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VOLUME XLII—NUMBER TWENTY-SIX.
Atlanta, Ga., Week Endinq August 27, 1964.
50c PER YEAR—SINGLE COPY 5c.
*<3*
§?
ohQ Strenuous Boyhood
^ Passed at RaleigH,
of Andrew
North Carolina
Johnson,
^ yp
By
Fol
F. A-t OLDS.
IShe StsnnT South
NT) of the sights of
Raleigh is the homo in
', vjvhieh Andrew Johnson,
'■ president of the United
Estates, «ras born, the
•> bujlding being 1 one of the
smallest an<| quajntest
dwellings In the city, with
the old-time hip-roof, dor-
l |> trier .windows and tiny
panes, the shingles rich
% green ,with hioss; the
chimney'part granite and
part brick, and with an
old vine, a Virginia creep
er, over the doorway, while a tall black
locust tree casts in summer a shade over
*he little front yao-d. No president ever
jvid a more humble home than this. The
planks are of yellow pine, fastened with
hand-made nails, many of which have
been carried away by relic-hunters. The
house is only 12x18 foot In size, one
oon being only 6x!0 feet. It was on
the upper floor ‘.that tlio president was
bora. the way to- this floor being up a
corl:: crewiiko stairway. The ceiling of
the lower T-ooras Is only 8 feet high. Ne
groes have for twenty-five years lived
in the building and are very prou<f~of it.
showing it to visitors, wlfh many bows
and smiles, and with all sorts of queer
stories about ”de leetlo preslden’ whar
T, uz bo’p up stars.’’
President Johnson’s father was a very
(humble employee at an old tavern or
bote] here, and lator looked after the in-
icrest, of a private family, »o far. a3 the
rt; ’ -ere cono inied. Ills v:fe was
equally humble in her employments, anti
in the jittle town which Raleigh was in
the early part of the last century, both
these people were well known, and so
was the boy, their son. who by and by
was to fill one of tihe highest of earthly
positions. Jacob' Johnson, the father of
the president, died of pneumonia, due to
his efforts in saving the life of a friend
from drowning in a mill pond about a
mile south of Raleigh. In the quaint old
city cemetery, now almost disused, but
admirably kept. Is the grave and monu
ment above it of Jacob Johnson. The
1 mer is of brown stone and bears the fol
lowing inscription, one which many a
fn- more pretentious man might well bn
proud to know' would be inscribed with
JiistDe on the shaft which will rise above
his grave:
“In memory of Jacob Johnson. An
honest man. beloved and respected by all
who knew' him. Rom ; died January
1812. from disease caused by an
over-effort In saving the life of his
friend ’*
AT HIS FATHER’S GRAVE.
The monument was unveiled In 1866
and strange Indeed was the scene on
tills occasion. There, bareheaded ami
facing the monument, stood the presi
dent. surrounded by his cabinet, and
with General Grant, commanding the
army, and other noted generals near
him, and in this imposing party the lead
ing residents of Raleigh, including the
governor and men distinguished in pri
vate and public life. In the streets near-
Quaint House, Formerly a Kitchen, in Which
Was Born, at Raleigh, North Carolina.
bv /were masses of troops,
all branches of the service
dent made no remarks a
but later in the day deliveri
representing
The presi-
the grave,
1 an address
from the balcony of (he principal hotel,
In which lie took occasion to refer in the
most grateful way to the tribute which
the people of Raleigh had thus paid to
the memory of his father. About this
speech some strange and Inaccurate
statements have gone out. one being to
the effect that the president had used
the phrase. “Tpe grave of the man re
puted to be my father.’’ lie said no such
thing, all his remarks having ! eon In
the highest degree filial. On the evening
of this eventful day a banquet was given
the president, the distinguished members
of the cabinet. General Grant and the
chief officers, al which some two hun
dred persons were present, and at which
Daniel G. Fowle, who many years !a!er
became governor, presided.
The life of President Johnson, as re
corded by his biographers, contains some
errors, notably one that after having left
Raleigh in his boyhood he returned here
before he became president. As a mat
ter of fact, after he left here, a run
away (for such lie was.) he never saw
Raleigh again until that eventful time In
1866, when he came here to revisit his
birthplace and see the monument un
veiled. Some new' information on this
subject has been obtained and is an In
teresting contribution to the history of
the life of the president.
I11 an interview with Miss Hannah Co-
ley, of Raleigh, she said: “President An
drew Johnson was born in the loft of the
kitchen of my great-grandmother, and
was named by my grandmother, Mrs.
Hannah Stewart, whose maiden name
vras Paddison. He was horn the night
after my grandmother's marriage to John
Stewart, who was one of Raleigh's first
merchants.
