Evening star. [volume], July 25, 1937, Page F-2, Image 46

About Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972

Image provided by: Library of Congress, Washington, DC

                
DUPONT CIRCLE MEMORIALS
Statue of Admiral and Later Fountain Have Been Notable Orna
ments to Section of City Associated With Center of In
fluence in Higher Development.
By John Clagett Proctor.
HERE are many places in Wash
ington ' that but few people
know anything about, and it
Is quite likely that only a lim
ited few, even of the old-timers,
could tell you where once was lo
cated Pacific Circle, although under
another name it is still in the same
place, right in the heart of the city, its
present name being Dupont Circle,
which will be readily recognized by
•very one.
Back in 1R82, when it was pro
posed to erect a statue of Rear Ad
miral Samuel Francis Dupont in this
circle. Congress thought that the
name of this reservation should be
changed to the name of the man
whose statue was to grace the in
closure, and this was accordingly
done
It took a few years to get the red
tape unwound, of course, and to have
the statue made, and finally the day
for unveiling arrived. And this day
was December 20. 18M. It was bitter
cold, the Potomac being frozen over ]
all the way from Washington to
Alexandria But this did not prevent j
President Arthur and many distin
guished guests from braving the ele- j
ments. though it does seem that a I
different time of the year would best j
have been selected for an event of
this kind
"The piercing wind," says an old j
account, "which blew up the broad
converging avenues and across Du
pont Circle yesterday made the pom
pous ceremonies of unveiling another
statue seem more perfunctory than
ever. The stand was prettily draped
by the Wyandotte and Dispatch sail
ors. and some of the neighboring res
idences had been gay in honor of the
event. The President and cabinet
were somewhat tardy. When thev
appeared on the platform the bugle
corps of the Maine Band played the
usual welcome, which was immedi
ately followed by Rossini's 'Stabat
Mater' by the full band, with cornet
iolo by Jaegar. It was a grand per
formance and brought forth merited
applause.
/\ ο auuiN ai me music had died
away, Secretary Chandler
stepped to the front of the grand
stand and said: 'We have assembled to
honor the memory of one of the naval
heroes of the War for the Union.
Samuel Francis Dupont, who enured '
the Navy in 1815 as a boy of 12
end died in the service in 1865, a rear
admiral. His faithful labors for his
country, his patience, dignity and
lovalty under trying circumstances,
end his important achievements in
battle against the enemv have made
his name illustrious. The Congress
has ordered that his statue shall be
here erected, an enduring memorial
of his virtues, his valor and his
patriotism.'
"After the remarks of Secretary
Chandler, he called upon Rev. Dr.
Leonard, who was dressed in full epis
copal robes and offered up a fitting
prayer. Immediately after the prayer,
two sailors, stationed on either sid°
of the pedestal, seized the ropes that 1
held the covering around the statue
and at the signal pulled them away,
the appearance of the figure being
greeted by a salute from the military
and applause of the spectators.
"As soon as the applause died away
Secretary Chandler introduced Sen
ator Bayard of Delaware as the orator j
of the day. It took the Senator just
one hour and 10 minutes to deliver
his address, he standing all the time
uncovered in the intense cold. The
spectators, especially those on the j
grandstand, were the pictures of de- i
spair. the cold making their faces |
appear in all sorts of shapes and
grimaces. Secretary Frelinghuysen
vas the only member of the cabinet
who retreated, retiring early from the
scene, but the rest of the gathering
withstood the blast and the snow that
fell toward the close like so many
veterans.
"At the conclusion of Senator
Bayard's address the Marine Band
struck up 'Hail to the Chief.' while a
rear admiral's salute was fired from
the artillery stationed on Ρ street.
The military parade consisted of the
Marine Battalion, with full band and
bugle corps, commanded by Col. Mc
Cauley and Lieuts. Harrington. Nichol
son and Turner, a detachmpnt of
ëailors from the Navy Yard supplied
with cutlasses and Dupont Post, No.
2. G. A. R, of Wilmington, Del., under
charge of Comdr. Emmons. Most of
the Army and Navy officers on duty
here were present in uniform, as were
also many diplomats."
ELL, it is surprising what a
change in sentiment a few
years will brin? about, and so we find
that in less than 37 years the statue
of Admiral Dupont, then considered
en artistic achievement, was taken
down and removed from the city and
In its place was erected a white marble
fountain, upon which are fleures rep
resenting the sea, the wind and the
itars.
