Page:Men of Mark in America vol 2.djvu/165

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JOHN DAVIS LONG
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danced views. His powers as an orator were especially honored at :he dedication of the Washington Monument in 1885, by his selection :o read the oration prepared for that occasion by Robert C. Winthrop. This duty was admirably performed. In 1884, as a delegate to the Republican national convention, he had nominated George F. Edmunds for the presidency and supported him in a telling speech.

Mr. Long was married to Mary Woodward Glover on September 13, 1870; and some years after her death, he was again married on May 22, 1886, to Miss Agnes Peirce. His family embraced four children, three by the first wife and one by the second. He left congress at the close of the session of 1889, and returned to the practice of law, his only public office for several years afterward being that 3f commissioner of construction of the Massachusetts statehouse. But the able Massachusetts statesman was not forgotten, and in 1897, when President McKinley sought for fitting men to compose his cabinet, he selected John Davis Long, known to him for his brilliant administration as governor and his superior powers as congressman, as secretary of the navy. Entering upon the duties of this office March 5, 1897, Mr. Long served in it for over five years under the administrations of Presidents McKinley and Roosevelt, till May 1, 1902, when he resigned it. His career as secretary was one of very active duties. In 1898 came the Spanish war, memorable for the brilliant exploits of the navy, and calling for judgment, discretion and the highest ability in the head of that department of the government. Then followed the Philippine troubles and the Boxer outbreak in China, in both of which the services of the navy were required; while the urgent demand for an augmented and powerful navy was actively responded to so far as it lay under the secretary's control. When Secretary Long retired he left behind him the reputation of a faithful and efficient official during a strenuous period of national history.

Mr. Long's life career yields its lessons of value. In offering to others suggestions drawn from his personal experience, he believes that a young man who seeks success in life should endeavor to bring himself into relations with men of the highest standing. He should not be deterred by the fear that such men will be beyond his reach, since he will soon learn that they are very ready to appreciate and respond to one who worthily, but not aggressively, seeks them. The failure to discover this, and readiness to accept a lower level of influ-