The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-05-13
JOSEPH B. FORAKER OF OHIO
BY sAVoYARp.

Copyrighted 1907 by E. w. Newman)
 Just fifty years ago the administra- tion of James Buchanan undertook to put stephen A. Douglas out of the political business. The little giant was candidate for reelection to the senate, and by general consent Abraham Lincoln was selected as his republican opponent. Horace Greeley. however, who was possessed of extravagant admiration for the wonderful forensic genius of Douglas, advised the party in Illinois to give it's vote to him a rebuke to the Southern Democracy, that prevailed on Buchanan to favor the Le Compton con stitution; but the Illinois republicans dis trusted and feared the little giant, and the result was the splendid fight he made against both Lincoln and Buchanan in 1s5S from which he came off victor.
 A dozen years later Charles Sumner and President Grant had a row over MT. Sum ner's attempt to run our foreign affairs independent of the president and the Secretary of State, and there is no sort of doubt that we would have had war with Great Britain over the Alabama claims if Grant had not served notice on Summer that Hamilton Fish had charge of our foreign affairs. The result Was the recall of John Lothrop Motley, our minister to England, who presisted in taking orders from Sumner instead of from the state department. Later the re- publican majority in the senate deposed Sumner from the chairmanship of foreign relations and gave the place to Simon Cameron. Sumner then joined the liber al republican party and made a speech rebuking Gen. Grant for neptoism that was wonderful for the vast wealth of his- torical illustration with which it abound ed Sumner supported Greeley, whom he survived but a few months.
 Another famous quarrel was that be- tween Garfield and Conkling, which was cut short by a manlaes bullet just as the senator was getting ready to fight.
 And now there is a quarrel between president and senator that promises to eclipse all the others in public interest and political consequences. Ohio is the battle-ground and Theodore Roosevelt and Joseph B. Foraker the champions. The president asserts the right to appoint his successor, for that is what it means In plain English; the senator maintains the privilege to be a statesman in the senate, or a politician in Ohio, without let or hindrance from the president, or anybody and everybody else. Secretary Taft Is the man the president has chosen to wear his mantle after March f. 19O9. ID1OTIQndlelY MT. 1dll IS lOl dll AiiO presidential timber in Ohio. There are thousands of republicans in Ohio who be- lieve that Joseph B. Foraker has done more for the party than Taft ever ae- complished, and these gentlemen are m no humor to have their favorite horned off from the national convention in 1908 or pitchforked out of the United States Senate in 19O9.
 Foraker is one of the most dashing and Ohio has nrOdI1PPl. He is fanatically honest and intrepdly courageous. His conscience never felt the touch of interest, and his tongue never felt the presence of bridle. What his heart forges, that his mouth speaks, and his is an eye that never feared to look on the face of man. He never Hanks an ob- stacle. There is nothing negative about him. Had there been there Is little doubt that he would have been president ere this, and this 1 make bold to say, that he would have been elected president nine teen years ago had he consented to con test for the nomination.
 Foraker was born In Ohio because he is of a Virginia family that preferred to dwell in the then wilderness rather than to cast it's lot In a community where Afr1- can slavery existed, That Is why Fora ker was not born in Virginia Perhaps that is why he wore the blue and not the gray He is Methodist and was named for John Wesleys friend and follower, Joseph Benson. year before ms birth there came the great schisn in the Meth odist church that presaged the political secession in 1861. The family settled in Highland county and there the future sol dier and statesman was born July 5, 1S46. At the age of sixteen, he was volunteer soldier in the great war and continued III the service to the end when he was mus tered out, having advanced to the rank or captain by sheer merit and without pat ronage Only nineteen years of age and a veteran, his was a career and record that tens of thousands of Ohio youths en- vied. He now set about acquiring an edu- cation and was graduated from Cornell university in 1869.
 There was one of the learned profes- sions that invited him-the law-and dur ing the autumn following the completion ot his college course, he was admitted to the bar and opened office in Cincinnati, city famous for the splendid abilities or its bar With youth, health, strength, character, brilliant parts and no ordinary talents. he was studious and dhigent in his profession and in a little while he was not lacking for clients. He was no moot court lawyer as he had been no carpet knight soldier He had no odious vices. Pleasures he had, but they were rational, the pleasures or gentleman anu d (hiis tian. Ten years later he was on the bench, a judge of the supreme court
 But Foraker was politician He was made for public life-made ito move as- sembly." Not so polished an orator as Hurd. he surpassed him on the stump; not so accomplished man as Garheld, he was more a favorite with the masses. If was character that stood him in good stead. His reputation penetrated the re- motest precincts and everywhere he was known as one who never held to the scab- bard when once he had drawn the sword. As meets a rock thousand waves, so
 Missfall met Lochlin
 It was the days of reconstruction, time of political frenzy that has it's coun- terpart in the present economic frenzy, when nothing is patriotic that is not ex- travagant, nothing respectable that Is not unconstitutional nothing excellent that is not novel-where the leaders of both po- ltical parties are bidding in the auction for the approval of the mob and offering to pay cash on the spot in the mintage of economic falacy and the currency of po- litical heresay.
 Foraker was a bloody-shirter Of the most ensanguned hue. He was outraged when Andy Johnson went acquitted He was for reconstruction and re-reconstruc- tion and re-re-reconstruction. He wanted treason made odious and traitors punish ed. He believed in Ben Wade, Thad Stevens, Oliver P Morton, and John A. Logan. The liberal republican movement of ha al fna cd a thing