Of course, no one with an eye for
the beautiful could other than praise
this memorial as a work of art, espe
cially when we know that Daniel
Chester French, who made that mar
velous statue of the Great Emanci
pator in the Lincoln Memorial, was
also its sculptor. Henry Bacon the
architect and that Piccirrilli brothers
xrere the marble workers But this
Is there arxl speaks for itself, while
the heroic bronze fitrure. formerly on
the site, is probably in one of the
Parks of Wilmington. Del., where The
Star, at the time of its removal, said
tt would be placed.
The statue, placed in the circle in
188*. was the work of Launt Thomp
son. an artist of rare ability, of whom
It has been said:
"Another sculptor of great ability
ewes his first instruction in the plas
tic art to Palmer—Launt Thompson.
He was a poor lad, who early showed
art instincts, but was employed in the
office of Dr Armsby, until Palmer
stated one aay that h· was in search
of an assistant, and asked Dr. Armsby
if he could recommenld any one. The
doctor suggested Thompson (who was
In the room) as a youth who had a
turn that way, but had been unable
to find opportunity to gratify his art
cravings. Thus began the career of
one of our strongest portrait sculptors.
In the modeling, both of the bust
and the full figure, Thompson has
been equaled by# very few of our
sculptors. Among many successful
works may be mentioned his Napoleon.
Edwin Booth, Gen. Sedgwick, at
Weet Point, and President Pierson, at
Yal· College." '
The coat of thia atatue was 120.500,
this amount being appropriated by
congress. The cost of the fountain
that replaced it was somewhere be
tween $75,000 and $100,000, which
was borne by the Du Pont family. At
the unveiling exercises of the latter
the Marine Band was also present, as
it had been in 1884. and among its
selections played Nevin's "Narcissus."
Right Rev. Alfred Harding, D. D.,
Bishop of Washington, gave the in
vocation; Mrs. Bruce Ford, the ad
miral's granddaughter, pulled the cord,
while the Secretary of the Navy, Edwin
Denby, made the formal address.
rpHE removal of the old statue Is
said to have been because it be
came an eyesore to a member of the
Du Pont family. An unusual reason,
if true, for if it were unworthy of a
place in Washington, why set. it up
in Delaware, to offend some one else's
vision?
However, as we look at the matter j
from the sidelines, perhaps it would
have been better to let the statue ι
remain in Washington, where it would
ha\e been seen by so many thousands ι
of visitors annually, for, after all. |
there are many naval officers whose j
history is as brilliant as his, though ι
their service may not have covered !
quite as many years and their an
cestral background not so important.
Admiral Samuel Francis Dupont
was born at Bergen Point, N. J.,
September 27, 1803, and died at Phila
delphia, Pa . June 23, 1865. In 1815
President Madison appointed him a
midshipman in the Navy, his first
service being a voyage to the Med
iterranean in the Franklin. During
the years 1821 and 1822 he served
aboard the Constitution, being later |
attached to the Congress. In 1842 he
was promoted to commander, and in
1845 assisted in perfecting the or- |
ganization of the newly founded Naval ;
Academv. On the outbreak of the
Mexican War he was sent to com
mand the Cyane, and toward the
beginning of the Civil War was ap
pointed flag officer and ordered to
the command of the South Atlantic
blockading squadron.
Perhaps hia greatest achievement
in this war was when, in conjunction
with Gen. Thomas W. Sherman's land
forces, he captured the forts at Port
Royal Entrance, S. C., and Tyber
Island, at the mouth of the Savannah.
Thus Port Royal became the great
depot for the Union fleet. In this
engagement, we are told, the ships
described an ellipse between the forts,
each vessel delivering its flre as it
slowly sailed by, then passing on and
another talcing its place. The line
of this ellipse was constantly changed
to prevent the Confederates from get
ting the range of the vessels.
His attack on Charleston, April 7,
1863, did not, however, end so glori
ously, and his attempt to run the
fortifications at the entrance to this
city ended in a disastrous failure,
when he was repulsed with consid
erable loss. Shortly after this, on
July 5. 1863, he was relieved from
command.
DESIDES the fountain, erected here
to his memory, a fort was named
for him during the Civil War, and part
of the earthworks still denote the spot.
