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Samuel Whitney Hale
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MEMORIAL
OF
Saaiuel Whitney Hale
KEENE. N. H.
-■Vorii E>lc^
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KiL 2, 1822 October 16, 1891
By W. DtLoSS Lovt, JR.
Privatelv Prixteo
HARTFORD. CONN
Pr<$» or Cb< C»$<, Xockwoob & Sralnacd Companf
Mis
/-r / Up
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INSCRIBED
\ N I ■ I •
THE PRECIOUS MEMORY OF THOSE LITTLE ONES
DEPARTED WHOM HE CARRIES
IN HIS ARMS
•• The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and there
shall no torment touch them.
•• In the sight of the umvise they seemed to die : and their de-
parture is taken for misery, and their going from us to he utter
destruction ; but they are in peace.
" For though they be punished in the sight of men, yet is their
hope full of immortality. And having been a little chastised, they
shall be greatly rncarded, for God proved them and found them
worthy for Himself."
yT^ WREATH of evcrg^rcen ! It was hung over a
11 familiar portrait at Christma-s tide. Every one
J who looks upon it may read in the emblem a
beautiful sttjry of undying affection in her who placed
it there. Vet now as the days go by the wreath is
withering, its green is fading into the sear and sombre
hue of time and the dried sprigs are falling. So in hope
of twining one which will not so soon perish, and that
those who come after us, when they look upon his face,
may know him as he was known in his family circle, we
make this record of his life.
Samuel Whitney Hale was born April 2, 1822, in the
home of his father, Samuel Hale, which was situated on a
beautiful hillside overlooking the thriving town of Fitch-
burg, Mass. His mother was Saloma Whitney, bom in
Westminster, Mass.. January 10, 1792, where her father,
Samuel Whitney, Jr.. resided. Thus on both the pa-
ternal and maternal sides he was of a worthy ancestr>'.
the Hales and the Whitneys having been conspicuous
from earliest times in New England history. The line
of his father's descent is: Samuel Hale, Moses Hale of
Fitchburg, Moses Hale of Newbury. Rev. Moses Hale of
Byfield, John Hale of Ncwbur)-. Thomas Hale of New-
bury and Watton, Hertfordshire, England. The line of
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his mother's descent is : Saloma Whitney, Samuel Whit-
ney, Jr., of Westminster, Samuel Whitney of Westmin-
ster, William Whitney of Weston, Nathaniel Whitney
of Watertown, John Whitney, Jr., of Watertown, John
Whitney of Watertown and Isleworth, England. These
ancestors were joined in marriage to well-known ISIassa-
chusetts families as the following names testify : Smith,
Huse, Moody, Symonds; and Wilder, Fletcher, Pierce,
Hagar, Reynolds.
So the babe born in the hillside home had a title by
the laws of heredity to the New England character, the
virtues of which have been a great element of success in
so many lives. His grandfather, Moses Hale, had been
reared under the strictest religious influences, which had
emanated from the instruction of an honored New Eng-
land minister of the olden time. Moses Hale carried
those influences with him when he removed from New-
bury about 1 786 and established himself on a Fitchburg
farm, where his son Samuel was born October 20, 1792.
This son followed his father's vocation ; and the home-
stead farm where Samuel Hale and Saloma Whitney
spent their days,— passing thence to their reward in 1880,
he on the ist of February, and she on the 25 th of
June — was throughout his life a dearly-loved spot to
their son. He ever recognized the fact that he owed
much to the religious atmosphere of his father's house,
though it seemed ^mewhat oppressive to his spirits in
boyhood. Often in his maturer years, when weighed
down with business cares and harassed by responsibili-
tics, he turned aside for a while to breathe the invigor-
atinpf air of that hill and delight in its extensive view.
