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GLEN LILY-HOME OF GEN. S. B. BUCKNER

citizens, which has secured a wholesome limit to the term of official power and applied to its Mayor that wise rule of the Constitution which limits eligibility in the office of Governor to a single term. And they declare that in all matters of municipal policy which involve the creation of a bonded debt and the imposition of burdens which must endure for years and affect their fortunes and their city's prosperity, the voice of the citizens should be heard and respected, expressed in the form of a free and fair vote and under the safeguard of a pure ballot.'

"Messrs. M. Cary Peter, Frank Hagan, W. R. Belknap, John H. Ward, Isaac T. Woodson and E. Polk Johnson advocated the adoption of Col. Brown's resolutions and when the vote was put a ringing cheer of assent was given.

"The Secretary was requested to notify Governor Buckner of the action of the meeting. "John W. Buchanan, John E. Green,

Secretary.

Chairman."

When the official term of Governor Buckner was about to close, the citizens of Frankfort, without regard to political opinions, held a meeting at which the following preamble and resolutions were adopted:

"The citizens of Frankfort to Gov. Simon Bolivar Buckner.

"The citizens of Frankfort to whom during the past four years an association with Governor Simon Bolivar Buckner has been most acceptable, desire upon his retirement from the Executive office, to give some expression of the feelings of respect and regard he has inspired among them and to offer in public and permanent form, a testimonial by which it may be manifested; it is therefore,

"Resolved, That in his capacity as Governor of Kentucky, Simon Bolivar Buckner has entirely filled the promise of ability and integrity given by an earlier public service and with exceptional fidelity, intelligence and a fearless

disregard of personal results, has conducted the affairs of the Commonwealth to the admiration of all its observing and capable people. They desire to bear witness that he has honorably and equitably administered the laws in all departments of his office and that in the exercise of his prerogative he has neither been compelled nor restrained by any fear of public censure, nor by any desire to court public favor, but that all of his acts have come from a desire to execute rightly and justly his duties as a public officer and that he has in no measuse failed in this performance.

"With all of the higher elements of manhood, sensitiveness, gentleness and firmness, with the fullest human sympathy and the most generous impulses, he has steered clear of the shoals of all mere personal considerations and has adhered closely to the line of justice alike to the individual and the Commonwealth.

"In his social relations, he is frank, easy and unpretentious, endearing himself to all and winning such esteem as has opened to him the hearts and homes of Frankfort people. To him and to the fitting consort by whom he has been so gracefully aided and sustained, there will always be welcoming hands at the Capital.

"In thus ending the happy and honorable relations of four years, the people of Frankfort have only to regret that their extent of feeling is so restrained by limits of expression. "Signed

"Pat McDonald,

"Chairman of General Committee. "Lewis Mangan,

"Acting Mayor.

"B. F. Farmer,

"Secretary, General Committee."

During General Buckner's term as Governor the people of his native county unanimously elected him as their delegate to the Constitutional Convention in which he served with credit to them and to himself. Had his sug

gestions been adopted the resulting Constitution would have been an instrument far superior to that which was finally produced. The Convention was unfortunately dominated by self-seekers and men to whom the sound of their own voices was sweet music, while men of the modest class to which General Buckner, Governor Knott, and others belonged, found their efforts of no avail.

In the memorable Presidential campaign of 1896, many Democrats found themselves unable to accept the theories of Mr. Bryan and the platform upon which he sought election. They were unwilling to support Mr. McKinley and the result was the holding of a National Convention of what came to be known as "Sound Money Democrats" at Indianapolis.

At this Convention, Gen. John M. Palmer, of Illinois, was nominated for President and Gen. S. B. Buckner, of Kentucky, for Vice President. These gentlemen made an extended campaign, and though they failed of election, they had the satisfaction of a duty well performed and the knowledge that they had held intact a nucleus of the older and better Democratic party around which all of its members could rally when reason and sane policies once more returned to its leadership.

From a character sketch of General Buckner written by the late Morton M. Casseday, of the Louisville press, the following extracts are made:

"In the foundation of so well-rounded a character as his many influences work, and in such a man we may see the epitome of a people.

