Montour American. (Danville, Pa.) 1866-1920, 1902-05-15

utter "OIu lIOH WHICH, buC IOulu
form a suspicion that he sought to in
jure or obtain an unjust advantage of
anyone with whom he dealt, and he
exacted the same business integrity
from others i'll their dealings. He de-
spised a dishonest man and left him
severely alone.
He had a vein of stubboTnness run
ming through him, and at times 1t
took rough bit and strong hand to
control him when his teeth We're set.
These fits happened but seldom. As a
rule he was gentle, full of warm,
generous impulses, kind-hearted SYM
pathetic, courteous, and tolerant even
Of the prejudices of others. Much of
his life and his ambitions | learned
from his own lips as we sat after din
ner in the evening twilight and eX-
changed mutual condolences before we
took up the never ending tasks of Con-
gressional life.
He would light a cigar and stretch
out on an easy chair and talk of his
wife and his babies, of his parents,
and his illustrious uncle Leonidas, tho
fighting bishop. This was the history
of his life as l CLEANED it chiefly from
these talks
In the spring of 1898, when the
United States declared war with Spain
POLK, with his associates i'll the Ma
tional Guard, left his wife, family,
and large, growing business interests
and was mustered in as first lieuten-
ant of Company +, Twelfth Regiment
of Pennsylvania Volunteers, and serv-
ed until his muster out and honorable
discharge after peace was established.
Almost Immediately after his return
home from this service he was nominal
ed and elected as Democrat to repre-
sent the Seventeenth district of Penn
sylvania, composed of the counties Of
Columbia, Montour, Northumberland
and Sullivan, in the Fifty sixth Con
gress, and although that district was
then represented by a Republican, his
majority was nearly 1000. This was
his first appearance i'll the political
arena Two years afterwards he was
reelected to the Fifty y-seventh Con
gress with an increased majority Of
nearly 800, so popular had he be-
come, and would have been renominat-
ed and elected TO the Fifty eighth Con-
gress had he lived and not positively
refused to run again on account of the
exactions of his large and onerous busi-
ness interests.
One evening he told me the reasons
why he enlisted III the Spanish war
and went to the front III spite of the
fact that he left wife and family of
young children and large business in
terests which required his care and at
tention behind-a sacrifice which no
man under such circumstances could
reasonably have been called upon to
make The story was, as near as l
Cdu ItIlltIlDtI II. dS lOlIONS
You see, GREEN, all my people
in the civil war We're what you Yam
KEGS called rebels. Every mother 5
son of them fought from start to finish
the battles of the Confederacy, and
were loyal sons of the South, where
they lived when the outbreak occurr-
ed. They were generals and colonies
and majors i'll that war We We're of
fighting stock from Revolutionary
times down, and until that time had
always been loyal to the Stars and
Stripes, and its patriotic supporters
when the Republic was formed My
! greatgrandfather, Thomas Polk, of
Mecklenburg County, n. c., was one
of the organizers of the Mecklenburg
! o,ra...:~-. ..nu one OF the slgners OF
the Mecklenburg declaration Of indie
pendence. My grandfather was Col.
William Polk.
This medal which | wear is the
| badge of the Order of Cincinnati,
founded by the officers of the Ameri-
can Revolutionary Army i'll 1913. Nc
man can become member of the order
who is not a male descendant of al
| original member, and inherits it un.
der the law of primogeniture. prov
ed my right before l was admitted.
Well, after the rebellion my brothers
| and | entered into a solemn agreement
| that should there ever be a war in
which the United States was interest
ed we would all enlist.
80 when war was declared witt
Spain my brothers and myself and
many young cousins were mustered in.
to the United States service and show
ed that we were loyal TO our country
and ever ready to sacrifice our lives i'll
the defense of its honor and its flag
Our pledge has been so far kept, and
we stand always ready to redeem it
while life and strength shall last.
This little incident ennobled this
man i'll my eyes, and | knew him vel
4
| enough to be able to vOuch for every
word he had told me.
Is it any wonder that the people
| of his district, Northern men and lOyal
men though they We're, nevertheless,
were ready to intrust him with theiI
interests in the great Legislature OF
this nation, with firm conviction
| that their interests and the Republics
interests were intrusted TO a loyal and
| patriotic man.
But a few short weeks ago the slend
er figure and manly presence of the
| young statesman of the Seventeenth
district of Pennsylvania was i'll oul
midst. His sunny smile and cheerful
| greeting met US on every side. He
left US in the strength of manhood's
prime never to return.
As | sit, in the silence of the mid
night hour, in his favorite chair and
my thoughts wander and dwell upon