Thither his children often went to enjoy the partiality of
their grandj>arents and the maiden aunt. Mary Elizabeth
Hale, whose devoted life was a blessing to all who came
under her influence and came to a close all too soon, June
30, 1879. ^^^^ have walked with him around the familiar
premises and marked the reverence he had for the old
home and the lessons of his childhood. Words of coun-
sel which his parents had given were rejxjated. In a
vein of commingled tenderness and merriment, scenes
were revived in which his boyish love for fun had
offended the discipline of the Puritiin household. He
remembered with exceptional clearness the details of his
early days on the fami, — how he had held the plough
in the field for the first time, had driven the herd to
pasture by such a path, had been diverted from his play
in the d<x>ryard to watch his mother feeding the chick-
ens, had occupied such a .^eat in the old schoolhouse in
the valley, and had received the great tniths of morality
and religion in line upon line about the fireside. Remi-
niscences of this past were pleasant to hear from his lips,
not only because of his own inimitable recital of them,
but also because they seemed to afford him so much
pleasure in the recollection. So the streams of influence
from his childhood went singing through his life.
In those years of his youth Samuel Whitney Hale
obtained such in.struction as the schools of the town
afforded. These advantages were not great, and as he
lO
grew he realized more the necessity of exerting himself
in acquiring an education. He had not been gifted with
that power of application which makes a student ; but he
had an intuitive faculty of gathering facts and appre-
hending situations which is often a means of developing
men in the affairs of life more than the schools. He had
been taught to work and had learned what work can
accomplish, though he had no particular fondness for the
routine of farm labor. Withal he had a restless disposi-
tion which could not be satisfied with the quiet environ-
ment of the agriculturist, but must be in the midst of the
world's business. It was altogether natural to him to
trade. As he grew to maturity therefore an ambition
awakened within him to find a larger sphere of activity
where he might hope to see his aims realized.
Shortly after he became of age he left his father's
house to take up his residence in Dublin, N. H., where he
engaged in business with his elder brother, John Moses
Hale. There his labors were prospered. He extended
his interests and entered into manufacturing. It could
not be expected that this rural town on the shoulder of
Mount Monadnock would long continue to be his home.
It was so until 1859 when he removed to Keene, N. H.,
the center of manufacturing and business interests in
Cheshire County. The affection Mr. Hale had for Dub-
lin and his interest in its people were the growth of those
years. He made acquaintances in the village store and
in the church, and these he ever remembered. Indeed,
this was one prominent characteristic in his kindly
II
nature; he loved to meet his old friends and never
missed an opportunity of inquiring after them. The
warm attachment many had for him throughout his life
grew in part out of this genuine interest he had in them.
Their faces were known to him at once though he had
not seen them perhaps for years, and he could speak
their names without hesitation. Throughout his political
life this faculty won him popularity, and all the more
because it was evidently a natural trait in the man. In
traveling with him we have often noted his greeting of
one whom he had known years before. It seemed
to bring a flock of recollections to his mind and he could
give a biography of his old friend enlivened with many
incidents — a story told in such friendliness that the
absent one would have been pleased to hear it.
While residing in Dublin Mr. Hale founded his home.
He was married by Rev. Levi W. Leonard, D.D., June
13, 1850, to Emelia Marinda Hay, who was born in Dub-
lin November 9, 1832, a daughter of Joseph Fitch and
Nancy Saunders Hay. This family were early settlers in
the town, to which Joseph's father, Thomas Hay, Jr., had
come from Merrimack, N. H., where Thomas Hay, the
son of William Hay, M.D., of Reading, Mass., had been
an original settler. The son-in-law was welcomed into
this family circle, and in an adjoining house his two chil-
dren were born, William Samuel, May 17, 1854, and Mary
Louise, August 26, 1855. Here it is pleasant to record
the esteem he ever had for Mr. and Mrs. Hay, who spent
their declining years amid the comforts of his home at
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Keene, — the father a gentleman of the old school and
the mother devoted to the kind offices of the household.
