Huntsville gazette., 1893-02-04
Maine Immediately appointed Mr. Blaine to fill

| the first national convention at which his name
| was mentioned in connection with the presi =.
! dency, MIR. Blaine experienced q sunstroks
Wnlcn caused alarm at Cincinnati, and, indeed
| for time seemed serious matter.
| Inc convention came together on Wednes-
| DAY, June IA, 1879. On the second day the plat
form was adopted and the nominating speeches
made. Col. Robert G.. Ingersoll presented the
name of Mr.. Blaine and gave to him the title of
| Plumed Knight. which clung to him thereaft
er Col. Ingersol said: Like an armed war
rior, like plumed knight, James G.. Blaiaa
marched down the halls Of the American con-
g ess and threw his shining lances full and faii
against the brazen forehead of every defamel
| OF his country and maligner of it's honor
| When Gov Hayes was nominated on the sew.
enth ballot, the friends and supporters of Mr..
Blaine accepted their defeat with good grace.
| MIR. Blaine entered the next convention held
| at Chicago, June 2, 1880, with almost exactly
| the same number OF supporters that had
| striven for him In the preceding contest, but
| the persistency Of those who were determined
to nominate Grant for third term made a
compromise candidate again necessary, and
| the nomination fell to James A. Garfield, by
whom he was chosen as secretary of state.
| Scarcely four months passed before the presi-
| dent was shot down. During the three months
| that followed Mr.. Blaine was in constant at
| tendance upon his bedside and when he died
the short time during which he continued in
|
| designs-the friendly aid and countenaoce Of
him under whom they had been conceived DO :
| ing lacking.
| When congress met after President Garfield s
| death it cast about for fit man to deliver a
eulogv Of Gen. Garfield, and its choice natural
| ly fell to Mr. Blaine. 1t has been called one of
| the noblest performances of his life, and cer
tainly he never spoke to 80 lofty and inspirip e
| a theme.
| The story of the convention of 1884, which
nominated Mr.. Blaine on the first ballot is
| fresh in all minds. The nominating speech Of
Judge West, of Ohio, was one of the most
| forceful ever delivered in presenting the name
OF any man to a convention; and the history Of
his defeat by Grover Cleveland in still green
memory
From 1884 to 1888, during the time Of Pres-
| dent Cleveland's administration. Mr.. Blaine
devoted himself entirely to his family. He
| spent a year in an extended tour abroad, not
returning to America until after the nomina-
| ton Of Mr.. Harrison.
When Mr.. Biaino returned to WASHINGTON In
the fall of 1885, buoyant in mind after declining
the use of his name as the candidate for presi-
dent and ready to assume to premiership of the
cabinet of President Harrison, he had happy
| family about him. Mr.. Blaine took up the
| work Of the state department where he had
| laid it down in answer to the bullet of Guiteau.
In the brief period of less than four years
state troubles cams to him and whitened his
head and enfeebled his frame In that brief
interval his ellest son, the pride of his heart
| and his eldest daughter had died; his youngest
son whom ha h al perAapa spe;le5 by A~-.riF-
| dulgence had dragged his name through the
| divorce court and public prints. Then more
| crushing than ALL the sudden death of his
| ond son, the OF whom the father was
| very proud. In the opinion Of Mr.. Blaine's
| physicians no man, even with the frame
| of giant and ths will of Napoleon,
| could resist disease while living in the
| shallow of such a chain of sorrows as this and
| the efforts of the OF science were con-
stantly handicapped by the hand of Providence.
| Few public men have ever occupied the place
| that James G. Blaine has for many years filed
| in the hearts of the American people. Henry
| Clay is most often compared to him and there
| are many strong points of resemblance. Clay
| and Blaine both possessed in marked degree
| those qualities of attraction, of sympathetic
| intuition which now fttingly described
| as personal magnetism. 1t is said that
| Mr.. Blaine rarely forgot face, or the
| name that belonged to it. He had the
| faculty of making those with whom he
| came in contact believe that he took the
strongest and most direct personal inter :
| est in them. 1t was said of him that he could
| decline request for favor in such a way as
| to make a friend by an act which would have
| made an enemy for most men. His converse
4 tional powers were necessarily, from what has
| been said, of high order. His fund Of informa-
| tion, while not as thorough or accurate as
! be no doubt would have liked. owing to his
| lack of early advantages, was most extensive,
| and there were few subjects on which he could
| not converse entertainingy As man OF
| busn sss he was remarkably successful and
4 his Judgment respecting investments was al
| most infallible. This capacity in this direction
| gave great weight to many Of his ideas and
suggestions respecting the commercial policy
| of the country.
| Mr. Blaines position was unique. By his
| friends and admirers he was esteemed man
| of stern integrity, a statesman of far SEEING
| prophetic vision, orator OF matchless eio-
4 ouence, leader without fear and without re.
4 proach. His enemies, and he had many, both
| political and personal, called him crafty, un'
| scrupulous and corrupt in money matters, y
! scheming politician with elements OF great
| ness an orator who dealt in words and phrases
| only leader who was for himself first and
| always. 1t is probable that he was by no means
| without faults and certain that he had many
1 qualities of greatness; in other words that the
| truth lies somewhere between the lavish en-
| copiums Of his friends and the bitter charac-
| terizaton of his enemies.
| Mr. Blains died a rich man, even as wealth is
| reckoned in these days He was worth close on
| to a million of dollars, If not more than that
| amount 1t is probable that IL some of his
speculative investments could be sold out
| under advantageous circumstances that his
| wealth would include him in any list of mil
| lionaires His holdings Of coal lands are large,
| and with the development of the country must
greatly increase In value if keptintact for sew
| eral years.
| Mr. Blaine, By reason OF his wide popularity
| was associated with a number OF men of wealth
| in various enterprises. and his sagacity and
! business foresight kept him from wasting
| much money on brilliant but illusionary
speculative projects. He was interested with
| Secretary Elkins years ago in silver mine,
| out of which he made considerable money.
| At the time of his death he owned real estate
| In the city of Washington which would prob
| ably sell under the hammer for more than
| quarter of million of dollars
/ His holdings OF West Virginia and Pennsyl-
vania coal lands are considerable. Mr.. Blaine
was one of the directors in the West Virgins
| Central Railroad Co., in which ex- Senator Da-
| Wis. Secretary Elkins, ex- Secretary Bayard and
| others are interested. This road taps
coal and timber lands which Mr.. Blaine bought
years ago very cheaply and which
| have become valuable through the railroad
connections. His wealth includes bank stocks,
but the approximate value can not be stated.
| A gentleman who was intimately acquainted
| with Mr. Blaine said that in his opinion Mr.
q