She and her husband had been at a
bill given in honor of their marriage,
and on their return home my grand
mother. before removing her ball dress,
went to the kitchen, climbed the queer
little crooked stairs leading to the loft,
and upon first sight of the baby named
him ‘Andrew.’ The house, which now-
stands on Kast Cabarrus street, then
stood at the corner of a square only a
few yards from the southern entrance of
the capitol grounds, and was the prop
erty of my great-grandmother. Some
.'.ears after the birth w. Andrew Jackson
Monument Over the Grave of the Father of President Johnson in tht Old
Cemetery at Raleigh, North Carolina. The President Unveiled the Mon
ument In 1866.
the house was removed to its present
location, wdiere it is now one of the
sights of Raleigh. Andrew Johnson's
mother was named Polly, and she was
the weaver for my great-grandmother's
family. His father was hostler on the
premises.
“When the United States troops came
to Raleigh, In April, I865. my grand
mother was living, and very soon after
the army arrived President Lincoln was
assassinated and Andrew Johnson cam- 1
to he president. Some of the leading
federal officers heard that the lady who
had named their president was then liv
ing here and a number of them sought
her out, and called to see her. One re
marked: “Madame, we will soon go to
Washington and we will tell the pres!
dent that we have had the honor of
seeing and talking to the lady who named
him. What shall we suggest to him
to send you?’ My grandmother, who
was a devoted confederate in sentiment
replied: "I do not wish him to send mo
anything. All I desire yon to ask hint
to do for me Is to release my grandson,
George Whiting. *Jio was clptured at
Gettysburg, and who has been a pris
oner at Johnston’s Island about two
years and a half." In 1866 President
Johnson came to Raleigh. He went to
tlie house of Dr. F J. Haywood. Sr.,
and requested him to accompany him to
see tlie lady who had named him, but
my grandmother had died July 3, 1865.
at the age of 33 years." This interview
contains some valuable facts, and some
others were obtained from ex-Congress-
man John Nichols, of Raleigh, who said:
“When Andrew Johnson vis .1 hoc it
was the custom, in fact. on,, might per
haps sa.y it was the law, that boys learn
ing a trade should be bound out. or in-
di ntured, to masters of the trade, who
were technically and personally known
as masters. Young Andrew was a v< ry
wiki boy, what would be call* d a bad
boy. always up to some mischief and
getting into fights, and he carried this to
such an extent that some persons might
have termed him a bully. He was ro
bust, athletic and brave. Parents did
not like for their boys to a-ssociate witn
him, because they never knew when
there would be some row. Vet for all
this, Andrew was not mean, but Fas
honorable, and although wild, and, in.
fact, almost reckless, was considered by
his fellows tl:..- soul of honor and would
never allow - a big boy to impose upon
a little one. It was In consequence of
some of these characteristics of Andy
that his mother, on the advice of.'friends
(ills father having died when he waa
very' young), decided to put him out to
learn a trade. In selecting a trade, two
things were to be considered, one being
to have him In a place where he would,
be kept off the streets, and the otiher, jto
pia.ee him under a strict master.
A STERN MASTER.
Janies Ditchford was then the f town
tailor; a man of great industry ahd
sterling integrity - , with an iron win and
plenty of nerve, the force of 'both of
which were not infreq-unetliy impressed
on the mind and tlio person of th<3
young apprentice. As Andy approached
manhood he became restless under the
confinement In the back room of a. tail
or’s shop and his spfrit chafed, under
what he considered the tyrannical exac
tions of a martinet. He made up nis
mind to run away and only- needed an
excuse and an opportunity to rake this
step. Both excuse and opportunity tame
In due time, and Andy availed himself
of their benefits. He lived at the home
of his master or employer, and while
in the kitchen one morning h- got into
a tight with the negro cook, comme jut
victor in th.f coni! it. His o. - mi :,* was
Immediately' reported to hi- master, who,
following th^ custom of the time, hur
ried to the scene with a switch, with
which ho gave a good thrashing to his
I- gna cions apprentice. This made the
opportunity and the excuse for Andy
to break his apprentice bond and flee.
S , gathertng a ell 1
some much prized odds and ends he made
these into a pack and then went to
6ee his best friend, Neil Brown, who
was apprentice to a hatter, and asked
Brown to meet him at a point agree!
on. about I mile south of Raleigh, at !
o’clock that day. Andy intending to take
his departure while his master and the
family were at dinner, this meal being
then taken by everybody- at noon. Andy
was watching and waiting for dinner time,
to come, when his watch till master would
b.. at the table, but a little incident oc
curred which hastened his departure.