Respect for the aged was characteristic of him, but in his
relations to her whom he lovingly knew as " grand-
mother," surviving her husband as she did many years,
there was filial love which his family can never forget.
On formal occasions it was she who was escorted on his
arm to the table. By many attentions and a tender
solicitude for her comfort she was made to feel that she
was welcome in the home where she dwelt. She, too,
reciprocated this kindness, and as a mother was faithful
to him, mourning his death in her age.
The religious nature of Mr. Hale was developed in
early life. His parents had been connected with a Con-
gregational church, but he came under the more ardent
religious teachings of the Methodists and united with a
Methodist church. It was easy for those who knew him
well to account for this affiliation. He had a strong
emotional temperament and was oftentimes borne along
by the rising tide of his feelings. He was enthusiastic in
whatever engaged his mind, and religion was no excep-
tion. So it happened that he came under revivalistic
influences, experiencing great good himself in such
seasons and believing thoroughly in that means of awak-
ening fervor in a church. The Unitarian teachings
under which many of his friends sat in Dublin, and
which he never spoke harshly of, did not effect a change
in his opinions. Even after his removal to Keene, when
he and his companion united with the First Congrega-
13
tional Church then under the pastoral care of Rev. Z. S.
Barstow, D.D., the characteristic of religious earnestness
dominated his thought. It was doubtless one reason why
he joined with others in 1867 to form the Second Congre-
gational Church.
Mr. Hale's business connections were extensive and
various. It does not fall within our purpose to give a
particular account of them, but any sketch of his life
would be incomplete without some notice of his excep-
tional capacities, the very scope of which involved him in
overvvhelming responsibilities. The ability to watch over
the exacting details of an enterprise, so essential to its
permanent success, is seldom found in the man who con-
ceives it and can push it with enthusiasm. Of Mr. Hale
it can be said as of few. he had marvelous energy and
indomitable perseverance. He accomplished through his
zeal what others would have given up as impossible.
Such a disposition is ever liable to make extravagant
estimates and cannot be governed by a calm conserva-
tism. It takes many things on the assurances of others
and must leave to them the working of the machinery.
Its mission is to furnish the motive force, to carry a
venture forward with enterprise. In all the business
relations of Mr. Hale this seems to have been the part
which fell to him, and his success was largely due to this
extraordinary capacity. Any one of the numerous com-
panies in which he was interested was sufficient to claim
all the attention of an energetic man. He believed in
them and served them as well as he could. His labors
were greatly augmented by his desire to protect others
who had adventured with him. Yet he thought he had
time and streng-th for more and expanded his interests.
The wheels of fortune, however, turn continuously for
but few in this world, and there is a limit in our human
capacity to tend them. It was through no abating of his
efforts that their product decreased. He bore disappoint-
ment with a brave heart — its deepest bitterness himself,
blaming not others, shielding not his own, courageous
and hopeful in his expectations until that tireless energy,
which was a wonder to all who knew him, fell asleep.
The political career of Mr. Hale affords to one who
was intimately acquainted with it a pleasing view of his
manhood. In his youth he sympathized with the Free-
soil party, and for its candidate he cast his first vote. At
its organization he joined the Republican party. No one
surely ever entertained a suspicion that he was half-
hearted in his political faith. It was characteristic of him
to be both loyal and enthusiastic. Having become a sup-
porter of the candidacy of Hon. James G. Blaine he never
wavered, and many are the admiring remarks he has been
heard to make of that great political leader even after his
chances of succe.ss had waned. He valued party triumphs,
perhaps more than some would, but in this he was con-
sistent with his belief that a Republican administration
was best qualified to serve the people. As he became
more and more familiar with politics, he was drawn into
them. In 1866 he was elected to the State Legislature,
and was reelected the year following. For two years he
was chosen a member of the Governor's Council. Then,
in the autumn of 1882, came an exciting canvass which
resulted in his being the Republican nominee for Gov-
ernor of the State. It was a season of general disaster to
his party throughout the coimtry, but he was elected, and
on the 7th of June, 1883, was inaugurated at Concord.
