The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-10-19
THEY GREW OLD TOGETHER
The Fifty-Year Honeymoon of Judge
Thurman and His Wife
Mary.
The Statesman Believed in Her
as in no Other
Person.
it Was Only by Her Consent That He
Allowed His Name on the
Ticket in 1888.

The st. Louis Globe Democrat contained
Thurman, a few days before her death:
The wife of Judge Thurman, the distin-
guished Ohio statesman, lies dying. She
is a woman of so years, but to her husband
she seems no older than she was when he
married her nearly half a century ago.
They have grown old together in q most
affectionate and beautiful way. Their union
has served to vindicate the law Of affinities
and to present a choice example Of domestic
harmony, confidence and devotion. They
have always been Mary and "Allen'' to
each other with answering and simple
fondness. Tit Old Roman, as he is famil-
iarly known in our politics, has not won
his honors by forgetting for a moment the
partner with whom he began the battle of
life. 1t is said that no mar can live up to
his love-making, but this case must be
rated as a sweet and wholesome exception.
The best of all that Allen said to Mary rs
a sutton has been repeated in his conduct as
a husband. He has believed in her as in
nobody else. Her wishes have guided him,
her faith has strengthened him, her ap-
prevail has blessed him. In no contingency
has he gone contrary to her advice. The
word of Mary has outweighed all other in
fluences with him, not in the sense of blind
submission to another's will, but under
constraint of well-justified reliance upon
her wisdom and fidelity; and she has found
her full reward in his candid and tender
appreciation of her services.
There is something inexpressibly gra-
cious and admirable in this view of a great
statesman's life and character. His friends
delight to recall instances of his profound
.ospeet for his wife's opinion, and of his
surprising desire to please her. When The
committee waited upon him in 1883 to ten
der him the nomination for vice-president,
he did not respond with q set speech of &C
ceptance; he said he would ask Mary about
it. Tit remark was like the man; and
it was like the woman to shake her head at
first and say that he was too feeble to
make the race. She had to be persuaded,
and when at last she consented. he merely
observed, "All right, it's just az Mary
Bays.' If she had not yielded he would
have declined the honor, feeling sure
that such a step was in every respect
the best one. He could not have thought
of disappointing her. There has never
been a time, it is safe to say. when the petit
ton of all the rest of the world would have
caused him to disregard her preference.
That has been his method of testifyimg his
esteem for her and filling her heart with
delight. A man of less virtue and ability
might have made it a weakness to concede
80 much to any woman, but it has not APP
Ieared 30 in Judge Thurman. He ha,
never forfeited any of his greatness by
reason of his reverence for his wife. WI
may be sure that he has never stopped tc
consider what others would think of his
LOYALTY to Mary and his unselfsb anxiety
TO promote her welfare and happiness. Hi
own felicity has been increased by the sigh