Governor
King was a Whig and, naturally the Whig Party of Massachusetts
sympathized with him. Gen. H. A. S. Dearborn, who had been an officer
in the War of 1812, was then Adjutant-General of Massachusetts. In his
haste to aid Governor King, he loaned to him quite a quantity of
muskets from the State Arsenal. This act caused great criticism and
contributed to the overthrow of the Whig Party in 1842, if it did not
in fact cause it. Dorr had organized a government, under a
constitution which had been ratified by such of the people of Rhode
Island as chose to vote upon it. The Dorr legislature assembled, a
military force was organized, and the State seemed to be on the eve of
a bloody contest.
Governor King appealed for aid to President Tyler. The President
recognized Governor King as the head of the lawful government of the
State, and although the aid was not granted, the Dorr Rebellion came
to an end. The courts followed the political department of the
government, and the attempt of Dorr and his associates was a failure in
fact and in law. The failure was followed, however, by the adoption of
a constitution from which the most objectionable features of the
Charter were removed.
In 1842 Massachusetts was living under the majority system. The
Abolitionists placed a candidate in nomination. As a consequence there
was no election of Governor by the people.
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