The commonwealth. (Scotland Neck, N.C.) 1896-1929, 1912-02-08

III I1dTnoLC county, ABOUT twenty
miles from Raleigh, on November IS
1855, being a little more than fifty
six years.of age.
After he had reached young man
hood he entered Wake Forest Col
lege, where he graduated with hon
ors in the class with Thomas Dixon
Jr., the great author and playwright
After his graduation Mr.. Hilliart
came to Scotland Neck and taught
school in the old Vine Hill Male
Academy, welding from the very
beginning mighty influence upon
the moral. social and civic life of the
entire community.
Some time after coming here Mr.
HilIiard was happily married to Miss
Mary Montague, of Wake Forest
who through ali these years has been
his companion indeed. She always
stood close to him, in prosperity and
in adversely, in health and in sick.
ness; in joy and in SORROW. in bust
ness and in pleasure, holding up his
hands that he might reach the goa-
for which his whole life was lived
And for the past few years while he
Was living in semi-darkness, she was
almost always seen with him, guild.
ing his footstep and directing his
course. Beautiful indeed was hel
devotion to the man she loved.
After his marriage he entered the
field of journalism, buying the Scot
land Neck Democrat from the late
Captain w. H. Kitchin, which he
edited successfully for more thar
twenty years. Soon after taking
charge of the newspaper he changed
its name to The Commonwealth. Mr.
Hilliard made Of his paper one OF
the most influential Weeklies ir
North Carolina, and he was one o!
the States brightest and most popu-
lar and forcefuI writer's.
While teaching here Mr. HilliarG
t ,ok up the study Of law, and after
attending the law school at Chape
Hill, he was admitted to the bar al
the fall term Of the Supreme Court
in 1887, in the class with Governor
K,chin. He pFacticed law but {
short time, giving as one OF his rea.
rs that he could rot practice law
and be Christian. And this calls
to mind a remark we heard hin
make once. Being asked BY {
stranger what his business was, he
replied, Ely business, sir, is serving
the Lord, but l run q newspaper te
pay expenses. ;"
Many times he vas importu
by his friends TO enter politics, anC
well do we remember that on one
occasion he was urged to accept the
Democratic nomination Tor Superin
tendent of Public instruction, being
assured that If he would accept hi
nomination and election was assured
But he declined, saying that he coult
not conscientiously DO the thing
that a man in public life was a
times almost forced t. d., and rattle
tn III have his skirts trailing in tn.
d TT and dust Of filthy politics h,
would die private in the ranks.
Mr.. Hilliasd was modest, yet h
was firm in his beliefs, and he al
ways stood steadfastly for what h
conceived to be right, and clean, ali,
pure, and for the moral, social ant
civic Righteousness of his town AM
community. Many times have w
heard men say that if he had entere'
public life he could have easily occu
pied the Governors chair or sea
! in the United States Senate. But h
chose rather to live the simple, tn
quiet, the humble life Of a privat
citizen and serve his friends in
manner Of his own choosing.
When the question of establishing