Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1911-02-04

chairman Of the executive committee
and managed the campaign on behalf
of James G. Blaine as the Republican
candidate for President in 1884, and
always claimed Blaine really carried
the state of New York and had been
lactualIy elected as President, but had
been dcfrauded in the count Of the
votes in the city of New York. He
/ received fattering congratulation
/ from Mr. Blaine on the splendid man
ner in which the campaign had been
conducted under his leadership.
! In 1891 he was. on the suggestion
Of Mr.. Blaine and the urgent solici-
! tation of President Harrison, appoint.
/ ed secretary Of war, which place he
held until the end of Harrison's ad-
ministration, March 4, 1898. In 1895
! he was elected and entered on the
duties of U. S. Senator from West Vir-
ginia, to which position he was twice
thereafter elected to succeed himself
and continued to hold that office from
/ the date of his first election until the
/ time of his death, January 5th of
| this year. AS a Senator he looked
| first after the welfare of his state,
he was always attentive to his duties
and kept in close touch with the busi-
ness of the Senate; he served on many
committees of importance and early
! took rank as an able, reliable and use
full member of that body. At the
! time of his death and for several years
prior he had been the chairman of the
Interstate Commerce Commission. from
which emanated the Elkins act which
has received much consideration by
the country AS chairman of that
committee he was in charge of the
railroad rate bill which received great
consideration and was more discussed
in the Senate than any act which was
ever passed by that body. Every
species of attack was made on the
bill, innumerable amendments were
proposed to it and most of them de-
feated, but several of them were
adopted 1t was an administration
measure and the President looked to
and depended on EIkins to see it
through the Senate in good shape.
When it finally passed, it was regard
ed as much improved over the origi-
nal bill, much of the improvement
being due to the able intelligent and
business like manner in which the
bill was handled in the Senate by Mr..
Elkins. This was the last great and
croWning act of his official life and
he received from all the senators con-
gratulatlons upon the agreeable. I'D.
right and prudent manner in which
he had conducted himself and man.
aged the passage of the bill through
the Senate-probably more and great.
er than had ever been accorded to
any other Senator.
But this was not the last of his
senatorial acts. Very shortly after
the passage of the railroad rate bill
IN the Senate, the bill to enable New
Mexico to form a state government
winch had passed the House, came
up in the Senate where an amend.
ment IN the nature of substitute for
the House was proposed. Elkins.
here, showed his deep interest in be.
half of New Mexico, as he had always
done. He opposed the amendment
and favored the House bill as being
much more beneficial to New Mexico,
but the Senate would pass only the
substitute. He then went to the
House of Representatives and advis-
ed all New Mexicans and all the mem.
oers OF the House to agree to the
amendment and not allow it to go to