The 1861 Congressional Debate in Whatcom
Candidates for Congress face a tense local crowd over the question of loyalty to the Union as the Civil War erupts.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
SEHOME, May 28, 1861. The two candidates for Congressional distinction, Messrs. Garfielde and Lander, accompanied by Mr. Evans, the representative of Mr. Wallace, the people's candidate, arrived here day before yesterday. We were much disappointed in the efforts of the first two speakers until they expressed their loyalty to the United States, but their loyalty sunk into insignificance when they replied to interrogatories. We were agreeably surprised by the able manner in which Mr. Evans replied to them. This precinct, if not the whole county, will give a fair majority for Wallace in July next. The question propounded to them was: 'In the event of the Border States seceding and joining the Southern Confederacy in the war now waged against the Government of the United States, will you support the Administration of President Lincoln?' The replies of Garfielde and Lander were not direct, stating in substance that they would not pledge themselves to support it, and that when their views differed with the Administration, they would not support it. Mr. Garfielde also said that 'if the people were not willing to support him after that explanation, he would not ask them for their votes.' The answer of Mr. Evans in behalf of Col. Wallace was an affirmation that all loyal men should support its Administration.
“The replies of the first named gentlemen were not direct, and were, in substance, that they would not pledge themselves to support it.”
This debate highlights the deep political divide in Washington Territory during the onset of the Civil War. Even today, the region struggles with questions of loyalty to federal authority versus regional autonomy, a tension that has defined Washington's civic identity since before it was a state.
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