Arizona weekly journal-miner., 1901-08-14
DIED AT RIPE OLD AGE.
Rev. Robert Martin, Fathsr of We'll Known PeapIe in Arizona, Dies at
 His Home in Michigan.

The Hillsdale, Michigan, Leader,
 gives the following notice of the
 death of Rev. Robert Martin. father
 of Mrs. A. c. Burmister of Prescott, and of D. NJ. Martin and Miss Mimi
 Martin, both former well known resi-
 dents of Prescott:
 The death of Rev. Robert Martin
 occurred at his home, 312 Hillsdale street, July 21. Alr. Martin was born
 in Grail, Fifeshire, Scotland, July IS,
 1920. He is descended from the old
 Scottish family of Erskine, tracing
 his descent from an upbroken line for
 over seven centuries. His great
 grandfather was William Erskine,
 younger son of Sir Charles Erskine
 of Cambo, who was the younger
 brother of the Earl of Kellie. This
 William Erskine, becoming involved
 in the Jacobite rebellion of 1715, fled
 to France, where he remained in exile several years and upon his return to
 Scotland assumed the name of Myre-
 ton, his mothers family name, the
 spelling of which was changed to Martin the early part of the 18th century.
 Mr. Martins grandfather and father successiveIy had command of the Isle of May, a coast guard station controlling the entrance to the Firth of Forth. Both sympathized with the American colonies in their struggle for independence, and the former was a fun friend of John Paul, generally l. known as Paul Jones, the naval hero of the Revolution. John Paul Jones ]. sailed into the Forth one night and . landed upon the Isle of May to call . upon his old friend, Capt. Martin. | Jones had in his possession some i'm portant dispatches from the continen tai congress to Benjamin Franklin, who was then in Paris. Jones had been endeavoring for upwards of a week to enter a French port, but had been prevented from so doing by the close blockade of the British cruisers in the channel. Capt. Martin was owner of a fast sailing lugger which he had captured from smugglers, and he volunteered to run the gauntlet of the British cruisers and deliver the dispatches. He sailed from the ia- land in the middle of the night, talk ing with him his only son, boy of about nineteen years, crossed the channel successfully, landed the boy Dn the coast of France, sent him for ward with the dispatches and return ed to the island himself the next night. The boy who carried the dis patches to Franklin was Robert Mar .in's father.
 Mir. Martin left his home when young man, lived several years in and from thence went to Liverpool, Manchester and London. While in London he took an active part in the Chartist movement during he 40's and was sent to Paris and several other European cities upon a  of the Chartists. Last summer he pointed out to his children he spot in Kensington Commons where he was one of over one hundred , hOusand men who had met to march O parliament to present a petition of ,ver a million names.
 He was forced to come to the United States in the early sos because he would not submit to being taxed for he support of a state church. He identified himself with he anti-slavery movement, lecturing nd preaching against the sin of iuman bondage. He was conductor Ipon the underground railroad, and many has been the poor slave he has . ecreted, fed and then helped on by many an hours night driving towards he Canadian border. Mir. Martin .ad been for nearly half century in he Christian ministry in the Free Baptist denomination. His life has cen full of so many interesting incl ents that it would be impossible to lore than give a hint of them here.