authority, were arrested and tried as conspirators in the crimes committed by that ring, and a few men in the country hoped it would be shown in the investigation that followed that the President himself would be found to be connected in some way with the frauds which would result in his impeachment; but no sooner had the designs of his enemies been made known to him, than this brave, silent man sent forth the official direction that there should be the most thorough investigation of the charges against the men who had been implicated in the whisky-frauds, and to let no guilty man escape, no matter how close he might claim to be to the administration. The trial of these men, as most of our readers know, was of the most searching character, and while the guilty were punished, it was evident that President Grant had been made the subject of the most wicked and foul conspiracy that had ever been attempted upon mortal man, in the very house of his friends; but he came out of the trying ordeal like pure gold, and the verdict of the people of the whole country was that he was as innocent of any connection with the infamy of that ring as the unborn babe. But slander loves a shining mark. Gen. Grant had retired from the presidency, had traveled around the world, and had been received by the people and governments of foreign climes with far more distinction than any citizen of this country who had ever traveled abroad. In his absence, and without consulting his wishes, his warm political friends conceived the idea that it would be a fitting tribute to the eminent services of the distinguished soldier-citizen to again make him President of the United States, and then it was that slander raised for the second time its hydrahead. John McDonald, who had been severely punished for his connection with the whisky-frauds, lent himself to certain political leaders in an attempt to break down the character of Gen. Grant by resuscitating the whisky trials
of St. Louis, into popular book form; and J. W. Buel, a facile and pleasing writer, was employed to do the work, which he did with a master hand, but utterly regardless of the truth of history or the consequences to follow. But to the consternation of the political leaders engaged in Mr. McDonald's infamous book enterprise, Gen. Grant did not receive the Republican nomination for President; and although the advent of the book had been extensively advertised in all the leading Democratic journals of the country, and in many of the Republican papers whose editors were opposed to his nomination for a third term, by the publication of liberal extracts from the most striking features of its pages, it came forth stillborn, and the dastardly slander, intended to destroy the good name of the man who had done so much for his country upon the field of carnage, and won for it imperishable honors abroad, went out like a spark in the ocean. But we can imagine nothing so debased in the scale of infamy as an attempt to destroy the good name of such a man, a man who came from the private walks of life in 1861, and modestly offered himself to the Governor of Illinois as a defender of his country; a man who advanced from a clerkship in the Adjutant General's office in his State to the proudest position in the military arm of his Government; a man who advanced to the highest and most exalted civil station within the gift of the people, simply by the force of his own manly moral character, and without asking or seeking the advancement; a man whose hands were known to be free from the spoils of office, to be charged with or suspected of such corruption, is an insult to him and his country, for which there can be no adequate atonement. God has not allotted to man a life long enough to atone for such an offense; for such an indignity; for such a crime.
Governor-Shelby M. Cullom.
Lieutenant-Governor-John M. Hamilton.
Secretary of State-Henry D. Dement.
Auditor of Public Accounts-Chas. P. Swigert.
Treasurer-Edward Rutz.
Superintendent of Public Instruction-James P. Slade.
Attorney-General-James McCartney.
THIRTY-SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY.
The Thirty-second General Assembly convened January 5, and adjourned May 30, sine die. It was composed of the following members.
Geo. E. White, Chicago.
L. D. Condee, Chicago.
Sylvester Artley, Chicago.
Chris. Mamer, Chicago.
Fred. C. DeLang, Chicago.
Geo. E. Adams, Chicago.
W. J. Campbell, Chicago.
George Kirk, Waukegan.
Chas. E. Fuller, Belvidere.
D. H. Sunderland, Freeport.
Charles Bent, Morrison.
Isaac Rice, Mt. Morris.
J. R. Marshall, Yorkville.
Henry H. Evans, Aurora.
S. W. Munn, Joliet.
Conrad Secrest, Watseka.
Sam' R. Lewis, Ottawa.
Geo. Torrance, Chatsworth.
L. D. Whiting, Tiskilwa.
Thomas. M. Shaw, Lacon.
Milton M. Ford, Galva.
A. W. Berggren, Galesburg.
Wm. H. Neece, Macomb.
John Fletcher, Carthage.
Meredith Walker, Canton.
Andrew J. Bell, Peoria.
Abram Mayfield, Lincoln.
Jos. W. Fifer, Bloomington.
Wm. T. Moffett, Decatur.
Jas. S. Wright, Champaign.
George Hunt, Paris.
Horace S. Clark, Mattoon.
E. N. Rinehart, Effingham.
W. T. Vandeveer, Taylorville.
Wm. E. Shutt, Springfield.
Ed. Laning, Petersburg.
Maurice Kelly, Liberty.
Wm. R. Archer, Pittsfield.
W. P. Callon, Jacksonville.
C. A. Walker, Carlinville.
A. J. Parkinson, Highland.
T. B. Needles, Nashville.
Louis Ihorn, Harrisonville.
John R. Tanner, Louisville. John Thomas, Belleville. Wm. C. Wilson, Robinson. W. A. Lemma, Carbondale. J. C. Edwards, McLeansboro. A. J. Kuykendall, Vienna. S. L. Cheaney, Harrisburg.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
David Sullivan, Chicago. John Clark, Somonauk.
Addis L. Rockwell, Chicago. Oliver P. Chisholm, Elgin.
M. R. Harris, Chicago, Jas. Herrington, Geneva.
John R. Cook, Chicago. Jas. G. Wright, Naperville.
Randall H. White, Chicago. E. B. Shumway, Peotone.
Orrin S. Cook, Chicago. Michael Collins, Peotone.
Thomas Cloonan, Chicago. Harvey Stratton, Plainfield.
