Public sentiment within the Democratic party prevented the consummation of the deal to supplant Morrison with Tree, the death of a Democratic assemblyman enabled the Republicans to steal a march on their opponents in a by-election, and the deadlock was finally broken by Logan securing the bare 103 votes necessary to election.  How Field rejoiced over this outcome, to which he contributed so powerfully, may be inferred from the pictorial and poetic outburst shown on the opposite page: 

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BEFORE.                   AFTER.

There came a burst of thunder sound,
The jedge—­oh, where was he? 
His twigs were strewn for miles around—­
He was a blasted tree.

Field was never in sympathy with the independent lines upon which the Morning News was edited.  As I have said, he was a thorough-going partisan Republican, and he preferred a straight-out Democrat to an independent—­or Mugwump, as the independents have been styled since 1884, when they bolted Blaine.  To his mind the entire Mugwump movement revolved around Grover Cleveland and opposition to the election of Mr. Blaine.  The former was not only the idol, but the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the decalogue to many of Field’s Mugwump friends whom he cherished personally, but detested and lampooned politically.  It pleased him to represent the Mugwump party of Chicago as consisting of General McClurg, John W. Ela, now president of the Chicago Civil Service Commission; Melville E. Stone, Franklin MacVeagh, and myself; and as late as 1892 he took delight in reporting its meetings after this fashion: 

When the Mugump party of Chicago met in General McClurg’s office yesterday, considerable agitation was caused by Mr. Slason Thompson’s suggestion that a committee be appointed to investigate the report that John W. Ela was soliciting funds in the East for the purpose of electing the Democratic ticket in Illinois.

General McClurg thought that a serious mistake had been made.  As he understood, Colonel Ela was soliciting subscriptions, but not to promote Democratic success.  What funds Colonel Ela secured would be used toward the election of the great white-souled Cleveland, and that would be all right. (Applause.) The use of money elsewise would be offensive partisanship; devoted to the holy cause of Cleveland and Reform, it would be simply a patriotic, not to say a religious, duty.

  Mr. Thompson said he was glad to hear this explanation.  It was
  eminently satisfactory, and he hoped to have it disseminated through
  Illinois.