The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-03-05
JAMES A. GARY.

| We're distinguished.
JAMES A. GARY.
James A. Gary is the new postmaster
| general. He wears a heavy beard and
| moustache, and has ell the outward and
| visible signs of a man of substance. He
is a man with whom politics has been
| more q recreation than profession.
| He is first business man, having made
| his millions in manufacturing cotton
| goods but commercial matters have
! never been quite SO pressing that he
| could not find time to take a hand in
| public affairs when questions of real
| interest have arisen.
| Ever since the Republican party was
| formed he has been working and hoping
for party victory in Maryland. He
| had accepted nominations for congress
| and governor when there was no pros
| pect of success but after each defeat
the Republicans rallied, Mr.. Gary con-
| trputed literally and the fight went on.
| Now that success has finally come to
Maryland Republicans Mr.. Gary re-
ceives as his reward his first office.
For many years Mr.. Gary has held
the position of "one of Marylands fore
most citizens" In every list of repre-
sentative men of Baltimore his name
is among the first, whether in COM
merce, politics or public reform.
But with all this conservatism there
is no business man in Baltimore more
up-to-date than the millionaire mer-
chant politician. He works from a.
m. to D. m. every day on business.
He is director in half dozen corpor-
ations and is as active as any young
man in Baltimore. AS president of the
Merchants and Manufacturers asso-
citation he represents the commercial
industries of the city.
Mr.. Gary was born in Connecticut in
1888, but was taken to Baltimore by
his parents when five years old The
elder Gary founded the business that
the son now carries on. Mr. Gary has
one of the largest private residences in
the city Near Coatesvlle he has a fine
country place His family consists of
his wife, one son and seven daughters,
who will take a leading place in official
society of the capital. They are beau
tiful women, of the queenly Baltimore
type.
Mr. Gary entered politics in 1855
when he was nominated for state sena-
tor, but was not elected He was an
Abolitionist and strongly supported
the Union during the war. He first
, went as delegate to a national con-
Vention in 1872, and he has attended
every one since then. He has been
Maryland's member of the Republican
national committee for eight years.
CORNELIUS N. BLISS.
5 Cornelius n. Bliss, the secretary OF
/ the interior, was born in 1888, at Fail
River, Mass. He traces his ancestry
t in this country to the year 1885. He is
2 head of the wholesale dry goods firm
of Bliss, Fabyan & Co. In politics he
has long been within the city as promi-
nent as in business. Until now he has
treated politics as strictly an avocatior
to which he could make no sacrifices
which might interfere with his regular
business. 1t was strictly upon the
ground of his unWillingness to neglect
his business that he based his refusal
for the second time some six weeks
ago to accept the portfolio then Of
fered him. He once for a similar rea
son, declined a nomination for the
governorship when the nomination
would be equivalent to election. He
was one of the earliest and most un-
compromising of the promenent anti.
Platt Republicans, and down to a re.
! cent period maintained the strife
| against Platt Then, however, there
was a noticeable remission of hostility
and so far as any explanation could
ever he drawn from Mr.. Bliss it was
that the necessity of harmony in the
party required a non-insistence upor
factional differences. He has served
his party we'll in purely organization
offices, having often been a delegate tC
city, county and state conventions. II
1884 he was chairman of the commit,
tee of 100 business men appointed at &
public meeting in Cooper Union to at
tend the national convention in Chi
cago for the purpose of urging the
nomination of President Arthur. II
1889 he took an impartant part in the
Pan-AmeriCan conference of that year
Mr.. Bliss holds in the business worlC
many positions of honor and trust. HI
has been chairman of the executive
committee and is vice president of the
| Chamber of Commerce; he is vice pres
ident of the Fourth National bank
| director in the Home and Equitable In
surance companies and the Centra
Trust company governor and treasure
s of the New York hospital and chair
e man of the board of trustees of tn
y Broadway tabernacle. He was treas
urer of the Republican national com