Tar Heels in the Cabinet
Outstanding facts in the careers of the five
North Carolinians who were members of
presidential cabinets. All five, as you prob¬
ably know’, held Navy portfolios.
CAROLINA born sons lo the
number of more than a dozen
have served in the Cabinet,
but only five of these were resi¬
dents of this State at the time of
their appointment, and it is a curi¬
ous fact that all five filled the same
Cabinet post — Secretary of the
Navy. All of these men rendered
other outstanding service as will
be seen.
JOHN BRANCH of Halifax, was
our first Cabinet officer appointed
by President Jackson (Old Hickory)
in 1828. Branch had already passed
a brilliant public career in Caro¬
lina, having been elected as Gov¬
ernor in 1817, and as United States
Senator in 1823, resigning that
position to accept his appointment
to the Cabinet.
When Jackson’s Secretary of
War. John H. Eaton, scandalized
the Washington aristocracy by
wedding the plebian Peggy O’Neill,
daughter of a tavern keeper, and
when the President made the sup¬
port of the pretty Peggy a condi¬
tion of party loyalty, Secretary
Branch refused to follow the Presi¬
dent and tendered his resignation
from the Cabinet in 1831.
The wedding of Peggy had reper¬
cussions not only in Washington
but over the country, and here in
Carolina his party promptly rallied
to the support of Mr. Branch. The
gentleman who had been nomi¬
nated for Congress in the Branch
district withdrew; Branch was
named in his place and was elected
and returned to Washington in
triumph. But alas for party loyalty!
In 1836 Branch bolted the Demo¬
cratic party, and went over into
the camp of John C. Calhoun. He
closed his public career as Governor
of the territory of Florida.
GEORGE E. BADGER, graduate
of Yale and one of the most eminent
lawyers of his day, passed most
of his legal career at Raleigh. He
was bred at Newbern, and also
spent a few years at Hillsboro,
where he took over the law prac¬
tice of Chief Justice Ruffin.
Judge Badger was Superior
Court Judge, and was appointed to
the Cabinet by President Harrison
tty R. C. LAURENCE
in 1841, which office he later re¬
signed. He became United States
Senator in 1846, and had a dis¬
tinguished career in that body.
I doubt if his legal career has a
parallel in the history of our coun¬
try, for he was twice named as
Justice of a Supreme Court only to
fail of confirmation both times. He
was a Whig in politics and was
nominated to the Supreme Court
bench of our State by Governor
Morehead. but failed of confirma¬
tion because the Senate was con¬
trolled by the Democrats. Again,
while a member of the United
States Senate, he was nominated
by President Fillmore as a Justice
of the Supreme Court of the United
States, but again the opposing po¬
litical party held a majority, and
consideration of the Badger nomi¬
nation was "postponed," which
caused the President to withdraw
his name.
Judge Badger is said to have been
noted for working late at night,
and sleeping late in the morning.
On his way to a court he stopped
at a farm house to spend the night
and requested his hostess to give
THE COVER PICTURE
Pardon us for running an¬
other picture so closely re¬
sembling the one that ap¬
peared on the September 16
issue. It’s such an interesting
shot, however, that we
couldn’t resist using it. Real
quiet and restful, too.
People in the First Con¬
gressional District won't have
to turn to this page to recog¬
nize the gentleman on the
right. He is Congressman
Herbert C. Bonner. The one
on the left is Roy Hampton,
of Washington County, mem¬
ber of the State Board of Con¬
servation and Development
and State Senator-elect.
(Photo by John Hemmer.)
him an early breakfast next morn¬
ing. Said she: "Judge, I’ll do the
best I can, but by the time I feed
the stock, milk the cows, look after
eight head of children, attend to
the baby and cut the wood and
cook breakfast, the sun is mighty
nigh up." “My God. Madam!” ex¬
claimed the Judge. "Don’t worry
about breakfast; early supper will
do for me.”
JAMES C. DOBBIN, of Cumber¬
land, was in Congress in 1845; was
Speaker of the House at Raleigh in
1850; and was the father of the act
providing for the erection of an
asylum for the insane at Raleigh.
In the Democratic National Con¬
vention of 1851, there was a fierce
contest for the nomination, and the
influence of Dobbin was dominant,
he being chairman of the State
delegation. On the 49th ballot,
Dobbin threw the vote of Carolina
to Pierce who was thereupon nomi¬
nated and was thereafter elected.
Upon his election he named Dobbin
as Secretary, and while serving
in that capacity, Dobbin instituted
certain far-reaching reforms in
Naval affairs, among these being:
He established the retirement
system for Naval officers.
He founded the merit system for
promotions.
He inaugurated the first inspec¬
tion system.
He abolished corporal punish¬
ment.
He changed the motive power
from sail to steam.
WILLIAM A. GRAHAM of
Orange, was one of the most dis¬
tinguished statesmen our State
ever produced, and he probably
held more offices than any other
public man in our history.
He was often in the legislature
and was Speaker of the House. He
became United States Senator in
1841. He was elected as Governor
in 1845, serving two terms. Presi¬
dent Taylor offered him his choice
of the Russian or Spanish missions,
but he declined both. He was ap¬
pointed to the cabinet by President
Fillmore in 1850, and as such is
(Continued on page 24)
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