The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-11-28
CUSHMAN K. DAVIS.

dant of Thomas Cushman and his wife,
Mary Al!erton. She was the last survivor
of those who came over in the May;lower.
Thomas was the son of Robert Cushman
the Puritan. who was the financial agent
who fitted out the MayAower and the
Speedwell and who was largely instrument
tai in procuring the Massachusetts grant
from King James l.
The subject of this sketch was the son Of
Horatio Nelson Davis. who served four
years as a captain in the Union Army dur
ing the civil war. He was State Senator
from Rock county, Wis, for several years
and was one Of the pioneers of that
State, having removed there from New
York in 1888. His wife, Clarissa Cushman,
was direct descendant of Robert CUsh-
| man.
Mr.. Davis was born at Henderson,
N. Y, June Is. 1888. His education be-
gan in log schooihouse at Waukesha,
Wis, to which place his parents had re-
moved. Subsequently he attended Carroll
College, at the same place, completing
the junior year. after which he attended
the University of Michigan, where he
graduated in 1851 in the classical course
When he was in college he was member
/ of the Delta Phi fraternity. In 1862
! he enlisted in the army. and was made
| hrst Lieutenant of Company b, twenty
eighth Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry. He
served in the Vicksburg campaign, and in
| that in which Little Rock was taken.
While his military career was not par
| ticularly eventful, he was always en- duty.
and earned reputation as a brave SOL
inv In nr-l,
| three years in the war, and being very
much broken in health on account Of the
hardships of the service, he went to
Minnesota in search of health. and was
| successful. He settled at ST. Paul, and
| began the practice of the law. He had
| no influential friends to advance his in
| terests, and owed his success to his nat
ural abilities. to his professional equip
ment, and to his fidelity to his clients.
He obtained his professional start in the
| State by defending in st. Paul, in 1866,
George 1. Van Solen. on the charge Of
| murder. This was one of the most in
| teresting cases of circumstaniial evidence
ever tried, but Mr.. Davis secu. ed the ac-
quittal of his client.
| In 1878 occurred the famous impeach-
ment of Judge Sherman Page before the
Senate of Minnesota. Mr.. Davis was en-
ployed to defend Judge Page, and had as
sociated with him John A. Lovely, Of
| Albert Lea, and ]. w. Losey, of La
Crosse. Judge Page was acquitted.
Always a Republican, Mr.. Davis had
| east his earliest vote for Abraham Lin
coin. And through Republican ballots,
when twenty-nine years of age, he OBJ
tanned his first important Office, that Of
Representative in the Minnesota Legisla-
ture. On committees he was soon a di-
recting spirit. In debate he was powerful
alert. Appointed United States District
Attorney in 1868, he held the office until
1879.
few years earlier he had taken part in
the now almost forgotten granger
movement. The general issue of that
movement was the corporations against the
people, the specific struggle was the rail-
ways against the farmers
Approaching the possibilities OF this up
heaval, Mr.. Davis spoke out strenuously
for the farmers. He prepared a lecture en-
titled Modern Feudalism.'' which ar
raigned the railways for infringement Of
the popular rights. and delivered it
throughout Minnesota.
1t was a rare compliment, indeed. when
he received from legislative committee
invitation to repeat the lecture at the
State Capitol before the lawmakers Of the
Commonwealth. And on the assembling
of the Republican State Convention, in
1873, no one was surprised that the gu
bernatorial nomination was enthusiasts
tically awarded to Mr.. Davis. He re-
signed his post as District Attorney. his
farmer friends rallied to his standard
and he was elected Governor against two
opponents by plurality of $500 votes
over the Democratic candidate.
Mr.. Davis served as Governor during 1874
and 1875. His administration was conserv-
alive and Just. But the anti-monopolists
were inevitably disappointed. They did
not realize that the rhetoric of a lecturer
could never be the policy of Governor,
too. The temperance advocates Joined in
disapproval of Governor Davis. 1t was
thought. nevertheless that he could have
obtained a denomination for second term
had he been willing to accept his party's
offer
During the eleven years that followed
Mr.. Davis sought no political Office.
His time was divided between his profess
sion and his literary pursuits. He wrote
a volume about 1.-The Law in Shake
speare." He delivered addresses on va
rious occasions, and he secured due praise
for two scholarly lectures. One was upon
Hamlet" the other upon Madame Ro-
land
In 1887 he succeeded S. ]. r. Mcmillan
as United States Senator. With charac-
terstic thorOughness and caution Senator
Davis did not attempt to thrust himself
into 4 premature Importance among the
veterans of the upper house. But he sur
rendered everything to his Senatorial
duties. He carefully studied public ques-
tons He applied himself especially to
international law, which had first attract
ed him when beginning his profession at
the village of Waukesha.
The Senator was reelected by the Leg
islature of 1898. Early in his second term
the great labor riots at Chicago blocked
the Federal mails and paralyzed the Fed
eral Courts. President Cleveland, seeing
that the Illinois authorities could not
preserve the peace, despatched troops to
the scene OF the riot. Governor Altgeld
protested against what he styled an I'm
vasion of State rights A motion in SUD-
port of the Democratic President was de-
bated by the Senate, and Senator Davis
took the floor. He was a Republican He
had opposed the Administration. But by
his speech on this occasion he upheld the
Executive with learned a patriotic elo-
quence that won universal praise.
With the beginning Of his second term
Senator Davis was promoted to the much
priced craftsmanship of the Senate Com
mittee on Foreign Affairs. From this
Craftsmanship the Minnesota leader main
tanned unremitting warfare against the
Cleveland policy. In the North American
Review" of January, 1895, Senator Davis
attacked Two Years of Democratic Diplo-
macy" He scored the Governments ex-
cuses for surrendering two Japanese stu
dents to the Chinese authorities in the
course Of the yellow War" A year later
Senator Davis antagonized President
Cleve!and's policy toward Hawaii in a
speech that made more familiar still the
name of Minnesota's gifted son.
And when subsequently the Hawaii
treaty of annexation failed to secure the |
requisite majority in the upper house. Sen