Democratic Northwest and Henry County news. [volume] (Napoleon, O. [Ohio]) 1894-1905, 1894-10-18

FIRST train. He did 50. and was 80 cnarmeo
with the possibilities Of railroGding that ne
minutely inspected the constructlon ano
equipment Of the road. Returning home be
AZ once put aside all other business and
made an extended trip through Central New
York. vhere the various roads between Al
bany and Buffalo were under construction
He became q railroad enthusiast. and, see
ing q new and profitable career before him.
be thus early began TO advocate the con-
Bolidaton Of all the short roads under one
company. his ideas being crystallised lat0
IN the formation Of the New York Central
At this time the people OF Troy. 10 secure
direct communication with the central part
Of the State, without being tributary "a
Albany, Aad bn'lt a railroad 10 Schenectady,
Known as the Troy and Schenectady Rail-
road. The money TO build the railroad
had been raised on bonds issued by the city
OF Troy and belonged 10 the people In fee
simple. Thurlow Weed and his friends saw
In this road q dangerous rival to the Al
oany and Schenectady, SO they determined
to secure control Of 1t. Russell Sage was
enlisted In their behalf. and, being q mem
Der OF the Board of Aldermen, he advised
the sale OF the road. 1t was thereupon
sold on March /, 1853, to Edwin ID. Nor
gan, atterward Governor Of New York State.
and others for $3.50, 900. Sage was the 9th
ers mentioned in the contract, and 1t Ia
said he made s250.00O by the deal. as It
was Immediately resold to the New York
Central corporation for four times the price
paid for It to the city OF Troy.
In 1S4S, Just previous to the events spoken
OF, Russell Sage was delegate from Troy
70 the National Whig Convention at Phila-
delphia. He went there. backed by the
entire New York State delegation, pledged to
Henry Clay. Upon their arrival in Phila-
phia a brother Of General Zachary Tay-
lor and Josiah Randall, father OF the late
Hon. Samuel J. Randall of Philadelphia, got
Sage and some Of the other leaders In q
room at hotel. where lengthy conference
took place.
The next morning in convention some Of
Clay's delegates changed their votes to
Daniel Webster, and others to General VIM
field Scott. This was the signal for the
New York delegation TO bolt Sage arose
and voted for General Zachary Taylor, and
the whole New York delegation at once de-
him the nomination. Taylor was subse-
quently elected over Martin Van Buren, the
Independent, and General Lewis Cass. the
regular Democratic candidates.
Shortly after the Convention, while going
up the North River one night from New
York to Troy, an occurrence happened aboard
the steamboat North America that further
endeared Sage 10 General Taylor. There
was a large crowd aboard. among whom
was General John A. Wool and a certain
captious Alderman from Troy. General
Wool had just returned from the Mexican
War and this Alderman thought to gain his
friendship by certain deeds Of what he mis-
took to be courtesy. After dinner he arose
and made most fiowery speech introducing
General Wool as a son Of Troy. and further
as the hero OF Buena Vista. calling for
cheers, General Wool meanwhile bowing
and smiling his Acknowledgements. Before
any one could utter a cheer. however, Rus
sell Sage leaped to his feet and shouted:
II am the last man TO detract one iota OF
credit from the record of brave man like
General Wool, but believe in placing credit
where 1t properly belongs, even IL a son OF
Troy is made to suffer thereby!' Then
while his auditors listened in open mouthed
wonder, he continued: 'I now propose three
cheers for General Zachary Taylor, our candi-
date for President the real hero of Buena
Vista" 1t is needless perhaps to say that
the yell that went up then and there for old
Rough and Ready did not die out until he
was seated in The Presidents chair.
Sage's friendship for General Taylor was
afterward turned 10 good account by WILL
lam H. Seward, whom General Taylor dis
liked intensely. Alexander H. Stephens
and Robert Toombs had filled the President s
ears so full Of tales about Stewards dis
loyalty to him, at the same time calling
Seward a rank AbolItionist, that they wese
controlling all the federal appointments in
New York State, they being members Of
Congress from the South, while Stewards
nominations, he being Senator from New
York. went into the waste paper basket,
At the solicitation o. Thurlow Weed, Rus
sell Sage visited President Taylor and de-
nounced Stephens and Toombs as falsifiers.
thu. bringing about a reconciliation be-
tween him and Seward. The President then
confirmed all of Stewards nominations.
In 1850 Russell Sage was nominated by
the Wings Of Troy for member Of Congress.
Owing, however, to the detection of the
Silver Grays he was beaten by David Sey-
mour, Democrat. In 1859. however, Sage
was elected by a small majority, beating
Seymour, but IN 1854 he was reelected by
1000 majority, the largest ever given at
that time in the district.
While In Congress Sage passed most
active life. He kept his business interests
in Troy and New York going at full blast,
and 1t was while on one Of his flying trips
home from Washington that he first met Jay
Gould, the meeting taking place in the
Troy Union depot, while Gould was In Troy
turning over the control Of the Troy and
Rutland Railroad to the Delaware and
Hudson Canal Company.
While Sage was In Congress he served
with many eminent men, namely: Reuben
e. Fenton, William A. Wheeler, Judge
Theoderic Romeyn Westbrook, Francis e.
Spinner, Edwin D. Morgan, A. P. Granville.
Thomas A. Hendricks, Nathaniel P. Banks
and others. He served on the Ways and
Means Committee with Thomas A. Hen
bricks and was also with him on the In
valids Pension Committee Of the Mexican
War. While in Congress he was an Abo-
litionist Of the most outspoken kind. II
was mainly due to his efforts that attention
was called to the decay into which the
historic home Of Washington had fallen and
the organization of the Ladies' Mount Ver-
non Association, an the purchase and pre-
servation Of Washington's home followed.
While In Congress Sage reckoned among
his friends David Wilmot Of Wilmot Pro-
viso fame: Galusha A. Grow. Thaddeus Ste
vens. David Atchison, the Border Rufian
Governor Of Kansas; Stephen A. Douglas.
James Buchanan and many others famous
then. When Just rising to the zenith Of
fame as statesman Sage deserted the legis-
lative halls for Wall street.
In 1857 he refused denomination on ac-
count Of his business interests. 1t was the
year OF the great panic, and only his in
dividual attention to the minutest details
OF business saved him, where his neighbors
were ruined. In 1850 while still resi-
dent OF Troy he was delegate to the Re-
publican convention which nominated Lin
coin.
In 1868 Sage disposed Of his grocery
business and removed to New York. where
he Immediately became a figure on Wall
street. His first venture Of any moment
was the reorganization of the old Lacrosse
Railroad into the Chicago. Milwaukee and
st. Paul, Of which he became president In
| 1878. His ventures since then have been
| mostly IN connection with the Goulds. and
| 1t is said that he furnished the ready cash
with which Jay Gould wrested the control
of Western Union from William H. Wander.
| bilt.
The only time Sage has ever been badly
pinched was when Grant and Ward failed in
| 1884. He Is credited on that memorable day