Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1911-03-08


The retirement Of Hon. Eugene
Hale from his long term of public SER
vice is distinct loss not only to this
State, but to the nation at large. 1t
does not matter, at this juncture,
whether we have always agreed with
him upon questions of public policy,
whether his individual judgment has
always met our approval as individ-
uals, the essential consideration is
that with large experience, great
ability and high patriotic motives he
has filed public station for many
years and has wrought increasingly
for what he believed to be the public
well being.
Opinions upon political questions
must differ; these differences consti.
tute what we know as the difference
between political parties. The good
public servant, in the United States,
at least, must have thorough know
ledge of the fundamental principles
upoc which the government is
founded, he must be a man of posi-
tive ideas and OF fixed opinions
grounded upon his own construction
OF those principles, and he must have
the courage of his convictions to
stand firmly and forever by his belief
Of right, and the ability aggressively
to engraft these convictions into the
permanent policy OF the nation.
He who lacks in single respect the
qualifications here enumerated misses
his calling if he accepts a place in
either of the great national legisla
tive bodies. Eugene Hale embodied
them all, and to the degree that he
was superior to other men in these
respects, to that degree was his public
career more successful and more use-
full than we're theirs.
The writer well remembers, if a
personal recollection may be per-
mitted in this connection, that during
the winter of 1868, when he was but a
boy, it fell to his lot, daily to read to
the blind son of representative to
the legislature of that year the record
of the proceedings Of the Maine legis-
lature from the official report as
printed in the Kennebec Journal, and
he recalls his deep interest in hearing
this rural representative, on the occa-
sion of one of his rare visits home
during the session, relate the story
which since has come to be one of
such familiar experience of the do
ings OF the ''great and general COURT,
and he recalls with more distinctness
than any other thing, remark of this
rural legislator AZ follows: "rhere is
one young man in that house of rep
resentatives about whom this country
is going to hear, and that man is
young Eugene Hale, of Ellsworth
Asa T. Talbot, the Franklin county
legislator, who made this prophecy,
although then an aged man, lived to
see his prophecy fulfilled. Even be-
fore he died, the country had heard
from Eugene Hale, and to- day, as he
retires from Office, he carries with
him fame second to that of no man
who has done service in the American
Senate.
There is no need now, with the
craftsmanship OF Senator Hale a part
Of the recent history of our country,
10 go into detail relative TO his public
service. In all of the recent history
'f the American republic, Senator
Hale can say of himself, as the old
Roman did: ssAil of which saw. and
part Of which l was.n
And when this history of more than
hree decades is far enough removed |
rom the present hour to give proper |
it is entirely safe to say |
hat the name of Eugene Hale, Of |
Maine, will stand forth high among |
hose others Of the great men who |
AVE served their country in its legis- |
alive halls.