News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1915-11-03
FROM SENATOR PAGE
An Interesting Retrospective
Letter

| EDIIOR NEWS AND AIIZhN -
The death Of Elk Governor Stewart las
week suggests line of thought in which
old.time Vermonters find food for som
very interesting reflections.
| During the later years of Gov. Fred'l
Holbrook's life it was my custom tc
write to the Governors of the severa
states in the Union suggesting that &
birthday letter to the Governor-whc
was for several years the nestor of all the
| Governors of the United States-would
give him a great deal of pleasure. His
friends used to tell me that for weeks af.
ter these birthday letters came to hand
the Governor would call in his friends
and show them these episties. That they
| afforded him an immense amount of
| pleasure during the last days of his life
is unquestionably true. Gov. Holbrook
was.96 at the time of his death.
Gov Stewart was born in November,
1925, and was, therefore. 90 years old
this month. Whether at the time of his
decease he was or was not the Oldest liv-
ing Governor in the United States have
not taken the pains to ascertain; he
probably was.
A few weeks ago Vermont might have
boosted of twelve living Ex-Governors,
but the deaths of Mccullough and Stew
art reduces the number to ten-the small
est it has been for generation.
For many years we enjoyed the dis
tinction of having more than twice as
many living Elk Governors as any other
state in the Union. On one occasion
when | was writing to the Governor of
Michigan in regard to Governor Hol
brook l suggested the fact that we had
II living ex-Governors; he replied that
Michigan had only one and that he was
native son of Vermont
Our living Elk Governors to. day are Pin.
gree, Orlnsbee, Dillingham;. Page, Grout,
Smith, Stickney, Prouty, Mead and
Fletcher.
We have tine same number of living Ex-
Lieutenant Governors, consisting of Pin
gree, Ormsbee, Fiske, Allen, Stanton,
Stearns, Prouty, Mead, Slack and Howe.
OF Elk United States Senators only one
the venerable dmunds-survives while
of Representatives to Congress there are
four-Toyce, Tyler, Haskins and Plumlev,
There has been an article going the
rounds of the press of late stating that
only two delegates to the Republican
National Convention of 1860, which nom.
mated Abraham Lincoln, were living, and
that both OF them were Vermonters
These two members were John w. St-w
art and Edward B. Sawyer. If this
statement is correct, our own Hyde Park
has the distinction of not only having the
only living member of that memorable
of 1860, but since the death
Of Col. Walbridge Of the End Vermont,
and of Generals Ripley and Henry, all of
which occurred within the past two
years, HYDE Park also has in Colonel
Sawyer. the only living veteran of the
civil war residing in Vermont. who was
the commanding officer of either regi-
ment, brigade or division.
Dispatches from Council Bluffs, Iowa,
which reached US last week, announce
that General Grenvile M. Dodge, who re-
sides in that city, is probably on his death |
bed. General Dodge was not native
Vermonter but think he was at one time |
n command of a brigade or division con-
.aining Vermont troops. He was a |
graduate of Norwich University.
Major General Lewis A. Grant now re-
sides in Minneapolis, Minnesota. So far
as can recall he is the only living Major |
General who ever commanded Vermont |
.egiment in the Civil War. 1 have met
General Grant several times within the
)ast few years and although, as matter
IF course, the infirmities of age are grad
tally beginning to be manifest, as they |
Ire with Col Sawyer, they both enjoy an
EXCELLENT measure of health for their years
Ind we may all hope that kind Provi-
lence will long spare these two living
monuments Of the Civil War.
Vermont may well feel proud of the
lonors she enjoys in the matter of dis
inguished survivors. Ia the venerable
Sdmunds we have the last of that long
inc of constitutionalla lawyers which made
he Senate of the United States memoir.
lble during the last half of the last GEN.
urv. Senator Edmunds is now nearly SO
md am told is in the enjoyment of ex-
client health, Long may he be spared
CARROLL S. PAGE.
Hyde Park, VT, Nov. 2, 1915.
u