The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1871-02-10
Great Britain,
THE AMERICAN co OmuIssIONERs
Hon. Hamilton Fish.


The Secretary of State, Hon. Hamilton Fish,
of New York, is the President of the Commits
sion on the part of the United States, by virtue
of his official position as Foreign Minister. Mr..
Fish is descended, on the maternal side, from
Peter StYyvesant, the last Dutch Governor of
New York, and was born in New York city in
1909. He graduated at Columbia College, New
York, studied law, and was admitted to the bar
in 1880. Entering upon political life, he served
in the Legislature of the State of New York;
was for two years in the National House of
Representatives.; was Governor of the State of
New York from 1S4S to 1850; and after that
served full six-year term in the Senate of the
A United States, from 1851 to 1857. Before the
organization of the Republican party he be
longed to the Wing party, but since that time
he has been a consistent though rather con
servative Republican. On March IL, 1869, he
was appointed Secretary of State, to fill the
vacancy caused by the resignation of Mr.. Wash
burne.
General Robert @. schenck,
who occupies the second position on the Ameri-
can branch of the commission, has recently
been appointed and confirmed as Minister to
Great Britain, his departure being delayed by
the prospective negotiations to take place at
Washington. At the time of his appointment
to the Court of st. James, we published a
career.
Hon. Kbenezer K Hoar.
Hon. Ebenezer lockwood Hoar, one of the
American Commissioners was born at Concord,
Mass, in 1916, graduated from Harvard College
in 1885, and was admitted to the bar in 1910.
He became an active politician and held several
offices. He was a strong anti-slayery man. He
was the starter of the Free Soil party, he having
written the circular which called the State Con-
veption together,
In his efforts in behalf Of this party he was
untiring. Through his exertions, in great
measure, the party which began with only 36, 900
votes, in the course of three years broke down
Daniel Webster and the Whig party, elected
Charles Sumner to the United States Senate,
and made Secretary Boutwell, the Governor OF
the State of Massachusetts.
In April 1859, he was appointed Judge OF
the Supreme Court of Massachusetts, which po-
sition he continued to hold until his appoint
ment to a seat in the National Cabinet.
His name was in the first draft of President
Grants Cabinet, but after holding his position
of Attorney General for some time he became
very unpopular, especially in the Senate, an(
his resignation was rendered and accepted jun
Is, 1905 In December, 1869, his name was sen
to the Senate by the President as Associate Jus
tice of the Supreme Court of the United States
but his nomination was rejected by a majorit!
of nine votes after a bitter and protractet
contest.
Hon. samuel Nelson,
another of the, American commissioners, wa
born in New York, in 1892, and after a success
full career at the bar and on the bench, was, i
1s45, appointed an Associate Justice of tn
Supreme Court of the United States by Pres
dent Tyler, his judicial service now amountin
10 over forty-hye years. He is one OF the able
iurors on the Supreme bench, but is rath'
conservative in his views, and gained consider
BILE unpopularity in the North by joining in Il
famous bred Scott decision in 1857.
Hon. George II. Williams,
the fifth commissioner on the part OF the Unite
states, was born in Columbia county, Ne