Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1891-01-22
GEORGE BANCROFT.


Death of the Aged Historian, Politician
and Diplomatic Brief Sketch OF his
Life and Labor-He Passed Peacefully
Away, After Brief Illness, IN HIS
Ninety-First Year.
WASHINGTON. Jan. 1S.-George Ban
croft, the venerable historian, died at ms
home in this city at
NL/h@SSSS $3.50 D. N. yesterday.
UNI N He had been sick
tS1ElE: --(N only tow days and
EsnLE ~ 10y was on the street
(eGSN|, - IN but four days ago.
NJN,A, 4N<A, On Thursday he
EW1Y SITsa x took to his bed as a
(E,Nu W N\0k matter of precau-'
RTSIiN MN ton. but was taken
SsSVSAn(OI&T seriously i'll Friday.
Eh5&ETE From that time I'M
= til yesterday after
George Bancroft. noon he failed rapid
ly, and allsday lowered between lie
and death. At 8 p. m. the doctor left,
thinking that Mr.. Bancroft would 1--we
through the night, but before the hour
was up Mr.. Bancroft was dead. His
end was quiet and peaceful and the
prime cause of his death was simply
the weakness of old age.
HIS LIFE AND LABoRS.
Mr.. Bancroft was in his ninety first year..
He was born October 3, $780, in Worcester,
Mass His father was a clergyman. He pre-
pared for college at Exeter, \. H.. graduated
at Harvard in 1877, and went to Goettingen,
Germany, where he resided for two years, a
pupil of Benecke, Artand, Bunsen, Eichhorn,.
Planck, Heeren, Blumenback and Dissen.
He was given the degree of Doctor of Phi
losophy by the University of Goettingen in
1920 and it was about that time that he de-
voted himself specially to history. This de-
votion did not prevent him from publishing
a volume of poems in 1923. From 1929 to 1922
he resided in Berlin and at Heidelberg.
where he enjoyed acquaintance with two.
great men-Humboldt and Goethe. He re-
turned to America in 1922 and was for short.
time Greek tutor at Harvard.
The year of the publication of his book of
poems he opened school ut Northampton,
Mass, with DIR. Joseph e. Cogswell. He oc-
cupied his leisure with the study of United
States history and found time to publish, in
1924, a translation of HeerenS "PoliticS OF
Ancient Greece" and in 1926 an Grafton adj
vOcating universal suffrage. He was elected
to the lower house of the Massachusetts
Legislature without being candidate
in $780, and refused to take his seat He
declined "a nomination to the State SEN
ate the next year.
The first volume of the 'History of the
United States" was published in 1884, and the
second completed in 1885, in which year
he was appointed by President Van Buren,
collector for the port of Boston He was
then resident of Springfield, Mass, and
had given>up his school. In 1910 the third
volume of his history was published.
He was the nominee of the Democratic
party in Massachusetts for Governor in 1874
and was defeated. He was, however, APP
pointed Secretary of the Navy when Presi-
dent Polk into the White House. He
did two things while in this Office that are
especially noteworthy. He established the
Naval Academy at Annapolis and ordered
the seizure of California for the United
States. Congress had persistently refused
to appropriate money for the establishment
of a Naval Academy. The new Secretary by
diligent examination of the law relative to
his powers, ascertained that he could desig-
nate place where mdshipmen must await
orders, that he could direct instructors to
give them lessons at sea, and that he could
follow them to the place of their common
residence shore.
He economical in his department, and in
that way obtained a fund to meet the ex-
penses He secured from the Secretary of
War an abandoned military post, which was
ceded to the navy. SO when Congress met
again it found the Naval Academy estab-
lished at Annapolis. Then it made suffi-
cient appropriations for the repair of tho
buildings and for the maintenance of the
academy. As a side issue Mr.. Bancroft re-
formed the naval observatory at Washing
ton, secured large appropriations for its inn
provement, and established a system of pro-
motion merit in place of age. He gave
the order to the commander of the American
squadron in the Pacific to seize California in
event of war with Mexico, and never neg
lected an opportunity of impressing this or
der sending it by every poss BILE channel. It
carried into effect before he left the
Cabinet.
During his term as Secretary of the Navy
he also acted Secretary of War for a
month and gave the order for the occupa-
ton of Texas by the army of the United
states. He did not, however, remain the
entire term in the Cabinet, but in 1916 was
appointed Minister to Great Britain, remain
ing until 1919. In May, 1867 he was appointed
Minister to Russia, but in 1868 trans
fcrred to the North German confederation,
and in 1871 accredited to the German
Empire. He was recalled at his own request
in 1874.
While Minister at Berlin he proposed the
reference to the King of Prussia of the dis
pute between the United States and Great
Britain concerning the northwestern bound
arv of the United States He wrote the
plies to the argument of Great Britain and
won the ease. Great Britain had persist
entity denied the right of emigrants to the
United States from Great Britain or Ireland
to throw off allegiance to the mother coun-
try and become citizens of the United states.
MIR. Bancroft negotiated a treaty with Prussia
containing formal recognition of the right
of repatriation at the will of the emgrant,
and secured similar treaties with the
eral German States. England watched these
negotiations, and on their conclusion she
also abandoned her claims to perpetual al
legance.
On his return to America in 1919 Mr.. BAN
croft resumed work on his history and pub
Iished the fourth volume in 1852. In the
ceeding fifteen years of his absence from Of
fetal life he published five more volumes of
the history, and in 1874 printed the tenth vol
ume In 1875 he revised the work and printed
it in six volumes in 1876. Two more volumes
were printed under the title "History of the
Formation of the Constitution of the United
States in 1882 He again revised the whole
work and printed the matter of the twelve
volumes he had published in 1884 and 1882 in
six volumes USs5).
He wrote much on many subjects, printing
an article in the Magazine of American
History as late as June, 1886. In May 1882
{nearly nine years ago., he wrote to a friend:
II was trained to look upon life here as a
season for labor. Being more than four
score wears old know that the time for nv
near the shore of eternity ! await without
impotence and without dread the beckon-
ing of the hand which will summon me to
rest"
any mention of his family any other than
what might be called the public facts of his
life. He was for several years ON the edge of
the grave. as it seemed, and several times
reported dying.
Merely a Matter of Justice.
JOHNsTowN. Pa, Jan. 1S.-Repre-
sentative McNelis, of this city. will,
on Tuesday introduce a bill in the