* His military training gave the largeminded man strength, reliance and self-control. He did not become a mere part of a military machine but a man of the strongest personality which made itself felt when he returned to the state after his service in the Mexican war. framed the admirable military law of Kentucky; greatly increased the efficiency of the state troops and at the commencement of hostilities between the North and the South, was

He

actively engaged in trying to maintain Kentucky's neutrality. When this had been disregarded, General Buckner went where his sympathies and his sense of right called him and cast his lot with the South."

Of the battle of Fort Donelson Mr. Casseday wrote: "This battle made General Buckner a hero of the war. He was the third in command but the brunt of the fighting, the mortification of surrender and the hardship of imprisonment fell upon him. * *** Floyd and Pillow left the field and their men and fled to Nashville. General Buckner, steadfast and true, remained with his little army and went with it into suffering and imprisonment.

"The Rev. Dr. Cross of the Confederate army in a sketch of General Buckner's military career, says: 'His moral character is irreproachable. During the months of my intimacy with him, I never saw in him an act or heard from him a word which would not become the purest Christian on earth. Though not a communicant of the Church his Bible and prayer book are his constant companions. In short, he is the most perfect gentleman I have found in the Confederate army, and of all the distinguished men, civilians or soldiers, whose acquaintance I have enjoyed, I have never known one whose private character was altogether so unexceptional as that of General Buckner.'

"Of General Buckner's conduct at Chickamauga, Dr. Cross says: 'He rode through the fiery tempest as calmly as if he knew himself invulnerable, and seemed as thoughtless of danger as if he were out on an equestrian pleasure excursion. He was everywhere among his troops, in front and flank and rear, directing their movements and cheering them to victory. To this cool courage, in connection with Longstreet's strategy and heroic resolution, more than to the management or energy of their compeers, is attributable the triumph of the Confederate arms on the field of Chickamauga.'

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As these words are written the aged hero of

two wars, now nearing the eighty-ninth anniversary of his birth calmly and serenely faces what life may yet have in store for him. With mind as clear and active as when he led his company into action in Mexico or his gray legions to the tremendous conflicts of a later and greater war, he is familiar with the events of to-day with which he keeps in touch as closely as do men far younger than he. About his hospitable board, he delights to gather young and old friends and nowhere is a more charming host. In a word, he is a young old man who refuses to live only in the past, though he recognizes that his days have been many. Writ ing to a friend who had failed to make a promised visit, he said with cheerfulness: "Time is becoming a matter of some importance to me, and if you delay your visit unduly, I may not be here when you come." And in this spirit, he sits upon the porch of his boyhood home calmly enjoying the present and with no fears of the future—a grand old man, a soldier and a statesman.

It is not the purpose of this history to write the lives of all Kentucky's famous men. Neither time nor space would permit so great a task. It would mean the writing of an entire biographical library. The author, whether wisely or unwisely the reader must judge, has chosen three men of more than local distinction as representative Kentuckians and has endeavored to fairly set them forth for the judgment of mankind. Mr. Justice John M. Harlan, of the Supreme Court of the United States; Lieutenant General Simon Bolivar Buckner, of the Confederate Army, and Governer J. Proctor Knott are the typical Kentuckians he has chosen. The first two have been represented in the preceding pages.

J. Proctor Knott was born near Lebanon, Kentucky, August 29, 1830. After receiving a liberal education, he studied law and after his admission to the bar, followed the example of thousands of other Kentuckians and removed to Missouri. Having a natural inclination to

