New England Must Not Be Trampled On by Ginn Roger;

Author:Ginn, Roger;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: undefined
Publisher: Down East Books
Published: 2012-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

Premature death again struck Jonathan and Deborah in May, when five-year-old Jane died, likely from an illness. Unlike with Bowdoin, who had always been frail and sickly, Jane’s death was very unexpected. She was a vibrant young child closely attached to Jonathan. He was in the habit of writing little short letters to his children while he was away from home, and he had written to Jane in February while in Augusta.

Getting elected to the U.S. House of Representatives was not a sure bet for Jonathan. In Maine at that time, in order to be elected, the winner had to garner not just the most votes but more than 50 percent of the votes cast. While no reference can be found regarding Jonathan’s campaign, it is likely that he traveled around his district making stump speeches and periodically engaging in debates with Jeremiah Bailey. The first election was in September and Bailey received the most votes, but not quite enough (49.66 percent). Therefore another election was required. That one was scheduled for November, at the same time as the presidential election, in which Van Buren was running against William Henry Harrison. Van Buren won, easily carrying Maine. At the time Jonathan outpolled Bailey but was still fifty-eight votes short of a majority. However, what kept Jonathan from winning was the same issue that had so often haunted him over the course of his political life—opposition from within his own party. This time it came from McCrates, who had worked with Ruggles in 1832 to oppose Jonathan’s reelection to the Maine House. McCrates was now tax collector—a party patronage post—in the coastal town of Wiscasset and had been successful in getting men in Wiscasset and a few neighboring town to vote for him, thus taking 195 votes away from Jonathan. The Age chided McCrates for what they saw as selfish opposition, suggesting that he was angry over not getting the party’s nomination. The paper also thought that he had gotten his present job because of the Democratic Party and so should show more appreciation. It was believed that he might not retain his position. Another election was needed, which would not occur until February 1837.

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