Arizona republican., 1903-03-27
WILLIAM E. AMIN
 LIVES NO LONGER
With Him Died One of the
 Most Charming of Men
His Mental Qualities Were of the Most Extraordinary Character. One Man Who Might Have Been Properly Called a Genius

William E. Amin died yesterday It may be said without eXaGgerarion that at the same time one of the most brilliant men ii the United States passed away. Those who knew him well may easily believe that one of the most charming of men in the world ceased to breath
 MT. Amin was one month past forty six years of age and for four years had been in ill health. He first came to Phoenix three years ago last Septem- Der and remained until late the follow ing spring. He had been assigned to a place in the postofIice department as inspector of rural mail routes. Before leaving Phoenix, he was promoted to the head of a division in the rural de livery service as special agent in charge and Denver was made his headquarters. He pursued his work in the postal service with the same nervous but unremitting energy with which he had followed every occupa- tiCn in which he had ever been en- gagged and his work was so easily distinguished in the service that he was made the subject of special com mendation by the head of the depart ment.
 During the last year he suffered from a complication of physical troubles and it became necessary for him to leave Denver. He was temporarily transfer red to Phoenix, though he was still nominally in charge of the work at Denver.
 In the nearly three years that had elapsed since he first visited Phoenix he had changed so much that wher his friends saw him they believed that they were looking upon the face of a man who had not much longer to live. The change though was all in the ap- pearance. He was otherwise the same Billy Amin whom they had known and loved.
 He returned here late in the fall ac- companied by Mrs. Amin. There was no improvement for him. A few days ago he suffered an attack of pleurisy from which he obtained only brief and temporary relief. The end came yes terday morning about half past ten o'clock.
 Beside Mrs. Amin who had faithful " ministered to him night and day, and the attendants there was present at the death bed Watson PickrelI, his
  try and a former associate in Wash ington. Late yesterday afternoon Bishop Kendrick of this Episcopal dio- cese visited the house and brief relig- ious ceremonies were held. Mrs. Amin left this morning for Denver with the body.
 MT. Amin was graduated from Princeton University. then Princeton college in 1877. Dr. James M'Cosh then the president of Princeton said that the record of MT. Amin was high CT than that of any man who had left that institution in his administra tion. Soon after graduation he went to Omaha and for a time was employed on the Omaha Bee in the news depart ment. He subsequently, became the managing editor of the paper and re- mained in that position until 1877 when he went to Washington as pri- vate secretary to Senator Paddock of Nebraska. He was at the same time the Washington correspondent of the Bee and also represented several other western newspapers at the capital. He soon took the lead as a gatherer of news and within a short time became the most famous of the Washington correspondents. He had way of grasping the importance of an event that came to the average correspond ent only after it ceased to be a matter of news and had become one of public discussion.
 The famous Gridiron Club had been esta blished two years when MT. An min went to Washington. He became member of it at once and was later the president of it; that is an honor that comes to comparatively few newspaper men. He had a marvellous memory and a quick wit. It is no won der then that he soon became distin- guiShed as racOnteur. Even Col. Tom Ochiltree used to quote him and say that he must yield the palm to him. Dr. ChaunCey Depew once said that Amin was the best after dinrer talker he had ever met and those who have heard him in his happiest moods have readily accepted the judgment of the great New Yorker who is acknowl- edged to be judge of those matters.
 MT Amin would have been as bril- liant an actor as a newspaper man if he had been directed to the stage He would perhaps been as successful in any other occupation provided of course that it did not involve plodding. lie COulQ neN ci DttOIIiG q DlOO0eG. The word genius has been much overworked ever since it was invented and it has been applied to all manner of men, But it might have been prop erly applied to MT. Amin. He was a genius, an Admirable Crichton He never forgot anything that he had learned at college. The classics were as familiar to him in his last days as they were when a boy, he shut them up and laid them aside for the active duties of life. After his grad uatfon he was not a student that is he did not pore over anything, but few students in spite of post graduate courses have been so scholarly as he wa.
 The volume of work he turned off was marvellous. It was seemingly done without an effort. He was still given time to make d study of current affairs so that few men in the country had such a grasp of political events. He also had time to cultivate a most extensive acquaintance. There
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