Vs.
Elite
VOL. I.
RALEIGH, N. C, THURSDAY, JULY 21, 1904.
NO. 14
rpnseo
SKETCH OF JUDdE PARKER.
His Boyhood DaysSought Political
Honors Early in Life Was a
Strong Cle velandlte.
Washington, D. C., July 19.
Correspondence of the Enterprise.
Alton Brooks Parker was born a
farmer's son. Far back in the begin
nings of this nation, two hundred
years ago, his ancestors came from
England and settled in New England.
From generation to generation they
were of the hardy farmer class, and
they drew their love of country from
the soil to which they had been trans
planted. Judge Parker's great
grandfather was a soldier in the
ranks of Washington's army. His
father was living on his farm at
Cortland, in New York State, when,
on May 14th, 1852, the son was born.
He did not yearn to be a farmer,'
but he learned a good deal about
what a farmer boy must do to keep
himself in good standing with his
own family.
As early as he could do so. he
attended school at Cortland Academy
and later got out of the Cortland
Normal School all the equipment for
life it could give him. lie delighted
in study, and formed a strong desire
to round out all his academic begin
nings by a course at Cornell.
His parents were not able to send
him to college or even to take care
. of him while he was trying to find a
foothold. At sixteen, he became a
country school teacher. There is a
tradition that at this immature age
he was obliged, in order to maintain
his prestige and place, to thrash the
school bully. He wandered as far
afoot from home as the village of
Rochester, in Ulster County, to find
a school in which he could earn $3.00
a day as a teacher.
Having surrendered one cherished
ambition, but not his chosen profes
sion, he was admitted to the office
of Schoonmaker & Hardenbergh, of
Kingston, as a student of. law. Both
men were eminent in their profession.
Hardenbergh became a State Senator
and at Albany, was distinguished for
; his intellectual force and for a re
markable power of concise and forci
ble statement.
Working his way, he was at last
enabled to enter the law school at
Albany, gravitating between the of
fice of his preceptors at Kingston
and the law school according to the
season and necessity. In 1872, he
was graduated, and soon after the
sign of Parker & Kenyon was hung
out at Kingston.
A natural interest in politics led
him very earlv to participate in local
effort in that line. He speedily dem
onstrated a decided ability for politi
cal management. From the start he
was a Democrat. In 1877, when he
was twenty-five, the Democrats of
Ulster County, nominated him for
surrogate of the county. He was
elected for a six year term, and in
1883 he was re-elected.
In 1884, he" was a delegate to the
convention at Chicago that nominat
ed Grover Cleveland for President,
and he helped to pull the candidate
through in the hotly contested cam
paign of that year.
When Mr. Cleveland was filling up
the offices in Washington he offered
the position of First Assistant Postmaster-General
to Judge Parker, and
the offer was declined. During the
campaign for Hill, Supreme Court
Justice Theodore R. Westbrook died.
Governor Hill was urged to fill the
vacancy at once. "After the elec
tion," was his answer to all pres
sure. When the election was over
he announced the appointment of
Alton B. Parker to the judgeship.
But he continued to rise. In
June, 1889, was created the second
division of the Court of Appeals to
accelerate the work of the highest
court. Judge Parker was designated
by Governor Hill to sit with the new
court. He was only thirty-eight
years of age, the youngest of all the
judges of the Court of Appeals. He
sat in this court until 1893, when,
upon its dissolution, he was appoint
ed by Governor Flower to be a mem
ber of the general term of the Su
preme Court of the. First District.
This assignment brought him into in
timate association with the bar of
New York City and extended the
circle of his admirers and friends.
In 1897, he was nominated to the
chief judge of the Court of Appeals,
and was elected by a plurality of
60,889.
Andrew Johnson's Quick Wit
There is in the city of Memphis
a precinct known as Pinch, in which
a majority of the voters are Irish.
It so happened that Andrew John
son and his opponent, Gus Henry,
were to meet in joint debate in this
precinct. The evening came, and
hundreds of blue Irish eyes were on
the two speakers as they ascended
the rostrum. Henry opened and as
a bid for the Irish vote he told in
withering terms how Johnson, when
in Congress before, had voted against
a bill for an appropriation to assist
Ireland during a time of famine; he
himself had done yoeman work for
the passage of the bill, while this
other man who was now asking their
support had done everything possi
ble to defeat it. It was a fine point,
and the speaker made the most of it,
burning before it the lamp of his el
oquence until the crowd were wild
with excitement. Then Henry sat
down, and Johnson got up amid cat
calls and scoffs to answer him.
"What my opponent has told you
is true," he said. "Ireland was suf
fering and I voted against an ap
propriation for her relief, for the
money which it was thus proposed
to give away was not mine, but
yours: yours because it was in the
public coffers. I refused to give
away money which did not belong to
me; but I went down into my own
pocket and out of my own private
funds which I had a right to bestow
I subscribed $250 to the relief fund
which wa3 being quietly raised. How
much of his own money did Mr. Hen
ry give ? Not a cent ! He was too
busy trying to give away yours. Now,
gentlemen, which of us two did the
better part by suffering Ireland ?"
The effect of this was magical, the
cat calls were now for Henry and
the cheers for Johnson, and the
votes went with the cheers.