It is Just about on the southeast Dis
trict of Columbia-Maryland line where
it Is crossed by the Marlboro road. Be
ginning at the top of Good Hope road,
where was Fort Wagner, the other
forts, extending on a line to Fort du
Pont, were Fort Baker, Fort Davis
and Fort Caton.
Admiral du Pont was the third son
of Victor Marie du Pont de Nemours,
who was born in ''aris. France. Octo
ber 1, 1767, and died in Philadelphia,
Pa., January 30, 1827. He In turn was
the son of Pierre Samuel du Pont de
Nemours, French economist.
Victor Marie du Pont settled in
Louvier, Del. and became one of
America's outstanding manufacturers.
His father, Pierre Samuel du Pont de
Nemours, who was born in Paris, De
cember 14, 1739, died at Eleutherian
Mills, near Wilmington. Del , August
7, 1817. He is stated always to have
been an ardent advocate of the cause
of American liberty, and when the
time was ripe for peace overtures be
tween this coufitry and Great Britain,
toward the close of the American Rev
olution. to have been entrusted by the
Count de Vergennes with the delicate
mission of conducting the secret nego
tiations with the English representa
tive, Dr. Hutton. which culminated
in the peace treaty of 1783, by which
Great Britain acknowledged the Inde
pendence of the United States.
He was also instrumental in pro
moting the treaty of 1803. by which
the Unfed States purchased Louis
iana. However, like Lafayette, his
trials In his own country were great,
and upon one occasion he barely
escaped the guillotine. After the re
turn of Napoleon from Elba, he was
forced to flee to the United States,
where his two sons had already be
come citizens.
(")NE could hardly speak of Dupont
Circle without saying a word
about some of the notable buildings
that surrounded this well known park,
especially the pioneer of them all
Stewart's Castle, erected in 1873. by
Senator William M. Stewart, at a cost
of about $225.000, with furnishings
costing $100.000 more. On December
30. 1879, it was severely burned, with
a loss estimated at $30,000. The last
owner of the ."castle," which stood on
the site where is now the branch of
the Riggs National Bank, was Sena
tor William A. Clark of Montana, who
removed the building in 1901.
The home of James G. Blaine, can
didate for the presidency in 1884. and
who was defeated by Grover Cleve
land. is still standing to the west of the
circle.
The permit to build the house was
issued on June 8. 1881. the estimated
cost being placed at $48,000. John
Fraser was the architect and Robert
Davidson Co. the builders.
The "Plumed Knight," as Blaine
was called, resided in this house but a
short while, when, in 1883, he leased it
to Levi Z. Leiter of Chicago for five
years at an annual rental of $11,000.
During Blaine's residence here the
house was the center of much social
gavety. On January 1, 1891, it was
damaged by fire to the extent of $15.
000. Later, on May 26. 1899, George
Westinghouse. jr., of Pittsburgh,
bought the property and resided there
for some years.
During the World War it became
the home of the Officers' Club, and in
1921 it was sold by Westinghouse to
Henry B. Spencer of this city. At the
time the property was sold the con
sideration was mentioned as being
$90.000, and it was then described as
having a frontage of 127 6 feet on Ρ
street. 69 6 feet on Twentieth street,
and 116.6 feet on Massachusetts ave
nue. It «as further stated: "The
house is constructed of brick and is
four stories in height, and contains
many large rooms, including a spa
cious reception nail on the main
floor, flanked by numerous living and
dining rooms."
After vacating the Blaine house.
Mr. Leiter built the mansion at 1500
New Hampshire avenue and here his
daughter Mary resided when she mar
ried the Hon. George Nathaniel Cur
zon, in St. John'* Church, Sixteenth
and Η street*, April 22, 1895.
T^HE Patterson house, at No. 15
Dupont circle, is. no doubt, the
most Important residence in this
neighborhood, particularly so because
it *-as occupied in 1927 as the tem
porary White House, during the mak
ing of repairs to the Executive Man
sion. At the time it was taken over
by the President, The Star said:
"The old Patterson home is one of
the. finest of the many mansions to
be found in the Dupont Circle sec
tion of Washington. Stately in archi
tecture. of Italian influence, from the
outside, it is even more gorgeous in
side. It contains 30 rooms, all of
them large and comfortable, and 10
baths. An elevator runs from base
ment to top floor.
"The house has four floors and is
built of white stone, and was designed
by the late Sanford White. It is com
pletely detached. This feature is un
derstood to have had considerable ■
influence in causing this house to be
picked by the President for the tem
porary White House. They wanted a
home that had plenty of light. Thire
were other houses that appealed, but
were not selected because they are
not detached and because their con
struction did not. permit sufficient day
light to enter the rooms."
