SAMUEL FINLEY VINTON.*

BY MADELENE VINTON Dahlgren.

It was peculiarly characteristic of the patriotic unselfishness that was the dominating principle of the public career of Samuel F. Vinton that he never paused, while laboring with unremitting zeal for his country, to prepare any journal, or written notes of any kind, that might assist the biographer to give the story of his own life.

Unaided, therefore, by that light which he himself could best have thrown upon the record of a service that was singularly useful to the nation, one must look elsewhere for the desired information.

In so far as the facts that meet the common eye are concerned, the Congressional records give the official history, but back of this, and forever screened by his reticence regarding himself, stands after all the real man, the impelling motives, the essential qualities, that moulded all his acts into one consistent whole.

It may seem startling to say so, but his absolute lack of personal ambition, which repeated the severest types of the ancients, was to my apprehension unfortunate in its consequences. For, had Mr. Vinton grasped as most men do the opportunities of the power that high station gives, of the occasions which were offered to him, and from which he turned aside, it is safe to say, that an influence that was never exerted but for the right would have vastly broadened.

Ambition properly regulated is for the American citizen a divine right of sovereignty! In this connection I desire to quote from some remarks made by the Hon. Robert C. Winthrop at a

This interesting and valuable sketch of Mr. Vinton was written by

his daughter, Mrs. Dahlgren, of New York City. It was prepared at the request of the Secretary of this Society for publication in this volume. Mr. Vinton's argument on the boundary line between Ohio and Virginia appears elsewhere in this volume and is one of the ablest legal pleas ever made before an American court.-E. O. R.

meeting of the Massachusetts Historical Society, held in October, 1890, when Mr. Winthrop said of Mr. Vinton:

"He was a man of eminent ability, of great political experience and wisdom, and of the highest integrity and personal excellence. He might at one time have been Secretary of the Treasury had he been willing to accept that office. He might have been Speaker of the House of Representatives of the United States in 1847 had he not positively declined the nomination."

Are these not offices which, as Mr. Webster said of the Presidency, "should be neither sought for nor declined"?

Reverting to the "Vinton Memorial," compiled by the Rev. John Adams Vinton, I find that the subject of this sketch was the direct descendant in the sixth generation of John Vinton, of Lynn, Massachusetts, who emigrated to America in 1648. The traditions of the race all confirm the idea that the founder of the family in this country was a descendant of the de Vintonnes who were exiled from France in the seventeenth century, on account of being Huguenot.

Samuel Finley was born at South Hadley, Massachusetts, September 25, 1792, and called after his great uncle, Dr. Samuel Finley Vinton, whose name appears, as also that of his grandfather, in the Massachusetts archives as one of the "minute men," that marched on the "Lexington alarm" in 1775.

Abiathan Vinton, the father of Samuel Finley, was an adopted son of Dr. Vinton, who bequeathed to him most of his estate. He is spoken of in the "Vinton Memorial" as “a substantial farmer in easy circumstances." He married in 1791, Sarah Day. The progenitor of the Day family emigrated from England to New England in 1634. In the Day genealogy occur the names of a President of Yale and a Secretary of State of the State of Connecticut, and this honorable record continues to be sustained. We would especially mention a first cousin to whom Mr. Vinton was greatly attached, Mr. Henry Day, of New York City, who is conspicuous as an able jurist.

Samuel Finley being the oldest of seven children, it was the intention of his father to train him as a farmer, so that he might be of assistance in the labors of the farm. But from an early

age the thoughtful, studious boy ardently desired to receive a liberal education, and his wise father soon became convinced that it was his duty to aid the wishes of his son. A younger sister used to relate with great glee the conversation at a family council at the time it was finally decided to send "Finley" (as) he was always called at home) to college, when each member had to suggest something they were willing to give up, so as to make a common contribution towards the desired end. A charming picture of a united family, in which the advantages of a liberal education were properly appreciated.