This success, however much of honor he may have seen
in it, was but the background upon which his friends
were enabled to see certain noble traits in his character.
His conduct during the ordeal of political conflict was ad-
mirable. It was said of him at the time in a newspaper :
" Any one who has been thrown into personal contact
with ;Mr. Hale cannot fail to have become impressed with
that gentleman's eminently proper and dignified bearing.
If he has even once yielded to the temptation to indulge
in vehement expression or angry retort, we have yet
to learn of it." In his family, where many would
have felt less restraint, he was never heard to speak un-
kindly of his political opponents. Indeed, though he was
not at other times insensible of unjust or unfriendly
treatment, he readily found excuse for the utterances of
an exciting campaign. He read them all, particularly
those judgments which were adverse, — read them with
amusement, and welcomed the suggestion that they be
preserved in a scrap-book for his entertainment. And,
though we note this trait in connection with his political
career, it was always and everywhere true of him that he
never harbored enmity. He taught his family by example
to forgive. Though he did not hesitate to disagree with
i6
others, he was able to appreciate their situation. He recog-
nized the good qualities in others, and praised many be-
hind their backs who had no reason to expect such words.
A friend truly wrote of him : " I have always noticed that
he never said harsh or unkind things of anyone." In this
he has left behind him a memory that is blessed.
Governor Hale discharged the duties of his high office
with credit to himself and honor to the State. His execu-
tive ability was unquestioned. The legislation which
came before him was conscientiously and thoroughly con-
sidered, and his action received the commendation of his
fellow-citizens. He was a patriot in every sense of the
word. The interests of the people which had been com-
mitted to his care were foremost in his mind. Great
pressure was brought to bear upon him to exercise his
power of veto. He could have done so with reasons which
would have seemed sufficient to many, and his action
would have been of life-long benefit to himself in circum-
stances which conspired against him, but he did not hesitate
for one moment to choose that course which he thought
was for the welfare of the State. He made such appoint-
ments as the dignity of the office at his disposal de-
manded, even at the risk of experiencing the resentment
of some who had been his personal friends. The conse-
quences were never so great that he regretted in after
times his decision. His pastor spake of him as follows :
" Amid the whirlpools, pitfalls, and quicksands of political
life, so universally fatal to the strongest, he moved with
conscience and integrity unimpaired. His attitude and
17
conduct in public life made a deep and salutary impres-
sion upon his immediate associates, especially upon the
members of his Council and Staff : while Governor with
one accord they bear hearty witness to his thoroughly
Christian and manly conduct and action when principle
was at stake."
This opinion of him was given in the public press :
" Governor Hale's administration was clean and successful
in every way, and was characterized by several new and
important measures which were adopted by the Legisla-
ture and received the Governor's support and sanction.
He filled the office of Chief Executive of the State with
marked ability, firmness, and dignity, proving one of the
best and ablest governors which New Hampshire has had
for years. No flaws or shortcomings were ever found in
his gubernatorial career, even by his political opponents
and enemies."
Those who had even a slight acquaintance with Mr.
Hale will agree that one of his conspicuous traits was his
kindness of heart. This was manifest throughout his life
in his relations to employees, among his relatives and
friends, in his church fellowship, and in his home. None
ever appealed to him for help and were denied when the
relief was within his power. The enduring attachment
many had for him, especially among the poor and such as
had been sick or unfortunate, was in numerous instances
due to some unheralded kindness which they had received
at his hand. It was not possible for him to be miserly
and close with what he had to bestow. So easy was it to
i8
obtain a favor from him that he was constantly appealed
to in person and by letter. He released many from their
obligations to him when others would have pressed the
claims. With what pleasure did he send his carriage on
the Sabbath to carry this or that infirm person to the
house of God ! The grapes in his hothouse, which
ripened while yet the winter's snow lingered, were not
too costly for the invalid, and were sometimes sent to those
whom he had never even seen. Strange it was, and still
it was true, he would listen more attentively to the recital
of another's trouble than to the discussion of matters
which most men would have thought of greater moment.
