The Irish standard., 1904-04-09

Herald from Albany, N. Y, dated April
2, Walter Wellman, the noted cores
pondent, writes as follows concerning
Judge Alton B. Parker, now so prom
inently mentioned in connection with
the Democratic nomination for presi-
dent. Mr.. Wellman says:
Typical of many thousands of his
fellow citizens in this great country of
ours is the man who seems likely to be
the nominee of the Democratic party
this year, Chief Justice Alton B. Par
ker.
Now that the glamour Of probable
nomination for president is thrown
about him it is easy for his admirers
to set him too high and to ascribe to
him great qualities which he has never
shown himself to be the possessor of.
And it is just as easy for his critics to
go to the other extreme and place him
too low. He has actually done so little
and said so little that when we come to
an analysis Of him in view Of the very
large and curiosity-stimulating fact
that in less than a year he may be the
head of our state the task is a good
deal like that of writing up Jones and
Smith or Brown, Of whom we never
heard before, but who we are assured
have all their lives been good men and
a credit to their calling, be it law or
,,,o1io;po o,s n, o1i
The story of Judge Parkers career is
a simple one, but not without interest.
He was born fifty-two years ago come
the fourteenth day of next month. His
father was farmer near the village
of Cortland, Cortland county, between
Syracuse and Binghamton. Like thou
sands upon thousands Of other success
full Americans, he passed his boyhood
on the farm, working in the fields in
summer as soon as he was old enough
and going to the district school in win
ter. For three years he was student
in Cortland Academy, where he main.
tained himself with the proceeds of la.
Dor performed outside school hours.
For four years he taught a country
school, and was himself a student all
this time. Having saved little mon
ey, he went to the Albany Law School,
where he graduated in 1872. In all
this we see young man who was de.
termined to have an education, deter
mined to be lawyer, determined to
lift himself above the social station in
which he was born, and who succeeded
by hard work and self-denial. 1t is a
story which we often read IN the an
mails Of the great men of our country.
The Parkers are Of good Massa-
chusetts stock. Young Alton was
reared in an atmosphere almost puri-
tanic. The day Of his graduation from
Cortland Academy he hired horse and
drove out into the country to find a
Job at school-teaching, and found it at
Virgil. On his return home he learned
his father and uncle had secured an
other school for him with so cents q
day better salary than the young man
was to get at Virgil. Much chagrined,
Alton proposed to cancel his engage.
ment, but Parker senior quietly re.
marked:
"You will do nothing of the sort.
have noticed that young man who
starts out in life by failing to keep an
obligation fails at everything else.'
They say there was never anything
brilliant about Alton Brooks Parker
but that he had the fine quality of pa.
tient plodding perseverance. 1t is q
characteristic Of his to make haste
slowly. There has been nothing
meteoric about his career. After leav'
ing the law school he entered law
drm at Kingston and served five years
as clerk, and finally as Junior partner
doing the drudgery Of the shop, but
always studying. In small way he
got early into politics. He always took
an interest in politics. He was ar
orthodox, an answering democrat
He attended all the primaries and made
himself part Of the machine. He had
political ambitions in those days, and
was popular with ''the boys" While
still under thirty he was elected sur.
- e 4 q 81 *,