James Blaine
was born in West Brownsville, Pennsylvania, was born on 31st January,
1830. After graduating from Washington College in 1847 he taught at
the Western Military Institute and the Pennsylvania Institution for
the Blind (1852-54).
In 1854 he moved to Maine where he edited the Portland
Advertiser and the Kennebec Journal.
A member of the Republican Party he
was elected to the 38th Congress and took his seat in March, 1863.
A supporter of African American suffrage, Blaine was a strong opponent
of President Andrew Johnson and voted
for his impeachment in 1868.
Blaine soon built up a loyal following in the House of Representatives
and in 1868 he was elected speaker. Blaine was an unsuccessful candidate
for presidential nomination in 1876 and 1880.
James Garfield, who was the successful Republican
Party candidate, appointed Blaine as his Secretary of State. However,
when Garfield was assassinated, Blaine resigned as he was unwilling
to serve under Chester Arthur.
In 1884 Blaine at last won the Republican
Party presidential nomination. His campaign was not helped by
Bernhard Gilliam, the cartoonist with
the magazine, The Judge. In these
cartoons, Blaine's body was engraved with details of charges of corruption
made by his political past. Blaine threatened to sue but was persuaded
by his political friends to back down. In the election Blaine was
narrowly defeated by the Democratic Party
candidate, Grover Cleveland by 4,911,017
to 4,848,334.
When Benjamin Harrison defeated Grover
Cleveland in 1888 he appointed Blaine as his Secretary of State.
He held the post until retiring in June, 1892, as a result of poor
health. James Blaine died in Washington
on 27th January, 1893.
Bernard
Gillam, James Blaine: Tattooed Man, Puck
(4th June, 1884)
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