Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-09-11
A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY.
sket oh Of MIR. Cox's Political aud literary
Life Work.


Life Work.
r'Sunset" Cox, as he is popularity called, or
samuel sullivan Cox. as he was baptized, was
A grandson of James Cox. who was "a congress-
man. brigadier general Of the NV Jersey
militia. and Democratic politician of note.
Samuel's father, Ezekiel Taylor Cox, left
the old homestead at Monmouth some time
after James Cox's death and emisrated TO
Ohio, settling at GAINESVILLE, where samuel =
was born Sept. 10, ls,i. The boy. after pass
ing through the common school was sent to
the Ohio university. He did not finish his
collegiate course, but went Ia Brown uni
ver-ity at Providence, X. l.. and was gradu-
ated In the class of lsl6 He studied law,
went back to Ohio, and began To practice.
I'm journalism and Politics
He did not take kindly to the profession,
and after a tour in Europe, the Story of which
he Itold in "A Buckeye Abroad" he. in 1853,
became editor of The Ohio Statesman, pub
lished at Columbus. In lSi5 he was appointed
secretary OF legation to Peru by the Pierce ad-
ministration. and ON his return cultivated
politics and was elected from thc Columbus
90 district To the Thirty fifth congress. which
was In session just preceding the inaugura ion
Of Abraham Lincoln president. lie stood
by the Union, AMI was rewarded by heing re-
turned 10 the Thirty-sixth. Thirty-seventh,
and Thirty-eigth congresses.
Removal to New York.
In 1884 he WAS defeated by the Republican
candidate, and removed & New York city in
the following spring. Here he wrote his
Eight Years in Congress, an interest ing
volume of personal observations and expert
ence The interval between his removal from
Ohio To New York and his elect on from a
New York district Mr.. Cox passed either in
travels abroad or in writing books about
those travels. In ls,is Mr.. Cox first appeared
as canIi date for congress In New York city
and was elected by large majority over
Starr, his Republican opponent. This ma
iority was greatly augmented two years after
when Horace Greeley ran against him.
HIS second Defeat
In lc' when he ran for congressman-at-
large against Lyman Tremaine, he WINS de-
teated. lie was "a few months after chosen to
I'LL the scat made vacant by the death of
James Brook. He was reelected to the
Forty -fourth congress, was appointed speaker
pro tempore June :. 1876. and elected speaker
pro tcmpOre June 30. 1876. serving until June
=. He was elected to the Forty-fifth Forty
sixth. Fo ty-seventh, Forty -eighth. and Forty
ninth congresses. and resigned to become
minister to Turkey. This position he resigned
and took his seat in the Forty ninth congress.
hlling the vacancy caused by the resignation
NJ Joseph Pulitzer. He was reelected to the
Fiftieth congress, amp again to the Fifty first.
THE soubriquet OF "sun-eL"
His freedom from partisan bitterness. to-
gether.with his winning social qualities have
made him great favorte among Repub-
licans, rs his mastery of parliamentary law
and constant readiness To enter into the thick
If party engagement has made him a neces-
atty To the Democrats. The produc ton which
won for MIR. Cox the snubriquet Of sunset
was piece Of descriptive writing which ap-
peared In The Ohio Statesman MAY 49, 1853
and was entilled-''A Great Old sunset" He
was In the composing room OF The Statesman
the ey ming before and witnessed peculiarly
at NNN A