His sympathies were easily aroused, and he usually found
some practical way of expressing them.
Thus by the exhibition of his desire to see others
happy, he wrought his life into the hearts of many about
him. This was preeminently true in his home. Among
his servants he was popular. They did his bidding with
something of pleasure. Though he was absent from his
home much of the time on business, he delighted to
think that those whom he had left there were enjoying
its pleasures. Their friends were his also. They came,
and were welcomed. They went away, and felt that it
would be pleasant to come again. His hospitality was
without grudging. On many occasions he entertained
lecturers, and when there was a religious gathering his
house was sure to be filled with guests. He always had
a room in his mansion for any who might turn aside
from the thronged pathway to rest awhile. One who had
i
19
a remembrance of his hospitality has written of it thus :
" I once saw him in his own lovely home, surrounded by
his accomplished family. I was quite sick at the time,
but the kind attentions of all kept heart in me, and I
have never forgotten their courtesies to the stranger."
The intimation of these words is just, for wife, son, and
daughter were in cordial sympathy with such services ;
but they would accord to the head of the household the
honor of being the personal inspiration of these loving
deeds.
Throughout the forty years of Mr. Hale's married life
he displayed a constancy of affection toward her whom
he had chosen, which can only be recalled by his chil-
dren with tenderest emotion. As the bower over which
the honeysuckle clambers is filled with fragance, so was
his home with love. No whispered word ever brought
a reproach against the purity of his life. He was, too, a
generous father, indulging his children in all that could
contribute to their happiness. The words of admonition
or counsel he uttered were few, but wisely chosen, and
the respect his children had for his wishes made them
sufficient. From their infancy his grandchildren were
drawn toward him, seeming to know by instinct his ten-
der feelings. When he was away from them their names
were often on his lips, and in their presence he entered
into all their childish joys. So he showed his love for all
children wherever he met them. On one occasion he
brought a beautiful child home with him, and she tarried
in his family for years — a joy and sunbeam in the
20
household. We have seen him at a railroad station,
while waiting for a train, take a crying- babe from the
mother, wholly unknown to him, and carry it in his arms,
which was surely an unusual service for the Governor of
a commonwealth. This same tenderness was often seen
in the homes of his children. There are those who will
never forget the sound of his anxious footsteps to and
fro through many hours of the night of watching. The
flight of that child's spirit was his loss, too ; his tearful
eyes and voice melted with sorrow told how great a loss.
As time goes on all remembrance of him may fade from
the mind of even the eldest of his grandchildren, except
as these lines may, perhaps, freshen it ; but there were
days when they watched at the window for his coming,
with expectations of a greeting from "grandpa" — the
best of their friends.
In the memorial discourse preached shortly after his
death by Rev. G. H. DeBevoise, his pastor, the following
eloquent tribute was paid to Mr. Hale's home life : " He
lavished the love and tenderness of his pure and loving
heart without stint or measure upon wife and children.
All that true devotion to their happiness and good could
do was ever done for them. From the distractions of
business, from the whirl of politics, he retired to his
home as to a sanctuary, and he strove to keep himself
sweet and pure through home influences and through
prayer. Not only when the waters went over him did
he pray, but also when through calm, unruffled seas he
was making progress toward the city that hath founda-
21
tions, whose builder and maker is God. In his children's
children he had great delight and joy. They are not old
enough to know or recollect much about him. But they
will be told of his love for them, and of a life not per-
fect, but one which amid the strife of tongues, the war of
words, the harassing cares of business, the burdens,
temptations, and trials of high political station, steadily
held to tnith, integrity, to love of men, and to God."
