Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-01-26

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surprised man in his district when he saw
his election posted on the returns. He
claims to be the only man of Bohemian
blood ever sent to Congress.
The next youngest member of the House.
Frank 8. Dickson, also of Chicago, was
twenty-eight when elected to the present
Congress, while the following six members
were twenty mine: French Qdaho), Whar-
ton Qll.). Wood (Mo.), Lever Is. c., Gar
rett CTenn.), and Sheppard Texas). Fifty
one members-about 13 per cent-of the
House are still In their thirtes.
However there are no present day Rep
resentatives who can equal the records Of
Alexander Hamilton and James Monroe.
who entered Congress when twenty-five
the minimum of age imposed by the Con-
stitution. Madison, Jay, Jackson, Calhoun
and Buchanan also were in their twenties
when they commenced their congressional
careers. Men under forty are considered
ineligible for the cabinet-have been. in
deed. by modern presidents although Alex
ander Hamilton was Secretary of the
Treasury at thirty-two and Calhoun was
Secretary of War at thirty-five. Indeed
Hamilton was but thirty-three when he
sent to Congress his famous report on
the public credit which ranks one of
member of the newly organized cabinet will
| be James r. Garfield son of the martyred
President. But Mr. Cortelyou, who
| tered the cabinet at forty, holds the record
as the youngest man to take a portfolio
| since Frank Hatton, who was only thirty
| eight when Arthur appointed him POST
master General.
Diplomatic Prodigie5.
Among our ambassadors and ministers
abroad there are but two men in their
| thirties.
Ambassador Griscomb, just sent to Rome,
at the age of thirty-four is one of the
| most notable examples of precocity in our
| national life today. He is notable excep-
ton to the rule, that the millionaire's son
| possesses little ability beyond that for
| spending his inherited wealth. Young Girls
com, born of Philadelphia Quaker blood,
spurned idleness from the start, and had
taken degree from the University Of
Pennsylvania when yet in his teens. 1t
was his first ambition to become the pro-
verbal Philadelphia lawyer, and he equip
ped himself in that profession, but AM
| bassador Bayard took him to London as his
| secretary when he was but twenty-one, and
at the Court of st. James he acquired
| yearnings, as well as ability, for diplo-
matte career. When the Mckinley admin
/ istration came in he pitched into affairs
| In New York and became deputy district
attorney, but when the Spanish war broke
Que he volunteered and served in Cuba as
aid-de-camp to Gen. Wade. He was Of
fered a commission in the army, but re.
fused 1t when an opening came for him
to go to Constantinople as secretary of
legation. In our minister's absence he be-
came charge d'affaires there at the age of
twenty-seven and so served for fifteen
| months, during which time some delicate
and that of the sick man of Europe" Tho
State Department was not a little anxious
at having such a youthful diplomat at the
court of the sublime porte, but Mr.. Griscom
chessboard cleverly that President
Mckinley commissioned him minister to
Persia. He was then but twenty-eight.
From Constantinople he went TO Japan az
minister when thirty, and he remained at
the helm there. throughout the trying period
of the war with Russia. A year ago, at
the age of thirty-three, he was promoted
to the grade of ambassador-the highest in
the diplomatic service-and sent to Brazil,
whence he is now promoted to the more
difficult post at Rome.
Another prodigy of the diplomatic serv-
ice is w. NJ. Collier, q minister's son of
Lodi, N. Y, who, after studying law and
clerking In law and county offices, be-
came president of the New York state
man attracted the attention of Mr.. Roose-
welt, then governor and when the latter
became President he placed Mr.. Collier
In charge of the legal work of the new
Department of Commerce and Labor. Last
year, when only thirty-seven, he was
made minister to Spain.
Minister at Twenty-Seven.
But John Barrett, when only twenty
seven, was made minister resident to
Siam by President Cleveland, and in that
position he not only settled by arbitra-
ton claims involving 100000. but Sc
cured the first exact Interpretation of
foreign extraterritorIal jurisdiction in
Asiatic countries. He has since served as
minister to Argentina, Panama and CO.
| lombia, and this month became director
of the bureau of American republics
But modern history does not record
names of young Americans intrusted with
such delicate diplomatic missions as
those given to John Jay, James Monroe
and Henry Clay, when. in the third
decade of their lives. Jay, when but
thfrty-six, was a member of the commits
sion which went to Paris to negotiate
the great treaty of peace with Great
Britain. and, at thirty-eight with such
master statesmen as Franklin and Adams,
signed the historic document by which
England recognized us as an independ-
ent nation. This was the most delicate
diplomatic mission which ever was and
which probably ever will be intrusted to
an American.
Clay, when thirty-seven, signed the
treaty of Client, closing the war of 1912,
while Monroe had the difficult and i'm
portant mission of minister to France when
but thirty-six.
JOHN ELFRETH WATKINS.