The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1897-02-25
PERSONAL

Good fortune has come to a son of a veteran.
The President mas appointed Lieut.. John NJ.
Carson, jr.. of the 5th U. 8. Cav, Assistant
Quartermaster. with the rank of Captain. He
is the son of Captain and Brevet Maj. John NJ.
Carson, formerly of the 9th Pa, and for many
years the representative in Washington of the
Philadelphia Ledger, and one of the ablest and
most reliable correspondents at the National
Capital. Lieut.. Carson graduated from West
Point, high in his class, in 1885. He was
assigned to the 5th U. s. Cav, and has for some
time been Adjutant of the regiment. He is
very popular in the Army, and is everywhere
esteemed as man Of high ability tact and
fidelity to duty.
son of veteran who won high distinction
has terminated his brilliant career by his own
hand. Capt. Philo N. McGiffin committed
suicide by shooting, at the Post Graduate Hos
pital at New York, Feb. II. lie was the son of
Col. Norton McGiffin, who served as Captain
| in the Mexican war and as Colonel of the s9th
Pa during the war of the rebellion. Capt.
McGiffin graduated from Annapolis in 1882,
near the head of his class, aud served two
| years in the Navy, but was discharged on &C.
shipmen. Before he entered the Naval Acad-
envy he distinguished himself so calamity during
| the riots ut Pttsburg as TO receive gold medal
| and vote of thanks from the Pittsburg City
| Council. After leaving the Navy the war
| between France and China broke out. He
| entered the Chinese SERVICE and captured
| the only French gunboat the Chinese took.
| He grew into high favor with Ii Hung Chang,
| and held number Of important positions in
| the Chinese service. He was Superintendent
| of Education of the Chinese naval officers,
made surveys Of the coast and was given the
Order of the Double Dragon and peacock
feather. He was sent to England to superin-
tend the construction of the Chinese war ves-
sells, and when the war with Japan broke out
| he was put 10 command of the great battleship
| Chen Yuen. He fired the first shot in the bat
tie off the mouth of the Yalu River. and made
a great reputation for seamanship and gallantry.
| The Chen Yuen inflicted more loss upon the
| Japanese and came out of the battle in better
| shape than any of the other Chinese vessels.
| He was repeatedly and terribly wounded,
and the awful shock of the terrible conflict
undoubtedly wrecked him mentally. He re-.
| turned nome ditcE tue war, anu was received
with great distinction by naval officers every
| where About the middle of January he de-
veloped such strong symptoms of insanity that
he was sent to the hospital, but il was hoped
that the removal of splinter of bone which
pressed upon his brain would restore him. By
| some means he got possession of a revolver
and, during the absence of his nurses, he fired
the fatal shot. He was very cool and collected
about it, and penciled some notes to his friends
| lust before he fired. One was a memorandum
to see that the bed was not set on fire by his
| shot.
Secretary Carlisle gets into job at once
Bonner 6 La Toilette of Chicago, have re.
tanned him as their leading counsel in case
that they have pending before the Land Office
for 16O acres Of scrip land" on the Chicago
lake front. The rule that employees of the
| Government shall not be permitted to appear
in claims for two years after they leave its serv
ice does not seem to apply to him, for he will
| enter upon the case March s.
Capt William J. Clark. the last survivor oil
the John Brown raiders in Kansas. died in
| Hobart, Delaware County. last week. He was
born in 1910, aud when Is years old he went
to Kansas where he served with John Brown
In 1862 Capt. Clark went out with the Hath
NY, was promoted to Lieutenant, and for
! time had command OF Co. Of tbA regiment.