New-York tribune., 1910-03-11
i. B. PERKINS DEAD.
Ne5c York Congressman Er-
Dires litter Lone Illness.

Washington. March i1.-Representauve
James Breck Perkins. of Rochester died
this morning at lis o'clock at Garfield
Hospital. after an illness of several weeks
Among his colleagues Mr.. Perkins was
well liked and highly respected. He was
regarded as a legislator of great earnest
ness and of high ideals and, although he
was not frequent speaker, he was always
heard with interest and attention. He was
a loyal Republican. and gave much serious
thought 70 the welfare of his party. While
his political experience was not SO eXten-
sive or so varied as that of some of his
colleagues. his advice was often sought
as that of an earnest thinker and one
whose party loyalty could not be ques-
toned. Personally, Mr Perkins was genial
and kindly. He win be sadly missed.
James Breck Perkins won distinction III
three fields-as lawyer. historian and legls-
lator. He was born in 1S41 at St CroiX
Falls. now in Wisconsin, then frontier
station, chiefly populated by Sioux Indians.
His ancestry was OF New England stock
on both sides of the house. Soon after the
sons birth the father died, and the mother
moved with her infant son To a farm near
Como. III. There they lived till he was
nine Years old. when they moved to Roch-
ester.
The boy possessed 4 precocious intellect.
At the age OF twelve he entered the Roch-
ester Free Academy, and at fifteen was
prepared for college Part of his junior
and senior years at the University Ot
Rochester. where he was graduated. Mr..
Perkins spent in travelling. mainly in Italy.
While in Rome, in 1866 he was suspected
of being connected with the Garibaldian
conspiracies by representatives OF the Pope,
who then ruled the city. He was detained
for a time at police headquarters. and was
set at work translating public notices from
italian into English, His proficiency in
Italian won him favor. and he was allowed
10 depart.
Returning 10 Rochester. in 1867 Mr.. Per
kins took Up the study OF law, and was
admitted TO the bar in the following year.
He became a partner of W +. Cogswen
IN 1870. 1t was only four years later, at
the age OF twenty-siX, that the young law
yer was elected City Attorney, and re-
elected two years later. During this tine
he published several articles In The Amer
ican Law Review" mostly on French law.
As a lawyer he rose TO the front rank In
Western New York. The firm of CogsWell
& Perkins was dissolved in 1884, and M
Perkins pTactised alone till 1884 when he
took as partner David Hays, Of Rochester.
In 1880 Mr.. Perkins went TO Paris where
he gathered material for his we'll known
French histories. In 1892 his France I'm
der the Regency" was published in Eng
land and America. This work had been
preceded by France Under Mazarin. and
was followed by France Under Louis
XVI and a Life of Richelieu." These
works have won high praise from English
and American critics.
In 1897 Mr.. Perkins turned again 10 pub
lie life as d member of the Assembly. serv-
ing for one year. He made an excellent
reputation at Albany for his work in the
committees on Cities, Codes and Military
Affairs In 1925 he was a candidate for
nc mination to Congress, but withdrew be
fore the convention. He was elected 10
Congress from the 32d District in 1900, re-
naming there till his death
He was q member of the National In
stitute Of Arts and Letters. The Univer-
sity or Rochester had conferred on him the
degree of LII. D. In 1878 he married the
daughter Of General Martindale. OF Roch-