The Nevada County picayune. (Prescott, Ark.) 190?-current, 1919-02-13
PREFACE
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r. LIGHT in the Clearing shone upon
things and mostly upon those
X,ob above all others, have impassloheo
~, narnetuated the Spirit of America
], which lust now, seem to me 10 ue
-, ~ attention. l believe that spirit
So .be very candle of the Lord which,
II mi. dark and windy night or time, mas
4i,erad ca that the souls of the falthIui
ye been afraid. But let us be OF soou
Ger. 1t is shining brighter as / "lIts
a. under God, l believe 1t SMALL ps anu
he seen and loved OF all men.
~ seIf-contafned, Homeric figure OF
h remote countryside in Wnlch We
= had the true Spirit of Democracy
a shed its light abroad in the senate OF
4 United states and the capitol at Al
~ He carried the Candle of the Loro
i led him to a height of self -forgettul-
ID achieved by only two others-Wash-
krton and Lincoln. Yet | have been sur
Used by the profound and general is-
kropca of this generation regarding the
kreer of Silas Wright.
ETbe distinguished senator who served
his side for many years, Ihomas II.
linton of Missouri, has this 10 say ol
has Wright in his Thirty Years view
3rHe refused cabinet appointments IN
= his fast friend Van Buren, and under
kcted. He refused a seat on the beheh
the Supreme court of the United
kates. he rejected instantly the nomina-
In in 1874 for vice president; he refused
| he nut in nomination for the presl-
kncy He spent that time in declining
kfce which others did in winning 1t. Inc
bfces he did accept, 1t might well De
kid. were thrust upon him He was born
feat and above office and unwllhnsly oe-
kended to it."
So much by way of preparing the reader
q meet the great commoner in these
&ges.
&There were those who accused MT
Fright of being a spokesman the only
zArrant for which claim would seem TO
4 his remark in a letter: when our
kemies accuse us of feeding our friends
stead of them never let them lie in tell
q the story"
afIe was. in fact, human being, through
Ia through, but so upright that they
he'd to say of him that he was AS hon
a as any man under heaven or in IL.
@4or my knowledge of the color ana
xirIt of the time l am indebted to long
kalrse of reading in its books. newspa-
krs and periodicals, notably the North
nerican Review. the United States Mag
line and Democratic Review, the New
Eprk Mirror, the Knickerbocker, the ST
hwrence Republican, Bentons Thirty
bars View. Bancrofts Life of Martin
hn Buren,, histories of Wright and his
me by Hammond and Jenkins, and to
amy manuscript letters of the disttn-
bished eommoner in the New York pub
! library and in the possession Of Mr.
Smuel Wright of Weybridge, Vermont
Do any who may think that they dis
kuer portraits in these pages l desire to
N that all the characters-save only
Has Wright and President Van Buren,
Ia Barton Baynes-are purely imagin-
IN. However, there were Grimshaws
hd Purvises and Binkses and Aunt Deels
ID Uncle Peabodys In almost every rus
y neighborhood those days, and l regret
add that Rowing Kate was on many
5ads. The case of Amos Grimshaw bears
kstriking resemblance to that of young
lckford, executed long ago in Malone.
the particulars of which case l am
debted to my friend, Mr.. II. l.. Ives of
ptsdam.