The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1893-02-03
THE BENNINGTON BANNER, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY s. 1898.

4
The President epitomized the dead
statesman's life in his Proclamation or
| dering flags at half-mast. The Demo-
cratic mayor of New York, so the Press
of that city says, had already placed the
flag over city hall in that position, A
review of his life is given:
James Gillespie Blaine was born at
West Brownsville, Washington county,
Pennsylvanis, Jan. 81, $780, He received
| preparatory education at home and at
school in Lancaster, o., and graduated
at Washington and Jefferson College, in
his native county, in 1S47. AS student
he had a marked taste for historical
study, and exceled his fellow-students
in literature and art
In 1850 he removed to Kentucky, and
was appointed teacher OF mathematics
in Western Military Institute, Blue Lick
Springs, Two years later he resigned to
accept an appointment as instructor in
the Pennsylvania Institution for the
Blind, Philadelphia, and during the few
months he held this Office he began
studying law and contributing articles to
the Philadelphia Inquirer
In 1858 Mr.. Blaine moved to Augusta,
Me-, became editor of the Kennebec Jour
nal in that city, and subsequently pur-
chased a half interest in the paper. He
contributed largely to the formation of
the Republican party, and was delegate
! to its first national convention in 1856.
BY this time he had achieved wide re-
pute as a political writer and platform
speaker. The facility with which he
massed facts, figures and historical illus
tratiOns, the fluency of his speech, and
magnetism of his personal presence,
combined to make him at that early age
leader among men. In 1858 he was
elected member of the Maine legisla-
ture, and served by continuous annual
reflections till 1858, and was speaker
during the two last terms.
| In 1862, September, he was elected
member of Congress from the thinl
Maine district as a Republican, and was
neglected for six successive terms, thus
| serving continuously for fourteen years.
After the election of Speaker COlfax as
| Vice-president in 1864, Mr.. Blaine was
chosen to succeed him in the House, and
was its speaker from 1859 till 1875, when
the Democratic majority elected Michael
G. Kerr speaker. In 1876, July, Mr..
Blaine was appointed by the Governor
of Maine member of the United States
Senate to ill the vacancy caused by the
appointment of Senator Lot Morrill, as
Secretary of the United States Treasury;
and at the ensuing session of the Legis-
lature was elected for the full senatorial
| term, expiring 1888, March 4. 45
| A month after the election of General
James A. Garfield to the Presidency, he
urged Mr. Blaine with all the warmth of
] long personal and political friendship to
enter his cabinet as Secretary of State.
! The acceptance of this office caused his
resignation as United States Senator,
and closed an uninterrupted service in
! Congress of eighteen years. During this
period he was an interchangeable worker,
both in the committee room and ON the
floor of the House and Senate. ''
Mr.. Blaine's name was presented for
the Presidential nomination for the first
time at the National convention in 1876,
and on the seventh ballot he received 35l
| votes, only % less than a majority. The
nomination went to Hayes. In the Re-
publican National convention 1880, when.
Gen. Grants name was presented for a
t1ird term, Mr.. Blaine received 2S4 votes.
to 304 for Grant on the first ballot, Gen.
James A. Garfield ultimately receiving
the nomination. His tenure of the Office
of Secretary of State was limited t. less
than year by the assassination of the
President, and he was succeeded by
Frederick 7. Frelinghuysen, WHO served
to the close of President Arthur'S adj,
ADMINISTRATION. While Secretary of State,
and with the approval of President Gar
field, he issued Invitations, to Pan
American 90 nj erenoe-te be held in Wash
ington; but these invitations were re-
called by Secretary Frelinghuysen by au-
thority of President Arthur. After the
death of President Garfield Mr. Blaine
was honored with joint invitation by
Congress to deliver u memorial address,
which he did in the hall of the Repre-
sentatives 1882, Feb. 81. In December
following the resignation of his office
was accepted In the leisure of his re-
tirement from public life. he applied
himself to the compilation OF a historical
work. Twenty Years of Congress-, issu-
ing the LIST vol 1884 and the second 1885.
At the Republican National Conven-
ton 1884, he received 1874 votes on the
first ballot, and on the fourth gained the
Presidential nomination by vote of 54l
cut ola total OF Sl3. Ajbitter canvass
followed. However, the probability of
Mr.. Blalne's success was strong till an
unfortunate expression by one of the
speakers at a reception in New York a
few days before the election, turned
from his support amultitude of Roman
Catholic Irish, who had been counted as
fayoring him. By margin so narrow
that a few hundred votes decided the re-
suit, Cleveland, who. had been chOsen
Governor of New York by majority of
over 10000, received the electoral vote
of that State and became PRESIDENT
Subsequently Mr.. Blaine was active in
the Maine State elections, and in 1897
started ON a lengthy European trip.
During his absence his friends continued
to consider as an available candidate for
the Presidential convention 1888, till
February of that year, when the Chair,
man of the Republican National Com
Dittee published a letter from Mr.. Blaine
in which he declared himself no longer a
candidate for the nomination. On the
election of Benjamin Harrison Mr.. Blaine
was again rendered and accepted the of
fec OF Secretary of State. One of his
earliest acts was to rel ssue his invita-
tons to the Mexican and the South, and
Central American governments for a
joint conference to be held in Washing
ton.
Mr.. Blaine's development of the reci-
procity principle is too well known to
call for mention; nor need we more than
allude to the last public act Of his life
his sudden resignation of the Secretary
ship of State.
There are various estimates of the
value of Mr.. Blaine's estate. Careless
guessers have believed him to have been
worth from $2,000,000 to 81 100000. A
n q