Thus the campaign went on, end
ing in a victory for the ex-tailor, who
once more took his place among the
statesmen of the land. But hi3 term
was a short one, for death soon
claimed him. But he left behind him
a reputation as a "stump" speaker
which abides still upon the hustings
down in Tennessee. Chicago Times-Herald.
RAN AWAY FROM "DIXIE."
A Story of the War-Time Experience
of Brigadier aeneral "Jack" Hayes.
Brigadier General "Jack" Hayes,
retired, was seated with a friend on
the lawn in front of his home one
evening when a street pianist came
along and began his repertory, says
a Washington letter to the New York
Herald. It was a fair instrument,
and the old soldier liked the music
so much that he tossed the man a
piece of silver. The Italian picked
up the money, arranged the side
clutch and then "Dixie" filled the
block.
General Hayes got up from his
chair without a word, walked into his
house, through the hallway and to
the back yard, where he remained un
til the street pianist had gone down
the street and out of the section.
Then the General came out on the
lawn again and took the chair beside
his friend without saying anything.
The friend, however was curious.
"General," he said, "I never before
knew that you were one of these
prejudiced people. What's your idea
in gallowing away when that Italian
began to unwind 'Dixie?' What's
the matter with 'Dixie V WJiy I've
heard it tumultuously cheered in
theatres in Boston and New York."
"That's all right, too," replied Gen
eral Hayes, chewing on his cigar,
"The persons who cheered 'Dixie" in
theatres in Botson and New York
never got such a stampeding through
'Dixie' as I did. Prejudice nothing !
I'm not prejudiced against or sore on
anybody. But I made a bad break
once in connection with that 'Dixie
air, so that I've never been able tc
listen to it since without getting up
and walking as far away from the
sound as I could get.
"I was an aid on the staff of Gen
eral Kirkpatrick when he was tear
ing up the railroads around Macon.
The Confederates were never very
far away from us while we were
doing that work. They hovered
around our front, watching proceed
ings. They thought that they were
not numerically strong enough to
make it worth our while to go after
them. They just watched us from
their distance in front, making no at
tempt to bother the men.
"One day General Kirkpatrick
summoned me I was in charge of
a part of the track destroying to
ask me how the job was proceeding.
He wanted quicker progress made.
"Take one of the mounted bands
down to the place where the men
are working,' said General Kirk
patrick to me. "The boys always work
faster when there's music around."
"I got one of the mounted bands
and took it down to where our gang
was pulling up the ties and rails.
The leader asked me what kind of
music I wanted. I told him to go
ahead with some of the patriotic
airs. He swung off with 'Hail Co
lumbia, 'The Star Spangled Banner.'
'My Country,' etc. The men worked
like Trojans under the inspiration
of the music. I could see the Con
federates massed among the trees.
but they hadn't fired a shot. They
were evidently obeying orders not to.
I appreciated the immunity from the
fire of sharp shooters which they
gave us, and in a sort of bravado
you've got to remember that I was
a lot younger then than I am now -I
turned to the band leader and said to
him:
"Those 'rebs' are treating us pret
ty white. Suppose you just reward
the poor devils by giving them
Dixie
"Well, the leader gave them the
word and the band began to pump
Dixie.'
At this point General Hayes
brought his teeth down hard on his
cigar and remained silent for a minute..'':
"Well ?" inquired his friend.
"Oh, nothing," replied the old sol
dier, 'except that that band hadn't
played more than six bars of 'Dixie'
before the ground under our feet
shook with the blastedest 'rebel yell'
any of us had ever heard, and in a
minute and a half those Confeder
ates were on top of us and whipped
h 1 out of us."
Cream of the Press.
The Japanese have a Togo and a
Nogi, but if they have a Nogo he
hasn't shown up yet. New York
MaiL. . '
;
With a platform a mile long, why
were our old friends the initiative
and referendum ignored ? Chicago
Chronicle.
'
For the first time in eight years
the Democrats are all eating soup
out of the same dish again Phila
delphia Telegraph.
.'. :
As Mr. Fairbanks has a barrel, his
eligibility for the Vice-Presidency
cannot be questioned for a moment.
Memphis Commercial Appeal.
:'.'
If one did not know it to be a fact,
he could hardily believe this is the
same crowd that was running things
four and eight years ago Durham
Herald.
In Manchuria a pint of Russian
beer costs a dollar. Perhaps this is
another reason why the Russians are
so anxious to get out of Manchuria.
Atlanta Journal.
''' v '
When Nicholas found that the
Standard Oil Company had invaded
Russia he concluded to have his
crown strapped to his head. Augus
ta Herald.
,
The President says that while Mr.
Knox was Attorney-General he never
took a vacation. He didn't need to
his whole term was a vacation.
Houston Chronicle.
A New York millionaire has mar
ried a telephone girl. Few men are
thus successful in getting a favor
able answer from Central. Washing
ton Post..
That $1,000,000 check which rumor
says Andrew Carnegie talks of giving
toward the Republican campaign ex
penses is the kind of money plank
the whole party can agree upon.
Baltimore Sun.
. '
Candidate Davis' first duty should
be to assure the public whether the
picture which shows him with whis
kers or the one which shows him
smooth-shaven is authorized to repre
sent him before the people. Chicago
News.