The Dolores star., 1919-01-24
PREFACE


The Light in the Clearing shone upon
many things and mostly upon those
which above all others, have impassioned
and psrpctuIted the Spirit of America
and v hicB. Just now, seem to me 10 be
worthy OF attention. l believe that spirit
TO be the very candle OF the Lord which
In this dark and windy night OF time, has
fiickered so that the souls of the faithful
have been afraid. But let us be of good
cheer 1t is shining brighter as l write
and under God. believe it shall, by and
by. be seen and loved of all meN.
One self-contained Homeric figure OF
the remote countryside in which 1 was
born. had the true Spirit of Democracy
and shed its light abroad In the senate OF
the United States and the capitol at Al
. hauy- He carried the Candle of the Lord
II led him to a height of self-forgetful-
ness achieved by only two others-Wash-
ington and Lincoln Yet l have been sur
prised by the profound and general ig-
uoTanCe OF this generation regarding the
career of Siias Wright
The distinguished senator who served
at his side for many years. Thomas H.
Benton Of Missouri, has this to say of
sIas Wright in his Thirty Years View:
He refused cabinet appointments un-
der his fast friend Van Buren, and under
Polk whom he may be said to have
elected. He refused seat on the bench
OF the Supreme court OF the United
States; he rejected Instantly the nominal
ton in lS4i for vice president: he refused
20 be put In nomination for the presi-
dency. He spent that time IN declining
office which others did in winning it. The
Offices he did accept It might well be
said. were thrust upon him. He was born
great and above office and unwillingly de-
scended to it"
So much by way OF preparing tho reader
10 meet the great commoner in these
pages.
Wright Of being spokesman. the only
warrant for which claim would seem TO
be his remark in n letter: when our
enemies accuse Us of feeding our friends
instead OF them never let them lie in tell
in= the story"
He was In fact. a human being. through
and through. but so upright that they
used 70 say Of him that he was "as hon
est as any man UHder heaven or in it,
For my knowledge OF the color and
spirit OF the time l am indebted to long
course Of reading in its books, newspa-
pers and periodicals. not bly, the North
American Review the United States Mag
asine and Democratir Review, the New
York Mirror. the KniCierboCker, the St.
Lawrence Republican. Benton's Thirty
Years View. BanCrolts Life Of Martin
Van Buren. histories of Wright and his
time by Hammond and jenkins. and to
many manuscript letters OF the distln-
gulshed commOner in the New York pub
lie library and in the possession OF Mr..
Samuel Wright of Weybrldge. Vermont.
To any who may think that they dis
cover portraits in these pages / desire to
say that all the charaCters-says only
silas Wright and President Van Buren
and Barton Baynes-are purely imagin-
ary However. there were Grimshaws
and Purvises and Biukses and Aunt Deels
and Uncle Peabodys in almost every rus
tic neighborhood those days, and l regret
to add that Rowing Kate on many
roads The case OF Amos Grimshaw bears
a striking resemblance to that Of young
Bickford, executed long ago In Malone.
for the particulars Of which case l am
indebted to my friend. Mr. H. l.. Ives of
Potsdam.