The National tribune., 1900-11-01

John Quincy Adams, the sixth Presi.
dent, son of President Adams. was born
in Braintree, now Quincy, July IL, 1861
From childhood he breathed the atmOS-
phere of patriotism and craftsmanship. In
his eleventh year he went with his father
TO France when he was sent there as Min
lister. He went to Russia as Private Sec
retary to the American Minister, Mr..
Dana, when he was 15 years old. He
graduated at Harvard College in 1877. He
studied law, and opened an office in Bos-
ton. In 1894 Washington appointed him
Minister to The Hague, and later he
served as Minister to Sweden and Prl!s-
sia; was sent from Massachusetts as
Senator from 1903 to 1905 He as
sisted in the negotiations of the
Treaty of Ghent in 1914; was
Secretary of State under Monroe, and was
chosen President of the United States in
1925, serving one term. In 1881 he was
elected Il Representative in Congress, and
continued in that position for 16 years,
until his death, which occurred in the Ma
tional Capitol, House of Representatives.
Feb. %, 1S4S. He was stricken with par
alysis in the Chamber of the Hall of Rep
resentativcs, and died in the Speakers
room. His last words were: This is the
end of earth; l am content" He is buried
in Quincy, Mass.
In the last Administration we found
Clay's doctrine, The American System"
had found many followers, and it began
to tincture politics.
Clay stood for the protection of Ameri-
can industries, and that the first tariff act
of 1879, suggested by Hamilton and ap-
proved by Washington, was for the en-
couragement of manufactures, as well as
q reyenue-raiSing power.
The opposite party denied the direct
purpose was for the protection of domes-
tic industry, but FOR revenue, and that
revenue was the object and protection the
incident. Clay was supported in the House
by many able speakers. The last years
from 1920 were marked by business de-
preston and financial distress. Clay ad-
vocated higher protective duties to stimu-
late industry and manufacturing enter
prise and incidentally to raise more reve
nue., as the national debt was S90,000,000.
Adams, Clay and Jackson voted for the
bill Daniel Webster and Massachusetts
opposed the bill. This gave protection to
lead in Missouri and Illinois. hemp in Ken
tucky. iron in Pennsylvania, wool in Ohio
and New York, but now came the time
for the Southern States to change their
votes on the tariff question. The position
of Calhoun, LOwndes and other we'll
known leaders who voted for a protective
tariff under Madison found themselves dis
satisfied, arguing that the new burden on
imports fell upon the producers of exports
and tended to better one section of the
country to the detriment of the other. The
bill passed, and was signed by President
Monroe. There has probably been no
more careful or strict constructionist of
the Constitution than President Monroe,
and it seems that he did not construe the |
protective element as annulling the reye |
nue. character.
We now find the Federal party quite
extinct, and the tariff for protection
brought many followers known under the
party. name of Wings.
The Inauguration of John Quincy |
Adams took place March 4, 1925. He was |
the second President to be chosen by the |
House of Representatives. This was the |
tenth Presidential term. There had been |
four candidates in the feld-Gen. Jack |
son, John Quincy Adams, James II. Craw |
ford, and Henry Clay. None of them re-
ceived majority vote, and the election |
Adams received the required number of |
votes, and John C. Calhoun was elected :
Vice-President by a majority of electoral |
votes.
Mr.. Adams's inaugural took place in |
the old Representatives Hall, in the same
room where he was stricken unto death |
% years later. Some pleasant features of |
that day have been handed down. There |
was gathering of the citizens of the Dis
trict, who formed into line and entered |
the cavalcade as Presidential escort, led |