Mr. Vinton graduated at Williams College in 1814. He studied law with the Hon. Stephen Titus Hosmer, afterwards Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Connecticut; and while he was a law student he gave lessons in Latin. In 1816 he was admitted to the Connecticut bar. Finding that the profession in New England was somewhat crowded, he soon decided to seek the wider scope of the West, and went to Ohio, fortified with some excellent letters of introduction. After visiting several of the then principal towns of the State, he finally went to Gallipolis, a village of French emigres, on the Ohio River. He had a letter for Mr. Bureau, one of the most influential men of the place, and seeking on his arrival to present it, he was directed to the Court House, where that gentleman was found by him, engaged in the management of some case in his own behalf. Mr. Vinton at once perceived that Mr. Bureau was letting some nice points escape him, and quietly taking a place beside him, he gave him the needed help-soto voce. At first Mr. Bureau glanced with surprise at this stranger, who gave his uninvited aid, but he at once recognized the valuable assistance with quick intelligence. When the short trial was over, Mr. Bureau said to Mr. Vinton, "You have won my case, what is your fee?" Of course a fee was declined, and the letter presented. Mr. Bureau then took Mr. Vinton home to dinner, introducing him to his two charming and very carefully educated daughters, who had just returned from their French pensionneat. at Philadelphia. Mr. Bureau urged his young friend to locate in Gallipolis, and doubtless the beauty and grace of the younger daughter, Romaine Madelene, whom he married in 1824, aided

his decision. He established himself in the practice of the law at Gallipolis.

The "Vinton Memorial" says: "His first efforts at the bar attracted much attention, and by the end of the first year he was in the enjoyment of an extensive and prosperous business. During six years he continued to achieve the most flattering success; rising constantly in public estimation, his income steadily increasing, and having apparently no inclination for public life, and no taste for party politics. Without any agency or wish of his own, he unexpectedly found himself, in the autumn of 1822, nominated for a seat in Congress, by a large meeting of the people of his district. His election over two formidable competitors was a decisive token of the public

esteem."

The astonishment this immediate success created in his New England home is pleasantly depicted in an anecdote told me not many years ago by an aged relative. He said that he happened to be at the Vinton farm one day, when a letter was received from Mr. Vinton by his father, in which he mentioned having selected Gallipolis as a residence, and asked his father the loan of eight hundred dollars for one year, to enable him to purchase the needed law books, as there was no law library and no books. at hand to refer to in the prosecution of his cases. The old gentleman looked serious, for this was a heavy and an unexpected drain upon a New England farmer situated as he was, but presently he said: "Finley must have the tools to work with, but I expect to have to make it a gift, not a loan.".

Evidently he never supposed his son could earn that sum in one year, or indeed in any definite time, and his surprise was great when some months later, and long before the expiration of the year, "the loan" was refunded. But the grateful recollection of an affectionate child did not end there, for to the day of their death the filial devotion of a good son comforted his excellent parents.

It is a pathetic circumstance that this estimable couple died within a few days of each other, the loving wife being ill at the time of her venerable husband's decease and unable to survive the shock of his loss.

Shortly before his death, Mr. Vinton's father had the gratification of seeing for himself the esteem his gifted son had so quickly won in the place of his adoption, as he visited him at his home in Gallipolis. The old gentleman was of genial and pleasant manners, very suave and of much intelligence and refinement. The fact is, the Massachusetts farmer of the class to which he belonged was of a superior type of men such as few countries have ever possessed. If you found them during the day like Cincinnatus at the plow, the evening was given to books, and to a mental activity that kept pace with the progress of the age. Besides, Mr. Vinton's father had been carefully trained in the home of his uncle, Dr. Vinton, an accomplished physician, who had adopted him as his son and heir. *

On the threshold of Mr. Vinton's political career, we pause to insert verbatim a communication received some years ago from one who knew him well and whose opinion is entitled to the highest respect. They are the recollections of Mr. John T. Brasee, himself an excellent lawyer, of Mr. Vinton. Mr. Brasee says:

"My acquaintance with Mr. Vinton commenced in the autumn of 1819, and continued during his life. From 1819 to 1826, I resided at Athens, where he regularly attended the courts. In 1826, I commenced the practice of law at Gallipolis, where he resided, and until 1835 we rode the same circuit together and practiced in the same counties. So I may say, I knew him well.

"Mr. Vinton's mind was remarkably well balanced; all its powers worked together harmoniously, giving him the clearest conceptions of all subjects he investigated, and in debate he imparted those conceptions to his adversaries and auditors, not only clearly and fully, but in the purest and simplest language.

"Mr. Vinton was a very accomplished lawyer, learned in all the departments of his profession, and very skillful in the application of his knowledge to cases as they arose on the circuit. In his cases in the higher courts, he came to his work well prepared; unlike most other lawyers, he studied both sides of such cases and was therefore never taken by surprise by anything developed during the trial on argument. * * *

"From his peculiar habits of investigation, Mr. Vinton was