LIARS; Coswell and Jefferson

I believe newspaper man Harry Croswell (above) may be best understood by a story he told about himself.

One of his victims, a large and aggressive Justice of the Peace named Hagedorn, spotted the young journalist crossing the street in the river port boom-town at the southern end of the Erie Canal: Hudson, New York. 

Brandishing his whip, Hagedorn leaped from his wagon and accused the unsuspecting Croswell of slandering him in his newspaper.  As a crowd quickly gathered Harry Croswell calmly responded that he did not believe that Hagedorn would “whip” him. 

The offended justice exploded in a stream of profanity and then remounted his carriage and whipped his “poor horse” instead.  As the angry man disappeared down the street a witness asked Harry how he could have been so certain Hagedorn would not have used the horse whip on him, to which Harry replied, “Mainly because I planned to run away.”

Harry lived in a world not so different from our own. True, he never experienced the joys of indoor plumbing, nor the miracles of modern medicine, but his America was a land bitterly divided, plagued by partisanship, confused by conspiracy theories right and left, and afflicted with a media that fanned the flames of discord in the name of profit.  Of course, the American republic of Harry Croswell’s day had a valid excuse for its childish behavior; it was little more than a child itself.

First, Congress had passed the Naturalization Act, of 18 June, 1798. Openly supported by outgoing President George Washington, (above), this law required anyone applying for citizenship first be a resident for at least 14 years. (At this point it had only been 22 years since the Declaration of Independence).

Then there was the Alien Friends Act, of 25 June, which authorized incoming President John Adams (above) to deport any resident alien whom he personally considered dangerous. This was followed by the Alien Enemies Act of 6 July,  which allowed the President to deport any alien whose original nation was currently at war with the United States. And finally, there was the Sedition Act of 14 July, 1798. This made it a crime to publish anything “false, scandalous, and malicious” about the government or its officials. Taken together these were the Alien and Sedition Acts.

The acts were the creation of the Federalist President John Adams, and his Treasury Secretary, Alexander Hamilton (above).

And few in the country had any doubt the laws were intended to be used against the friends and allies of Vice President, and founder of the opposition Democratic-Republican Party,  Thomas Jefferson (above).

To oversimplify the situation, the Federalists were in favor of a strong central government, while Jefferson’s Democratic-Republicans were in favor of strong states. The contest between the two philosophies seemed to have been decided in 1800 when Jefferson was swept into office, succeeding the one term Adams. But as soon as President Jefferson had the reins of power in his hands he began to beat the same horse President Adams had.

In fact most of this flailing was started by the Republican side, and was written  by 22 year old James Callender, from Virginia. He was Jefferson’s personal attack dog, AKA, his "pen for hire", and what was called a "scandalmonger".  

It was Callender who, in print, called the father of the United States and founder of the Federalist party, George Washington,  a traitor.  Politics in the early United States seemed to be the invective filled writings of the Republican James Callender set against the invectives of the Federalist Harry Crosswell 

The “tall, and manly” Harry Crosswell, was the son of a Connecticut preacher. His tutor had been the old Federalists, Noah Webster, of the dictionary fame. 

Harry began his career as an assistant editor on the Hudson, New York Federalist newspaper called the “Balance”.

But in 1802 when Democratic-Republicans in New Haven, Connecticut started an anti-Federalist attack sheet called “The Bee”...

.... Harry Callender convinced his publisher to fund a Federalist four page attack sheet in response, which he called “The Wasp”.  He wrote under the pen-name of “Robert Rusticoat”, and pledged that “Wherever the Bee ranges, the Wasp will follow…the Wasp will only strive to displease, vex and torment his enemies .” And he did.

What was most amazing was that, as Thomas Jefferson took power in Washington,  Harry Crosswell's really nasty attacks on him, were reprinted from the pen of James Callender, the ex-confidant of Jefferson himself.

In 1801, when Jefferson refused to name Callender Postmaster for Virginia, the only job Callender could find was as at the weekly Federalist newspaper in Richmond, Virginia, The Recorder.  Once there, the bitter Callender turned on his one-time sponsor, detailing how Jefferson had fed him word for word the vile attacks upon Washington.  

And it was James Callander who now revealed Jefferson’s liaisons with his slave, Sally Hemings, and their children.  And Harry Crosswell reprinted every one of the salacious details in his newspaper, The Wasp.

In January of 1803, Harry Croswell was dragged before three Republican leaning judges and charged with “... being a malicious and seditious man, and of depraved mind and wicked and diabolical disposition, and also deceitfully, wickedly and maliciously devising, contriving and intending, toward Thomas Jefferson, Esquire, President of the United States of America...and to represent him… as unworthy of the confidence, respect and attachment of the people of the said United States…”
Now this was nothing new for Harry Crosswell.  He was constantly being sued by his targets, such as the angry Justice of the Peace, Mr, Hagedorn.  But this time the Jeffersonians were determined to bring the full weight of their political power to bear. Harry’s lawyers requested copies of the indictments; denied. They requested a delay to bring James Callender up from Virginia, to testify; denied. They requested a change of venue; denied. 

