The Monticellonian., 1903-02-12
.EX.GOV. F|SHBAck DEAD
Passed Away at His Home in Fort
 Smith on the oth Inst.
AT THE AGE OF SeVeNTY-IW0 YEARS
One of the Most Progressive Men in Public Life in Arkansas Author of Famous Amendment to the Con- stituton, Which Saved the State Thousands of Dollars.

Ex- Gov Fishback died at his home
 in Fort Smith at Il o'clock on the 9th
 inst
 Gov. Fishback was attacked with a
 stroke of paralysis about ten days be-
 fore his death and from that moment
 the attending physicians had but little
 hopes of his recovery.
 l As a private citizen and public offi- cial Gov. Fishback was recognized as
 a progressive, conscientious man, and
 he was highly esteemed by the people
 not only in this state. but throughout BiographIcs'.
 | William Meade Fshback, seventeenth 1 governor of Arkansas Gs93-951 was born at Jefferson, Culpepper county. ] Va. November ,. 1891. son of Frederick and Sophia A CYates) Ffshback. His paternal grandfather Martin Flshback. l a revolutionary soldier was descended from Frederick Fishbaek. planter. | who settling in Maryland at .aR early date owned the land upon which Fred l erickstown afterward stood; his wife's father, named Hager owning the sub l seauent site of Hagerstewn. His ma 1 ternal grandfather was Col. Poitress l Yates, of Petersburg, Va whose wife | (bofn Stith) was directly descended | from William Stith. author of a His | tory of Virginia" also a descendant of | the Randolph family and president of | William and Mary College The son received his rudmentary education at the schools of his native village and vicinity. subsequently, entering the IT. iversity of Virginia. After his sradu- ation, in 1855, he studied law in the | office of Luther R. Spellman. at Rich- mond and was admitted to the bar in 1858. His first venture in law prac- 1 tice was in 1858, while on an extended | visit to Illinois. Here he became ac- quainted with Abraham Lincoln. who, attracted to the young man, entrusted him with important legal business while l travelling through the state. In iS6a Mir. Fishback took up permanent res l idence at Fort Smith. Ark, where he l engaged in the practice of his profes- sion.
 In 1861 he was elected delegate to the state convention which passed the or dinance of secession. Although so pro- nounced Union man that the seces- sion press of the state denounced him as an abolitionist. yet he was opposed to the policy of coercion, thinking that such q course would provoke civil war. Upon MT. Lincoln's call for troops, by advice of his constituents. MT. Fish back voted for secession, in the hope that when the North the with drawal of all the Southern states IL
 might be forced into accepting the Crit tendon compromise. All efforts at com promise failing, however. when the war broke out he went north. but during l the occupation of Little Rock by the Federal troops, in 1863. he established a newspaper called the Unconditional l Union" While editing that paper he. as commander. was raising the Fourth Arkansas cavalry for the Federal ser vice When about 900 men had enlisted l he was elected to the United States senate by the Union legislature, and | thus was never mustered into service. i Under the proclamation of President l Lincoln the reorganization of the state | was at length accomplished in Janu- | ary. 1861.
 MT F1shbaek had such influence with the convention in charge that he was called upon to write the greater part | of the constitution of 1S64 sometimes called the "Fishback Constitution He 1 was advised that if the word white | as prerequisite to voting was not | stricken out the state would not be re- | ceived into the Union. and that he would | not get his seat in the senate. to which l 1t was known he would be elected. Be- liey1ng. however, that It would not be | safe to confer the suffrage upon all, he l refused to strike it out; he was. there l fore not seated. Tn 1865 he ap- | pointed treasury agent for Arkansas, | and his conduct in that office added | largely to his popularity. In 1881 he l was elected to the convention which | framed the present constitution, and in | 1871 1879 and 1885 he served in the | legislature. He is the author of what l | to the constitution of the state of Ark
 ansas. by which the legislature is for
 bidden ever to pay certain state bonds | issued during reconstruction times. During the summer of 1892. contrary l to the policy of his opponents, he made no canvass for the nomination for gov | ernor His cause was taken up by the people. however, and he received 540 votes out of CPS in the nominating con vention. while his plurality at the polls | was larger than that received by any l other governor since reconstruction l times Immediately after his election l he accepted the urgent invitation of the | national Democratic committee, and go-
 ing North. made q number of speeches
 in New York and in Indiana, which met | with gratifying success. His adminiS-
 tration was marked by continued pros l perity.
 It was at the suggestion of Gov Fish 1 baCk that the governors or the southern 1 states met in convention at Richmond, l Va. in April 1893. the assembly being | one of the most important and distin- 1 guished ever held in America. Of this he was made president As a lawyer l Gov. Fishback ranked with the best,
 while as a debater and public speaker | he had few equals. No man was bet | ter known throughout his state his his l tory being q part of it's history. In 1 SGT Gov. Fishback was married to Ad- elaide. daughter of Joseph Miller. a prominent merchant of Fort Smith. Five children were born to them. three sons 1 and two daughters. Mrs. Fishbaek died
 at Fort Smith. December 4, 1882. |