It was during Mr. Coolldge's resi
dence here that Col. Charles Lind- j
bergh and his mother, Mrs. Evangeline
Lindbergh, were the President's guests,
folowing the return of Col. Lindbergh
to this country after his memorable
flight across the Atlantic. It was from
the balcony of this house that he
waved a greeting to the throng
which gathered in front of the house
to shout his praise.
Lindbergh, as will be recalled, as a
boy, spent much of his time in Wash
ington while his father was serving
in Congress as a Representative from
Minnesota. In 1907, when he first
came to Washington, the senior Lind
bergh took up his residence at 1831
V street northwest. For some un
known reason this place did not seem
to suit his fancy, and in the following
year he had moved to 1726 Willard
street.
For his whereabouts after 1908. the
City Directory must be depended upon,
and this gives his 1910 address as
the Congress Hall Hotel, located at
New Jersey avenue and C street south
east, where formerly stood several
buildings owned by Thomas Law. the
corner one of which was his residence, j
Mr. Law had married Elizabeth Parke [
Custis, granddaughter of Martha j
Washington, and it was to their home
that the first President paid visits
wrhen in this city. The House Office
Annex now occupies this site.
rpHE Laws did not get along in
perfect harmony, and ere long
the property was leased to Conrad Λ
McMunn for hotel purposes, and it
was here that Thomas Jefferson re
sided while Vice President and from
here also that he marched with an
escort το the Capitol to be sworn in j
as President in 1801, when some folks
say he rode up the Avenue unaccom
panied and hitched his horse to
paling fence and returned to the
White House after the ceremony, in
the same democratic fashion; but' of
course this statement does not apply
to his first inauguration.
The next place we find Representa
tive Lindbergh is at the Hotel Dris
coll, First and Β streets northwest,
where he stopped in 1914. The direc
tories do ηόι give his address for
1915 and 1916, but during his la.'*,
year in Washington he stepped at
the Continental Hotel, corner of North
Capitol and Ε streets.
That Col. Lindbergh received much
of his education In Washington thete
is little doubt. Besides attending the
Friends School, he attended also the
Eastern High School in the period oi
the 10 years his father serve", in
the Lower House.
The Patterson mansion is the resi
dence of Mrs. Eleanor Patterson, pub
lisher of the Washington Herald. It
was constructed in 1901 and 1902.
The cost of the building was esti
mated at $164,000, the building bein·;
done during a period of low prices. !
The site was acquired for $83.000. j
The extra refinements which went j
into the building cost $164.000, among
these being the wainscoting for the ι
library, costing $6.000; interior dec
orative features, $10.000. and marble ]
for the hall and stairway, $10,000. Tne
mansion at the time it was occupied
by Mr. Coolidge was assessed at ap
proximately $450,000. It was built
by the George A. Fuller Co. and is
still one of Washington's most beau
tiful mansions.
JT WOULD, indeed, be quite difficult
for any one to visualize what Du
pont Circle and that vicinity of tne !
city looked like in the early days of
Washington, or, to come down to more
recent times, when Stewart Castle
was built in 1873, unless, in the la^- ι
ter instance, the person looking back
ward into the past was willing to con
fess that he was an old-timer and
could recall John Hopkins' brickyard,
at Twentieth and Ρ streets, which was
operated as late as 1875, though Mr.
Hopkins, a Georgetown man. died in
1858, the business probably being car
ried on after that date by his heirs.
Old Slash Run. still remembered
by many, touched, in its zig-zag course,
within a block of the circle. This
stream, sometimes also called Shad
Run, was still an open stream in many
places when many still living were
youngsters. Its source was some
where in the vicinity of Fifteenth
street and Columbia road, and the
odor arising from the insanitary
slaughter houses which lined its
banks was very unpleasant in warm
weather, as the city became gradually
more congested.
Some of the early slaughter houses
included those of William Linkms,
Frank Linkins. John Pfeaster, John
Berry, George Walker. John Hoover.
John Little and others. But nature
had made this a picturesque stream
and it had its attraction as well as
its detraction. It entered the city by
crossing Florida avenue at about
Eiehteenth street. A feeder which
joined the mam stream in the center
of square 156. between Seventeenth
and Eiehteenth, Ρ and Q. added to
the size of the branch as it wended
its way southeasterly to near Sixteenth
and L streets, where it zie-zaeeed
west to Twenty-second street and
flowed into Rock Creek at a point
between Ν and Ο streets.