After six months of denials, the case was finally went to the jury, and jury instructions from the  imperious Chief Justice Morgan Lewis’ (above) sealed Harry’s fate. “The law is settled. The truth of the matter published cannot be given in evidence.”

This was old English Common Law, the standard still in use in the United States, at the time. And under its rules, the jury retired at sunset, and at 8 A.M. the next morning convicted Harry Croswell. His lawyers immediately filed an appeal for a new trial, and while that was heard, at least Harry was out of jail. 

That did not seem to help much because over the summer his primary witness for the defense, James Callender, scorned confidant of Thomas Jefferson, and life-long alcoholic, fell into the mud flats along the James River in Richmond, Virginia, and drowned.

Speaking for Harry's defense before the New York state Supreme Court, on 13 February, 1804, was Jefferson's nemeses, Alexander Hamilton himself. He argued that the only restraint on publishers should reside not with the government and politicians, but with the “occasional and fluctuating group of common citizens” sitting on juries. Only if a charge was untrue, and only if the writer had reason to know it was untrue, should it be considered slander; or so argued Alexander Hamilton.

Amazingly the New York State Supreme Court agreed. They overturned Harry’s conviction and ordered a new trial. They even fined Chief Justice Morgan Lewis $100, for being so biased. 

Clearly, the political winds had shifted. Public opinion had not taken kindly to Republican politicians arguing they should be exempt from public criticism, any more than it liked Federalists doing the same thing. The New York Legislature even re-wrote their libel and slander laws. 

But, Thomas Jefferson was not willing to take "no" for an answer, and Harry Croswell was brought up on new charges. And he was convicted again. But this time the jury awarded the plaintiff exactly six cents, which wasn’t a lot of money, even in 1804.

Harry Croswell was now made senior editor of "The Balance". But the fire had also gone out of the Federalists cause, and the paper floundered financially. In 1811, having served a short term in debtor’s prison, Harry retired from politics completely. He never even voted again. 

Instead, Harry Crosswell became an Episcopal Minister and eventually was assigned to the Trinity Church in New Haven, Conneticut. He preached there for 43 years. Said one of his flock, “He was not a great preacher, but he had an extraordinary knowledge of human nature, and could ingratiate himself into every man's heart.”

Thus, having applied his talents in a more productive way than politics, Harry Crosswell, died on 13 March , 1858, at 80 years old. His life could be divided in two. In the first phrase, he made history. In the second phrase, he made a real difference.

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SAUSAGE FACTORY, Suffering Suffrage

 

"He's the kind of man a woman would have to marry to get rid of."

Mae West

I wish William Bright (above) had been more of a hero. In reality he struggled his whole life against his own bigotry and bad timing. First, he was a Democrat, which in the late 1860's was the definition of political irrelevancy.   

In 1867 Bright emigrated to South Pass City, Wyoming (above), a sort of rest and resupply stop astride the 7,500 foot high wagon route through the Rocky Mountains. What had drawn the 44 year old William Bright and his new wife, along with 2,000 miners to South Pas was the discovery of gold nearby. 

Not that William was much of a miner, but the he used what little he made buying and selling gold mining claims to buy a saloon...just as the gold was running out. By the end of the year South Pass City had a total population of just 60 people, and a disturbing number of them were temperance supporters, making even Mr. Bright's saloon irrelevant..

"The only good woman I can recall in history was Betsy Ross. And all she ever made was a flag."

Mae West

By 1869 the Democrats were an endangered species on the national stage. Victorious in the Civil War, the party of Lincoln dominated the 41^st Congress, controlling the Senate - 57 Republicans to just 9 Democrats, and 150 Republicans to just 65 Democrats (above) in the House of Representatives. 

Thus it was no surprise that newly selected governor for the new Wyoming Territory would be a  Republican – Ohioan John A. Campbell (above).  Arriving in the railroad town of Laramie, the new Governor promptly called elections for the Territorial Legislature to be held on Tuesday, 3 August, 1869.

And shortly thereafter the newly appointed U.S. Attorney for the territory, another good Republican name Joseph M. Carey (above), issued a legal opinion that because of the new 14^th and 15^th Amendments to the Constitution, no person could be denied the right to vote because of their skin color. And that was the start of all kinds of Wyoming insanity

"Anything worth doing is worth doing slowly."

Mae West

The turnout on election day was disappointing. Only 5,266 men showed up to cast ballots. More might have voted but for the gangs of drunken Democrats flashing guns and knives around all the polling places because they did not believe blacks or Asians or people who thought blacks or Asians should be allowed to vote, should be allowed to vote. Still, it seems unlikely better order at the polls would have significantly changed the outcome. 

The census taken the following year found only 6,107 men in the entire territory. And when the new legislature convened in Cheyenne in October of 1869 (above) it consisted in total of 12 Representatives in the lower house and 8 Councilmen in the upper house -  and they were all Democrats.

"A man in the house is worth two in the street."

Mae West

One of the most prominent Democrats elected was the racist from South Pass City , William Bright (above). He was so respected by his fellows that he was named President of the Council (the upper house) before the legislature even got down to work.  

