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50 W. C. WOODWARD sired to see the. Government disrupted and the latter is con- trolled by those who desire to keep it so. I sympathize with neither. I was in hopes that the conservative men of the state, would combine upon the President's policy and give some prac- tical aid in restoring the country to its former prosperous con- dition barring however the institution of slavery to which you were once so devoted. I perhaps expected too much of trading politicians who have more regard for party than for country." The bitterness and desperate nature of the campaign which followed' is better reflected in the Oregonian than in the Statesman, the former throwing its whole strength into the fight. It made a specialty of showing up the records of all the Demo- crats connected with the campaign and quoting past treasonable utterances by them, thus rendering the, campaign bitterly per- sonal. As a last appeal to voters it begged them to "give the old traitor, Jo Lane, another kick," asserting that if the Demo- crats gained the legislature, Lane was to be sent back to the Senate. The Democrats laid stress upon what they termed the fanatical and disruptive measures of the Radicals in Congress, charging that the Union party was composed of disunionists. They were insistent in their demand for the taxation of United States bonds, were strong against the tariff, and were hysterical over threatened "Negro equality." 6 ? On the whole, the Union party nominees and campaigners took the side of Congress as against Johnson. The Statesman, now the only Johnson paper in the Union party, became very much subdued in its attitude even to the extent of endorsing the reconstruction report of the Congressional committee. 68 The Unionists denied the im- putations of the Democrats on the subject of negro suffrage, some maintaining that this was not an issue in the canvass, others expressing their opposition to the principle. The result of the election was very close, especially as com- pared with the results of elections since the forming of the Union organization. The whole Union ticket was elected, the 67 "Shall U. S. bonds be taxed? Shall the toiling millions of this land pay the taxes of the rich? Shall negroes be placed upon the same social and political footing with white men," etc. Oregon Daily Herald, April 5. 68 Deady to Nesmith, June u.