The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-07-03
LEMUEL ELY QUIGG
DIES AT AGE OF 66
Served in Congress and Was
Noted in G.. o. P. Politics in
State for 30 Years.
BEAT TAMMANY TWICE
Friend of Whitelaw Reid,
Thomas G. Plat and Ben
jamin B. 0dell.

Lemuel Ely Quigg. for nearly thirty
years a factor 10 the Republican councils
Of this State. died on Tuesday night in
his home. Is5 West End avenue. Mr.
Quigg was IS years old and his death
was due to Bright's disease, with which
he had been seriously Ill for three
months.
Mr.. Quigg was born In Cecil County,
Maryland, in 1858. and was only 90
years old when he became. almost over
night a parsonage in New York politics.
He received a common school education
and took up newspaper work when he
was nineteen, his first Job In this city
being as a reporter on the New York
Times. He quit that post to become
editor OF the Flushing Times, later CIV
ing that up to become a member of the
staff OF the New York Tribune when
Whltelaw Reid was its proprietor and
in active management.
Mr.. Qugg had a deep interest in
politics and a pronounced talent for the
game as 1t was played thirty years ago.
Whitelaw Reid saw this and made him
press agent for the Republican National
Committee in the campaign of 1892.
carried the Fourteenth Congress District
In this city by a large plurality fol
Tammany Hall. but resigned before his
term was out to become District Attor.
ney OF this county. A special election
was held to All his place and everybody
thought that Col. William L. Brown, the
Democratic nominee would walk In with
hardly any opposition as the district had
been Overwhelmingly Democratic fol
years.
Mr.. QuigE Defeats Tammany.
Mr.. Quigg, however, thought he saw
self and offered TO make the run agains,
Col. Brown. His party was glad to ge
anybody to make II and Mr.. Quigg tool
the nomination and began his campaign
realizing that special election Will
only two names in the field afforded hin
a chance for publicity that no genera
election ever would give him.
1t was hts grasp of the Fundamental
laws of advertising and publicity, gained
as newspaper man. that won Mr.
Quigg the election. Even IL he had lost
his name and personality were 30 WV
idly before the voters OF the city by the
time the campaign was ended that he
was irresistibly logical" candidate
for something else the next time hi,
party wrote a ticket.
The Fourteenth district was located
mainly on the upper West Side, but BY
foretime Tammany arrangement took
| in section on the East Side of the city
which had always shown absolute 10y.
| atty to Fourteenth street. When Mr.
Quigg took the stump the braves at the
Hall regarded his candidacy as the most
| amusing thing that had occurred in city
politics In a score Of years. To their
notion a veteran Republican could have
done nothing in the district. Mr.. Quige
was a kid, and what political experience
he had had was regarded as negligible
However. Mr., Quigg carried the brun'
district on the East Side which his op.
ponents relied on as theirs without eff.
| fort. fed the voters with the kind OF
oratory which his experience out of pol
tiles had taught him was palatable &c
| them and won his seat with a plurality
OF 949 votes.
Tammany Hall said II was an acct.
dent: but in the next election Mr.. Quig-
won again with a majority OF 5,e7T. and
in 1896, in the Mckinley Bryan cam
paiga, won once more with a majority
OF more than 10000. The old Demo.
cratic majority had been 10000.
Mr., Quigg was now. at the age OF SO
figure in Congress. where his oratory
had attracted wide attention, and by
| 1909, eight years later. when he ma d.
the nominating speech which placed Lev
7. Morton at the head of the Republican