Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-01-18
THE DEAD LIBRARIAN
Funeral Services to Be Held Here
Next Saturday.
PALLBEARERS NOT YET SELECTED
George Alfred Townsend's Recol-
Iections of the Deceased.
AN TERESTIN TALK

| The funeral of Mr. John Russell Young,
/ the librarian Of Congress, who died yester-
| day morning, will take place Saturday at
| ii am. from ST. Johns Episcopal Church.
| 10Th and H streets northwest. DR.. Alex
ander Mackay-Smith will conduct the serv-
| ices.
1t has not yet been determined where the
| remains shall rest. Mrs. Young is pros
trated with grief, and as it Is desired that
| her wishes in all matters pertaining to the
funeral shall be carried out, the arrange
ments have not been completed If 1t is de-
cided that the interment shall take place in
Philadelphia, which was really Mr.. Young S
home city, the remains will be placed in Il
receiving vault in this city for a time.
Should 1t be the decision to have the burial
in Washington the remains will rest in
either Rock Creek or Oak Hill cemetery.
The pal1bearers will not be selected today.
Many of the gentlemen who are expected to
act as such reside in Philadelphia and will
have to be consulted by wire. Some of the
late librarians intimate friends in this city
will also be asked to serve.
Many letters and kilograms of coincidence
have been received by the family and many
beautiful flowers, including collection
from the White House conservatory, sent
by Mrs. Mckinley, have also been received.
The deepest sympathy is expressed on all
sides.
Gossip as to a Successor.
President Mckinley has not begun con-
sideration of the question of successor to
John Russell Young as librarian of Con-
gress. Among the numerous callers today
| no mention was made Of prospective can
didates. Senator Plat, who is understood
to favor the appointment of Thomas G.
Alvord, was at the White House during the
day, but his mission was of an altogether
different kind. The senator and members
of the New York delegation in Congress
will probably unite upon Mr.. Alvord.
MIR. Porter Not Candidate.
The mention of the name of John Addi-
| son Porter, the Presidents secretary, was
due to the belief of some of his influential
| friends that he possesses all the qualifica-
| tons for so responsible a position. Mr.
Porter will not, however, allow his name
| used, and If he is suggested to the Presi-
dent Will ask that his name shall not be
| considered. 1t is known that Mr. Porter's
ambitions are political. He has loyal
friends in Connecticut who want to see him
governor and will continue to fight with
| that purpose in view An appointment as
librarian would mean the shelving of po
| litical hopes and the retirement of Mr.
| Porter to a literary field.
Another White House official was sug-
gested today. He is Assistant Secretary
| Cortelyou.
George Alfred TOwnsend's Tribute.
| Mr.. George Alfred Townsend was con-
| temporary with John Russell Young for
| almost forty years. and gave the following
narrative of the deceased from his recolIec-
| lions. Said Mr.. Townsend:
Il came out of the Philadelphia High
! School in February, 1860. and went on the
Philadelphia Inquirer at once. / heard
| about John Young almost Immediately and
was soon introduced to him on Chestnut
street by some intermediate reporter. He
| altered very little in two-score years: a
| flcrid, stoutiy-set, observing, congenial man.
| whose face was broad and square and fully
! expressed and beardless but his brown
| reddish tnged hair was profuse.
He took and carried away impressions
| visibly, was of a nervous yet cool temper
| ament, listened more than talked, and had
a positive purpose and broad policy with
| out strong views.
He was a reporter and absorber first of
| all. His command of ideas was easy but
! subordinated to his employment He sell
| dom differed with his patron or EMPLOYER
| yet read that employer like an intelligent
pupil, who might some day be his historian
He had gone upon the Press newspaper
| soon after John w. Forney started it in
| 1891, and as the proofreaders assistant or
copy holder. 1t is coincidence that
saw that prCofreader, Mr.. Ward, who lives
| in Washington, the day John Young died
! and he told me that he had official expecta-
| tons from John Young, though 1 suspect
that Mr. Ward has passed three-score and
| ten.
Youthful COmpaniOns.
''Forney's Press was an important and al
most eVentfu publication. the signal of the
breaking up of the democratic party
through the selection of Mr.. Buchanan for
President, whose local expIoiter and ad-
mirer Forney had been at Lancaster and
had carried his presidential banner for
years I'LL the contamination separated the
cold magistrate and the warm Warwick
Buchanan was mean prince and his re-
pudiation of Forney's engagements to elect
him, and finally of Forney also, awakened
| that fine leader writer to real indepen-
dence, of which the Press was the oriiamme.
He took up Stephen A. Douglas and natur-
ally swerved to Mr.. Lincoln by 1861
John Young was sent to the Baltimore
convention, which was the sequel of the
Charleston convention, and his mail letters
! to the Press from that vivid scene were
| his beginning of career. He represented
| all Forneys prepoSsessions with an indie
| pendence Of sketching which delighted that
indulgent but somewhat timorous employer
Il was transferred to the Press during
the Douglas-Lincoln campaign, and there
remained till 1862, and became intimate
with Young, who had advanced to be as
sistant editorial writer and special reporter
He was exceedingly ambitious, but his WIN
ming personal intercourse often concealed
his thoughts. The maturity of his ambi-
ton was almost visionary, but he advanced
farther on visionary lines than anybody l
| have known among newspaper writer's.
An AnecdOtc of Young.
| I'm the first summer of the war. when
each of the half dozen men on Fornev's
| staff was doing what he could in the
papers behalf, 1 took a Saturday holiday
| walk with Young along the Wissahckon
| creek above the wei-known Red bridge
| and We went off in a meadow to bathe
While there John showed me an appreciat-
| ing letter from Forney in Washington For
ney was then clerk of the House of Repre-
| sentatives. / said to John:
| why don't you write back to Forney
! and ask him to call you to Washington, to
| be his accessory and sketch the public men i?
| You will not be able to pass above Mr.
| Luther Ringwalt the official assistant edi-
! tor, who, naturally, will be sensitive about
! such appreciation as that. But you can
| have co-field with Forney himself in
| Washington, who will recognize your work
| and applaud it
John Young, who fully realized the blue
! eyed boy Of ambition listened with the
| paleness of a new prepossession.
| II will do that very thing today he
said.
! In few days Forney called him to
Wy 1T All, l.: