El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1913-08-12
GEN. FLANAGAN IS READY
TO QUIT FEDERAL OFFICE
Had Held Office in Texas Under Fed
eraI appointment More Than Any
Other Man in State.

Austin, Texas. Aug. 12.-The stage IS
being set for the passing from office,
and probably from public life. Of gen
eral Webster Flanagan. collector of in
ternal revenue veteran soldier and po-
litical leader
Pictures of Republican presidents
from Grant to Taft have been taken
down from the walls of Gen FIanagan's
off &c in the federal building Dozens
OF beautiful animal hides and horns
which have decorated the room for
years are being packed into boxes,
while into others go papers and books.
A picture OF Teddy Roosevelt lone
somely faces two chairs and a desk,
the only remaining decorations
Appointed Fifteen Years Ago.
Fifteen years ago president McKin-
ley appointed Gen Flanagan. who was
then living at Henderson, Tex, to the
position he will vacate within the next
two weeks to make way for Alexander
s Walker Of Leander. The general
became collector on April II, 1898. and
continued in office under presidents
Roosevelt and Taft and for several
months under president Wilson. There
is no tenure to the office. the colIec-
tocs term depending on the will Of the
Honored by five presidents. twice a
member Of the Texas senate, and one of
the trainers of the Texas constitution
of 1875, Gen Flanagan has had a dis
tnguished career in civil life, besides
having served through the civil war
in the Confederate army and gained
considerable advancement as a soldier.
He was opposed to secession, but he
was far from being the only anti-seceS-
stonist who fought for the Stars and
Bars. Nor was he alone in emerging
from the civil war a staunch Republi-
can But in one respect his war record
IS unique he was a general before the
war, became a private to get into the
war. and came out OF it a general
again.
Governor Sam Houston made Flana-
gan brigadier general of militia, but
when he entered the Confederate army
it was as an ordinary soldier in a COM
pany organized at Henderson by Capt.
NJ. NJ Boggs in 1861.
General Flanagan went to the state
senate from the district embracing his
home county of RUsk, in the Twelfth
legislature, and was again elected SEN
atOr in the Thirteenth senate. He was
a member of the constitutional cOnyen-
ton of 1875. President Arthur ap-
pointed him collector of internal rev.
enue for the fourth Texas district with
headquarters at Henderson. and later
president Harrison made him cOIiectOr
of customs at the port of FL Paso Nc
Kinley, the next Republican president
named him collector for the third dis
trict of Texas, which now embraces the
entire state
Roosevelt continued Gen. Flanagan
in office, and under the Taft admin
istratiOn he was further honored by
being retained as head of the district
embracing all of Texas. which was
created by the consolidation of the Aus
tin and Dallas districts.
Served as President Pro Tenn.
While he was state senator Gen.
Flanagan was elected president pro tenn
of the senate on the death of ifeuten-
ant governor Don Campbell in 1871,
ana presided over that body the re-
mainder of the session.
The octogenarian collector-he was
81 years old in January, and killed
Ilne puck two weeks before his birth
tirement He knows politics. and Drob-
ably was surprised at holding as long
as ne did under Democratic president
a position so attractive as was his