He saw the hated negro cook taking
tlie dinner from the kitchen through the
yard to the dining room, and as she came
out of the kitchen door, holding up a
large dish of cabbage, topped by a ham.
Andy saw his opportunity, and picking
-up a shingle dug a quantity of dirt, which
he threw upon the dish, in an instant
running as If for life. lie met his faith
ful young friend. Brown, at the appotnt-
e 1 place. Brown having his ’pack’ r°any
for him, and in this wise the future pres
ident took his departure from Rah igh,
to which he did not return until he came
here in 1866. when president, to attend
the unveiling of the monument which
tTTe citizens had er-cted in memory- of his
father, Jacob Johnson.”
v*T»'r*v*v* - r*v«v
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&/>e Real Iss^xe
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convent ions
ity of the d
i d for him,
lion if the thre
and a spring a.nd a sum
mer. and threatened to
push itself into the first
days of autumn, when
Wharton. the western
member, whoTiad been in
the house five terms, con
cluded to pack his valise
and go home. The cam
paign was growing warm.
Nearly all of the county
had been held, and a major-
legates elected were instruet-
which insured hi« renomlna-
remaining counties in
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T was near the close of a Just before be had left bis rooms for
long session—a session tlie departing train his private secretary
which had lasted a winter Lad handed him the day's elippins; and
after lie had beo n riding for an hour or
so. while he was fumbling in his pockets
for a match, they tumbled out in a tight
little roll. ][(. idly read them. He was
used to unjust abuse and sick of uncalled
for praise. The first clipping was taken
from The Queen city Daily Herald; it
bore a Washington date line, and was
introduced by the words. “Special to The
Herald.” It read;
“They say here that Wharton, of tlie
fourth district. Is beginning to feel un
easy. He has received several letters
from his district tiiat have convinced
him that the populist cyclone has shaken
down several lengths of fence in Dee,
Meade and Smith counties. Hill Heat-
ley's strength is said to he developing
down there wonderfully. The lion. Ike
Russell, who was here qst week looking
for a joh ns receiver of the Baxter na
tional bank, wa s in close consultation
with Wharton three of the four nights
Im was here, and the ‘old man’ Is wearing
a hunted look and is talking to himself.
They say down in the fourth district that
it will take more than ‘Our Tom' Whar
ton's hug to explain away his silver
vote.”
Wharton knew the correspondent and
only smiled as he flipped the wadded
clipping out of the ear window. There
was a short editorial clipping from the
same paper. It read:
“The dispatches say that ’Our Tom’
Wharton is wiggling in his sent and
trying to project his astral body in the
fourth district to see how his fences are,
and at the same time to keep his eor-
tlie district did not go solidly against
him. He had laid his plans mechanical-
iy for a rennmlnn t ion. and If he had
stopped to ask 'himself whether or not he
really wanted to come back to con
gress. he would probably have, said no.
He was tired, but he did ndi know why.
ip rnought he needed rest, that he had
been overworked, that he was played
015J: yet ills private secretary, who kept
the >un of the pension business and did
ids routine work, did not seem tired- the
private secretary even had refused a va
cation. and it was at tlie secretary's
own request that he stayed in Washing
ton.
But Wharton, the western member, was
tired—dead tired, and he pictured to him
self the pleasures of going back to his
homo in the. little town of Baxter, where
people on the streets who had seen him
grow up from a boy and called him
“Tom.’' really were glad to see him.
9 -i- 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9
poral body in Washington to look after
Ike Russell's pie plate. If ‘Our Tom'
doesn't fall down in his anxiety to keep
one foot in the 'blooue fourth’ and the
other at the political bake shop, he must
be either a Colossus of Rhodes or a
'quadrille dancer.' ”
Wharton dropped that on the floor and
read another from The Smith Count v
Farmer’s .Friend. It was long and full
of double leads and "break lines.” and
Italics and exclamation points. It was
abusive in the extreme and closed with
this tirade:
“Now. let us reason together. Tom
Wharton has been in congress ten years;
he had been judge six years before en
tering congress, and county superintend-
et four years before he was Judge. Twen
ty years has this man been In office;
hls total salary In that time has been
only $70,000. Tet he is rated by the
commercial agencies at one-half million
dollars. He has hanks and railroad
stocks; he owns mortgages and farms.
Where did he get them’.’ His time has
been sold to the peov-s, he has been
false to every trust; he was voted with
the east on the raoa»,» question; he has
neglected Cne farmers at every turn. He
Is a garden-seed congressman; he comes
out here and haw-haws around, and
then goes hack to vote with Wall street.
A Vail slreet knows its friends, and ’Our
Torp* Is worth one-half million dollars.
