Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1910-03-11
PLATTS LONG
CAREER ENDED
EX-SENATOR DIES UNEXPECTEDLY
IN HIS APARTMENTS IN NEW
YORK CITY.
POLITICIAN TO THE VERY LAST
Conkling Alliance, Gold Standard Fight
Nomination of Roosevelt Three
Memorable Events.
BRIGHT'S DISEASE CAUSE OF DEATH

! NEW YORK. March Former Unit
| ed States Senator Thomas Collier Platt
| Republican leader of the state New York
! for years and intensely interested in the
| Republican party from it's organization
! in 1856. died unexpectedly Sunday after
| noon at 4 o'clock in his apartments, 13i
| West Eleventh street. He would have
| been Z years old it he had lived until
| next July.
| The direct cause of Mr.. Platts death
| was acute Bright's disease. For a num-
| Der of years he had suffered with palsy
| OF the legs, which necessitated his 'oc'
| cupylng wheel chair most OF the time.
To Be Buried by First Wife.
Late in the evening his body was taken
to the home OF his son, Frank, 212 West
| Seventy-fourth street, and on Tuesday
| neral services will be held in the Pres.
| byterian church, and Platt will be buried
| In the churchyard beside the first Mrs.
| Platt. who was his cousin.
A political writer some time ago thus
| cited what he considered the three great
| events in Platts career.
Alliance with Conkling in tight on
| Garfield and their joint resignation from
| the Senate.
Fight for the gold standard plank in
| the st. Louis platform in 1896.
Forcing the nomination of Roosevelt
| for the vice presidency, an act which
| made Roosevelt president.
| With his retirement from the Senate
| in 1909 Plat completed over half d cen
fury of political activity. For nearly
| half OF this time he was the undlsputed
boss Of the Republican party of New
| York state, but he was known as the
| ''easy boss"
PIatt had many storms in his domestic
life. On October II, 1903, he married
| Mrs. Julian T. Janeway. Mrs. Jane
ways first husband was travelling man
named Snow, from whom she was oil,
| Later she married DIR. Theodore Jane
way of New York. Shortly after DR..
| Janeway's death in 1897 Mrs. Janeway
met Platt.
Illness Cuts Short Yale Career.
Thomas Collier Plat was born in Os-
wego, N Y, July 10, 1888. His cole
| giate career at Yale was cut short by ILL
ness, not, however, before he had taken
| a prize in Latin Believing he was fitted
for literary career, he took to writing.
| First he wrote poetry-love rhymes, at
| that-to some maid named Stella. HA
never would tell who she was. Then he
had charge of column of ''Wasps and
stings'' in St. Nicholas, a paper that
lived less than nc year, under the
|
| From the EDITORS desk the future SEN
ator went to the prescription counter in
| the Corner Drug Store" which, with
a partner, was his first commercial ven
! ture. In the rear was little room. 1t
was the sanctum sanctorum Of the mem
hers hers of the firm, but chiefly of Platt.
! It was the scene of the genesis of the
! politician who half a century later be-
! came United States senator and the boss
of New York.
! In that little rear room friends per-
suaded the young druggist to run for
was elected. It was the first of the
only four political offices Mr.. Platt ever
| held This position he held through
1859. 1860. and 1861.
! Between the time of his relinquishing
the office of county clerk and his nomina-
| ton to Congress in 1872, Mr.. Platt de-
voted his time to building up his banking
| and lumber business. But he was grad
ually becoming stronger in his grasp of
| state politics and politicians, so that at
the convention deadlock in 1872, when 1t
seemed impossible to secure the nominal
| ton of congressman from his district he
was named. He was elected. In 1874
| he was reelected. Besides having been
delegate to the Republican national
conventions of 1876, 1880, 1884. 1888,
1892 1896, he was member of the ma
tional Republican committee.
Goes to Senate in 1881.
Mr.. Plat became chairman of the Re-
| publican state committee in 1877, and in
! 1881 he first took his seat in the United
| States Senate. linen came that astound-
| ing event, When he resigned from the
Senate, along with Roscoe Conkling, IN
| 1881.
| When Platt was first elected United
| States senator on January 10, 1881, he
already had come to be regarded as one
| of the shrewdest politicians in the state.
| He had won certain amount of notOri-
| speech he made at the Rochester con-
! vention, over which he presided in 1878,
| in which he attacked the administration
Of President Hayes, and, with, great bot;
! terness, censured him for his alleged
treachery to the Republican organization
Of the state of New York.
| In 1883 Platt assisted in the nomina,
| ton of Harrison, and Morton was nomi.
| mated for vice president. It was decided
| to be good politics to nominate Warner
| breed-stalwart feud, for governor. The
surface politicians cheered and said this
mean harmony at last. Plat smiled
| grimly. He could see little harmony in
| it. Harrison carried New York. Miller
| was defeated. and in the squabble over
| the federal spoils Plat and Miller were
both, worsted and the old feud continued,
There was no one to consult but Plat
| in all the state conventions from 1881
| on. The boys" who wanted to nomi
nate Fassett at Rochester in 1891 dared
not make move until they got the word
from Plat. It was Miller's turn tn
smile grimly. Fassett was nominated
and the young man from Chemung was
| defeated in the half breed strongholds.
/ Thereafter the ''old man" did not have
to reach out for new alliances. They al,
| ways came to him. He stood the undis,
] puted "boss,' the aggressive, uncompro,
/ missing Republican that he was when
| Conkling called him "a stalwart." He
believed in the principle that to the vic
tors belong the spoils.