OCR Text |
Show OUR FIRST SPEAKER SPEAKERAn An article in m the National Repubhc Republic Republicgises Republicgives gnes gises some SOI11e mt mteiesting interesting ( > lcsUng information informationconcermng informationconcerning informationconcerning concermng concerning the first lrst speaker of the thenatlOnal thenational thenational natlOnal national Hou'e Houe Hou"e Howe ' " of Representatives RepresentatlVes , an anable anable anable able man m3n "ho"e hoe " who uho " e name few of thl this < ; gcn- gcn gen- gen gcneratIon generation gen generation - eration ever heardHe heardHe heard heardHe He Hea.s Heas \\a.s a.s was \ ' \ \as as \ . Frederick Augustus Comad Conrad ComadMuhlenberg ConradMullenberg Corn adMuhlenberg Muhlenberg Mullenberg . , bom born in Penn Pennsylvania < ; ylvania m in m1750 1750 , the son of a German pioneer , a aLutheran aLutheran aLutheran Lutheran preacher The son follov foUO\ foUO follow foUOed \ ' ed edm edin edin m in his fathers father s footstepsrind footsleps footsteps " "md md "nd nd rind " also be- be became became be became - came a Lutholan Lutheran Luth ian preacher at the early earlyage earlyage earlyage age of 20 , sl six " , years before the Declara Declara- Declaration Declaration Declaration - tion of IndependenceYoung IndependenceYoung Independence IndependenceYoung Young Muhlenberg \ was \ as a staunchsupporter staunch staunchsupporCel staunchsupportel supporCel supporter of the Revolution RevolutlOn , and be- be because because be because - cause of his patriotic patrJOtlc expressions eXpresslOns v.as vas was v.aschased waschased . waschased chased from place to place by theBritish the theBritl5h theBritish Britl5h British Nothing daunted , , he continued con- con contmued con continued - tinued tmued to preach liberty hberty as ' " well ell as the thegospel thegospel thegospel gospel and was elected to the Contin Contm- Contm Contin- Contmental Continental Continental - ental CongressAfter CongressAfter Congress CongressAfter After liberty hberty had been won and the thenew thenew thenew new constitution constitutlon had been adopted adoptedMuhlenberg , , MUhlenberg was sent to the F1.rst F1rst Fast F1.rstCongress FastCongress . FirstCongress Congress and was elected its first firstspeaker firstspeaker firstspeaker speaker , and was subsequently speaker speakerof of the Third ThlI'd ThlId ' Congress Before going goingto goingto goingto to the national Congress he had serv serv- - ed two terms as speaker of the Penn Penn- Pennsylvania Pennsylvania - sylvania Legislature . His brilliant briIllant career as as-preacher as preacher .preacher preacher - . and andI andlegislator andlegislator andlegislator I legislator came carne to an untimely end in In1801 1801 , , when he died at the age of 51 |