FRANK S. BLACK

The life of Frank S. Black is an inspiration ; an incentive to youth to cultivate industry, integrity, and sincerity.

Born in a small country town—Limington, Maine—on the 8th day of March, 1853, of ancestry, which, way back, was English, but which for generations had been distinctly American, with surroundings which did not especially tend to promote ambition, or to lead to expectation of high position or even great success, he. started right.

The woodsman sharpens his axe and then cuts down the tree.

Black first secured an education. In order to earn money, he taught school or did any other honorable work. Having fitted himself for college at Lebanon and Limerick Academies, both in Maine, he entered Dartmouth in 1871, not specially well fitted, not a "dig", yet he ranked so high that he was a Commencement speaker and, as was his custom, delivered a fine address.

His manner of speaking was not dramatic; he never was an impassioned orator, but his ability, sincerity, and earnest way were always impressive, and his audience would listen and naturally be strongly influenced by what he had to say. Neither was this influence transitory. Years after, his auditors would refer to the time, the place and, often, his exact words, and then remark, "That has proved true". Everyone seemed to feel that he had not strained to express himself, but that he could have done better if he had cared to exert himself; that he had plenty of ammunition in reserve. Black was tall, slim, genial, and entertaining, and made friends easily.

Graduating from Dartmouth in 1875, he went to Troy, N. Y., and commenced the study of law with Robertson & Foster. To defray his expenses, he worked in the postoffice, and became a reporter on the TroyWhig. In 1877 he was- admitted to the bar and commenced the practice of law at Troy under the firm name of Smith, Wellington, and Black. Smith was a classmate. This partnership lasted but a year, and then he was alone until after he retired from the governorship.

Thanksgiving day, 1879, he was married to Lois Hamlin of Provincetown, Mass., and had one son, Arthur Black, who is a successful lawyer, practicing in Boston. In the fall of 1893, at a municipal election in Troy, one Bat Shea came down with a car-load of thugs from New York City, and voted them in many polling places. It was thought that Shea had voted about thirty times that day. When they came to Ward 13, he was stopped by Robert Ross and a man named Boland, who were trying to see that only real residents were allowed to vote. Immediately there was a mix-up; revdlvers were drawn; Shea shot Ross dead. Boland was standing at his side and was at once accused by the thugs of doing the shooting. There were many witnesses, however, who knew who did the shooting. A committee of one hundred citizens of Troy, without regard to party, were organized in Black's office, and he was chosen as their counsel to prosecute Shea and protect Boland. Black assisted the district attorney with his usual vigor, and Shea was convicted of murder. Strenuous efforts were made by his political brethren to save Shea, and the governor several times postponed the date of execution; public opinion was so strong, however, that he was eventually electrocuted. This affair made Black very popular with one class of citizens, and very unpopular with another class. Those who favored the frauds called him "the murderer of Bat Shea".

In 1894, he was nominated for Congress in a district then represented by a Democrat. It was a Republican year. Black was elected bv about three thousand majority in a district where he ran, two years before, as delegate to the Constitutional Convention, and had been defeated by about six thousand majority. Tom Reed was speaker of the House, and he placed Black upon two important committees. But Black was not anxious for a Congressional career, and in 1896 became a candidate for governor of New York. His own county, with a little over thirty votes, backed him from the start. There were many candidates. Black was temporary chairman of the convention, and made a speech tending to harmonize all factions which decidedly strengthened him as a compromise candidate, and, after several days' balloting, he was nominated by a verylarge majority. He won his election by over two hundred and forty thousand majority, probably the largest ever given a Republican candidate in New York state. During his administration he was independent, fearless, and outspoken. The Capitol building at Albany had been in process of construction for many years; had cost over $40,000,000; the graft was so apparent that it was a disgrace to the state. Black completed the building at reasonable prices, and caused beautiful lawns to take the place of stones, bricks, lumber, and.debris.

He started the Forestry School, and stopped the cutting of lumber on public lands. He bought back for the state from two to three million acres of land in the Adirondack mountains.

He vetoed the graduated inheritance tax bill.

