Show 0 cut 7 U era as A great orator had ad a warning henry W grady seemed to have premonition of evil before G going 0 ing to boston where he con fatal cold in the early part of december 1889 1 I think it was about two weeks after congress had met in regular ees ses slon elon I 1 was sitting in my office in washington one evening when a man came in threw himself into an un occupied chair and said hello in this way the late amos J cum who in 1889 was closing his first term in congress described to me his last meeting with henry W grady editor of the atlanta bonatt aution who gained national tame fame in a single night by a speech which he made on the new south before the members of the new england society in new york on the evening of forefathers day 1886 I 1 noticed the moment grady sat down mr cummings went on that he seemed to be in 14 ill health or else was mentally distressed he pushed his hat upon the back side of his head leaned forward placed his el bows upon the table and dejectedly rested his chin in both hands bands dont you feel well I 1 asked and he be replied that so tar far as he knew he was perfectly well physically but that he bad had been laboring under a fit of great depression which had seized him the very moment he took the train at atlanta for the north thinking to cheer him up a bit I 1 said to him that no man who had gained so swiftly the brilliant reau tation which had come to him from one address ought to fave a mo ments ment a depression he gave me no direct answer but said instead I 1 am RM on my way to boston they have invited me to deliver an address there on the evening of forefathers day they ached me last year but I 1 was unable to go to boston then that new york address so far as ftc it success was concerned was as great a surprise to me as it could have been to any of those who invited me to speak at the new england dinner having said this grady burled buried his face in his hands I 1 thought that he was fearful that he would not main tain at boston the reputation he had gained three years earlier in new york I 1 asked him it if he was to speak upon the same subject the new south how fervid was his rhetoric upon that occa occasion with what per faction of the spoken word he prophesied the future of the united coun afryl FY I 1 how apt were his metaphors e entirely tree free from any grandiloquent nourish fl the more effective hy by reason of their simplicity I 1 thought of this and I 1 wondered whether he would be able at boston to stir the sons of new now Fri fridland gland in the new england capital as he had moved the sons of new england in new york he must have known what was in my mind for he said that he was not at all concerned about the effect of his speech in boston and he was not going to speak of the new south but of some phases of the negro question it will be a more serious subject than the one I 1 chose for new york because the negro question Is the grave one of the south he continued but I 1 am going to tell them about it exactly what I 1 think again grady stopped and once more rested his face in his hands at last he said I 1 dont don t know what has come over me I 1 have not the slightest anxiety about my boston speech but I 1 can cant t shake off this feel ing of depression if I 1 were super supers sti tl bious I 1 should say that it Is tous tons I 1 suggested to him that perhaps his stomach was out of order no he replied it Is not that but I 1 don t know inow what it Is ident to new york with a light heart and story of whites elevation president cleveland vexed by awo wo rejections by senate got as far away from new york state as po possible sible but for grover cleveland s nation to get as far away from new york state as possible edward doug las as agite would probably not now be chief justice of the united states su SEE preme court and the various inter esting details of bow how he came to be put on the bench as an associate jus tice by president cleveland are given here for the first time president cleveland found it expedit ent to summon congress into binary session in the summer of 1893 panic prevailed there had been a virtual suspension of payments by the banks the president was assured that it if congress would repeal the so called sherman silver law confidence would be restored it so happened view of arthur he had sincere admiration for his predecessor and for his skill and courage in handling a dif ficula situation mr george F parker the bolograph blo graph er of grover cleveland and his inti anti mate friend for years had many tunit les tor for confidential conversation with mr cleveland during which the latter spoke freely of men and events of the po generation with which be was identified on one OL occasion caslon said mr parker w when hen I 1 was chatting with mr cleve i land and it was while he was serving his first term as president some chance reference was made to his sor in the white house chester A arthur instantly mr cleveland spoke in a most tender and sympathetic manner of general arthur and when he had finished I 1 was as much impressed by the earnestness a and nd the cordiality of his appreciation of president arthur and his administration at this po nt I 1 interrupted to say that I 1 had high authority for the statement that before cleveland became governor of new york and certainly after he had entered the executive mansion at albany he had sincere ad aa mi ration for general arthur primarily based on some business or protes elonar association of an earlier day that feeling replied mr parker mr air cleveland still stilt more strongly en after he had been some time in the presidency his early expert ances in that office badelt clear to him how very difficult the position of general arthurr must have been when he entered the presidency not as pres ident elect but by virtue of cons titu lional succession I 1 cannot undertake to repeat pres ident cleveland s precise words but I 1 can give you iery ery clearly the sub