loaned him a copy of Blackstone's Commentaries. The next winter, he taught the Dorrity School, if I remember rightly, spending a part of his leisure in the study of the Commentaries. In the autumn, he went to Middlebury College, probably because his father, Zina Hepburn, had come from that neighborhood, and Bart put in two years there, teaching winters to pay for board, clothes and tuition. Then he became instructor in mathematics in the St. Lawrence Academy under Dr. Plumb, and later principal of the school at Ogdensburg. Meanwhile, he had been studying the law books. After a term as School Commissioner for the county, he was admitted to the bar and began the practice of the law at Colton.

On a summer day, when I was a lad about twelve years of age, in the old Howard school house, of which my sister was then the teacher, I got my first look at "Bart Hibburn" as he was familiarly called up there in the hills. My sister had been a schoolmate of his in the Academy at Potsdam, and I had heard much about him. It was a moment of dread anxiety, when with a forbidden look through the window near which I sat, I saw this stranger turn into the school yard, sitting erect in a single buggy, and get out and hitch his horse to the fence. I knew it was the Commissioner. Other eyes had seen him. There was a little rustle of alarm among the "pupils"-as we were known in those rural, knife-hacked shrines of Minerva, smelling of apple pie and stale cheese and bread and butter. I remember how proud I was to learn for the first time that I had become "a pupil". What a silence fell upon us as the knowledge spread that the Commissioner had arrived! The teacher looked pale and serious and began to feel her back hair.

"Carlton, stop looking out of the window. Salona, please do not lean on your desk," she warned in a low voice and added: "The first class in grammar will now recite."

I was a member of that class-there were only three of us who had got along so far as analysis and parsing. How scared we were as we took our places on the floor! I remember the look of consternation in the eyes of my sister as she beheld my bare feet which showed unwelcome signs of their love of mud puddles.

The Commissioner entered and shook hands with her and sat

down behind the desk. He had a full, brown beard of a hue not quite "sandy" but nearing it, I would say, looking back through all these years; deep set blue eyes, a serious, indeed almost a sad face, and a quiet dignified manner. He listened attentively as we recited our lesson, doing ourselves poor justice, I am bound to say. He asked two or three questions, congratulated the teacher and went away.

When I saw him again I must have been about sixteen and he twenty-nine. He stood in the office of the Empire Hotel, just back from Albany, surrounded by admiring friends. He was then a Member of the Assembly. The second stage of his great career had begun. Sitting by the camp fire one evening in the remote and lonely canyon of Fish Creek in western Wyoming, where we were hunting elk, he told me the remarkable story of his nomination and of the singular events that lifted him into prominence.

"My friends had planted the hope in me that I could be nominated for the Assembly," he began. "I went to one of the party leaders in Canton and asked him if he could see any objection to my being a candidate.

"None at all', he answered with an ironical smile that hurt me. "I wanted to know about that, because if I start in the race, I shall keep a-going', I said.

"Go ahead', said he, but with his tongue in his cheek as if he would have me understand that I would be likely to find it bad going.

"The other leaders talked in the same tone. They had made a wrong guess at my weight. They didn't know me, of course, as well as I knew myself, and those fellows in Canton were running a little monopoly and hitting at everyone who came near it. I don't owe much to them. My travel as School Commissioner had given me a wide acquaintance in the county. I had lodged or broken bread with most of the leading families. All the teachers knew me, I had shaken hands with the best men in every school district. I had made nothing out of my job as Commissioner but friends. Now I began to learn their value and incregor their number. There were two or three important I consulted men in this county who liked me and believed in me.

them. They encouraged me to go ahead and told me about how to proceed. I had some young friends-mostly school friendswho were willing to take off their coats and go to work for me. We organized a canvass of the voters and soon our horses and buggies were on all the main roads. We were making a stir. The news of it reached Canton. The leaders were worried. The one I had first consulted sent for me to come and see him. I went.

"You cannot be nominated this year. It is impossible', he said. 'Wait a year or so and you shall have our help'.

"Mr. R―, when I saw you first, I told you that if I went Rahead I should keep a-going and you told me to go ahead. I went ahead and now I cannot stop. I owe it to my friends who have been working for me to go on.'

