was finally carried by a vote of 34 to 9. In the course of this debate a senator asked Mr. Grundy of Tennessee, who

had reported the resolutions, as chairman of the joint committee, what course would have been pursued if the

vote of Michigan had varied the result? Mr. Grundy replied that the gentleman could not expect him "to answer a question which the wisest of their predecessors had purposely left undetermined. What might be done under the circumstances adverted to, should they ever occur, the wisdom of the day must decide."

The official count of the electoral votes is given on the preceding page.

The result was announced in the alternative form pro vided for by the joint resolution, concluding with the declaration that, whether the votes of Michigan were counted or not counted, Martin Van Buren was elected President, and that no person had a majority of votes for Vice-President; that an election to that office had not been effected; that Richard M. Johnson of Kentucky, and Francis Granger of New York, were the two highest on the lists of electoral votes, and that it devolved on the Senate to choose a Vice-President from these persons.

On returning to its own chamber, the Senate adopted a resolution prescribing the manner in which an election should be made. The names of the senators were to be called in alphabetical order, and they were to vote viva voce. On the first trial, Richard M. Johnson of Kentucky was chosen by a vote of 33 to 16 for Francis Granger. This was the only occasion in our political history that the choice of the Vice-President has devolved upon the Senate.

XV.

THE HARRISON CAMPAIGN.

No other political canvass that has ever taken place in the United States bears even a near resemblance to the "log-cabin" and "hard-cider" campaign of 1840. It was marked by intense and extraordinary enthusiasm on the part of young men for a candidate who was close upon seventy years of age. The party which won the victory was a party only in name, for its only bond of union was opposition to the administration of the day. It announced no positive principles, it had no definite policy. Yet it triumphed over the closely-organized party which had governed the country since the beginning of the century, unless the four years' term of the second Adams is to be excepted, — strongly intrenched in the offices, and using the public patronage without scruple to perpetuate its own power.

Mr. Van Buren's administration was a continuation of General Jackson's. The new President had far more political shrewdness than his predecessor, but far less personal force. His public life was characterized from beginning to end by finesse. He contrived to be on neither side of many of the most important questions of the day,

at least until it had become very evident which view was likely to be the more popular. But when he cast in his fortunes with Jackson, after the failure of the caucus in 1824, he supported his chief zealously and loyally, and he had his reward. The people had, however, begun to tire of Jackson before his second term expired, and Van

Buren was unequal to the task of bringing them back to their allegiance. The great panic of 1837- the direct result of the reckless financing of Jackson, of the extinction of the Bank of the United States, which had given stability to the currency, of the treasury circular which required the payment of all dues of the United States in coin, and of the distribution of the surplus revenue dealt a blow at the administration in the first year of its existence. Its weakness was shown by its repeated defeats in two successive Congresses, in each of which there was a Democratic majority, upon the President's favorite scheme of establishing that anomalous institution, the Independent Treasury, the one great measure of Mr. Van Buren's administration.

Still, it would be a mistake to suppose either that Mr. Van Buren was abandoned by his party, or that his administration was an unpopular one among Democrats. On the contrary, a very large majority of them believed in him, approved his measures, and desired his re-election. They were in favor of completing the work which Jackson had begun, by divorcing the State altogether from private banking corporations. Mr. Van Buren was then, and to the end of his life, as his "Political History" shows, an enemy of banks as well as of the The Bank, the "monster" which Jackson crushed. It is extremely probable that if the issue in the canvass of 1840 had been made wholly upon the bank question, the result would have shown that the people were with Van Buren. The Whigs were too shrewd to avow friendliness to the bank, or to any bank. They took advantage of the opposition to, and the bad results of, the Jackson-Van Buren fiscal plans, without declaring themselves in favor of restoring what had been destroyed; and they also profited by the Southern hostility to the administration, without promising to reverse

or to modify in any respect the policy of the general government on the subject of State Rights. In short, the Democrats had principles and a policy, right or wrong, as people may think; the Whigs were united only in condemning, and, whatever they may have intended, whatever they may have done or attempted to do when they were in power, they did not venture to declare principles or policy beforehand.

The State elections in 1837 and 1838 resulted unfavorably to the Democrats. In the latter year the most of the elections of members of the twenty-sixth Congress took place; and they were so decidedly adverse to the Democrats that only by extraordinary exertions in the spring elections of 1839 did they succeed in saving any majority at all. So close was the contest that, when the House assembled in December, 1839, there were 119 Democrats, 118 Opposition, and five members from New Jersey whose seats were contested. The certificates were held by Whigs, who were not allowed to participate in the organization. On that occasion Mr. Adams, the ex-President, who had returned to the House of Representatives, prevented anarchy by calling the members to order and persuading them to choose a temporary chairman, — a position which was assigned to Mr. Adams himself.

Long before this, the plans of the Whigs had been forming; and, two days after the assembling of Congress, the National Whig convention met at Harrisburg,- on Dec. 4, 1839. The leaders were resolved on union, and the only question was as to the candidate who would command the largest support. Mr. Clay had the advantage of a very long public service, and of having been a leader in national affairs for almost thirty years; but he also labored under the double disadvantage of being a Freemason, and therefore not acceptable to the faction which