New-York tribune., 1908-05-17

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his first outstanding venture was his estabEsS
rnent. with his friend CogsweII. Of a scboo, .
boys. II was in this period that he also bs,,-
TO write the History Of the United States = +.
which he fs chiefly known. and came To nlsy -
active part In Democratic politics prsvi,.-
Van Buren, made him Collector Of the Por, :.
Boston in 1897. and IT IS evidence OF thar GO
ciencv Of which we have already SPOKEN s..
he is known TO have administered his oefc. .,
exceptiouaI business aptitude. From tbi, ,r.
On there are frequent echoes OF public life +, -
hfooraphy. Here and there Is pfquant bi, .
,ersonaIfa He was present at the detica,io, a
the Bunker Hill Monument, in 1s43. and vvs,.
IN the bannuet which was given on thar oec
sion for President Tyler. Webster and osbo-
,otahiIities The dinner was cold water One
,eetotaI' he says. bat Tyler must have HI,
brandy and water. and IL was amusing 70 500
hin, hold his turnbler beIOI the table to get a
cliff elass Of il, and then duck himself down n
sy,r1ovv II unseen Quite q Jest for the Wash
ingtonians-"
r,.,crof. vas unsuccessful IN his candidacy f,-
.,a c.overnorsbip Of Massachusetts,. his whiy
o,r.onent heating him by nearly fifteen THOUSAND
7otez and he suffered some obloquy for his Do
u.fc,r rrincfples In a fOotnOts Mr. Howe
crotes this story which Dr. Chadwick had from
Senator Hoar:
. r,snor-at was a social pariah George Ban
q. a-tTs-,an and scholar. after brilliant car
Jdacv for the Gevernorsnip or AL7.i'l Isetls NJ,
a lady of the Whis arIstoc.ac5 On s b -. ana
said 70 her 'I did not find You a nome Waen
eaiied' NO.. she answered and you never VIII
1a co,Id afford TO snap his fingers at crftCz
- ct President Polk made him Secre-
to-, q, the Navy. and after accomplishing good
,uert ~ the Naval Academy at Annapolis-hs
-, ,,,da Minister to England a piece OF good
.-.,o ,.bich he valued the more highly mas
- rs n 1ras calculated TO facilitate the his
.-~.-ot t,bors 10 which he was always devoting
- o,erov and time. Nr. Howe pleasantly
,,e,cbas his years in England from ISi6 to
900. tho neriod down 10 1867. which ne spent
3, Neu York, working on MS HlstorJ Ms
ministry at Berlin. and his closing years IN TINS
country He enjoyed his stay IN H4lS-and hn'-
inc, rn1ch stimulus in the company 'I inen IKE
,,irr,ar and Macaulay but he feared mat the
,-a-, ,,Taasautuess OF the life might enfeeols,
and no adds: Il begin to sigh a ltlie Tor repdo-
rtcan air. and for the homely sincerity OK AIne7-
lean life and the rough visor OF our ins'i'u'lons
and neoDIe." He seems to have been glad when
he gave UP his post. throwing himself VII
e,1sto upon the archives he needed % consult Il
PARIS and upon the society OF the Frencn cali-
tai Apafn We find that TO come IN contact VIII
Rancroft is to touch link with the DID reglms.
ua talked with men who had talked with the
leaders Of the Terror. and .is letters and Jour
nails are sprinkled with suggestive anecdotes
Witness the following. written in lsit:
T went with Count Circourt % see t5e blind ~.
cram Thierry He IS pa-alyzed in his over limbs;
his nerves are shattered his eyeSSlJ gone oll rs
mind is bright as hsht ana .- Us ,.sr - "a rsS m
When the general returned n his sorry irQIh l4
first campaign in America Mar A--aIleI,e -sf.
self gave him a welcome Nos ooil5 repl
saJ sF ..cfitpS moi dueque chose DE nus onn5 =
nt,bIicains'' little dreaming that A-ilerIc2 W
nearer than Athens and sparta OF ,Ias re - g.
isa oF yCasbingtou was more likely % De followed
by results than that OF hero or 9d uihe' q
the ocean divided as much as TWO t'llsAll VIE ytaiS
he told another story OF Lafayetta--that Wnen p
yyisi+ad Berlin at dinner Frederic Glzzed nm ao-t
his enthusiasm Il had a y1lNS l---4 ~ - -,
up and down the world seeking aIys1tars, "a S ~
Frederic: ''a1d DO you know what end ne cane u
He was hanged -rL
I have not yet seen Chateau5riand E:ut | a'ls
to 40 SO OConneu wished 20 meet nm anI =
sert him word he would receive Dis yisIr -
rot he know said the yiCOmte- 'tIlaLc 1 EsVe-y 9
out OF lhe house for any one oGt ny So
After a few pages he bade them SOP. sayLn-- j.
Iore Ia CfuIIIOtine, harsh and UNJUST pn -
ona that will be repeated and remembered stn1
one WIS Speaking with him OF his Ire N hI
J.nyItb - said he. .T saw Washington and Mllesae''
hes: in my old age 7 see Louis Philppe lad Dua'-
can you think I wish to continue longer
In passages like the foregoing Bancroft iHHs-
trates his best trait as historian. his quiei
sense Of the thing vivid and picturesque Az
other great resource Of his as a writer IS cara
fully brought out by Mr.. Howe. his Industry N
the accumulation OF documentary evidence Ea
was Z devoted searcher after the truth. II l7
was not always the most convincing pleadeT q