Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1901-09-27

Inc TASK SET Tor me To-Day is one O.
the most difficult have ever approach
ed. 1t is with reluctant heart that
attempt to speak on this occasion. No
because am not in full accord will
the purpose of this gathering but be
cause feel that one so small and hum
BILE as I, were almost presumptuous tt
try 10 tell The story of the life, and pro
nounce the eulogy upon the character
of one SO good and great as William
Mckinley, And yet the highest tri
butte that love can pay to the memor,
Of the departed is not simply funera
Grafton of matchless eloquence, fol
flowing words may mean no more thar
the music of ripping waters, but rather
a manifestation of that respect and af
fection which are too profound and toe
sacred to be framed into human lang
uage.
+ To me the death Of our President
comes with feeling of personal loss.
My President, my friend, my brother,
has gone. I never spoke to him and
never clasped his hand in mine, never.
theless to me he was one well-beloved.
Pardon this extended personal refer.
ence but wish to say that this expert
ence Of personal loss and personal sor-
row is SO real and SO deep in my heart
that can hardly account for it and
doubtless it is to be explained only by
the fact that there was in President
Mckinley that majesty of manhood,
nobility of nature, and sweetness of
soul, that endeared him to the.h Of
every right-thinking citizen in the land.
And the American people can perform
no more fitting deed this day than to
turn aside from the ordinary cares and
duties of life to pay grateful and loving
homage to the sacred memory of their
martyred chief.
William Mckinley was favored by
Providence in being well-born.s Il is a
long way in the direction of true char
acter to be well-born. He came from
Scotch-Irish stock, from a class Of peo-
pie noted for their strict integrity and
sturdy character Those persons who
in the heat Of passion of this hour dis
'cuss the question of anarchy and in
condemnation of this accursed form of
villainy, make sweeping statements
concerning foreigners who come to our
land as though they were all culpable
and criminal in breeding anarchy and
infamy should be more temperate in
their remarks. Let them bear in mind
that If we had had no foreigners com
ing to our shores we would have had
no Lincoln, no Garfield, and no Nc
Kinley, and then this great trinity Of
matchless martyrs would never have
been known to our history.
Those who haye studied the gene
alogy of the late President tell US that
the blood of both the Scotch Coyen-
anters and the English Pulitans
mingled in his veins. His forefathers
were among the patriot heroes who
fought for freedom in the great Ameri.
can revolution. William Mckinley, Sr.
was the father of him whom we honor
today. In his early manhood he es.ab-
lished an iron foundry at Fairfield,
Colunlbiana county. Ohio, and continu-
ed to be identified with the iron in
dustry up. to 1876, when he retired
from business.
On the Goth of January, in the year
ls43, at Niles, Ohio, William McKin.
ley, Jr. was born. He was the seventh
of nine children in his fathers family.
The house in which he was born is a
two story frame building which still
stands and which the American people
should at once take steps to preserve
Let the generation of today and the
generations of the future be permitted
to look upon this home which gave tc
America one of her most honorable anG
illustrious sons. Let the government
take action Immediately to possess thu
place and as far as possible protect from
natural processes of decay and ravage!
of time this house which will ever
more be sacred to true American
hearts.
The parents of William Mckinley
were splendid examples of the genuin,
type of American citizens. Homes
and honorable, industrious and frugal
intelligent and pious, they represented
in their characters that which consti
tutes the real wealth of our nation
They were not rich and not poor al
though it has been said, the struggl,
of life was sometimes hard with then
as.it was with their generation, bu
they met its trials with fortitude ani
strove to instill into their children
principles of rectitude and correc
ideas as to the responsibilities of life.
It will thus be seen that the child wht
was to become the President was Meth
er handled in the lap of luxury MOI
starved at the scant table of penury.
The absolute democracy of our socia
system and customs may be seen in tn,