George W. Kroll, Chicago. Geo. B. Winter, Onarga.
Jos. R. Gorman, Chicago. James Chatfield, Momence.
P. J. McMahon, Chicago. Edward Rumley, Gilman.
John L. Parish, Chicago. Alex. Vaughey, Seneca.
Robert N. Pierson, Chicago. Isaac Ames, Streator.
Wm. A. Phelps, Chicago. F. M. Robinson, Seneca.
Thos. H. McKone, Chicago. J. H. Collier, Gibson City.
S. D. Mieroslawski, Chicago. A. H. Goodspeed, Odell.
Austin O. Sexton, Chicago. Leander L. Green, Odell.
Horace H. Thomas, Chicago.
Nathan Plotke, Chicago.
Geo. G. Struckman, Elgin.
L. C. Collins, Jr., Chicago.
B. F. Weber, Chicago.
Orson C. Diggins, Harvard.
Jas. Thompson, Harvard.
James Pollock, Millburn.
Ed. B. Sumner, Rockford.
O. H. Wright, Belvidere,
L. McDonald, Pecatonica.
William Cox, Winslow.
E. L. Cronkrite, Freeport.
James Bayne, Warren.
Wm. H. Allen, Erie.
Emanuel Stover, Lanark.
Henry Bitner, Mt. Carroll.
Frank N. Tice, Forreston.
Alex. P. Dysart, Nachusa.
A. F. Brown, Stillman Valley.
Henry Wood, Sycamore.
Hiram Loucks, Somonauk.
John H. Welsh, Tiskilwa.
S. F. Otman, Wyoming.
Charles Baldwin, Princeton.
Euclid Martin, Minonk.
C. Stowell, La Prairie Centre.
Jas. T. Thornton, Magnolia.
A. R. Mock, Cambridge.
J. W. Simonson, Port Byron.
Patrick O'Mara, Rock Island.
Martin A. Boyd, Aledo.
A. P. Petrie, New Windsor.
Hannibal. P. Wood, Wataga.
Wm. C. McLeod, Macomb.
S. B. Davis, Blandinville.
Daniel D. Parry, Monmouth.
R. A. McKinley, Biggsville.
H. M. Whiteman, Biggsville.
James Peterson, Oquawka.
Joseph L. McCune, Ipava.
Wm. C. Reno, Browning.
Inmon Blackaby, Civer.
Jos. Gallup, Lawn Ridge.
David Heryer, Brimfield. Oliver Coultas, Lynnville.
J. M. Niehaus, Peoria. Joseph S. Carr, Kane.
John H. Crandall, Morton. Balfour Cowen, Virden.
W. B. Harvey, Washington. J. N. English, Sr., Jerseyv'le.
Allen Lucas, Mt. Pulaski. A. N. Yancy, Bunker Hill.
William Hill, Bloomington. Henry O. Billings, Alton.
Geo. B. Okeson, Lexington. John M. Pearson, Godfrey.
T. F. Mitchell, Bloomington. Jones Tontz, Grant Fork.
L. Ludington, Farmer City. Fred. Becker, Germantown.
Jason Rogers, Decatur. John L. Nichols, Clement.
B. K. Durfee, Decatur. E. H. Simmons, Greenville.
Chas. F. Tenney, Bement. Iverson M. Little, Vera.
Ashbel H. Bailey, Rantoul. D. W. Andrews, Centralia.
H. D. Peters, Monticello. Mancil A. Harris, Ramsey.
Joseph B. Mann, Danville. Nathan Crews, Fairfield.
Bradley Butterfield, Rankin. James Keen, Six Mile.
John G. Holden, Danville. Ezra B. Keene, Keensburg.
Thomas E. Bundy, Tuscola. Jacob C. Olwin, Robinson.
J. W. R. Morgan, Sullivan. James C. Bryan, Marshall.
Eugene B. Buck, Charleston. W. H. H. Mieure, L'wr'ncev'le
Geo. D. Chafee, Shelbyville. C. T. Strattan, Mt. Vernon.
A. C. Campbell, Moweaqua. Samuel M. Martin, Carmi.
F. M. Richardson, Neoga. R. A. D. Wilbanks, Mt. V'rn'n.
R. McWilliams, Litchfield. Milo Erwin, Crab Orchard.
Geo. R. Sharp, Sharpsburg. F. M. Youngblood, Benton.
Geo W. Paisley, Hillsboro. Jas. M. Gregg, Harrisburg.
A. N. J. Crook, Springfield. Isaac M. Kelly, DuQuoin.
DeWitt W. Smith, Bates. W. K. Murphy, Pinckneyv'le.
Jas. M. Garland, Springfield. Austin James, Mitchie.
L. C. Chandler, Chandlery'le.
Wm. M. Duffy, San Jose.
J. H. Shaw, Beardstown.
Joseph N. Carter, Quincy.
John McAdams, Ursa.
Wm. A. Richardson, Quincy.
J. L. Underwood, Barry.
Wm. Mortland, Hardin.
S. R. Powell, Winchester.
Ornan Pierson, Carrollton.
John N. Perrin, Belleville.
P. H. Postel, Mascoutah.
Joseph Veile, Millstadt.
Harmon H. Black, Cairo.
David T. Linegar, Cairo.
H. R. Buckingham, Alto Pass.
William A. Spann, Vienna.
W. S. Morris, Elizabethtown.
John D. Young, Pellona.
Lieutenant-Governor John M. Hamilton presided over the Senate. William J. Campbell, of Cook, was elected President pro tempore, over Wm. P. Callon, of Morgan, by a vote of 33 to 28, and James H. Paddock, Secretary, over T. W. S. Kidd, by a vote of 35 to 16.
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