Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1890-01-17
Death OF VIM. D. Kelley.

William D. Kelley, who for nearly thirty
years had represented one Of the districts
of Philadelphia in Congress, and who was
known as the Father of the House. died
at his hotel in Washington, d. c., last Fri
day, aged 76 years.
Judge Kelley had attended alike to pub
lie and private duties until few weeks be-
fore his death, and, although an intense
sufferer from complication of diseases,
his tremendous will power had time and
again carried him through attacks of sick
ness and suffering which would have
stricken down less powerful constitutions.
The old protection warrior fought a gal
liant fight to the last, and death only con-
quered six years after the Judge had pass
ed the allotted life of man. Judge Kelley
will always be known in American politi-
cal history as one of the ablest and most
eloquent defenders of the national policy
of protection. He will. moreover, rank as
one of the greatest of American authors
and parliamentarians In debate few men
could cope with him, and in some OF the
moro important historic debates on the tar
iff he has shown himself as unquestionably
the best equipped man on that question on
the floor. 1t is safe to say that no other
living man ever mastered the details of the
tariff as Judge Kelley did. His mind was
a complete storehouse of facts and figures
relating to the history of every protected
article. He never forgot anything. He
could remember WITH the most remarkable
minuteness conversations, speeches and
incidents which happened q generation,
and even half century ago, better than
some men remember the occurrences of
yesterday. His memory was simply prod
igious.
As statesman Mr.. Kelley was undoubt-
edly very able man, with large amount
of both political foresight and political ga
gacity. He was invariably in advance OF
his party certainly in all matters relating
to the tariff question. He was the man
VIII stood fearlessly and defended the tar
ifi and advocated the repeal of the internal
revenue taxes when the more timid Repub-
lican leaders were squirming at the at
tacks of the agents of British free trade in
the United States. He was q man of great
courage, of strong convictions, of unhag-
ging industry and remarkable persistency.
He was absolutely an incorruptible man.
His public career is without single stain
or suspicion. An active and influential
man in public life during the corrupting
period of the war and Immediately follow
ing, he never wavered from the ster-
ling honesty of purpose which characteriz-
ed b i'm as Judge of the Court of Common
Pleas of Philadelphia, and while others
yielded William D. Kelley stood forth,
ik Q Abraham Lincoln, sincere, earnest,
rugged repres entative of the common peo-
pie.
Poor, perhaps in worldly goods, Judge
Kelly leaves behind a reputation which is
rich in what it teaches. His boyhood aud
early struggles show what perseverance and
study will do, if acco mpanied by honesty
of purpose and earnestness of conviction.
These struggles with hardship in the ear
lier days OF his career undoubtedly created
sympathy for the efforts and aims and
ambitions of young men. There are many
young who received their first lift in life
from Judge Kelley. If he could help
young man bent on helping himself the
great protectionist always did it. And
when he did it, it was done thoroughly.
His friendship was worth that of an army
OF ordinary men. More than one President
of the United States has referred to the
strength and earnestness Of Judge Kelley's
friendship Now that he dead the many
splendid qualities of this fine old Ameri
can statesman will be remembered and his
death will be mourned from one end of the
country to the other. Dead he is, but as
his life slowly ebbed in the midst Of the
noise and hustle of Washington hotel, it
must have been gratifying thought to
the dying orator to feel that although he
was about to pass through the shadow of
the valley of death, the doctrine which he
believed in so earnestly and truly never
had such strong hold upon the sixty-fve
millions of souls which make up this nation
as it has to-day.
TEE New York Press facetiously OBJ