McKinley, William

     McKinley, William, an American statesman, 24th President of the United States; born in Niles, O., Jan. 29, 1843. He was educated at the public schools, and at the Poland, O., Academy. In May, 1861 he volunteered for the army, and entered the 23d Ohio Infantry as a private. He served four years, rising by merit and faithfulness to the captaincy of his company, and to the rank of major when mustered out in 1865. He at once began the study of law; in 1867 was admitted to the bar, and commenced practice at Canton, O., where he afterward had his residence. In 1869 he was elected prosecuting attorney for Stark County, where his success attracted local attention. Entering politics, he was elected to Congress in 1876, and was reëlected for six successive terms. In 1882 his election was contested and he was unseated but triumphantly returned at the next election. His reputation in Congress rests chiefly on the tariff bill that bears his name. It was drawn by him as chairman of the Ways and Means Committee, and passed by the 51st Congress. This bill and his able advocacy of it before the House distinguished him as the leader of the Republican party, on the tariff question. The Republican party went before the country in 1892 almost solely on the issue raised by the McKinley tariff, but a reaction against it had set in, and Mr. Cleveland was elected. Meanwhile McKinley failed of reëlection in his district, though largely reducing the adverse plurality created by a redistricting that changed the limits of the district. In 1891 he was elected Governor of Ohio by a large plurality over former Governor James E. Campbell, a very popular Democrat, and reëlected in 1893 in the reactionary tidal wave of politics following a contrary tariff policy that carried the Republican party back to power in Congress, having a plurality of over 80,000. By this time his name was frequently mentioned as a future candidate for the presidency. In 1895 a systematic canvass in McKinley’s behalf was instituted by his supporters which was continued till the election of 1896. These sagacious and well-timed efforts, with the general acceptability of Mc- [page break] Kinley in the Republican party ranks, made it certain long before the convention met that he would be the candidate. He was nominated and elected by a plurality of 603,514, and an electoral majority of 95, after a campaign of more intense interest than was displayed in any election since the Civil War.
     President McKinley’s first term is memorable chiefly for the occurrence of the Spanish-American War and its unexpected results. That his policy during 1896-1900 was acceptable was shown by his unanimous renomination and reëlection in 1900 by a plurality of 849,000 and an electoral majority of 137. His second term began most auspiciously and ended tragically. On Sept. 5, 1901, he visited the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo, N. Y., that day having been set apart in his honor and called the “President’s Day.” On the afternoon of the following day, while holding a public reception in the Temple of Music, he was shot twice by Leon F. Czolgosz, an anarchist, who was at once arrested. The wounded President was first taken to the Emergency Hospital on the exposition grounds for immediate treatment, and then removed to the residence of John N. Milburn, the president of the exposition. Hopes of his recovery were entertained for several days, but on Sept. 13 he began to sink rapidly and died at 2:15 A. M., Sept. 14. His remains were removed to Washington on Sept., 16, laid in state in the Capitol on the 17th, and taken to his home city, Canton, O., where they were interred on the 18th amid universal mourning. The assassin was placed on trial in Buffalo, N. Y., on Sept. 23, and found guilty of murder in the first degree on Sept. 24, in a trial lasting less than nine hours and covering a period of two days. On Sept. 28 he was sentenced to death, and on Oct. 29, the sentence was carried out.