The morning times., 1897-02-07

he shall utilize his energies during the
years that remain to him.
In 1889, although he had been defeated
of reelection the year before, he believed
he had chance Of winning next time, and
the event showed that he was right. But
in 1S97 lie cannot well be looking forward
to yet another term as President. Both his
age and certain evolutionary changes in
the nature Of the questions IN which the
people seem most vitally interested are
against this, not To speak OF the fact that
no man las ever yet been thrice elected
Chief Magistrate of the republic.
According TO his private secretary, one
of Mr.. ClevelaDd's chief desires is that lie
may be granted an interval, at least, Sf
longed-for relief from publicity. He pur-
poses spending some time at Princeton, the
New Jersey university town, where he has
recently purchased home, and then 20 to
Gray Gables. He will not take up any 5usi-
ness whatever for some months atleast. But
there is no probability, say his friends that
lie will follow the example of certain other
X-Presidents and Shut himself entirely out
of political life.
He is a lawyer by profession, and can
command large and paying practice; and
he has excellent precedent for stepping
back into such active political life as his
inclinations shall dictate and his strength
shall permit
or the eighteen men who have become
ex-Presidents five-John Adams, Frank
lin Pierce, james Buchanan. Rutherford
r. Hayes ana Chester A. Arthur-became
political recluses before their death.
Mr. Arthur, indeed, lived only short
no
and might have again taken his place in
the world as ii man OF affairs had he not
been 50 soon removed, and no doubthe could
have re-entered the profession OF the law,
as Mr. Cleveland can now, with profit TO
himself and benefit To his contemporaries
But he was so hard hit by his defeat by
Mr. Blaine for the nomination in 1884,
that he seemed To wish only to withdraw
himself as much as possible from public
notice; and the end of lis life came before
the arrival OF the reaction his friends
hoped for.
Although Mr. Hayes, who was a year
older than Mr. Cleveland when he retired
from the Presidency. and had an even
dozen of years of life before him, es.
chewed politics ever afterward, he did
not SO entirely shrink from appearing in
public, as did Mr.. Arthur. In fact, in
certain lines he was publicly active when
ever the opportunity presented itself, be-
ing interested in many educational prob
lens, and especially in prison reform, serv-
ing for some time as the president OF the
National Prison Reform Association, and
as trustee of a big educational fund. But,
although lawyer by profession, and pre-
sumably good one, he never re-entered the
legal lists, preferring to make what in
come he needed by raising chickens for the
market.
Buchanan's life after the Presidency was
that of reciuse in almost every way.
Rightly or wrongly, he was charged with
beinglargely to blame for the grea progress
made by the founders of the Southern Con-
federacy during the last months of his
term, and as his home was in the North
he was stunned almost as Systematically "A S
he stunned others. 1t should be remember
ed, however. that his neishbors of LancaS.
ter, Pa, near which city his estate, which
he called ',Wheatland," was located, pro-
fessed confidence in him Co the last and
turned out enthusiastically in great num-
bers to greet him when he returned from
Washington. MIR. Buchanan lived seven
years after the close of his term, and it was
quite possible that his advanced age-he
was seventy seven when he died-had
something to do with his seclusion.
Franklin Pierce lived eighteen years
after be became an eX-Pre sident, in
1857, dying in 1869, in New Hampshire,
| four years after the actual close of the
civil war. During all that struggle his
| sympathies were with the South, in
| spite of his Northern birth and resi-
| dence, and it is quite possible that he
might have resumed the legal profes
sion and even re-entered public life had
| his views been different 1t was, per-
| haps, because of his variance from his
! neighbors that he travelled much abroad
during his last years at all events, he
kept out of the country good deal of
the time.
| Before Pierce, there were no ex-Presi-
| dents, excepting John Adams, who strove
| in any way to withdraw into seclusion.
| The elder Adams, however, who lived
twenty five years after leaving Washing
| ton, was SO incensed at his defeat in the
House of Representatives by Jefferson
that he would not even remain at the
| National Capital one day after the expira-
ton of bis term to see his successor ill.,
/ duSuI dtSu. All bis iS'eS SotS WIZ SPSho
| in Quincy (set off from Braintree, Mass.
where however, he worked hard at the
| self-imposed task of collating records and
writing uptbe early history OF the Republic,
! though once, indeed, in 1920. when very
old, he acted as a delegate to a state con-
| stitutonal convention.
/ Andrew jackson, the hero OF New Or
| leans. did not seclude himself voluntarily
1 I-RS &t.<