William Schenck was a land speculator and an important early settler of Ohio who had also been in the War of 1812 and, like his son, rose to the rank of general.

His first conspicuous work was to help repeal the gag rule that had long been used to prevent antislavery petitions being read on the floor of the house.

He declined re-election in 1851, and, in March 1851, was appointed by President Millard Fillmore, Minister to Brazil and also accredited to Uruguay, Argentine Confederation, and Paraguay.

He was directed by the Government to visit Buenos Aires, Montevideo, and Asunción, and make treaties with the republics around the Río de la Plata and its tributaries.

Several treaties were concluded with these governments by which the United States gained advantages never accorded to any European nation.

The Democratic victory in 1852 caused the treaty of commerce with Uruguay to fail to be ratified by the United States Senate.

In 1854, Schenck returned to Ohio, and though sympathizing generally in the views of the Republican party, his personal antipathy to John C. Fremont was so strong that he took no part in the election.

He became more in sympathy with the Republican party, and, in September 1859, Schenck delivered a speech in Dayton regarding the growing animosity within the country.

[2][8] Seeing this disposition, an elderly local Union sympathizer ran down the tracks to warn the approaching train of the hidden Confederate force.

[2] As the train rounded a curve within 0.25 miles (0.40 km) of Vienna, one of the men spotted some Confederate cavalrymen on a nearby hill.

The Union force suffered several casualties but were spared from incurring even more by the slightly high initial cannon shots and by quickly jumping from the slow–moving train and either running into nearby woods or moving into protected positions near the cars.

Schenck now had no means of communication and had to have the wounded men carried back to their camp in blankets by soldiers on foot.

[9] Many of the Union infantrymen took shelter behind the cars and tried to return fire against the Confederate force amid a confusion of conflicting orders.

[15][16] Schenck was subsequently in command under Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans in West Virginia, and under Maj. Gen. John C. Fremont in the Luray Valley.

He had been elected over Democrat Clement Vallandigham, running in absentia after being deported by Lincoln for a speech he gave in Mt.

It was said that in military matters he was the firm friend of the volunteer, as against what he thought the encroachments and assumptions of the regulars; the remorseless enemy of deserters; a vigorous advocate of the draft, and the author of the disfranchisement of those who ran away from it; the champion of the private soldiers and subordinate officers.

He was re-elected to the Thirty-Eighth, Thirty-Ninth, Fortieth and Forty-First Congresses, and from his position was a leader of the House, including service as Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee.

Failing re-election by just fifty-three votes in 1870, Schenck was appointed by President Ulysses Grant as Minister to the United Kingdom, and he sailed for England in July 1871.

In his book History of Monetary Systems, historian Alexander Del Mar intimates on p. 488 and 489 that Schenck was instrumental in passing a bill denominating currency in only gold, whereas it had been previously redeemable in silver, as well.

At a royal party in Somerset, Ambassador Schenck was attending a reception hosted by Queen Victoria, when he was persuaded to write down his rules for poker by a duchess.

A congressional investigation in March 1876 concluded that he was not guilty of wrongdoing but that he had shown very bad judgment in lending his name and office to promote any such scheme.

Schenck was an accomplished scholar, thoroughly informed on international and constitutional law, well versed in political history, and familiar with the whole range of modern literature, English, French, and Spanish.