The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-06-23

MI. InuTUsaIi TUlik III tue StHutc "ho
established from the day he took his seat,
and it was never lowered during the
period of his service, He was an admir-
ably disciplined debater. was fair In his
method Of statement. logical in his arg'l.
ment. honest In his conclusions. He had
no tricks In discussion. no catch phrases
to secure attention. but was always direct
and manly. His mind was not pre-
occupied and engrossed with political con
test or with affairs OF state. lie had
natural and cultivated tastes outside OF
those fields He was discriminating
reader, and enjoyed not only serious books.
bat inclined also TO the lighter indulgence
of romance and poetry He was especially
fond Of the best French writers. He
loved Molliere and Racine, and could
quote with rare enjoyment the humor-
GUS scenes depicted by Balzac. He
took pleasure in the drama and was
devoted to music In Washington he
could usually be found in the best seat OF
the theatre when good play was TO be
presented or an opera was TO be given
These tastes illustrated the genial side Of
his nature, and were Il fitting complement
to the stronger and sterner elements OF
the man His retirement from the Senate
was q serious loss to his party-a loss
indeed, to the body
Thurmans common sense is one Of the
strong elements of his nature. He sci
dom loses his head, and lie il, rs John
Randolph used 20 say, as cool as the cen
ter seed of a cucumber. His talk as vice
presidential candidate on love for the
party is based on good record in this
regard 1t recalls how he repulsed man
who wished to weam him away from the
Democratic party. II was about the time
of the panic Of 1873. when the Green
hackers were nj their highest, and when
a number of new parties were in the held.
There was convention OF one OF these
parties at Columbus. and several dele
gates. two of whom were old friends OF
Thurman s and who had been strong Dem
ocrats. called upon him. They found him
sitting in the library of his drab house
ON High street They told their story
and said they thought they could make
him president of the United States, and
with him they could break up the Demo
cratic party and defeat the Republican
party.
All" said Thurman, and he looked
,oberly down at the table.
Then the spokesman again began his
speech. bat Thurman interrupted him
with the question.
MY friend, what do You imagine the
size OF this room to be-
1T is sixteen feet square, | judge,
was the reply, but why do you ask
Because. sir, - said Thurman, pulling
ont his red bandanna and violently wiping
his nose because, sir, this room, sir, u
too - small to destroy the Democratic
party In Good day. gentleman, good
day." and that vas the end of the CONVEX
sation. -
Judge Thurman IS now about "A years
old His work in the courts has shown
that his mind is as active as it has been
for years and be may do great deal OF
good work yet. He is man Of means; his
wife brought 10 him fortune and he has
made another himself. He has trained
himself to enjoy life and lie gets great
deal of pleasure out of the reading OF
French novels in the original When he
was on the supreme bench of Ohio he was
very fond of mathematics and while he
was in the United States senate he played
as good a game of whist as any man IN
WASHINGTON. He would have made q
good chief Justice of the United States
and he is fully as well fitted for the bench
as for congress. He keeps up with poiit-
zeal matters. uses stenographcr i'll the
carving on of his correspondence and is
in reality leading rather active life. He
made speech on the tariff last fall
that showed that his oratorcal abilities
l...Qna
and If he would work at ii. he could
turn out a very interesting and very
profitable work on the history of the coun-
try. Governor lloadley, OF Cincinnati,
once said to me that Ohio never allows a
man TO get more than two feet high be
fore it wants to cllt off his head. This
has been true with both parties in Ohio,
and Thurman career in this respect runs
almost parallel with that Of Sherman.
Both have been for Years conceded TO be
great statesmen By the nation and both
have been fought by men within their
own parties and defeated again and again.
Thurman had Tom Ewing. Hugh }.
Jewett, Henry b Payne and John X. Me
Lean against him. and his opponents were
all good men. Payne succeeded in getting
the United States senatorship and Ne
Lean would have taken Sherman place
had Ohio gone Democratic that year.
Sherman might have been nominated for
the presidency in the place of Garfield
had not Ohio had another great Republi
can.
Henry B. Payne will probably close his
senatorial career with this term. He is
too old man 10 receive q nomination and
the Ohio democracy is calling for young
blood | am told that John Mclean is
ambitious to go TO the senate, and hear
also the friends of Cal Brice. the railroad
millionaire, proposing him as a desirable
candidate. There are numbers of smaller
men in Ohio politics who will come TO the
front when senator /, to be chosen. but
it is probable that the next Democratic
nominee will be young man. As to
Sherman, he has five years yet TO serve
and the term Of his service will expire in
1893 He will probably have Il reelection
ifhe wants it, though Foraker or Foster
may be among his contestants Five
years means a great deal in politics. but
the present generation Of statesmen is
fast passing away. The generation Of
men born since the war Is striving TO get
its hands on the reins of the government.
1t lisa young giant and it will II time push
the old men 10 the wall.