"Guy Graham," so an old item
states, "was the pioneer settler of the
Dupont Circle neighborhood." and
was one of those who rut the mad
from the Capitol to the Treasury, now
designated Pennsylvania avenue. In
his day, and for manv years after
ward. there was good swim m me alon?
Slash Run, which would embrace to
day one of the most important parti
of Washington.
At one time the stream was evi
dently qui'e large, and quite old a:,
well, for on several occasions when
excavations have been made along it',
course tree trunlts and vegetation of
an early period have b^en found,
sometimes 20 feet below the earth i *
surface.
Statue of Rear Admiral
Samuel Francis Dupont, for
merly in Dupont Circle. It
iras dedicated in 1884 and
removed in 1921.
Stewart's Castle, erected by Senator William M. Stewart of
Neiwda in 1873 on the northwest corrier of Connecticut avenue
and Dupont Circle, west of the Leiter home.
Λ
Home erected by Levi Z. Leiter at 1500 New Hampshire avenue, Dupont Circle, prior to
1895.
TRADITION AGAINST THIRD TERM HAS FACED MANY ATTACKS
First President's Final Decision Has Maintained Influence in Long
History of National Politics, But Hard Battles for Change
of Policy Have Been Fought Out.
By Herbert Hollander. |
IT'S In again, the hardest peren- !
niai in American political life;
and everywhere throughout. the
country the question is being
asked: "Will Franklin D R<iosevelt
seek a third-term nomination, or per
mit himself to be 'drafted'?"
Regardless of White House pro
nouncements. or lack of them, between
now and 1940. it is clear that the
question will be answered definitely
and finally only at the nominating
convention in the Summer of that
year.
In the meantime—again regardless
of what President Roosevelt says or
does not say on the subject—third
term talk will grow in volume and
intensity.
That, history shows, has happened
often before. On many occasions
since the Inception of the country,
the public !ms become profoundly
agitated over the third-term Issue.
And it is noteworthy that while sen
timent generally always has been
clearly opposed to a third term, those
who have sought to break the prece
dent by no means have been devoid
of supporters.
President George Washington's in
fluence. probably more than any other
single factor, has given unshakable
strength to the anti-third-term tradi
tion. There Ls nothing in the Consti
tution to prevent one President from
remaining in office for more than two
terms, and strong third-term move
ments have appeared in behalf of
several Presidents.
rpHE nearest approach to outright
third-termism occurred In 1880,
when supporters of Ulysses S. Grant
were able to muster more than 300
votes on 36 ballots at the Republican
convention in Chicago.
Grant already had served two terms.
Then came the Hayes administration
—after the Tilden-Haves election had
nearly precipitated a second civil war
—and the Grant men, under the
leadership of Senator Roecoe Conk
ling of New York, saw an opportunity
once more to capitalize on the gen
eral's great war record and reinstall
him in the White House. (As a mat
ter of fact. Grant would have been
willing to run for a third term In
1876, but failed to receive the support
then that he was to gain for the
effort four years later.)
Despite the corruption and malad
ministration during Grant's two
terms, he still was popular personally,
and Conkling persuaded him to allow
hi- name to come before the conven
tion. But not all of the political
astuteness of Conkling, nor the loy
alty of his henchmen, nor even the
promise of bigger and better spoils,
could overcome the traditional oppo
sition to a third term.
Λ
After days and weeks of bitter bat
tling. a compromise was reached,
Grant was ditched and Garfield be
came the nominee.
When Grant received the news of
his defeat, he spoke bitterly of his
managers. Chagrined and humiliated,
he said: "They never should have
permitted my name to come before
the convention unless they were sure
of victory."
On the day Grant was placed in
nomination for a third term, Repre
sentative Springer of Illinois intro
duced a resolution in Congress ex
pressing opposition to more than two
terms for any President. The reso
lution was adopted by a wide margin.
A similar resolution was Introduced
In Congress, and also adopted, as re
cently as 1928.
Its author was Senator Robert M.
La Follette of Wisconsin, and the
occasion was the issuance by Presi
dent Coolidge of his famous "I-do
not-choose-to-run" statement. It will
be recalled that there were many in
the country who favored Coolidge for
another term, insisting—as Theodore
Roosevelt himself did earlier—that he
had been elected but once, and that
the other term came merely as the
result of succession iollowlng death.
