Martinsburg independent. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1875-1900, 1894-11-10
OUR PRESIDENTS.
FIft en- OF the Twsnty-three LiberalIy-Ed-
ucated Men.

or the twenty three Presidents Of
the United States, fifteen or about
Lwo-thirds, were college bred men.
This includes Grant, who was a
West Pointer.
Those who never went to COL
lege we're Washington, jackson,
Van Buren,, Taylor, Fillmore. Lincoln
johnson, and Cleveland.
Sir Richard Steele once said Of
Lady Elizabeth FASTING that "to
love her was liberal education"
One would probably not be far
wrong in saying the same thing
about Washington's mother, Mary
Washington. Washington learned
better things from her than he could
have lesrned from Harvard or Yale.
His successor of the White House,
John Adams, was Harvard man,
and he graduated in 1855. He had
been sent there with some intention
of making him minister, but, luck
ly for his country, he chose law and
politics.
Jefferson was graduate in 1862
of William and Mary, college in
this day a fourishing institution
of learning. Jefferson's father had
declared on his deathbed that his
son, then boy, must receive a
college education. Jefferson never
forgot his fathers sollcitude on this
point, saying in after life that if he
had to choose between the estate
his father left him and the educa-
ton, he would have taken the
latter without moments hesitation.
Jefferson, it may be added, did
more for the cause of education than
any 9th American OF his time. 1t
has been said thst he originated the
modern university idea. The cpl
taph on his tombstone, which he
himself, wrote, recites that he was
the authof of the Declaration of In
dependence aud "father of the Uni
versity of Virginia"
Madison was graduated from
Princeton in 1872, where he also
spent an additional, or post grad
uate year studying Hebrew.
Monroe, like Jefferson, went to
William and Mary, but left before
graduating to join the Revolutionary
Army.
John Quincy Adams was a Har-
ward man. OF his own accord he
left London, where he occupied the
congenial position of secretary to
his father, in order to come to his
native country to be educated,
"deeming that an American educa-
tion was the best fitting for an
American career" He was gradual
ed in 1888.
Jackson was taught only the three
RS and his attachments in even that
limited field were said to be scanty.
He never learned to write the En-
glish language correctly. His dis
cipal and successor, Martin Van Bu-
rem was to- early immersed in law
and politics to spare the time re.
quired for college education.
William Henry Harrison was a
graduate Of Hampton Sidney Col.
lege, in Virginia. He began the
study OF medicine, but left it for the
army.
Tyler was the third President to
attend William and Mary, where he
was graduated in 1907.
Polk entered the University of
North CarolinA as sophomore, and
was graduated in 1918.
Taylor entered the army when he
was "a, with only rudimentary ed
ucation gained.
Fillmore received practically no
schooling in his boyhood. His
fathers library contained but two
books-Until he was 10 years old it
is said that he had never "Shake-
speare" "Robinson Crusoe," his
tory of the United States or even
map of this country. Yet he man
aged to acquire knowledge of law,
and the fact that Sir Thomas Browne
came to be one of his favorate au-
thors shows how widely he must
have extended his reading in after
life.
Franklin Pierce was graduated
from BoWdoln In 1924, third in the
famous class which included Long.
fellow and Nathaniel Hawthorne
among its members.
Buchanan was graduated from
Dickinson College, in Pennsylvania,
in 1909.
Lincoln, as everybody knows, was
practically self taught. He once
said that he had been brought up in
30 rude country that "if stray
gler supposed to understand Latin
happened to sojourn in the neighbour
hood he was looked upon as a wiz
ard"
Andrew johnson was in some re-
spects the most remarkable instance
of a self-made man to be found in
the list of the Presidents. He did
not know how to write until he was
married. Then his wife taught him.
Not until he had been in Congress
did he learn to write fuently.
Grant was graduated from West