The Conservative. (M'connelsville, Ohio) 1866-1871, 1869-10-22
$500 A YEAR.
"GREAT MEN HAVE NO coz.
TINUANCE.o
From the Cincinnati Enquirer,

Such was the remark Of the grea-
test Of philosophers and the most
observer Of the times
Every page Of history attcsts the
truth Of this declaration of Lord
Bacon. The brief records Of the
Untod States orO full Of pregnant
illustrations og il. Great intcllccts
and characters fud i, even moro
diGicu,t TO transmit thoir qualities
to their descendants than the dcvo.
tees Of wealth do to hand down to
succeeding generations their great
acquisitions Of treasure. The hero
Of the Revolution, G1noral Wash
lugtou, and the most distinguished
leader of the war of 1872, Andrew
Jackson, were both chlldlcss. SO
we believe was ono Of the leading
authors OF our Federal Consti.u-
tiOn, James Madison. All these
men were Presidents Of the Unitud
States. 10 these are TO be added
two other Presidents, Jas. X. Polk
and James Buchanan. Still auoth-
or, Genera! Pierce, has now no I'm
cal descendant IN whom hls blood
flows. Tho first and most distin-
guished Of our authors, Washing
ton Irving, was bachelor. James
k. Paulding was also IN that cata-
CORY. The greatest, in many res
poets of our orators, after Patrick
Henry, John Randolph, Of Roam.
olc, nevor married. The most ON.
incnt American Senator, aitor Web
stcr, Calhoun and Clay, was Silas
| Wright, OF New York. lIo had u
wllo, but mover had any children.
Where is the representative ofthat
erratic child of genius, Edgar a.
Poe ? Two of tho Vice Presidents
of the United States, Aaron Burr
and William r. King, died leaving
no issue. Tho two men, tho great
est in tho last and in this genera
tion in the collecting OF colossal
fortune, were Stephen Girard, Of
! Philadelphia, and Alexander 7.
Stewart, of New York. Gnrard
never had any children, and neith-
or has Stewart. The vast wealth
Of Girard Will be appreciated when
We state that in tho war Of 1872,
when capitalists rocoilcd from TAX
ing the American loan, Mr. Girard
stepped forward, and alone and un-
assisted, took five million dollars.
A dollar thon was probably, all
) things considered, il its relative
value equal to three dollars now
His immense fortune had To so to
collateral heirs and to purposes of
public charity. There are sow of
. the instances that occur 10 us whore
: the men OF cmincnco not only did
} not reproduce themselves, but were
0 entirely OF barren stocks.
, But now look at another class Of
I heroes, statesmen and scholars,
D who left children, 1t is true, but in
: no instance did thoy inherit the ge-
, MUS Of their progcnitors. Tho
= names Of two Of the Presidents,
c Thomas Jefferson and James Moh-
: roe, were lost in the female line
6 Save the Adamscs and the Van Blu.
+ reus, (MarLin and JohnO the Liv-
u ipgstoncs, the Lees and the Pinck,
Il neys, what great hereditary names
= appear in our history ? And tn,
d Van Burens arc already extinct
o Where are the young Calhouns, tht
% Wobstors, tho Clays, the ChoateI
II and the Everetts ? Whore arc th'
20 Bells, the Berries, tho McDuffs, th,
h Haynes, the Randolphs, the Pinck
10 neys, the Hamltons, the Prestons
= and the PoindoXters, that onco sheC
g. such an ofruIgonec Of glory over tn
m American Congress Where ar
10 the Bainbridgos, tho Hulls, tn
III Scots, the Browns, the Decaturs
ID and the Stewards, that once on Ian,
o. and on sea conferred honor and re
ut nown upon our arms. Echo ans
re wers, where
,~ In the main, wherever they eX
list they possess as lttlo OF the gen
Ius and spirit of their ancestors Il
Richard Cromwell, the son Of tn
great Oliver, did, when he volunta
! rIly descended from n positio
- which was not inferior TO the Brit
,, lsh throne, and which had bee
h, gained for him by the talents Of hi
IN father, the great Protector. dis
t. tinQWShed talents seem TO dbhor ne
-. p0iiSm. The celestial fires OF ger
-. ius, descending from on high, Al
y, seldom lighted at the hearths
IN more than one Of II family. I'll
-, puzos Of brains in 0n eminent d.
~ gree arc too valuable and rare M
'is to DO sent round to the whole HI
'ig man race so tar as possible. Whu
bSS over monopolics some families ms
bc long preserve, q monopoly OF sc
Lo iUs is not OF .ho number.
,t We have already alluded to a II
nd table exception, that Of tho Adar
'cr sos. Four generations have sec
them distinguished, Three of the
IA grandfather, Il father and s,
,cr have been Minister'S of the Ur
Wy ted States tO Great Britain. TT
o! them have bcen Presidents
bed the United States, Twenty yea
g., ago, Charles Francis Adams d
iw Si%a not possess the emInence he h
" since attained. He was then, u
est on one occasion, while running
,an Vice President upon what wab ca
ed the Freesol ticket, contempt
ously alluded to, by the great OF