Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-05-09
RECORD OF FRANK l. GREENE
How q Struggling Vermont boy Edu-
Gated Himself and Won n Position
of Usefulness and influence.

| The fact that all the clergy OF all
denominations in st. Adams and all the
| lawyers of Franklin county. with but two
exceptions. are said to be supporting
Frank l.. Greene for Congress shows the
esteem in which he is held where he is
best known. For those who do not know
Mr.. Greene il may be helpful at this time
| to glance at his record:
Frank Lester Greene. son OF Lester
Bruce and Mary Elizabeth (Hoadiey)
Greene. was born In st. Adams February
10, 1870 The family removed to Cleveland,
Ohio. in 1873. where the elder Greene, as
secretary and treasurer of the Brother
hood Of Locomotive Engineers. was for
some years intimately associated with the
late Peter NJ. Arthur. the noted grand
chief Of the order. Here the first two
years Of Greene's brief schooling were
passed In 1873. his father being stricken
with a fatal disease with which he
fingered nine years, the family, now in
creased by an infant son, returned to St.
Adams.
From that time young Greene. being
eight years old. was put to all kinds OF
honorable labor In order to help support
the family and keep himself in school n
little while longer. He sold newspa pers
on the streets: ran errands; was janitor in
n store. opening 1t early In the morning
and taking care OF fires. etc: shoveled
paths in the winter time; worked on a
farm in vacation; learned to weave cane
seats in chairs and went about from house
to house soliciting and doing this kind OF
work. BY this means and the ceaseless
labors OF a noble mother he was kept IN
school until he was thirteen years old
when, practically the last cent gone, or
September g. 1883, the lad went to work
as errand boy in the .uiiting department
of the Central Vermont railway and his
school days were over
Having studied shorthand during spare
time for several years. the boy was trans
TERED to the general freight department
of the railroad in 1884 ana made a stsnog
rapher there. shorthand writers on thos,
days being few. From this position n,
made his way to be chief clerk OF the de
partment in 1887. In 1855 ne began dom,
newspaper reporting in occasional hour,
out or mis- regular employment. becam.
correspondent Of the Boston Globe ane
other papers and entered the newspane
profession as an occupation March / 1891
as reporter on the St. Adams Daily Mes
senger' he was afterward assistan
editor and September IS. 1899, was mad.
editor which position he has held eve
since.
He served in the Vermont Nationn
Guard from October 4. 1893. to 1900. risin,
from private to captain: recruited Com
pany b, LIST infantry. Vermont volunteers
War with Spain, and was mustered int,
the United States service as its captain
During the war he served for some tim
as adjutant-general third brigade. frs
division. third army corps. Upon tn
muster-out OF his regiment at the clos
OF the war. while stricken with linger
Ing illness with typhoid fever contracte
In the army, frequently thought to b
fatal, he was commissioned colonel An,
senior aide-de-camp on the staff of Gov
Edward G. Smith.
a republican from his earliest years O
discretion. Mr. Greene never before wa
candidate for any political office of an
kird and never held one. He did work /
the party ranks, however. from hi
youth. As lad he carried a torch in
BOYS Blaine and Logan club in an oil
time rally in 1894, and when in 1892 he wa
able 10 cast his first vote, he organize
and was made president of a Republca
flrst Voters club In St. Adams that nun
hered over hundred young men "start
ed right He was for several year
chairman of the republican town COMM,
tee' was secretary of the Young Men
Republican club of Vermont in the 90
and active in the well remembered polit
cal movement it conducted for severf
, years; mas been delegate. etc, at count,
district and State conventions. wa
chairman OF the committee on resolution
or the republican State convention Of l9l
and prepared the draft of the platform
alternate deiegate-at-large to the reput
-, lican national convention of 1904, an
attended the republican national CONVEX
ton of 1908 as delegate-at-large. servin
on the committee on credentials
He was appointed by Gov Fletcher
u Proctor, chairman of the State commi.
d sion To examine the normal schools
= 1905. and was in lsS appointed by Go,
: George H. Prouty member of the Stat
] commission to propose amendments
d the state constitution. in that servi,
q making Il careful study of the constitl
q ton of every state In che union. Th
d work on both of these commissions ws
:. carried through two years and took man
hours and nights OF extra labor. Il
which the State provided no compenss
l. Ition. Mr.. Greene was also commissions
l. nv Gov John A. Mead 10 be one Of Il
delegates yspSognpuuGr Vermont q u