The Ely miner., 1930-08-15

in the psychical energy of the family"
The stage was set for the first great
Adams. John, to play his part in
American history when the dispute be
tween England and her rebelliOus col
onies sent him to the Continental con
crosses, where clear heads were head
ed to see that independence was in
evitable and union of the colonies es-
Sential. While most Americans think
of the Revolution mainly in terms of
George Washington, Thomas Jefferson.
Benjamin Franklin and few others
of spectacular deeds, the true history
of those times could not he written
without the name of John Adams. 1t
was he who had much to do with
bringing congress to the point of de-
claring independence his was the
master stroke which caused the adop-
ton of the New England troops around
Boston as Continental army and
which checkmated intercOlonial jeal
Ousies by placing George Washington.
a Virginian. in command; he deserves
the principal credit for establishing
the American navy. and he furnished
many of the political ideas on which
the new nation based its government
The international career of the
Adamses began when John Adams was
sent to France as one of the American
cOmmissioners-his son. John Quincy
Adams. going with him to begin his
education in European schools, and
after a brief stay there and brief
return to this country he went back
to England as one of the commission
ers to arrange the terms of the treaty
of peace and later to become Ameri-
can minister at the Court of ST. James.
His career as vice president and final
ly as President completes the pattern
of the life of this first great Adams.
In John Quincy Adams. the second
generation kept up the standard set
by the first and even advanced it. Be-
fore he was seventeen years of age he
was private secretary to the minister
to Russia and to his own father in
Paris and in London. On his twenty
seventh birthday, after his graduation
from Harvard, President Washington
sent him as minister to The Hague
and later to Portugal, Prussia and
| Russia. Then followed a term of
| teaching at Harvard but he. was soon
called back to public service on the
| peace commission of 1915. Next he
| emulated his father by becoming min
lister to England and came home in
1917 TO serve President Monroe as Sec
retary of state.
John Quincy Adams was a master
| diplomat, having learned his lessons
| in the European school Of interna-
| tional relations. He brought Spain to
| terms in Florida and his cOnciliatory
| actions offset the rash deeds of Jack,
son without bunting the force of the
| American policy. To him. according
| to Historian Adams, belongs most of
| the credit for the Monroe doctrine.
! though it has come down in history
| bearing the name of the Virginia Pres
| dent. Like his father he failed of re-
election to the Presidency. but his
| great years came during his service as
congressman from the Plymouth dis
| trict when he stood almost alone in
defense OF constitutional government
during the period of the slavery dis
| pute. Finally he died at his desk,
worn out in the service Of the republic
I The third generation Of Adamses did
not produce another President. hut it
did keep up the family tradition of
diplomatic service to the nation. anil
! if there were any way 20 eya!uate
comparative worth of national and in
lernational service IL might show that
the cOntribut on of Charles Francis
Adams was just rs great as were
those of John and John Quincy. Orig.