^y/HETHER or not Coolidge carefully
designed his statement, as a strad
dle—and there is no reason to believe
he did—his supporters for a third
term were numerous and highly ar
ticulate.
To choke that off. La Follette in
troduced his resolution, which, after
several days of stinging debate, was j
adopted by a vote of 56 to 26.
The La Follette resolution, as in- I
trodured, read:
"Resolved, that it is the sense of
the Senate that the precedent estab- :
lished by Washington and other Près- |
idents of the United States retiring j
from the presidential office after their !
second term has become, by universal
concurrence, a pert of our republican !
system of government, and that any
departure from this time-honored cus
tom would be unwise, unpatriotic and
fraught with peril to our free institu
tions; and be it· further
"Resolved, that the Senate com
mends the observance of this prece
dent by the President."
The latter paragraph was dropped
off as the resolution was finally
adopted.
]^OT so well known as George
Washington's refusal to accept a
third term is a statement made by
him in 1778 in a letter to Lafayette,
in which he declares himself em
phatically against limiting the presi
dential tenure of office. At that time
he wrote:
"There are other points in which
opinions would be mone likely to vary,
as, for instance, on the eligibility of
the same person for President after
he should have served a certain num
ber of years. Guarded so effectively
as the proposed Constitution is in
respect to the prevention of bribery
and undue influence in the choice of
President, I confess I differ widely
from Mr. Jefferson and you as to the
necessity or expediency of rotation in
that office. * · * I can see no pro
priety in precluding ourselves from
the services of any man who on some
great emergency shall be deemed, .uni
versally most capable of serving the
public."
This statement is quite as explicit
as Washington's later action in re
fusing the proffered third term. Did
he change his mind during the suc
ceeding years, did he not deem him
self longer worthy, or desirous, of the
office, or did he not consider the emer
gency pressing enough to justify con
tinuance in the presidency? What
ever the answer may be, it was Wash
ington who, wittingly or unwittingly,
set a precedent which has had far
greater weight and «way than law
ltMlf.
In 1788 Jefferson discussed the
question in s letter to Alexander Don
ald, as follows:
"There Is another strong feature in
the new Constitution which I as
strongly dislike. That is the perpetual
re-eligibility of the President. Of this
I expect no amendment at present,
because I do not see that anybody
has objection to it. But it will be
productive of cruel distress to our
country, even in your day and mine."
Perhaps Jefferson's prediction has
not been borne out fully—although
Grant certainly suffered "cruel dis
tress" when the Chicago attempt
failed—but there is yo gainsaying
that the third-term issue has been a
perennially live, and usually bitter,
one since the very beginning.
QN NUMEROUS occasions in our
history, Congress has taken cog
nizance of the question. Resolutions
limiting the presidential term were up
in 1828, 1829, 1830 and 1832. All were
defeated. Jackson, in a message to
Congress, urged such a change. In
1833 and in 1835 constitutional
amendments were offered, and in11844
tiré Whig platform contained a
strongly worded plank pledging such
an amendment. Again in 1844 and in
1846 constitutional amendments were
offered in Congress, but nothing was
accomplished.
After the real third-term scare of
1880 there was renewed demand for
some statutory limitation, but again
no action was taken.
Previously, in 1871 and 1872, there
had been considerable agitation in
favor of a single term for the Preei.
dent. As a matter of fact the single
term idea lw been put forward
frequently In the pa«t 150 years, be
ginning with the Constitutional Con
vention itself and continuing up to the
present.
The question of presidential tenure
was a subject of intensive debate in
1787 when the Constitution was being
hammered into form, and the present
provision Is the result of η compromise
—as Is virtually every other part of
that document.
Two proposals first were discussed
most seriously, namely, a three-year
term with eligibility for re-election
and a seven-year term without eligi
bility.
The first vote was for a sever>-year
term without re-eligibility, the second
vote was for a seven-year term with
eligibility, and on a third vote a reso
lution was adopted providing for a
seven-year term for the President of
the United States without eligibility
for re-election to that office.
However, the convention was not
yet done with the question, for the
entire matter then was referred to a
committee of 11. representing each of
the 11 States represented in the con
vention. This committee, after long
and careful consideration, voted to
recommend a four-year term without
reference to eligibility for re-election.
