The Irish standard., 1903-11-21
HUGH MCLAUGHLIN
And his LAST fight
Continued from Page u

ditch. Three main causes have been
assigned for Hugh McLaughlin's won
derful success as a political leader
Hy birth and training he belonged to
the rank and file of the democracy
and always sympathized with them
He was good listener, while himself,
until recently man of few words.
Rut above all he was known to all
men rs IL man of his word and a
friend true as steel. Mr.. MCLAUGHLIN
has been blessed with a serene home
life and is never so happy as when
surrounded by his fond wife, two
daughters, his little grandson, Hugh
Mclaughlin Courtney, and his grand
daughter. Grace Carroll. No matter
how political storms might beat
around him. from first to last Mr.. Nc
Iaughlin has never allowed them to
disturb the quiet and harmony of his
own fircsidc. The death of his only
son. Harvey. in his teens in 1876 was
one of Mr.. McLaughIin's great sor-
rows. from which it took him years
to recover. Until couple of years
ago Mr.. Mclaughlin was noted prob
ably above all things else for his re-
ticcncc. He refused to talk for publ
cation even under the most extreme
provocation. With him "silence was
=oldcn.' SO pronounced was this trait
that he was frequently styled the
sphinx of Wilou=lby Street" His
sudden change to flow of words,
even though bis real meaning was dis
"uiScd i'm proverbs and parallels. made
him m untailng source of interest.
and in recent political crises report
"rs swarmcd around him daily and
hourly. Only in the last stormy cam
paissn did Mr.. Mclaughlin resort to
the authorized interview" to express
his opinions. These interviews were
one of the special features in the cam
paiYn. The last. in which he made his
appeal to native lrsllmcn and Irish
American voters to resist the threat
rncd invasion of Talnmnny, caused
sensation. The fusion managers con-
Sidrrcd it of such weight that they
had 10000 copies of it struck off and
distributed in certain parts of the city
Il few hours after it was handed out
at the auction room. Mr.. Mclaughlin
has always been fond of indulging in
"reminiscences of his early days, and
comparing them With the present
time. I'm those early days" he said
recently, boys went to work much
earlier than they do at present. 1t
was not ut all uncommon for boys of
ten or twelve to be at work turning
wheels in the ropcwalkS. and by the
time they were fifteen they were APP
prcntccS to some trade. There's Il
big difference between the young fell
lows of those early times and those of
the present day. Then they did not
know when they We're mon. Now
they're men almost before they're
boys. AS to whether or not this com
pulsory education, which forces poor
parents to send their boys to school
till they are II years old, no matter
how much they need their services, is
altogether Il good thing. am not pre-
pared to say. But have no doubt
that the market is about as much
overstockcd with education as with
Ignorance. 1t is not Ignorance that
causes all crime. There never vet
WAS an ignorant man who could
forge or write an anonymous letter.
or very ignorant man who could
pick Il lock or break Il Jail. In these
days an ignorant main may be elected
governor or president. but he has to
pass Il civil service examination to get
Il place in the street cleaning depart
mcnt. There seems to lie some hum
bug in that"
Contrasting the difference in the
pleasures and enjoymcnts between
the present and the old times, Mr.. Nc
LaughIin told about people going out
to Flatbush as late as the sos at the
first CLEAN OF dawn to listen to the
morning concert of the English sky
larkS.
"Fancy." commented the sage of
WilIouglby street. "tlc people of to-
day enjoyed anything SO simple as the
singing Of larksH'
Mr.. Mclaughlin has been Il great
admirercr of manly sports all his life
No champion of the prize ring, native
or foreign, ever visited Brooklyn,
who did not receive kindly welcome
ut the auction room: and the old man
almost wept when lie heard Of the de-
feat of Jack Dempsey, Hrooklyn's
"NOnpareil." at the hands of Bob
FitZsimmOns. In the old days when
brooklyn used to be the scene. al
most weekly, of not only amateur but
professional boxing entertainments, Il
front seat was usually reserved for
Hugh Mclaughlin on such occasions.
Mr.. Mclaughlin never owned any
fast horses or kept stable and sci
dom could be induced to visit IL race
track. He has been IL devoted angler
all his life, taking as much delight in
fishing in the waters of Great PeconiC
Bay now that he is approaching the