Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 12.djvu/140

 132 W. C. WOODWARD the presidential campaign of 1856. For while Oregon had no voice in presidential elections the attitude of the Territorial editors during the campaigns was hardly less aggressive on that account. The wreck of the Whig party, which met at Baltimore, September 17, 1856, ratified the Know Nothing nominations of Fillmore and Donelson, made at Philadelphia, February 22, but did not adopt the American party platform. 1 Early in the campaign Dryer entered the nominations of all the parties at the head of his editorial page, headed by the names of Fillmore and Donelson in big, black display type. Before the end of the campaign he changed the latter to the modest type in which the others appeared. Though opposing Buchanan in a general way he did not come out for either Fillmore or Fremont, though he published re-print articles favorable to both and occasionally unfavorable. His attitude was that of satisfaction with either, if only the defeat of Bu- chanan could be secured, who stood on the Cincinnati plat- form which endorsed the substitution of squatter sovereignty for the Missouri Compromise. But Dryer endorsed Buchanan's inaugural address as good old Whig doctrine and good enough for him if carried out. 2 Thus is seen the uncertain, purpose- less attitude of Dryer who found himself a man without a party. So steadfast was Dryer to his old Whig allegiance, that he viewed askance the organization of the new party in Oregon. In his view its principles were so sufficiently maintained by the Whigs as to preclude the necessity of a new organization. He resented freely the idea that Republicanism was a new doc- trine and likewise resented the apparent efforts of the sup- porters of the new movement to declare and maintain a mo- nopoly in Republican principles. 3 His attitude was frankly critical and semi-hostile. i Johnston's "American Politics," p. 176. zOregonian, April u, 1857. 3"We have always supposed we were a Republican, we think so still. . . . If our republicanism don't suit you gentlemen, your republicanism won't suit us, and we shall not endorse it." Oregonian, November 8, 1856.