Hi es in a mansion filled with hammered
brass, at Baxter, while the farmer foots
the bills.”
Wharton knew that the editor of The
Farmer's Friend had been a candidate
for the postofflee at Smith City; that lie
himself had lent the editor money and
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By William AUen White
Second in tire Political iSeries
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helfi his note for S50o. ffc put the clip
ping in ills pocketbook with a sigh and
looked through the other scraps of paper.
There were perhaps a dozen—a few of
them laudatory to an offensive degree,
some clearly bids fo» - money, and the.
rest a fair discussion of his candidacy.
Wharton’s first week in the district was
spent at Baxter. He did practically
nolhlng to secure liis renomination, al
though wise-looking men from each of
the three doubtful counties enrne ncarly
everj day to Baxter and went directly
from the train to Wharton’s house. They
all wanted money or promises of “as
sistance;” and each of them told how-
some precinct could be “swung Into lino"
by a little work on the part of the cer
tain third person—always nameless—wlio
would need money for cigars and livery
liire. Wharton put these statesmen off.
and they went away doubting tvhellier
they would support the “old man” or
fight him. The congressman’s presence
In the little town w»» an event, and he
had callers all day long who seemed
to need help in different ways. Soldiers
desired pensions, mothers asked for po
sitions in Washington for their sons;
young women called to see about clerk
ships; widows, whose husbands he had
known came to borrow money. Ho was
honestly glad to see all those people,
and, when he could, he helped them: he
rarely made an enemy, even though lie
always was frank.
It was Saturday evening, and Wharton
was just entering on his second week at
home, and he and hls friend, Ike Rus
sell. were sitting on the southern porch
of the congressman's home. Their wives
and daughters were in the parlor around
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er for a longer speech than usual. He
twisted his gray mustache nervously; he
looked askance at his friend, who was
apparently listening to the music that
had just started up again in the parlor.
Wharton went over to the garden hose
men were at
f conversation
conveyed by grunts
the piano, and the
that preliminary stage
in which ideas are
and monosyllables.
“What did Hughey, of Smith City, want
today?” ask'd Russell.
“About two hundred, more or less,"
said the congressman.
“Hughey’s a thief; he’d spend about
$25. and the' rust would go into his
jeans.”
“i suppos? so.” \\ hart on answered.
“Say we lose Smith county?” —
•‘Well, you say,” said his friend. “Did
you sp..-. Higgins, from Dee \ alley? n#
told me last month that lie had five fel
lows who could swing Dee county for
$100 a piece."
“Ugh,” grunted I he congressman. “That
makes $2,300 so far. if I come down."
•'Well, that's cheaper than you got off
before—by several hundred.”
Wharton yawned, and the silence that
followed was broken only by the tinkie
of the c.ow bells in the valley below tlie
town and tlie splash of water over the
village. Occasionally the sound of voices
singing on tlie water or note of a guitar
would come up on tlie gusts of wind.
Tlie piano in tlie parlor was silent. | I
the moon was barely visible under ’lie
eastern corner or the porch. the men
had smoked in silence a few moments
when Wharton said*
“ike, what is the real issue in this cam
paign?'
“I dunno, old man: sometimes I think
it’s the tariff; sometimes 1 think it's sil
ver, and then at other times I just give
it all up. What's your idea. Tom?”
The congressman did net reply at once;
lie seemed to be pulling his ideas togeth-
whieh was turned upon a. shrub, changed
its course, came back, relighting his -ci
gar. and said:
“B’Godfrey, I don’t know, Ike, I don’t
know. Do you remember when he used
to cut down corn at 6 cents a shook, and
go to school down the valley where those
cow' bells were tinkling a little while
ago? We us d to s it on tho fence of
nigivts like this and talk ’way into the.
night about what we were going to do.”
“Yes?” said the politician, expectantly.
“Yes., and I used to hope to go to pon-
grrss some d,. ; . ; we used to talk the
oldtime statesmen and read their speech
es in the srhoo] readers—Clay and t '.il-
honn and the great men whose narn ■< we
knew as boys. They were tall, thin, spare
men in swallow-tailed coats and chok
ers ind hair that looked fierce and
statesmanlike. Do yon remember the
congressman from tills district fortv
yrars ago: how dignified he was, what
ti really great mail lie must have lie n?
He lived greatness every hour of his iife
The men wiio went to the territorial leg
islature—how superior they seemed with
their tail hats and close buttoned coats!
ike. do you remember when I went to the
legislature in tin winter of - 70. and a me
back discouraged and disappointed with
the sham of it all—the row ; ml the l ings
and the schemes?”
Russell would have interjected some
continued on fourth page.
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