Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1870-03-03
Death of Hon. Arson Eurlingame.


day afternoon by the reception of cabl
telegram, announcing the death in st
Petersburgh the day previous OF Hon
Arson Burlingame, late American min
lister to China, and at the time of hi
death Envoy Extraordinary and Minister
Plenipotentiary from the Flower King
dom to the Western Powers, with author
ity to execute commercial treaties between
them and the hitherto partially isolated
Empire of which he was the representa-
tive.
Mr.. Burlingame was born in New Der
lin, Chenango County, New York, Nov
Ia, 1922, and consequently was at thu
time of his death but little over AZ years
of age, young indeed for one who had
developed already statesman-like abili
ties and diplomatic talents to make him
the compeer of the ablest diplomats Of
Europe and America. His parents re.
moved to Ohio when he was quite young,
and young Burlingame spent his earlier
years with surveying parties on the front
Ter, and in treating with the Indians. He
prepared for College in Ohio, and gradu.
ated at Harvard in 1916. After gradu.
alton he studied law and in 1848 com.
fnenced its practice in Boston. The same
year he turned his attention to politics
and four years thereafter attained to q
seat in the Massachusetts, Senate. He
embraced the doctrines of the Native
American party, before that organization
became corrupt with narrow-minded
bigotry and prejudice, and rising with it,
was elected member of the Saith Con.
gress, and reelected by the Republicans
to the 35th and Seth Congresses.
He was in Congress through the Dor.
der ruffian troubles in Kansas, and made
strong speeches denouncing the imbecilty
of an administration which allowed to &c
unpublished those rufians, under the lead.
ership of Atchison, Stringfellow and
Quantrell. Indeed in those days he had
few equals on the floor of the United States
House of Representatives and was ter
ror to the fre-eating pro-slaveryites in
that body. We all remember how, after
Mr. Sumner had been struck down in the
Senate chamber by blows from the cane
of Preston S. Brooks of South Carolina,
that Mr.. Burlingame, from his seat in the
House on the following day, denounced
the act as cowardly in such scathing
terms as to call forth from Brooks chal-
lenge to Burlingame, offering to fight
him cor any other Yankee mudsill." The
challenge was accepted, rifles named as
weapons and the vicinity of the Clifton
House, Canada, named as the place of
combat. But, though the Massachusetts
man was on hand at the time and place
specified, the fight never occurred,
Brooks ooncealing his cowardice behind
the excuse that he dare not go to Canada,
as in doing so he would have to pass
through a hostile country.
He labored arduously on the stump in
the campaigns of 1866 and 1860 for the
election first of Fremont and then of Lin
coin to the Presidency, and SO great was
his argumentative powers that it is con-
ceded he did more than any other man
for the success of the party in these cam
paigns. His services were recognized by
Mr. Lincoln by an appointment as Minis.
ter to the Court of Austria, but while on
the committee of foreign affairs, in Con-
gress, during the Italian war, he had ex-
pressed himself so decidly in favor of Sar-
DINA, as to win the enmity of the Austrian
government, and Francis Joseph refused
to accept him as a minister to his court.
Returning home he was rendered the
Chinese mission by President Lincoln,
which he accepted and held until early in
1868, when he resigned, to accept from
the Chinese government the mission to
the Western powers. This mission he
had carried out with eminent satisfaction
to the sovereign OF the Celestials and the
governments with which he had treated,
though not without much opposition on
the part of some of those in Europe. His
mission to Russia, the one he designed as
the browning effort of his labors for China,
he had just entered upon when called to
the presence of the Higher Court above.
His loss is one to be felt by every Ameri-
can, for he had already done much for the
nation, and at the conclusion of his pre-
sent labors had determined to settle on an
estate recently purchased by him in Cali
fornia, whence he would undoubtedly
have emerged to again take high rank in
the forum and in Legislative halls. His
death is an irreparable loss to China, as ii
can hardly be expected that that govern
ment will find a man competent to COM
plete the work which Mr.. Burlingame had
so we'll commenced and carried SO near the
end.
The following eloquent tribute was
paid the deceased by General n. P. Banks
his former colleague in Congress, upon
the news of his death reaching the House
of Representatives on Wednesday:
NJ. Speaker Although Mr.. Burlin.
game had rendered great service to the
country, he was not officially connected
with the government at the time of his
death. 1t is not proper, therefore, to in
terrupt the proceedings of the House at
this time by giving more than a state
ment of the sad occurrence, yet l crave
the general indulgence of the House to
say that fitting and proper opportunity
will be presented in the regular course OF
business to express our appreciation of his
character and great services. He wished
to be remembered in connection with
these services, and promised him at the
last interview | had with him that his
name should not be forgotten.
The mediation between the great and
auoiep empire OF the East and the civil
lied nations of the West. is one of the
grandest services which any man in
modern times has performed. That ser
vice MIR. Burlingnnie bad carried nearly
to it's complete success.
The empire OF Russia, ut the capital u
which he had died, and in which he must
have very recently arrived, war the last
of the great States he WAS to visit His