The personal appearance of Mr. Hale was such that
he was a marked man wherever he went. In stature he
was above the average height, his form was erect, and he
walked with a firm step. The charm of his countenance
was in his pleasant smile, which could be detected in his
twinkling eye before it appeared on his face. His coal-
black hair conveyed to strangers the impression that he
was younger than his years. Persons who met him
noted his genial manner, which was warmed by the gen-
tleness of his speech. Few men are more companionable
than he was. On all subjects he was well-informed, and
his conversation was sure to be enlivened by some story
which came to his mind from some mysterious depth,
for, though often with him, we have rarely heard him
repeat himself. If he lacked in being able to read the
characters of other men, it was singularly true that other
men could easily detect his kindly disposition in his face.
One day, when he was riding in a train, a man entered
the car, and after passing through it, eyeing every pas-
senger nan-owly, he came to Mr. Hale, and asked for fifty
cents to pay his fare. It was paid at once, and the
22
stranger bluntly told his benefactor that he knew by his
face that he would not be refused.
No one will deny that Mr. Hale had great courage
and pluck. The business reverses which came upon him
in his last years would have conquered most men. His
desire to recover himself urged him on to exertions
which, if unwisely judged and of unfortunate issue, had
at least in his mind the merit of an honorable intention.
The physical man cannot endure all that such a brave
spirit puts upon it, and in his case death brought him
a release. A gentleman distinguished in the public life
of the State expressed his opinion in these words : "I
think Governor Hale was one of the noblest and
ablest men I have known. The really great things which
he accomplished by his pluck and bravery and intelli-
gence and business capacity, and the sturdy manhood
with which he encountered the misfortunes of life and
battled with them to the last, when weak and small men
would have laid down in despair, entitle him to be
honored and remembered as one of our most superior
men."
In his devotion to the interests of the Second Congre-
gational Church of Keene, with which Mr. Hale was
connected for nearly twenty-five years, he set a com-
mendable example. He gave generously to build its
house of worship and for many years thereafter he was a
pillar of strength in its fellowship. The preacher of the
Gospel had his full and hearty encouragement in his
work. He felt that he was not fitted to teach, yet he
23
nevertheless tried to do his part in the teaching of the
Sabbath-school. His contributions to the various neces-
sities of the church, whether he was called upon to make
up a deficit, repair the meeting-house, or bury the dead,
were all cheerfully given, perhaps the most so of any
benefactions he made, though he was much interested in
missions, for he had a large conception of the necessity of
established religious influences and believed in the fel-
lowship of Christians in the church of Christ. He would
fain have had his last days contribute to the honor and
usefulness of the church he loved ; if it was otherwise the
greater grief was his. Under no circumstances in his
intercourse with men, — who are always influenced by
confessions of faith however far short our human nature
may come of abiding by them — did he hesitate to avow
his allegiance to Christ. He was never ashamed of the
blessed Redeemer.
An honored member of his gTibernatorial staff bears
this testimony concerning him : " Governor Hale was
one to whom by long acquaintance I had become very
much attached, and had learned to love. In all of my
business relations of more than thirty-five years I never
had to do with one more noble and upright. Socially he
was always gentlemanly and courteous, ever extending
the hand of welcome, expressive of a warm and generous
heart. In fact, he was this to every one, however humble
their position in life.
" He was always loyal to his religious obligation,
ready at all times to do his duty though the cross be
24
heavy; and I well remember many years ago when he was
State Councilor of his frequent attendance at the men's
morning prayer-meeting, held in a hall near the council
chamber. His remarks were listened to with the closest
attention, his prayer was earnest, and his influence always
on the side of religion and Christian benevolence, as
many poor persons can testify. His heart and purse were
always open to them for sympathy and help, and he was
ever ready to aid in sending the gospel to those who
have it not,
" In later years, when going through the political
strife of a gubernatorial campaign, my attachment grew
stronger, and after his election, receiving an appointment
on his staff, I had an opportunity to see more of the real
man than ever before, as my relations with him were
more close and intimate. I have been with him on many
pleasant occasions, when thousands turned their eyes to
witness his approach ; also when dark clouds hung low,
when various influences and threats were used for a pur-
pose, but, like the man that he was, he claimed a right to
think and act for himself — ever governed by the princi-
ple of justice and right, and with fidelity did he do his
duty to his God, himself, and the State. As its chief
executive, no one, not even his political opponents, could
say aught of his administration.
