The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1899-10-11
THE LESSON OF
DEWEY'S LIFE.
A Story worthy of the Study of
Every American.

A Story worthy of the Study of
Every American.
From the New York sun.
Here is a story of Dewey's life up to
the time that be Became the most IA
nous naval hero OF the latter end of
the nineteenth century and took his
place 10 history beside John Paul Jones
and Nelson and Farragut, whose pupil
be was. Il is worthy of the study of
every American boy and girl as we'll as
that Of every American elder, for it is
a lesson in American citizenship.
/ The man over whom the whole coun-
try has gone more or less daft, who is
to-day hailed as the greatest living
fighter and who is receiving such hon
ors as no other living American ever
has received, had nothing in his early
life or environment to make him a
fighter. In sense he came of fight
ing stock, but only in the sense that all
American boys and girls come of fight
ing stock. His great-grandfather was
corporal in the Continental army and
his grandfather was soldier in the
Revolution. Those were the days when
all patriotic American citizens were
fighters. But Dewey's father was not
fighter. Those relatives Of his who
We're living when he was born were
none of them fighters and had none of
them been fighters Dewey himself
chose lighting for his profession when
there was little fighting 10 be done.
When the time came for fighting to be
done, he got right into the thick of it.
He developed that most valuable Of all
qualities, tiek-tO-it-ivenes.n Having
chosen fighting as his profession he
stuck to it, only bemoaning now and
then the fate that he felt was his, that
his biographer would write Entered
Annapolis, 1854; retired, Rear Admiral,
1907
He lacked opportunity and feared
the worst. When opportunity came
he had the requisite ambition and suffi-
cient nerve and courage to grasp it and
to-day he has honor the like of which
the President of the United States can
not command, for he is an idol that
the younger generation worship and
the older generation look up TO. Dew
ey is unlike most Americans who have
become great fighters in this, that he
was the son of well-to-do parents, that
he had before him an opening in the
business world that promised in money
returns a thousand dollars TO the one
dollar that was in sight in the Nary
and the outlook ahead of a life of COM
fort and comparative ease. IL was nei-
ther necessary nor from a worldly
standpoint desirable that he should de
vote his life to his eountry's service,
throwing aside the opportunities that
he had in the business world. He
chose his profession and stuck to it.
To-day, in reputation at least, he ranks
the naval officers of the world.
Dewey was born in Montpelier, VT,
in fine old colonial house across the
way from the Vermont State House.
Dewey's father, DIR. Julius Yemans
Dewey, was the leading physician of
the city. He had been born on a farm,
had spent his early life working on his
sather's farm and then had studied
medicine, putting all the energy that
he possessed into it. Dewey the elder
had wonderful energy and when he
undertook anything he put all of that
energy into the undertaking, which
probably accounts for the fact that
though he started late to be q doctor,
once ne started he became the leading
doctor. Dewey was born the day after
Christmas, 1887. He had two brothers
older than himself and both of them
are still alive, one having attained
large fortune and retired from business.
and the other being president Of life
insurance company which the elder
Dewey founded.
George Dewey, when a boy, was
merely one of four children Of a town
doctor and later of a suecf ssful business
man, for the elder Dewey made up his
mind that there was more money in
the life insurance business than there
was in the medical profession and he
founded the National Life Insurance
Company. This was before George
Dewey had chosen his profession, and
at the time he did choose, the life in
surance business had grown and was
successful. IL was to that business and
into bis father company that he would
naturally gravitate. There was a life
of ease snd riches in il for him. Dew
ey's father was religious man and his
children were brought up with the
strietest respect for the Church. Their
third boy, who is now the Admiral,
was not model of goodness by any
means. There was nothing of the Lord
FauntIercy about him. He had bean
shooters and shot the chickens. he
had putty blowers and blew paper
wads, carefully chewed, at the heads
of his elders. He played hockey and
ran off to steal swims and he did most
of the other things that good, sound
American boys do when they get
streaks Of Satan in them. In his
school life il is not recorded that he
was any better than his fellows. The
Hon. Zebina X. PangbOrn, now most
respected resident of Jersey City, was
one of his teachers and found it most
desirable and necessary to thump him
to maintain the discipline OF the school.
He did it so wen that Dewey remem-
bers it to this day and since he got ven
geanee on the Spaniards, he has him
self told the story. Dewey's mother
died when he was boy and his step
mother had the management of him
up to the time that be made up bis
mind to go TO the Naval Academy al
Annapolis
His schooling, begun in the public
schools at Montpelier, was continued
in the Academy at johnson, Vt, and
then at the Norwich University. He
entered the university in 1851, and it is