This recommendation was accepted by
the convention and became part of the
Constitution.
As to qualifications, the Constitu
tion simply specifies that the President
must be a natural born citizen, he
must have attained the age of 35
years and he shall have been a resident
of the United Statee for 14 years.
' V\7HEN Theodore Roosevelt ran for
President in 1912 on the Pro
gressive ticket. against President Taft
and Gov. Wilson, he had a strong
anti-third-term sentiment to contend
with, despite his heated claim that he
was running for the presidency, not
the third time, but the second time.
The first time he ran for the vice
vice presidency with McKinley. suc
ceeding to the White House on the
latter's death. The same argument
was used, not by Coolidge himself, but
by those who wished him to run again
in 1928.
Many probably have forgotten It,
but Wilson is known to have desired
a third nomination in 1920, despite
his unfortunate physical condition, in
order to win from the country a repu
diation of the senatorial "irreconcil
ables" who had wrecked his plan for
American participation in the League
of Nations. If Wilson had not been
so crushed in body, there is held to
be the strongest evidence that he
would have made a characteristically
vigorous fight for another nomination
and another opportunity to go before
the country on his record.
There was only one President who
declared at the outset of his first
administration that he would take but
one term and held by his resolution.
He was James Buchanan. 65 years
old at his inauguration. Only Wil
liam Henry Harrison, 68, was older
among all the Presidents when taking
office. While there is little likelihood
that Buchanan could have been re
elected, it ia noteworthy that he did
not «eek renomination, thus keeping
hie still unique pledge.
OPPOSITION TO THIRD
TERM REVEALED BY
LONG HISTORY
f^EORGE WASHINGTON set
the as yet unshattered -pre
cedent against third terms for
American Presidents.
Yet in a letter to Lafayette in
1778, Washington said that "I
can see no propriety in preclud
ing ourselves from the services of
any man who on some great emer
gency shall be deemed universally
most capable of serving the pub
lic."
But Jackson declared himself
strongly opposed to more than two
terms: Congress on numerous oc
casions has so resolved: Grant
failed in 1SS0 in the boldest and
most nearly successful bid in our
history for an outright third
nomination: and Theodore Roose
velt could not convince, the coun
try in 1912 that he was not run
ning for the third term.
These and many other facts,
many of them little known, be
ginning with the heated debates
in the Constitution Convention
on Presidential Tenure, are con
tained in the accompanying
article, rendered timely by the
Nation-wide interest in President
Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1940 in
tention*.
Third-term jinx. This typical cartoon, by Nelson Harding, published in 1911 by the Brooklyn
Eagle, foreshadowed Theodore Roosevelt's presidential candidacy the following year on the Pro
gressive ticket.
LIST FAMOUS WOMEN
American Ladies Who Are Called Great
Come From Every Imaginable Profes
sion, According to Publication.
By J a tttps Waldo Fawcrtt.
MORE than 1.000 American
women deserve to be regarded
as famous.
Such is the finding repre
sented in the latest publication of the
Division of Bibliography of the Library
i{ Congress. The book. a.s yet avail
»ble only in mimeographed form, was
"ompiled by Miss Florence S. Hellman.
icting chief bibliographer. It brings
jp to date a similar but much less
comprehensive study made in 1932.
The list begins with Eleanor Hallo
veil Abbott, author, and closes with
Lucia Zora, circus star.
In the subject index there is an
ittempt at classification, but tne edi
xir stipulates that "it is not intended
is a complete analysts of the careers
if the women" included. Actresses,
clubwomen, composers, editors, educa
ors. Government officials, humani
arians, illustrators, journalists, lec
;urers, missionaries, novelists, nurses,
philanthropists. poets, reformers, social
service workers, wives of famous men
ind wives of Presidents are grouped
irbitrarilv "merely as an aid to locate
material relating to the various pro
fessions."
A glance over the contents record
shows one animal trainer, Mabel
Stark; one anthropogeographer, Ellen
Churchill Semple· on* "stunt girl.J
Olive Hatch; one botanist, Jane C'I
den: one chemist, Ellen Henrietta.
Swallow Richards; one cabinet officer
Frances Perkins; one financier, Hett;
Howland Robinson Green: one Gov -
ernor. Nellie Tayjoe Ross; one Mormon
poet. Eliza Roxey Snow ; one mountain
climber, Annie Smith Peck: one mor
ologuist, Anne Newport Royall; or»
markswoman or "sharpshooter," Ann:»
Oakley; one pho'oerapher, Margaret
Bourke-White; one Girl Scouts leader, *
' Juliette Gordon Low, and one violin
ist, Maud Powell.
