The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-12-23


test. Mr.. Burton recalls . suspicion ths'
Garfield. who attended the convention
under instructions 20 vots for Sherman,
| but ~accepted the nomination for himself.
had not given his friend cordial supporI,
| sherman after careful examination ali.
solved Garfield.
Four years later Sherman was again q
candidate for President, but his supper,
was comparatively small, at no time reach,
ing the full vote from his own State. Just
as In 1880 no had been strongly opposed e.
Grant, 90 In 1854 he was equally opposed C.
Arthur. In 1888. on tho other hand. Sher-
mans candidacy assumed larger proper.
lions than 10 had reached ever before, AM
for some time previous TO the meeting o.
the Republican national convention g.
Chicago IL seemed as II he would be nom
mated. He received twice a. many votee
as any OF his competitors on the frst two
ballots and the largest vote for SIX ballots.
On this occasion Sherman vas strongly
opposed to the nomination Of Blaine, Co
whose selection he had been reooncled In
isss. The ultimate nomination Of Harrison
In 1888 wa entirely satisfactory 70 Sherman.
In 1897, on the other hand. IL was Sherman's
conviction that Harrison could not DO re-
elected, and for this reason he advised tbs
nomination OF another man, preferably
Mckinley. He. however. gave Harrtscs
hearty support during tho campaign.
On reviewing his subjects record anc
the political conditions OF the time. the
b~ioRrapher does not deem II strange thas
Sherman could not obtain . nomination for
the Presidency. His claims in 1850 we're very
strong. because his name was more promi~
nently associated than that OF any other
man with the notable prosperity OF that
year. Again, In 1883. as we have said, his
chances seemed. at the outset, 10 be very
GOOD. His career, however, had not been
of the type which appeals strongly TO popu-
lar snthusiasm. He suffered especially
from the disadvantage OF having taken .
pronounced stand upon numerous questions
about which the electorate were divided b
their opinions. Then, again, his name had
not BEEN inseparably associated with any
Of those issues of a sentimental nature BY
which the multitude are swayed. He had
been encaged In managing the Govern
ment's nances and had taken a prominent
part In keeping down appropriations. By
his achievements In these directions he had
made enemies as well as friends. His LACK
Of the faculty for remembering names and
! faces was also, In q practical way, a serious
drawback. People thought him unappre-
ciatiye and cold. Those who met at PresI.
DENTAL conventions and discussed tbs
question OF Presidential availability with q
supreme desire for party success conceded
his fitness and his services to the party and
the country, but thought him not sufficiently
magnetic TO attract the masses.
There was something tragical about ths
conclusion OF John Sherman's public life
Il is well known that he resigned his seat
in the Senate in order to accept the poss
Of Secretary Of State in the first Mckinley
administration on March s.. 1907. His po-
eition in the Cabinet soon became unen-
durable. William r. Day, an intimate per-
sonal friend of McKinley's, since made .
Justice OF the Supreme Court of the United
States, had been appointed First Assistant
Secretary Of State in May, 1897, and il soon
became apparent hat President Mckinley
relied upon him for thu management OF
affairs in the State Department. The un-
usual course was adopted OF inviting an
assistant secretary to attend the meetings
of the Cabinet for the purpose Of discussing
the Cuban question, which at hat time
was Of the most absorbing interest to the
nation. Sherman was not slow to observe!
and in a measure resent, this innovation.
| On April Is, 1893, two days after the call for
| troops, he resigned.
In the opinion Of his biographer the
abandonment Of the Office was inevitable,
| on two grounds. In the first place, Sher-
mans health had so failed that IL was inn
possible for him to a great depart
ment in a trying emergency with sufficient
vigor. He had become forgetful, and Ia
many important matters Of detail his lack
of memory threatened complications in
relations with the Ambassadors and Min
isters of other nations. A second reason
was the difference Of opinion between him
and President Mckinley as to the proper
policy to adopt with regard to Cuba. What
ever he may have said in the Senate in
earlier years, he was now u~ualterably OF
I the opinion that it was not desirable for
the United States to annex outlying terri
tory. In view OF this conviction all his
powers were naturally exerted to avert
war with Spain, especially as such a war
was at that time considered a q prelude
ID the annexation OF Cuba. Mr.. Burton
! would not deny, however, hat Sherman
left the Cabinet with a feeling Of bitter
ness toward President Mckinley. mainly on
account Of his practical suppression by
Assistant Secretary Day, but slso because
Of a belief that he had been transferred
to the Cabinet 20 make room for another
person in the Senate.
The few remaining years Of his life were
years of sadness. Ill health and weakness
were creeping upon him, but his chief mis-
fortune was his compulsory absence from
the pursuits to which forty-three years hsA
been devoted. Numerous interviews with
him and alleged utterances Of his appeared
some Of which his biographer admits TO
have been genuine, In which he attacked
the policy Of the Mckinley Administration
At the request Of the Anti ImperialLss
League he furnished an argument againss
the annexation OF the Philippines which
showed that. however defective his mem
DRY might be, he still retained remarkable
vigor Of thought and expression. Grief
for his wifs's death, which occurred In
1900. soon after the fiftieth anniversary OF
their marriage, left him shattered both In
mind and body. Within less than Eve
months he followed her TO the grAvaA