His views of civil service subjected him to sharp criticism. In his first annual message as governor, he said: "Every means must be adapted to the end desired, and, in my judgment, civil service would work better with less starch". This led to a nation-wide comment that he had taken the starch out of the civil service. What he really meant was, that scholastic education and a knowledge of mathematics, geography, geology, etc., were certainly no more important than character and fitness. Education should be supplemented by merit. In another part of the same message, he said, "The value of practical civil service is beyond question"; and he insisted upon the use of "common sense" in the examination, and added, "Experience, character, tact, and even muscle may be of more importance in some cases than the fraction of one per cent in an examination in geography".

His appointment of Lou Payne as insurance commissioner caused severe censure. In' his campaign for governor, Payne was an important factor, and it was claimed that Black paid a political debt; that he never would have even thought of making the appointment if Payne had not been of service in his campaign. If he had not made the appointment, Black would have been accused of ingratitude. Payne was very diplomatic, had a large acquaintance, always kept his promises; but he was a politician, and took an active interest in legislation.

Black was not a timeserver, and did not feel the public pulse first and then change his course to meet the popular demand. He assumed that he must do his duty and take the consequences. When he had made up his mind he went right ahead, and it mattered not what others said about him.

He was a candidate for renomination, but was defeated by Theodore Roosevelt, who had just returned from the Spanish War and was, therefore, thought to be a vote-getter. However, the chief reason was, doubtless, that Piatt favored Roosevelt, because he thought Roosevelt was the only man who could defeat the too independent governor. Roosevelt was elected by about twenty-thousand majority.

In January of 1899, immediately after his term of office expired, Black formed a partnership under the firm name of Black, 01-cott, Gruber, and Bonvnge, and began the practice of law in New York City. Cases involving large interests were placed in his hands, and his clients were usually insistent upon his personal attention. They knew his ability, relied upon his integrity and judgment, and trusted to his legal knowledge and skill in the trial of cases. They always felt he knew when a case ought to be compromised and settled. Under such circumstances, the partnership was of little advantage to him and, in 1906, the firm was dissolved. He, later, formed a limited partnership under the name of Black & Peck.

He had little to do with criminal law; yet at the second trial of Roland Molineux, who had been convicted at the first trial of the murder of Mrs. Adams, he was employed as leading counsel for the defense, and had the courage to defy the usual custom of a lengthy opening, and, in simple language, stated his points in defense in five minutes. At the end of the trial, Molineux walked out of the court room, a free man, arm in arm with his counsel.

Never anxious for the accumulation of property, Black determined to retire at the age of sixty. Before that date, he transferred the lease of his offices to Judge Parker, and, for something like two years prior to his death, which occurred March 21, 1913, did almost nothing except close up old cases with which he had been connected.

He delivered many forceful addresses upon a variety of topics. His political speeches show that he had strong convictions, and equally strong reasons for his convictions. Although he made the leading speech nominating Roosevelt for the presidency, yet he did not approve of Roosevelt's career in politics, and did not hesitate to express his views at the time when Roosevelt was at the height of popularity. In his address before the Home Market Club of Boston on February 13, 1908, he .said: "The most tyrannical trust in existence today is the trust in politics. There never has been, in the history of this country, a bossism so despotic and unscrupulous as that which controls you now".

His eulogies were sincere. His latest speeches were "marks to which the people will come". In these, he took a very deep interest. In one of them he said: "I would have incorporated wealth and incorporated labor each know its place as the servant and not the master in this republic. I would remember the millions upon millions of freemen who believe neither in the tyranny of wealth nor the tyranny of force".

Black bought a farm at Freedom, N. H. near the Maine line, fixed it up to suit his taste, and here he frequently sought refuge from care, and anticipated great enjoyment, after his retirement from his business, in this quiet, beautiful home. But the fates ruled otherwise; he was taken ill before, and lived just thirteen days after, his sixtieth birthday.

Our College has lost one of its representative alumni. His brain and heart, his judgment and industry, and not his wealth, made him great. His towering height, his clearness of expression, and his level-headed horse sense caused many to call him "The Modern Lincoln".