that it was all

important that he should be prevailed upon to reconsider his first

resolve, and permit his name to head our ticket. “You know, General,” I

said, “Dix is a war Democrat. He will act as a bridge to bring over to

our ranks all the war Democrats. It was chiefly for that reason that I

sprung him on the Convention.”

General Grant realized the position at once, and fully agreed with me.

I said: “General, you must write a letter to General Dix, urging him to

accept the nomination.” He wrote to General Dix in a day or two. The

veteran was greatly moved by a letter from a renowned brother in arms,

but still had some difficulty in making up his mind, lest he might lay

himself open to the charge of inconsistency. And here comes in the

predominating influence of lovely woman, even cruelly deprived as she is

of the ballot. General Dix held his final answer in abeyance until he

should consult his wife.

GENERAL GRANT TO GENERAL DIX.

Following is the letter which General Grant wrote after my interview

with him:

“LONG BRANCH, N. J., Aug. 24, 1872.

“MY DEAR GENERAL:

“I congratulate you upon the unanimity and enthusiasm of the

Utica Convention on the occasion of your nomination for the

honorable and responsible position of Governor of the great

State of New York. Especially do I congratulate the citizens of

that State, almost irrespective of party, upon your nomination.

I believe you will receive the active support of the great

majority of the best people of the State, and the secret

sympathy of thousands who may be so bound up by party ties and

pledges as to force them to support your opponent.

“But to doubt your election would be to impugn the intelligence

and patriotism of a people by whose enlightened discrimination

such good men as Tompkins, Clinton, Marcy, Fish, King and Morgan

have been lifted to the Chief Magistracy of the Empire State.

With your election reforms in the State will naturally follow,

which all acknowledge have been much needed for years.

“No one acquainted with the political history of New York for

the past eight years will claim that all the abuses of

legislation are due to Democratic rule, but members, or at least

pretended members, of both political parties share the

responsibility of them.

“When I read the proceedings of the Convention of the 21st

inst., and of the unanimity of feeling in favor of you and your

associates on the State ticket, I felt that victory had been

already achieved and reform inaugurated in the State of New

York.

“Again, I congratulate you, not upon the prospect of being

Governor, but upon having it within your reach to render such

services to your State.

“It is a happy day when conventions seek candidates, not

candidates nominations. This dream has been realized in the

action of the Convention of the 21st inst. at Utica, New York.

“I have the honor to be, General, your most obedient servant,

U. S. GRANT.”

“GEN. JOHN A. DIX, N. Y.”

GENERAL DIX’S REPLY.

“LEAFIELD, WEST HAMPTON, N. Y.,

August 28, 1872.

“MY DEAR GENERAL:

“I am very thankful to you for your kind letter of

congratulation on my nomination for the office of Governor of

this State. You are aware, no doubt, that I declined it before

the Convention was held. I am deeply sensible of the honor

conferred on me, especially by the manner in which it was

tendered; but my objections to the acceptance of the nomination

are so strong, that I would not think of it a moment, were it

not for the deep concern I feel in the result of the election,

and the great public interests at stake.

“I expect Mrs. Dix to arrive from Europe on the 2nd or 3rd

proximo, and as soon as I am able to confer with her, I shall

reply to the letter of the President of the Convention, advising

me of my nomination.

“I am, dear General, very respectfully and sincerely yours,

JOHN A. DIX.”

“HIS EXCELLENCY, U. S. GRANT.”

It is evident from this correspondence that General Grant’s letter,

which I take the credit of having inspired, reinforced by the latent,

loving power and good judgment of Mrs. Dix, assisted in the wise

decision of the war Democrat to accept the Republican office which was

judiciously thrust upon him.

The election of Dix made the second calling and election of Grant sure.

The Republican party took General Dix into its fold, and the effect was,

as I had anticipated, to bring thousands of others similarly situated,

to vote, at the Presidential election, for General Grant.

The Dix nomination was the worst black eye that Mr. Greeley received

during that campaign, and the Sage of Chappaqua acknowledged on his

death bed that that event, together with the Grant mass meetings at the

Cooper Institute, described in another chapter, sealed his political

doom.

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