But, having gotten to work they were very busy, passing 86 laws and 13 memorials and resolutions.  One law ensured that male teachers should not be paid more than women teachers, while another guaranteed that wives would retain property rights after separating from their husbands. And then there was the  “Act to Prevent Intermarriage between White Persons and those of Negro or Mongolian Blood,” which sadly, was self explanatory.  

Governor Cambell (above) vetoed that one, but the legislature passed it again over his veto. And then, wrote the Wyoming Tribune, “amid the greatest hilarity, and after the presentation of various funny amendments and in the full expectation of a gubernatorial veto, an act was passed enfranchising the women of Wyoming.”

"Those who are easily shocked should be shocked more often."

Mae West

William Bright introduced the measure, labeled Council Bill (CB) 70 on 30 November.  It read, in full, “Section 1. That every woman of the age of eighteen years, residing in this territory, may at every election to be held under the laws thereof, cast her vote. And her rights to the elective franchise and to hold office shall be the same under the election laws of the territory, as those of electors. Section 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage.” 

According to his supporting speech, William Bright's primary reasons for introducing such a revolutionary measure – there were only about 1,000 females (above) over the age of ten in all of Wyoming - was that, as an unnamed Councilman said, “if you are going to let the n--gers and the pi--ils (Chinese) vote, we will ring in the women, too.”  Three members of the council disagreed on grounds that even as a joke, neither women nor Negros nor Chinese should be considered intellectual or moral equals to white men. But CB70 passed the same day, 6-2 with one abstention.

"Between two evils, I always pick the one I never tried before."

Mae West

When things got to the upper house of the legislature, Benjamin Sheeks (above), also from South Pass, led the opposition. He tried to permanently table the bill, and when that failed he and his allies tried adding “poison pill” amendments, such as the addition of the phrase,  “colored women and squaws” to section one, and substituting the word “ladies”, as in “ladies of the evening” for the word “women”. These attempts produced some laughter, but they were both defeated. Then Sheeks moved to temporally table the bill, so the House could consider more “pressing matters”. That passed, but it bought the opponents only two days to lobby against the joke measure.

"Every man I meet wants to protect me. I can't figure out what from."

Mae West

When the debate was resumed, opponents tried moving to adjourn three times in a row, hoping to catch somebody in the outhouse or off sneaking a shot of whiskey or a beer. All three attempts failed. Then it was moved that CB70 should be reconsidered on 4 July, 1870 – seven months after the house permanently adjourned. Amid all the laughter and snickering, that maneuver was also defeated. 

But Sheeks did finally amend CB70, raising the voting age for women from 18 to 21. After all a joke's a joke, but let's not go crazy here. And then, finally, at 8:20 that night the house approved CB70, 7 to 4. It was immediately moved to reconsider the issue, but that was just as quickly defeated. And with that, finally, the issue of female suffrage was dumped - with a snicker -  into the lap of the Republican Governor.

"The score never interested me, only the game."

Mae West

Governor John Cambell was a bit young, but he was nobody's fool.  As the measure moved through the legislature, Cambell had asked advice from everybody he knew.  In the end, he decided the best thing to do was to not fight the issue as he had with the mixed race marriage bill. Governor Cambell decided to simply sign the bill without comment, which he did on 10 December, 1868. In Wyoming, females now had the right to vote.

"His mother should have thrown him away and kept the stork."

Mae West

Back in South Pass City, Justice of the Peace R.S. Barr decided to deliver the punch line to Mr. Bright's joke. On Valentine's day 1870 he placed an ad in the newspaper, offering to resign his position “whenever some lady elector shall have been duly appointed to fill the vacancy.” 

Ha, ha, and what do you know, such a woman appeared, one Esther Hobart Morris (above).  Mister Barr resigned in protest, but Esther won the election.  And when the man Esther had beaten refused to hand over the keys to the court house she arrested him. One of the lawyers who argued cases before the lady Justice of the Peace remembered, Esther tolerated no pettifoggers in her court and showed no mercy.  And the world did not dissolve into an estrogen mush 

"I never said it would be easy, I only said it would be worth it."

Mae West

William Bright would not stand for re-election. His bar went bankrupt in 1870, and he moved back to his hometown of  Washington D.C.  On 3 May, 1912 the Cheyenne State Leader ran his obituary. “Mr. Bright was 86 years of age, and had been for twenty years past an employee of the government printing office...(He) moved to Wyoming and...drew up and fought through the bill for woman suffrage, which was the first law of its kind ever presented to a law-making body in the United States.” And often, that is how you become a hero -  in retrospect and with heavy editing

"I use to be Snow White, but I drifted."

Mae West

In 1871, at the next meeting of the Territorial Legislature, the male politicians, led again by Mr. Sheek, passed a bill to overturn female suffrage. Governor Cambell vetoed it, and the attempt to override by a two third margin failed, by one slim vote.   But it would be 1910 before a woman would be elected to serve in the Wyoming legislature, and into the 1950's they were still routinely blocked from serving on juries. And yet, Wyoming insists on calling its self the “Equity State”. It seems to me, that is something of an gross exaggeration.

"To err is human - but it feels divine."

Mae West

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