The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1907-06-30
By DEXTER MARSHALL.


Not only DO these fifty-fve names stand
for ffy-hve personalities Of unusual
strength and distinction, but the descen-
dants Of more than two-thirds of them
have distinguished themselves sufficient
~ On their own account in the 151 years
since the first Fourth of July 10 warrant
attention in the standard biographical
works Of to-day.
The descendants Of John and Samuel
Adams have been prominent in every gen
Grafton Charles Francis Adams, one of
the sons Of the diplomat Of the same
name. and best known member of the
family. at this time. is a veteran of the
civil war. in which he won the breyet
rank Of brigadier general He has writ
ten several works Of value he has made
his mark on the railway development of
the country. having served as president
Of the Union Pacific for some years, and
he was long a member OF the Massachu-
sets railroad commission. At seventy
two he is well entitled to take life easy.
Henry Adams, a brother Of Charles, who
Is prominent as an author. lives IN the
house adjoining the John Hay house, in
Washington. = brief sketch Of his life
appeared on the editorial page Of The
Washington Herald last Wednesday.
Brook Adams, still another brother, re-
sides in Boston.
The Younger Adamses.
George Adams. Charles Francis Adams
nephew. has been mayor Of Quincy.
Mass, is now treasurer Of Harvard Uni
versity-a very big position in New Eng
land-and he sailed the boat which won
the Kaiser's yacht prize last year.
The sons Of Charles Francis. Jack and
Harry. the Adams Twins" are solid
chaps of about thirty. John is looking af-
ter his fathers interests in the West.
while Henry IS interested IN a big ranch
in the Pacific Northwest.
The Adamses are descended from Pres
idents as well as from signers, their
family being one of two which has given
the country two first magistrates. John
Adams being the second President and
John Quincy Adams the sixth The best
known members OF the Harrison family,
which has also furnished two Presidents
William Henry Harrison. the ninth. and
3. Harrison, son Of Benjamin Harrison,
and George Paul Harrison, who was the
youngest Confederate general
Harrison Lives in Indianapolis.
Russell B. Harrison is now living at
indianapolis, where he follows the pro-
fession Of lawyer, civil engineer, cleo
trio engineer, and mining engineer He
was ROst widely known during his IA
Tiers Presidential term. when he was
often spoken of as Prince Russell. Before
that he published a newspaper. the Mon
tana Live Stock Journal, in partnership
with William J. Arkell. and was also
connected with Judge and Leslie's Week
y.
In 1875 he was made an officer in the
army Sent TO Porto Rico in the prOsecu-
ton of the Spanish war, he was on the
staff Of the late FitzhUgh Lee, himself a
signer's descendant. but was honOrably
discharged In a way that made his friends
call for vindicauon. He did not study law
until after that. and his legal preceptor
was the late w II. H Miller. Benjamin
Harrison's Attorney General. R. B. Har-
rison is in the neighbQrhood of fifty.
Gerry, Many-sided Descendant.
Prominent as the Adams and Harrison
families have been in the history Of the
country, their present representatives. per-
haUs, are not the most interesting Of
those now well known whose veins car
" signers' blood. EIbridge T. Gerry, IA
nous descendant Of Elbridge Gerry. who
was not only a signer. but also Vice Pres
ident under Monroe, has been a most in
tereSting personality for more than thir-
ty years. not altogether because he is a
mulu-milliOnaire. and not at all because
Of any rapid rise TO wealth on his part
The Gerrys. like the AstOrs and the GOe-
lets, have been rich Tor generations. sim
ply by the accumulation OF the "unearned
increment" from their land holdings on
Manhattan Island in colonial days
wherefore. as a Gerry intimate said the
other day, no member of the family has
had to do a lick Of work for two or three
generations"
There are working Gerrys, OF course,
while the family fortune was being built
up and Elbridge T. has never been an
idler. but his work has been done on prin-
ciple. and not for pay. !
Gerry's Career CreditabIe.
The life Of Commodore Gerry (commo-
dore because Of his fondness for pleasure
yachting) has been more Of "a credit to
him than the lives Of most men Of his
class. In the half century since he was
graduated from Columbia College he has
been about as active as the next one.
He started out TO practice law, and APP
pears 20 have been q good lawyer for a
yOungster so long as he stuck to the Job.
His attention was drawn TO the lack
Of laws for the prevention Of cruelty to
children while he was the attorney OF
Henry Bergh's Society for the Prevention
Of Cruelty 20 Animals. and in 1874 he
brought about the formation of the So
called Gerry Society" which has made
him even more famous than his fad If I
wearing d Cap-blue cloth in the summer /
sealskin in the winteT-on every and all /
occasions. He made more enemies as the /
head Of the 5. 2. c. c. perhaps than
through any other Of his several activi- |
ties. because Of his continuous crusade 4
for years against the employment Of chill /
dren on the stage.
some Wrongs Done.
Most Of these enemies have been the /
parents and managers of the children /
barred from performing, and there may 1
have been cases in which wrong has been |
done, but on the whole the work Of the /
society has been Of great benefit. Take 1
the case OF Josef Holman, for instance.
In 1857 or a year later, when a lad Of /
ten this pianist. then a child prodigy"
came 70 this country to give exhibitions /
Of his skill in the Metropolitan Opera
House under the direction of Henry z.
Abbey, grand opera impresario long be-
fore COnried or Hammefstein The boy
was a wonder and his parents began TO
reap q harvest of shekels: then Gerry
swooped down upon the outfit There was
a dreadful outcry, it being held generally
that the boys playing three or four
evenings a week could not harm him
since evidently he pniOvpd II hugely and /