' Ç^THER hracket.s are: Abolitionist5,
archeologists. art patrons, astron
omers. business executives, civic work
ers. Congresswomen. dancers, drama
tists, engineers, entomologists, ethnolo
gists. explorers, foundresses, historians,
home economists, hymn writers, judges,
labor leaders, lawyers, mothers of
noted persons, naturalists, organizers,
painters, physicians, pioneer women,
religious leaders, screen stars, sculp-,
tors, singers, suffragists, surgeons,
translators and welfare workers.
No less than seven spies are men
j tioned—Lydia Barrmgton Darragh and
Fanny Bullock Workman, 'real"
daughters of the Revolution: Belie
Boyd and Rose O'Neil Greenhow of
ί the South, and Paulme Cushman,
! Emma Edmonds and Elizabeth van '
1 Lew of the North.
A courase like that required in war
time is also manifest in the case of
two women described as "parachute ,
jumpers." Tinv Broadwick and Phoebe
Fairgrave Omlie.
But women meriting the adjective
"indomitable." are numerous Miss
Hellmnn applies the word to Annie
Pike Greenwood of "We Sagebrush
Folks": Mrs. Evelyn Harris, "the bar
ter lady": Mary Kidder Rak. "a cow
man's wife"; Katharine Ball Ripley
of "Sand in My Shoes": Eleanor de
la Verene Doss Risley, heroine of "An ,
Abandoned Orchard." and Mrs. Hilda
Ra«e of "The Stump Farm "
Some of the names are unfamiliar.
For example, who would guess that
Mary Ludwig Hays McCauley conceal»
Molly Pitcher of the battle of Mon
mouth? Or Helen Louise Leonard the
glamorous Lillian Russell?
On the other hand, many of the
names need no explanatory introduc
tion. Lydia Pinkham. perhaps, was
the most widely celebrated woman of
her generation She still is known to
millions of people who probably never "
have heard of Martha Washington or
Helen Keller.
j rr,HE list serves to bring back to pub
lic notice a few "forgotten ladies"
who ought not to be lost. Emma Iîz
arus. the unhappy American "sister"
of Thomas Chatterton, is a case in
point. Another is Rose Hawthorne
Lathrop. daughter of the writer of
"Twice Told Tales"—she abandoned
the world to devote herself to the care
of patients suffering with incurahle
cancer and, as Mother Alphonsa,
earned a place in any proper Hall of
Fame of which it is possible to con
ceive.
Miss Hellman's purpose has been *
eminently prartiral. She has under
stood that people are interested pri
marily in their contemporaries To
meet the current demand, therefore,
she has listed Grace Abbott. Rose
Bampton, Pamela Bianco. Carrie
Jacobs Bond. Evangeline Bnoth. Pearl
Buck. Senator Hattie Caraway, Carrie
Chapman Catt. Mrs. Calvin Coolidge,
Katharine Cornell. Joan Crawford,
Gertrude Ederle, Zona Gale, Mary '
Garden. Lillian Gish, Helen Hayes,
Katherine Hepburn, Malvina Hoffman,
Fannie Hurst, Eleanor Holm Jarrett,
Eva Le Ga'.lienne, Anne Morrow Lind
bergh, Ruth Hanna McCormick
Simms. Evalvn Walsh McLean, Edna
St. Vincent Millay, Helen Wills
Moody. Grace Moore, Kathleen Nor
ris. Julia Peterkin, Mary Pickford,
Brenda Putnam. Mary Roberts Rine
hart, Norma Shearer, Cornelia Otis
Skinner. Gertrude Stein. Lillian D.
Wald, Mrs. Harry Payne Whitney, *
the Duchess of Windsor and the
mother and the wife of President
Franklin D. Roosevelt.
Yet there are certain remarkable
omissions, inevitable, no doubt, in the
circumstances. Shirley Temple may
be cited for illustration.
All in all, however. Miss Hellman's
labors have resulted in something far
more important than a guide to liter
ature. She has demonstrated in hT
list the romance and the variety nf
American life. Her book is an index
finger to the rolor and vitality of
a* rich a civilization as e'er the *uri
■hone on.
4