Page:History of Iowa From the Earliest Times to the Beginning of the Twentieth Century Volume 1.djvu/383

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OF IOWA 263

On the 15th day of May, 1850, the Whigs held their State convention at Iowa City. The resolutions declare the Whig party of Iowa to be in favor of free men, free territory, free States and a revision of the Constitution of the State. The candidates nominated were John L. Thompson for Governor; Isaac Cook for Secretary of State; Wm. H. Seevers for Auditor; Evan Jay for Treasurer; and Joseph Nosier for Treasurer of the Board of Public Works. The Democratic Convention assembled at Iowa City on the 12th of June. The resolutions condemned the administration of President Taylor and approved of the compromise measures of Congress. The following nominations were made: Stephen Hempstead for Governor; G. W. McCleary for Secretary of State; Israel Kester for Treasurer; Wm. Pattee for Auditor; George Gillaspy for Treasurer of Public Works. The election resulted in the success of the Democrats by an average plurality of 2,000. The vote for Governor was as follows:

Hempstead, Democrat 13,488
Thompson, Whig 11,403
Wm. Penn Clark, Free Soil 576
Hempstead’s plurality 2,083
Hempstead’s majority 1,058

The election of members of Congress for the full term resulted in the choice of Bernhart Henn in the First District, and Lincoln Clark in the Second, both Democrats.

The Third General Assembly met at Iowa City on the 2d of December, and was organized by the election of the following officers: President of the Senate, Enos Lowe; Speaker of the House, George Temple.

Governor Briggs, in his retiring message to the General Assembly, congratulated the people of the State upon the final settlement, by the Supreme Court of the United States, of the controversy long pending with Missouri over our southern boundary. The award was in favor of the line claimed by Iowa.