stance of his opinion respecting gen eral arthur as president and the rea sons he be gave for holding that opinion he discovered that there were always embarrassments some of them seri serf ous awaiting a newly inaugurated president nt frequently these are diali cult in case the succession passes to one of an opposite party but gen eral arthur became president because of the assassination of president gar field passion was aroused through out the country grievous factional 1 d I inces had bad been created in the rp republican publican party it was an unary d responsibility that awaited general arthur in view of the tact fact that he was recognized as one ot of the leaders of the stalwart faction of the party the faction that had placed itself in opposition to the tra tion of president garfield but cleve land had a good opportunity for learn ing how skillfully fully and with what gen tie tle firmness and a complete sense of patriotic duty president arthur met the responsibility he ile was particular ly impressed by general arthurs dis play of moral courage when he vetoed the first river and ha bor bill sent to him a bill outrageously crammed with pork and I 1 distinctly kemem her ber what mr cleveland said after he had told of the difficulties that had beset arthur and pointed to 0 o the fact hat chat by the end of his term the breace breach in his party had been healed and there was recognition in congress that a pa triot ariot conscientious and earnestly pa citizen had been administering the government I 1 do not think that the country as yet ully realizes or appreciates the high character of the service of pres ident arthur but I 1 feel certain that when the accurate history of hs his ad ministration and times is written there will come a full appreciation which will be the abiding judgment of the american people copyright 1910 by E J edwards all rights reserved ith real enthusiasm I 1 go to boston laboring under this depression he ile tried to shake off the feeling we chatted tor for a while and then with a forced cheerfulness he bade me good bye A few days later I 1 read read the reports in the papers of grady grad a boston address learned that he had maintained his NOT now york reputation and I 1 said te myself now that fit of depression will pass A few days later the news came from atlanta that henry W grady was dead it Is my recollection that he caught a cold at boston which de swiftly into mortal disease and I 1 have never had any doubt that some monition had come to him of what his destiny was to be tt the i real explanation of the d depression e pres SI on t that hat he was laboring under when last I 1 saw him copyright 1910 by E J edwards all rights reserved t that hat a vacancy upon the bench of the supreme court had occurred and the president determined to send into the senate at the extra session the nom of a lawyer to fill that va cancy taking counsel solely with himself he sent in the nomination of william D hornblower of new york the sen sell ate did not act upon the nomination at the special session and so as con gresa gress adjourned without confirming the appointment it was necessary tor for the president to make a new nomina tion when congress met in december it was suggested to him that he send some other name than that ot of mr hornblower to the senate in act fact mr hornblower himself made this suggestion but grover cleveland would not have been the man be he was had he agreed to a suggestion ot of that kind your nomination will go to the senate again and will stay there until it Is confirmed or rejected he said to mr hornblower the nomina tion was again made and david B hill then a senator caused it to be rejected A day or two later president cleve land sent to the senate the nomina fiort of wheeler 11 peckham of new york tor for associate justice senator hill made this nomination a personal issue he had urged the senate to reject hornblower Horri blower on the ground that he was not a loyal democrat but wheel er II 11 peckham was a personal as well as a political enemy mr hill there fore appealed to the custom known as senatorial courtesy and in that way he secured the rejection of the nomi nation of peckham for justice thereupon grover cleveland deter mined so to act as to put an end to the playing fast and loose with his nominations to the supreme court bench I 1 am going to get as far away from new york state as possible he declared the senators from new york appear not to want a new york man to fill the vacancy upon the bench caused by the death of a justice who was nominated from new york well I 1 think I 1 can accommodate them the president asked one or friends to sound the senators quietly respecting the availability of edward D white senator from louisiana as associate justice those friends told president cleveland that senator white came from an old louisiana whig family well there isn t any whig party now senator white was elected as a democrat and he Is a democrat was the reply would there be the slightest oblee tion to his appointment 7 and the answer was that it if he sent senator white whites s name to the senate for associate justice that body would confirm the appointment within ten minutes while this consultation was going on senator white was ignorant of what was in the president presidents s mind A few hours before his nomination was sent to the senate a friend said to senator white president cleveland is going to louisiana for his supreme court justice he says he be is going to get as far away from new york state as possible because the new york senators don t want a new york man appointed that would be a great honor for louisiana senator white said whether just previously he had a more direct intimation of the dent dents s purpose Is not known but his nomination was speedily confirmed and it was confirmed unanimously and with such evidence of cordial appreciation that senator white was deeply touched copyright 1910 by E J edwards all rights reserved |