Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1912-01-29
NEW NEWS OF YESTERDAY
Humiliation That Death Spared
Allen Th0rndike hiess
Appointed Minister to Russia no
Could Not Have Maintained That
Position, for His Once Large
Fortune Was DIsslpstsd
By g. }. EDWARDS.


Rice, and to the younger generatlon
the name means absolutely notnlns'
Yet twenty-five years ago Allen Thorn,
dixie Rice YVES thought TO nave Inc
MOST promising future OF sny young
Republican OF New York sta1e anu
was deemed 8 more interesting: anu
| piouant character than sven iheo
dore Roosevelt, with whom Hlce va.
Intimately associated In pohucS u
| the late eighties.
He yas Boston born, but, lived LOT
| many years In Europe and was
graduate OF one OF the English uni
! yarsitjes. He returned to the Onlteu
stateg about 1875 when he was Only
90 years Of age. He wss reported u
| be the possessor OF g. very large ios'
time snd Of q scholarly as we'll as
nracttcal turn OF mind, reputation
mat he justified by buying the So'tn
| American Review, the Oldest aiio
| sta,dast Of American periodicals. ana
By entering upon a career OF pfac
! teal politics. He was a candidate TOT
congress- In 1886. in a New YORK CITY
| district but was defeated, anu ne
gained national notoriety by his ao
yocacy CT the Australian ballot. re
was. in fact, the first TO bring tha'
form OF ballot to the attention OF the
American people.
BENJAMIN Harrison was one OF MT
Rice's intimate friends and after Har'
rison entered the presidency he noml.
mated Mr.. Rice minister to. Russia
| and the nomination was promptly con-
hrmed. Rice. however. never went 10
Russia. He was taken III three days
before the date fixed for his sailing
and died from some acute ntestna!
trouble. Mr. Rice was personal
friend OF the late William r. Grace
who was twice mayor OF New YORK,
and It was from Mr.. Grace that
learned the following incident or MT
Rice's last hours.
Late one afternoon I WAS IN an
elevated railroad train on my way
home when ! saw. across the asie'
but some distance from me. someone
beckon to me-" said Mr.. Grace. IN
an instant T realized that 1t was Allen
ThorndIke Rice and that he seemed
to be in distress. / hurried TO MIN
and saw that he WAS seriously Ill. He
was suffering intense pain. lie TOTO
me that he had been stricken AFTER
no entered the car and that lie was
afraid he would not be- able to reach
his hotel.
"He seemed grateful When / offered
20 accompany him to the Fifth Ave
nue. hotel, where he lived. had to
support him upon my arm down the
! elevated station stairs and iii. him
Into the carriage which / summoned
| feared that he would lapse Into I'M
consciousness before he reached the
hotel. After We got him to his room
and put him on his bed he seemed
little easier. and when the physician
came Rice frightened up q little. so
that felt justified in saying to him
that I hoped he would recover from
the attack by the next day SO that he
would be in good shape to sail for
Russia.
"iis looked at me with a pathetic
EXPRESSION and motloned me to bend
over him.; and when had done so
he told me in whisper that he never
would get to Russia. and that It was
probably just as we'll.
After / left him / thought there
was something unusually significant
| in his remark that It would probably
! be Just es we'll if he did not 60 10 Rus
sia. ] did NOT. however. fathom the
meaning until two or three weeks aft
or Rlce's deaLh. Then every one OF
| his friends was surprised al the reTe
lations which were made when the
examination OF his estate was finish.
ed. We had all supposed that Rice
was a very rich man; we found that
| there was little Or nothing left Of his
| estate. He had some personal belong
! iues--books and brica-bTac--and he
owned the North American Review,
which think cost him more to run
| than he received from It IN the way
| vi TIC 1luSl nave
therefore, that as minister to Russia
| he would not be able to maintain him.
self in the style to which he was 40
customed and which was necessary
| at tho Russian court, for he was not
the kind Of man who could live upon
! his salary. SO I have always believed
that when he realized that he was
stricken with q mortal illness he also
felt that he would by It be spared
the humiliation Of being unable to
maintain the luxury and entertain.
ment at the Russian court which his
manner Of life and his reputation rs
man of wealth would have e1acted
from him.
I'VE were never able to tell how
great a fortune he brought to the
United States or how he had used
whatever wealth he had obtained"
| (Copyright, 1911. by e. ]. Edwards. All
Pfehts ReserYed1