The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1907-08-08
AN HISTORICAL ADDRESS
BY HON. R. F. DuNToN OF BELFAST.

in Hope August 1st, of the Tooth birthday
of Hon. Abner Dunton was X. F. DuntOn
ESQ.,, of this city whose historical address
was not only a fine tribute to the hero OF
the occasion, but contained many other
points of historical nature which were
listened to with extreme interest Mr..
Dunton said, in part:
1t is indeed a rare event which we cele-
brate today. The table of expectation of
life used by insurance companies c0nstruc-
ted from the American table of mortality,
based on actual statistics, shows that of
100000 persons of the age of ten years only
three are expected to live until 95 years Of
age, and three are expected to die at that
age, so there the table ends The man who
lives to be one hundred years of age is one
in many thousands,-I do not know how
| many.
If il were only the fact that man has
| reached the age of 100 years, it would be a
very extraordinary event, but that we have
| among us a man in the full possession of all
| his mental faculties and of all the senses
| with which his Creator endowed him, with
| Intellect unimpaIred aud retentive memory,
| looking back upon the scenes and incidents,
| the friendships and companionShipS, the
| joys and SORROWS of a hundred years, is
| wonderful. 1t seems almost incredible :;
yet such is the fact.
| wonder if all of us fully comprehend the
years that this man has lived. A few COM
| parisons may serve to demonstrate Nine
| years ago there died across the water a
man who for many years before his death
| had been known and honored throughout
| the world as the Grand Old Man of Eng
| land and grand old man he was; yet the
Grand Old Man of Hope was two years
old when William Z. Gladstone was born
In 1901 the venerable Queen Of England
passed away. She was Queen of England
| before most of Us were born, and very few
OF those present can remember her corona
tion. Abner Dunton was 12years old when
Queen Victoria was born Forty-two years
ago the life work of Abraham Lincoln was
ended by the bullet of the assassin. All
portraits of him as President show the fur
rowed cheek and wrinkled brow indicating
the approach of old age. Abner Dunton is
two years older than Abraham Lincoln
would be, if now living.
| The Declaration of Independence was but
80 years old and many of the signers were
still living, the Constitution of the United
States was but 20 years old, and Washing
ton had been dead only eight years, when
| Uncle Abner was born.
PROLIFIC IN EVENTS.
The year 1907 was very prolific in import
ant events. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
and John Greeneaf Whittier were born that
year. One hundred years ago this very
month the first steamboat was successfully
operated on the Hudson River by Robert
| Fulton.
The first railway line in the United States
was a short stretch of track laid by SilaS
| Whitney on Beacon street in Boston in 1907
In the same year Lewis and Clark. return
ing from their long journey of 5000 miles,
! which had occupied three years time, made
| a detailed report of their explorations, fur
nishing the first definite information of the
geographical extent and condition of the
| Great Northwest Territory which we had
! tlI rnb a6 from, EraDaa
III June 1907, Napoleon Bonaparte, at the
zenith Ui his power and fame, having sub
| dued Austria and Prussia and accomplished
the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire,
held his famous conference with the Gar of
Russia on a raft moored in the Niemen Riv-
er, and there these rulers formed an alliance,
and made their plans to conquer the whole
world and divide ii between them.
| In 1907 the Orders in Council of Great
Britain and the DEGREES of Napoleon had
virtually put all European ports under a pa
! per blockade, and during that year 1874
American vessels were seized by the Brit
ish and Il large number by the French for al
legged violation of the neutrality laws. AS a
measure of retaliation, under President jeff
erson'S recommendation, our Congress laid
au embargo on shipping, and for fifteen
months not an American vessel carried our
surplus products to any foreign port or re-
turned therefrom laden with manufactured
goods. History informs us that during this
| periop "Ships with their cargoes rotted in
port, thousands of seameu were thrown out
of employment, industry was at standstill,
and general business stagnation prevailed
| throughout the country.
RESULTS OF EMBARGO.
Yet in its consequences the laying of this
| embargo proved to be one of the most i'm
portant acts in all of our economic history
for while it struck down commerce for the
time being, it laid the foundation for Ameri-
CAN manufactures and made US independent
| of Europe induStrially as we were political
ly. Previous to this time we were depend
ent upon Great Britain for our china, glass,
| crockery, hardware, edge tools, cotton,
woolen and leather goods and many other
articles of daily use. AS soon as the en-
barge was laid, companies were formed for
the manufacture of cotton, WOODEN and other
| goods, and associations were organized
whose members pledged themselves to use
none but American made goods, if they
could be had at not more than % per cent.
advance on the cost of foreign goods.
The embargo was lifted in 1909, but our
strained relations with Great Britain, which
eliminated in the War of 1912, and the war
itself, prevented free commercial inter-
course with Europe until the close of the
war in 1915, and gave additional stimulus to
our manufacturing industries. The return
British trade was followed by the arrival
of fleets of British merchantmen loaded
| with the products of British mills. They
came in charge of supercargoes and agents
of the mills and factories, and were sent to
the auction rooms and sold for what they
would bring, to the ruin of the business of
the American manufacturers.
1t was under these circumstances that
Congress passed the tariff law of 1916, which
was the first Systematically planned for the
protection of American manufacturers. 1t
will thus be seen that causes which directly
led up to the passage of the first protective
tariff law originated in the year Uncle Alb
ner was born. Many times since this
question has been an issue in our national
politics, and this man remembers them all.
The end is not yet.
Railroads, steamboats,, telegraph and tel
ephOne lines and other great inventions and
discoveries too numerous to mention have
come into use within the recollection OF
Uncle Abner, and many other interesting
events occurring in the year of his birth
might be mentioned, but time will not suffice.
| Here follows a brief biographical sketch
of Abper Dunton, prepared by Uncle Abner
himself.
PERSONAL TRIBUTE.
| suppose that Uncle Abner's boyhood
days differed but little from those of the
average country boy of his time. 1t was
undoubtedly the constant daily round OF
I toll and study and play of the healthy, ac
tive and ambitious boy. He must have
kept busy most of the time, for in addition
to helping his father upon the farm he haG
acquired sufficient education to teach school