Evening journal., 1914-07-25
New News Of Yesterday
Why Senator Mangum
Resigned His Office
BY Holland.

recently narrated an anecdote
based upon brief informal chat
which ! had with Zebulon Vance. of
North Carolina. who for some years
represented that State in part in the
United States Senate. mentioned 70
Senator Vance that | had heard that
Senator Willie p. Mangum, who vas
acknowledged to have been one of the
ablest Of the United States Senators
and public men Of his day, had sud
denly resigned his seat for the al
legged reason that he desired to retire
from public life before he reached the
age when his judgment would be like
ly impaired. and when by reason of
habit he would be disposed 10 cling to
public office.
Senator Vance admitted that he had
heard a story OF that kind associated
with the great North Carolinian, but
was not ready to confirm II. Instead
Of doing so. he spoke of the presence
in the Senate Of men Of venerable
years whose faculties we're not at all
impaired and whose public service
was as valuable in the latter years OF
their life as 1t was in their earlier ca
reers.
Mr.. stephen b. Weeks, very promi-
nently associated with history and
education, biography and bibliograp-
hy. bearing the highest honorary de-
gree Johns Hopkins Univcrsary be-
slows, tells me that 1t was in all prob
ability another distinguished North
Carolina Senator who quilted the Uni
ted States Senate for the reason that
was attributed to Senator Mangum.
Il have heard that it was for this
reason that Senator Nathaniel Macon
retired from the United States Senate
when he was about seventy-five years
of age" said MIR. Weeks. Senator Ma
con resigned his scat in the Senate
about the year 1880. ! have frequent
ly heard from distinguished men OF
North Carolina that the reason why
Senator Macon retired was because OF
his belief that il would be eXpedient
for him to give up his place while he
was still in possession OF his facul-
ties. He lived in retirement for sew
eral years after he resigned, and must
have been about eighty years of age
at the time of his death. | am per-
suaded that the association of the
name Of Senator Mangum with such
action is Incorrect
Senator Mangum was only forty
four years of age when he resigned,
in 1886. He had presumably a very
brilliant political future. There is to
be published shortly a record Of the
life and times of Senator Mangum,
and reference will be made 10 the
fact that he was President of the Uni
ted States Senate and was so promi-
nent and able that he was conspicu-
ously named as an available candidate
for the Whlg nomination for Presi-
dent He was a North Carolina Whig.
Senator Mangum did not retire
from the Senate because public life
had wearied him. He had been in
structed to vote for the Benton ex-
punging resolution. He refused to
do so, and refused also to resign. This
Benton resolution incident was the
most exciting political topic Of the
time.
Senator Mangum expected to be
reelected in 1887, but the North Car
olina legislature was Democratic by
narrow margin. Senator Mangum
knew that for that reason he could
not be reelected, and. therefore, he
resigned few months before his
term expired Four years later he
was re-eelcted to the Senate and
President pro tempore from 1912 to
1S45. Had John Tyler died, Senator
Mangum would have been by virtue Of
the law, President of the United
States
Copyright 1914. by r. J. Edwards.
All rights reserved0