Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1869-10-19
Curiosities of American History.

| The American history is full of Gu
riosities and singular incidents. For
instance, three of our Presidents, all
of whom participated in the Revolu-
ton, died on its great anniversary,
the Fourth day of July, viz. John
Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James
| Monroe.
| General Washington, when he re-
tired from the Presidency, was in
his Goth year of his age. His sue
cessor, John adams, when he left was
&c years old. After him came
Thomas Jefferson, James Madison,
and James Monroe. Mr.. Jefferson
was sc f, James Madison had just
passed his Goth year, and Mr.. Mon
roe was in 9th when they respect
lively left the Presidential chair
General Harrison was in his 81 year
when he was elected and died in
the Presidential office.
| From 1901 to 1925, the Presiden-
tial office was flied by Virginians.-
During the same interval, with the
exception of four years, the Vice
Presidential office was steadily by
the citizens of New York. John
Adams negotiated the treaty of peace
that concluded the war of the revolu-
ton with England. His son, John
Quincy Adams, was leading envoy,
aud negotiated the treaty which
apIa1 tba aon0nl NAV With and
in 1914 His son, Charles Francis
Adams, at the third great crisis of
our history was the Minister to Eng
land during he recent war, from 1861
to 1865, the period which covers the
"Alabama" claims, out Of which an
other war is altogether possible with
the old mother country,
In 1900, John Adams was on
leading Presidential ticket. Twenty
four years after. his son, John Quin-
cy, was also Presidential candidate
Twenty-four years from that time,
Charles FrancisAdams, JohnQuincys
son, was an important candidate for
Vice President, with contingent
Presidential succession.
OF the first six Presidents, four of
them were taken from office of Sec
rotary of State and the other two,
being the first elected, could not p er-
form its duties. From this fact arose
the precedence that makes the Sec
rotary of State the first officer in the
Cabinet, instead of the Secretary of
the Treasury, which is the case in
in Great Britain.
The highest civil officer in the
country at the time of the Declare
ration of Independence was John
Hancock, of Massachusetts, the Pres
ident of the Continental Congress-
The highest military officer was Geo.
Washington, of Virginia. The first
battle of the Revolution was fought
in Massachusetts,, and the last in
Virginia The first President of the
United States was from Virginia, and
the second from Massachusetts. The
first English settlement in the coun-
try was made in Virginia and the
second in Massachusetts,. OF the
fifty-six signers to the Declaration
of independence, three long survived
upon the earth after all the others
had died, and two Of these had been
upon the committee of five who
drafted the important instrument
The very last survivor, Charles Car
rol, of Carrollton. Maryland, threw
the first shovelful of earth from the
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, the
first railroad enterprise of the coun-
try. The last man of the past inaug-
urated the coming future.
No less than FIVE of the greatest of
American statesmen were born in
the same year, 1882: Daniel Web
ster, John G. Calhoun, Thomas I'll.
Benton, Martin Van Buren, and
Lewis Cass. From 1900 to 1855,
period spanning from the second
President to the seventeenth, only
two persons filled the Office of Chief
Justice of the Supreme Court of the
United States, John Marshal and
Rodger B. fancy.
The first Secretary of the Treasury
of the United States, Alexander
Hamilton, was alleged to be de-
faulter.
The Capitol of the United States
was located at Washington in pur-
suance of corrupt bargain, by which
two or three members of Congress,
who lived adjacent to it, and whose
districts would be greatly benefited
by it, voted for the funding of the
national debt for that consideration.
But two men in the United States
have, as they say in Odd 'lowship,
passed through all the "chairs" been
Governors of States, held first-cIass
| foreign mission, been the head of the
Cabinet, then Vice President and
President. Their names are Thomas
Jefferson and Martin Van Buren,.
Three Presidents died in office !:
Harrison, Taylor and Lincoln.
Three persons were elected by the
people Vice Presidents before they
became Presidents John Adams,
Thomas Jefferson and Martin Van
Buren,.
Three Vice Presidents died in Of
fee George Clinton, EIdridge CORY
and William B. King.
/ Three men were elected President
who had been Ministers to England
under the Federal Government John
Quincy Adams, Martin Van Buren,
and James Buchanan.
Three Vice Presidents became
President by the death of their chiefs:
John Tyler Willard Fillmore and An
drewJ ohnson--and every one of them
pursued a policy adverse to that of
the party by which they were elect
ed. Two of the Vice Presidents of
the United States, and they the
| youngest men who ever held the Of
| fee, have been indicted for treason :
AKRON; Burriand John C.Breckinridge
and in each instance the Government
hroka down and dismissad the case