Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 1.djvu/319

Rh Fillmore was the favorite of the South, which gave its entire vote to him with a single exception. The Northern vote cast on first ballot divided between Fillmore, 16; Webster, 29, and Scott, 130. The final vote ended in the nomination of Scott by defection from the Fillmore ranks, a nomination which proved to be unfortunate, chiefly on account of the suspicion that Scott was not heartily in sympathy with the compromise. Mr. Blaine suggests, with political shrewdness: &quot;The people soon perceived that, if there was indeed merit in the compromise measures, it would be wise to entrust them to the keeping of the party that was unreservedly North and South in favor of upholding and enforcing them. On this point there was absolutely no division in the Democratic ranks. &quot; (Blaine, vol. i, p. 104.)

Scott was defeated by the course of his most prominent supporters. At the outset of the canvass Greeley accepted the candidate, but violently abused the platform. Seward supported him in public speeches which contained the old agitating elements that were now supposed to be eliminated from national politics. Offensively declaring they spat upon the platform of their party, many of these advocates of Scott s election ruined his candidacy.

The Free Soil party, which had at no time discontinued the sectional war, were urging Hale for the presidency, and were drawing their strength from the ultraists of both parties, but generally from the Whigs.

As a consequence of their political folly, the Whig party, the true national antagonist of the national Democratic party, was overwhelmed by defeat in a contest in which they carried the electoral votes of only four States. Twenty-seven States voted for Pierce.

The inexcusable folly of the Whig convention may be regretfully contemplated as one of those strangely recurring political blunders which led at last to the disruption of the Union. Fillmore and Webster were both