Woodruff County news., 1903-02-19
Passed Away at His Home in Fort
 Smith on the oth Inst.
AT THE AGE OF sEvENN-TWo YEARS.
One of, the Most Progressive Men m Public Life in Arkansas of a Famous Amendment to the Con- stitution, Which Saved the State Thousands of Dollars.

inst.
 Gov. Fishback was attacked with stroke of paralysis about ten days be- fore his death and from that moment the attending physicians had but little hopes of his recovery.
 As a private citizen and public ofd- cial Gov. Fishback was recognized as progressive, conscientious man, and he was highly esteemed by the people not only in this state, but throughout the country.
 Biographical
 William Meade Fishback, seventeenth governor of Arkansas 1S93-95) was born at Jefferson, Culpepper county, Va, November 5, 1881, son of Frederick and Sophia A (Yates) Fishback. His paternal grandfather Martin Fishback. a revolutionary soldier, was descended from Frederick Fishback, 0 planter, who, settling in Maryland at an early date, owned the land upon which Fred erickstown afterward stood; his wife's father, named Hager. owning the sub sequent site of Hagerstown. His ma Cerndl STdnuldIHeF was SOA' 4 OAeA AS''S Yates, of Petersburg, Va. whose wife (born Stith) was directly descended from William Stith, author of His tory of Virginia" also a descendant of the Randolph family and president of William and Mary College. The son received his rudimentary education at the schools of his native village and vicinity, subsequently, entering the Un- itv nf Uirpinia After his Pradu- >tion, 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- 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 travelling through the state. 1r 1858 MT. Fishback took up permanent res- idence at Fort Smith, Ark, where he 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 a 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 a 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 saw the with drawal of all the Southern states it 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 the occupation of Little Rock by the Federal troops, in 1863, he established a newspaper called the Unconditional 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 he was elected to the United States senate by the Union legislature, and thus was never mustered into service Under the proclamation of President Lincoln the reorganization of the state was at length accomplished in Janu- ary, 1864.
 MT. Fishback had such influence with the convention in charge that he was called upon to write the greater part of the constitution of 1864, sometimes called the "Fisrback Constitution" He 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 it was known he would be elected. Be- lieving, however, that it would not be safe to confer the suffrage upon all. he refused to strike it out: he was. there fore, not seated. In 1865 he was ap- pointed treasury agent for Arkansas. and his conduct in that office added largely to his popularity. In 1884 he was elected to the convention which framed the present constitution, and in 1877, 1879 and 1885 he served in the legislature. He is the author of what is known as the "Fishback Amendment" 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 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 $40 votes out of CPS in the nominating con- was larger than that received by any other governor since reconstruction times. Immediately after his election he accepted the urgent invitation of the national Democratic committee, and, go- ing North, made number of speeches in New York and in Indiana, which met with gratifying success. His adminis- tration was marked by continued proa- perity.
 It was at the suggestion of Gov. Fish, back that the governors of the Southern states met in convention at Richmond, Va, in April, 1893. the assembly being one of the most important and distin- guished ever held in America Of this he was made president. As a lawyer, 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- tory being a part of its history. In 1867 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 and two daughters. Mrs. Fishback died at Fort Smith December l. 1882