" From the generous impulse of his heart he spoke no
unkind word of anyone, but always threw the mantle
of charity over all, whether friend or otherwise. I be-
lieve him to have been a noble Christian man, and I shall
ever cherish his memory and think of him as such."
25
That Mr. Hale made a similar impression of liis
Christian character upon his business associates the fol-
lowing words from one of them bear witness :
" Of course all who knew him well recognized the
splendid attributes of his good nature. Generous, ami-
able, gentle, keenly alive to his moral, religious, and
social obligations, he faithfully discharged his whole duty
to the State, community, his family, friends, and his God.
" From him I have had repeated evidences of his abid-
ing faith in the Redeemer of mankind, his absolute
loyalty to our common religion and his hope in im-
mortality. He certainly could have had no fear of Death.
" Let us think of him as we knew him in the prime
of his manly vigor, when ' his eye was not dimmed nor
his native force abated.' Let us be consoled with the
belief that his generous soul rests in peace ; and that he
has gone to ' his chamber in the silent halls of death,'
sustained and soothed by an unfaltering trust, and ' like
one who wraps the drapery of his couch about him he lay
down to pleasant dreams.'
" He was a manly man. Nature had endowed him with
a generous hand. His mental and physical powers were
liberally bestowed upon him, and in all respects he was a
gentleman. ' His life was gentle, and the elements so
mixed in him that nature might stand up and say to all
the world : This was a man.' "
Samuel Whitney Hale died at the home of his beloved
elder brother, John M. Hale, 361 Monroe Street, Brooklyn,
N. Y., October 16, 1891. He had been far from well for
26
some time, but with characteristic fortitude he concealed
so far as possible his condition from his family, though
its hopelessness was made known to him by his physician
about a week before his death. Nature was merciful
in permitting him to pursue his labors until within ten
days of that time. What his thoughts were in bidding
farewell to that business world where he had been long
so active these lines will testify :
" A week before his death he spent some time in my
office, and he seemed cheerful and usually well, but said
he felt weak, but thought he was gaining steadily. He
was anxious to carry forward some business he had just
entered into. He spoke of some acquaintances that had
died suddenly. He said any of us might die in the same
manner, but that would be all right if we were ready. He
spoke with confidence of the future life, and had no fears.
He said if he could have his choice it would be not to
have a lingering sickness that would be a tax on those
left. He seemed to think more of this - — to leave those
whom he had so long loved and cared for, as they for him,
behind ; but he knew he should meet them again."
So he passed away. Everything which brotherly
kindness could suggest and the skilled attentions of a
sister beloved could devise, ministered to the relief of his
fleeting hours. Comforted by the Christian faith and
hope of her who had been the devoted companion of his
life, and cheered by the words of his son upon whom he
had leaned, he fell asleep in the gray dawn of the morn-
ing, — the shadows fled away and the day broke ! His
27
remains were sorrowfully carried to his home, so pleasant
and happy in other days by his presence, where on the
19th of October the funeral obsequies were held. Dust
was committed to dust, as is the final lot of all that is mor-
tal ; the spirit had gone to God who gave it.
men eccm betimes in tbe e^es of a vain worlD to <Me great;
but in tbe Xamb'15 book of lite, from wblcb no recorO of our
past faDes awag tbougb bg men forgotten, tbere is no sucb
rating. Cbrougb tbe gift of Divine mercg tbe most tbe best
of us can bope for is to Die forgiven.
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-..:.ryr,z, NGRESS
nni4 041 420 7
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Open Library