Conversation so far:
What happened in 1893?
1893, President Grover Cleveland appointed federal judge Walter Q.
Gresham as his Secretary of State, and Gresham hired Landis.
Was Landis hired on as judge?
Gresham hired Landis as his personal secretary.
How long did he keep that position?
1895, offered Landis the post of United States Ambassador to Venezuela.
Landis declined the diplomatic post.

Question: Why did he decline?
Self-contained rewrite: Why did Kenesaw Mountain Landis decline the post of United States Ambassador to Venezuela?