"All right, go on then, and you'll see what will happen to you,' he said with a look of indignant pity for my presumption. "I saw, and conquered. We captured the delegates from nearly every town in the county. I had learned my first great lesson. It had taught me the value of friends. Since then I have really studied the art of choosing, making and keeping friends. It is a most helpful and inspiring art. It involves keeping oneself worthy of the respect and confidence of discerning men. In the matter of choosing friends, I think that I was born with rather good taste.

"I went to Albany with the ill will of most of the home leaders. I had not the benefit of their endorsement and their letters of introduction. The administration was Democratic, so my lack of machine backing was not so important as it might have been. Tilden was Governor. The Speaker was a little, lame, hardswearing Irishman of the name of Maguire a real human being and a good fellow. I had two letters of introduction but I was almost a total stranger.

"I was in my seat one afternoon when someone touched my shoulder. Turning I saw the gigantic figure of John F. Smythe, the local political boss, leaning over me.

"Is your name Hepburn?' he asked,

"'Yes, sir.'

"How do you spell it?'

"I spelled the name for him. He handed me his card. "Can you come to my rooms this evening?' he asked. 'I want to have a talk with you.'

"I went, and the interview had a remarkable effect on my Mr. Smythe began by telling why he had asked me to call. It was a story of his boyhood. When a lad in school, over in Scotland, he and some other students had got into trouble on account of a bit of hazing in which they had been leaders. The master proposed to expel them and turn them over to the civil authorities for punishment. It meant disgrace and consequences more serious then the offense merited. The boys were in a panic, when a man of my name befriended them. He went to the schoolmaster, and by timely persuasion saved the boys from the peril of disgrace. Naturally they were grateful.

Since I have come to manhood and some degree of success, I have thought often of the kindness of that member of your Clan, he said. Long since he passed beyond the reach of my gratitude, but I have called you here to tell you that anything I can do for a Hepburn will be gladly done. What do you want here?

"It a'most took my breath. I knew that it was in his power to be of great service to me. I thought a moment and said: Het sir, I should like to be a member of the Banking, Jubietary and Insurance Committees

“Have you seen the Spader?' be asked

"Not yet. He is so d'ased and beset by members. I haven't lad a Clare'

**Go and we ligg foreres. It's your duty to do it. You Tal bin you represent a large 7. "AÅst sopier the State we expect to be recognized # De State of De overities Issei'

De cumus Dinge er barcered to a friendless
I worse e Sexier. The lame,

mare de bat was surrounded by men seeking favor.

ist down and waited my

Your burdens are heavy

enough. I shall increase them as little as possible. I come to you only because my people would disown me if I didn't. They will expect you to give me a chance to be busy enough to keep out of mischief.'

"By G―, I like the way you talk!' he declared. 'Sit down here.'

"Smythe had seen him. He wished to know what I wanted. I told him and got it, and more. He put me on all the best committees and gave me an important chairmanship.

"I was ready for work. I looked the ground over. It astonished me to see how many men there were in the House who knew little or nothing of the bills that were being introduced and of the real progress of legislation. I decided that I would be an exception; that when a bill came up, I would know its history and aim. I went to work harder than I had ever worked in school. When a session began I was prepared for it. I was the man with the facts and I think about the only man with the facts. I became an authority on legislation. My knowledge of the various undertakings began to attract attention. Governor Tilden heard of it and asked me to dinner. Then came my chance. "The Governor proposed to investigate the management of canals and railroads. He had caused a bill to be introduced, calling for a secret investigation. Witnesses were to be examined without the benefit of counsel. Excellent as the bill might be in

other respects, I objected to the secrecy and the examination without counsel. These would make the investigation a star chamber proceeding.

"But here was an embarrassing fact: only the worst men in the Legislature were opposed to the bill. I voted with them and briefly gave my reasons. The New York papers attacked me. I was worried. I saw, in my fancy, the smiles of delight on the faces of those Republican leaders in the North. I could hear their chorus of I-told-you-so's. I got ready to defend my course in a speech. I was loaded to the muzzle when Tilden sent for me. It nearly floored me with astonishment to hear him say: “Hepburn, you are right about that bill. has changed. To-day it is with you.' Here was the last gate on the road to success.

VOL. CCXVI.-NO. 800

999

Public opinion

He had passed