The Cecil Whig., 1886-08-14
ABOUT THE DISTINGUISHED DEAD.

HiiGdclphid Record.
New YORK, August 1T is imposs-
BILE to date newspaper letter from this
city without commencing with an allu-
sion to the number of distinguished citi-
zens who within the last year have left
our busy streets to join the silent major.
ity. The list is notable one-Grant,
Tilden, Mcclellan, Hancock, Vanderbilt,
Kelly and Hubert o. Thompson-men
widely differ ent in their lives and records,
but each of them marked men as they
were met in public places, and all of them
with their large personal following of ad-
miIes. Vanderbilt and Tilden were mil
lionaires; Hancock and Thompson died
poor; Mcclellan and Kelly left their fam
lies in comfortable circumstances, and
Grants last heroic battle with literature
secured more than competence for his
wife and children. Socially Hancock and
Mcclellan were more of favoriteS than
the others, The former was greatly
sought at the social gatherings of our
best people. With his elegant manners,
hne conversational powers and imposing
personal appearance he graced the circles
of the highest. Mcclellan was more re-
ticent, but was always the refined, highly
educated gentleman whom it was pleas.
ure to meet. General Grants fame as a
soldier and his Presidential honors made
| him a welcome guest at the tables of
| social aspiran and at public festivals;
but his reticerce and shyness that he
could never overcome made him hard to
entertain. He always trembled like a
school boy when called upon 20 respond
| to a toast, and he sat down covered with
confusion at the close, and pathetically
appealed to his nearest neighbor to know
if be had made himself Ineligible. VAN
derbilt's money gave him a welcome at
all gatherings save those of the ancient
blue blooded Knickerbockers; but he car
ried the weight of his wealth with him,
| and it was more overpowerng than agree
| able. John Kelly was better known So
cially in the circle of his Church than
among outsiders, with whom he figured
| only as q politician, though he was really
| IA man of considera BILE learning, extensive
reading ard extremely courteous and faS-
mating manners. Hubert O. Thompson
was a power in cub life, where he shone
conspicuous. For society. as such, he
| had cared nothing for the last ten years
| though he had once been stylish leader
| of the german, and had caught effectively
the trick of using his single glass in the
| English fashion.
AS for Samuel J. Tilden, he was the
same man in all positions in which he
was placed-impassIve. self contained,
unsympathetic, but quietly absorbent of
power. The shake of his hand was cold;
his oratory was unimpassioned; his smile
without sunshine. Successful as a law
yer. statesman and iuancier, he yet failed
of achieving the goal he sought and this
| as much from his failure to inspire per-
sonal enthusiasm as from force of circum-
stances. This opinion of Mr.. Tilden is
not founded upon hearsay, but upon per-
sonal observation. | met him first at the
Constitutional Convention of 1SG7-S,
where saw him daily for a year, both
in the Convention and at his hotel. He
had been in the Constitutional Conven-
tion of 1916, and his ea perience made him
prominent in the later one, though no
one then spoke of him as a man likely to
be Governor of the State. much less Pres
ident of the United States. When at
last he was nominated for Governor there
was great enthusiasm for the party, but
little personally for the candidate. When
Horatio Seymour ran for Governor his
personal magnetism swept everything be
fore him, even in war times. Men loved
Seymour. Young men followed him iu