Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1894-07-12
FARMER STATESMEN.

"nere once They Cut q Figure Iawver>
ana Soldiers Now Hold the Call
Farmers, IN the early days of the re-
Puoiic' were as prominent in the walks
VI s.atecra1t and in the honors of Office
hoiding as lawyers are to-day Eight
OF the original siQners of the Declare
tlon OF Independence described them
selves as farmers or planters. Among
. these was Benjamin Harrison, of Vir-
ginla; Lewis Morris, of New York;
francls Lee, OF Virginia, and William
Floyd, of New York.
The American statesmen of that dav
made few claims to social prominence
= Roger Sherman described himself as p
shoemaker. William Whipple. of New
hampshire, as a sailor: BENJAMIN
Franklin, of Pennsylvania. as a print
d er, and George Taylor, of the same
state, as foundryman.
Nearly all of the early presidents
were farmers, George Washington
having been educated as land sur
veyor and having inherited large
tract OF land in Virginia Madison,
Jefferson and Monroe had stronplv-de-
veloped rural tastes, and it was not. in
tact, until the large cities of the coun-
Try and more especially the large
cities In the orthern states, absorbed
so large share of political influence
that the lawyers became as prominent
as they now are
In the present congress lawyers pre-
Ponderate, there being fifty-eight law
yers to one farmer in the senate, and
two hundred and twenty-niRe lawyers
to thirty-four farmers in the house of
representatives. President Cleveland
was admitted to the bar
IN Buffalo in 1859. Vice-Presi-
dent Adlai Stevenson was adj
mitted to the bar in Metamora. ILL.,. in
1853. Secretary of State Gresham was
admitted to the bar in Corydon, Ind,
in 1858. Secretary of the Treasury
Carlisle was admitted to the bar in
Covington, KY, in 1853. Postmaster
General Bissell was admitted to the
bar in Buffalo in 1853. Secretary of
the Navy Herbert was admitted to the
bar in Montgomery, the Alabama CAPT
tai. shortly before the war. Hoke
Smith, secretary of the interior was
admitted to the bar at Atlanta, Ca, in
1872
The only two members of the cabinet
who are not lawyers are Secretary of
War Lamont and Commissioner of
Agriculture Morton. But Mr.. Lamont.
if not qualified by parct,T,ent to
practice law in the courts of this state,
is much better skilled in many of the
intricacies of Jurisprudence than
great number of lawyers are. and his
advice and counsel have been repeated
ly sought both by large corporate in
terests and by legislators.
1t is somewhat peculiar fact that
presidential candidates have. with
scarcely an exception, been chosen by
both politi cal parties from the ranks of
lawyers and soldiers.
The republicans had soldier candi-
dates in 1856, 1868 and in 1872: they had
lawyer candidates in 1860. 1864. 1876
1850, 1883 and 1892. Their one excep-
ton was 1884, when Mr.. Blaine. who
was neither lawyer nor a soldier,
was nominated, but running on the
same ticket with him was Gen. Logan.
The democrats had soldier-lawyer
candidates for president in 1856. 1860,
1868, 1876. 1880, 1883 and 1892: they had
soldier candidates in 1864 and 1880
Their one exception was 1872, when
Horace Greeley was the democratic
nominee.
Though farmers constitute the largest
class of American voting citizens they
are usually represented in congress or
the legislature by lawyers. and few
practical benefits have been derived by
ia rming communities represented in
congress or elsewhere by actual agri-
culturists. The present tendency is
for lawyers to become more prominent
in legislation than before. and for
farmers to become less son. Y. Sun.