wards politics—not for the spoils of office but because of a sense that it was the duty of a good citizen to give his best to his countryit is not surprising that the people of the county in which the young lawyer settled, should have chosen him to represent them in the Legislature. It was in this humble office that the foundations were laid for the great career of Proctor Knott in the Congress of the United tates. Always a student and a close observer, he saw and heard everything and forgot nothing. In 1859, he resigned his seat in the Missouri Legislature to accept an appointment as Attorney General of the state, being then but twenty-nine years old and having practiced law but eight years. The young lawyer had made the most of his opportunities and so firmly had he planted himself on the eternal principles of the law that at an age when most young lawyers are merely struggling for a foothold, he was recognized for appointment to one of the highest legal positions in the state. So excellently were the duties of the office performed, that on the expiration of his appointive term, he was unanimously nominated by a Democratic State Convention and elected thereto, though at that troublous time, the early days of the war, Democrats were not too popular in Missouri. In 1863, owing to the disturbed condition of affairs in that state, Mr. Knott, in common with many other Kentuckians, returned to his boyhood home and began the practice of law at Lebanon. His great ability did not go unnoticed by the people and he was soon called into active politics where for many years he was to exercise a wise and potent influence. The people of his district elected him to the Fortieth, Forty-first, Forty-fourth, Forty-fifth and Forty-sixth Congresses. Owing to the bitterness of partisan politics immediately following the war, Mr. Knott was not at once seated in the House after his first election, the usual charge of disloyalty being made against him and a majority of the Kentucky delegation when they presented themselves to be sworn as members,

as is related elsewhere in this volume. Finally, however, he was permitted to take his seat and begin a career in Congress which made his name known throughout the entire Union. When the Democrats came into power in the House, no member of the Kentucky delegation had committee assignments superior to his, and after rendering faithful service on each assignment, he reached the goal of every lawyer's hope in the House, the chairmanship of the Judiciary Committee. It was here that his fine mind and great legal attainments won for him the attention, not alone of his colleagues but of the thinking men of the country. It was a great position in that day, greater perhaps than at any other time. New conditions growing out of the war were daily to be met and considered and the chairmanship of the first law committee of the House entailed constant and untiring industry and watchfulness. There were shrewd lawyers in the opposition but the records of Congress show no instance wherein they obtained the advantage of Mr. Knott. He was a profound constitutional lawyer and one of his closest associates while in Washington, was the Hon. Jerry Black, of Pennsylvania, whom he esteemed the greatest lawyer of that day. They were both old-fashioned Democrats, a very different thing from latter day isms; they were both great lawyers, and thus they were mutually drawn to each other.

Solemnity used to be deemed a necessary accompaniment of statesmanship. Mr. Knott was not a solemn man; he could appear solemn on occasion but beneath the cover of appearance there lurked a smile and a fund of humor greater than most men possess. It was ever afterwards his sincere regret that he should have delivered the great Duluth speech which was received by the House and by the Nation with roars of appreciative laughter. No other speech ever delivered in the House has equalled it in satire, humor and effect. It came as a surprise even to the close friends of the

orator. Some time afterwards he delivered in the House his Pennsylvania Avenue speech along the same humorous lines, but never afterwards did he attempt anything of the kind. The country measured the man by these two speeches, notably the first or Duluth speech, and his reputation as a humorist was established nation-wide.

For years afterward when it was announced that Proctor Knott was to speak men and women came for miles to hear him only to go away disenchanted and disappointed. They had come to listen to jokes, to quips and quirks and had listened instead, to a profound speech upon the Constitution or some one of the great questions then uppermost on the minds of thinking men. Mr. Knott felt these conditions keenly and often expressed regret that he had delivered the Duluth speech. Humor, though deeply imbedded in his nature, was a side-issue; he was, on occasion, a very serious man, perhaps altogether serious save in the midst of a circle of his friends when he was the most charming of companions. As a raconteur, he had few equals and his retentive memory permitted him to permanently treasure every good thing he had ever heard, while his brilliant fancy embellished the thoughts of others, making them his own so changed were they from their original shape.

In 1883. Mr. Knott was nominated by the Democrats for Governor and chosen to that office at the ensuing election. His administration was quiet, dignified and successful, though, like all others who, in the past fifty years, have filled that office, he did not escape criticism. The office of Governor of Kentucky is not filled with beds of roses. It is probable that there has been no incumbent of that position who has not retired therefrom with a sense of relief, though at the moment when these words are being written, a former Governor of the State is seeking to be reelected to that office.

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